Underground-This Trial Is Actually Taking Place Underground

The air is humid, and it feels rather cold.

Before he even opened his eyes, Cheng Shi got goosebumps from the cool breeze around him.

It was cold, but not from the wind; it was a damp, chilly cold.

When his sense of smell returned, he smelled a strong, rotten stench in the air, like the smell of fallen leaves rotting in a pond.

Under the stimulation of multiple senses, a thought flashed through Cheng Shi's mind:

Rainforest? This game isn't going to be in the wild again, is it?

He quickly opened his eyes as his consciousness returned, and then saw a thick layer of dead branches and leaves piled up at his feet, as well as a half-dead, Rotten Wood forest of trees all around him.

!!

Cheng Shi's pupils contracted sharply, and a surprised guess escaped his lips:

"Underground?"

Unexpectedly, the word "underground" was not uttered by him alone, but by three or four people speaking in unison.

His heart skipped a beat, and he immediately looked around, his sharp gaze sweeping over his five teammates. They seemed relatively calm, but their slightly furrowed brows revealed their surprise and doubt.

It seems that most people didn't expect that a Trials of "Prosperity" would be set underground.

It's important to understand that the underground is different from the Surface. This is the nest of "Sinking" and the stronghold of "Chaos." These two Path of Fate are the absolute rulers of the underground Faith. As for those revered by Surface life, to put it bluntly, they are all evil gods here.

In such places, the will to prosper is almost imperceptible.

To complete a mission to protect "Prosperity" in a place with almost no "Prosperity" Faith is incredibly difficult.

Cheng Shi never expected that this Trials would turn out to be such a big challenge right from the start!

Wow, that's really impressive!

The only good news right now is that my teammates seem confused but not afraid, which means that everyone's score is not low, and it is very likely a high-score game, so there is still room for us to play casually.

Sure enough, as everyone was sizing each other up, a bespectacled man wearing a gray windbreaker spoke up:

"Twisted Night Python... folks, we're in a bad situation."

"The Sighing Forest!" A long-haired female player frowned, kicked at the decaying leaves under her feet, and said with disgust, "The stench of Decay is nauseating."

Cheng Shi glanced at the woman silently, and was almost certain that she was a Believer in "Prosperity," not only because her disgust for "Decay" was openly displayed on her face, but also because of her long hair that reached past her thighs.

It's too long, just like the will of [prosperity], growing unchecked.

Moreover, this female player's appearance is also very eye-catching. She is only wearing a leather bodice on her upper body and a pair of super short leather shorts on her lower body. She is not even wearing shoes. Her hot and primitive outfit makes her look wild at first glance.

At first glance, she seems to belong to the forest.

Unfortunately, this is a forest shrouded in Decay. Although this is Trials for her Lord of Grace, this place is not very friendly to Believer of prosperity.

The Sighing Forest is a forest area shrouded in Decay located in the Underground World. It is arguably the most extensive forest on the entire Isle of Hope, both underground and on the Surface.

It is called the Sighing Forest because a mist called the "Sighing Tide" perpetually lingers in this forest. This mist is filled with the power of "Decay," and any life swallowed by the mist will embrace "Decay" after completely losing its way, becoming part of this decaying forest.

The Twisted Night Python is one of the creatures that has been modified by "Decay".

When the not-so-hot sun rises underground, it transforms into the crooked, Rotten Wood before the player's eyes, indistinguishable from real trees; but as night falls, the Rotten Wood gradually comes to life, transforming into rotting giant pythons under the moonlight, preying on others, and shedding its snakeskin before the next sunrise, returning to Rotten Wood.

The snakeskins they shed were made from the leaves that people were treading on.

These decaying leaves will become nutrients for the Decay, transforming more lives that have strayed into them.

This is the ecology of Decay; this is the Sighing Forest.

"The Dark Sun has just passed its zenith, and there are still about 5 hours until nightfall. I think that's enough time for us to find clues about Him."

"You can see the Dark Sun?" The man in the windbreaker and glasses who spoke first looked delighted and turned to the tall, thin man in the feather cloak who had just spoken.

The feathered man nodded, then shook his head and said:

"Looks like our teammates are still a bit lacking, don't you think, Baldy?"

???

What is it?

Baldness?

Cheng Shi followed the feathered man's gaze to the female player with knee-length hair and couldn't help but want to laugh.

You call this baldness?

Dude, your eyesight is probably...

Wait! Something's not right!

Cheng Shi's smile froze halfway down his face, his pupils contracted sharply for a moment, and he looked back at the woman with the super long hair.

The Believer of [Prosperity]... are known as bald... there seems to be a "Baldy Uses Pantene" on the leaderboard... information shared by players in the Mage channel also says that the Chosen of God of [Prosperity] has not yet returned to his rightful place...

Ah?

She couldn't be!!??

The moment this terrifying thought crossed his mind, the "bald man" spat out a disgusted remark:

"You dare call me bald?"

"You stinky bird, watch your feathers, or I'll find a chance to pluck them all bald."

As she spoke, she casually reached out and effortlessly pulled out a twisted python. Then, right in front of everyone, she used her ruthless iron hand to pluck the bent trunk from top to bottom, forcibly creating a long, solid wooden spear on the spot!

Then she planted the wooden spear among the decaying leaves, rested her arms on the butt of the spear, and casually tilted her head and smiled at her teammates:

"Don't panic, it's a personal grudge and has nothing to do with you."

Let me introduce Hong Lin, Druid, aged 2567.

Druid, the warrior of [Prosperity].

A warrior class that can transform its form across multiple species, its output methods are mostly fierce, it can withstand attacks and deal damage, making it an all-rounder.

The job is great, the score is high enough, and the thighs are white and strong... but Cheng Shi... wants to run away.

"..."

2567!

Players with this score shouldn't be matched with you.

Who is controlling this garbage matching system?

Of the dozen or so Chosen of God, only a few were left who didn't make it to the next round, and yet we still managed to run into one of them in this game!

No, it might not be just one. Someone who has a personal grudge against the Chosen of God couldn't possibly be an ordinary person. So, this guy covered in bird feathers...

Cheng Shi quickly turned to look at the feathered man, only to see him smiling with narrowed eyes, showing no annoyance whatsoever:

"I'm really looking forward to it. I hope you'll put in a bit more force when you do it."

"..."

No, buddy, are you also a "Filth and Decay" person?

Cheng Shi was stunned. He felt like he had encountered something unclean again, but the guy's next introduction made him think that it would be better to have a [Filth and Decay] teammate.

"Zhen, you can call me Zhen, the Zhen that means to drink poison to quench thirst."

The Rot Singer, 2538.

Rot Singer, Singer of Decay.

Unbelievable! Not only did I encounter a Chosen of God in one Trials, but I also ran into a high-scoring [Decay] Believer!

This is Trials of prosperity!

Putting aside their personal grudges, given their opposing Faith, can this guy, Feathered Brother, really make this Trials proceed smoothly?

For these people, losing points is probably easier than drinking water.

At this moment Cheng Shi's brows were furrowed more deeply than a twisted rope. He sighed inwardly and silently looked at the next person.

"Bald? Baldy Uses Pantene? You're the [Prosperity] Chosen of God?" The man in the windbreaker and glasses looked at Hong Lin in astonishment, then at Zhen with surprise, "You're that guy with the ID Zhen Du, who used to be number four on the [Decay] list?"

Hong Lin didn't seem proud of her status as the Chosen of God; she pursed her lips as if to acknowledge it, while the Feathered Brother also nodded with a squinted smile.

"Oh no, this game is going to be tough."

"You know quite a lot. What's your name?"

"Zuo Qiu, [exists]..." The man in the windbreaker and glasses pushed up his glasses, his expression somewhat complicated. "Forget it, I can't hide it from the big shot. I am Historian of the History School, Ladder 2343."

The first statement is false, the second statement is true.

His name wasn't Zuo Qiu, but he was indeed a Historian.

"..."

That's impressive!

Cheng Shi's face was almost frozen, and his whole body was numb.

I just got completely ripped off by one Historian, and now another one's popping up?

I got another one after I regained my Faith in [Deception]!

So, there are now two people who like watching Clown performances?

If you keep playing like this, don't blame me for bringing up that "XXXXXX" phrase again!