Sky-Reaching Bridge

In front of the cultivation chamber, the ape-man youth respectfully saluted the guardian, Kanderi, before transforming into a streak of light and departing. “You twelve, wait a moment,” Guardian Kanderi said with a smile. “Hmm?” Luo Feng looked at the elder before him with confusion, and the other geniuses were equally puzzled. Kanderi smiled, “This is your first time entering the cultivation chamber, so I’ll remind you… first, find a residence that will serve as your cultivation dwelling for the next 30 years. After that, enter the Virtual Universe and apply to enter the Sky-Reaching Bridge.” “Enter the Sky-Reaching Bridge?” Luo Feng and the others were all confused. “You’ll understand once you enter the Virtual Universe network and access the Sky-Reaching Bridge,” Kanderi said with a faint smile. “You may go now.” Seeing that the guardian didn't wish to elaborate, Luo Feng and the others could only leave. … After exiting the City Lord's Mansion, the twelve of them immediately dispersed to search for their cultivation residences. Chaos City was vast, and apart from a few special buildings, the cultivation residences were almost identical. Most of the residences had pale white doors, indicating they were unoccupied. “Where should I choose for my residence for the next 30 years?” Luo Feng pondered for a moment. “Hmm, I’ll pick a quiet residence near the central area of Chaos City.” The City Lord's Mansion was at the very center of Chaos City, and many of the cultivation residences surrounding it were vacant. Luo Feng quickly chose a relatively secluded one. Standing before the residence door, he placed his hand on it. “Beep, beep, beep…” The door gradually emitted sounds, and its color began to deepen, changing from pale white to dark gray before stabilizing. “Welcome, Master,” an electronic voice announced. “Mm.” Luo Feng entered the cultivation residence directly. The first floor was an enormous living room with incredibly advanced and complete facilities. The electronic voice continued, “I am the service AI. During your stay, I will serve you. Please command me if you need anything, such as food or drink.” “Mm.” Luo Feng swiftly ascended the stairs, moving like a blur, and instantly reached the rooftop on the third floor. The rooftop also had some random insights carved by previous cultivators, but they were disorganized. Although he could vaguely sense some special artistic conceptions, having witnessed the '52 Chaos Tablets,' Luo Feng had little interest in such chaotic and irregular carvings. In the Primal Universe, time was precious and shouldn't be wasted on inefficient matters. “Phew!” “From today onwards, I will truly begin my cultivation journey in this Chaos City!” Luo Feng looked around. In the distance, he could see other cultivators on the rooftops of their residences. These cultivators had diverse appearances; some had incredibly long hair, as if they hadn't moved in many years. “First, enter the Virtual Universe network.” … In the Virtual Universe, at Yuxiang Mountain Taichu District Manor No. 1136. Luo Feng appeared in the manor. “Your Highness!” A group of servants and guards immediately bowed. “Mm.” Luo Feng nodded and said, “Apply to enter the Sky-Reaching Bridge.” “Understood.” Babata, the fist-sized virtual assistant on Luo Feng’s shoulder, immediately contacted the Virtual Universe’s main system to submit the application. Soon, a voice echoed in Luo Feng’s mind: “Identity confirmed. Luo Feng, you have permanently qualified to enter the Sky-Reaching Bridge. We hope you strive to reach the end of the Sky-Reaching Bridge. Now, teleporting!” Swish! Luo Feng vanished from the manor. … In the Virtual Universe, a special dimensional plane. This dimensional plane was an endless ocean, with surging waves. On this ocean lay a single beautiful island. The edge of this beautiful island had 52 ports, and from each port extended an endless long bridge, stretching towards the horizon… as if to connect with the distant sky. These 52 long bridges completely covered the entire ocean. Above the ocean waves, a faint mist lingered, obscuring what lay beneath the surface. The mist entwined around the long bridges, creating a dreamlike, illusory scene. Luo Feng suddenly appeared in the central plaza of the island. “Luo Feng.” “Luo Feng, you’re here too.” There were already nine young people around. Luo Feng recognized them; they were all from the same group who had come to comprehend the Jiuyu Chaos Tablet with him. “Do you know what this place is?” Luo Feng asked curiously. “You should ask the Guardian,” the nine replied, pointing to a man in a black starry robe standing nearby in the plaza. The man, who had four ears but no nose, walked over with a smile. “Hello, Luo Feng. I am Bafen, the Guardian of the Sky-Reaching Bridge plane, but I prefer to be called Guardian.” “Hello, Guardian,” Luo Feng respectfully saluted. “Let me introduce you,” Guardian Bafen said with a nod. “This Sky-Reaching Bridge plane was created for the 52 Chaos Tablets in Chaos City.” “Because our cosmic human race has, over billions of years, comprehended the 52 Chaos Tablets, 52 different schools of thought have formed within Chaos City,” Guardian Bafen explained with emotion. “For example, all of you comprehended the Jiuyu Chaos Tablet, so you naturally belong to the ‘Jiuyu’ school. While everyone comprehends the Chaos Tablets, the depth of understanding varies. Only those with superior comprehension will be granted another opportunity to comprehend a Chaos Tablet.” Luo Feng’s eyes lit up. Another opportunity to comprehend? After experiencing the comprehension of the Jiuyu Chaos Tablet, he had gained clear direction for much of his future cultivation. The exhilaration of such progress was truly captivating. How wonderful it would be to comprehend it again. “How do we prove the depth of our understanding? It’s not by words alone,” Guardian Bafen said with a smile. “That’s why the Sky-Reaching Bridge plane was built in the Virtual Universe. The further you advance on the Sky-Reaching Bridge, the stronger your understanding!” “This island has 52 Sky-Reaching Bridges, each corresponding to one of the 52 Chaos Tablets. Since you comprehended the Jiuyu Chaos Tablet, you will challenge the ‘Jiuyu Sky-Reaching Bridge.’ This ‘Jiuyu Sky-Reaching Bridge’ is incredibly long, with layer after layer that you must continuously advance through, totaling 27 layers!” “If you successfully pass the first layer, you gain one comprehension opportunity. For every additional layer you pass, you gain another comprehension opportunity!” Guardian Bafen looked at Luo Feng with a smile. “Oh,” Luo Feng suddenly understood. Right. He had encountered that ape-man youth in front of the cultivation chamber earlier, and the youth had said, “Hmm, I successfully passed the sixth layer of the assessment, gaining another seven days of comprehension time.” Clearly, passing each layer granted an additional comprehension opportunity. “However, the Sky-Reaching Bridge is very difficult to pass,” Guardian Bafen sighed. “Youngsters like you usually can’t even pass the first layer when you first start.” Luo Feng was startled. “The Jiuyu Sky-Reaching Bridge has 27 layers! The further you go, the deeper your comprehension of the Jiuyu Chaos Tablet. If you fully comprehend the Jiuyu Chaos Tablet, you can pass all 27 layers, but… that is incredibly difficult.” “Immortals generally reach the 10th layer,” Guardian Bafen lamented. “If one reaches the 18th layer, they are considered almost invincible among Immortals. Reaching the 21st layer… allows one to become a ‘Universe Nation Master’.” “What?” Luo Feng was shocked. Reaching the 21st layer meant becoming a Universe Nation Master! Becoming a Universe Nation Master was incredibly difficult, which highlighted how challenging it was to reach the 21st layer. And becoming an Immortal was also very difficult… so reaching the 10th layer was already remarkable. As for the highest ‘27th layer,’ that was only possible by fully comprehending the entire Jiuyu Chaos Tablet, which was too distant a goal. “Strive hard!” Guardian Bafen smiled. “This is a grand path to the pinnacle. Many, many cosmic humans follow these 52 schools of thought, and once you can pass the 18th layer, you will directly obtain permanent residency in Chaos City, without any other additional conditions!” “Oh?” Luo Feng’s eyes brightened. Permanent resident of Chaos City? But passing the 18th layer was too difficult. “The previous challenger failed,” Guardian Bafen said, looking at Luo Feng and the others. “Next, challenge the Jiuyu Sky-Reaching Bridge.” “I’ll go.” One of the nine who had arrived earlier immediately transformed into a streak of light and flew towards the ‘Jiuyu Sky-Reaching Bridge’ among the 52 bridges. Just two minutes later, Guardian Bafen said, “Still a failure. Next.” “Another failure. Next.” “Failure. Next.” … “They all failed. Only Luo Feng is left.” This batch of newcomers challenging the Jiuyu Sky-Reaching Bridge totaled 12 people. Two had challenged before Luo Feng arrived, and now, out of the 12, 11 had failed consecutively, leaving only Luo Feng. This greatly increased the pressure on Luo Feng: “Indeed, the Sky-Reaching Bridge is difficult. These are all geniuses, and three of them are from the Tiandi District, yet not a single one could pass the first layer.” “Luo Feng, do your best,” Guardian Bafen said, smiling at Luo Feng. “Among your batch, including the nearly 900 people tested before, almost ninety percent have been tested.” “Out of so many people, besides Bolan, not a single one has passed the first layer.” “What?” Luo Feng was astonished. Many others had gone to comprehend in the cultivation chamber from the start. Luo Feng had waited a day on the city wall, so it was normal for nearly 900 young geniuses from their batch to have undergone the Sky-Reaching Bridge test by now. “Bolan is very strong. He continuously passed the first and second layers in one go, gaining two additional comprehension opportunities,” Guardian Bafen marveled. “As for the others, even Longyun, another genius from the Primal Secret Region, failed to pass the first layer. Not a single one of them passed the first layer.” Pressure. Luo Feng felt the pressure. Top geniuses like Bolan, Longyun, and Jialaixi from this batch had already been tested. Based on the time they entered the cultivation chamber, when Luo Feng entered, Rongjun and Wuka, the Manka Star youth who chose the Giant Axe Chaos Tablet, had not yet entered. So, among the top geniuses from the Taichu District, only Luo Feng, Rongjun, and Wuka had yet to be tested. “Go and challenge it!” Guardian Bafen looked at Luo Feng with anticipation. Swish! Luo Feng transformed into a blur and flew directly towards a Sky-Reaching Bridge extending to the horizon in the distance. From afar, he could see a stone tablet at the bridge’s entrance, bearing the characters ‘Jiuyu’.