In the eighth region, Little Rascal carried a massive beast-hide bundle containing a total of eighteen Glyph Bones, each one crystalline and translucent, shimmering with radiant light and densely inscribed with mystical runes. Though they weren’t the precious bones of ancient descendants, such a haul was still worth a fortune. This area did house the genuine bones of primordial descendants, used to suppress and guard the land, but unfortunately, he couldn’t dig them up. Attempting to excavate them deeply might result in severe injury and cause a massive disturbance.
Little Rascal, ever the sly one, observed the surroundings for a while. Seeing no one coming to apprehend him, he relaxed slightly. “Better get out of here fast!” With that, he bolted away at an astonishing speed. He planned to advance to the second layer of the ancient battlefield—there was no way he could stay here any longer, or someone would surely come after him with gritted teeth.
In the eighth region, everyone was in high spirits, growing more confident the deeper they ventured. They felt an inexhaustible surge of energy, effortlessly dismantling the array barriers and advancing with unstoppable momentum. Nearly ten thousand participants were swiftly pushing forward, scattered across different forests, converging from all directions toward the final challenge, each brimming with unwavering confidence.
“O heavens, O earth! After failing four times in a row, I *will* succeed this year—my relentless training won’t be in vain!” A young man in his twenties wept tears of joy.
“It’s not that hard, is it? This is my first time attempting the trial, and I already feel like I can pass. Guess I’m just a genius,” a snot-nosed kid gloated happily.
A cluster of glowing runes marked the exit, but Little Rascal didn’t even consider it. Instead, he dashed toward another direction. Ahead, a dazzling barrier of radiant light blocked his path.
“Boom!” Little Rascal unleashed his power, fingers splayed as lightning erupted—this was the Lion-Dragon’s Treasure Spell. The barrier shattered under the force, and he swiftly leaped through.
Beyond lay a far more primal zone, where towering ancient trees loomed and the cries of apes and roars of tigers echoed. The moment he stepped in, an aura of desolation and antiquity washed over him.
With a deafening *rumble*, a distant mountain peak collapsed as a colossal black tiger roared at the sky, its massive paw pressing down and flattening the entire summit—a sight so terrifying it sent shivers down the spine.
“Scary! That thing is *huge*!” Even Little Rascal was taken aback. Though the pitch-black tiger wasn’t a primordial descendant, it was undoubtedly a fearsome beast king—not something to provoke.
“Truly the second-level battlefield. Here, life and death are left to fate—this is entirely our own choice!”
From another direction, another participant entered the second layer. Naturally, only geniuses could make it this far, and they all immediately concealed themselves, lest they be ambushed by the savage beasts lurking in the wild.
The second battlefield was interconnected; those who entered from the first eight regions could meet here, no longer separated by zones.
Little Rascal, however, felt no tension. Having traversed hundreds of miles of untamed wilderness—sometimes even protecting Qing Feng—he was more than familiar with such primal forests. After a brief observation, he darted through the jungle like an ancient divine leopard, startling beasts but avoiding the truly terrifying creatures.
Once he had scouted the nearby area and carefully sensed the surroundings, he finally turned his attention to his loot. Cautious as ever, he divided the eighteen precious bones into six piles of three, burying them in different locations—some in swamps, some in streams, and others in abandoned bird nests.
He mused that since this so-called second battlefield connected to the wilderness with no guardians, he could likely find a detour later to retrieve his stash.
With everything settled, he straightened up, head held high, and strolled through the forest with an air of innocence—as if he had done nothing wrong.
According to the trial’s requirements, they had to find a stele in this second battlefield, which would detail their next task. Clearly, not revealing the stele’s exact location was meant to force them to explore, battle fierce beasts, and test their mettle.
Little Rascal was smug and at ease, unaware that outside, some people were about to suffer greatly.
Several elders from the Sky-Suppressing Pavilion led groups toward the exits of the eight regions, arriving swiftly to await the successful participants.
“The first region is pitiful—only nine children have succeeded so far. This year’s trial must be exceptionally difficult,” one of the tribal elders remarked, their expressions darkening. With tens of thousands participating, how could so few have passed? These were supposed to be the finest youths from their clans—how could they be struggling so badly in the Sky-Suppressing Pavilion’s trial?
Discontent simmered among the crowd. They knew the reason—noble scions, even descendants of primordial beasts, had taken up too many spots, forcing the Pavilion to raise the difficulty to an extreme level, leaving many promising youths with no chance.
“There’s no helping it. This year’s competition is just too fierce,” Elder Xiong Fei of the Sky-Suppressing Pavilion said apologetically, though his words did little to appease the crowd.
“The second region isn’t much better—only sixteen have made it so far,” someone sighed.
The third region was even worse—only eight emerged, all exhausted and drenched in sweat.
“This is too hard!” Complaints rose, and faces grew darker.
“Don’t worry. The trial lasts three days. The most outstanding ones are coming out first—more will follow,” Elder Zhuo Yun reassured.
“More will come, but not many. The longer they stay, the more energy they expend. How will they have the strength left to break the arrays?” a great clan elder retorted.
“Not necessarily. Some true geniuses might have already entered the second battlefield. I believe the numbers won’t be too low,” the Pavilion elders consoled.
Despite their words, as the later regions yielded equally dismal results, the crowd’s mood plummeted.
The Pavilion elders, though outwardly apologetic, were secretly delighted—this year’s batch was exceptionally talented, surpassing all previous ones.
Only when they reached the eighth region did things change, offering some hope. Here, dozens—no, *hundreds*—of participants stood waiting.
“Incredible! The geniuses are all concentrated in the eighth region! This is unprecedented—their numbers exceed the total from the first seven regions combined!” Elder Xiong Fei nodded approvingly, a smile on his face.
“Indeed, the eighth region is exceptional,” Elder Zhuo Yun agreed.
The tribal elders’ expressions softened slightly.
“Ah! That’s my clan’s Da Meng! He failed four times before, but he finally succeeded this year—hahaha!” one elder laughed heartily.
“And my clan’s Qing Hu made it too! Look at his vigorous aura—he didn’t even exert much effort. Truly, heroes emerge from the young—remarkable!”
One by one, the elders brightened as they spotted their own clans’ youths emerging from the exit.
Elder Xiong Fei initially smiled and nodded, pleased with the eighth region’s performance. But soon, he realized something was off—why were *so many* coming out? The trial’s difficulty had been increased—this shouldn’t be happening!
“One, two… two hundred fourteen…” He frowned as he counted. How could there be so many? The trial’s barriers had been strengthened—this made no sense!
“Four hundred… four hundred one…” The numbers kept climbing, and Elder Xiong Fei grew restless. “This year’s geniuses are truly numerous—a rare sight indeed.”
“Indeed, surpassing all expectations. But this is a joyous occasion,” Elder Zhuo Yun remarked contentedly.
When the count exceeded a thousand, Elder Xiong Fei shot to his feet as if scalded.
Elder Zhuo Yun was equally dumbfounded. “So many geniuses… the eighth region’s children are extraordinary.”
Other elders frowned, whispering among themselves. “This is too many. We might need to reassess them—otherwise, we’ll exceed our intended intake by far.”
“That might not go over well. The great clans’ elders will protest—this year’s trial was already made exceptionally difficult,” another sighed.
By the time the count hit two thousand, Elder Xiong Fei’s face turned green. *This many geniuses?!*
Elder Zhuo Yun was speechless.
“This…” The other Pavilion elders were equally stunned.
When the number reached three thousand, the elders fidgeted nervously, nearly tearing out their beards in distress.
In stark contrast, the tribal elders beamed with pride, thrilled that so many of their youths had passed.
“My boy, well done! So young, yet you’ve already succeeded!”
“Er Hei, your persistence paid off at last—you’ve finally made it at twenty-plus years old!”
Listening to these praises, the Pavilion elders felt like their hair was on fire—this was the *opposite* of what they had expected.
“I—what am I even—*that’s a snot-nosed kid!* How did *he* pass?!” Elder Xiong Fei nearly jumped out of his skin in agitation.
“Thank you for the praise, Elder,” the six-year-old snot-nosed kid bowed before wiping his nose—nearly smearing it on Elder Xiong Fei’s robes.
“This is *wrong!* There’s *definitely* a problem!” By now, the Pavilion elders wished they could faint on the spot.
The sight before them was horrifying—over *four thousand* participants had emerged, and worst of all, they were *walking out in groups*, chatting and laughing as if this were a casual outing.
Even in the ancient era of sages and legends, such a horde of “geniuses” had never been seen.
This was *not* the demeanor of battle-hardened trial survivors!
The elders’ faces turned greener than ever before, until they finally couldn’t take it anymore and bellowed:
“*Investigate!* Get to the bottom of this!”
Their anguished cries alarmed the Pavilion’s higher-ups, who rushed over, thinking a primordial beast had attacked.
Two hours later, the stream of participants finally stopped. A final count revealed—
*Eight thousand, nine hundred twenty-seven.*
The Pavilion higher-ups’ faces turned ashen. This was *unprecedented* in history—an absurd, impossible number!
Out of over ten thousand participants, only a little over a thousand had failed.
Half an hour later, back in the eighth region, several elders were beside themselves with rage. Elder Xiong Fei and Elder Zhuo Yun nearly coughed up blood.
“*Damn it all!* Who did this?!”
Their agonized howls left the tribal elders bewildered—what could have provoked such a reaction?
Soon, the Pavilion’s higher-ups received the report. They all looked skyward in silence for a long moment.
“What happened?” the tribal elders asked cautiously.
Without a word, the higher-ups turned and walked away, their emotions unreadable.
Finally, the truth leaked out:
“*A little thief stole the Glyph Bones from the eighth region and wrecked the trial grounds!*”
The tribal elders froze, utterly dumbfounded. Then, their lips twitched as they suppressed the urge to laugh.
“*Who was it?!*” an elder roared.
“Who else? It *has* to be that brat! They said he wasn’t coming, but this confirms it—he’s here!” Elder Xiong Fei wept tears of frustration. That kid was *too* much!
“If I ever see him, the *first* thing I’ll do after he enters the Pavilion is spank his backside into *eighteen pieces!*” Elder Zhuo Yun snarled.
But immediately, a voice interjected:
“Little brother, wherever you are, the Deerchaser Academy’s doors are always open for you.”
It was the War Goddess of Deerchaser Academy, radiant in golden light, her graceful figure and jade-like face adorned with a rare, gentle smile.
Elder Zhuo Yun broke out in a cold sweat, glancing around nervously.
At the same time, the Void God Realm erupted in chaos as the news spread like wildfire.
“Is it really that kid? Did he show up?”
“Who else could it be? This is just like his antics in the Initial Grounds. Poor Sky-Suppressing Pavilion!”
“Hahaha! That little menace is *too* much!”
“The Pavilion is *so* unlucky. That rascal is beyond words—he’s done it again, committing another heaven-defying outrage!”
“Exactly! Anyone who crosses him ends up suffering. Even the Void God Realm couldn’t handle him—will the Pavilion expel him too? Hahaha!”
The entire Void God Realm buzzed with laughter and chatter.
“That kid really knows how to stir up trouble. He’s a walking disaster—nowhere is safe with him around. Thank goodness he’s far from us now,” Hammer Uncle wiped his brow.
The Profiteer said nothing, swiftly setting up a sign in the crowd:
*”Want insider info on the Milk Kid? One essence jade per tip.”*
Bird Grandpa was just as quick, unfurling a tattered banner beside it:
*”One essence jade—exclusive secrets.”*
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