With a sharp crack, the blue form, before being completely engulfed by the "Primordial Chaos Heavenly Fire," dissolved into a stream of water that shot out from the almost sealed sphere of flames.

"Snap!"

The stream burst, sending countless crystalline droplets scattering, showering and filling the entire space.

"Quick escape!"

Nie Kong chuckled inwardly, his body instantly merging into the core of the "Purple Myriad Illusory Spirit Incense," its purple stem and leaves rapidly extending outwards.

In a brief moment, this blue-leaf space was cleaved in two.

"Whoosh!"

The core ignited with fierce flames, the fire roaring in gusts, and the azure space was dyed crimson by the reflection of the "Primordial Chaos Heavenly Fire," appearing as if it would combust.

Nie Kong had employed similar tactics when clashing with the avatar of the Dark Night Divine Venerable.

Among all of Nie Kong's abilities, the Purple Myriad Illusory Spirit Incense core was not the strongest, yet in this setting, facing this opponent, it proved the most suitable.

"Boom!"

The azure space erupted into chaos. The myriad water droplets thrashed about like ants in a hot pan, wildly darting left and right, desperate to break through the blockade of the "Primordial Chaos Heavenly Fire."

However, driven by the intense heat, no matter how the droplets collided, they began to converge toward the center.

In less than a minute, two azure water spheres formed, one in each half of the space partitioned by the wall of fire. These water spheres refused to lie still, their shapes transforming violently—sometimes round, sometimes flattened, sometimes elongated...

Alas, soon the degree of distortion and transformation in the water spheres grew weaker and weaker. Only when the "Primordial Chaos Heavenly Fire" from both sides pressed down and completely enveloped them did the water spheres finally quiet down. A small opening appeared in the center of the vine wall woven by the core, and the two azure water spheres quickly merged.

With a faint flash of purple light, Nie Kong detached himself from the core, resuming his original form. The round water sphere in his palm was still wreathed in scorching flames.

"I suppose that counts as defeating it?"

Nie Kong breathed out softly, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Indeed, moments later, the azure space vanished, and the blue leaf reappeared, yet it grew increasingly indistinct, dissolving into the void in the blink of an eye.

What lay before Nie Kong's feet was still the seven-colored bridge...

No, it should be six colors!

Nie Kong keenly noticed that the blue segment that formed the rainbow bridge had disappeared.

A thought flickered, and Nie Kong vaguely understood: to cross this colored bridge and reach the building on the other side, he would likely have to pass through seven trials.

These seven trials corresponded to the seven-colored spirit leaves. Each spirit leaf represented a stage of challenge.

"Wait, perhaps only five trials, as I possess two spirit leaves myself."

Nie Kong reached into his robes with his left hand, and his expression turned somewhat strange. That single leaf, fused from the red and green leaves, had vanished without him realizing it. There was no doubt that the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable had taken it through some means; it seemed he still had to pass seven checkpoints.

The first one, materialized from the blue leaf, manifested a Sixth-Grade Spirit God; those that followed would surely be even more formidable.

Nie Kong's eyes darted around. He wasn't in a hurry to move forward but instead sat cross-legged right where he was, then channeled the entirety of his divine power from the "Primordial Chaos Divine Art" into his right hand.

"Whoosh!"

With a loud burst, the fireball expanded several times over, the flames leaping several dozen feet high. Instantly, Nie Kong’s spirit quieted completely as he began refining this mass of water divinity.

In the center of the lake, on the second floor of the building.

The room held almost no furnishings, but the lumber that constructed it was extraordinary, seemingly having endured the baptism of millennia, exuding an air of ancient vicissitude everywhere.

In the center of the room, a figure sat cross-legged.

This person wore white robes, his hair and beard as white as snow, his face aged, the dense wrinkles etched upon it appearing as if carved by a stylus. His eye sockets were two deep, dark cavities.

He had no eyes!

This elder was the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable.

Before him, the void shimmered like a mirror, and on the mirror's surface, a magnificent, vibrant colored bridge was displayed. The young man seated at the bridge's head was unmistakably Nie Kong.

"This little fellow is actually refining my divinity," the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable said, a faint smile touching his lips. Though he had no eyes, he saw the scene before him perfectly clearly.

"Nie Kong is quite clever, knowing that the later stages will be harder to pass, hence he is maximizing his strength beforehand," the speaker was Gu Quan, seated slightly behind and to the right of the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable. He gazed at the figure within the void mirror, a satisfied smile lingering on his face.

"My 'Spirit Leaf Seven Realms Bridge' is specifically set up for the Primordial Chaos Divine Power he cultivates. If he doesn't cherish this opportunity, he might force his way through the first three spirit leaf spaces, but he will certainly fail in the fourth," the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable stroked his beard, the wrinkles on his face bunching even tighter.

Gu Quan mused thoughtfully, "My disciple took a full thirty years to finally pass the 'Spirit Leaf Five Realms Bridge' set by Master, and his cultivation rose from Second Grade to Fifth Grade. Now Nie Kong must pass the 'Spirit Leaf Seven Realms Bridge,' two realms more difficult than what I faced. I wonder how many years it will take him?"

The Seven-Colored Grand Venerable chuckled, "He is different from you; perhaps one or two years will suffice. If he can pass within a year, he might still make it in time to travel to the 'Primal Beginning Grotto-Heaven.'"

Primal Beginning Grotto-Heaven!

Hearing those four words, two brilliant sparks ignited in Gu Quan's eyes. After a long moment, the focus of Gu Quan's gaze returned to Nie Kong, and he said with a smile, "Master, if Nie Kong fails to pass this 'Spirit Leaf Seven Realms Bridge,' will you truly not take him as a disciple?"

"What do you think?"

The Seven-Colored Grand Venerable laughed heartily upon hearing this. "The 'Spirit Leaf Seven Realms Bridge' I set today has no question of 'if' he can pass; it's only a question of 'how long'—one year, two years? Or ten, twenty years? Perhaps even one or two hundred..."

"It seems I will truly have to start calling this young man 'Junior Brother Nie Kong' in the future!" Gu Quan paused, then chuckled in sudden realization.

"..."

"Finally absorbed them all!"

Unsure how much time had passed, Nie Kong finally opened his eyes, which were filled with pleasant surprise.

In the Divine Void Realm, Nie Kong had refined several Sixth-Grade Spirit God avatars, but their divine power was incomparable to the divinity of the Seven-Colored Grand Venerable. Although the intensity of their divine power was the same, in terms of purity, one was in the mud while the other was in the heavens.

It was like comparing a wad of cotton to a stone; given the same volume, their weights were vastly different.

The mass of blue-leaf water divinity Nie Kong refined was roughly equivalent to the divine power of Yi Xing, a Seventh-Grade Spirit God. Not only had Nie Kong completely absorbed the blue-leaf water divinity just now, but he had also absorbed Yi Xing’s earth divinity, resulting in a massive surge in strength, his internal power rocketing upwards.

"If I can absorb a few more times, perhaps I can advance to Seventh-Grade Spirit God!"

A flicker of excitement involuntarily shone in Nie Kong's eyes. He immediately sprang up and took his tenth, eleventh, twelfth step onto the colored bridge...

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