Lan Zhaoyue, seeing her dispirited expression, walked up with a smile to comfort her.
"Don't be sad. Even though you didn't pass, you still scored much higher than Mu Yangchen. This means your future achievements will definitely be greater than his."
As a woman who held grudges, she wished she could constantly put down Mu Yangchen, infuriating him to no end.
Amidst this somber atmosphere, Lan Zhaoye jumped out and declared, "Everyone, look here, look here! Behold your young master!"
His plump body almost slammed into the stone tablet. He placed his grease-filled hands on it and closed his eyes to concentrate.
Light flickered, and a bell sound rang out.
*Dong!*
*Dong dong!*
*Dong!*
A total of four rings. It was still a far cry from passing, but he showed no disappointment.
Instead, he returned to Lan Zhaoyue with a grin and said, "Sister, mine rang four times! It's the same as Mu Yangchen's!"
After speaking, he deliberately glanced at Mu Yangchen not far away and said leisurely.
"Doesn't this mean that if we were in the Xuanming Immortal Palace, we'd be considered young palace lord level geniuses?"
Lan Zhaoyue praised him, patting his shoulder. "Naturally. You truly are my brother, Little Ye. You're amazing."
"That's right!"
Lan Zhaoye smiled proudly, displaying a brother-sister bond. This scene was like a dagger to Mu Yangchen's heart.
After all, not long ago, his brother Mu Yangtuo had been killed by Ye Yun. Now, the killer of his brother was right before him, yet he couldn't act and had to endure this display of affection.
Mu Yangchen snorted coldly but said nothing more.
As for the other rogue cultivators, seeing that these peerless prodigies had only managed four, five, or six rings, their hearts sank by half.
As expected, after this, others stepped forward to try, but not a single one managed to ring three times.
Clearly, the difficulty of the Tongling Bell was much higher than they had anticipated. Even the cultivators in the Life and Death realm from various immortal palaces could only manage two or three rings.
"Brother Ye, what are you waiting for? Aren't you going to try soon?"
At this moment, Lan Zhaoye looked at Ye Yun, who was staring blankly at the stone tablet, and couldn't help but remind him. Everyone else was almost done testing; they were all waiting to see how their Brother Ye would perform.
Others also looked over. Lan Zhaoyue urged, "That's right, what are you spacing out for? Hurry up and see if you can pass!"
"Got it, got it. I'm coming."
Ye Yun withdrew his gaze and agreed with a smile. He had been lost in thought, marveling at the inscriptions on the stone tablet, and hadn't noticed what was happening around him.
Seeing that everyone else had performed poorly, Ye Yun also walked forward out of curiosity, wanting to see how difficult it was to make the bell ring.
Everyone's attention fell on him. Even Mu Yangchen couldn't help but stare, wanting to witness how much comprehension this "number one sword cultivator genius in ancient and modern times," as he was touted, possessed.
Before the stone tablet, Ye Yun gently placed his hand on it. The moment he closed his eyes, he felt countless profound runes flooding into his mind.
"This is..."
Ye Yun was extremely shocked. These runes, which seemed unrelated at first glance, were in fact a chapter from a top-tier Heavenly-grade profound skill.
"Heavenly-grade top-tier profound skill... Tian Mo Bian. Is this part of its cultivation method..."
Because these contents were hidden too deeply, at first glance, even understanding some of them wouldn't reveal that it was a cultivation method for a profound skill.
As the wise sage had said, it depended on one's comprehension to discern some of its content.
However, for Ye Yun, who possessed Immortal-grade comprehension, this so-called hidden method was completely transparent. It was merely a matter of reading the content in a slightly more complicated manner.
Soon, he read through the entire text and basically understood this profound skill. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
"Truly worthy of an ancient sage; such a profound skill is indeed remarkable!"
He wasn't without Heavenly-grade profound skills. Shi Fang Bing Hua was quite powerful, and its cultivation was mysterious and profound. But compared to Tian Mo Bian, a top-tier Heavenly-grade skill, it fell somewhat short.
This time, the gains were truly immense!
While Ye Yun was fully immersed in the joy of discovering Tian Mo Bian, the outside world had already exploded.
From the moment his palm touched the stone tablet, everyone's gaze had been fixed there, and they soon noticed something was amiss.
The entire stone tablet began to glow rapidly from the center where Ye Yun's palm rested, and the Tongling Bell immediately began to ring.
*Dong...*
After a sustained ring, silence fell over the space. No one dared to breathe.
"Huh? It's not just going to ring once, is it?"
Seeing that the Tongling Bell had stopped, Lan Zhaoye looked bewildered.
It wasn't just him; anyone who knew Ye Yun was stunned. How could it be? With Ye Yun's talent, would it only ring once?
Yu Wenya's delicate brows furrowed. She couldn't believe it and said, "How could this be? Is the Tongling Bell broken?"
Meanwhile, Mu Yangchen, seeing this, couldn't help but sneer.
"Tch, I thought he was supposed to be amazing. Is this the 'number one sword genius in ancient and modern times' that people from your Eastern Domain have been hyping up? It's quite comical!"
His previous frustration dissipated significantly. Yu Wenya and the others ignored him, their brows furrowed.
The stagnant atmosphere persisted for a long time. Mu Yangchen couldn't help but continue to sneer.
"That guy is still persisting. Does he really think that if he waits long enough, it will ring again?"
But as soon as he spoke, the silent Tongling Bell suddenly rang again. This ring seemed to strike everyone's heart.
"Hmm?"
Mu Yangchen narrowed his eyes. But as he turned to look, the Tongling Bell let out another deafening sound.
*Dong!*
Immediately followed by another.
*Dong!*
After this, the time between each ring grew shorter.
*Dong!*
*Dong dong!*
*Dong dong dong...*
The sound of the Tongling Bell became increasingly rapid, transforming from individual rings into a continuous roar.
Simultaneously, the gentle light from the giant stone tablet that Ye Yun was touching suddenly became blinding, instantly resembling a sun standing there!
The white light stripped away their vision. The entire space echoed with the deafening sound of the bell, forcing many to cover their ears to prevent their eardrums from shattering.
This chaotic scene caused many to turn pale and curse involuntarily.
"Damn it! Does it need to be this loud?"
This chaotic barrage lasted for more than ten seconds, until a sound like breaking glass was heard, and the commotion in the space suddenly ceased.
The blinding light from the stone tablet gradually faded, and the sound of the Tongling Bell disappeared. When everything returned to normal, they could finally see the scene before them clearly.
Ye Yun was nowhere to be seen, only the cracked stone tablet in the distance and the Tongling Bell shattered on the ground...
"..."
Whether it was Yu Wenya, Lan Zhaoyue, or Mu Yangchen and the others, their eyes were all stunned.
Honestly, no one was surprised that Ye Yun could pass this round of assessment. In fact, they considered it a matter of course.
But the problem was, passing the assessment with such a terrifying display was something none of them could have imagined even in their wildest dreams...
"This guy really is..."
Looking at the shattered fragments of the Tongling Bell, Yu Wenya let out a long sigh.
Others also fell silent, a sense of powerlessness rising in everyone's hearts.
The Tongling Bell, which they had struggled to make ring, was so utterly insignificant to Ye Yun...
Lan Zhaoyue couldn't help but exclaim, "Truly a formidable fellow. It seems the Sage's treasure will definitely belong to him."
"Yes... all our efforts were in vain."
Yu Wenya couldn't help but give a bitter smile.
Mu Yangchen, after snapping out of his shock, wore an extremely grim expression.
In fact, whether he could obtain the Sage's treasure this time was related to whether he could truly gain control of the Xuanming Immortal Palace.
Or, put simply, this trip to the Sage's tomb was his final assessment to become the Palace Master of Xuanming Immortal Palace. Once he obtained that Sage's treasure, the Xuanming Immortal Palace would truly be his!
But now, everything had been snatched away by Ye Yun, by this man who had harmed his brother!
"Ye Yun... Ye Yun..."
Mu Yangchen stared at the shattered stone tablet, his eyes filled with killing intent.
"You can be arrogant for a little while longer. Once we leave this Sage's tomb, you will surely die!"
At this point, no matter what, he had to kill Ye Yun. This was no longer just a personal vendetta.
The Sage's treasure, the Heavenly-grade profound skill, the revenge for his brother's death, the control of the Xuanming Immortal Palace, and, most importantly, Ye Yun's terrifying potential, which made him genuinely fearful.
He absolutely could not let someone with the chance to reach the pinnacle grow any further. Otherwise, in the future, their Xuanming Immortal Palace would have a formidable enemy!