Chapter 20: Crimson Bolts

Chapter 20: Crimson Bolts

Jiang lei has finally masterd the Fire Burst Technique to Advanced stage and he can be considered as a genius now.

According to his knowledge, Li xun also has only practiced this skill to advanced stage.

But now, Jiang Lei had achieved the same level in a much shorter time, which filled him with confidence for the competition ahead.

At first, he had been worrying his head off about the competition he'd face in the inner sect. Would he even get a chance to meet any of those talented geniuses of the Azure Sky Sect?

However, with his current strength, even if he couldn't meet the top geniuses, he could still easily make friends with some lower-level talents and copy their talents and skills by touching them.

Jiang Lei felt very fortunate for his decision. If he had just gone back before, he couldn't have become as powerful as he is now.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "It's time for the Ember Steps."

"System, help me to learn Ember Steps," Jiang Lei commanded.

[System: Sure Master]

As the voice dropped down, Jiang Lei found himself back in his inner world. In his mind, Jiang Lei encountered a shadowy figure appeared before him, moving with incredible grace and speed, teleporting around him and leaving afterimages with every step.

Sometimes there seemed to be five or six figures, making it hard for Jiang Lei to tell which was real and which were illusions.

Jiang Lei focused intently on the shadowy figure, studying its every move. Each step was precise and fluid, a perfect execution of the Ember Steps technique. He observed how it channeled fire energy through its body, concentrating it in the feet before each step. The figure moved with incredible speed, leaving behind several afterimages with each step.

This technique wasn't just about speed; it involved being familiar with the fire energy within him, utilizing it to create illusions that would bewilder his opponents during a fight.

With his eyes closed, Jiang Lei began to move. A surge of fire energy rushed into his body as he channeled it to perform Ember Steps.

His body blurred into a hazy silhouette as he executed the Ember Steps, leaving behind a trail of fiery light with every step.

As Jiang Lei was practicing Ember Steps in his inner world, there came a moment, when his body seemed to split into two - the real him and a fiery afterimage.

For a brief moment, the two figures moved in unison before the afterimage faded away. Jiang Lei halted on his tracks as he watched the blurry figure which almost resembled him, slowly fading away in the thin air with a smile on his face.

Although he managed to create just one afterimage for now, it was really a good start, it won't take him too long to master this skill.

Jiang lei came out of his consciousness, and started practicing it in real world.

"This pressure is really amazing for my ember steps." To his surprise, the effect of pressure in his movement skill was far better than in his flame burst technique.

"May be it is because, this is a physical skill and the pressure is restricting my physical movements." He mumbled but did not continue to dwell on the reason and kept his focus on his practice.

Jiang Lei kept practicing, focusing on the flow of his fire energy and the precision of his movements. Gradually, his mastery over the technique improved. Soon, he could create two afterimages.

With time, he noticed a subtle change. Each time he practiced, he could feel the pressure on his body, restricting his movements. But instead of hindering him, it seemed to enhance the effectiveness of the Ember Steps, because this type of pressure was making his spritual energy flowing faster.

The afterimages he could create at first were illusory and it was easy to differentiate, but as he practiced, it changed.

To the point, it became so convincing that it became challenging even for Jiang Lei himself to distinguish between real him and his afterimages.

As time went on, he became more and more familiar with the moves, and the number of afterimages he could create at the same time also increased. At first, he could only create two afterimages, but through continuous efforts, he improved to three, then four, and finally five.

However, there was a mysterious limit he could not break - the bottleneck of the sixth afterimage was always just out of reach.

This confused him, because he had seen that phantom create nine afterimages at a time, so why could he only create five?

"System, what's happening?" he inquired.

[System: "Master, to generate these afterimages, you require fire energy. Your source of this energy is your mastery of the Fire Burst Technique. Only Cultivators with innate fire talents can maximize this technique's potential, accessing purer and more abundant energy. If you want to create more afterimages, you need a fire attribute talent."]

The system's voice sounded in Jiang Lei's mind.]

"I understand. It seems that I must rush to the sect as soon as possible and copy a person with fire attribute talent." Jiang Lei nodded with sudden realization. If he wants to become strong quickly, he had to enter the sect as soon as possible, find a disciple with fire attribute talents, and copy the talents from them.

However, for the time being, he put this matter on the back of his mind and decided to focus on the matter at hand.

"It does not matter. My current progress is already amazing. There is no need to be too greedy." Jiang Lei stared at the monument, which was only four steps away from his current position.

He had gained incredible benefits from this journey so far, and he doubted what further rewards the remaining four steps would bring.

He took a step but because of excessive grow in his strength, he couldn't feel too much pressure on his body so he prepared to take the next step

Breathing deeply, Jiang Lei carefully lifted his foot. But at this moment, a strong sense of crisis enveloped his whole body, as if something life-threatening was about to happen. After the baptism of all kinds of hardships before, especially the tragic battle with the monster, Jiang Lei's intuition about danger became extremely sharp.

At this moment, a loud voice sounded in his ears. The sound seemed as if it came from nowhere, yet it was extremely clear, giving people a feeling of eternity.

The voice was cold, devoid of any emotions and the message was very simple ---

"One more step forward, and you will surely die!"

"You... who are you? Who is talking? Come out!" Jiang Lei looked around vigilantly, but did not find anyone around.

The voice replied, "You don't need to find me, because you can't. Do as I say, and go back."

Jiang Lei chuckled, retorting, "Oh, and how are you qualified to tell me whether I can cross these steps or not?"

After a brief pause, the voice echoed around him, "I am just kindly reminding you that with your current level of cultivation, if you rashly make this step, you will be asking for death. Just listen to me and stop moving forward."

Jiang Lei sneered, "Just because of a few words from you, you want me to turn back and leave? You really underestimate me. Do you think I'm a five-year-old child? Do you even know how much I've endured to reach here?"

Since you insist on continuing, I will not stop you. But I want to remind you that the test ahead is far more dangerous than before, and life and death are unpredictable."

"What do you mean? What are you testing for? Why is this strange force around this monument? Tell me!"

Jiang Lei asked all the questions in one breath. It seemed like he was very close to solve the mystery around the barrier and this cursed monument.

This time, however, the voice didn't respond, and the surroundings returned to silence, as if the previous conversation was just Jiang Lei's hallucination.

Jiang Lei waited for a while, and when he saw that the voice no longer responded, his expression became serious. He could ignore the threat of the voice, but he could not get rid of the lingering sense of danger when he tried to take a step just now.

He realised that he will have to quickly make a choice, If he moved forward, the unknown would be waiting for him; if he retreated, he might be able to live in peace. Jiang Lei had to think carefully.

Contemplating his choices, Jiang Lei understood the truth of cultivation in this celestial world. A strong heart and pure soul were paramount. He knew that giving in to fear now would taint his spirit and make him forever hesitate in the face of adversity.

if it got damaged once, it doesn't matter how much resources you have, how much talent you have, you will never be able to become a real strong existence in this world.

Jiang Lei looked at the monument for a while faces of three children, and villagers' one by one flashed in his mind.

His eyes became cold and firm, and his tone became extremely decisive, "In this world, when have cultivators not survived on the edge of a knife? If I want to become stronger, I will inevitably face such a situation in the future. By then, will I still retreat like I am now? What is the point of strength if I am coward inside?"

Jiang Lei thought back to the fight with the monster. If he wanted, he could have escaped from there and left the villagers to die.

If he had done that, he wouldn't have to endure that pain, nor would he have lost his intermediate fire talent.

But if he really escaped that day, would he still be able to live a normal life? Would he still have the courage and face to say that he was powerful?

Jiang Lei looked up at the stone tablet again, clenched his fists, and said firmly: "No matter who you are, I don't care. But I will never escape because of fear of the unknown. No matter what happens next, I will not look back. I swear to get through this level, even if there is a bottomless abyss ahead!"

After saying that, Jiang Lei took that step resolutely.

Unexpectedly, he did not feel any resistance this time, and the surrounding environment seemed to be normal.

Just when Jiang Lei was puzzled, a huge attraction suddenly pulled him into an unknown space. When he came to his senses, he found himself in a completely unfamiliar place.

It was pitch black all around, and one could not see one's hand in front of one's face. If it were an ordinary cultivator, he would have been frightened to death.

But Jiang Lei did not panic, he tried to find clues in the darkness. At this moment, the voice sounded in his ears again.

"Congratulations, Jiang Lei. You have successfully passed my test. Where you are now is your own consciousness space, there will be no danger. I gave you the opportunity to quit before, but you chose to stick to it, which proves that you have extraordinary willpower."

Before Jiang Lei could breathe a sigh of relief, the voice continued, "However, your real test has just begun. Everything before was just a test of your intentions to prevent those with weak minds from approaching the monument. Now, you will face your first substantial test, life and death are unpredictable, and you must use all your strength and courage to deal with it."

"Contrary to my previous speculation, you have made it here and I am impressed. So, Jiang Lei, prepare yourself for your first trial... be cautious."

Jiang Lei was shocked by the sudden voice. He questioned in disbelief, "What do you mean by what I was going through was just my test, and my real trial is beginning now? Is this some kind of joke? Do you even know that I was nearly dead because of your 'test'?"

Swish!

However, before he could comprehend the situation before him, a tearing sound pierced the silence, and the dark surroundings were illuminated with a crimson glow. He saw a crimson fire bolt hurtling towards him with unimaginable force, aimed directly at his heart..

Jiang lei felt a strong sense of danger, he knew if he couldn't dodge this attack, he would die for sure.

He used his ember steps to his extent, one can't even see his body because of his speed in his dark surrounding .

But although his speed was fast, the fiery crimson bolt was faster, in just a matter of second it reached Jiang lei and vigorously smashed against him.

"Boom!"

Jiang lei was thrown backwards, his hand where it hit was torn open with a bloody hole bleeding like a fountain.

"Aaaaah"

Jiang Lei immediately let out a strong cry as he fell down. The burning pain was searing, the fiery bolt was not simple at all, Jiang Lei had cultivated fire element techniques and ordinary fire could not even slightly hurt him.

But this bolt, it did not even hit him, it just crossed while touching his body slightly because of his fast reaction speed.

But still the pain it is feeling can only be described by one word 'hell'.

"You have chosen this path, so you must bear the corresponding risks," the voice sounded again, "From now on, you only have two choices. Either survive in this space for ten minutes or die.

Jiang Lei wanted to stand up and curse the nine generations of ancestors of this voice, but the pain was too severe and he couldn't even utter a word.

While he was still thinking about his pain, the darkness suddenly became brighter again, even brighter than before, and he saw the same crimson fire bolts again, only this time, there was not one, but... two.

They roared towards Jiang Lei, faster than before, and more fiercely!

Jiang Lei knew that he must not get hurt again, otherwise he would surely die.