Boom!

Under Xu Yang’s rejection with his true will, the Heaven-Locking intent within his spiritual intent twisted and struggled violently, unwilling to retreat!

Spiritual intent—truly the convergence of a martial artist’s own will and the meaning of their divine techniques!

It seems that the intent of divine techniques is the foundation, but without the true will, there is no way such intent could ever manifest!

At the level of the Spirit Path, the intent of divine techniques is paramount!

From True Monarch, to Divine Firmament, and on to Heaven’s Man, it is endless metamorphosis of spiritual intent, ascending to supreme power, shaking the eight directions!

But at this moment, Xu Yang’s purpose was to transmute this spiritual intent into pure self-will, driving out all traces of divine technique within.

From a Spirit Path perspective, this was near impossible—an unreachable dream.

Unless one shatters intent and rebuilds!

But that would cause immense damage and be nearly impossible to recover from.

Yet Xu Yang still made the decision without hesitation.

Arriving at this crossroads, if he didn’t try, there would be no way to pass the trial—elimination inevitable!

Boom! Boom!

Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh!!

Spiritual intent raged madly, Heaven-Locking Divine Chains thrashing unceasingly.

Xu Yang’s mind was struck as if by ten thousand blades—painful beyond words, on the verge of shattering.

He bit down and endured, throwing caution to the wind!

Crack-boom!

One Heaven-Locking intent was expelled, but then suddenly rushed back in.

"Break!"

Xu Yang went ferocious, and directly shattered it!

So what if he had to rebuild afterward!

He’d done it—regret was no longer an option, even if it was a mistake.

Crack!

The Divine Chain shattered.

Xu Yang’s mind twisted in agony, but he forced it calm and continued desperately expelling the Heaven-Locking intent.

Outside—in the midst of deep contemplation, Xue Ming and Shi Hu were suddenly startled awake by the violent disturbance, looking at Xu Yang with alarm.

At this moment, Xu Yang’s form was convulsing, his face twisted, as if enduring unimaginable torment—sending chills down their spines.

Worse, the aura around him was as if scorched by raging flames, battered by thunderbolts, surging madly.

"What is he doing?"

"Hiss... such a huge commotion, this..."

Even Shi Hu couldn’t imagine what exactly Xu Yang was doing to cause such chaos.

It was as if he was suffering calamity itself.

Xue Ming, seasoned and shrewd, pupils contracting, murmured: "All of it is waves of willpower—could it be he’s found a way?"

"So quick?"

Shi Hu’s eyes nearly bulged out, disbelief all over his face.

How long has it even been?

Not only did he think of a method, but immediately tried it?

But judging by Xu Yang’s reaction, this didn’t look smooth at all.

If he fails...

For a moment, Shi Hu was grippingly tense.

Xu Yang remained oblivious to the shock he’d caused Xue Ming and Shi Hu, and simply kept expelling the Divine Chains.

Chain after chain, once expelled, it was immediately shattered.

Amid this agony, he remained utterly calm.

Moreover, he thought of a crucial key.

Spiritual intent, though made manifest!

But at root, it takes form from the formless, able to alternate between the tangible and intangible!

Leaving behind the Spirit Path—faced with the unknown Immortal Path, if I am strong enough, do I even need to care about form or formlessness?

It takes nothing but a single thought!

Heaven Locking by a single thought!

Only the birth of intent!

Heaven-Locking intent, Heaven-Locking Divine Chain—destruction is rebirth!

At this, Xu Yang’s mind instantly cleared!

He felt he had chosen the right path.

Otherwise, how could there be this feeling of unobstructed clarity?

As time passed, Xu Yang’s aura gradually weakened, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

His spiritual intent was crumbling even faster, becoming thin and illusory!

Xu Yang didn’t care in the slightest!

Then—

When he expelled the very last trace of spiritual chain intent—

Xu Yang’s mind shuddered, as if he was cast into a primal, clear-chaos realm!

He even lost all sense of his physical body.

What comes next?

He felt dazed for a moment, then snapped suddenly clear.

"The Ascension Bridge!"

"What...what about the Ascension Bridge..."

Xu Yang’s thoughts surged, a glimmer of understanding rising within.

What is the Ascension Bridge?

The Immortal Path—profound and mysterious!

I have never seen it, and have no concept of it!

Form is born of the mind!

"Ascension Bridge—show yourself!"

Xu Yang unleashed every last bit of this pure spiritual intent, setting it ablaze.

Still not enough—the Minghuo surged in, his willstorm flooding forth.

In an instant—

Primordial chaos shattered.

A speck of immortal radiance exploded above the clouds, dazzling and brilliant!

Whoosh!

A radiant bridge materialized out of nothing, stretching toward the immortal light at a rate visible to the naked eye.

But at midway, it suddenly faltered and lost all strength!

"Damn it!"

Xu Yang’s face changed dramatically.

He hadn’t made a mistake!

The Ascension Bridge—immortal; peeking into the Immortal Dao!

But now—he had no more follow-through!

"Impossible!"

Even those Immortal Soldiers, mightier than me, advanced step by step—all of them managed to ascend the bridge, step into the Immortal Dao—there must be a profound mystery!

The mystery... Xu Yang suddenly realized: everything he’d visualized, aside from his own will, nothing remained to drive it forward.

"Looks like—I haven’t burned enough!"

"To step from Spirit to Immortal, I must shed everything of the Spirit Path!"

Xu Yang made up his mind, hesitating not at all.

Boom!

In the Sea of Consciousness, the Minghuo erupted into full blaze, boiling up like a volcano spewing lava.

His will burned, heedless, wildly extreme!

If outsiders saw this—it was suicide, pure and simple!

Willpower is the soul itself!

Once it burns out, certain death awaits!

As the flame devoured him, Xu Yang felt his mind grow light and ethereal, as if about to ascend to the heavens.

This seemed to be the omen of consciousness collapsing!

But at the same time, he felt a tremendous force, supporting the Ascension Bridge in its wild stretch.

Outside, Xue Ming sensed all of this, face changing in alarm, unable to stay seated.

"Has he gone mad?"

"Burning his will, all or nothing...that’s just suicide!"

"Could...could this be the way to ascend the Bridge?"

Xue Ming’s mind reeled, refusing to believe it.

This was too insane!

No one would dare gamble their life on it!

For once your will burns out—there’s only death, no escape!

No chance of survival!

"What? Burning his will?" Shi Hu felt like he’d been struck by lightning, his body swaying.

"Xu Yang wouldn’t act recklessly!"

"He looks crazy, but he’s always careful!"

Shi Hu tried to comfort himself—maybe, truly, there was another secret.

But until the final moment, words are empty air.

Even if Heaven’s Men showed up, no one could guarantee the outcome!

Xu Yang’s consciousness grew steadily hazy, losing all concept of time, all sense of space.

The Ascension Bridge kept stretching forward, while his mind grew fuzzy and blurred.

Even his thoughts were sluggish, and all that remained was the obsessive compulsion to advance.

From start to finish, he never once hesitated.

That immortal radiance grew closer and closer, more and more dazzling!

Within it, a towering portal could vaguely be seen.

Peerless, vast, sacred, majestic, ancient!

Whoosh!

At the limits of exhaustion, Xu Yang burned away every last shred of will.

He was a blazing, shining sun—dazzling and fierce—and at the instant the bridge connected with immortal light, he passed from one end to the other in a single bound.

At last, he saw clearly the portal within the immortal radiance.

It was a gate towering to the utmost, its immortal might so holy and fearsome no one could bear to stare at it directly!

Before it, even if the vast spiritual river were moved here, it would be but an ant—unworthy even to compare to a single wisp of the immortal light it leaked!

Within that gate—the supreme Immortal Dao!

Climb the Ascension Bridge, glimpse the Immortal Portal!

This path—life must first die to live again!

Xu Yang’s final shred of consciousness, lighter than words can describe, drifted into the Immortal Gate without pause.

Whoosh!

Immortal light engulfed all.

His consciousness plunged instantly into infinite darkness!