Chapter 86: Final Selection First Assessment

In the mist-shrouded canyon.

"Form ranks!"

"Form ranks!"

The geniuses shouted in unison. There were one hundred of them in total, but only about a dozen could rival demon great commanders. The demon side, however, boasted one hundred and thirty-five demon great commanders and over a thousand demon commanders. If they didn't unite, they would likely be quickly routed.

Eleven divine archers stood in the center, protected by layers of other geniuses surrounding them.

Speaking of which, Meng Chuan and Ji Yuantong both dared to charge into the demon army and fight, but that was just reckless courage. Cooperation with companions led to higher efficiency. Having trained in the Daoist Academy since childhood, they all understood the principle of cooperation.

"They're here," all the geniuses said solemnly, watching the demon army charge madly.

"Get out of the way!" The burliest, Dong Fang, wielding a large shield in one hand and a great axe in the other, swung his spike-covered shield, sending a wolf demon flying and breaking many of its bones. Dong Fang then swung his axe, killing a tiger demon commander.

"Block!" Many geniuses used their shields to defend. Blades and swords also stabbed out from the gaps in the shields, cunningly slaughtering the demon commanders. Simultaneously, the eleven divine archers rapidly fired arrow after arrow. Geniuses who qualified for the top one hundred were of the highest caliber among mortals, each firing volleys of arrows with extreme speed. As the other geniuses fought the demons, arrows seized the opportunity to pierce the demons' bodies, reaping their lives. Within the blink of an eye, dozens of demon commanders were dead.

In terms of killing efficiency, divine archers were the most formidable.

The human geniuses' "barrel formation" was like a meat grinder, obliterating the lives of the demons.

"Roar!"

Under the command of the red-robed female god-demon, the demons had long since gone berserk, fearing no death as they continuously lunged at the shields! Some avian demons also swooped down. As common demon commanders were slaughtered, the demon great commanders charged to the front lines one after another.

"The demon great commanders are here!"

"Everyone, be careful!"

The human geniuses became even more cautious, yet also eager to kill. This was the entrance examination for Yuanchu Mountain, so they naturally wanted to perform well.

The demon great commanders had stronger auras and were mostly a size larger!

A rhino demon great commander strode forward, wielding twin hammers. Upon reaching the front, it snorted furiously and smashed down with one hammer.

"Boom!" Chu Yong directly blocked with his saber, producing a thunderous sound. Then, with a change in his saber technique, he aimed for the rhino demon great commander's knee. However, the rhino demon great commander's other great hammer was already coming.

"Whoosh!" A streak of an arrow flashed, striking the rhino demon great commander's face, piercing a full foot deep. But the rhino demon great commander didn't care about this injury at all.

"Pfft!" Another arrow, however, shot into the rhino demon's eye, piercing deeper into its brain. Only then did the rhino demon great commander's body tremble and collapse with a crash. With Chu Yong holding the front, Li Ying and Zong Sha's successive arrows managed to kill a demon great commander in a short time.

But more demon great commanders arrived!

In the initial assault, the barrel formation tottered, and individual geniuses were simply unable to withstand the demon great commanders.

"Ah!"

"Oh no!"

Suddenly, a section of the barrel formation began to collapse. A cat demon great commander, transformed into a black streak of light, ran rampant, causing geniuses to fall one after another. However, just as the cat demon was about to tear these humans apart with its claws, an invisible force enveloped these geniuses, carrying them towards the canyon entrance. Clearly, a god-demon from Yuanchu Mountain had intervened to save the injured geniuses. When their lives were potentially at risk, the god-demons would intervene to rescue them.

The rescued geniuses felt a complex mix of emotions in their hearts. Carried in mid-air, they watched the demon army continue to assault the barrel formation.

Meng Chuan threw down a demon great commander and quickly went to intercept the cat demon great commander. The two fought at high speed. Meng Chuan unleashed his 'Five Thunders Descending upon the World' technique: the first strike, the second strike, the third strike! The fastest third strike, 'Moonfall,' slashed the cat demon great commander's abdomen, tearing a huge wound. A flash of arrow light seized the opportunity to pierce through the cat demon's skull. This cat demon was incredibly fast, but its physical toughness was far weaker than that of bear demon great commanders or ox demon great commanders.

Meng Chuan looked back at Zong Sha, who smiled and continued firing arrows.

Meng Chuan also felt that earlier in the year, when demons invaded Dongning Prefecture, he had struggled against a demon great commander. But now, he could exert pressure. This was clearly due to his saber force reaching its peak and his strength increasing over the past half-year. Yet, to kill a demon great commander? It would take at least ten saber strikes, or in many cases, he simply couldn't kill them alone. Fortunately, he had the assistance of the divine archers, whose arrows were much faster than Meng Chuan's saber.

Time flowed on. From the moment the demon great commanders first assaulted the barrel formation, the human geniuses struggled to hold on, and one by one, they were rescued.

When the incense stick burned out.

"Stop," the red-robed woman's voice echoed through the canyon. All the demons ceased fighting and became much more docile.

"Return to your respective caves," the red-robed woman commanded. All the demons, whether running, climbing, or flying, obediently returned to their individual caves on the cliff face. The chains, under invisible control, once again bound them.

Only seven individuals remained standing in the canyon: Meng Chuan, Yan Jin, Ji Yuantong, Chu Yong, Yan Feng, and the divine archers Zong Sha and Li Ying, all covered in blood.

They stood there, stunned.

"It's over?" Yan Feng asked hoarsely.

"The incense stick has burned out," Chu Yong said, collapsing wearily onto the ground.

"These demons were truly ferocious," Ji Yuantong also looked tired.

Yan Jin stood silently, his fingers gripping his twin swords already white.

Meng Chuan also let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you all," Zong Sha said. "If you hadn't risked your lives to protect us, we would have fallen long ago."

"If you're going to thank someone, thank Meng Chuan more; he truly put his life on the line to protect you two," Yan Feng said, leaning on her long spear.

"Young Master Meng is indeed formidable at protecting people," Princess Li Ying managed to say with a smile.

Meng Chuan merely nodded, too tired to speak. He was truly exhausted. For the duration of the incense stick, his attention was highly focused at all times, constantly rushing to wherever help was needed. His ten-zhang domain allowed him to clearly understand the surrounding situation, and he would go wherever there was a problem to compensate. It was also by relying on his ten-zhang domain and his speed that he managed to protect the two divine archers. Of course, the others were also desperately protecting the divine archers. Because divine archers were far more efficient at killing demons than they were; protecting them was essential on the battlefield.

"You two are truly incredible," Princess Li Ying exclaimed with deep emotion. "Earlier, when those three demon great commanders unleashed their poisonous mist, both of you charged into the demon horde and forcefully killed those three demon great commanders. That was the most dangerous moment; if those three demon commanders hadn't been dealt with, with the poisonous mist spreading... we wouldn't have lasted much longer."

"The first part of the final selection is over. The seven of you, come here quickly," the green-robed woman commanded.

Meng Chuan and the others immediately walked towards the canyon entrance.

King Donghe, the unkempt man, and the green-robed woman—the three of them had accurately assessed the performance of the hundred geniuses.

"Some geniuses, despite having high realms and strong god-demon foundations, became flustered during the most intense combat. They could only display seventy percent of their full strength, or even, by fighting in a chaotic manner on the battlefield, actually disrupted the military formation and had a counterproductive effect," the green-robed woman shook her head. "These are the ones with poor combat talent."

"High cultivation talent doesn't necessarily mean high combat talent," the unkempt man chuckled.

Combat talent was very important. At the same realm and with the same god-demon body, those with high combat talent could kill three to five individuals of the same level.

"Among these one hundred people, seven have poor combat talent. What's the use of cultivating such dullards?" the green-robed woman said. "The vast majority performed normally, understood sophisticated cooperation, and didn't drag down their companions. Those truly considered to have high combat talent numbered only twelve."