Chapter 88 The Golden Pressure
Chapter 88 The Golden Pressure
Chapter 88: Chapter 88 The Golden Pressure
The golden markings continued to glow beneath the ancient road.
After the strange changes at the end of the previous stage, every cultivator remained alert. Nobody knew what the formation would do next, and the Primordial Devouring Beast was still pursuing them from behind.
For a while, nothing else happened.
Then, a faint pressure descended upon the road.
At first, it was barely noticeable. Some cultivators only felt a slight heaviness in their legs, while others sensed the spiritual energy around them becoming strangely oppressive.
A young independent cultivator frowned.
"What is this?"
Before anyone could answer, the pressure increased slightly.
His footsteps became heavier.
Another cultivator beside him inhaled sharply as he felt an invisible force pressing against his shoulders.
"Don’t tell me this is another part of the trial."
Nobody had an answer.
The golden markings beneath their feet flickered, and the pressure continued to spread along the ancient road.
Lin Chen glanced at the ground.
"The formation is changing again."
Lin Yu nodded as he circulated his spiritual energy.
"The pressure is coming from the road itself. It isn’t a natural phenomenon."
Lin Jue looked behind them.
"Whatever it is, we can’t afford to stop and investigate."
A terrifying roar echoed from the distance.
The Primordial Devouring Beast was still coming.
Everyone immediately focused on running again.
---
As time passed, the pressure gradually intensified.
The stronger cultivators continued moving without much difficulty, but the weaker participants began to struggle.
Some circulated their spiritual energy throughout their bodies, attempting to reinforce their muscles and bones. Others adjusted their breathing and tried to maintain a steady pace.
A few independent cultivators took rejuvenation pills to restore their strength.
The pills worked as expected. Their fatigue diminished, and their depleted spiritual energy began to recover.
However, the pressure remained.
No matter how much spiritual energy they circulated, the invisible force continued weighing down on their bodies.
One cultivator gritted his teeth.
"My spiritual energy has recovered, so why do my legs still feel so heavy?"
A companion running beside him shook his head.
"I don’t know! Just keep moving!"
They had barely finished speaking when the golden markings beneath their feet brightened.
The pressure increased once more.
Several cultivators stumbled, their bodies pitching forward before they managed to regain their balance.
Panic began spreading among the weaker participants.
They had already been running for a considerable period, and now the formation was making every step more difficult.
Worse still, the beast remained behind them.
Nobody wanted to discover what would happen if it caught up.
---
The first cultivator to reach his limit was a young man from an unaffiliated cultivation family.
He had been struggling for some time, but he continued forcing himself forward.
His breathing grew ragged.
His legs trembled.
He circulated every trace of spiritual energy he could muster, attempting to strengthen his body against the pressure.
Yet, the force pressing down on him continued increasing.
"Just a little farther..."
He clenched his teeth and tried to take another step.
His leg refused to move.
He tried again.
Nothing happened.
The young man’s eyes widened.
"No! I can’t stop here!"
He desperately attempted to force his body forward, but his strength had reached its limit. His legs could no longer support the effort required to continue running.
Golden light suddenly enveloped him.
Before the surrounding cultivators could react, his figure vanished from the road.
Everyone who witnessed the scene was stunned.
"What just happened?"
"Where did he go?"
A cultivator who had been running nearby nearly lost his footing.
"He disappeared!"
Nobody had time to investigate.
The Primordial Devouring Beast roared again, forcing everyone to concentrate on escaping.
---
The first disappearance was only the beginning.
As the pressure continued increasing, more cultivators reached their limits.
One young man fell to his knees, struggling desperately to rise. His body shook as he attempted to circulate his spiritual energy, but his legs could no longer carry him forward.
Golden light enveloped him.
He disappeared.
Another cultivator tried to maintain his pace by taking several rejuvenation pills in succession. Although his spiritual energy recovered, the pressure continued crushing down on his body.
Eventually, he could no longer move.
He vanished in the same golden light.
One after another, cultivators who became physically incapable of continuing were transported away.
Some struggled until their final strength was exhausted. Others collapsed after desperately attempting to overcome the invisible force.
Whenever the formation determined that a participant could no longer continue running, golden light appeared, and the unfortunate cultivator disappeared from the ancient road.
They were not killed.
Instead, each eliminated participant was transported outside the ruin alive, with their cultivation reduced by 1 minor level.
However, those still inside the trial had no way of knowing that.
All they saw was their fellow cultivators disappearing when they could no longer endure the pressure.
Fear spread rapidly.
"Keep moving!"
"Don’t fall behind!"
"How much longer will this pressure increase?"
Nobody answered.
The road stretched endlessly into the golden haze, while the Primordial Devouring Beast continued its pursuit.
By the time the pressure had intensified through several successive increases, 10 cultivators had been eliminated.
Their disappearances left the remaining participants shaken.
The trial had become far more dangerous than they had initially imagined.
---
Meanwhile, the successors of the major forces were also experiencing the effects of the pressure.
The young geniuses from the 7 Forbidden Families and 8 Forbidden Sects relied on their powerful cultivation techniques to reinforce their bodies.
Some circulated spiritual energy through their meridians, while others used body-tempering techniques to resist the force pressing down on them.
The successors of the 9 Holy Families and 8 Holy Sects did the same.
Their foundations and resources gave them an advantage over many independent cultivators, but the formation’s pressure was not something they could simply ignore.
Shen Feng of the Myriad Heaven Sect frowned as he continued running.
"This pressure is becoming increasingly troublesome."
Beside him, Su Qinghuang maintained her pace, although her expression had grown more serious.
"It is probably designed to test our endurance. Using spiritual energy to resist it helps, but it doesn’t remove the pressure itself."
Shi Tianba snorted.
"Then we keep running. Complaining won’t make the road shorter."
Despite his confident words, even he had begun paying closer attention to the changes beneath his feet.
Mo Chen of the Blood Moon Sect glanced at the golden markings.
"The formation is controlling the intensity. It has increased the pressure several times already."
Luo Xue nodded.
"And it may not have reached its limit."
Their conversation ended when another roar echoed behind them.
The Primordial Devouring Beast remained on the road, its terrifying presence reminding everyone that they could not afford to slow down carelessly.
Even the most confident successors understood that this trial was not something they could treat lightly.
---
The Lin Clan’s group, however, remained comparatively relaxed.
The 10 youngsters continued running together, maintaining their formation while observing the changes around them.
Although they could feel the pressure, it had not seriously disrupted their movements.
Their extensive training in the Time Tower had strengthened their bodies, improved their control over spiritual energy, and prepared them to endure demanding conditions.
Lin Qing, who had reached Half-Step Body Integration Realm, was particularly steady.
The other 9 had reached Peak Void Refining Realm, and they were also handling the pressure well.
Lin Chen glanced at his companions.
"Stay together. Don’t let the changes on the road distract you."
"Understood," Lin Yu replied.
Lin Mo looked at the golden markings beneath his feet.
"This formation certainly enjoys making a simple run unnecessarily complicated."
Lin Qing glanced at him.
"If you have enough energy to complain, you have enough energy to concentrate."
Lin Zhen chuckled.
"She’s right. Save your breath for running."
Lin Mo gave him an offended look.
"I am running perfectly well while speaking. Perhaps you should improve your endurance."
"Then keep talking," Lin Zhen replied. "We’ll see how long that lasts."
Lin Chen shook his head slightly but didn’t interrupt their banter.
Their relaxed conversation did not mean they were careless. All 10 remained alert, and none of them had any intention of underestimating the trial.
They had no reason to risk stopping for the treasures that occasionally appeared along the road. Their Ancestor had already provided them with abundant cultivation resources, and they understood that the mysterious formation was more dangerous than any ordinary treasure was worth.
For now, continuing forward was the sensible choice.
---
The pressure gradually increased again.
The golden markings beneath the road began glowing more intensely, spreading brilliant lines of light toward the golden haze in the distance.
Then—
BOOM!
A tremendous force descended upon the entire road.
The cultivators felt as though an enormous mountain had suddenly been placed upon their shoulders.
Several participants cried out in shock.
Their running became unsteady as the sudden increase disrupted their movements. Some stumbled, while others struggled to keep their legs moving.
"What is happening?!"
"The pressure has increased again!"
"How are we supposed to endure this?!"
Panic erupted among the weaker cultivators.
One man attempted to circulate his spiritual energy, only to discover that maintaining his movement had suddenly become far more difficult.
Another took a rejuvenation pill with trembling hands.
Even several cultivators who had managed well until then began showing visible signs of strain.
The successors of the major forces also grew more serious. Some gritted their teeth, while others strengthened their spiritual energy defenses and pushed forward with renewed determination.
Nobody wanted to become the next person to disappear.
Behind them, the Primordial Devouring Beast released another deafening roar.
The sound swept across the ancient road, making the already terrified cultivators even more desperate to escape.
Yet the beast’s distance from the leading groups remained strangely consistent.
---
Within the Lin Clan’s group, Lin Chen’s expression finally changed.
The sudden pressure increase was far more severe than the previous ones.
Although the others could still move, the golden markings were now releasing an extraordinary force.
Lin Yu looked down at the road.
"The formation’s energy has changed dramatically."
Lin Jue narrowed his eyes.
"The markings are connected to the pressure. Every time they brighten, the force increases."
Lin Qing looked toward the golden haze ahead.
"And it is still changing."
Lin Chen nodded.
"Stay alert. Don’t assume this is the final increase."
His words had barely fallen when the road trembled violently.
The golden markings blazed brighter than ever before.
BOOM!
Another wave of pressure swept across the ancient road.
Cries of alarm erupted from the cultivators behind them. Several struggled to remain upright, while others fought desperately to keep their legs moving.
The golden haze thickened, obscuring the road ahead.
Then the Primordial Devouring Beast roared once more.
Its thunderous roar reverberated through the golden haze as the formation’s pressure continued bearing down on every cultivator who remained in the trial.
The first 10 eliminations had already demonstrated the consequences of failure.
Now, with the pressure rising to a terrifying level, everyone understood that the road ahead would be far more difficult than they had expected.
And the golden markings were still glowing.