It was indeed Jiao Xiuyuan's corpse.
Now, after three months had passed, it was gradually revealing something unusual.
Unlike normal flesh and blood, it appeared more like withered wood, taking on a yellowish-brown hue.
Li Fan kicked it lightly with his foot—the sound was exactly like kicking wood.
Just then, a voice came from behind Li Fan.
"This is just a puppet, not his real body. It's one of Jiao Xiuyuan's usual tricks—no need to be surprised, fellow Daoist."
Li Fan turned his head and saw that the speaker was also a Qi Refining cultivator.
He immediately cupped his hands in greeting. "Thank you for the explanation, fellow Daoist. Are you also a member of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance?"
The man nodded. "Indeed. I am Chen An, and I've been part of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance for over thirty years now."
"I'm Li Fan. From your words, it seems you're quite familiar with this Jiao Xiuyuan?"
Chen An chuckled. "Familiar wouldn't be the right word. But after living on the island for so long, one naturally picks up certain things."
"Take Jiao Xiuyuan, for example. He runs a general store on the island called 'Thousand Li Hall,' selling all kinds of things. They say he has connections with the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance's official channels, so occasionally, he can even procure some rare goods."
"Besides that, he often deals in information brokering. But that guy never takes risks himself—he always sends puppets in his place."
Li Fan listened and nodded slowly. "Greedy for wealth but afraid of death, huh? That explains it."
Chen An burst into laughter. "Fellow Daoist, you've summed it up perfectly! 'Greedy for wealth but afraid of death'—those four words describe Jiao Xiuyuan better than anything else!"
After laughing, however, Chen An suddenly said, "Back in the scripture pavilion when everyone was copying techniques, I noticed something. Most people would write for a while, rest when tired, recover their energy, and then continue copying. But you, fellow Daoist, didn't stop for three months. I deeply admire that!"
"Yet, I can't help but wonder—was there a deeper meaning behind your actions? In terms of pure copying speed, you must have slowed down later due to exhaustion, so you couldn't have outpaced those who took breaks."
"Might I ask you to enlighten me?" Chen An bowed slightly in inquiry.
Li Fan pondered for a moment before replying, "I wouldn't call it any 'deeper meaning'—just a gut feeling, really."
"Qin Tang said the first trial was about focus."
"Focus means single-minded dedication. Only by remaining undisturbed by external factors can one achieve true focus. Isn't physical and mental exhaustion also an external distraction? If you stop because of it, doesn't that mean you're no longer 'focused'?"
"Just a humble opinion—take it as you will." Li Fan spoke modestly.
Chen An fell into thought upon hearing this.
Li Fan said no more and returned to his room to rest.
The next day, Qin Tang indeed did not appear again.
No one dared to wander off, patiently waiting inside the building instead.
On the morning of the third day, Qin Tang stumbled into view, drinking from his gourd as usual.
"Good wine, damn good wine!"
After a loud belch, he squinted at the assembled cultivators.
"Today begins the second trial!"
"This time, I will test your courage!"
"The path of immortality is long and fraught with hardships—do you have the courage to face them all?"
Qin Tang smiled faintly.
The cultivators felt their vision blur—in the next instant, they had already left the pavilion and appeared by the seaside.
Their cultivation and spiritual power were completely sealed, leaving them no different from mortals.
Qin Tang himself had vanished.
Only his voice echoed from afar:
"I'll be waiting on the other side of the sea. Use your courage to cross these waters!"
The group exchanged uneasy glances.
A bold individual stepped forward, placing a foot on the sea—
Instantly, the water solidified into ice, supporting his weight.
Delighted, the man strode forward and soon disappeared from sight.
Seeing someone take the lead, the others grew impatient and hurried onto the sea as well.
Li Fan noticed that Baili Chen also followed, stepping onto the water.
But Sikong Yi remained on the shore, unmoving.
Li Fan paid no further attention, steadying his mind before stepping onto the sea himself.
The water froze beneath his feet, but in his vision, all the others had vanished.
In the vast expanse of the ocean, he was abruptly alone.
Expression unchanging, Li Fan walked forward, one step at a time.
The sun rose and the moon set—he had no idea how much time had passed.
Yet the scenery before him remained unchanged.
This sea seemed endless.
Even though Li Fan already knew the answer, he couldn't help but feel waves of exhaustion and doubt creeping into his heart.
At such moments, he could sense the ice beneath his feet gradually thinning.
Taking a deep breath, Li Fan expelled the hesitation from his mind.
He continued forward with unwavering determination.
The ice beneath him thickened once more.
This second trial tested courage—
Not just the courage to face external dangers, but the courage to confront one's own heart.
On this boundless sea, after walking for so long without seeing the opposite shore—
Would doubts arise? Would one question whether they had lost their way?
Would anxiety take root? Would one wonder if this sea even had an end?
Would fear settle in, eroding the will to move forward?
Or would one simply give up, refusing to take another step?
As Li Fan walked, step by step, he interrogated his own heart.
Even after centuries of reincarnation, he had never experienced anything like this—
Letting go of all worldly concerns, simply walking and thinking.
This journey across the frozen sea was no different from the path of immortality.
The road ahead was vast, its end invisible.
At the halfway point, looking around, one couldn't even be sure if they were still on the right path.
From beginning to end, one walked alone, with nothing to rely on.
Time flowed endlessly, as if this march would continue forever.
Without rest, without pause.
...
Even so—could one hold fast to their conviction and never lose the courage to move forward?
Even knowing that this trial would eventually end, Li Fan still felt his resolve waver.
Because this sea-crossing journey was simply too long.
One year, two years…
Decades passed.
Li Fan's hair turned gray, his body grew hunched, yet he never stopped walking.
Only when his aged body could no longer take another step did he finally collapse onto the ice.
As his vision blurred and consciousness faded, Li Fan thought he saw—
On the distant shore ahead, Qin Tang stood alone in his white robes.
Raising his gourd in salute, Qin Tang took a sip and smiled.
...
Li Fan opened his eyes.
He and the other cultivators were still inside the building.
Though in his memory, an eternity had passed, many wore dazed expressions.
It took a long time before clarity returned to their eyes.
"Crossing the River of the Netherworld is easy; traversing the sea within one's heart is hard."
"The second trial—the Trial of Courage—is now complete."
"The day after tomorrow, we will conduct the final test."
With that, Qin Tang—still clutching his ever-present wine gourd—swayed out of sight.