Chapter 220: Black Hole Labyrinth

At the foot of a towering peak shrouded in mist, thousands of aspirants stood silently, gazing at the black-robed, white-haired woman ahead.

"Over two thousand…"

Lin Qing slightly narrowed his eyes.

He had naturally noticed long ago just how numerous this trial's participants were.

When he first arrived, there were only a few hundred—some of whom had already been waiting for over two thousand years, having come to join the trial at the end of the last Star God Trial.

After all, the interval between Star God Trials depends solely on when a new Star God position appears.

If the interval is short, the number of aspirants might be small, so joining early ensures you don't miss it.

Over two thousand years, there were only a few hundred aspirants.

But after he arrived, within just four or five hundred years, the number grew from a few hundred to over two thousand.

This was clearly abnormal.

Moreover, most of these aspirants had been observing him since their arrival—likely drawn here specifically for him.

"Come here specifically to deal with me? Or…" Lin Qing's gaze grew cold.

He hadn't expected to become so "famous" in the Void Sea that so many aspirants would actively join the Star God Trial because of him.

"Less than three thousand years since the last Star God Trial ended, and already over two thousand aspirants—quite remarkable."

The black-robed, white-haired woman smiled as her gaze swept over the crowd, as if she had already seen through their intentions: "So many of you… it reminds me of when I took the Star God Trial myself. How interesting…"

Most of the aspirants bowed their heads respectfully.

"Let's see the format of this Star God Trial," the black-robed woman said, raising her hand. Behind her, the towering peak trembled slightly, and from deep within the endless mist, a streak of light shot forth.

The streak descended, forming in her hand a green-copper key shaped like a blade, while a stream of information flowed into her mind.

"Oh?"

A faint smile curled the black-robed woman's lips: "It seems many among you have actively studied past Star God Trials—so much so that a new twist has emerged this time?"

As she spoke, the green-copper key in her hand soared upward along the mountain path.

The mist obscuring part of the path above slowly dissipated, revealing a winding, twisting trail.

Only then did Lin Qing realize that along this path, dozens of branches extended upward; only one branch was fully visible now, and as it extended deeper, it split into even more branches—yet only one remained visible, the rest still hidden in mist.

"Follow me up the mountain."

The black-robed woman took a step—and vanished.

The aspirants dared not delay; silently, they ascended the now-visible path.

Soon, the two thousand-plus reached the end of this branch, where a massive gate of pure green copper stood—its surface covered in intricate, mysterious patterns, and the key embedded in a socket on its face.

"Beyond this gate lies the preliminary stage of this trial."

The black-robed woman, standing before the gate, scanned the crowd: "The preliminary stage is called the Black Hole Labyrinth. It tests your will, insight, luck… and your ability to survive. Only those who emerge alive from the labyrinth qualify for the Divine Selection stage."

Her lips suddenly curled into a smile: "Of course, as is customary for a newly introduced trial format, there is a special reward—available only to the first aspirant to exit the labyrinth."

Hearing this, many aspirants below brightened their eyes.

The Divine Office Lands are unquestionably humanity's most sacred site in the entire universe—countless civilizations rose through Divine Offices, and every Divine Office is granted by the Divine Office Lands.

Countless races yearn for Starry Divine Offices, yet only humans are permitted entry into the Divine Office Lands.

Perhaps… only the two rare Tier-4 civilizations—the Void God Clan and the Yu Xingyuan Demon Clan—could afford to ignore Divine Offices.

A special reward from the Divine Office Lands?

At this moment, countless aspirants felt desire ignite within them.

"The rules of the Black Hole Labyrinth are simple."

The black-robed woman smiled: "Within this labyrinth, no matter which path you take, if you keep moving forward, you will inevitably reach the end."

"At the end of every corridor lies a stable, space-tearing black hole—though these black holes have been modified."

"Once you enter its event horizon, within that dark void, you must resist the crushing pressure of the black hole's space, adapt to its constantly shifting geometry, and endure the psychological influence of absolute annihilation and stillness—longer exposure increases the risk of being assimilated, breeding suicidal thoughts."

"Each black hole at the end of a corridor is unique; the internal, ever-twisting space follows different patterns—this tests your insight and judgment."

"Moreover, each black hole emphasizes different traits: some prioritize insight, others strength, others willpower. If you lack confidence in passing one, withdraw promptly and try another corridor."

The black-robed woman's gaze swept over them: "I'll say this plainly: to pass through these black holes, your will, insight, strength—all must meet a minimum threshold. Otherwise, you may die inside. If you wish to survive, stand still and shout 'I give up'—the labyrinth will teleport you out in three seconds."

As she spoke, the massive gate behind her slowly opened, revealing a dark, gaping entrance.

"Once you pass through this gate, you will be randomly teleported to any point within the labyrinth. Whether your starting position is near or far from the end? That depends on your luck."

"Then… begin."

…

As space shifted, when Lin Qing's vision cleared, he found himself in a dimly lit space.

"This is a labyrinth corridor?"

Lin Qing surveyed his surroundings and realized the corridor was astonishingly vast.

Both walls and floor were made of green copper, at least tens of thousands of meters wide, and nearly ten thousand meters high.

For someone of his level, who could break the speed of light across the stars, such a confined space would normally be useless.

But the gravity within this labyrinth was terrifyingly intense.

A typical Star Office cultivator would barely manage to walk here.

With speed restricted, the corridor naturally appeared enormous.

Moreover, the ambient energy within the labyrinth was scarce—likely making energy recovery difficult.

"I hope I'm the first to exit the labyrinth."

Lin Qing certainly wanted that special reward—but he also understood that this preliminary stage depended heavily on luck. Even with confidence in his strength, he had no great assurance.

What if someone else got lucky and was teleported right near the labyrinth's end? How could he compete?

For someone like Qi Lingxiao, whose luck defied all reason, he had no recourse.

On Earth, he had also sent the Black Flame Clone to explore the Silver Labyrinth, but the clone died countless times without ever exiting the Silver Labyrinth, naturally gaining no rewards.

Clearly, his luck was poor.

"Fortunately... as long as I can become a Star God, I can improve my luck."

Lin Qing was very eager and wasted no time; the vertical eye on his brow immediately opened, and the Black Flame Clone flew out of the spatial channel.

"Merge!"

The Black Flame Clone instantly turned into a hazy light-shadow and merged into his body. His aura immediately surged.

Without burning his life force, the Merge Technique could also double his strength; when combat required a burst, the Black Flame Clone could burn its life then.

"Next is... the World God."

Accompanied by an explosion of endless dark-gold energy, it roared and gathered to form a World God standing over two thousand meters tall.

With a far larger body and energy, the gravity it endured was even more astonishing, and the consumption was terrifying.

"Fortunately, the complete form of the World God can withstand it..."

Lin Qing immediately stepped forward along the channel; with the World God's height of over two thousand meters, its legs were very long, and one stride covered several thousand meters, so the speed was naturally astonishingly fast.

"Boom-boom-boom-boom—"

The massive feet kept falling, emitting a booming sound.

In this labyrinth where even those at the eighth layer of the Yu Xingyuan could only barely walk, his speed easily soared to several thousand meters per second.

No mistakes, one chapter, one release, one content, one read!

In a short while, after advancing only tens of kilometers, Lin Qing discovered a fork in the labyrinth; without hesitation, he casually chose the middle path and continued striding forward.

After all, no matter which path, as long as one keeps moving forward, one will surely reach the endpoint.

A moment passed.

"Black hole!"

After passing two more forks, when Lin Qing reached the end of this channel, he saw the darkness at the end that seemed to swallow everything, with strange photon streams swirling around the edges, causing the otherwise stable space nearby to warp completely.

Without hesitation, maintaining the World God, he immediately charged into that darkness that swallowed everything.

The next moment, the terrifying pressure, tearing, and crushing brought by the constantly changing space inside the black hole, along with all sorts of astonishing forces, immediately acted upon Lin Qing.

At the same time, the pure darkness, dead silence, and void inside the black hole, with an aura that seemed ready to destroy everything, began to erode his mind.

"So that's how it is..."

Lin Qing forcibly resisted the various forces brought by the changing space inside the black hole, sensed carefully, and immediately understood.

Resisting the changing space inside this black hole is like dealing with underwater undercurrents while swimming; those skilled in water naturally won't drown in it, but those unskilled are in great danger.

Inside this black hole, the layers of changing space are like a constantly shifting river, with surging undercurrents changing continuously.

If one resists with brute force, it is naturally very difficult to withstand the black hole's spatial changes, but if one's comprehension is high enough to immediately recognize the patterns of spatial change, one can adapt to the changes; like having learned to swim, resistance becomes much easier.

"As for the black hole's aura of dead silence and annihilation eroding the mind, I can resist that for a long time..."

In the darkness and void, Lin Qing immediately confirmed his situation. "The spatial changes in this black hole also resemble the state of the cosmic wonder 'Multiverse Black Hole'; this must be a trial modeled after the Multiverse Black Hole..."

Over these years, while secluding himself in the Vacuum Great Tomb to cultivate, he had already perfected the World God and other divine techniques to their utmost.

During other times, besides cultivating various secret arts originating from the Sky Archipelago and tempering his will, he was visiting the 'Cosmic Wonder Museum' inside the Vacuum Great Tomb.

Even just visiting those cosmic wonders he could comprehend took nearly a hundred years.

Moreover, while waiting for the Star God trial to open, four or five hundred years had already passed on Earth; the Blood Cauldron King Clone also periodically pondered those cosmic wonders, trying to touch his mind and recognize the true nature of space.

Therefore, Lin Qing immediately understood this black hole's trial.

He also immediately understood what the fastest method to pass was.

"Brute force!"

At this moment, Lin Qing's aura suddenly erupted; relying on the peerless might of the World God body, the Black Flame Clone also burned, immediately withstanding the force of spatial changes and beginning to force a breakthrough.

Perhaps...

Forcing a breakthrough is a stupid and clumsy method, but perceiving the spatial changes, mastering the patterns, and searching for gaps and opportunities along with the force of spatial changes also wastes a lot of time.

But as long as one's strength is powerful enough to break through the limit, brute force is the fastest!

"Boom!"

With the Black Flame Clone in its fused state burning its life force, the World God's might suddenly erupted, raising his strength several times over in an instant.

The layers of changing spatial forces inside the black hole immediately began to disperse, and Lin Qing broke through forcefully in the blink of an eye.

When the darkness and void before his eyes dissipated, another channel had already appeared.

"As expected, it works."

Lin Qing glanced back and couldn't help but reveal a slight smile.

A person falling into a river needs to learn water skills to survive in the river, but if a giant falls into the river, the water flow cannot shake it, so naturally there is no need to learn water skills.

Of course, this method also requires sufficient strength; otherwise, it is seeking death.

Only Void Beings possess the strength to forcibly break spatial limits, so if one wants to use this method, one must at least be comparable to a Void Being.

"This preliminary selection poses no difficulty for me; let's see which number I exit the labyrinth as."

"The consumption is just a bit too great; it actually consumed three or four tenths of my energy..."

Lin Qing took a deep breath, temporarily dispelled the World God, and began to frantically absorb the relatively thin floating energy inside the labyrinth, recovering at an astonishing speed.

At the same time, he continued flying forward along the labyrinth channel.

Even without activating the World God and without the Black Flame Clone burning its life, he still possessed strength at the upper reaches of the ninth layer of the Yu Xingyuan; flying within this labyrinth was still very simple.

After flying along the channel for a moment, when he saw the next black hole, his energy had barely recovered to near full state.

Releasing the World God again and forcing a breakthrough, Lin Qing arrived at the next channel.

Thus, the cycle repeated.

After continuously breaking through seven black hole checkpoints, Lin Qing still had not seen the end of the labyrinth, nor did he know how large this labyrinth truly was.

"Hm?"

Suddenly, as Lin Qing was flying and replenishing his energy, he spotted three figures emerging from a fork in the path ahead.

One of them stood over five meters tall, his entire body covered in bronze-colored muscle, like a miniature giant.

It was Turus!

The other two also appeared familiar with Turus, closely following him, clearly striving to absorb the sparse ambient energy within the passage to restore their strength.

The moment the three saw Lin Qing, they all paused slightly.

Immediately, Turus's lips curled into a cruel smile: "You've got terrible luck—walking right into my hands?"

(End of Chapter)