Chapter Thirty-Six: The Humiliated Fat Man

The surrounding crowd, witnessing the scene, immediately leaned in to whisper and inquire among themselves.

“Who is this Lin Hu?”

“I’ve never heard of anyone by that name among the outer disciples…”

“I checked the list of strong contenders for the top ten, and there’s no Lin Hu either.”

“Wait, I remember now… wasn’t he that fat guy who was seriously injured by Zhang Yan and his group not long ago?”

“You mean Lin Cheng’s brother, the one with incomplete spiritual roots, Lin Hu?”

“He could win the championship? Don’t be ridiculous… he can’t even cultivate…”

“Shh… keep your voice down…”

The moment they realized Lin Cheng was just behind them, smiling serenely as he watched, a chill swept over them.

It wasn’t that Lin Cheng didn’t want to place a bigger bet, but he knew that if he wagered too much, it would surely arouse suspicion.

In his mind, five hundred spirit stones would force the other party to pay out five thousand; for a senior disciple from the inner sect, that was already a painful loss.

With Niu Shisan’s bold move, more and more people began to place their bets. The man in purple was overjoyed, now seeing Niu Shisan as the epitome of style.

“These fools… wait and see how shocked they’ll be later…”

The group found a spot at the back, sat down on the ground, and watched the performance of the man in purple with relish.

The commotion soon attracted even those inner disciples who usually kept to themselves.

With spirit stones to be won, everyone wanted a share.

The bluestone square grew lively and crowded.

As night fell, the radiant portal still stood tall, towering like a pillar. Now, only a few silhouettes remained as most had returned to their own abodes.

Lin Cheng and his companions did not leave, but instead sat in meditation to cultivate.

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Three days passed swiftly.

As the morning light crept across the bluestone square, the first rays of dawn welcomed a crowd far larger than on the first day.

Most gathered in small groups, laughing and discussing who would emerge from the secret realm first, who would ultimately claim victory, and so on.

Those who had placed bets were even more invested in the outcome of the grand competition.

Several streaks of light swept across the sky, as elders of the Qingyang Sect appeared on the platform above, stroking their beards and exchanging polite greetings.

Among them, Lin Cheng recognized Sun De.

Noticing Lin Cheng’s gaze, Sun De turned to look at him. Though his demeanor seemed calm, Lin Cheng sensed a fleeting murderous intent deep in his eyes.

Boom!

Suddenly, a loud rumble echoed from within the portal, drawing everyone’s attention.

Boom! Boom!

Two more thunderous sounds followed.

Lin Cheng and his companions quickly stood, eyes fixed intently on the portal.

Before long, a ball of flesh tumbled out, rolling several times before barely managing to steady itself.

Looking closely—it was none other than Fat Lin.

But in this moment, he appeared utterly disheveled.

His body was draped only in scraps of cloth, revealing several crimson gashes across his fleshy torso. His black hair was wild in the wind, and his round face was smeared with something dark.

Roar! Roar!

A series of low, beastly growls erupted from behind the portal, startling Lin Hu and making him shudder.

He glanced back nervously.

“What happened?” Niu Shisan exclaimed, “Did Fatty get mauled by beasts?”

Pang Bo guessed, “Maybe more than one…”

Wang Shan added, “This is terrifying…”

Even Lin Cheng was left agape, for he had come to the same conclusion!

Recovering, Lin Hu spotted his friends and rushed toward them, arms outstretched in grievance.

Seeing this, they turned and fled, vanishing in an instant.

Fat Lin was left standing there, dazed.

“Isn’t that Lin Hu? How is he the first to walk out of the secret realm…”

“How strange. Isn’t he supposed to be unable to cultivate? How could he pass the inner sect trial—and be the first to emerge?”

“Judging by his appearance, it seems he suffered something tragic in there…”

…

Listening to the murmurs around him, Fat Lin finally realized that his current state was bound to inspire wild speculation.

After this brief episode, time passed as the sun climbed higher.

Another sound came from the portal.

Bang! Bang!

After two sharp noises, two figures shot out, crashing heavily to the ground.

Before anyone could react, several more muffled thuds followed.

Six or seven figures in succession flew from the portal, landing in various undignified positions—some sprawled on their backs, others landing hard on their seats.

Some, like Ouyang Bo, landed face-first, eating dirt.

This shocked everyone present.

What was happening?

No previous inner sect trial had ever seen such a spectacle!

The five elders above flashed down to stand before the crowd.

One spoke in a deep voice, “What’s going on? Why are you all in this state?”

The nine figures quickly straightened themselves and saluted the elders respectfully.

“Reporting, elders: at the portal’s exit, we were intercepted by two giant apes. After a fierce struggle, we were swept out…”

“We don’t know what happened… the apes inside suddenly went berserk, attacking anyone they saw…”

The elders pondered for a moment. One said, “The giant apes would never attack disciples of the sect unless…”

“Unless someone provoked them…”

At this, Sun De thought of the first to emerge—Lin Hu.

“Perhaps it was Lin Hu’s doing…”

The nine who had passed the trial looked at each other in confusion. Lin Hu?

“Where is Lin Hu?” Sun De turned and asked in a booming voice.

…

Meanwhile, Lin Hu was feasting with his friends.

Outside Pang Bo’s cave at Funiu Peak, they drank and listened to Fat Lin recount his miserable three days.

It turned out that behind the portal were six more teleportation gates.

Fat Lin chose one at random and stepped through. After a burst of blinding light, he found himself in a spirit beast mountain range.

With his cultivation at the seventh level of the True Qi Realm, he believed himself invincible in the trial—and for a while, he was.

Most participants in the trial were below the sixth level, so rarely would any high-level spirit beasts challenge them.

Growing overconfident, Fat Lin wielded his tungsten-iron staff and attacked any spirit beast that displeased him.

But after seriously injuring a young giant ape, his luck changed.

Two furious giant apes charged out from the depths of the mountains, chasing him relentlessly.

While dodging their pursuit, he searched for a way to pass the trial.

One had to admit, he was resourceful—even under such circumstances, he managed to find the path out.

With the giant apes in a frenzy, he barely escaped their pursuit, resulting in his dramatic tumble from the portal.

Unable to exit through the portal themselves, the giant apes blocked the way in their frustration…

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