Chapter 958: Wanting to Die Is Really Hard

In the Ice Profound Realm, Yun Che, completely unaware that the assessment was nearing its end, was still locked in a fierce battle with the Ice Howling Wolves.

After successively confronting eleven waves of Ice Howling Wolves, Yun Che's body was covered in scars and blood, yet the aura emanating from him showed almost no weakening, and was even more violent than before. Even his eyes glowed with a ferocity that rivaled that of the Ice Howling Wolves.

“Die… Purgatory Red Lotus!!”

Boom!!

The Golden Crow Flame erupted violently in the cramped space. All the Ice Howling Wolves charging at him shrieked, each wolf body consumed by the exploding fiery lotus, and more than half were directly incinerated.

From within the spreading sea of flames, a dangerous aura suddenly approached. An un-dead Ice Howling Wolf, covered in flames, lunged out of the inferno, its blood-stained claws tearing towards Yun Che with terrifying power and hatred.

Rip!

The afterimage was instantly torn apart. Yun Che, having used his instantaneous movement, thrust out his palm, condensing his profound energy into ice. A half-zhang-long ice cone mercilessly pierced the Ice Howling Wolf, directly impaling its flame-engulfed body.

The Ice Howling Wolf was already severely wounded from the flames. Upon being impaled by the ice cone, it let out a tragic wail. Before its body hit the ground, it dissipated into a faint light.

With this, the eleventh wave, consisting of eleven Ice Howling Wolves, had all met their end at Yun Che's hands.

Phew...

Yun Che let out a long breath. His body was covered in injuries, but a closer look would reveal that while they appeared alarming, none of the wounds were bone-deep.

Moreover, since he hadn't used the Heaven Smiting Sword, his consumption of profound energy was minimal. Even now, he was only slightly out of breath.

“About a quarter of an hour should have passed,” Yun Che muttered to himself. He had been silently keeping track of the time while fighting the Ice Howling Wolves, as Mu Sushan had told him that roughly a quarter of an hour was the minimum time required to pass the final trial.

“But…” Yun Che frowned, muttering, “That Mu Sushan person isn’t trying to trick me, is he? Just lasting for a quarter of an hour, isn’t that a bit too simple? For a trial of this level, even the weakest among the Divine Path experts who made it into the top thousand in the Blizzard Realm shouldn’t find it too difficult to last a quarter of an hour here, right?”

Because apart from feeling a slight pressure when first encountering the Ice Howling Wolves, after figuring out their attack patterns and weaknesses, he dealt with the subsequent ten waves with considerable ease, and even his energy consumption was minimal… Moreover, he was completely certain that if he used the Heaven Smiting Sword, not only would he avoid injury, but even if the Ice Howling Wolves swarmed him, they wouldn't be able to get within ten steps of him.

Those who participated in this final assessment with him were all individuals possessing Divine Path power. Dealing with Ice Howling Wolves, which were strong in power and speed but quite fragile in body, even when facing multiple ones simultaneously, shouldn't be too difficult.

Just to be safe, should I…

As Yun Che was pondering and hesitating, blue light flashed around him again… The twelfth wave of Ice Howling Wolves materialized in the blue light.

For the twelfth wave, a full twelve appeared at once!

Twelve ferocious auras instantly locked onto Yun Che. However, he didn't react immediately, as his mind was still conflicted, debating whether to end it now or continue for one or two more waves… Ultimately, he chose the latter.

That Mu Sushan person seemed righteous. I don't know him, so there's no reason for him to deliberately lie to me. The reason I handled it so easily must be largely due to my immunity to extreme cold and the Star God Broken Shadow. It's also possible that I still underestimated my current level of strength.

With this thought, Yun Che's body remained motionless, allowing the twelve Ice Howling Wolves to pounce on him.

Howl!! Hiss… Whoosh!! Bang…

The twelve Ice Howling Wolves attacked simultaneously like mad, raising a terrifying storm of destruction in the Ice Profound Realm. Instantly, several bloody holes and dozens of lacerations appeared on Yun Che’s body…

But that was all.

If it had been any other profound practitioner from the outside, under such an assault, they would have been torn into frozen or bloody fragments long ago.

Yun Che's body was too formidable. With the existence of the Dragon God's Marrow, even in his sleep, his Dragon God bloodline grew denser with every breath. Currently, even he didn't know the extent of his Dragon God bloodline's power.

During the fierce battle with Xuanyuan Wentian, even when his body was restrained, he wasn't pierced by Xuanyuan Wentian's strongest 'Absolute Sword of No Return' head-on. Let alone the attacks of these Ice Howling Wolves!

The twelve Ice Howling Wolves tore and bit at him, leaving him covered in wounds, but they couldn't take his life at all. Instead, they made Yun Che grimace in pain, and he let out a furious roar: “You all still go to hell!!”

“Netherworld Ash!!”

Boom!!!

With a howl, the Golden Crow Flame, pushed to its absolute limit, mercilessly erupted, instantly transforming the frigid Ice Profound Realm into a golden fiery purgatory. Within the terrifying, destructive flames, the inescapable Ice Howling Wolves couldn't even let out a scream before being incinerated into ash.

When the flames dissipated, there was no longer any chill in the Ice Profound Realm. Every corner emanated a frightening heat. As for the Ice Howling Wolves, they had all vanished without a trace, not even a single strand of fur remaining.

“This should be enough. Hiss… I suffered all this for nothing.” Looking at his bloody arms, Yun Che grimaced in pain, then raised his head and shouted, “I give up.”

Ji Hanfeng had said that if one dared not face death during the trial, they could directly shout the words 'I give up' to end the assessment immediately.

However, he wasn't giving up because he was afraid of death.

As his voice fell, a beam of white light descended from the void and enveloped him. With the shimmering of the white light, he vanished from the Ice Profound Realm. And with his departure, the Ice Profound Realm he had just been in also collapsed, disappearing into nothingness.

The Ice Profound Realm was not an independent space created by the Snow Song Realm. Rather, it was merely a series of temporary spaces opened by the power of profound formations.

The profound assessment formation flashed with light. As everyone waited, a figure finally flew out from it, descending to the ground amidst a white glow.

“It’s Li Mingcheng… Li Mingcheng is finally out!!”

“As expected… it’s Li Mingcheng. He actually stayed for more than a hundred breaths longer than the second-place person. So… so impressive.”

“Of course! He grew up in the Ice Phoenix Realm, and he's the nephew of the Snow Song Realm's Grand Palace Master. We can't compare at all.”

“If we were in another group, we could still try to compete for the Jadefall Ice Soul Pill. But being grouped with Li Mingcheng… what bad luck,” a highly ranked profound practitioner sighed.

The white light on Li Mingcheng's body vanished. He sat on the ground, his face pale, gasping for breath. Having just experienced the terrifying situation of being besieged by Ice Howling Wolves, this state was perfectly normal. However, he recovered extremely quickly and soon stood up. Ji Hanfeng also walked over at this moment, laughing heartily: “Hahahaha, as expected of Junior Brother Mingcheng, who the Grand Palace Master holds such high hopes for. To be able to stay in the Ice Profound Realm for so long is truly astonishing.”

Ji Hanfeng’s voice in his ear quickly brought color back to Li Mingcheng’s face. The envious, reverent, astonished, and self-deprecating gazes from all around made him feel elated. He quickly replied with false modesty, “Oh, not at all, I’m still far from reaching Senior Brother’s level.”

“I can’t accept such words, Junior Brother Mingcheng,” Ji Hanfeng said with a smile. “When I took the Ice Profound Realm assessment back then, I endured eight waves of Ice Howling Wolves, which I considered exceptional. Your performance, Junior Brother Mingcheng, means you endured a full ten waves. With such talent, I am far inferior. It seems within ten years, Junior Brother Mingcheng's cultivation will be enough to surpass mine. At that time, as your Senior Brother in the Snow Song Realm, I’ll have to rely on you for guidance.”

Previously, he had been subtly currying favor. Now, witnessing Li Mingcheng’s astonishing performance, Ji Hanfeng openly flattered him. Although Li Mingcheng was still far from his level now, given his talent and status, he was bound to become a major figure in the Snow Song Realm in the future. As a smart person, he naturally chose the most opportune moment to secure his connections.

“Ahaha, Senior Brother Hanfeng, what are you saying? You're too kind to this junior.” Li Mingcheng feigned humility, but couldn't hide the smugness and arrogance deep in his eyes. Immediately, he impatiently whispered, “Senior Brother Hanfeng, that Jadefall Ice Soul Pill…”

“Hehe, could it possibly fall into someone else's hands?” Ji Hanfeng gave him a knowing look, then turned around, his gaze sweeping over all the profound practitioners who had passed the final assessment and were now standing in neat formation, and said loudly, “Excellent, the assessment for our group is now complete. First, congratulations to all junior brothers and sisters. Having undergone three rounds of assessment, you are now sufficiently qualified to become disciples of my Snow Song Realm. Once you receive your Ice Phoenix Engraved Jade, you will officially become disciples of the Snow Song Realm, soaring to great heights and bringing glory to your ancestors!”

“And as the first-place candidate in this assessment, also the most outstanding new disciple in our group,” Ji Hanfeng raised his palm and slowly picked up the 'Jadefall Ice Soul Pill'. Under its dreamy blue light, everyone’s eyes were drawn to it like magnets, fixed firmly on the pill. Every gaze was filled with deep longing and envy. Especially Li Mingcheng, whose limbs were trembling with excitement, his eyes gleaming, wishing he could instantly pounce and clutch the sacred pill in his arms.

Ji Hanfeng's gaze then fell upon Li Mingcheng: “This Jadefall Ice Soul Pill naturally belongs to…”

“Wait!”

Before Ji Hanfeng could finish speaking, he was suddenly interrupted by a calm voice. Ji Hanfeng’s expression turned cold, but he immediately realized that the voice belonged to Mu Sushan, who had been observing from the side. His expression quickly softened. He turned and bowed his head respectfully, saying, “Manager Sushan, do you have any instructions for this disciple…?”

Mu Sushan extended his hand, pointing at the profound assessment formation: “Haven’t you noticed that the profound light from the assessment formation hasn’t dissipated yet?”

Ji Hanfeng looked at the profound assessment formation in confusion. After a slight pause, he suddenly realized, his expression changing drastically, and stammered, “Wh-what’s going on?”

The other profound practitioners also looked at the assessment formation, which was still radiating white light, their faces full of bewilderment. Only Li Mingcheng was also dumbfounded.

“Ji Hanfeng, this isn’t your first time overseeing an assessment. You should know clearly that this profound formation exists for the assessment; once the assessment is complete, its light naturally dissipates. The fact that it’s still operating now proves that the assessment hasn’t truly finished. There’s still one more candidate who hasn’t emerged from the Ice Profound Realm.”

“This disciple naturally understands that. But… but this shouldn’t be happening. This disciple has already counted: all nine hundred eliminated individuals have left. After Li Mingcheng completed his assessment, all ninety-nine qualified individuals were accounted for, no more, no less. Plus Yun Che, who fled before the assessment…”

Ji Hanfeng’s voice suddenly trailed off here, his eyes slightly widening: “Could it be…”