Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

'This kid has some guts and ability, to be able to control even the Ascension Platform. But his cultivation is just too low.'

As Yang Xiao's aura surged wildly, Lu Changsheng—who, like Emperor Xuanyuan, was also observing in secret—seemed a bit more impartial in his assessment, a stark contrast to the Emperor's bitter expression.

However, no amount of impartiality could change the fact that this Silver Moon Envoy of the Blood Robe Tower intended to kill Yang Xiao.

In fact, because of Yang Xiao's recent performance, this desire had only grown stronger within him. At the same time, he had also become far more cautious.

He suppressed his aura to the absolute limit. Even if Emperor Xuanyuan were to notice him now, he likely wouldn't detect his concealed presence without a careful inspection.

After all, Emperor Xuanyuan's true body wasn't on the Profound Sun Continent; it was merely a clone formed from a wisp of his will.

The Blood Robe Tower, to which Lu Changsheng belonged, was an infamous assassin organization throughout the Divine Land Continent. When it came to concealing auras and hiding identities, it was doubtful that even Yang Xiao, with his talent for altering his own aura, could match them.

Not to mention, Lu Changsheng was among the elite of the Silver Moon Envoys. Even the Vice Tower Lord of the Blood Robe Tower, a Tier Seven Divine Marquis Level expert, was extremely wary of him.

This was because he had never been able to discern Lu Changsheng's cultivation.

It was impossible to see through.

This showed just how terrifyingly skilled this man—the one the Lu Family called the Longevity Demon—was at concealing his aura.

However, at this moment, Lu Changsheng still greatly admired Yang Xiao.

In particular, he could tell at a glance that although Yang Xiao's cultivation was only at the True Intent Eighth Layer Peak, his true combat strength—judging by his aura alone—was already comparable to the Peak of Small Divine Power Realm.

However, while Lu Changsheng could see this, the others—including the Demigod Peak Qin Family Ancestor—were utterly stunned when they discovered that Yang Xiao's cultivation had stabilized at the True Intent Eighth Layer Peak.

Baffled.

Why did the person chosen by the Human Emperor have such a low level of cultivation?

After this discovery, some of those who had just been filled with admiration for Yang Xiao even began to harbor doubts.

'He's only at the True Intent Eighth Layer, so why did he tell us we needed to be at the Peak of Small Divine Power Realm to set foot on the platform? Was he just trying to scare us?'

An expert at the Small Divine Seventh or Eighth Layer thought to themselves.

'This guy... a moment ago I thought he meant well, warning me not to get myself killed. But now? Heheh. If he can get on at the True Intent Stage, why can't I? Is his True Intent Stage somehow that much stronger than mine? I don't believe it!'

'That's right, he's just at the True Intent Stage. With that display earlier, I thought he was a Demigod, or maybe even a True God. Tsk, tsk. I bet he didn't communicate with the Ascension Platform at all. He was probably just putting on an act and got lucky when Lord Human Emperor happened to communicate with it, don't you think?'

The crowd's thoughts were suddenly a chaotic jumble.

Their attitude toward Yang Xiao was no longer as respectful as before.

However, Yang Xiao, who was standing on the Ascension Platform, paid no attention to any of this.

Because the pressure on the Ascension Platform was truly immense.

Simply standing on it subjected one to a crushing pressure that surged in from all directions—front, back, left, right, above, and below. To withstand it, one needed strength equivalent to the Peak of Small Divine Power Realm at a minimum.

Without it, one would be crushed into a bloody pulp in an instant.

This was precisely why Yang Xiao had given his warning.

Because without the combat strength of the Peak of Small Divine Power Realm, it was impossible to stand for long on even the first step.

But his good intentions.

Once his cultivation was revealed, they were once again twisted by these people.

One person, who had previously made inquiries about the Ascension Platform, muttered to himself, 'I heard before that for those smaller, Ninety-nine Floor Ascension Platforms, all you needed was the strength of True Intent Peak. Now they've merged into this grand, three-hundred-and-thirty-three-floor Ascension Platform. I assumed it would be harder, but it looks like the requirement is still just True Intent Peak. Otherwise, how could a guy at True Intent Eighth Layer Peak stand up there for so long?'

'No, I have to try. Even though I only just broke through to the Small Divine Power Realm, I'm still young. If I get lucky, I might just win the Human Emperor's favor, right?'

With that thought, the man made his move.

He stepped onto the Ascension Platform.

At the same time, dozens of other streaks of light shot forward, entering the Ascension Platform at almost the exact same moment.

They all appeared on the first step.

The most eye-catching among them were the nine so-called candidates for Human Emperor Disciple, each of whom had previously reached the top of one of the Ninety-nine Floor Ascension Platforms.

Previously, because of Yang Xiao, none of them had dared to step forward.

They were afraid of being exposed, as it was the factions behind them that had sealed the Ascension Platforms.

But now.

Yang Xiao's cultivation was so weak, yet he was standing on the Ascension Platform while claiming that one needed to be at the Peak of Small Divine Power Realm just to try.

He was clearly lying; his words couldn't be trusted.

Instantly, the credibility of his earlier warning plummeted in their eyes.

Naturally, these nine were no longer afraid of him.

Growing smug once more, their figures flashed as they arrived on the first step.

Besides them, there were also some exceptionally powerful individuals whose strength already surpassed the Peak of Small Divine Power Realm. They were currently the only ones who still felt any gratitude toward Yang Xiao.

For various reasons, they had missed the preliminary trials of the Ascension Platform. If Yang Xiao hadn't caused such a scene, the platform would never have opened for them at all.

Therefore, even though they suspected Yang Xiao was lying, they still held a sliver of goodwill toward him—unlike the others. But it was only a sliver.

This group made up more than half of all the people who had just stepped onto the platform.

They were the largest contingent.

The remainder, of course, were those who felt deceived by Yang Xiao and wanted to gamble on their luck.

This group wasn't large.

But it wasn't small, either.

There were about twenty of them in all.

They accounted for nearly thirty percent of the first wave of people to step onto the Ascension Platform.

Among them was the very same guy from before, the one who believed that since he was young and had the strength of the First Level of Small Divine Power Realm, he had a good chance of winning Human Emperor Xuanyuan's favor.

But the moment he set foot on the step, his expression changed drastically.

A force far beyond his ability to bear surged from all directions of the Ascension Platform.

At this moment.

He finally understood that Yang Xiao had been telling the truth.

He hadn't been deceiving them in the slightest.

But by now, it was too late.

In the span of a single instant.

The immense pressure surging from all sides crushed the man until he burst.

He wasn't the only one.

At that same instant, seventeen or eighteen other people were also crushed until they burst.

Only one or two experts at the Small Divine Seventh or Eighth Layer managed to hold on for a moment longer.

But it was only for a moment.

Then, they met the same fate as the others before them.

Seeing this explosive scene.

Everyone present was completely stunned.

What... what in the world was going on?

In an instant, everyone's gaze converged on Yang Xiao once more.