Right after, Bai Yunqing also used his own method — one he had comprehended himself — to enter the palace.
After entering the palace, Bai Yunqing did not find Chu Feng and the other two. Instead, he was sent into a corridor all on his own.
If he continued forward, trials would await him.
But what Bai Yunqing did not know was that although he had not seen Chu Feng, every move he made was being watched by Chu Feng the entire time.
It turned out that after entering the palace, Chu Feng had not been transported into a corridor the way Bai Yunqing was. Instead, he had entered a special space.
Chu Feng had been given a privilege.
He could choose which trial to face next.
There were nineteen corridors inside the palace, which meant there were nineteen types of trials here.
Each trial had its own entrance, but they all led to the same endpoint.
Though the endpoint was the same, the rewards gained differed depending on the trial.
Because Chu Feng had the freedom to choose, he could currently see all nineteen corridors. He could also see the positions of Bai Yunqing and the other two, and knew what level of difficulty each of their corridors held.
Ling Hang had been assigned the easiest one.
Bai Yunqing's was the second most difficult.
All three of them had been randomly assigned, Ling Hang included.
Only Chu Feng, who still held the key, had the right to choose.
Chu Feng knew that the most difficult trial would undoubtedly yield the best reward.
So he had no intention of traveling with Bai Yunqing. Instead, he decided to take on the hardest one.
As it happened, the trial Chu Feng wanted to tackle was the very one Li Ta'er had been assigned to.
He really didn't want to be stuck with this woman, but in order not to waste this opportunity, Chu Feng chose the corridor where Li Ta'er was.
Once he made his decision, Chu Feng gripped the key in his hand.
The next instant, a teleportation force carried him into the corridor where Li Ta'er was.
"Why are you here?" Li Ta'er's face soured the moment she saw Chu Feng.
But Chu Feng ignored her entirely and walked straight ahead.
"I'm talking to you — are you mute?" Li Ta'er not only pressed further but stepped forward, reaching for the back of Chu Feng's collar.
But the instant her hand shot out, Chu Feng stopped abruptly and spun around.
That cold, piercing gaze made Li Ta'er freeze mid-reach.
Chu Feng didn't strike. He simply stared at Li Ta'er with icy eyes, and that alone was enough to make her heart clench with fear.
"There's no one here to protect you now. I'd watch your tongue if I were you — because I won't put up with it." With that, Chu Feng turned and continued walking.
Li Ta'er's emotions churned. She had genuinely been frightened by his gaze, yet she refused to accept it.
When had she ever been treated this way?
"Watch my tongue?"
"Then let me ask you — what exactly will you do if I don't?" Li Ta'er shot back.
"I warned you. Don't provoke me. If you won't listen, don't blame me for what happens next," Chu Feng said.
"Oh, listen to you — so full of yourself. No wonder your grandmother got herself killed. I bet she was the same kind of pretender. She deserved to die too!" Li Ta'er spat.
The moment those words left her mouth, a wave of killing intent swept over her. The next instant, a large hand clamped around her throat.
Her body was flung backward at terrifying speed, and with a deafening crash, the back of her head slammed into the wall.
The sheer force of the impact sent her brain reeling.
It was Chu Feng. He had seized her by the neck and pinned her against the wall.
When her vision cleared enough to see him, she couldn't believe it. She had thought he was bluffing — she never expected him to actually lay a hand on her.
But rather than fear, Li Ta'er was consumed by fury the moment she recovered. She erupted into an enraged scream.
"Chu Feng! How dare you hurt me! You're dead! My father will never let you go! I'll tear you to pieces!!!"
Hearing this, Chu Feng showed not a shred of panic. If anything, the killing intent in his eyes only grew colder.
"You really think I wouldn't dare kill you?" Chu Feng said in an ice-cold voice.
"Hmph! Then go ahead and try — just touch me once and see what—"
"Ighk—" Before Li Ta'er could finish, a searing pain exploded through her abdomen. Her stomach lurched violently, her mouth opened wide, and a torrent of blood poured out.
Chu Feng had driven his fist into her gut.
But that was only the beginning. After the first punch came a second, a third, a fourth…
In his fury, Chu Feng landed five consecutive blows, every single one hammering into Li Ta'er's abdomen.
The moment he released his grip, Li Ta'er collapsed to the ground, her body curling up and trembling uncontrollably. The pain was so overwhelming she couldn't even form words.
"Keep running that mouth of yours."
"You really think I wouldn't hit you just because you're a woman?"