Brocade Robe Unparalleled

Chapter 115 The trial begins

"In the city outside, houses stand side by side, and some streets are so wide that a dozen or so carriages can pass at the same time. On both sides of the streets are all kinds of shops, selling all kinds of things..."

Do you sell Gu worms?

"That's not..."

"They say there's lots of good food outside..."

Compared to the resource-poor Jiuli tribe, there are naturally many more delicious foods outside. Lin Xuan nodded and said, "Yes, there are candied hawthorns for sale on the street, sugar figurines, and all kinds of pastries..."

Aya couldn't help but lick her lips: "I heard them say that pastries are delicious, do you know how to make them?"

Lin Xuan fell into a brief silence.

He can make many kinds of pastries, all of which were taught to him by A-Luo.

"Why don't you speak?"

"know a little."

"When we get back, could you make some pastries? I haven't tried any yet!"

"can."

"Then let's pull the hook!"

Lin Xuan shook her head: "No need, I wouldn't lie to you."

Only kids believe in pinky promises.

Many things, even if you've made a pinky promise, don't mean they'll stay the same forever.

Following the Xuanwu tribe's team, we ventured deeper along the bluestone-paved road, where the surrounding mountains became increasingly rugged and precipitous.

Lin Xuan noticed that the Xuanwu clan members in the group all had serious and solemn expressions.

Aya, who had been chattering all the way, also fell silent and didn't speak for a long time.

At the end of the bluestone road is a high mountain shrouded in clouds and mist.

Rows of stone steps lead from the foot of the mountain to the top.

At the end of the stone steps, a magnificent stone palace appears and disappears in the clouds and mist.

At the foot of the mountain is a spacious square.

At the very center of the square stands a massive altar made entirely of bronze, with raging flames burning in its center.

Around the altar are nine silver statues, each about ten feet tall.

These statues, some with human faces and bird bodies, some with human bodies and snake tails, and some with animal faces and human bodies, all look ferocious and terrifying.

Lin Xuan had researched the records at Jingbian Division and knew that these were the shaman gods worshipped by the Jiuli people.

Beneath the statues sat dozens of figures, presumably from other tribes.

The members of the Xuanwu tribe arrived at a statue with a human face and a bird's body and sat down silently.

Other teams arrived one after another, each choosing a statue to sit cross-legged under. Within an hour, all eight statues were filled with people, leaving only one statue still empty.

An old man from the Xuanwu tribe sneered, "The Lingwu tribe is the last to arrive again!"

Lin Xuan looked at the last statue. The Jingbian Division's records said that the Jiuli tribes were very loosely organized, which seemed to be true.

Another quarter of an hour passed before a large procession emerged from the thin mist.

The number of people escorting the saintess and saints in other departments ranged from thirty or forty to fifty or sixty, with the Spirit Witch Department having the largest number, exceeding one hundred at a glance.

After the Lingwu tribe arrived, the members of the other tribes slowly rose to their feet.

An elderly man in a white robe stepped out of the crowd and said with a smile, "I apologize to everyone. Something came up along the way and I was delayed a bit, but thankfully I didn't miss the appointed time."

All the departments know that this is just their excuse.

With the trial imminent, they had neither the time nor the inclination to concern themselves with such matters as the Spirit Witch Department.

An elderly man dressed in black robes stepped out from the Dark Witch Clan and said calmly, "It's getting late. Since we're here, let's begin."

The old man in white robes asked, "Is everything ready?"

The old man in black robes nodded and said, "The trial path is ready. We can begin the sacrifice to the witch god."

People from all tribes knelt before the shaman god worshipped by their tribes. Lin Xuan followed the local custom and knelt next to Aya. The little girl's expression was very devout, and she was muttering incantations, but Lin Xuan could not hear what she was saying.

At the very front of the procession, a priest from the Xuanwu tribe, holding a snake-shaped scepter, was hopping and skipping around as if performing some kind of ritual.

More than a quarter of an hour passed before he finally stopped moving.

At almost the same time, priests from several other tribes also completed their sacrifices.

The nine people walked slowly to the altar, exchanged a few words in hushed tones, and the white-robed priest of the Spirit Witch Department stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over the nine people present, his voice echoing throughout the square.

"Witnessed by the God of War, the trial begins!"

He pointed to the seemingly endless stone steps leading to the stone hall at the mountaintop and said in a deep voice, "Break through the trial path and ascend the Heavenly Stairs. Those who fail to ascend seven hundred steps within one hour will fail the trial!"

Youmeng turned around, looked at Lin Xuan and Aya, and said, "Let's go."

Lin Xuan followed Youmeng to the stone steps.

The holy sons and daughters of the other eight tribes also gathered here. Behind them, too, followed two protectors.

Lin Xuan glanced at it and found that the Jiuli tribe had five holy maidens and four holy sons in this generation.

All five saintesses, including Youmeng, wore veils.

The four holy sons did not conceal their faces.

Just as Youmeng said, the priests of the Jiuli tribe did not inquire about Lin Xuan's identity. They simply had him look at himself in a silver mirror and then ignored him.

Youmeng had mentioned to him that this silver mirror was used to confirm his age.

Initially, the trials of the saintesses of each tribe only allowed members of that tribe to act as protectors.

However, this was extremely unfair to some weak tribes, so the restriction was later relaxed, allowing them to seek help from outside.

The Jiuli tribe is the most talented race on the continent. The so-called geniuses from the outside world are just mediocre in the Jiuli tribe, and the tribes don't care about them at all.

Whether they are saints, saints, or protectors, they must be under twenty-five years old.

Lin Xuan looked toward the main hall at the top of the mountain.

At the foot of the mountain, there are nine paths leading up the mountain, which are also paths of trial.

These nine paths converge halfway up the mountain, eventually forming a wide stone staircase that leads directly to the main hall at the summit.

The holy sons and daughters of the nine tribes each chose a path.

Lin Xuan and Aya followed Youmeng and stepped onto the leftmost stone steps.

Youmeng turned to look at Lin Xuan and reminded him, "You stay behind me and Aya."

Lin Xuan nodded slightly.

After walking up about a hundred stone steps, a wide open platform suddenly appeared in front of us.

Youmeng and Aya did not step onto the platform immediately.

Lin Xuan followed behind them, and just one glance at the platform made his scalp tingle.

The platform was covered with spiders, scorpions, and snakes and insects that Lin Xuan couldn't name, almost completely covering the entire platform.

It's impossible to bypass them and climb the mountain.

At this moment, Youmeng took out a short flute from her sleeve.

She put the piccolo to her lips and began to play a melody.

After the melody began, some snakes on the platform seemed to be driven by something, and immediately left the platform, disappearing into the grass on both sides.

Youmeng then changed her melody, and as her melody changed, the poisonous insects on the platform scattered.

The platform was quickly cleaned up.

The Jiuli tribe is skilled in practicing Gu poison, and naturally they also know how to control insects.

After shooing away the poisonous insects, the three continued along the stone steps.

After climbing several dozen more steps, another platform appeared ahead.

Unlike the poisonous insects from before, the platform's ground was covered with dazzling spiritual runes, and huge stone pillars stood atop it, clearly indicating another stage of the trial.

Youmeng shielded Lin Xuan and Aya behind her, whispering, "This is a spirit pattern array. Stay behind me and don't wander off, or you might get hurt..."

Lin Xuan held Aya's hand and followed closely behind Youmeng.

at this time.

At the foot of the mountain, people from various tribes waited patiently.

A priest from the War Witch Clan gazed at the rows of stone steps and said, "I wonder who will be the first in this trial..."

The first tribe to reach the top will receive more slots in the Marrow Cleansing Pool over the next ten years.

This can save the geniuses in the clan a lot of cultivation time.

The priest of the Sorcerer's Department said, "Ling Tian is very likely the one. He is the strongest among the Holy Sons and Holy Daughters. The Sorcerer's Department has also found a young genius sorcerer for him from outside. I heard that the Sorcerer's Department's goal this time is not to win the trial, but to inherit the ancestral spirit's legacy..."

As soon as this statement came out, there was an uproar around him.

"What, ancestral spirit inheritance?"

"Does he want to enter the Temple of the Witch God?"

"It's been about three hundred years since anyone received the ancestral spirit's inheritance..."

"It seems the Spirit Witch Clan is very confident this time. Although the ancestral spirit inheritance is an immense opportunity, if they cannot withstand it, the Spirit Witch Clan's number one genius in decades may be destroyed..."

The white-robed priest of the Spirit Shaman tribe gazed at a straight mountain path, his face filled with hope.

The Spirit Witch Department has been preparing for so long, but their purpose from beginning to end has never been the trial.

With Ling Tian's talent, if he can enter the Witch God Temple and obtain the ancestral spirit's inheritance, he will most likely break through to the first rank in the future, lead the Jiuli tribe out of the Hundred Thousand Mountains, and restore the glory of his ancestors!

At that time, the entire continent will submit to the Jiuli!

Lost in his own world, he didn't notice that not far behind him, the priest of the Xuanwu tribe had a smile playing on his lips...

(End of this chapter)