Chapter 509 - 379: Their Unspoken Understanding
The members of the Xuan Country Delegation were all infuriated.
Not only had someone died, but they were also directly disqualified. The Guardian Cave Elder of Xingxiu Cave was being far too overbearing.
"Since you do not abide by the rules, then I shall not leave a single one of you."
The elder gave a cold huff, and before the sound could fade,
suddenly from the cliff below came a surge of violent Gang Wind, a dark and ominous breeze sweeping in.
By the time the leader of the Xuan Country realized something was amiss and attempted to control their Alchemy Beast to flee quickly,
the Alchemy Beast was no match for the ferocious Gang Wind. With a series of piteous screams, the Alchemy Beast was torn to dust, and the remaining ten members of the Xuan Country Delegation were swept up by the Gang Wind and fell into the bottomless chasm, never to be heard from again.
Looking back at the elder at the cave's entrance, he remained with his eyes tightly shut.
The rest of the thirty-eight delegates fell into collective silence.
This elder could actually directly manipulate the Gang Wind beneath the endless cliff; such strength was truly terrifying.
While these Martial Artists were considered the pride of their nations, they were now caught between heaven and earth, with the exceedingly fierce Gang Wind below.
For a moment, no one dared utter another word.
"Ladies and gentlemen, as I mentioned earlier, each delegation must send one person to draw lots. These Jade Carvings are not ordinary pieces; each one is imbued with a different spiritual power. The Jade Carvings numbered one to three require at least an Alchemist of the Nine Rank and above and Fang Venerate to withstand. The ones numbered four to six correspond to the Eighth Rank, and seven to nine correspond to the Seventh Rank. Pian Ran here would like to advise everyone to act according to their capability. After all, at the end of each cave, there is a Jade Carving that leads to another cave, so opportunities are not limited to just one."
The explanation from Xue Pianran made the delegates from each party feel much better.
That is to say, as long as you follow one passage to the end, there is still a chance to obtain a Jade Engraving that gives access to other passages.
The Xuan Country delegate earlier, who acted recklessly without considering the consequences, had aimed for the "No.1" Jade Carving right off the bat, which contained such a strong spiritual power that it could instantly tear him apart.
The members of the other delegations did not dare to rashly compete for the Jade Carvings numbered "one to three" since, at this moment, everyone only had one chance.
No one wished to follow in the footsteps of Xuan Country.
Ye Lingyue also furrowed her brows; the challenges had already presented themselves before even entering Xingxiu Cave.
Only those above the Nine Rank could draw from the Jade Carvings numbered one to three. Currently, she was only of the Seventh Rank, and even with the use of Cauldron Breath, she was at best the Eighth Rank, which meant at most she could only go for the Jade Carvings numbered four to six, and even that would be a stretch.
However, Chen Hongru had also reminded Ye Lingyue that the Yi God's Void-breaking Bow, capable of breaking the Eye of the Primordial Demon, was a Spiritual Artifact of Heaven Rank.
Such a Spiritual Artifact would definitely not be placed in the paths of seven to nine; therefore, the remaining possibilities could only be... within the paths of one to six.
If one were too late for a Heaven Rank Spiritual Artifact, it would surely be snatched away by others.
Among the members of the Beiqing Delegation, one person had already stepped forward, a middle-aged Alchemist of the Nine Rank, who was also the leader of the Beiqing Delegation this time.
"Lady Heavenly Maiden, Wen Xu dares to give it a try."
Wen Xu, who was evident in being from Dan Palace, gave a bow to Xue Pianran.
He walked up to the nine Jade Carvings without any hesitation and reached for the one labeled "three."
As soon as the Jade Carving was in hand, it trembled violently.
Wen Xu felt an enormous force strike him. His body shook violently, as if someone had delivered a heavy punch to his chest; all his internal organs seemed to twist together.
It took the time it would take to drink a cup of tea before the Jade Carving finally stopped struggling.
From within that Jade Carving, a light was emitted, and on Wen Xu's hand appeared the character "three."
This meant that he had already earned the approval of the No. 3 Jade Engraving, with permission to enter.
Wen Xu's complexion was pale as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, finally letting out a long sigh of relief.
After drawing the Jade Engraving, Wen Xu did not immediately enter but instead retreated back to his original position, evidently waiting for the results of other representative groups.
Wen Xu, hailing from Dan Palace, only dared to draw the No. 3 Jade Engraving and from his appearance, dealing with it was not an easy task, which also served as a considerable warning to the other groups.
Following Wen Xu, individuals from other countries also stepped forward one after another.
Since the teams from most countries were mostly made up of Seven Rank and Eighth Rank Alchemists, the numbers they drew were also between six and eight.
When it was Daxia Delegation's turn, Chou Alchemist and Xiahou Qi consulted with each other.
In the end, they decided to draw the Jade Engraving for the fourth cave.
Having been an Eighth Rank Alchemist for many years already, Chou Alchemist managed to secure the No. 4 Jade Engraving without much risk.
After the Daxia Delegation, Zhuge Yi from Heavenly Armor Sect also drew the No. 4 Jade Engraving for the cave.
Evidently, the Heavenly Armor Sect had formed an alliance with the Daxia Delegation behind the scenes.
One by one, everyone had drawn their Jade Engravings.
There weren't many representative groups left, and both Ye Lingyue and Kaijiang Prince Manor hadn't drawn yet.
Chen Minzhi had been standing aside all along, occasionally discussing with the members of the Beiqing Delegation.
Aside from the Beiqing Delegation, the representatives from Kaijiang Prince Manor were undoubtedly the ones Ye Lingyue paid the most attention to.
"Ling Yue, should we not opt for a steady victory, drawing a Jade Engraving between numbers five, six, or seven?" Lan Cai'er suggested.
Lan Cai'er knew that Ye Lingyue was a Seven Rank Alchemist but also understood her sister always concealed her strength well, suspecting that Ye Lingyue still had an ace up her sleeve.
Caves numbered five, six, and seven corresponded to Eighth Rank to Seven Rank in Spiritual Power Cultivation, a moderate path to walk, and most importantly, it would allow them to avoid the Daxia Delegation and the Heavenly Armor Sect.
From the looks in Hong Yuying and Zhuge Yi's eyes, they wished nothing more than to tear Ye Lingyue into pieces swiftly.
Ye Lingyue did not make a sound, while Feng Xun appeared to be deep in thought.
"Feng San, perhaps you should choose the sixth or seventh cave," said Cong Lv, speaking solemnly from beside.
"No, I think we have an answer already," said Feng Xun, exchanging a glance with Ye Lingyue. It was just one look, but there was an indescribable understanding between them.
Ye Lingyue chuckled, suddenly getting a playful idea, she joked with Feng Xun.
"Why not write down your answer, and I will go up and draw to see if our choices are the same?"
Saying so, Ye Lingyue stepped out from the line, ready to draw a Jade Engraving. As the only Alchemist in their group, the task fell to her without question.
Feng Xun nodded in agreement and commanded Sword Slave to take out pen and ink, writing a single character in his palm.
By then, Ye Lingyue was already standing in front of the nine floating Xingxiu Cave Jade Carvings.
She did not rush to act, scrutinizing the nine Jade Engravings carefully, and ultimately her gaze settled on the No. 3 Jade Engraving. Her hands, fair and flawless after a change of skin, reached out slowly but with utmost certainty towards the No. 3 Jade Engraving.
The crowd was shocked; of the thirty-eight teams present, aside from the eliminated Xuan Country Delegation, only the Beiqing Delegation had drawn No. 3.
Could it be... this woman, was also planning to draw the No. 3 Jade Engraving recklessly? She couldn't be throwing her life away, could she?