Library of Heaven’s Path

Zhang Xuan shook his head and said, “I am too used to living a leisurely life, so I must say that I’m not comfortable with taking up such heavy responsibility…”

The only reason he had gone to the Sky of Spirit Origin and assumed the identity of Feng Xuan was to enter Spirit God Palace. There was no way he could take on the additional burden known as the Inferno Phoenix Clan!

Not expecting ‘Feng Xuan’ to turn down the offer, the clan head was at a loss for words. Just as he was about to ask the reason behind it, Zhang Xuan asked a different question. “You mentioned the Trial of Conferment earlier… Is there a trial that God Kings have to undergo in order to become Conferred God Kings?”

All along, he had thought that Conferred God Kings were chosen by God Monarchs based on their merits, and they gained great power as a result of their favor. So, it was a little odd for him to hear that there was a trial for that.

“Conferment refers to the act of a God Monarch bestowing the jurisdiction of a territory over to an individual, granting him the rights to access the Anima of Yearning in the region. However, the Anima of Yearning is a natural force that nature depends on the sentiments of those creating it. Due to that, the Anima of Yearning in a region is often extremely chaotic, and to control such a force requires one’s soul to be extraordinarily powerful.

“For this reason, the basic requirement for one to become a Conferred God King is for one’s soul cultivation to reach God King realm pinnacle. Contrary to popular belief, one’s zhenqi cultivation is actually of secondary importance. Your chances of succeeding are actually quite high, so won’t you give it some thought?” the clan head said.

Each living being was unique and had its own set of beliefs and emotions. These would all be mixed within their Anima of Yearning, and to use a person’s Anima of Yearning meant to take on the sentiments they carried.

If a Conferred God King’s soul was not strong and pure enough, they could easily be influenced by the malevolent emotions within the Anima of Yearning and fall into a state of confusion.

For this reason, the strength of one’s soul was of paramount importance for one’s conferment.

It was true that the young man before him was still a high-tier Celestial God, but it should only be a matter of time before he became a full-fledged God King given his talents. With the level of his soul cultivation, the chances of him successfully becoming a Conferred God King in the future was at least fifty percent!

The reason their Inferno Phoenix Clan had been able to prosper was because of their old ancestor, the Fire Feather Conferred God King. If another Conferred God King appeared among them, there was no doubt that the position of the number one clan in the Sky of Spirit Origin, or perhaps even the whole Firmament, would be theirs to claim!

“I see… Thank you for your high opinion for me, but I’m afraid that I’ll have to refuse,” Zhang Xuan replied.

Seeing how reluctant the other party was, the clan head knew that it would be hard to convince him right away. So, he decided to take a step back for the time being. “I understand your thoughts. Why don’t we do this instead? There is a stone phoenix sculpture just outside of Spirit God Palace that is used to control the formation within the palace and test the potential of a God King. Even though you aren’t interested in it, there’s no harm giving it a try, right?”

With the Flood of Spiritual Energy looming around the corner, there was no power that would not want to increase the number of Conferred God Kings on their side.

This young man was probably the closest to become a Conferred God King in the Sky of Spirit Origin!

As long as they could prove his talent to the other two clans, he would be able to convince them to devote their resources to help him achieve a breakthrough in his zhenqi cultivation.

If everything worked out, not only would the forces of the Sky of Spirit Origin be bolstered, more importantly, it would also guarantee the prosperity of the Inferno Phoenix Clan for the next hundred thousand years!

“You are going to enter Spirit God Palace anyway. Why not just give it a try while you are there?” The clan head pushed his case further.

Zhang Xuan nodded. “Alright then…”

The clan head was right.

There was no harm in him giving it a try, especially since he had been wanting to head to Spirit God Palace anyway.

…

Spirit God Palace floated above Spirit Origin Royal City. Flying behind the clan head of the Inferno Phoenix Clan, he soon arrived before it.

There were already two other people waiting outside the palace for him.

They were the heads of the other two clans.

“Feng Yuanchi, you said that his soul cultivation has already reached God King realm pinnacle?”

As soon as they landed on the ground, one of the clan heads stepped forward with a look of displeasure in his eyes and an ice-cold aura.

He was the head of the Glacier Phoenix Clan, Feng Hanxue.

It should have been their clan’s Feng Hanqiu to enter Spirit God Palace, but he ended up being replaced by someone from the Inferno Phoenix Clan. Furthermore, the Inferno Phoenix Clan had even gained a God King and a God King realm pinnacle cultivator in succession over the last few hours…

There was no way he could have been happy about it.

“That’s right.” The head of the Inferno Phoenix Clan, Feng Yuanchi, nodded.

Feng Hanxue turned to look at Zhang Xuan, and he found that the latter’s soul was indeed unfathomably deep. Despite being a God King, he was actually unable to see through the young man’s soul cultivation.

This made him even more stifled, but it would not be appropriate for him to kick up a fuss. So, he waved his hand impatiently and said, “Let’s start the trial. Let me say it in advance. The Trial of Conferment is very dangerous, and the slightest carelessness can result in your soul getting crushed!”

Feng Yuanchi nodded before turning to Zhang Xuan and discreetly sending him a message through zhenqi telepathy. “Your goal is just to test if you have the potential to push for a breakthrough to Conferred God King. That will put us in a better position to demand more resources from the other two clans for you. So, if you find yourself reaching your limits, back down right away. Don’t force yourself to persevere through it, alright?”

Zhang Xuan nodded before asking, “How does the trial work?”

“Do you see the stone phoenix sculpture ahead? Behind the sculpture, you will find a constellation map of the Sky of Spirit Origin. Through channeling your soul energy into the stone phoenix sculpture, you’ll be able to light up the stars in the constellation map. If you can light up a star, it shows that you have potential. If you can light up a hundred stars, it means that you have the right to become a Conferred God King,” Feng Yuanchi said as he pointed ahead.

Zhang Xuan glanced over, and right outside Spirit God Palace, there was indeed a massive stone phoenix sculpture. Behind it was an even larger constellation map with countless stars twinkling on it, numbering in the tens of thousands at the very least.

Looking at it from afar, it looked like a massive phoenix soaring in a boundless sky.

To only need to light up a hundred stars on the constellation map in order to qualify as a Conferred God King… was it not a little too easy?

Feng Yuanchi saw through Zhang Xuan’s thoughts and explained with an awkward chuckle, “Don’t underestimate the trial. The stone phoenix sculpture has His Sovereignty’s will infused within, so you’ll experience a tremendous amount of pressure as you attempt to infuse your soul energy in. In other words, you will need to overcome His Sovereignty’s will while lighting up the stars, making it an extremely difficult trial. I, together with the other two clan heads, have tried the trial before, but in the end… we couldn’t even light up a single star!”

“I see…” Zhang Xuan nodded.

If it was that easy to become a Conferred God King, there would not be just three of them in the entire Sky of Spirit Origin.

The three clan heads had already discussed this matter beforehand, so there were no issues hindering them.

Zhang Xuan walked up to the stone phoenix sculpture and placed his hand on it.

As soon as his palm touched the sculpture, he immediately felt a powerful pressure coming from within the sculpture. Without any hesitation, he began to channel his soul energy into the sculpture.

Hong long!

Zhang Xuan’s soul rattled a little under the pressure, and vaguely, he could see a massive phoenix appearing before him. In comparison to this massive phoenix, his soul energy appeared to be no more than a speck of dust in the midst of a desert.

Do I have to overcome this phoenix in order to clear the trial?

Things were indeed not as easy as he had expected.

The pressure coming from the phoenix was simply too great. Even though he had made a breakthrough in his soul cultivation, it still would not be easy for him to overcome it.

I should still give it a try anyway…

He was already there, so no matter how difficult it might be, he should not give up without at least putting up a fight.

Above the God Kings were the Conferred God Kings. If he wished to become a God Monarch like Kong shi, this was a route that he had to take. Since that was the case, there was no reason for him to run away from it.

So, he swiftly gathered his soul energy before directing it toward the phoenix before him.

Hmm? This isn’t right…

Zhang Xuan soon realized that something was amiss.

Given the tremendous pressure weighing down on him, he thought that it would get progressively harder for him to push his soul energy forward. Yet, as he got closer to the phoenix, he oddly felt a sense of intimacy.

Instead of getting repelled, he was able to easily channel his soul energy past the phoenix to reach the constellation map.

Zhang Xuan was not too sure what was happening, but he was just glad that he was able to bypass the phoenix for the time being. So, he directed his soul energy toward one of the stars.

Hu!

As if someone had flicked on the switch, all the stars lit up simultaneously to radiate a brilliant light.

Zhang Xuan was stunned. It’s all lit up… Is it supposed to be so simple?