Trial's End

Ji Mu had not been wrong. Huo Hai indeed had his own exchange target. But unlike what she had imagined, it was not some immensely powerful Spirit Art treasure, but Blood Refining Pills and Bone Tempering Pills. And the quantity was astonishing.

If people learned that Huo Hai was exchanging for Blood Refining Pills in bulk, they would probably know what he intended to cultivate. Things like the Blood Tempering Spirit Formation and the Body-Refining Spirit Formation were known to almost everyone across the continent, and everyone knew they were the finest cultivation methods.

The problem was that no one dared to cultivate them. Of course, if someone did dare to cultivate them recklessly and their enemies found out, those enemies would do everything possible to sabotage them. Everyone knew that even if one mastered only one of the three great Spirit Formations, their future achievements would be immeasurable. Huo Hai had not said anything, so Ji Mu naturally did not know what he intended to do. She merely thought his family had set a goal for him.

Although there were many things he could not make sense of, this was all he could do for now. After wiping out this Spirit Beast clan, Huo Hai became even more confident. He continuously searched for more and stronger Spirit Beasts; whenever he found one, he wiped it out directly.

Yet amid this immense slaughter, Huo Hai's state of mind gradually settled instead. He had always known he was killing, but he had never actively watched it happen. This subtle, imperceptible approach changed his temperament.

That was right. People died every moment in this world; every minute, no one knew how many died in accidents. Since he had not seen them, nothing had happened, had it? Even those he killed, those deaths connected to him, were still within the normal range when viewed across the entire continent. Thinking this way, Huo Hai gradually felt his heart calm.

Of course, Huo Hai still did not slaughter recklessly. He knew that he was in the Spirit Blood Realm. No matter how calm his mind became, once he began a killing spree, his blood would inevitably boil on its own, and he would certainly lose control of himself.

The Spirit Blood Realm had such a grave flaw. To resolve it, he could only break through. Huo Hai had no better method.

"What's going on? Why are there no more large clans? There aren't even many Spirit Beasts left." Huo Hai frowned. Over the past few days, he had thoroughly searched the deepest reaches of Southern Mountain.

Because the depths of Southern Mountain were dangerous, no one had ever entered its innermost areas. Huo Hai had not encountered a single outsider these past few days. No, it was not that he had encountered no one, but that none of those he encountered were participants. Perhaps there were stronger Spirit Beasts and even larger clans farther inside. But those places were no longer within the trial grounds; those people were stationed around the perimeter as guards.

The little bugs could fly out without drawing their attention, but if he himself went out, he would certainly be discovered. At that point, it was entirely possible that his trial qualification would be revoked. Huo Hai did not want that outcome.

Within the trial grounds, the powerful Spirit Beasts had basically all been killed. Even after slaughtering so many Spirit Beasts, Huo Hai still did not have enough points. He had only nearly twenty thousand points, far from enough to obtain sufficient Spirit Bone Pills for his use.

Yet Huo Hai was unwilling to lower his standards for tempering his Spirit Bone. It had to be said that Huo Hai was a thoroughgoing perfectionist: either do not do it at all, or do it to the very best. If he wanted enough points, it seemed he could only resort to robbery.

But robbery... Huo Hai frowned. This concerned his future development, even the future of his entire life. If he did not kill people, what reason would he have to rob them? The vast majority would probably rather die than hand over their cards. How was he supposed to begin? He did not want slaughter to turn him into a madman. If that happened, everything would become an illusion.

"Forget it. I'll keep looking first. Maybe there are Spirit Beasts somewhere that I haven't encountered yet." Huo Hai muttered to himself, though he knew that was unlikely. He understood Star Gu's scouting ability very well.

Deep in the forest, not every Spirit Beast had a card on it. Perhaps the Imperial City Academy had never expected anyone to dare venture into the depths of the forest and hunt the Spirit Beasts there, so only some of them carried cards.

Huo Hai had killed the Spirit Beasts whether they had cards or not. With that, how could there possibly be any cards left behind? Sometimes, Huo Hai truly wished those prey could also trade cards with the Imperial City Academy.

Time slipped away unnoticed amid Huo Hai's search. During the final stretch, Huo Hai gained nothing at all. Those people had swept through like locusts, leaving nothing wherever they passed. Even relatively powerful Spirit Beasts were jointly exterminated through everyone's cooperation. Then the cards were divided among them.

The closer it came to the final days, the fiercer everyone fought for them. With large numbers of people dying, an extra layer of blood stench hung over the forest. Yet basically no one knew at whose hands these people had died.

He Wang had left long ago, so he had not encountered such matters. But the other major powers were different. In the end, those adventurers had joined into several groups and launched attacks against the teams from the great Lineages.

When both sides clashed, these motley mobs still suffered the heaviest losses. In the end, there were probably only a few who could return with enough cards. Most either died here or abandoned their cards and fled.

Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, fourteen of the trial's fifteen days had passed. On this day, Huo Hai knew he should stop. Continuing like this would bring no gains.

"Ah, it seems that if I want enough points, I can only think of another way after entering the Imperial City Academy." Huo Hai's heart was full of helplessness. There was no helping it. The Imperial City Academy only had so many cards prepared for the trial. The fact that he had obtained such a huge pile was already highly abnormal. Even among the Academy's upper-year students, there were not many like him.

Those experts who had reached the Spirit Practitioner Realm might earn quite a few points, but they spent them just as quickly.

"Huo Hai, it's about time. We should leave. If we return late, we may lose our chance to join the Imperial City Academy." The Imperial City Academy's rules were extremely strict. If one was late, they would absolutely not be accepted.

No matter how many cards someone had obtained, the Imperial City Academy would not want them. Call it domineering or call it strict, but rules were rules. After all, the Imperial City Academy was powerful. Huo Hai understood as well, and nodded in agreement. "Let's go. If we don't hurry, we might not make it out in a day." Huo Hai finally gave up searching.

He gathered the Star Gu. Four hundred Star Gu stayed on his body, protecting him and Ji Mu, while only one hundred remained in the surroundings to scout for danger. The two headed outward, and the Spirit Beasts in this area had basically been cleared out.

Thus, they encountered no danger. Along the way, they merely had to avoid others who were also returning. They kept moving forward without rest through the entire night. Before dawn, the two finally neared the exit.

"Whew, let's rest a while. The trial won't officially end until noon tomorrow." After traveling all night without rest, even Huo Hai and Ji Mu could hardly endure it. They had reached the Spirit Blood Realm, but not the point where they could go without rest. Ji Mu nodded, closed her weary eyes, and fell asleep the moment she sat down.

Huo Hai shook his head. After ordering the Star Gu to protect them, he too closed his eyes and began resting. He did not know what kind of structure the Star Gu possessed, but they seemed to need no rest at all. As long as they had spiritual power to sustain them, that was enough.

Perhaps, like dolphins, they could divide their brains in two, with one half resting while the other remained active. That was Huo Hai's final thought. He did not yet have the ability to investigate such things. Forget it, he would let nature take its course. Wasn't this already quite good?

The Spirit Blood Realm was still the Spirit Blood Realm, after all, and could not be compared to ordinary people. The two began resting shortly before dawn. Yet not long after dawn arrived, they woke up. Their bodies had long since shed their exhaustion under the effects of spiritual power. Their minds, nourished by spiritual power, had also returned to normal and were no longer so weary.

That was the benefit of spiritual power. No Spirit Master needed much rest. The two looked at each other and smiled. They had never expected this trial to bring them through so many events. Their gains had also been unprecedentedly great.

Ji Mu had not gained many cards. But she had gained a most important friend—perhaps a friend. There was also the trade in the Iron Armor Hound King's fur and bones. Those were tangible benefits, benefits enough to move her Lineage.

"Let's go. We've reached the exit. I wonder how many people will pass this test." Ji Mu smiled as she spoke to Huo Hai. In every trial, it was impossible for everyone to make it out, and this time would be no exception.

Huo Hai smiled. "Yes, let's get out first." This harvest had already satisfied Huo Hai immensely; it could be said that he had surpassed his goal. After all, when he had first joined, he had only wanted to gather the points needed for all the Blood Refining Pills. Yet this time, he had nearly gathered enough for the Bone Tempering Pills as well. His gains were enormous.

Still, Huo Hai felt some regret. He had not collected all the points needed for the Bone Tempering Pills. Once he reached the Imperial City Academy, he would still have to work hard for them. It was said that at the Imperial City Academy, the only way to earn points was through Academy missions.

The two set off once more. The closer they came to the exit, the more relaxed they felt. Their bodies even seemed much lighter. It was already the final half-day. Surely no one would still be lying in ambush near the exit, right?

That was what the two thought, but others clearly did not think the same way. The closer it came to the final moment, the fiercer the competition became. Especially those who had not obtained enough cards—they hoped to make one final gamble at the last critical juncture. The two did not know that people had long been lying in ambush throughout this nearby area.