Inside the hut, the scenery changed drastically. While the exterior had appeared small and poverty-stricken, the cat and the wolf now found themselves in a magnificent hall whose splendor could shock the wealthiest of kings. The two demonic beasts were shaken even more when they looked behind them to find that the door they had entered through was gone.
The white wolf walked to the wall that now stood where the door had been and tried to find a way out. When it failed, it turned to look at the black cat. The cat snorted at the wolf's stupidity, then walked to the wall itself, its gaze fixed on the "stupid" wolf.
The cat checked the wall, trying everything it could, but no door was found. The wolf looked at the cat with disdain and walked to the center of the hall. Displeased but resigned, the cat gave up and followed the wolf. As the two reached the center, a human figure appeared before them, floating in the air. His black hair moved as if it were in flowing water, a mesmerizing, wavy motion that gave him an otherworldly beauty. This was an extremely beautiful man, one who would put women to shame and leave men gnawing their teeth with jealousy.
"I am Ritz, and you two have activated the 256th trial for my inheritance," the man said in an authoritative voice. "Before we begin, you should know that of all the others who have taken this trial, none have survived to the end; most died in the very first trial. You have one chance to choose to depart from this place. Should you give up, I will erase your memories of this place and teleport you outside the trial zone."
The wolf and the cat looked at each other, silently communicating their willingness to take the trial. The wolf chose this path to gain power, while the cat, in truth, wanted to leave immediately but did not want the wolf to see it as a coward. It was a fool's choice to join a trial where one hundred percent of participants had died.
Ritz didn't think too much about their reasons but could see the cat's legs were trembling, while the wolf was ready for death. Ritz saw in the wolf's eyes a being who had hoped for death more than once in its life. People like this usually have no fear of death and may even hope for it at times, but they would never actively seek it out. Ritz was pleased with the wolf's attitude.
"Since you have chosen this path, I will tell you what kind of inheritance you have chosen to struggle for. I am Ritz. In my lifetime, I had good luck and talent, which led me to an inheritance ground where I found a cultivation technique, the Absolute Zero Sutra. At the peak of this technique, it was said that one could freeze heaven and hell, death and life, and even the laws that make up the world itself.
"With this sutra and the many resources I found, I suppressed the other cultivators of my generation and was hailed as a once-in-a-generation talent. I quickly cultivated and reached the Heaven Monarch realm, just a single step away from becoming an Emperor,the highest level a mortal can attain. I founded a powerful sect that, in a mere one thousand years, had already surpassed sects whose histories spanned millennia.
"I should have known better. Human greed cannot be stopped. Soon, other sects spread rumors that I cultivated in the Devil Path. The world turned on me. All my so-called friends abandoned me, and before I knew it, the entire world was my enemy. I was surrounded by thousands of so-called 'heroes of justice,' and we fought for seven days and seven nights. I was finally critically injured by a sneak attack from a despicable fellow who called himself the Sun Monarch. I had killed hundreds, and the few tens who remained were heavily injured. I used the last of my power to circulate a forbidden escape technique. Unfortunately, I was too injured, and even my enemies believed me dead. They then wiped out my sect; they killed my sons, and my wives and daughters were sold into brothels. Any man or beast with even the smallest amount of money was allowed to do as he pleased with them.
"As I lay dying on some small mountain, I captured a passing cultivator who told me all this. I was so angered that I gave up the only chance to save my life and used another forbidden technique to temporarily gain power even beyond my former peak. In my anger, I resolved to die with my enemies. I attacked these righteous sects one by one, killing every living being within them, from people down to the rats. As I killed, my soul became more and more warped until I had become the devil they had accused me of being. My power grew even greater, and soon, even those who had nothing to do with the righteous sects were being killed like chickens by me.
"I visited the brothels, only to find that my wives and daughters were long dead from being raped day and night by men and beasts. My only surviving daughter was left on the brink of death, her psyche forever distorted. I had not gone to rescue my family instantly because I didn't know where they were; I only knew they were in a brothel. I used the last of my power to fix her injuries, erase her memories of the incident, and increase her cultivation to the peak by sacrificing the remainder of my life. In doing so, her talent was raised to a level beyond even my own. I then teleported her into the Devil Domain. Finally, I escaped and set up this trial ground. Should one of you pass my trial, you shall become my disciple and fulfill three of my wishes without fail. In return, I will teach you everything I know about cultivation, and give you all my wealth and cultivation techniques."
Ritz finished speaking, leaving the beasts dumbfounded.