Chapter 955: Final Assessment

“Oh?” Seeing Yun Che, Ji Hanfeng was also taken aback.

“What's with this kid... How did he come out so quickly?” Li Mingcheng looked like he’d seen a ghost in broad daylight.

“It certainly isn't normal.” Ji Hanfeng observed Li Mingcheng's reaction, then said thoughtfully, “Junior Brother Mingcheng, you seem quite interested in this kid. Could he be the one you were just talking about?”

“Yes, it's him. I suppose I've given Senior Brother Hanfeng something to laugh about,” Li Mingcheng said with a shrug.

“Hahahaha,” Ji Hanfeng indeed started laughing. “That's truly interesting. Could it be that he tried to curry favor with you, failed, became indignant, and that's what annoyed you?”

“Senior Brother Hanfeng might not believe it if I told you,” Li Mingcheng sneered. “This kid is much more ‘promising’ than we imagined, probably relying on Mu Bingyun's influence. Hmph, never mind. He’s just a useless clown, not worth Senior Brother Hanfeng or me wasting our breath on. After the assessment, I could crush him anytime I want.”

“It's still better to be a bit cautious.” Although he said “cautious,” Ji Hanfeng’s tone was full of disdain. “After all, he was brought back from the lower realms by a Glacier Phoenix Palace Master.”

“Heh, Senior Brother Hanfeng, you jest.” Li Mingcheng sneered disdainfully. “It's true that Mu Bingyun brought him back, but he's trash who hasn't even entered the Divine Way and has issues in his head. I don't believe a grand Glacier Phoenix Palace Master would specifically protect him. The reason she brought back such trash, I suspect...” Li Mingcheng's voice dropped to a whisper. “This kid has a pretty boy face that could seduce women. Mu Bingyun knows she doesn't have many days left to live, so she probably decided to bring a pretty boy back to enjoy herself.”

“Hahahahahaha…” Ji Hanfeng burst into loud laughter. “Junior Brother Mingcheng, you truly see things clearly. If the Great Palace Master were to hear this, she would surely be pleased, hahahaha.”

“Heh, now I'm especially curious how he managed to get into the top thousand.”

“Who cares about him?” Ji Hanfeng curled his lip. “The second stage of the assessment doesn't restrict the use of profound artifacts or various items. There are countless ways to cheat. What does it matter if he passed? Besides, he's just dead last. Consider him an extra bit of entertainment. Junior Brother Mingcheng, the upcoming final assessment is the main event. You must give it your all. After all, the Jadefall Ice Soul Pill is a sacred medicine even I, your senior brother, can't obtain. If you can perfectly refine it, not only will your profound energy rapidly increase in a short period, but it will also deeply temper your blood and marrow, offering immense benefits for your future cultivation of the Ice Phoenix Conferred God Canon.”

“Of course.” Li Mingcheng looked confident he would succeed. He lowered his voice again. “The reason Auntie had me wait until this year to participate in the assessment was precisely for this ‘Jadefall Ice Soul Pill.’ These people aren't even qualified to compete with me for it.”

Meanwhile, the moment Yun Che appeared, Mu Sushan's gaze fixed on him. He then murmured thoughtfully, “It seems it's not as simple as it appears.”

“Huh? Senior Sushan, what did you say?” Mu Xiaolan looked up and asked.

“Yun Che, the one you brought, passed the second stage of the assessment,” Mu Sushan said. “Passing the second stage of the Frozen Snow Hall assessment with power that hasn't entered the Divine Way... it seems unprecedented in the history of the Snow Song Realm.”

“What? You said Yun Che... passed the assessment?” Mu Xiaolan was stunned, almost thinking something was wrong with her ears. She instinctively looked up and saw Yun Che standing outside the profound formation, her mouth wide open.

At that moment, as the last white light flashed, the thousandth profound practitioner to pass the assessment emerged from the profound formation. Instantly, the light from the assessment formation completely dissipated, revealing over nine thousand figures still within it. Most of them were slumped on the ground, their faces crestfallen.

The Blizzard Realm had closed, signifying their failure in this assessment. To participate again, they would have to wait at least five years.

“The second stage of the assessment is over. For now, congratulations to those who passed.” Ji Hanfeng stepped forward and said unhurriedly, then swept his gaze across the formation. “As for the rest of you, hmph, you may leave. Cultivate well, and return in five years!”

With that, he made a grasping motion with his hand, and in the same spot, another profound formation appeared, instantly teleporting all who failed the assessment out of the Frozen Snow Hall.

“Yun Che... you... you actually passed the assessment?” Mu Xiaolan stared at Yun Che as he walked closer, her face filled with shock.

“You seem quite unhappy that I passed,” Yun Che said with a gloomy expression.

“This has nothing to do with being happy or not!” Mu Xiaolan quickly moved a few steps closer to Yun Che, asking cautiously, “How on earth did you do it? Everyone else in the assessment with you possesses Divine Way power; the weakest among them is dozens, even hundreds of times stronger than you! How could you possibly pass? You didn't... use something to cheat, did you?”

“...” Yun Che pressed his forehead. “Well, you might have guessed correctly.”

“Hmph! Just as I thought!” The naive Mu Xiaolan didn't catch the hidden meaning in Yun Che's words. “Could it be that Master told you about the Frozen Snow Hall's assessment while she was on the Azure Cloud Continent and gave you some kind of profound stone that allows you to traverse the Blizzard Realm? Hmph, no wonder you dared to participate in the Frozen Snow Hall's assessment.”

“Alright, alright, you're right about everything,” Yun Che pouted.

A total of one thousand people passed the second stage of the assessment. Among them, Yun Che was a complete and unique anomaly. Most people's gazes were fixed on him, looking bewildered or whispering to each other.

Ji Hanfeng's voice then carried over: “Passing the second stage of the assessment has, to some extent, proven your strength. However, don't celebrate too early. You have merely crossed another not-too-high, not-too-low threshold. The upcoming third stage of the assessment is when your destiny will be decided.”

Ji Hanfeng's words instantly made the atmosphere on site exceptionally solemn. The excitement on every profound practitioner's face completely vanished, replaced by deep tension. Passing the second stage of the assessment only meant they were a small step closer to the Frozen Snow Hall. What came next would truly decide their fate... whether they could enter the Frozen Snow Hall meant two entirely different destinies.

Among those who passed, a staggering ninety percent would be eliminated in the final stage of the assessment! It was truly brutal.

“The final stage of the assessment is called the ‘Ice Profound Realm’.” Ji Hanfeng's gaze was stern. “This stage is relatively much simpler than the second. It tests the most important thing about you… your true strength!”

“In the Ice Profound Realm, you will be attacked by powerful profound beasts. The longer you stay inside, the more profound beasts you will encounter! Moreover, the space is confined; you can only fight, with nowhere to run! As for how to pass the Ice Profound Realm assessment, I believe you already understand...”

Ji Hanfeng extended his hand: “The longer you persevere, the better! The last one hundred people to leave the Ice Profound Realm will have passed the final assessment, becoming disciples of my Frozen Snow Hall from this day forward! And the one who endures the longest will receive the ‘Jadefall Ice Soul Pill’!”

Upon hearing the name “Jadefall Ice Soul Pill” from Ji Hanfeng, more than half of the profound practitioners still couldn't help but gulp hard.

“The Blizzard Realm assessment teleports your true bodies into the Blizzard Realm, and it doesn't restrict your use of any profound artifacts. So, some might use teleportation profound stones or similar items to cheat... Oh no, no, it wouldn't really be called cheating. Since it's not restricted, it can be considered permissible.”

While saying these words, Ji Hanfeng deliberately glanced at Yun Che: “After all, the second stage trial is only meant to filter out excess people; the third stage determines the final outcome. Even if a piece of trash uses external items to pass the second trial, they won't be able to pass the final trial, and they'll have wasted precious profound artifacts capable of interfering with the Blizzard Realm. Tsk tsk. That's why our Frozen Snow Hall has always been too lazy to forbid this meaningless ‘cheating’.”

“As for the final stage of the assessment, no one should hope to get by with clever tricks.” Ji Hanfeng sneered, “Because what enters the Ice Profound Realm is not your true body, but your ‘projection’! Your power and will will be fully projected, but you cannot use any external items within it... including your weapons and contracted profound beasts! You can only rely on your true strength!”

“Once you ‘die’ in the Ice Profound Realm, you will immediately be teleported out, with no second chances. But rest assured, only your ‘projection’ dies in the Ice Profound Realm. No matter how horribly you die inside, you will not truly die, not even suffering a scratch. However, if any of you are afraid of death, you can also shout ‘Give up,’ and you will be immediately sent out of the Ice Profound Realm as you wish.”

“In other words... if you want to pass the Ice Profound Realm assessment, try to die slowly inside, understood?!”

“Understood!” Li Mingcheng was the first to reply, a faint, confident smile on his face. “Senior Brother Hanfeng, I'm ready; we can start anytime. I just hope the profound beasts in the Ice Profound Realm won't be too disappointing.”

“Very good.” Ji Hanfeng nodded. He stretched out his arm, and in the same spot, a third profound formation was activated, this time emitting a deep blue profound light. “Now, all of you who passed the second stage of the assessment, stand in the center of the profound formation. The final assessment that will determine your destiny... is about to begin!”

Yun Che broadly understood what the third stage of the assessment entailed. However, having arrived in the Snow Song Realm only today, he didn't have prior knowledge of the assessment content like the other participants. The most crucial point was that in the second stage, he could judge his rank based on the aura of other participants, but in this final stage, everyone seemed to be "projected" into an independent space, unable to see other participants or interfere with each other. This meant he couldn't determine his rank based on how long he persevered.

If he persevered for too long and accidentally ended up with a high rank, it would certainly cause him trouble.

If he deliberately held back too much and fell outside the top hundred, he wouldn't be able to enter the Frozen Snow Hall, and his idea of bringing honor to Mu Bingyun would become an illusion.

“Hey, to pass the ‘Ice Profound Realm’ trial, how long does one usually need to last inside?” Yun Che didn't immediately step into the profound formation, but instead asked in a low voice.

“How should I know? I entered the Ice Phoenix Palace directly; I never participated in the Frozen Snow Hall trial,” Mu Xiaolan said proudly, then rolled her eyes at him. “Why are you asking that? You just heard them; everyone realized you must have cheated in the Blizzard Realm, but in the Ice Profound Realm, it's absolutely... absolutely... absolutely impossible to cheat.”

“I was just asking casually,” Yun Che muttered softly. This girl truly knows nothing when asked, other than how to retort...

“Judging by the results of previous years, enduring for a quarter of an hour is the most basic threshold to pass the Ice Profound Realm assessment,” Mu Sushan, standing beside Mu Xiaolan, suddenly said. “And some remarkable geniuses can even last for nearly two quarters of an hour. Good luck.”

Yun Che turned to Mu Sushan, and after a slight surprise, nodded and said, “Thank you for the guidance, Senior.”

With that, he turned and walked toward the profound formation.

At the same time, Mu Sushan's lips twitched slightly, and a mysterious, unusual glint flashed in his eyes.