Wang Wei was sent out of the Pagoda with all the other disciples. Each of them had benefited a lot after this trial.

In fact, this time, the star of the Second Trial was not Wang Wei. It was actually Li Jun. All the core disciples have already started cultivated, so they are already used to the concept of loneliness. When they retreat in seclusion, although they will not spend hundreds of years, retreating for a few decades is quite common. As such, this trial did not have as much of an impact on them as mortals like Wang Wei and Li Jun.

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As for Li Jun, the reason that he shined the most in this trial was due to the fact that he was used to loneliness.

In the Li family, beside his mother, no one would interact with him. Even his father, he would only see him at the diner table. But then, few words were exchanged between them.

Li Jun was used to the cold, indifferent, and aloof eyes of the people around him. Loneliness was already a part of his daily life.

So, in this trial, after a few years adapting to the environment, he soon adjusted his emotion and tried to make the most of the time he had.

Li Jun knew that the plan that his brother had made for both of them was the only chance to fundamentally change his destiny. However, this plan requires a tremendous amount of resources.

With the status of his big brother, the elders of the sect were willing to spend it on Wang Wei, but they were not willing to do it for him. It was his brother who insisted that he needed a powerful general to support him in the fight for Heaven Will; as such, the elders agreed to invest resources on him.

However, many people were dissatisfied. They could not complain about his big brother, but they could place their dissatisfaction on him. As such, Li Jun knew that The Pagoda Trial was his only way to prove to the sect that he was worth the resources that they would invest on him. So, the better his performance on the trials are, the better and more secure his future will be.

....

After adjusting their mind and spirit for a few days, Wang Wei, Li Jun, and the other disciples returned to the pagoda for the Third Trial.

The Third Trial can be considered one of the harshest trials of the Pagoda. The purpose of this trial is simple and quite straightforward: that is pain.

In this trial, the testers will experience all kind of torture--both to the body and the soul--and they simply have to endure it.

Wang Wei was at loss on how to design this test at first, but then, he simply modelled it after the Chinese 18 Hell from his past life.

After entering the Pagoda, Wang Wei found himself bound by chains surrounded by a bunch of demons. On top of his head, there was a plaque with the word: "Chamber of Tongue Ripping".

Soon, Wang Wei learned the hard way what the meaning of these words represent. These devils used all kinds of means to cut out Wang Wei's tongue.

Whether to attach chains to his tongue and pull it, or simply cutting it with a knife, or using this machine that slowly twists his tongue until it becomes deform and unrecognizable. They went as far as burning his own tongue.

What made Wang Wei more tragic is the fact that this tortured never goes beyond his limits. As soon he could not bear the pain and was about to pass out, they would stop, then a new tongue would grow out so that the pain continued.

It was as if they were slowly pushing his threshold of pain to a higher level. What's even worse, this torture also some spiritual aspect.

Every time his tongue is ripped out, Wang Wei feels that he lost his ability to express himself out loud. Not just physically, but that he lost his determination to express his ideas, his philosophy, his views, and even his aspiration. All these were slowly being taken from him.

As such, Wang Wei began to fight back. He cursed at these demons at every chance he got. Even if his tongue is no longer there, he still curses them inaudibly. No one could take his voice away from him.

In the Second Layer of Hell, the Chamber of Scissors, Wang Wei experienced the pain of having all his fingers being cut one by one. He felt a part of himself was forever taken away, that without being whole, he will never amount to anything in life. However, he refused to believe such a thing. Only he himself determined his own worth.

In the Third Layer of Hell, the Chamber of Iron Cycads, Wang Wei experienced being hung by iron trees. The trees would penetrate his body, then impale all the organs they come in contact with. His screams echoed throughout the chamber for hours without end.

In the Fourth Layer of Hell, the Chamber of Mirrors of Retribution, Wang Wei was shown his true self through a mirror. In this mirror, he saw that he was a powerful Emperor, but, in order to sit in that throne, he was willing to do absolutely anything. He killed millions upon millions of people. He sacrificed the sect that raised him. And even his parents could not escape his greed for power. Thousands of worlds were destroyed and myriad races became extinct due his mad thirst for power.

In the Fifth Layer of Hell, the Chamber of Steam, Wang Wei experienced being steam alive in a steamer. He watched as his insides were slowly liquified by heat and steam.

In the Sixth Layer of Hell, the Forest of Copper Column, Wang Wei was placed on a burning copper column and experienced the pain of his skin burning off. In that layer, he could smell the burn off scent of his skin; it smelled like overcook street meat.

In the Seven Layer of Hell, the Mountain of Knives, Wang We was forced to walk barefooted uphill a mountain full of sharp and pointy knives. Every step he took, his foot would be impaled, blood oozing out leaving a trail behind. He gritted his teeth and marched forward until he reached the top of the mountain. Then, he had to return the same way he came. He repeated the process nine times before leaving.

In the Eighth Layer of Hell, the Hill of Ice, Wang Wei was left naked in a freezing hill. His body started shivering, his speech was slurred, his breathing became shallow. His skin became bright red, his consciousness was slowly fading, His body function dropped below the level of normal function. He laid on the floor in the fetal position trying to find some warmth and comfort. Even his ideas or memories of warmth and comfort were slowly fading away. As such, he tried to think about only happy thoughts, only happy memories with his loved one to pass through this trial.

In the Ninth Layer of Hell, the Cauldron of Boiling Oil, Wang Wei experienced how it feels to be cooked alive with fried oil in a large cauldron. He even saw the demon in charge of this level secretly put some seasoning in the cauldron. What's even worse was that this process did not happen only once, but repeatedly.

Throughout all these level of torture, the only audible sound was the agonizing scream of Wang Wei that echoed through the chambers, conveying the unimaginable pain and suffering he had to endure. Unfortunately for him, he had only pass half of the torture in the Eighteen Level of Hell.