280: Some clues

A minute later, Feng Ming stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the members of the North Desert Mercenary Group who were collapsed on the ground and gasping for breath. His cool voice slowly rang out: "Speak. How did you find out the secret of the Wangyue Spring?"

Feng Ming was truly curious about this. He only knew the secrets of the Wangyue Spring because Wu Qingyue had spent a great deal of effort researching ancient texts and historical records to barely piece together a few clues.

But this group of crude mercenaries before him had neither connections nor background. How could they have set their sights on such a hidden place?

Facing Feng Ming's questioning, the leader of the mercenary group, North Desert, stiffened his neck, spat out a mouthful of blood, and snorted coldly, "Don't think you'll get a single word out of my mouth! If you have the guts, then kill me!"

Feng Ming was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, then he looked at North Desert with a strange expression as if he had heard some huge joke. "How did an idiot like you ever become the leader of a mercenary group?"

After saying that, his gaze turned to the group of shivering subordinates behind North Desert, his tone carrying a hint of mockery: "He has no brains, but are you all going to be foolish along with him?"

"What nonsense are you talking!" North Desert's eyes instantly widened in anger. He struggled to climb up from the ground, but only aggravated his wounds, making him grimace in pain.

Feng Ming withdrew his gaze and sighed softly, his tone calm yet carrying a heart-piercing force: "Don't you think your current appearance is very much like an idiot?"

"What do you mean?" North Desert furrowed his brows, feeling a faint sense of unease in his heart. He felt that there was some kind of trap hidden in Feng Ming's words.

Feng Ming spoke indifferently, every word clearly reaching everyone's ears: "There are so many people here. Did I say I had to have you answer my questions? Does it matter if you're willing to speak? Can you guarantee that while you keep your mouth shut, every single one of your subordinates is also unafraid of death?"

"You!" North Desert was left speechless by these words, the veins on his face bulging, and a mouthful of blood almost rushed up his throat.

Only then did he realize how foolish his actions just now were. Feng Ming didn't expect him to speak at all; as long as even one subordinate feared death, the secret could not be kept!

Seeing this, Feng Ming spread his hands, a "kind" smile appearing on his face: "Forget it. Since you want to die so badly, I'll just have to fulfill your wish. It's called helping someone achieve their goal."

Before his voice had even faded, a purple-gold Thunder Arc Blade suddenly condensed in his palm, and a chilling killing intent instantly filled the air.

When North Desert saw that Thunder Arc Blade, his expression changed drastically, and fear finally appeared in his eyes. No longer caring about acting tough, he hurriedly took out a snow-white crystal from his bosom and crushed it without hesitation.

"Watch out! He's going to run! That's a Random Teleportation Stone!" Hua Dieer, who was nearby, hurriedly shouted a warning.

This Random Teleportation Stone could randomly teleport a person to any corner of the Liangzhou Trial Grounds. Of course, because this was the Trial Grounds and was covered by a Formation, it was practically isolated from the world. Even a teleportation stone couldn't send someone out of this area.

The moment North Desert crushed the teleportation stone, a burst of white light suddenly erupted, enveloping his entire body.

The light grew brighter and brighter, seemingly about to take North Desert away from the spot. At this critical moment, the Thunder Arc Blade in front of Feng Ming moved.

That purple-gold stream of light was incredibly fast, weaving through the white light like a phantom.

With only a few soft "chi chi" sounds, the originally pure white light was actually dyed blood-red at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The surrounding mercenaries watched in stunned silence. The Thunder Arc Blade's weaving speed was extremely fast; in just three short seconds, the sphere of white light enveloping North Desert collapsed with a bang, like a punctured balloon.

The moment the white light dissipated, North Desert's body fell heavily to the ground, covered in blood, his eyes wide open, having already lost his breath.

Seeing this scene, North Desert's subordinates had their Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering. They collapsed on the ground one by one, cold sweat pouring down their foreheads, not even daring to breathe loudly.

They never would have imagined that even with a teleportation stone in hand, their leader still couldn't escape death.

Feng Ming's strength was truly terrifying!

Feng Ming withdrew the Thunder Arc Blade and swept his gaze over the crowd again, his tone still indifferent: "So now, who will answer my question from before?"

As soon as these words were spoken, a commotion immediately broke out among the crowd.

A man dressed in a black robe, enduring the intense pain in his legs, struggled to crawl into a kneeling position, his voice trembling but urgent: "I'll talk! I'll tell you everything! Just please don't kill me!"

"Tell me first." Feng Ming tilted his chin up, his expression unchanged.

The black-robed man had long been scared out of his wits. How could he dare to hide anything? He immediately recounted the whole sequence of events in detail.

The matter had to be traced back to three months ago, when North Desert and his mercenary group took a job to deliver goods to Liang Province.

Once the mission was completed, they stayed in a small farmhouse. The owner was a seventy-year-old man, accompanied by a grandson in his late teens.

The two depended on each other, but the grandson had good talent and was a Heaven Ranking participant in this year's Liangzhou Trial.

By a stroke of Destiny, North Desert and his men overheard the grandfather and grandson talking and learned the secret of the Wangyue Spring from them. According to the old man, as long as the youth could enter the Wangyue Spring during the Trial, he would obtain a massive Opportunity.

The Wangyue Spring was one of the Three Great Perilous Lands of the Liangzhou Trial Grounds, which was something almost everyone knew.

After North Desert heard this news, he immediately developed evil intentions.

Who wouldn't want to obtain the Opportunity of the Wangyue Spring? Not only would it mean a rapid surge in strength, but it could also bring more substantial benefits, and his mercenary group would become a top-tier power.

To ordinary people, wealth moves the heart, but to a Cultivator, gold, silver, and treasures are external things; strength is what gives one the right to speak.

Who could face an Opportunity without being moved? That night, North Desert took his men and seized the grandfather and grandson, interrogating them under torture all night long. After exhausting all methods, they finally obtained the answer they wanted.

As for the final fate of the grandfather and grandson, it was naturally self-evident.

Hua Dieer asked casually, and upon receiving the answer, her almond eyes widened in anger. She glared fiercely at North Desert's corpse on the ground and cursed angrily, "He was simply a beast! He deserved to die!"

Feng Ming's face also darkened. He furrowed his brows and continued to press, "And then?"

The black-robed man didn't dare to be slow at all and hurriedly continued, "Later, our leader started thinking of ways to get Trial qualifications. To buy the Heaven Ranking Trial qualifications, the leader exhausted his entire fortune and sought out several Sects to pull strings, which finally allowed all of us to sneak in."

Hearing this, Feng Ming was somewhat puzzled. "Why didn't you participate in the Earth Ranking?"

Hua Dieer explained from the side, "Although one can also enter the Trial Grounds through the Earth Ranking, the outskirts of the Three Great Perilous Lands are all covered by Formations. Earth Ranking participants simply cannot enter."

"Of course, one could follow inside by hiding in a storage ring, but once inside the perilous land, they would never be able to come back out, so it's completely useless. Therefore, they could only take the Heaven Ranking path."