Chapter 58

(Seeking red tickets, clicks, and collections — even more so, the monthly votes from my fellow readers)

Dark clouds rolled across the sky, providing the best cover of night.

Leaving Tianma Lake Village, Chen Xun and Zong Ya, along with others, moved south along the dense forest on the east bank of Wild Horse Creek. They first arrived at the northern foot of Black Rock Peak in the dark and met up with Gu Jianfeng and his group.

Several crane calls echoed, and the two groups exchanged signals, meeting on a massive stone beam that jutted out on the eastern slope of the mountain.

Bathed in the faint light, Gu Jianfeng noticed that Zong Ya's left arm was intact and asked in surprise, "Your hand, what's going on?"

"Fake..." Zong Ya removed the wooden prosthetic hand from his left arm, leaving the sleeve hanging empty.

Gu Jianfeng instantly understood Chen Xun's intention.

Today, thousands of tribal youths gathered, and most of them were strangers to each other. When Zong Ya, representing Black Python, went to the martial arts platform to receive the trial iron badge, his severed left arm was the most noticeable feature, making him the most recognizable target for other tribes.

By now wearing a prosthetic hand, Zong Ya's most distinctive feature was hidden, making it easier to blend in. When they joined together, those lurking in the shadows might overlook them.

Gu Jianfeng had heard from his father that Zong Tu was cunning. It seemed that Black Python had put a lot of thought into protecting that trial iron badge.

Dark clouds rolled across the sky, with only a faint light filtering through.

Although it was already spring, the cold wind still made them hunch their shoulders.

Chen Xun leaped onto the stone beam and gazed at the distant Tianma Lake. The lake's surface shimmered faintly under the dark night, about thirty to fifty miles away.

The Black Mountain Tribe had sent fifteen youths to participate in the trial. Apart from six who were missing, eight Black Mountain youths stood under the stone beam with Gu Jianfeng, waiting.

Apart from Gu Jianfeng, who was at the peak of the sixth level of Savage Martial Arts, only one of the other eight had awakened a savage soul, but his cultivation was slightly weaker than Zong Ling's. He had a scar on his face.

Chen Xun asked, "What's your name?"

"Gu Feng."

"Good, Gu Feng, you come with us. The rest of you go back to the village!" Chen Xun said.

"How can we do that?" The other Black Mountain youths said anxiously.

"Although they haven't awakened their savage souls yet, they have been practicing Savage Martial Arts since childhood, strengthening their bodies. They are not weak and won't be a burden..." Gu Jianfeng didn't understand why Chen Xun only chose him and Gu Feng to go, while the others were to return to the Black Mountain Tribe.

The other seven, though they hadn't awakened their savage souls, were only fourteen or fifteen years old, with well-trained bodies and a solid foundation in Savage Martial Arts. They were the elite of the Black Mountain Tribe's younger generation.

Chen Xun thought that the Black Mountain Tribe was truly determined to use so many excellent youths as decoys with Gu Jianfeng.

If the Black Mountain Tribe's sacrifice couldn't protect the trial iron badge, the tribe's people might lose the courage to resist and directly submit to Gui Xi.

"Sacrificing so many people to draw the attention of other tribes won't work. The real danger lies after entering the Canglan Wilderness."

Chen Xun bluntly told Gu Jianfeng,

"Once you reach the upper level of Savage Martial Arts, your savage soul will develop a spiritual sense. With a little practice, you can sense weak auras from far away. Perhaps few of the North Mountain Tribe's youths can see that the trial iron badge is not on you, but once you enter the Canglan Wilderness, you won't be able to hide from the ambushes set by the Gui Xi Tribe's elite. The only way is to fight your way through. The Canglan Academy won't give you any chance to cheat..."

"How is that possible?" Gu Jianfeng was both ashamed and surprised, his face showing shock. "My father can only sense the trial iron badge within fifty meters..."

Before practicing the Dragon Binding Technique, Chen Xun's savage soul could only sense weak auras within twenty to thirty meters. After practicing the technique, he could clearly sense weak auras up to six hundred meters away.

The restrained savage beast soul in the trial iron badge was so fierce that it was like a beacon attracting people to compete for it from miles away.

If Gu Hu could only sense the trial iron badge within fifty meters, his spiritual sense was much weaker than Chen Xun's before he practiced the Dragon Binding Technique.

The Black Mountain Tribe might not have a clear concept of spiritual sense training, so their plan to deceive others was full of flaws, which was not surprising.

"The Gui Xi Tribe and other major tribes have sent countless youths to the Canglan Academy over the past century and have brought back many mystic techniques to their tribes," Chen Xun asked, "Do you think there isn't a single Gui Xi youth with a spiritual sense far stronger than the Black Mountain Tribe's?"

The Gui Xi Tribe even had several Heaven Savages who had reached the Rebirth Realm, with a legacy far beyond the Black Mountain Tribe's.

Gu Jianfeng felt both embarrassed and dejected, realizing that their plan to use Chen Xun to draw attention had been seen through by Chen Xun. He also realized that the Black Mountain Tribe's carefully planned strategy was useless.

Gu Jianfeng's face turned red, wishing he could dig a hole and hide. Fortunately, the night was deep, and Chen Xun couldn't see his expression.

Zong Ya asked, "Where are the other seven from Black Mountain? If they come with us, they might have a chance to survive."

"Once we split up, we won't contact each other again unless we reach Canglan City. I don't know which path they will take or how they will go," Gu Jianfeng said guiltily, unsure if Chen Xun would believe him and worried about the other seven who had gone south.

Zong Ya chuckled; he didn't believe Gu Jianfeng's words.

Chen Xun, however, thought Gu Jianfeng had no reason to lie at this point.

In the trial, anything goes.

Since the Gui Xi Tribe had decided to use their young leader, Gu Jianfeng, as a decoy, they shouldn't have told him the details of the other group's plan.

"I can sense that one trial iron badge is staying on the southern slope of Black Rock Peak. It's probably held by a Left Thorn Tribe youth. They left Tianma Lake Village before us. The other three have already run far away, not stopping along the way. They probably hope to use the night to disperse and cover their tracks," Chen Xun said, looking at the Black Mountain youths, "Stay here tonight and return to the village tomorrow..."

Gu Jianfeng felt guilty and was about to follow Chen Xun's instructions when he saw Chen Xun take out his iron-bow from his back.

Before Gu Jianfeng could react, Chen Xun drew an iron arrow from his quiver, turned, and drew the bow, his movements fluid and seamless. In the next moment, the iron arrow, gleaming in the dark, shot into the night like a black shadow.

A moment later, a muffled thud was heard, as if the arrow had deeply pierced a large tree.

Chen Xun drew another arrow and shot. A commotion was heard from the dense forest, as if a large bird had been startled and flown away.

It sounded like a bird, but it wasn't. Birds don't fly close to the treetops.

In the darkness, Gu Jianfeng couldn't see anything. He drew his short spear, listened carefully to the wind, and prepared to throw his spear in the direction Chen Xun aimed.

"He's run far away..."

Chen Xun put away his bow.

Since their presence had been detected, there was no need to hide anymore. Chen Xun immediately had Zong Ling light a fire and search the area.

The iron arrow was embedded in the trunk of a massive iron tree, with only the feathered end visible, hanging a piece of coarse linen. A patch of blood was on the moss at the base of the tree.

Seeing the bloodstains in the firelight, Gu Jianfeng was secretly alarmed. With the dark clouds overhead, he could only see a few feet in the faint light. Chen Xun had shot and injured an enemy three hundred meters away without even looking. This must be the spiritual sense he mentioned!

"Who could it be?" Gu Jianfeng asked, thinking that Chen Xun's spiritual sense was so sharp that they must have been followed unintentionally. He was scared, thinking how they could have defended against the attack if Chen Xun hadn't been there.

"Probably a Left Thorn Tribe youth," Chen Xun said, looking at the broken branches on the treetop. "His aura was well concealed, and I didn't notice him at first. When I mentioned the Left Thorn Tribe, he inadvertently revealed a hint of his aura, which I detected..."

"The Left Thorn Tribe must be planning to target us. Damn them," Zong Ya spat, but didn't say more.

"Should we chase after them?" Gu Jianfeng asked.

During the day in Tianma Lake Village, he had noticed a Left Thorn Tribe youth whose strength he couldn't gauge. If this youth was injured by Chen Xun, the others would be no match for Chen Xun and him. They could chase and seize the trial iron badge from the Left Thorn Tribe.

Chen Xun shook his head and said, "No, let's go down the mountain..."

He then had Zong Ling and Nan Xi take the two or three dozen short spears carried by the Black Mountain youths.

The Black Mountain Tribe had lived in the northern mountains of Python Tooth Ridge for centuries, hunting for a living, and had mastered the skill of throwing short spears. Chen Xun and Gu Lei had experienced this during their fierce battle in the valley.

The bone spears made by the Black Mountain Tribe were light but as strong as fine steel. Thrown from three to four hundred meters, they were extremely powerful. Carrying two or three dozen bone spears would be as effective as the iron-bow.

The bone spears were divided into three bundles and carried by Zong Ling, Nan Xi, and Gu Feng. Seeing that Gu Jianfeng was still hesitant, Chen Xun asked, "Are you wondering why we didn't seize the trial iron badge from the Left Thorn Tribe?"

"Hmm?" Gu Jianfeng didn't deny it, knowing that Black Python only had one trial iron badge, which was clearly not enough for Chen Xun and Zong Ya to enter the Canglan Academy.

"Even if we seize all five trial iron badges from the North Mountain Tribe, entering the Canglan Wilderness would make us the sole target for attacks by the Gui Xi Tribe and other major tribes," Chen Xun explained calmly, trying to build more trust. "Seizing the trial iron badge from others now would be detrimental to us..."

Gu Jianfeng nodded, realizing that although Chen Xun looked two years younger than him, he was far superior in cultivation and wisdom.