Chapter 64

Five days passed in a flash, and tomorrow was the day of the third round of the Inner Gate Selection Competition.

Over these five days, Lin Xuan had managed to grasp the basics of the Illusory Thunder Step. His speed was nearly one and a half times faster than when he used the Instant Shadow Step. Even if he encountered Duan Fei, Lin Xuan was confident he could match him in speed.

"Truly worthy of being an intermediate-level mystic martial art, to have such power right from the start!" Lin Xuan was eagerly looking forward to the effects when he mastered it completely.

The night passed without incident.

The next day, Lin Xuan arrived at the training ground early to prepare for the third round of the test. After him, disciples began to arrive one by one, all of whom had passed the first two rounds, totaling 103 people.

Among them, many were familiar to Lin Xuan, and standing beside him were Tang Yu, Yin Qingyi, Luo Yi, and others.

Everyone chatted casually, and before long, several black dots suddenly appeared in the sky, quickly flying toward the training ground.

Since fusing with the black lotus, Lin Xuan's right eye could not only form a black vortex but also had extremely sharp vision, allowing him to see things from a great distance.

He looked up and saw that the black dots were large ships flying rapidly in the air.

Rumble!

The three large ships moved very quickly, and one of them landed on the training ground, causing a wave of air that made the disciples retreat.

The cabin door opened, and three middle-aged men in purple robes walked out. The one in the lead was the square-faced middle-aged man from that day. He stood at the bow of the ship, looked down at the 103 disciples, and said loudly, "Line up and board the ship. I will take you to the third round!"

Everyone looked puzzled, not knowing where they were going, but their movements were quick, and they all jumped onto the large ship one by one.

The ship was very large, and even with 103 disciples on board, it didn't feel crowded. Lin Xuan stood on the ship, curiously observing and found that although the ship's body was made of wood, it was incredibly hard, far beyond what a Pulse Condensation Realm cultivator could damage.

"Go!" The square-faced middle-aged man gave the order, and the large ship, which was over a hundred feet long, swayed a few times before slowly taking off, rising into the sky and flying away with the other two large ships.

Once the ship took off, the square-faced middle-aged man didn't pay attention to the disciples and walked into the cabin.

The over a hundred disciples looked at each other, feeling uneasy. As the ship's speed increased, the wind grew stronger, causing a slight pain when it blew against their bodies.

Except for some special body-cultivation disciples and those with high strength, the others all activated their spiritual energy to form a protective layer on their skin to resist the cold wind.

Lin Xuan had practiced the Golden Jade Body Tempering Technique, so he could still endure the wind, but Tang Yu and Yin Qingyi beside him both formed protective spiritual light.

In such strong winds, it was impossible to speak, and many people sat down to meditate. Lin Xuan, with nothing to do, curiously looked around and finally focused his gaze on the adjacent ship.

The distance between the two ships was over a hundred meters, but Lin Xuan could still see clearly with his right eye. He noticed that the other ship also carried some young people, but they were generally older than them. Few of them activated protective spiritual energy, and they sat silently, wiping their weapons.

"Judging by their attire, they should be disciples of the Mystic Heaven Sect. Could they be Inner Gate disciples?" Lin Xuan guessed, but he didn't know why they were traveling with them.

After about three to four hours, the large ship gradually slowed down, and many disciples stood up, knowing that their destination was near.

For the final part of the journey, the large ship moved slowly, and Lin Xuan and the others could clearly see the scene below.

However, the scene below shocked them.

Below was a city, or rather, a city that had been destroyed. The city walls, which were over ten meters high, were half-collapsed, and most of the buildings inside were destroyed. Debris and bones were scattered everywhere, and the ground was stained with a glaring red color.

"This..." The outer gate disciples were all stunned by the scene before them.

After a long while, someone muttered, "This is a city that has been invaded by beasts! We've come to the front lines of war!"

"What? The front lines of war!" Many people exclaimed in shock.

The Great Xia Kingdom was not peaceful, especially in areas bordering the primeval forest, where wars frequently occurred. Lin Xuan and the others had likely come to a battlefield.

"We are so weak, how can we possibly fight those beasts? Isn't this sending us to our deaths?" someone complained.

"Yeah, I don't want to be eaten by beasts!" many disciples chimed in.

"Shut up, you bunch of trash!" Jiang Yulong said coldly from the crowd.

"I think the sect won't send us directly to the front lines. Don't be anxious," Duan Fei said solemnly.

Lin Xuan looked at the ruined scene below, feeling a bit depressed. This was a cruel world where the weak were devoured, and only the strong could survive.

Suddenly, his eyebrows furrowed, and he quickly turned around, his muscles tensing as he stared intently at the sky.

A sharp screech echoed, making everyone's eardrums vibrate and causing dizziness. The outer gate disciples all activated their spiritual energy to resist, and a layer of light green energy shield appeared on the ship, covering the entire vessel.

"What a terrifying sound! What is that?" everyone was alarmed.

Whoosh! A huge shadow fell on the ship, and a gray bird over ten meters long appeared above them, diving down.

"Damn, it's an Iron Claw Eagle! It's so big, it must be far beyond the Pulse Condensation Realm!" someone recognized the strange bird.

Boom!

The silver-glowing iron claws struck the green energy shield, causing it to shake, but the shield only deformed slightly and then returned to its original state.

At this moment, the cabin door opened, and the square-faced middle-aged man walked out, followed by two young men in their twenties.

"Beast!" The square-faced middle-aged man glared at the Iron Claw Eagle above and snorted.

Then, a sword beam flashed, like a red streak, instantly piercing the Iron Claw Eagle's chest and leaving a two-meter-long wound.

Blood splattered into the sky, and gray feathers flew in the air as the Iron Claw Eagle let out a mournful screech and quickly flew away.

"What a terrifying sword!" Lin Xuan looked at the square-faced middle-aged man with great respect. That sword strike was so sharp that it could almost instantly kill all of them.

After driving away the Iron Claw Eagle with one sword strike, the square-faced middle-aged man said calmly, "I am the person in charge of this mission. You can call me Elder Gu. The content of your test this time is combat, real combat!"

"I will send you to a small battlefield. There are no beasts there, only fierce beasts, and their strength is similar to yours. Your task is to kill these fierce beasts!"

"After you kill the fierce beasts, you need to cut off their left ears as proof. The final ranking will be based on the number of kills."

"Of course, this test is dangerous, and there may be casualties. Now, I will give you a chance to withdraw. Give me your answer in ten breaths!"