Bronze Man Formation

New week, seeking clicks and recommendations~~~

Among the five people beside him, four were at the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, even at the peak of the Ninth Layer—it was no surprise they could hold out until the end!

But Zhou Heng?

He was merely at the late Seventh Layer of Body Refining. By tapping into his potential, he could indeed reach the finish within three minutes of arriving, but to follow without missing a single step? That was far too hard to believe.

What's more, this kid didn't even seem to have reached his limit!

Tsk, how could there be such a freak, with such terrifying reserves of True Essence Power?

Yu Dongcheng was thinking too narrowly. Zhou Heng didn't have that deep a reserve of True Essence Power; rather, the Flying Cloud Steps allowed him to borrow the power of heaven and earth, conserving a great deal of True Essence Power!

If not for the limitations of his physical body, he could sprint at full speed for another hour without any issue.

The Twelfth Layer of Body Refining truly was a step-by-step ascent, with completely different levels of physical enhancement! Zhou Heng glanced at Shen Xinqi and the other three. Though their breathing was somewhat erratic, none of them were as exhausted as he was.

No help for it—these four were all at the peak of the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, two layers more of tempering than Zhou Heng, making their physical strength worlds apart.

"What's your name?" Yu Dongcheng suddenly asked Zhou Heng.

Seeing that this examiner singled out Zhou Heng to ask his name, Shen Xinqi and the other three all showed a hint of resentment, but none of them dared to offend the examiner now, so they had to swallow their displeasure.

"This Humble One is Zhou Heng!" Zhou Heng replied respectfully but with confidence.

"Mm!" Yu Dongcheng nodded, committing the young man's face to memory. As he spoke, people began arriving one after another, their cheeks flushed and their breathing as rough as bellows.

Thud, thud, thud—as soon as these people reached the finish line, they collapsed to the ground, but knowing that falling asleep directly after expending so much energy was harmful, they struggled back up and sat down to circulate their techniques and recover their True Essence Power.

—By the final stretch, they had long since exhausted their True Essence Power and were running purely on physical strength, practically risking their lives.

The three minutes passed quickly, and Yu Dongcheng said without hesitation, "Let's go!"

He turned around, facing a massive mountain gate, bowed respectfully, and then led the youths up the stone steps. As for those who arrived afterward, they were blocked by an invisible force, left to gaze helplessly from afar.

Many, thinking of how they had been sent off gloriously by their families only to fail the very first test, burst into loud sobs. It seemed contagious, and soon the mountain gate was filled with weeping.

These people had missed their chance. The next time the Nine Spirits Sect opened its gates would be another five years, and they would already be past twenty, unable to participate again. Failing to join the Three Great Sects meant they would never have the opportunity to walk the Ascension Path—how could that not be a devastating blow?

A mysterious power at the mountain gate blocked entry but not sound. Listening to the cries behind them, the remaining youths felt a pang of bitterness in their hearts, for this was only the first test—who could guarantee they wouldn't be eliminated next?

The mountain was vast. Rows of houses lined the path from the foot upward, growing larger and more elegant the higher one went. Clearly, the higher one's status, the higher one's dwelling.

"Are these the people taking the exam this year?"

"They don't look like much!"

"The highest cultivation is only the Ninth Layer of Body Refining—not a single one can enter the Inner Sect directly!"

As they passed by, youths emerged from the houses on either side, ranging from fourteen or fifteen to under twenty, with cultivation from the Fifth to the Ninth Layer of Body Refining.

So many at the Ninth Layer of Body Refining!

Zhou Heng was slightly startled. Shen Xinqi and the other three were geniuses who had stood out from over a hundred towns under Fengyu City's jurisdiction, truly one in ten thousand. Yet here at the Nine Spirits Sect, they seemed to be a dime a dozen?

Hearing the obvious disdain in these youths' words, the group showed anger. In their own towns, they were absolute geniuses, never treated with such contempt!

Yu Dongcheng, however, paid them no mind. He moved swiftly and soon reached the mountainside, leading the group into a grand hall.

"Old Yu, are these the ones who passed the test?" Another middle-aged man approached, tall and lean, with a genial smile that made him seem easygoing. "One, two, three, four, five, six... only forty-seven in total. Tsk, the newcomers get worse every year!"

Twelfth Layer of Body Refining!

Zhou Heng was shocked. As expected of a sect ruling over a region, the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining was a peak-level expert in Raw Stone Town—the Zhou Family could only field one! But at the Nine Spirits Sect, the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining seemed to be used only for handling miscellaneous tasks, hardly worth anything!

The others took it better than Zhou Heng. They had heard of the Nine Spirits Sect's reputation since childhood and knew how terrifying its foundations were, which was why they had worked so hard to get in!

Yu Dongcheng nodded and turned to the youths, saying, "This is the examiner in charge of your second test, Zhu Xun. Those who pass the second test will follow Zhu Xun to find the third examiner. Those who fail... come find me outside!"

With that, he strode forward, exited the hall, and stood like a spear outside.

"Alright, follow me!" Zhu Xun clapped his hands, leading the group deeper into the hall. After passing through a training ground, they arrived before a long corridor and stopped.

The corridor was wide, about three meters across, and roughly a hundred meters long, completely empty.

"This is your second test. Simple—walk fifty meters to pass. For every ten meters beyond that, you'll earn one point. The three with the highest total points will receive certain rewards!" Zhu Xun said flatly.

No one naively believed this corridor would be easy to cross. There were bound to be countless traps!

"You have half an hour to rest!" Zhu Xun was considerate enough not to start the second test immediately, giving everyone ample time to recover. "I'll demonstrate where the difficulty of this corridor lies."

The group had only recovered some of their True Essence Power. Hearing this, they quickly sat down to continue their recovery, while Zhu Xun strode into the corridor.

Boom!

The moment he stepped in, the walls on both sides suddenly split open, revealing a pair of Bronze Men. Then, boom, boom, boom, pair after pair of Bronze Men sprang out from the walls. Whoosh, whoosh—the first two Bronze Men swung their arms at Zhu Xun, the wind howling, their strength at least at the Seventh Layer of Body Refining!

Zhu Xun flipped his hands, casually knocking the two Bronze Men aside. As a master of the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining, repelling two Bronze Men at the Seventh Layer was effortless.

Boom, boom, boom!

He advanced, engaging the Bronze Men on both sides as he went. Though there were many, none could slow his pace. However, when Zhu Xun reached the fifty-meter mark, the Bronze Men there were noticeably stronger!

Eighth Layer of Body Refining!

Further on, Ninth Layer, Tenth Layer, Eleventh Layer, Twelfth Layer!

In the final twenty meters, even Zhu Xun couldn't remain composed. Though he forced his way through, he was utterly disheveled, sweat streaming down his forehead.

How terrifying!

Fortunately, just making it past the first fifty meters was enough to pass!

The youths were shocked, but also couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief.

Zhu Xun said nothing more. He pressed a mechanism on the wall, and all the bronze men retracted. He walked back and waited in silence. Soon, the half hour was up, and the youths rose one after another. After such a long rest, everyone had more or less returned to their peak state.

"Begin!" Zhu Xun wasted no words. He pointed at someone at random and reactivated the mechanism. "You, first!"

Since everyone had recovered their condition, the order of who went first or last didn't matter much. That person didn't dare defy Zhu Xun or protest why he had to be first. He quickly stood up and cautiously entered the corridor.

Ten meters, twenty meters, thirty meters. The man parried the bronze men's attacks while charging forward with all his might. But there were simply too many bronze men—they blocked him front and back, packing him in tight. Boom, boom, boom. He was struck repeatedly. Even a physique at the Seventh Layer of Body Refining couldn't withstand such battering, and blood sprayed from his mouth.

Slap. He collapsed on the ground at around forty meters.

Zhu Xun immediately slapped the wall, and all the bronze men stopped moving, retracting back into the walls.

"Failed!" he said coldly. He walked over, lifted the man like trash, and tossed him aside. Then he pointed at another person. "You, second!"

The crowd couldn't help glancing at the failure. The man had been beaten quite badly, but fortunately, no bones were broken—only superficial injuries, easy to heal.

Only then did they relax. If failing the trial meant paying with injury, disability, or even life, they would have to reconsider whether to continue.

Zhu Xun reactivated the mechanism and began testing the second person.

Both were at the Seventh Layer of Body Refining, but there was a considerable gap in strength. The second man was much more formidable—he successfully broke through fifty meters. But he didn't push his luck; he stopped immediately and asked to be let out.

"Pass!"

"Pass!"

"Fail!"

Time passed slowly. More and more people entered the mechanism corridor, facing the bronze men's trial. The pass rate was less than fifty percent, and only two people managed to earn points—and just one point each!

Zhu Xun swept his gaze over the final five. Four of them were at the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, the strongest among this batch of examinees. As for the last one... late Seventh Layer of Body Refining. He didn't know why Yu Dongcheng had specifically told him to pay extra attention.

He thought for a moment, then pointed at Shi Qingfeng. "Next, you!"

Shi Qingfeng was stunned, then a shadow of displeasure crossed his face. Why him? With his strength, he should have been the last to take the stage! He didn't dare vent his anger at Zhu Xun, so he just darkened his face and entered the corridor, silently resolving to go all out and show everyone just how terrifying his strength really was.

"Begin!"

Shi Qingfeng strode forward. Boom, boom, boom. Bronze men leaped out one after another, but he easily smashed them apart. He quickly crossed the minimum requirement of fifty meters—for someone at the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, this was naturally effortless.

"Haha, I'll definitely take first place!" He laughed loudly and began charging into the bronze man formation of the final fifty meters.