Deep in the rarely visited Black Demon Forest.
On a vast, imposing mountainside, a perilous confrontation was about to erupt.
"Run, then, Mu Chen, Luo Li! Why have you stopped running?!"
The speaker was a long-haired youth dressed in black.
Qiu Beihai's usually impassive face was twisted with fury and viciousness.
He was Ji Xuan's right-hand man, and even his most capable assistant. He had joined forces with Yang Hong and led men to hunt down Mu Chen and Luo Li many times, only to be brutally beaten and suffer defeat after defeat.
Luo Li had even sliced off three of his fingers with the Luo God Sword, and they couldn't be reattached.
The agonizing pain, so intense it was unbearable, was one thing.
But he was a prodigy with the sword.
That meant he would have to abandon the dream he had pursued his entire life.
Ever since Qiu Beihai lost three fingers, his temperament had grown increasingly extreme. Like a mad dog, he led men everywhere in search of Mu Chen and Luo Li. They had surrounded them again and again, but never caught them.
Today, he had finally succeeded. How could he not be delighted?
Behind Qiu Beihai stood a vast crowd, every one of them giving off a powerful aura.
Ji Xuan, Yang Hong, Shi Jingtian, the Shi Brothers, three mysterious Kings, more than twenty Quasi-Kings, and over a hundred Level 6 and Level 7 Spirit Bodies. Even the weakest among them had a Level 5 Spirit Body.
Some were Ji Xuan's original followers; some, like Shi Hao, had old grudges against Mu Chen; and others were bloodthirsty hounds who had smelled blood and come running. Together, they had formed a hunting alliance.
Yet their once-proud force of nearly three hundred, a lavish lineup capable of sweeping across most of the Spirit Road, had suffered heavy losses in battle after battle. Now, only around a hundred and eighty remained.
Even three or four Level 8 Kings had fallen in battle.
Ji Xuan was surrounded by several Kings in the middle of the crowd, the most dazzling presence among them.
His gaze lingered on the silver-haired girl in a long black dress—the peerless beauty who had always stayed by Mu Chen's side, standing there demurely without a word.
Even now, the silver-haired girl hadn't so much as looked up at him.
Ji Xuan was inexplicably furious.
He felt deeply uncomfortable. An emotion called jealousy slowly, steadily filled his heart, like a fish bone lodged in his throat that he couldn't swallow or spit out.
Luo Li, believe me. After today, you'll remember me forever!
Ji Xuan stepped forward and patted Qiu Beihai on the shoulder, signaling him to stand down.
"Mu Chen, now that things have come to this, what do you have to say?"
The prodigy of the Ji Clan, dressed in a white robe, forced himself not to look at the black-dressed girl standing with a sword in her arms. Instead, he stared intently at Mu Chen.
The gloom that had clouded his face for days gave way to a trace of satisfaction.
"The audience is here. The grand show is about to begin~"
The Hundred Spirits Youth ignored Ji Xuan's smug expression and instead gazed into the distant horizon, as if his sight pierced mountain after mountain and endless space. His eyes were deep and unfathomable.
"Hmph. Playing the fool and spouting nonsense."
"Mu Chen, you've certainly cooked up quite the scheme."
"Did you think I wouldn't know that this mountain is the Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast's territory?"
"You two deliberately led us in circles through the Black Demon Forest for half a day, then brought us here. You're obviously trying to use us to kill the beast."
"That's all old tricks I've already played myself!"
Ji Xuan snorted and laughed with confidence.
The Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast was a ruler among high-grade spirit beasts, ferocious to an extreme degree.
An adult could fight a late-stage Divine Soul Realm martial artist to a standstill. Its battle prowess was terrifying.
Back then, Luo Li, a King of the Spirit Road, had ventured deep into the Black Demon Forest to train and accidentally killed a Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast cub. The adult beast had hunted her down, leaving her gravely wounded.
That was how she caught the attention of the notorious Five Tigers of the Zhao Family and set off a whole chain of trouble.
Ji Xuan, who prided himself on leaving nothing to chance, had deliberately exposed Mu Chen's "scheme" in front of everyone. He wanted to seize the initiative, shake Mu Chen's resolve, and make him panic and lose his footing.
After all, once a trick like using another party to kill your enemy was seen through, it held no mystery at all.
Seeing Mu Chen make such a fool of himself, Ji Xuan sneered inwardly.
Though he seemed relaxed, his body had quietly tensed. He missed not the slightest expression or movement from Mu Chen's face or body.
All the while, he remained on guard, ready to strike at any moment.
Ji Xuan had seen too many cases of people tripping in a ditch. Victory was practically within his grasp, and with most of the Spirit Road watching, he had no intention of embarrassing himself.
His Highness the Heir looked utterly panicked in his words, yet his face didn't change in the slightest. "Oh, wow, you saw right through me. You really were a clever kid from the start."
To Ji Xuan, everything Mu Chen had done was proof of a guilty conscience.
He could hardly wait to see his opponent kneel and beg for mercy.
With that thought, the brimming-with-confidence Ji Xuan suddenly raised his hand. "You're about to die, and you're still talking tough. Brothers, give them a—"
"Bang, bang, bang!!"
The moment Ji Xuan raised his arm, several jade bottles appeared out of nowhere above the huge crowd behind him and burst open all at once.
A great spray of golden liquid rained down, drenching everyone.
Ji Xuan, who was surrounded by his followers like the moon among the stars, was especially well drenched. His body was coated all over with blood that gave off a peculiar scent.
From head to toe, he'd been hit from all three hundred and sixty-five degrees. Not a single inch had been spared.
"Blood. Spirit beast blood. Golden."
"No, wait! Everyone, be careful! This is blood from a Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast!"
Yang Hong, who had been steeped in books since childhood, sniffed the air and suddenly turned pale.
He quickly connected what was happening today with the earlier incident in which Luo Li had accidentally killed a Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast cub and was then hunted by the adult high-grade spirit beast.
These golden liquids were probably King Luo's doing back then.
"What? The blood of a Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast cub?"
"Then that means..."
The alliance, made up of forces from all sides, realized the gravity of the situation. An uproar broke out, and the crowd descended into chaos.
The instant the jade bottles filled with the Golden Armored Dragon Tiger Beast cub's blood were thrown up from within the crowd and shattered, several figures darted out from the alliance's ranks.
"Your Highness the Heir!"
The figures included both men and women, and at the very least, each was a Quasi-King.
The seven lined up, dropped to one knee, clasped their fists, and called out in unison.
"Rise, all of you. It's been a long time."
Mu Chen raised a hand in a gesture of welcome, unable to suppress his smile.
Eight people from the Northern Spiritual Academy, including him, had been chosen to enter the Spirit Road and take part in the trial.
Himself, Zhou Yuan, Lie Jiu, Luo Tong, Tang Qian'er, Hong Ling, Liu Mubai.
Though the ultimate divine artifact, the Mirror of Judgment, had sent living beings to random locations rather than one place, if two years had passed and the Spirit Road Trial was nearing its end, yet Mu Chen still hadn't gathered the Hundred Spirits Retinue, then he'd been a pretty useless Heir.
Mu Chen had never been one to fight alone!
The Hundred Spirits youths, who had grown up together and entered the academy together, shared a deep bond. After exchanging greetings, they all stood up with grins and took their places behind His Highness the Heir.
Zhou Yuan had complained to him in private that a girl calling herself Wu Yingying had gone around looking for him. When she found him, she hadn't bothered to ask what had happened before pulling out a blade and hacking at him.
Then, after she was done, she turned around and left, saying she'd got the wrong person.
It was truly... truly enough to leave him completely baffled!
P.S. The character list has been created successfully. It should be visible on Qidian now.
The Spirit Road is nearing its end, brothers. Be patient—it won't be this simple.
Before you continue