Aside from a slight discrepancy between the plate and the cloud formation, the other parts seemed almost like a direct giveaway.
Moreover, when explaining the rules earlier, that voice had said something ambiguous—could it really have been meaningless?
The rules emphasized the word “compete.” Her opponent was Jun Mo Yao, and she had no need to compete against her, because she sought the spiritual treasure precisely for her sake.
Yet, deep down, she had a premonition that she couldn’t afford to lose easily.
Perhaps, as she suspected, the other side also remained silent for a long time.
Why would Jun Mo Yao hesitate and have reservations?
Was she afraid that winning against her would cause her master to lose face, making her feel guilty?
On the other side, Jun Mo Yao was indeed hesitating.
Because besides one side winning, there was another way to pass this second trial: both sides pressing the totems simultaneously, regardless of timing, resulting in a draw.
Passing through a draw required extreme synchronization between the two, with not the slightest difference in timing.
She believed that she and Ming Jia had almost no chance of achieving such synchronization.
Jun Mo Yao’s expression turned disdainful.
She somewhat disliked herself for being so indecisive.
She should have been single-minded, just like in her previous life, directly eliminating her opponent, advancing to the third trial, and quickly obtaining the Longevity Vine.
But she had already lost count of how many times she had been this indecisive. Just like in the first trial, if she had broken through directly, what would it have mattered even if Ming Jia sensed something was off? After repairing her spiritual root, she didn’t necessarily have to stay in the Taishang Sect as Ming Jia’s disciple.
Moreover, Ming Jia might not want to lose to her either. The prolonged silence indicated that she was also weighing the pros and cons.
Humans, after all, are ultimately selfish.
As if acting out of spite, Jun Mo Yao directly pressed the two totems one after the other.
That’s right—Jun Mo Yao remembered the sequence of the totems from her previous life. After a simple verification and recollection, she knew the order of the remaining two totems without needing any description from her opponent.
Naturally, she emerged victorious.
A ball of light enveloped Jun Mo Yao from above.
She wouldn’t see Ming Jia in the third trial.
She thought.
When she opened her eyes again, Jun Mo Yao immediately saw the familiar gate from her memories.
She adjusted her breathing, cleared her mind of unnecessary emotions, and was about to step forward.
“My dear disciple, you’ve come out too!”
A familiar voice rang in her ears. Jun Mo Yao turned in surprise and saw Ming Jia sitting lazily on the ground, seemingly having emerged even earlier than her.
“Wasn’t there supposed to be only one victor coming out?” Jun Mo Yao voiced her doubt directly.
Ming Jia nodded. “That’s right. You won, and I won too, so we’ve met here.”
Seeing that Jun Mo Yao still didn’t understand, Ming Jia didn’t keep her in suspense.
The rules had indeed been explained clearly: one side would win, and the other would lose.
However, the rules never told anyone who their opponent actually was!
They had both assumed that their opponent was each other—that was the greatest test of the second trial.
Ming Jia certainly felt that it didn’t matter who won this round, and she instinctively wanted Jun Mo Yao to emerge victorious.
But what if her opponent wasn’t Jun Mo Yao?
Yes, Ming Jia’s opponent wasn’t Jun Mo Yao, and Jun Mo Yao’s opponent wasn’t Ming Jia either.
“Mo Yao, my opponent should have been Xiao Jian.”
As soon as these words were spoken, Jun Mo Yao’s expression changed immediately. Because in her previous life, Xiao Jian hadn’t chosen the Longevity Vine. Only those who made the same choice would face the same trials.
Ming Jia waited for a long time, but the other party did not describe the totem, so she realized she had indeed overlooked the details.
At that time, the other party described the first two totems like this:
“…a small Lingzhi with four leaves.”
“…irregular colored blocks with pointed corners, arranged in repeating groups of three.”
It sounded fine, but upon careful reflection, it felt somewhat deliberate.
Both Xiao Jian and Jun Mingzhu should have been in the same stage as them. Xiao Jian used a hidden message to test whether the other party was Jun Mingzhu.
Since Ming Jia did not respond, Xiao Jian likely noticed, so for the last two totems, he waited for Ming Jia to speak first, then directly secured victory.
But Ming Jia always possessed the fine virtues of a sword cultivator—skillful and bold.
She directly pressed two totems randomly, thinking that if she made a mistake, she could simply start over.
To her surprise, luck favored her, and she won outright.
After she emerged, Jun Mo Yao appeared shortly after, which fully confirmed her suspicions were correct.
Jun Mo Yao’s hand resting beside her tightly gripped the Zhanyuan Sword.
Jun Mingzhu and Xiao Jian chose the Longevity Vine for only one reason: to completely cut off her chance of repairing her spiritual root. They would rather forego their own opportunities than ruin her path to cultivation.
They really thought too highly of her…
“Wonder what the next stage is,” Ming Jia muttered, standing up from the ground and looking at Jun Mo Yao with a smile still on her face. “Let’s go, onward to the next stage.”
“I know what the next stage is,” Jun Mo Yao stood still, not walking beside Ming Jia but positioning herself behind her.
“The next stage is to pluck the Jiuyou Tan. Whoever plucks it will enter the Inheritance Ground.”
She stared at Ming Jia, gaze unwavering, yet her eyes concealed unfathomable depths.
“Alright,” she heard Ming Jia’s voice as usual. “When the time comes, you go directly to pick the flower. I’ll clear the path for you.”
She said.
The door opened, revealing a deep, dense forest that seemed to hide beasts capable of devouring humans—dangerous and mysterious.
Indeed, upon entering the forest, a familiar voice echoed from above: “Rules of this stage: Pluck the Jiuyou Tan. The winner will be directly transported to the Inheritance Ground.”
The third stage wasn’t just Ming Jia and Jun Mo Yao participating; many Xiu Shi who had chosen the Longevity Vine of the same level also competed for that single Jiuyou Tan.
Although everyone’s spiritual power remained sealed, they all displayed a determination to fight to the death, as spiritual treasures are not easily obtained by anyone.
Within sight, everyone was an enemy. There was no need for polite greetings—it was a fight to the death from the outset!
In such circumstances, forming a team was most likely to be targeted, as everyone wanted to eliminate the most competitive opponents.
Thus, Ming Jia and Jun Mo Yao encountered several ambushes along the way. Fortunately, both overcame the dangers with absolute strength.
The Jiuyou Tan didn’t require deliberate searching, as the forest had only one straight path, and at its end was where it grew.
Because of this clear path, everyone raced desperately. Whoever reached the Jiuyou Tan first would gain the advantage.
Ming Jia and Jun Mo Yao unleashed unprecedented speed, racing ahead of everyone, even though their bodies were already covered with wounds of varying sizes, they remained oblivious.
Their efforts paid off—they saw the Jiuyou Tan!
The black bud, poised between blooming and not, emanated an alluring, rich fragrance, like the flames of the netherworld—deep, serene, and elegant.
Ming Jia suddenly halted her steps and gave Jun Mo Yao a gentle push.
Jun Mo Yao instinctively turned to look at her.
“Go.”
With her back turned to Jun Mo Yao, Ming Jia faced the surging opponents ahead, while to the side, a ferocious beast at the foundation establishment stage growled low, ready to strike.
Jun Mo Yao bit her lip, the taste of blood filling her mouth. Without looking back, she began to run.
Perhaps it was for the best—this was how it should have been all along, wasn’t it…