The man's appearance was handsome, as refined as jade, with a calm demeanor, truly pleasing to the eye. However, what concerned Pu Yin even more was Feng Ninghe.
Anyone who could contract a divine beast must possess extraordinary abilities.
Her spirit beast was also a divine beast, but it had not yet been able to transform into human form.
Vaguely, she had a premonition that this woman would bring her pleasant surprises.
In the jungle.
Bang!
Countless figures descended from the sky.
Feng Ninghe landed heavily on the ground. She quickly scanned her surroundings.
Everyone else fell to the ground one after another.
The bushes were lush and green, and the surroundings were extremely quiet, unnervingly so.
"Ouch, my backside really hurts!"
"Did we arrive at the third trial?"
"Weren't we told this place was teeming with puppets? Why haven't we seen a single one?"
The surrounding cultivators began to murmur amongst themselves.
Feng Ninghe narrowed her eyes slightly, a hint of wariness in her expression. She scanned the surroundings repeatedly and whispered, "It's unnervingly quiet here. We must be careful."
Feng Xing had already placed his hand on his long sword. If anything seemed amiss, he would draw it immediately.
However, a pair of sharp eyes kept lingering on Feng Ninghe.
Lin Yuran raised her eyes slightly, a cruel glint appearing on her beautiful face. She deliberately raised her voice, "We are all traveling in groups of five. Why does your pair have an extra person?"
The more companions one had, the greater the chance of survival.
Not only would they have an extra jade slip, but their strength would also be significantly higher.
With her words, the cultivators who had reached the third trial all turned their gazes towards Feng Ninghe.
Xiao Zhao appeared to be about ten years old, posing no significant threat to these cultivators. However, having an extra person was always better than having one less.
"That's right, why do you get to have an extra person compared to us?"
"We are all traveling in groups of five, but you have six!"
"Didn't we agree that a maximum of five people could travel together? How could six of them enter the jungle trial?"
For a moment, the surrounding cultivators began to voice their complaints.
Lin Yuran's bright red lips curved upwards into a dazzling smile.
This was precisely the scene she had wanted to witness.
A fiery-tempered girl in pink rushed directly in front of Feng Ninghe. "You had an extra person but were still allowed to enter the trial. Did that senior just not notice you?"
"What nonsense are you spouting?"
Bai Niannian suppressed her displeasure, extended her hand to point at Zhao Zhao, and let out a soft scoff. "Open your eyes and look at him. Feel his aura before you speak."
Xiao Zhao opened his bright blue eyes, a hint of wariness in their depths, and scanned these cultivators.
His aura was exceptionally well-hidden, and ordinary people naturally couldn't detect anything unusual about him.
Those who could discern his identity were indeed skilled.
"Your attitude is so arrogant. Do you know who I am?"
The girl in pink raised her eyes, her displeased gaze sweeping over Bai Niannian inch by inch. "You look unfamiliar to me. I suppose you're from one of those insignificant families?"
Compared to the Dragon Domain, the Xuan Continent was nothing. The Bai family of the Li Kingdom was indeed an insignificant family.
Bai Niannian's expression immediately changed. She was about to speak when a hand gently tugged at her.
Feng Ninghe walked over from the side, a hint of cold aloofness in her eyes. Her clear female voice slowly fell, "Young lady, you can't even discern the anomaly in the child beside me. Even if you come from a prominent family, what use is it?"
These simple words enraged the girl in pink.
She stomped her foot fiercely. "You are truly arrogant. I'd like to see if you can survive and leave this jungle!"
Feng Ninghe met the girl in pink's gaze indifferently. "Instead of worrying about me, you might as well worry about yourself."
"Linglong."
At this moment, a deep male voice sounded from the side. "We are still in the trial. The priority is not verbal disputes."
A man with a refined appearance stepped forward.
Cultivators in the crowd who recognized them began to whisper, "This Sheng Linglong from Sheng Tian Academy is known for her unreasonable behavior. Her father is the dean of Sheng Tian Academy. Provoking her will not end well."
"The one beside Sheng Linglong should be Du Chang, the most outstanding disciple of Sheng Tian Academy. He is calm, exceptionally talented, and most importantly, his appearance is outstanding."
The cultivators' discussions were very quiet, but everyone present was a cultivator with keen hearing and could naturally hear these words.
Ji Binyu chuckled disdainfully, lowering his voice to a volume only the two of them could hear. "Yuran, they've just arrived and have already offended someone. Their future days likely won't be peaceful."
Lin Yuran crossed her arms over her chest, arrogantly raising her eyes to look directly at everything before her.
"Brother Du."
Sheng Linglong instantly dropped her overbearing demeanor, looking at the man with a hint of grievance. "We are all traveling in groups of five. Although they only have a few children more than us, it's still one extra person."
Du Chang's gaze fell on Xiao Zhao, his brows furrowing slightly. "His aura is indeed unusual. For the Thunder Cloud Tower to let him pass, perhaps he is not human."
Xiao Zhao rolled his eyes with annoyance. "Finally, someone with eyes."
His implication was that Sheng Linglong, who had spoken earlier, was blind.
These insulting words instantly infuriated the woman.
"Are you implying I don't have eyes?"
Sheng Linglong's eyes widened, a hint of anger coloring her exquisitely made-up face. "You are so young, yet your tongue is so sharp. You dare to be so rude, I will remember you!"
This "remembering" clearly carried a deep meaning.
Feng Ninghe, having just arrived, did not wish to offend anyone.
But some things would happen even if she didn't initiate them; people would actively seek to offend her. Not wanting to offend did not mean she feared anyone.
She looked directly at Sheng Linglong, her clear female voice devoid of any warmth. "If you want to remember, then remember. It's your choice."
Dong!
A dull drumbeat sounded from above.
An old and familiar male voice followed the drumbeat, slowly descending. "All cultivators, don't forget to retrieve the spirit crystals from the chests of the puppets. The team that collects the most spirit crystals in this trial will receive an additional reward. This reward will not disappoint you."
"Spirit crystals?"
Feng Ninghe noticed the key point in this announcement, and a faint light flickered in her eyes. "What are spirit crystals?"
Sheng Linglong seized the opportunity to mock, smiling arrogantly. Her scrutinizing gaze swept over Feng Ninghe. "You don't even know what spirit crystals are? Even people from insignificant families should know that one spirit crystal is equal to a hundred spirit stones."
Feng Ninghe ignored Sheng Linglong's mockery, a hint of regret appearing on her face. "Puppets actually have spirit crystals on them. We've lost out greatly. I shouldn't have set fire to all the puppets. I should have dug out all the spirit crystals."