Chapter 1098: Trial
In the Golden Soul Realm.
The originally calm grounds suddenly became busy.
Fang Yuan stood on top of an iron tree and casually grabbed a small golden snake that tried to ambush him. He tossed it aside, plucked a Golden Soul Fruit, and ate it happily.
“Within the surrounding twenty-five kilometers, there are no other disciples… This makes sense. No matter how small the Golden Soul Realm, it’s the size of a country. Combined with the artifact spirit’s intentional adjustments, the disciples are dispersed as much as possible. If they weren’t, they could form groups to enter the third region and make the test a joke!”
Fang Yuan kept alert.
Although this test of the Golden Soul Sect seemed crude, the artifact spirit and Immortals kept watch at all times. He would be courting death if he tried to abuse any loopholes.
On the other hand, trials like that of the Thirty-Three-Level Outer Heaven Tower were exploitable once the master was no longer around, no matter how rigorous the settings were.
“However, with my spiritual will, gathering a bunch of disciples is merely a matter of time!”
His spiritual will could be attached to spatial vibrations and was unaffected by the Nomological Laws of Gravity. As such, he had a huge advantage in the Golden Soul Realm since he could detect golden beasts in advance and find routes that avoided them.
“The requirement to become a core disciple of the Golden Soul Sect is to enter the third region and survive for more than three days!”
Fang Yuan decided on a direction and started off while taking detours.
Roar Roar!
A golden cheetah spotted him and suddenly accelerated, turning into a sharp arrow that bit his shoulder.
Crack!
The cheetah’s teeth broke, and it rolled around on the ground, wailing in agony.
“You’ve eaten a loss, huh?” Fang Yuan brushed his torn clothes and revealed his smooth shoulder that did not even have a mark. “The golden beasts in the first region can damage dao artifacts. Golden beasts in the second region can only be resisted with bodies at the top-grade dao artifact level. But without a body at the immortal artifact level, entering the third is courting death!”
At this time, he had undoubtedly cultivated the Nine Transference Undying Method to the third transference, and his body was comparable to a low-grade immortal artifact!
He had achieved this as a result of having the foundation of a dao artifact-level body and the assistance of a plethora of heavenly materials and earthly treasures.
After all, he had fleeced Immortals and obtained many treasures from the Pantheon Palace and the Outer Heaven Tower, and quite a few of those treasures could be used for tempering bodies.
Although the Golden Soul Fruits were incredibly effective, even outer disciples could get their hands on a few of them, so it was clear how much they were worth in comparison.
Kaboom!
After entering the second region, Fang Yuan’s arrogant demeanor immediately angered the golden beasts.
A hundred or so golden beasts roared and formed a beast tide.
Along with earthshaking sounds, a golden line appeared on the horizon.
“Haha… Come!”
Fang Yuan laughed loudly as he tore off his scraps of clothing and rushed toward the golden beasts.
Bang! Bang Bang!
The sound of numerous collisions echoed. Fang Yuan was just too fast and too powerful. The slightly weaker golden beasts turned into piles of mud on the spot, while the others flew into the air and broke their bones upon landing.
…
“We have to be cautious in the second region. As long as we can survive for three days, we will become inner disciples…”
On another side, Xiao Jiuli and Chu Duo guarded each other’s back carefully. “There are golden beasts waiting in ambush underground too. We can’t remain in one place and have to be constantly on the move!”
Since inner disciples enjoyed honor and more resources in normal times, they were undoubtedly going to enjoy easier missions and more attention now. It was worth risking their lives for!
“The two of us working together can deal with at most five golden beasts, and we can’t afford to be discovered by those damn crows!”
Xiao Jiuli held an iron hammer in his hand, while Chu Duo carried a heavy saber, both of which were dao artifacts.
They could appear together because they had bribed the deacon that guarded the realm gates. Of course, it was allowed, but it was limited to two people.
“What happened? The golden beasts are sparse!” Xiao Jiuli put his ear to the ground and listened. “There’s also this noise. A disciple must have encountered a beast tide! It’s not far from here… What an unlucky guy. Let’s head over!”
It was, of course, extremely dangerous to face a beast tide head-on. However, if they only brushed by, they could take advantage of the golden beast vacuum to obtain a precious chance to catch their breath.
“Haha!” Chu Duo’s eyes gleamed, and he followed immediately.
They crouched on a small hill and saw Fang Yuan charging at the beast tide.
“Heavens, is he still human? Hang on, that person is… Li Hun?!”
Chu Duo became absent-minded and nearly fell on his butt.
“The third transference of the Nine Transference Undying Method, body comparable to an immortal artifact?” Xiao Jiuli smiled bitterly. “He’s indeed a true genius. Having refined his body to this level before becoming an Immortal, he’s almost guaranteed to become a core disciple!”
Cultivation Holy Lands attached great importance to these core disciples.
Someone who had cultivated to the third transcendence before the lightning tribulation had a very high chance of surviving it, almost ensuring that they would become Immortal. They were peerless monsters, and they even had a glimmer of hope of reaching Grand Unity in the future!
This type of seed would not be sent out to fight even during a demon disaster until the very last minute.
“We-we even wanted to rob him before?”
Chu Duo watched as Fang Yuan forcibly subdued the hundred golden beasts and suddenly felt the strength drain from his body.
At the same time, Fang Yuan pierced the final golden lion with his fist and looked in their direction.
“He’s discovered us!” Xiao Jiuli and Chu Duo both felt a chill in their heart, and their legs were shivering.
Fortunately, Fang Yuan did not pay them much attention, as if he had merely seen two strangers, and headed deeper into the region.
“He wants to tackle the third region and become a core disciple?” Xiao Jiuli muttered, feeling a great sense of failure and frustration.
The goal he risked his life for was only the starting point for someone else. It truly was a bitter pill to swallow.
…
There was a special space above the Golden Soul Realm.
Amid colorful clouds was an absolutely gorgeous palace.
An Immortal with golden brows and a hooked nose was sitting inside the palace. There were three hundred and sixty-five water mirrors in front of him, all of which were reflecting the situations of the disciples in the Golden Soul Realm.
“Hmm, those that have reached their limit have all entered the Golden Soul Realm to fight. They’ve finally realized the sect master’s intention correctly!” The golden-browed Immortal looked at the scene and smiled. “However, most of those who can pass are outer disciples. It’s difficult for inner disciples to tackle the third region. Difficult! Difficult! Difficult!!!”
He was once an inner disciple and was naturally well aware of the difficulty of the core disciple test.
Even the golden-browed Immortal himself had only reached the third transcendence of the Nine Transference Undying Method by using the special qualities of the immortal body after transcending the lightning tribulation and becoming an Immortal.
Even so, his immortal artifact-level body allowed him to reign supreme among ordinary Immortals!
“However, some disciples always manage to rise above the crowd in this final squeeze of potential. I wonder how many core disciples will appear? Two? Or maybe three?” the golden-browed Immortal muttered as he sensed the third region.
Although he was not the master of the artifact spirit of the Golden Soul Realm, because he was appointed as an administrator, he was granted the majority of the jurisdiction and could accomplish many things.
With a thought, a number of water mirrors moved closer. “Hmm, he really is here! The top inner disciple, Tie Xinku! He was originally an Iron Mountain Gate disciple, and he has an extremely strong foundation!
“And this one, the female inner disciple—Huang Yue. Did she awaken some kind of bloodline? It’s truly surprising!”
“And finally this group of three. They’re lucky to have run into each other and were able to form a small sword formation. Unfortunately… the dangers of the third region are beyond your imagination. Choosing the easy way out will ultimately result in nothing!” The golden-browed Immortal shook his head. “The positions for the true disciples are probably among these five. However, the third group, haha…”
The third region was different from the first two. There was no room for any luck. The golden beasts were dense, and no matter which direction you took, you would surely run into the beasts and find yourself in a hard fight.
Additionally, as the functional operator of the Golden Soul Realm, he would naturally increase the difficulty for the three-man group and not allow them to pass without real skills.
At this moment, his gaze shifted as a water mirror moved close. “Another one, huh? It’s actually an outer disciple?” The golden-browed Immortal’s expression changed.
In the water mirror, he saw a young man with torn clothing, revealing bronze skin that had speckles of gold, defined but not bulging muscles. There was a beautiful golden ratio and a sense of smooth beauty to it. He rushed straight into the third region.
Roar Roar!
Ow Ow!
Caw Caw!
Many golden beasts immediately roared furiously and surrounded him.
Bang!
The golden beasts in this region were stronger than those in the previous two. In their first exchange, the young man was smashed into a rock wall, creating a deep hole.
But in the blink of an eye, the young man dashed out and slammed his fist on a golden beast’s face, sending it flying away like a cannonball, plowing a long trail on the ground.
“The third transference of the Nine Transference Undying Method?! He’s still an outer disciple. How is this possible?” The golden-browed Immortal’s eyes flashed.
To survive in the third region, one had to refine their body to be comparable to an immortal artifact.
Among the disciples that he had set his eyes on, Tie Xinku had cultivated the Myriad Poison Mixed Element Method and broke through by impressive willpower. He fulfilled the criterion completely.
As for the female disciple, Huang Yue, although her body was only at the half immortal artifact level, she had managed to awaken a special bloodline that boosted her body refining technique, making her body comparable to an immortal artifact.
As for the three using the sword formation, their bodies were only at the top-grade dao artifact level and were not even worth mentioning.
Among the five inner disciples, only one had truly met the criterion, but a monster emerged from the outer disciples?
Things were definitely amiss!
The golden-browed Immortal took out a jade disc and found Fang Yuan’s details immediately. “Li Hun, also recommended by the Iron Mountain Gate… Joined the sect for less than a month?”
His eyes bulged out in disbelief as he watched Fang Yuan fight and run through the water mirror. A month to reach the third transcendence of the Nine Transference Undying Method? The difficulty of this technique was even higher than the Myriad Poison Mixed Element Method!”
“This person has a huge secret and is worth investigating. Although the Golden Soul Sect doesn’t choose who to teach, you need a clean background to become a core disciple!”
The golden-browed Immortal would not admit it, but he also had some secret thoughts.