However, what was different was that the broken face of the god in the sky opened its eyes and its pupils turned into the shape of a cross.
This illusory eye only had a vertical pupil.
As for its might, it was like the difference between the blazing sun and a firefly. The former could instantly mutate an area into a forbidden zone, while the latter could only form a deterrence that could shake one’s mind.
Of course, this should have something to do with the illusory eye being formed by a drop of blood that had been diluted countless times. If it was pure blood, its might would be even more terrifying.
However, no matter what, even if the real eye appeared, compared to the fragmented face of the god, there was still a world of difference.
Even so, the shock Xu Qing felt was still incomparably intense. His body was only one aspect but what caused waves in his heart was that this matter had broken his understanding.
“Could it be that the Seven Blood Eyes can already extract the flesh and blood of gods?”
“This is impossible… The two give me the same feeling but it’s clearly not the same. In that case, there’s a high chance that there are existences similar to gods in this world?”
This guess caused Xu Qing’s breathing to become even more hurried. He stared at the illusory eye on the limestone and a strong desire to learn more about this world arose in his heart.
At the same time, as the pressure rumbled, the people on the plaza spat out mouthfuls of blood one after another. Half of them couldn’t hold on and were sent out by the long-faced cultivator with a wave of his hand.
Very soon, only three people persisted.
Zhou Qingpeng wasn’t among them. Among the three of them, there was Li Zimei and an ordinary-looking youth. Although the youth’s clothes weren’t like scavengers’, they were plain and simple. He came from a small city.
At that moment, his persistence had reached its limit. Very soon, blood gushed out and he had no choice but to give up. After that, it was Li Xiaomei’s turn.
As for the last of the three, it was naturally Xu Qing.
Willpower could be faked.
However, this time around, Xu Qing didn’t wish to lie in front of such a god-like cold existence.
He instinctively didn’t want to submit to the other party.
Hence, he stared at the illusory eye and his entire body tensed up. His heart pounded with unprecedented intensity as he cooperated with his will to fight against the illusory eye.
“Under the gaze of the god’s fragmented face, I struggled to survive. At this moment, the pressure formed by this drop of blood that has been diluted countless times cannot make me submit!”
Xu Qing’s eyes slowly turned bloodshot and his body trembled. At that moment, it was as though all the flesh and blood in his body were screaming. However, under the suppression of the powerful will he had tempered in the slums and the forbidden zone’s jungle, he was firmly in control.
At that moment, he was the only one still resisting in the entire plaza. This scene caused the hearts of all the examinees in the surroundings to tremble violently and they all looked at Xu Qing in shock.
Even the long-faced middle-aged man and the other two cultivators turned their gazes to Xu Qing with astonished expressions.
This was because Xu Qing had persisted for a very long time.
This year’s test had been carried out for a month. So far, there were only three people who had persisted for so long like Xu Qing.
“I wonder if this kid can survive the last wave of attacks.”
“No one has succeeded in this test this year.”
As the three middle-aged cultivators transmitted their voices to each other, more than half of the golden liquid on the bluestone had dissipated. However… at the instant when it was about to completely dissipate, the illusory eye on top of the bluestone suddenly moved. Its gaze then shifted from scattered to locked onto Xu Qing.
An even more terrifying pressure gathered on Xu Qing’s body at this instant. It was as though the gods wanted to make all things submit, suppressing them with an earth-shattering rumble.
Xu Qing’s entire body trembled intensely and his head slowly lowered as though it was being pressed down by a mountain.
This scene caused the expressions of the three cultivators to turn serious as they observed carefully.
However, in the process of lowering his head, Xu Qing’s body trembled even more intensely. In the end, he slowly lifted his head again. The veins on his forehead bulged, and his blood-colored eyes revealed a wolf-like coldness that contained unyieldingness.
The instant he looked at the illusory eye, the seventh level of the Mountains and Seas Art, Body Refinement, erupted from his body at this moment. It rapidly transformed behind him and quickly formed a pitch-black shadow.
This figure was tens of feet tall and its entire body was pitch-black. It had two spiral horns on its head and a pair of purple eyes. Its bloody mouth suddenly opened and let out a soundless roar toward the illusory eye.
ROAR!!!
Xu Qing also let out a low roar and made contact with the illusory eye on the limestone.
At the next moment, his entire body trembled as though a heavy hammer had smashed into his mind. As blood spurted out, the shadow behind him dissipated. However, the illusory eye on the limestone also turned blurry at this instant and finally dissipated.
It was over.
Xu Qing’s breathing was hurried and he forcefully endured the headache. After a long time, he struggled to stand up and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. He then cupped his fists toward the three middle-aged cultivators who were standing there with deep gazes. After that, he turned and silently walked down the plaza.
In the surroundings of the plaza, everyone who couldn’t hold on earlier all looked at Xu Qing as though they were looking at a monster. Their faces were filled with disbelief and horror.
“Qi and blood… Blood and Qi Shadow Formation? This only appears when one’s body is at the great circle of perfection in Body Refinement. It’s comparable to the great circle of Qi Condensation!” An uncertain voice echoed out.
At the next moment, gasps rang out one after another.
Only Xu Qing stood there silently with his eyes closed. He could sense that the pain in his mind was slowly dissipating at this moment. There seemed to be an even stronger perception growing.
It was like forging. After repeated tempering, one’s edge would be revealed.
In reality, the second test was also like this, containing good fortune. However, those who could obtain it were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.
This caused Xu Qing to be stunned. After a careful examination, he discovered that his perception seemed to be much sharper than before. It was as though his will had become more tenacious. He had no way to prove the latter but his senses couldn’t be wrong.
“Very good!”
On the square, the three middle-aged cultivators who were in charge of the test revealed looks of admiration as they looked at Xu Qing. The long-faced cultivator even nodded at him.
“Your name is Xu Qing, right? The ultimate suppressor who can survive the second test will have a great increase in his mental strength. By using the blood of a divine creature as a whetstone, the tempered will will be incomparably tenacious!”
“A divine creature?” Xu Qing looked at the long-faced cultivator.
The other party didn’t explain. He retracted his gaze and stopped talking. At that moment, the third test began.
The person presiding over the third test was one of the three.
This person had a round face and small eyes but the sharpness in his gaze was very sharp. After he walked out, he swept his gaze across everyone and spoke calmly.
“The third test is actual combat. Fight against mutated beasts in an illusion array.”
After saying this, the round-faced middle-aged man pointed at Xu Qing.
“Xu Qing, you don’t have to participate. Your body refinement has reached the level where your qi and blood can turn into shadows. You already possess the combat strength of the great circle of perfection. There’s no difference if you participate in the third round of the test or not. I’ll allow you to pass the first round.”
As soon as he spoke, the other examinees in the surroundings were filled with envy but they could say nothing. Just now, the shadow behind Xu Qing had completely intimidated them.
“Thank you, Senior.” Xu Qing lowered his head when he heard this. He then cupped his fists and bowed deeply.
He wasn’t good with words but he knew that he had to be polite when facing good intentions.
Very soon, the third test began. As he watched the others entering the square one after another, Xu Qing decided to sit down cross-legged and recuperate his spirit. By the time the third test ended, his spirit had mostly recovered.
Through this recovery, Xu Qing deeply understood that his perception seemed to have doubled compared to before.
Specifically, it showed that he could instantly sense the movement of the wind and grass within a certain range. This scene caused his heart to race and his eyes to shine.
“To think that there’s such feedback from tempering my will… I have to test out my control over the shadow when I get back. It should be more agile now.”
While Xu Qing was in deep thought, the third test ended very quickly.
Everyone returned to their original positions and nervously waited for the results. Xu Qing also stood up and looked at the three middle-aged cultivators who were communicating with each other.
“It’s a pity that the first peak requires a specific token…” Xu Qing lowered his head and looked at the token in his hand. He didn’t know which peak he would be arranged to enter next.
Not long later, the announcement for the start of the competition was made. Among the 60-odd people, half of them were eliminated.
Those who were eliminated all had pale expressions. Those who didn’t pass the entry test were told that they had to leave the Seven Blood Eyes within two hours. After that, they would be killed by the array formation.
The word “kill” caused Xu Qing’s eyes to narrow. It also caused those eliminated to have extremely bitter expressions.
However, leaving wasn’t the only option.
They were told that if they had enough spirit stones to purchase contribution points, they could also stay in the main city. However, the cost would be the same as the commoners, 30 spirit coins or 30 contribution points a day.
As for the disciples who passed the test, although they would also consume 30 contribution points a day, they would gain an additional right to purchase the cultivation resources of the Seven Blood Eyes.
Xu Qing was a little ignorant about this and didn’t understand it very well. However, he believed that he would be able to clarify everything very soon.
Not long later, the remaining people who passed the assessment were told one after another that they belonged to the mountain peak.
“Zhen Han, First Peak.”
“Zhao Chungang, Third Peak.”
“Zhou Qingpeng, Seventh peak.”
…
Among them, five people went to the first peak, three to the seventh peak, and six to seven people to the remaining five peaks.
As the long-faced cultivator’s voice rose and fell, Xu Qing waited silently. He didn’t hear his name.
Not long later, Xu Qing lifted his head and his gaze froze.
“Xu Qing, Seventh Peak.”
After the long-faced cultivator called out Xu Qing’s name, he swept his gaze across the youths in front of him and calmly spoke.
“All of you who passed the test will be rewarded with 1,000 contribution points each. The person ranked first is Xu Qing. He will be rewarded with 10,000 contribution points.”
When Xu Qing heard this, he heaved a sigh of relief. He felt that the Seventh Peak was also very good. At the same time, he was also shocked by the amount of reward money.
He secretly did some calculations. The contribution points and spirit coins were equal in value. 10,000 contribution points equaled 10,000 spirit coins. If he counted them as spirit stones, it would be 10 spirit stones.
“So many!” Xu Qing was a little surprised.
At this moment, after the long-faced cultivator finished speaking, he took out the jade slip and operated it. Very soon, Xu Qing felt his token trembling. When he lowered his head to take a look, the pattern on the front of the token automatically distorted and transformed into an ancient text that represented 10,000 words.
But very soon, the number changed to 9999, a little less.
Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed.
The other disciples who passed the test also sensed the changes in their tokens one after another. All of them had rueful expressions on their faces. As the long-faced cultivator summoned them, they were taken away in batches.
The round-faced cultivator beside him walked toward Xu Qing. After he got close, he glanced at Xu Qing’s token and smiled.
“Stop looking. I’ll introduce them to you later.”
With that, he summoned the other disciples who had joined the Seventh Peak and called out to Xu Qing as they walked toward the mountain path that led to the Seventh Peak.
“Let’s go. I’ll bring you guys to the Seventh Peak’s mountain gate. You guys have to cherish it because this might be your only time going up the mountain!”