Regarding the content of the second level, everyone else had some understanding, but Li Shuang was completely in the dark.
She concentrated her mind, not daring to miss even the slightest change.
On the towering pillar before her, a gilded character now appeared.
"Calamity!"
This was the test for the second stage.
The next moment.
The character "Calamity" dissipated into specks of light.
Another line of text emerged.
"Calamity is not calamity; calamity is the myriad forms of life."
Li Shuang's pupils suddenly constricted.
Calamity is not calamity; calamity is the myriad forms of life?
What did that sentence mean?
She hadn't even had time to react.
The next moment.
This line of text also vanished.
On the towering pillar, thousands of threads suddenly appeared.
These threads extended directly towards everyone.
Li Shuang's heart jumped, and she instinctively tried to dodge.
However.
It was useless!
She couldn't react at all; in an instant, a total of five threads wrapped around her body.
Li Shuang glanced at the others.
Seeing that everyone else was in the same situation as her, and they all looked calm and composed, Li Shuang's heart settled.
It seemed.
These threads were the test for the second stage.
"Sever all calamity lines, or endure for ten days. Fulfill one of these two conditions to reach the third level. For the first three days, you must actively enter the calamity. After three days, the calamity will manifest."
The prompt's voice faded.
On the golden altars, everyone skillfully sat down cross-legged. They closed their eyes, and the threads on their bodies glowed with a strange light.
Li Shuang observed, then also sat down cross-legged with the others.
Now.
She had five threads on her body.
Severing these five threads would allow her to proceed to the third level.
Alternatively, enduring for ten days would also allow her to proceed to the third level.
Currently, the calamity had not yet manifested; they needed to actively enter it.
Li Shuang looked at the five transparent threads on her body. She casually chose one, and her spiritual consciousness entered the thread.
The next moment.
Li Shuang felt a burning heat all around her.
The golden altar beneath her feet had transformed into a vast sea of fire.
Fire could melt ice, and this was the natural attribute Li Shuang disliked the most.
However.
Her ice spirit root was exceptionally powerful; this level of fire attribute wouldn't affect her much.
Li Shuang frowned slightly. This thread, it represented a boundless sea of fire.
She withdrew, then chose another thread.
The next moment.
Vines oozing strange purple liquid suddenly appeared beneath her feet.
Li Shuang withdrew again.
She tried another thread.
The entire golden altar mountain crumbled and cracked, the altar continuously shattering. If she wasn't careful, she would fall.
She tried yet another thread.
She saw a vast ocean, with terrifying cold emanating from its depths.
The last thread.
Li Shuang already had an idea.
Indeed, within the last thread, a rain of swords descended from the sky, with sword qi overwhelming everything.
Li Shuang experienced each of the five threads and fell into contemplation.
Five threads, representing the Five Elements.
Did this stage require understanding the Five Elements to pass quickly?
That seemed too illusory, definitely not something they could achieve.
So.
The method for most people to pass should be to tough it out for ten days?
Currently, the calamity had not yet manifested; they could actively observe and adapt to it.
After three days.
This Five Elements calamity would forcibly manifest on the golden altar.
Only by enduring the calamity could they proceed to the next level.
In Myriad Law City.
Everyone discussed cheerfully.
"Sharp Metal Sword Rain."
"Green Vine Soul Devourer."
"Weak Water Bone Corrosion."
"Heaven-Burning Blazing Flames."
"Earth-Shattering Rock Collapse."
"These are the Five Elements calamities of the second level. Each time, the specific manifestation of the Five Elements calamity is different, but the content of the test is ultimately the same."
"Enduring the sharpness of metal, the intensity of fire, the binding of wood, the chill of water, and the cracking of earth. Experiencing the Five Elements forges the spiritual consciousness."
"This stage will likely eliminate a large portion of the participants."
"According to past experience, fewer than a hundred people usually make it to the third level."
"Even the geniuses on the genius rankings often fail at this stage, let alone others."
"The second stage is the true proving ground. Even the slightest imperfection in one's spiritual consciousness can lead to direct failure."
Yan Fan hid in the crowd, listening to the discussions.
A hint of longing flashed in his eyes.
He didn't even hope to reach the third level.
Being able to visit the second level before he turned a hundred years old would be an immense stroke of luck.
Perhaps because he had bet on Li in this round, Yan Fan's gaze involuntarily fell upon her.
Also possessing an ice spirit root, this genius named Li had progressed much further on this path than Li Shuang.
If he could discern some mystery, perhaps he could offer Li Shuang some guidance.
Under Yan Fan's gaze, Li Shuang had already experienced all five calamities.
However, she hadn't delved deeply into any of them.
If she continued like this.
When the calamity manifested after three days, she might not know how to cope.
She should... make further moves, right?
On the spiritual consciousness golden altar.
Li Shuang observed the Five Elements calamities, and at this moment, a strange light flashed in her eyes.
These Five Elements calamities... they were somewhat subtle.
In her mind.
A prompt sounded at this moment.
"Five Elements Source Crystal. Value points: fifty million."
Li Shuang's eyebrow twitched involuntarily.
Fifty million value points!
This was the first time she had seen such a terrifying number.
Li Shuang quickly glanced at the specific description.
"The Five Elements Source Crystal is a treasure of heaven and earth. It can automatically generate Five Elements insights. After the insights are exhausted, it will go dormant for seven years, and after seven years, it can generate Five Elements insights again."
Li Shuang couldn't help but gasp.
Generating Five Elements insights once every seven years.
Could it be.
This was why the spiritual consciousness golden altar only opened once every seven years?
Li Shuang tried to steady her mind.
The Heaven and Earth Smelting Furnace was incredibly powerful; it had already recorded the details of the Five Elements Source Crystal. Theoretically, as long as Li Shuang could gather fifty million value points, she could create a Five Elements Source Crystal herself.
But...
Fifty million value points?
Even if she sold herself, she couldn't gather that much!
Li Shuang was still in shock.
In her mind.
The text flickered, and the information changed again.
"Five Elements Source Line: A source line of insight generated by the heaven and earth treasure, the Five Elements Source Crystal. Cultivators can obtain Five Elements insights through the source line. If the source line can be severed, corresponding Five Elements crystals can be obtained. The Five Elements crystals reside within the body and can be comprehended at any time."
"These Five Elements Source Lines are primary Five Elements Source Lines."
"Value points: five hundred thousand."
Li Shuang looked at the five threads wrapped around her body.
So...
These five threads were the Five Elements Source Lines.
If she couldn't sever the source lines, then she could only seize every moment during these ten days and try her best to comprehend more.
If she severed the source lines directly, then there would be no need to rush. The insights would form crystals, and she could comprehend them at any time in the future.
Therefore.
This time.
She couldn't passively wait.
She had to sever the source lines as quickly as possible, so as not to miss this great opportunity.