Eternal Temptation: Awakening Sinful Desires

After breaking out of the heart-demon illusion by getting over his regrets and fear and accepting both sides, Asher found himself standing on the edge of the abyss.

It gave him a feeling of sadness, loss, despair, and loneliness as he peered down into the bottomless void.

Just one more step, and he would fall down into the endless darkness. However, before taking the next step, Asher stopped himself and turned his head around.

There he saw a mysterious door on the other end of the path as it pulsed with a faint golden glow, calling to him in an irresistible manner, making him feel that he had to rush to it and that he would get out of this place if he did.

Asher took a deep breath and closed his eyes to focus on his thoughts. "This is probably what they call the 'last obstacle to overcome before escaping this place.' It can't be easy, can it? Well, either way, it's a choice that I have to make."

After contemplating for a moment, Asher opened his eyes, which gleamed with a sharp light as he took a step forward without hesitation.

"Even your shadow abandons you in the darkness. The only way to overcome the darkness is to embrace it without letting it consume you. So, even though I have accepted myself and gotten rid of my fears, if I again reject my past, I am just fooling myself. Because my past is a part of me, and I can't erase it from my existence."

With a calm expression on his face, Asher felt himself falling down into the void of darkness, while the distant door on the other side faded into obscurity.

However, as he fell into the depths of the abyss, his heart was filled with an indescribable sense of tranquility.

The pain and suffering he experienced all these years, which made his heart feel cold and numb, dissipated as if they never existed in the first place.

He finally felt free from the shackles that had bound him to his fate for so long. He was no longer afraid of what lay in store for him or what would happen in the future.

The darkness around him began to fade away as he entered a trance-like state where time ceased to exist and everything seemed to stop moving.

All of a sudden, he heard a voice whispering in his ears, "Embrace the darkness. Become one with it and never let go. There is nothing to fear, as you are the darkness itself."

Without saying anything else, the voice faded away, and Asher's eyes snapped open as he found himself standing on the stage, surrounded by many participants.

He was confused by the sudden voice whispering into his ear. It sounded like a woman's voice, but he didn't know whom it belonged to or why she had whispered the words.

He wanted to figure it out, but the sudden change in scenery and the situation left him startled, which made him pause for a moment to adjust to the surroundings.

Looking around, he saw a huge number of participants who had finished their respective tests. They had mixed emotions, as some of them had passed the test while others had failed to do so. However, he saw that the number of participants was lower than before.

'It seems like there were a lot of people who died during the process of passing the test,' he thought as he swept his gaze around the stage once more before turning towards Lei Liwei, who had arrived after him.

He smiled when their eyes met as he approached her. "Congratulations on passing the test."

Lei Liwei returned the smile as she nodded her head and replied, "Congratulations to you as well. However, I am disappointed that I didn't manage to find you during the test, as I wanted to fight you and let you experience my lightning."

"Ha Ha... Well, don't worry about it. I saw very well how much of a beast you are while hunting beasts in the forest." Asher laughed as he remembered the scene where Lei Liwei went around destroying everything in her path to lure out the beasts from hiding before killing them. She was like a natural disaster, as she created destruction everywhere she went.

"What? How did you see me? Were you spying on me? Pervert!"

"Of course not! Don't flatter yourself. It just happened that I stumbled upon you in the forest."

"Oh? If that's the case, then tell me, why didn't you show yourself? Afraid?"

"Ha ha ha... Afraid? Indeed, I was."

This answer left Lei Liwei stunned for a moment. She didn't expect him to be a coward, as she was sure that he wasn't one based on the impression she got from him earlier.

However, before she could respond, he took a step closer to her as he whispered with a hint of playfulness in his eyes, "Afraid of hurting you and losing my chance to be in the same sect with a beauty like you."

Lei Liwei's eyes widened when she heard this statement, but before she could react, he took a strand of her silky hair and tucked it behind her ear before continuing in a gentle voice, "Well, at least not anymore. Now that we both passed the test, I guess we will see each other often, right?"

His words left Lei Liwei speechless. Although she had seen through his charms and knew he was trying to seduce her, it didn't change the fact that he still affected her.

"Ah, how shameless. You are indeed a womanizer, and not a decent one either. Heh heh." She giggled as she pushed his hand away from her face. "Anyway, you better not make excuses when I challenge you again. Understand?"

"Of course," Asher responded with a wink as he backed away.

The two continued talking until he saw Yuan Long walking in the direction of Long Lingyu and right away understood that a drama was about to unfold, which made him grin.

"Hey, Liwei, there is a good show about to begin. Look that way." He gestured with his chin towards their direction while maintaining his gaze on them.