The Jade Seal Family

After walking for about two hours, the terrain ahead suddenly opened up.

A campsite built on dark red rock came into view, with hundreds of tents of all sizes spread out densely around a circular plaza made of black stones.

In the center of the square stood a thick stone pillar, with a dark red ore embedded at its top. The light shone not brightly, but steadily, illuminating a large area around the square.

The camp was surrounded by a wooden fence, and several guards in standard leather armor stood at the gate. They concealed their auras very well, and were at least at the Legendary Early Stage.

The camp was bustling with people. Monks dressed in various clothes walked between the tents, some talking, some checking weapons, and some sitting cross-legged at the tent entrance, meditating with their eyes closed.

Everyone was waiting, waiting for the stone pillar in the center of the circular plaza to light up.

Shen Fei's gaze swept across the camp, and he roughly got a sense of what was going on.

This should be the gathering point for the selection test of the Nether Domain Controller. There are far more people than expected. Just by looking at the number of tents, you can tell there are at least several hundred people.

Moreover, the aura emanating from these people is not weak at all. The Legendary Early Stage is only the threshold here. The auras of the Legendary Rank Middle Stage Realm are mixed in with the crowd. Occasionally, one can vaguely sense one or two heavy and oppressive fluctuations coming from the depths of the camp. Those are probably Demi-God- level beings.

Nie Li stopped at the entrance of the camp and said a few words to the guards.

The guard glanced at him, then at the group behind him, turned and ran back into the camp. He quickly returned, followed by a middle-aged man in a dark gold brocade robe.

The man was rather thin, with low cheekbones, a long face, a small tuft of short beard on his chin, and neatly combed hair held in place with a dark gold hairpin.

He walked over slowly, but each step was steady. His aura was deeply concealed, making it impossible to discern his specific cultivation level. However, one could sense a profound foundation, at least at the Demi-God level.

"Nephew Nie Li," the man said, his voice low and habitually polite, his smile perfectly balanced—neither overly warm nor distant.

He walked up to Nie Li and stopped, giving a slight bow. "You must be tired from your journey. The camp has been arranged for you; the tents are in a quieter spot towards the back."

Nie Li returned the greeting, his tone polite. "Patriarch Luo, you've gone to so much trouble."

Luo Xiaoyao waved his hand, his gaze passing over Nie Li and sweeping over Shen Fei, Xiao Ning'er, Duan Jian, and Lu Piao behind him. His eyes lingered on each of them for a moment, as if assessing something, before he looked away, his smile unchanged, "My dear nephew's friends are indeed extraordinary. Despite their young age, their cultivation foundations are all very solid."

Without asking further questions, he turned to the side and gestured towards the camp, saying, "Come with me, I'll take you there."

The group followed Luo Xiaoyao through the camp. The cultivators they encountered along the way all turned to look at them. Some recognized Nie Li and whispered a few words to the person next to them, their eyes scanning the group.

Shen Fei could sense the curiosity and scrutiny mixed in those gazes, along with a hint of unfriendly assessment. He ignored them and followed Nie Li forward, his eyes level, his pace neither fast nor slow.

Duan Jian walked at the very back, his black cloak obscuring most of his figure. However, when the surrounding gazes swept over him, his steps did not change, only his fingers gripping the hilt of his sword tightened slightly.

The tents were placed in a location towards the back of the camp, not far from the circular plaza, but separated from a row of other tents, so they weren't too conspicuous.

There were three tents in total: one for Nie Li and Ye Ziyun, one for Shen Fei and Xiao Ning'er, one for Duan Jian, Lu Piao, and Du Ze, and one for Xiao Xue and Ye Ziyun.

Luo Xiaoyao stopped at the tent entrance and spoke a few more words to Nie Li about the arrangements for the disciple selection test. It was nothing more than empty words about being in good condition before the seventh level opened in three days and not causing trouble outside.

Nie Li agreed to everything, Luo Xiaoyao bowed slightly before turning and leaving.

Shen Fei entered his and Xiao Ning'er's tent and lowered the curtain. The tent was not large, with two simple beds placed on either side, leaving a narrow passage in the middle. In the corner was a wooden box with an unlit oil lamp on the lid.

He took out the dark gray inner armor from his Space Ring, unfolded it, and glanced at it.

The material of the inner armor had a matte sheen in the dim light inside the tent, and the Spiritual Power circuit inside the dark Crystal Stone on the chest glowed quietly, not dazzlingly, but very steadily.

He took off his outer garment, put on the inner armor close to his skin, and then put the outer garment back on. The inner armor felt neither stuffy nor constricting against his skin, and his shoulder and waist movements were completely unrestricted, as if it had been tailor-made for him.

He stretched his arms and back to make sure it wouldn't affect his sword-drawing and turning movements before straightening his outer garment and sitting down on his bunk.

There were two soft knocks coming from outside.

"Are you done?" Xiao Ning'er's voice came from outside the curtain.

"Alright," Shen Fei replied.

The curtain was lifted from the outside, and Xiao Ning'er walked in with her head down.

She changed into a clean, light gray outfit. The bandage on her left arm had been rewrapped, but it was thinner than before, and it wasn't visible because of the sleeve covering it.

She sat down on another bunk, looked at Shen Fei, and said, "Lu Piao just took a stroll outside and found out some news. He said that the first level of the Nine-Layered Deathlands has Spiritual Origin Fruit, which are very helpful for cultivation. They can directly allow someone to break through to the Legendary Realm."

Shen Fei nodded after listening. If it was really as Lu Piao had found out, that it could allow a Black Gold Rank Peak cultivator to directly break through to Legendary Rank, then the value of this item would be completely different.

Lu Piao, Du Ze, Xiao Xue, Ye Ziyun in the team are all stuck at the Black Gold Rank level. Although Duan Jian has reached the Legendary Early Stage, he still needs resources to go further.

If we can find a few Spiritual Origin Fruit, the strength of the entire team can be significantly improved.

He didn't rush to conclusions. He stood up, nodded to Xiao Ning'er, and said, "I'll go out and take a look."

Xiao Ning'er hummed in agreement, asking no further questions, and stayed in the tent to continue tidying up. Shen Fei lifted the curtain and went outside. The campsite outside was still dimly lit, and the smell of sulfur mixed with dust filled the air.

He glanced around, his gaze quickly settling on an open space at the edge of the tent area.

Nie Li stood there, his back to the tent, his hands in his sleeves, his head down, as if looking at the ground beneath his feet, or perhaps deep in thought.

The pale golden light membrane formed from the Yu Yan clung quietly to the inside of his sleeve, remaining motionless.

Shen Fei over and stood next to Nie Li. He didn't speak, but simply followed Nie Li's gaze to look at the ground.

A shallow crack runs through the dark red rock layer, through which a faint, dim light shines, as if magma is slowly flowing deep within.

The two stood there for a few breaths, the sounds of voices and footsteps from the camp echoing far away, but not reaching them.