Linley, Thomas, and Corey entered the rear cabin of the Metal Life and sat down. Through the transparent windows, they watched the outside world as candidates arrived one after another, occasionally accompanied by demons.
The demons who boarded the Metal Life all headed to the front cabin, kept distinctly separate from the candidates. The atmosphere gradually grew tense and oppressive.
"Damn it, my luck is terrible. This assessment mission actually has demons participating too."
"Ugh, we're screwed this time."
Linley noticed that the surrounding candidates wore gloomy expressions and had lost much of their morale. He wasn't surprised. He had already learned about some of the unspoken rules.
If demons were participating, it meant their objectives differed. The mission might involve both an assessment for newcomers and promotion missions for Six-star Demons and Seven-star Demons.
It was the deadliest kind of mission. The aftershocks of battles between experts could kill someone for no apparent reason if they weren't careful.
Linley paid it little mind and silently closed his eyes to cultivate.
He was confident he could protect himself, Thomas, and Corey unless they encountered a Seven-star Demon. But experts of that level weren't stray dogs by the roadside. The chances of encountering one were far too small.
Suddenly, Thomas's voice rang out in Linley's mind through divine sense. "Linley, look up ahead."
Linley opened his eyes and raised his head to look forward.
A familiar figure stood in the corridor of the Metal Life. Her thick black hair, flawless and exquisite features, and elegant, captivating bearing quickly made her the focus of everyone's attention. It was Mariana, the woman who had been drinking in the Demon Castle a few days ago.
Beside her stood a burly Blond Youth nearly two meters tall, along with a black-haired boy and a blond girl whose features resembled each other by sixty to seventy percent. The group appeared close, and they spoke without hiding anything, so Linley heard their conversation as well.
"Aaron, Lisa, since you aren't demons, go to the rear cabin."
"All right, Father."
A middle-aged black-haired man dressed in black leather approached and greeted the Blond Youth warmly. "Hi, Claude. I've heard about what happened to you recently. Barry and Harold didn't come with you?"
Claude shook his head helplessly. "They only have a Sanctuary True Body left alive. They plan to cultivate a second Divine Avatar in peace within the city, then refine a godhead to recover their strength as Four-star Demons."
The middle-aged black-haired man sighed and said with some emotion, "That's good too. Perhaps there will be more opportunities in the future."
Claude and Mariana headed for the front cabin, while the son and daughter went to the rear cabin and happened to sit behind Linley, slightly to his right.
Linley exchanged messages with Thomas and Corey through divine sense.
Thomas said, "An upper-level God who became a god independently—if he dies before fusing with a Mystery, having to refine a godhead to recover his strength is the most regrettable outcome."
Corey agreed. "Exactly. Then there's no difference between him and someone who refined a godhead. All those years of cultivation would have been wasted. If it were me, I'd be unbelievably depressed."
Linley said, "That Claude is a Five-star Demon. It seems this assessment mission is somewhat dangerous. Be careful."
He was merely reminding them.
As for himself, even if he encountered a Six-star Demon, he could still fight!
"Whoosh..."
The Metal Life tore through the sky. Its enormous purplish-black phantom vanished in an instant from above the gates of Red Stone City. A tiny black dot could faintly be seen in the distant sky, but it disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Thomas shifted restlessly, somewhat anxious. "We've already taken off. Why don't we know what the mission is yet?"
This was also his first time participating in an assessment. It was impossible for him not to be nervous.
Linley said calmly, "Just wait. We'll find out sooner or later."
He looked out through the transparent window. The Metal Life flew extremely quickly, stirring up a stream of air...
Only after the sky grew dark did a staff member from the Demon Castle come over from the front cabin.
The red-haired middle-aged man said, "There are six hundred people participating in this Demon assessment... The assessment location is the Red Stone Mountain Range... At the Metal Life's speed, it should take approximately twenty days."
He looked at a cold-faced black-robed youth with short silver hair beside him, smiled, and said, "You explain the mission, Ethan."
The black-robed youth nodded calmly. Looking at the crowd, he said flatly, "The master of Bloodthirsty Castle is a Five-star Demon, and the butler is a Four-star Demon. There are more than a hundred Blood Slaves with the strength of Mid-level Gods and Low-level Gods. Your objective in this assessment is to obtain a Blood Leech found only within the body of a Mid-level God Blood Slave..."
Before he could finish, he was forced to stop. The candidates below had already erupted into an uproar.
"A Five-star Demon and a Four-star Demon!"
"How is this mission so difficult?"
A green-haired youth stood up and demanded, "You aren't expecting us to deal with the master and butler of Bloodthirsty Castle, are you?"
The black-robed youth coldly shouted, "Shut up. I haven't finished speaking."
His gaze swept over the crowd as he warned them, "Some of you may be skilled in similar methods, or perhaps you already have Blood Leeches obtained through various means inside your Space Rings. But let me remind you of something: the Demon Castle has specialists who will inspect whether these Blood Leeches were refined by the master of Bloodthirsty Castle. Don't think you can pass the assessment by trying to fool us with fakes."
At those words, a few people's expressions changed slightly. Clearly, they had been entertaining certain thoughts of taking shortcuts.
The black-robed youth sneered. "This time, accompanying you in the promotion assessment mission will also be some Three-star Demons, Four-star Demons, and squads led by Five-star Demon experts. Of course, experts such as the master and butler of Bloodthirsty Castle aren't for you newcomers to worry about!"
Only then did everyone's expressions ease somewhat. However, they still understood that once a real battle broke out and the situation became chaotic, being caught in the aftermath by accident would be perfectly normal.
Linley was stirred by this and sent a message to Thomas. "Bloodthirsty Castle seems to be the force you mentioned before—the largest power in the Red Stone Mountain Range according to the rumors?"
This was quite a coincidence. The location of the One-star Demon assessment was in the Red Stone Mountain Range, though the Tianlan Tribe was merely a small power on the outskirts. It had risen only recently and had yet to attract much attention.
Thomas replied through divine sense, "That's right. The Blood Crystal Mine there is of the best quality, and only major powers can occupy it."
Twenty days later, the Metal Life arrived at its destination without incident. Naturally, it wasn't outside the gates of Bloodthirsty Castle, but in an open area within a blood-colored forest several miles away.
"What an intense bloody stench."
"This place is so gloomy. I wonder how many corpses are buried underground."
One candidate after another emerged from the passageway of the Metal Life. The moment their feet touched the ground, their expressions changed slightly. They could feel a faint blood aura filling the air, growing stronger the closer they got to the depths of the forest.
The several hundred people present were generally Mid-level Gods. The number of Low-level Gods brave enough to sign up for a Demon assessment could be counted on one hand. Naturally, none of them were ignorant children, and they began guessing at some of the possibilities.
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