The next day, a group of two boys and two girls emerged from their hiding place and began searching for other tournament participants.
It was decided that they would achieve more if they teamed up.
Zhang Yong admired the views, distracted by every small animal she could spot. Yao Ren and Qin Li-Na were chatting pleasantly, learning about each other. Only Zhou Yulong was silently complaining that things were going completely differently than in his previous life.
Their walk continued until they reached an open clearing. Ahead lay a huge waterfall, the beginning of which was invisible, and the lake it had formed contained various fish.
"Exactly! This is the waterfall Yao Ren and I accidentally fell into in our previous life! What happened next was shameful..." Zhou Yulong frowned and began to walk away.
— Let's get out of here..." — he said nervously, walking back the way they came.
— Why? We just got here! — Zhang Yong protested, pouting.
— I sense a faint spiritual energy coming from that waterfall. If we go there, it will only get worse for us... — Zhou Yulong insisted, walking further and further away from the place. The others, confused, but followed him.
Zhou Yulong remembered this place clearly as if it were yesterday. Behind that waterfall was a spirit bear. It was as huge as an elephant, its claws sharper than any sword, its thick fur stronger than any armor, and its roar reached every cell of your body.
In a previous life, he and Yao Ren accidentally fell into this waterfall, and while Yao Ren was swimming in the lake and enjoying himself, Zhou Yulong decided to explore the area and learned that there was a cave behind the waterfall.
The spirit bear emerged from this cave and attacked the boys. They miraculously escaped the monster, but Yao Ren tripped while running, dragging Zhou Yulong down with him, and the duo found themselves on the ground in a strange position.
This compromising set of circumstances was witnessed by a couple of the tournament participants. Upon exiting the real world, they found themselves being watched by the entire tournament spectators.
Result: The trial passed, at the cost of shame for the two boys.
Zhou Yulong flinched for a moment, glanced briefly at Yao Ren, and quickened his pace.
The group continued walking through the forest, and although caution and stealth were essential in such a place, no one except Qin Li-Na seemed to care.
At noon, tired of wandering and unable to find the other participants, the group sighed and began to return to their hiding place.
On the way, they came across the same waterfall again, and Zhou Yulong hastily fled, leaving the boys with questions, who hurried after him.
As they approached the shelter, they were suddenly attacked by another group of people who had teamed up for the test.
Zhou Yulong and Qin Li-Na drew their swords and took a stance, Yao Ren pulled out a couple of papers and a brush with ink, and Zhang Yong hid in fear behind Zhou Yulong.
One of them stepped forward and said with a grin:
— What a catch! We'll be able to immediately collect bracelets for the passage and "have fun" with the beauties~
The faces of the remaining enemies twisted into vile grins, while Zhou Yulong's group looked at them with disgust, and Zhang Yong with fear.
— Give us your bracelets and maybe we'll spare you~
While they continued talking, Zhou Yulong counted 10 enemies.
— There are 10 thugs in front of us. I don't see anyone lying in ambush, so this is most likely all their forces...— he whispered, gripping his sword, ready to attack.
Yao Ren grinned and stepped forward.
Qin Li-Na and Zhang Yong looked at him in surprise and amazement, and Zhou Yulong sighed, already knowing what he was about to do.
— I think we'll decline! — A sweet smile lit up the boy's face, and taking the scroll, he opened it and began writing symbols.
Seeing this, the enemies grinned and began to laugh.
—What is this bastard doing? Is he planning to paint us to death?
—Hey! Make sure I look pretty!~
—What an idiot!—they laughed uncontrollably, while the girls turned to Yao Ren in fear.
—Yao Ren, get out of there! Now is not the time for jokes!—Qin Li-Na shouted, concern in her eyes.
—That's right, get out! Otherwise, they'll attack you!—Zhang Yong encouraged her. Only Zhou Yulong stood and watched with a subtle smile.
Yao Ren smiled, and in an instant, she drew a picture of animals on the scroll.
As if by magic, the drawings began to come to life.
A tiger appeared first and attacked the enemies. They were unable to react, exposing themselves to the attack, and one of them was seriously wounded.
Then a crane came to life, lifting one of them high into the sky and throwing it to the ground. Falling from a great height, it finally perished, returning to the real world.
One by one, Yao Ren's drawings came to life and attacked the enemies. Initially, they were able to fight back, but were gradually overwhelmed by the sheer number of opponents.
Yao Ren, standing among the defeated enemies, smiled sweetly.
— Do not underestimate me! — he said, looking at his group.
The girls were delighted by what they saw, while Zhou Yulong lazily collected the bracelets of the defeated tournament participants.
— There are 10 bracelets in total, meaning 5 pairs. To pass the second stage, you need to collect at least 4 bracelets. So, we can split 4 bracelets between us two people, and the remaining two can go to Yao Ren, since he was the one who defeated our opponents! Any objections? — Zhou Yulong asked the girls, immediately shutting Yao Ren's mouth so he wouldn't even think of objecting.
The girls nodded, and the group, dividing their collected bracelets, returned to their hiding place and sighed with relief.
All night, Zhou Yulong was tormented by the thought of giving the bracelet to the girls when they had done nothing, but since he himself was useless in this stage, he swallowed his pride, went outside, and went hunting.
***
Following the mysterious trace of Dao energy, Bai Yunsheng and Li Yuhua reached the mountain's summit in two days. Surprisingly, they were unharmed except for a few weak spirit birds, who became the couple's lunch, dinner, and breakfast.
Having reached the summit, the trace of Dao energy ceased halfway.
"Hmm... Considering Mount Wangmei is an ancient, frozen volcano, it's unlikely anyone would live here. Then why did the trace of Dao energy lead us here?"
"On the other hand, this is the perfect place to hide from prying eyes for precisely the same reason!"
While Bai Yunsheng was pondering this, Li Yuhua, pretending to inspect the mountain, tripped over a rock and activated some kind of formation.
The ground beneath their feet trembled. The ice in the center of the mountain turned to lau and began to sink, revealing the entrance to some kind of cave. "A hidden passage!?" Bai Yunsheng asked in surprise, looking at the cave.
And here's another discrepancy with the novel. Nowhere was there any mention of a passage leading to any place in Mount Wangmei!
Li Yuhua was delighted and surprised, covering her lips with her hand.
— Oh my god, what is this!? Is there really a secret room inside this place? — she exclaimed in surprise, but Bai Yunsheng somehow sensed sarcasm.
— How about we check this place out? — the girl asked, drawing her sword and infusing it with her Dao energy.
The sword's tip glowed golden and began to hover in the air. The girl stood on the sword and levitated next to Bai Yunsheng, extending her hand to him.
Bai Yunsheng himself frowned and pondered deeply.
"On the one hand, it's dangerous to just go into an unknown place that's not even mentioned in a book! It's a direct threat to safety!"
"On the other hand, it could be a good opportunity. In the book, Zhou Yulong often found himself in places full of danger, and his efforts always proved worthwhile, ultimately rewarding him with many useful treasures!"
"BUT I'M NOT ZHOU YULONG!!!" — Bai Yunsheng thought to himself, weighing every possibility.
After a while, he made his choice with a deep sigh and nodded.
Accepting Li Yuhua's outstretched hand, the boy climbed onto her flying sword. The girl took his hand, arguing that it was for his own safety, though a smile and a faint blush graced her face.
The sword soared into the air and carried the pair into the cave, above the boiling lava. As soon as they passed through the passage, the lava suddenly rose, blocking the passage. However, to their surprise, the lava didn't flow inward; instead, it blocked the passage, as if there were a barrier, and turned to ice.
Having descended to the ground, Bai Yunsheng and Li Yuhua headed away from the lava. Torches suddenly lit up, illuminating their path.
Bai Yunsheng nervously glanced around, expecting traps in every corner, while Li Yuhua walked behind him with a mysterious smile.
After some time, the pair reached a closed door, and somehow Li Yuhua guessed that they needed to infuse Dao energy into it.
When Bai Yunsheng asked her how she'd figured it out before, she replied that she'd encountered a similar type of gate before, one that could only be opened by Dao energy.
After examining the room, the pair found various artifacts, both of lower and higher quality. The room itself looked like a furnished house, and in the center of it all stood a lone book...
To be continued...