The pressure of the Discipline Elder’s aura made Ye Tian’s knees tremble violently, yet he refused to collapse. Beside the Elder, Lady Mei observed him with an unreadable gaze—a mix of disbelief that the "pest" who had hitched a ride on her ascension was still breathing, and deep suspicion toward his unnatural strength.

"Elder! This mortal trash stole the sacred water and injured us using forbidden magic!" Gao Lu shrieked as he crawled forward, begging for retribution.

The Discipline Elder raised his hand, gathering a wave of energy to shatter Ye Tian's meridians. Before the strike could launch, however, Ye Tian snapped his head up and shouted, "Wait! The Immortal Realm reveres strength, does it not? I merely defended myself against the oppression of weak disciples! If the sect executes me for defeating outer disciples, wouldn't that make the sect's rules a complete laughingstock?"

"You insolent brat!" The Elder boiled with rage, but Ye Tian’s public challenge before the crowd gave him pause; executing a servant outright would tarnish the sect's honor.

Lady Mei finally broke her silence, her voice cold as ice. "Elder, since he claims to be strong and challenges our rules, offer him a fair choice. Send him into the Mist Cave. If he survives, grant him the status of an official disciple. If he dies, it is simply the fate of a pest."

A cruel smile touched the Discipline Elder's lips upon hearing her words. The Mist Cave was a deadly trial reserved for inner disciple candidates. The mist within was toxic to ordinary bodies, packed with illusions and vicious beasts. For a mortal, stepping inside was nothing short of voluntary suicide.

"Very well! Mortal boy, do you dare accept the Trial of the Mist Cave? Come out alive, and you shall become an official disciple with full access to the Sect’s Technique Library. Fail, and your bones will rot in the dark!" the Elder declared.

Ye Tian clenched his fists tightly. The Sect’s Technique Library! That was precisely what he needed to learn the secrets of this world and discover a way to tear through the dimensions to return to his sister.

"I accept," Ye Tian answered without hesitation, his eyes locking directly onto Lady Mei. The woman simply turned away with elegant disdain, ignoring him as though he were already a walking corpse.

Two hours later, Ye Tian stood before the mouth of a colossal cavern spewing a thick, silvery-purple fog. The wind blowing from within carried the metallic stench of blood and a bone-chilling cold. Wasting no time, with the half-bag of rice bound tightly at his waist, Ye Tian stepped into the darkness.

The moment his feet crossed the threshold, the purple mist swirled to engulf him.

Cough!

Ye Tian gagged as a scorching sensation raced down his throat. The toxic mist attempted to seep through his pores to corrode his internal organs. Yet, before the poison could spread, the lingering Ascension energy from Lady Mei surged with soothing warmth. The divine energy wrapped around his heart and lungs, creating a hidden shield that swiftly neutralized the venomous air.

"This place... is actually the perfect training ground for me," Ye Tian whispered to himself.

ROAAARRR!

Suddenly, a massive shadow lunged from the thick fog. A Tier-1 Mist Wolf—a spiritual beast boasting arm-length fangs coated in sharp energy—leaped straight for Ye Tian’s throat.

Relying on his battle-tested reflexes, Ye Tian shifted half a step to the side. The wolf’s fangs missed his face by a mere hair's breadth. Simultaneously, Ye Tian tightened every muscle in his right arm, channeling raw physical strength fused with the perfected strike technique he had stolen from the training hall.

BOOM!

Ye Tian's bare fist smashed directly into the beast's lower jaw. A sickening crack of splintering bone resonated through the cavern, sending the massive monster flying into the stone wall, dead before it hit the floor.

Ye Tian did not stop. Over the next three days, the Mist Cave became his personal battleground. He hunted, evaded, and fought off dozens of spiritual beasts. Every clash pushed his mortal body past its absolute limits, drawing out the deep-seated Ascension energy hidden within his bone marrow to heal and reinforce his muscle fibers.

On the fourth day, while venturing deeper into an unexplored reach of the cave, Ye Tian caught the rich, sweet scent of a potent medicinal herb. He followed the fragrance to a hidden alcove illuminated by a small plant bearing blood-red leaves and a single crystal-dew fruit.

A Soul-Cleansing Fruit—an Earth-grade spiritual herb sought even by inner disciples. It had thrived by absorbing the pure energy trapped deep within the cave for centuries.

Pushed by extreme hunger and exhaustion, Ye Tian plucked the crystal fruit and devoured it without hesitation.

GULP.

An excruciating freeze instantly exploded in his mouth, immediately followed by a wave of searing heat a hundred times more violent than anything he had felt before. Ye Tian shrieked in agony as his body collapsed, rolling violently across the cold cavern floor.

The fruit had begun to react with the Ascension energy inside him. The two high-tier forces worked together like quicksilver, violently stripping away every trace of mortal impurities that had clogged Ye Tian’s meridians and bones since birth.

From every single pore, a thick, foul-smelling black sludge oozed out in vast amounts. The sensation was akin to having his skin and flesh flayed alive and woven anew with threads of divine silk. His dull hair shed completely, replaced by a dark, healthy mane. His skin, once coarse and scarred from hard labor, peeled away to reveal a fresh layer—fair, pristine, yet as tough as forged steel.

This agonizing metamorphosis lasted a full day and night until Ye Tian finally fainted from the sheer intensity of the pain.

As dawn broke on the fifth day, the Discipline Elder and several outer disciples—including Gao Lu, whose wrist was still wrapped in bandages—gathered outside the mouth of the Mist Cave. They brought an hourglass to mark the end of the trial's time limit.

"The time is up," the Discipline Elder said with a cold sneer. "That mortal brat is undoubtedly a pile of bones by now. Gao Lu, erase his name from the servant registry."

"Understood, Elder! The trash is finally dead!" Gao Lu grinned with immense satisfaction.

However, just as the Discipline Elder turned to leave, the purple mist at the cavern entrance suddenly churned violently. Heavy, measured footsteps echoed from the gloom.

Step... Step... Step...

Everyone froze. Gao Lu held his breath, his eyes widening in horror.

A young man strode out from the dense fog. He no longer resembled the emaciated, tattered woodchopper. Though his old clothes hung in rags, the body beneath was well-built with flawless proportions. His refined features radiated a sharp handsome quality, and his pitch-black eyes gleamed with an intimidating light of maturity and raw power.

The aura of mortal dust on him had vanished entirely, replaced by the dense presence of pure physical mastery. At his waist, the hemp bag containing the half-ration of rice still hung securely.

Ye Tian looked at the frozen Discipline Elder and Gao Lu with a faint, icy smile.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Ye Tian spoke, his voice deep and echoing with boundless energy. "Now, grant me my official disciple status and open the Technique Library!"