Chapter 55

And at the entrance of the Martial Arts Hall, several lines of text were carved into the ground in a crimson color, exuding an imposing aura."The third challenge, Sever the Heart."

"Each stage can hold 20 Disciples, with the one facing south at noon starting off by talking about the most unique thing they have ever done, which could be true or false."

"The stories cannot relate to age, gender, specific parts of the body, Cultivation Technique names, mental method names, or similar matters, and each story can only be told once without repetition."

"After the previous Disciple has finished speaking, if the next one suspects that the previous Disciple is lying, they can call out the falsehood. If the judgement is correct, the other party is eliminated; if it's mistaken, they themselves are out."

"If unable to judge whether the other party is lying, one can skip this process. The next statement must build on what the previous Disciple said, adding their own story for the next Disciple to judge, and so on."

"For example, if the previous Disciple said 'I have saved a person,' the next Disciple must add to it with their own story, saying 'I have saved a person, and I have also killed someone.'"

"When only one Disciple remains on the stage, that Disciple is the winner and will receive the victory reward."

...

People did not rush into the Martial Arts Hall immediately; instead, they stood at the entrance of the hall and carefully committed the words carved into the ground to memory before exchanging glances with each other. In almost an instant, many hurried toward the various stages to secure a spot.

The rules were clear.

Only one person on each stage could win a reward.

Naturally, one had to avoid competing against fellow sect members to avoid confrontation.

Chen Qiu and Fat Long bid each other a hasty farewell and ran toward different stages.

Some cultivators from the same family had their eyes light up and activated their movement techniques, dashing toward the stages at the far end. Their idea was simple: if they could occupy a stage entirely, it didn't matter who won in the end—the Pill would definitely end up in their family's hands.

However...

They were not the only ones with this idea.

"Get lost!!!"

A Foundation Establishment mid-stage cultivator, with an expression ravaged by time, glared at the other family cultivators running shoulder to shoulder with him toward the distant stage, his eyes filled with ferocity. Spiritual Energy surged into his left palm, and he swung with all his might!

Although this attack did not use any Cultivation Technique, it was purely a Spiritual Energy assault.

But if it hit, the impact was not to be underestimated.

His strike was not intended to injure or kill, but simply to repel the others, to deter them from fighting over the spot with him. The force wasn't tremendous, but it was energy-saving to deal with the chaos likely to ensue.

However—

Just as he unleashed his attack, before he could accelerate further, a tremendous oppressive force suddenly descended from the sky of the Martial Arts Hall. Countless Array Patterns on the ceiling emerged and flickered wildly, and then, as the Foundation Establishment Cultivator looked on in terror, a bolt of Thunder as thick as a bucket struck down.

Instantly turned into a pile of ashes.

The other cultivators, who had been ready to fight for a position, all twitched at this spectacle. The Spiritual Energy that had been gathering in their palms forcibly reversed flow back into their Dantians, causing blood to ooze from the corners of their mouths—obviously, they'd been internally injured.

The reason was simple, backlash from Spiritual Energy.

Naturally, it could cause internal injuries.

All at once, the atmosphere in the Martial Arts Hall, which was on the verge of chaos, quieted down. People began to compete quietly with their movement technique speeds. Once the stages were full, they waited patiently on the sidelines, in no rush.

...

"Big Brother, I just thought of something. Why are we rushing for the first round?"

"There are nearly 8,000 people here and only 100 stages, 20 to a group, so it's definitely going to take several rounds to finish. If we go last, there are bound to be many empty stages for us to choose from."

"By then, wouldn't it guarantee our family gets an Earth Fire Pill?"

"Hmm, if you had shared your insight before Big Brother was struck by lightning, that would've been better. And I'm Second Brother, not Big Brother. You've got the wrong person," said the middle-aged man with a complex expression, looking at the pile of black ashes at his feet, unsure of what to say. Enjoy new chapters from empire

"Old Big Brother is dead, now you're Big Brother."

"That makes sense."

...

"Phew..."

Fat Long had already taken his seat on cushion number 18 in the martial arts hall, looking at the other 19 cushions where cultivators were already sitting cross-legged with serious expressions. He shrunk his head timidly, trying to make himself look as inconspicuous as possible.

He was a bit socially anxious.

He didn't like places with lots of people.

...

Meanwhile, Chen Qiu had taken his seat on cushion number 19. His hundred resentful spirits, summoned earlier, were still present since their hour had not yet passed, lying quietly under the martial arts platform, looking just like a group of spectators.

Consequently, their platform was the coldest in the entire martial arts hall.

Chillingly cold.

One must say, if this entry were to be used to keep cool during summer, it would probably be quite effective.

As a barrier slowly rose around the platform, enclosing it, the third challenge officially began—starting with the disciple stationed at high noon taking the lead to speak, given only three breaths' time to think.

Anyone who failed to make a decision within three breaths would be automatically eliminated.

"I..."

This was a rather young man, dressed in lavish clothes, clearly a young master from some family. After contemplating for a moment, he spoke hoarsely, "I have eaten a meal!"

Then, the young man turned to look at the disciple seated below him.

This was almost a perfect beginning; this challenge resembled something like a game of idiom solitaire, except it tested your life experiences rather than vocabulary. His statement was clearly true, leaving no room for doubt for the next disciple.

And the next disciple quickly followed up.

"I have eaten a meal, and I have also killed a man."

For a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, having killed was quite normal.

The third disciple had no cause for doubt and smoothly continued, "I have eaten a meal, and I have also killed a man, and I have even eaten shit."

As soon as he finished speaking,

the fourth disciple seated cross-legged on his cushion began to twitch at the corners of his mouth uncontrollably, feeling as if his scalp was about to explode!

There were only two options before him now!

1: Challenge the claim, but if it turned out to be true, he'd be eliminated.

2: Don't challenge it, and continue the narrative, but the problem was, he had never eaten shit, and if the disciple below him were to challenge his claim, he'd be out of the game.

Dammit...

The previous disciple had spoken so smoothly; it was clear as day that he bloody well had eaten it!

The disciple took a deep breath, trying to keep his expression as calm as possible, and said indifferantly, "I have eaten a meal, and I have also killed a man, and I have eaten shit, and I have bought a talisman."

At this moment, the disciple below him turned his head to look at the man who had just spoken, and gave a sly laugh.

"I don't believe you."

As soon as those words were out,

a soft yet powerful surge of Formation energy suddenly appeared on the platform, pushing the previous speaker off the platform and signalling his official elimination, meaning the first round had ended and the second round had officially begun.

The first to speak in the second round was the one who had just raised the challenge.

After pondering for a moment, the disciple began anew, "I have watched my young auntie take a bath." seaʀᴄh thё NôvelFire(.)net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

Then he looked provocatively at the cultivator seated below him, which was Chen Qiu.

"..."

After a long pause, Chen Qiu softly said, "I have watched my young auntie take a bath, and I own a green entry."

He was starting to get the feeling that he was gradually beginning to understand the educational principles of this sect.