Chương 36: Chapter 35 – The Trial Concludes

The jostling movement woke up Zhao Ren. It took him a moment to blearily open his eyes and take in his surroundings. He was being carried. From his vantage, all he could see was the ground and the legs of the one carrying him. Muffled whispering reached his ears.

"I thought I was done for when I felt something hit my back! I kept waiting to be finished off when I realized how light the weight on me was."

"Hush, I think he's awake. Are you injured anywhere, Ren? Put him down carefully, Hua!" Ren was laid next to a gnarled trunk. He was finally conscious enough to ask,"Where are we? Did we make it out?!" Hua laughed and pointed up. Ren's gaze followed to the sky where the moon was its usual color and the blood red comet was nowhere to be seen.

"We made it out in time. We're a short distance from the frontier camp."

"What happened to you there at the end? Nobody saw anything." Mei Ling asked him curiously. Ren's fists clenched as he recalled the betrayal.

"It was Mo Ying. He attacked me from behind." Hua just looked clueless, muttering, "Who…?"

"Why would he attack you?" Mei Ling looked deadly serious all of a sudden. That cold look usually meant someone's meal was going to receive an extra seasoning of poison.

"I'm not sure, but I think he held a grudge for losing at the tournament. I can't believe it myself. It makes no sense!" Neither of the two had seen Mo Ying since they left, and Ren, going by his last memory, didn't think Mo Ying had much chance of surviving. They didn't know what to say to Ren that could help. Bao Hua awkwardly patted his shoulder. Mei Ling just said, "People do things for all kinds of reasons. We can try guessing why he did it, but ultimately it doesn't matter now. I'm just glad you're alive."

Bao Hua picked up Ren, who was still too injured to walk just yet. Together they silently trudged back. Once they left the forest, they could see the large crowd assembled in the camp. Seeing that the elders of all the sects were about to address them, Ren held off on going to the medical tents. As the last of the survivors trickled in, the patriarch of the Heavenly Sword Sect began speaking.

"Well done on surviving! I hope the trial pushed you to greater heights. With its conclusion, we will host an inter-sect tournament in a month's time. This tournament will serve not just to exchange pointers with the best of your peers but also for earning further rewards. So go recover, meditate, and breakthrough. Digest your gains and become even stronger." The sect leader's presence had a gentle touch. He stepped back and began speaking with the other elders.

Amongst them, Ren could clearly see the ugly expressions on the Hidden Sea Sect's elders and on some of the Celestial Instruments Sect.

'Subo was probably right about them having to pay reparations.' He idly thought. After receiving some healing, Ren made his way to his courtyard, ready to sleep for a week! The next morning, despite his wounds still restricting movement, he slowly made his way to the courtyard of the disciple in whose care he had left his pet Myriad Path tortoises. This disciple was one he liked and trusted, the one who liked to have discussions about tea. The tortoises all looked healthy, clearly having been well looked after.

He gave her three cores from the blood beasts in addition to what he had already paid her and thanked her sincerely. He carried his pets back to his home, occasionally petting them. He had missed the cute little fellows. His courtyard was a little barren without any spirit herbs, but it still had a higher level of qi than the outside. It didn't matter much since he wasn't going to stay here much longer anyway. In the rush to become eligible for the trial, he had only registered as an inner sect disciple.

He hadn't yet found an abode to move into. Nor had he gotten accustomed to the rules of the inner sect. There was much that he had put off that he now needed to address. There was nothing he needed to do right away except sleep but what he truly desired was to sort and trade the loot he had gathered! He had risked a lot, lost sleep, even been injured, but he had definitely earned more than enough to make it worth it. 27 cores and 14 corpses of the 9th layer qi gathering realm blood beasts.

46 cores and 9 corpses of 3rd or 4th layer foundation realm slasher beasts. 19 assorted spirit plants including the red blossoms and one lotus. An entire blood pool and the large red crystal he found at its base. A large chunk of lunar silver. A large patch of flesh-eating moss. A number of insect cocoons on a branch. Large quantities of beast bones. 1 small yin flame with yet unclear properties. 1 spatial pouch and 20 spirit stones. Zhao Ren was wealthy beyond belief!!

The beast corpses had largely come from their desperate escape. While he split the qi gathering ones with his friends, his solo hunt of the foundation realm slashers had been incredibly successful. Ren didn't know the exact value of the cores, but they were definitely worth several hundred spirit stones. He could also feed his tortoises with them. They were already looking at the pile in curiosity, drawn in by the large amounts of qi emanating from it.

As for the blood pool and the moss, he already had an idea he wanted to implement. If it worked, he stood to earn a lot. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. The cocoons he had found on a vibrant tree while hunting. Amidst the gnarled trees, this one had stood out from its neighbors with how it was teeming with life. He had kept the sparkling white cocoons as a curiosity, but maybe some insect cultivator would be interested.

The spatial pouch would have cost him a 100 spirit stones or a mid-grade spirit stone, but he was spared that cost now. It had already proved its usefulness by allowing him to bring back his current treasure trove. By far the best prize was the yin flame. It would need to be nurtured over time, and he needed to find out its exact properties, but when it grew enough, he could begin really raking in the wealth. He still couldn't believe his luck!

At the thought of luck, his memories drifted to that strange feeling that had filled him during Mo Ying's treachery. He didn't know what had caused it or what instinct had told him to accept the blow instead of dodging it, but he was glad he had listened. If he tried to dodge, he would have been killed the next instant by the spiked beast. Instead, he had been pushed away by the attack, leaving Mo Ying to face the beast. Was it luck? Danger sense? Something to do with his cultivation method?

All Ren knew was that feeling wasn't something simple. Such providence couldn't be an accident, but at the moment he couldn't think of what might have brought it about. Giving up for now, he ate another healing pill and went back to sleep. A few days later he was recovered enough to leave his courtyard. Bao Hua wasn't home, so he decided to go find out more news about what else had happened in the sect. He decided to visit Hu Yan, who should be at the contribution hall.

He could also find out more about moving to the inner sect. Maybe he could visit the market if he were feeling well enough. Ren slowly made his way to the sect, encountering many disciples he recognized on the way. They all greeted him politely, even those who looked older than him. Initially, Ren was taken aback but slowly understood. He was an inner sect disciple now, and the robes he wore showed it. By sect law, he was of a higher standing than outer court disciples, no matter their age.

He continued walking, trying to ignore the strange feeling. The air around the sect was festive. With the return of the participants of the trial, there was an influx of resources, rumors, and fascinating foreign cultivators. The sect was abuzz with discussion. The trial was on everyone's tongues, and so was the upcoming tournament. From the fragments of the many conversations he overheard on the way, Ren already knew that there were many theories about the voice that marked the end of the trial.

The most popular seemed to be that it belonged to the blood moon elder. There were many more theories on the 'Ancient' to whom it had been supplicating. His sedate pace finally brought him to the Hall of Contribution, which was busy as ever. The qi gathering realm disciples still went about completing the sect's missions even if the abundant beast tide was over. There he saw a small crowd gathered around Hu Yan as if he were giving away coin. Wanting to take care of business first, Ren walked to the counter.

The middle-aged man at the counter saw his inner sect robes and greeted him first.

"Greetings, Senior. How may I serve you?" Ren handed over his inner sect identification jade.

"I had registered to join the inner sect in order to participate in the trial. But I haven't actually entered yet. I was told that someone would be appointed to guide the way?" The man nodded knowingly.

"Yes, that's right. There are many others like you, so the inner sect senior who usually shows the way is waiting to gather a few disciples to help you all at the same time. If Senior returns in two days' time, then they will be here to take you to the inner sect." With that sorted, Ren made his way over to Hu Yan and tried to catch his attention. Hu Yan's eyes lit up when he saw Ren, and he hurried over.

"Brother Ren, I'm glad to see you well! How was the trial?" He was clearly too excited to exchange casual greetings. Ren didn't tease him either. He shared most of the details of his experience. Hu Yan must have heard most of it already, but he seemed to value Ren's detailed descriptions more. He was already inscribing the information into a jade slip. Ren only avoided personal details and wrapped up his tale. He then asked Hu Yan what else had happened since the trial closed.

Hu Yan, only too glad to return the favor, launched into a telling of news and rumors with the look of someone who had started eating a delicious meal.

"A direct disciple of elder Jiao Yue confirmed that the voice was that of the blood moon elder and that the ancient being referred to was likely an entity known as the Blood Emperor. I haven't yet found out much about this person. Do you think this Ancient and the comet are linked? I even heard a rumor that the comet was actually a drop of blood from a powerful cultivator, so I thought it was possible." Ren had heard something similar from Xi Yuan before.

Xi Yuan, whom he hadn't seen a trace of in the trial from start to finish. He shook his head to chase away the thought and focused back on what Hu Yan was saying.

"Some core disciples actually brought back techniques and cultivation manuals, but the elders have requested to review them before they shall allow them to be practiced. It must be regarding concerns of demonic influences. The elders have once again announced that any such methods can be turned in for great rewards." Hu Yan was just getting warmed up. His genial smile told of many more interesting morsels of news.

"There will be an auction in the inner sect before the tournament. This is unverified, but I heard it's mainly to display our wealth to the other sects. Us lowly disciples won't be able to afford much. But not to worry, the next market day is going to include both inner and outer sect disciples, so we'll get an opportunity to trade in about 4 days! There should be a great many wonderous treasures from the inheritance trial." There was something to look forward to!

Ren needed to convert some of his treasures into spirit stones. He would be moving into the inner sect soon and needed a lot of funds if he wanted to set up his abode to his standards. He was already starting to make plans on what he needed that he almost didn't hear Hu Yan's next comment.

"Oh and have you heard about the Challenger? Apparently someone set up trials all around the mountains. People said there was originally a reward, but now people are participating simply to test themselves." Ren froze.

'They what?!' He urgently pressed for more information.

"Tell me more about this challenger, brother Hu! Why are people testing themselves if there's no reward?"

"Heh, you find it amusing too? It's because there's a ranking at the end of the trial that allows the name and timing of the one who solves it to be recorded. Turns out the disciples of the Heavenly Sword Sect love a challenge and a chance to earn glory. Who knew? A second one was discovered about 10 days ago and was quickly swarmed by interested disciples. Now, everyone is keeping an eye out for more such challenges. I can give you their location if you'd like?" Ren thanked him in a daze.

This was much bigger than he expected! He had added the timing feature to the formation for his own purposes, to keep track of how quickly the challenges were solved. He barely remembered adding it! He didn't realize that people would use it to compete just for the sake of glory! Then something occurred to him.

"If the challenges have been getting this much attention recently, then this could be the variable that changed!" Ren had theorized long ago that taking actions that followed your dao could bring fortune. Maybe this was why he had been able to turn disaster into opportunity with Mo Ying?! His heart was beating like a drum in his chest. If he was right, then this changed everything!