The Second Trial: Proof of Courage

The one-month deadline has arrived.

Five people emerged from the deep cellar and stood in the icy snow, looking at each other in bewilderment.

"Where is the headmaster?" someone couldn't help but ask.

Gao Linzhi looked into the distance.

And at this time...

Suddenly, someone clapped their hands in the distance, and the blizzard instantly dissipated.

Everyone looked toward where the clapping was coming from, and there stood the headmaster.

They were utterly astonished; this was simply a godlike ability.

To ordinary people, the power to Wind and Rain Summoning and control celestial phenomena is the power of gods.

The headmaster did not walk towards the group, but instead gave them some time.

The five of them also realized this.

One of the natives spoke up, "Gentlemen, it's fate that we've survived together. Why don't we get to know each other?"

Gao Linzhi looked at the other four people.

Among the three natives, one was thin and two were fat.

They were a little dazed, having just crawled out of the ground, and were standing obediently to the side.

There are two players, one of whom is Gao Linzhi's Substitute Puppet.

The other person was a female player.

This female player possesses a special talent, similar to an animal's ability to hibernate, which does not require the support of Mysterious Energy. Therefore, she can still function even without Mysterious Energy.

Gao Linzhi had already guessed at this woman's talent or ability.

He felt that the other party had a hibernation ability somewhat similar to that of reptiles.

This can be observed from the other person's still somewhat dazed expression and behavior.

However, the fact that they've survived this long means they've won this survival evolution, or rather, survival selection process.

Many people know that women have much greater endurance than men.

This can be seen from the fact that women generally live longer than men.

At this moment, the female player looked at the three natives, nodded, and said, "It is indeed a kind of fate, after all, we have gone through life and death together."

"My name is 'Wanshi Suifeng,' may I ask how you gentlemen are addressed?"

"We are the Wang Family Three Brothers. My Wang Da, and these two are Wang Qiang and Wang Shun."

"Hello." Suifeng then looked at Gao Linzhi, "May I ask your surname?"

"Wuming."

"Okay, I wonder what the next level is?"

"That depends on how the headmaster arranges it."

The five then looked into the distance.

Sure enough, the headmaster appeared before everyone the next moment.

"Very good, now the five of you have successfully passed the first test."

"You have demonstrated your wisdom, morality, principles, and strength."

"But next, you will need to proceed to the second stage."

The four of them immediately felt a chill run down their spines.

The first hurdle is already very difficult.

Is there going to be a second level?

"This test is meant to test your courage."

"Remember, we are going to rebel, we are going to overthrow the imperial court, and we can't do it without courage!" the headmaster said to the crowd.

"No matter how strong you are, if you lack courage, it will all be in vain in the end."

Everyone nodded.

That's very true, but how can I demonstrate my courage?

This hurdle is likely to be very difficult to overcome.

In the previous level, more than 200 people died, leaving only 5 survivors.

This is mainly due to infighting.

"You want to be taught Master Level Skill, which is naturally not something that can be easily obtained."

"But how do we demonstrate this courage?"

"Some people's courage is just reckless bravery; they only dare to engage in private fights in the streets."

"However, when faced with a powerful enemy, or a high and mighty emperor, they became afraid."

"They dared not fight; they thought the emperor was a god, and the court was heaven, and dared not rebel."

"I'd rather be easily executed by the court than run away and resist."

The headmaster sneered as he finished speaking.

It seems she has seen many people like this throughout her Immortality.

That's exactly right.

Gao Linzhi nodded.

"Now we're going to test your courage."

Then the headmaster waved his hand again.

Before the five of them, a colossal, Ice and Snow Giant Anomaly suddenly appeared.

It's a kilometer tall, practically a mountain!

Everyone looked up and saw that the ice and snow giant had the appearance of a human.

Compared to it, the group of people were like ants.

And this strange phenomenon now stood before them.

At this moment, the three natives were immediately terrified and trembled with fear.

Although they knew this was a test.

However, they are even less likely to be unafraid because of the test.

Because the trials are far more arduous than actual work, even more so than death.

Just like the difficulty of the college entrance examination, it is far greater than most things that ordinary people encounter in their lifetime.

This includes going to work, getting married, having children, and raising children.

If you fail the test, you will die in this stage.

Keep in mind that over 200 people died in the first stage.

Failure to pass the test means death.

This is much harder than in reality.

In reality, even if you fail, you can still surrender and have a chance to live.

As expected, "Following the rebels means going hungry twice in three days."

Rebellion is no joke.

The rebels were dangerous from the start.

And they really won't give you benefits easily; you have to risk your life for them.

Therefore, unless the legitimate dynasty forces ordinary people to the point of starvation, no one would be willing to rebel.

Now, looking at this enormous, bizarre creature, three of the locals were so terrified they nearly wet themselves.

They never expected the second challenge to be this difficult!

They actually managed to survive the first hurdle by sheer luck.

The next day, the other party actually brought this thing over as part of their assessment.

At this moment, the headmaster had already disappeared, leaving behind a single sentence before vanishing:

"Exile it, or destroy it."

"It will bear witness to your courage."

At this moment, Wang Qiang said to Wang Da, "Brother, let's run away."

Wang Shun nodded in agreement. "That's right, it's too difficult."

Wang Da frowned, but he didn't seem willing to give up.

Gao Linzhi looked up.

This strange object was indeed enormous.

In nature, large size can exempt a person from most predators.

In this situation, dealing with this monster is obviously not an easy task.

Even Gao Linzhi would have to shake his head after seeing this.

Killing this weirdo will be a bit difficult.

His Anomaly Dungeon Ticket are unlikely to be effective.

Gao Linzhi looked up and repeatedly observed the enormous monster.

At this point, the other party acted as if they were being completely ignored.

That's normal.

In the eyes of this mountain-like monster, people are just like ordinary grass and trees, almost like bacteria on a person's body.

The female player also looked terrified.

She never expected the second challenge to be so difficult!

This is like going from a beginner to hell mode in an instant.

Even on the second level, one is already facing such a massive and unsolvable mystery.

In the first stage, she barely survived by relying on some of her passive skills and talents.

How do we pass the second level?

It's simply insurmountable.

"The only good news is that this giant is ignoring us and hasn't attacked us like it did in the first level," the female player said after a moment's thought.

The other three indigenous people didn't seem to notice this at all.

This giant was as strange as a mountain.

Even without launching an attack, getting them to move a mountain would be an impossible task.

After all, although they have regained their mysterious powers, that little bit of power is simply a drop in the ocean compared to the mountain-like strangeness.

It's completely insignificant.

"This time it's too difficult."

The difficulty lies in the fact that we are not on the same level.

The three indigenous people whispered among themselves.

They didn't want to die.

At this moment, Gao Linzhi suddenly asked, "The three of you, what are your reasons for rebelling and joining the Daoist Academy?"

"That's because the imperial court is tyrannical and seized our family's territory."

"Yes, our family was originally a local Feudal Lords with three islands. But because a kind of longevity-promoting Ganoderma was produced on the islands, the imperial court, under the pretext of offering it to the royal family, used some means to make us three brothers lose our inheritance rights. Our father was also killed by the imperial court in an accident." Wang Da said angrily.

"In the end, the territory was taken over by three members of the royal family."

Gao Linzhi nodded.

The inferiority of feudal dynasties lies in the fact that they not only oppressed the common people, but also the powerful and wealthy, including even the emperor.

Under such a feudal regime, no one could fully enjoy the benefits without bearing any risks.

This is incomparable to modern society.

Modern society does not have such strict restrictions, which ensure the basic safety of people.

From this perspective, the company's system has crossed the line of modern society when faced with the intrusion of games.

Therefore, it was destined to fail and be restructured.

Because people are capable of resistance.

A system that constantly invites resistance is not stable.

Like an athlete who loses their balance, they will eventually fall.

And at this time...

The strange giant finally looked at the group.

However, the other party was too huge, so when it looked at the group, it didn't see anything.

Or perhaps they only saw a few blades of grass and didn't pay any attention.

This is the only good news.

The next moment, this strange giant even lay down directly on the icy ground.

Not long after, a huge storm appeared around it.

That's formed when it's panting.

Just then, the headmaster's words came again.

"Act faster."

"You don't have much time."

"You must kill it or drive it away."

"Otherwise, we'll fail this round."

"You cannot prove your courage unless you defeat it."

Everyone was speechless.

This anomaly is incredibly powerful, comparable to a natural disaster.

The headmaster even wants them to kill or expel the other party—isn't that ridiculous?

How can they fight this monster?

Even with Gao Linzhi's abilities, it would be difficult to do.

Although the strange dungeon scrolls from before are still in the hands of this Substitute Puppet, Gao Linzhi has already secretly tested them.

Game System prompt:

"The anomaly's level is too high; the corresponding instance cannot be opened."

In fact, even if it were usable, Gao Linzhi wouldn't be able to use it.

After all, this thing would directly attract the great interest of the headmaster.

"Killing this monster now is just too, too difficult."

The three natives muttered to themselves.

"Brothers, in my opinion, if we want to deal with this thing, we should find its weakness in order to have any chance of eliminating it," said the Female Player Sui Feng.

So, all five of them began to rack their brains.

What exactly are the weaknesses of this strange creature?

In fact, Gao Linzhi had already figured out Method of Passing.

This method worked for him, but it was useless for the other four.

It's actually very simple.

The headmaster repeatedly emphasized the need to kill and expel the monsters, but also said that this trial was to prove their courage.

In other words, it's not about the result, but about the attitude and the process.

Do you have the courage to point your knife at someone more powerful?

This is indeed very important.

Many people simply didn't have the courage to confront the imperial court; at first, they could manage by acting furtively.

They would immediately defect if they faced direct pressure from the imperial court.

All Gao Linzhi needs to do is prove that he dares to deal with this anomaly.

However, the other four people will really die.

But Gao Linzhi won't die.

Therefore, the method he proposed was difficult for the other four to accept.

Therefore, Gao Linzhi's method naturally could not be proposed by him.

Ideally, the other four people should come up with the idea themselves and do it themselves.

Otherwise, it would appear that Gao Linzhi plotting against them.

At this moment, the three natives frowned as they watched the enormous monster fall into a deep sleep.

Wang Da suddenly had an idea. "We should use the bizarre to counter the bizarre."

"We can't beat it, but we should be able to defeat the monsters that defeat it."

"We will win as long as the new anomaly can destroy him."

"That's right."

"Use the bizarre to subdue the bizarre."

And at this time...

The Second Brother, Wang Qiang, spoke up again, advising, "Big brother, let's forget about it."

Let's give up.

"Yes, brother, we don't want to die here in vain."

"We joined the Daoist Academy to reclaim our territory, but what good will it do if we die?"

"No, although the strange creatures are invincible, and no one has ever been able to defeat them, there are other ways to counter them," Wang Da insisted.

"We can subdue it through sacrifice and seduction, or by using other strange and unusual methods."

"No one can truly defeat them except themselves."

Clearly, their obsession with family territory runs too deep.

This is quite normal.

Having been raised with the identity of a "crown prince," he now has to use the name of a commoner and work as hard as any commoner.

How can this be tolerated?

It's important to know that Wang Da was different from his two brothers; he had lived as the son of the island lord for over twenty years since childhood.

This identity is already deeply ingrained in me.

He would rather die than lose his rightful identity.

Human obsession is so terrifying; it can overcome the fear of death.

At this moment, the female player "Wanshi Suifeng" suddenly said, "Sigh, if only our Canxue powerhouse were here."

"Canxue boss has ways to deal with all sorts of weirdos."

Gao Linzhi found it very interesting upon hearing this.

He himself was already Canxue.

However, his method was to charge in and fight, regardless of whether he died or not.

"How did he do that?" Wang Da pressed.

"I don't know the specifics, but I do know that they have a kind of jade talisman that has already cleaned up many strange things on the island of the big boss."

"That place has become a major commercial hub."

"I see." Wang Da was disappointed again.

He looked at his two brothers.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes.

The two brothers were twins, born after the island had already fallen into ruin.

He raised them single-handedly.