Chapter 66
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Chapter 66: Not Just a Trial
“Deacon Jin, the hundred disciples who passed the assessment are here. Take charge of them.” Elder Lan approached the Teleportation Array as a portly middle-aged man in white robes waddled forward, his belly jiggling with each step.
“Elder Lan, you’ve worked hard. Let’s meet again after the sect trial ends,” Deacon Jin chuckled, patting Elder Lan’s shoulder with a meaty hand.
Elder Lan forced a smile. “Naturally. Though I worry you’ll be too busy to visit, Deacon Jin.”
“Nonsense! Brothers like us must gather often,” Deacon Jin replied, eyes crinkling into slits.
“Excellent!” Elder Lan’s grin widened before he turned to the disciples. “This is Deacon Jin of the inner peak’s Trial Hall. He’ll guide you into the Teleportation Array now.”
Deacon Jin eyed the disciples like a merchant appraising goods, his gaze glinting as though they were piles of spirit stones.
The handover concluded swiftly. Under Deacon Jin’s direction, the disciples filed into the array’s swirling blue starlight.
Elder Lan watched them, a flicker of unreadable emotion passing through his eyes—perhaps a hint of pity—but it vanished instantly, replaced by his usual composure.
“You are Tian Zhu Peak’s finest outer disciples,” he declared. “Your determination, talent, and Exceptional Cultivation Level earned you this chance. During the sect tasks, uphold our peak’s honor through relentless effort. Those who disgrace Tian Zhu Peak will face severe punishment, regardless of their achievements.”
He paused, letting his stern gaze sweep over the crowd.
“Cooperate fully during the trial. Betray no sectmate for personal gain. Every action is monitored. Violators will be punished upon return. Follow these rules, and the sect will nurture you as future inner disciples. Understood?”
“Understood!” Their unified shout echoed across the square.
Ye Yun’s lips twitched in silent mockery. Survival mattered more than hollow speeches about glory—dead men couldn’t appreciate honor. Elder Lan’s fervor only confirmed his suspicion: their survival odds were razor-thin.
After exchanging nods, Deacon Jin and Elder Lan barked in unison: “Activate the Teleportation Array!”
The five pillars erupted in multicolored brilliance. Blue starlight engulfed the disciples, warping space itself.
Ye Yun’s senses fragmented. Companions vanished. Time stretched like taffy. When the distortion eased—roughly an incense stick’s burning time later—familiar faces reappeared as though they’d never moved.
Spatial teleportation. Such power supposedly required mastery of spatial laws, attainable only by Golden Pill masters. Yet rumors claimed the Heavenly Sword Sect lacked such figures. Who then created this array and Zang Wu Pavilion’s spatial arrays?
The thought surfaced briefly before Ye Yun dismissed it—far beyond his reach.
The restored array platform looked shabbier than Tian Zhu Peak’s: plain pillars devoid of runes, a dull starlit base resembling mist rather than crystal. Clearly temporary.
But temporary arrays still required Golden Pill masters. Their involvement meant this trial’s stakes dwarfed ordinary sect tasks. Why send outer disciples on a mission demanding such power?
Ye Yun’s jaw tightened. Survival might require miracles.
“Trouble ahead,” Duan Chenfeng muttered, uncharacteristically subdued. “Golden Pill masters meddling? This reeks of more than a trial.”
“Suggestions?” Ye Yun kept his voice low.
“Avoid attention. Ditch any heroic notions.” Duan Chenfeng nodded toward white-robed figures ahead. “Twenty inner disciples ‘welcoming’ us? See their faces? Butchers greeting lambs.”
The inner disciples stood like statues, inspecting each newcomer with frosty detachment. As Ye Yun studied their blade-sharp expressions, cold dread pooled in his gut.
