Heaven, Earth, Me Chapter 1627. Destiny Trial and Guardian Trial.

The eight Guardians were not unaware of Yasenia’s arrival. They had been looking at everything they were doing through local spying formations. Only, there were times when Yasenia and the others set up anti-spy formations to block the view, blocking their attempts.

"What do you think?" The woman with an ethereal voice asked.

A man crossed his arms and spoke. "I don’t see any malice in them."

"They kidnapped someone."

That man with crossed arms snorted. "They kidnapped him to learn the language. The compensation he received is something even us covet."

When they saw that bottle with Yasenia’s diluted drop of blood, all of them were tempted. They had seen just how strong the dragon was, so they were convinced that feeding such rich blood to their young would result in tremendous changes.

For now, though, they held back. Provoking the dragon’s fury when they needed to cooperate was not a wise thing to do.

Meanwhile, the woman with an ethereal voice manifested the image of the orange orb with yellow lines. "They have the catalyst with them. The fact that they can carry it with them, even if they used sealing formations, once more shows their value and strength."

No one disagreed. The thing sealed in that orb was powerful to the point that Golden Giants were considered not much more than cannon fodder. Someone spoke worriedly. "If those constraints snap..."

The worst-case scenario would be the creature sealed there being freed outside the Central Altar, where they all were. The problem was, they were currently constrained.

"Only those who have overcome the Guardian Trials can meet us properly."

That was the rule, because in the prophecy, those who came to help would do so. Therefore, they never considered that someone who made them want to go and meet them first would ever arrive.

"...This is stifling."

The sigh-like complaint was shared by all of them. The woman with an ethereal voice spoke softly. "Let’s hope that they can overcome the trials. After all, brute force alone won’t help them pass everything."

***

Meanwhile, Yasenia’s ears couldn’t help but twitch, her golden slit eyes looking around in confusion. ’Since I arrived, I’ve felt a gaze but...’

The reason she sent her maids to explore was not just because she wanted to collect information. This persistent gaze was also part of the problem.

"Am I too sensitive?"

Kali squeezed Yasenia’s hand gently. "Don’t worry. We know you are not imagining things. If your senses tell you that we are being secretly watched, we must take it seriously until that feeling disappears."

Their trust in her softened Yasenia’s heart into a puddle. The bothersome sensation disappeared, replaced by a happy feeling that made her long dragon tail wag.

Wu Lan Xin looked back and spoke. "Welcome, Lady Yasenia, to the [Destiny Trials]."

Looking ahead, Yasenia noticed a large cave entrance expand in front. "I heard of this from the maids’ reports. So, it is called Destiny Trials... What’s the gist of it?"

Miss Bai explained, wanting to become closer with Yasenia. "Lady Yasenia, this is the location where those who can participate in the Guardian Trials are chosen. Inside here, each person can gain the qualification. Only, there is a catch: if you can’t gain it, the cave won’t allow your entrance for ten years. So, you need to be careful."

Yasenia blinked. "Is there no participant limit?"

"There isn’t. Some years, there are thousands who pass the Destiny Trials and go to participate in the Guardian Trials. Other years, there are only a few dozen. It greatly varies from time to time."

This puzzled her somewhat. "What kind of trials are those in the Guardian Trials that you don’t care about participant limits?"

Wu Lan Xin explained this time. "Those trials are usually elimination-based. Only certain percentages pass each round, making sure that at the end, a certain number remain."

"Hm... I see. Let’s go then."

Yasenia turned toward Wu Lan Xin and smiled at her. "Thank you for your hospitality, Miss Wu. This is a spatial ring with a few of my modest dishes. You can eat them yourself or share them. We will go now."

Wu Lan Xin smiled at the gesture, not giving the dishes in the ring too much thought. Only later would she realize just how precious the ring she was holding truly was. "Good luck, Lady Yasenia."

Miss Bai chimed in. "We will be cheering for you during this year’s Guardian Trials!"

Yasenia nodded and guided everyone inside. Dune and the other three pondered whether to follow. They heard that the trials were individual trials. So, if they didn’t pass, they wouldn’t be able to participate. ’Well, there is no threat of death, so at worst, we will just fail.’

That was their thinking process.

When Yasenia entered the cave, the people around her vanished like mist. She had already expected it, so she wasn’t flustered.

Her steps echoed in the large, empty cave. Her golden slit eyes glanced around with curiosity, wondering when something would pop up.

It wasn’t until five minutes later that the first obstacle appeared. In the middle of the cave, Yasenia saw a man wearing tight-fitting robes that emphasized his muscular build. The man pointed at her with his spear. "Defeat me to advance."

Yasenia nodded and walked forward leisurely. The man rushed at her, but... he was far too weak. Yasenia caught the spear, pulled the man forward, and then struck his head with a simple, straight punch.

BOOM!

The man’s body scattered like dust, only the lower half remaining. A second later, it disappeared and opened the closed path ahead.

"Hm... quite weak."

Yasenia continued forward, reaching an empty, white room. "Oh? Is this a test other than combat?"

What appeared in front of Yasenia was a strange creature. "...Perhaps not."

The being was a humanoid that seemed to have been forcibly mixed with a lizard and a quadrupedal beast. Around it, strange dark tendrils shone with terrifying energy.

A voice reached her. "Resist this creature’s presence for ten minutes to pass the test."

After those words, the creature screeched at her, opening its mouth well past what a normal creature could. The jaw and neck muscles seemed to detach, showing a much larger mouth than expected.

Yasenia frowned. "What an unpleasant odor."

This creature’s strength was close to that of a Silver Giant. So, Yasenia guessed it was not supposed to be an entity to be defeated. Therefore, even though she had the strength to kill it quickly, she stayed still until the trial ended.

By the end of it, Yasenia gently rubbed her earlobe. "What an unpleasant voice. Even the scratching of nails on metal sounds better."

So, without much difficulty, Yasenia advanced forward and reached a large, circular room. The room had a wooden floor, with marble pillars at the edges. The elegantly carved ceiling and intricate wall murals were quite a pleasant view.

Yasenia looked around, taking in the details. ’These murals...’

She could see people fighting. The creatures they were fighting were similar to that strange, screechy monster. "Did someone open some unknown portal and cause the world’s ruin?"

This place had no trial, so Yasenia made sure to memorize and record what she saw with her artifacts. Even when she had her maids, each person’s view might be different.

After she was done, Yasenia walked forward and stepped into the next room. In front of her, Yasenia saw herself.

It was a mirrored room, and as she walked closer, the woman in front of her smiled. Clearly, it was her reflection, but the other side was smiling wickedly when she wasn’t.

"Can you forgive yourself?"

"Forgive myself...? For what?"

The mirror Yasenia snorted. "All the sins you’ve committed. Your hands are not only stained with the blood of the scum, but with those rivers of innocent people that fell as collateral by your actions."

Yasenia blinked and chuckled. "Is this all this trial can do? Those who die unjustly... Well, it is regrettable. That won’t stop me from fulfilling my duties."

"Duties? Or your selfish desires?"

"Both." Yasenia shrugged. "Are we done here?"

The mirror looked at Yasenia and stayed silent for a while. "...You have no heart demons."

It wasn’t a question, but confirmation. The mirror had felt it was strange. However, after a few interactions, it learned that its senses were not deceiving it.

Meanwhile, in a nearby room, Tatyana faced her mirror with an amused smile. "Yasenia will die."

Tatyana chuckled. "Pray tell me why."

The mirror reflected Tatyana, smiling contemptuously. "You know why. All around you dies. All precious to you dies. Perhaps not now, perhaps not in ten thousand years. However, she will die. You are a lonely existence, and you will lead that path to the end."

Tatyana sighed. "Perhaps."

Her heart was riddled with Heart Demons. Regrets, painful memories, fears... Tatyana was plagued by them. Were it not because of her unbreaking will, she would’ve long lost all sanity and become nothing but a beast that wished destruction and death.

So, this trial, Tatyana knew it was not something she could pass. She could not resolve her Heart Demons this easily. Some of them were soothed thanks to Yasenia’s sweet love, but others had already dug far too deep.

"So... I can’t pass? Is there any other way to pass, like destroying you?"

The mirror’s words didn’t affect Tatyana. She had faced far worse trials similar to this one during all her years. So, she asked those words as she usually did.

"Only those who can use their powers perfectly can pass. But... can you?"

Tatyana looked at her copy and laughed. "Perfectly... you say. [Perish]."

Her voice echoed as if punching the world. Death Energy hiding Fate Energy surged forward like a tide. As it did, Tatyana spoke. "[Fate World Denial]."

Her copy, who was about to use her own skill, froze for a moment. Then, [Perish] struck with the might of a thousand suns, erasing the copy.

Tatyana strutted forward calmly. "It’s quite an interesting place. The adventures are becoming more and more interesting."

Compared to when Yasenia roamed those low-level worlds and secret realms, this one at least had a degree of strength that made it somewhat thrilling.

After passing the mirror, Tatyana hummed and picked a strange talisman. "Let me see... I saw the copy drop something after it died. Oho. Not a bad thing. Should I give it to Aster?"

A one-time-use talisman with an attack skill that could probably damage even a Golden Giant to a certain degree. It was quite a perfect gift for Aster.

Meanwhile, Yasenia arrived at the final area. Here, she faced a massive hall with golden figures seated on thrones. At the very end of the hall, Yasenia saw a woman kneeling and praying piously to one of the golden statues.

Yasenia glanced around and decided to approach.