Chapter 307

Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

A small golden pagoda hovered above Lu Chuanning's head, casting down a golden light barrier that protected him within.

Those red soul-entities rushed forward one after another, but upon touching the golden light barrier, they immediately dissipated into nothingness.

Inside the light barrier, a look of smugness appeared in Lu Chuanning's eyes.

Soul-Extinguishing Pagoda!

This was a spirit weapon capable of destroying soul-entities, which he had specially prepared for this ranking tournament.

This ranking tournament was being held in Yan Guo, and the Academy Head had long guessed that the point-based competition Yan Guo would arrange should be related to the soul.

This was Yan Guo's advantage; Yan Guo had no reason to abandon such a great advantage.

This spirit weapon was not his, but temporarily lent to him by the Academy Head, who had anticipated the situation inside the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

The situation inside the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm was no secret to Han Guo.

Many disciples of the Yan Guo Royal Martial Academy had also been to Han Guo and had informed them of the situation inside the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

"Even if that Lin Chen's soul is powerful, it is impossible for it to compare with my Soul-Extinguishing Pagoda. The one with the highest points in this round will inevitably be me."

Lu Chuanning's eyes revealed a look of certainty. He had now stayed inside for 1,500 breaths, which was equivalent to 1,400 points. With Lin Chen's strength, he could at most persist for 500 breaths inside. Even counting the points from the testing round, he was far ahead of Lin Chen.

However, for the sake of caution, Lu Chuanning did not rush to leave, but decided to search around in this mist.

With the Soul-Extinguishing Pagoda, he could see clearly within a radius of one zhang and would not lose his way.

A few dozen breaths later.

Lu Chuanning had not found any traces, and just as he was preparing to exit, the next moment he stopped abruptly, his gaze fixed on the millstone in the firmament ahead.

The millstone stopped rotating, and no more soul-entities surged out from the red cracks; a green leaf revealed its true form from within the cracks.

One leaf, two leaves, three leaves...

Among the three green leaves, a red fruit was bright and eye-catching.

"What is this?"

A brilliant light shone in Lu Chuanning's eyes. He did not know what this red fruit was, but he knew it was definitely a good thing.

Without any hesitation, Lu Chuanning leaped toward the fruit. When he was only three zhang away from the red fruit, a look of excitement appeared on his face, and he reached out to pluck it.

Swish!

Just at this moment, a cold light whistled over.

The cold light struck Lu Chuanning's golden barrier. Lu Chuanning was startled and looked behind him.

"It's you!"

When he saw Lin Chen behind him, Lu Chuanning was stunned. 1,600 breaths had passed, and Lin Chen was actually still in this secret realm.

Coming back to his senses, a cold smile appeared on Lu Chuanning's face; he had found what he was looking for without any effort.

If Lin Chen had left the secret realm, he might not have been able to do anything to him, but inside this secret realm, even if he killed Lin Chen, Liang Guo would be unable to do anything to him.

Although the red fruit in front of him was tempting, compared to Lin Chen, Lu Chuanning wanted to kill Lin Chen even more.

After killing Lin Chen, it wouldn't be too late to take the red fruit.

Lin Chen narrowed his eyes as he looked at Lu Chuanning, focusing mainly on the pagoda above Lu Chuanning's head.

Just now, he had attacked with his spiritual sense flying knives, which was a direct attack on the soul and difficult for ordinary objects to block, but the golden light barrier cast down by the pagoda above Lu Chuanning's head had blocked it. Coupled with the fact that Lu Chuanning had stayed here for such a long time, he understood in his heart that this pagoda was likely capable of resisting soul attacks.

"Lin Chen, go to hell!"

A cold light suddenly appeared in Lu Chuanning's eyes. His figure moved, and he actually detached himself from the pagoda above his head, whistling toward Lin Chen.

In Lu Chuanning's view, the pagoda was something he used to resist the soul-entities here, and he didn't need the pagoda to deal with Lin Chen at all; he could kill Lin Chen right here with his own strength.

"Seeking death!"

Seeing Lu Chuanning abandon the pagoda, Lin Chen moved his spiritual sense, and ten flying knives condensed again, merging into one the next moment.

Swish!

The flying knife, which had expanded to twice its original volume, arrived in front of Lu Chuanning in the blink of an eye. Lu Chuanning's pupils shrank, but he didn't care, slapping out with a palm to meet the flying knife.

However, under the palm wind, the flying knife's speed did not decrease in the slightest. In Lu Chuanning's incredulous eyes, the flying knife pierced directly through his palm and stabbed into his heart, disappearing from sight.

Lu Chuanning's clothes were not damaged in the slightest, but his figure staggered, and he fell toward the ground in mid-air.

Just as Lu Chuanning was distracted and his figure was falling, Lin Chen's right hand produced the Long Yinggong, and a golden arrow was shot out.

Pfft!

This arrow pierced directly through Lu Chuanning's chest. Lu Chuanning, who had come to his senses, spat out blood and fell heavily to the ground.

"I was wondering how to break your golden barrier; I didn't expect you to deliver yourself to my door."

Lin Chen walked up to Lu Chuanning, looked at the disbelief in Lu Chuanning's pupils, and without any hesitation, slapped down with his palm.

Lu Chuanning wanted to kill him, so he naturally would not let the other party go.

Having dealt with Lu Chuanning, the pagoda slowly descended at this moment. Lin Chen flashed his figure and grasped the pagoda in his hand, while simultaneously heading toward the millstone and plucking the red fruit.

The moment the red fruit was in his hand, it turned into a pool of liquid, permeated his skin, and disappeared.

A cool, comfortable sensation hit his heart instantly. Lin Chen immediately summoned his panel.

【Host: Lin Chen】

【Realm: Ninth Rank】

【Spirit Tier: 3.6】

Hiss!

His soul had increased by another 0.3 tiers; this red fruit was so powerful!

By now, Lin Chen understood this Spirit Tier; the so-called Spirit Tier was the tier of his own soul.

A Ninth-Rank soul was Tier 1, and his soul was already equivalent to that of a Seventh-Rank martial artist, and at the mid-to-upper level of a Seventh-Rank martial artist at that.

Relying on the Qianji Lianshen Jue, below a Seventh-Rank martial artist, if they had no method to resist the soul, he could easily kill them with his flying knives.

The Qianji Lianshen Jue was his most powerful killing move and trump card at present.

Landing back on the ground, Lin Chen looked at Lu Chuanning's corpse. Out of respect for him, he searched his body thoroughly, but unfortunately, apart from some silver taels, there were no other good things.

"This respect was given in vain."

Lin Chen looked regretful; he couldn't use Han Guo's silver taels, but this pagoda...

His gaze returned to the pagoda in his hand. Lin Chen directly used the Qianji Lianshen Jue to split off a strand of soul and placed it on the pagoda. The pagoda began to tremble, repelling Lin Chen's soul, but as Lin Chen's second and third strands of soul landed on the pagoda, it gradually became calm.

"Rise!"

Lin Chen gave a light shout, and the pagoda began to slowly hover, floating above his head. A golden light barrier descended, enveloping his entire body.

"Shrink!"

Following Lin Chen's soft whisper, the pagoda descended. This time it landed in Lin Chen's hand, but its size began to shrink until it was only a finger's height.

Hiding it in his bosom, no clues could be seen from the outside.

... 2,000 breaths!

The martial artists outside the stone gate grew increasingly anxious; such a long time was clearly somewhat abnormal.

"Lin Lin Shidi Hou, it seems this Lin Chen is indeed not bad. Having only just entered the Ninth Rank, he can stay in this Thousand Illusions Secret Realm for such a long time. Your Liang Guo has produced a genius no less than Pei Qingming."

Lu Qiguang spoke with a chuckle, and upon hearing this, before Hou Zhan Tian could respond, the powerhouses from the other countries nearby had thoughtful looks on their faces.

Logically speaking, the longer Lin Chen stayed inside, the more disadvantageous it was for Han Guo. In the first round, Lin Chen had led by 600 points.

Yet Lu Qiguang didn't look anxious at all. Was this absolute confidence in Lu Chuanning?

That shouldn't be the expression, unless...

Someone thought of a possibility: unless something favorable to Han Guo had happened inside.

"Brother Elder Murong, is there any way to let the disciples in the secret realm come out?"

Hou Zhan Tian also guessed this possibility. He immediately looked at Elder Murong Song. Now, only Lin Chen and Lu Chuanning were in the secret realm. Observing Lu Qiguang's words, it was clear he had long anticipated that Lu Chuanning could stay inside for so long.

Han Guo had arranged a backup plan for the Thousand Illusions Secret Realm.

If that were the case, Lin Chen would likely be in danger.

Elder Murong Song's expression also changed slightly; Hou Zhan Tian could guess this, and naturally, he could too.

If it were before the first round, he naturally wouldn't interfere in the struggle between Liang Guo and Han Guo, but seeing that Lin Chen could separate his soul, he couldn't sit still either.

Lin Chen could not die!

"Alright, I will close the secret realm now."

"Brother Elder Murong, this move is inappropriate!"

Lu Qiguang spoke to stop him: "The outcome is not yet decided; how can you close the secret realm? This is the Martial Academy Ranking Tournament, concerning the ranking of the nine countries' martial academies, not just your Yan Guo's affair."

The threat in his words was extremely obvious.

"Brother Lu is right; this is a ranking tournament, how can you interfere?"

The powerhouse from Zheng Guo followed up, a cold sneer on his face. If this Lin Chen were killed by Lu Chuanning in the secret realm, that would be the best thing.

"To put it bluntly, in the Martial Academy Ranking Tournament, since you dare to participate, you must have the determination to die. If an accident happens and you die, then you die."

The powerhouse from Xiang Guo added meaningfully from the side. This was laying an ambush in advance for Lu Chuanning to kill Lin Chen.

"Everyone should agree with my words, right?"

Lu Qiguang laughed: "Brother Hu is right, but the ranking tournament has been held for many years, and there is no life-and-death enmity between our nine countries. Let's not deliberately take an opponent's life."

These words were extremely hypocritical.

Everyone understood the meaning behind Lu Qiguang's words: if Lin Chen were really killed by Lu Chuanning in the secret realm, it certainly wouldn't be Lu Chuanning's intention; it could only be called an accident.

Hou Zhan Tian's eyes were spitting fire. Compared to the ranking of the martial academy, he cared more about Lin Chen's safety.

If he had known that Han Guo had arranged a backup plan in advance, he would absolutely not have let Lin Chen enter the secret realm.

Regarding the mocking words of Lu Qiguang and the others, Hou Zhan Tian ignored them and looked at Elder Murong Song: "Brother Elder Murong, in this round, my Liang Guo admits..."

Before the word "defeat" could be spoken, a figure appeared at the stone gate.

Lin Chen's figure walked out from within the stone gate.

The moment they saw Lin Chen's figure appear, the Liang Guo side collectively breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness... Lin Lin Shidi was unharmed.

By contrast, the eyes of the martial artists from Zheng Guo and Han Guo held looks of regret, especially Bian Xinjie, who knew that Lin Lin Shidi Lu had brought a special spirit weapon into the secret realm and could easily persist for 2,000 breaths.

And the reason Lin Chen hadn't come out for so long wasn't that Lin Chen could persist for that long, but that he had long since been killed by Lin Lin Shidi Lu in the secret realm.

If a person was dead, naturally they couldn't come out.

"What on earth happened to Lin Lin Shidi Lu, to let Lin Chen walk out alive."

A look of hidden dissatisfaction flashed in Bian Xinjie's eyes. At this moment, at the very front, Elder Murong Song looked at Hou Zhan Tian and smiled: "What was Brother Hou about to say?"

"Nothing."

Hou Zhan Tian also breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. Since Lin Chen had come out, he naturally wouldn't say that Liang Guo admitted defeat and ask Elder Murong Song to close the secret realm.

"Lin Lin Shidi, you actually stayed inside for 2,000 breaths."

Seeing Lin Chen walk over, Li Yuan and the others were very excited. Lin Chen asked curiously: "Am I first?"

"Currently, Lu Chuanning has yet to come out."

"There's still someone who hasn't come out?"

Lin Chen frowned. Seeing Lin Chen's expression, Li Yuan comforted him: "Lin Lin Shidi, being able to have this result is already very good; you don't need to be too harsh on yourself."

"Hmm."

Lin Chen nodded and retreated to the side without saying anything more. He was very satisfied with himself; it was just acting out a play, after all.

"Senior Lin Lin Shidi, even if this Lu Chuanning comes out 1,000 breaths later, Canglan Martial Academy's points can still rank second. This ranking has already broken the academy's record." Meng Star also chimed in from the side.

Lu Qiguang, at the very top, lost the smile on his face the moment Lin Chen's figure appeared.

Lu Chuanning failed to kill Lin Chen, and this Lin Chen could stay inside for 2,000 breaths; this Lin Chen's soul strength far exceeded his peers. If he wasn't eradicated early, he would be a formidable enemy of Han Guo in the future.

After the ranking tournament ended, he would report to His Majesty to carry out an assassination against Lin Chen.

"What a pity."

The powerhouse from Zheng Guo nearby whispered, and everyone understood the implication of his "pity."

It was a pity that Lin Chen had survived.

"Even if Canglan Martial Academy gets second place, so what? It's just surviving a few more rounds in the official competition."

Regarding these words, Hou Zhan Tian didn't care. Canglan Martial Academy's second-place result was indeed enough.

There was no great practical difference between first place and second place.

Getting first place was more of a symbolic significance.

100 breaths later, Lu Chuanning still hadn't come out, and Lu Qiguang's expression remained unchanged.

300 breaths later, the powerhouse from Zheng Guo began to congratulate Lu Qiguang.

"Congratulations, Brother Lu, Tianque Martial Academy has taken first place."

Relying on Lu Chuanning's points plus the points of Ling Tianhao from Tianque Martial Academy, they had already surpassed Canglan Martial Academy; to be precise, they had surpassed Lin Chen.

However, 500 breaths later, Lu Chuanning still hadn't appeared, and a trace of gloom appeared on Lu Qiguang's face.

600 breaths later, Lu Qiguang's old eyes shot out brilliant light, staring fixedly at Lin Chen, and he shouted: "Lin Chen, what did you do in the secret realm!"

By now, Lu Qiguang had discovered that something was wrong. It was impossible for Lu Chuanning not to come out for so long; something must have happened in the secret realm.

And the only one who could have caused something to happen to Lu Chuanning was Lin Chen!

In the crowd, Lin Chen looked puzzled, seemingly not understanding what Lu Qiguang was talking about.

(End of chapter)