Chapter 578: The Terrifying Alien Clan

"Repair?"

Looking at the rubble all over the ground, like ruins after a cannon bombardment, Hong Shi's whole body stiffened, and his vision went dark, as if he was about to faint.

You only dismantled one wall and one corridor, which could still be repaired. But in this state, how am I supposed to repair it?

Repair my foot!

It's just a trial—if you can get out, you get out; if you can't, so what... How did this Ghost Domain Phantom City of mine offend you, that you had to tear it down like this?

Besides, how many minutes have passed? Two? Three?

In such a short time, even I would find it hard to reach the center. How... how did you manage to tear it down?

Feeling his heart twitch, Hong Shi was about to go mad.

"As expected..."

Unlike Hong Shi's frenzy, Hall Master Kang and the others simultaneously slapped their foreheads.

They had guessed that this Master Zhang might cause some trouble, but seeing it now... they had underestimated the trouble. He was going to make it impossible for the Master Competition to continue!

The greatest reliance for testing mental fortitude was this Ghost Domain Phantom City. Now that you've made the city collapse, how can the test proceed?

Walk your own path, leaving others with no path to walk. Conquer your own trial, leaving others with no trial to conquer!

Master Zhang... you're too fierce!

While everyone was speechless, Liao Wuzhi recovered from his shock and also staggered.

Earlier, when Young Master Ruohuan said he was worried the Ghost Domain Phantom City might be in danger, he thought it was a joke, nonsense. Now it seemed... it was true!

In less than three minutes inside, he had dismantled someone's castle...

I get it now—you're not a master taking the trial; you're from a demolition crew!

The surroundings were dead silent in shock. Under the gaze of all eyes, Zhang Xuan dusted off his clothes, also full of helplessness.

He just wanted to quietly stop the formation and walk out boldly, but... why was such a simple wish so hard to achieve?

"Repair... it's definitely beyond repair!"

Although his heart bled with pain and he was furious enough to faint, Hong Shi quickly recovered.

After all, the other party was a student of Master Yang, and it wasn't intentional, so he couldn't be too harsh.

Though he felt heartache over the treasure that was the Ghost Domain Phantom City, since it had already collapsed, thinking more was useless. He had no choice but to swallow his teeth and stomach the loss, resigning himself to bad luck.

But... if this thing was reduced to such a state after testing just the first person, how could the others be tested?

The other renowned teachers also looked over in unison.

"The Ghost Realm Illusory City has been destroyed, so the mental assessment... let's set it aside for now. Next, we will test your courage!" After a pause, Teacher Hong said through gritted teeth.

The selection competition had four rounds; losing one, though somewhat impactful, was still within control.

"Courage assessment?"

"How will that be tested?"

Hearing that the next round was about to begin, everyone recovered from their shock.

"The significance of Teacher Kong establishing the profession of renowned teachers—I need not elaborate; you all understand!"

Teacher Hong said.

"To make humanity stronger, to better fight against the alien race and disasters!" a renowned teacher spoke up.

Teacher Kong's original intention in founding the profession of renowned teachers was to make every person like a dragon—only when individuals are strong can society prosper and the entire race thrive.

"Indeed, tens of thousands of years ago, the alien race ran rampant, invading humanity, causing devastation across the world. To save lives from this catastrophe, Teacher Kong established the profession of renowned teachers. After tens of thousands of years of development, it has achieved unprecedented glory!"

Teacher Hong nodded, looking at everyone with a spirited gaze: "The courage assessment is simple: fulfill the duty of a renowned teacher, do what must be done, and face... the alien race alone!"

"The alien race?"

"Hasn't that race been extinct? Are there still living ones?"

Everyone was stunned.

The alien race had been driven away by Teacher Kong tens of thousands of years ago and had vanished from the continent. Facing this race... what did that mean?

"The alien race was driven away ten thousand years ago, but... there are still some alive on the continent. They disguise themselves as humans, hiding among the crowd!"

Teacher Hong's brow grew heavy as he pointed with his hand.

Whoosh!

Behind him, another part of the circular platform, previously shrouded in mist, was revealed—a massive stone house.

Though the door was tightly shut and nothing could be seen, one could feel intense killing intent and a fierce aura emanating from within, as if anyone who approached would be torn to shreds.

"Such a ferocious aura... Could it be that... the thing in the stone house is... an alien?"

"I've heard the alien race is brutally savage, slaughtering humans like ants... They carry an extremely intense killing intent. A normal human, let alone fighting one, might not even withstand the killing intent and would faint on the spot!"

"Even through the stone house, it's terrifying. How strong would it be face to face?"

...

Feeling the aura emanating from the stone house, everyone's expression changed.

It was too terrifying!

Almost all of those near the round platform were four-star masters... Such powerful figures felt a murderous aura even before the door opened, making their legs weak. How formidable must the imprisoned alien spirit be?

"The alien spirits are cruel and cunning. Not only do they kill humans, but sometimes they even devour their own kind to grow stronger! In their eyes, humans are merely lower life forms, prey!"

Master Hong snorted: "This creature hid within the Hongfeng Empire, slaughtering at least several thousand innocent humans. I pursued it for three full years before finally capturing it."

"Although I've now locked its bones with the Golden Soul Lock, preventing it from using power or fighting, it can still exert soul pressure on people, instilling the deepest fear from within. Even some quasi-five-star masters dare not confront it head-on, let alone four-star peak masters."

It's like encountering a tiger—even if the tiger doesn't move, one naturally feels weak in the legs and powerless.

This involves courage.

"If you want to kill a tiger but lack the strength to even approach it, how can you succeed? A master who dares not approach an alien spirit is useless no matter how high his rank!"

"Testing courage is simple: come and sit before it. The closer you get, the greater your courage. The limit is five meters. Those who cannot approach within that distance fail."

With a wave of his hand, Master Hong flicked his finger.

Crash!

The stone chamber's wall split open, revealing a ferocious monster over three meters tall, resembling a giant, before the crowd.

Boom!

As the monster appeared, a狂暴 aura burst forth. Many spectators near the round platform, before they could react, felt their heads spin, their vision went black, and they fainted on the spot.

Not only them, but even Song Chao and others on the platform turned pale, their lips purple.

The alien spirits enslaved humanity. Had Master Kong not appeared out of nowhere, created the master profession, and driven them away, the continent would still be groaning under their tyranny.

Seeing one for the first time, the psychological impact is unbearable for ordinary people.

"So this is an alien spirit?"

Zhang Xuan's brows also twitched.

The creature before him was like a ferocious beast, exuding a thick bloody aura. Approaching it felt like being torn apart on the spot, with no chance of survival.

Not to mention others, even he found it difficult to get within five meters.

"Terrifying!"

No wonder even after disappearing for tens of thousands of years, the Master Teacher Hall remained vigilant—it was truly frightening.

"It's now trapped and cannot move. You may proceed. You have the time it takes half an incense stick to burn. If you cannot get within five meters, you fail!"

Master Hong said no more, lit a long incense stick, and waved his hand: "Begin!"

Hearing the countdown start, everyone on the platform looked grim and walked toward the huge monster.

Zhang Xuan followed behind, but after just one step, his expression changed again.

With one step forward, the pressure nearly doubled. The fierce killing intent made his legs weak, making it hard to advance.

He looked at the others; they seemed no better, all sweating and pale-faced.

Another step forward, and the pressure grew even more immense. It felt like being a small boat in a storm, battered by giant waves, about to sink at any moment, or standing on a cliff's edge, one misstep away from falling into the abyss of hell, never to escape.

"Like this... forget five meters, even ten meters is hard!"

He had thought it would be a simple test, but it turned out to be this terrifying.

At this rate, even he would struggle to get within ten meters of the creature, let alone five.

He advanced again. By now, only about ten people were still alongside him.

"Try circulating true energy!"

Taking another step, feeling he could barely endure, Zhang Xuan had a sudden idea.

He had been advancing without circulating true energy, wanting to see how far he could go. But he found that four steps were his limit; he could not move an inch further.

Whoosh!

With a thought, Heaven's Path true energy flowed through his body, and he immediately felt relieved, the pressure vanishing.

The force that had nearly crushed him moments ago now felt like a gentle breeze, causing no ripples.

"Just as I guessed—Heaven's Path true energy can neutralize it!"

Heaven's Path true energy, though attribute-less, could neutralize any attribute. He had guessed earlier that circulating true energy might counteract the force, and it turned out to be true.

He quietly glanced at the others.

Unlike him, they had been circulating true energy from the start, yet they still looked strained, forcing themselves onward.

The few at the front had already approached within ten meters.

"Impressive!"

Seeing that they could get so close even though their true energy couldn't neutralize the pressure, Zhang Xuan's expression turned serious, and he felt admiration.

No wonder they were called geniuses, and even Hall Master Kang had low expectations for him—these people's courage was indeed formidable.

If not for his Heaven's Path true energy cheating, he didn't know if he could have gone as far as they had.

"Since this alien spirit uses a special ability to exert soul pressure on humans... does that count as using a martial technique?" With the pressure gone, his mind became active.

To make people too scared to approach and unable to move, the creature must be using some kind of soul pressure.

Even if this method isn't a martial technique, it has the same effect. If so, can the Heaven's Path Library see its flaws?

"Flaw!" he murmured inwardly.

Whoosh!

A book appeared in his mind.