Soul Emperor Awakening

Leveraging his Wind Realm, Ling Tian easily took the lead, effortlessly dodging the howling gales and hurled rocks. After so many trials, if he couldn’t even manage this much with his Wind Realm, he’d have no claim to being number one.

Even Lin Xuan’s Cyan Cloud Fire-Treading Step could only barely keep pace, which just went to show the formidable advantage of Ling Tian’s Wind Realm. Its absolute dominance was so overwhelming, it left the others with no will to even complain.

Whenever Lin Xuan picked up his pace, Ling Tian would match it, a clear provocation. He was waiting for them to exert their full strength, yet Ling Tian himself clearly wasn’t going all out.

They were not far behind Ling Tian, less than a hundred meters, so there was no need to rush just yet.

The tyrannical Lei Zhantian’s expression was unruffled, his speed steady. He was clearly waiting for something.

Lin Xuan was aware of this. ’The real push comes in the final stretch. Once we’re past this section, we’ll reach the most difficult part of Hurricane Valley.’ This knowledge came from Qing Liuyun’s memories, which were his greatest advantage. Without them, he’d be in for a world of hurt, and taking first place would be next to impossible.

Sure enough, after a while, a corner appeared up ahead, leading into a narrow passage that only a few people could pass through at a time. A terrifying gale blew out from within, several times stronger than the wind outside. The ceaseless howling filled their ears—a wind speed that could tear anything to shreds!

And so it proved. As the gales howled past, they carved new gashes into the surrounding cliffs, shearing off chunks of stone that shattered into countless smaller pieces before they even hit the ground, spraying toward the participants.

Over a great many years, this ceaseless gale had gradually widened the entire cliff passage. The wind was like a sharp blade, constantly slicing at the cliffs on both sides and sending a shower of rocks flying. Both the terrifying gales and the spraying stones were extremely dangerous.

’The force of these flying stones alone is immense. Each one hits with the force of a heavy blow from a Refining Spirit Stage Level cultivator...’ Lin Xuan watched as a piece of shrapnel slammed into the ground, gouging a deep pit in the hard rock. ’At this rate, a person could be riddled with holes.’

The terrifying force didn’t make them retreat. Ling Tian, his speed undiminished, led the charge straight into the passage. The rocks were flying thick and fast; the slightest misstep would mean getting hit.

Even he, a master of the Wind Realm, had to proceed with caution. He could withstand a single stone, but a continuous barrage would injure even someone like Ling Tian.

However, with just a blur of movement, Ling Tian was inside. But his speed dropped drastically—the wind was simply too strong, almost enough to tear the clothes right off his body.

Lei Zhantian’s approach was far more brazen. His entire body was wreathed in lightning, as if a thunderstorm raged across his skin. He continued to charge forward with heavy, violent steps. When the rock fragments flew at him, he didn’t dodge, but instead met them head-on.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

As the shards of rock struck his body, they exploded into black dust, completely pulverized by his lightning armor. They couldn’t harm him in the slightest. The method was brutish, to be sure, and it slowed him down, but its advantage was its absolute stability—and its sheer violence.

’I wonder how Lin Yunlong will handle this,’ Qing Piaoyun thought, his eyes glinting. ’This is the most difficult stage. Relying purely on a Body Technique would be fine under normal circumstances, but this wind is far too strong. It could easily blow a person away. A careless dodge, and you’ll be sent flying.’ He was eager to see how Lin Xuan would perform.

This area was nothing like the previous sections. What they’d faced before could only be called a light breeze; this was a true hurricane. The gales were so terrifying that if you so much as jumped off the ground, a gust would snatch you up and blow you far back, causing you to fall hopelessly behind.

That was why, despite how nonchalant Ling Tian looked, he didn’t dare lift his feet from the ground. He kept low, his base planted firmly, essentially gliding along the surface. Unless they could achieve the state of creating Elemental Power Wings, they couldn’t even think of flying through.

Just as they were wondering if Lin Xuan would use his Cyan Cloud Step to glide through, they noticed he had stopped at the edge of the canyon. He stood there silently, eyes closed, making no move to advance!

He was quickly overtaken by the participants behind him. They gave him a cursory glance, not bothering to wonder what he was playing at, and rushed onward. They might not be able to contend for first or second place, but third and fourth were still very important.

After all, only the top four would qualify for the final duels!

Soon, the remaining seven contestants had all charged into the passage. But the moment they entered, their speed slowed by several-fold. It was impossible to move quickly even if they wanted to.

And just like that, Lin Xuan fell to last place, the one at the very bottom.

"What is he doing? Why did he stop?" Qingyu frowned. Lin Xuan had stopped for no apparent reason, squandering the advantage he’d had at the start.

’If he had just kept moving forward, even slowly, he could have secured third place at worst. Now it will be much harder to catch up.’

"I’m not sure," Qing Piaoyun said, though he couldn’t be certain. "Perhaps he’s planning something?" He had no idea what was going through Lin Xuan’s mind.

Among those farther ahead, some shot back looks of disdain. Lei Zhantian and the others didn’t know what Lin Xuan was planning, but his actions disappointed them.

’So his skills are only this great after all. The moment he faced a real challenge, his true, insufficient level was exposed,’ Chen Zhiquan, currently in third place, sneered. A look of contempt crossed his face. He had thought he’d be stuck in fourth, but now it looked like third place was his for the taking.

At that moment, as Lin Xuan stood motionless, his ears twitched. He murmured in a voice only he could hear, "So that’s how it is. The sounds here are this loud... I’ve memorized them."

The next instant, with a WHOOSH from beneath his feet, Lin Xuan burned his Phoenix Essence Blood once more. He took a step forward, activating the Cyan Cloud Fire-Treading Step again. It was as if wheels had been attached to his feet; he practically glided across the ground, erupting with a burst of speed that far surpassed everyone else!

This sudden explosion of speed stunned everyone for a moment, but it was quickly followed by sneers. To run recklessly in a hurricane like this was simply suicidal.

"Th-that Lin Yunlong is too reckless!" Qingyu couldn’t help but exclaim. "Even if he knows he can’t catch up, he shouldn’t be so rash! The faster you go, the harder it is to dodge the flying rocks!" Any admiration she’d had for Lin Xuan vanished without a trace.

The nine people ahead of him—was it that they couldn’t go any faster? Of course not. They could increase their speed, but the faster they went, the harder it became to evade the flying rocks. There simply wasn’t enough time to react.

The rocks varied in size. Getting hit by a large one could make a person cough up blood. Punching them to pieces was an option, but that would slow one down considerably. Even Lei Zhantian didn’t dare to intercept the larger boulders head-on; he couldn’t completely pulverize them with a single punch, and one could imagine the damage the remaining fragments would inflict.

Most importantly, these weren’t ordinary rocks; they were incredibly hard. The deeper Lei Zhantian went, the more hesitant he became to take them on directly.

For Lin Xuan to do this now was, in their eyes, a death wish.

But the scene that followed left everyone dumbfounded. Suddenly, Lin Xuan swerved to the side. The very instant he moved, a rock shot past the exact spot where he’d been, missing him by a hair’s breadth!

The next moment, he swerved again, and another rock grazed past without causing him any harm. Each time, he seemed to have already chosen his path of evasion moments in advance. But the most crucial part was that his eyes weren’t even open—he was charging forward completely blind!

’Is... is he using Sound Discrimination to dodge?’ Qing Piaoyun was inwardly stunned.

That’s right. This was Lin Xuan’s ability: Sound Discrimination! His years of blindness had granted him an extraordinary Sound Discrimination Ability. The instant a rock was sheared from the cliff face, he could already tell which direction it was coming from.

This wasn’t an ability he was born with, but one that had been brutally forged during his years of blindness!