176: Fierce battle!!

"It's the 'Three Bears of Mobei'! They want to enter too?" someone in the crowd whispered.

"The eldest, Xiong Bao, is in the Iron Bone Realm. He might actually make it..."

"Hard to say. Those Iron Bone Realm Early Stage experts from just now were turned to ash before they even touched the door..."

Under everyone's gaze, Xiong Bao strode to a spot five zhang from the stone door, stopped, and squinted at it.

The red light on the stone door flowed incessantly, with no other unusual signs.

"Playing tricks!" Xiong Bao gave a sinister laugh. His blood and Qi surged, and his skin took on an iron-gray luster, clearly having cultivated some kind of external hard-body art. He let out a violent shout and stomped his feet; the ground shook slightly as he charged toward the stone door like a cannonball!

His two brothers followed closely behind, the three of them in a triangular formation, their Aura aggressive!

The moment Xiong Bao stepped within three zhang of the stone door—

"Buzz!"

On the surface of the stone door, the flowing flame patterns suddenly lit up with a blinding white light!

In the next moment, a line of ancient flame-like characters appeared out of thin air above the lintel. Each character seemed forged from burning magma, emitting a scorching and majestic Aura:

"Those under twenty-five years of age and at the Jiaojin Realm or below may enter. Those who exceed the limit shall be incinerated by the door's fire."

The moment the text appeared, Xiong Bao and his brothers had already rushed to within two zhang of the door!

"Pretentious! Open up for me!" Xiong Bao roared, his right fist gathering his full strength. The iron-gray fist let out a piercing whistle through the air as it smashed violently toward the stone door!

However, before his fist could even touch the door—

"Boom!"

From the center of the stone door, a blast of pure white fire suddenly erupted!

That fire was no ordinary flame; it was smokeless and odorless, yet it emitted an extreme heat. Wherever it passed, the air distorted and cracked, making strange sizzling noises!

Xiong Bao's expression changed drastically. He wanted to retreat, but it was too late!

The white flames swept out like a living thing and swallowed him!

"Argh—!!!"

The shrill scream came to an abrupt end.

Within the flames, Xiong Bao's Iron Bone Realm body melted and vaporized as quickly as a wax statue. In less than a breath's time, he turned into a pile of fly ash, scattering with the wind!

His two brothers behind him were only grazed by the edge of the flames. Their protective Qi instantly collapsed, and half of their bodies were charred and carbonized. They fell to the ground screaming and rolling, and in just a few breaths, they fell silent, leaving behind only two mangled, charred corpses.

The entire field fell into a dead silence.

Everyone gasped, their eyes filled with terror as they looked at the stone door.

The white flames slowly retracted into the door. The flame characters on the stone door continued to burn brightly, as if silently announcing the inviolability of the rules.

"Age under twenty-five, Jiaojin Realm and below..." someone murmured.

"Is... is this the screening mechanism of the Secret Realm itself?"

"No wonder Army Breaker Manor and the Wolf Clan Shamans brought their younger Disciples..."

"Even an Iron Bone Realm expert was turned to ash in an instant. This fire is too terrifying..."

Discussions gradually arose, and people's eyes began to wander over the young faces within the various factions.

In the Army Breaker Manor camp, behind the cold-faced Captain Xiao Zhan, stood three young armored soldiers who looked to be in their early twenties—two men and one woman. Their breathing was steady and their gazes sharp; they were clearly skilled experts at the Flood Dragon Tendon Realm, Initial Stage.

Beside the Northern Desert Wolf Clan Shaman, there were also four young warriors. Each had surging blood and Qi and arrogant eyes, and the scimitars at their waists faintly shimmered with a bloody light.

Among the Central Plains factions like Tingtao Academy and the Qiushui Sword Sect, there were also several young Disciples with extraordinary temperaments.

Among the larger crowd of Loose Cultivators, young Martial Artists who met the age and cultivation requirements were also secretly calculating, their eyes flickering.

Chen Linsheng lay prone on the sand dune, taking everything in.

The restrictions on the stone door set his mind at ease.

Age under twenty-five—he was currently not even twenty, well within the limit.

Jiaojin Realm and below—he was precisely at the Flood Dragon Tendon Realm, Initial Stage. Although his actual combat strength far exceeded his level, his Realm itself met the requirements.

More importantly, this restriction blocked many of the older generation's experts and those Martial Artists who had ground their way to higher Realms through time. Those who could enter were all true young geniuses. While the competition would still be fierce, it was at least on a relatively "fair" starting line.

And he, possessing various trump cards like the Hunyuan True Body, the Five Viscera Absorbing Essence Art, the Golden Robe Skill, and the Mountain Suppressing Seal, as well as extraordinary Skills like Tracking Perfection, Five Senses Clarity, and Minor Achievement in Statecraft, was confident he wouldn't lose to anyone of the same age and Realm.

"Fentian Valley..." Chen Linsheng looked toward the stone door shimmering with red light, Battle Intent igniting in his eyes.

The crimson flame great peng feather in his breast grew slightly warm, as if urging him forward.

He knew that his own Opportunity lay behind that door.

No longer hesitating, Chen Linsheng stood up, patted the neck of the Date-Red Horse, and released the reins, letting it leave on its own—the horse would not be able to follow him on the path ahead.

He organized his gear, slung the "Skyfire" bow across his back, hung his iron sword at his waist, and tucked away his essential supplies.

Finally, he put on his sand mask and goggles, took a deep breath of the scorching air, and with a flash of his body, he sped toward the platform at the foot of Chiyan Mountain where the various factions were gathered like a blue-gray shadow... At the foot of Chiyan Mountain, the atmosphere on the platform suddenly tightened to the extreme following the tragic deaths of the "Three Bears of Mobei."

The flame characters on the stone door burned brightly; the rules were clear. Under twenty-five years old, Jiaojin Realm and below—this was like an invisible sieve, quickly dividing the hundreds of people on the platform into two categories: those qualified to compete for the Opportunity, and those who could only be spectators.

After a brief silence, the commotion spread like a plague.

The older Martial Artists and Iron Bone Realm experts who were excluded by the rules looked extremely grim.

Some clenched their fists in frustration, some scanned the qualified young faces with flickering eyes, and others quietly retreated, vanishing into the shadows of the crowd, plotting who knows what.

Meanwhile, the young Martial Artists who met the criteria became the focus of the entire field.

Gazes fell upon them—some with envy, some with jealousy, and some with undisguised, cold killing intent.

"Eliminate the opponents!"

Unknown who it was that growled lowly, acting like a spark in a powder keg.

"Move!"

"Clear the way for our clan's geniuses!"

"Kill!"

Almost simultaneously, battles broke out in several places!

The first to strike was the Northern Desert Wolf Clan.

The four young warriors standing by the young Shaman let out a long howl together, a howl filled with wild brutality.

Their figures were like lightning as they boldly lunged toward the nearest group of Central Plains Loose Cultivators.

In that group, there were three young people with strong Auras, all at the Flood Dragon Tendon Realm, Initial Stage—qualified competitors.

"How dare you wolf cubs!"

An old man among the Loose Cultivators shouted in fury, drawing his blade to block, but he was intercepted by two middle-aged warriors from the Wolf Clan camp who were also excluded by the rules, and they fell into a fierce fight.

The four young Wolf Clan warriors coordinated perfectly. Two attacked head-on with scimitars, the blade light like New Moons with a shrill whistling sound; one held a bone javelin, moving around the perimeter to provide support, the tip of the spear glistening with a faint blue poisonous light; the last one was actually empty-handed, but his fingernails were black and sharp, his movements like a ghost as he specialized in attacking the lower body with sinister and ruthless Moves.

The three young Loose Cultivators were caught off guard and instantly fell into a disadvantageous position, their lives hanging by a thread.

On the other side, several young Disciples from Tingtao Academy and the Qiushui Sword Sect also came under attack. The attackers were not from a single faction but were several Loose Cultivators with ruthless eyes and varied techniques. They had clearly formed a temporary alliance with a clear goal—to eliminate these Sect elites and reduce the number of competitors.

"Form a formation!" a student in green robes from Tingtao Academy shouted. He unfurled a scroll in his hand, and clear Qi erupted, turning into an invisible barrier. The three academy Disciples stood back-to-back, each holding strange weapons like brushes, ink, paper, or inkstones. Their clear Qi linked together, barely managing to withstand the frantic assault of the five Loose Cultivators.

The two young swordsmen from the Qiushui Sword Sect were more direct. Their sword light was like snow, chilling to the bone, as they instantly engaged with three opponents. Sword Qi crisscrossed, and frost condensed.

In front of the Army Breaker Manor camp, the cold-faced Captain Xiao Zhan's eyes were as cold as iron. He watched the sudden outbreak of chaos without moving immediately. The three young armored soldiers behind him had already drawn their blades, their Auras locked onto several nearby figures who were itching to Move. If the opponents made even the slightest Move, they would face a thunderous strike.

The entire platform was instantly transformed into a Shura Field!