Chapter 109: The Street at Dusk
As hushed whispers passed among the disciples, a voice suddenly echoed through the heavens and earth.
"All cultivators participating in the Wheel of Life and Death, step forward with your sect elders. The Wheel now opens!"
While listening to the chatter around him, Li Yan kept a close watch on the spherical mountain at the center. Suddenly, a sharp voice rang out, it was the Sword King Xiahua of the Ten-Step Court.
Immediately after, Elder Peng gave a low command.
"Let’s go!"
He rose into the air, heading straight for the central spherical peak. Bai Liyuan, Gan Shi, and Gong Chenying quickly followed, each summoning their own flying artifact midair.
Li Yan and the other Qi Condensation disciples, who couldn’t yet fly long distances unaided, swiftly darted toward the flying artifacts of their respective teams. Just as Li Yan leapt into the air, a teasing voice whispered in his ear.
"Little junior brother, be careful out there~"
He recognized the voice as Li Changting’s. Turning his head, he saw her standing side by side with Zhao Min, like twin lotus blossoms blooming on the same stem.
However, both looked pale and weary. Clearly, a night had passed and their energy had not yet recovered.
Seeing him turn around, Li Changting gave Zhao Min a sly wink. The latter remained as cold as ever, but when she noticed Li Yan’s gaze, she could only offer a faint, helpless nod in response.
"Senior Sister! Senior Brother! Wait for me to return and treat me to some wine!"
Li Yan shouted back with a grin before flying off.
Li Changting blinked in surprise, then a pleased smile crept across her face. With a mixture of mischief and mockery, she glanced at a visibly awkward Li Wuyi and murmured softly:
"Mhm, wine… good wine… plenty of wine brewed with love bugs!"
Zhao Min, upon hearing Li Yan's parting words, let a rare smile bloom on her pale face. In that moment, she was like a lone lily in full bloom atop the clouds, peerless and serene.
Gong Chenying’s flying magic tool was a white jade boat, something Li Yan had seen before in the Spiritual Plant Garden. Bai Liyuan’s was a massive gourd, while Gan Shi used a grand banner. The three artifacts soared swiftly toward Elder Peng.
Before long, all the gathered cultivators had arrived above the spherical mountain. They landed, keeping some distance between each group.
Elder Peng, the Sword King Xiahua, and Yin Congfeng each retrieved a triangular, earthen-brown object and cast them into the sky. With swift hand seals, they sent spiritual energy into the artifacts. The three triangular pieces trembled and locked together into a single, compass-shaped object once more.
This time, however, no Core Formation cultivators from the Pure Land Sect or Grand Profound Sect joined in to suppress it. The compass spun wildly in the sky, releasing beams of colored light downward like a firework display.
Li Yan stared at the rotating lights overhead, already imagining how grim the expressions of the elders from the Pure Land and Grand Profound Sects must be.
After emitting twenty beams of light, the compass abruptly stopped spinning. Unlike before, it didn’t expand and float overhead, but instead split back into three parts and shot down toward Elder Peng and the other two.
The twenty beams of light struck different regions of the spherical mountain below. In those spots, the green vegetation began to twist and ripple, then slowly revealed a series of translucent tunnels.
Above each tunnel hovered a blue, translucent rhombus crystal. Dazzling and beautiful, they seemed impossible to part with yet at their core, each had a single dot of identical color.
Li Yan understood what this meant: if someone from another tunnel chose the same color core as you, your paths would never intersect, and you would not battle one another.
However, no more than five tunnels could share the same core color, otherwise, the trial wouldn’t initiate.
Each tunnel had to be led by a higher-realm cultivator, accompanied by exactly thirty-six disciples of the realm beneath. If the number or cultivation levels didn’t meet the criteria, the trial couldn’t start.
And if all twenty tunnels were not simultaneously filled with matching teams, the trial would not open.
"Team leaders, step forward and choose your crystal!"
The Sword King Xiahua put away the brown artifact and barked coldly.
Gong Chenying and the others exchanged glances before flying toward three adjacent tunnels with their teams. The other sects and beast clans followed suit, landing by their respective tunnel entrances.
After arriving, Li Yan and the others stepped down from the white jade boat and stood at the entrance of their tunnel, bathed in the glowing light. Beneath their feet lay a path of white luminescence, a transparent bridge leading down to a twisted portal amidst the vegetation.
Within the portal, thick white mist churned slowly, so dense it looked like blinding liquid. There was no telling what lay beyond.
Once everyone had taken their places, Bai Liyuan, Gan Shi, and Gong Chenying glanced at one another and then around at the other sects. Seeing no one had yet chosen a rhomboid crystal, Bai Liyuan pointed at one above with a purple core. The others instantly understood.
All three reached up and grasped the blue crystals with purple cores above them. In that instant, a vivid purple light flared across their tunnels.
The transparent pathways and the thick white mist within instantly turned a dazzling shade of purple. The three teams were bathed in a sea of violet.
This unexpected sight drew the attention of the other seventeen teams.
Among the crystals above them, there were still some with purple cores. If any of them chose those, only two more teams could share the same core color, none of which would face Li Yan’s team.
As Gong Chenying and the others made their choice, Li Yan swept his gaze across the remaining seventeen teams, eyes narrowing with a faint sneer.
“So... apart from the beast clans, the other three sects had already chosen their Wheel of Life and Death team leaders.”
From Ten Steps Court: Wang Lang, Liang Liang, Miao Zhengyi.
From the Grand Profound Sect: Quan Jiuxing and Qiu Jiu.
From the Pure Land Sect: the chan monks Zhi Liao and Zhi Wei, plus two others whose names Li Yan didn’t know.
Wraith Sect had already noticed these individuals yesterday. After the havesting trial, they’d all returned looking refreshed and vigorous.
When handing over their storage pouches, the Core Formation elders hardly examined the contents, instead they seemed far more focused on the cultivators' physical condition.
That realization made the Wraith disciples suspicious: these people likely hadn’t exerted themselves at all during the previous trial. They might have simply hidden somewhere to preserve strength for the Wheel of Life and Death.
Gong Chenying and the other team leaders had clearly seen this as well. Their expressions were grave.
Just then, a sharp gaze swept over them, sending a chill down the spines of Wraith Sect’s Qi Condensation disciples. Looking up, they saw it was Wang Lang from Ten Steps Court, his sharp brows and eyes exuding authority.
Their team had chosen a blue crystal with a white core. Wang Lang's lips curled in a cold smile, his eyes sweeping over the Wraith disciples like he was already viewing corpses.
More hostile gazes followed, from the Grand Profound Sect and even a few beast clans. It was clear the beasts bore no goodwill toward any of the human sects, casting glances at the other three factions as well.
Meanwhile, the monks from the Pure Land Sect quietly chose three matching crystals, heads lowered with seemingly benevolent expressions.
Li Yan watched all nine teams from the three sects. Though they had dropped all pretense of goodwill toward Wraith Sect, they exchanged no signals and displayed no suspicious behavior. How were they planning to act against Wraith Sect?
“Still no movement... Could it be they’re waiting until the moment we step into the tunnels?” Li Yan thought to himself.
Fixing his gaze on Wang Lang, he refused to blink, determined to catch the slightest clue. Watching all nine leaders was impossible, so he focused on just one.
“Selections complete. Initiate!”
A cold shout rang out, shattering Li Yan’s focus. He’d seen nothing suspicious from Wang Lang.
At the Sword King's command, all Qi Condensation disciples followed their team leaders, each holding a crystal and stepped into their respective tunnels.
Li Yan’s final glance at Wang Lang revealed nothing unusual. If anything, it was that Wang Lang had simply been the first to step into the glowing white passage…
A cascade of swirling lights enveloped Li Yan. Countless colors flickered across the skies, creating a surreal vision. It felt like an eternity and yet, only an instant.
When Li Yan came to, he found himself standing on a dimly lit street.
Looking around in confusion, he saw that their group of thirty-seven stood at the mouth of a narrow road, winding into the distance beneath a dusk-hued sky.
Shops, taverns, and storefronts lined both sides, with signs and banners fluttering gently in the breeze.
What made it eerie was the silence.
No vendors’ calls.
No bustling crowds.
No barking dogs or crowing roosters.
Only silence, profound and unbroken.
Even the swaying signs and banners moved without a sound, the entire scene so still that it stirred a deep melancholy within the heart.
As a few dry leaves skittered across the ground, Gong Chenying at the forefront put away her crystal and cautiously stepped forward.
Her footfall made a light pa sound, breaking the stillness. Startled by the sudden noise, Gong Chenying paused, confirming it was her own step before glancing back at the others.
The rest had flinched at the sound. Meeting her gaze, they exchanged looks and silently followed her lead.
Suddenly, the lifeless street gained a flicker of vitality.
“Maintain a distance of three zhang. Six-person squads. Fan out and remain alert in all directions.”
Gong Chenying didn’t look back. Her calm voice floated through the air, clear and unwavering.
They had already arranged team assignments beforehand. The group quickly split into six squads, scanning their surroundings with spiritual sense.
“L-Little Martial Uncle... it’s starting already?”
A voice echoed in Li Yan’s mind, making him jolt. Turning, he saw it was Senior Brother Wu from Spirit Insect Peak, the scarred dark-skinned man who’d first guided him into the sect.
Beside him stood another familiar figure: Senior Brother Yu, also from Spirit Insect Peak, who nodded at Li Yan with a smile.
Li Yan had always thought well of these two. Though he’d known they were part of his team, the different peaks had formed their own cliques, and he hadn’t approached them.
He hadn’t expected them to come to his side, nor to address him as “Little Uncle.” Clearly, Wu was still a bit unused to the title.
“Probably not yet,” Li Yan replied briefly.
“Oh? Why do you think so?”
Wu hesitated before asking.
“Because... there’s no giant shadow behind us yet.”
As he sent the message, Li Yan turned and glanced over his shoulder.
(Chapter End)