"What the hell is that thing?" the Queen asked.
"No idea. It must be some kind of special formation," Chu Feng said.
"Let me go out and test it," the Queen offered.
"No need. It doesn't do any real damage. Just ignore it."
Chu Feng stopped paying attention to the little ghouls. Their clubs didn't hurt that much anyway, so he simply let them keep pounding away at him.
Instead, he focused his attention on the water in the pool.
After observing for a while, he grasped the crux of the matter. The pool water rejected him, and naturally, that meant no interaction would take place within it.
So he was deemed unworthy…
The reason for the rejection was more or less the same as before.
It came down to demons. What this place required was the bloodline of the demon race. Though Chu Feng possessed bloodline power, he was undeniably human, which meant he could never withstand the trial here.
That was also why those ghoul-like creatures kept mocking him.
In their eyes, Chu Feng must have been some small fry demon to have made it this far, but with such weak bloodline power, he could only be a minor demon.
"Looks like I'll have to find a way to alter some bloodline characteristics."
With that, Chu Feng left the pool and began setting up a formation, hoping to use it to deceive the pool's evaluation.
But even with the formation active on his body, when he re-entered the pool, the water remained completely unchanged. The little ghouls reappeared once more, raising their clubs and pummeling him again.
At the same time, the mocking laughter from the other pools grew increasingly shrill.
"If this keeps up, there's no way in."
Chu Feng was starting to get a headache. He had tried every method he could think of, but nothing worked.
He understood perfectly well why his deceptive formation had failed. This place itself was powered by a far more powerful formation. Trying to use his own formation to fool it was like showing off one's modest axe skills before Lu Ban's door.
"Little brat, it seems like you need some help."
Just then, a familiar voice rang out.
Hearing it, Chu Feng felt as though he had found his anchor. His earlier frustration vanished, replaced by a surge of confidence.
"Senior! It's you—you're finally willing to talk to me!" Chu Feng was overjoyed, and he immediately projected his consciousness into his Dantian.
The one who had spoken was none other than his bloodline power—the red Thunder Beast among the nine Thunder Beasts.
This red Thunder Beast had manifested in the Ancient Realm to help Chu Feng before, offering him guidance. In the end, it had even left him a special technique.
However, it had also told him that the technique could only be comprehended once. Chu Feng needed to attempt it only when he was absolutely certain, or the consequence would be the permanent loss of its power.
For that reason, Chu Feng had never dared to make a rash attempt.
Since then, the red Thunder Beast had not spoken to him again.
Chu Feng had assumed it would remain silent until he was ready to comprehend the technique. Yet today, it had spoken once more.
And now, with his consciousness projected into the Dantian, Chu Feng found the red Thunder Beast gazing directly at him—moving closer.
It was too large. Far, far too large.
So vast that even though it was still at an immense distance from Chu Feng, he could already barely make out its full form.
It wasn't that Chu Feng's vision was limited. The Thunder Beast was simply that enormous—its size was virtually impossible to describe.
But precisely because it was so close now, the Thunder Bamboo Scroll inside the Thunder Beast had also grown correspondingly massive.
That Thunder Bamboo Scroll was the technique the red Thunder Beast had left for Chu Feng.
It was a shame that Chu Feng had never dared to attempt its comprehension.
"Senior, can you help me?" Chu Feng cut straight to the point, not bothering with pleasantries.
He knew that the Thunder Beast speaking to him at this moment most likely meant it wanted to help him solve his problem.
"Little brat, this formation is no simple thing. Using a formation to alter your bloodline and slip past it is virtually impossible.
"But since this place's formation detects bloodlines, there is one method that might work. It will require you to endure extreme pain and will put considerable strain on your body. Are you willing to try?"
The Thunder Beast's deep, resonant voice reverberated throughout the Dantian world. The sensation was less like an entity speaking to Chu Feng and more like an entire world conversing with him.
Though he had witnessed the Thunder Beast's power before, facing it once more in person, the overwhelming, peerless pressure still filled Chu Feng with excitement.
Yes—excitement, not fear. After all, this was his own power. He simply couldn't wield it yet.