Hidden Shadow – CH 054

Chapter Fifty-Four: Trial of Life and Death (2)

Mei Tingchun suddenly snatched the dagger from Mei Jiu’s hand and stabbed the corpse repeatedly, as if this would instantly increase his strength. Blood splattered everywhere, instantly filling the room with the stench of blood, the entire stone platform stained beyond recognition. No one dodged, all letting the blood stain them.

Mei Jiu stared in shock at this bloody and cruel scene, finally succumbing to unconsciousness.

An Jiu did not want to lie in a pool of blood, so she manipulated her body to stay up.

She noticed Gu Jinghong’s gaze, so she lowered her head and leaned against the wall, silently suppressing the boiling blood in her veins caused by the brutal scene.

Gu Jinghong withdrew his gaze and looked at Mei Tingchun, who was covered in blood.

Someone as calm and self-controlled as Mei Tingzhu was well-suited for missions, while Mei Tingchun’s timidity stemmed from a fear of death, and his emotions were prone to outbursts. In life-or-death situations, he would undoubtedly act beyond his capabilities, as he was now. If he survived the trial period without collapsing, he should be assigned to the Dangerous Moon faction.

Of the three—Mei Tingjun, Mei Tingyuan, and Mei Rujian—Gu Jinghong favored Mei Tingyuan and Mei Rujian. He remembered Mei Tingyuan’s terrified reaction upon first seeing a corpse, merely scrambling away, and Mei Rujian’s near-fatal reaction. Their ability to remain composed the second time was truly unexpected. Conversely, Mei Tingjun possessed decent martial arts skills and was relatively calm, but unfortunately, he had developed a strong sense of right and wrong. While the Konghe Army was not exactly insane, most of their missions could not be judged right or wrong. He was currently unsuitable for joining the Konghe Army.

As for Mei Ruxue…

Gu Jinghong turned his gaze. In the flickering lamplight, half of her snow-white face was stained with dark red blood, like a red plum blossom in the snow. She leaned slightly against the wall, her body slightly hunched, the shadow falling on her eyes obscuring her expression, making it difficult to discern her emotions, but she appeared very calm. Clearly, fear had long since vanished.

Gu Jinghong felt he still did not understand her.

Outside, the north wind howled, and snow began to fall again in the night, silently growing denser, quickly covering the dark, mountainous forest with a layer of white.

Two hours passed, and when everyone emerged, a thick layer of snow had piled up on the roof tiles.

A gust of cold wind swirled with snowflakes, stinging their cheeks. Everyone stood there stunned for a moment before recovering from the gruesome scene they had just witnessed.

Mei Tingchun shivered as he plunged his hands into the snow, scrubbing them vigorously, and finally burrowed into it completely.

The others did the same, cleaning the blood from their skin.

Mei Tingjun was the cleanest of them all. He stared blankly at his hands, unable to believe he had committed such a cruel act at the mortuary!

The Mei family’s guards, waiting nearby, did not urge them. Only after they had vented their emotions did someone say, “Young masters and ladies, it’s getting late. Please return.”

The group silently boarded the carriage.

Squeezed into the cramped space, the stench of blood intensified. Mei Tingyuan suddenly opened the window and vomited violently.

When they were first selected for the secret academy, they were excited and proud; now, they could not even cry. Today’s events brought nothing but cruelty and despair, from which no one could escape.

Due to the heavy snow, they did not return to the mansion until almost dawn.

The group rushed back to their quarters, washing away the bloodstains. They collapsed into bed and slept.

Nightmares plagued their deep sleep.

In the evening, the head of the family sent for them to go to the council hall to distribute various medicines obtained from Elder Qi.

Each family sent five people to this trial. Mei Rujian escaped because his leg injury had just healed, and he could not engage in strenuous activity. Hearing this decision, Mei Tingchun wished he were the one whose leg had been broken by An Jiu!

“You must all come back alive.” The family head’s gaze swept around, finally settling on Mei Tingjun.

Even though Mei Tingjun was not sure, he still forced a smile and said, “Father, do not worry.”

The family head looked at his two daughters, sighed deeply, and turned away.

Mei Tingyuan choked out, “Father, we will definitely come out alive.”

Elder Qi took two small bottles from his pocket and handed them to Mei Tingchun. “These two bottles contain the Antidote for All Poisons. It can cure seven-tenths of all poisons in the world. Some families are particularly skilled in using poisons. Take these, just in case.”

He had registered the medicine under Elder Qi’s name, so Elder Qi naturally took extra care of him. No one else dared to object, especially since others had also taken many medicines, just not this Antidote for All Poisons.

Elder Zhi frowned and handed Mei Jiu a three-foot-long bow and a quiver of arrows. “This is my most prized creation. With your ability, you will surely be able to draw this bow.”

“Thank you, Elder.” Mei Jiu accepted the bow and arrows, but a bitter taste lingered in her mouth. Elder Zhi’s words were clearly directed at An Jiu.

Elder Zhi looked at Mei Jiu’s quiet demeanor, hesitated for a moment, and then cautioned, “You only have one life; use it wisely. Taking a step back does not necessarily mean defeat, and fighting for a moment does not guarantee victory.”

Mei Jiu suddenly understood. “Thank you for your advice, Elder.”

“You old bastard!” An Jiu was filled with displeasure.

This was clearly a matter of life and death, and Mei Jiu was full of enthusiasm. If Elder Zhi had not reminded her, Mei Jiu might have simply disappeared from this body!

Elder Zhi certainly would not overlook this, but he did not want to take a baseless risk. If something went wrong, where would he find a ready-made successor in archery? For him, the best outcome would be to eliminate the weaker element within this body. If not, it did not matter whether it was two souls or two layers of spiritual power, as long as the powerful spiritual power remained intact.

After preparing, the group ate dinner together.

The excessively lavish dishes on the table made them feel like it was their last meal, but to have the strength to fight, they had to eat their fill, even if it tasted like cardboard.

As soon as Mei Jiu sat down at the table, An Jiu took over and began to eat heartily.

Seeing her eat so deliciously, the others unconsciously developed a greater appetite. Mei Tingchun even had two large bowls of rice at the end.

Before it was even dark, the group boarded the carriage.

“The four great families are definitely all here. The Li family excels in swordsmanship, the Lou family is known for its internal energy cultivation, the Cui family’s palm techniques are unparalleled, and our Mei family specializes in fists. I wonder how many other families are here, and where they are being tested,” Mei Tingchun muttered nervously.

Mei Tingjun turned to An Jiu and said, “Come with us.”

This time, even Mei Tingyuan, who disliked Mei Jiu the most, did not object. She might be a bully among her own kind, but when facing an enemy, they had to unite, especially since this concerned everyone’s survival.

An Jiu nodded.

The four of them secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

An Jiu’s strength was a mystery, and Mei Tingzhu wanted to take this opportunity to find out. “Fourteenth Young Lady, what level are you?”

An Jiu sensed the tiny speck of light in her dantian. She thought to herself that such a small glimmer of light was probably not even worth mentioning.

Seeing that she did not answer, Mei Tingjun said, “Tingzhu and I are both just a hair’s breadth away from the sixth level. Tingyuan just broke through to the fourth level, and Tingchun is at the fourth level.”

“I have almost no internal energy,” An Jiu said.

The group looked on in surprise. Mei Tingyuan scoffed, “If you do not want to talk, then do not! Nobody’s holding a knife to your throat! This pretense is annoying!”

“Ah Yuan!” Mei Tingjun scolded softly.

Mei Tingyuan pouted and turned away, no longer participating.

“Really, no internal energy? Then how did you manage to subdue Mei Rujian?” Mei Tingjun asked doubtfully.

Mei Rujian was at least a fourth-level cultivator. How could she have dragged him out the window in the blink of an eye without internal energy?

“No,” An Jiu answered succinctly and without question.

After a moment of silence, Mei Tingzhu said, “So, you only have hand-to-hand combat skills?”

An Jiu closed her eyes, leaned against the carriage wall, and hummed in response. If she had not come to this place where even ten-year-olds possessed internal energy, she would have been more cautious and definitely would not have been so accommodating.

“You kicked a hornet’s nest!” Mei Tingyuan mocked Mei Tingzhu, then asked Mei Tingjun with concern. “Brother, how’s your injury?”

Last time, Mei Tingyuan rushed out of the mortuary but did not run far. Instead, she squatted on the veranda vomiting, thus overhearing the entire conversation inside. Mei Tingjun was stabbed by the Deputy Envoy for speaking up for her, and she immediately forgave him for abandoning her at the mass grave, but her resentment towards Mei Tingzhu only intensified.

Mei Tingjun sighed, “It’s nothing serious.”

Mei Tingyuan said indignantly, “It’s so unfair! Why can Mei Rujian not participate just because his leg is injured, but you have to fight with an injury!”

Gu Jinghong’s swordsmanship was superb. The stab was not deep; the cut was minimal and avoided vital organs. The bleeding was stopped immediately at the mortuary, and Elder Qi personally treated him after returning to the mansion. Apart from the excruciating pain when moving his arm, it was not life-threatening at all.

Mei Tingchun was worried: one had no internal energy, two were at the fourth level, one was injured, and only Mei Tingzhu was normal! Just as the Deputy Envoy of the Divine Strategy had said, the situation was far from optimistic!

Silence fell over the carriage. All five people leaned against the wall, eyes closed, resting. However, only An Jiu seemed truly calm and collected.

Two and a half hours later, the carriage slowly came to a stop.

Mei Tingjun and the others immediately opened their eyes.

“Please stay inside the carriage until the appointed time,” the guard reminded them.

Mei Tingyuan could not resist opening the window slightly. Through the narrow crack, she vaguely saw a dark mass outside—it seemed to be filled with carriages!

“So many!” Mei Tingyuan whispered.

Mei Tingchun also leaned closer and, after looking, gasped, “There must be at least thirty or forty carriages, right?”

Mei Tingjun also glanced around. Seeing that no one had gotten out, he said, “We should sleep a little while we still have time. We probably will not have time to rest once the trial begins.”

Mei Tingzhu opened her eyes and looked at An Jiu. The other three followed her gaze and found that she was breathing evenly and calmly—she had fallen asleep!

“Sleep,” Mei Tingjun said.

The group leaned back and closed their eyes to rest.

After about two quarters of an hour, the cry of an eagle suddenly rang out outside.

An Jiu’s ears twitched; she heard a rustling sound.

People began to alight from the carriage. The Mei family’s guards said, “Please cover your faces and alight.”

The five took out black masks from their robes and covered their entire faces, then pulled up the large hoods of their black cloaks to cover themselves further.

An Jiu sat by the carriage door and was the first to alight.

A biting wind, carrying snow, swept against her face. An Jiu pulled her cloak tighter and began to survey her surroundings.

It was a clearing in a dense forest; the trees were bare, so visibility was still relatively good. The snow-covered ground reflected a greyish-blue light in the darkness. Everyone was dressed in uniform black, standing out starkly against the snow. An Jiu estimated there were about eighty people.

Each family sent five people, meaning there were about sixteen families participating in the trial today.

An Jiu had only heard Mei Yanran mention the four most powerful families in the Konghe Army, but she had not expected there to be so many.

They formed a circle in the open space, and a dark figure descended like an eagle in the center.

“Everyone, today’s trial will take place in an abandoned temple in the dense forest.” The man was calm and composed, as if the collapse of the heavens and earth could not shake him. “The temple is guarded by the Konghe Army; anyone who crosses the perimeter will be killed without mercy. There are twelve boxes containing fragments of the Heavenly Book within the temple’s pagoda forest; these are your targets. The trial will last two days and four nights. There is a small amount of food within the temple; those with the ability may take it.”

Before he finished speaking, a slight commotion arose in the crowd.

The man coldly stated, “The rules are simple: you can act alone or team up to seize the fragments, but only one person can ultimately obtain the Heavenly Book fragments. During the trial, any means, any risk to life, will be disregarded.”

Mei Tingchun was nearly driven to despair. Of the eighty-odd people present, were they not all elites of their respective families? There were only twelve fragments of the Heavenly Book; with their combined strength of five, they’d be lucky to snatch even one, let alone five!

“Lone travelers who fail to obtain the fragments will not be punished as long as they emerge alive. Those who team up but fail to obtain the map will be given the ‘Heart-Severing Powder,'” the man continued. “However, to prevent some of you from slacking off, I’ve cut the thirty-six maps into pieces, and each person will hold a fragment.”

Twelve maps copied three times would yield thirty-six pieces. Cutting each piece into two or three pieces would be enough for everyone present. Therefore, to assemble a complete map, one would need to steal at least one person’s map!

A voice nearby murmured, “How ruthless! Without a team, it’s all solo. If we team up, we might get the complete route, and the lucky ones might even get two complete maps. But there’s a rule that only individuals who obtain the Heavenly Book fragment count; those who team up but do not get it are still doomed…”

So, even if you teamed up and got two complete maps, you would either end up killing each other or trying to steal someone else’s map.

Not only that, but even if you got the Heavenly Book fragment, you still had to guard against others stealing it!

“Is this not deliberately making us fight each other?” Mei Tingyuan was at a loss.

Everyone in the family had initially decided to team up, but with this rule, everyone hesitated.

Killing others was better than killing your own siblings!

“What’s the benefit of getting the Heavenly Book fragment?” someone asked loudly.

“Yeah, if everyone risks their lives to get the Heavenly Book fragment and gets no benefit whatsoever, would it not be better for everyone to go solo, then just wait in the dilapidated temple for time to pass, and everyone would survive?”

The man explained, “The fragments of the Heavenly Book are martial arts manuals! Anyone at the fourth level or above can practice them, helping you easily break through to higher levels. The box containing the fragments is made of millennia-old ice crystals, which can calm the mind and purify one’s spiritual and internal energy. Furthermore, it grants direct entry into the Konghe Army, bypassing the hardships of the Konghe Academy.” Silence fell over the room. The temptation was indeed immense!

“Those who have decided can now come and record whether they want to team up or go solo!” The black-clad man in the center spoke seriously, his inflammatory words making one want to punch him. “Hurry up; those who get the map first go in. Perhaps you can find the fragments of the Heavenly Book without a map.”

Even knowing it was a trap, some could not resist the temptation, running over in twos and threes to leave their documents, indicating whether they wanted to act alone or in a team.

Seeing more and more people leaving, Mei Tingchun anxiously asked, “What do we do?”