Upon seeing those words, "Once you enter Qingyun Road, you ascend the Nine-layered Heaven alone," all the experts were somewhat shocked.

"Haha, my friends, stop guessing. Since we’ve entered the Ni Yang Realm, it’s too late for regrets. What we can do is try our best to survive in the Ni Yang Realm and obtain that treasure," Ao Feng said loudly.

Instantly, Hua Yan, Zong Jue, Du Zhongjun, and the other experts snapped back to reality.

"Brother Ao Feng is right. I want to see what challenges this Qingyun Road really holds," Man Qian said as he briskly entered the palace gates, moving inside with Yu Liang and Kong Cao hurriedly following him. At the same time, Hua Yan, Du Zhongjun, Ao Feng, Zong Jue, and others also entered, laughing in succession.

However, Qin Yu, Hou Fei, and Hei Yu were the last to follow.

Qin Yu solemnly said to his two brothers, "Feifei, Little Black. You haven’t been in the Mortal World for long. If this challenge proves too difficult, you don’t have to overcome it. Just wait outside, and after a day and a half, you can ascend directly without facing these dangers."

From Scattered Treasure Rock to the Qingyun Road palace, they indeed had spent more than a day traveling.

Hou Fei and Hei Yu thought for a moment and then nodded.

After all, they had only been in the Mortal World for a day and a half. Why bother desperately struggling further?

"Big Brother, let’s go. We’re going to ascend anyway; let’s take a good look at this Ni Yang Realm of the Immortal Emperor Ni Yang before we leave. Once we reach the Upper Realm, we might not have the chance to see this place again," Hou Fei said cheerfully, and subsequently, the three brothers, Qin Yu, entered through the palace gates.

Upon entering the palace gate.

Qin Yu saw Ao Feng, Zong Jue, Man Qian, and others ahead of him; clearly, they were all shocked by everything in front of them. Upon closer inspection, Qin Yu was equally astounded by the scene before him.

The buildings in front of them were all made of white jade, translucent and sparkling.

This was a small White Jade Square, and at the end of the small White Jade Square was a bridge made of green jade that soared skyward at a forty-five-degree angle, as if connecting to some palace in the sky. Around this Green Jade Bridge, there were clumps of green clouds, making it impossible to see clearly what was inside the Green Jade Bridge with the naked eye.

"Wow," Hou Fei’s eyes gleamed, "What is this green crystal stone? From where we stand now on the White Jade Square to some high place in the sky. This bridge must extend thousands of miles to connect such a distant place."

Qin Yu and Hei Yu were also delighted.

It was indeed a great pleasure to enjoy such beautiful scenery, but this beauty contained endless dangers.

"Brother Qin Yu, this wooden Attribute Crystal Stone that forms the jade bridge is what’s called ’Qingyun Road’ in the Ni Yang Realm," Man Qian said with a smile as he walked next to Qin Yu. "The other end of Qingyun Road is nearly ten thousand miles away from here."

Qin Yu recalled those two lines, "Once you enter Qingyun Road, you ascend the Nine-layered Heaven alone."

"Brother Man Qian, could it be that the other end of Qingyun Road is the Nine-layered Heaven?" Qin Yu speculated.

Man Qian laughed, "Smart. Yes, the end of this Qingyun Road is the Nine-layered Heaven, the core area of the Ni Yang Realm. The Immortal Emperor Ni Yang usually resided in the Nine-layered Heaven. However, there are many wonderful places within the Ni Yang Realm, but this time the Immortal Emperor Ni Yang just brought us here from the Mingxin Realm, with no restrictions in between."

Qin Yu understood.

The lair of the Immortal Emperor Ni Yang was dangerous enough not just for a First Level Golden Immortal but even for a First Level Profound Immortal. The Immortal Emperor Ni Yang probably knew that many of the challenges in the Ni Yang Realm were too dangerous, hence he canceled many of them. He just left a few.

Suddenly—

The dazzling white light spread from not far away, and everyone, including Qin Yu, couldn’t help but look in that direction.

The Green Jade Bridge connected to the White Jade Square, and on one side of the square, there were buildings on each side. On the left side of the bridgehead of the jade bridge stood a white jade sculpture with its hands behind its back, gazing up at the sky; it naturally exuded an aura that made people submit.

"It’s similar to the sculpture outside the Treasure Pavilion of the Nine Sword Immortal Mansion. They are both sculptures of the same person," Qin Yu immediately determined.

On the right side of the bridgehead of the jade bridge, however, was the source of that dazzling white light.

"Just now, there was only a white jade stele here with just the words ’Qingyun Road’ on it. How is it emitting such astonishing brilliance now?" Man Qian said, puzzled.

The experts present were all confused, but no one dared to act rashly.

As time passed, the white light began to converge. In just a moment, the white jade stele returned to its former appearance, except a halo circulated on its surface, and numerous dense characters emerged on it.

Qin Yu’s heart skipped a beat when he saw those lines, clearly recognizing them as a message left by Immortal Emperor Ni Yang.

"To ascend to the Nine-layered Heaven, one must pass through Qingyun Road. Qingyun Road can only be traversed by one person at a time; only when this person successfully passes or dies in failure can the next person set foot on Qingyun Road. If two people set foot on Qingyun Road together, both will surely die. Reaching the Nine-layered Heaven will be rewarded with a precious treasure." 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

In just a moment, those lines disappeared, and before anyone had a chance to speak, the white jade stele revealed several more lines of text.

"Qingyun Road is long and dangerous. On the edges of the square, there are Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones; those who enter the Ni Yang Realm can use them to replenish their expended cultivation energy. If there is an envoy from the Immortal Realm, it is wise to give up early and rest in this White Jade Square. Otherwise, entering it means risking a ninety percent chance of death."

These lines also disappeared in a moment, and no more words appeared thereafter.

After reading these words, everyone present remained silent for a long time.

They fully understood why it was called ’ascend to the Nine-layered Heaven alone’.

It wasn’t that only one person would survive, but each person must rely on their own abilities to traverse ’Qingyun Road.’ Those who could pass it could indeed reach the Nine-layered Heaven; failure meant certain death.

"Qingyun Road can only be entered by one person at a time, entering with two people means certain death... Immortal Emperor Ni Yang’s message is truly frightening," Man Qian chuckled, confident in his skills as the strongest on the field. He believed he had the greatest chances to pass through Qingyun Road.

At that moment, Ao Xu, the elder of the Dragon Clan, exclaimed in surprise, "Hey, it just said there were Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones by the square, but where are they?"

"Yes, there are none." Others also noticed this.

Since those words appeared on the white jade, stating that Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones were available at the edge of the square to replenish cultivation energy, logically, they should be there, but no one present could see any Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones.

Nearby, Qin Yu gave a wry smile.

When he first saw the words about the Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones, he excitedly scrutinized the White Jade Square in detail. The area of this square was only several tens of meters in length and width, not large. Qin Yu glanced over every part, but he didn’t see any Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones at all.

"If there were Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones, my Sword Immortal Puppet would have enough energy to be used often." Qin Yu sighed inwardly.

Hua Yan, Du Zhongjun, and Man Yan frowned.

"Since Immortal Emperor Ni Yang said there were Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones, and he stated it so clearly, there must be some. But now they are gone, could it be that someone came to the Ni Yang Realm earlier and took the Top-Grade Primordial Spirit Stones already?" Hua Yan’s expression changed.

The expressions of Man Qian and the others also changed.

Had someone entered the Ni Yang Realm ahead of time?

"Impossible, absolutely impossible for anyone to come in ahead of time. We only managed to come here with the Sky-breaking Map; how could others come in ahead without it?" Du Zhongjun couldn’t accept this.

Hua Yan coldly said, "Don’t forget how Qin Yu came in. He had a way to enter, so others might have as well."

Everyone looked toward Qin Yu.

Right, Qin Yu didn’t have the Sky-breaking Map, but he... not only found the Ni Yang Realm, he also brought people in. If Qin Yu could do it, it wasn’t necessarily impossible for others.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Qin Yu began with a smile, "I, Qin Yu, can assure you of one thing: there are only two methods to enter the Ni Yang Realm in this world. One is through the Sky-breaking Map, and the other is my method. It’s absolutely impossible for others to come in. Unless..." Qin Yu pondered.

"Unless what?" Man Qian, Hua Yan, and others looked toward Qin Yu.

"Unless... he is the Immortal Emperor Ni Yang himself," Qin Yu confidently declared with a smile.

Perhaps only he clearly understood that initially, inside the Nine Sword Immortal Mansion, only by relying on the Black Flame Monarch’s Ring and three Sky-breaking Maps could one enter the Ni Yang Realm. He possessed the Black Flame Monarch’s Ring, the Dragon Clan and two other factions had the Sky-breaking Maps; how could other people possibly come in?

"Haha..." Man Qian laughed. The meaning of Qin Yu’s words was very clear—definitely, no one else could have come in ahead of time.

"Alright, stop speculating wildly. Even if someone did come in ahead of time, they may not necessarily overcome the challenges set by the Immortal Emperor Ni Yang. What we need to do now is... who will challenge Qingyun Road first, and who will be the last?" Man Qian looked around at everyone.

Who would go first?

Who would go last?

Hua Yan, Du Zhongjun, Ao Feng, Zong Jue, Fang Tian, and others pondered to themselves.

The first to challenge would be the guinea pig. But they might also be the first to reach the Nine-layered Heaven, the benefits of which are naturally too numerous to discuss. Yet, the danger for the first person is also the greatest since they would know nothing about the dangers of Qingyun Road.

The last to challenge would benefit from the attempts of others, making the last person much safer, but by being the last to arrive, they might find that all the benefits have already been taken by others.

"Let my people go first," Hua Yan said with a smile.

"No way," Du Zhongjun, Ao Feng, and others said almost simultaneously.

"Your underlings can, but you can’t be the first to challenge," Man Qian said, looking at Hua Yan, with Du Zhongjun and Ao Feng nodding in agreement. Besides the six great experts present, others like True Master Ming Shan and the Upper Realm envoys didn’t care at all.

If people like True Master Ming Shan were to obtain treasures, that would indeed be strange.

"Fine, my subordinates will go first," Hua Yan said with a smile.

Ao Feng nodded and spoke, "In that case, the first round will have one person from each group, but the envoys as well as Zong Jue and Fang Tian absolutely cannot go first. Will that be agreeable?" Ao Feng looked at everyone.

The other three Upper Realm envoys, as well as Fang Tian and Zong Jue, all nodded.

"Brother Ao Feng, please hold on a moment," Qin Yu stepped forward.

"Brother Qin Yu, what is it?" Ao Feng inquired.

With a hint of melancholy on his face, Qin Yu said, "My two brothers, Hou Fei and Hei Yu, have reached the Great Success Stage, and they’re just over a day away from Ascension. With such little time left, I don’t want my two brothers to take any risks, and I’d also like to spend some quality time with them. So, let everyone else go ahead on Qingyun Road, and I’ll go last."

Ao Feng, Du Zhongjun, and others looked at Hou Fei and Hei Yu in surprise, nodding. With their keen eyesight, they could tell that Hou Fei and Hei Yu were about to ascend, having already converted their energy into Demon Essence Power.

"Alright, Brother Qin Yu, you go last and spend some good time with your brothers," Ao Feng said directly, and the other envoys had no objections.

In their view, being the last to challenge wasn’t worth competing over. And since Qin Yu’s cultivation was weak, no one considered him a competitor.

Qin Yu then moved with Hou Fei and Hei Yu to one end of the square.

Meanwhile, Man Qian and the other Six Great Leaders discussed among themselves and finally decided on the order for challenging Qingyun Road. Each of them left a Soul Jade Scroll at White Jade Square, and the ’lucky’ one to get the first chance to challenge Qingyun Road was True Master Ming Shan.

"Ming Shan, if you’re the first to reach the Nine-layered Heaven, or even lucky enough to obtain that treasure, your future will surely be boundless. You must not fail my expectations, nor those of Emperor Yu," Hua Yan instructed.

True Master Ming Shan’s complexion turned somewhat bitter.

Being the first to challenge Qingyun Road was definitely the most dangerous. But did people like True Master Ming Shan have the qualification to resist the arrangements of the Six Great Leaders?

"Senior Hua Yan, rest assured, I will give it my all."

True Master Ming Shan took a deep breath and then walked directly toward Qingyun Road, setting foot on the Green Jade Bridge, that is, Qingyun Road.

Qingyun Road led straight to the Nine-layered Heaven, and it was surrounded by layers of clouds. True Master Ming Shan had only walked for a short while when no one on the field could hear him anymore. At that moment... everyone listened carefully.

"Roar~~"

A low roar came from Qingyun Road, and then—

The Soul Jade Scroll belonging to True Master Ming Shan lying on White Jade Square shattered with a "bang."

"True Master Ming Shan is dead. It’s time for the second person, Brother Du, it’s your man’s turn," Ao Feng said coldly, looking at Du Zhongjun.

At that moment, only one of Du Zhongjun’s people was still alive, namely Wu Hei. Du Zhongjun turned to look at Wu Hei behind him, whose complexion looked rather uneasy; True Master Ming Shan had died way too quickly, so quickly it was alarming.

Qingyun Road was long, but True Master Ming Shan had barely progressed a short distance before dying, and the others had only heard a beast’s roar.

"Wu Hei, you must try your best. If you can stay alive, I will definitely let you practice some special techniques from the Black Demon Demon Path," Du Zhongjun said seriously.

"Yes, Lord Blood Demon," Wu Hei nodded, then gathered his courage and stepped onto Qingyun Road.

(Today, I have the Level 2 computer practical exam. What a disaster.)

(To be continued... For more Chapters, please visit WWW.CMFU.COM. Support the author and support original content!)