Devour

Chapter 250 Fair Competition

Everyone was present, standing on the palm of the goddess statue, ready to go.

Cheng Bai was not quite sure how to open the Netherworld Road to Shanhui City, so he asked, "Is the method of returning to Shanhui City different from the way here?"

Ningxiang said: "If you fail to obtain the source of the divine fire, you must communicate with the divine consciousness in front of the corpse of the God King. Now it is much simpler. Use the Star Burning Sky Fire as the key to open all the statues of the goddesses in the Eternal Holy City. You can open the Netherworld Road and lead directly to the Star Palace."

After saying this, he activated the Star Burning Sky Lamp, and a faint light appeared in the eyes of the goddess statue. The surrounding shapes changed, and in an instant, they returned to the hall where they came from in Shanhui City.

The stone statues of all sizes in the hall are still there, except for the tallest giant statue in the center, which looks dull and old, and covered with cobwebs, as if no one has taken care of it for many years.

Cheng Bai felt a little strange, and led everyone out of the hall and came to the front hall, where he saw Li Haotian, Jinlian, and Hei Long sitting cross-legged or in a leisurely state.

Li Haotian stood up and said, "Only four days have passed, and you're back so soon. Did you gain anything?"

Cheng Bai's heart was slightly moved when he heard this: "I stayed in the Eternal Holy City for about two days, but it was four days in the Shanhui City. The time in the two places is different."

Ningxiang said: "Obtain the Star Burning Sky Fire, everything will go smoothly."

A hint of surprise flashed across Li Haotian's calm eyes, and he said with sincere admiration: "I never expected that the goal would be achieved much faster than expected. Your Majesty is blessed by heaven!"

Hei Long whispered to Cheng Bai, "The Quantai Palace has been very busy lately. It is said that the Nine-Layered Abyss Secret Realm will be opened in the next few days. Ge Chu'e and Chi Zhongming went to check it out."

Cheng Bai said: "Is there anything good in the Nine-Layered Abyss?"

Jin Lian looked at him with a smile and continued, "There are some incredible things. It is rich in precious medicinal herbs, spiritual roots, gold, iron and spiritual stones. It is a famous place for producing magic silver. But compared to the Nine Heavens Mysterious Fire hidden deep in the abyss, the magic silver is nothing."

"With so many people enthusiastic about it, the difficulty must not be high." Cheng Bai once heard Chu Kangtian say that he and Han Si could go, so it didn't seem like a particularly powerful secret place.

Jin Lian did not dare to despise it and continued, "The Nine-Layered Abyss is a place of extreme chaos and evil, with extraordinary origins. Legend has it that it is the remains of a fairy mountain that was expelled from the fairy world. Some people also believe that it is the final resting place of the old and weak soldiers of the fairy world who were eroded by chaos in order to resist the underworld."

Li Haotian continued, "The Nine-Layered Abyss has nine levels. It is a place full of resentment, strange things, and many ghosts. It has exhausted the imagination of adventurers and the greed of hunters. The first level is the easiest, and you can enter and explore it at the early stage of the Wuwei Realm. If you organize a well-coordinated team, Wuwei Realm cultivators can also advance step by step on the second level. The lower the level, the more difficult it is. Even few of the seventy-two sages dare to go to the ninth level."

Jin Lian said solemnly, "I have been to the ninth floor before, but I left very quickly. It is very dangerous and one of the secret realms with the highest mortality rate among known cultivators. Those who die there either lose their souls or become ghosts in the Ninth Layer Abyss."

Cheng Bai asked curiously, "What did Sister Jin find out?"

Jin Lian said, "The Nine Layers of the Abyss has an owner. Each layer has a lord, whose cultivation is not lower than the top few of the Seventy-two Sages, or even higher. But they are very lazy and don't care about foreign cultivators. Maybe they are happy to see someone join the ranks of the abyss ghosts, and outsiders don't provoke them, so they can live in peace. There is a supreme ruler on the ninth layer, who is much more powerful than me. He controls the other lords and is obviously much more proactive."

Cheng Bai asked, "The Nine Heavens Mysterious Fire is on the ninth floor, right? What power does it have?"

Jin Lian said: "This divine fire source was born in the deepest part of the Nine-Layered Abyss. It is said that it can heal injuries and poisons, and can help one survive from the brink of death. It is a sixth-level immortal treasure, and no one has ever obtained it."

Cheng Bai's heart was moved, and he thought to himself: "The sixth-level divine fire can open the door of choice in the Temple of the Eternal Sleeping Holy Mountain."

Yun Juan saw Shangguan Jing'er's pretty face, and although she was wearing a thorny hairpin and a cloth skirt, she was still otherworldly. The more she looked at her, the more she liked her. She couldn't help but talk to her, "Little sister, do you really want to take Dabai as your master? He is a bad guy. He eats all the good things he sees. He is greedy and greedy. He is slick and lustful. He is not a good person. Why don't you practice with me?"

Shangguan Jing'er opened her eyes wide, thought for a moment and said, "No, he treats me very well."

"Don't steal someone else's apprentice like this." Cheng Bai wiped his sweat and thought to himself, "Jing'er is over a hundred years old, she looks young, she is more than old enough to be your grandmother."

Yun Juan was reluctant to let her go, so she pulled Shangguan Jing'er and said gently, "Such a good girl, how can you as her master still say that she is dressed in such rags? I want to take her to wash up and change into some nice clothes."

Shangguan Jing'er looked at her cheap master expectantly, and Cheng Bai nodded, indicating his agreement.

As they were talking, Ge Chu'e and Chi Zhongming came back.

Chi Zhongming was overjoyed when he saw Cheng Bai and said, "Brother, how are you?"

Cheng Bai smiled and said, "Junior Brother Chi, you look so happy, is there something happy happening to you?"

Chi Zhongming said excitedly, "I am so happy to see you, brother. I just asked for information and went to Yuzhen Palace. I saw many weapon refiners showing off their unique skills. The magic weapons and magical things were all amazing. It really opened my eyes and made my life worthwhile."

Ningxiang said: "The Yuzhen Palace is the largest center for refining equipment and natural treasures in Shanhui City. Don't miss it when you come to the city."

Cheng Bai said: "I will definitely go for a stroll later. Any news about the Nine-Layered Abyss?"

Ge Chuwu bowed and said, "I was just about to report this to your majesty. Taowu Academy has just announced the test questions for this year's exam to compete for the title of the most virtuous."

Ningxiang said: "Tell me about it."

Ge Chu'e said: "Challenge the Nine-Layered Abyss and collect treasure points. Taowu Academy arranges the Grand Tutor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Yuwen Ganglie, to stay in Lingtai Hall to purchase nine-leafed Ganoderma lucidum at a price of 75,000 taels of gold. For each plant collected, the academy will record one point."

Cheng Bai said: "The precious medicinal roots obtained by candidates from various races are now concentrated in the hands of the Great Zhou Dynasty. The purchase price is reasonable, but I don't know how the winner will be determined in the examination?"

Ge Chuwu explained in detail: "There are many talented people from all over the world who come to Shanhui City to participate in the examination, but not everyone has the opportunity to make it to the final. Taowu Academy will hold three rounds of elimination competitions for three consecutive months. A large secret realm will be opened every month. The top fifty-six rankings will be counted by the points system. Together with the eight Ming Kings, the total sixty-four will gather in the three holy temples to fight and finally decide the top, middle and junior three talents. If you fail this time, the king medal of each race will guarantee that the examinee will have another chance to participate thirty years later."

Cheng Bai was surprised and said, "Doesn't the Ming King need to go to the secret realm... No, this rule is to protect the local candidates. In the same secret realm competition, they get the treasures for themselves and don't need to take out the Nine-Leaf Ganoderma Lucidum they get, but others have to hand it in. They have the upper hand in resources from the beginning, so they naturally have a great advantage in the examination."

Li Haotian explained solemnly: "For many years, Taowu Academy has performed its duties conscientiously and carefully selected three talented people to travel to Ziwei Emperor Star to participate in the palace examination. They took on important tasks and became the backbone of the new imperial dynasty. The eight Ming Wangs are local talents, and their places are predetermined. This is the tradition of Mount Sumeru. Foreign talents must pass the competition before they can enter the examination. There is nothing unfair. The battle of Ming Wangs is cruel, and the recommendation guarantee is a matter of course."

Jin Lian said, "I don't recommend accumulating points in the Nine-Layered Abyss. There are Ganoderma Lucidum in the second-layer Jiaoshi Mountains, but they are extremely rare. You may find more in the fourth-layer Abomination Swamp, but the difficulty increases sharply. This test is destined to have only a very small number of people who can produce Nine-Leaf Ganoderma Lucidum, so risking exploration is mostly for other resources, or to save strength for the best use in the second round."

Li Haotian smiled and said, "Nine-leaf Earth Ganoderma is a more difficult way to earn points within three months. It will be open for the longest time, until the top 64 are counted. If you want it to be easier, you have to wait patiently for the second round of opening of the Five Dragon Palace's secret realm next month. It's better to practice well and wait for the hard work."

As an important member of Taowu Academy, he knew it early on. Lao Shen arranged for Ningxiang to improve her strength in the secret realm and took special care of her. Others did not have such a good opportunity.

Jinlian said: "The key is to rely on strength, otherwise even if the treasure is right in front of you, you will not be able to take it."

Ningxiang nodded and said, "I have obtained the Star Burning Sky Fire. I feel that there is still some room for improvement in my cultivation. I might as well practice in seclusion and break through to the late stage of the Wuwei Realm before participating in the examination."

Li Haotian agreed: "This is the best."