Chapter 187 – An Endless Plain
RRRumble…
Along with the collapse of the Stone Dragon General, the enormous stone gate in which it came from slowly opened. Subsequently, the Primordial Azure Dragon’s pleased voice came from overhead:
“Very good. Young human, you have allowed me to see a shocking result. In these ten thousand years that I’ve stayed on this continent, you are the first person to pass this stage of the trial. During these ten thousand years of wait, I have regretted multiple times about leaving a trace of my soul and strength on this piece of land, because the level of strength within this continent is just too low; it made me gradually realize that the trial I had left behind was something that humans on this continent could never pass… Fortunately, I met you.”
“You have already passed the first stage of the trial. Not only did you pass with a two-fold difficulty level, you also accomplished this while being tied down; you have allowed me to see the greatest of hope. The second stage’s trial ground gate has already opened. After making sufficient preparations, go in the opened stone gate and you will enter the second stage’s trial ground. I wish you good fortune.”
The opened stone gate was the second trial’s gate.
The first stage of the trial was so terrifying that the second and the third stage were bound to be even more challenging… It was unknown as to what degree of brutality awaited.
The Frozen Soul Barrier was still in place because Yun Che had eliminated the Stone Dragon General in a span of fifteen minutes.
“It’s finally alright now.” Yun Che went back to Chu Yuechan’s side and helped her adjust to a more comfortable laying position. He extended his hand, slowly guided his profound energy into her body, and helped her circulate her internal energy and blood.
Chu Yuechan’s half opened eyes blankly stared at him for a long while. Then, she softly asked: “How did you recover from your injuries and regain your strength so fast?”
Yun Che did not want to lie to her, so he replied immediately: “The profound art I cultivate is capable of speeding up the recovery of my injuries and can restore my strength.”
“Can you tell me the name of this profound art?” Chu Yuechan asked softly. At her level, profound arts that piqued her interest were indeed not many. She knew many profound arts that could speed up the recovery of injuries and restore strength like Recovery Arts, Nine Cycle Recovery Arts, the Divine Art of the Fleeting Flowers and Snowy Moon, and so on. But the injuries Yun Che had received were severe. It was extremely clear to her that he had used up too much power, so much that it had been critically overused to the point that it affected his lifespan… Yet it only took six hours to fully recover. Even added together, all the powerful recovery profound arts that she knew of were incapable of displaying such a shocking result.
Yun Che slightly hesitated but still said it out loud: “You probably have never heard of this profound art’s name. It is called the Great Way of the Buddha.”
“Great Way of the Buddha…” Chu Yuechan pondered lightly as her eyes flashed with confusion. She indeed had never heard of this art before.
“A profound strength at the middle of the True Profound Realm… in such a short period of time… slaughtered a thousand opponents of the same level… And even easily executed an enemy whose level far surpassed his own by a whole great realm… Even though your profound strength matches your age and you can only be considered an ordinary genius, your innate talent in using your profound strength… Perhaps even Xia Qingyue… is inferior… Your master must be… a very extraordinary person.”
It was the first time she said that many words, and Chu Yuechan was already out of breath. For her, who treasured words more than gold, to suddenly say so much, also revealed how much Yun Che had shocked her.
“Mn, I have two masters and they’re both very extraordinary.” Yun Che nodded as he smiled: “One of my masters taught me medical arts and how to to be human. The other master taught me all kinds of profound arts. Both of them gave me a new lease in life; without them, the current me would not exist.”
Chu Yuechan closed her eyes and spoke no more. She relaxed and then the feeling of weakness and exhaustion came at the same time. Not long after, she fell fast asleep.
With completely destroyed profound veins and meridians that were almost all broken, it undoubtedly took an enormous amount of perseverance to have remained conscious for so long. And what made Yun Che exceptionally happy, was the fact that he no longer felt the desire to die from her body.
Yun Che did not immediately enter the second stage’s gate. Instead, he calmly watched over Chu Yuechan at her side. Dragon Fault was still in his hands, and had not disappeared along with the Stone Dragon General when it died.
When Chu Yuechan awoke, it was already the morning of the second day. Although her body was still weak after being treated by a night of Yun Che’s profound energy flow and warmth, her complexion had already improved greatly.
“Here, drink some water first.” Yun Che lifted Chu Yuechan’s upper body and allowed her to lean against his chest. After passing the water over her lips, he watched her take small little sips. Perhaps he had never thought that there would come a day in which he would be holding this Little Fairy, who was at summit of the Blue Wind Empire, and helping her drink water in the same way one would carefully feed an infant. Chu Yuechan herself would never have thought of this happening either… And at this moment, even Chu Yuechan herself was not aware that she had not strongly rejected Yun Che’s intimate touch, but instead had a very strange sense of security. But all of this was summed up to be because of her completely crippled body; it was fundamentally impossible for her to take care of herself, and she didn’t even have the ability to resist.
In her current state, Chu Yuechan could only eat plain watery food. Fortunately, Yun Che had purchased a few grains at an inn before entering the Wasteland of Death. He boiled a little pot of porridge using the phoenix flame and then helped her drink it. After all preparations were in order, he lifted Chu Yuechan and headed toward the gate of the trial’s second stage.
After slowly entering the stone gate, his vision became pitch-black. Then, he took two more steps forward and it suddenly lightened up; it was as if it only took two steps to completely step over from one world into another.
What appeared before his eyes was a vast expanse of an endless plain. Grass covered the ground and there were also trees that gave shade; even the faint sound of running water could be heard. There were short hills in the distance that rose and fell. Occasionally, the cries of all kinds of birds and animals could be heard.
This place’s refreshingly delightful atmosphere and smells were also completely different than the previous location’s. Yun Che turned around and still saw the endless plain; there were simply no signs of any mountain walls or stone gates. He immediately understood then, that he did not walk through some stone gate, but rather a transportation formation.
“This is… the next trial ground? It doesn’t seem… to have any hint of danger.” Chu Yuechang said softly.
It was also at this time that the Primordial Azure Dragon’s voice sounded.
“Young human, welcome. This place, is the Dragon God Trial’s second trial ground. This trial ground has no limit, and also has no exit. You can only leave this place after you have successfully completed the trial. Or perhaps you would be buried here before completing the trial.”
“There are an innumerable amount of profound beasts here in this endless plain. The level of the profound beasts here have all been adjusted with your strength as the benchmark. Also, as a result of the two-fold difficulty level you have to bear, every single profound beast here is not lower than the Spirit Profound Realm. As for some of the more powerful profound beasts, their strength far surpasses the Stone Dragon General that you had killed.”
“To these profound beasts, this place is an endless paradise. But to you, this place is extremely dangerous; it is an abyss filled with countless shadows of death. This is because once the profound beasts here sense your aura, they would all immediately unleash an endless barrage of attacks. At the same time, under my soul’s guidance, profound beasts near you would all be led in your direction. You would be hunted at all times by profound beasts and would never be able to sleep soundly or eat in peace.”
Yun Che: “…”
Yun Che did not have any obvious reactions to all of that, but the Primordial Azure Dragon’s following words almost made Yun Che spit out a mouthful of blood.
“And your objective in clearing this second stage of the trial is also very easy. It is to kill ninety-nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine profound beasts, within one year!”