Chapter 697: 700: Struggling to Survive (Fourth Update)

“Trial?”

“Yes, it’s a trial, Lin Zhen. If you hadn’t been transported to Pure Land, by now, you might have been eliminated. In fact, the trial started when you arrived here.”

Lin Zhen looked at the endless snowfall outside and nodded slightly.

“This time, if you can’t stay calm during the trial, you won’t be able to pass. I have been testing you just now, and your performance has satisfied me, but the upcoming trial won’t be that simple.”

“What is the trial?”

“Pure Land is located at the far north of Divine Punishment Star. It’s extremely cold here, with winter lasting for ten months and the other three seasons only lasting for two months. Winter has just begun; if you can survive this long winter, you will pass the trial.”

Lin Zhen looked stunned. Was it that simple?

If he just needed to get through a winter, one training session would be enough.

“Don’t underestimate it. Don’t forget your current state. You’re cursed by the Holy Word Skill, which is difficult to break while you’re on Divine Punishment Star. You’re just an ordinary person now, unable to use Star Power or Spiritual Power. Even your weapons, which you used before, are probably too heavy for you to lift.”

Lin Zhen secretly attempted to use his Star Power and found that he could not use it.

His Dantian and Dark Star Space were filled with a deathly silence, unable to mobilize even a tiny bit of power.

Even his Spiritual Power was unusable. His Divine Infant curled up in his Spiritual Consciousness Sea, seemingly in deep sleep, and could not control his Spiritual Power.

Even his Elemental Power couldn’t be controlled anymore; he wanted to summon fire to keep himself warm, but he couldn’t do that either.

“What a powerful curse. My body has also become much weaker. I can’t use my transformation into the Black Hole Beast. I’m not even a Martial Artist now, and probably not much stronger than an ordinary person. At most, I’m just a strong man.”

He couldn’t even open his Space Ring, so he couldn’t take out any food from it.

“Did you get all that? Everything you have has been sealed and temporarily cannot be used. What you need to do now is rely on yourself, your body, and your wisdom to survive the long winter here.”

“Remember, Pure Land is not necessarily safe. There are no human intrigues here, but there are survival-of-the-fittest challenges and dangers from the cold and wild beasts.”

“I’m leaving now, Lin Zhen. If I see you again in ten months, it means you’ve passed the trial. Good luck!”

As the voice was about to disappear, Lin Zhen hurriedly asked, “What happens if I pass the trial? Are there any rewards?”

“You’ll find out when the time comes. Passing is the greatest reward!”

The voice disappeared, and no matter what Lin Zhen asked, it wouldn’t appear again.

“This is going to be difficult!”

Lin Zhen stood at the entrance of the cave. The cave was located on the slope of a mountain, with snow covering the entire mountain peak. Only here could one see a bit of rock and earth, offering a little comfort.

“Awooo~~!!”

A howl came from afar, and Lin Zhen could even see a procession of black dots, more than a hundred snow wolves making their way through the snowstorm towards him.

Without food, fire, or weapons, and facing only cold, hunger, and wild beasts, Lin Zhen’s first night in Pure Land would likely be a difficult one.

*********

Since Lin Zhen’s disappearance, there had been significant changes on the Divine Punishment Star.

After La Moti and Holy Word were struck by Destructive God Thunder, they suffered severe injuries. The Power of Destruction invaded their bodies, and they dared not fight indiscriminately. Instead, they struggled against the destructive power within them, gradually expelling it little by little.

As a result, their rankings stagnated. Thankfully, both of them had excellent methods of concealment; otherwise, they might have been hunted down.

They lost their third and fourth places, which were taken over by others.

The current rankings were as follows:

First place: Qin Jianfeng from the Western Continent.

Second place: Boston from the Southern Continent.

Third place: Jun Mo from the Western Continent.

Fourth place: Feng Qingluan from the Northern Continent.

Fifth place…

La Moti and Holy Word dropped to ranks beyond the fiftieth place after three months.

As time passed, there were fewer and fewer people left on Divine Punishment Star, decreasing from the original 10 billion to just 100 million! Moreover, the number was still dropping.

For Divine Punishment Star to end, one condition must be met: the number of undead creatures must be less than the number of humans.

As it became harder to find people, conflicts among Martial Artists gradually decreased. They shifted their focus back to the undead creatures, especially those in the forefront, who were constantly hunting them down.

As long as they killed more undead creatures than humans, their positions would be secured, and when Divine Punishment Star came to an end, they would be eligible to temper their Divine Bodies.

However, some people were exceptions, such as Feng Qingluan, the Saintess of the Phoenix Clan, who had climbed from ranks beyond 100 up to her current position.

*********

Amid the broken walls, Feng Qingluan gently stroked the long sword in her hand. Her fiery red dress stood out strikingly in this domain of death.

Blood lingered in the air nearby. Just a moment ago, she had eliminated a team of over twenty martial artists.

These people didn’t have many points, with the highest-ranked among them being outside of the top one million. They weren’t worth killing, as the points she gained from killing them all were negligible compared to her own points.

“Ding-a-ling~~!!”

Her phone rang, and Feng Qingluan picked it up. The caller was Jun Mo.

“Young Master! What can I do for you?”

“Qingluan, what are you doing?”

“I just finished a battle.”

“Qingluan, I’ve been receiving calls from several old friends lately, telling me that you’ve been going overboard lately. Why are you so ruthless towards those low-ranked martial artists? Their points aren’t even worth as much as those gained from killing a single high-level undead. In the past three months, too many people have expressed their anger at me. You should know that you represent not only yourself, but also the entire Phoenix Clan!”

“Young Master, I don’t quite understand. Since we’re here on the Divine Punishment Star, we shouldn’t fear battles. If they’re afraid of being eliminated, it would be better for them to end their lives quickly. If anyone complains to you again, you can just put the blame on me and let them seek revenge from me. You don’t have to bear any responsibility for this.”

“You … why won’t you take my advice? You may not be afraid of ordinary people, but aren’t you afraid of the secret sect’s people? Even if the Holy Word hasn’t come forward yet, you’ll be no match for him if he does. Although you’re ranked fourth, that’s because you’ve killed too many low-level martial artists, it doesn’t mean you have the actual strength to be in the top four.”

“Let him come then, I’ve been wanting to meet him too.”

“Luan’er~! What are you trying to do?” Jun Mo was becoming increasingly angry.

“Nothing, I just want to kill. And don’t call me Luan’er; find someone else to use such an affectionate nickname with!”

Feng Qingluan hung up the phone and picked up her sword.

“Keep killing… As long as the number of undead creatures doesn’t drop below that of humans, the Divine Punishment Star won’t end. Lin Zhen, I hope you can come back soon. I might not be able to hold on for much longer…”

*********

Crack~!

Lin Zhen snapped the neck of a snow wolf, its blood seeping through its fur and splattering on the snowy ground, leaving a trail of crimson plum petals.

Exhausted, he sat down heavily in the snow, panting heavily.

More than a dozen snow wolves laid dead on the ground, piled up every which way.

These wolves were as big as calves, with extremely sharp teeth. Lin Zhen had fought them for over ten minutes, and his body was riddled with wounds.

Luckily, his fighting instinct was excellent, and he never let the wolves attack his vital points. This self-defense instinct was honed through millions of battles.

Even a physically strong person wouldn’t stand a chance against these wolves.

Lin Zhen held a sharpened stone in his hand, a makeshift weapon he’d found in the cave.

Using the edge of the stone, he cut open a snow wolf’s skin. In this freezing cold, the corpse would stiffen within five minutes, so he had to drink the warm blood and eat the flesh while it was still warm.

Gulp, gulp!

After a few mouthfuls of warm blood, Lin Zhen felt a surge of warmth in his extremely exhausted body, easing his pain slightly.

He tore off some cloth to bandage his wounds and draped himself in a layer of wolf skin – a coat he had made for himself.

Three months had passed since he had arrived in this pure land.

In those three months, his body had accumulated thousands of scars, layered over each other.

Without medicinal recovery, timely food supplies, or powerful healing abilities, his wounds didn’t stand a chance of healing in the extreme cold.

That he had managed to endure for three months was almost a miraculous feat.

Initially, Lin Zhen thought that with his combat experience, he could hunt for food and survive for ten months. However, he soon realized how naive he had been.

In a place without fire, it was simply impossible for a human to survive for long.

He raised his arm, pus and blood oozing from many wounds. The intense pain constantly assailed his nerves.

“Chris, can you still calculate?” Lin Zhen found comfort in the fact that Chris could still accompany him through this long and cold winter.

“Master, I currently lack energy. If I don’t get replenished, I will automatically shut down in five minutes. Calculation consumes power too; I can only persist for three minutes.”

“There’s no energy supply for you at the moment, but three minutes will do. Calculate for me how long I can last in my current state.”

“Alright. At the moment, your only source of food here comes from snow wolves and polar bears. You’re getting food at a slower rate than before, and your wounds are constantly infected. Based on the current rate of decline, you’re expected to die in about twenty-five days.”

“Can I only hold on for twenty-five days?”

“Yes, and this is only while I accompany you. You should know that sometimes loneliness can take a person’s life too. Master, my battery is running out. Before I shut down, I have one last piece of advice for you: to get through these ten months, you must find hope, something to keep you going. That way, you might be able to hold on longer…”

“Beep, beep, beep, beep~!”

The signal vanished, the Dimensional Universe automatically shut down, and Lin Zhen’s world lost its last bit of sound.