After being reborn, the villain comes with a spoiler tag.

"After the Five Elements Realm comes the third test: the state of mind. For some, this test is as easy as taking candy from a baby, but for others, it is as difficult as climbing to the sky. In this test, the enemy that everyone has to face comes from the deepest shadows in their own heart that they fear the most and do not want to face. I am ashamed to say that I retreated in a sorry state in this test last time, and almost got completely lost in my own inner demons."

Changsun Ning seemed to still have lingering fears about this experience, but she quickly adjusted her demeanor and smiled at Meng Xia:

"However, the cultivation method that Fellow Daoist Meng practices happens to be effective in suppressing this kind of inner demon. With Fellow Daoist Meng here, this hurdle should be easily overcome."

Upon hearing her name called, Meng Xia immediately giggled and assured Changsun Ning:

"Leave this challenge to me; I will certainly not disappoint Young Master Changsun's expectations."

"As for the final fourth barrier, I don't know its contents either, so I can only adapt to the situation. But with Brother Mu here, no weakness in the restrictions will escape his keen eyes. The rest of us just need to work together to break it."

Mu Chuyang remained unmoved by Changsun Ning's flattery and humbly replied:

"Brother Changsun, you flatter me. Whether my meager skills can work on the ancient restrictions is still unknown."

Meng Xia immediately chimed in, her words carrying an undisguised provocation:

"Him? Hopefully he won't mess things up at the crucial moment and ruin everything. But then again, I'm not without my own artifacts capable of breaking restrictions. My master already bestowed the Myriad Fiends Illusion-Breaking Bell upon me; with it, I..."

This woman clearly doesn't get along with Mu Chuyang, and she won't easily let go of any opportunity to belittle Mu Chuyang.

However, Mu Chuyang always just smiled and ignored her sharp words.

Instead, Ning Zhaoqiu interrupted Meng Xia with a sharp shout:

"Junior Sister Meng!"

Those three simple words silenced Meng Xia instantly, and she obediently shut her mouth.

Seeing this, Changsun Ning simply smiled and remained silent, wisely avoiding any mention of the Myriad Fiends Illusion-Breaking Bell.

A moment of peace finally arrived on the ship.

Long Yucheng kept his eyes down, remaining quietly to the side, playing the role of nothing.

Having spent less than half a day on the ship, he had already figured out the intricate relationship between the four men and was determined not to get involved.

Meng Xia is deeply in love with Changsun Ning, disgusted by Mu Chuyang, and fearful of Ning Zhaoqiu.

Ning Zhaoqiu is straightforward and never beats around the bush. If he says he won't give someone a pleasant look, he won't, not even Changsun Ning, the organizer of this trip.

Unlike Ning Zhaoqiu, Mu Chuyang was extremely calm. Even when facing Meng Xia, who made no attempt to hide her dislike for him, he remained composed and greeted her with a smile.

As for Changsun Ning, the planner of this trip, although he seemed to get along well with everyone on the surface, Long Yucheng had already viewed him with prejudice. No matter what he did, Long Yucheng felt that he had ulterior motives and ill intentions.

Moreover, this person's attitude towards his senior brother seemed particularly special.

Since their last parting in Tianhe City, Changsun Ning had actually managed to contact his senior brother and specially invited him, whom he had only met once, to go to this extraordinary secret realm to search for treasures. In Long Yucheng's eyes, this move undoubtedly showed that he had "ulterior motives" written all over his face.

Unfortunately, Huo Yu, who was being paid special attention to by Changsun Ning, had found a quiet corner to rest his mind after boarding the ship, and all the disturbances in the outside world were irrelevant to him.

Changsun Ning tried to approach him several times to talk, but was repeatedly interrupted by Meng Xia, who was almost always by his side.

For this reason, Long Yucheng actually had a good impression of this woman who only had eyes for "Young Master Changsun"—provided that she didn't turn her attention to her senior brother, who was inexplicably receiving a lot of attention from Changsun Ning.

As for Huo Yu himself, who was forced into this complicated emotional relationship, he was completely unaware of it.

Huo Yu had no interest in the complex relationships among the people on the ship. His main purpose for this trip was to obtain the Ascension Token, and only after boarding the ship did he acquire a secondary objective:

Observe Changsun Ning.

The three remaining characters, "Rootless," beside Changsun Ning's cracked Heavenly Dao Prism, continued to dissipate slowly. At this rate, it would take at most another month for the annotation above his head to completely vanish without a trace.

Although he didn't know what this person had gone through to cause such a change in the Heavenly Dao Prism, Huo Yu wanted to know what kind of changes would happen to Changsun Ning when that moment came.

……

With its astonishing speed, the Frostbreaker Warship arrived at the location of the Azure Sky Secret Realm in less than a day.

What appeared before everyone was a rare cliff spectacle in Liangxi National Park: a waterfall like a silver chain rushing down from the top of the cliff with great momentum, finally flowing into a deep pool with rippling blue water, splashing up layers of crystal-clear water droplets that shimmered with dazzling light in the sunlight.

The ancient trees surrounding the deep pool are lush and verdant, their branches and leaves blocking out the sun, giving this secluded place a mysterious veil.

Although apart from its picturesque scenery, there seems to be nothing unusual about this place.

In Huo Yu's divine sense, he could clearly see that in the void above the waterfall, there was a spatial barrier that was particularly weak compared to other areas.

Changsun Ning flew to the top of the waterfall and swiftly set up an array to conceal the fluctuations of spiritual energy. He then threw out an ancient wooden plaque, quickly formed hand seals, and his spiritual energy surged around him, as if it resonated strongly with the spiritual energy of heaven and earth around him.

As Changsun Ning moved, the surrounding spiritual energy seemed to be drawn by an invisible force, rapidly converging towards him.

He let out a low shout, and all the spiritual power around him instantly gathered on the token in front of him. The token seemed to be given life, and suddenly shot out a silver spiritual light, which struck the weak point of the spatial barrier that Huo Yu had previously detected.

The spatial barrier rippled eerily under the silvery light, like water rippling in the wind.

Immediately afterwards, a rift quietly appeared in the void above the waterfall, like a chasm, stretching between this world and the unknown.

Beyond the crack, a hazy scene unfolds, like a flower in a mirror or the moon's reflection in water, making it impossible to see its full form.

After doing all this, Changsun Ning put away the wooden plaque, took out five jade slips from his storage bag, and distributed them to everyone present, explaining:

"The place this spatial rift leads to is the first checkpoint—the Mist Realm. Once we step into it, we will be randomly scattered to various parts of the Mist Realm. With this jade slip, we can sense each other's location and reunite as soon as possible."

"As for this level, I have no way to break through it. In the past, I only managed to enter the second level by luck and countless attempts. Now that Brother Mu is here, it should be much easier."

After speaking, Changsun Ning did not immediately step into the spatial rift, but slowly scanned the group around him.

"Furthermore, in this first level, there are mist creatures that can perfectly mimic your and my appearance. Once you are taken away by them, there is no way back. You must be careful to distinguish them. This is another function of the jade slip - to confirm the identity of the person in front of you."