To be honest the rest of the trial was quite disappointing. The first battle with another soul wisp had put my life at risk. Every twist and turn had taught me something new.

However, after that first encounter the rest of the souls which attacked me used similar methods. I was able to easily overpower them, growing stronger each time.

After what seemed like hours I suddenly exited the mist. At the moment I passed out of it, I felt my vision blurring as I was yanked out of that soul space.

All of a sudden I was back in the courtyard, looking up at the ancient female cultivator in robes as black as night. The chain which had been wrapped around me had vanished and I was free to move once more.

"Not bad," the woman said.

I looked up and realised she was floating directly in front of my face, our noses almost touching. I took a step back and cleared my throat.

"Thank you. It was quite confusing at first. Did I pass? I'm not sure if I chose the right path or not," I replied.

The woman smiled and then returned to float above the altar. I glanced at the others, noticing that the shadowy figure was also free from the chains, but the two who'd tried to attack us were still bound and unconscious.

"The right path. Was there truly such a requirement? No matter. You have both passed. Wait for the others to finish," she said before falling silent.

I used the moment of respite to check on my body. I noticed no difference, but there was a lingering sensation of confidence and self-determination.

Had the effect of strengthening my soul in the trial carried back to the real world? If so, I wondered what the effect of a more powerful soul might be.

"How do you feel?" Wang Ren asked.

"Better than ever," I replied honestly.

"What was the trial like?"

"Very strange. I think she pulled my soul out of my body. I had to travel through mists and battle against other souls," I explained.

Wang Ren's face paled. "I'm glad I didn't take part in the trial. That sounds terrifying."

"It was scary at first, but once I figured out how to utilise my own strength it became rather boring if I'm being honest."

He snorted. "You're too talented for your own good. Where was all this back when you were in the sect?"

"Every plant needs the right conditions to grow properly," I answered with a smirk.

The truth was that I was a different person to the talentless Zhao Dan who'd originally possessed this body. I wasn't sure I was talented. I simply knew how to use the knowledge I obtained in the right ways.

Suddenly I heard a thud, followed by a cry of shock. I looked over to the male and female cultivator, unsurprised by what I saw.

The man had collapsed to the ground. There was no sign of life from his body. The woman coughed blood and fell to her knees.

She was still alive, but the light in her eyes seemed to have dimmed. Her qi still flowed normally, but her movements were slow and jittery.

Her gaze was filled with terror, but it was muted and dull. The ancient cultivator harrumphed. "Arrogant fools who didn't understand their own limits."

The female cultivator raised her hands and stared at them, her expression strange. All of a sudden she took out one of her fans and dragged it across her own throat.

Blood spurted out as she fell forwards, dead. Were the consequences of failing the trial so dreadful?

The ancient cultivator had said we could be crippled, but clearly she hadn't referred to our dantians. A crippled soul?

That seemed an even more terrifying fate than losing one's cultivation. At least one could still live as a mortal if their dantian was crippled, but with a damaged soul even that seemed a dim prospect.

The woman clapped her hands, grabbing my attention. "Well done to both of you for passing the trial. I have to say I didn't expect two to pass. This makes things difficult. I only have one inheritance, after all," she said with a coquettish giggle.

At that declaration the shadowy cultivator's gaze locked onto me. I felt as though it was drilling into my soul. Their silhouette was rather plain and their face covered, making it impossible to tell their gender.

"No need to squabble. I will claim it. This lesser being has no use for things he can't comprehend," they snorted.

I frowned. It wasn't unusual for cultivators to be arrogant, but the words they used were unsettling. Lesser being?

The floating woman fell into silence, appraising the arrogant cultivator. Her brow creased, but I couldn't tell if it was in annoyance or thought.

After a while, she sighed and waved a hand. "How about this, I will pose three questions to the both of you. Each correct answer will allow you to claim a single part of my legacy. This way there can be no further arguments," she declared.

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"Acceptable. It's not as though this trash's knowledge can eclipse my own," my rival harrumphed.

I tried to sense their cultivation, expecting them to be a Foundation Building expert, given the sheer arrogance they displayed. However, I was unable to sense even a single drop of qi in their body.

In fact, there was no energy whatsoever. For all intents and purposes it was as though I was looking at a mortal, rather than a cultivator.

That worried me, but perhaps it was some sort of cloaking artifact beyond my understanding. I wasn't aware of every piece of knowledge in this world, after all.

"The arrangement works for me," I answered. To tell the truth I was mostly interested in the large soul wisp, which despite the ancient woman's floating apparition was still trapped inside the stone tablet.

However, my pride had been poked by this bastard's attitude. I wanted to beat him on all three questions simply to prove the depths of my knowledge.

"Then let us begin. The one who answers this first question correctly will receive the Thousand Soul Flag, a Saint-grade artifact which allows the wielder to trap the souls of defeated enemies and summon them to fight alongside them. Unfortunately all of the souls I obtained during my life have escaped and you will need to figure out the method of using it yourself, but it is a valuable treasure nonetheless," the woman explained, pointing at the black flag of writhing shadows that lay on the altar.

I wasn't particularly interested in this artifact, but given that it was the first Saint-grade one I'd ever seen and it was related to souls, I wanted it for myself. Losing to that bastard wasn't an option either.

"Just ask the question. This artifact will be perfect to trap the souls of my enemies and force them to serve me," the shadowy figure said, a dark glint in their eyes.

"So impatient. For all your arrogance and supposed importance, you still behave like a child. Let us see what your confidence is worth, then. What is the soul and how does it affect one's cultivation path?" she asked.

My brain stuttered. I had no idea how to answer her question. I hadn't known souls were a real thing until a few hours ago.

Of course, after my reincarnation into this world I had suspected it was a possibility but I had no evidence. I believed I had been in soul form during her trial, but all strengthening it had done was give me a feeling of confidence.

Did that affect my cultivation path? Before I could figure out what my answer would be, my rival spoke.

"Is that it? For all your babble about your valuable legacy, you ask a question that even a child would know the answer to? The soul is the centre of a cultivator's being, that connects their existence with the spirit plane, the physical plane, and the dao. A more powerful soul allows one to resonate with the world better, hence improving the speed of cultivation and the strength of their path," he said, almost laughing as he did.

With that laugh, however, he had dropped the strange alteration to his voice. I realised it was a male cultivator, but that didn't change much.

"Tch. Congratulations, that is an acceptable answer," she said, waving an arm and making the black flag float towards the man wrapped in black robes.

He immediately stored it inside a spatial artifact, not even bothering to inspect it. The sheer lack of care told me one thing for certain—he was rich. Definitely the average young master type.

"The second part of my legacy is my self created soul arts, allowing the one who practices them to refine souls into energy, furthering one's cultivation. It is a dangerous method, but when properly utilised as I did, it can allow you to advance twice as fast with half the effort. My question is this: what is the purpose of cultivation?" she continued, ignoring the lack of respect the man showed the previous artifact.

"What kind of nonsense is that? You can't ask a question that doesn't have a single answer. Regardless, it is obvious. The only reason to cultivate is to become powerful enough to suppress the entire world under your fists," he said, puffing out his chest.

It was an answer typical of the cultivators of this world. I didn't agree with his view at all. I noticed the woman remained silent this time, not immediately validating his answer.

Taking the silence as my opportunity to speak, I thought about what cultivation meant to me.

"Cultivation allows me to pursue my passion of healing others, but it also gives me the strength to protect those close to my heart. At the same time, cultivation is a double edged sword. The further I advance down the path of cultivation, the more numerous and deadly the dangers I face.

"Even so, I will pursue this path until I die or reach the pinnacle. So, I would say the purpose of cultivation isn't fixed. It is simply whatever you make of it," I said, feeling a great weight lift from my chest as I finished.

At that moment, the world around us began to shine with green, blue, and red sparkling light. Images of flowers, rivers, and lakes appeared all around me.

I grew lightheaded and felt as though my skull was expanding outwards. In my mind a lake around fifty metres in diameter suddenly appeared, the surface perfectly flat and still.

The sparkling lights shot into my head as the images faded. They coalesced into a green spark that floated above the lake, like a solitary star.

My vision returned to the world around me, but I felt that lake was still present within my mind. I could enter and exit that space at will.

Not only that, but I felt that the clarity of my thoughts had improved tenfold and as I looked around me, insights about everything I saw appeared in my mind.

The influx of information was overwhelming and the experience left me drained. However, I was filled with a feeling of strength and solidity that allowed me to stand tall as I faced everyone around me. I realised everyone was staring at me with wide eyes, though the emotions behind them varied.

Wang Ren was surprised and confused. The black robed man seemed shocked and… envious? Meanwhile the floating woman had a wry smile on her face and her gaze contained mild surprise but also approval.

"Your answer was lacking," she told the black robed man. "Yours was also far from being correct, but it was a lot better. This belongs to you."

As she finished speaking, the book bound in pale purple leather floated into the air and flew towards me. I caught it in both hands, appraising it.

There were no words on the cover, so I opened it to the first page. Each page was pale pink and felt crusty to the touch. Scrawled in red ink were three words: Hong Yue's Diary.

"Without my understanding of the techniques, it might take some effort to comprehend them. The entire book can be considered a Saint-grade artifact in its own right. Use it well," she told me.

I wanted to read further, but there was still one final question to answer. This one was also the most important, as I assumed the person who got it right would receive the stone tablet with the powerful soul wisp trapped within.

"I suppose even the most powerful in a lower realm would have a lacking understanding of cultivation. However, I'm not some tacky scum who would rob my lessers. Keep that paltry collection of techniques," the black robed cultivator snorted in derision.

I didn't dignify him with a response. I looked towards the apparition, preparing myself to answer her final question. When she told us what it was, it left me stunned.

"The final part of my legacy is my personal memories and understanding of this world and its laws. I will bestow the final portion of my soul to you," she said.

At her words, all of our eyes lit up with greed. I noticed that where the black robed man had barely spared the other artifacts a look, this truly gained his attention.

"My question is this. Which is better, sweet or savoury food?"

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