Chapter 1461: Vast Expanse Shrine! 1

　　By now, virtually all of the disciples in the Ninth Sect were looking at the man standing at the very top of the mountain, in front of the Vast Expanse Shrine.

　　He looked like a celestial spirit standing there, robe fluttering in the wind, a warm smile on his face. It was a simple, warm smile, nothing more, and when he looked away from Yan’er, his gaze came to rest… on the Vast Expanse Shrine.

　　Although it was called a shrine, it was actually a huge tower with a total of ten levels.

　　In all of the Ninth Sect, only the disciples who reached this point on the mountain could qualify to be listed in the top 100 of the Vast Expanse Shrine.

　　Each one of those hundred cultivators were thoroughly famous within their sects. In fact, they were also well known among people in the other sects as well.

　　After all… in the Vast Expanse School, there were a total of nine Vast Expanse Shrines. In some ways, it could be said that those who made it into the top 100 on one of those nine shrines were actually within the top 1,000 of the entire Vast Expanse School.

　　In a sect with such a vast number of disciples, to be within the top 1,000… made truly Chosen!

　　Therefore, when Fang Mu’s name appeared among the top 100, the entire Ninth Sect was shaken. Countless individuals were paying close attention, and many had eyes shining with envy and passion. Chosen, as long as they didn’t perish at some point, were destined to become pillars of the Vast Expanse School. Not only were they incredibly important to the sect, they were the type of figure others didn’t dare to provoke.

　　As for Meng Hao, he had done something visibly different from the average Chosen. He had established a legend, having reached the top 100 in such a short time. Countless individuals within the sect were very curious about how far he would actually go in the end.

　　The area around the mountain was completely silent. No one cried out. All eyes were fixed on Meng Hao as he flicked his sleeve, turned, and strode toward the main door of the tower that was the Vast Expanse Shrine. When he reached it, he stretched out his hand and pushed.

　　Rumbling sounds echoed out as the door opened. Without the slightest hesitation, Meng Hao stepped into the first level of the Vast Expanse Shrine.

　　The Vast Expanse Shrine. It was a huge tower with ten levels, each one of which represented ten names. The amount of time spent within each of those levels would determine one’s ranking on the list.

　　In almost the same moment that he stepped into the first level, brilliant light glittered, and he looked out to see a world stretching out in front of him. The sky was crimson, and the land was actually a sea of flames.

　　An intense pressure crushed down onto him, something so powerful that it seemed capable of crushing anything and everything. However, Meng Hao didn’t seem to be affected very much at all. Although his divine sense and his soul felt incredible pressure, and he trembled, when he looked up at the crimson sky, his eyes shone with a bright light.

　　“It seems the first level of the Vast Expanse Shrine tests a person’s willpower and tenacity. There is no pressure on the body, only the soul.” Even as he stood there thoughtfully, the pressure suddenly exploded in intensity. Massive rumbling sounds echoed out, as the mounting pressure tried to force Meng Hao to submit.

　　He smiled. In terms of cultivation base, this clone of his couldn’t be considered spectacular, but in terms of willpower… in all of Planet Vast Expanse, it would be easier to find a phoenix feather or a qilin horn than to find someone who could match Meng Hao’s tenacious willpower.

　　His willpower had been forged within the Mountain and Sea Realm, and then had grown to new heights because of its destruction. He had experienced a complete transformation when defending the Mountains and Seas against the Immortal God Continent and the Devil Realm. After all of his countless years of cultivation and other experiences, he had made shocking progress.

　　If he hadn’t developed an incredible willpower throughout his life, he would long since have been destroyed. Now, standing here in the first level of this tower, even if the pressure were increased by a hundredfold, it wouldn’t be anything more than a gentle breeze to him.

　　At the most, it might stir his hair, or cause his mind to shiver a bit.

　　Amidst the rumbling, the pressure intensified, and something like an enraged roar echoed out in all directions.

　　“Kneel!!” the voice roared. Power slammed onto Meng Hao, but his only reaction was to smile derisively. Disdain flickered in his eyes, and Immortal qi erupted out of him as he took a step forward and waved his sleeve.

　　“You’ll be kneeling to me!” he growled. His willpower exploded out, the combination of everything from his third and fourth lives creating a Heaven-defying pressure that erupted out, causing the first level to shake.

　　Wild colors flashed, the wind screamed, and rumbling echoed out in all directions. In the short time it took Meng Hao to wave his sleeve, everything trembled so violently that the pressure was incapable of fighting back against his willpower and divine sense, and began to retreat.

　　Meng Hao took another step forward, and then another. Without pausing, he walked forward, his mental faculties growing stronger. Simultaneously, the pressure in the area grew weaker. By the time he took a ninth step, the situation was completely reversed, and instead of the pressure crushing down onto Meng Hao, he was crushing it!

　　This was the first time anything like this had ever occurred in the first level of the Ninth Sect’s Vast Expanse Shrine. In the past, people had to endure for a set period of time to be able to pass into the next level.

　　But today… something entirely different was happening!!

　　It was a dazzling scene as Meng Hao’s willpower and tenacity filled the entire level, crushing the pressure and forcing it to submit to him.

　　In the end, he was like the lord of the entire level. His footfall could flatten Heaven and Earth, and finally, the pressure completely vanished!

　　The illusory world around him collapsed, and the entrance to the second level appeared in front of him.

　　Meanwhile, on the stone stele outside the mountain, the name Fang Mu rose up to 90th place, passing Bi Yun, much to the astonishment of people in the audience.

　　“Too… too fast!!” Bi Yun blurted in disbelief. He wasn’t the only person to react in such a way. Many other disciples in the top 100 had expressions of astonishment on their faces.

　　They knew how terrifying the first level was, which only served to increase their shock.

　　The disciples who had challenged the Vast Expanse Shrine in the past were already starting to speculate about what was happening. “There’s only one way he could do it so fast!” someone said. “He’s–”

　　Before the sentence could be completed, radiant light began to emanate from the first level.

　　“First Heaven! The First Heaven is appearing!!”

　　“I know that light! According to the stories, anyone who can create a legend in the Vast Expanse Shrine will cause the First Heaven to appear!!” The dazzling light which spread out seemed to replace the Heavens themselves, causing cries of shock to rise up from the cultivators outside of the mountain.

　　Even in ancient times, there was a legend related to the Vast Expanse Shrine. In any particular level, if a person could do something completely unheard-of, and reach the absolute pinnacle of a given level, then a radiant light would appear which represented… the light of Heaven!

　　Depending on the level involved, there were the First through the Tenth Heavens!

　　From ancient times until the present, it was uncommon for the First Heaven to appear. As for people who reached the Second Heaven, they were very rare, and when it came to the Third Heaven, there had only been nine people throughout the history of the Ninth Sect who had succeeded.

　　As for the Fourth Heaven… only two people had ever succeeded, and the Fifth Heaven… remained unseen throughout the entire long history of the Ninth Sect!

　　Now that the First Heaven had appeared, everyone in the Ninth Sect was boiling with excitement.

　　There were Dao Realm experts who appeared to bear witness; elders of the Ninth Sect, and Dao Lords showed their faces.

　　There were even Dao Sovereigns who flew over to the Vast Expanse Shrine.

　　Meng Hao stood there for a moment on the first level of the Vast Expanse Shrine, then stepped forward into the second level.

　　In that instant, he entered yet another new world, within which existed nothing more than a huge spell formation.

　　“Light up the spell formation,” a voice said. “Anyone who finishes within the time it takes an incense stick to burn will rise to the third level.”

　　Meng Hao sat down cross-legged, a thoughtful expression on his face. Almost as soon as he did, his cultivation base began to rotate rapidly, and his divine sense exploded out. His arteries and veins began to shine with crystalline light.

　　This level tested latent talent; lighting up the spell formation quickly required incredible latent talent. As for Meng Hao’s latent talent… that came from how his true self had re-moulded his body with the bronze lamp. It wasn’t even necessary to talk about how good or bad his latent talent was. This was the Vast Expanse School, and as far as Meng Hao could tell, his bronze lamp originally belonged to Patriarch Vast Expanse.

　　In other words, after being re-moulded by the bronze lamp, the latent talent of the clone he had subsequently created would be little different than that of Patriarch Vast Expanse himself.

　　Using Patriarch Vast Expanse’s latent talent to complete a trial by fire in the Vast Expanse School was essentially… like cheating!

　　Almost in the same moment that Meng Hao sat down, the spell formation lit up with bright light, and began to rumble.

　　From the time the Vast Expanse Shrine had been created until this time, nothing like this had ever happened. The spell formation was shining with incredible brightness!

　　Rumbling echoed out as the crowd outside saw brilliant dazzling light shining out from the second level. It was none other than… the Second Heaven!

　　It combined with the light from the First Heaven, creating a completely shocking spectacle.

　　“The Second Heaven! I can’t believe… the Second Heaven has actually appeared!”

　　“No, no way! It happened too fast. How could he possibly have lit up the entire spell formation on the second level so quickly!?”

　　“What… what kind of latent talent does he have? How is this happening? Even if he has Superlative latent talent, he shouldn’t be able to go that fast. It’s like… he’s cheating or something!” The group gathered near the mountain peak, all of whom were in the top 100, were in a complete uproar. As their voices rang out, more and more disciples were thrown into a commotion.

　　The Dao Realm experts and the sect Elders, even the Dao Sovereign, were all completely and utterly shocked.

　　1. Yes, this is the exact same chapter title as 1457