Chapter 111: The Trial Space and the Struggle for Points

“No, no, that’s not how it is—!”

Suddenly, a roar rang out across the starry heavens. In an instant, the entire firmament changed color as countless wormholes, black holes, and planets collided with one another, as though the universe itself were about to be destroyed.

At the place where Lin Fan had died, an explosive boom resounded. Countless bloody flames surged into the sky, covering the entire universe in a sea of crimson.

Lin Fan, dressed in a long robe, slowly rose from within the blood flames. His eyes were completely silver-white.

Crack!

The entire universe shattered like glass, revealing Lin Fan’s figure. At that moment, however, his head hung slightly lowered. Beads of sweat slid from his forehead, while most of his face remained buried beneath his long hair.

An inexplicable gloom emanated from Lin Fan. His killing intent was almost tangible, as though it were about to blot out the heavens.

“Wake up, young man. You have passed the academy’s second illusion trial!”

Suddenly, an aged voice rang out. It was like a spring breeze washing over him, and Lin Fan’s entire body trembled. The gloom and killing intent vanished in an instant. He raised his head, and his expression once more became calm and detached.

Standing before Lin Fan was a short old man, barely five feet tall and slightly stooped. His hair and beard were completely white, and he stood with his hands clasped behind his back, gazing at Lin Fan with a kindly expression.

“Young man, are you all right?”

Lin Fan bowed slightly and saluted him, then smiled. “I’m fine.”

His expression was utterly serene, entirely unlike the terrifying killing intent that had filled the air moments before. He looked as pure and harmless as a simple young man.

Hearing this, the old man smiled. “Good. As long as you’re fine. No matter how deep the blood feud you carry, never lose yourself. If you want revenge, then cultivate diligently. Of course, besides cultivation, there are many beautiful things in this world. You should experience them.”

“Such as?” Lin Fan asked.

The old man gazed into the distance. “For instance, at least once in your life, you should forget yourself for someone. Forget cultivation, forget fame and fortune. Ask for no result, no companionship, no possession—not even love in return.”

“All you need is to meet her during the most beautiful years of your life, fulfill a promise written by fate, and bring to completion one beautiful encounter…”

Lin Fan seemed to understand something. After pondering for a moment, he asked, “How can two people remain together for a long time?”

“Interfere in her life, restrict her hobbies, and constantly test the loyalty of her feelings for no reason. If a problem can be solved through a cold war, never argue. Point out all her faults and shortcomings as often as possible. If she refuses to change, threaten her with separation!”

Lin Fan hesitated. “Are you serious?”

“Of course! As long as you perfectly avoid everything I just mentioned, you should probably be able to stay together for a long time. In truth, I used to have a very bad temper. But there was one sentence that cured me of all my temper. I hope you can take it to heart.”

“Elder, please tell me.” Lin Fan bowed respectfully.

“If I had known that the days I would have with you were so few, I would never have argued with you.”

When those words reached Lin Fan’s ears, he was shaken to the core.

In his previous life, because of a misunderstanding, he and she had gone thousands of years without speaking a single word. By the time he wanted to apologize, they had already been separated forever—and he had died.

Even if the truth was that he had not truly died, but that his soul had crossed over into this world, then in the eyes of everyone in that other world, he was already dead.

She must have been heartbroken…

Perhaps she had gone completely mad, staining vast stretches of the star region with blood in order to avenge him.

Lin Fan’s expression darkened. Seeing this, the old man smiled and said, “Little fellow, it seems I have nothing to worry about. Not only do you carry a blood feud, but there is also someone you cannot let go of in your heart. I need not fear that you will lose yourself.”

“Thank you, Elder, for solving some of the questions in my heart. They have troubled me for a very long time. I will certainly repay today’s kindness in the future.”

Lin Fan bowed a third time.

Although the old man knew that Lin Fan carried a blood feud and did not want him to lose himself completely, he had tried to open a breach in Lin Fan’s heart. That breach would become the place where his future beloved might enter.

At the same time, Lin Fan had sensed the old man’s enormous spiritual power. It seemed that the old man had intended to hypnotize him, though without malicious intent. He merely wished to ease the hatred in Lin Fan’s heart.

But even if the old man meant well, Lin Fan could not allow himself to be hypnotized. If he truly fell under its influence and revealed something he should not, the result would be fatal. He immediately used his spiritual power to repel the old man’s soul force.

Fortunately, the soul force the old man employed was not especially powerful. It was merely equivalent to the Meridian Opening Realm.

Still, the old man’s words had stirred questions buried deep within Lin Fan’s heart—questions whose answers he had sought for many years without success. That was why he had asked them aloud.

The old man’s response had been unconventional, yet it had suddenly illuminated everything for Lin Fan. He immediately bowed to the old man.

This bow was neither a formal salute nor an act of empty courtesy. It came from the depths of his heart, offered in his former identity as the God of Blades. Perhaps the old man would never understand it, but Lin Fan knew precisely how much that bow meant.

In the future, he would surely repay the old man generously.

“All right, little fellow. Go on to the next trial.” The old man waved dismissively after receiving Lin Fan’s salute.

Lin Fan straightened and nodded before walking toward the next room. He was not afraid that the old man would investigate his memories while he was deep within the illusion. His spiritual power was simply too vast, and the illusion itself did not possess such a function.

This illusion was probably designed to test the will of young experts, while also determining whether they were spies from enemy nations. Lin Fan’s will was so tenacious that he had torn the illusion apart. Naturally, he had passed.

As for the illusion used to test spies, it was perhaps different.

Yet after tearing the illusion apart, Lin Fan had been unwilling to awaken. Moments earlier, he had once again experienced that blood-soaked hatred and overwhelming grievance.

“Ancestor, this young man’s physical strength and spiritual power are astonishing. He has actually reached the Meridian Opening Realm…”

Just as Lin Fan’s figure vanished into the distance, a burly middle-aged man appeared beside the old man. He seemed hesitant to speak.

The old man was not surprised by his arrival in the slightest.

“So what? There are plenty of young experts who have encountered great opportunities. That girl has already reached the mid-stage of the Meridian Opening Realm, and those little fellows have all reached the early stage. Don’t make such a fuss. Now that our Ice and Snow Kingdom is flourishing under the reign of the Heavenly Dragon, it is only natural that more geniuses are emerging than usual. This is a good thing, a very good thing!”

The old man shook his head as he spoke. Before the middle-aged man could respond, his figure had already vanished.

“…”

The middle-aged man pondered for a moment. He took out a recording jade and seemed about to write something down, but in the end he shook his head as well and disappeared from the spot.

“Congratulations, young man. You have passed the bone-age and illusion trials. Hand me your identity token.”

When Lin Fan entered the third room, the view before him suddenly opened up. To his surprise, he found himself in an enormous plaza where tens of thousands of people had already gathered.

The place he emerged from was an entrance. An old man stood there, smiling as he spoke to him.

“This old man is rather amiable.”

Lin Fan praised him inwardly. He handed over his student token, then looked around.

The plaza resembled an arena. It was circular, enclosed by walls more than thirty feet high. Beneath those walls were a series of doors like the one behind him, from which young experts continuously emerged.

“Could the third trial be combat?”

Lin Fan’s thoughts stirred as he made a tentative guess.

At that moment, the old man transformed the jade token in his hand into a bronze medallion and handed it to Lin Fan.

“The trial that follows will take place in an alternate dimension. You will compete with one another by plundering points. You currently have one point. During the next three months, you must strive to seize as many points as possible. After three months, the five thousand people with the highest scores will become disciples of the Heavenly Book Academy.”

“If you are not among the top five thousand after three months, your trial will be declared a failure, and you will regretfully be unable to become a disciple of the Heavenly Book Academy this year.”

“If you encounter a fatal attack and the bronze medallion determines that you are unable to resist, the teleportation array contained within it will send you out of the alternate dimension. Of course, if you feel that you no longer have any hope of completing the trial, you may also activate the teleportation array and leave.”

“However, in either case, the trial will be considered a failure.”

“Likewise, if your points are plundered by someone else and reduced to zero, you will also be teleported out of the alternate dimension after ten consecutive days, thereby losing your qualification.”

“You can also earn points by killing fierce beasts in the alternate dimension. A third-tier fierce beast is worth one point, a fourth-tier fierce beast is worth ten points, and a fifth-tier fierce beast is worth one hundred points.”

“At the same time, this bronze medallion will emit different lights as your points increase. One to ten points will produce a cyan glow. Ten to one hundred points will produce a silver glow. One hundred to one thousand points will produce a golden glow. One thousand to ten thousand points will produce a violet glow. Ten thousand to one hundred thousand points will produce a scarlet glow. Anything above one hundred thousand points will produce a blood-red glow.”

“However, you can forget about the scarlet and blood-red glows. There are only a few tens of thousands of students who have passed the second trial and will participate in the third. By the time the third trial officially begins, there probably will not be more than seventy thousand. Of those seventy thousand, twenty thousand have already reached the Qi Meridian Realm.”

“Even if you truly eliminated ten thousand people and obtained more than ten thousand points, you would not be able to hold on to them against so many experts. You should focus on breaking through as quickly as possible during these three months. The energy in the alternate dimension is three times denser than that of the outside world. Combined with the many opportunities hidden within, it might allow you to advance several more steps.”

“Here is a friendly reminder: points are not merely for this trial. They will also be extremely useful within the academy. For new students, competing for points is the fastest way to obtain them—there is no other. So I hope you will cherish this opportunity and acquire as many points as possible.”

After saying all this, the old man did not wait for Lin Fan to respond. He waved his hand, indicating that Lin Fan could leave. Then the door behind Lin Fan opened, and another young man emerged.

Lin Fan nodded in acknowledgment and walked toward the distance. Although the old man had spoken continuously without giving him a chance to ask questions, he was still a decent person. That friendly reminder had been genuinely helpful.

Perhaps the old man had sensed that he was unusual and had given him special consideration in the hope of forming a favorable connection.

“Congratulations, young man. You have passed the bone-age and illusion trials. Hand me your identity token.”

“…”

“Here is a friendly reminder…”

Lin Fan had not gone far when he heard those words. His expression immediately darkened, and he nearly stumbled.

He had just been thinking that the old man was amiable and might have treated him with special consideration in the hope of forming a favorable connection.

So it turned out the old man had merely been following a routine script!

Never mind, never mind… A great man should not quarrel with a petty one.

Lin Fan stopped dwelling on the depressing subject and examined the bronze medallion in his hand.

His name was engraved on the front, with a cyan number one beneath it. The back depicted the ancient and dignified architectural complex of the Heavenly Book Academy.

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