Chapter 627: Earth Power (I)
Yellow sand filled the sky as furious winds howled. A terrifying hurricane swept endless waves of sand across the world without pause, never ceasing for even an instant. Lin Zheyu sat cross-legged on the ground as the storm roared over him, burying him beneath an endless sea of sand.
When the hurricane passed, Lin Zheyu's body trembled slightly. The sand covering him scattered in all directions, and the small dune that had formed over him vanished in an instant.
"It's already been four days... There's not a trace of spiritual qi in this world. That Shamanic Clan expert isn't planning to trap me here until I die, is he?" Lin Zheyu opened his eyes and looked at the endless storm of sand, a growing sense of unease rising in his heart.
Being trapped somewhere was not inherently frightening, even if that place was the demon realm. What was truly terrifying was being imprisoned in a lifeless world where there was nothing at all. No spiritual qi. No demonic qi. This was a land completely devoid of energy.
The key to triggering this trial has nothing to do with time or location. The physical test is already over. That only leaves comprehension, strength of character, and compatibility with the Shamanic cultivator system. There's a good chance this world is meant to test one's character... But it could just as easily be testing comprehension instead... Lin Zheyu's eyes flickered thoughtfully.
He had already tried using the Earth Shrinking Technique at full power to search for the boundaries of this world and uncover its secrets. Unfortunately, he had found nothing but endless yellow sand, wasting a tremendous amount of the energy stored within his divine repositories.
"I can't just sit here and wait..." Lin Zheyu murmured as he slowly rose to his feet.
There was no energy whatsoever in this world, so every last bit had to be conserved. With a thought, Lin Zheyu sealed his divine repositories. Unless he reached the absolute end of his rope, he had no intention of opening it again. He wanted to see whether this trial truly was a test of his will.
The hurricane continued to howl. Keeping his gaze fixed on the distant horizon, Lin Zheyu wandered aimlessly onward, measuring the silent world of sand one step at a time. As he walked, he constantly observed his surroundings, seeking insight into this desolate realm.
Time flowed like water, and time slipped by. Lin Zheyu had no idea how far he had traveled across the endless sea of sand. By his own reckoning, he had been walking through this lifeless world for more than a year. He walked without stopping, day after day. Yet aside from the endless yellow earth beneath his feet and the ceaseless storm of sand overhead, there was nothing.
"Pfft... fuck..."
Lin Zheyu's breathing had grown ragged. He accidentally inhaled a mouthful of sand, triggering a violent coughing fit.
"It's been four hundred and eighty-three days... My physique and spirit are both nearing their limits. If this trial isn't testing my spirit and will, then all this suffering has been for nothing," Lin Zheyu murmured softly.
By now, he was little more than skin and bones. His once broad and powerful physique had withered away, and every last trace of blood qi within him had long since been exhausted. His body was on the verge of complete collapse. His spirit and spiritual soul were so drained that he could barely think.
He dragged his feeble body forward with unsteady steps, his consciousness beginning to blur. Had it not been for his unyielding will, he would have long since collapsed onto the ground, unable to rise again.
"Hm? What's that? Have I become so weak that my spirit is starting to hallucinate?" Lin Zheyu shook his head, his consciousness hazy and unfocused.
Yet no matter how much he shook his head, it was to no avail. Whenever Lin Zheyu opened his eyes and looked ahead, he saw the raging sand within the howling hurricane condense into mysterious runes imbued with a primordial wildness. These runes were very familiar to him. Their bold, primitive, and majestic style was identical to the five-pattern script he had seen before!
"No... It's not a hallucination! So this is the true trial of this stage!" Lin Zheyu's spirit jolted, and for a brief instant, clarity returned to his muddled mind.
With a thought, he opened the tightly sealed spirit divine repository. Under his control, ten faint wisps of spiritual energy drifted out and merged into his spirit and spiritual soul. Instantly, the exhaustion that had nearly pushed them to their limit eased considerably. However, as his spirit and spiritual soul recovered, Lin Zheyu discovered that the mysterious rune that had filled the world had vanished!
"So it's a dual test of spiritual will and comprehension? It seems I have to comprehend the shamanic pattern hidden within this world while my spirit is pushed to its absolute limit. Only then will I pass this trial," Lin Zheyu murmured softly, finally understanding what this stage truly required.
Although his spirit was utterly exhausted and his body was on the verge of collapse, Lin Zheyu's eyes shone with an unprecedented brilliance. At last, he knew how to clear this trial.
***
In the Southern Barbarian Region, within a desolate mountain forest devoid of human presence, a handsome young man in luxurious robes strode forward with calm confidence. He carried himself with extraordinary bearing, and every inch of his face radiated pride.
"It disappeared... Could there be ancient ruins or perhaps a secret realm here?" Woo Yiyan murmured softly.
He had employed every method at his disposal to investigate the person who had killed Woo Yixuan, but all his efforts had come to nothing. As a result, Woo Yiyan turned his attention to Lin Zheyu.
According to the reports from the men he had dispatched, Woo Yixuan had already tracked down Xiao Yu's whereabouts before his death. The three of them had been lying in ambush, intending to kill Xiao Yu the moment he appeared.
Yet afterward, something had happened, and all three of them had died. They had not even managed to leave behind a single clue about their killer. Woo Yiyan suspected that Xiao Yu was somehow connected to the incident. Even if he was not directly involved, there was a high chance he knew something about it.
This Xiao Yu is shrouded in mystery. Everything connected to him feels strangely suspicious. There's a very good chance Little Xuan's death is tied to him!
He narrowed his eyes and pushed his spiritual sense to its utmost limit, yet detected nothing unusual. Patting his storage pouch with his right hand, he produced a purple leather pouch. With a thought, a special powder drifted out of it, transforming into countless specks of yellow luminescence that floated through the air.
This method won't work... Martial artists are always the most interested in the Shamanic Clan's inheritance. Let's try using one of the Shamanic Clan's methods instead.
Among mortals, there were specialists who made a living robbing tombs and searching for treasure. Cultivators likewise had experts dedicated to treasure hunting and exploring hidden realms. Over the years, countless specialized methods had been developed to locate ruins and secret realms concealed within the void. The technique Woo Yiyan had just used was one such method. However, he had never been particularly interested in treasure hunting, so he carried few related secret treasures and knew only a handful of such techniques.
"If it's a Shamanic Clan inheritance secret realm, there's no need to go through all that trouble." Woo Yiyan smiled faintly.
An inheritance secret realm existed for one purpose: to seek out worthy successors and pass down the Shamanic cultivator system. Without potential inheritors, such secret realms served no purpose. As a result, every Shamanic Clan inheritance secret realm possessed the ability to scan its surroundings in search of suitable candidates. That was precisely how Tu Yuan had discovered this secret realm in the first place.
Boom!
Woo Yiyan's body trembled slightly as a thunderous roar erupted from within him. His immense aura surged wildly, his muscles rapidly swelling as a thick, blood-soaked aura spread from his body. His crimson qi and blood quickly transformed, gradually becoming saturated with a deep, rich violet hue.
Roar!
A terrifying roar echoed through the mountains as the phantom of a gigantic purple tiger materialized, its deafening bellow reverberating throughout the forest.
"So it really is here!" Woo Yiyan's brows twitched as he sensed a mysterious summons. Narrowing his eyes, he looked toward the forest to his left, where ripples spread across the void.
No... I need a special method to enter. It looks like this Shamanic Clan inheritance secret realm is extremely ancient. Otherwise, it wouldn't be like this... Woo Yiyan thought to himself.
Only Shamanic Clan inheritance secret realms dating back to ancient times imposed restrictions on who could enter. Such realms could only be accessed by those who possessed special shamanic patterns, specific dharma artifacts, or the secret techniques required to enter.
Back then, Tu Yuan had been able to enter because the incomplete shamanic pattern within his body happened to satisfy the entry requirements. His fortune had truly been extraordinary.
Later, after the invasion of the demon realm brought about a great upheaval of heaven and earth, the experts of the Shamanic cultivator system perished one after another, leaving their inheritance on the brink of extinction. As a result, the Shamanic Clan inheritance secret realms established after that era rarely imposed restrictions on entrants. Anyone possessing sufficiently outstanding natural talent could enter.
This is troublesome. Looks like I'll have to ask Uncle Shuo for help, Woo Yiyan thought after carefully probing the area. He shook his head slightly.
With a thought, he sent a message to Uncle Woo Shuo. Then his figure blurred and disappeared into the void. Woo Shuo was highly accomplished in treasure hunting and the exploration of hidden realms, having mastered numerous methods for entering secret realm spaces. Among them, he was especially skilled when it came to secret realms related to the Shamanic Clan.