Chapter 3494: Not Qualified

"Uncle Feng, what's wrong with the Third Boss?" Zhi Hua asked. She had accepted her growing admiration for the Third Boss. His peerless arrogance caused her heart to race, and she did not want to see him die in the Twilight Maple Forest.

Qian Huifeng was not sure how to respond. "Let's wait and see."

Old Tao and Lu Yin’s other companions exchanged glances, but they were not nearly as tense anymore. After learning that the Third Boss was a Spirit Treasure Master, the Spirit Treasure Society no longer saw him or his entourage as enemies.

Still, what exactly had happened to the Third Boss? How could he have been defeated by the formation so easily? Those who traveled with him refused to believe that he had failed.

While traveling with Lu Yin, they had witnessed his power firsthand. He seemed to possess limitless strength; there was no way he would fall like this.

Challenging the nine steps of the Grandmaster's Trial was not something that could be accomplished in one day. There were some people who spent months before showing any results.

The only thing the onlookers could do was wait.

As long as Grandmaster Yu Ran did not announce the Third Boss’s failure, people would continue to wait.

Soon, a full day passed.

Lu Yin was still in the same position as ever, never moving. Just like that, another day passed.

Then, he moved.

Everyone stared.

His eyes slowly opened, and he lazily stretched. "That was a great nap."

Everyone was speechless.

Nap? Sleeping? He was sleeping?

What a joke! Sleeping within the Twilight Maple Forest? Had they all been on edge, watching, while he merely slept?

While they could not believe it, there was no denying that that was exactly what had happened. The Third Boss had enjoyed a relaxing sleep. When he woke up, he had stretched his body to shake off a bit of drowsiness and then stood up. He walked through the Twilight Maple Forest spirit treasure formation and casually stepped onto the seventh step.

Everyone was dumbfounded yet again. The moment the Third Boss had arrived at the Spirit Treasure Society, people had experienced shock after shock. They had thought that they would grow accustomed to the man’s surprises, only to yet again be caught off guard.

In the plaza, Old Tao and the rest of Lu Yin’s entourage were not surprised in the least. They had already known the truth. After all, how could the Third Boss be defeated by a mere formation?

Far away, Qian Huifeng remained calm.

Zhi Hua was happy, and she let out a brief cheer. Though, the moment she made a noise, she caught herself and quickly glanced over at Qian Huifeng.

He did not appear to be at all angry. "Sleeping, huh? I can see it now. It couldn’t be so easy."

It appears that my Twilight Maple Forest is still too weak.

Grandmaster Yu Ran shook her head. She had thought that the Twilight Maple Forest had stopped the Third Boss’s progress, but in reality, he had simply been taking a nap. She did not even know how to react to that.

𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

She felt as though she had believed a massive fire had been ignited, only to discover someone had stamped out with one foot. It was a qualitative difference in level. This Third Boss was a true monster.

"Hehe, this kid... Feng Zi is going to end up as a laughingstock," someone nearby mentioned in a hoarse voice.

Grandmaster Yu Ran looked over. "You’ve also returned?"

An elderly man had spoken. His hair was mostly gray, but he was still quite spry. "I came back to take a look when I heard that this Third Boss was coming to our Spirit Treasure Domain. If I can help, I’ll lend a hand. After all, the next one’s mine."

"How long do you think yours will be able to last?" Grandmaster Yu Ran asked while staring at the seventh step of the stairs.

The old man took a moment to consider. "Hard to say."

"You don’t want to guess?"

"It’s really hard to say. By the way, Yu Ran, this Third Boss isn’t as vicious as the rumors make him out to be."

Grandmaster Yu Ran was taken aback. "What happened?"

A forced and bitter smile appeared on the old man’s face. "When he left Hu Wu and Tian Ya’s place to come to our domain, my granddaughter went with a few others to block him. When I heard that, I nearly died of fright. Luckily, the Third Boss did nothing to them, or else I wouldn’t be here with you now."

Grandmaster Yu Ran looked back at the Grandmaster's Trial. "We’re all lucky that he did nothing. If he had, our entire Spirit Treasure Society would be gone."

The old man felt a bit of warmth in his heart.

He was part of the Spirit Treasure Society. If he had been killed by the Third Boss, the Spirit Treasure Society would have never let the matter go.

The Spirit Treasure Society was a truly unique organization within the Spirit Nidus, which was precisely why no one was willing to offend any member of the society.

They had been lucky, very lucky.

The old man’s name was Zhi Shan, and he was another one of the society’s nine Grandmasters. He had arranged the formation on the seventh step of the Grandmaster's Trial, and his creation was called the Tomb of Mountains and Streams.

Just as the name suggested, the Tomb of Mountains and Streams had mountains and water. It had been developed by Grandmaster Zhi Shan.

The fact that the formation had been placed on the seventh step of the Grandmaster's Trial, even higher than the Twilight Maple Forest, demonstrated how highly the Spirit Treasure Society had evaluated the Tomb of Mountains and Streams. However, the Tomb of Mountains and Streams was also regarded as one of the most impractical spirit treasure formations.

In the plaza, Old Tao let out a sigh. "The Tomb of Mountains and Streams is unquestionably one of the most powerful spirit treasure formations. Once completed, even a powerful Ortuser can be trapped, finding it difficult to escape. The Spirit Treasure Society has always wanted to see if someone at the level of the Seven Seraphs can break out of the Tomb of Mountains and Streams."

"Is it that powerful?" Cai Keqing was surprised.

Palace Master Yao solemnly stated, "I’ve also heard of the Tomb of Mountains and Streams. It’s been referred to as one of the most impractical spirit treasure formations because it takes too long to set up."

Old Tao nodded. "Not only does it take too long to set up, but it’s also too obvious. It’s easy to notice, and its boundaries are also readily seen. If someone wanted to use the Tomb of Mountains and Streams in combat, they would struggle greatly to do so. No enemy will give you the time needed to set up the formation, and even if that happens, the formation is so obvious that an enemy will simply avoid it.

"However, those drawbacks don’t matter on the Grandmaster's Trial. The Third Boss has to enter the Tomb of Mountains and Streams, and he needs to break free of it."

There were various conversations sprouting throughout the Spirit Treasure Society, all of them discussing the Tomb of Mountains and Streams.

Ying Han showed a bitter smile. "The Tomb of Mountains and Streams is precisely what’s stopped two Grandmasters from conquering the Grandmaster's Trial. If not for this formation, the Spirit Treasure Society would have more than just nine Grandmasters."

"That’s wrong," Grandmaster Yu Ran retorted.

Ying Han grew confused. "Wrong?"

Grandmaster Yu Ran explained, "There are two layers to the Tomb of Mountains and Streams: one of mountains, and one of water. While the formation has been constructed on the Grandmaster's Trial, thus far, only one of the two layers has ever been activated. Even the last two Grandmasters that challenged the stairs only managed to activate one layer. If not for that limitation, then forget them—even I would struggle to escape from the Tomb of Mountains and Streams. I would need a great deal of time to unravel it."

"I see. Then what about this challenger?" Ying Han asked.

Beside them, Grandmaster Zhi Shan showed a small smile. "I’m eager to see just how powerful this Third Boss really is."

On the seventh step of the Grandmaster's Trial, Lu Yin entered the Tomb of Mountains and Streams. He had to enter the formation, as his only other option was to abandon the Grandmaster's Trial.

The further one climbed, the more difficult the challenges became.

At this moment, an extremely obvious sourcebox array appeared in front of Lu Yin. It was so obvious that he could even see the array’s sharply defined boundaries.

He rarely saw such an obvious sourcebox array, and he was somewhat surprised by it. If this sourcebox array were used in battle, it would be completely useless.

Upon stepping into the Tomb of Mountains and Streams, Lu Yin was surrounded by danger zones. He saw endless mountains and unending streams of water rising upwards. There was only a single thin line of sky to be seen; the seemingly endless mountains and waters continued to rise into the sky.

Lu Yin quietly observed the array while looking around. He was impressed. "It’s a good array, but unfortunately, its use is too limited."

Those who were outside and heard his comment did not argue. There was no denying the impracticality of the Tomb of Mountains and Streams.

Lu Yin slowly walked forward. The mountains and waters in front of him were both illusory and real, and they blocked his path.

To leave, he could either shatter the mountains and waters, or resolve the sourcebox's danger zone. There were no other options.

The Tomb of Mountains and Streams’s danger zone was highly complex, but not to the point whereLu Yin could not deal with it. It would just be very time consuming.

Typically, to conquer the Grandmaster's Trial, a challenger would rely on their lockbreaking skills.

However, Lu Yin had no intention of joining the Spirit Treasure Society. Challenging the Grandmaster's Trial was nothing more than a way to grant both himself and the society a way to step back. Regardless of the situation, he still held a certain level of admiration for the Spirit Treasure Society, as it felt rather familiar to him.

With both of them having an excuse to step back, there was no reason for Lu Yin to waste any time.

He raised his hand and pointed a finger forward. Wielder-realm battle force spread out with a constant flow. He used the Dao of One Heavens as he pointed at the mountains and waters ahead of him.

The entire Spirit Treasure Domain trembled imperceptibly.

At least, it was imperceptible to most people, but Grandmaster Yu Ran and a few others could sense it.

Those select few exchanged shocked glances. This Third Boss’s strength did not resemble anything they had ever heard of before.

Grandmaster Zhi Shan’s eyes never left the seventh step. This Third Boss was clearly as powerful as the Seven Seraphs, and the Grandmaster had always hoped for an expert of that level to try to break free from his Tomb of Mountains and Streams. If it could even restrain someone as powerful as the Seraphs, then despite being impractical, the Tomb of Mountains and Streams would still become regarded as one of the Spirit Treasure Society’s most important formations.

Could it trap the Third Boss?

Elsewhere in the Spirit Treasure Society, Grandmaster Qianhui Feng, Zhi Hua, and the others watched on nervously.

This could be said to be the moment when the future of the Tomb of Mountains and Streams was decided, as well as Grandmaster Zhi Shan's status. Both reputations were on the line.

If the Tomb of Mountains and Streams could trap someone as powerful as the Seven Seraphs, then Grandmaster Zhi Shan’s reputation would leap forward, and he would be regarded as one of the most powerful Grandmasters in the Spirit Treasure Society. He would even surpass Qianhui Feng. If the spirit treasure formation failed, then the man’s status would remain beneath Qianhui Feng’s.

On the Grandmaster's Trial, Lu Yin pointed a single finger out, causing the mountains and waters to continuously shatter, even as more continued to appear.

The mountains and waters rose up, leaving only a single visible line of sky. The danger zone surged endlessly, leading to a state that somewhat mirrored Verdant Eternity. This made it hard to exhaust the array.

Lu Yin developed a stronger and stronger admiration for the Array Grandmaster who had designed this Tomb of Mountains and Streams. Regardless of whether this formation had come from sheer luck or true insight, the Tomb of Mountains and Streams was exceptional.

Unfortunately, Lu Yin was the one challenging it.

He could not say how others would defeat the array, but for him, things were quite simple.

Stars spun around his fingertip, released from his inner universe. With Verdant Eternity assisting him, Lu Yin did not exhaust any of his energy.

Mountains and water appeared without end, but his own power was also infinite.

It was just a matter of how long the sourcebox array could last.

The Spirit Treasure Domain trembled more and more violently, allowing more and more people to feel it.

Everyone stared at the Grandmaster's Trial, watching as Lu Yin's finger continued to release an endless attack. Finally, he raised a foot and took a step forward. Cracks appeared and ran along the step of the Grandmaster's Trial.

Grandmaster Zhi Shan's face turned pale, and he closed his eyes. His spirit treasure formation had been broken.

Grandmaster Yu Ran stared in shock.

The formation broke, as simple as that

.

The Third Boss could not be stopped. In the end, the Tomb of Mountains and Streams was not powerful enough to restrain someone as strong as a Seraph.

Lu Yin continued to walk forward. He passed through the Tomb of Mountains and Streams, a relaxed expression on his face.

He had not encountered any trouble on the first seven steps of the Grandmaster's Trial, not even when facing the Tomb of Mountains and Streams. At most, the last sourcebox array had required him to spend a bit more effort, but that was all.

Seeing his Tomb of Mountains and Streams being broken dealt a harsh blow to Grandmaster Zhi Shan, as well as to the Spirit Treasure Society as a whole.

However, before the audience could recover, someone shouted, "There’s someone on the eighth step!"

Everyone looked further up to the eighth step of the Grandmaster's Trial.

Grandmaster Yu Ran's expression changed drastically. "Grandmaster Cheng Liang, what are you doing?"

Lu Yin raised his head to look up at the eighth step.

There, a man stood. He appeared to only be slightly older than Lu Yin, and he was smiling downwards. However, his smile was fake, to the point where he looked like he was wearing a mask.

"Third Boss, please wait. This spirit treasure formation on the eighth step was set up by me, but it isn’t complete just yet."

Lu Yin arched a brow. "Not completed? Just what have you been doing this whole time?"

Lu Yin made no attempt to be polite. It was clear that the man was putting on false pretenses and targeting the Third Boss.

The man’s smile never slipped as he replied, "Third Boss, you don't need to worry. I’ll be finished soon."

"My time is not something you can waste." Lu Yin immediately stepped onto the eighth step, continuing his way forward.

He had never intended to become one of the Spirit Treasure Society’s Grandmasters. With his true objective already accomplished, Lu Yin had no intention of wasting time by waiting for some random man to finish setting up a sourcebox array.

This man did not qualify to make Lu Yin wait.