Refining the Mountains and Rivers

The Demonic Path highly valued the Demon Body talent that its new disciples possessed; this was particularly true now that the throne of the Holy Palace was empty. After Qin Yu obtained a reminder from Zhao Qianyuan and Dong Hanzhu, two days later the Foreign Affairs Division sent out news that they would start an examination the next day.

The examination process seemed to be extremely complex and needed to use a special environment. All new disciples being examined needed to arrive ahead of time so they could board a giant speedcar to go there.

Qin Yu had no desire to do something ridiculous like trying to be the last one to enter the stage, especially when he determined how important the examination was. So, when there was around an hour left until the scheduled meeting time, he arrived early on foot. After his status was confirmed, he boarded the giant speedcar.

It was clear that he wasn't the only who knew how important the Demon Body talent examination was. When he arrived he saw that there were many people in the speedcar. Upon seeing Qin Yu, their complexions changed and the atmosphere became a bit more tense.

During the first day, no one besides Gong Zhen had hopped out to make things difficult for Qin Yu. But that didn't mean they were all happily living together.

Qin Yu had a light expression. He swept his eyes around and casually picked an empty seat before closing his eyes in meditation.

Time slowly passed. More and more new disciples began to board the speedcar. But, the seats around Qin Yu remained vacant.

Not just that, but any disciple that walked near him would subconsciously hold their breath as if they felt uncomfortable.

Qin Yu was glad for the quiet. Then, a voice sounded out in his ears, "Demon Body cultivation values a rich blood energy, and the young have a blood energy that is particularly hot and exuberant. The earlier one cultivates it, the more they will be able to achieve. If someone is too old, I fear they would only be wasting their effort!"

It was Gong Zhen. This fellow had been beaten black and blue with words not too long ago, and he was still as disgusting as before, except this time he also seemed to lack long-term memory…

Actions spoke louder than words; this was something Qin Yu believed in. He decided that once he established his position here, he would make sure this fellow would find it too late to regret.

"Senior-apprentice brother Gong is right." Someone also leapt out. "In my opinion, some people should honestly stay in their own dwelling and cultivate. If they come to an examination with us young people, they will only have themselves to blame for any troubles they experience. After all, today's examination tests one's talent and not their cultivation!"

A third person spoke up, and it was unexpectedly a woman. She covered her mouth and started tittering all around. "Senior-apprentice brother Gong, junior-apprentice brother Bao, you must not say that. Be careful or others might become angry out of shame and try to do something to us. The three of us are young and we aren't a match for the old man. Besides, we should respect our elders, right?"

This woman sounded polite, but when she mentioned whatever old man and whatever respecting our elders, her mouth was simply cunning.

Qin Yu was suddenly happy. Although he couldn't deal with them right now, he had been planning on 'amazing the world with a single feat' to begin with, so bringing these three along also seemed to be a good idea. So, he opened his eyes and looked at the two men and one woman standing across from him. The interior of the Demonic Path's giant speedcar was incredibly large and yet the three people were gathered together.

Welcoming Qin Yu's gaze, the three glanced back at him, a taunting expression on their faces. They were deliberately provoking him, telling him that they clearly came for him, but there was also nothing he could do about it.

Qin Yu took a deep breath and spoke as if he were forcefully trying to suppress his anger. "What use are mere words? Actions speak louder than words!"

Gong Zhen almost flew into a rage. You finally know that 'mere words are useless?' How come I didn't see you spout such high-handed words before!

But the more it was like this, the more it indicated that this surname Yao was moved to anger. To Gong Zhen, not only was this a good way to vent, but he was also making great progress.

His thoughts turned and his anger subsided. He raised an eyebrow as if sending a message, 'Hey, bastard, come and hit me. Aren't you so epic and amazing? So come and hit me!'

The speedcar trip continued peacefully. In truth, no one here was an idiot. If Gong Zhen and the others were trying to pick a fight with Qin Yu again and again, there had to be a deeper story behind it all. Because news of the demon blood crystal involved significant events, the high level figures had put down an information blockade and thus it hadn't spread out yet.

Some people knew of the incident in Heavenly Demon City with the Qi Family, but they also believed that the Qi Family didn't possess such influence. But, was the reason really that important?

Everyone looked toward Qin Yu, waiting to see how he would respond to the provocations of these people. But, most of them also believed that he would choose to ignore them like before. Considering the situation, this was indeed the best way to deal with it. Although it was a bit vexing, it was always better than falling for the traps of others.

But today's events progressed differently from how others were thinking. Qin Yu looked at the mocking expressions of these three people and clenched his teeth, saying, "Do you dare to make a bet with me?"

Gong Zhen coldly sneered, "What bet?"

Qin Yu said, "We will take today's Demon Body talent examination as the bet. Based on the difference in the test result, the loser must agree to a condition from the winner as long as it is one that doesn't cause substantial harm!"

Gong Zhen's eyes brightened. "Good, we'll make that bet!"

Gong Zhen believed that his annoying actions had finally gotten to Qin Yu's head. He quickly said, "All the cultivators in this speedcar today can testify for us. If you fail to keep your word at that point, don't blame us for being impolite!"

The female cultivator chuckled, "Senior-apprentice brother Yao, count this little sister in too."

He was just an old fogy. Although he was strong, his blood energy was likely old and diminished; he probably didn't even have the qualifications to cultivate the Demon Body. As for a condition that didn't cause substantial harm…hehe, as long as she chose the correct condition she would be able to complete her mission. She definitely wouldn't miss out on the chance to obtain such merits!

The three people appeared calm on the surface but they were actually overjoyed within. They never thought that the seemingly indifferent Yao Bin would jump into their trap on his own initiative. As they thought about the rewards they would obtain after completing their mission, their hearts began to burn even hotter.

As for whether they would lose…how was that possible? There were three of them, so as long as one of them won, he was done for. Moreover, the three of them didn't believe that they couldn't compare to an old fogy like this whose blood energy had probably slowed down to a crawl!

Qin Yu coldly snorted and closed his eyes. Once everything was quiet around him once more, he faintly smiled within. He began to think - how would he play with these people afterwards?

Although he wasn't too sure what the Demonic Path's examination method was, Qin Yu's Demon Body cultivation had reached the Sovereign level. He naturally had confidence in his talent.

Even if he couldn't really do anything to them, he wanted to give them a lesson they would never forget in their lives! At the same time, he wanted this to serve as a warning to everyone that his temper wasn't good and it was best not to provoke him!

The giant speedcar was incredibly fast. But even so, they traveled for almost six hours before they arrived at the examination area.

Gong Zhen and the other two sneered and left the speedcar first. Qin Yu didn't push his way out with the rest of the group. He waited for most of the people to leave before he stood up and walked down.

What he saw was the summit crater of a giant volcano. But, this volcano seemed to have been silent for many years already. All around the crater, there were traces of solidified lava. Still, one could imagine how much destructive strength this lonely and shining black crater exploded with countless years ago.

Outside the crater, there were many people waiting already. The ones responsible for standing guard were impressively the True Demon Guards. This was already within everyone's expectations. Since the Demon Body was related to the throne of the Holy Palace it was natural for True Demon Guards to be here.

There were three old men wearing black robes with cold and indifferent expressions on their faces. They were clearly the leaders here. They swept their eyes around everyone and one of them waved his hand and said, "You may begin."

From their demeanors, it didn't seem as if they had any interest in this at all.

One couldn't blame them for being cold and indifferent; the quality of this batch of disciples was just far too disappointing, and this was something they had confirmed ahead of time. If it weren't for the fact that the rules stated they had to be here, they wouldn't have bothered wasting their time.

But since they were here, they had to be as fast as possible. Once they went through the motions they would all be able to go back home.

"The volcano crater you see in front of you is the examination place. Once I give the order, restrain your strength in its entirety and jump in. Remember, no matter what you feel within the crater, you cannot resist it with strength. Otherwise, if you end up suffering as a result, don't blame me for not having warned you." A Holy Palace cultivator said. Then, he cast a meaningful look over and the True Demon Guards standing near the edge of the crater began to draw backwards.

"Jump!"

No one hesitated. There were almost 2000 new disciples so even if some of these people were frightened, in this sort of situation none of them dared to waver.

The volcano crater was pitch black and cold within. As people plunged in, they were like stuffed dumplings falling into the belly of some giant monster.

When it was Qin Yu's turn, he leapt down. Soon his field of vision was covered in darkness. But strangely, he felt a strange peace around him. His divine sense was suppressed by an invisible strength and he couldn't probe his surroundings at all. But after carefully listening to everything around him and hearing nothing but absolute silence, he determined that he was alone.

Where were the other cultivators that leapt into the crater with him? Qin Yu didn't know where they had gone. He couldn't help but become a little nervous. Could someone have tried messing with today's examination in order to deal with him? But this sort of large official examination was being held by the Holy Palace. Who would be so fierce that they would disregard this?

As all sorts of thoughts were racing through Qin Yu's mind, a gentle strength suddenly wrapped around him. Then, his rapidly falling body began to slow down until he eventually started fluttering down like a feather.

He tried to move his hands and feet. This strength only seemed to be supporting him, not imprisoning him. When he carefully sensed this strength and discovered nothing wrong with it, he relaxed. It seemed like there weren't people trying to deliberately harm him in this situation.

Suddenly, Qin Yu's keen senses picked up on something. Small traces of a cold aura were appearing from nowhere and started to drill into his body through his pores. This aura slowly wriggled in. Starting from his skin, it seeped into his flesh and blood a little bit at a time. What followed after this was a numb and aching feeling, as if countless ants were crawling over his heart.

This was an extremely uncomfortable feeling. It wasn't fiercely painful, but it was a warm and greasy feeling, one that was soft and hard to resist.

Recalling the reminder from the Holy Palace cultivator, Qin Yu clenched his teeth and allowed this cold aura to seep into his body. Luckily, he possessed a firm will and had been tempered through countless experiences, so he managed to maintain his composure.

At this moment, Qin Yu suddenly realized something. Perhaps the standard for determining how much talent one had for the Demon Body was based on how much one's body could absorb this cool aura.

With this thought in mind, he relaxed his body even more. He didn't put up any defenses and allowed this cool aura to explore the depths of his body.

Time slowly passed. Although the acrid itching feeling was hard to endure, Qin Yu believed he could still withstand it. Everything seemed to be going smoothly, but when the last bit of cool aura bumped into the demon blood crystal within Qin Yu's body, it was like a spark of fire falling into an endless sea of oil.