Reborn as a Mountain: I Defy the Heavens with a Smile

Domination!

This was the word that flashed through the owner's mind.

Dominance was not granted by cultivation or status. It was seized with overwhelming strength and an unshakable will to stand above all others. Only those who dared to challenge everything and dared to crush the resistance without hesitation could truly rule.

The victorious tiger standing atop the bear's corpse was the same. It dared to challenge everything and crush every resistance against it. To the tiger, the victory wasn't about survival alone.

It was also about declaring supremacy and the silent acknowledgment of the surrounding fierce beasts, who bowed their heads and did not even dare to growl, was the true proof of it.

This scene was etched deep inside the owner's mind and a fire burned inside his heart.

A strength that needed no explanation.

An existence so overwhelming that thousands would bow without a sound.

This was true might. This was what it meant to dominate.

…

Ye Chen felt the owner's thoughts as his own, so the same fire of domination also started to burn inside his heart.

"It's not me so these are not my thoughts." Ye Chen suddenly shook his head and calmed his heart down.

The fire of domination was not his. It was born from another's path, another's will. That person wanted to rule over the world, crush everything under their feet and reign supreme.

Ye Chen did not wish for such things, especially the meaningless submission. He might be a demon but all he wanted was to court fairies and get some entertainment from the arrogant young master.

He did want strength that is enough to dominate, however not just for the sole reason of domination.

So, he would rise to the peak not because he wanted to enslave others but because no one in heaven or earth could stop him.

Furthermore, he was Ye Chen!

A man who had walked on the different path from the beginning of his life! How could he just casually embrace someone's path and become their shadow? His heart itself won't allow it!

…

Crack!

Suddenly the golden acknowledgment band on Ye Chen's wrist shattered.

"He is really a genius, but he is still behind my cute future disciple, hehe." The old man Yang Wuji saw this but he did not care too much since Lin Xian'er had ten bands broken already.

She was a lot faster, just within a minute or two breaking each one of them.

Compared to her and Ye Chen, others were having a difficult time. Most of them did not even know what their path was, and because many of them were following a certain figure, their thoughts were in disarray.

It was as if there were multiple choices in front of them, each one good but they could only decide on one. Hence the dilemma and confusion wondering if the path they had taken is right or wrong.

This trial was similar to the identity and purpose trial. The only difference was that rather than identity and purpose, it displayed various paths.

Not only that, but there were many other things they could learn, reflect on, and ponder over.

Such as Ye Chen, who now arrived in the memoirs of someone else and surprisingly, the owner was not a human but a flying, fierce beast.

This flying, fierce beast was really not something special and even had low cultivation. But what it did surprised Ye Chen.

The flying beast would fly over mountains and observe the world around it as if trying to understand the heavens. Sometimes right, sometimes wrong — yet the flying beasts never stopped.

It would soar through storms, dive into valleys, perch atop the cliffs, and gaze at the endless horizon for days, hours, and months.

Not for survival, not for strength but for the pure desire to understand.

Ye Chen watched all of this unfold as if he himself was flying across the endless sky. He did question the path of the flying beast since it gained nothing. However, as his memories were aligned with the beast, he could feel the beast did not feel regret, loss, or dissatisfaction over gaining nothing.

"To walk your own path, you must dare to seek it without hesitation," Ye Chen sighed faintly, understating that it was not the strength that made one extraordinary. It was the willingness to keep seeking, even without guarantees.

As soon as Ye Chen understood this, the memory once again changed and this time the owner was a human Buddhist preaching everywhere in the world.

There were many things to gain, as the knowledge of this Buddhist was profound, solving the heart demons of cultivators with just a few words. It's a pity that such a thing only happened a few times. Nonetheless, the gains were not small.

Ye Chen wanted to stay in these memories for longer; however, as soon as he denied taking the same path as the owner, the memories ended.

After which he faced the memories of a person whose confidence came from their lies, fake wealth, fake strength, fake beauty, and such. The result was devastating because pretending to be not who you are meant you were never confident in yourself.

Furthermore, do not expect anyone to be nice to you after they find your lies.

"Every lie you tell yourself is another sword pointed at your own heart." Ye Chen shook his head silently as he witnessed this.

In the path of cultivation, there was no shortcut. Moreover, if you don't even believe in your true self, what qualification do you have to seek immortality?

…

Crack!

Once again one more band on Ye Chen's wrist shattered and slowly yet surely Li Mei and others were also catching up.

Of course, there were two disciples who failed because their master wanted these two to be like them and follow in their footsteps. But how could two people think alike? So, in the end they failed and were instantaneously teleported out.

"A master's responsibility is to nurture their disciple and their path. If they are wrong, then guide them to the right one. If they made a mistake, let them face the retribution for it." The old man muttered to himself as he saw genius disciples failing because of such simple mistakes.

However, he did not blame them since almost every master would want their disciples to succeed easily and what was the easiest path? Of course, the one they took. Because of this, many disciples became great in the future.

But what was the use of borrowed Dao?

To imitate was easy.

To inherit was simple.

But to truly comprehend and forge a path from the soul — that was what cultivation demanded.

No matter how many shortcuts were given, no matter how carefully the path was paved, the heavens would never bow to a copied path.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

Just as the old man was busy pondering, the acknowledgment bands on the disciples wrists started to shatter.

There was no surprise here as Lin Xian'er and Ye Chen were in the lead while Li Mei and the group followed behind. After which were the crown prince and others who were also doing good.

"You might be smart enough to clear this but are you talented enough to clear the challenges that are going to appear now?" The old man questioned his expression a little seriously as he looked at Lin Xian'er and Ye Chen.

He did not want Lin Xian'er to fail because she will be his future disciple. As for Ye Chen, although he disliked him, he still hoped for him to get this inheritance.

…

Swoosh!

Ye Chen experienced another memory but this time it was not related to the cultivation path but to talent and it was his talent!

As for the owner of memory? No matter how much he tried, he couldn't link with its thought and all he could do was face the test the owner was taking.

What it was? 'The Heaven Spirit Test,' which measures how much one is talented not by the spiritual root, not by the soul but by the ability to learn heaven rules.

Ye Chen did not know what the rules meant and neither did the owner who was facing the trial. But he did know that he had to take the trial himself, as his name was written on the stone tablet.

There were also other names and in front of them their evaluation grade was written, which was surprisingly similar to what Ye Chen knew. No, it was not similar but the same, as the grades were Yellow, Profound, Earth, and Heaven, which were further divided into low, mid, and high tiers.

But this did not stop here! The grades went above Heaven, and they were Mystic, King, and Saint.

There was no mention of Supreme, Emperor, or Divine; nonetheless, knowing this grade stunned Ye Chen a little.

"My spiritual root is heaven grade and since it's going through evolution, it should be half-step Mystic grade. Maybe even low-tier at that," he muttered to himself and then focused his attention on the wall where complicated, yet profound text was engraved.