Chương 21

Based on Elara's memories from her previous life, the next three levels of the Ember Sanctum—the third, fourth, and fifth steps—were all duels to the death. The only differences were the number of opponents and the steadily increasing difficulty. On the third level, the battlefield remained unchanged, but she would face two Qi Refining Tier 1 cultivators armed with spirit swords.

"With my current cultivation at Qi Refining Tier 3, I should be able to use Metal Gathering Art much faster. Even if something goes wrong, I can use Soften Earth to slow both of them down." Elara had no intention of exploiting the trial's preparation loophole this time. She wanted to use the two puppet cultivators to test the black insect swarm she had just acquired. The swarm didn't appear to possess a queen or any other means of reproduction. Every insect she lost would therefore be gone permanently.

Inside an Ember Sanctum trial, however, all consumed resources and damaged items were restored once the challenger either succeeded or failed. That made it the perfect place to experiment without risking the actual swarm. When Elara opened her eyes, she was standing once again on the arena of densely packed black earth. As usual, she had chosen a battlefield ideally suited to Metal Gathering Art. The same cool voice sounded beside her ear. [Are you ready?]"Begin."

With a wave of her hand, Elara summoned the insect cage. She guided the entire swarm out with her qi, forming a black mass nearly half the size of a person. These were all the insects she had extracted from the three elite-grade Flamewyrm Fruit trees.

"You coward! Die!" The two cultivators charged from opposite sides, spirit swords in hand. Qi flowed across their blades as they tore through the air toward Elara. Before either could reach her, she directed the swarm forward. The black mass split into two groups. Both surged toward their targets like dark clouds, filling the arena with the rapid beating of countless wings.

"What kind of sorcery is this?" One cultivator slashed at the approaching swarm. The instant the qi surrounding his sword touched the black cloud, it disappeared completely. Only the bare blade continued through the attack. Clang! The sword struck the insects again and again, producing harsh metallic sounds and showers of sparks. The two cultivators couldn't release their qi at all. Every time they tried, the black clouds swarmed over the energy and devoured it before they could complete their arts.

Their swords alone inflicted almost no damage. Barely fifteen seconds later, both cultivators were riddled with countless tiny wounds. Their bodies collapsed, completely drained of life.

"Two Qi Refining Tier 1 sword cultivators died without putting up any meaningful resistance. Even when they tried to use their arts, the swarm devoured every trace of qi they released." The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Elara gave the insects an appropriate name. Spirit-Eater Beetles. Unfortunately, the swarm in her possession was currently an irreplaceable treasure. Until she discovered some way to breed them, she would need to use them carefully.

Elara recalled the swarm. Most of the Spirit-Eater Beetles returned to the insect cage, but a small group remained hovering beside her. They seemed to be waiting for her to touch them.

"What is it?" Elara extended one hand. The moment her fingers touched the insects, a stream of qi flowed into her dantian.

"These beetles can devour and store qi, then transfer it back to their owner?" Before Elara could continue experimenting, the third trial registered her victory. The arena vanished, and she returned to the entrance of the Ember Sanctum before the Stairway of the Great Dao. [Congratulations.] [Stairway of the Great Dao — Level 3 cleared.] [Rewards acquired:] [Qi Gathering Pills ×10] [Swarmkeeper Ring — Low Arcane-grade Artifact] The ten Qi Gathering Pills were the standard reward for clearing the trial.

Combined with the bottle Cedric had already given her, Elara now possessed twenty. Even if she cultivated inside the Ember Sanctum day and night, that supply should last until the Moonwatch Sect's assessment. The second reward was far more surprising. Elara had merely used an insect swarm to clear the trial, yet the Ember Sanctum had awarded her an artifact for setting a new record. She accepted the item.

It resembled a storage ring, but its entire surface was covered in tiny indentations that looked like insect bites. A description appeared on her interface. [Swarmkeeper Ring] [Grade: Low Arcane] [Effect: Stores a single insect swarm. The interior space expands according to the user's qi reserves. Infusing the ring with qi continuously nourishes the insects within and promotes their growth.] [Restriction: Can only contain insect swarms below the Foundation Establishment Realm.]"My Spirit-Eater Beetles probably aren't even equivalent to Qi Refining Tier 1. They've never undergone any systematic cultivation, so the ring should have no trouble containing them." Elara slipped the Swarmkeeper Ring onto her finger beside the storage ring, then retrieved the insect cage Garrick had given her. The cage was only a Low Basic-grade artifact. Aside from containing insects, it offered no special effects. Now that she possessed the Swarmkeeper Ring, the cage had become largely redundant.

Elara transferred the entire swarm into the ring and cautiously infused it with qi. The moment her qi entered, she sensed an intense hunger from within. With the artifact supporting them, the Spirit-Eater Beetles became noticeably more active. They eagerly devoured every trace of qi Elara supplied. Although the swarm had not yet reached the equivalent of Qi Refining Tier 1, feeding it once consumed more than half of her total reserves.

"What an appetite. At least Prim only needs a little qi to keep moving. If I had to support two gluttons like this at the same time, I'd never be able to keep up." The activity inside the Swarmkeeper Ring gradually subsided. The entire swarm had entered its first metamorphosis, and the collective aura of the insects was slowly growing stronger. Judging by the rate of change, the process would probably require at least a day or two to finish.

"These beetles can devour qi, store it, and return it to me. Even without considering their offensive power, they can function as a reserve supply of qi."

"The swarm also seems to work extremely well with Metal Gathering Art." Elara wanted to test the possibilities, but she had no suitable opportunity at the moment. For now, she decided to continue climbing and stepped toward the fourth stair. Her leg refused to move forward. [Insufficient Fortune.] [You cannot attempt this trial at this time.]"Wait. My Fortune isn't high enough?" Elara opened her status screen.

Her Fortune had risen to three yesterday, which apparently corresponded exactly to the third level of the Stairway. Now she was attempting to enter Level Four. Why didn't I ever notice this restriction in my previous life? Do I need a corresponding amount of Fortune for every trial? Elara searched her memories. Then she realized the problem. Her starting circumstances in her previous life had been far too favorable for this restriction to matter.

Even an ordinary outer disciple of one of the great Divine Sects possessed far more Fortune than the average person. Such disciples might begin with several dozen points, or perhaps even more than a hundred. Under those circumstances, players could challenge the first hundred or two hundred levels without ever encountering a Fortune requirement.

"I can't believe I have to keep farming reward orbs and hope they give me more Fortune. Otherwise, I can't even attempt the next trial." Elara sighed. With no other option, she swallowed one of the Qi Gathering Pills and began cultivating inside the Ember Sanctum. [Cultivation in progress...] [Three days of cultivation completed.] [Qi Refining Tier 3 progress +5.] [81/100]