Second Trial

It took a long time for Nea to finish writing her letter. She had to rewrite it several times before she was satisfied. In her letter, she first said her apology for her tantrum. Then she shared her experience in the main continent. She had to end her letter when the moon had reached its peak. While cultivators did not require as much sleep as a mortal. Adequate sleep still had good effects on their body especially those with lower cultivation. Cultivators who had formed golden core could stay awake for a month without any adverse side effects. The Immortal clan members were blessed with a golden core since their birth, however, it needed to be activated first. Nea had not yet reached that step. 

She reluctantly ended her letter and gave it to the spirit beast. It was called a lightning owl. Its speed was remarkable and it was very intelligent. Han Bingde had lent it to her when she told him that she wanted to send a letter to her clan. This lightning owl had been trained to find the Immortal clan sentry that was stationed on the mainland. 

"Please send it safely," Nea said. The owl hooted as she rubbed its head. With its mighty wings, it soared into the dark sky. Nea watched as the owl's small figure was swallowed by the night.

The sun rose steadily on the sky. Many disciples did not sleep that night and those who did woke up early. The second trial would be held in the spiritual forest behind the mountain peaks. Many beasts roamed in this area. Disciples were prohibited to enter it without authorization. For the second trial, the Qing Yang Sect had put up a large barrier to surround the area where the second trial would be held. They gathered once again in the arena.

"For your second trial, you are required to gather these materials." Han Bingde raised his hand and a scroll flew out of her sleeve. The scroll enlarged and rolled open. A list of spiritual plants and parts of fierce beasts was written there. Each item was marked with points. "You can collect as many materials as possible. The more items you collect, the more points you will receive. You will be given a week to complete these tasks. Only those with rank 30 or above can enter the secret realm." With another wave of his hands, small pouches flew towards the participants. In each pouch, there were a copy of the list of materials, healing pills, and a signal talisman.

Han Bingde explained. "You can activate the talisman whenever you wish and an elder will take you out of the forest. Keep in mind, that you will fail the trial if you do this."

To enter the forest, a teleportation array had been set up. Unlike the massive teleportation array in the Immortal clan, this small teleportation array did not require its user to walk through the void. The main downside was the array could only teleport a person within a limited range. The order of participants entering the array was based on their timing when they left the illusion yesterday. The participants would then be scattered around the trial area.

The participants lined up and it did not take long for all of the participants to enter the forest. Ruan Yanxi found himself transported into an unremarkable part of the forest. The trees here were tall and thick. They towered over humans like giants and their leaves covered the sky. Only strands of light escaped through the gaps. He scanned his surrounding, making sure that there was no danger around him. Finding himself safe, Ruan Yanxi took out the list and began to read through it carefully. Most of the items on the list were moderately rare items but those with the highest points would require luck and hard work. After learning in the Qing Yang sect, he had gained considerable knowledge regarding spiritual plants and fierce beasts. He could not call himself a master but he could identify the many of them. Among the items listed, he only didn't know 5 of them. Ruan Yanxi took a random direction and began walking. 

Unlike the first trial which could be passed using willpower and mental strength, luck played a significant role in the second trial. If someone was unlucky it would be difficult to find these items. Though it might sound unfair, luck could be considered an ability. The world was not fair. There were those who were born in a good background with supportive family members and there were those born in detested and abandoned. Luck as fickle as it was could make and break one's fate. Still, hard work could make up one's luck. And Ruan Yanxi never considered relying on luck. 

On the first day, Ruan Yanxi managed to find several spiritual plants listed. Most of them were in tricky and unexpected places. One spiritual plant required him to climb the trees and search through the thick foliage to find a specific spiritual birds' nest. He had suffered a lot of pecking and squawking for his intrusion. At night, he did not sleep and instead meditate for several hours. After recovering his stamina, he climbed to the highest point of a tree. He surfaced out of the green sea and looked around. He found a spot where the trees became less dense, there should be a body of water there. One of the rare spiritual plants grew in a lake, and there might also be fierce beasts he had to kill.

With a destination, Ruan Yanxi hastened his pace. It was at this point, he finally came across another participant. It was young male fighting against a fierce beast. Looking at his uniform, he should be from the Qian Jian sect. The fierce beast was a silver edge eagle. It dived to attack and flew back to avoid the sword's reach. The young man frowned with a hint of impatience. Ruan Yanxi observed the fight.