"What in the world is going on?" Shen Haoran stared at the immense Chaos Celestial Ladder, his face a mask of confusion.

The moment Shen Haoran was stunned into a daze, the battle in the sky erupted!

The colossal Chaos Celestial Ladder descended like a meteorite, crashing down upon the figure in the black mist! The violent winds of its descent tore the very space around it, and sinister, terrifying black rifts appeared one after another above the misty figure.

Yet, faced with such a powerful attack, the figure in the black mist simply raised its right hand. With a light squeeze, the descending Chaos Celestial Ladder came to an eerie halt!

"You overestimate yourself!" the figure in the black mist sneered, raising the Chaos Celestial Ladder and viciously smashing it toward the golden-robed man!

With no way to dodge such a swift and heavy blow, the golden-robed man could only raise his arms to block it!

BOOM! With a muffled impact, the golden-robed man’s body plummeted like a kite with a severed string. He smashed into the forest below, carving a deep trench in his path before finally coming to a stop.

The gap in power between them was simply too vast; the golden-robed man was no match for the figure in the black mist!

WHOOSH! The figure in the black mist vanished from the air. The next instant, it appeared in the forest, hauling the golden-robed man up by his collar!

"Give me what I want, and I’ll leave your body intact." The voice was still utterly devoid of emotion.

The golden-robed man weakly lifted his head. He would have died from that last strike if the figure in the mist had not held back. His gaze drifted to the distant, now-nonexistent mountain gate, his eyes filled with grief. Then, he fixed his eyes on the misty figure before him, a furious fire igniting within them.

"You want this, don’t you? Fine, take it!" With that, the golden-robed man grabbed the misty figure’s arm. The Spiritual Power in his body began to roil. He was going to self-destruct!

"You’re insane!" Sensing the berserk Spiritual Power within the golden-robed man, the misty figure paled in shock. As powerful as it was, it wasn’t certain it could survive the man’s self-detonation!

The misty figure tried to pull away, but its arm was caught in a death grip. In the end, the figure was decisive, severing its own arm to escape with its life!

BOOM! An earth-shattering explosion erupted. A terrifying storm of Spiritual Power swept through the entire forest, instantly razing the surrounding mountain ranges to the ground. The storm continued to spread outward, leaving not a single blade of grass in its wake!

Shen Haoran, caught in the Spiritual Power storm, was not spared. Even though he was just a being of consciousness, the impact caused his form to waver unsteadily, as if he might dissipate at any moment.

WHOOSH! Just as Shen Haoran managed to stabilize himself, a streak of golden light shot into his mind with the speed of a thunderbolt. A sharp pain lanced through him, his vision went black, and he completely lost consciousness.

...

Meanwhile, in the plaza of Red Flame City, everyone stared dumbfounded at the empty square. The massive, hill-like Chaos Celestial Ladder that had stood there just moments before had inexplicably vanished!

Chen Yu was even more stunned. The Chaos Celestial Ladder was a sacred artifact that could only be wielded by the Sect Leader, yet his connection to it had just abruptly vanished!

"Sect Leader... what..." She Master was filled with shock and doubt.

Chen Yu frowned, his gaze fixed on the spot where the Chaos Celestial Ladder had vanished. All that remained was Shen Haoran’s battered body.

"Take Shen Haoran away for treatment. Have him come see me the moment he wakes up." Chen Yu seemed to have thought of something, giving the order before leaving the plaza.

Chen Yu left, leaving She Master to deal with the mess. She could only manage a wry smile. After coming up with an excuse to gloss over the matter of the Chaos Celestial Ladder, she moved on to awarding the prizes for the test.

First place was left vacant, as it was currently impossible to judge. Second and third places were awarded to the two talented disciples from the Thick Earth Hall and the Golden Sun Hall. As for Mu Feiyu, he had fallen from the Chaotic Celestial Body and naturally received no score.

The other Martial Artists also received rewards to varying degrees, and a few with exceptional Talent were selected to join the Five Great Halls. Aside from the unexpected incident with Shen Haoran, the test was considered a resounding success.

However, even though She Master and the other high-ranking members of the Five Elements Sect had declared the test over, the disciples below continued to discuss the matter with great fervor. Shen Haoran, in particular, became the hot topic of conversation for everyone in the sect.

"Hey, have you heard? They say one of the new disciples, a guy named Shen Haoran, broke Sect Master Chen Yu’s record climbing the Chaos Celestial Ladder!"

"Oh, you mean Shen Haoran? I know. I was there that day. He’s definitely not ordinary!"

"I heard he even tried to reach the top?"

"That’s right. The result was pretty disastrous, though. He really overestimated his own abilities."

"He has the Talent, sure, but no brains. A person like that doesn’t deserve to be called a genius."

Opinions on Shen Haoran were mixed, but the subject of all this discussion remained unconscious.

At this moment, Shen Haoran’s mind was still a swirl of chaos. Images of the battle between the golden-robed man and the misty figure, as well as that terrifying Spiritual Power storm, flashed relentlessly through his consciousness.

"Ugh..." After a long while, Shen Haoran’s consciousness finally cleared. He let out a sigh of relief as he took in the familiar surroundings. His awareness had finally returned to his own Sea of Consciousness.

But before he could feel relieved, he discovered something even more astonishing: he was standing on a high platform, and it looked incredibly familiar!

"This... Isn’t this the Chaos Celestial Ladder? How did it appear in my Sea of Consciousness!" Shen Haoran stared in disbelief at the golden Chaos Celestial Ladder beneath his feet.

The top of the Chaos Celestial Ladder no longer emanated that terrifying pressure, and Shen Haoran found he could walk around on it freely.

WHOOSH! As Shen Haoran casually turned around, the sound of something cutting through the air suddenly rang in his ear. A golden light appeared before him!

"This..." Shen Haoran stared at the golden light. He suddenly recalled being knocked unconscious by this very light in that strange mountain forest.

"What on earth is this thing?" Shen Haoran wondered.

The moment he spoke, the golden light seemed to understand him. It slowly dissipated, and a Golden Token appeared before Shen Haoran.

The Golden Token was exquisitely crafted, like a piece of fine art. But Shen Haoran couldn’t understand the carved text or patterns on it at all. The winding, tadpole-like runes made him so dizzy that he eventually had to look away.

"Remember, protect this Token with your life!" A solemn voice echoed in Shen Haoran’s ear. In a daze, it was as if he could see the man in the golden battle robe once more.