Chapter 94: The Trial Begins
"Junior Brother, something seems off."
A middle-aged steward who had been following He Shaogang closely walked over with a grim expression.
"What is it?"
Seeing the man's serious expression, He Shaogang instinctively straightened his posture.
"I can't get in touch with Junior Brother Zhao."
The middle-aged steward's voice was filled with concern. Their sect had only three members who successfully infiltrated Qinglu Sect: himself, He Shaogang, and Junior Brother Zhao, who was stationed in the outer disciple area.
The pawn network He Shaogang controlled in the outer disciple district—including Gu Mo—had all been cultivated by Junior Brother Zhao. Zhao was a key figure in their mission to dismantle Qinglu Sect from within.
For such an important member to suddenly go missing was alarming. If Junior Brother Zhao had been caught by a passing Qinglu Sect Golden Core elder, even though their souls were branded with restrictions that made them immune to soul-searching techniques, his capture alone could alert Qinglu Sect to the infiltration. That would lead to heightened security, making their entire plan much harder to execute, or even causing it to fail entirely.
"I told him to relay orders to Gu Mo. How could he suddenly disappear?" He Shaogang's expression darkened upon hearing the news.
A thought flashed through his mind—could it have been Gu Mo's doing? Had he deliberately drawn Qinglu Sect's attention? But He Shaogang quickly dismissed the idea as absurd. Gu Mo's life was in his hands, and the man had no courage to betray him.
More likely, Junior Brother Zhao had encountered an accident while delivering the orders.
"I'll investigate this matter."
Junior Brother Zhao was a Foundation Establishment cultivator—such a person couldn't simply vanish without a trace. Even if he had been captured by a Qinglu Sect Golden Core elder, there should be internal reports on it. With He Shaogang's status as a direct disciple of his sect master, he had access to such intelligence.
If it wasn't a serious issue, he might even find a way to rescue Zhao. Someone capable of infiltrating Qinglu Sect as an undercover agent wouldn't be easily exposed. Perhaps Zhao was merely being questioned over something unrelated.
However, without Zhao delivering the order, Gu Mo wouldn't act, making it impossible for him to assist in the assassination of Yuan Niya.
At this point, He Shaogang had no way to send new orders to Gu Mo.
"It seems I'll have to find another opportunity after leaving the sect."
Even without Gu Mo's cooperation, He Shaogang wouldn't give up on the plan to eliminate Yuan Niya. The True Disciple Trial was the perfect chance to weaken Qinglu Sect's future prospects. Missing this opportunity would mean waiting indefinitely for another.
Inside Qinglu Sect, his resources were limited. But outside the sect, he had the full backing of a Nascent Soul-level sect.
If necessary, he could send multiple Foundation Establishment cultivators to ambush Yuan Niya. She might have great potential, but she was still only a Qi Refining cultivator. A single Foundation Establishment cultivator would be enough to kill her, but sending several would ensure success—especially since she was likely to have protective talismans and hidden guardians during the trial.
That said, if he could contact Gu Mo, the plan would have a much higher success rate with minimal risk.
—
"Gu Mo, give it a try."
Chu Feifei handed a jade talisman to Gu Mo. She had set up three formations in his spiritual field.
The outermost one was a concealment array that masked the field's aura.
The second was a defensive formation custom-made for Gu Mo. Its core was a giant nut—a strange plant that Chu Feifei had seen before. This time, however, the nut Gu Mo provided seemed even tougher than before.
Her intuition was correct. This nut was a top-tier Rank 1 specimen. Combined with the defensive formation, it could withstand a full-force attack from a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
One attack might not seem like much, but inside the sect, any Foundation Establishment cultivator launching a full-powered strike would immediately attract the attention of sect elders.
Gu Mo actually had more of these high-grade nuts and could have used them to construct an even stronger formation. However, since he was about to assist Yuan Niya in the True Disciple Trial, he needed to keep some for emergencies. If they encountered danger, Chu Feifei could use the nuts to create emergency formations, buying them time for reinforcements to arrive.
The final formation was an illusion array that hid the plants in Gu Mo's field. Combined with the outer concealment array, it provided excellent protection for his secrets.
Because Chu Feifei had tailored these formations to the environment, they were far more effective than pre-made formation disks.
"Not bad, not bad!"
After testing all three formations, Gu Mo nodded in satisfaction. With these defenses in place, he could safely expand his sunflower farm when he returned.
Once everything was set, he left Xiao Li in charge of guarding the field and handling daily upkeep. Xiao Li's advanced Rain Spell was more than enough to care for the Water Spirit Rice. Additionally, Gu Mo left behind a Rank 2 Peashooter and a Rank 2 Potato Mine as last-resort defenses.
The last intruder—a Foundation Establishment demonic cultivator—had died to his explosive trap. Gu Mo wasn't sure if the man had allies who might return, so he took precautions.
With his field secured, Gu Mo and Chu Feifei flew toward the marketplace, where Yuan Niya was gathering supplies for their journey.
"You two finally made it! Check out my guide!"
When Yuan Niya saw them, she excitedly presented her latest acquisition.
Gu Mo expected her to have hired an experienced cultivator, but instead, she pulled out a jade slip.
"Hehe, this is a real treasure!"
Seeing their confusion, Yuan Niya injected spiritual energy into the jade slip, which lit up and displayed a map. A red dot marked their current location—Qinglu Sect's marketplace.
This was no ordinary map; it was a navigational tool! A must-have for travelers. According to Yuan Niya, the jade slip not only provided navigation but also detailed information about various locations—markets, monster territories, faction boundaries, and more.
With this jade slip, they could avoid unnecessary trouble during their journey. Unfortunately, it wasn't for sale—her Golden Core master had given it to her. The information within was based on his past travels, and the slip itself was a high-grade magical artifact with detection abilities.
It could sense nearby monsters and even detect cultivators unless they deliberately suppressed their spiritual energy.
"You two find an inn—I have a few more things to prepare."
After marveling at the jade slip, Gu Mo left the group and headed to Gou Youyu's tavern.
For this trial, aside from cultivating plants, Gu Mo had also asked Gou Youyu to gather disguise and camouflage items.
Traveling incognito was always a good idea—it greatly improved safety.
"Brother Gu, here's everything you asked for!"
When Gu Mo arrived, Gou Youyu quickly handed him a package.
"Thanks, Brother Gou!"
After collecting the items, Gu Mo returned to meet Yuan Niya and Chu Feifei at the inn.
Inside, he unpacked the contents: a Rank 1 disguise technique and various concealment tools.
The disguise technique wasn't particularly advanced—it only altered facial muscles slightly. Close acquaintances might still recognize them.
Still, it was useful for casual travel. To be extra cautious, Gu Mo prepared additional tools to enhance the effect.
A true secret disguise technique would have been ideal, but this was the best he could manage for now. Fortunately, this technique was easy to learn, and within hours, all three of them had mastered it.
A few hours later, three ordinary-looking rogue cultivators left the marketplace unnoticed.
Except by Rong Guangsheng.
As Yuan Niya's assigned guardian and examiner, he was watching her every move.
"Did they switch the male cultivator?"
Rong Guangsheng narrowed his eyes. Yuan Niya and Chu Feifei's disguises were meaningless to a Foundation Establishment cultivator like him. But the young man was different—his disguise was unexpectedly effective.
Curious, Rong Guangsheng sent out his spiritual sense to probe the youth.
—
Gu Mo suddenly halted mid-step and glanced behind him. He had sensed a probing spiritual sense.
"Probably the sect's guardian."
Realizing there was no hostility, Gu Mo quickly pieced it together. Given Yuan Niya's ranking, it made sense for the sect to assign a protector.
Rong Guangsheng was momentarily startled. A Qi Refining cultivator shouldn't have sensed his probe. But when he tried again, Gu Mo showed no reaction.
"Must have been a coincidence…"
Yet something about this young man felt strange.
"What's wrong?"
Chu Feifei, walking beside Gu Mo, noticed his change in expression.
"Nothing."
Gu Mo shook his head. There was no need to tell them about the guardian—it would ruin the test's authenticity.
"Junior Brother Gu Mo, this is too slow. Let's fly over on our swords." After walking for a while, Yuan Niya could no longer hold back.
"That works too."
Gu Mo nodded. The reason they had been walking earlier was that he wanted to check if anyone was tailing them. As expected, someone was following them—but it turned out to be a guardian sent by their sect.
The three of them soared into the sky on their swords, transforming into streaks of light that disappeared into the horizon.
Hidden in the shadows, Rong Guangsheng finally revealed himself, his expression filled with approval. This wasn't his first time acting as a guardian. He had seen plenty of reckless newcomers who, the moment they left the sect, would take off on their swords without a second thought—never bothering to check whether they were being followed.
Of course, the reason they were often tailed was because they drew too much attention. Even if one was a disciple of a prestigious sect, once they stepped outside, they became a potential target. Rogue cultivators would fight over a few spirit stones, let alone a sect disciple laden with treasures. At worst, they would strike once and flee far away.
But Gu Mo's group had done well. They knew how to disguise themselves, reducing the risk of being tracked.
After waiting for a moment, Rong Guangsheng concealed his presence once more and prepared to follow them. Suddenly, his mind wavered for an instant. Frowning at the unexpected anomaly, he didn't dwell on it since he still had a mission to complete. In a flash of light, he shot off in pursuit of Gu Mo and the others.
"Success!"
At that moment, a figure stepped out of the shadows, looking at the motionless Rong Guangsheng with a smile. Trapping a cultivator of the same level in an illusion was no easy feat. If not for the illusion-type magical treasure bestowed upon him by the sect, he wouldn't have been able to do it so effortlessly.
"The target guardian has been subdued!"
The figure took out a formation disk, setting up a concealment array to shroud both himself and the ensnared Rong Guangsheng, ensuring they wouldn't be discovered. At the same time, he sent a signal to his accomplices, initiating the next phase of their ambush.
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