Chapter 81: The Wheel of Life and Death
At this moment, Li Yan was standing in the midst of a spiritual valley field. He straightened his back, one hand resting on his hoe, the other wiping the sweat from his forehead. Even with a cultivator's physique, after hoeing just two ridges of weeds, he was already utterly exhausted.
This task was one he had only accepted a few days ago. When he went to find Third Senior Brother, the latter simply pulled a hoe out of the hut and tossed it to him, without giving any explanation. At the time, Li Yan hadn't thought much of it. Wasn't it just farm work?
This kind of labor was something he had done often since childhood; otherwise, he wouldn't have dared accept it so easily. He considered himself quite experienced in such tasks. But once he actually got down into the field, he was dumbfounded.
Li Yan took up the hoe again and, after confirming the location, flew over to the spiritual valley field on the flying spirit artifact, having received only a few indifferent words of direction from Third Senior Brother.
This was a spiritual valley field covering several hundred mu, with every stalk glimmering with a golden-green light. Li Yan stood before it as if facing a sea of rippling grain waves that reached his waist.
From these spirit grains, he could sense a flourishing spiritual energy. The breeze stirred the waves of grain into motion; from afar, specks of golden-green light swayed in unison, evoking a sense of vast heaven and earth, full of vitality.
His task was to remove the weeds from ten mu of this field in a single day, otherwise, he would be docked one lower-grade spirit stone. Li Yan naturally saw no issue with this.
After marveling at the scenic beauty of this picturesque countryside, he took off his long robe, rolled up his sleeves, and upon arriving between the ridges, immediately saw plenty of weeds.
Taking a deep breath and planting his feet, he swung the hoe down. A metallic "clang!" rang out, jolting his hands numb. On the ground, there was only a shallow mark, and the clump of weeds hadn't even budged.
Stunned, Li Yan raised the hoe again, exerted even more strength, and struck once more. A louder and crisper clang sounded, but the ground still bore only a shallow mark, not much deeper than before.
Li Yan couldn't believe it. He crouched down to dig at the soil with his hands to see what was going on when suddenly a voice called out from behind.
"Junior Brother, that won't work. Is this your first time doing this task?"
Li Yan turned at the sound. Dozens of zhang away, in another part of the valley, stood a man between the ridges, also holding a hoe. He, too, was weeding.
Li Yan hadn't released his divine sense earlier, so he hadn't noticed there was someone else here. The other cultivator probably heard the loud clangs and only then noticed him.
Li Yan quickly turned and saluted.
"I'm embarrassed to say so, Senior Brother. It is indeed my first time doing this task. May I ask how I should address you?"
The man had an average build and appeared to be in his thirties, with a short beard and an experienced demeanor.
Since Li Yan hadn't released his divine sense, he guessed the man was a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator. Likewise, the other hadn't released his divine sense either. Otherwise, upon recognizing Li Yan's cultivation level, he might have addressed him as "Martial Nephew."
"I am Zhang Kui from Four Symbols Peak. And you, Junior Brother…?"
"Oh, I'm a disciple of Little Bamboo Peak, Li Yan," he answered with a smile.
"Oh? Li Yan… Li Yan? I remember now. Weren't you the Junior Brother who joined Little Bamboo Peak a few years ago? I recall chatting with Daqiao before, and he mentioned you."
Upon hearing that, the middle-aged cultivator was momentarily surprised. Then, after thinking it over, he chuckled.
Li Yan nodded with a smile, thinking to himself:
"Given Seventh Senior Brother's talkative nature, it's no surprise he mentioned me."
"So, Junior Brother Li, you came here without getting any instructions from Senior Brother Yun?"
Li Yan didn't want to say directly that Third Senior Brother had only thrown a hoe at him and that even the location had to be pried out by asking around. So, he simply scratched his head.
Zhang Kui seemed to understand.
"Heh heh… I get it. Let me explain it to you, actually, it's not that hard. The hoe in our hands isn't some mundane farmer's tool. It's a low-grade spirit artifact."
"When tilling the land, you must infuse it with spiritual power. The weeds in these valley fields are most vulnerable to metal spiritual energy, and second to that, fire spiritual energy. If you use wood, water, or earth spiritual energy, it won't just fail to remove them, it'll help the roots grow and spread more wildly. That's all there is to it."
With that said, he nodded to Li Yan, then bent down and resumed his work.
Li Yan hurriedly returned the salute. He knew that for the man to offer this much advice was already a great kindness, he didn't have to bother at all.
At this point, Li Yan recalled there had indeed been a note on the mission requiring the use of metal or fire spiritual power. Back then, he hadn't understood it. And when he received the hoe, he had overlooked it entirely. So that was the reason.
He began circulating the Guishui True Scripture, and in an instant, metal spiritual power formed within him. The next moment, he channeled it into the spiritual hoe. A faint golden light glimmered from the hoe's surface. Li Yan swung it down, and with a crisp "hiss," the soil flipped up. Just as Zhang Kui had said.
And so, Li Yan began working diligently between the ridges. But after just half an hour, when he straightened up again, his forehead was soaked in sweat, and his face was pale, his spiritual energy had been depleted.
Normally, with his seventh level Qi Condensation cultivation, hoeing ten mu of land should have been no issue at all.
But this spiritual valley's soil was extremely unusual, not only was the ground unnaturally hard, but the weed roots extended nearly three zhang deep. If he infused too little energy, the weeds wouldn't come out; if he used too much, he would just burn through his reserves needlessly.
Thus, after clearing just three ridges, he had almost completely drained his spiritual power. Looking at the large remaining expanse of the valley, Li Yan couldn't help but sigh inwardly:
"Looks like another spirit stone is gone!"
It would take him over a dozen hours of meditation to recover. There was no way he could finish within one day...
And so the days passed, each earning less than he spent. A month later, one evening, Li Yan looked over the weedless ridges spread across ten mu of fields and allowed a faint smile to tug at the corner of his lips.
During this time, he had indeed spent many spirit stones. Although he had also taken on the task of watering the Ink King Bamboo, and combined that with the spirit stones he received monthly, he still ended up owing the Mission Hall twenty-six spirit stones. But in the days ahead, this kind of situation should occur less often.
Though he lost many spirit stones, Li Yan also gained a great deal. He learned how to better control his spiritual energy, how to switch between the five elemental spiritual powers quickly, and how to speed up his spiritual recovery rate.
All of this came from repeatedly exhausting his magical power in the Spiritual Plant Garden, recovering, exhausting again… and gradually gaining new insight through the cycle.
And during one such post-weeding cultivation session, he unexpectedly broke through to the late seventh level of Qi Condensation. It happened so naturally, catching him completely off guard. Of course, Li Yan was overjoyed.
Time thus passed in fulfilling busyness. Every day, Li Yan was occupied with either the Spiritual Plant Garden or cultivation like a diligent little bee.
One morning, Li Yan rose early, quickly washed up, and opened the formation at his courtyard gate, preparing to head straight for the Mission Hall. He still owed the Mission Hall twenty-six spirit stones, and had to hurry, otherwise by next month, it would become twenty-seven. The sect's interest rates were truly terrifying.
Recently, with many Foundation Establishment disciples heading out for training, a backlog of tasks had accumulated at the mission halls across the various peaks. As a result, the tasks Li Yan was familiar with, such as harvesting Ink King Bamboo and irrigating the Spirit Valleys, were still available.
According to Zhang Kui, the mission hall on Old Lord Peak had an even greater backlog. But once the Foundation Establishment competition concluded, these tasks would likely be taken up quickly and disappear.
Over the past few months, Li Yan and Zhang Kui had been completing similar tasks. Zhang Kui wasn't much of a fighter, otherwise, he'd have long since taken on outdoor missions, which yielded more spirit stones.
This time, Zhang Kui hadn't registered for the Foundation Establishment competition. In the Wraith Sect, there were quite a few cultivators like him who focused solely on advancing their cultivation, seeking longevity above all else. Their ultimate goal was to set foot on the path to immortality.
After stepping out of the courtyard, Li Yan was just about to summon his flying artifact when he saw a flash of light above the bamboo grove. A large scroll came descending from the sky.
"Junior brother, hold on! What a coincidence, I came just in time!"
A gentle voice called out from ahead.
Li Yan was momentarily stunned upon recognizing the newcomer, it was his eldest senior brother, and he had no idea why he would be looking for him so early in the morning. He quickly bowed in greeting.
"Eldestt Senior Brother, good morning. If there's something you need, you could've just sent me a message through the token, I'd have come to you. No need for you to make the trip yourself."
Li Wuyi had already put away his magical tool and walked over steadily.
"Hehehe… This matter, I thought it would be better to speak about in person."
Li Yan couldn't help but feel puzzled. If it was important enough for Eldest Senior Brother to come in person, it clearly wasn't a small matter.
So, he reopened the courtyard gate, and the two of them walked into the garden and sat on the stone stools. Li Yan brought out a tea set and poured each a cup. The tea leaves had been a gift from Zhang Kui from the Spiritual Plant Garden.
Li Wuyi took a sip and found the tea refreshingly soothing. He nodded with approval, then grew serious.
"Junior brother, I came to speak with you about an important matter.
"Recently, Master and Mistress have both entered seclusion, so I've been handling all affairs on the peak. Yesterday, after receiving a directive from the Sect Master, I went to Old Lord Peak and listened to the senior uncles instruct us on next year's secret realm harvest mission.
"Not long ago, Core Formation experts from the Grand Profound Sect, Pure Land Sect, and Ten Step Court came to our sect to discuss this matter. The three sects proposed that in addition to next year's secret realm gathering, we also open another subspace within the realm, the 'Wheel of Life and Death', for an inter-sect competition.
"The Wheel of Life and Death is also located within the secret realm. Long ago, when only Core Formation cultivators entered for harvesting, the various sects would hold trials and competitions within it. But after it became standard for Foundation Establishment cultivators to enter instead, the Wheel was sealed off.
"The reason for its closure is known only to the masters, but I've heard some things, it seems the Wheel of Life and Death is a brutal magical treasure crafted by ancient cultivators within the secret realm.
"It takes the shape of a massive sphere within the realm, with twenty entrance paths leading in from different directions, all converging toward the core of the sphere.
"Each path must be led by one cultivator at the Foundation Establishment stage or higher, with thirty-six cultivators at one realm lower forming the rest of the team.
"The twenty paths are completely independent and start off only ten li in length. But as the cultivators advance toward the core, the paths continuously extend in that direction.
"These paths twist and shift within the sphere like twenty flying ribbons. From the outside, it looks like a huge rotating sphere, with people walking along these fluttering, twisting strips.
"However, those inside don't feel any shaking or movement, hence the name 'Wheel of Life and Death.'
"At some point, two of these paths will intersect as they extend. No one can predict which two paths will meet.
"When they intersect, both stop extending. At that moment, the seventy-four cultivators from both paths will meet.
"Then, a brutal clash must occur until only thirty-seven or fewer remain alive. After that, the two paths merge into one and continue toward the core."
At this point, Li Wuyi glanced at Li Yan, who appeared deep in thought, head bowed.
"Junior brother, aren't you even a little curious or have any questions?"
Li Wuyi took another sip of tea.
"Senior Brother, I imagine there must be a reason the two sides are forced to fight. Otherwise, they could just wait peacefully for the end. Perhaps, if they don't reach the core, the whole team dies? Or maybe something dangerous appears when the paths intersect?"
Li Wuyi chuckled in admiration.
"Junior brother, you truly are clever. You didn't guess the exact reason, but you've hit on the key idea.
"Once all twenty paths are filled with seven hundred and forty cultivators, the mechanism activates. From that moment, the sphere starts to contract and compress inward toward the core.
"During this contraction, the edges of the sphere produce shadowy clouds, like a black curse descending from the heavens.
"Anything that touches these shadows whether magical tools, treasures, or flesh and bone, is instantly reduced to ash. Nothing survives.
"So, when two paths intersect, both teams must desperately fight. They must reopen the path extension before the encroaching shadows overtake them. Otherwise, they'll all perish under those terrifying black shadows.
"The Wheel of Life and Death tests speed above all. Within the core are four layers, and everyone can eventually enter the first layer.
"Teams that reach the core are ranked by order of arrival. The first three teams are each teleported to a separate isolated layer, where rich rewards await, far more precious than anything found in the main harvesting trial.
"However, the rewards cannot all be kept for oneself. Each participant may choose one item, or opt to forfeit it in exchange for its equivalent value in spirit stones from the sect.
"The rest must be turned over to the sect. It may seem harsh, after all, these treasures are won at great risk but that's how it is.
"Even so, everyone still fights to enter the trial. Any one of those treasures could be something you'd never find or even hear of in your entire life, making them immensely valuable.
"Still, the sect invests massive resources into our growth. Opening the secret realm also consumes rare and precious materials, so it's only fair that most of the gains are returned to the sect."
Li Yan nodded in agreement. He understood well what Eldest Senior Brother was explaining, to mentally prepare him, so that if he chose to go, he wouldn't feel resentment toward the sect later.
"As long as you reach the first layer of the sphere's core, you won't die. It's just that, if your team isn't in the top three, there will be no rewards. In the end, all such teams are teleported out along with those from the other layers.
"But those who remain stuck on the peripheral paths… they will die.
"And that kind of death, it's watching the people around you fall one by one, unable to do anything. A torment few can endure. Many may go mad and turn on their teammates in their final moments…"
(Chapter End)