Seeing Cao Yun surrounded by demonic beasts ready to slaughter him, Sun Liao felt really good. Somehow, he considered Cao Yun as an eyesore and wanted him gone. To achieve this, he had used a little trick to alter the array formation. It was very complex but a small part of it was an array formation he was very familiar with. The part in question served to control the timing of the activations. By messing with it a little, he was able to force the appearance of the eight beasts at once.
Sun Liao was waiting for Cao Yun to cower in fear. It would be great if the elders could not stop the array in time and Cao Yun suffered great pain. Maybe he would even faint from the pain, or pee himself in front of everyone. Many possibilities appeared in Sun Liao's head as a huge grin deformed his face.
All of a sudden, his grin was replaced by fear. A voice had just echoed in his mind.
"You little rascal! You're proud of yourself?!" It was Chief Elder Suxian's voice. As a Spirit Warrior, he could send him telepathic messages. Considering that Sun Liao was his protégé, they both knew each other.
Sun Liao moved his head around, trying to catch a glimpse of the chief elder.
"You must think that you're terribly clever, huh?! We're all watching the exam right now. Are you really willing to make me lose all face?! You can't even win but you keep on making bets and you use cheap tricks?! I'll try and convince the others not to ban you from the sect for this little stunt. But stop being so conceited! Just because you're from a big family and someone is not does not mean they can't be better than you at certain things."
Chief Elder Suxian kept berating him. As a matter of fact he was using Sun Liao to vent his anger and some of his attacks were maybe directed toward himself. He probably shouldn't have made the bet with Xiao Xuefeng. In his mind, he had already given up on the Exquisite Purple Jasmin tea. It had required so much efforts to obtain just enough for one cup and he would never be able to enjoy it. He really should learn to shut his mouth...
Chief Elder Luoming was watching him, knowing exactly what he was thinking. But he also knew too well that his friend would not learn, he never learned.
-
Cao Yun was circulating Yi the Earth Intent to the utmost and divided his intent on every beast for an instant. The demonic beast he was the most familiar with was the Crimson Lion-Stag. Considering how many he had killed in the woods, he was confident enough in dealing with it quickly.
The first thing Cao Yun had to do was to break from the encirclement. For the time being he did not know whether this malfunction of the array would impair his chances to join the Wubei Sect so he decided to act quickly.
He ran straight for the Crimson Lion-Stag as the eight beasts were just getting ready. Easily getting in its blind spot, Cao Yun used 'Slaughtering the Enemy' and his palm hit the beast somewhere on its neck. Even the candidates were able to hear the sound of cracking bones as the beast fell to the floor, its neck broken in several places.
In this fight, Cao Yun could only rely on the eight variations of the 'Dance of Slaughter'. As long as he killed another beast, he would be qualified no matter what, but he did not want to just qualify. Despite not knowing the rules of the sect, it was obvious that the more points you got in the exam the more benefits you would obtain. The main goal of Cao Yun was to get stronger and securing benefits and resources was essential.
The Long-Billed Shelled Crow immediately flew toward Cao Yun. It was a crow the size of a man with a sharp beak as long as a sword and a black turtle shell on the back. It flew close to the ground, trying to impale the human on its beak. 'Cutting the Retreat'. Cao Yun was able to dodge the attack at the last moment. As it tried to fly up to avoid the upcoming wall, the Long-Billed Shelled Crow felt a hand grabbing one of its leg. The human was trying to get on top of it. The crow tried to rotate itself in order to collide with the wall and squash the boy. Seeing the wall getting closer, Cao Yun jumped at the last moment letting the bird hurt itself against it.
In midair, a shadowy figure pounced toward Cao Yun. The Rainbow Feather Cobra had its jaw wide open with two shining fangs ready to bite into his flesh. Its speed was impressive and Cao Yun could not evade in the middle of the air. But he could still parry. Using his intent, he focused on the right timing. 'Pushing the Sky'. His left palm hit the snake's head and he used the impact to propel himself back to the ground as the colorful feathers on its tails carressed his face.
Cao Yun had not a second to breathe. He felt the floor shake as the Golden Horn Buffalo decided to charge in his direction. Once again, his strong intent allowed him to calm his mind and only focus on the beast's attitude. He evaded at the last moment.
However, another beast had used the buffalo's charge as a distraction. When Cao Yun saw it, it was already too late. The Carnivorous Hammer-Gorilla was already on him. The gorilla had jumped from afar and was now atop Cao Yun who got pinned down to the floor. 'Forging the Fort'. Using his forearms as a shield, Cao Yun felt the strikes from the hammer-like fists of the beast. Every beast was made with the light emanating from the array. So Cao Yun's arm could not really break. But he still felt the pain of his forearms being broken everywhere. The gorilla finally lifted up both his arms for a final strike.
'Slaughtering the Enemy'. Cao Yun sent a vibrating punch to the abdomen of the beast. Its fur, skin and fat were too thick to sustain any damage, but the vibration spread through its tissues and hit its organs. The wind taken out of it, it let go of the human. Ready to give the final blow, Cao Yun was again interrupted as the Gray-Beak Storm Eagle was rushing straight for him. He was also assaulted from both sides by the Black Two-Headed Wolf and the Sun Catching Vicious Tiger.
Cao Yun forgot the killing blow he was about to give and took an instant decision. He rushed right between the heads of the black wolf. Just hitting the beast was not enough to kill it, but he had a flash of inspiration. 'Breaking the Formation' and 'Slaughtering the Enemy'. He sent an elbow strike on both sides and tried to add the vibrating effect of the last movement to them. The wolf got surprised by the sudden dash of the human. Just as it was about to jump backwards and put some distance with Cao Yun, two elbows collided with both of its heads and it died on the spot. The vibrating force could penetrate any tissues to hit directly the innermost parts of the body.
-
"Your little candidate is impressive Miss Xiao. He technically passed the trial." Chief Elder Luoming was not trying to be coy, Cao Yun's performance really was great.
"I cannot recognize his martial art."
"That's rare for you Sister Baishen." Chief Elder Luoming got thinking. "He's a vagrant cultivator, so his martial arts must not come from some great lineage."
"On the contrary, the moves he used are full of mysteries. And he seems to be getting deeper and deeper in them. Miss Xiao was right not to stop this trial. I reckon it will be very beneficial to him. Only in dire situations can you push yourself and discover new heights."
Chief Elder Luoming and Chief Elder Suxian were astounded by their sister. Usually, she was really harsh when it came to complimenting martial arts, but she seemed to have a very good opinion of this fellow and his moves.
Cao Yun was heavily relying on 'Dance of Slaughter'. It was a martial art that was derived from 'Cultivation of Slaughter'. If she had known that the art she praised was only a mere cultivation routine applied in a fight, Chief Elder Baishen would probably not believe it. But she was right on the fact that there were many mysteries within it. Cao Yun had only scraped the surface and in this fight, he was starting to realize that.
-
"Isn't my brother great?! Even with this stupid array messing it up, he got qualified!" Ren Chao was yelling his pride and joy as loud as he possibly could. For Sun Liao, it seemed as though he was rubbing salt in his wounds.
Back in the array formation, the eagle was flying straight toward Cao Yun. He really needed to take care of the flying beasts first. Holding this thought, Cao Yun sensed the ground shake and put his focus on its source. Without any hesitation he dodged with 'Cutting the Retreat' as the Golden Horn Buffalo passed right where he was a moment ago.
Seeing its failure, the beat stopped in its tracks and charged again. This time, Cao Yun saw it coming. As he focused on the raging buffalo, an idea popped in his mind. If he had a weapon, he could take down the two birds with more ease. Well, the buffalo had two weapons. When the buffalo charged again, Cao Yun waited for the last moment on purpose. He dodged and cut off one of its horns with 'Dyeing the Ground'. As payment, he was grazed by the beast but stood his ground by rooting himself with 'Shaking the Earth'.
Throughout the array, the sound of his broken ribs resonated. No wound was real but the pain was vivid. He really felt as if his forearms earlier and his ribs now were shattered in his body. Without Yi the Earth Intent, he would have collapsed from the pain. Luckily, he was able to focus his mind on the fight and make the pain vanish in the back of his head.
Cao Yun grabbed the horn he had cut off and as he was anxious about the eagle, it was the crow who appeared. After hitting the wall earlier it got a little disoriented but nothing much. Cao Yun waited for the very last moment when the crow was at full speed and could not change its course. That's when he threw the horn, copying the move of Feng Yingyue. The horn flew right between the crow's eyes. The speed of the throw got added to the speed of the crow itself and the horn penetrated its thick skull, killing it on the spot.
Up in the sky, Chief Elder Baishen finally recognized a move. "That's a move from 'Bladeless Eternity'. He probably learned it to be able to fight at a distance. He's smart."
Cao Yun had no time to rest. He saw the gorilla who was still a little unfocused after the vibrating attack and ran toward it. Before he could get close, the cobra attacked again. The boy was able to dodge once, twice. But he was getting tired and there was still more than half of the beasts to fight.
A plan in mind, he got close to the wall and waited for the cobra to attack again with a gaping jaw. The beast was not stupid, it controlled its speed not to hit the wall as Cao Yun evaded once more. But now, its head was precisely between the wall and Cao Yun, it had no room to gain momentum for a new jump. It tried to bite off Cao Yun who moved to the side of its jaw and duplicated his move from earlier. His hand acted as a saber and cut off its left fang. In pain, the cobra spat out some poison.
Cao Yun jumped to avoid it but still got some on his left leg. The pain was unbearable! He even began to sense the poison spreading through his skin. Of course, the poison was not real but the sensations were the same as if it was.
Alas, Cao Yun could not kill the cobra yet. If he did, the fang would disappear with the rest of its body. He needed this weapon to compensate for his fatigue.
Once again, he threw the fang. It got into the gorilla's throat as it was still a bit stunned. Looking for the eagle, he felt the ground shake again.
Cao Yun decided to use the fact that only the pain was real. From the poison of the cobra he had finally understood all the rules of the array. It would not stop as long as he did not sustain a lethal injury. Indeed, he could feel the poison creep up inside of him but the array did not consider it his loss yet.
As the buffalo got near him, Cao Yun crouched down and swept with his leg, 'Annihilating the Horses'. The impact broke off the buffalo's front legs and inflicted the same pain on Cao Yun who still let out a moan of agony. Now that the beast could not run anymore, Cao Yun put it down for good.
But using this opportunity, the eagle sank its claws into Cao Yun's shoulders and lifted him up in the air. Before getting too high in the sky, he contorted his body to kick the beast in its belly. The vibrating force of 'Slaughtering the Enemy' coursed through its lower abdomen and the eagle fell down to the ground. Before it could get back up, a saber hand of Cao Yun was deep within its heart.
Taking him by surprise, the tiger jumped him. Weakened by the poison, Cao Yun could not evade anymore. He rolled and pushed the beast with his leg, but still got lacerated by its claws. Facing him, the tiger was waiting for the right opportunity, sensing that the human was getting weaker and weaker. If he just waited, Cao Yun would be eliminated because of the poison, but the tiger was right between him and the cobra. He could not kill one without taking care of the other first.
He ran toward the tiger who jumped again. Cao Yun got pinned down to the floor with the claws deep within his chest. He was way too tired to dodge anymore. As his arms were free, he put one as a defense and the fangs of the beast sank into his flesh. With his other arm, a saber hand pierced the tiger's head. The pain was extreme as all four of his limbs had been broken or pierced by fangs and claws. His ribs were shattered and a deadly poison was slowly going to his heart.
Without Yi, Cao Yun would have fainted and lost. But as long as he stayed awake and did not sustain a lethal injury, the array would not stop.
There was only one beast left, the cobra with a single fang remaining. The beast was hurt and it sent its tail to bash Cao Yun against a wall. It worked. Cao Yun's back violently collided with the wall. This injury was real though. The damage done by the beasts was an illusion but the walls were still real.
Never mind! Cao Yun had no more time and just enough strength for one final assault. He needed to close the distance but he could not run fast enough. For that, he had one last idea but did not know if it was any good as his mind was approaching its limit. Even after cultivating Yi to Perfection, he could not keep it up forever. That was why he also needed to cultivate Zhi, the Water Will. It would allow him to keep going a lot longer.
'Shaking the Earth'. His right leg trampled on the floor to propel him forward. This kick was used as a jump. All of a sudden, his speed exploded and it threw off the cobra's attack. At last, he got near to its head but he could not stop his run.
'Breaking the Formation'. His crazy run just turned into a shoulder strike straight toward the cobra.
'Slaughtering the Enemy'. A vibrating force erupted from his shoulder and got deep within the beast's body. Vibrating his shoulder was really hard to do. But with Yi, Cao Yun could feel every subtle movement in his body and was able to contract and relax any muscle at will.
Cao Yun got down to the floor as all the excitement had finally brought the poison within his heart. Just before his view blacked out, he saw an explosion of light. The cobra was considered killed. All the beasts were considered killed. Cao Yun had achieved a perfect victory.