Chapter 84: Destined

Two days later, all the disciples of the Beast Taming Sect had gathered near the Great Hall.

At the very center stood the elders and the Sect Master, Jiang Zhengqing. All arrangements to open the Ancient Forbidden Land had been made. Once inside, Lin Yun's actions would be displayed on a projection barrier for all to see.

Lin Yun stood beside Jiang Zhengqing.

"Are you ready?" Jiang Zhengqing asked, looking at him.

Lin Yun nodded. "Sect Master, this disciple is ready."

"Remember what I said. The Ancient Forbidden Land is vast, but the areas outside the designated zone are exceptionally dangerous. Once you are inside, you must not step beyond the borders of the Origin Realm."

The Origin Realm was a designated safe zone within the forbidden land. Of course, it still contained fierce exotic beasts, but most were at the Origin Fusion or early Origin Sea Realm in strength. Only occasionally would one or two peak Origin Sea Realm beasts appear. As long as one was careful, their life would not be in danger. But leaving the Origin Realm was another matter entirely.

"This disciple understands," Lin Yun said with a smiling nod.

He double-checked his status panel one last time. Yep, no problem.

He watched as Jiang Zhengqing stood in the center of a grand array. The surrounding elders began to channel their vital energy simultaneously. With a push of their hands, their energy formed pillars of light that converged high in the sky.

Jiang Zhengqing let out a great roar and stomped his foot on the ground. The shadow of an immense formation instantly appeared, enveloping the elders within it. A golden beam shot up to the heavens.

The pillars of light converged, then collapsed inward before violently exploding.

A swirling vortex of energy materialized before them, through which one could vaguely glimpse the scene on the other side.

Jiang Zhengqing raised his right hand, and Lin Yun's body began to float gently into the air.

"In one month, the Ancient Forbidden Land will open again," Jiang Zhengqing's voice echoed. "When that time comes, do not forget to return to this spot."

As his voice faded, Lin Yun's entire body was sucked into the vortex, vanishing from everyone's sight in an instant.

Lin Yun felt like he had been tossed into a washing machine. Dizziness. Overwhelming dizziness.

Suddenly, he saw an object materialize before him. A broken sword. It looked ancient. And strangely, it had flown into the vortex behind him.

What the hell?

For some reason, he felt a very peculiar aura from the sword. A bad premonition surfaced. He hastily checked his panel.

[Name]: Lin Yun [Realm]: Origin Sea - Stage 3 [Destiny Template]: Son of Misfortune (Gray) [Attributes]: Fated Calamity (Black), A Bleak Future (Gray), A Glimmer of Hope (Blue) [Fated Calamity]: Congratulations, you have encountered your destined calamity. It is unpredictable and unavoidable. [A Bleak Future]: Your luck is not very good. It seems you're doomed to die this time. [A Glimmer of Hope]: Do not give up. There is still a glimmer of hope. [Fate]: After joining the Beast Taming Sect, he hoped to use the Ancient Forbidden Land to increase his strength, but was framed by a villain and ultimately dies at the hands of the Desolate Ancient Exotic Beast, Ezu, the Calamity Ancestor. [Recent Turning Point]: In one month, the passage back to the Beast Taming Sect will fail to open. At that time, the protective effect of the Origin Realm will weaken.

Damn it.

A backstab! I'm shaking with rage!

To prevent any issues, Lin Yun had specifically checked his panel multiple times before entering. He was worried someone might try to sabotage him. He had planned for a thousand contingencies, yet he still couldn't escape this.

But Wu Boyan, the one with the greatest enmity toward him in the sect, had already been dealt with. Who else could possibly want him dead this badly? Lin Yun couldn't figure it out.

Soon, his consciousness faded into a long slumber.

When he awoke again, he found himself amidst crumbling ruins. He could vaguely make out that he was on a beacon tower. An air of grim desolation washed over him.

Lin Yun shook his head and slowly got to his feet. Even in its ruined state, the great wall beneath him, which stretched out as far as the eye could see, was thousands of feet high. What terrifying existence had it been built to defend against?

Behind him was a military encampment, but it was completely empty, without a single soul in sight. Beyond the outer wall of the encampment was a stretch of flat land about a thousand feet wide. Further on lay a continuous, dense forest, shrouded in a thick mist that obscured whatever lay within.

Lin Yun didn't rush into the forest. Instead, he turned and began to search the military camp for anything he could use. He was supposed to be able to leave in a month. Now, that was no longer an option. He had to prepare for a long-term battle for survival.

He didn't know who the mastermind behind this was, and the broken sword was gone when he awoke. His only advantage now was that he knew what was coming, so he could prepare in advance. The dense forest was the beasts' domain; if he wanted to train and challenge himself, that was where he would have to go.

Meanwhile, in the plaza outside the Great Hall, countless people were watching Lin Yun's every move through the projection barrier. They had expected him to bring them some great surprise. Who would have thought that the very first thing Lin Yun would do upon arriving in the Ancient Forbidden Land was turn around and hide in a military camp?

"Haha, I told you! That kid must be scared stiff!"

"Of course he is! I heard that too many powerful experts have died in the Ancient Forbidden Land. The killing intent there is overwhelming. An ordinary person can't handle it."

"Hmph. He dared to go without having the ability. What a waste of our sect's resources."

The group of disciples outside grumbled with dissatisfaction.

Jiang Zhengqing and the other elders also found it strange. Wouldn't a normal person immediately jump into the dense forest for a life-and-death battle with the beasts? This kid certainly thought differently.

At that moment, Lin Yun couldn't care less what they were saying outside. Strangely enough, while the great wall seemed to have been heavily damaged, the military camp was perfectly intact. Lin Yun even found a good deal of armor and weapons, all of which were still in good condition despite the passage of countless years.

But these were not his true goal. More than training, Lin Yun needed to understand what had happened here. He hadn't thought about it much before entering, so he knew nothing about the history of the Ancient Forbidden Land. But now, things were different. He had one month. He needed to find out who his enemies were, and then figure out how to deal with them.

"What is this kid doing?" Ning Changkong asked, puzzled.

Duan Wuya shook his head. "I can't understand it. Is he scavenging for supplies?"

Both of them were baffled by Lin Yun's actions. So was Jiang Zhengqing. But he was now feeling a growing sense of unease. The Ancient Forbidden Land was a test, yes. But it was also the perfect place to kill Lin Yun.

They had dealt with Wu Boyan, the traitor who colluded with their enemy. Everyone thought the Beast Taming Sect was clean now. But it was very likely that something major was about to happen again.

Jiang Zhengqing looked at the elders beside him. If that was the case… then who could it be? Who else would want to kill Lin Yun?

Hiss… What a headache-inducing situation.