Glazed Bell

Fang Chen guided the Black Iron Sword, closely following behind Elder Yun and Li Yunshan. Elder Yun's flying speed wasn't very fast, but it was extremely steady. Although Fang Chen had only just learned the Sword Control Technique, he could still keep up with ease.

Soon, Fang Chen and the others saw many people. These were all Outer Sect Disciples from Azure Cloud Peak heading to participate in the trial. There were men and women. Besides flying with swords, some people used other magical treasures. For example, some stepped on brooms, while others sat on a large pot. However, as disciples of the Glazed Sword Sect, most people's flying spiritual treasures were flying swords.

Everyone flew along a specific route because the Sect had many areas with formations and restrictions above them, and some places had unstable space. Rushing in rashly would be life-threatening.

"So spectacular!"

Fang Chen was immediately captivated by the scene before him.

Elder Yun led Fang Chen and Li Yanshan, merging into the flying formation and heading southwest.

Golden Bull Ridge.

Zhang Xu stood at Zhang Tielin's doorway, waiting anxiously.

"The Trial Path is about to open, why hasn't Brother Lin emerged from seclusion yet?"

Zhang Xu was a bit anxious. The Trial Path was a great opportunity to get rich because there were many Spirit Medicines inside, as well as many Demonic Beasts. Whether it was those Spirit Medicines or the blood, scales, and inner cores of those Demonic Beasts, they were all very valuable. If they were lucky enough, their final results could place them in the top three, and they could become Inner Disciples.

Once such an opportunity was missed, they would be left far behind by other Outer Sect Disciples. This was because most of them had Mixed Spiritual Roots with dual attributes, and their aptitudes were all similar. Whoever had more resources would improve their cultivation faster.

Therefore, to improve their cultivation faster, everyone would try their best to obtain more resources and seize every opportunity to gain them.

If Zhang Tielin missed this trial, his strength would definitely fall far behind others. As Zhang Tielin's lackey, Zhang Xu's fate was tied to Zhang Tielin's; they rose and fell together.

Before Zhang Tielin went into seclusion, the Sect had not yet released the information about the opening of the Trial Path. If he entered a deep cultivation state, he might not even know about this news.

At this moment, Zhang Xu was extremely conflicted. He was hesitating whether he should forcefully break in and wake Zhang Tielin. However, before Zhang Tielin went into seclusion, he had said that he had touched the threshold of the fifth level of Qi Refining. He was afraid that he would disturb Zhang Tielin and cause him to fail his breakthrough.

Just as Zhang Xu was hesitating in his heart.

"Boom!"

A powerful aura erupted from Zhang Tielin's residence.

"Such a strong aura! Brother Lin has broken through!"

Zhang Xu's heart was instantly filled with joy. He immediately shouted towards Zhang Tielin's residence, "Brother Lin, Brother Lin, hurry and open the door, something big has happened!"

A moment later, Zhang Tielin walked out of the house and opened the courtyard gate.

At this moment, Zhang Tielin was full of vigor, a world of difference compared to a few days ago. He looked at Zhang Xu, frowned slightly, and immediately asked, "What major event has happened?"

Zhang Xu immediately replied, "Brother Lin, the Trial Path has opened, did you know?"

"The Trial Path has opened?"

Zhang Tielin couldn't help but be stunned. He had been in seclusion since he met Zhang Xu three days ago and had only just emerged. He had no idea that the Trial Path had opened.

Zhang Xu nodded vigorously and said, "Yes, you can check your identity token to find out!"

Zhang Tielin immediately took out his identity token and scanned it with his Spiritual Sense. A piece of unfamiliar information appeared in his mind. His eyes narrowed slightly, and a look of surprise appeared on his face as he said, "The previous Trial Paths always opened on the day of the Beginning of Winter. There are still three months until the Beginning of Winter this year, and the Trial Path has actually opened?"

Zhang Xu said to Zhang Tielin, "Brother Lin, congratulations on breaking through to the fifth level of Qi Refining. You will definitely have a great harvest in this Trial Path. Let's hurry to Glazed Peak now!"

"Mm!"

Zhang Tielin nodded slightly. Now that his cultivation had broken through to the fifth level of Qi Refining, his strength had greatly increased. If he were to face Li Yanshan again, he was confident he could defeat Li Yanshan with one move. The breakthrough in his cultivation also made Zhang Tielin full of anticipation for this Trial Path.

He didn't rush to summon his flying sword to depart. Instead, he asked Zhang Xu, "Is there any news about Ah Ning?"

Zhang Xu shook his head slightly and said, "No, I'm afraid he's already met a grim fate. He might have been killed by that Fang Chen!"

"Fang Chen?"

Two cold killing intents flashed in Zhang Tielin's eyes. If it were in the past, he definitely wouldn't have believed that Fang Chen had the strength to kill Zhang Qining. However, three days ago, Fang Chen had killed the Bloodthirsty Evil Crow in Spirit Flame Valley effortlessly. He was entirely capable of killing Zhang Qining.

Zhang Xu immediately said to Zhang Tielin, "Brother Lin, let's hurry and set off. We can think of a way to deal with Fang Chen after the trial!"

"Mm!"

Zhang Tielin nodded slightly, then summoned his flying sword and soared into the sky, stepping on it.

Zhang Xu also immediately summoned his flying sword and followed, piloting it.

At this moment, Fang Chen and the others were slowly flying in the sky, following the Outer Sect Disciples of Azure Cloud Peak.

Ahead, Fang Chen saw a black ribbon converging with the flight path of the Azure Cloud Peak disciples.

Fang Chen's eyes narrowed slightly, and he said, "Those are disciples from Green Support Peak!"

Everyone was flying in an orderly fashion in the air.

An incense stick later, a huge barrier appeared before Fang Chen and the others. Those who approached the barrier all landed on the ground and then walked towards the barrier on foot.

Li Yanshan said to Fang Chen, "This is the Sky Lake Barrier. Once we get close to the barrier, we can't fly with our swords. We have to enter the Sky Lake Barrier on foot. Let's go down too!"

"Mm!"

Fang Chen nodded slightly, followed Li Yanshan and Elder Yun to the ground, and then slowly advanced with the main group.

When Fang Chen crossed the Sky Lake Barrier, he immediately felt a dense spiritual energy wash over him. Before him was an open sandy beach, and behind the beach was a vast lake. The lake was as calm as a mirror, reflecting the azure sky. Those who had entered the barrier were gathered in groups of three to five on the sandy beach by the lake, chatting and laughing.

"So many people!"

Fang Chen was also shocked by the scene before him. He had never seen so many people.

Li Yanshan said to Fang Chen with a smile, "This vast lake you see now is Sky Lake. This lake is the entrance to the Trial Path!"

"Mm!"

Fang Chen nodded slightly, following Elder Yun and Li Yanshan through the crowd, heading toward a less crowded area.

"Everyone, look quickly! Isn't that the cripple from Dog Head Ridge?"

"Hahaha, he even brought a dog in!"

"Hahaha, a cripple, a blind man, and an old dog!"

Suddenly, a group of people not far away were laughing wildly at Elder Yun.

Fang Chen's gaze fell upon the embroidery on their chests. He saw a small green sword embroidered on each of them.

"It's people from Green Support Peak!"

Fang Chen's eyes narrowed slightly. He was about to step forward and scold those people, but Elder Yun stopped him with his cane. Elder Yun looked at Fang Chen and said calmly, "Ignore this trash. Didn't you see that even Little Six can't be bothered with them?"

"Woof woof..."

Little Six barked at the disciples from Green Support Peak, then revealed a look of disdain.

"Damn it, a dog dares to look down on us? I'll kill it!"

A thin young man with a horse-like face became instantly angry upon seeing Little Six's expression. He was about to walk over and attack Little Six, but he was stopped by the people around him. They didn't dare to act recklessly; if they did, they could be stripped of their trial qualification at best, or face punishment at worst.

Elder Yun, along with Li Yanshan and Fang Chen, swaggered past these Green Support Peak disciples.

The horse-faced youth was furious and immediately shouted at Elder Yun, "Yun Yi, you cripple, don't let me run into you on the Trial Path, or I'll chop off your other leg!"

Elder Yun ignored the horse-faced youth and led Li Yanshan and Fang Chen to a less crowded spot to wait.

Li Yanshan looked at Fang Chen and said with a smile, "Fang Chen, there's no need to get angry with those people. If you encounter them in the trial space, kill them if you can, don't waste words with them. If you can't kill them, run. After all, there's no Enforcement Hall in the trial space!"

"Mm!"

Fang Chen nodded slightly, then looked around at the people. On the sandy beach by the lake, more and more people were gathering, all having come from different directions.

An hour later, a rumbling sound echoed from the sky. Fang Chen looked up and saw a large bell, over thirty zhang in diameter, breaking through the air. It hovered above Sky Lake. The surface of the bell was inscribed with numerous characters and was covered in cracks, emitting a powerful pressure that filled the entire Sky Lake Barrier.