In the final year of the Blood Trial, the Eastern Domain, Western Domain, Southern Domain, and Northern Domain would rapidly crumble from the outside inward under the pressure of the World Projection controlled by the Realm Lord.
At the same time, the Central Domain would open directly.
The Core Land was the innermost hundred or so kilometers of the Central Domain, which spanned more than a thousand kilometers.
Once the four regions had completely crumbled under the pressure of the World Projection, that pressure would spread further into the Central Domain, stopping only at the edge of the Core Land.
The surviving trial participants and the many ferocious beasts first had to escape into the Core Land during this window of time.
Needless to say, those who failed to make it would meet their end.
But entering the Core Land didn't mean they could rest easy.
From above, the entire Core Land had only a few kilometers of flat ground at its center. A massive Ancient Tree stood there, its trunk over a hundred meters thick and its height reaching several thousand meters.
The "prize" in this Trial Ground was hanging from one of the Ancient Tree's branches by a specially made rope.
Aside from the flat ground, the rest of the Core Land was covered in Stone Forest Mountain Paths, formed by countless massive, hard boulders crisscrossing one another.
Under normal circumstances, the trial participants would have to find a path through the jagged mountain clefts to reach the flat ground.
The pressure from the World Projection was so great that even Li Long couldn't fly through the air.
But the trial participants on the Nine Spirits Society's side never expected Leo to transform into an Azure giant and fly straight toward the "prize" hanging in midair, despite the immense pressure.
"Master really is something else. The prize is right in front of us. We could team up, take it, then wait for the year to end and complete the mission without a hitch! Instead, he has to make things so complicated. It feels like he's making monkeys out of us."
Leo transformed into an Azure giant more than two hundred meters tall. Beating his purple wings, he flew up to the Elf woman. Though he felt rather annoyed, he could only follow orders.
An Azure Wind Pillar flickered around him, threaded with countless arcs of lightning. His Wind and Thunder Domains joined together to shield him from the pressure of the world.
Of course, that was all he could manage for now.
The might of a Realm Lord's World Projection was no joke. Even though the Realm Lord high above wasn't exerting his full strength, since this was merely a trial, it was still enough to make these youngsters—none of them even at Cosmic Level—suffer.
"A Domain? How is that possible? Once members of the Thunder Wing Giant Clan comprehend the Thunder Domain, their skin is black at Sky Grade, bronze at Nirvana, silver at Domain Lord, and finally turns gold when they reach Realm Lord."
"But he clearly has a Domain. Why is his skin still Azure, like someone at Earth Grade?"
Many were shocked by Leo's actions, and even more were confused.
"He really does have a Domain. I never expected it to be the Wind Domain! Impressive. Just this alone means the current Leo has already exceeded my expectations!"
Seeing the faint pillar of wind around the Azure giant, Li Long's lips twisted bitterly.
He had done his best to improve, convinced his comprehension was peerless and no one could match him. Yet against someone else's innate advantage, his hard work and talent were utterly insignificant.
"So that's how it is! The Thunder Wing Giant Clan is famous for its Innate Secret Art, 'Thunder Domain,' so we've always taken it for granted that they'd comprehend the Thunder Domain. But they're also favored by the Wind Source Law, so it makes sense that they could comprehend the Wind Domain, too."
"What's the difference between the two Domains?" another trial participant asked.
"Only the energy attribute differs. But a Domain is a prerequisite for comprehending its corresponding Source Law. For example, if you don't even have the Wind Domain, it means you can't even control wind energy at the most basic level. How could you possibly comprehend the Wind Source Law?"
"Even if the Thunder Wing Giant Clan does nothing, they'll naturally gain the Thunder Domain when they reach Nirvana."
"So if Leo keeps comprehending the laws, he might be able to comprehend both the Wind and Thunder Source Laws. I don't need to tell you how strong he'd be then, do I?"
Hearing this explanation, the trial participants finally understood how terrifying Leo could be.
A Domain was the first step toward comprehending its corresponding Source Law—specifically, a lower law. Most Thunder Wing Giants in the past had relied on the Thunder Domain alone to comprehend the Thunder Source Law, but a few had possessed both Domains.
Those Thunder Wing Giants had greater potential, far surpassing the former.
"So Leo is stronger than Lei Ao?"
"Lei Ao is widely recognized as the greatest genius of the younger generation in the Thunder Wing Giant Clan. He comprehended the Thunder Domain at an early age, and they say he's even touched the very surface of the Thunder Source Law. He's so strong that he's invincible in the Blood Sun Tribe!"
A trial participant cried out in surprise.
In the entire Blood Sun Tribe, they could find a hundred or so Star Grade fighters with Domains.
But as for anyone who had comprehended a law while still at Star Grade, apart from Lei Ao of the Thunder Wing Giant Clan, no one had ever heard of anyone else managing it.
"Don't get ahead of yourself. Leo's talent only represents his potential. Very few can actually comprehend two Source Laws at once. It's just too difficult."
"Even comprehending a single Source Law is incredibly difficult. Quite a number of Realm Lords haven't even touched the surface of a law, let alone Leo."
"The hardest part is going from Realm Lord to Immortal. Just look at the Blood Sun Tribe: over hundreds of thousands of eras, only Blood Sun has successfully advanced to Immortal. That tells you how hard it is. If Leo really tries to have it both ways and comprehend both the Wind and Thunder Source Laws, he'll only be asking for trouble!"
Someone scoffed in disdain.
That was true!
Not a single new Immortal had appeared in hundreds of thousands of eras, and that was only counting the time since the Blood Sun Tribe was founded.
If the Blood Sun Tribe lasted a million eras, or even ten million, without another Immortal being born, that would be entirely possible.
"Don't overthink it. It won't do us any good! Few of us trial participants will probably ever become Realm Lords. Worrying about things that have nothing to do with us will only bring trouble."
"What we need to do now is kill as many trial participants from other factions as we can, then leave the Trial Ground safe and sound and enjoy ourselves!"
At that, everyone's eyes lit up.
They had already passed eighty of the eighty-one trials. If they could survive this final one by sheer luck, then they'd truly be free to enjoy life.
As for Realm Lords, Immortals, and Law Comprehension, they didn't need to concern themselves with any of that. The lives of those at the bottom and the lives of Realm Lords and Immortals belonged to entirely different worlds.
"Yeah, this feels pretty good, too!"
After hearing the other trial participants talk, Wu Sheng felt his Mindset had changed a little more.
In the past, he had placed too much importance on becoming stronger. But strength was only a means to an end.
If he kept growing stronger without knowing what he wanted, sooner or later he'd let power blind him to his original purpose.
Cultivating the mind was about cultivating one's state of mind! Without the support of a strong Mindset, even the strongest will was like a rootless duckweed: it came quickly and vanished just as quickly.
"What are you going to do?"
In midair, the bound Elf woman looked at Leo, her beautiful face full of wariness. She asked him in the common tongue of the Human Territory.
"I hear you're a human genius, too. You comprehended the Wood Source Law while still at Sky Grade. The major factions paid dearly to get their hands on you!"
Leo laughed in the Prison Clan's common tongue. The two of them weren't even speaking the same language.
"I can't understand you. Can't you speak like a person?"
The Elf woman watched the Azure giant rattle on in front of her. She hadn't understood a single word, and thin green lines appeared on her fair brow.
"I know you're praising me, too. The Thunder Wing Giant Clan's innate advantages are definitely beyond anything a human body can match. But for now, I'll have to borrow your body."
As he spoke, Leo extended his ten-meter-wide right hand and slowly reached for the Elf woman.