Half an hour later, in the middle of a destroyed forest.
"Liqin..... are..... you... awake?"
"Just....barely....You?"
"Barely..in the next few seconds, I don't know.
Yu...Mei...are you...?"
"She's....un..conscious..."
"Seems...like...you...are okay, He Shan. Your..your... poisons ...didn't seem like they worked.."
"Bastard...you..threw them wrong.."
"You still..."
"He Shan is unconscious, Zou Yi.."
"How are you still awake with those injuries?"
"I learned to stay awake whether injured, starving, sick... ever since I was a kid, otherwise...let's say if I didn't, injuries such as these are the best I could have hoped for.."
"Thank you all for all your help by the way. It seems I dragged you all down with me. If only I was a little bit stronger.."
"What are you saying? it's because of you holding her back that we survived this long and who would have expected her ability to contain poison too...if it wasn't for that, we would have won...
But still..she was a monster..you too Lai Rou.."
"Liqin?..."
"She's unconscious too, and it seems I'm about to join them too. Thanks, Zou Yi....
Zou Yi....it seems him too...
Why is my heart still this excited despite being defeated....i hope this ..isn't the end...."
...
The peak of Autumn Mountain.
"Those kids really put on a performance.." said Kang Huilang as his gaze fell on a certain area.
"That they did.." said Yang Qing with a soft smile of appreciation appearing on his face.
"That girl Yin Rong is quite something for coming out on top despite the odds. She may not have sword sense yet, but her combat sense is exemplary. The way she used her physique, her skill with sword art, and the trap she lay with the poison in her physique.
The different departments of the inquisitor are bound to get in a battle for her.." said Xia Boqin.
"Lai Rou wasn't bad either. Had his foundations not been as shaky as they were, the result would have been different. Saber sense and sword sense users appearing in an Orange grade test is a welcome surprise.." said Dai Chen with a glint flashing in his eyes.
"That it is... I hope the Order isn't stingy with its awards.." Yang Qing gingerly said.
The fight between Zou Yi's party against Yin Rong had been captivating even to them, especially with the ferocity at which they went at each other and the skills they displayed. However, the biggest standouts were Lai Rou who developed saber sense, and Yin Rong whom despite being beset by five people, among them a saber sense user still managed to come out on top.
Of course, she didn't come out unscathed and her victory hinged on the hidden ability of the blazing white rose physique which produced traceless paralytic poison in every shard that exploded.
However, the poison wasn't fast acting and it needed the victims to be injured or worn out to a certain degree before it kicked in. She was secretly dosing them in the midst of the fight while masking its effect with the frost-numbing effect of her ability. Which was why someone poison conscious as He Shan never noticed it until it was too late.
Her judgment throughout the battle was exemplary. The others also managed to showcase their abilities despite losing in the end.
The only question now was if they would be able to reach the peak on time. In the two hours they had fought, two more people had arrived bringing the total participants to twelve, leaving only three open spots, one of which would be for Yin Rong if she manages to reach the peak.
In Zou Yi's team of five, only two would make it, that is if, by the time they regain consciousness, those spots will still be available.
Yang Qing at this moment could only hope they make it in time. While he didn't mention anything about a deadline for the test, one did in fact exist, and would only be triggered after the fifteenth person reached the peak.
The moment the fifteenth person crossed the finish line, a three-day deadline would be in effect, and those who don't reach within that timeframe would be eliminated. The participants would only know about it after the fifteenth person is announced, and if they are unconscious when he makes the announcement, he can only sigh at their bad luck.
Of the group, Yu Mei already had her spot reserved and Lai Rou had a chance of getting in via special recommendation if he failed to make it in time because of achieving saber sense which was an excellent feat. He Shan had a chance of making it through recommendation too via his skills in alchemy as for the two siblings, it was in the air at the moment.
While Zou Yi did show excellent judgment on a few occasions, it wasn't enough to warrant a special recommendation, and for Zou Liqin the odds were already against her, especially after her results in the first test. The only way she would make it is if she crossed the finish line in time.
...
"Huh? Is the sky moving... wait I'm the one moving!!" He Shan jumped in fright as he hurriedly went for his axe only to realize it had broken while fighting against Yin Rong.
He clenched his fists in preparation for an attack, only to find Lai Rou gazing at him with an innocent smile.
"Can you help me in pulling them?" Lai Rou awkwardly said as he pointed to the unconscious Zou Yi, Zou Liqin, and Yu Mei who were in what looked to be a makeshift hammock made of vines.
He Shan nodded in an absent-minded manner as he grabbed one of the vines Lai Rou was using to pull.
"Are you sure you're okay to be doing this?" hesitantly asked He Shan as he looked at the bloody wounds on Lai Rou.
His old robes were soaked in blood and every part of him was still bleeding with his left arm even showing bone as a faint mist came out of it. Despite the wounds on him, Lai Rou didn't so much as flinch, and from the area they were, it seemed like he had been dragging them along for quite some time.
"It's okay, I can handle this much, besides we can't afford to waste too much time. Fifteen people have already reached the peak and...."
"We have a three-day deadline to reach the peak..two hours have passed since the fifteenth person was announced.." said Lai Rou.
"What?!" He Shan almost dropped the vine in shock.
"Three days?" he asked to which Lai Rou nodded back in confirmation. He was unused to talking to people. Since coming for the test, it's the most he had talked to people.
"Okay," He Shan said with a sigh after he had calmed down.
He took one end and Lai Rou the other, and they dragged Zou Yi and the rest at a moderate pace so as not to aggravate their injuries, or draw the attention of some unwanted spirit beast in their injured state and injured party to look after.
Luckily, they didn't have to do it for too long because twenty minutes to thirty minutes later the whole party had regained consciousness, after which He Shan dropped the deadline bombshell on them.
With a deadline on hand, the group pushed themselves to the limit to make sure they made it on time.
Along the way, with He Shan's guidance they picked certain herbs which he used to make healing salves that they wrapped on themselves in. The quick first aid helped them in having enough energy to increase their momentum.
A day later they finally reached the peak of the mountain after a mildly gruesome struggle. With their injuries, they would have struggled to make it in such a short time without working together.
The team was all smiles for making it this far with two days to spare. They even forgot the dreadful training waiting for them for missing the top fifteen.
Zou Yi could feel his face turn hot and steamy when he saw Yang Qing and the other judges seating below a maple tree.
"We did it.." he said to Zou Liqin and the rest who were just as emotional. It had been a long couple of days.
The team grinned at each other as they gingerly made their way forward with joy and a little life in their haggard steps.
Fifteen steps, ten steps, five steps...
Zou Yi gulped in greed as the waft of the delicacies Yang Qing and the rest were eating, reached him.
"It won't be too forward if I asked for a tiny bit, would it?" Zou Yi thought.
However, before he could delight in his flights of fancy he had Lai Rou yell,
"WATCH OUT!!"
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