Chapter 3

The entire team made their way through the valley, the poisonous fog gradually dissipating ahead, and the terrain began to narrow, forming a pass shaped like a gourd mouth.

Yuan Ming could see from a distance a bronze gate about five to six zhang high standing at the pass, with seven or eight armored guards armed with weapons stationed beside it.

The bronze gate was intricately carved with patterns of coiled green snakes, exuding an exotic atmosphere at first glance.

On either side of the gate, two green wolves over two zhang tall stood guard, their backs arched and bodies clad in specially made scale armor that tightly protected their necks and chests, looking exceptionally fierce.

As the group approached, the green wolves immediately bared their teeth, growling hoarsely in their throats, crouching low with their muscles taut, ready to attack at any moment.

After the guards calmed them down, the green wolves relaxed their menacing stance.

The leading bare-chested giant brought the group forward, and after a greeting, the heavy bronze gate slowly lifted with the sound of gears turning, opening a passage.

At that moment, a sharp cry came from the sky, and a shadow flew over the group.

Yuan Ming looked up and saw a giant black hawk circling above, then diving straight down after a turn.

"Whoosh"

A strong wind swept up a cloud of dust and sand, and a hawk with a five-foot wingspan, its sharp talons gleaming, swept low over the group and then soared back up, causing a collective gasp.

Yuan Ming looked at the passage and sighed inwardly. The defenses here were far more stringent than he had imagined, and once inside, it would be as difficult as climbing to the heavens to escape.

"As long as I am alive, there will be a chance."

Yuan Ming narrowed his eyes and continued forward with the group, walking along a passage about two zhang wide for a li. The scenery ahead suddenly opened up, revealing a vast green stone square.

Behind the square stood a grand circular hall, constructed entirely of green stone slabs, with a huge circular dome on top, resembling a massive fortress.

On either side of the hall, similar circular halls were scattered, and further back, a mountain peak rose, with stone buildings visible among the trees.

Beast roars echoed from behind the hall, varying in pitch, seemingly from different beasts. More hawks flew and landed above, their low cries continuous.

Only a few people walked across the square, and when they looked over, the southern border giants who had escorted them would all place their hands on their chests and bow.

They did not stay long and were led to the left side of the square, stopping in front of one of the halls.

Yuan Ming looked up and saw that above the stone door, three crooked, worm-like characters were engraved.

After a moment's thought, Yuan Ming recognized them as the snake script commonly used in the southern border.

The three characters meant "Zhu Ling Hall."

At this moment, an old man with a gaunt face and a gray robe emerged from the hall. His skin was slightly gray, and although he was tall, his figure seemed somewhat hunched.

"This time, there are quite a few of them," the old man said in a hoarse voice.

"Elder Saren, this time we were lucky, a total of 137, all capable of lighting the soul stones, and there should be a few with spiritual roots," the bare-chested giant said with a bow and a smile.

"Let's hope so. After I test their spiritual roots, you can go to the treasury to collect your reward," the old man nodded slightly.

"Thank you, Elder."

Elder Saren's gaze swept over the southern border savages, pausing on Yuan Ming, his brows furrowing slightly, as if he felt some disgust.

"Why is there a Central Plains person here?"

"Cough, cough, we picked him up on the way. We originally planned to extract his soul, but unexpectedly, his spirit was not weak and passed the soul stone test. We didn't dare make a decision and brought him back," the bare-chested giant explained hurriedly.

Yuan Ming's heart sank slightly upon hearing this. From their conversation, it seemed that the identity of a "Central Plains person" was not well-received here.

"Bring him in first, we'll see what happens," Elder Saren said indifferently.

The bare-chested giant and others then escorted Yuan Ming and the southern border savages into the hall.

The stone hall was spacious, with bronze animal heads hanging on the walls, burning yellow flames that illuminated the entire hall.

Yuan Ming immediately saw a circular stone platform in the center of the hall, resembling a millstone but with uneven patterns carved on it.

On the eight different positions of the stone platform, there were eight snake script characters of the southern border, reading: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, Heaven, Strange, and Void.

He did not understand what they meant but guessed they were related to the spiritual roots mentioned earlier.

"You, come up."

Elder Saren pointed to a muscular savage and gestured to the center of the stone platform.

The savage looked terrified, trembling and hesitant to step forward.

Elder Saren did not hesitate, grabbing the savage by the back, making him stiff and immobile, and lifting him onto the stone platform like a chicken.

The other savages looked on in fear.

Yuan Ming, however, watched intently with wide eyes.

Elder Saren pressed the savage's head down, forcing him to sit, and then jumped off the platform. After making some gestures, a green light appeared in his palms.

With a wave of his hand, the green light fell on the savage on the platform.

The savage was immediately enveloped by the green light, screaming in terror.

However, no cruel or bloody scene followed. The green light flashed and disappeared, and the "Void" character on the platform glowed white for a moment before fading.

"No spiritual root, stand over there," Elder Saren said expressionlessly, pointing to a spot on the left.

The muscular savage, confused but not daring to disobey, walked over.

Elder Saren then randomly pointed to another savage, who stepped onto the platform, and only the "Void" character glowed again.

"No spiritual root."

"No."

"No."

One after another, about seventeen or eighteen people had no spiritual roots. By the end, Elder Saren seemed to lose interest and simply waved his hand without speaking.

The bare-chested giant glanced at the savages standing on the left and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

Suddenly, a light "hmm" came from Elder Saren.

A green light fell on a slightly plump young savage, and a faint spiritual light appeared on his body, seeping into the stone platform.

Then, a yellow, a green, and a red light column rose from the "Earth," "Wood," and "Fire" characters on the platform.

"Three spiritual roots, not bad. Stand on the right," Elder Saren nodded slightly.

He then helped the savage down, his face showing a rare gentle smile, which surprised the savage.

"Your turn," he said, pointing to another savage with a noticeably larger head.

Seeing that the test did not seem to have serious consequences, the others were less nervous.

The large-headed savage walked onto the platform, sitting down and curiously looking around.

Elder Saren again cast a green light, and this time, a blue, a green, a golden, and a red light column rose from the "Water," "Wood," "Fire," and "Metal" characters on the platform.

"Hmm, another one! One water root, one wood root, one fire root, and one metal root. Four spiritual roots are too mixed, not good enough, but stand on the right for now," the old man shook his head but still let the large-headed savage stand on the right.

"Thank you, Elder." The large-headed savage bowed to Elder Saren before walking to the right.

At this point, even if the other savages did not understand what spiritual roots were, they could infer from the old man's expressions that having spiritual roots was better than not having them.

One by one, the savages were called to the platform to be tested for spiritual roots.

After the large-headed savage, about twenty more had no spiritual roots, and the left side of the hall was quickly filled.

Elder Saren's face turned sour.

The bare-chested giant, rubbing his hands, looked anxious.

They had worked hard to capture these savages, and the rewards they would receive depended on the results of the spiritual root tests.

In the human world, those with spiritual roots were extremely rare, and although these savages had been screened, the majority still lacked spiritual roots. Even those with spiritual roots, most had four spiritual roots, which were of poor quality.

If the remaining savages also had poor qualities, the rewards would be minimal, and they would likely be scolded and sent out to capture more, losing their time for cultivation.

"What are you waiting for, come up," Elder Saren said impatiently to a young savage.

The young savage had thick eyebrows and large eyes, his body not inferior to the adult savages, but his face still showed some youthful innocence.

He walked to the center of the platform and sat down, and the test began again.

The next moment, a green and a yellow light column rose from the "Wood" and "Earth" characters, and Elder Saren's face changed instantly.

"Two spiritual roots, actually a two-spiritual-root, this is enough to enter the inner gate," the old man's sudden joy surprised everyone.

However, he quickly calmed down and said to the bare-chested giant with satisfaction, "Huzha, you have done a great job this time, bringing back such a good seed. The Elder will reward you greatly."

Huzha was so excited he could not speak, his eyes burning as he looked at the bewildered young savage, wishing he could hug and kiss him.

The fewer the types of spiritual roots, the purer they were, and the faster the cultivation would be. A single elemental spiritual root was extremely rare, and the appearance of a two-spiritual-root was already enough to make them ecstatic.

Happiness came too suddenly!

With the precedent set, the other savages no longer looked anxious but rather eager, making some noise.

But Elder Saren's next words were like a bucket of cold water poured over their heads:

"Be quiet! Those without spiritual roots, drag them out and kill them."

After saying this, he personally helped the still bewildered young savage down from the platform and asked him a few questions kindly.

Huzha immediately took out a bell, and with a wave of his hand, several southern border giants stepped forward and dragged the group of savages who had not yet reacted out of the hall.

Soon, cries of pain echoed from outside.

The remaining savages finally realized that those without spiritual roots would be killed. They no longer fought to go up but instead shrank back, afraid to step forward.

Yuan Ming's heart sank even further. He had already understood that the stone platform was some kind of talent testing device, and the results could not be influenced by human intervention.

This meant that his life and death were entirely up to fate.

"Central Plains boy, you go first," Elder Saren pointed to Yuan Ming with an authoritative tone.

Yuan Ming did not resist or struggle, walking to the platform and sitting down calmly.

This scene made Elder Saren's eyes flash with surprise.

Soon, he cast the green light again, and Yuan Ming felt a warm current flow into the stone platform below him.

Then, red, golden, blue, and green light columns rose around him.

"Five elements missing Earth... Haha, another false spiritual root," Elder Saren smiled and shook his head.

Yuan Ming's heart sank upon hearing this.

At this moment, Huzha, who had just returned, asked:

"Should we...?"

"Four spiritual roots, he can still be a fur beast slave. The camps are short of hands, and although he is from the Central Plains, we can keep him for now," Elder Saren said indifferently, sparing Yuan Ming's life.

Yuan Ming was overjoyed, feeling as if he had escaped death.

The tests continued, and most of the savages without spiritual roots were killed. The few who survived, besides one with three spiritual roots, all had four spiritual roots, similar to Yuan Ming.

From the test results and Elder Saren's occasional comments, Yuan Ming deduced that more spiritual roots were not necessarily better.

It seemed that a heavenly spiritual root was the best, followed by a strange spiritual root, then a single elemental spiritual root like fire or water. A two-spiritual-root was slightly inferior but still very rare.

As for a four-spiritual-root like his, it was considered a substandard spiritual root, the worst type, and was called a false spiritual root.

He did not yet know what it meant for him, being a Central Plains person with an inferior spiritual root, for his future.