Chapter Sixteen: The Nine Aperture Golden Elixir

Wang Fan collapsed onto the ground, gasping for breath. For him, surviving and passing the Emperor-level trial was nothing short of a miracle.

He couldn't help but feel incredibly lucky. Upon entering the trial space, the vital essence lingering on the endless white bones had not yet fully dissipated, saturating the entire space with ownerless spiritual energy. For someone like Wang Fan, who possessed the Devouring Heaven Demonic Art, this abundance of energy was a great advantage.

Moreover, Wang Fan himself had extraordinary combat comprehension, and at the most critical moment, his understanding of the Devouring Heaven Demonic Art reached a new height—this was his personal advantage. And just at the pivotal moment, the trial's time expired—this was the advantage of timing.

He possessed all three: the right place, the right person, and the right time. Only by holding these three key points was Wang Fan able to survive the hands of the young Emperor Wu Shi.

But for now, survival was all he could manage.

The gap in constitution, understanding of techniques, and mastery of arcane arts was immense. Calculating all these differences, Wang Fan realized it was reckless to challenge the Emperor-level trial on his first attempt. If not for his extraordinary luck, he might have ended up as yet another pile of fresh bones on the path of emperors.

Having come to terms with this gap, Wang Fan resolved to train diligently in the future, so that next time, he could stride into the Emperor's trial with overwhelming strength and truly face off against the Emperor. Next time, there would be no omnipresent spiritual energy saturating the trial space—he would rely solely on his own true power to defeat the young Emperor, rather than relying on stalling for time.

Taking a short rest, Wang Fan then unclasped his hands, causing the Great Dao Treasure Vessel to dissipate. An immeasurable surge of spiritual energy flooded into his body, filling and refining it, making him stronger.

This torrent of energy not only nourished him but also healed the wounds he had sustained.

Sitting cross-legged on the arena, Wang Fan closed his eyes and circulated the Devouring Heaven Demonic Art, transforming the ownerless spiritual energy into his own, deepening his foundation.

After allowing the vast spiritual energy to flow through him and spending ten minutes to restore himself, Wang Fan rose to his feet, his face still slightly pale. As he stood, he noticed a button had appeared at the center of the arena—a button that hadn't been there before, only manifesting after he had passed the trial.

He gazed thoughtfully at the softly glowing gemstone button, then stepped forward to press it. Instantly, the arena trembled slightly, and a passageway opened—a dark corridor appeared.

Could this be the reward?

With that thought, Wang Fan headed into the corridor. Descending, he discovered it was not pitch-black as he'd first thought. Countless runes were etched into the walls. Wang Fan didn't understand their meaning, but staring at them made his heart pound with dread, as if each rune could obliterate him a hundred times over.

Swallowing hard, Wang Fan quickened his pace, going deeper until he found a treasury. The door stood open, revealing countless treasures within, and several mysterious characters inscribed above the entrance.

These characters were very different from those on the corridor walls. Though Wang Fan didn't recognize their language, upon seeing them, he instinctively understood their meaning: those who passed the Emperor-level trial could enter the treasury and select two treasures.

With a raised brow and a smile tugging at his lips, Wang Fan entered to make his choices.

Inside, he saw an endless array of materials, weapons, cultivation techniques, and mystical artifacts—treasures from all corners of the world, all displayed within the vault.

The sheer number of items left Wang Fan momentarily stunned.

Before him stood more than a hundred shelves, each emanating a unique aura of treasure.

So many treasures, yet only two could be taken. He knew he had to choose carefully.

Taking a deep breath to calm his excitement, Wang Fan began his search.

Passing the first shelf, he found a piece of primordial essence, within which a fish seemed to reside. This fish had dragon whiskers and four limbs, resembling an ancient dragonfish.

At the sight of this dragonfish essence, Wang Fan immediately sensed an overwhelming danger—just thinking of taking it filled him with foreboding. He realized that whatever was sealed within was immensely perilous; opening it might unleash a terrifying monster that could well harm him.

With that in mind, Wang Fan left the dragonfish essence and continued on, stopping and starting as he wandered past many shelves, seeing countless divine weapons and artifacts. All the highest-grade divine weapons were sentient; as soon as Wang Fan, still in the Bitter Sea realm, so much as considered taking one, the weapon would tremble, flashing with a cold gleam and murderous intent, as if they would attack him should he dare touch them.

Wang Fan could only withdraw his hand with a wry smile.

And it wasn't just the weapons—many of the pills had developed intelligence after thousands or even tens of thousands of years, their cultivation even surpassing Wang Fan's. It was impossible for him to simply take these pills, either.

To enter a mountain of treasures, yet come away empty-handed!

Wang Fan frowned, never having expected that his low cultivation would bar him from claiming the best treasures.

Still, he did not stop; instead, he moved quickly, believing that in this mountain of treasures, there must be something suitable for him.

With that conviction, he pressed on until he stopped before a wooden shelf, his eyes fixed on a box atop it.

On the box were four words: Nine Aperture Golden Pill.

Wang Fan was intimately familiar with this pill. He remembered that in the world of Immortal Life, the protagonist had obtained this very pill, allowing him to defy fate, rise from a mere stable hand to the pinnacle of the world, and ultimately achieve immortality.

If this was truly the Nine Aperture Golden Pill from the story, it was a tremendous fortune!

Thinking so, Wang Fan reached out and took the box from the shelf, opening it.

With a soft click, the box revealed its contents—a thumb-sized golden pill. Strangely, the pill had nine tiny holes, and an invigorating fragrance wafted from it. With just a slight sniff, Wang Fan felt his mind clear, his body refreshed, and the speed of his healing increased considerably.

He gazed intently at the golden pill, noting the nine apertures resembling the nine orifices of a human, each exhaling and inhaling streams of energy, as if containing a unique life force of its own.