Han Chen took a deep breath and placed his foot firmly on the first step of the mountain path.
Almost immediately, a violent surge of energy pulsed from the core of the restriction—a jagged bolt of thunder tore through the air, aimed straight at him.
Instinctively, Han Chen gathered his soul power, forming it into a shimmering, translucent shield before him. Boom! The thunder struck the barrier, sending sparks flying in all directions. The shield trembled, but held firm, deflecting the strike harmlessly aside.
Seizing the moment, Han Chen directed his divine sense inward, penetrating the core of the restriction itself. The codes governing the restriction revealed themselves—eighteen intricate layers, each one pulsing with encoded spiritual energy.
With deliberate precision, Han Chen used his soul power to disrupt and modify the code, unraveling the fragile weave that formed the thunder strike. Piece by piece, the restriction's attack dissolved into nothingness, as if the thunder itself had never existed.
Patiently, he waited as his soul power flowed back into balance, rebuilding with quiet strength.
When he felt ready, Han Chen stepped onto the second restriction.
Here, three separate restrictions activated simultaneously. The first summoned a blazing fire fox, its tail flickering and eyes burning with spirited intensity. The second called forth a wind eagle, wings spanning wide with whistling gusts. The third manifested a serpent with a dragon's head, its sinuous form made of coiling spiritual energy.
They attacked in unison.
Han Chen weaved and dodged, his movements fluid and measured, while his divine sense delved into the core's depths. This time, over a thousand layers of coding sprawled before him—complex beyond the thunder strike, a labyrinth of spiritual programming.
He knew reckless destruction would risk enhancing the restriction's danger, so he carefully studied the code, analyzing, probing layer by layer.
Minutes passed—five to be exact—before a faint, almost imperceptible command caught his attention: the 615th layer contained the on/off switch for the restriction.
With steady focus, Han Chen disrupted that specific code. Suddenly, the flood of spiritual creatures froze mid-attack, then vanished entirely as the restriction ceased its hold.
Step by step, restriction by restriction, Han Chen progressed, each challenge a puzzle to unravel, each victory a testament to his growing mastery.
One by one, Han Chen solved restrictions...
...
One month later...
Han Chen pressed onward, step after step, his resolve unyielding. Over the course of one intense month, he had conquered more than seven thousand restrictions. His beard and mustache had grown thick, streaked with dust from the unending climb. Yet he required no food or water—this mountain pulsed with abundant spiritual energy, enough to sustain him indefinitely.
At last, he found himself facing a restriction unlike any before—a raging blizzard. Massive chaotic winds slammed against him, not physically, but assaulting his very soul with ruthless force."I can't hold on much longer," Han Chen murmured, teeth clenched. "Modify the core quickly."
Suddenly, a voice echoed clearly in his mind—soft, confident, yet familiar. "It's done."
Instantly, the blizzard ceased. A deep silence fell. Han Chen exhaled, releasing a long-held breath of relief.
From the area where the restriction's core had been, a figure emerged—a woman with flowing white hair, furry white ears atop her head, and a long tail swaying behind her. She hovered gracefully, eyes bright and proud."These restrictions are nothing to me," she said, voice smooth and teasing. "I worked for the Heaven-Desecrating Devil Immortal, refining countless restriction flags and weapons."
Her tone shifted, softening with pain. "But when he self-destructed, I lost all my powers. Now, you are my master. You must grow strong—without relying on me."
Han Chen nodded silently. Dependence was not his nature.
"This," she gestured around them, "is the last restriction I helped you solve while activating it. Actually, over these seven thousand steps, you learned—you can solve restrictions without activating them. Once solved, you may take the next step immediately."
Han Chen's eyes gleamed with new understanding. "But I persisted in activating the restrictions before solving them—to gauge my limits."
She smiled faintly.
"Now," Han Chen said quietly, "I will begin solving the restrictions without activating them."And with that, he prepared to push his powers into a new realm of mastery—silent, precise, and resolute.
...
Han Chen's footsteps echoed faintly as he advanced on the mountain path, each step a fragment of an arduous journey inscribed in sweat and spirit.
The months stretched endlessly before him, marked only by the slow, inevitable transformation of his body and mind. His beard and mustache grew thick, wild, and long, strands of hair falling past his shoulders in tangled waves. Time passed unnoticed amid the relentless cadence of challenge and resolve.
Restrictions—a total of fifty-four thousand, seven hundred steps—had fallen before his relentless will. Each step began with a glimpse into the core of a restriction: a swirling maelstrom of codes layered like the depths of the ocean, layered beyond reckoning. Han Chen had mastered the art of subtlety, learning to pierce through these intricate veils with his divine sense, sensing the fragile threads that held each restriction's form together.
Some restrictions were fierce beasts born of raw spiritual energy, howling with elemental fury. Fire dragons with scales smoldering molten gold erupted before him, but Han Chen's soul shield cracked the searing flames and unraveled the patterns binding the flames' essence.
Thunder giants roared, their fists slamming the earth—boom!—sending waves that threatened to fracture the mountain itself. Yet Han Chen's touch melted the restrictions' will, extinguishing thunder into silence with a single modification.
Other restrictions took subtler forms: shifting mazes that bent space, puzzles of essence and logic woven into the mountain's bones. Han Chen sat in calm contemplation, unraveling these enigmas layer by layer until the chains of binding loosened and fell away.
At times, the mountain seemed alive with whispers, the breath of unknown forces brushing past him like icy winds. Shadows closed, illusions flickered—tempting, deceiving—but Han Chen remained steady, the pulse of his resolve a beacon in the swirling mists of challenge.
Days blurred into nights beneath the still sun. Conflict was not of sword or magic alone; it was battle waged within the mind and spirit, against the ceaseless tide of coded energy.
The mountain gave no quarter, no mercy. Each restriction cracked the edge of his endurance, demanding more from him than the last. His soul power waned and surged—the tide of his essence rising and falling like the waves of the endless sea within his consciousness.
Yet as he climbed, Han Chen's understanding deepened. The mountain was a crucible, forging not only strength but insight. He began predicting the shifting patterns of restrictions, sensing the delicate balance that held their codes together.
There were moments when his heart hammered—thud, thud—as a step tested his limits dangerously. A restriction of shadow serpents danced around him, their form fluid and intent deadly, seeking entry into his spirit. His soul shield shimmered with a sudden crack of energy—crack!—but with precise adjustment of the core's code, he shattered the serpents' form into harmless mist.
Then came a restriction that conjured a tempest—howling gales that twisted the mountain's very shape into a vortex of chaos. For hours, Han Chen danced with the storm's edge, bending both soul and will to steady the code's rhythm, eventually quelling the maelstrom into gentle breeze. His body weakened, yet his mind soared. The mountain's trials refined his soul like a forge tempers steel.
Countless were the moments when fatigue threatened to swallow him, and the fingers of doubt crept in like creeping shadows. He sat among the wildflowers, scalp slick with sweat, beard heavy with dust and dew, murmuring quietly to himself, "Only a thousand… less than a thousand left. Almost there."
Time pressed, yet the horizon gleamed faintly with promise. The mountain's peak drew near—the final daunting ascents waiting silently, a premiss for destiny itself.
Han Chen knew these last restrictions would not bow easily. Their power would be titanic, their code impenetrable. But his journey had become a rhythm of patience and persistence, a dance in which even silence sang songs of victory.
His soul foundation, now stable and resilient, pulsed with energy fresh yet tempered by trials. Each restriction solved was a step closer to transcending the limits that bound him, a step towards forging his dao heart from true understanding.
The mountain watched with ancient patience. Han Chen moved forward—undaunted, unyielding—ready to face whatever lay in the final thousand steps, each one a testament to a journey both outward and within.
...
Han Chen climbed steadily, step by painstaking step, unraveling the labyrinth of restrictions that barred his path upward. For months, the mountain had been his crucible, molding him with relentless fire and unyielding trials. Yet as he pushed deeper, the challenges thickened—each restriction more complex, layered, and cunning than the last.
After conquering over fifty-four thousand restrictions, fatigue crept into his bones, shadows of doubt flirting at the edges of his resolve. One day, as he approached an especially intricate step, the air around him thickened unnaturally. The restriction's core pulsed with dense, chaotic energy—like a mass of conflicting codes intertwined in a maddening dance.
Han Chen narrowed his eyes, his divine sense probing the core. His soul power rippled as he delved through thousands of layers but found no single weak point. Each attempt to modify the code was met with a twisting counterforce—the restriction reshaping itself, adapting to his strikes.
Frustration crept in. His soul power wavered, the strain of continuous battles weighing heavily. For the first time on this journey, Han Chen hesitated."I'm stuck," he admitted silently.
He closed his eyes and summoned Yue Ruo in his mind—his artifact spirit and guide. The moment her voice echoed within his consciousness, cool and calm, he felt a surge of renewed hope."Master, I am here," she whispered softly.
He willed, Yue Ruo entered his Sea of Consciousness, coming out of the library. The endless black sea, red mist swirling in the air, and a floating red moon welcomed her as she stepped toward the gate of the marble structure within—his inner sanctuary.
Inside the vast hall of knowledge, she moved quickly across the endless corridors. Her hands traced invisible symbols in the air, scanning layers of spiritual energy binding the restriction's code. With meticulous grace, she uncovered subtle flaws, unweaving complex knots that Han Chen could not detect.
Minutes ticked by—and then, like the cracking of a celestial whip, the tangled code splintered."There," Yue Ruo said, her voice tinged with satisfaction. "I have dismantled its core. You can go ahead."
Back in the physical world, Han Chen's soul pulsed as the oppressive energy lifted. With a steady breath, he rose, stepping onto the newly freed path. Each movement felt lighter, his inner strength rekindled by the quiet guardian who supported him unseen.
Days passed. Han Chen pressed onward, navigating the remaining restrictions with newfound confidence and precision. The mountain's imposing peak loomed ever closer, and the weight of the trial's deadline pressed relentlessly near.
Eight days before the time limit, Han Chen paused at the threshold of the final stretch—the last remaining ten steps that stood between him and victory.
He looked out over the winding path spiraling upward, a tapestry of light and shadow woven with cosmic threads and subtle energies. Each step crackled faintly with latent restrictions, waiting to test him one last time.
With a calm resolve, Han Chen thought, "I am finally here." He took a deep breath and advanced, the mountain holding its breath with him as he ventured into the last stretch of his trial.
-----TO BE CONTINUED-----