Trial Killing Field (Part 1)

Stepping into the valley, the scenery before his eyes shifted in a whirlwind of change.

Ning Ye saw that he was standing on an ancient battlefield, littered with severed limbs and piles of bones.

Yellow sand filled the sky, and as the wind blew, it carried a desolate and murderous intent.

Countless Immortal Seekers stood there, their eyes filled with bewilderment, clearly unaware of what they were about to face.

It wasn't until the final person, Ning Ye, entered the valley that, accompanied by the crisp chime of a cloud bell, the crowd watched in horror as the dead corpses on the ground began to sway and stand up.

They held broken steel blades and wore rusted armor, their hollow eyes flickering with a chilling red light as they began to shamble toward them.

Before anyone could react, a skeleton raised its battle blade high and brought it down upon the Immortal Seeker standing at the very front.

The Immortal Seeker was terrified, thinking he was about to die, but to his surprise, the blade passed right through him, and he remained completely unharmed.

He stared at the skeleton in astonishment, only to see the Undead Soldier pass through his body and continue its charge, unable to injure anyone.

"It's just an illusion," the Immortal Seeker rejoiced.

Just as he let out a sigh of relief, several more skeletons rushed over, and the Immortal Seeker didn't even bother to dodge.

The next moment.

"Ah!"

A shrill, painful scream and a spray of blood sent terror through everyone's hearts.

The voice of Xifengzi echoed over the valley floor: "We have set up a grand formation here, transforming this place into an Undead Battlefield. Among the Undead Soldiers, nine are illusions and one is real. Fight hard; kill those true Undead Soldiers, or be killed by them. Those who perform the best will be qualified to become inner disciples."

As Xifengzi's voice faded, a massive wave of Undead Soldiers charged forward in full force, their momentum surging and kicking up clouds of dust. Even though most were illusions, they were enough to make the crowd tremble with fear, let alone the fact that some were truly real.

Blood light rose, smoke billowed, men shrieked, and ghosts wailed.

The trial battlefield descended into instant chaos.

Those who came to seek immortality were mere mortals with no strength to speak of. Even a single Undead Soldier was powerful enough to drive them to despair. Facing this tidal wave of an assault, their fighting spirit vanished completely. They had no courage to fight and instantly crumbled, scattering like birds and beasts. Some were even trampled to death by the crowd, dying not at the hands of the undead, but under the feet of the masses.

Ning Ye was perhaps the calmest person amidst this tragic scene.

He had been the last to enter the valley, and once he was in, the entrance sealed shut, revealing a cliff face behind him.

He pressed himself against the rock wall, his gaze coolly searching his surroundings.

Xifengzi hadn't mentioned it, but he knew the truth.

On the surface, this Undead Battlefield was meant for all Immortal Seekers to fight the Undead Soldiers, but in reality, the Black and White Divine Palace had made other arrangements.

At this moment, he walked slowly along the wall, moving bit by bit, unaffected by the chaotic tide of people. Using the cover of the crowd ahead, he shifted his position step by step.

A moment later, Ning Ye suddenly sensed something.

He stopped and looked back.

He saw that faint writing had appeared on the cliff wall behind him.

Indeed!

There was magic!

As long as Ning Ye reached out and pressed his hand against it, the magic recorded there would fly into his sea of consciousness, granting him temporary mastery of the spell. However, Ning Ye did not do so; he merely glanced at it and continued on his way.

The Black and White Divine Palace had secretly placed a large number of spells throughout the Undead Battlefield.

Although the Immortal Seekers lacked cultivation and could not cast spells even if they had them, the Black and White Divine Palace had simultaneously set up a grand formation underground to provide spiritual power, allowing those who obtained the spells to cast them temporarily despite their lack of cultivation.

Only in this way could they stand a chance against the Undead Soldiers.

To seek immortality and the Way, one required physical constitution, aptitude, temperament, and comprehension—all were indispensable.

Discovering the spells was a test of temperament, requiring the Immortal Seekers to maintain a degree of insight even while in a state of fear and chaos. Those spells all had omens; one only needed to pay a little attention to perceive them.

Comprehension required them to master the spells quickly within a short period.

As for the effectiveness of the casting, that tested their physical constitution and aptitude.

It could be said that the Undead Battlefield trial demanded all four qualities of an immortal cultivator. It seemed simple on the surface, but it held deep meaning. The only problem was perhaps that it was a bit too bloody and cruel.

On the Undead Battlefield, slaughter was everywhere.

The Undead Soldiers were like a herd of stampeding bulls, charging and driving the crowd everywhere. Their coarse, blunt, and rusted blades raised fresh, hot blood. The coldness of the weapons chilled the people's courage, and the sharpness of the blades struck fear into their hearts, leading to widespread defeat.

If it weren't for the fact that the number of true Undead Soldiers was extremely small and their movements sluggish, they would likely have slaughtered all one hundred thousand people in half a day.

Yet, only in such an extreme environment could true warriors be found.

Ning Ye saw a burly, robust man who had found a battle blade from somewhere. He hadn't found a spell, but relying solely on the broken blade in his hand, he was locked in a fierce battle with a real Undead Soldier.

Then, he saw a woman in blue who had been lucky enough to find a spell immediately. She seemed to have good aptitude, and in a very short time, she grasped the essence of its operation and successfully utilized it. A trickling stream of water flowed from her fingertips, binding an Undead Soldier. As she tightened her hold, the Undead Soldier was finally strangled to death by her.

Ning Ye continued to search for his own target along the way.

The formation on the Undead Battlefield only supported the use of one type of spell, so Ning Ye had to make a choice.

Fortunately, the Kunlun Mirror had given him a hint; although it couldn't pinpoint the exact location, it was not far off.

Just then, Ning Ye saw a flash of light not far away, and the characters flickering upon it made Ning Ye's heart tremble.

Killing Heart Blade!

It was exactly the Killing Heart Blade he had been searching for!

Ning Ye rushed over in a hurry.

Just then, not far from the cliff wall, a green-faced man also spotted the characters faintly appearing on the rock face.

Perhaps someone had cast a spell to alert him earlier; realizing what was happening, the green-faced man let out a tiger-like roar and lunged toward the Killing Heart Blade.

Not good, he's closer.

Knowing he wouldn't make it in time to compete, Ning Ye grew anxious, grabbed a nearby stone, and hurled it violently at the green-faced man.

Caught off guard, the green-faced man was struck in the head by the stone. His vision blurred and his steps faltered, allowing Ning Ye to charge over, slam his shoulder into him, and send him flying. At the same time, Ning Ye lunged toward the cliff wall and pressed his hand against it, focusing his mind. The next moment, a point of golden light flew into his sea of consciousness.

Success!

Ning Ye was overjoyed.

The Killing Heart Blade Art was his.

Seeing this, the green-faced man flew into a rage: "Bastard!"

He threw a punch at Ning Ye.

Ning Ye didn't even retaliate; instead, he suddenly glared, his eyes erupting with killing intent. When the green-faced man looked into his eyes, he felt as if he were facing a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Terrified, he let out a scream and collapsed limply to the ground.

Ignoring him, Ning Ye stood where he was, calming his mind to digest the Killing Heart Blade Art.

Even though the technique was in his grasp, it still required contemplation and digestion.

The techniques placed by the Black and White Divine Palace were the most basic ones, yet even so, they required sufficient comprehension from the practitioners; otherwise, even with the technique, it would be difficult to unleash its power.

Ning Ye possessed high innate comprehension, and his three years of cultivation experience were not for nothing, so after running the blade art through his mind just once, he understood its essence.

The Killing Heart Blade Art's core was in the killing.

With killing intent in the heart, the blade's momentum forms of its own accord!

The next moment, Ning Ye charged out into the crowd. Three Undead Soldiers rushed toward him, but Ning Ye ignored them entirely and passed straight through.

All three were mere phantoms.

Behind him, another Undead Soldier raised its blade. Ning Ye stopped abruptly just as the Undead Soldier's blade fell, cleaving directly into the skull of an unlucky Immortal Seeker. The blade edge embedded itself into the Immortal Seeker's cranium, drawing out a cry of agony.

Ning Ye flew up and kicked the Undead Soldier back, though the blade remained stuck in the Immortal Seeker's head.

Ning Ye struck the hilt of the blade from bottom to top, easily retrieving it. Blood sprayed wildly from the Immortal Seeker's forehead, but Ning Ye didn't even glance at him. He spun the blade, circulated the magic power within his body, and drew upon the power of the grand formation.

Killing Heart Blade!

Puff!

With a single slash, the Undead Soldier was cut in two, scattering into a pile of bones on the ground.