Yun Fei opened his eyes in the dark underground chamber and wiped the sweat dripping off his forehead.

The day of the exam draws near and there's very little chance for me to break through to the 4th level of Qi condensation, it keeps getting harder to carve out the meridians inside my body.

All the chaotic Qi inside my body has already been assimilated into orderly flow of the meridians, I have to absorb Qi normally which slows my cultivation speed to the same as other people.

He stood up and stretched his muscles which were sore from being in the same position for a long amount of time.

As he loosened up his taut muscles, Yun Fei once again appreciated just how much he liked being in control of his body and physically moving it.

He felt very happy performing physical movements that were impossible for him before.Only another cripple could empathize with the simple enjoyment, that the feel of his sinew twitching in soreness offered him.

Living like a savage in the forest, the daily toil and exercise in order to better survive had made his body what it was. Skin stretched tight over lean muscles, all excess had melted away from his frame and all that was left has strength.

Yun Fei hadn't ever thought of reciting scriptures even once after he left the monastery, he didn't believe in anything like that anymore.

The only thing that tied him to the monastery now was animosity, which he would surely resolve in the near future when he became a little stronger.

Almost unintentionally, Yun Fei exercised his body and thought about the things that had happened recently.

My eye technique has gotten better and better, the world seems much more vivid than before. The distance to which I can sense has also increased.

The Forest King's crown is really helpful in cultivation, it can reduce the pain I feel and also increase the speed by which I can absorb the Qi from my surroundings.

Although cultivation feels like torture to me, the benefits are evident. It has become much easier for me to use the Qi with the help of meridians. Now I can manipulate qi to support my limbs, and even attack.

Curling up his fist, strands of qi followed his will as they floated to the surface of his skin, weaving them self into a protective as well as an offensive covering. As he threw out a punch, air was sliced producing a satisfying sound.

Finishing up his exercises Yun Fei started to prepare some food to fill himself up. Although he required very less food to get by now since he could directly take in the energy from the atmosphere, he still needed to eat somewhat regularly.

Pulling out the dagger he had acquired early on in the forest, he looked at it's edge for some moments and then began to cut some stored meat and vegetables.

This dagger has accompanied me from the start of my new life at the forest, yet it still carries no scratches or blemishes.

I don't know what that forest is, it might be related to the Forest King since the crown was there. I'll have to find more about it once I have some free time on my hands.

After finishing all the things that he had to, Devanshu moved towards the underground chamber where Yun Fei was cultivating. The deadline to reach the peak of the mountain was in 3 days.

It was about time that Yun Fei started his journey towards the mountain peak.

Devanshu opened up the trap door and descended the stairs, what greeted his eyes was nothing but two purple lights amid the darkness.

His heart shook a little as he looked into Yun Fei's purple violet eyes but he maintained his composure as he called out.

"Master what are you up to in the dark? You almost scared me to death."

Yun Fei just smiled as he replied back to Devanshu,

"Hahahaha, nothing much. I don't really need the lights."

Devanshu switched on the lights of the room and went to brew some tea as he made some small talk.

Serving the tea he boiled, Devanshu's face took on a serious look as he said,

"Master I have acquired the most recent information that I could get my hands on. I think the contenders will be very strong this time."

Yun Fei savoured the tea and called out in surprise.

"Are these the same tea leaves? why is it that the tea you make is much better than the one I make, even though we use the same tea leaves?"

Devanshu's face depicted the pride he felt in his skills as he answered.

"That's just because I am very experienced and have a special technique to brew tea, I am very confident in my tea making skills.

I would even be willing to bet that almost no one can make better tea than me in this whole city but that's not important, let me tell you about the information that I got my hands on instead."

Yun Fei also got more serious and then they had a strategy meeting where Devanshu told Yun Fei about all the information that he acquired and his thoughts on it.

“This intelligence came at a great personal cost, so I hope master can make the best of it." Devanshu was anxious as he felt Yun Fei was Ill matched against some opponents, especially Su Libai with his fearsome illusions.

He must surely have a few trump cards that I don't know about, I do not need to worry. consoled by his conviction Devanshu continued.

"I've prepared some rations for you to take along with you and a change of clothes." Yun Fei's mouth watered as he accepted the bundle of smoked meat and wheat biscuits.

In an uncharacteristically stern voice Devanshu said,

"Don't eat them up before you need them they might prove crucial.

And hold off on the biscuits unless you forsee a fight, they are my own special blend and will provide a pleasant surprise. There are but three of them.

These are the arrows that you asked off me before, and some throwing daggers. I think that it's best if you leave right now.

Since the searching talismans can only work at some distance away from the city, you don't have to be worried about being ambushed at the gates. I would advise you to move discreetly but fast so as to avoid attention.

While you were cultivating, some announcements have been made from the side of the city which disallow movements of non-participants in the tracts of land from the city to the mountain so the candidates don't have to worry about external influence."

Yun Fei listened to Devanshu and then packed up his belongings, he bade farewell and paid his thanks to Devanshu as he moved towards the gate he used to enter Sungon city.

It was just an hour after midnight, making it the perfect time to sneak out without any commotion.

Devanshu stood outside the dilapidated building as he saw Yun Fei turning around the corner,

I don't really need to wish someone like him luck, his own destiny is already beyond compare. And as someone new to the town he shouldn't have anyone gunning for him, should he?

At some distance west of the city, in an underground hall a loud voice echoed.

"Although the Song Brothers were of not much use, they were still members of the group. If I let us get pushed around like this, I won't have any face to show to the higher ups and the other team leaders.

Wipe this guy out as fast as possible and bring his head back along with the space pouch."

"Leader, the tracking formations is showing him exiting Sungon city, but that area he has moved towards has been cordoned off by the city officials.

The people who are not a part of the examination cannot harm the participants and this is being strictly enforced.

However, that won’t be a problem. I've already dispatched Li Gan and Gao Jian to deal with this matter.

They have also enrolled for the competition and have the highest cultivation level allowed.

They can just join the city guard association as planned after killing this guy. Since they were sent by the higher ups, they must have some method to bypass the Youlan Mirror.

We don't have to worry about this issue anymore, let's plan what we have to do after Li Gan and Gao Jian have infiltrated the city."

"Hahahaha, Good Job. Let's talk about the infiltration now."

Yun Fei was making his way outside the city, oblivious, following an old hunter’s map that Devanshu had gotten for him, it would lead him the entire way to the mountain.

He was excited to participate in the competition and win.

I am progressing steadily but I can feel my own shortcomings and according to Devanshu all of the other contestants have solidified their own martial style and many of them even possess martial techniques.

Only by utilising the resources of the Guards can I begin to bridge the gap between us.

A warm glow rose up in his cheeks as he thought,

I hope I can see Lin Xue at the peak, since she was 16 and didn't seem weak. She should definitely participate in it.

In the northern reaches of the Nan forest towards the south of the 8 path monastery; in a cavern deep underground.

An injured figure kneeled panting on the polished, smooth rock of the cavern. He was covered with congealed blood and a disgusting black slime, his clothes tattered.

It was Yun Moxie.

Yun Fei's adoptive father looked over his shoulder at the marsh like blood pit that stretched across his trodden path. The floor of the cavern was filled with thick blood soup that came up to his knees.

The cavern itself was carved most certainly by human hands in the shape of a maze, a single path, each room laden with traps, poisonous insects, swinging axes, noxious gases. The wall glittered scarlet, no light source was apparent.

This place had managed to imprison Yun Moxie in its depth for close to 2 years, the vestiges that he had found at the bottom of the seemingly endless sea of blood, suggested a horrible truth.

It has been years since I've been trapped in this place, made to jump through hoops and traverse perilous trap rooms.

The one who set up this inheritance ground was definitely a peerless evil cultivator; he actually created a blood pool from the remains of innocent children. The small skulls and underdeveloped bones I found suggest as much.

Even my body has been soaked through by the ominous aura that runs deep through this place, however without cultivating with that aura I could never pass the tests set up by the owner. There is no future for me in righteous sects anymore.

With my contaminated Qi unless I find some method to hide it, those excessively righteous cultivators will scream about slaying the demons and protecting the Dao.

Ominous or Demonic aura was one of the attributes that Qi could adopt.

The prejudiced saw it as inherently evil though that wasn't really uncalled for, if the actions of the demonic faction were assessed.

The cultivators and sects who practiced Demonic Cultivation were usually very tyrannical and despicable. They slaughtered innocents without any apprehensions and committed highly questionable acts on their path to power.

The Righteous faction was always embroiled in conflict with the Demonic faction, it might be because they were different or just that the righteous faction considered itself to be 'Righteous'.

They thought it to be their duties to slay the demons who practice the debauched demonic cultivation techniques and protect the Dao. Always trying to keep the moral high ground, it was a big part of the identities of the righteous cultivators to hunt demonic cultivators.

There were also differences in cultivation of the two camps. Righteous cultivators focused on purity of their Qi and stability of their hearts while the Demonic cultivators focused more on the speed of cultivation and the Quantity.

The demonic versions of the Qi also lent a slight strength advantage to the cultivators but there were also drawbacks in the form of an unstable heart which could lead to Qi Deviations and Heart Devils which could even lead to death if not handled properly.

However, even though these were different paths to powers for humans. It was postulated by many scholars and wise men that they finally reached the same destination in the higher levels, the only difference remaining, the different ideologies or Dao.

Yun Moxie was currently in Nan forest which fell into a predominant righteous territory. He feared that if he encountered some strong righteous cultivators after he escaped from the forest, he'd be swiftly eliminated without any chance to escape.

However, he didn't regret escaping to this direction and falling into this ruin. He knew that it was a very substantial chance to increase in strength and get some inheritance to improve his future.

“What is done is done, this is a chance for me to be reborn. I must forge through this hellhole and solidify my gains.”

Just as soon as he took a step forward a rumbling sound of something heavy rolling was heard and at the very next moment a huge boulder slammed through the previously seamless cavern ceiling.

Jagged rocks fell shattering against the floor and spraying Yun Moxie with shrapnel and blood. Running for his life he disappeared down the only available path, forward.