âWhat happened?â
âWas there an error?â
âHow could an outsider receive such a container?â
A commotion broke out amongst the members of the Seven Realms Sacred Mansion, especially those from the Jie Clan. They couldnât accept that Chu Feng had achieved such an outstanding result. Their first thought was that something had gone wrong.
âShut your mouths. When have you seen this place making an error before? Is it that difficult for you to admit that someone has done better than you?â Ling Shengâer roared.
The others immediately zipped their mouths.
Ling Shengâerâs reputation was one thing, but they had to admit that her words made sense too. The sculpture had never made a mistake before. However, this would also mean that Chu Feng was a top-notch prodigy surpassing the rest of them.
That realization changed some of their impressions toward Chu Feng, but the others continued to direct animosity toward him.
The Seven Realms Sacred Mansion had always prided itself on having the strongest world spiritists in the world. They believed that the blood of the strongest world spiritists was flowing through their veins, making them nobler than others.
Yet, the sculpture actually deemed an outsider superior to them. It made them displeased, thus compelling them to find excuses for their shortcomings. It was not just arrogance at play here; it was a natural reaction stemming from the upbringing that had ingrained in them the notion that they were superior to outsiders.
âBrother Chu Feng sure is extraordinary. Itâs no wonder little sister Shengâer would invite him here,â Jie Zhou finally spoke up with a smile. Despite his friendly attitude, his expression looked a little stiff.
âThat fellowâs face has turned livid, but heâs still trying to force a smile. Itâs obvious that heâs a hypocrite, albeit a lousy one,â Eggy said.
Chu Feng could also tell that Jie Zhou was acting weird.
âExactly, Jie Zhou! With Chu Feng around, we might just be able to acquire more cultivation resources than you this time around,â Ling Shengâer said confidently, not showing any humility at all.
âThat'd be a blessing to our Seven Realms Sacred Mansion. Iâd be happy for you,â Jie Zhou said with a smile.
âPui. How fake!â Eggy berated.
Ling Shengâer didnât respond to those words. She didnât seem to be fond of Jie Zhou either.
âLetâs enter the Ancient Palace,â Ling Moâer said before turning to Chu Feng. âYoung master Chu Feng, follow me.â
There were twelve entrances to the Ancient Palace in total.
Ling Moâer made her way toward the leftmost entrance, whereas Jie Zhou made his way toward the rightmost entrance. The others entered via the other entrances. It looked like they had already agreed on which entrances they would be entering the Ancient Palace by.
âWhy are you following us? Take the fifth entrance!â Yao Luo said.
âYoung miss, I want to go with big brother Chu Feng,â Bai Yunqing said.
âThat wonât do. That entrance usually only accommodates three people. Four is already a crowd. If you join us too, itâll greatly increase the difficulty of clearing the stages!â Yao Luo said.
âYoung miss, I am a Blue Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist. Iâm confident that I can contribute to you!â To prove himself, Bai Yunqing released a whiff of his spirit power.
However, Yao Luo ignored him and said, âJust head to the fifth entrance.â
âLet him come with us. I promise you that he wonât be a burden,â Chu Feng said.
Yao Luo turned to Chu Feng and spoke in a gentler but aggrieved tone, âChu Feng, itâs not that I donât want him to come with us, but it really wonât work!â
Just then, Ling Moâer spoke up, âNo worries. Young master Bai can join us too.â
âYoung miss!â Yao Luo exclaimed.
âLuo'er,â Ling Shengâer interjected.
Yao Luo finally zipped her mouth.
It was worth noting that there were only three people entering Jie Zhouâs rightmost entrance too, while there were more people entering the other entrances.
âJie Yu, you should come with us,â Jie Zhou suddenly said.
âYoung master Jie Zhou, I appreciate your goodwill, but I donât want to be a burden to you,â Jie Yu replied.
âI insist. You should join us,â Jie Zhou said. He turned to one of his aides and said, âYouâll swap places with Jie Yu.â
His aide was reluctant to head to the other entrances, but he had no choice but to do as he was told. Seeing that, Jie Yu could only head to Jie Zhouâs side.
âWhat is that fellow up to? Is he hoping to get information on you through Jie Yu so that he can deal with you?â Eggy asked.
âThatâs probably the case.â Chu Feng also thought that Jie Zhou wanted to deal with him.
After all, Jie Zhou was the one prophesied to decipher the secret here, only to be outdone by Chu Feng earlier on. Despite his friendly exterior, there was a high chance that he might have already classified Chu Feng as his enemy.
However, Chu Feng wasnât bothered by it. It was not once or twice that he had become a thorn in other peopleâs flesh because of how outstanding he was.
As soon as Chu Feng entered the leftmost entrance, he felt the power of a formation sweeping across the five of them. It didnât seem like much had happened at first glance, but it was likely that the difficulty of the stages ahead had been recalibrated according to their group.
âIs there anything special about the entrances?â Chu Feng asked.
âYes, each of the entrances has different stages, which results in different levels of difficulties and rewards. On top of that, each entrance has a different limit on the number of people that can enter. Luo'er was reluctant to allow young master Bai to come with us because the leftmost entrance has a limit of three people. Beyond that, the level of difficulty greatly increases,â Ling Moâer said.
Yao Luo couldnât resist the urge to add on, âJie Zhou gets the rightmost entrance just because heâs the prophesied child. While itâs not the easiest entrance, it promises the greatest benefits since itâs the one that the Seven Realms Sacred Mansion is the most familiar with. Heâs always able to get the best rewards not because heâs better than our young misses but simply because of the entrance he gets!â
Chu Feng wanted to ask which entrance his mother took, but on second thought, asking such a question would be telling others that Jie Yu had divulged confidential information to them. Thus, he held himself back.
âDonât worry. With Chu Feng helping us this time around, weâll definitely be able to go further than we previously did,â Ling Shengâer said confidently. She turned to Chu Feng and said, âChu Feng, weâre familiar with the first few trials, so you need not exert yourself. However, thereâs a stage later on that we have been stuck on for a long time now. Weâll need your aid for that one.â
âWhat kind of stage is it?â Bai Yunqing asked out of curiosity.
However, Ling Shengâer completely ignored Bai Yunqing and instead continued addressing Chu Feng, âArenât you curious why I invited you here?â
âI am,â Chu Feng replied.
âThat stage requires one to have a high mastery of martial power and spirit power,â Ling Shengâer said.
âIs that why you have been cultivating your martial skill?â Chu Feng asked.
âThatâs right,â Ling Shengâer replied. With a wave of her hand, she drew out a stage with her spirit power. âThis is the stage I am referring to. Only one person can challenge it, and that person only gets one shot. Itâll be the end of the challenge once that person fails. I have always been the one to challenge that stage, but I have never succeeded. While I have mastered that martial skill, honestly speaking, I still donât bear too much hope for it. Thatâs why I want you to do it in my place.â
âSure. Iâll give it a try,â Chu Feng said.
âArenât you going to take a closer look?â Yao Luo asked. She noticed that Chu Feng had only taken a glance at the map before turning away.
âI have already remembered it,â Chu Feng replied.
âBe a little more serious. Our young misses have high expectations of you!â Yao Luo said.
âLuo'er.â Ling Moâer gestured for Yao Luo to speak no more. She then turned to Chu Feng and said, âYoung master Chu Feng, that trial is also beyond our means. Thatâs why we sought your help. You need not feel too pressured to succeed; itâs not a big deal even if you fail.â
âI donât feel pressured, but I donât intend to let down your trust. Iâll do my best,â Chu Feng said.
Soon, the group arrived at the first stage. Ling Moâer and Ling Shengâer took the lead for the stage, whereas Yao Luo played a supportive role to them. Their teamwork was impeccable, and it looked like they were quite experienced with this.
Yet, Chu Feng soon noticed that the three of them had started to struggle. Bai Yunqing quickly released his spirit power to help them, but even so, they were unable to breach the formation. Seeing that, he stepped in too.
âChu Feng, youâre too weak. Donât come in,â Ling Shengâer said.
However, Chu Feng paid them no heed. He released his spirit power and began constructing a formation. His movements left Ling Moâer and the others dumbfounded.
Chu Feng was clearly a White Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist, but the prowess of his formation was comparable to a Blue Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist. His intervention immediately revealed an opening in the formation blocking their path, and through their tight coordination, they were able to quickly breach the formation.
The formation shattered into countless light fragments that flowed into their respective containers. These were the cultivation resources they could use once they completed the trial.
âYoung master Chu Feng, how did you⦠Were you hiding your true strength?â Ling Moâer asked.
While all of them had exerted their full prowess earlier, they could still tell that Chu Feng had played the key role in breaching the formation. They probably could have still breached the formation without his help too, but it wouldnât have been that easy.
It was hard to believe that a White Dragon God-cloak World Spiritist like him could construct such a powerful formation unless he was hiding his true strength.