Chapter 701: Passing the Stage
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Nangong Mingzhu and the other six stood quietly on top of the altar, awaiting the final result. Each of them had different expressions. Some hoped that Mo Wen passed; some didn’t.
None of them said anything. Only time would reveal the final result. Before it was revealed, all talk was meaningless.
Time passed slowly. The remaining time kept ticking down. On top of the altar, all was quiet. Mo Wen had still not appeared.
Gao Hanshan started breathing heavily. An inexplicable light flickered in his eyes. Mo Wen still had not appeared. Didn’t that mean that he had managed to survive up until now and was slowly approaching the final hour?
None of them had believed that Mo Wen could survive. After he found out about the Beast Wave Gao Hanshan also had no faith in Mo Wen.
However, a miracle seemed to be approaching, and it might actually happen.
As long as Mo Wen did not appear on the altar before the final moment, that would mean that he had already passed the task.
As time passed, the breathing of the six people on the altar grew anxious.
Nangong Mingzhu’s gaze was flickering uncontrollably. Could it be that Mo Wen would actually survive until the end? He had encountered a Pinnacle Beast King. How could he possibly survive? Chu Yuan would not be lying about such a matter.
Chu Yuan and Bu Xingyi’s expressions grew more and more hideous. They felt dissatisfied inside. How could Mo Wen possibly have survived up until now?
Although the two of them had hoped to complete the double task, their hatred for Mo Wen had overshadowed their hopes of victory. How would they be satisfied with Mo Wen having the last laugh? Everyone had failed and only he succeeded. Wasn’t that a smack to their faces? He would also become the hero among all the human ancient martial art practitioners.
The final second finally passed by. A full day had passed since they had entered the Beast King Island.
“Time is up.” Gao Hanshan let out a long sigh. A day had passed and Mo Wen had still not appeared. That meant that he had survived until the end, successfully passing the third stage.
Lan Zhongzhi and Tan Qiyue similarly heaved long sighs of relief. Regardless of whether it was their contribution or not, as long as they passed, it was naturally a good thing. No one would hope to fail the task at the last moment.
Only Chu Yuan and Bu Xingyi had expressions that were sullen beyond compare. They snorted heavily.
“Whoever said that Mo Wen would certainly not last until the end can shut up now, right?” Tan Qiyue said coldly.
He too could not bear some people. They did not mention their own incompetence and yet they still targeted Mo Wen at every opportunity. Them targeting Mo Wen because they had a grudge was one thing, but to hope he would fail the third stage was completely unprofessional.
“If there are no accidents, Mo Wen should have passed the third stage.” Nangong Mingzhu nodded her head. According to the time, Mo Wen had indeed survived until the end. Otherwise, he would have already arrived on this altar.
“That is not necessarily true. Something else may have popped up along the way. Or maybe Mo Wen is special and the Tower Spirit did not send him here,” Bu Xingyi said stubbornly. After all, he had completely put aside all considerations of saving his face with Mo Wen. At this moment, he did not care about how he came off.
At this moment, everyone ignored Bu Xingyi. What he said was too weak to stand, and besides, no one was in the mood to ridicule a person in the throes of death.
“Huh, something isn’t right. It’s been fifteen minutes! Why hasn’t Mo Wen returned?” Lan Zhongzhi frowned. By rights, after Mo Wen passed the trial, he should have been immediately sent here. Why was it that he had yet to appear after fifteen minutes?
The others also realized that something was off. Since he had passed the trial, he should have returned here from the Beast King Island. Such a long time had passed. Why hadn’t he returned?
An hour later, Mo Wen still had not appeared.
“Ha, I said something special must have happened. How could Mo Wen possibly survive till the end? That’s something that even Lord Chu Yuan could not do. Moreover, Mo Wen encountered a Pinnacle Beast King, so it is even more impossible that he has lasted until the end.”
Bu Xingyi began to laugh loudly. He believed that something else had happened to Mo Wen, hence he had not appeared on the altar. Bu Xingyi was especially delighted. At least Mo Wen was not the final hero. Everyone had failed. No one could say anything and could not blame anyone else.
If Mo Wen had truly lasted until the end, and if word of what happened in the task spread, Bu Xingyi’s image would certainly take a severe hit. After all, his performance in the task could not be considered impressive. Moreover, there would be Gao Hanshan fueling the fires, so the situation would be even worse.
Now that they had completely failed the task, no one had any excuse to blame others. Everyone shared the blame.
“Mo Wen most likely has encountered problems,” Bu Xingyi said gloatingly. “Did Lord Chu Yuan not say that Mo Wen had encountered a Pinnacle Beast King? Maybe the Pinnacle Beast King is different from other Beast Kings. If Mo Wen was eaten by a Pinnacle Beast King, he may have truly been killed. Mo Wen has yet to come out. Maybe he has died for real on Beast King Island.”
All sorts of possibilities kept emerging in his mind. His greatest wish was that Mo Wen had actually died on the Beast King Island, without even a chance of resurrecting.
The corner of Chu Yuan’s mouth twitched. His expression was unnatural. What difference could there be between a Pinnacle Beast King and an ordinary Beast King? He had been chewed up by a Pinnacle Beast King and completely swallowed without any leftovers. Had he not also similarly resurrected?
However, Chu Yuan would not mention such a thing. He could only stand on the altar with a stoic face, not saying a word.
Gao Hanshan and Nangong Mingzhu frowned. They both felt that something was unusual. An hour had passed. Why had Mo Wen still not appeared? Could it be that some accident had happened?
A look of concern flashed in Gao Hanshan’s eyes. Could it be that it was as Bu Xingyi had said and something had happened to Mo Wen?
Just as everyone felt that something was truly wrong, a beam of light descended from the sky. Mo Wen’s silhouette appeared on the altar.
Dressed in white, looking handsome and with a genial smile, he walked nonchalantly out of the pillar of light.
“Mo Wen, are you alright?”
A look of joy flashed n Gao Hanshan’s eyes. Just when he had really started to worry, Mo Wen had appeared.
“What could have happened to me? I am fine,” Mo Wen said with a smile. What could happen to him? Indeed, nothing had happened to him, and he was very well indeed. He had obtained a superb grade Unsealing Light and unsealed a superb grade profound level weapon. His combat power had undoubtedly more than doubled.
Although right now he still did not know the might of the Heavenly Serpent Divine Spear, he was certain that it would absolutely not be rudimentary.
In the double task this time, Mo Wen was clearly the biggest winner. It was impossible for the others to have obtained as many rewards as he had.
“Did you pass the task?” Nangong Mingzhu asked. It was one of the rare times she said anything. For her, the most important thing was whether they passed the task.
“I should have. I survived until the end.” Mo Wen nodded his head. The six people here had all died on the Beast King Island once. Only he had survived from start to finish.
“Really? That’s wonderful.” A look of joy flashed in Gao Hanshan’s eyes. As expected, Mo Wen did not disappoint, successfully passing the task. For them, as well as all the human ancient martial art practitioners, it was something that was extremely important.
If the seven of them did not complete the task, although other people could not say anything, it would certainly greatly affect their reputations. After all, they were the chosen Seven Great Human Warriors who represented all the humans to take part in this task.
“How did you escape the hunt of the Pinnacle Beast King?” Nangong Mingzhu looked at Mo Wen in astonishment. The gaze she gave him was exceptionally curious. She had died because of a Pinnacle Beast King, so she knew how frightening they were and yet Mo Wen had managed to escape from a Pinnacle Beast King. It was almost unbelievable. Most likely even ordinary Martial Arts Grandmasters would not have been able to manage it.
However, the fact that Mo Wen had passed the final task also made her breathe a sigh of relief. At least they had not failed the task and their efforts had not all been in vain.
Mo Wen immediately smiled a radiant smile. Still grinning, he looked at Chu Yuan.
“Why are you looking at me?”
Chu Yuan had a sullen expression. He looked incredulously at Mo Wen. Why was Mo Wen smiling while looking at him? What did he want to do? Was Mo Wen mocking him?
For Chu Yuan, the experience on the Beast King Island was a disgrace that he would not forget. He had never imagined that he would lose to this youth and so pathetically at that. He had even lost his most beloved Blood Ghost.
As expected, after resurrecting, he discovered that his Blood Ghost was lost forever. It was impossible for him to get it back. A treasure that he had cultivated for more than a century was completely lost. One could imagine the gaping feeling in his heart.
If it wasn’t for the fact that Chu Yuan knew he was not a match for Mo Wen, he most likely would have pounced forward to fight Mo Wen to the death. But right now, he could only endure the feelings of shame and anger and wait for an opportunity. He would certainly make Mo Wen’s life a living hell.
The gaze that Bu Xingyi gave Mo Wen was similarly sullen, but his gaze was also evasive and fearful. Indeed, he still feared Mo Wen. Although he did not want to admit it, it was a reality. At least in this space, Mo Wen had the ability to kill him. Also, the scene where Mo Wen had grabbed him and thrown him into the Beast King’s mouth left a permanent shadow over his heart.
“You want to know how I managed to escape the hunt of the Pinnacle Beast King?” Mo Wen said playfully as he looked at Nangong Mingzhu.
“Of course. Don’t keep me guessing. I am indeed very curious.” Nangong Mingzhu nodded her head. Under normal circumstances, she would not be interested in Mo Wen’s boasting. However, she had died at the hands of a Pinnacle Beast King. No matter how much she tried, she had not been able to escape. In the end, she had been forced to commit suicide to avoid being eaten by a Beast King.
Almost everyone looked over curiously. Gao Hanshan, Tan Qiyue, and the others were similarly very interested in how Mo Wen had escaped from the terrifying Pinnacle Beast King. It seemed almost impossible.
“Regarding this point, I must first thank both Bu Xingyi and Chu Yuan. Without their contributions, I could not possibly have last until the end.”
Mo Wen looked at Bu Xingyi and Chu Yuan, the corners of his mouth rising slightly and curling into an arc.