Chapter 826: Landing a Cloud Pearl?

North of Dongtian Royal City lies the Yunlun Mountain Range.

The Yunlun Mountain Range stretches for tens of thousands of miles, potentially extending to a hundred thousand miles if the outer foothills are included. Perennially shrouded in mist and clouds, it resembles a celestial realm.

There's a saying: "Mist descends to the mortal world, a heaven emerges from Yunlun; if not for the three calamities, it would shelter generations." This popular saying perfectly illustrates the immense opportunities the Yunlun Mountain Range offers to the poor common folk living outside Dongtian Royal City. The "three calamities" mentioned refer to natural disasters, beast calamities, and human-inflicted disasters. For most ordinary people, Spirit Refiners are akin to deities. Dongtian Royal City belongs to the Spirit Refining world. Ordinary families, unable to enter the city, would settle outside its walls, seeking a divine opportunity.

Generations passed, and great changes occurred. Families who settled in the Yunlun Mountain Range early on had, by utilizing its resources, carved out their own existence. It must be said that, adjacent to Dongtian Royal City, the Yunlun Mountain Range offered countless opportunities for ordinary people to dramatically improve their lives.

However, precisely because it was separated from Dongtian Royal City, the spiritual refining center of the Eastern Heaven Realm, there were also many calamities. When disaster struck, the common folk often perished before the "deities" could arrive with timely rescue. Even so, this could not deter the countless common people who lived near the mountains, yearning for spiritual cultivation. For them, a single venture into the mountains could mean discovering a celestial herb, fundamentally altering their life's fortunes.

While opportunity coexisted with danger, natural disasters in the Yunlun Mountain Range were one calamity—unavoidable, and thus met without complaint. Beast calamities, naturally, referred to the spiritual beasts within the Yunlun Mountain Range, powerful enough to rival Spirit Refiners. These potent beasts primarily roamed the inner reaches of the mountain range, but occasionally, one would emerge from the deep mountains. Even a beast at the Xiantian (Innate) realm was a disaster for mortals.

As for human-inflicted disasters... In the Spirit Refining world, life and death were commonplace. Sometimes, when "deities" clashed, mortals suffered the consequences. Besides one of the warring "deities," the mountains and rivers were often stained with the blood of the common folk living at the base of the mountains, overlooked by these "deities."

Fortunately, after centuries of change, the "deities" from the Royal City periodically ventured out for hunts, making it extremely rare to find a spiritual beast in the outer Yunlun Mountain Range today. However, recently there had been new activity in the "deity" realm: the entire Yunlun Mountain Range was enveloped by a hazy barrier, pushing mortals out from around its perimeter. The mortal world and the Spirit Refining world were separated by a single boundary, yet seemed infinitely far apart.

Mist hung heavily, and the sky stretched wide with scattered clouds. The 'Cloud Realm' of the Heavenly Mechanism World spanned ten thousand miles, encompassing the entire Yunlun Mountain Range. Above the Cloud Realm, at the pinnacle of the void, stood a group of "deities," treading on air, surveying the mortal world.

"Are they all in?" Rao Yaoyao, with the Xuan Cang Divine Sword on her back, stood at the forefront. Her beautiful eyes swept across the vast mountain range below. With a wave of her hand, tens of thousands of spirit mirrors appeared before her, each reflecting a trial participant from within the mountains.

"They are all in."

"Approximately thirty-six thousand trial participants are competing in this Royal City Trial. Whether they seize the opportunity depends entirely on their own destiny."

Cheng Ji stepped forward, gazing at the tens of thousands of spirit mirrors, his eyes filled with awe. If not for the Sky City, it would have been impossible for the Yunlun Mountain Range to acquire the 'Cloud Realm'. Consequently, this year's trial participants would face either death or severe injury in their struggle for the thirty-six precious Holy Palace trial slots. Now, with the arrival of the Sky City, the Yunlun Mountain Range had gained the 'Cloud Realm' world.

What Rao Yaoyao needed to guard against and monitor, of course, were the infiltrators whom even Cheng Ji had allowed to slip into the Yunlun Mountain Range. Yet, for the trial participants from the Five Domains, this was not necessarily a bad thing. It must be known that those who reached this stage of the Royal City Trial were all exceptional talents; in time, they would surely shine brightly in various regions. If even one of these individuals were to die, it might mean one less Grand Void expert appearing in the Five Domains of the continent in the future.

The Eastern Heaven Realm was Cheng Ji's foundation. The Holy Divine Hall, which he governed, was responsible not only for Dongtian Royal City but also for the fundamental lifelines of all commanderies in the Eastern Heaven Realm. These young people, one might say, emerged from the lands under his care; they were like children he watched grow, his subjects, and their fate was tied to the realm's fortune. The major forces behind them had, to varying degrees, connections with the Cheng family and the Holy Divine Hall of Dongtian Royal City. When these young people achieved success in the future, Cheng Ji would inevitably share in their karmic destiny. Therefore, reducing casualties now was certainly a joyous matter.

In the void, over thirty thousand spirit mirrors reflected over thirty thousand trial participants. Some were still black screens, some had already lit up, and some were in the process of transitioning from black to white. Undoubtedly, every participant wishing to join the trial had to drip their blood into a trial jade pendant. Once blood was dripped into the trial jade pendant, the Heavenly Mechanism Array would be activated, allowing Rao Yaoyao to observe the participants' every move through the spirit mirrors. The system was interconnected.

The trial had already begun. After a brief wait, most of the approximately thirty-six thousand spirit mirrors were activated. However, several hundred mirrors remained black, showing no activity for a long time. It was clear that these mirrors were unlikely to show any activity later.

"Those who should be in are in, and those who shouldn't, are also in," Rao Yaoyao remarked, a slight smile on her face as she gazed at the black screens.

Cheng Ji sighed with emotion, saying, "Sword Immortal Rao, this Heavenly Net you've cast is hundreds, even thousands, of times stronger than the one I set up in the Royal City previously! No matter what elaborate methods those infiltrators use, desperately trying to get in... However, the Cloud Realm world intercepted the vast majority; those who did manage to sneak in will be exposed under our gaze; and as for those who sought to fish in troubled waters..." Cheng Ji said, looking at the black screens, his voice filled with admiration, "They were all caught in one fell swoop!"

Rao Yaoyao naturally detected the conciliatory tone in Cheng Ji's words. The credit for the Royal City's night battle belonged to Hall Master Cheng, but she bore all the blame. Cheng Ji now stood before her, his heart undoubtedly filled with trepidation. But if Rao Yaoyao truly wanted to dwell on such matters, why would she have kept him around until now?

"You may deploy," she commanded, gesturing and turning to the several Red Cloaks behind her. "Take your Heavenly Mechanism Plates with you. The coordinates have been provided. Before those with black screens realize what's happening and discard their trial jade pendants, go and apprehend an initial group."

The Red Cloaks behind her were filled with reverence and admiration. Sword Immortal Rao's move had effectively cut off the retreat of too many individuals.

"Yes!"

Several affirmative replies merged into one sound, and the Red Cloaks vanished. A short while later, from high above, hundreds of streaks of red light could be seen, like falling hail, plunging from various locations outside the Cloud Realm barrier and entering the Yunlun Mountain Range.

Cheng Ji watched this scene and chuckled, "The Red Cloak Prison is about to get quite busy."

Rao Yaoyao remained silent, offering no response. Her gaze ceaselessly swept across the tens of thousands of spirit mirrors. It could be said that these first two waves of deployment only caught a handful of insignificant individuals. How could truly seasoned veterans be caught so easily?

"Where will they hide?" Rao Yaoyao's eyes held anticipation, occasionally lingering on suspicious individuals in the spirit mirrors, a coldness on her face. "Rats scurrying across the street, and the dirty snakes and insects from various shadowy places..."

Outer Yunlun Mountain Range, eastern section.

From a patch of weeds, three streams of light shot skyward, startling the birds and beasts in the forest behind them into chaotic flight.

"Phew, we're here."

Xu Xiaoshou emerged from the teleportation light. Before him was uneven mountainous terrain covered in waist-high weeds, a result of scarce human presence. Behind him was forested land; he was precisely at the outer edge of it. Looking into the distance, everything was very blurry, except for the faint outlines of mountains far away that seemed to merge with the sky. The Yunlun Mountain Range was perpetually shrouded in mist, resulting in low visibility. Moreover, these mists had the ability to block spiritual senses. Typically, Xiantian (Innate) realm trial participants arriving here would effectively be limited to seeing the world with their naked eyes.

Xu Xiaoshou was different. With his "Perception" activated, he could directly scan an area of one hundred miles around him, detecting dozens of individuals, some panicked, some alert, others shaking their heads to dispel the spatial dizziness from teleportation. However, these individuals all shared a very distinct characteristic.

"Scattered distribution?"

"All alone?"

Xu Xiaoshou was surprised and looked to his side. Xin Gugu and Liu Changqing, as the two guardians of the 'fragile alchemist,' had landed beside him because they were holding his hand. But Mu Zixi, Mo Mo, and others had completely vanished.

"Random teleportation?"

"That makes sense. With so many people, they couldn't just drop them all in one spot and have them fight. After all, this time it's a points-based competition."

Xin Gugu had also finished surveying the surroundings and turned to him, hesitating, "Young Master Xu, we've been separated. What about Xiao Wanfeng?"

"Uh!" Xu Xiaoshou's heart sank at the thought of Xiao Wanfeng. "No way?" He had originally planned to give him a leg up. Now, with a random teleportation, was Xiao Wanfeng, a mere mortal, really going to be a normal trial participant?

"Let's try to find him first, see if he can survive until we do," Xu Xiaoshou said with a wry smile.

Xin Gugu also chuckled, "He's too pitiful. A mere tea-server, if he truly encounters an enemy, he'll likely just be 'looted'."

"Not necessarily," Xu Xiaoshou said, suddenly unable to suppress a laugh at the thought. "Perhaps others will see he's a mortal and not even bother to attack him, since he's certainly got nothing to gain."

"True, hehe..." Xin Gugu held his stomach, laughing.

These few didn't worry about themselves at all. After all, they weren't there to participate in the trial, but to bully others. Liu Changqing, being older, seemed much calmer. He said, "The trial jade pendant offers three 'looting' opportunities. Xiao Wanfeng shouldn't be so unlucky as to be looted three times right at the start; he should be able to last for a few days."

Xu Xiaoshou nodded, "The first assessment round lasts ten days. Anyone with sense will wait for others to accumulate enough points before acting. After all, you can plunder half their points, so acting too early would ultimately put you at a disadvantage."

"Unless it's enemies meeting, then sparks will fly," Xin Gugu added with a smile.

The three of them relaxed for a moment. Xiao Wanfeng clearly wouldn't be expelled from the trial anytime soon. The immediate priority was to drip blood onto the trial jade pendant. After all, the trial jade pendant was how they would receive subsequent assessment rules and other information.

"Let's drip the blood!"

Xin Gugu took out his jade pendant, and as he squeezed his index finger, he was about to drip blood.

"Wait," Xu Xiaoshou and Liu Changqing transmitted simultaneously. Xin Gugu turned, puzzled. Liu Changqing moved two fingers hidden in his sleeve, and a subtle Heavenly Mechanism Dao pattern flickered. Their speech and actions were then altered.

"Someone is watching us," Liu Changqing said, subtly glancing upwards.

Xu Xiaoshou smiled. He looked at the information bar.

"Under surveillance, Passive Point, 1." He had noticed this message as soon as he landed.

"I have already modified this space, but I haven't completely shielded it to avoid drawing their attention. Our current actions, in the eyes of those monitoring us, will simply appear 'normal'," Liu Changqing said with a smile.

"An elder in the family is like a treasure," Xu Xiaoshou said, giving a thumbs-up.

Xin Gugu suddenly realized, "The Red... they are monitoring us through the 'Cloud Realm' world?"

"Yes."

Liu Changqing nodded, "The 'Cloud Realm' is a world constructed using Heavenly Mechanism arts, and its power is immense, far more complex than Cheng Ji described at the Pilgrimage Square. It's roughly equivalent to half an alternate dimension. However, while the Heavenly Mechanism arts used in the 'Cloud Realm' are formidable, they are clearly not the work of Hall Master Dao himself. He wouldn't have time for so many trivial matters. This must be the result of a combined effort by the Dao Department. And as long as it's not Hall Master Dao..."

Liu Changqing smiled confidently, "As soon as I landed, I sensed something was amiss."

Xin Gugu felt a pang of fear. When he used to work with Jiao Tangtang, he wasn't responsible for the intellectual side of things, so he wouldn't have thought that far ahead. But that didn't mean he was stupid. Holding up the trial jade pendant, Xin Gugu immediately asked, "So, if we drip blood into this thing, it might use the blood to identify our cultivation level or identity?"

Liu Changqing nodded, then shook his head, "Not identity, but possibly cultivation level. Even though you and I have already strictly sealed our cultivation levels using Heavenly Mechanism arts, just in case, if we're to drip blood, that blood must first be processed."

Xin Gugu was still startled. He quickly put down the jade pendant, feeling as if it were a hot potato. "Couldn't we just not drip it? We're not planning to participate in the trial anyway..." He suddenly stopped speaking, clearly realizing something.

Xu Xiaoshou laughed and scolded him, "Are you truly stupid or just pretending? This is clearly an overt scheme by the Holy Divine Hall. Everyone else drips blood; if you don't, won't your intentions be obvious to everyone?"

"Who's Sima Zhao?" Xin Gugu recoiled his neck.

"Who cares who he is! Hurry up, get the jade pendant out..." Xu Xiaoshou lightly tapped his head and pulled out the pendant. "Little Qing, process the blood again. We need to drip it as soon as possible. If we're too slow, the Red Cloaks might just come looking for you directly!"

Xin Gugu trembled at the mention of Red Cloaks. He quickly squeezed out some blood and offered it to Liu Changqing. Stripping the energy from blood was an easy feat for Heavenly Mechanism arts. In mere moments, the three of them dripped the processed blood into their trial jade pendants.

As soon as the jade pendant recognized its owner, a subtle, almost imperceptible connection was established. Xu Xiaoshou's spiritual sense probed it. Information immediately appeared within the jade pendant.

"Name: Please engrave.""Points: 0."

Besides basic information, the jade pendant also contained a points leaderboard. Xu Xiaoshou checked the leaderboard. Since it had just begun and everyone had only just landed, he expected no information on the board. However...

"1. Chong Yuan, Points: 10000.""2. Zhou Tianshen, Points: 100.""3. Duo Er, Points: 100."

The leaderboard only had three entries, making them stand out significantly. Instantly, the names of these three individuals on the list were remembered by everyone. The crucial point was...

"Zhou Tianshen?"

Xu Xiaoshou looked at the second name on the list and suddenly smiled. This guy, landed on a Cloud Pearl? What kind of insane luck!