They navigated five treacherous stretches of terrain without incident. Nie Kong finally halted his steps before a precipice, standing poised at the edge as if floating high above the sky. Gazing into the distance, he saw mist swirling, countless peaks faintly visible amidst the churning clouds, resembling a celestial paradise.
The path on the Spiritual Inscription Map ended here.
Logically, the Inner City should lie just ahead, yet Nie Kong turned and looked around, finding no trace of any structure. The bottom of the cliff was shrouded in a dim haze, its depth impossible to gauge. The cloud waves, surging and rolling like the tide, resembled monstrous beasts, jaws agape, waiting for someone to jump.
“Little Junior Brother, are you stunned speechless?” A light laugh drifted from the side, the voice clear and possessing a quality that felt like a spring breeze washing over him.
“Who is it?”
Nie Kong started, turning toward the sound. At the same instant, the spiritual power within him vibrated violently, his palm instantly covered in a dense emerald green.
Several meters away, a figure approached, seemingly floating effortlessly on the wind.
The person appeared to be around twenty-six or twenty-seven, clad in a blue robe, tall and handsome, with gentle eyes and a perpetual smile as he regarded Nie Kong.
Nie Kong’s eyes narrowed with caution.
The summit of this cliff was an unusually open flat expanse, devoid of trees, covered only in grass no higher than the instep. It was impossible for anyone to hide, and Nie Kong was certain he had seen no one on his approach. How had this man appeared, arriving so silently at his side?
“No need to be so tense.”
The man in blue seemed to sense Nie Kong’s wariness and waved a hand with a smile. “I am here on the command of the Six Hall Masters to guide disciples who pass the supplementary trial. Half a day has gone by, and you are the first Outer City Junior Brother I have seen. It seems your trial went exceptionally smoothly?”
“So, you are an Inner City Senior Brother.”
The acceptance was natural, without artifice, yet there was a persuasive strength in the man’s words that caused Nie Kong to unconsciously lower his guard.
Nie Kong realized he had been overly nervous. If Outer City disciples dared not attack to steal maps within the illusionary realm, then Inner City disciples certainly wouldn't cause trouble here. There was no need to be so jumpy. Nie Kong cupped his hands and smiled. “Senior Brother, how does one enter the Inner City?”
The man in blue picked up a small stone from the ground and tossed it into the abyss before them. After a long moment, a faint thud echoed back from below.
Nie Kong had assumed this abyss, like the great river he encountered earlier, was merely an illusion woven by Spiritual Inscriptions. But hearing the echo confirmed the cliff face must be incredibly high. Then again, he reasoned, if a river created by illusion could drown a person, who was to say this echo wasn't also fake?
True? False?
These two words flickered ceaselessly in his mind, leaving Nie Kong somewhat bewildered.
The man in blue watched Nie Kong, saying with a slight smile, “Beneath the cliff, within the abyss, lies the Inner City. Junior Brother, jump down, and you will be the first place finisher of this supplementary trial, and the first Inner City disciple to pass this assessment. Why do you still hesitate?”
“Oh?”
Nie Kong laughed carelessly. “Senior Brother speaks sense. Since that is the case, this Junior Brother will go. Regardless of whether this cliff is real or not, its existence here certainly isn't meant to trick Outer City disciples who have passed the illusionary realm into jumping to their deaths.
“Furthermore, since this Inner City disciple could appear on the cliff top without a sound, he must have ascended from this very abyss. If he can come up, why can’t I go down?”
With these two points settled, what was there to fear!
In that instant of resolve, Nie Kong stepped off the edge of the cliff. His body immediately plunged into the violently churning mist, falling rapidly toward the depths like a meteor.
Watching Nie Kong’s figure grow increasingly indistinct, a hint of admiration flickered in the eyes of the man in blue. “This Junior Brother has considerable courage. When I first entered the Inner City, I hesitated quite a bit,” he murmured, a tone of remembrance in his voice. As his voice faded, he too stepped off the cliff. However, his figure did not plummet like Nie Kong’s; instead, it merged directly into the pervasive mist, vanishing without a trace.
“Whoosh! Whoosh!”
The sound of the wind roared past his ears. Spiritual power surged through Nie Kong’s meridians, causing his outer garments to billow, attempting to increase air resistance and slow his descent. But soon, Nie Kong realized this effort was unnecessary, as he sensed his falling speed beginning to decrease.
From the bottom of the abyss, a steady force seemed to ascend, supporting his body. In only about half a minute, Nie Kong felt as if he were drifting downwards like a feather, descending gently, no longer needing to consider what method awaited to catch the Outer City disciples who jumped from the cliff.
It was then that Nie Kong had the leisure to survey his surroundings.
Clouds and vapor still billowed from all directions, though they were much thinner than above, allowing the outlines of the cliff faces on either side to become vaguely visible. The abyss at the bottom of the cliff was exceedingly wide; by Nie Kong’s estimation, at least two or three li. As for the floor beneath, it remained obscured by haze.
Thump!
Suddenly, Nie Kong felt as if he had struck something soft and yielding. Before he could react, his vision cleared. The area before him opened up, revealing a magnificent and spectacular scene—the Inner City. Compared to the Spirit Guard City outside, this place was smaller in scale but exuded an air of imposing grandeur in every corner. Viewing it from above imparted a uniquely heart-stirring charm.
Gradually, Nie Kong’s sight was blocked by the imposing outer city wall surrounding the structures.
Clang!
His feet finally met solid ground.
“This is the Inner City?”
Nie Kong looked up at the expanse of snow-white walls and let out a long breath. The cliff had indeed been real. This small city was built against the cliff face opposite, except that in this area, the cliff wall wasn't a sheer drop of a thousand li but slanted gently down from a high point.
By now, Nie Kong could see the Inner City architecture extending toward the opposite slope.
“Register here!”
A loud shout suddenly jolted Nie Kong back to attention. He looked over and saw a table set up near the city gate several dozen meters away. A young man dressed in black sat stiffly on a chair, his expression emotionless and solemn. Several dozen other people were gathered around him.
“See? The kid is dumbfounded!”
“Stop talking about him. Weren’t you the same when you first came last year?”
“I heard the time limit for this Six Hall Grand Competition supplementary trial is one day. This kid making it to the Inner City in half a day suggests he isn't simple.”
...
Faint whispers drifted over. Many of them regarded Nie Kong with the look reserved for country bumpkins. Judging by the golden glint on the left breast of their clothes, they were all Inner City disciples.
Nie Kong paid them no mind. Using the Flowing Shadow of Flying Flowers technique, he blinked a few times and arrived before the table, stating two words: “Nie Kong!”
“Your name is Nie Kong?”
The black-clothed man, who was poised with his brush ready to write, paused, a flicker of slight surprise crossing his eyes. He looked up at Nie Kong, then his expression calmed, and he resumed writing. However, those two words caused a significant stir among the surrounding Inner City disciples.
“Nie Kong? That name sounds familiar!”
“Is that really Nie Kong? I didn’t mishear, did I?”
“I heard that in the Six Hall Grand Competition five days ago, an Outer City disciple named Nie Kong managed to drive Luo Sheng and Xiao Yao out of the illusionary space in a sorry state?”
“Luo Sheng and Xiao Yao were apparently demoted to the Outer City in the end. I recall many Inner City disciples were punished in the Lingxiao Hall that day!”
“That’s what they deserved for trying to kill people in the illusionary space. Did they really think the rules of the Six Hall Grand Competition were so easily broken? If I were a Hall Master, I’d kick them out of Spirit Guard City entirely, hehe.”
“Luo Sheng, Xiao Yao, and Hong Guang deserved it. The other Inner City disciples, however, suffered undeserved misfortune. But then again, it’s their fault for trying to rescue them; they were just unlucky! Besides, I heard this Nie Kong is close to Gu Kan. Could that mean he might also be close to Hall Master Yao Xin...?”
Nie Kong felt utterly speechless at these discussions. What did ‘close to Gu Kan’ mean? It made it sound as if he and that little girl had some sort of illicit affair! However, this might be for the best. Just as Miao Ge said, this misunderstanding could save him a lot of trouble.
“The maps?” The man in black spoke again.
“Please inspect them, Senior Brother.”
Nie Kong quickly pulled out all the maps he had tucked inside his robes.
The thick stack made the man in black pause again, and the bright white glint dazzled the eyes of the surrounding Inner City disciples!
Judging by the thickness, there must be over a hundred sheets?
Just how many people did this guy rob to acquire so many maps? I heard there were only about a thousand Outer City disciples participating in this supplementary trial. This Nie Kong alone managed to take one-tenth of all the maps. What was left for others to seize?
Ruthless! This guy is truly ruthless!
Although they hadn't participated in this kind of supplementary trial, they could guess the difficulty of snatching this many maps. Moreover, Nie Kong was only at the fifth stage of Spirit Fusion. To compete for maps against Outer City disciples who mostly possessed sixth or seventh-stage Spirit Masters made the difficulty multiply exponentially.
Yet, he succeeded, and he was the first to reach the Inner City with so many maps!
The Inner City disciples looked at Nie Kong with increased fervor. Since this person could use elixirs to drive his spirit beasts to expel Luo Sheng and the others from the illusionary space, and now he had seized such a large number of maps, he likely relied on medicinal aid as well. It seemed his ability in alchemy was quite exceptional!
“One hundred and twenty-two sheets. Subtracting your own, that leaves one hundred and twenty-one. That’s one hundred and twenty-one points.”
The man in black’s fingers moved rapidly, counting the maps in an instant. He then picked up the densely written roster beside him and scanned it quickly. “Three extra points for those who exited the Lingxiao City disciples when the illusionary space sealed—that brings it to one hundred and twenty-four points. First arrival in the Inner City earns a bonus of twenty points. Nie Kong, you currently have a total of one hundred and forty-four points! These points are valid for use throughout the Inner City!”
As he spoke, the man in black inscribed a large number after Nie Kong’s name...
Fat: The second chapter is here. I was held up by something this afternoon, apologies to everyone. . .