My mother is the white moonlight of the cultivation world.

The tense air suddenly relaxed, and the oppressive aura belonging to the Nascent Soul stage vanished without a trace.

Hua Yue let out a long sigh of relief, but before she could let go of Yue Nuanwei's hand, she felt a cold, damp sensation in her palm.

"Are you alright?" She turned her head to look at Yue Nuanwei and saw that her face was still pale and her eyes still held a sense of shock from surviving the ordeal.

Yue Nuan shook her head slightly, composed herself, and whispered, "Thank you, Hua Yue."

This time, his voice lacked its usual timidity, instead carrying a genuine sense of gratitude and relief.

Just as Hua Yue was about to say something, the surrounding scenery changed again.

The slippery stone walls on both sides became blurred, and the stone slabs underfoot began to twist. Eventually, the entire corridor turned into pure darkness.

Immediately afterwards, an ancient and distant voice resounded in their minds, indistinguishable in gender and origin.

"Commendable courage, the inner demons have been overcome."

"Next, it's a test of strength."

As soon as they finished speaking, seven huge stone slabs appeared in the darkness before them.

Each stone slab is carved with a distinct totem, exuding a chilling and terrifying aura.

Yue Nuanwei's pupils suddenly contracted, and she subconsciously took half a step back, her voice trembling.

"This...this is...the totem of the seven demon lords!"

Although Hua Yue didn't recognize these totems, just sensing the faint evil aura emanating from them made the hairs on her body stand on end.

"Are you kidding me? You want us to fight the Demon Lord?" Hua Yue could hardly believe her ears.

The ancient voice seemed to hear her thoughts and let out a low, childlike laugh.

"Hehe, don't worry, little cultivators. What appears before you is merely a projection of one percent of their power."

One percent?

Hua Yue was inwardly cursing, but outwardly she was all smiles. A one percent Demon Lord? He didn't seem like a match for someone at the Golden Core stage!

Her understanding of the Demon Realm was limited to snippets of gossip and information she had heard from Jun Yuan; she knew nothing about the specific abilities of these seven Demon Lords.

The only one she recognized was the "Gluttonous Demon King" who almost treated her like a snack.

She turned her head to look at Yue Nuanwei, asking for his opinion with her eyes.

Yue Nuanwei was clearly also torn. His family records might contain the answer, but he was still struggling to make a decision. Finally, he looked at Hua Yue and said with difficulty, "I...I don't know either. You decide."

"Then let's binge eat," Hua Yue made a decisive choice. "At least I've heard of it, and at least I'll know why I died."

As she finished speaking, the stone slab engraved with the Gluttony Demon Lord's totem suddenly lit up, while the other six stone slabs disappeared into the darkness.

A fist-sized, pure black sphere slowly emerged from the stone slab and hovered in mid-air. It looked completely harmless, like an inconspicuous black pebble, eerily quiet.

But Hua Yue dared not be careless in the slightest.

The Phoenix Eye Sword was instantly drawn, and with a clear and melodious sword cry, a sharp sword aura cleaved straight into the black sphere!

"Bang!"

The sword energy struck the target with perfect accuracy.

However, the expected explosion did not occur. The black sphere merely swayed, then with a "poof," it shattered into hundreds of smaller, fingernail-sized black spheres, which floated densely in the air.

The next moment, those small spheres, like sharks smelling blood, pounced on Hua Yue like madmen!

Hua Yue dodged quickly, but a small ball still grazed her arm.

A powerful suction force suddenly came from the point of contact, and the spiritual power in her body poured out uncontrollably like a flood that had been released!

Hua Yue was horrified. Her spiritual power had been tempered and refined, making it incredibly domineering and concentrated. Yet this little thing was able to swallow nearly ten percent of her spiritual power in one gulp!

"Be careful! Don't get bumped!" Hua Yue hurriedly reminded Yue Nuanwei.

Seeing the black spheres coming in overwhelmingly, Yue Nuanwei reacted immediately and sat down cross-legged, with an ancient seven-stringed zither lying across her lap.

"Zheng—"

The rapid piano music transformed into invisible sound blades, sweeping towards the black sphere.

However, a strange scene happened.

The moment those sonic blades touched the black sphere, they vanished without a trace, like mud sinking into the sea, without even causing a ripple!

Moreover, Hua Yue keenly sensed that from the moment these black spheres appeared, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth in this space was becoming thinner at an alarming rate.

They're eating!

They are constantly devouring all the energy here!

"Is it that strong?" Hua Yue couldn't help but complain while dodging.

"Something's not right!" Yue Nuanwei's expression grew increasingly grave. "I've reviewed the experiences left by previous senior brothers and sisters who entered the ruins. After the trial of courage, the test of strength does indeed present powerful enemies, but at most they are some rare and powerful demons. There has never been a precedent of a Demon Lord's projection!"

Hua Yue's heart sank. While brandishing her Phoenix Eye Sword, using the blade to swat away the small balls, she quickly asked, "Speaking of which, what is the Demon Lord's full strength? The Void Refinement stage?"

"No." Yue Nuanwei's voice carried a hint of despair. "I once saw it in a tattered ancient book at home. At their peak, the Seven Demon Lords were not targeting cultivators, but... gods."

god!

Hua Yue gasped.

This joke has gone a bit too far.

Thanks to her divine vein constitution, her spiritual energy recovery speed far exceeded that of ordinary people, allowing her to barely manage to hold on. However, Yue Nuanwei's condition took a sharp turn for the worse.

His spiritual power was never known for its strength, and at this moment his face was as pale as paper, fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead, and his hands, which were playing the zither, began to tremble slightly.

"Hua Yue... don't worry about me, quickly find a way to get out of here! This trial is too strange!" Yue Nuan said through gritted teeth, her voice hoarse.

Leave? Where to leave? This godforsaken place doesn't even have a door!

Hua Yue's heart sank little by little.

She began to doubt her own abilities.

If even a projection of one percent of the Demon Lord's power is so troublesome, then what will she use to search for her mother in the Demon Realm?

She thought that by winning the sect competition, she would have the qualifications to compete with the best talents in the world and to set foot in the Demon Realm.

How ridiculous it seems now.

She's not even a frog in a well.

……

Beyond the ruins, before the water mirror.

The instant the seven Demon Lord stone tablets appeared, all the water mirror images turned into snowflakes with a "sizzle".

"What's going on?!"

"We can no longer ascertain the situation inside!"

The elders of the various sects were in an uproar, and they all tried to reconnect by casting spells, but all of them failed.

Yue Qingxue suddenly stood up, her face showing undisguised anxiety for the first time.

He couldn't let anything happen to Hua Yue.

"Sect Master, I..."

"Sit down." The Wuji Sect Master's voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable authority.

Yue Qingxue paused and looked at the sect leader.

The sect leader simply looked back at him calmly and slowly said, "Qingxue, this is fate, beyond our control. For that child, this may not be a calamity, but a blessing in disguise."

He paused, his tone carrying a deeper meaning.

"Trust her."

……

Inside the ruins, the little black ball's attacks became increasingly fierce, forcing Hua Yue and Yue Nuanwei into a very small area.

Yue Nuanwei's spiritual power was completely exhausted, and she collapsed to the ground, too weak to even move a finger.

Hua Yue shielded him behind her, wielding her Phoenix Eye Sword with impenetrable skill, but she knew she was nearing her limit.

Just as one of the black balls broke through the sword net and was about to imprint itself on Hua Yue's chest—

A beam of pure white light tore through the dim space without warning.

The light was not dazzling, but rather warm. Wherever it passed, the hideous black spheres melted and purified silently, like winter snow meeting the blazing sun, leaving not a trace.

A figure with snow-white hair quietly appeared in front of Hua Yue.

It was Xi Ming.

His eyes, unusually, were now tinged with emotion—a cold dissatisfaction.

He ignored Hua Yue and Yue Nuanwei, simply raised his head, and spoke clearly into the empty darkness:

"This trial has gone too far."

The ancient voice rang out again, this time tinged with obsequiousness and unease.

"Oh dear, it's been so long since I've seen a child with divine veins, I couldn't resist testing them a bit more..."

Xi Ming's brows furrowed slightly.

The ancient voice immediately relented: "Alright, alright! You've passed! Isn't that enough?!"

As it spoke, the oppressive atmosphere completely dissipated, and the space was once again filled with gentle spiritual energy.

"As compensation," the ancient voice continued, "you are qualified to awaken the sleeping god."

Hua Yue, panting heavily, finally caught her breath. She straightened up, supporting herself on her knees, and asked curiously, "Wake me up? How do I wake me up?"

"Dance," the ancient voice answered crisply.

Hua Yue: "..."

She held her forehead, feeling a throbbing sensation in her temples.

Why is it dancing again!

Last time in the Hundred Flowers Secret Realm, in order to get a reward, she had already done an awkward dance in public, and she still vividly remembered the feeling of her toes digging into a three-bedroom apartment.

She finally understood why so many ancient sacrificial ceremonies required shamanic rituals; it turned out that these gods simply enjoyed this kind of thing!

"I can... add background music." Yue Nuan, who had caught her breath, struggled to sit up and said weakly.

"Well," Hua Yue thought to herself, "the setup has been upgraded this time. There's a live musician now, so the dancing isn't so dry anymore."

That's how exams are; just when you think you'll never test a particular topic again, it always surprises you with a big "surprise" on the next test.

Clearly, she was that unfortunate student who never learned her lesson.

Since we can't avoid it, let's just let ourselves go!

Hua Yue took a deep breath, turned to Yue Nuanwei and said, "Come on, I'll hum a tune, you remember it, the more enthusiastically you play it, the better!"

As she spoke, she cleared her throat and began to hum a tune with a strange melody but a very strong rhythm.

"Such a dynamic beat..."

Xi Ming, standing to the side, tilted his head, his eyes full of confusion, but he still silently memorized every strange movement and tone of Hua Yue's voice.

Just as Hua Yue was about to start her chaotic version of "Wild Wolf Disco," Xi Ming suddenly stepped forward, seemingly wanting to imitate her movements.

"I'll be with you," he said earnestly.

Hua Yue stumbled and almost lost her balance.

Looking at Xi Ming's godlike, aloof, and otherworldly face, and imagining him following her as he "draws a dragon with his left hand and a rainbow with his right," she suddenly shivered.

Hua Yue suddenly stretched out her hand and made a "stop" gesture, her face full of righteousness and heroism.

"Brother, stop!"

"I can handle this embarrassment all by myself!"