"I wonder how many merit points and what kind of reward will I get if I pass this Heaven Stage..."
"What the first stage, Heaven Stage, tests is... one’s comprehension of the void!"
While Ning Fan was pondering, the illusory realm around him slowly turned real and the noise of a bustling city went into his ears.
He was standing in a small city surrounded by an ocean of bamboo. The smell of liquor filled every nook and cranny of the city.
The men in the city wore high hats and broad girdles. Their attire was similar to what the ancient scholars would wear. Each of them smelled of wine and were staggering drunkenly, walking in a muddled state on the streets.
As for the ladies, they were all dressed up gorgeously with heavy makeup on. The smell of the cosmetic powder they wore was slightly irritating to the nose.
The air was permeated with a thick liquor smell. The longer Ning Fan stayed here, the more of it he would inhale. The smell would then slowly make him lose his consciousness.
Fortunately, he had already understood the true meaning of liquor. Even if one’s body is heavily intoxicated, as long as their hearts are not drunk, they will never be intoxicated.
He released his magic power to protect his heart and his eyes gradually turned bright and clear.
He then raised his head to gaze at the sky, looking as if he was deep in thought. The sun, the moon and the stars were coexisting in the sky, making it difficult for one to discern whether it was day or night... Thus, it looked quite bizarre...
Ning Fan walked across the streets of the bamboo city. All the men and women he saw along his way were in a drunken stupor.
Accompanied by the music produced by a reed-pipe, he walked past each of the liquor stores, houses of courtesans and the riverbanks that were full of colorful pleasure boats.
Everyone was indulging in pleasure and none were conscious.
"What is the meaning of this stage?"
While slowly walking alone, Ning Fan was deep in thought. All of a sudden, he stopped by a liquor store outside the bamboo forest.
All the customers in the store were in a drunken state. Even the shopkeeper was intoxicated. Only a young man in black robes was drinking liquor all alone with a cold expression. He did not show any sign of being drunk.
He was not particularly handsome. His appearance was rather common. He wore a faint silver earring on his right ear. His presence gave off an inexplicable disposition that was as unfathomable as flowing clouds.
This man did not reveal the slightest hint of magic power. He seemed just like a mortal. However, when Ning Fan approached the liquor store, he gently raised his head and casually glanced at Ning Fan. With just a single look, he seemed to have seen through all of his secrets!
"Another person who has come to face the test, huh..."
The man in black robes held up his liquor jug and took a swig of it. Then, he muttered to himself without looking at Ning Fan.
"The universe is a temporary inn for all living creatures while time is a passing traveler of endless generations. Life is but a fleeting dream, how brief would your happiness be? Indeed, it was with good reason that the ancients took evening strolls with lanterns. It should be indeed more so with us now that the sunny spring invites me with misty scenery while the great earth provides me with such a beautiful picture. Here we gather in the beautiful garden of peach and plum and enjoy fraternal love. All my younger brothers are men of culture and elegance like Hui Lian3. But when I recite poems, I myself feel ashamed to be compared with Kang Le4. Before silent appreciation comes to an end, our lofty chat turns to pure talk. The banquet is served amid flowers and the flight of the winged goblet makes us drunk under the moon. Without fine poems, how can our refined taste be satisfied? If anyone fails to produce a poem, make him drink several cups of wine as punishment..."
Ning Fan’s eyes scanned past the man in black robes and could only feel that he was mysterious and unfathomable.
Perhaps this man is the key to passing the first stage...
While Ning Fan was thinking, the man in black robes suddenly raised his head and stared at Ning Fan with a cold smirk.
"What is void?!"
Out of the blue, a wave of overwhelming rain force surrounded the entire illusory realm! Heavy rain began pouring down from outside the liquor store!
The rain force also pressed against Ning Fan’s body. Ning Fan had never been afraid of a cultivator’s aura force. However, when he was suppressed by this man’s aura force, he actually felt like he was as insignificant as an ant that was being pressed down by a mountain!
"Who is he?!" Ning Fan was inwardly surprised.
...
In the Temple of Rain, Revered Sage’s expression gradually recovered and he passed a message to Rain Sovereign using telepathy.
"That Chu Chang is still sensible as he has already taken away the blood-red handkerchief. Now, I can continue observing the Heaven Stage."
"Humph! It’s good that he still knows his limits!" The Rain Sovereign was sneering inwardly but his expression did not reveal the slightest trace of emotion.
Within the temple, many old monsters were whispering among themselves.
"The first stage is the Heaven Stage and it tests a cultivator on their comprehension of the void... In order to pass the stage, one will at least need to have Void Pierce Stage comprehension... White-Robed Marquis’ cultivation base is only at the Void Inquiry Stage. I’m afraid he won’t be able to find the ’void exit’ and it’ll be difficult for him to get through this stage."
"However, even if he fails at this stage, the benefits he will obtain aren’t small either. There is the shadow of that man staying in this stage... If he can find him and have a conversation with him, it can also be considered as a great opportunity..."
"Stop joking. Even when Void Pierce Stage old monsters enter the illusory realm, most of them will be too affected by the liquor qi which would cause them to lose their consciousness and eventually fail. There might be some old monsters at the Void Pierce Stage and Absolute Void Stage who successfully got through this stage but all of them barely managed to discover the void exit in that illusory realm right before they were completely intoxicated and escaped that place... Who will have time to look for that person?"
"Besides, so what if White-Robed Marquis can locate that person? Ordinary people can’t endure that person’s rain intent at all! An Absolute Void Stage expert who had already converted his unital magic power to yuan once wanted to try this stage. After expending a great amount of effort to look for that person in the illusory realm, he finally found him. However, he was directly sent out of the illusory realm by that person’s rain intent and consequently failed the test..."
"*Sigh* I wonder if White-Robed Marquis can get through this stage..."
Translated by Tommy, edited by Roel
1. Shen (Chinese: 蜃 Pinyin: shèn)
According wikitionary, shen, in mythology, refers to a shapeshifting aquatic monster that is originally imagined as a clam and later as a type of dragon.
2. Heavenly Demon (Chinese: 天妖) is previously as Immortal Demon. However, it has been changed to sound more accurate.
3. Hui Lian (Chinese: 惠连) is a poet during the Southern Song Dynasty. His original name is Xie Hui Lian (Chinese: 谢惠连)
4. Kang Le (Chinese: 康乐), also known as Xie Kang Le (Chinese: 谢康乐) refers to Xie Ling Yun (Chinese: 謝靈運). He was also known as the Duke of Kangle (康樂公). He was one of the foremost Chinese poets of the Southern and Northern Dynasties and a famous practitioner of the Six Dynasties poetry.