"If you are all ready, then let us begin."
Once the Ancient Realm elder finished speaking, the ancient gates slowly opened.
After they opened, there were eleven smaller gates inside.
Ten of the gates were white, lined up in a row below, while one gate hovered above.
It was red, as if foreshadowing danger. Without a doubt, this gate led to the more difficult examination.
And now, all eleven gates leading to the Ancient Realm were wide open.
Whoosh—
Suddenly, everyone who held an invitation surged forward, but two figures were noticeably faster than the rest.
Almost the instant everyone began moving, they had already descended from the sky and arrived before the red gate.
They were two young men, both members of the younger generation.
One wore a green robe—the attire of the Cangxiong Immortal Sect. He was handsome, clearly a man of outstanding appearance.
The other wore a dark green-black robe. Compared to the cultivator from the Cangxiong Immortal Sect, he was even more handsome—so beautiful, in fact, that he was almost bewitching. His only flaw was his unnaturally pale, deathly white skin. This one was clearly from the Qingyue Divine Temple.
The two of them arrived at the gate and stopped simultaneously. After exchanging a single glance, they both turned away and entered separate gates below.
"Why'd they give up?" the crowd murmured in confusion.
They could all tell that those two had originally intended to challenge the difficult examination, but why had they suddenly backed down?
Whoosh—
Just then, a figure streaked down from the sky—a young man from the Alchemy Dao Immortal Sect.
"Look—it's Jia Chengying! The number one genius of the younger generation in the Alchemy Dao Immortal Sect! He's here too?"
When they saw this man, the crowd erupted. Clearly, among the Totem Heaven River cultivators, his reputation was even greater.
That was only natural—after all, he was the most powerful genius of the Alchemy Dao Immortal Sect.
Yet when Jia Chengying arrived before the red gate, he too furrowed his brow, hesitation showing on his face.
In the end, he also turned around, changed course, and entered one of the gates below.
"Jia Chengying gave up too?"
"What exactly is the deal with that gate?"
Three geniuses had changed course one after another, and everyone began to realize that the red gate was no simple matter.
In the crowd, Bai Yunqing's gaze wavered. He didn't know how the red gate had scared off three geniuses, and while part of him wanted to try, he wasn't willing to risk losing face.
In the end, he made his decision. He did not choose the red gate, but instead walked through one of the ten gates below.
He chose the safe route—no challenge, just giving up.
However, even though he was a disciple of the Guest Grand Elder of the Totem Dragon Clan, clearly no one recognized him, so his departure caused not a ripple.
"Miss, which path will you take?" Chu Feng asked the white-haired young woman.
"You don't need to follow me. Just go wherever you want to go."
Whoosh—
A white figure soared into the air, heading straight for the red gate—it was the white-haired young woman.
Because she didn't hesitate at all and entered directly, and because she moved with incredible speed, the younger generation couldn't even detect her.
However, some of the older, more powerful cultivators did notice, and looks of astonishment appeared on their faces.
Mo Wuxiang, in particular, understood Jia Chengying well.
When there was a chance to compete, Jia Chengying would never choose to give up. If he did, there had to be a reason—and that reason was very likely that the danger was too high.
If even Jia Chengying had given up on the challenge, yet this white-haired woman dared to attempt it, she either possessed absolute strength or was out of her mind.
But judging by her speed just now, she was definitely no ordinary person. Even if she was out of her mind, she was still a rare talent among the younger generation.
"Could this white-haired girl be the one the young master spoke of—the one who defeated him during the Strongest Trial when he was at the early Half-God stage?"
Mo Wuxiang fell into deep thought.
Meanwhile, many people were entering the massive gates.
However, some were blocked by an invisible force before they could even get close. It turned out they had been trying to sneak in without invitations.
Once exposed, these people looked embarrassed and had no choice but to slink away. The Ancient Realm elder did not punish these interlopers; instead, he simply observed everything below.
Whoosh—
And just then, cries of surprise arose from the watching crowd.
Another figure had appeared before the red gate.
This person had materialized out of thin air—it was Chu Feng.
"Damn it, I miscalculated. There's a barrier here."
Chu Feng's face was flushed with embarrassment. He had intended to sneak in while invisible, but to his surprise, his concealment barrier had been shattered the moment he arrived before the red gate.
There was actually a force here capable of breaking concealment barriers, and he hadn't sensed it at all.
At the same time, Chu Feng now understood why the geniuses from the Cangxiong Immortal Sect, Qingyue Divine Temple, and Alchemy Dao Immortal Sect had all changed course upon arriving at the red gate.
Standing before this gate, one could feel the terror within—a pressure that came from the very depths of the soul.
This pressure struck directly at the heart, chilling one to the bone. It was the kind of pressure that made you feel you would truly die.
"What, not moving anymore? If you're scared, just say so. Why put on an act?"
Just then, a voice sounded from behind Chu Feng.
Looking back, he saw a young man wearing the attire of the Alchemy Dao Immortal Sect, walking through the air toward him.
His features were youthful—not only was he of the younger generation, but he probably wasn't much older than Chu Feng, making him one of the younger ones among those under a hundred years of age.
His aura was fully released—he was an eighth-rank Martial Venerable.
At his age, having this level of cultivation showed that his talent was considerable. But the way he looked at Chu Feng was filled with contempt and provocation.
They had never had any grievances, yet this was how the man treated him at their very first meeting, which put Chu Feng in a very foul mood.
What Chu Feng despised most were these kinds of people—arrogant fools who looked down on others for no reason.
"It's Jia Chengxiong."
"Not only did Jia Chengying come, but his younger brother Jia Chengxiong came too."