Chapter 1095: Chapter 1094: Breakthrough the Limits of Mental Power_1
"I wonder whose handiwork this is."
Among those Shi Xiaole knew, only Shui Lingping seemed capable of arranging such an Array System, but in reality, the probability was still extremely low.
Merging countless Void Origin Realm arrays together and combining them perfectly was no less difficult than setting up a single Sky Origin Realm array.
"Entering the Colorless Abyss, one must be of Void Origin; thus I set the Void Origin Great Array, solely wishing for those who come after to break it."
Such a sentence was inscribed on a stone before the light wall, which showed the arranger’s pride. You are all of the Void Origin Realm, fine, I will set up this Great Array of the Void Origin Realm, and you won’t be able to break it!
Ling’er stuck out her tongue and huffed, "Grandpa thought about destroying this stone several times, but he didn’t dare to do it."
Shi Xiaole shook his head with a wry smile. A connection clearly existed between the Array System and the stone, and who knows what consequences would follow if it were destroyed.
As his spiritual power penetrated into it, Shi Xiaole’s face grew increasingly solemn.
Between array and array, at least three different kinds of connecting nodes were designed; some had dozens. These numbers were not randomly determined—they obviously followed a certain principle. Any error in a single link could evolve into an even more complex array situation, and as time passed, one might not even be able to distinguish north from south.
To put it bluntly, breaking through the light wall would be as challenging as breaking a Sky Origin Realm array, but Shi Xiaole felt an inexplicable excitement because at least there was a possibility of solving it—it all depended on whether his skills were ingenious enough!
Ignoring the chattering Ling’er, he immediately sat down cross-legged, pouring his whole heart into breaking the array.
Ling’er shouted for a while, then ran into the cave, calling out, "Grandpa, something’s wrong."
The round-faced elder said in annoyance, "What now?"
"Brother Shi has gone mad."
Several times previously, Grandpa had disregarded everything, occasionally going crazy on the spot. In Ling’er’s view, Brother Shi was definitely not as robust as Grandpa, which could only mean worse trouble.
The round-faced elder knew all too well what was going on. He thought to himself: That array even the Forbidden Martial Emperor could not solve—if that kid is looking for death, what can be done? Probably in a few days, he’ll go mad.
"Grandpa, go and wake Brother Shi quickly," urged Ling’er.
The round-faced elder waved his hand and nonsense seriously, "He’s comprehending the array. Waking him rashly would harm his spiritual power. Let him wake up on his own, then I’ll take action."
Ling’er was half-convinced yet helpless, so she could only return to the cliffside and keep an eye on Shi Xiaole.
Little did she expect that her vigil would last three days and nights. During that period, Ling’er dozed off many times, and almost couldn’t help but shake him, until Shi Xiaole finally woke up.
"So complex."
After three days and nights of intense thinking, Shi Xiaole had only managed to construct an array channel of three meters. The light wall stretched for a thousand meters. At this rate, it would take him at least nearly three years to get out of this place, not including the increased difficulty of subsequent arrays and the mental recuperation required. The time to break the array would certainly exceed three years.
But considering that there was a little more than a year left before his appointment with the Martial Emperor and the master of the Ghost Carriage, Shi Xiaole really did not want to miss this once-in-a-lifetime battle!
Moreover, if he didn’t show up, it would undoubtedly cause great worry to his friends and family at Nine Heavens Mountain, which was not something he wanted to see.
"I must give it my all."
With eyes closed, mental fatigue, and a throbbing head, he nevertheless forcibly continued to tackle the array. There is a saying about human limits; with Shi Xiaole’s current mental strength, he couldn’t break the array quickly, but what about surpassing the limits?
He had broken through the potential wellspring of his body twice, but he had never done so with his mental strength. So why not give it a try? If he failed, at worst he would be exhausted and need an extended time to recover. But what if he succeeded?
It would be a spectacular triumph, achieving what he never dared hope for himself! Difficulty is an opportunity, and Shi Xiaole would never underestimate his ability to transform challenges.
Ling’er called out "Brother Shi" a few times but got no response, stomping her feet in frustration.
"The kid’s tenacity is not bad," commented the round-faced elder suddenly appearing beside Ling’er, glancing at Shi Xiaole with a trace of admiration, though it was just a trace.
Many things in life do not rely solely on tenacity, but rather on one’s actual ability. An array that even the five Forbidden Martial Emperors could not solve, to say that Shi Xiaole could solve it was simply a huge joke.
The round-faced elder thought, maybe it’s time to intervene and stop this youngster before he truly becomes mentally deranged, preventing Ling’er from losing a playmate.
One day.
Two days.
...
Time quickly passed by half a month.
In this period, Shi Xiaole woke up twice, his originally jade-like skin now showing signs of paleness, his expression clearly extremely weary, and his head veins pulsating, a sign of mental overexertion.
You should know that during this time he had not a moment of rest, with his brain operating at its limits every second. If others did this, they would have long since died from mental exhaustion.
Opening his bloodshot eyes, Shi Xiaole thought to himself: The constructed channel has reached sixteen meters. Eighteen days to construct sixteen meters, his condition clearly suffered, not as good as before.
However, after extreme exhaustion, Shi Xiaole had a feeling of breaking free, seemingly glimpsing solid iron waiting to be struck to reveal a new world.
Resting for a moment, he resumed his understanding of the array.
Ling’er, kept at bay by the Vigorous Air of Shi Xiaole, could only continue to beat at it helplessly, deeply regretting that she should never have brought Brother Shi here, as it had only caused him harm.
Noticing all this, the elder inside the cave was very displeased and angrily said, "I refused to believe this evil; let’s see just how long you can hold on, kid!"
Storms raged, and the fierce sun blazed down.
Two months had passed in the blink of an eye.
The white streaks at Shi Xiaole’s temples, originally only the width of a finger, now exceeded an inch. His complexion had turned from white to a sallow green, his forehead glistened with cold sweat, as if countless needles were pricking his brain, causing agony.
In two months and eighteen days, he had only constructed a passage of forty-five meters. The efficiency kept decreasing, the agony intensifying, yet the feeling of breaking free was getting stronger.
Shi Xiaole knew he was approaching his limit. He had never been so exhausted; it felt like even a single breath might cost him half his life. If it weren’t for not wanting to miss that scheduled battle, perhaps he couldn’t have persisted.
"I have never failed before, and this time will be no different; I believe I can do it."
To retreat would bring momentary relief but would betray the past two grueling months. To advance meant enduring pain, but with the possibility to break through oneself, to transcend the ordinary.
Shi Xiaole gritted his teeth and continued to break the Array System.
"What a tough guy!"
If before, the round-faced old man had only a hint of appreciation for Shi Xiaole, then his performance these days had earned him a newfound respect.
Perhaps in this world, there were many with talents greater than Shi Xiaole, but few were willing to pay any price to achieve their goals like he did.
If he weren’t trapped in the Colorless Realm, with such determination alone, he could have achieved great feats inaccessible to the common man. What a pity, what a pity.
"You old fart, come out!"
While mulling over these thoughts, the round-faced old man’s expression changed, and he rushed out of the cave. Suspended in the air ten thousand meters away were a man and a woman, unmistakably the ugly eunuch and the beautiful crone.
Ever since they had been scared off that day, the more the two of them thought about it, the more something seemed off. With Golden Silkworm’s temperament, an attack would surely injure someone; how could they have been so easily let go? Thinking of the round-faced old man’s martial prowess and the sight of Shi Xiaole at the cliff’s edge, how could the two not grasp the truth?
Without a word, the ugly eunuch, consumed by fury, slapped his palm towards the round-faced old man. The beautiful crone, smiling, charged at Shi Xiaole, shouting, "Handsome young man, you can’t escape. Lose hope."
Confronting the ugly eunuch’s palm, the round-faced old man actually used the same move. Leveraging the force of their palms, he intercepted the beautiful crone using the same movement technique she had used.
"Can you only imitate others?"
With a pointed finger from the beautiful crone, the void instantly shattered into thousands of pieces. Under the ugly eunuch’s palm attack, these fragments of void swiftly reformed. Under immense pressure, chaotic energy spilled wildly, and mysteriously, mountain after mountain vanished.
On the low hillside, Ling’er watched her grandfather with a worried expression. The last time the three had clashed was two years prior, when the beautiful crone had attempted to take her away. Her grandfather had snatched her back, but at the cost of grave injuries.
"Wooden Grandpa!"
Suddenly, Ling’er’s expression brightened.
Just as the round-faced old man was struggling to cope, a crane shadow pierced the heavens and earth, its mouth wide open, swallowing the ugly eunuch’s fist.
"Last time it was you who messed things up, and this time again!"
The ugly eunuch’s infuriated voice echoed through the sky as he furiously attacked an elegant old man with white hair and beard. The latter’s attack power was inferior, but he made up for it with nimble movement, soon matching him blow for blow.
As the four Forbidden Martial Emperors clashed, not a single part of the vast sky remained intact, as if a smooth mirror had shattered, turning pitch black. Sunlight was obscured, chaotic void streams raged like hurricanes, whipping around wildly as if heralding the apocalypse.
Their battle lasted a whole month. Millions of miles of terrain were razed to the ground, rivers filled in. Fortunately, the cliff area was protected by an Array System, unable to be breached by the four, otherwise every living being within range would have been doomed.
And atop the said cliff, Shi Xiaole was oblivious to all this.
His mind was a chaos, his remaining spiritual power scattered all over, which he forcibly concentrated, seeking to pierce some invisible door.
One last attempt, one final try! If unsuccessful, his spiritual power would be exhausted, requiring at least half a year to recover, and there was even the danger of backsliding!
Shi Xiaole forgot about the pain, forgot about the fatigue, his spirit at that moment reaching the utmost height of his life.
Hum!
The remaining spiritual power emitted a blinding brilliance, like a needle, and with a ’pop’, just before running out, it barely pierced the invisible door.
In an instant, on the surface of the mountain of his deep consciousness, spiritual power began to peel off like the Yangtze and Yellow rivers flowing into the sea of spirit that Shi Xiaole could command.
Shi Xiaole’s spiritual power surged.
One fold.
Two folds.
Three folds.
...
Only when it had increased by fifty percent did the pace finally slow, until the mountain of spirit came to a halt. If previously, Shi Xiaole’s total spiritual power had reached the peak of the Void Origin Realm, not inferior to a Forbidden Martial Emperor, then now, it had far surpassed it.
He had finally completed his self-breakthrough!
"I can’t teach you a lesson myself, but I must kill that youngster!"
After a month of intense fighting, the ugly eunuch’s power was reduced to a fraction of its original. Seizing an opportunity, he suddenly sneered, and as he fought back against the white-haired old man, he fiercely launched a spiritual punch toward the distant Shi Xiaole.
The white-haired old man inwardly cursed the situation, disbelieving the other’s treachery, but it was too late to intervene. The beautiful crone cursed loudly, her face an ugly shade, while the round-faced old man was equally out of reach.
"Get lost!"
The seemingly doomed Shi Xiaole abruptly opened his eyes and unleashed the "Shocking Eye Tribulation." With his vastly increased spiritual power, the first three of the Sacred Heart Four Tribulations automatically reached perfection.
