The opening of the entrance to the third floor triggered an instant chain reaction.

Every cultivator in the room froze, their eyes locking onto the staircase that had materialized from thin air.

“Only ten people can enter?” one cultivator muttered, his expression twisting.

There were fifteen of them present. Five would be left behind.

“I’m going first!”

A Rogue Cultivator didn’t hesitate. abandoning his half-opened jade box, he shot toward the stairs.

The Fated Chance awaiting them on the third floor was bound to surpass anything down here. Since he couldn’t crack the high-level restrictions on these boxes anyway, his only hope was to seize the initiative upstairs.

His movement broke the stalemate. The others, who had been torn between their greed for the current loot and the promise of greater treasure, instantly made their choice.

“Don’t fall behind!”

Zhou Fengxing grit his teeth, retracting his talisman brush. He could always come back for the boxes later, but if he missed the quota for the third floor, the loss would be permanent. He rushed forward, his brush trembling slightly in his grip.

The mob followed, a chaotic tide surging toward the narrow entrance.

Shen Xian’s gaze swept over the remaining unopened boxes. With the power of the [Heavenly Mechanism Disk], he could easily crack them all. However, the mysterious turtle in his Blood Jade Ring was urging him upward, and with the strict ten-person limit, he couldn’t afford to be greedy now.

He moved, joining the pack.

The staircase consisted of eighteen steps, each one radiating a heart-palpitating spatial fluctuation.

Boom!

The moment the lead Rogue Cultivator stepped onto the first tier, a crushing pressure slammed down on him.

His body lurched violently, nearly thrown backward off the stairs. He barely managed to plant his feet, face flushing red as he fought to stabilize.

Zhou Fengxing was right on his heels. He slapped a spirit talisman onto his chest, neutralizing the physical pressure of the first step. But the moment his foot touched the second step, his face turned deathly pale.

Inside his Sea of Consciousness, it felt as though ten thousand vengeful ghosts were shrieking. The mental impact was staggering, nearly buckling his knees.

These stairs were not merely a physical test.

Everyone who stepped on was visibly hindered, their pace slowing to a crawl.

“Only the first ten,” someone wheezed.

Realizing the danger, the cultivators exploded with spiritual power, using every artifact and technique at their disposal to force their way up against the crushing weight.

Shen Xian did not rush to be first. He calculated the pace of those ahead and maintained a position safely within the top ten, conserving his strength while observing the others. He quietly cataloged their panic responses and trump cards—information that would be vital in the conflicts to come.

Just then, a figure swept into the second floor.

Shen Xing.

The Azure Province’s number one prodigy glanced at the pile of abandoned jade boxes, then at the struggling crowd on the stairs. Without a word, he strode forward.

While others stumbled and gasped, Shen Xing’s ascent was steady as a rock.

A golden seal flashed briefly between his brows, shattering the mental pressure before it could even take hold. Despite arriving late, he effortlessly overtook the lagging cultivators, pushing into the lead pack.

But the biggest shock came from Liu Wanduo.

The withered old man stepped onto the staircase as if he were taking a leisurely stroll in his garden.

The pitch-black jade pendant at his waist emitted a faint, ghostly glow. Wherever he walked, the spatial pressure and mental attacks parted like water, their power reduced by more than half.

“Hahaha!” Liu Wanduo cackled, breezing past a struggling cultivator. “Do take your time, everyone. This old man will be going ahead!”

He shot to the front, surpassing even Shen Xing, and vanished into the entrance of the third floor.

“As expected of the inheritance recipient,” a Rogue Cultivator whispered, staring at the empty doorway with envy. “Even ancient restrictions can’t touch him.”

“Tsk. He really reached the sky in a single step,” another muttered sourly. “If only I had such a Fated Chance.”

Below them, Lei Yingjie’s forehead bulged with veins, his hair whipping wildly in the wind.

Damn that old fossil!

He was burning his blood essence just to reach the fifth step, yet Liu Wanduo had strolled past the tenth like it was nothing.

Zhou Fengxing wiped a trail of blood from his lips, his eyes burning with jealousy. That jade pendant… it defies the heavens.

While the crowd seethed with envy, only Shen Xian and Shen Xing remained calm. Both brothers felt a lingering suspicion toward the ease of Liu Wanduo’s progress.

That inheritance feels… wrong.

But there was no time to dwell on it.

Shen Xian crested the final step.

Entering the third floor’s great hall, he was greeted by the sight of seven massive bronze pillars. Thick black iron chains wound around them, pulsing with an ominous, dark energy.

In the center of the vast chamber, three supreme treasures floated in suspension.

On the left was the [Tortoise-Snake Lamp]. Its flame flickered weakly, seemingly on the verge of extinguishing, yet it exuded a timeless, unchanging charm that spoke of eons passed.

On the right hovered the [Eight Desolations War Chariot]. The bronze chassis was etched with flickering runes, radiating an ancient, vast aura of conquest and blood.

And in the direct center, the [Profound Heaven Sword Diagram] slowly unfurled. Seventy-two phantom swords circled it in an endless, hypnotic formation.

Shen Xian’s gaze locked instantly onto the [Tortoise-Snake Lamp].

The mysterious turtle inside his ring was vibrating with excitement. This was it. This was the heavy treasure it had sensed.

But why that one? Shen Xian glanced at the other two items. Why not the sword diagram or the chariot?

“Where is Fellow Daoist Liu?” a cultivator asked, looking around the empty hall.

“He’s in the trial.” Zhou Fengxing pointed to the center.

The surface of the [Profound Heaven Sword Diagram] was rippling like water. Vaguely, they could see a human silhouette battling within the artifact’s internal dimension.

“He went straight for the Sword Diagram?” A cultivator frowned. “He isn’t a Sword Cultivator, is he?”

For a Sword Cultivator, such an artifact was irresistible—especially one from an ancient sword sect. But for a talisman master or a generalist, the other two treasures offered far more tangible power.

“It’s the pendant,” someone realized aloud.

Liu Wanduo had coasted through every obstacle so far thanks to that inheritance item. If he chose the center, it meant the inheritance was guiding him there—either because it held the greatest secret, or because the other trials were death traps.

Realization dawned on the group.

Does the Sword Diagram hold the true legacy?

Hesitation rippled through them. Should they follow the inheritance holder?

Competing against Liu Wanduo, who essentially had the “admin key” to this dungeon, seemed foolish. But the allure of the central treasure was undeniable.

While they dithered, Shen Xing moved.

He walked directly toward the [Profound Heaven Sword Diagram].

As a pure Sword Cultivator with a firm Dao heart, he didn’t care about Liu Wanduo’s advantages or the calculations of the others. He came for the sword. He would take the sword.

Seeing the Azure Province’s top genius enter the fray, the remaining cultivators exchanged looks of dismay.

“I’ll try something else,” one muttered, veering toward the [Eight Desolations War Chariot].

Fighting both the inheritance holder and Shen Xing was suicide.

However, a few courageous Sword Cultivators gritted their teeth and followed Shen Xing into the diagram. This was a chance to Defy the Heavens to change fate. They were willing to gamble their lives on it.

Shen Xian ignored the drama in the center. He walked straight toward the [Tortoise-Snake Lamp].

If the turtle said this was the prize, he trusted it over any inheritance.

Behind him, Qiu Ruoli watched his movement, a cold light flickering in her beautiful eyes.

“Truly, enemies cross paths on a narrow road,” she whispered.

She could sense that the [Tortoise-Snake Lamp] contained a massive affinity with her Water Spirit Root. She couldn’t let it go. And since that vile demonic cultivator was also targeting it… it was the perfect chance to kill two birds with one stone.

She had not forgotten the humiliation he had dealt her.

She turned to the man beside her.

“Fellow Daoist Li.”

Li Chen, a Golden Core Perfection cultivator from a subsidiary of the Tianyao Sect, nodded. He was the heavy hitter she had recruited for this exact moment.

“Rest assured, Fairy Qiu. I will help you slaughter him,” Li Chen said, his voice brimming with confidence.

Qiu Ruoli nodded slightly. “I have a way to restrain his two True Spirit Treasures for a few breaths. You must be decisive.”

Li Chen’s eyes flashed with greed.

He didn’t care about her vendetta. He agreed to the alliance for one reason only: Shen Xian’s loot.

If he could seize just one of those True Spirit Treasures, his status in his sect would skyrocket. He could even challenge for the position of Headmaster.

With their pact sealed, the two of them walked in sync toward the [Tortoise-Snake Lamp].

In the hall, only three people remained undecided: Lei Yingjie, Zhou Fengxing, and an Elder from a prominent clan.

They looked at the dangerous lineup in the Sword Diagram, then at the brewing deathmatch at the Lamp.

Unanimously, they turned toward the [Eight Desolations War Chariot].

Why risk death against Shen Xing or Shen Xian? Better to secure the third treasure while the monsters fought amongst themselves. Or perhaps, they could play the fisherman and profit from others’ conflict once the dust settled.

The ten cultivators had made their choices.