223: Fighting in front of the pond

"The True Devil Pool... No, it seems much smaller in scale than rumored... Is it just a sub-pool?"

Gu Changsheng's eyes flashed with purple, and his powerful Divine Thought swept across, yet it seemed to be obstructed by a barrier.

He reached out, and immediately, a translucent light curtain appeared around the True Devil Pool.

At the very top, ancient, simple seal script characters emerged.

'Insufficient number of trial participants, not yet open.'

"So that's how it is..."

Gu Changsheng simply crossed his arms and rested by the side.

After a long while, a hand suddenly appeared at the edge of the one hundred thousandth step, a head with three eyes peeked out, then he leaped high, reaching the top.

It was the Tianmu Clan youth.

'Hmm? This person does have some skill... Among True Core Realm Cultivators, he can be considered quite good...' Gu glanced at him, then no longer paid attention.

After all, they were just True Core Realm Cultivators.

Even though the Senmu Clan Cultivator he currently possessed was not skilled in fighting and had weak magical power, with his various secret techniques, he was not comparable to an ordinary True Core Realm Cultivator.

Beside him, the Tianmu Clan youth narrowed his eyes, his gaze towards Gu Changsheng filled with venom.

Several hours ago, he forcibly activated his Dharma Eye, causing a great loss of Soul Power, and almost got ejected from the Heavenly Staircase due to a momentary lapse.

Clearly, he blamed Gu Changsheng for this.

"Hmph." The Tianmu Clan youth snorted coldly, found a spot to sit cross-legged, silently swallowed a handful of Medicinal Pills, and began to recuperate.

After another while, the blue-robed woman and the Iron Pagoda Mountain Race youth successively climbed up.

"These two... especially that one..."

The Iron Pagoda Mountain Race youth looked at Gu Changsheng with a wary expression and silently avoided him.

'When the fighting starts later, I must avoid that person...'

Gradually, more and more Cultivators climbed to the top.

The light curtain outside the True Devil Pool in his perception grew increasingly dim.

Finally... the thousandth person arrived.

All trial participants instantly received the same Divine Thought message.

The third trial — Slaughter before the Pool, begin!

"Mutual slaughter... until only one hundred people remain..."

"A ninety percent elimination rate?"

"Damn it!"

Some weaker trial participants turned pale and slowly moved towards the edge of the Heavenly Staircase.

Rip—

A burly Saint Clan member suddenly pierced through the right chest of a gray-robed Cultivator with a claw, pulled out a throbbing heart, and chewed it savagely.

"This taste... is truly wonderful..."

Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth onto the ground, making him look like a terrifying demon.

Immediately, the entire arena erupted into a wave of slaughter.

"Kill!"

"Today, this old man will prove his Dao through slaughter and achieve an unparalleled Devil Body!"

"Die!"

In an instant, cries of battle, pleas for mercy, and wails echoed through the sky, the pool water churned, stained with devil blood, and the entire world was shrouded in a bloody mist.

Bang—

A powerful punch, heavy enough to split mountains, struck a black-robed Cultivator, instantly causing his body to explode, internal organs mixed with blood spilling out.

The burly giant, resembling a black bear, sneered and stared at others.

Drizzle—

Fine rain fell, gradually transforming into blood-winged bats, devouring everything around.

"This flesh and blood will be perfect to nourish my children..."

Among the bat swarm, a female Cultivator in a revealing red robe chuckled.

"Are you going to get lost yourself, or should this venerable one do it personally!"

A fierce man with a curved saber said menacingly.

"Mercy... I..."

Rip—

A silver light swept across the sky, and a fine head was thrown high.

"Trash..."

The fierce man sneered and plunged back into the crowd.

Cultivators of various clans displayed their methods, and from time to time, the names of the Red Bat Demoness, the Mountain-Splitting Bear Monster, and the Scimitar Wielder were heard.

At this moment, Gu Changsheng still had his eyes closed, and his surroundings seemed like a vacuum, with no one daring to approach, as if all the fighting had nothing to do with him.

The trial participants were not fools; the Senmu Clan Cultivator in front of them had reached the top as the first place. Even if his methods were not obvious, who would dare to provoke him?

In fact, no one dared to provoke the few in the first echelon.

After all, only one hundred people needed to remain in the end, so they could just pick on the weak.

It was basically a one-sided slaughter from the second echelon to the third echelon.

"The third trial is a bit boring, it doesn't even give this venerable one a chance to stretch his muscles..."

The Tianmu Clan youth said with disdain.

"Brother Tian Sheng, you are the Tianmu Clan's top Prodigy, who would dare to offend you? Are they tired of living?"

Beside him, a short Cultivator with a pointy mouth and monkey-like cheeks flattered him.

He was from the Miyuan Clan, a vassal race of the Tianmu Clan, and now he had found a powerful backer.

Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on the Tianmu Clan youth's face.

Suddenly, a teasing voice came from the side.

"Oh, Tian Sheng, aren't you always proud of your status, always striving for first place in everything? Why aren't you making a move against that person?"

The Iron Pagoda Mountain Race youth pointed to the east, where Gu Changsheng was located.

Hearing this, the Tianmu Clan youth's face darkened.

He then turned his head away, not responding.

He wasn't stupid; why would he be provoked by a few words and easily provoke a powerful enemy?

'Damn it, I couldn't trick this three-eyed freak...' A hint of coldness flashed in the Iron Pagoda Mountain Race youth's eyes.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind swept in.

It was a joint attack from more than ten people.

"If the Cultivators of the first echelon don't die, even if the True Devil Pool opens, how much hope do we have of competing for the True Devil Qi?"

"Big brother is right, everyone, let's attack together and kill this fiend."

"This old man doesn't believe that these people can be much stronger than us."

"Kill!"

The Iron Pagoda Mountain Race youth frowned: "Damn it, they dare to treat this old man as a soft persimmon..."

Stomping on the ground, his body suddenly swelled, an ancient gray light emanated from his body, and his Body Refining strength greatly increased, like a gigantic mountain devil.

"Die!"

Bang—

A heavy punch was thrown, accompanied by shrill screams, and the dozen or so people who had just ambushed him flew hundreds of feet away. Many Cultivators' heads exploded, and they were directly blasted into a bloody mist.

At the same time, a cold Sword Qi suddenly rose behind the Tianmu Clan youth.

"Die..."

The figure shrouded in darkness, with only a pair of icy eyes visible, uttered the word "die," emitting a unique fluctuation.

"Dark Shadow Clan... Hmph..."

The Tianmu Clan youth sneered, his third vertical pupil faintly lit up, his footwork changed, and he narrowly avoided this fatal blow.

In the exchange, he struck out with a palm, causing the Dark Shadow Clan Cultivator's body to shatter.

The Cultivators of the second echelon began to besiege the first echelon!

"Save me..."

A curvaceous, foxy female Cultivator, her face full of terror, fled towards Gu Changsheng's direction, followed by more than a dozen fierce men.

With a cry of "ouch," the foxy female Cultivator fell to the ground, inadvertently revealing her ample charms, and looked at Gu Changsheng with tearful eyes: "My lord, save me... I, Hu Qing'er, am willing to... Hmm?"

A foot kept growing larger in front of her eyes.

Even if she tried to dodge, she found that there was no direction in which she could avoid this kick.

Pfft—

With a single kick, the foxy female Cultivator's head burst open like a watermelon, blood splattered, and her body went limp, collapsing to the ground.

Gu Changsheng slowly withdrew his foot, his gaze coldly fixed on the dozen or so Cultivators in front of him: "This kind of trick... Fellow Daoists, you underestimate Gu too much..."

In an instant, everyone was horrified and fled towards the horizon as if escaping.

Bang, bang, bang—

Gu Changsheng lightly tapped his fingers, and powerful Qi precisely detonated one head after another. A dozen bodies simultaneously fell to the ground.

Killing more than a dozen skilled second-echelon Cultivators with a single move immediately attracted everyone's attention.

"Terrifying... The dozen leaders of the Qianshan Bandit Group couldn't even withstand a single move from this person..."

"This person must not be provoked!"

"What a ruthless heart, that Hu Qing'er was a famous beauty in Qianshan City..."

Beside him, the Iron Pagoda Mountain Race youth frowned slightly.

He was astonished to find that if he were in her place, it would also be quite difficult for him to avoid the Sword Qi just now.

'Monster...'

He silently shifted his body, moving even further away from Gu Changsheng.

The scene just now also did not escape the Dharma Eye of the Tianmu Clan youth. He frowned slightly, his eyes filled with apprehension, and he attacked in another direction.

With the first echelon entering the fray, the fighting became even more intense.

Not long after, only one hundred people remained.

The light curtain covering the True Devil Pool burst like a bubble with a 'pop'...