Chapter 25 · Volume 1

So-Called Geniuses are Like Stray Dogs, Clearing Two Stages to Hog the Experience

“Eliminate one of the participants in your area?”
Hearing the mysterious voice announce the content of the first trial stage, everyone present except Ye Lin grew extremely vigilant.
“Daoist Brother, we're in your hands.”
At this moment, Zhao Xiaoyu and Li Xuan proactively stepped behind Ye Lin.
“Easy enough.” Ye Lin nodded calmly. Since he had accepted their payment, he would naturally fulfill his promise and carry the two of them.
So, as they stood behind him, his gaze shifted toward Qi Changqing, the red-eyed gorilla, and the giant black serpent in front of him.
The member to be eliminated could only be chosen from among them.
“You actually dare to target us?”
Sensing Ye Lin's gaze, which was as scorching as the blazing sun, the red-eyed gorilla thumped its chest with both fists and spoke in human tongue with a cold voice.
It was a genius of the demon race's Vajra Savage Ape Clan, so it was not surprising for it to speak human tongue even at the Qi Condensation Stage.
What angered it was that Ye Lin actually dared to set his sights on them.
One had to know that the human race was currently only in the middle-to-lower tiers among the myriad races. Normally, which genius from those external sects and aristocratic families wouldn't be extremely respectful, trying to flatter and please it?
Yet, the moment they entered the Immortal Hall, a human dared to target them. How could it remain calm?
“Let's strike together and cripple him!”
The giant black serpent beside it also spoke in human tongue, looking at Ye Lin with a cold sneer.
As for Qi Changqing, he glanced at Ye Lin with a calm expression, then proactively walked over and said, “I won't take advantage of you. We'll take one each.”
Hearing this, Ye Lin was momentarily taken aback, then nodded in response.
“Sure, but remember not to kill it. It might still be useful in the next stage.”
Having said that, he did not hesitate in the slightest, immediately clenching his fists and charging toward the Vajra Savage Ape.
“Good, good, good! I see you are truly arrogant beyond belief, actually planning to exchange punches with a member of my noble Vajra Savage Ape Clan?”
“Since you are so confident, this Young Master will fulfill your wish right now!”
Seeing that Ye Lin dared to charge at it with his fists flying without another word, the red-eyed gorilla was so furious that it laughed.
Ye Lin's action completely disregarded the physical body that the demon race took such pride in.
However, it also knew that those who could enter this place were basically the geniuses of the younger generation from various races, and they definitely possessed extraordinary abilities.
Thus, even though it was extremely enraged by Ye Lin's reckless punch, the gorilla still used its full strength the moment it struck.
Crack!
The fists collided. The scene the gorilla had imagined, where Ye Lin would be sent flying by its punch, did not happen.
On the contrary, not only did Ye Lin's punch fracture its bones, but the sheer force of the blow also knocked it unconscious.
One had to know that this was only because Ye Lin had held back. Otherwise, the gorilla would have definitely been turned into a mist of blood on the spot.
After all, he still didn't know what the content of the upcoming trials would be. If it turned out to be something like sacrificing a teammate, this red-eyed gorilla might still be useful.
“Roar!”
Just as Ye Lin knocked the gorilla unconscious, the giant black serpent on the other side was beset by the joint attack of Zhao Xiaoyu, Li Xuan, and Qi Changqing.
There was no suspense. No matter how strong the demon race's physical body was, the giant black serpent simply could not withstand the joint assault of three human geniuses.
Then, the bronze token on its body was reclaimed by the secret realm.
“Damn you all! You all deserve to die! How dare you obstruct my opportunities? I will definitely not let you off!”
Seeing that it was about to be eliminated, the giant black serpent roared in fury.
Boom!
Yet, the moment it finished speaking, its head was smashed into a mist of blood by Ye Lin's fist.
“How... how dare you?” This sudden, explosive kill left the giant black serpent dying with its eyes wide open in disbelief.
Meanwhile, Li Xuan, Zhao Xiaoyu, and Qi Changqing were utterly shocked to see Ye Lin execute such a decisive kill.
Firstly, they were shocked by Ye Lin's terrifying strength. After all, it took the three of them working together to easily defeat the giant black serpent, yet Ye Lin only needed a single punch to insta-kill it. This combat power was simply heaven-defying.
Secondly, they admired Ye Lin's sheer audacity. One had to know that the giant black serpent before them was no random nobody, but a genius of the powerful Blackwater Serpent Clan among the demon races.
Even for the three of them, whose backgrounds were immensely formidable, they would still have to think twice before killing it. Yet, Ye Lin did not care in the slightest.
“He already said he wouldn't let us off. If we don't slaughter him on the spot, are we supposed to wait for him to return and seek revenge in the future?”
Seeing the three of them staring at him blankly, Ye Lin couldn't help but frown.
Were these so-called geniuses so foolish that they didn't even understand the simple concept of nipping trouble in the bud?
“What Daoist Brother says... makes sense.” In the end, it was Li Xuan who responded to Ye Lin's question with a stiff, awkward laugh.
【Ding! You have killed a sin-laden genius of the Blackwater Serpent Clan. You have obtained 80 years of foreign race lifespan, and your Power of Heaven's Punishment has increased by one wisp. The Desolate Ancient Dao Pagoda has automatically retrieved the foreign race's corpse to extract its blood vitality...】
Just after killing the giant black serpent, a series of game notification sounds rang in Ye Lin's ears.
However, to his surprise, he did not receive any Luck Value rewards from the Heavenly Dao this time.
“And they call this a genius? The rewards aren't even as good as some random dark creature you can find on the side of the road.”
Sweeping up the storage treasures of the giant black serpent and the gorilla, Ye Lin couldn't help but complain inwardly.
Then, like dragging a dead dog, he dragged the unconscious gorilla by its head and walked toward the cavern ahead.
Seeing this, Zhao Xiaoyu and the other two quickly followed.
Before long, two massive, open stone doors appeared before them.
“Congratulations on completing the first stage of the Trial of the Immortal King's Road. You may now choose any Earth-grade reward to settle your progress and leave.”
“You may also choose to continue on the trial road. However, if you fail, you will not receive any rewards.”
Just as the four people and one ape arrived before the stone doors, that old and indifferent voice echoed in their ears once more.
The four of them would naturally not settle for a mere Earth-grade reward. As for the unconscious gorilla, it had no say in the matter; Ye Lin's choice was its choice.
“Praiseworthy courage. Then, please step into the second stage of the trial, the Endless Battlefield.”
“This stage is a multiplayer defense trial lasting three shichen. You must repel at least ten waves of monster attacks to clear it.”
Seeing that Ye Lin and the others chose to continue the trial, the mysterious voice directly announced the content of the second stage.
Buzz, buzz, buzz...
The moment they stepped through the open doors, Ye Lin and his group were instantly teleported onto a desolate battlefield.
Then, a humanoid skeleton clad in soldier's armor at the great perfection of the Qi Condensation Stage charged at them, wielding a rusty longsword.
“Get away from me!” Seeing a monster spawn, Ye Lin's eyes gleamed. Tossing the gorilla onto the ground, he rushed forward and threw a heavy punch at the humanoid skeleton.
Boom!
A massive rumble echoed. Although the humanoid skeleton was sent flying by the immense force, it barely sustained any damage.
“Its defense is this ridiculous?” Seeing that his punch actually failed to insta-kill the skeleton, Ye Lin couldn't help but be taken aback.
One had to know that although he didn't use his full strength, that punch still carried five to six hundred thousand jin of force. For this humanoid skeleton to withstand it, just how terrifying was its defensive power?
It seemed the Trial of the Immortal King's Road was not as simple as he had imagined.
But it didn't matter. After all, he was a cheater.
Conveniently, both his 《Nine Suns Heaven-Shaking Fist》 and the Great Dark Heaven Flame possessed terrifying penetrating power.
Without any hesitation, he channeled the Great Dark Heaven Flame into his right fist, unleashed his fist technique, and smashed his fist toward the humanoid skeleton that was just getting back up.
Bang!
A loud explosion rang out, and this time, the humanoid skeleton was directly blasted into fragments by his punch.
【Ding! You have killed a deeply sinful mutated evil spirit skeleton. You have obtained 108 years of evil spirit lifespan, your Luck Value has increased by 10 points, your Power of Heaven's Punishment has accumulated by one wisp, and blood vitality is 0...】
The moment the evil spirit skeleton was killed, the pleasant game notification sound rang out right on cue.
“Although there's no blood vitality, these rewards are far better than that so-called Blackwater Serpent Clan genius.”
Looking at the numerous rewards obtained from the kill, Ye Lin nodded in satisfaction.
The deceased Blackwater Serpent Clan genius: 'I feel offended, thanks.'
While waiting for the second wave of monsters to spawn, Ye Lin did not hesitate to equip the Sword of Original Sin.
After all, although this sword possessed peerless penetration, its attack power grew along with him, starting from the Qi Condensation Stage, which was at the low-grade spiritual weapon tier.
Having killed so many evil spirits yesterday and accumulated over a hundred wisps of the Power of Sin, its attack power had already surpassed many mid-grade spiritual weapons, yet it had not advanced.
The reason for this was that this sword was a taboo genius among swords, so the Power of Sin required for its advancement was much greater.
The sword was over three chi long, with a mysterious chain-like pattern carved onto its blade. Purple lightning and blood-colored malevolent aura constantly lingered around the pattern, making it look both sacred and eerie.
“Roar!”
Before long, two skeletons also at the great perfection of the Qi Condensation Stage emerged from the ground. Before their bodies could even fully emerge, Ye Lin shattered their skulls with a single sword strike each.
Evil spirit skeletons: '?'
What the hell, getting killed before even coming out? Isn't that too underhanded?
【Ding! You have killed two heinous evil spirit skeletons. You have obtained 221 years of evil spirit lifespan, your Luck has increased by 20 points, your Power of Sin has accumulated by one wisp, and your Power of Heaven's Punishment has accumulated by one wisp...】
As if sensing Ye Lin's extraordinary strength, the owner of the mysterious voice accelerated the spawning of the evil spirits.
The third wave of three monsters came, and they were instantly killed by Ye Lin.
The fourth wave of four monsters came, and they were also killed in a few strikes by Ye Lin.
...
The sixth wave, the seventh wave...
Three shichen quickly passed. Ye Lin had already lost count of how many evil spirits he had killed. Aside from the very beginning, he had insta-killed every single one the moment they showed their heads. His speed was absolutely breathtaking.
In truth, this was mainly due to the peerless penetration of the Sword of Original Sin. With a single slash, everything was decapitated. Otherwise, given the terrifying defense of the evil spirit skeletons, killing them would not have been so easy.
During this time, Qi Changqing, Zhao Xiaoyu, and Li Xuan had prepared to help several times, but they were all turned back by him under the pretext that he could still handle it.
After all, he wanted to hog all the experience for himself; how could he let others steal his kills?
“Congratulations, you have exceeded the requirements to complete the second stage of the Trial of the Immortal King's Road. You may now choose two Heaven-grade items as rewards to settle your progress and leave the assessment.”
“You may also choose to continue the trial, but if you fail, you will not receive any rewards.”
Just as the time for the second stage ended, the mysterious voice rang out once more.
【Ding! Congratulations, you have harvested a total of 23,000 years of evil spirit lifespan, your Luck has increased by 2,100 points, and you have advanced to a Tier 2 Child of Fortune. Your Power of Sin has accumulated to 402 wisps, and your Power of Heaven's Punishment has reached 410 wisps...】

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