Chapter 5500: The Obedient Long Shanshan

The compass comprised six regions—one in the middle and five in the outer perimeter. Of the five regions in the outer perimeter, two of them were blank whereas the other three contained marks that represented ‘wind’, ‘water’, and ‘fire’.

These marks looked still at first glance, but it was lifelike upon closer inspection.

“What’s that?” the Totem Dragon Clan’s Clan Chief asked.

He could sense the Demon Crane’s aura in the compass.

“This ancient treasure is linked to the Demon Crane. The regions on it have been blank all along, but those three marks appeared one after another today, and I reckon that more will appear very soon. However, I have no idea what this means. My guess is that it’s a trial,” Daoist Demon Crane said.

“A trial?”

The Totem Dragon Clansmen fell into deep thoughts. That would explain the anomaly behind the Demon Crane’s opening.

Tzlala!

Another mark appeared on one of the blank regions on the compass’ outer perimeter—lightning.

“Lord Clan Chief, is it possible for us to force open the Demon Crane?”

The Totem Dragon Clan’s elders turned to the Totem Dragon Clan’s Clan Chief. Something was clearly off about the Demon Crane, and that stoked their worry for the juniors’ safety.

The Totem Dragon Clan’s Clan Chief glanced at the Demon Crane and sighed. “That Demon Crane isn’t as simple as it seems. Let’s just go with the flow.”

From observing the Demon Crane, he concluded that it wouldn’t be that easy to force it open. An attempt to do so could endanger the lives of those inside the Demon Crane. Besides, this was likely to be a fortuitous encounter too. Rather than taking a risk to save them, it might be better to leave them to their own devices.

Seeing that the clan chief had already made up his mind, the others from the Totem Dragon Clan had no choice but to patiently wait.

…

Inside the Demon Crane, Chu Feng and the others were currently facing a lightning attack.

There was a moment of respite after the lightning scattered. Specks of light appeared on the walls once more, and Chu Feng made sure to carefully examine them.

“Young hero Chu Feng, are there more torturous tempering trials awaiting us?” Long Shanshan asked.

“Yes, there is,” Chu Feng replied.

“All right.”

Long Shanshan took out yet another pain suppressant pill and swallowed it in preparation for the next round of tempering. After having undergone the flame and lightning tempering, she no longer harbored any doubts about Chu Feng’s judgment.

Following that, she went over to Chu Feng’s side, pointed her finger at the glowing wall, and asked, “Young hero Chu Feng, what are those?”

“It’s a cultivation skill for tempering. It might have something to do with the upcoming tempering. However, it’ll be hard for you to grasp it,” Chu Feng told the truth.

He had already grasped the complete cultivation skill by now, and he figured that it would be important for whatever was up next. He was intending to share it with not just Long Shanshan but Long Chengyu and the others if possible. In fact, he had already thought of a way to do so.

“Young hero Chu Feng, you shouldn’t look down on me. My talents might pale in comparison to yours, but they aren’t too bad either. Many people see me as a one-in-a-million prodigy!” Long Shanshan protested with an indignant pout.

“Is that so? Are you able to see what’s on the walls?” Chu Feng asked.

“Well…” Long Shanshan was put in a spot. “Young hero Chu Feng, aren’t you making things difficult for me? I’ve already said that my talent doesn’t match up to yours.”

Chu Feng chuckled. He lightly tapped his finger on Long Shanshan’s forehead and imparted a cultivation skill directly into her mind. This was a revised version that even prodigies of Long Shanshan’s caliber should be able to grasp.

It should be useful even though it was lacking compared to the complete cultivation skill. He had prepared this specifically for the Totem Dragon Clansmen.

“This is the simplified version of the cultivation skill I made. Try to grasp it,” Chu Feng said.

“You altered it?” Long Shanshan widened her eyes.

“Mmhm,” Chu Feng replied with a nod.

“I should be able to grasp it, but it’ll take some time,” Long Shanshan replied.

Even the simplified cultivation skill Chu Feng had prepared was difficult for Long Shanshan to grasp.

“Try your best. It might prove to be useful,” Chu Feng replied.

Boom boom boom!

A loud rumble suddenly echoed from the distant passageway.

“It’s here. This should be the last one,” Chu Feng murmured as he looked toward the source of the noise.

Expectation could be seen gleaming in his eyes as he was curious to know what was the purpose behind the tempering he had gone through here. He figured that he should be able to receive his answer after surviving this tempering.

The ground continued to tremble. The culprit soon came into sight.

It was a humongous dust storm that blocked off the passageway. It quickly engulfed Chu Feng and Long Shanshan and swept them away in its currents. It blocked off their line of sight and hearing, such that Chu Feng was unable to see or hear Long Shanshan even though they were close to each other.

Unlike the previous tempering trials, the dust storm inflicted pain not on the body but on the soul. It was an incredibly suffocating sensation that felt as if one’s soul was going to be popped.

This was also where Chu Feng’s unnaturally great willpower shone. He felt the pain and discomfort as much as anyone else, but his accrued experiences and willpower allowed him to keep his focus and withstand it.

The dust storm didn’t last as long as the other trials.

When the dust storm finally scattered, Chu Feng found himself standing in the midst of an elliptical palace with a round pedestal in the middle. There were many figures standing on the round pedestal, such as Long Chengyu, Long Muxi, and everyone else whom he had met at the very first palace.

More than half of them were unconscious, and the remaining awake ones were in a frail state. None of them had suffered any injuries, but the earlier ordeals had withered away their spirit.

Chu Feng’s heart was set at ease when he saw that Long Chengyu and Long Muxi were fine. Similarly, Long Chengyu and the others also showed relieved smiles upon confirming that he was safe.

Weng!

Before the crowd could talk, a beam of light shone down from the roof and enveloped the pedestal. Bathing in the light left the crowd, including Chu Feng, feeling refreshed. Those whose spirits were withered earlier quickly became revitalized.

It was a powerful recovery power. That showed how formidable the Demon Crane was.

Shortly after the recovery power dissipated, another ray of light containing teleportation power enveloped the pedestal, transporting those who were unconscious or in a bad condition to the bottom of the pedestal.

Those who were transported away hurriedly tried to fly back onto the pedestal, knowing that being on the pedestal would likely entitle them to benefits, but they were blocked by an invisible barrier. They couldn’t return to the pedestal anymore.

This was a clear sign that those who were transported off the pedestal had been eliminated, but those who were still on the pedestal like Chu Feng could still step off it if they wanted to.

Just then, an image appeared on the pedestal before disappearing in a flash. Moments later, it appeared again, but this time a little larger than before.

Those on the pedestal trembled in excitement, knowing that the image was some kind of countdown function. Most likely, a fortuitous encounter would happen to them when the image covered the entire pedestal.

The Demon Crane had always provided plenty of benefits to its challengers. Considering the peculiar circumstances this time around, the benefits were likely to be greater than ever.

Just then, a voice shattered the expectant atmosphere.

“Young hero Chu Feng, should I forfeit now?”

It was Long Shanshan. She still remembered Chu Feng’s earlier warning. The latter had told her that the earlier powers were part of a tempering process, and they built up to a final trial at the very end.

Long Shanshan hadn’t seriously undergone the tempering, so the chances were slim that she could withstand the final trial. For that reason, Chu Feng advised her to surrender.

“This is the time to surrender,” Chu Feng replied.

As soon as she heard those words, Long Shanshan leaped down the pedestal without the slightest hesitation. This sight shocked not just the outsiders but also those from the Totem Dragon Clan.