Chapter 3661 — The Rules of the Trial

After all, every herb the newcomers gathered during the trial had to be handed in. Without lavish rewards to make the prospect of victory visible, these newcomers would likely slack off and do the bare minimum, which would defeat the whole purpose.

Still, newcomers were newcomers. While lavish rewards were meant to fire their spirits, certain unpleasant truths had to be spelled out in advance to spare everyone a great deal of needless trouble.

The bald Elder swept a cool glance over the assembled newcomers and said at last, "Now that the rules are clear to you all, there are three things this old man must stress again, lest some fools among you get ideas they shouldn't."

"First, you may move only about the outer fringes of the back mountain. Do not attempt to touch any of the seals. This old man guarantees you will die most miserably."

"Second, you have only three days. If you have not returned to this spot by noon of the third day, you will likewise die most miserably."

"Third, the trial encourages competition. You may plunder one another, but you must absolutely not take a life. Should anyone truly cause a death, this old man will act himself and take a life for a life."

Three rules, and to break any one of them was to forfeit one's life. His killing intent was palpable.

Having said his piece, the bald Elder paid the newcomers no further mind, though his murderous air had left them somewhat dazed, and closed his eyes to rest. As for the two Elders beside him, they had not spoken a word from first to last. Their chief duty was to guard the back mountain; presiding over the newcomer trial at the Welcome Pavilion was merely a small side task to vary the routine.

"Very well! Everyone, go to your respective supervising senior brothers and collect the special baskets from the Back Mountain Hall. Settle yourselves and you may set out—no dawdling!" Hu Yunfeng seized the moment to take up the thread and issue his orders.

"Yes, sir!" All the newcomers answered in unison, every one of them raring to go, fists clenched and spirits high.

"Junior Brother Lin, you must be careful once you enter the back mountain. Dangers lurk on every side, and anything at all may happen during the trial—do not grow careless. Junior Brothers Xiao and Qiao as well." The long-suffering senior brother spoke these warnings even as he strapped the special baskets onto the three of them.

The bald Elder had warned them already: killing was strictly forbidden during the newcomer trial. Yet the back mountain was vast, and even its outer fringes were fraught with peril, and no one could say what might happen. If someone with malice in his heart truly wished a man dead, he need not strike the blow himself—a little quiet tampering was enough to do the deed.

Wei Zhao nodded along with Xiao Che and Qiao Hongcai. Though none of them had ever entered the back mountain, all three were at least Heaven-rank experts, and they possessed that much vigilance. To their eyes, this savage forest that breathed of an age beyond memory was a holy ground for cultivators, harboring countless rare treasures of heaven and earth—and at the same time a monstrous beast that devoured whom it chose, a place where the bones of no one knew how many fine cultivators lay buried.

Glancing back at the other newcomers gathered around Meng Jueming, the long-suffering senior brother lowered his voice and said to the three, "Just now I happened to overhear a few careless words from them. It seems they mean to join forces against you during the trial. If you can, I would advise that once you are inside the trial grounds, you first find a chance to regroup and move together—that way you can at least look out for one another."

"That..." The three exchanged a look, and their faces all showed signs of difficulty.

To begin with, this trial teleported each newcomer to a random location; regrouping would be no easy feat. And to squander one's time searching for the others would be to lose far more than one gained.

Most crucially, Wei Zhao was single-minded in his search for the Heart-Devouring Linglong Grass, while Xiao Che and Qiao Hongcai each had plans of their own. Moving as three would indeed let them watch one another's backs, but it would naturally cap their scores as well.

After all, if three men walked a single route, the herbs they ultimately found would surely be limited—and there lay the problem. They could hardly split all of it equally, could they?

Split equally among three, the likely outcome was that every one of them would end with a lower score than the rest of the field, making it impossible for any to place in the top three, and so the Foundation Establishment Pill would slip through all their fingers. And if they did not split equally, then who was to get more and who less? That made the problem even worse.

On the other hand, if the three went their separate ways, there would be a little more risk, but the returns would be greater too. In the end each man's score would surely far surpass what it would have been in company—at the very least, there was still hope of contending for the top three. And the prize for the top three was the Foundation Establishment Golden Pill—how could they lightly cast away such a chance?

What was more, the bald Elder had already warned them plainly that no killing would be permitted. So long as they were careful, their lives at least were not at stake, and the risk was not so very great. Reckoned thus, it was plainly the better bargain for the three to part ways.

Yet Xiao Che and Qiao Hongcai exchanged a glance. Wei Zhao treated them generously in ordinary times—was this not the moment to repay him?

If the three pooled their efforts and gave every herb they found to Wei Zhao, then his bid for first place should be without question! At this thought, both felt ashamed of their earlier selfishness.

Together they said, "Senior Brother Ku is right. We should find a way to move together after all. Brother Lin has looked after us so much—this time, come what may, we must win you first place in the trial!"

The implication was that any herbs found while moving together would all go to Wei Zhao first, which amounted to the two of them voluntarily renouncing the trial's rewards. Such a thing required no small resolve; the Foundation Establishment Pill was, to Heaven-rank cultivators at the peak of perfection like them, a temptation beyond compare.

Wei Zhao shook his head with a bitter smile. Their goodwill touched him, but his most important task this time was to find the Heart-Devouring Linglong Grass. Compared with the Foundation Establishment Golden Pill he meant to refine afterward, the trial's Foundation Establishment Pill meant nothing at all.

And if he moved together with the two of them, quite apart from the unfairness to Xiao Che and Qiao Hongcai, it would be an added burden on him as well.

"I am grateful for your kindness, both of you, but there is no need. This chance is rare—whatever rewards are worth winning, absolutely do not let them slip by, or you will regret it all your lives." Wei Zhao urged them gravely.

"But two fists cannot beat four hands. If Meng Zhou and the rest really do join forces, then no matter how many herbs we find early on, it will do us no good—they will take them in the end anyway. Better that we give up contending and adopt the two-guard-one plan, focusing on supporting Brother Lin. That would be the safer course." Xiao Che thought it over and spoke, and beside him Qiao Hongcai found himself in wholehearted agreement.