Published: August 16, 2025
Chapter 172: The Choice
In the northern part of Jianzhou, on a barren mountain at the border between Yue Country and Yuanwu Country, dozens of people dressed in yellow robes stood. Their garments fluttered in the wind, and their ages varied greatly. The eldest had white hair and wrinkled faces, already at the twilight of their lives, while the youngest had delicate skin, rosy lips, and white teeth, still retaining their youthful innocence. Yet all of them stood silently and orderly.
At the front stood an imposing elderly man who exuded authority without raising his voice. He had his hands clasped behind his back and gazed calmly at the sky, lost in thought. Behind him were four men and one woman, all with solemn expressions. Among them was Senior Disciple Uncle Wang, the very one who had introduced Han Li to the sect. At this moment, he too wore a serious expression.
Behind these five were two neat rows of yellow-robed disciples. Their expressions varied—some looked tense and uneasy, some indifferent and casually glancing around, and others smiled quietly without revealing their thoughts.
In the corner of the last row stood a young man with a dark complexion and average looks, his eyes fixed on his toes, never daring to look around. He appeared extremely shy.
But no one knew that this seemingly timid young man, who looked like a yellow-haired kid, was actually filled with resentment and bitter complaints in his heart.
This young man was none other than Han Li, and this group of yellow-robed disciples were the members of Yellow Maple Valley participating in the Blood Trial.
In the end, Han Li had still decided to join this mission that was essentially a death sentence—even after having obtained two foundation establishment pills. This was both absurd and helpless.
More than a month ago, after learning the method to take foundation establishment pills from Wu Feng, Han Li was greatly discouraged.
It turned out that after taking the foundation establishment pill, the cultivator must seclude themselves for three months to fully absorb the medicinal power. Only then could the seclusion end; otherwise, the pill’s power would dissipate greatly, and its effectiveness would be severely reduced. Thus, whether foundation establishment would succeed could only be known after several months.
But waiting so long was very unfavorable for Han Li.
Originally, when he obtained these two foundation establishment pills, his plan was to first consume them and see if he could successfully establish a foundation. If he got lucky and succeeded, he would avoid the dangerous Forbidden Zone, as the survival rate there was only one in four—a terrifying prospect.
If the pills did not work, then embarking on the Forbidden Zone trial was inevitable. If one or two pills were insufficient, he could refine three, four, or even more. Han Li believed that no matter how poor his talent was, with enough foundation establishment pills, he could still enter the foundation establishment stage.
But the three-month seclusion requirement after taking the pills disrupted Han Li’s plan, putting him in a dilemma where he couldn’t have both.
He had to either take the foundation establishment pills now and give up the Forbidden Zone trip entirely, or put the pills aside temporarily and take them after the Blood Trial. There would be no way to have both.
After nearly half a month of pondering, Han Li concluded that with his poor talent, the hope of successfully establishing a foundation after taking two pills was slim, so the Blood Trial could not be abandoned.
In fact, Han Li had considered waiting another five years before participating in the Blood Trial. By then, even if he hadn’t established a foundation, his mastery of the everlasting spring technique would have reached its peak, greatly improving his ability to survive.
But shortly after this thought came to him, Yellow Maple Valley’s elders announced a shocking event that shook the entire immortal cultivation world of Yue Country, shattering his hopes.