Chapter 864 - 864: The Final Task Completed?

Three Years Later

The Demonic Library

CRACK.

The massive gates of the Demonic Library began to open for the first time in three years, their ancient hinges groaning as formations that had sealed them shut slowly deactivated.

There was no shift in light since the whole place was underground and illuminated with fire torches.

Supervisor Gui stood before the opening gates, his scarred face showing rare interest as he waited to see what would emerge.

Swarms of participants came out of the room, reborn as beings at their cores. Among these people were some familiar faces. Sister Yue followed by several men and women who had joined her group before or after entering the library.

Sister Yue had Shed the slight immaturity she had on her face; there was only clear vision in her eyes concealing the ruthless nature she kept hidden underneath.

Yuan Ming also stepped out with a new look on his face and a more confident gait. Even though he failed to find the cultivation technique he had been looking for, he had obtained a grand technique.

Three years of isolation in the Demonic Library changed people.

Some came out stronger, having absorbed knowledge and techniques that transformed them into completely different cultivators.

Others came out broken, their minds fractured by attempting to learn too much too quickly, by diving into knowledge they weren't ready to comprehend. Their deranged mind and broken thoughts affected their personalities, bringing out the worst in them.

They had fallen to their inner demons!

And some didn't come out at all, likely dead from violating the rules of the library.

Finally, as the gates of the library swung fully open.

A figure stepped through.

Unlike the rest of the participants, he had not changed much.

His appearance was still the same, long, silky hair that could merge with the night sky. The same plain face that was neither too attractive nor too ugly. Yet those cold, ruthless eyes showed the thousands of years he had been through.

The only difference that might have been there was the slight difference in the way he walked. If before he walked as if he could cover several miles on one foot, now he appeared slower yet more fluid.

It was like he was floating in the air and shifting through space while appearing elegant, all at once.

Supervisor Gui looked at Noah with slight confusion, wondering what technique he might have practiced. When he saw Noah looking at him, he smiled and nodded at the bow before turning his attention to the rest.

From the initial thousands, slightly less than a hundred disciples were left; the rest had been claimed by the demonic caves.

Supervisor Gui let them all gather before him, watching with those hollow eyes as they formed into a loose semicircle, waiting to hear what came next.

No one uttered a word, waiting patiently. They had been trained into perfect soldiers after facing "the hellish torture within the demonic cult trials.

"Welcome back," he said finally, his voice carrying across the group with that same mocking amusement it always held. "Congratulations on surviving three years in the Demonic Library. Not everyone can say they've done that."

He gestured vaguely toward the library behind them.

"There are some dumb ones who are still lying inside, enjoying their eternal sleep. How dumb can you be to overlook the laws of the Heavenly Demon Cult like they mean nothing?"

He shook his head as if he was truly disappointed. Some traumatized disciples bristled at his mocking words since they had widened the death of their friends or ended up facing loss inside the library. Yet, no matter how angry they were, they could only swallow their rage.

"But you," Supervisor Gui continued, his smile widening to show those filed teeth, "you survived. Not only that, some of you even managed to grow stronger. You proved that you have what it takes to walk the path of demonic cultivation and become the disciples of the Heavenly Demon Cult."

He began to pace before them, his hands clasped behind his back. Many hearts trembled with happiness hearing those words.

Could it be after they finally get to become official disciples of the cult?

Such a question popped up in the heads of many.

"Three years ago, you were merely candidates. Aspirants hoping to join the Heavenly Demon Cult. You had survived the initial trials, yes, but you were like diamonds in the rough with no proper techniques and training that could help you make a name for yourselves."

The Supervisor's eyes swept across the crowd, noting each and every one of their expressions.

"Now, after three years of isolation, after mastering techniques that most cultivators never even see..." He paused for dramatic effect. "You are finally ready to be called disciples of the Heavenly Demon Cult."

A murmur of excitement rippled through the crowd. Some participants straightened with pride. Others exchanged glances of relief; three years of hell was finally over.

"However," Supervisor Gui's voice cut through their relief like a blade, and the excitement died immediately. "You are not the disciples of the heavenly demon cult just yet. You have to prove your conviction just one final time."

Of course things were not that simple.

Several participants groaned quietly.

Yuan Ming's expression remained carefully neutral; he was ready for whatever the cult threw at him. Liu Yue's pleasant smile never wavered, but her eyes sharpened with calculation.

Noah showed no reaction at all.

"Nothing too dramatic," Supervisor Gui said with false reassurance. "You've already proven your ability to learn, to survive, to grow stronger. This final test is... different."

He stopped pacing and turned to face them fully.

"Each of you will find a task waiting in your former dwellings. The thatched huts where you stayed before entering the library—remember those cozy huts you hid your dark secrets in and held secret rendezvous in?"

Several heads nodded subconsciously before flushing with shame and twitching with panic.

"Good. Your individual assignments are there, sealed in jade slips, personalized for each of you based on what we observed during your time in the trials and the library."