Chapter Seventy-One: Charging Forward with Reckless Abandon

At this moment, Chen Mu had already regrouped with Xu Changye, Yan Chong, and the other disciples from the Nine Nether forces. When everyone saw that Chen Mu’s vitality was not only undiminished but even more vigorous than before, they were all stunned.

“Brother Chen Mu, weren’t you affected at all by the Blood Demon Soul devouring your life force? Why does your energy seem even stronger?” Xu Changye asked curiously.

“It’s because my cultivation method is special—it also allows me to absorb life force, so I was unharmed,” Chen Mu explained.

Everyone clicked their tongues in amazement. Chen Mu’s technique didn’t resemble a demonic method, yet it could absorb vitality—that was truly incredible.

“Uncle Xu, your vitality seems severely depleted. It seems the trial behind the ninth door is indeed no trivial matter,” Chen Mu observed gravely, looking at Xu Changye and Yan Chong.

“Don’t even mention it. Old Yan and I barely made it through the trial by joining forces. We lost a lot of life force in the process. I wouldn’t dare choose the ninth door for the next round,” Xu Changye said ruefully, already regretting his earlier choice.

Chen Mu shifted the topic. “I can’t shake this uneasy feeling. I suspect Xuetian has another purpose for making us participate in these trials.”

Yan Chong merely smiled. “Since the trials can be passed, and such precious rewards are given, I doubt there’s much to worry about. If Xuetian truly has some scheme, there’s nothing we could do to stop it anyway. We can’t leave, and we have to participate in the trials, or else we’d just waste away here. After all, it’s the spirit of this array—everything is within its control.”

“Let’s hope I’m just overthinking it,” Chen Mu murmured, slowly shaking his head.

Xuetian gave everyone ample time to recover their strength. It was in no hurry; after all, it had waited through countless ages, so what was a little more time? Only when it saw that everyone had mostly recovered did Xuetian speak again, introducing the second trial: “Now that you’ve mostly recovered, let’s proceed to the second trial. In this round, you don’t need to kill any enemies—just survive for an hour and a half in the trial ground. Once the time is up, you will be transported back to the main hall.”

Having learned their lesson from the first round, everyone decided to lower the difficulty this time—this way, they could still pass and obtain valuable treasures. Accordingly, each person chose the door that suited them best.

Unexpectedly, Chen Mu chose the ninth door again. While everyone else was eager to lower the difficulty, he instead increased it—were his wits muddled? They did not know that Chen Mu’s greatest strength now was his defense. Mid-stage Yuan Core cultivators could not leave the slightest mark on him, and if he activated the Flood Dragon Scale Feather Vest, even late-stage Yuan Core attacks could be withstood.

Because everyone had a new understanding of the trials’ difficulty, only Chen Mu entered the ninth door. After stepping into the teleportation passage, he arrived at the trial ground.

Once everyone was in place, clay puppets began to appear out of thin air in the trial ground.

Seeing that the defenders were just clay puppets, the cultivators breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Xuetian explained, “These are Power Demon Puppets crafted by the demon race. Like the Blood Demon Souls, they have cores inside. Destroy the core, and the puppet collapses. But this round isn’t about killing—you just have to survive.”

Hearing the requirements were so simple, the cultivators began to chat and joke, even discussing the rewards from the previous round. This trial seemed so easy that everyone’s vigilance unconsciously slackened.

But Chen Mu did not relax at all; he sensed something was wrong. Hold out? Was this testing survival ability? Or defense? Yes—defense! These Power Demon Puppets must possess extraordinary might.

He seemed to see his own shadow in the puppets. Power Demon Puppets—breaking all techniques with sheer force—wasn’t that his own combat style? Facing enemies head-on with formidable physical strength. Thus, the puppets must have overwhelming power and toughness.

Sure enough, once the trial began, the Power Demon Puppets unleashed their brutal strength. Anyone struck by the howling fists of a puppet was instantly reduced to a mangled heap of flesh.

The crowd was terrified. They had never imagined the puppets would be so powerful. They had underestimated them.

The cultivators launched frantic attacks on the Power Demon Puppets, but only managed to inflict the slightest damage.

Dozens of puppets rampaged through the crowd. Their great strength and resilience were not the only threat—their movements were astonishingly agile, nothing like man-made constructs.

Chen Mu was confronted by the strongest puppet in his trial, with power on par with a late-stage Yuan Core cultivator. When it attacked, Chen Mu chose to meet it head-on with his body.

When their fists collided, Chen Mu suffered a major setback for the first time in terms of raw physical strength. After all, his body-refining realm was only at the middle stage of the Body-forging level. He was battered, his arms swollen and bruised, and bones fractured.

He had underestimated his foe. Retreating to a safe area, he frantically used his vital force to heal his injuries. Once recovered, he spat out a mouthful of blood, bared his teeth in a savage grin, and instantly activated the Flood Dragon Scale Feather Vest. Once his body was covered in pale scales, he charged forward again.

This time, though still at a disadvantage, he suffered only superficial wounds. Chen Mu, full of heroic spirit, exchanged blows with the puppet, fist to fist, foot to foot, both sides fiercely pummeling each other.

Every punch Chen Mu landed inflicted slight damage on the puppet, while the puppet’s blows split his skin and drew blood.

As fists and feet flew, Chen Mu, stepping nimbly with the Nine Nether Dust-Stepping technique, rapidly shifted his footwork. The hand-to-hand combat was exhilarating.

The cultivators who had chosen other doors, though suffering fewer casualties than the previous round, still lost many.

The main reason was underestimating the threat. Many were caught off guard by the puppets’ sudden attacks and died before they could react.

Now, most had switched to dodging and using ranged attacks to hinder the puppets, aiming to buy time and survive. This strategy quickly became the unspoken consensus.

Only Chen Mu continued to both evade and occasionally clash head-on with the puppet, honing his combat awareness and fighting techniques.

The heavy casualties pleased Xuetian greatly. But seeing Chen Mu’s performance, it was filled with bewilderment and suspicion. Since when had such a monstrous genius emerged on Yuan Yao Continent? Not only was his elemental force formidable, but his physical body was utterly abnormal as well.

Concealed in the shadows, Xuetian pondered for a moment, then made up its mind. For the sake of escaping this accursed place, Chen Mu was a valuable asset.

An hour and a half passed in the blink of an eye. The survivors were transported from the trial space back to the main hall.

Everyone was heavy-hearted. Once again, each sect and faction had lost many of their fellow disciples. Night Shadow Organization and Battle Demon Hall had lost nearly a third of their members. Only the exceptional cooperation and strength of Xu Changye and Yan Chong had allowed them to survive.

When the crowd saw Chen Mu emerge alive, they looked as if they had seen a ghost. For Chen Mu to survive such a difficult trial alone was simply unbelievable.

At the same time, they were jealous, for the reward for the ninth door was the most precious. Already, several Yuan Core experts were casting hostile looks at him, completely forgetting that he had survived the most difficult trial.

This time, Chen Mu had obtained a soul-cultivation secret art called “Refining Soul Tactic.” He had never heard of soul-cultivation methods on Yuan Yao Continent, and even in the Immortal Domain, such techniques were treasured classics, never shown lightly to outsiders.

Chen Mu felt a surge of excitement. He stored the manual in his storage ring and calmly waited for the third trial.

From his demeanor, everyone could tell he had won something valuable. Immediately, several Yuan Core cultivators, confident in their strength, approached Chen Mu. “Kid, hand over your reward. Please us, and we might spare your life.”

Without even looking at them, Chen Mu spat out a single word: “Scram.”

That man sneered, “You don’t know what’s good for you! Everyone, let’s go—once we kill him, his prize will be ours!”

His words incited many, and several mid-stage Yuan Core cultivators charged at Chen Mu, unleashing their deadliest attacks.

Chen Mu watched them impassively, neither happy nor angry, and charged in with his body alone.

In an instant, as the brawl erupted, Chen Mu’s savage assault sent flesh and blood flying in the circle of combat. The onlookers felt their scalps tingle. This fighting style—they recognized it at once. Wasn’t it just like the Power Demon Puppets in the trial? Was Chen Mu’s body really this terrifying?

The ringleader realized too late he had kicked a steel plate. Wanting to melt into the crowd, he found himself already locked onto by Chen Mu. How could such a petty villain hope to escape?

As Chen Mu charged toward this Yuan Core cultivator, the man’s scalp tingled, and he shouted, “It was just a misunderstanding—you can’t kill me!”

But Chen Mu turned a deaf ear, reaching out and seizing the man’s head. The man’s spells had no effect at all, and in an instant, his skull was crushed by Chen Mu.

At this bloody spectacle, those who had plotted against Chen Mu all shuddered. After just a few months, Chen Mu had become so fearsome. They hurried to report his survival to their sects.

Chen Mu’s show of force made those with ill intent abandon their schemes. Everyone then sat down to heal their wounds, waiting for the third trial to begin.

With two-thirds of the trial completed, Chen Mu could not shake a sense of foreboding. He was sure Xuetian was plotting something. Earlier, Xuetian had said that after clearing three rounds, they could claim the Dark Demon Soul Crystal. He resolved that he would never get involved with Xuetian’s schemes—no matter how precious the item, he would not be tempted.