C22 Fight!!

Jade Water Hall, Dragon Bay.

Atop a towering cliff by the riverbank, Lin Xuan and Big Yellow reached the summit to find twenty-eight Qi Refining Stage monsters already scattered across the stone platform.

These Demon Clan Cultivators were mostly solitary figures, each seated alone, resembling a gathering of lone wolves.

Upon the arrival of Lin Xuan and Big Yellow, the twenty-eight cultivators on the platform lifted their heads, their gazes filled with wary respect.

Among the present Demon Clan Cultivators, only two pairs had arrived as allies, and with the addition of Lin Xuan and Big Yellow, a formidable third faction had emerged—potentially the most threatening trio in this assessment.

As the monsters scrutinized Lin Xuan, he too surveyed them. Most were early Qi Refining Stage practitioners, with six at the middle stage. However, the hulking figure with the massive bull head at the fringe was an enigma to Lin Xuan.

This meant that the black-robed, bull-headed giant likely stood at the late Qi Refining Stage—a formidable ninety percent probability.

"Amateurs," Lin Xuan thought, quickly sizing up the competition.

It dawned on him that merely possessing a recommendation order wasn't sufficient to gain entry to the Jade Water Hall; a battle was also required.

Sensing the underlying hostility from some of the Demon Clan Cultivators, Lin Xuan's mind raced with strategy.

"Now that all thirty of the Jade Water Hall's recommendation tokens have been collected, there's no point in further delay. We shall commence the final challenge: the Forest Survival Battle," announced a voice.

"You've all earned your tokens, likely having bested cultivators of your own rank. Some of you may have survived through stealth or exceptional evasion, but now comes the true test."

"The Forest Survival Battle will take place on the small island within Dragon Bay. You have three hours, ending when the sun is high. To pass, you must eliminate a fellow Demon Clan Cultivator from this assessment and return with their head."

"If that's the case, you'll pass the assessment!"

Following this declaration, the middle-aged man with the hawk-like nose abruptly drew in his expansive black wings and alighted onto his towering stone platform with a fluid grace. His piercing gaze swept over the assembled crowd as he spoke with a chilling indifference.

He was the examiner from the Jade Water Hall.

Once he finished laying out the rules, the atmosphere atop the soaring cliffs turned palpably tense.

At the very edge of the open grassland, the Ox-Head Demon, previously with eyes closed, snapped open its blood-tinged eyes, casting an intrigued look over the Demon Clan Cultivators.

"May I ask, is it permissible to kill extra test-takers?"

The Ox Demon was gearing up to make a fierce statement when...

Merely a dozen meters away...

Lin Xuan, clad in a blood-red robe, beat him to the punch with his question.

"Yes!"

"There's no problem even if you kill them all, as long as... you have the strength to do so!"

The middle-aged man on the platform, upon hearing Lin Xuan's inquiry, fixed his gaze on him with a spark of interest. Although he only sensed that Lin Xuan was at the early Qi Refining Stage...

For some inexplicable reason, he felt a twinge of apprehension towards the young man in the blood-red robe.

Naturally.

Lin Xuan's bold statement had also reached the ears of the other Qi Refining Stage Demon Cultivators. In a flash, nearly all eyes were on Lin Xuan, many filled with a glint of hostility.

"This youngster is quite self-assured!"

"Hehe!"

"I think we should take this kid out first!"

...

In that instant.

Lin Xuan felt the weight of everyone's focus on him.

This was precisely what he wanted. If they all sought him out, it would save him time.

On the field, the sole late-stage Qi Refining Ox Demon.

He too glared at Lin Xuan with irritation. He had been the center of attention until now.

His reason for seeking refuge with the Jade Water Hall was due to being a fugitive within his own Demon Clan.

He had slain two same-rank cultivators at the late Qi Refining Stage and had narrowly escaped from the dominion of his former clan.

He had secured the recommendation order from the Jade Water Hall, and at this point, it was merely a formality. His true intention was to eliminate as many Demon Clan Cultivators as possible during the forest assessment battle.

This kind of consequence-free slaughter and looting was precisely what the Ox Demon had always fantasized about.

"Now, I will announce the sequence for entering the island. Based on the order of arrival at Dragon Confining Bay, the first to arrive will be the first to enter the assessment island. Thirty breaths later, the second person will follow!"

"Let's begin!"

Boom!

As soon as the middle-aged man with the hawkish nose finished speaking.

Off to the side of the elevated platform.

A young man with emerald green scales covering his cheeks, as if he had anticipated this moment, stood up. Once the middle-aged man concluded, the young man stepped into the void, and a surge of air enveloped him.

The air burst apart.

Using the rebounding force.

The mid-Qi Refining Stage Demon Clan Cultivator, with green scales adorning his cheeks, shot through the air like a cannonball, leaving a trail of white air in his wake, and landed on the island a mere hundred meters away with lightning speed.

In less than four breaths.

He vanished into the thick jungle!

Subsequently.

His presence was nowhere to be found!

Those Demon Clan Cultivators who entered the island first undoubtedly had an advantage!

They could scout the terrain ahead of time and locate an ideal spot for an ambush.

As time ticked by...

The twenty-eight Demon Clan Cultivators ahead each cast a curious glance at Lin Xuan before setting foot on the island.

"Sigh!"

"It seems they've all marked me as their target!"

"They must think I'm an easy mark because I've only just advanced to the early Qi Refining Stage. Well, if you all want me dead, then I'll just have to wipe you out instead!"

Lin Xuan observed their menacing looks.

A flicker of eager excitement couldn't help but emerge in his gaze!

Finally.

It was Lin Xuan's turn.

With a flick of his wrist, he summoned a gust of wind attribute Spiritual Qi, crossing a hundred meters in under two breaths.

"Such masterful control of Spiritual Qi!"

From behind.

The middle-aged man with the hawk nose, perched on the towering stone platform, watched Lin Xuan effortlessly call forth a gust of wind attribute Spiritual Qi, a trace of astonishment appearing in his eyes.

"Is it possible that this fellow is a Spirit Beast?"

The thought seemed to strike the middle-aged man with the aquiline nose.