「One minute later.」

Wang Xiao smoothly completed the entire course. He passed in what felt like an instant.

Inside this Dream Corridor, he had indeed fallen into all sorts of dreams of debauchery, fame, desire, beautiful women, wealth, and terrifying hells.

Unfortunately for the trial, he had traveled through three different worlds, reaching the absolute pinnacle in each one.

His mental state had long been tempered to a state of flawless clarity.

The desires, fears, wealth, and beauties within these dreams could no longer shake his Heart Spirit in the slightest.

’So long as the heart yearns, nothing is out of reach!’

How could mere Illusion Realms possibly block Wang Xiao’s path?

Watching Wang Xiao step into the Bronze Gate and disappear without a trace, the group of prodigies were left dumbfounded. It took them a long while to snap out of it.

"Damn, that guy’s cheating! One minute! It only took him one minute to pass!"

"Does this guy even have a heart? These scenes were so realistic, yet they didn’t affect him at all."

"No, no, I have to try again! I refuse to believe I’m any worse than him!"

As if spurred on, the group began their attempts again.

「Meanwhile.」

Wang Xiao passed through the Bronze Gate and arrived directly at the fourth trial.

This place seemed to be another isolated room. The walls on both sides were covered with all sorts of brightly colored opera masks.

Just then, Gu Tiandu’s figure appeared once more.

"Congratulations on passing the third trial. The reward will now be distributed!"

A small black box appeared before Wang Xiao.

He opened the black box and saw another Glazed Sacred Heart Pill!

’It seems the highest grade is Saint Level Ninth Grade. Divine Level resources aren’t something that even a Tier Nine Life can just pull out of thin air,’ Wang Xiao thought to himself.

Just then, Gu Tiandu’s voice rang out.

"The fourth trial will now begin. This trial is called ’A Thousand Faces for a Thousand People.’ In a moment, a piece of opera will play. You must select the mask in this room that best matches the opera. You have only three chances. If you choose incorrectly three times, you will be eliminated immediately!"

As his voice fell, the melodious and gentle sound of a woman singing filled the room.

"A young nun, sixteen years of age, in the prime of her youth, had her hair shorn by her master... I was born a fair maiden, not a strapping man..."

Wang Xiao gazed at the opera masks on both walls, his eyes shimmering slightly.

He didn’t understand opera, so naturally, he didn’t know the meaning expressed in the song.

However, this trial naturally wasn’t a test of his ability to appreciate opera; it was likely also related to one’s Spirit.

Thinking of this, Wang Xiao couldn’t help but unleash his Divine Thought, enveloping all of the opera masks within it.

In an instant, a cacophony as piercing as a tidal wave rushed into his mind, making his Spirit daze for a moment.

This jumble of noises was so intertwined that he couldn’t make out what any of it was saying.

’So that’s how it is. Each mask is also emitting the sound of an opera. I just need to find the mask that matches the opera being played.’

’This trial actually has a minimum tier requirement. One must at least reach the Third Layer Spiritual Domain of a Tier Five Life and generate Divine Thought to be able to perceive these sounds.’

Wang Xiao didn’t rush to make a choice. Instead, he took out the Glazed Sacred Heart Pill and began to refine it again.

Although the effect wouldn’t be as significant the second time, every little bit of improvement counted right now.

「A moment later.」

Wang Xiao let out a breath of relief.

As expected, this time, it only saved him less than ten years of arduous cultivation.

However, this also meant that his Inner World and Great Daoist Nascent Soul were growing stronger and stronger.

Without thinking further, Wang Xiao once again spread his Divine Thought, enveloping the opera masks and carefully sensing them.

One by one, he filtered out the various dissonant sounds.

After a good while, Wang Xiao’s gaze fell upon one of the opera masks. He raised his hand and snatched it.

’This is the one!’

Through constant analysis and elimination, he had just determined that the sound coming from this red-and-white mask, painted with an exquisite headdress, was a perfect match for the opera’s melody!

The moment the opera mask was in his hand, Gu Tiandu’s voice sounded.

"Incorrect choice. Two chances remaining..."

In an instant, the opera mask flew back to the wall.

Then, the walls began to rotate, shuffling the positions of the opera masks.

At the same time, the opera changed to a different tune.

’Wrong?!’

Wang Xiao’s brow furrowed slightly.

He was certain he couldn’t have made a mistake just now.

Something must be wrong somewhere!

Wang Xiao swept his Divine Thought out again, sensing everything carefully once more.

Another long while passed.

He finally identified the opera mask that matched the music!

Amidst the cacophony woven from a thousand opera masks, the tone of this particular mask was completely identical to the opera’s.

’If this is wrong again, it means my approach is flawed.’

Wang Xiao reached out and took down the opera mask.

In an instant, Gu Tiandu’s voice was heard.

"Incorrect choice. Be warned, only one final chance remains. One more mistake, and you will be eliminated immediately!"

The opera mask flew back to the wall and was shuffled once again.

The opera music also changed.

Wang Xiao stood in place, his brows knitting together.

’It seems my approach really was flawed... ’A Thousand Faces for a Thousand People’—what is this trial really testing?’

Listening to the cacophony in his ears, Wang Xiao’s Divine Thought continuously sifted through the opera masks, eliminating them one by one.

In the end, only one mask remained.

However, he knew that this mask was definitely wrong too.

His previous two choices had already proven that.

’Only this one mask is left. Could it be that there are other masks in the room?’

Wang Xiao immersed his Heart Spirit, scanning back and forth among the masks.

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck him, and his eyes lit up.

’No, there’s one more mask in this room that I hadn’t considered before—myself. My own face is also a mask. ’A Thousand Faces for a Thousand People’... the most important part is the person, not the mask!’

’I just need to merge my own Divine Thought into the mix, turn it into a mask, and resonate with the same frequency as the opera. That will work because my mask is the one that’s eternal and unchanging. It can’t possibly be wrong!’

As his thoughts raced, Wang Xiao immediately channeled his Divine Thought, merging it with the thousand-fold cacophony until it gradually overlapped with the opera’s melody.

His Divine Thought seemed to transform into a mask itself, merging with the one that shared the same tune as the opera.

Just then, that very mask flew off the wall and landed in Wang Xiao’s hand.

RUMBLE—

In an instant, a Bronze Gate appeared before him, signifying that he had successfully passed the trial.

’I knew it.’

Wang Xiao let out a sigh of relief.

This trial was extremely simple if you could figure it out, but if you couldn’t, you’d get stuck, overthinking it to no end.

It seemed this was more of a test of one’s comprehension!

Without hesitation, Wang Xiao stepped directly into the Bronze Gate.

The light and shadows around him changed once again.

Wang Xiao looked around and found himself in a stone grotto.

The surrounding area was covered with murals similar to those in the Mogao Grottoes!

They seemed to depict portraits of Saints from before the Great Cosmic Era.

At this moment, three figures were sitting cross-legged inside the grotto, seemingly lost in a state of deep Meditation.

’These must be the other prodigies who were sent in. The fact that they’ve made it this far means they are all peerless geniuses, one in a billion from the outside world.’

Just then, Gu Tiandu’s voice was heard.

"Congratulations on passing the fourth trial. The reward will now be distributed."

The black box containing the reward appeared before Wang Xiao once again.

Wang Xiao opened it and found a pitch-black stone inside, looking utterly unremarkable.

Skipping the text description, Wang Xiao directly used his Analyze All Things Talent.

[Analyzing...]

[Analysis Complete]

[Enlightenment Stone, Divine Level First Grade. When held, it can accelerate the user’s thinking speed a hundredfold and induce a state of profound tranquility, making it easier to comprehend the ultimate principles of the Great Dao.]

Wang Xiao looked at the stone in his hand, his eyes flashing fiercely.

Divine Level!

Indeed, the faster one cleared the trials in the later stages, the more generous the rewards would become!

This was actually an item that could help him achieve Enlightenment.

Although he would need to cultivate to the level of One Thought Reaches Heaven for this Enlightenment Stone to display its greatest effect, it wasn’t as if he couldn’t use it now.

’I wonder if this Enlightenment Stone can help me cultivate directly to the level of One Thought Reaches Heaven!’

Looking at the Enlightenment Stone before him, Wang Xiao felt a surge of eagerness.