Longevity Martial Arts: Grinding Experience in the Chaotic World

Chapter 1280 - 664: Expelled from the Holy Land

"Brother Ling Xiao, you’re amazing! This really brings us great honor!"

Ling Xiao raised his chin proudly, but his eyes couldn’t help searching for the figure of Gu Sheng.

When he saw that Gu Sheng was still standing in the same place, with no trace of joy on his face, an uneasy feeling surged in his heart.

Gu Sheng looked at Ling Xiao, who had become the center of attention, from afar, his brows tightly knitted.

Things had completely deviated from the plan—Ling Xiao not only failed to control time as agreed, but had also thoroughly offended the Holy Land Disciples of Qinghe.

"It looks like trouble is coming."

Gu Sheng muttered to himself, glancing over the plaza.

He noticed the purple-robed youth Mo Qianjun squinting while sizing up Ling Xiao, and several Holy Land disciples huddled together, whispering and casting cold glances.

Amidst this undercurrent of tension, the voice of the black-robed elder sounded again.

"Next, Liang Yu."

The voice of the Deacon Elder echoed.

A slender boy stepped out from the crowd, heading towards the Array.

Liang Yu’s assessment began, his speed nowhere near Ling Xiao’s, but it was nonetheless fluent.

After an incense stick’s worth of time, Liang Yu successfully passed the assessment, his name appearing at the fourth position on the leaderboard.

"Fourth place!"

Liang Yu stood on the promotion platform, sweeping his gaze over the crowd with pride.

Gu Sheng felt a slight heaviness in his heart.

Liang Yu’s talent was indeed impressive, achieving such a result in his first assessment.

"Next, Gu Sheng!"

Hearing his name, Gu Sheng straightened his robe and strode towards the Array entrance.

He could feel the various gazes from behind—some expectant, some doubtful, but mostly indifferent.

In a place filled with geniuses like this, a cultivator of humble origin like him was never the focal point of attention.

"Another one courting death."

One of the Holy Land Disciples sneered.

Gu Sheng turned a deaf ear, standing at the entrance of the array, taking one last look at Ling Xiao’s name on the leaderboard before stepping into the Array.

The scenery before him suddenly changed, the originally bright sky replaced by a gray mist.

Gu Sheng immediately tensed up, knowing the assessment had begun.

"Swish!"

A shadow attacked from the left side, and Gu Sheng instinctively sidestepped to avoid it while his right hand formed a fist and struck at the shadow.

"Bang!"

The expected hard resistance didn’t occur, for the puppet exploded under his fist, dissolving into points of spiritual light that faded into the air.

Gu Sheng was momentarily stunned.

Since when had his strength become this formidable?

These puppets, though only the lowest level assessment tools, shouldn’t have been so fragile.

No time to think more, more puppets surged from all directions.

Gu Sheng quickly adjusted his state, flitting through the group of puppets.

His movements seemed simple yet contained a certain rhythm, each strike hitting the puppets’ weak points perfectly.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

A series of explosive sounds rang out, and everywhere Gu Sheng went, the puppets burst apart.

He was only using a fraction of his power, yet these puppets were so easily shattered.

"So weak?"

Gu Sheng mused, furrowing his eyebrows unconsciously.

He had expected the entry-level assessment of Qinghe Holy Land to pose some difficulty, considering it’s one of the top cultivation holy lands in the Eastern Domain.

Yet the combat puppets before him disintegrated at a mere casual strike, dissipating into countless glimmers.

"Looks like I’ll have to suppress my power even more."

Gu Sheng calculated inwardly, glancing at the already collapsed Killing Array.

Rumble——

With the collapse of the final puppet, the entire Killing Array crumbled completely, and a dazzling, multicolored bridge emerged from the Void, stretching out before Gu Sheng.

The bridge shimmered brilliantly, with runes gliding faintly on it, marking the second test—speed trial.

"Speed trial..."

Gu Sheng’s lips curled into a slight smile.

He could have crossed the bridge in a single thought, but such a thing would be far too astonishing.

Gu Sheng deliberately suppressed the surging True Yuan within, stepping onto the multicolored bridge at a speed characteristic of ordinary cultivators.

Indeed, the bridge had a suppressive force, each step feeling like wading through a mire.

But to Gu Sheng, it was nothing more than a light scratch.

He intentionally slowed his pace, pretending to struggle forward, though his heart was undisturbed.

"Should be about enough?"

Gu Sheng calculated the time in his heart, finally struggling to the end of the passage.

When he reached the other side of the bridge, he seemed to hear a faint gasp of surprise.

Gu Sheng didn’t look back; he knew someone outside the assessment venue was watching every participant’s performance.

The scene for the third trial unfolded immediately, presenting a volcano spewing blazing fire ahead.

Scorching lava burst from the mountaintop, the air filled with a searing aura.

"Physical test..."

Gu Sheng stepped into the sea of fire.

Flames capable of melting gold and iron landed on him, yet only wisps of white smoke rose, without even scorching his skin.

Feeling the temperature of the flames, a sense of disappointment arose in Gu Sheng’s heart—this trial was too easy for him.

"Still too fast..."

Gu Sheng shook his head inwardly, deliberately lingering in the sea of fire a while longer.

When he finally walked out of the volcano’s range, his frown deepened.

Even with intentionally slowing down, his performance far exceeded the norm.

Gu Sheng began to worry that continuing like this might attract unnecessary attention.

"I must dawdle over the willpower test."

Gu Sheng resolved himself, turning his gaze to the enormous guillotine suspended above the Milky Way ahead.

The guillotine was painted entirely black, its blade glinting a chilling light, surrounded by an intimidating presence of Evil Qi.

Ordinary cultivators approaching it might find their minds overwhelmed by this Evil Qi.

Gu Sheng approached slowly, immediately feeling a pressure coming towards his Divine Soul.