Three days later, in a vast grand hall, a scattered group of Gu cultivators lay about in disarray.
Most of them were injured, their bodies covered in blood, looking extrely battered and exhausted. It was clear that they had just experienced a brutal battle.
So had pale faces, their eyes filled with terror, still shaken from the ordeal.
Others had dark, grim expressions, gritting their teeth in fury.
The hall was eerily silent, the atmosphere oppressively tense.
At the center of the grand hall stood eight enormous teleportation gates. The fras of these gates were engraved with strange, ancient runes, exuding a mysterious aura. Various elental spiritual energies flickered across the runes.
Shui Lao occasionally glanced at the teleportation gate resonating with tal Spiritual Energy, his eyes full of worry, as if waiting for soone.
Naturally, he was concerned about Shui Juanyun’s survival. This ti, an unexpected event had occurred in the River God’s Secret Realm, significantly increasing the difficulty of the trials. Most of the participants had perished in the first stage.
He couldn't guarantee that Shui Juanyun had successfully passed the first trial. Seeing that the teleportation gate for the first trial was about to close, yet Shui Juanyun still hadn’t appeared, how could he not be anxious?
Without Shui Juanyun’s help, he had no confidence in dealing with Shui Wuqing, nor in confronting Long Xuan.
"I never expected this... I thought that with the sudden drastic change in the secret realm, nearly everyone who entered would perish. But to think that over three hundred people have survived—it’s truly a fortune amidst misfortune!"
Jiu Kang counted the number of survivors in the hall and was surprised to find that far more had made it through than he had anticipated. He let out a long breath of relief.
This ti, the opening of the River God’s Secret Realm was unlike before. Too many peak-stage Gu Kings had entered. In order to hunt down Qi Chi, a significant portion of the Western Region’s peak-stage Gu Kings had gathered here. Qi Chi’s strength was too overwhelming—mid and early-stage Gu Kings weren’t even qualified to participate in this battle.
If all these peak-stage Gu Kings were to perish here, it would be a devastating loss to the Western Region’s powerhouses.
Especially for the Radiant Moon Empire. Since this secret realm was within the Radiant Moon Empire’s territory, naturally, most of the peak-stage Gu Kings who entered were from there.
If all the Gu Kings who entered were annihilated, the Radiant Moon Empire’s losses would be catastrophic.
Thinking about the empire losing half of its national fortune, Jiu Kang sighed inwardly. Could this disaster that severely damaged the Radiant Moon Empire also be a consequence of its fate being halved?
Otherwise, the River God’s Secret Realm had remained stable for countless tens of thousands of years, yet it just so happened to encounter an accident now. He couldn't help but suspect that this was a chain reaction caused by the empire’s declining fate.
The first trial had already cost the Radiant Moon Empire a majority of its Gu Kings. By the ti the secret realm concluded, how many would be left? Perhaps even he himself would die here. A chill ran through his heart.
Cha Shan approached and sighed, "A fortune amidst misfortune. I just asked the others, and it seems that all eight paths encountered unexpected changes. The difficulty of the trials surpassed anything from the past by an imasurable degree—far beyond what the Spiritual Sea stage could handle."
"But fortunately, the number of monstrous geniuses entering this ti was simply too high."
"Zhu Jiuge single-handedly dealt with all the zombies in the Earth Trial and saved everyone."
"Qi Chi single-handedly wiped out all the treants in the Wood Trial and saved everyone."
"The gravitational force in the tal Trial unexpectedly disappeared, so most people survived as well."
"That’s why over three hundred people made it to this grand hall—most of them Gu Kings. Otherwise, if luck hadn’t played a part, even a hundred survivors would’ve been a blessing."
Jiu Kang’s expression remained grave. He scoffed, "What’s there to celebrate? They’re just living on borrowed ti."
"They were lucky to survive the first trial. But luck won’t save them a second ti, nor a third. How will they handle the later trials?"
"It’s all fate. This disaster in the River God’s Secret Realm is the will of the heavens. After this ordeal, more than half of the Radiant Moon Empire’s peak-stage Gu Kings will be lost. Without these powerhouses guarding it, whether the empire can continue to exist is uncertain... sigh."
At that mont, a golden light flashed, and Long Xuan finally erged from the portal.
He quickly scanned the hall, counting the number of survivors and noting his most dangerous competitors before casually walking into the crowd.
The reason Long Xuan had taken so long to erge was that he had been delayed mining in the tal Trial.
His golden finger allowed him to easily locate high-quality tal essences. These past few days, he had been deep underground, mining endlessly, completely imrsed in his work—to the point that he nearly lost track of ti.
As Long Xuan stepped out, the crowd turned to look at him. After recognizing him, they quickly shifted their gaze elsewhere.
Shui Lao imdiately approached, his expression anxious. "Where’s Shui Juanyun? Wasn’t he with you? Why hasn’t he co out?"
Long Xuan put on a look of shock and confusion. "What? He hasn’t co out? That’s impossible! With Brother Shui’s strength, he shouldn’t have had any trouble."
Shui Lao stared into his eyes and pressed, "I saw you both enter the tal Trial together. You two should’ve been together the whole ti. Don’t tell you don’t know anything!"
At this point, Shui Lao was beginning to feel suspicious. Could it be that Shui Juanyun had tried to ambush this kid and ended up being killed instead?
"What do you an by that? Are you suspecting that I killed him?"
Long Xuan’s expression darkened, and he angrily retorted, "Brother Shui treated like a brother. How could I possibly harm him? Besides, I have no reason to!"
"Earlier, he ignored my warnings and insisted on using the Sea Embraces All Rivers Technique to store the Gravity Mountain. That attracted a group of Gu Kings. We had no choice but to split up and flee for our lives. After that, I have no idea if he survived or not."
Long Xuan’s peripheral vision flickered toward the group of Gu Kings who had previously surrounded Shui Juanyun. Two of them were already dead, and the rest were injured. Their expressions remained calm, giving nothing away.
Shui Juanyun must be dead for sure now, right? Long Xuan thought to himself.
Wait—if Shui Juanyun was dead, and those Gu Kings hadn’t found the Gravity Mountain on him, then they would have co after him instead.
Since they hadn’t, it ant Shui Juanyun might still be alive.
Could his life really be that resilient? Even after all that, he still wasn’t dead?!
Long Xuan frowned deeply and glanced toward the tal attribute portal, silently praying that Shui Juanyun wouldn’t erge.
"I wasn’t accusing you. Forget it. If he’s dead, he’s dead."
Shui Lao sighed, disappointnt evident on his aged face. In his mind, there was no way Shui Juanyun could have survived an ambush from so many Gu Kings. He must already be dead.
"We didn’t know him for long. If he’s gone, so be it. The next trial is completely different from the first."
"In the second trial, all of us will be in the sa space. We will inevitably clash with Shui Wuqing. You possess the Heavy Yuan Water—whether you want to fight him or not, he will co for you. This battle is unavoidable."
Shui Lao’s eyes glead with ruthless determination. "Prepare yourself for battle. Even without Shui Juanyun, the two of us should be enough to take down Shui Wuqing!"
He clenched his fists, a fierce light flashing in his eyes.
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