Lin Feng said, neither servile nor arrogant, "My name is Lin Feng. I came from a small Lineage on the outskirts of the Eastern Region. After an enemy wiped out my Lineage, I wandered from place to place. I heard the Netherworld Hall was recruiting disciples, so I came to seek refuge."
The old man stared at him for a long while, then suddenly smiled. "Good. You have some nerve. Come with me."
Delight stirred in Lin Feng's heart, and he followed the old man into the palace.
The palace was even more sinister inside than it looked from outside. Eerie green lamps stood every few paces along both sides of the passage, casting strange light. From deep within, screams rang out from time to time, making his hair stand on end.
The old man led Lin Feng to a great hall and pushed open its doors.
Three black-robed men sat inside. The one in the middle had the strongest aura, at Peak Demigod, while the other two were late demigods. Before them stood a massive stone stele covered in runes.
"Newcomer, if you want to join the Netherworld Hall, you must first pass a test," the black-robed man in the middle said. "This stele tests your temperament. Put your hand on it. If you can endure for the time it takes an incense stick to burn, you pass."
Lin Feng stepped forward and placed his hand on the stele.
In an instant, a strange power surged into his body. It was bone-chillingly cold, like countless needles of ice piercing his meridians and rushing straight into his sea of consciousness! Countless terrifying scenes instantly appeared before his eyes—mountains of corpses and seas of blood, vengeful souls and vicious ghosts, mountains of blades and seas of fire... every scene was enough