I Can See Through Everything-Chapter 615

“True Marrow Tempering Pool?”

Lu Qing's eyes lit up the moment he heard those words.

The name alone sounded anything but ordinary.

“That’s right. The True Marrow Tempering Pool is the highest-grade Cleansing Pool of our Wu Clan. Even among us, only those peerless prodigies who emerge once every ten thousand, or even tens of thousands of years—candidates for the title of Grand Witch—have a chance of setting foot in this sacred ground.

If you can truly reach the summit of Witch Mountain, it would mean your aptitude rivals that of the most dazzling geniuses in the history of our clan. In that case, you'd naturally qualify to enter the True Marrow Tempering Pool.”

Though the voice said so, its tone clearly betrayed disbelief that Lu Qing could actually accomplish such a feat.

After all, its gaze had already seen through Lu Qing’s current cultivation—he hadn't even reached the peak of his current major realm.

For someone with that level of cultivation to make it this far was already impressive.

But if he could actually reach the summit?

Then wouldn't that make him more monstrous than the peerless geniuses of the Wu Clan’s own history?

To the mysterious voice, that seemed utterly impossible.

In fact, it didn’t even believe Lu Qing could reach the twentieth vertebra and pass the intermediate trial.

Still, it understood how prideful geniuses could be. Someone like Lu Qing would never heed advice or discouragement. Only after hitting a wall might he come to his senses.

It could only hope the boy wouldn’t overextend himself and end up dying on Witch Mountain.

It had been alone for far too long. Now that a somewhat promising youngster had finally appeared, it genuinely didn’t want to see him die due to his own arrogance.

“A sacred ground only Grand Witch candidates can access?”

Lu Qing's eyes grew even brighter.

From the information he’d gathered earlier, he knew that the title of Grand Witch held even more weight than that of True Witch within the Wu Clan.

The towering skeletal mountain beneath his feet had been forged from the spine of a fallen True Witch.

If True Witches were that powerful, then Grand Witches must be beyond imagination.

To be considered a Grand Witch candidate, one had to be an exceptionally rare and monstrous genius.

And to think the True Marrow Tempering Pool was reserved only for such figures—it must be unimaginably precious.

Without hesitation, Lu Qing made up his mind. Even if he had to exhaust every last trump card, he would try his best to reach the summit.

“Senior, with such a rare opportunity before me, I’d never be able to forgive myself if I didn’t give it everything I’ve got.”

“In that case, I wish you luck, little one.”

With those parting words, the mysterious voice fell silent.

But Lu Qing was certain the speaker was still watching from the shadows.

He lifted his gaze to the winding stairway above, knowing that this time, he had to go all out.

He focused his mind and sank his consciousness into his Golden Core of Spiritual Power.

In the next moment, the flawless golden core within his dantian and qi sea began to dissolve, slowly merging into his body.

His already formidable physical body began to transcend its limits, rising to an even more unimaginable level.

Though his body strength was rapidly increasing, Lu Qing restrained his aura with powerful control over his mind and spirit, preventing those below from sensing any changes.

“His aura…”

Only the hidden observer noticed the shift in Lu Qing and couldn’t help showing a trace of surprise.

Meanwhile, the strong cultivators observing from below grew increasingly puzzled.

“He stopped moving? Has he hit his limit?”

“Doesn’t seem like it. His speed slowed earlier, but it didn’t look like he was maxed out yet.”

“Maybe the higher vertebrae present a new kind of challenge? None of us has ever made it that far, after all.”

“Or maybe he passed the test, like that little spirit beast earlier, and is about to be taken away?”

“No—look! He’s moving again! And even faster than before!”

As they speculated, they were collectively shocked to see Lu Qing resume his ascent—this time at a speed that surpassed anything they’d seen from him so far.

He was sprinting upward.

The sight left them all dumbfounded.

“As expected, now that the Golden Core has fully merged into my flesh, my body’s strength has more than doubled!”

While racing up the steps, Lu Qing was marveling at the sheer explosive power coursing through his body.

After refining large quantities of Witch Bloodline Essence and undergoing physical transformation, his body had already reached a monstrous level.

Even when compared to Golden Core late-stage beasts, he hadn't been at a disadvantage.

Now, after fusing the Flawless Golden Core into his body, his strength had skyrocketed to a level that even he found shocking.

By his estimation, if he now faced those three Golden Core late-stage beasts outside the ancient tower, he could probably crush them with a casual slap.

As his strength surged, the radiance of his physical body also grew more intense.

What had previously been on the verge of collapse was now stable once again. No matter how violently the Fiendish Beasts—formed from malevolent aura—attacked, they couldn't shake it.

With this overwhelming power, the pressure on Lu Qing lightened considerably.

He sprinted upward, the staircase flashing beneath his feet.

The increasing suppression force couldn't slow him in the slightest. The swarm of Fiendish Beasts, like a horde of ghosts, scattered before him with each impact.

One vertebra after another fell behind him. Before long, Lu Qing leapt lightly over the nineteenth vertebra and landed firmly on the steps of the twentieth.

And there, he paused.

“He stopped again?”

The onlookers were hesitant to speculate further. None dared claim this was his limit.

Because every time they thought he had reached it, he would prove them wrong and explode forward with even greater strength.

Moreover, his speed hadn’t even slowed when he reached the twentieth vertebra.

They realized now—he wasn't stopping because he was out of strength.

“Senior, would you say I've passed the intermediate trial?”

Standing atop the twentieth vertebra, Lu Qing lightly shook off the surrounding Fiendish Beasts and posed his question.

“To think you could merge your Golden Core of Spiritual Power into your body and push your physical limits. This ability… it must be what only a Flawless Golden Core can achieve.”

The mysterious voice returned, but this time it spoke with a trace of emotion, unlike its earlier calm tone.

“No wonder you were so confident. You’ve condensed a Flawless Golden Core. That explains it.”

“Senior, you recognize the Flawless Golden Core?”

Lu Qing was surprised. This was the first time anyone had seen through the nature of his Golden Core.

Though, strictly speaking, this being might not even be a person.

“Of course I do. Back during the Dao-Wu War, your lineage produced many prodigies. The most dazzling among them were those who formed a Flawless Golden Core.

Some of them later became giants in the Dao lineage, equal to our clan’s Grand Witches.

Shapeless and formless, able to change at will—that’s a unique trait of the Flawless Golden Core.

In fact, our Wu Clan once tried to eliminate such prodigies early on, but due to their ability to shift their aura at will, we had little success.

I just didn’t expect… after so many years, I’d see one again.”

There was a hint of nostalgia in the voice, as if recalling some distant memory.

Its words made Lu Qing’s heart tighten. “Then, senior…”

“Heh, don’t worry. That was countless tens of thousands of years ago. You, little one, have nothing to do with it.

Besides, the creator of this realm was opposed to the Dao-Wu War from the start.

Otherwise, the moment you and the others entered this space, you’d have all been wiped out.”

Sensing Lu Qing’s concern, the voice chuckled.

Lu Qing had to admit the logic was sound. If the one who created this trial realm had truly been hostile to the Dao lineage, there’s no way they would’ve been allowed in.

“I can tell you still have strength left. Planning to keep climbing?”

The voice asked again.

“You’re not going to stop me anymore, Senior?” Lu Qing raised a brow.

“Since you’ve formed a Flawless Golden Core, your cultivation talent is already no less than the Grand Witch candidates of our own lineage. And you’ve also had a fortunate encounter that has strengthened your body to a remarkable degree. You’re qualified to keep going.”

“The reason I’ve been able to train my body to this level is thanks to the opportunities in this realm,” Lu Qing explained, recounting how he had refined the bloodline essence of the beasts here.

“So that’s it. You discovered the Witch Bloodline Essence in those brutes outside. Hah, you’re a lucky little thing,” the voice chuckled in realization. “I thought your body resembled ours. Turns out it wasn’t my imagination.”

“Senior doesn’t mind that I’ve been hunting so many of the beasts in this realm?” Lu Qing asked cautiously.

“It doesn’t matter. Those beasts were raised by our clan long ago as food anyway. If you’ve killed them, so be it—they’ve been put to use.”

That answer was unexpected.

But it did put Lu Qing at ease.

“Then, I’ll be bold and keep climbing.”

“Go ahead. The creator of this realm once said that a genius of the Dao lineage with a Flawless Golden Core is no less than a Grand Witch candidate of our clan. I’d like to see if he was right.”

The voice fell silent once more.

Lu Qing resumed his ascent.

Below, the strong cultivators watched in silence. They all knew—this was just a temporary pause. Even the twentieth vertebra couldn't stop him.

“Looks like the opportunity within this mountain is going to be his.”

“He’s past the twentieth vertebra already. I can’t even imagine how much pressure he’s under now. Is this really something a Golden Core Realm cultivator can endure?”

“Just look at those Fiendish Beasts circling around him. Any one of them could wipe out most of us.”

“Is he really in the Golden Core Realm?”

Staring up at Lu Qing’s swiftly climbing silhouette, someone finally voiced the question aloud.

This time, no one refuted it.

Because they were all thinking the same thing—even Batian and Shen Zangfeng.

Lu Qing’s current display was simply too monstrous.

He had long since surpassed the limits of what was expected from a Golden Core Realm cultivator.

But the newly formed secret realm on Sacred Tianxu Mountain barred entry to anyone in the Nascent Soul Realm. That was a fundamental truth accepted by everyone in the Tianyuan Great World.

In fact, when this realm had first opened, there had been attempts by Nascent Soul experts to enter. None had succeeded—they couldn’t even approach the spatial vortex that served as the entrance.

So if Lu Qing were truly a Nascent Soul cultivator, how had he bypassed that restriction?

Confusion and disbelief clouded the hearts of all present.

But none of it affected Lu Qing.

He was still climbing, but by the time he reached the twenty-fifth vertebra, the pressure on him had become absolutely terrifying.

Even those Golden Core late-stage beasts outside the tower would’ve been crushed to death under this weight.

Such terrifying force finally slowed Lu Qing’s pace. He shifted from sprinting to walking.

Though his speed had dropped, each step remained firm.

Step by step, he ascended, while the Five Elements Gourd within his dantian and qi sea spun rapidly, drawing spiritual essence from mid-grade spirit stones and refining it into spiritual power to sustain him.

Even so, by the time he reached the twenty-seventh vertebra, his movements had grown sluggish.

It was then that the illusory shadow of an ancient cauldron rose from his body. It dispersed the surrounding Fiendish Beasts and significantly eased the pressure on him, allowing him to advance once more.

With the help of the Li Huo Cauldron’s power, Lu Qing climbed three more vertebrae, finally setting foot on the thirtieth vertebra.

At this point, he had risen above the clouds. The crowd below could no longer see him.

Breathing heavily, Lu Qing felt far more relaxed in spirit.

According to the mysterious voice, reaching the thirtieth vertebra meant he had passed the advanced trial and qualified to enter the high-grade Cleansing Pool.

“Only three more vertebrae left?”

Lu Qing looked up and discovered that there were only three vertebrae remaining above his head.

In other words, the skeletal mountain had a total of thirty-three vertebrae.

“Unexpected. I didn’t think you’d really make it this far,” the mysterious voice said again. “But you’ve truly reached your limit now, haven’t you? These last three vertebrae—you no longer have the strength to climb them.”