On a green hillside, there stood a strange house next to it?
What is this?
Elder Yan was utterly bewildered, but he could sense that this scene didn’t seem real—it was more like a painting.
Suddenly, an ear-splitting sound erupted.
“Dang dang dang dang dang, dang dang dang dang dang dang.”
“Hi! I’m Peppa!”
A pink sow made a dazzling entrance, with five large characters flashing above her head: “Pink Hair Dryer.”
“Ah?” Elder Yan was dumbfounded. How… how could there be such bizarre things inside this girl’s soul?
Immediately after, the so-called Pink Hair Dryer suddenly let out an oink.
“This is my little brother, George.”
George stepped forward and oinked.
“This is my daddy, Daddy Pig.”
Daddy Pig stepped forward and oinked.
“This is my mummy, Mummy Pig.”
Mummy Pig stepped forward and oinked.
In an instant, four Pink Hair Dryers had gathered.
The oinking didn’t stop—the quartet echoed incessantly in his mind, accompanied by the maddening chant of “Hi! I’m Peppa!” “Hi! I’m Peppa!” “Hi! I’m Peppa!”
It was sheer auditory torture, a mental pollution!
What in the world was this bizarre thing?!
Elder Yan had lived for centuries but had never encountered such a bizarre and maddening soul. What on earth was Chi Miao usually thinking about in her head?!
He couldn’t take it anymore. If this continued, he would go insane.
Elder Yan intensified his efforts, delving deeper into Chi Miao’s soul.
Finally, he broke free from that maddening scene.
He arrived at a bottomless abyss.
There was no light here. Hundreds of thick, long chains imprisoned a young girl dressed in red.
Beside her, a massive hammer formed from divine soul and countless iron nails floated in the air.
The hammer struck the nails fiercely, driving them into the girl’s forehead—again and again!
In this lightless place, the girl endured the Soul Shattering Punishment for all eternity!
Even Elder Yan felt his heart race at the sight, a wave of agony spreading through him.
“What… what is this?”
Before he could react further, a mysterious and powerful force roared.
“Intruders, die!”
Instantly, Elder Yan felt his divine soul forced out of Chi Miao’s body. His internal organs exploded, and he spat out a mouthful of blood!
The others were clueless, having only witnessed Elder Yan alternating between chanting “Hi! I’m Peppa!” and raging wildly. He had barely calmed down when he suddenly exploded?!
Chi Miao fell silent for a moment.
What did “top-grade” in top-grade spiritual root refer to?
“Exactly! So top-grade that it can make any detector explode!” the Gou Shi System excitedly explained.
Chi Miao: “…”
Well, that really was top-grade, then.
She looked at Elder Yan with a hint of guilt. “Are you alright?”
Does it look like he’s alright?!
But at that moment, Elder Yan wasn’t concerned about himself. Instead, he was more focused on what that thing deep within Chi Miao’s soul actually was!
He was a powerhouse at the late Nascent Soul stage. Excluding those old recluses in seclusion, there were fewer than ten in the entire Cultivation World stronger than him!
That thing had managed to force him back, and he had only caught a glimpse of it… How terrifying must it have been at its peak?
Judging by Chi Miao’s reaction, she seemed unaware of it herself.
He had to figure out what that thing was!
“You passed the first round. Mutated Fire Spirit Root, Root Value 89,” he casually stated a number.
This number was exceptionally good—it allowed Chi Miao to pass, was reasonable enough for the sect to value her, yet not so high as to draw excessive attention.
The fact that even his late-stage Deity Transformation cultivation was forced back with a single glance suggested that the secrets Chi Miao carried might only be comprehensible at a realm beyond anyone’s reach.
Most importantly, eighty-nine—just one point short of ninety.
How utterly irritating!
Since Chi Miao had been needling him for so long, he was determined to return the favor!
Yet Chi Miao was merely exasperated, because the Gou Shi System had informed her that Elder Yan hadn’t actually grasped her true Root Value.
So this score was purely meant to annoy her.
How petty.
“What kind of look is that?”
Chi Miao averted her gaze and replied without hesitation, “A look of trust.”
Elder Yan: “?”
Something felt off.
But never mind—he needed to inform the other elders about Chi Miao’s situation first.
Perhaps someone would understand what was going on.
Just one glance had filled his heart with boundless agony.
…
Elder Yan returned to the higher realm and recounted everything he had witnessed to the other elders.
Almost no one had any idea what it could mean.
Only one white-haired elder trembled, his pupils shaking for a long moment.
“You’re certain you saw a hundred chains and a hammer driving multiple nails?”
Cultivators possessed abilities far beyond ordinary people, and Elder Yan, at the late stage of Deity Transformation, had exceptionally sharp perception—he couldn’t have been mistaken.
When he confirmed it, the elder couldn’t help but feel a chill.
“Old He, with your extensive knowledge, do you know something about this?”
His name was He Wanban, master of the All-Knowing Peak among the Nine Peaks of Sword Mountain, responsible for managing secret manuals and archives. In terms of erudition… he was the most formidable in all of Sword Mountain.
Old He took a deep breath, speaking with uncertainty:
“This is likely… the Yanluo Curse.”
“Before death, a hundred Soul Chasing Ropes bind every bone in the body, and Soul Extinguishing Needles are driven into the crown of the head, causing the soul to suffer torment for all eternity, never finding peace in death!”
“Every lifetime, she will die young and be unable to cultivate. Now that her Spirit Root is powerful, it may be due to some other immortal fate.”
“But this curse is vicious and damages destiny. Who would inflict such a curse upon her?”
“Her records state she was born an orphan, spent fifteen years in the mortal world, and has only just embarked on the immortal path. It’s likely… this curse wasn’t acquired in this life!”
“With her soul enduring such torment across lifetimes, her soul power naturally far exceeds ordinary comprehension.”
Just hearing the description was enough to send shivers down one’s spine.
The cost of casting such a curse was immense.
Who exactly was Chi Miao? What kind of secrets did she carry?
“Then… should we accept her?” Elder Yan asked after a long silence.
Everyone knew he had taken a liking to her talent and pitied her tragic fate.
It was well known that while Elder Yan appeared impulsive and strict on the surface, he was actually the most tender-hearted.
Petty and calculative he might be, but his compassion was genuine.
Old He said, “Those who come are fated. If destiny truly guided her here, no matter how mysterious she is, could she really turn everything upside down?”
“Besides, you said this child has an excellent temperament. If she passes all three rounds, what’s wrong with accepting her?”
“But for now, let’s not tell her about the secret she carries… lest it disrupt her state of mind.”
Only then did Elder Yan feel at ease.
Since it was fate, he would lend her a hand.
If Chi Miao could pass the second round’s Heavenly Ladder test, he would give her a small gift as compensation for the Soul Probe.
But there was one more thing he was curious about.
“By the way, do any of you know what a Pink Hair Dryer is?”
The other elders: “What thing?”
Elder Yan: “That goofy-looking one, the one who opens her mouth and says ‘Hi, I’m Peppa’.”
The crowd: “???”
…
Those who passed the first round could rest in the guest rooms of Sword Mountain using their tokens, awaiting the next day’s assessment.
Early the next morning.
Before dawn, Chi Miao attempted to absorb the surrounding spiritual power.
This time of day, when the spiritual energy between heaven and earth was at its peak, was the most suitable period for cultivation.
While others were still asleep, she sat cross-legged, regulating her breathing.
The surrounding fire-element spiritual power sensed a warm attraction and swiftly converged toward her.
Soon, the spiritual power grew so dense that it formed a small fiery whirlwind around Chi Miao, continuous and unending—she was like a black hole.
If anyone discovered that such a commotion was caused by her cultivation, they would surely be shocked to the point of their eyes popping out, then curse, “What kind of heaven-defying absorption speed is this?!”
Chi Miao’s cultivation stirred up a warm breeze.
In this sweltering summer.
She herself felt quite cool.
But the others who hadn’t fully woken up suffered.
All night, everyone had a nightmare, dreaming they were being steamed in a steamer by a red-clothed female demon.
They were so hot they were about to turn into steamed humans!
“Damn it, who’s blowing hot wind so early in the morning? Have you no decency? It’s hot enough to kill someone, really no manners!”
Chi Miao paid no mind—where was this hot wind? It felt perfectly cool to her.
Gou Shi System: “You might be cool, but the fire elements around you are nearly overcrowded. How could others not feel hot?”
Huh?
So this annoying disturbance was caused by her.
“Should I apologize then?”
Gou Shi System: “No need. They’d prefer you just leave.”
“Ahem.”
How regrettable.
But Chi Miao wasn’t one to overstay her welcome, so she quietly made her way to a small grove under the moonlight.