Chapter 1457

The next morning, when Elder Jin Yue and Elder Bai Bi and Lei Lan, the two holy sons, were all on the first floor of the pavilion, standing there quietly waiting for something.

Among them, Elder Shi had a hint of anticipation in his expression, while the two holy sons were completely bewildered, their gazes toward the stairwell flashing with surprise.

After a meal's time, footsteps came from above, followed by a flash of a figure, and Han Li appeared at the stairwell, a faint smile on his face.

"How is it, you succeeded." Elder Shi's eyes brightened as he asked.

"Thank you, Senior, for your instruction. I have mostly mastered it; it should be usable against enemies." Han Li said with a smile.

"Good. The danger of this trial may be much greater than before. Although Fellow Daoist Han is a high-ranking Spirit General, you may still encounter formidable foes you cannot handle along the way. So last night, Elder Shi and I discussed and decided to lend you one of our tribe's treasures for protection. That way, if you encounter any unexpected danger, you can defend yourself." The girl carefully examined Han Li's complexion, then suddenly said.

"Tribe's treasure." Han Li was stunned, greatly surprised.

"Not bad. Take this Thunder Flood Shears with you." As Jin Yue spoke, her sleeve flicked, and a burst of green light flew out, instantly transforming into a pair of green shears.

Han Li instinctively raised one hand and grabbed the treasure, then focused his gaze upon it.

The shears were about half a foot long, ancient in style, their surface deep blue but covered with faint silver mysterious patterns. At a glance, it was clearly not an ordinary object.

"Two seniors, you truly lend this treasure to this junior." Han Li stroked the shears with his hand, feeling a surge of icy chill, and asked with delight.

"Actually, our tribe has several other treasures more suitable for your use in the Abyss, but unfortunately, these treasures require considerable time to refine. We simply do not have enough time. As for this Thunder Shears, it needs no such trouble—just a slight infusion of your own spiritual power, and it can be unleashed to wound enemies, with tremendous power! But precisely for this reason, the shears are also easily seized by powerful opponents, Fellow Daoist Han must use them with extra caution." Jin Yue then solemnly warned.

"Thank you, Senior, for bestowing the treasure. I will certainly use it with care." Knowing these two had produced such a heavy treasure for the safety of their tribe's holy son, Han Li was not polite, accepting it with a smile.

Jin Yue nodded, then also instructed Bai Bi and Lei Lan beside her, but produced nothing else.

Han Li saw this and paid it no mind.

The treasures meant for these two were likely already given when they left the Holy City. The golden small gourd Lei Lan and the Chìróng tribe used in their duel at the martial arena last time was probably one of them.

After a short while, the five walked out of the pavilion and rose into the air,

where many other groups who had long been waiting had already gathered.

At this moment, none of them rode giant birds or flying insects; instead, they all hovered in midair with double wings on their backs.

Moreover, the holy sons of the various Spirit Race factions had gathered together in one place, already separated from the elders of their own tribe.

These holy sons were unlike yesterday—everyone's expression was grave, and no one whispered privately anymore.

Han Li's gaze flickered; similarly, he had no intention of speaking to anyone, and with the two behind him, he flew to a corner of the crowd, standing silently without a word.

But not long after, Han Li suddenly felt someone looking at him, his heart stirred, and he turned back to glance.

Over a hundred zhang away, a thin, short girl resembling a child was examining him up and down.

This girl had dark skin, but her neck bore some strange black tattoos.

When she saw Han Li looking over, she actually smiled slightly, revealing a mouth of exceptionally white teeth.

Han Li's heart jolted!

Because his spiritual sense swept over her, the dark-skinned girl was indeed a high-ranking Spirit General, and her aura was somewhat strange, making him faintly feel threatened, as if she had cultivated some special divine ability.

Han Li's face showed no change, but his lips moved slightly.

Standing beside him, Bai Bi, who had originally closed his eyes slightly, suddenly heard Han Li's voice transmission.

He startled, opened his eyes, followed Han Li's gaze to look at the emaciated girl, but his expression "whooshed" and changed drastically, then he quickly lowered his head.

"Han Brother, that is Ao Qing of the Seven Exceeds Tribe. Her fame even surpasses Zhu Yinzi; she is the foremost in divine abilities among our peers. But this woman is ruthless and vicious, with an extremely eccentric temper, often taking lives on a whim. Han Brother, it's best not to provoke her." Bai Li's voice, tinged with reverence, echoed in Han Li's ear.

Han Li frowned, unable to help pondering why this woman was staring at him like this, when he felt another dark gaze sweep over him. This time, it was truly ill-intentioned.

Han Li's complexion sank, his gaze followed and glanced.

The result showed that in another corner of the crowd, Zhu Yinzi stood with other holy sons of the Chìróng tribe, shooting him unfriendly glances.

Han Li coldly returned the glance, then withdrew his gaze with a blank expression.

The Chìróng tribe is determined to defeat the Tianpeng tribe, and will surely sabotage them in the trial. Han Li, however, felt no inner turmoil about this.

Because Han Li and the others had come out relatively late, they did not wait long in the air.

After half an hour, when the three great elders of the Joint Council of Elders and the blue-armored man appeared before everyone, the entire group immediately began advancing, straight toward the small-mountain-like great wall not far away.

For some reason, though the top of the wall was empty, the entire group did not fly directly over it, but instead stopped directly beneath a section of the great wall.

The blue-armored man walked to the front of the group, murmured something, then suddenly pointed his single hand at the wall.

With a thunderous boom, the surface of the great wall facing the crowd trembled, and amidst flashing five-colored light, a faint silver magic array gradually emerged.

Seeing this, the blue-armored man immediately opened his mouth and spat out a faint purple wooden tablet.

Light blazed on the tablet, a purple light column flashed and shot out, and after a few flickers, it plunged straight into the center of the array.

Instantly, the silver array hummed, then, amidst a flow of strange light, the array suddenly vanished, but beneath this section of the great wall, a silver great gate appeared.

This gate was tens of zhang high, emitting icy light, appearing immensely heavy, as if forged from pure silver.

The blue-armored man said nothing, immediately stowed the wooden tablet, and flicked his sleeve toward the distant gate.

Instantly, a burst of purple light flew out, striking the gate above.

With a tremendous roar, the silver gate slowly pushed open amidst the radiance.

Immediately, a grayish gloomy evil wind blew in; wherever it passed, the holy sons suddenly felt a nameless shudder, their skin as if being pressed by a blade, causing their hairs to stand on end.

Truly extremely strange!

Han Li naturally also felt the strangeness of this wind, his eyes flashing with blue light.

The gate had opened, so naturally the entire group no longer hesitated and walked out through the silver gate, and immediately the scene beyond the great wall became clear.

Han Li couldn't help but draw a breath of cold air.

Not far beyond the gate, there was a vast expanse of black land.

On the ground, not only was no grass growing, but even the soil and stones were pitch black, stretching endlessly to the horizon.

In the high sky, however, was a sea of mist formed by grayish-white vapor, unusually thick, and looking upward, one could likewise see no edge, appearing extraordinarily thick.

The gap between the mist sea and the ground was only thirty or forty zhang high, appearing extremely narrow, but within it, the eerie wind sounds continued without cease, as if capable of devouring everything.

Seeing this, everyone couldn't help but feel uneasy.

"This is the Gate of the Abyss indeed. Truly appears extremely perilous." Han Li muttered to himself in his heart.

"Alright, we have arrived. Except for the Holy Sons, no one else may take another step forward. The Gate of the Earth Abyss lies in the mist ten thousand li from here." The old 'woman' leaning on a cane with one hand suddenly spoke.

Although her voice was not loud, it was transmitted with unusual clarity to everyone's ears, and the originally somewhat 'restless' crowd immediately fell silent.

"Alright, since we have arrived here. Then let us announce the content of this trial. I'm sure everyone has long been eager to begin." The white-haired man beside her gave a hehe laugh.

The old 'woman' glanced at the white-haired man, then continued speaking without changing her 'expression':

"After discussion among the Elders of the Joint Council of Elders, the content of this trial differs from the previous ones where specific dark demonic beasts were to be slain. Instead, you must bring back a single spirit object called the Netherflame Fruit from the Earth Abyss to be considered successful. This spirit fruit differs from other spirit objects, as it only comes into being in places where darkness and foul qi are at their most solemn. The fruit ripens approximately once every five hundred years, and each tree bears only one fruit. The Netherflame Fruit you bring back must be a ripe specimen. The darkness of the first layer of the Earth Abyss is insufficient, so this fruit cannot possibly appear there. Of course, if anyone wishes to test their luck by searching the first layer despite not believing this, they are naturally free to do so. The second layer may possibly have a small number of Netherflame Fruits, but whether they truly exist there cannot be guaranteed by us. The third layer of the Earth Abyss will certainly have this spirit object, and in considerable numbers. As for how exactly to proceed, that is naturally up to you to decide. The trial duration is three months. After three months, regardless of how many succeed in the trial, we will reopen this gate to welcome you back. Have you all listened carefully?" The old 'woman's voice carried an unangered authority, and since her words concerned the success or failure of the trial, Han Li, as a participant, naturally listened with full attention, not daring to miss a single word.

"Alright, since I have already informed you of the trial's content. You may now set out. In three months, I hope to see the majority of you again. The rest of you may return, for the Seal Demon Gate will soon be closed once more." The tattooed elder commanded in a deep voice.

Then, with a flick of his sleeve, he actually turned and walked straight toward the city gate behind him, without the slightest intention of looking back.

The white-haired man and the old 'woman' exchanged a glance, then without hesitation followed closely behind. Subsequently, the other elders of the Joint Council of Elders also silently followed. Seeing this, about half of the branch elders merely glanced a few times at their own clan's Holy Sons before returning with a hint of worry.

Only a small half, taking this opportunity, transmitted a few more instructions, then also turned and departed.

In the blink of an eye, on the vast open ground outside the giant gate, only hundreds of the Flying Spirit Tribe's Holy Sons remained, standing there staring at one another.

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