Radiance bathed the land, and everyone gazed upward in awe.
Without any need for sensing, every person present understood what lay contained within that brilliance.
Swoosh swoosh swoosh—
Suddenly, objects rained down from the sky like a torrential downpour.
They were scrolls. Each scroll seemed to possess a will of its own, flying toward every person present — one for each, with no exception.
As the scrolls unfurled, inscriptions shimmered across their surfaces, all bearing the same message.
Soon, a unique power would surge throughout heaven and earth.
And these scrolls served as vessels to collect that power.
Once a scroll had accumulated enough energy, a formation diagram would manifest within it.
The more energy a scroll gathered, the stronger the formation diagram that appeared inside would naturally be.
This was the trial — simple and direct. Even the rewards were plainly announced from the start: the chance to obtain a formation.
The strength of the formation depended entirely on how much power the scroll managed to collect.
Of course, the amount of power gathered also served as an indirect measure of each individual's strength.
"Masters Painter, what kinds of formations can be found in here?" many people outside the barrier asked the Formation Painting Master with eager curiosity.
They were all Spirit World Masters themselves, and the prospect of acquiring a powerful formation was deeply tempting.
"Even I don't know the answer to that. Everything here — I'm merely a caretaker, not the one in control," the Formation Painting Master replied.
His words only deepened the crowd's curiosity.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh—
Before long, a sound like howling gale winds echoed from every direction within the trial world.
Looking around, vast streams of energy were converging toward this location, quickly filling the entire world.
This energy could not be used for cultivation, nor could it be gathered by any other means. The only way to collect it was through the scrolls held by those present.
Yet as for how exactly to collect it, the scrolls offered no direct instructions, and no one present had any idea how to go about it.
After this power flooded the entire world, a colossal phantom appeared in the sky above.
It was a stick of incense — not a physical object, but rather an illusory manifestation.
It was enormous. Even as a projection, it radiated an overwhelming sense of pressure. The incense was burning, and burning fast at that.
Clearly, it served as a time limit.
The moment this incense burned out, every person within the trial world would be expelled.
With time pressing, people could only begin studying the scrolls in their hands more carefully. Chu Feng was no exception.
Although there were no direct instructions, everyone understood that the method for collecting the power had to be hidden somewhere within the scroll.
Yet compared to the others, Chu Feng was perfectly at ease. After unfurling his scroll, he regarded it the way one might admire a painting — unhurried, savoring every detail with a leisurely gaze, as though appreciating a rare work of art.
Before long, someone cracked the code — the method for using the scroll to absorb the power.
They performed a series of hand seals, and the energy began flowing into the scroll.
Following that discovery, more and more people figured out the collection method.
In the blink of an eye, fully twenty percent of those present were able to use their scrolls to absorb the surrounding power.
Of course, because each person had mastered a different technique, the speed at which they gathered energy varied.
Judging by their absorption rates in comparison to the time limit imposed by the incense stick — even among those who had already begun collecting power, at least ninety percent would likely fail. Only one in ten would manage to accumulate enough to obtain a formation.
As time passed, more people gradually found the method.
By now, thirty percent of those present had figured out how to absorb the power.
As for the rest, their expressions said it all — they were helpless.
If they couldn't even determine how to collect the power, they had clearly missed their chance at any formations the trial had to offer.
"Chu Feng... why hasn't he started yet?"
All eyes turned to Chu Feng.
After all, Chu Feng was the one who had opened this trial, yet here he was, seemingly in the same camp as those who hadn't even discovered the collection method.
Could it be that Chu Feng couldn't figure out how to absorb the power either?
If that was the case, then how had he opened the trial in the first place?
Was Chu Feng simply someone who had gotten lucky?
Of course, only a few entertained such thoughts. Most believed Chu Feng must have his own plan.
But as time continued to slip away, more than half of the incense stick within the trial world had burned down.
At this point, some people's scrolls had begun to shimmer with a white radiance, accompanied by the sound of white dragon roars.
The white glow closely resembled the power of a White Dragon Pattern.
Once this energy manifested, it signified that the scroll was eligible to receive a formation.
If one continued, it might even produce a radiance rivaling that of a Grey Dragon Pattern — at which point a far more powerful formation could be obtained.
But compared to all of that, what people cared about most was still Chu Feng.
The trial was nearing its end.
Yet Chu Feng still hadn't made a single move. He simply continued to gaze at his scroll.