The light at the dense forest's exit grew ever more blinding, and the earth-shaking cheers from outside had become as clear and audible as a tsunami.
Lin Mu followed behind Lin Feng.
As the first ray of sunlight fell upon his face, that churning resentment born of humiliation deep within his eyes was perfectly and completely concealed the instant he stepped out of the forest canopy's shadow.
When they finally emerged through the trial's gates and stood once more upon Black Blood Stockade's broad Martial Training Plaza—
Boom—!
Thunderous cheers, mingled with countless frenzied screams, instantly engulfed this squad that had walked out of the killing field.
Lin Feng strode at the forefront.
Though his armor was shattered, his right arm numb and sore, and even his face still bore traces of blood, none of this could diminish his current air of triumphant radiance.
His white robes, though stained with blood, only added to his aura of iron-blooded dominance—a warrior who had survived a hundred battles.
First place in the initial arena matches! First place in the third round's wilderness survival trial!
A double champion!
Such near-crushing, dominant results were rare indeed in Black Blood Stockade's tournament history of the past several decades.
Behind Lin Feng's dazzling halo, Lin Mu followed with steady steps, positioned half a pace behind.
His expression was calm, his breathing long and even. With his head slightly lowered, he perfectly played the role of an extremely competent and capable aide.
The victor takes all; glory's reverse side is often drenched in cruel bloodshed.
Following Lin Feng's squad's brilliant entrance, the other teams that were subsequently carried out by the clan's rescue squads formed an extremely tragic and glaring contrast.
Lin Yan of the Punishment Hall had his right arm twisted at a grotesque angle, his entire body scorched and split open by corrosive venom.
He now lay unconscious on a stretcher, even his signature wild red hair mostly burned away.
Lin Ze, reputed to have the toughest turtle shell, had a face like golden paper.
Every glob of phlegm he coughed up contained fragments of internal organs. The look he cast toward Lin Feng was filled with fear and despair.
And Lin Xue, the ever-proud and aloof elder sister of the Medicine Hall—though she could still barely stand—her once-immaculate robes had been reduced to rags.
She bit down hard on her bloodless lips, her face a mask of dejection and bitter unwillingness.
These seed competitors who had once stood so high above others had now all become stepping stones beneath the throne. After all, the victor's crown has always been forged from the flesh and dignity of the defeated.
At that moment.
Upon the high platform.
Patriarch Lin Cang sat enthroned in the tiger-skin chair at the highest position, his gaze piercing like torches as he looked down upon Lin Feng, who was basking in the worship of thousands below.
No one noticed that beneath this Rank 4 powerhouse's seemingly calm majesty, a thread of spiritual perception—extremely subtle yet incomparably domineering—had silently swept over Lin Feng's body like an invisible ripple.
Hum.
Deep within Lin Cang's eyes, an almost imperceptible gleam flashed.
He had sensed it!
Within the aperture belonging to Lin Feng, he had clearly detected the will-mark he had left behind—hidden deep within the core of that Jade Tendon Gu!
Extremely faint, yet unmistakably present. It was carefully wrapped in Lin Feng's Primeval Essence, concealed in the deepest reaches of his aperture.
"Good lad!"
Lin Cang's heart settled with satisfaction. He couldn't help but stroke his beard in silent praise.
"Not only did he emerge unscathed from that chaotic death trap and claim first place, but he actually managed to capture that Rank 2 supreme-grade Gu worm!"
"Meticulous in thought, ruthless in methods, and knows how to endure. Our Black Blood Stockade has found a worthy successor!"
This was a mental leap of absurd irony.
Lin Cang, this Rank 4 powerhouse, had used the "contingency" he'd left within the Jade Tendon Gu to perfectly confirm the treasure's whereabouts.
Yet based on this irrefutable "iron proof," he had naturally and completely attributed Lin Mu's achievement to his good nephew, Lin Feng.
Misunderstanding, sometimes, is more solid than truth.
"Silence!"
Having confirmed that "the family fortune stays in the family," Lin Cang was in excellent spirits.
He rose to his feet, and the pressure of a Rank 4 cultivator rippled outward. The entire clamoring plaza fell silent in an instant.
"The rankings for this Elder's True Inheritance Tournament have been decided!"
Lin Cang's voice rang like a great bell, echoing through the mountains.
"First place—Lin Feng! His wisdom and courage bring glory to our clan. As Patriarch, I hereby officially establish his position as 'Elder's Direct Disciple'!"
The moment these words left his mouth, the entire plaza erupted once more.
But Lin Cang wasn't finished.
To thoroughly establish Lin Feng's prestige and to fulfill his promise of resource allocation toward the direct lineage, he announced a weighty reward that left all branch disciples and even inner sect elites breathless:
"From this day forward, the clan's core resources shall be fully directed toward Lin Feng, guaranteeing his cultivation to the Rank 3 realm!"
"Second, I shall personally make time to instruct him in our clan's secret killing techniques!"
"Third, upon the day he breaks through to Rank 2, the clan's underground treasury shall be opened exclusively for him. He may select one unique Rank 3 Gu worm as his path-guarding treasure!"
Boom!
When these three rewards were announced, countless eyes turned red with envy.
Guaranteed advancement to Rank 3! Personal instruction from the Patriarch! And even a reserved Rank 3 Gu worm!
This wasn't just treating him as a direct disciple—this was practically grooming Lin Feng as the next Young Master of Black Blood Stockade!
Lin Feng stood in the center of the plaza, listening to these dream-like, heaven-shaking rewards. His breathing quickened, his face flushed.
In this moment, he basked in the worship of thousands of clansmen, his power and glory reaching the absolute pinnacle of his life thus far.
He understood clearly: with these, he would completely open an unbridgeable class divide between himself and the likes of Lin Xue and Lin Yan.
Overjoyed beyond measure, Lin Feng decided to display the bearing of a wise leader who was "fair in reward and punishment, considerate of subordinates." He turned sharply.
Before the eyes of all present, he retrieved an extremely heavy Primeval Stone pouch from his robes, containing a full three hundred Primeval Stones.
He strode up to Lin Mu, extended the pouch, and spoke in a clear, carrying voice that ensured everyone nearby could hear:
"Lin Mu! In this battle, you showed loyal courage. Though your cultivation is not high, you repeatedly blocked hidden threats for me. These three hundred Primeval Stones are the reward you deserve. Follow me from now on, and I guarantee you a bright future!"
This was buying loyalty with gold.
He wanted to use Lin Mu as a living example to tell everyone: as long as you are loyal to me, Lin Feng, even if you're a lowly branch disciple, I can make you wealthy overnight.
Faced with this fortune and "favor" that had fallen from the sky—
Lin Mu naturally and steadily extended both hands to accept the heavy Primeval Stone pouch.
He straightened slightly, neither humble nor arrogant, and offered a cupped-fist salute. His tone was calm and respectful, without a single flaw:
"Thank you for your generosity, Young Master. Lin Mu will serve unto death."
The perfect subordinate. The perfect response.
This attitude of accepting payment for services rendered—clean, efficient, neither arrogant nor impatient—pleased Lin Feng immensely. He nodded with satisfaction and turned to continue receiving congratulations from other elders and clansmen.
As for Lin Mu, he casually tucked the pouch of Primeval Stones into his robes and stood quietly in place.
With cold eyes, he watched Lin Feng ahead—surrounded by the crowd, riding high on success—and watched those clansmen swarming like flies to curry favor with power.
His heart remained utterly still. Within those ink-black eyes, it was as if he were watching a noisy farce that had nothing to do with him.
The raucous celebration feast continued deep into the night.
Lin Mu excused himself on grounds of unhealed injuries, politely declining the drinking invitations of several outer disciples who sought to use him as a bridge to Lin Feng.
Alone, he walked through the cold moonlight back to his stone dwelling—a simple, secluded structure at the edge of the Quiet Stone District.
He pushed open the door and entered.
Lin Mu did not light a lamp.
Instead, in the darkness, he deftly sprinkled a ring of warning powder along the gaps in the doors and windows, then activated a miniature Rank 1 Sound Isolation Gu, completely cutting off all sound within the stone chamber from the outside world.
Only after confirming absolute security—
He walked to the table and lit a dim oil lamp.
Under the faint orange glow, Lin Mu sat at the table. His breathing finally began to quicken.
He slowly reached into his inner pocket, close to his body, and gradually withdrew the "unexpected windfall" he had intercepted during this tournament—something that excited him even more than that Rank 2 Jade Tendon Gu.
That palm-sized bone plate, pitch-black throughout, now revealed itself to the world.
The moment the bone plate was exposed to the air, the dim lamplight in the room seemed suppressed by an invisible force, suddenly growing darker.
Lin Mu placed the bone plate flat on the table, his fingertips gently tracing its surface.
The texture was cold, hard, yet not rough. Upon that ink-black surface, countless extremely obscure, twisted patterns were carved—as if naturally formed, strange and mysterious.
As his fingertips made contact, an extremely cold yet supremely refined ancient aura flowed through Lin Mu's fingers like a faint electric current, drilling straight into the depths of his aperture.
Within his aperture, that sea of peak-level dark green Primeval Essence refined from the Liquor Worm suddenly began to churn and tremble the instant it touched this aura—as if encountering a natural predator!
"Such a domineering Dao mark fluctuation..."
Lin Mu drew a sharp breath, his eyes filled with undisguisable shock and fervor.
He knew full well that he was intimately familiar with the plot of "Reverend Insanity." For every famous inheritance and treasure of the Southern Border, he had a rough impression in his mind.
But—
"The patterns on this bone plate, this ancient aura that completely crushes the life-levels of Rank 1 and Rank 2... In all my memories, it has never appeared! Neither in Black Blood Stockade nor in any records of strange tales from the outside world have I ever seen anything similar documented!"
Lin Mu stared fixedly at the pitch-black bone plate on the table.
This was not a trap set by Lin Cang, nor was it some named opportunity from the original work.
This was a completely unknown, completely beyond the plot's control—mysterious opportunity!