"Mental state assessment..." Chen Haotian softly repeated the four words, his brows tightly knitted. He stood on the third floor of the Trial Grounds. There were no physical objects here, only boundless emptiness, as if he had stepped into a limitless void. There was neither darkness nor light, only an intangible sense of oppression, like countless unseen eyes gazing at him.
The figure of the Guide appeared at the other end of the void, speaking with calm detachment: "The mental state assessment is the most difficult trial of all. It tests not only your control of spiritual qi and physical fitness, but even more so, your inner resilience and clarity. Only by transcending your Inner Demon can you step into the higher levels of the path of immortal cultivation."
"An Inner Demon?" Chen Haotian felt a chill in his heart. He had heard legends about the Inner Demon before; if a cultivator failed to overcome negative emotions such as fear, greed, and obsession, they would become trapped by their Inner Demon and ultimately fall into ruin. The Inner Demon was precisely one of a cultivator's greatest enemies.
The Guide nodded. "Every cultivator's mental state is different, and your Inner Demon will vary based on your experiences, emotions, desires, and other factors. When facing your Inner Demon, you must maintain inner clarity and cast aside all distracting thoughts. Only then can you pass the assessment."
Before the words faded, Chen Haotian felt a powerful suction force pull his body into the void. In the blink of an eye, his vision suddenly cleared, and the surrounding scenery gradually materialized. It was an ancient forest; the air was fresh, birds chirped, flowers bloomed, and sunlight filtered through the branches and leaves to illuminate everything around him.
Yet, Chen Haotian felt a slight shock in his heart, for he recognized this forest—this was a place he had once visited with his mother. At that time, his mother had just passed away, and he was mired in immense grief and bewilderment. His mother's death had become a lifelong pain that he found hard to forget to this day.
"Is this... my Inner Demon?" Chen Haotian whispered.
Suddenly, a familiar figure appeared before him. It was the appearance of his mother, with the same gentle and loving face just as he remembered.
"Haotian, what's wrong? Why haven't you come to see me for so long?" His mother's voice was soft and filled with affection, her gaze overflowing with concern for him.
"Mom..." Chen Haotian froze, his throat choking up. The mother before him seemed to have come back to life, her eyes full of unexpressed words. That familiar feeling made him almost unable to resist rushing forward to hold her tightly.
However, the instant he prepared to take a step forward, he suddenly halted, a sense of emptiness washing over him. It was impossible for his mother to still be alive; in reality, she had passed away many years ago, and all of this was merely the manifestation of an Inner Demon.
He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and telling himself that this was an illusion, a temptation born of the Inner Demon. He began to concentrate hard, reminding himself that he must face reality and not let this false hallucination dictate his emotions and judgment.
"Mom, I know you did a lot for me, but you are no longer here. You have gone far away, and I must continue walking my own path as well," Chen Haotian said firmly, his eyes resolute.
A look of disappointment appeared on his mother's face, and she slowly dissolved into the air. Chen Haotian let out a long breath, the heavy weight in his chest finally lightening somewhat.
"The Inner Demon is truly terrifying," Chen Haotian murmured, his eyes flashing with a resolute light.
Yet, the trial was not over yet. As his mother's phantom vanished, the surrounding scenery underwent a drastic transformation. The sky ahead grew gloomy, dark clouds rolled, lightning flashed, and thunder rumbled harshly in his ears.
A figure slowly descended from the clouds, clad in black armor with a stern expression and an imposing aura—it was none other than his father, Chen Weiting.
"Why are you so weak? You are not worthy of inheriting the bloodline of the Chen Family!" His father's voice was cold and ruthless, filled with blame and disappointment. "You are nothing more than waste, forever doomed to linger at the level of an ordinary mortal."
Chen Haotian's heart sank; his father's image brought a surge of unease and anger. When he was a child, his father had always demanded absolute perfection from him with almost no tolerance. He had forever felt the disappointment and indifference in his father's eyes, as if he could never reach that lofty standard.
"No, I am not waste!" Chen Haotian clenched his fists, struggling to suppress the anger and resentment in his heart. He knew this was merely his Inner Demon provoking his emotions, and that his father could not possibly appear before him like this.
"What can you even do? You are just an ordinary person, and you will never break out of your limitations," his father's voice rang out once more. "You aren't even worthy of being a true cultivator!"
"I will no longer be affected by you!" Chen Haotian roared, a flash of determination in his eyes. "You are not my father; you are merely my Inner Demon! I will transcend you!"
Before the words finished echoing, his father's illusion vanished, and the surrounding thunder clouds gradually dispersed. The sky returned to peace, and the sunlight in the forest shone down upon the earth once more. The pain and anger that had originally filled Chen Haotian's heart gradually dissipated. He realized that his past self had always lived in the eyes of others, shackled by his father's standards, but now, he was no longer that child criticized by his father and bound by others.
"Your mental state has broken through a major bottleneck," the Guide's voice suddenly echoed through the void. "You have conquered the shadows within your heart and displayed the true mindset of a cultivator."
Chen Haotian stood in the void, closing his eyes to feel the flow of spiritual qi within his body. The emotions that had once plagued his soul no longer weighed upon him. His mental state had become clearer and more resilient, as if shattering past constraints.
"Next is the final trial," the Guide's voice carried a deep, profound nuance. "Now is the true moment of testing. You will face a much more powerful opponent."
As the voice trailed off, the scenery before him abruptly changed. A figure stepped out from the void, exuding a mighty aura as majestic as a deity.
"You've finally come, Haotian." That person spoke slowly, their voice laden with boundless pressure. "I am your true Inner Demon."
Chen Haotian's heart gave a violent jolt. He stared closely at that figure—the opponent standing before him was none other than himself!