Chapter 277: Chapter 175: Elephant Demon and Blood Crystal, Absorbing the Heart of the Furnace!
“That mountain, it seems alive.”
As Qin Shi approached, the immense Copper Mountain embedded in the ground seemed to emit a heartbeat-like pulsating rhythm.
He squinted his eyes, expanding his spiritual power further. Concentrating his spirit, he inexplicably heard battle cries with a wilderness resonance.
“The pressure in the core area is indeed different.”
Qin Shi suddenly halted, restrained his breath, as a giant humanoid creature over twenty meters tall walked past with heavy steps.
Like a deep red giant with its skin peeled off, wherever it passed, great heat waves surged, melting the gravel.
The vitality was so immense it was terrifying, almost tangible as waves crashing, making it suffocating as if a small fish were being tossed ashore by furious tides.
“Specialized Level! And having gone through several evolution stages!”
Qin Shi silently hid in a corner, waiting for the deep red giant to pass.
Such an exotic creature, even if it stood still, it would be difficult to eliminate even with his Dimension Slash.
“No wonder those people sent to the core area don’t seem to hunt much. The possibility of becoming prey is too high.”
Qin Shi carefully proceeded. He noticed that the powerful strange creatures seemed unwilling to approach the Bronze Demon Mountain, as if they were fearful or wary.
“Thus, that mountain is actually the safest place.”
He moved swiftly, the Refining Stance’s speed like the wind once initiated, his figure merging into the airflow without resistance, and soon reached the “foot” of the mountain.
Precisely speaking, the part embedded in the ground was the mountain top, but due to its inverted structure, it appeared narrow at the bottom and wide at the top.
“Climbing the steps up, one must flip over to pass the trial.”
Qin Shi tried stepping onto the first step, feeling no unexpected heavy pressure.
“It’s not that difficult…”
He continued upward, and upon reaching the tenth step, his muscles and bones began to feel notable pressure.
After stepping onto the twenty-seventh step, his mortal body felt an electric shock, limbs slightly numb, the strange feeling growing stronger, with bones and organs trembling as if being hammered.
After the fiftieth step, Qin Shi saw a few silhouettes ahead, roughly at the hundredth step, each step taken with great difficulty.
“Has this Bronze Demon Mountain truly given birth to life? It’s assimilating me!”
Reaching the sixtieth step, Qin Shi finally discovered the issue.
As he ascended, his mortal body gradually adapted to the iron-forging-like tremors, with his flesh resonating more actively.
This was tempering, continuously expelling “impurities” from his muscles, bones, skin, and organs, making them increasingly hard and dense.
But similarly, the “assimilation” made his body increasingly resemble a certain “form”.
“If this mountain is truly alive, these tremors more resemble breathing! And I, as well as other climbers, will only adapt more to this breathing rhythm as we go higher!”
Qin Shi was startled, no doubt the Bronze Demon Mountain from the Netherworld belonged to some Great Demon’s authority personified.
He had heard from Old Liang that regardless of the Great Demons of the Netherworld or divine pillars, they were distinct from other beings.
They are higher beings, with absolute control over lower beings.
“The closer the lower beings are to the higher beings, the deeper the control and domination. This explains why the First Generation Martial God Yan Haishan and later Ning Yuanhai were reluctant to become the Four Pillars’ representatives.”
With clear thoughts, Qin Shi quickly grasped the essence of this trial, to resist the Bronze Demon Mountain’s assimilation, maintain self, and scale over it.
“To pass, one must firstly have a high inheritance level; being too ordinary means inevitably being unconsciously influenced, thus aligning with the mountain’s breathing rhythm.
Secondly, flesh vitality must be abundant, like long-distance running; only with sufficient stamina could one persist to the end. Luckily, I lack neither!”
Understanding this, Qin Shi began adjusting his climbing speed, aiming to take one step every two minutes, advancing steadily.
At the end of the Great Rift Valley was a lush oasis. Old Zhang sat in a wheelchair, eyes closed, basking in the sun.
Beside him was a middle-aged man with a wide forehead and a square, tough jaw. The man spoke slowly, his voice carrying a weight:
“One has to admit, Heng Province has indeed produced some talented individuals in recent years. This batch is the best since the Wilderness Trials were halted.”
Old Zhang, without opening his eyes, lazily replied:
“Dongxia never lacks talent, only those who can grow and realize their gifts. Before that, any evaluation is meaningless.”
The middle-aged man was the “Chief Examiner” sent by the Heng Province Martial Arts Association, holding more power than representative Li, even able to halt or terminate the competition.
“Surely, being experienced in life’s ups and downs, one would make such exclamations. As they say, the cicada’s life spans only an autumn, all beings strive to cross this sea of stars, where many promising talents lie buried. Before treading that path, who isn’t full of ambition and spirit?”
Old Zhang, still with closed eyes, rasped:
“Xiao Xu, it’s been years, and your skill at saying empty words has greatly improved. I used to find you more pleasing, now you’re too bureaucratic, too authoritative, not likable.”
The middle-aged man’s name was “Xu Sheng”, his habitual frown relaxed, a bitter smile appeared:
“Senior, in this vast societal dye vat, how can one remain pure? There are many rules within the system, pressures from above, demands from below. Without striking a balance, it’s hard to go far. Without senior’s unmatched strength, trying to act freely and horizontally, one would surely be kicked aside sooner or later.”