To improve one’s strength, he had to overcome his current limits and discover the latent power of his body. Tianshan Elder had performed the Divine Art of Moulding to create a cacoon known as the Prison of the Heaven and Earth, to provide a conducive environment for Xiao Luo to overcome his barriers and reach full potential. The process was extremely daunting and required him to go through unimaginable pain and torture.
“Arrgh! Arrgh!”
Xiao Luo’s screams had echoed the entire valley, and it was so harrowing that anyone who heard it instantly got goosebumps. Moreso, it was a process that went on for a few days, and sometimes he’d stop screaming for an hour or two, but most of the time, he was screaming for the entire day. It sounded like he was struggling to hang on to life, and it gave a chill to anyone who heard him.
“It’s been seven days, and I can’t believe that this little brat lasted seven days inside the prison!”
Tianshan Elder was thoroughly shocked, as she had said before, that ten days were the longest anyone could endure in there. In her estimation, she would consider it impressive if Xiao Luo could even last for five days. He would have reached an advanced state by that time, and now that he had carried on for seven days, it completely exceeded her expectations.
The gravitational force within the Prison of the Heaven and Earth would double every day, and the effects of the four elements would also become even more intense as the days went by. If she had thrown an ordinary man in, he would have turned into a pile of ash within half an hour.
“Junior Sister, is he doing okay?”
Elder Long sensed that her expression changed a little, so he walked to her and asked.
Gu Qianxue also stared at her master anxiously. There were still traces of tears on her face as she listened to Xiao Luo’s excruciating scream, making the days feel like years. Her heart was broken as she had hoped that Xiao Luo could be released immediately and relieve him of the pain.
Xiao Quanren’s eyebrows were almost twisted together, for it had been six days and nights since Xiao Luo started screaming like this. As someone who was almost at the end of his lifetime, he found it difficult to bear.
“How could he be not okay? Didn’t you hear that the little brat’s voice loud and clear?”
Tianshan Elder stared at Elder Long. Although that was what she had said, she was still worried about Xiao Luo and feared there could have been a mishap in his prison. After some hesitation, she called out to Xiao Luo from the outside, “God damn it, little brat, if you can’t take it, I can…”
“I-I… con… continue…”
Xiao Luo’s slightly coarse and tortured voice came from inside in reply, “I…can still take it…”
“Xiao Luo, are you okay?” Gu Qianque asked anxiously.
“I… am… fine…”
Xiao Luo’s answer felt like he had to gather every ounce of strength he had to utter the words, and it revealed the enormous pain he was experiencing.
“Cocky little brat, you have impressed me! Fine, I’ll accept your decision.”
Tianshan Elder could sense Xiao Luo’s condition, and she knew that his breathing and other vital functions were still normal. Therefore, he could continue with the cultivation. Hence, she summoned her powers again and doubled the gravitational force within the prison. The effects of the four elements immediately intensified, and if there was such a thing as Heaven’s tests, then Xiao Luo was undoubtedly experiencing it now.
“Arrgh!”
His screams intensified with the change and became even louder.
Within the pitch-black prison, blood was oozing out of every pore, drenching Xiao Luo in blood. Xiao Luo had turned into a bloody mess, and the immense pressure had distorted his facial features, making him looked like a bloody corpse.
At last, his screams had turned into laughter; a kind of laughter that was piercing and hysterical, and it showed that his pain was intensifying!
“What is going on inside?”
Sitting from afar, Gu Qianlin’s face had turned pale as she broke into a cold sweat. This was the most terrifying scream she had ever heard in her entire life, and it came from a man she knew. Such a heart-wrenching scream was completely unknown to her, even when she was carrying out an interrogation. Hence, even someone like her, who hated Xiao Luo, felt sympathy for him. She hoped Tianshan Elder could end this torturous training soon.
It was day eight and Xiao Luo’s scream continued.
It was the same for the ninth day.
On the tenth day, the black prison suddenly fell into complete silence. No one heard anything, not even Xiao Luo’s nerve-racking screams.
“Master, what’s going on? Could Xiao Luo be… could he be?..”
Gu Qianxue asked anxiously in tears as she held on to Tianshan Elder’s arm, for she was expecting the worst outcome.
“Junior Sister, the situation seems somewhat unusual…”
Both Elder Long and Xiao Quanren frowned, and they looked worried. He had been screaming for days on end, so why did he suddenly stop on the tenth day?
Elder Tianshan did not jump to a conclusion. Instead, she scanned the inside of the prison with her mind. She frowned and said, “That little brat’s vital signs can hardly be detected.”
What?
She shocked everyone when they heard her.
“Master, end the training now, please end it now!” Gu Qianxue pleaded.
Xiao Quanren was also concerned, and he pleaded, “Elder Tianshan, please let Xiao Luo out, we can’t drag it further.”
Tianshan Elder looked at both of them with a complicated look and turned to the pitch-black prison. She was somewhat hesitant to end the training, as there was a chance that all the hardship Xiao Luo had gone through might go to waste if she did so. Xiao Luo might have been undergoing the process of rebirth, which was the most important phase in the training. However, if she did not end the training now and caused Xiao Luo’s death, then what should they do?
“ROAR!”
As Tianshan Elder hesitated, unable to decide, an incredibly beastly roar came from within the Prison of Heaven and Earth. It was loud and piercing, and it shook everyone who heard it.
The tremendous roar shook the very ground they stood on and was very threatening.
Elder Long and Xiao Quanren both looked shocked as a powerful pulse of energy burst from within the prison along with the roar. Along the path the energy pulse traveled, the ground disintegrated, creating terrifying web-like fissures from the base of the prison extending outward.
Everyone unconsciously backed off a dozen meters as they stared at the pitch-black prison in disbelief. It was as if Xiao Luo had transformed into an evil being from hell. The deathly aura emanating from within the prison permeated deep into their souls.
“Junior Sister, what… What is going on?” Elder Long was confused.
Tianshan Elder glared at him and scowled, “You’re asking me? Then, pray tell, who should I ask?”
She then stared wide-eyed at the Prison of Heaven and Earth, the very cacoon she had created to secure Xiao Luo. It was an unprecedented situation, and Xiao Luo’s resilience exceeded her expectation. Had the little brat overcome the barriers of his limits? Why was his aura so beastly, and why was that roar so terrifying like a beast?
Elder Long was lost for words, and seeing that it was her Divine Art of Moulding that created the prison, he assumed she should have the answer.
“Master, is Xiao Luo going to be okay?” Gu Qianxue asked in tears.
“I can’t be sure at this point.”
Tianshan Elder shook her head, then stared at Elder Long and said, “Long, what is the background of this little brat?”
“Junior Sister, didn’t I tell you? He’s from the Xiao Clan.” Elder Long answered.
“What? The Xiao Clan?”
Tianshan Elder’s eyes widened, and she looked terrified. She looked like she had just recalled something terrible, and it seemed like she too had had an unpleasant experience with the Xiao Clan before.
