The Legend of the Netherworld

Chapter 171 Entering the Brave Trial

A year ago, Lin Jiao passed through the portal and came to Tianshu Academy.

The moment she stepped into the south gate of the academy, what came into view was a lush mountain range and majestic buildings. The academy seemed like a holy place that had stood for a thousand years.

Just as she was looking around, Taoist Siqi was already waiting at the door. When he saw her, he smiled kindly.

Under the guidance of Taoist Siqi, Lin Jiao successfully met the head of Tianshu Academy.

As soon as the headmaster saw Lin Jiao, he was very impressed with her and immediately made an exception to accept her as his disciple.

However, Lin Jiao's realm is only Dingmao Eighth Realm, and the lowest disciple standard of Tianshu Academy is Dingsi Realm.

When the headmaster saw her thin figure and young face, he couldn't help but feel pity for her, fearing that she would be bullied by the other disciples.

So, the head of the sect made a proposal and asked Lin Jiao if she would like to enter a place for cultivation called "Dongtian Fudi".

The blessed land of the cave is a small world detached from the mortal realm, filled with rich spiritual energy and abundant resources. Time flows differently here than in the outside world. One day of cultivation here is equivalent to ten days in the mortal world. Numerous opportunities exist, and some even achieve breakthroughs through several realms, experiencing rapid growth in strength.

Tianshu Academy owns this blessed land due to a chance encounter.

Later, the headmaster decided that only disciples who had made meritorious contributions could enter this blessed land. However, in view of his special regard for Lin Jiao, the headmaster made an exception and allowed her to enter, hoping that she could quickly catch up with the pace of other disciples in the academy.

Before entering the blessed land, Lin Jiao handed the letter she wrote to Lin Xiao to Taoist Siqi.

She described in detail her situation at Tianshu Academy, saying that she would enter a paradise to practice cultivation, and it might take one to two years for her to come out.

She hoped that Taoist Siqi could pass this letter to Lin Xiao and let him know about her situation.

However, after receiving the letter, Taoist Siqi felt an indescribable sense of guilt.

He had originally promised the headmaster of Feng Shui Academy to secure an "internal recommendation quota" for Lin Xiao to enter Tianshu Academy, but when he negotiated with the headmaster, he failed to get any concessions.

The headmaster believed that for talents like Lin Xiao, Feng Shui Academy was not the only choice. Instead, some wealthy families were more worthy of being given a place.

Taoist Siqi witnessed the duel between Lin Jiao and Lin Xiao with his own eyes. He admired Lin Xiao's talent, but failed to get a place for Lin Xiao. He was depressed and ashamed to face the Feng Shui Academy, so he chose to hide Lin Jiao's letter secretly and went into seclusion in the mountains to practice.

...

The atmosphere at the north gate of Tianshu Academy became increasingly tense.

Following the serious man's call, the waiting crowd gathered around the table.

Lin Xiao observed the people around him and couldn't help but feel a little shocked. The number of people participating in this death trial had reached hundreds, and there were many handsome and beautiful young women in the crowd. However, the eyes of these women were cold, giving people a cold feeling that made them feel unapproachable.

At this moment, a man with a handsome face and three-dimensional features approached Lin Xiao.

His handsome face had a mischievous smile, and he seemed to have some interest in Lin Xiao.

He jokingly said, "Little brother, don't be fooled by their appearance. Who knows if they are the 'Tianshan Child-Fairy'?"

Lin Xiao was slightly stunned, then turned his head to glance at those women with cold temperaments. After a closer look, he noticed that the corners of their eyes, necks and other small parts seemed to be covered with traces of time, with wrinkles visible, and it was obvious that they had lived for who knows how many years.

He was secretly shocked. It turned out that behind these "beauties" were terrifying years of cultivation, and they were far from what they seemed.

He nodded slightly and said politely, "Thank you for the reminder."

"Qi Yebai." The handsome man chuckled and said, "Little brother, what's your name?"

"Lin Xiao." Lin Xiao replied, his eyes alert but not showing too much vigilance.

"Be careful after entering the trial." Qi Yebai's words were relaxed and sincere. Then he reached out and touched Lin Xiao's back. His movements were gentle and without any hostility.

Lin Xiao instinctively felt a little uneasy and almost wanted to dodge, but when he saw that Qi Yebai did not have any malicious weapons in his hands, he let him go.

Qi Yebai grabbed a small transparent object from behind Lin Xiao. Upon closer inspection, the object was as crystal clear as a button, with almost no abnormality visible.

Qi Yebai gently crushed the object, and it instantly turned into dust and disappeared without a trace.

"What is this?" Lin Xiao's heart sank, and he suddenly sensed the vague threat behind him.

Just now, he didn't feel anything unusual, but there was an uneasy breath approaching quietly.

Recalling the scene just now, he realized that he was stuck with something.

"This is the secret method of buttons."

Qi Yebai explained calmly without hesitation, "Place the transparent button on the target, and it can be used for tracking. Any position of the target will be marked."

His tone was a little cold. "However, its presence can only be sensed when the target and the button are within ten kilometers. As for you..."

Qi Yebai smiled slightly, a meaningful light flashing in his eyes, "Everyone knows your strength, of course they will attack you first."

Lin Xiao's heart trembled, and he suddenly became angry.

These people are so despicable and impatient that they attacked me before the trial even started. They really think I am a soft persimmon. It seems that after entering the trial, it is necessary to let them know what suffering is... His anger exploded in his heart, and he looked around, looking for the person who just passed by him.

At this moment, the serious man at the table finally started his action.

Soon, he formed seals and cast a spell, his voice echoing like thunder: "Thousands of miles of sound transmission!"

An old man with white hair, narrowed eyes and a long white beard fluttering in the wind suddenly appeared in front of everyone.

His aura was ancient and steady, like the mountains and rivers that had not changed in hundreds of years.

The serious man immediately saluted and said respectfully: "Disciple Wen Chaozong, greetings to Elder Haidong! Here is the signed agreement of the participants." He handed over a thick agreement.

Elder Haidong nodded gently, flipped open the agreement, glanced at the signatures, and muttered to himself, "Why are there so many people?"

He coughed lightly, his gaze becoming even more stern. "Since you dare to participate, you are prepared to die. I won't repeat the rules. But I can bring you some opportunities, and I'm sure some of you are here for these opportunities. We don't care about your academy's affairs. What you can obtain is your own ability."

As Elder Haidong spoke, everyone gradually quieted down and all eyes were focused on him.

Elder Haidong paused briefly before continuing, "The first opportunity is the secret technique of our academy, the 'Blue Lotus Magic'. It has transformed into a demonic beast and is currently on the Trial Island. Whoever can obtain it will be a lucky individual with sufficient strength."

As soon as the words fell, there was a burst of exclamations at the scene.

Many elderly people had already come here with the determination to obtain the secret skills, but they did not expect that Tianshu Academy would make this opportunity public and directly put it into the trial. This was undoubtedly an encouragement to them.

Seeing the strong reaction from the crowd, Elder Haidong continued calmly, "However, there's no need to get too excited. This is just a dungeon. If you can make it into the top five and become a disciple of my academy, you'll have the opportunity to learn this secret technique again."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over all the contestants, and then added, "Besides the 'Blue Lotus Magic', there are other opportunities, such as the 'Strong Wind Splitting Mountain Seal', the 'Sea Mist Sword', the 'Light Thunder Seal', the 'Amethyst Jade', and so on. They have all transformed into monsters, waiting for everyone to fight for."

When he mentioned the amethyst jade, there was a murmur at the scene.

Amethyst jade is an advanced version of fairy jade, containing extremely powerful spiritual energy of heaven and earth. It is rumored that a piece of amethyst jade can allow a cultivator in the first Jiachen realm to break through to the second Jiachen realm. This opportunity is not available to ordinary cultivators. Even the Shadow Monkey King has not been able to reach this level after practicing for a lifetime.

Elder Haidong continued, "Although these opportunities are precious, they also come with great danger. Whether you can obtain them depends on your strength."

These words heightened everyone's anticipation, but they also vaguely sensed the cruelty involved.

Lin Xiao didn't show much interest in these opportunities at the moment. He had only one goal: to survive to the end, enter Tianshu Academy, and obtain one of the five places. Other opportunities were just additional temptations.

Elder Haidong took a deep breath and swept his eyes across the entire audience, and suddenly the place fell silent.

His expression grew more serious. "Now, if anyone wants to quit, they can do so now. Once you enter the island, there's no chance to leave."

Everyone was silent, as if they were ready to face the challenge.

"it is good!"

Elder Haidong nodded slightly, his voice low and majestic, "You will enter the portal I opened later according to the names called by Wen Chaozong. You will also receive a bottle of poison. If the five people who remain collect the most poison, they will receive a special entry reward."

As soon as he finished speaking, he began to form seals with his hands, and as he moved, five golden portals slowly appeared in the air.

Each door is filled with a mysterious glow, as if it contains endless space and unknown dangers.

At the same time, Wen Chaozong moved a large box from under the table. The box was filled with small bottles. The liquid in the bottles was dark black, like thick ink.

Seeing this scene, Lin Xiao raised his eyebrows slightly and couldn't help asking: "Is this poison prepared for us? And we need to collect it?"

"Correct."

Qi Yebai's tone was low and tinged with sadness. "If you are unfortunately injured and can't continue fighting, this bottle of poison will be our best antidote. It will quickly take away the pain, so that you don't have to endure any more torture."

He then added: "I heard that the winner who collected the most poisons at the end received an extremely rich reward."

After hearing this, Lin Xiao's heart sank.

"Shen Yunke." Wen Chaozong looked at the list in his hand and called out in a cold voice.

Then, a tall man stepped forward, took a bottle of poison from the box, and walked towards one of the golden portals without hesitation.

The door emitted a faint vibration, as if it was gently vibrating for his arrival.

As Wen Chaozong continued to read out the names, the atmosphere around him gradually became quiet. Almost everyone was nervous and silent, not daring to speak.

"Xu Yiyi!"

"Lin Yunzhang!"

…Every name called out seemed to announce the contestant's fate. Although this trial was a challenge and opportunity, it also meant the possibility of death.

Looking at the people walking into the teleportation portal, Lin Xiao also realized more and more intuitively that the majority of those who came to participate in this trial were elderly people, and the few young people who entered the teleportation array had mostly reached the third level of Jiachen or the third level of Dingsi.

.......

"Tang Cheng!"

When Wen Chaozong called out this name, the scene suddenly became quiet.

Almost everyone's eyes unconsciously focused on the man named Tang Cheng.

Tang Cheng was tall and slender, with an extraordinary presence that seemed to carry an air of oppression. Several elders spoke in low voices, their expressions vaguely filled with fear and awe.

"Look at that man, his aura is so strong. I didn't expect Tang Cheng to come too?" someone asked in a low voice.

"It's him! Tang Cheng, who once slaughtered an entire sect for a woman. He is extremely powerful. I heard that he has now broken through to the third level of Jiachen and should not be underestimated." Another voice responded.

Lin Xiao was secretly alert, his eyes fixed on Tang Cheng's back. This person was obviously not a simple person. If he really met him during the trial, he would definitely be a formidable opponent.

"Feng Tao!"

Wen Chaozong continued to call out names. When Lin Xiao heard this name, the corner of his eyes twitched slightly, and then he understood.

That was the fat man who had reminded him to quit before... Lin Xiao recognized him in his heart.

"Wish him good luck." Lin Xiao said silently in his heart, and no longer paid too much attention to him.

......

Zhu Liusu

"Yuan Jing"

When calling these two names, Lin Xiao also noticed the shock in the eyes of the people around him. It seemed that he was also a ruthless character.

At this moment, a gust of wind suddenly blew by, and everyone looked up, only to see a group of people galloping past their heads.

The knights were dressed in gorgeous armor, and the monsters they rode were as strange as unicorns. The horses had slender bodies, wings spread on both sides for flying, and a single, smooth horn on their heads, just like creatures from mythology.

"It's the Xuanyuan family!" someone exclaimed.

"I didn't expect the Xuanyuan family would also send people to Tianshu Academy to practice!"

"I heard that the one who came was the great-grandson of the Xuanyuan family - Xuanyuan Xichen, who has reached the fifth level of Jiachen cultivation." A burst of low murmurs sounded in the audience, and many people recognized the iconic flag - the word "Xuanyuan".

Everyone turned around and watched the team fly over their heads. The luxurious eight-horse sedan came into view. The flag of the "Xuanyuan" family was flying on the top of the sedan. It was magnificent and luxurious, attracting almost everyone's attention.

"Yes, it's Xuanyuan Xichen."

Someone who recognized him whispered, "I remember he was a genius of the Xuanyuan family. He will definitely be a great man in the future."

"I really envy these disciples from aristocratic families. If they want to enter Tianshu Academy, it's just a matter of a word." The people around sighed.

Although the Xuanyuan family's lineup was particularly eye-catching, Wen Chaozong did not stop calling out names.

At this moment, Qi Yebai's name was called. He smiled softly, walked forward, picked up the poison, and chose the portal on the far right. It was obvious that he had great confidence in the upcoming trial.

……

Finally, Lin Xiao's name rang out: "Lin Xiao!"

In an instant, all eyes were focused on him.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on Lin Xiao, watching the portal he chose. After all, everyone hoped to pick an easy target and get off to a good start.

Lin Xiao was calm. He walked forward calmly, took a bottle of poison from the box, and then walked towards the portal on the far right without looking around.