Chapter 393: Chapter 371: The Proud Ones Who Gave Up

Only less than half of the inheritors can reach the stone monument.

And among those who reached this height without giving up conserving their Spirit Beasts’ status, only half of them remained.

They all had a change of expression, some even groaning in pain involuntarily.

The darkness around Zuo Qingtian seemed even deeper.

Zhao Yue also looked gloomy, but a flame of anger burned in her beautiful eyes.

The smile on the Heaven-slaying Demon’s face became a bit stiff as he clutched his waist.

Du Qing looked grim.

The seven or eight people in the front row still had some Elixir, so they all chose to consume it and summon their Spirit Beasts to continue climbing, most often letting their Contracted Spirit Beasts bear the burden alternately.

However, those who had relied on their Spirit Beasts for too long were now reaching their limit at this stage.

……

Six hours and forty-seven minutes in.

The red-haired boy ranked twelfth.

From Li Hai City, Cang Hongxing.

At this moment, the enormous shadow of the Azure Flame Dragon behind him suddenly trembled all over and let out a painful roar.

Its incomparably hard Dragon Scales were pierced by an invisible sharp blade, leaving a deep wound on its body, with Dragon Blood gushing out.

Cang Hongxing’s expression changed, yet he still refrained from taking out the Inheritance Compass.

Fifteen minutes later, the bloodied Azure Flame Dragon collapsed from exhaustion, forcing Cang Hongxing to take out the Inheritance Compass and transfer the restriction’s damage to another Spirit Beast. However, the other ones he contracted were all support-type Spirit Beasts, with far less damage resistance compared to the Azure Flame Dragon, and soon they too fell.

Perhaps by squeezing a bit more out of them, they could take a few more steps, but in doing so, their lives would be in jeopardy.

Cang Hongxing could only recall the phantom of his Spirit Beast and step forward himself.

The next moment, an invisible sharp blade pierced fiercely through Cang Hongxing’s abdomen. The void and despair made his head buzz. He took a deep breath of cold air and only calmed down after a while.

Cang Hongxing glanced at the eleven people ahead, his eyebrows twitching frantically, but he gritted his teeth and took out an Elixir to consume.

——That was his last Elixir.

With the intention of staying as far from the brink of world-shattering as possible and a fierce resolve, Cang Hongxing continued to climb upward.

Ten minutes passed.

Covered in wounds, Cang Hongxing stopped in his tracks and spat out a mouthful of blood.

“Cough cough cough…”

The recent stab pierced his lung, filling his trachea with blood, and even a light breath would tug at the unhealed through-and-through wound in his chest.

Fortunately, the medicine’s efficacy had some last remnants, enough to barely sustain the healing of this penetrating wound.

But the feelings of despair and nothingness carried by the attacks endured just ten minutes earlier had already infiltrated his consciousness, threatening to utterly crush him.

Cang Hongxing lifted his head.

Sweat and blood flowed down together, seeping into his eyes, blurring his vision. He released his fingers from the rocky crevice, laboriously raised his hand, and wiped his face.

Looking at the summit of Celestial Ladder Mountain that seemed somewhat closer, a glint of helplessness and despair flashed in Cang Hongxing’s eyes.

This mountain resembled an endless path that fed on the Trial Taker’s blood.

All the flesh cut away by the invisible blades step by step seemed to nurture the malicious pleasure behind the scenes.

They were like desert travelers vainly chasing a mirage, like the figure from Federation Country’s mythology, a human punished by the gods, perpetually pushing a boulder uphill.

Forever… unable to reach the mountaintop.

Impossible to reach.

——How could someone like me possibly reach the summit?

Better to leave it to those true prodigies.

Jiang Nalan, Zhao Yue, Lin Guang… they surely can reach the summit, and by then perhaps the seal on the Secret Realm will be lifted.

Or the True Men outside are already trying to rescue everyone.

It only requires waiting…

Thus, the boy halted his steps.

…..

He could no longer go forward.

Excessively pushing “Opposing Tune” already left tremendous potential hazards on body and spirit. If he forcibly continued to climb, his future as a Spirit Master might be obstructed every turn.

[I might be able to seize the Inheritance, yet it seems unlikely that I will.]

[Better to await the rescue from the True Men.]

Covered in purple, Ju Zuojing wiped the bloodstains off his body, sitting feebly on a large rock, looking at the fractured world not far away.

His eyesight had already started to be affected, no longer clear of the Trial Takers’ situation ahead.

……

About thirty to forty meters behind him, Leng Shengnan smiled wryly, also coming to a halt.

She had limited accumulation, managing to reach here relying solely on the physical and spiritual prowess of an Ancient Martial Spirit Master, but she too, was reaching her limit, her Ice Armor slowly melting. Xiao Jiu let out a reluctant whimper, returning to her Spirit Beast Space.

She knew.

If the figure behind the scenes appeared before her right now, she would strike a blow even if it meant dying.

After all, falling in battle might not be an unacceptable outcome for her, instead, it could ignite her fighting spirit.

But…

If the difficulty ahead is not a tangible foe against whom a battle can be fought, but a road of despair with no end in sight.

With no target, how could she swing her sword? At whom would she swing?

——I failed.

She knelt bitterly on the ground, smiling twice in a low, self-mocking manner.

But the next moment, she looked at the few remaining people ahead, with a trace of lingering hope in her eyes.

——They haven’t given up yet.

Lin Guang… hasn’t even called out his Contracted Spirit Beast.

……

Seven hours and twenty-four minutes.

Within Lin Guang’s Sea of Spirit.

The silver-haired girl was unaware of the outside world, frowning and saying: [I’ve already said let me bear it, why don’t you agree?]

[It’s okay, I can endure it.]

[The elixirs haven’t run out yet; everything is under my control.]

[Really?]

Lin Guang hadn’t adjusted his field of vision for a long time. He couldn’t see the rankings, the positions of other trial takers, or his own body.

This made Vishdair a bit suspicious: [Rupu, what do you think?]

Although she broke through to Tier Three scraping by, her grade was still only Blue Elite Level, so for now, Lin Guang definitely had some dominance in the contract. As long as it wasn’t malicious thoughts, he could hide them and prevent Vishdair from sensing them.

Chelina: […I don’t know either.]

She spoke honestly.

Since Lin Guang became a Three-Star Spirit Master, unless Lin Guang wanted to, she could no longer easily perceive Lin Guang’s emotions as before.

Moreover, since the contract, only Chelina’s pain and sensations were open one-sidedly to Lin Guang; she had no idea whether Lin Guang felt pain.

Even with the previous tier suppression, she could only sense emotions.

But at this moment, Lin Guang’s Spiritual Power became a calm voice that rang in the ears of the three girls: [How could I be that fragile?]

[You all know I have an inheritance that can absorb the Spiritual Power overflowing from the people around me and turn it into my own use; my status is actually fine.]

Lisa remained silent for a moment.

Lin Guang could perceive her complicated feelings through the contract.

She seemed instinctively inclined to persuade Lin Guang not to push himself like this, but she also understood that it was impossible. In the end, she could only swallow everything, trying her best to lighten the atmosphere: [Lin Guang brother, if you feel pressured, L-Lisa’s tail can be yours to touch anytime!]

[Mm, alright, I’ll definitely have a good time touching it when we get back.]

Thus, the four fell into silence once again.

All that was left was the sound of the wind, the sound of gasping, the sound of climbing, and the sound of shoes scraping against the ground.

Soon after, Lin Guang once again arrived at a stele.

This time, there was content engraved on the stele.

As he passed by, a calm voice resonated in his mind.

[Ascend to the mountain’s peak, obtain the Inheritance, and the body may be reforged.]

[Reforge the body?]

Chelina was momentarily stunned.

Standing before the stele, Lin Guang took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Swish—

A cold gleam flashed past.

As if receiving some severe impact, the scene seen by the three girls trembled violently.

They saw Lin Guang’s vision unwittingly dip, his knees bending as if he were about to fall, supporting himself on a rough gray stone to avoid falling over.

However, this accident prevented him from controlling his body properly, inadvertently bringing his hands into his field of vision.

This fleeting glimpse, along with the faint feelings transmitted from the other side of the contract, struck them hard, causing the pupils of the three girls to contract dramatically.

In an instant, Lisa’s helpless wail sounded in the Sea of Spirit: [Ahhhh!!!]

[You——]

[!!!]

Only to see.

The young man’s hands were no longer the fair, delicate, slender, and well-defined hands they usually grasped and played with.

At this moment.

These hands were battered and bloodied, with wounds so deep one could see the bones.

They were covered in numerous scars, the pale tendons hanging like snapped strings, and there seemed to be little blood left, hardly flowing, yet the exposed wounds and even bones bore slight traces of black crystals.

——Source Stone Crystal?!

At this moment, the three girls could hardly imagine what Lin Guang’s entire body looked like?

Behind his constant calm, what kind of torment had he been enduring?!

…

[What’s wrong with you? Why aren’t you saying anything!!]

[Hurry the hell up and let someone else bear it!!!]

Vishdair’s beautiful face was almost distorted.

Have the elixirs for healing the body run out already?!

Lin Guang’s vision was always fixed in front, never looking ahead, making it impossible for them to know the situation of the other trial takers.

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