No one is safe

Many thoughts kept running through his mind to the point where his head started to feel strained and heavy. Seemingly sensing this change, a cool breeze blew inside his mind, washing away all the miscellaneous thoughts.

In a short moment, he regained his composure. His mind became clearer than ever before. This time, he did not dare to let his mind run wild, fearing he might silently vanish from this world. The short reverence he held towards this being immediately turned into horror.

Could a heavenly being be comprehended by his meagre mind?

He was now extremely fearful of this being. He seemed to understand how terrifying it is delving in the matters of this deity.

He had originally thought that being tied to this deity was perhaps a blessing in disguise, but now he felt just how wrong he was about that.

It might have seemed like a fruituous encounter, but now he was sure that if he was not careful enough, he could go straight to heaven. There would be no chance for regret. 

His life was already hanging by a thread, and he had to try his best not to pry into secrets of this being.

"Thirty minutes…"

Huh???

Bai Ming was confused by the words that sounded in his mind. Did this mean that he was only thirty minutes to finish the trial.

Wasn't this a bit too much???

He had just digested a bit of the information and started to understand the situation, but this senior's words puzzled him.

Dao Gu ignored his confusion and spat coldly, "The poison afflicting you all is from the demonic beast called the hell serpent."

"And under normal circumstances this poison would break down its target into pus in a second, judging by the potency and time it took for this poison to show its true effects then this can only be a half-step First Order Demonic Beast"

Bai Ming was greatly shocked by this, nearly breaking out of his calm state.

Hell Serpent?

He had never heard of such a beast before. Even the catalogue of the village there was no record of such a beast.

He was even more confused when this senior mentioned "First Order Demonic Beast".

He didn't truly want to believe if this meant there was a different class of beasts, completely different from the ones they learned of in the village. This was not a good thing.

Bai Ming felt as if his knowledge of the world they lived in had been completely subverted. He thought of the sight he caught outside the castle with the distant hills rising, each turning into heads with pairs of sinister looking eyes staring at them. It sent shivers down his spine.

Although he wasn't the brightest, he could at least tell that just one of those serpents was enough to sweep their village or perhaps all the neighbouring settlements.

So how could there be more of such creatures? If that is truly the case, then it would be impossible for humans to own a piece of land, let alone survive?

"Heh…"

Dao Gu coldly snorted and didn't bother to explain much. There were plenty of things Bai Ming did not know, but I would knowing about them helping him?

Only those who had embarked on the path would understand this.

"With such a low cultivation base, this poison relies on the essence in the surroundings to increase its potency. You all jumping into this castle sealed this young man's fate"

Although Bai Ming had been confused for the most part, he could at least understand the last part which seemed to point to the fact that them entering the castle they felt to be the only path left, was what had killed Mu Bai.

Did this mean that if they had stayed outside the castle, then Mu Bai would not have met such a tragic end? But the outside was far more dangerous.

When he thought of how he, Cui Rong and Si Niang were still poisoned but had not completely weakened to the point of losing consciousness like Mu Bai, he was a bit perplexed by this?

What he didn't know was that Dao Gu had already removed a large part of the poison inside their bodies. Only a quarter of the poison remained. It was as if time had been rewound, and the poison had gone back to what it was two hours before.

After all, the trial would be pointless if the participants are not able to last through it. He would not completely resolve it but would leave a little bit just to let them handle it themselves.

This was all done without anyone noticing a thing. Although they knew the poison rate of action had been accelerated by something unknown, they still believed that even if time was shorted. They still had at least an hour or so left, so one had noticed anything out of the ordinary.

It was at this moment that Bai Ming suddenly stiffened. He felt as if he had missed a crucial clue. It did not take him long to pinpoint the source of this feeling. He recalled what this senior had said in the beginning. The more he thought about it, the more horrified he became.

Dao Gu seemed to understand his thoughts and couldn't help but commend a bit. At the very least, to him, it didn't feel like giving hints to a wall. If that were truly the case, he would gladly abandon Bai Ming and look for another seed among this group.

"Yes, it is as that healer of yours suspected. The air you've all been breathing had the poison, so naturally, even those who had not been poisoned are now slowly going through the same sickened progression this young lad experienced"

Bai Ming was now even more shocked and amazed at the same time.

Not only had the poison only affected him, Cui Rong and Si Niang, but it also affected everyone, and somehow, this healer, Chi Huo, had already discovered this but had not told anyone about it.

Now they were truly grasshoppers on the same stalk.

Bai Ming looked at Chi Huo quietly with a look of approval, seemingly understanding why he had not said any of this to the rest of the group. Chi Huo did not notice anything.

Indeed, this immortal spirit was indeed heavenly. Although he wasn't surprised by how the spirit seemed to know what everyone was thinking, it still came as a shock.

Sure enough, in the eyes of the heavenly being, all thoughts were plain to see.

"You have thirty minutes left to finish the trial before the poison relapses. In this trial, there will be tests for temptation, courage, and mentality. Whether you can persevere is up to you"

As Dao Gu said this, his words seemed to sound distant at the end as if he was walking further away from Bai Ming. In the next moment, Bai Ming was left to his own means.

Thank you, senior!

Now, he understood what this senior had said and his groups state.

The immortal spirit had not truly left but just took a watch and see approach.

After Bai Ming's mind was cleared, he started to think more clearly. He didn't seem as dull as he had been before, but Dao Gu seemed unfazed by all these little thoughts, but even so, he felt shocked by what he was seeing now.

The only reason he had chosen to leave was so that he could examine the change he had just discovered.

To him, Bai Ming becoming more self-aware of his current predicament would aid him greatly but when he thought of the opportunity lying dormant inside this boy, he felt that perhaps he might be able to make this the first successful trial.

His senses pierced Bai Ming's whole body. Even at this moment where he was under such scrutiny, Bai Ming did not notice anything.

Deep inside his spirit, an oval shaped multicoloured orb had been silently formed.

When Dao Gu had first noticed Bai Ming, the seed was not there, and after he recited a Dao mantra to aid the boy in his future path, the seed had silently appeared without him noticing

Had it not been for his caution, this change might have gone unnoticed.

If other Taoists were to learn of this, they would likely go mad with zeal.

As the spirit of the True Everlasting Immortal Palace, he was naturally privy to all kinds of matters related to cultivation.

Now more than ever, he felt that this was a great opportunity. Never in his lifetime had he ever felt such a thirst. He felt that this treasure would have great benefit to him, but he did not dare to snatch the fruit. It may seem harmless, but even he felt a great sense of danger. A danger the likes of which he had never felt before.

He did not approach it and simply looked at it in thought. Unfortunately, he seemed to sense something and quietly vanished without leaving a trace.