Chapter 566 - 562: Entering the Pavilion to Pay Respects to the Ancestors

Chapter 566: Chapter 562: Entering the Pavilion to Pay Respects to the Ancestors

On this day, a long, drawn-out bell chime echoed from the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion, reverberating throughout the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

The chime was deep and resonant. Other than its ability to travel great distances, there seemed to be nothing peculiar about it.

However, the moment the bell rang, every Devil Beast within the Hundred Thousand Mountains began to tremble uncontrollably.

This seemingly ordinary chime possessed a strange Magic Power!

Within these Hundred Thousand Mountains were countless Devil Beasts—innumerable Tier Three Devil Beasts, and even some Tier Four Devil Beasts.

But when the chime sounded, every single Devil Beast, without exception, was suppressed by a strange power.

It was utterly terrifying!

"Mother, didn’t you say this bell only chimes when a peerless genius enters the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion? Why has it already rung three times this year?" Long after the chime faded, a somewhat childish voice piped up from the Hundred Thousand Mountains outside the Pavilion.

It was a Devil Beast, speaking in the human tongue.

"Child, you must cultivate faster. The world is about to descend into chaos," an older voice replied, its tone more serious than ever before.

"I have you to protect me, Mother. I’m not afraid," the young voice said, full of innocence.

"Silly child, the bell of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion hadn’t chimed even once in the last three hundred years. Now, it has sounded three times in a single year. A grand and turbulent age is upon us. Even I might... In any case, you must cultivate diligently!"

Similar conversations were echoing throughout the Hundred Thousand Mountains outside the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion.

There were a good number of Tier Four Devil Beasts within the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion’s territory, and many even possessed the bloodlines of ancient dire beasts. The Spiritual Sense of these Devil Beasts was terrifyingly sharp, and they sensed that something major was about to occur.

"Mother’s gone out! Let’s sneak over to the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion and see what that peerless genius looks like. I wonder if he has impressive horns." Some young Devil Beasts paid their elder’s words no mind, planning to sneak a peek.

"I told you to study, but you never listen! ’Impressive horns’ is an expression for us Devil Beasts. How could a human have horns?" a preachy voice interjected.

With that, the owner of the voice casually tossed its head. Its long horns slammed into a massive nearby boulder, which instantly shattered into pieces.

"You’re the one who didn’t study! The expression means someone is young and shows great promise."

"You dare talk back to me? Take this!"

"All you ever do is bully me! But I’m not afraid of you! Let’s fight!"

RUMBLE!

Amidst the mountains, a fight between Devil Beasts erupted...

In stark contrast to the atmosphere outside, a grand initiation ceremony was underway inside the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion.

Today was the auspicious date Guan Zhengyang had chosen for Lin Hao.

Five days had passed since the appointed time for Lin Hao’s duel with Tuoba Yangyu.

The ceremony was described as grand, yet in a strange turn of events, after leading Lin Hao to a mysterious location, the five elders of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion actually made him wait outside. They claimed they needed to enter first to consult with their ancestors.

The phrase "consult with their ancestors" gave Lin Hao quite a start.

’Could it be that the ancestors of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion are still alive?’

’If so, that would be far too astonishing.’

But Lin Hao’s temperament had always been to take things as they come. After a moment of contemplation, he put the matter out of his mind.

’The Dao Sound is too profound and abstruse. I haven’t been able to decipher even a single syllable in five days.’ Once he stopped thinking about the ancestors, his mind naturally drifted to the matter of the Dao Sound.

Over the past five days, Lin Hao had declined the kind offers of the Fifth Elder and Guan Zhengyang. Aside from his regular cultivation, he had spent every spare moment trying to comprehend the Dao Sound.

He had seared the Dao Sound into his memory with an almost fanatical obsession.

Lin Hao was keenly aware of the Dao Sound’s terrifying power. If he could have comprehended even the slightest trace of it in the last five days, it would have been more than enough to deal with Tuoba Yangyu.

Unfortunately, after five days, Lin Hao had gained nothing.

Whenever he was on the verge of an epiphany, an unseen, formless energy would always obstruct him.

Now, as the five elders went inside to consult the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion’s ancestors, Lin Hao’s thoughts naturally returned to the Dao Sound once more.

He became lost in thought, falling into a trance.

He didn’t even notice when the five elders emerged.

"Lin Hao, you may enter now. Remember, you must be reverent when facing the ancestors." Guan Zhengyang’s expression was more solemn than ever before.

Lin Hao quickly collected himself and nodded.

This mysterious place was located at the very peak of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion, sealed off by a stone gate.

After Lin Hao nodded and took a step forward, the stone gate opened on its own.

As Lin Hao stepped through, he was struck with awe.

He saw a palace.

A palace suspended in the void.

Gazing at the distant palace, Lin Hao even rubbed his eyes to make sure it wasn’t a mirage.

But the palace remained.

Lin Hao took a deep breath and strode toward the palace, walking through the void as if on solid ground.

Nothing unusual happened as Lin Hao rapidly approached the palace.

Lin Hao sensed nothing amiss, but the elders outside were already staring, wide-eyed with shock.

Setting aside ancient history, they had already consulted the ancestors twice this year alone.

When those two disciples had stepped into the void, both had been attacked without fail.

It was the ancestors testing the disciples.

But now, as Lin Hao strode into the void, there was no sign of anything at all. It was completely illogical.

"Come back!" Suddenly, a low shout rang in Lin Hao’s ear.

Caught completely off guard, Lin Hao felt as though he’d been struck by lightning. He violently coughed up a mouthful of blood and nearly collapsed.

The next moment, Lin Hao spun around, his eyes locking onto one of the five elders.

"Fourth Elder, what are you doing?!" Even Guan Zhengyang’s expression changed at this. This was a sacred ground of the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion; no one dared to act so presumptuously here. He quickly moved to placate Lin Hao while interrogating the elder.

"Dean, there’s no phenomenon in the void. This proves Lin Hao isn’t a peerless genius at all! If we let him enter the Holy Hall and disturb the ancestors, none of us can bear the consequences," the Fourth Elder said in a low voice.

At these words, even Guan Zhengyang’s expression flickered.

"We all saw what Lin Hao is capable of with our own eyes. If he doesn’t count as a peerless genius, then who in this world does?!" Liu Bo spoke up, firmly defending Lin Hao.

"We all know the saying: a genius appears, a phenomenon is born. Everyone in the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion knows this. This has held true for thousands of years. Now, Lin Hao enters and no phenomenon appears. It can only mean he is a false genius, one who cannot be acknowledged by the ancestors."

As an elder, Liu Bo knew the Fourth Elder wasn’t wrong, but thinking of Lin Hao’s performance, he still chose to trust him. "Perhaps Lin Hao is even more incredible than the others, and the phenomenon he is meant to face simply hasn’t appeared yet."

"That’s impossible! That is merely your speculation, and you can’t gamble the entire Heaven-Breaking Pavilion on it! If the ancestors are enraged, the Heaven-Breaking Pavilion might cease to exist. You must understand, there are many pavilions like ours on the Celestial Yang Continent. The world wouldn’t miss one of them."

"You..."

"Enough arguing! Let Lin Hao proceed. We agreed to this initiation ceremony, and we cannot go back on our word. If anything happens, I, Guan Zhengyang, will bear the consequences alone—I will scatter my cultivation and extinguish my Divine Soul!"

Having spoken, Guan Zhengyang gestured for Lin Hao to continue forward.