Three months had passed.

And during those three months, everyone had worked together to comprehend the Apex of Fear. Ironically, Lu Yuan, who had the greatest fame and potential, failed to grasp the Apex of Fear, while the other four, with lesser fame and potential, succeeded. This outcome sent a jolt through everyone, leaving them filled with doubt.

Lu Yuan knew his own situation best: suffering from the Deficiency of Seven Emotions, achieving the fifth heaven of the World Realm was proving incredibly difficult.

The Primordial Stone of Fear had now dissipated, vanishing completely.

What was about to begin was the Primordial Stone of Desire. The Primordial Stone of Desire was a colorful stone, about the size of a person. The six individuals sat cross-legged around it, pouring their magic power into the stone. Immediately, beams of light spread out, enveloping all six of them as they began to comprehend the Apex of Desire.

Lu Yuan was swept into the phenomenon as well.

Trapped within endless color, all manner of illusions manifested.

Within these illusions, there were beauties of every kind, immense power and authority, every conceivable wish, and exotic wines. Lu Yuan found himself completely unable to immerse himself in these phantoms. Power and beauty—what were those? He hadn't the slightest interest; such things had always been like passing clouds to him.

Wine? That held a little appeal, but blast it all, the wine was fake! Lu Yuan was so deeply immersed in the Dao of Wine that he could sense even the slightest falseness. No matter how real the illusion, it was useless against wine; no illusion could ever deceive Lu Yuan on that front.

Thus, these varied desires and mirages posed absolutely no challenge to Lu Yuan.

This should have been a good thing.

Indeed, when facing Inner Demons or other Heavenly Tribulations, Lu Yuan’s tranquil disposition was not just a good thing, but a supremely great thing.

However, the problem now was the Primordial Stone of Desire. To advance to the fifth heaven of the World Realm, the Creation Realm, one had to immerse oneself and feel the Apex of Desire, grasping the Apex of the Seven Emotions. In this back-and-forth, Lu Yuan's detached nature, usually a tremendous boon for cultivation, became an insurmountable obstacle in this particular trial.

In the first month, Lu Yuan failed to immerse himself. By this time, pink light had begun to appear above the heads of Zhu Tianrong and Ji Qianyu.

In the second month, Lu Yuan realized he still could not yield to the illusions of desire; they simply couldn't trick him. To be unable to enter—what could he do? Meanwhile, the pink light above the heads of Zhu Tianrong, Ji Qianyu, Jian Yunzhongzu, and Su Yingxiu grew steadily more intense.

The third month finally concluded. Zhu Tianrong, Ji Qianyu, Jian Yunzhongzu, and Su Yingxiu had all mastered the Apex of Desire, one of the Apexes of the Seven Emotions. And Lu Yuan? He still had not mastered the Apex of Desire.

Now, the situation had become truly interesting.

It was true that Lu Yuan was the most promising figure among the six. Yet, aside from him, the other five had all, to some degree, grasped either the Apex of Fear or the Apex of Desire, with some even mastering both Apexes.

This was utterly bizarre.

How could Lu Yuan fail to grasp even a single Apex?

This result was completely inconsistent with the reputation he had always maintained.

By this point, Lu Yuan and the other five had stayed on the Earth Dragon Star for six months, all having obtained what they sought. Next, none of the six showed any intention of leaving the Earth Dragon Star. If there was a second Primordial Stone, there might be a third; they needed to continue mining.

When the six arrived, the Sword Gate, Thousand Water Sect, and had all promised that if a third Primordial Stone appeared, the six of them could divide it. Such an opportunity was not to be missed.

And so, Lu Yuan, Jian Yunzhongzu, Ji Qianyu, Su Yingxiu, Zhu Tianrong, and Zhu Liefeng settled down on the Earth Dragon Star.

As soon as they settled in, people immediately began inquiring about their results, and the other five among the group were also puzzled as to why Lu Yuan had failed to grasp any Apex. What had happened this time?

"Right, have you heard? About the Primordial Stone of Fear and the Primordial Stone of Desire that appeared this time."

"Nonsense, of course, we've heard. Those are rare and precious treasures."

"Indeed. Lu Yuan, Jian Yunzhongzu, Ji Qianyu, Su Yingxiu, Zhu Tianrong, and Zhu Liefeng—these six are blessed to have experienced those two stones and successfully formed the Apex of Fear and the Apex of Desire."

"I heard that several among the six managed to cultivate two Apexes of the Seven Emotions. They truly struck gold."

"Speaking of which, the most famous of the six is Lu Yuan. Did he manage to cultivate two Apexes?"

"No, I heard Lu Yuan failed to cultivate either the Apex of Fear or the Apex of Desire."

"You're kidding. Are the Apex of Desire and the Apex of Fear that difficult? With the assistance of the Primordial Stones, it shouldn't be that hard, right?"

"Yes, we can't understand it either. Lu Yuan is a figure of great potential and renown. How could he fail to cultivate even one Apex of the Seven Emotions? It just doesn't match his reputation."

"But Lu Yuan is certainly not someone whose fame is undeserved. He even defeated the Child of the Sword; he absolutely has substance."

"So, what’s going on?" Countless people were troubled.

"Your intelligence isn't quite up to date. According to rumors circulating, many people have been studying Lu Yuan and discovered his nature: the Deficiency of Seven Emotions. This nature is usually exceptionally smooth for cultivation—a top-tier disposition that fears no intrusion from Inner Demons. However, precisely when attempting to break through to the fifth heaven of the World Realm, the Creation Realm, this Deficiency of Seven Emotions becomes an obstruction."

"If one has the Deficiency of Seven Emotions, how long might they be stuck when attempting to reach the fifth heaven of the World Realm, the Creation Realm?"

"So that's it. There’s that explanation, too."

At this point, everyone finally understood why Lu Yuan had been unable to master any of the Seven Emotion Apexes: the Deficiency of Seven Emotions! Especially for Jian Yunzhongzu, Ji Qianyu, Su Yingxiu, Zhu Tianrong, and Zhu Liefeng—all at the fourth heaven of the World Realm and pushing toward the fifth—they understood the terror of the Deficiency even better.

For them, attempting to reach the fifth heaven of the World Realm, the Creation Realm, was already incredibly difficult.

But for someone like Lu Yuan, afflicted with the Deficiency of Seven Emotions, it would be ten times, a hundred times harder than for them.

Yes, it could be said without doubt that the fifth heaven of the World Realm, the Creation Realm, represented an immense hurdle for Lu Yuan—a hurdle whose difficulty to overcome was unimaginable. Therefore, Lu Yuan’s failure over the past six months to grasp any Apex of the Seven Emotions could be fully explained: it was inherently difficult to the extreme for someone with the Deficiency of Seven Emotions to master the Apexes of the Seven Emotions.

This current pass was, for Lu Yuan, a super-hard trial.

Indeed, a super-hard trial—the greatest hurdle of his life, right now.

Ever since Old Ancestor Jian Mie told him about the Deficiency of Seven Emotions and the difficulty of this trial, Lu Yuan had believed it. The two consecutive failures over the past six months only confirmed this belief for him.

But, so what?

Even with the Deficiency of Seven Emotions, he needed to advance quickly.

He had to advance quickly. The eight-year pact with the Child of the Sword was still valid, and the Child of the Sword was progressing ceaselessly. If he didn't advance quickly, he would be defeated by the Child of the Sword. How could he possibly allow himself to be defeated by the Child of the Sword?

So, how could he forge the Apex of the Seven Emotions and ascend to the fifth heaven of the World Realm, the Creation Realm?

Lu Yuan fell into deep contemplation. Could he learn from the Eight Immortals of the Upper Cave and descend to the mortal realm for a period? A trip of an immortal descending to the mundane would certainly be possible, but Lu Yuan deeply doubted his own temperament. Even if he descended to live the life of a common person, he would likely live it with detachment, unable to fully integrate. A trip to the mortal realm would be pointless. Furthermore, frankly, he truly dared not descend as an immortal. Descending to the mortal realm was an extremely dangerous affair. With enemies scattered across the world, if he made such a journey, the possibility of being utterly destroyed was extremely, extremely high.

As Lu Yuan pondered, he felt the entire Earth Dragon Star shudder with a single, profound jolt. Yes, the entire celestial body vibrated.

Lu Yuan shot out from the surface of the Earth Dragon Star. In the sky above, a middle-aged man descended, possessing a square face, large ears, and wildly streaming hair. This man had thick eyebrows and large eyes, radiating an aura of murderous intent. Moreover, his magical power was immensely high, far beyond ordinary. At this moment, the others, such as Ji Qianyu and Jian Yunzhongzu, had also arrived on the ground, watching the descent of this square-faced, large-eared, thick-browed, large-eyed middle-aged man.

"Oh, you are all indeed on the Earth Dragon Star. Especially you, Lu Yuan. Excellent." The middle-aged man radiated an intensely wild aura as he swiftly swept his gaze over the group, finally fixing his attention on Lu Yuan.

"You must be Lu Yuan. Very young, indeed. A pity you have to die by my hand," the middle-aged man stated.

Lu Yuan looked at the man with the thick eyebrows and large eyes: "Who are you?"

"I am Zhan Kuangtie, one of the Old Ancestors of the Mad Sect," the middle-aged man replied.

Zhan Kuangtie, one of the Old Ancestors of the Mad Sect!

The Mad Sect! Lu Yuan started internally. It was actually someone from the Mad Sect.

The mortal enemy of the Sword Gate among the sects was not the Peerless Sect, nor the Thousand Mountain Sect, nor the Desolate Beast Gate, but the Mad Sect. The Mad Sect was a sect where everyone was known for their arrogance. The enmity between the Mad Sect and the Sword Gate had persisted for a very long time; countless Mad Sect members had perished at the hands of the Sword Gate, and countless Sword Gate members had died under the Mad Sect. Although both were sects under the dominion of the Ancient Law Civilization, their struggle was one of perpetual, irreconcilable conflict.

As for Zhan Kuangtie! Lu Yuan had never heard of him, but Jian Yunzhongzu had. He heard that this person possessed an incredibly fierce and cruel battle intent—a typical madman. He hadn't expected him to appear now.

"Lu Yuan, I will be the one to kill you this time," Zhan Kuangtie's voice was exceedingly rough. "Don't even think about resisting. I am at the sixth heaven of the World Realm, and you are at the fourth. You cannot defeat me, and you certainly cannot achieve an impromptu breakthrough. Because you suffer from the Deficiency of Seven Emotions, reaching the fifth heaven of the World Realm is too difficult, too difficult. It’s impossible in the short term, so you can only die by my hand." He instantly pinpointed Lu Yuan’s weakness: the Deficiency of Seven Emotions.

It seemed the people studying Lu Yuan were numerous indeed; many knew about his Deficiency of Seven Emotions.

Lu Yuan was currently receiving treatment equivalent to that of a Child of Destiny: anything that happened was reported across the Central Celestial Dynasty, and many people knew his informational profile.