Soul Emperor Awakening

Lin Xuan really hadn't expected the Fifth Layer to be without a Floor Master. If a floor lacked a master, it meant one of two things: they had either died, or they had successfully challenged the master of a higher floor, leaving their original position vacant. He wondered what circumstances had led to the disappearance of the Fifth Layer's Floor Master.

"It seems you're not afraid of the Black Dragon Race at all. Aren't you worried they'll come looking for trouble?" Lin Xuan said calmly. In any case, he had no favorable impression of the Mo Qianji before him.

There was only one way to describe him: arrogant!

The disdain in his eyes was palpable. Lin Xuan had sensed it from the very first time he'd asked for directions. It was just a simple question, and how the other man chose to look at him was his business, not Lin Xuan's concern. But he hadn't expected to encounter such a freak, someone who acted as if the whole world revolved around him.

"The Black Dragon Race is strong, I'll give you that. But my Demon Snake Race is a vassal of the Red Dragon Race. If you want to make a move on me, you'd better first consider whether you're even capable!" Mo Qianji sneered.

Lin Xuan finally understood. No wonder this Mo Qianji was so brazen. He had powerful backing, and a backer on the same Level as the Black Dragon Race, no less. The relationships between the major Dragon Races weren't good. Though they were all dragons, it didn't mean they were united as one great race. They were all separate, each looking out for themselves. The Black Dragon Race was just more aggressive, having allied with other factions to conquer the Golden Dragon Race.

"Enough talk. I just want to know if you'll accept the challenge or not. If you're going to cower in your shell like that Xiong Ba and refuse, then I have nothing more to say. In that case, you're no different from trash in my eyes! At worst, I'll just wait for the next Floor Master. In your current state, it's only a matter of time before you're defeated, and I won't even have to be the one to do it," Mo Qianji jeered, constantly trying to provoke Lin Xuan into accepting the mysterious challenge.

"You're the trash! My brother is way stronger than you! How about I take you on in this challenge? My brother doesn't even need to lift a finger—I can beat you all by myself!" Liu Yue'Er, who was standing beside them, bristled. She wouldn't stand for anyone insulting Lin Xuan.

"A little girl from the Golden Dragon Race? You can join too, but I wonder if you have the strength for it!" Mo Qianji's Snake Eyes swept over Liu Yue'Er, sizing her up as if trying to see something.

"I accept the challenge. Since the Fifth Layer is without a Floor Master, I'm more than happy to participate," Lin Xuan said after a moment of contemplation.

"Good!" Mo Qianji's expression eased slightly. "Follow me!"

Mo Qianji led them into a grand hall. Upon entering, Lin Xuan saw three massive doors up ahead, with quite a few members of the Demon Race waiting around. After one of them entered a door, it slammed shut. Not long after, the door flew open again, and a member of the Demon Race was hurled out, crashing heavily to the ground. He was gravely injured!

This member of the Demon Race had five badges, yet he had been inside for less than the time it takes an incense stick to burn before being thrown out, gravely injured. It was a terrifying prospect.

Not only was he gravely injured, but two and a half of the badges on the fallen demon's arm vanished, flying straight into the massive door and becoming part of it. Even though some were getting seriously hurt, a steady stream of demons still chose to enter, showing no fear at all.

Lin Xuan's brow furrowed. 'So it really is the Gate of Life and Death.' He already knew what this was.

After becoming a Floor Master, he had learned about most of the facilities in this place. For example, the Gate of Life and Death existed on the Fourth Layer and above, but it would close once a floor had a master.

The reason was simple: successfully passing through the Gate of Life and Death was a path to becoming the Floor Master. Of course, it required two or more challengers to successfully pass through, after which they would fight to determine the new Floor Master.

This Gate of Life and Death was far more formidable than the Life and Death Cave in the Core Hall. The slightest mistake could be fatal. The demons being spat out, all gravely injured, were proof enough. And that was getting off easy; at least they were still alive. If you died inside, you were teleported directly out of the tower.

If a door opened and no one was thrown out, the outcome was obvious: death.

Passing the Gate of Life and Death was also graded by Level: Demon Level, Earth Level, Celestial Level, and Reincarnation Level! The longer you stayed inside, the higher your Level.

To even be eligible to fight for the position of Floor Master, one had to achieve a Celestial Level qualification. This would allow a final challenge to determine the master. There had to be at least two qualified challengers. If only one person achieved the Celestial Level qualification, they would not be appointed. They would have to wait for someone else to also reach Celestial Level before a battle could take place. The winner would then become the Floor Master. The rules were quite simple.

It was essentially a tournament. If there were multiple qualified individuals, they would have to battle it out until the strongest emerged to become the Floor Master. The fact that Mo Qianji was waiting here meant he had already successfully passed the Gate of Life and Death and earned his Celestial Level qualification.

No wonder he was so arrogant; he truly had the credentials to back it up. The difficulty of the Gate of Life and Death was immense, far exceeding the requirements for a normal Floor Master challenge. The Gate tested one's comprehensive abilities, not just pure combat strength.

The higher the floor, the more terrifying the difficulty of its Gate of Life and Death. The reason Xiong Ba hadn't participated was simple: he was afraid of dying! His qualifications were insufficient. At best, he could only achieve an Earth Level rating, which would be meaningless.

This was why Mo Qianji had been unable to become the Floor Master of the Fifth Layer; he had to wait for someone else to obtain a Celestial Level qualification. Originally, the requirement to challenge the Fifth Layer's Floor Master was five badges. However, because the position was vacant, Mo Qianji was allowed to come down from a higher floor to participate.

The restrictions had been relaxed slightly, allowing experts from the Sixth Layer to participate. But to this day, only Mo Qianji had managed to obtain a Celestial Level qualification. It truly gave him the right to be arrogant and further highlighted just how difficult the Gate of Life and Death was.

Above the Celestial Level was the Reincarnation Level. If someone achieved that qualification, it was simply too bad for any Demon Race members who only had a Celestial Level rating. That's because anyone with a Reincarnation Level qualification would directly claim the title of Fifth Layer Floor Master, no questions asked!

If two people managed to obtain a Reincarnation Level qualification, they would battle to determine who was stronger. But if there was only one, that person would directly become the Floor Master. It was the simplest, most absolute method.

Furthermore, anyone who successfully passed the Gate of Life and Death at the Reincarnation Level would have their name carved upon the gate itself! As for those with a mere Celestial Level qualification, they were unfortunately not afforded such an opportunity.

Only those who achieved the Reincarnation Level qualification could have their names inscribed there, to remain for all time! Yet, on the three doors before them, there wasn't a single name. They were completely bare.

This meant that no member of the Demon Race had ever achieved the Reincarnation Level qualification. Achieving Celestial Level was already as difficult as ascending to the heavens; Reincarnation Level was just absurdly hard!

'The Gate of Life and Death... How interesting...' Lin Xuan's interest was piqued. The important thing was that he wanted to become the Floor Master of the Fifth Layer. That was where his true ambition lay.