Chapter 17 The Azure Heaven Demon King's Trial

Only two days after descending to the lower realm, and I'm already seeing Dafuli Earth again! Moreover, the Azure Heaven Demon King has descended to test Ji Xiang. This isn't the standard for a first-time demon trial at all!

Ji Xiang couldn't help but sigh to the heavens. What virtue or ability did he possess? With only elementary school knowledge, he was being given a university exam!

He wondered if he was being treated specially, or if something had gone wrong in a previous step, leading to the current situation?

It was said that whenever a Demon King descended, it was only to test Earth Immortals, Realized Ones, or Celestial Masters; there shouldn't be any interaction with a minor cultivator like him!

The *Dongxuan Lingbao Ziran Jiutian Sheng Shen Yu Zhang Jing Jie* says: "Scholars of the Dao undergo many demon trials. First, they experience the lesser demons, then the greater demons. If they pass both trials, the Demon King can recommend them to ascend to the celestial ranks."

The lesser demons are the ten demons of the human world. One must experience the ten demons and nine tribulations to even see a greater demon!

And the greater demons are the various Demon Kings of the Three Realms, Five Heavens, and Eight Emperors. They theoretically only descend once, as the final assessment!

Moreover, among the Five Heavens Demon Kings, the Azure Heaven is the leader. Under the seat of the Yuanshi Heavenly Lord, he is known as the "Source of All Gods," and all the heavens above, gods, and celestial generals are tested by him!

However, it is said that as long as one passes the Azure Heaven Demon King's exam, one will become an immortal on the spot!

"Everyone, we've shared a hundred years of incense. Why are you embarrassing me like this!"

"Forget it! Now that I'm here, I can't let this old thing look down on me!"

Ji Xiang calmed his mind... He had just been bragging, saying that he had a long-standing relationship with the Demon Kings and had even taken their incense offerings. Now, it was coming back to bite him.

The Azure Heaven Demon King didn't waste words; it couldn't waste words. The spirit tablet was emotionless and without wisdom, only doing what it was supposed to do. Ji Xiang had already been singled out by the Demon Kings because of his special identity.

He was both an extraterrestrial demon and a divine guest of Fulidi, so from the moment Ji Xiang descended to Dafuli Earth, he had been watched by the gods!

The lesser demons of the human world were not qualified to test Ji Xiang, because he was no ordinary person, but a celestial!

Now that the Azure Heaven Demon King had descended to give the exam, Ji Xiang could only brace himself and accept it. However, in reality, from the moment the Azure Heaven Demon King tore up the lesser demon's test paper and descended to the lower realm personally, Ji Xiang had entered the Demon King's exam!

The Demon King's exam was a closed-book exam, with no correct answers. There would be no notification before the exam started!

This was because "tribulation comes from the intangible"!

"Not good, I've become angry!"

At this moment, Ji Xiang felt his strength plummet, his body was weak, his yuanqi (original energy) was damaged, and his chest felt constricted. He spat out a mouthful of essence blood! He immediately recited the Purification Mantra!

This Azure Heaven Demon King controlled matters of joy and anger in the human world. Whenever one became angry, one's energy and essence blood would be depleted.

Ji Xiang saw the scenery before him change, and this test was directly aimed at the essence of the Incense Lord, not the physical body!

Within the Inner Vision Spirit Tablet, information about the Azure Heaven Demon King appeared!

[Azure Heaven Demon King: Greater Demon (Divine King)! Ninth Rank in the Celestial Department! Greater Demon of the Five Heavens, Source of All Gods!]

[Leader of the Heavenly Demons, Moods are fickle; Heavenly Gods and Celestials are tested by him!]

[In the Azure Heaven Demon Trial, you will see all kinds of joys, sorrows, and angers, and incomparably indignant events. These stories often have painful endings and are never perfect! During the demon trial, the test-taker will share the same mind and body with the characters in the illusion, but cannot interfere with their actions until the moment of desperation, when a choice can be made!]

[Ten lifetimes of reincarnation, a thousand years of time. You must remain unmoved by anger at least six times to pass the demon trial! Continuously reciting "Do not be confused, do not be disturbed, all things will be clear; Do not be alarmed, do not be frightened, all things will be managed by themselves," or continuously reciting the Purification Mantra, can calm the mind, prevent the demon realm from invading the heart, and greatly increase the chances of passing the exam!]

[If it is difficult to suppress anger, please recite the *Tai Shang Lao Jun Shuo Chang Qing Jing Jing* (The Classic of Purity and Tranquility).]

[If you do not pass the demon trial in the first millennium, the difficulty of the demon trial will gradually increase!]

[If one can recognize the demon's form and subdue it, then the Dao seeker and the Demon King will simultaneously transform into the image of the Heavenly Emperor, ascending the Dao seeker's form and spirit!]

[After passing the demon trial, the spirit can reach Dafuli Earth unhindered! You will gain the Dao practice of the Ascending Realm!]

.........

First life: As a youth, timid and afraid of trouble, he studied diligently for ten years, passed the imperial examination in one fell swoop, but was framed and became a scapegoat, resulting in the confiscation of his home and the extermination of his family.

Second life: Ten years of carefree life, after adulthood, he married a beautiful wife, but she was seen by the magistrate's son. Afraid of offending him, he had no choice but to offer his wife and children.

Third life: Half a lifetime of toil, accumulating a small fortune, but coveted by relatives, who bribed the county government, forcibly seized his property, and falsely accused him, turning the case into an ironclad injustice.

Fourth life: A beggar fought with a dog for food, was teased by a playboy, had his hands and feet chopped off, and his body was thrown into the bustling city.

Fifth life, sixth life, seventh life...

A hundred years wasted, a thousand years of stories.

How many years the "plot characters" in the illusion lived, Ji Xiang lived with them for the same amount of time. In the illusion, it was a great dream, and time was not counted.

From birth to death, Ji Xiang was the will within these illusion characters' bodies. However, the actions, movements, pain, and sorrow of the illusion characters seemed to have nothing to do with Ji Xiang. Ji Xiang could see everything, but could not make any rebellious actions, including those humiliating, flattering, or dirty words and expressions, making Ji Xiang feel as if he was doing these things himself!

He almost completely became the character in the illusion!

Even though Ji Xiang knew the method of passing the test, he could initially suppress the anger in his heart according to the incantations and scriptures. But starting from the third life, even the scriptures gradually became difficult to suppress. Ji Xiang then realized that if there was anger in his heart, even reciting the scriptures would be difficult.

His inner character was not suitable for the Dao of Tranquility.

So Ji Xiang could only try his best to restrain himself, and give himself the suggestion that these were other people's suffering, and he was just a spectator, although he was forcibly brought into it by the demon realm...

Even though the spirit tablet gave him an easier way to pass the test, the nameless flame in Ji Xiang's heart always seemed to want to burst out from time to time.

At this moment, Ji Xiang suddenly understood what the Fire Lord had said to the Wanli Emperor back then: "The moment a thought arises in your mind, the karma fire burns more vigorously; it is not others who are driving the karma fire to burn you, but you yourself who are burning yourself!"

"Honest people are forced to lie, upright people bow and scrape, outspoken people are silenced, kind people are framed, hardworking people are forcibly robbed of their savings, lowly people are treated worse than livestock, proud people are trampled into the dust, and those with ambition witness their ideals shattered..."

"Black and white are reversed, no amount of explanation can clear one's name, and those who have done all kinds of evil deeds have smooth sailing. Three men make a tiger, popular clamor melts metal, and continuous slander destroys bones!"

"You've spoken reason for half your life. When you reason with these people, they use force against you. When you use force against them, they use the law against you... It turns out there is no place in the world to reason."

Ji Xiang tried his best to restrain himself, but the nameless fire in his heart accumulated more and more intensely.

The spirit tablet of the Azure Heaven Greater Demon would occasionally flash in Ji Xiang's eyes.

It seemed to be mocking Ji Xiang, these are nothing compared to the many trials and tribulations of the human world!

Heaven will entrust great responsibility to this person, must first embitter his heart, strain his bones, starve his body, empty him, and disrupt his actions! Therefore, he is moved in his heart and strengthened his nature to increase what he is unable to do.

A thousand years passed in the blink of an eye. Within the demon realm, nine hundred years had already passed!

Four failures, five successes. Only one last time, the last century, and he could pass the Azure Heaven Demon Trial, but if he couldn't pass, he would usher in an even more arduous trial.

Make-up exams are not necessarily easier than regular exams, at least in the hands of the Demon Kings, make-up exams are more difficult!

Ji Xiang clenched his fists, glared his eyes, and waited for the final demon trial. The Azure Heaven Demon King's spirit tablet bloomed with azure and red light, and the demon realm opened. But this time there was no change. The demon realm fluctuated and still presented the appearance of Dafuli Earth.

But then, Ji Xiang heard a vicious curse in his ears. These words were released by the Azure Heaven Demon King from the spirit tablet!

Starting from the first sentence, the subsequent vicious and strange words turned into Heavenly Demon Sounds, constantly entering his ears!

......

"This woman must be having an affair with her lover and killed her husband. Look how beautiful she is... That's how it's written in all the storybooks..."

"Giving up your life to save someone, that kind of person is just stupid. He deserves to die!"

"He cheated on the exam! He cheated, so why hide it? He even changed it, does he think everyone else is blind?"

"I'm taking your money because I think highly of you. Don't think too highly of yourself. What are you? The face powder I buy for my concubines in a day is enough to buy your three lives."

"When will your whole family die?"

"We still didn't kill ruthlessly enough back then, hee hee..."