Don't try to cultivate immortality; mortals live longer than immortals.

The sky was dark, but the beam of light was so bright that it was hard to open one's eyes. Many students subconsciously raised their hands to block the glare and make their eyes more comfortable.

Just then, a "crack" sound reached their ears, and the spatial node was struck by the light blade, shattering at a speed visible to the naked eye.

As the starlight faded, a dark, swirling vortex-like object came into view.

"Hiss, is this the spatial passage?"

"No way, that looks pretty scary."

"Can it really take us back to Mercury? It looks like a black hole in space!"

……

The group looked at each other, whispering amongst themselves, all feeling a little uneasy.

"The spatial passage has been opened and will automatically close in 10 minutes. Please do not delay and enter quickly."

The nano-spiritual energy detector issued a notification, accompanied by a pleasant AI prompt.

"this……"

No one moved; the students' expressions were conflicted and fearful.

At this moment, everyone felt that the spatial passage in front of them was somewhat unreliable, but the reminder that it would close in 10 minutes made everyone afraid to lie down, because if they missed it, wouldn't they be left in this Azure Sky Immortal Cultivation World forever?

"What should we do?"

Should I gamble or not?

Everyone was panicked and dared not be the first to speak up.

Just then, Duan Xuan silently walked out, took out a flying talisman, slapped it on his body, and then transformed into a streak of light, flying towards the spatial passage.

He was actually a little worried, but Lingyun kept assuring him that it was absolutely safe.

Firstly, Duan Xuan believed that the system wouldn't betray him, and secondly, staying would lead to an even more terrible outcome, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and take the gamble.

"Hey, it's that genius from Shuiyun Daoyun Academy."

"Yes, it's him."

"If we're not afraid of geniuses, there shouldn't be any problem!"

……

Discussions arose again. People have a herd mentality; no one dares to be the first to try something new. However, if someone takes the lead, it's a different story.

Soon, others followed suit.

In just two or three minutes, they all flew towards the space passage. Some people hesitated and wondered, but no one dared to stay put.

Duan Xuanfei was at the forefront and quickly arrived at the spatial node.

Upon getting closer, he found that apart from being pitch black inside, there seemed to be nothing wrong with it, so he gritted his teeth and stepped inside.

The scenery in front of me was blurry, and at the same time, a strong sense of dizziness assaulted my mind, making me very uncomfortable. My eyelids started to droop, and I couldn't tell whether it was drowsiness or something else.

Duan Xuan panicked a little, but then he heard Ling Yun's comforting words: "Host, don't worry. This kind of long-distance spatial teleportation is bound to be uncomfortable. Just bear with it, it will pass soon."

……

Duan Xuan felt relieved after hearing this, and no longer resisted his sleepiness, slowly closing his eyes.

He didn't know how much time had passed—perhaps just a few seconds, or perhaps an extremely long wait—but when he regained consciousness, he turned around and looked around, secretly letting out a sigh of relief.

What comes into view is a pastoral landscape, but in the distance, skyscrapers and high-rises can be seen, indicating that they have successfully returned to Shuiyun Star.

The transmission finally went smoothly!

"Huh, where am I?"

"Are we back?"

……

The murmurs reached my ears, and at that moment, the other students gradually woke up as well.

Duan Xuan looked around and soon saw many familiar faces. Although there were two gathering points, the destination of the teleportation was the same.

In the distance, Zhou Ran saw him and waved vigorously.

Then there's Fairy Yaoguang, who was rather reserved, only nodding slightly.

Duan Xuan smiled sincerely.

Everyone else was doing the same, calling out to their friends and family.

But soon, the noise gradually subsided, and the once excited young men and women began to look bewildered and sorrowful.

They discovered that the number of participants was much smaller than when they set out; there were originally 121 cultivators participating in the Crimson Trial.

But what about now?

Someone counted them, and there were only sixty-odd left!

The casualty rate is close to 50%!

And these were their classmates, vibrant lives.

Just a few days ago, we were training and looking forward to the future together. In just three days, everything has changed. Realizing this, the atmosphere suddenly became depressing.

"How could this happen?"

"Damn it, we clearly said we'd be best buddies for life."

"Qingqing, why didn't you come back? We agreed that after this social practice, you had to treat me to mango pomelo sago at that new milk tea shop near the school gate. How could you not keep your word..."

"Waaah..."

……

It's unclear who started it, but the sound of crying began to rise, growing louder and louder, a suppressed, sorrowful cry. This group of young men and women had only been on the path of cultivation for a year, just entering university and embarking on their journey. Their youth was in full bloom, and their lives were full of hope. Yet, after just one trip to a foreign land for a social practice mission, many of them were separated from their good friends forever.

Although they knew that the path to immortality was fraught with difficulties, the teacher had repeatedly said in class that all the heavens and myriad realms were filled with malice towards Guixu. Since they had embarked on the path of immortality and shouldered the obligation to protect Guixu, they would inevitably be dancing on the edge of a knife in the future.

However, knowing is one thing, but actually facing life and death still brought a huge shock to these young cultivators.

There was no more joy of surviving a disaster and completing a practical task.

Watching this scene, Fairy Yaoguang sighed quietly.

It seems to bring back memories of my first time going to the opposing side during the second semester of my freshman year to participate in social practice.

And it was on that occasion that she lost her best friend.

Times have changed. Now a Golden Core cultivator, she has completed eight social practice missions and has long since shed her naivety. She is also accustomed to the dog-eat-dog world and its cruelty. But at this moment, Fairy Yaoguang's heartstrings seem to have been touched.

Just then, a streak of light caught my eye.

It seemed far away at first, but in the blink of an eye, it was right in front of us.

This is a light silver, shuttle-shaped cabin full of fluid dynamics aesthetics, an air-rail shuttle. When you came, you rode in this wonderful means of transportation.

The car door opened, and Zheng Lei stepped out.

"Instructor."

Someone called out, but their voice was choked with sobs. Zheng Lei sighed. He knew this mission would be difficult, but he hadn't expected the casualty rate to be so outrageous.

What exactly happened in the Azure Sky Cultivation World this time?

However, now is not the time to delve into this. He nodded to everyone and said, "Come on up, let's go back to the base first. We can talk about everything when we get back. Everything will be alright."

The students didn't argue or resist, but they were a little downcast, with many hanging their heads. However, they obediently boarded the sky shuttle, and this wondrous creation carried them away from the wilderness, speeding towards the base.