[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-dragon-lies-hidden":3,"chapter-the-dragon-lies-hidden-the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-945":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Dragon Lies Hidden",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2290243,4477,"Chapter 945","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-945",945,"\u003Cp>In the mortal world's bustling crowds, ordinary people once again organized themselves into groups of one hundred thousand for the examination, and the questions this time were identical to the last: the same three problems.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With experience from the previous test, the mortals worked swiftly and finished the three questions in short order. But the results of this examination were far inferior to the last: only a few hundred individuals were locked in, and even those were not certain. Wei Yuan personally inspected the few hundred targets filtered out—his heart demon was not among them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seems this heart demon is one who can bend and stretch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Yuan’s expression grew grim. Clearly, the new heart demon had somehow learned of the previous encounter and answered the questions flawlessly, revealing not the slightest flaw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But soon a second set of papers was distributed. This time, all mortals were split into two groups: half fought, half solved problems. After one hour, they switched roles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the second set of papers was completed, a thunderbolt suddenly appeared in the sky above the mortal world, striking instantly upon the head of a girl who looked barely seventeen or eighteen!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The girl’s face first showed confusion, then twisted into a monstrous snarl—her pupils instantly multiplied into hundreds of densely packed eyes, glaring venomously at Wei Yuan in the sky, her mouth spewing cruel curses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Wei Yuan gave her no chance to speak; divine light rolled forth and instantly reduced her to ashes of tribulation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second heart demon was destroyed, and Wei Yuan finally exhaled in relief. This time, they used Ji Liuli’s method: the second paper focused primarily on arithmetic and its derived deductions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mortal world had operated stably for many years; the vast majority of its mortals had already been enlightened and possessed a considerable foundation in arithmetic. Most knew how to solve the problems on the paper. Even by the standards of the world beyond heaven, these mortals had effectively completed compulsory education.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the trap was precisely set here: several questions on the paper had two correct answers—one based on the mortal world’s default cosmic principles, using base-ten carry-over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the cosmic principles of the purple sky’s spots differed: the invading monsters actually used base-three carry-over. Calculated this way, another answer emerged. Heart demons that had corrupted mortals likely possessed some arithmetic foundation, yet the entire paper contained no mention of carry-over at all. Thus, when vigilance relaxed, a heart demon using base-three was indeed lured out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the second heart demon eliminated, Wei Yuan felt no joy. The cultivators looked to the sky, seeing the azure heavens as clear as ever—and knew the matter was not over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sure enough, not long after, Wei Yuan faintly sensed a discomfort, as if a speck of dust had entered his eye.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wei Yuan opened his eyes and smiled bitterly: “Another heart demon—this is the third.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ji Liuli’s face had lost its ease and composure; he frowned: “Even if we destroy this one, new heart demons will surely come. We can’t take shortcuts anymore—we must begin from the root, studying to find a countermeasure.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feng Tingyu raised her hand and asked: “How is this heart demon different from the one during Yu Jing’s tribulation?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was widely acknowledged that disciples of the Mingwang Hall lacked common knowledge. Feng Chutang explained: “Yu Jing’s heart demons arose from within the soul—essentially self-projections, or proto-forms of the Three Corpses. At that time, the heart demon tribulation was fundamentally a battle against oneself. Some gifted cultivators’ heart demons mutated under influence from beyond heaven, but they remained self-generated within the mind sea.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But the heart demon Wei Yuan now faces is the tribulation encountered only after becoming an Immortal. These demons all originate from beyond heaven; strictly speaking, it should be called a Heavenly Demon Tribulation. But ancient cultivators couldn’t clearly distinguish them and used the terms interchangeably, so the name stuck. The problem now is: no one knows how many demons there are.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is there no way to defend against them?” Feng Tingyu asked again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feng Chutang sighed: “Wei Yuan is neither an Immortal nor a Yu Jing. His heart realm is vast, but its fundamental cosmic rules remain incomplete—it’s like a sieve, leaking from all sides, riddled with flaws, utterly defenseless against Heavenly Demons. Yet this incompleteness has an advantage: the immense cosmic power cannot balance, creating violent distortions and suppression. The stronger the incoming Heavenly Demon, the greater the distortion it suffers. So far, the demons that came aren’t strong enough—or we’d be utterly powerless.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Feng Tingyu nodded slowly, eyes half-closed, beginning to ponder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Sheng suddenly said: “I’ll test this Heavenly Demon’s methods first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Above her head appeared a young Daoist, who raised a finger—his side, an immortal sword automatically unsheathed and flew into Wei Yuan’s third eye. Three other immortal swords hovered faintly beside the Daoist’s seat, still mere shadows, unformed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Zhang Sheng then closed her eyes slightly, her spiritual sense already present within the mortal world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Within the mortal world, she no longer concealed herself—her robes fluttered, her form ethereal as a celestial being. She pointed to the sky, and the immortal sword appeared, then split into two, two into four, and in an instant became infinite, descending upon the mortals below—each received one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, every mortal felt doom approaching: some stood frozen, paralyzed with terror; others wept uncontrollably; some fled in all directions; some cried out against heaven.\u003C\u002Fp>",910,"2026-06-20T03:38:38.899Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","539b96b2e39a5f849a741970279fa7e83bf129c8be5e6c5a0860a39883c625ce","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-946","the-dragon-lies-hidden-chapter-944",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-lies-hidden-cover.jpg"]