Re-birth: The Beginning after the End-Chapter 146: TESTING PART 1
The siblings awoke early, their bodies already in tune with the realm’s peculiar rhythm. In the courtyard outside their quarters, Li Hao ignited a small flame under the teapot—a simple ritual they had come to cherish. His precise control over the flame’s intensity showed how far his cultivation had progressed; even in this mundane task, his mastery was evident. Steam rose in elegant spirals, carrying the rich aroma of their morning tea through the misty air.
Li Hua savored the crisp air, her senses extending outward to feel the realm’s pulse beneath its perpetual twilight. Even at rest, she maintained a subtle layer of concealment—a habit born from months of rigorous training. Beside her, Li Wei flexed his fingers, eager for the day’s training, his water essence creating subtle ripples in the morning mist, each movement precise and controlled like the person he was.
Their spirit beasts stirred to life, each one a reflection of their master’s growing power. Bai Ying prowled the perimeter with practiced vigilance, her frost-touched pawprints marking a protective boundary around the courtyard. Feng Yi stretched his glossy feathers in rising currents of essence, his presence creating invisible eddies in the realm’s ambient energy. Lei Lei and Dian Dian sparked playfully at each other’s ears, their electrical discharge growing more controlled with each passing day.
The peaceful morning shattered when Old Xiao appeared before they finished breakfast, his robes blending so perfectly with the morning mist that he seemed conjured by it. No footsteps had betrayed his approach—even their spirit beasts hadn’t detected him. It was a subtle reminder of the level of concealment they still aspired to achieve.
"Time for a special exercise," he said, authority wrapped in his gentle tone. The siblings recognized that particular gleam in his eyes—it meant he had devised something particularly challenging. "Today we test your motion-based concealment under continuous pressure."
The siblings exchanged eager glances, a familiar spark of competitive spirit passing between them. Though they had mastered staying hidden while still, maintaining concealment during movement—especially against active opposition—demanded far more. Each had their preferred techniques: Li Wei’s mathematical precision, Li Hao’s controlled chaos, and Li Hua’s natural harmony with the realm’s flow.
"Old Xiao," Li Hao ventured, unable to contain his curiosity any longer, "why do you maintain this older form? The other keepers still look quite young."
Li Wei’s elbow found his brother’s ribs as Li Hua burst out laughing—she’d been wondering the same thing. Old Xiao’s eyes crinkled with mirth, his weathered face breaking into an amused smile.
"When you’ve become immortal, you stop aging," Old Xiao mused, running a hand through his steel-gray hair. "Believe it or not, I didn’t look like this until..." He trailed off, and that familiar shadow of grief the siblings had witnessed during their first meeting darkened his features. Catching their concerned gazes, he cleared his throat and forced a smile. "I’m content with being by myself, there was no reason to continue looking young anymore." He gestured to his weathered face, his eyes taking on a teasing glint. "Besides, people tend to listen more carefully to someone who looks like they’ve lived a while."
Li Hua’s brows furrowed slightly.
"Come, let’s not waste any more time," he said, turning around.
Old Xiao led them through twisting corridors, each turn revealing new aspects of the Sixth Realm’s ever-changing architecture. Silver-veined stones shifted positions as they passed, while archways seemed to bend according to laws of geometry that existed only here. They arrived at a secluded training hall that curved like a Möbius strip, its boundaries defying normal space.
The hall’s translucent walls shifted between opaque and transparent, revealing and hiding chambers in an endless dance. Patterns of light and shadow played across surfaces that seemed both solid and permeable, creating a maze that challenged not just their ability to hide, but their very understanding of reality.
"Navigate this space for half a day without revealing yourselves," Old Xiao instructed as the doors sealed behind them with a whisper of power. "I’ve set illusions throughout—some gentle, others vicious. Some will test your technique, others your resolve. Whatever manifests, remain unseen."
The siblings took position, each drawing on their strengths while remembering months of lessons from all six keepers. Li Wei activated his Permission Barrier first, the technique spreading outward like ripples in still water, ensuring illusions couldn’t latch onto his core. Then he layered Still Lake calm over his essence, creating a surface so smooth that even the most sensitive probe would slide past without finding purchase.
Li Hao wrapped himself in a light Void Cloak, the technique now as natural to him as breathing. Phantom steps flickered beneath his feet, each one suggesting a different possible location, a mastery of misdirection that had evolved from his dual nature. The combination of fire and water essences allowed him to create mirages that seemed completely authentic.
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Li Hua merged with the environment through Breath of the World, her essence resonating so closely with the hall’s energy that she barely registered as separate. She had refined this technique until it was less about hiding and more about existing in perfect harmony with the realm itself. Each breath, each heartbeat synchronized with the pulse of power that flowed through the training hall.
The space transformed around them, responding to Old Xiao’s will. Walls slid past each other like shuffled cards while the floor rippled in gentle waves that threatened to disrupt their balance. Ghostly figures—cultivators and beasts—prowled the corners, each one a carefully crafted illusion ready to strike without warning.
The first challenge came swiftly. A spectral swordsman materialized near Li Wei, its blade whistling through the air with deadly precision. He reacted instantly, calling upon Dimensional Shift to slip just out of phase with reality. The weapon passed through empty air as he stepped away, leaving only a fading distortion that quickly merged with the hall’s ambient illusions.
Li Hao faced a more personal test—a corridor of flame illusions designed to exploit his fire affinity. The false flames mimicked his own essence signature, attempting to resonate with his core and reveal his position. He responded by scattering his essence through Breath of the World until no flame could find purchase. The illusions flared brilliantly but found only drifting currents of energy where a cultivator should have been.
Li Hua encountered a pulsing light that seemed to probe the very fabric of space, threatening to outline her form in sharp relief. She drew upon Mist Walker with practiced grace, letting her presence dissolve into the surrounding distortions. The technique, once challenging, now felt as natural as drawing breath. The probing light passed through where she stood, finding nothing but swirling images and ambient Qi.
Old Xiao’s voice echoed through the shifting space, each instruction carrying layers of meaning: "Layer your techniques—let them flow into each other!" "Your transitions must be fluid as water, leaving no trace!" "The illusions learn from your patterns—don’t let them anticipate you!"
The siblings wove through the maze with increasing confidence, their movements suggesting years of practice rather than months. Occasionally, they caught glimpses of each other through the chaos—Li Wei’s presence rippling like water beneath ice, Li Hao’s form multiplied in a dance of mirrors, Li Hua’s outline blending so perfectly with the ambient energy that she seemed more spirit than substance.
Their spirit beasts had adapted to the challenge as well. Bai Ying stalked through the illusions, her frost-touched fur deflecting spiritual probes. Feng Yi soared between layers of reality, his wings parting veils of deception. Lei Lei and Dian Dian darted through the chaos, their electrical signatures confusing the hall’s detection arrays.
