Chapter 521 – Five-layered Illusion
The crowd could only see a crimson orb floating close to the ceiling of the hall. A bloody glow was emitted from the orb, which transformed into a four zhang tall Shura[1] that had a pair of wings on its back and a pair of horns on its head. It was entirely covered in black, with a pair of reddened eyes.
What was a Shura?
It was neither human nor ghost. It greatly lusted for blood, and was known as a demon.
The aura of the Shura had reached the first-layer Martial Highness Realm, causing the participants to feel a chill in their hearts.
ROAR!
The Shura flapped its wings while uttering a roar. Countless red rays were emitted from its mouth, encapsulating the entire hall.
Fury, bloodlust, belligerence, madness…all sorts of negative emotions were lit up in the hearts of the geniuses like sparks, which gradually grew stronger.
This was the Shura Illusion.
Following its roar, it unleashed a formation that influenced the minds of the participants. Those without a firm will would be disturbed by these negative emotions, resulting in mental damage.
“The trial begins now!” Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong let out a roar that allowed the geniuses to collect their thoughts.
Following this, countless artifacts, Martial Spirits, Martial Arts, and Techniques were unleashed in the hall as the participants tried their best to resist the influence of the illusion.
That being said, Qin Nan, Longhu, Xue Meng, Ling Wushuang, and few other outstanding geniuses remained stationary. They all raised their heads while staring at the Shura above them calmly.
“This illusion is pretty interesting. I shall see how firm my will is now.”
Qin Nan wore a calm expression.
After merging with the left eye of the Divine God of Battle, stumbling into Sacred Leader Qinglong, and experiencing great crises, his firm had become incredibly firm.
“There are still some noticeable geniuses in this selection…”
On the second floor of the Martial Art Display Palace, Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong, Xu Ao, and Elder Wang gazed at Qin Nan and the others and nodded in satisfaction.
ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!
It was as if the Shura was aware of their calmness. Green veins began to surface on its forehead while its blood began to boil as it uttered another three roars. The red rays fired from its mouth became brighter, causing the negative emotions to turn stronger.
BANG BANG BANG!
At that instant, the figures of more than twenty participants were knocked out from the hall as if they had been struck by a powerful blow, causing them to vomit blood due to the impact.
Following this, many geniuses were continuously knocked out from the hall.
After the period it took for an incense to burn, only seven hundred participants remained.
Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong declared after seeing this, “Congratulations to those who are still in the trial. You’ve endured the period it took an incense to burn. You’ve now become the probationary disciples of the Black Tortoise Platoon! The second phase of the trial will take place now!”
Many among the participants were immersed in great joy upon hearing this.
However, at that instant, the aura of the Shura suddenly skyrocketed.
Crack crack crack.
A series of strange voices could be heard as another pair of wings burst out from the Shura’s back. As the wings fully evolved, it was as if the Shura had ranked up to the next level, causing its aura to improve significantly.
ROAR!
The Shura let out a ferocious cry as the bloody rays from its mouth turned into gusts of wind that swept the hall.
The participants were utterly dumbfounded.
Even Xue Meng and Ling Wushuang wore serious looks.
“Sh*t, this Shura is pretty powerful!”
Longhu shuddered slightly as the Dragon and Tiger force within his body was unleashed to resist the negative emotions. He then turned his head around and glanced at Qin Nan as a sudden thought came to him. He almost vomited blood after taking a glimpse.
Qin Nan’s expression remained exactly the same as before.
“This guy still managed to improve his cultivation after being hunted by the Four Great Factions. What the f**k…”
Longhu let out a curse and suddenly felt regretful. Maybe I shouldn’t be joining this selection, as Qin Nan will surely grab all the attention later.
How could I grab the attention of the ladies now?
“Mm? Heart-Calming Flute Martial Spirit, Demonic-Protective Barrier, Soul-Protection Rings…”
Even though the negative emotions were quite forceful, it had no effect on Qin Nan at all. Hence, Qin Nan began to look at the Martial Arts and Martial Spirits of the other participants as he was quite bored.
Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong, Xu Ao, and Elder Wang were aware of Qin Nan’s reaction too. Judging from his performance, he was most likely a great talent who was comparable to Xue Meng.
The second phase was soon over. In this phase, the rate of disqualifying increased greatly, as over four hundred cultivators were knocked out from the hall.
Longhu, Xue Meng, and Ling Wushuang began to unleash their auras too, unlike their calm appearance from the first round.
“Congratulations, you are now the disciples of the Black Tortoise.” A smile appeared on Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong’s face as he spoke, “Let me remind you that the Shura Illusion is classified into five different layers. You’ve now endured the first two layers. However, do be careful with the remaining three layers!”
Following the words, the glow emitted by the Shura grew stronger once again as the third pair of wings appeared from its back, turning it into a Six-Winged Shura.
ROAR!
The Shura stared downward with its reddened eyes and let out a roar. The bloody rays from its mouth transformed into a bloody aura that encapsulated the entire hall. It seemed to have some sort of intelligence, as it sprang ferociously at the participants and penetrated their bodies through their pores.
At that instant, the crowd was utterly astounded.
BANG BANG BANG!
A series of crashes could be heard as at least a hundred geniuses were knocked out from the hall the moment the third phase started.
“Bring it on!”
Xue Meng and Ling Wushuang both uttered roars. Golden rays were emitted from their backs as they finally unleashed their Martial Spirits.
ROAR!
The cry of a dragon could be heard too, which turned out to be from Longhu executing the Dragon and Tiger force.
The rest of the participants unveiled their trump cards respectively to resist the third-layer Illusion.
“Not bad, not bad. The quality of the participants this year is a lot better than last year’s. Some of them only started to unleash their Martial Spirits in the third phase, while the others are resisting the illusion with their trump cards…” Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong could not help but let out compliments as he glanced at the remaining participants.
Elder Wang and Xu Ao nodded their heads slightly too.
However, Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong’s voice suddenly halted as his gaze landed onto a figure. His eyes flickered with disbelief, “How——”
Elder Wang and Xu Ao were startled.
Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong was the Vice-Platoon Leader of the Black Tortoise Platoon. Even though his strength was weaker than theirs, it was rare to see such a reaction from him.
The two then followed Vice-Platoon Leader Xiong’s gaze with a hint of doubt. Following a glimpse, they instantly held their breaths.
How was that guy acting so calm under the pressure of the third-layer Illusion?
Translator: XephiZ
Editor: DOCuinn
[1] TL Note: Also known as Asura. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asura_(Buddhism)
