CHAPTER 574: CHAPTER 574: STAY BEHIND

Boom!

The two collided.

Everyone had thought there would be an earth-shattering explosion, but unexpectedly, at the moment of contact, the Cloud Umbrella that Meng Zehao had integrated with was directly swallowed by the black lotus.

The entire umbrella was swallowed, yet the small black lotus remained unchanged.

Its size remained the same.

Just as everyone was puzzled about what had happened, the black lotus suddenly bloomed, transforming into black petals that sprinkled across the sky.

And Meng Zehao, who had previously become one with the Cloud Umbrella, was spat out.

But upon being expelled, they had separated from the Man and Artifact Integration state.

Meng Zehao’s complexion was extremely pale, his skin as thin as tin foil, his eye sockets deeply sunken, and the darkness spread all over his eye area, looking like he had stayed up for several nights in a row, on the verge of sudden death.

His Artifact Spirit also transformed from the Artifact Spirit Form back into a human shape, lying on the ground with an equally pale face devoid of any blood color.

On the other hand, Xiao Zhan looked rosy and full of energy, as if he could go another ten rounds!

Glancing at Meng Zehao, Xiao Zhan wore a hint of disdain on his face.

Beneath this disdain, deep in his eyes, there was tremendous excitement and shock.

He had mastered this Spirit Manipulation Technique and only felt it would be very powerful, but had never tested it in actual combat.

During the fight with Meng Zehao, he thought at most they would tie, or at best, he would have a slight advantage.

But the outcome surprised him greatly.

He indeed held a momentous advantage!

Moreover, there was an unexpected surprise for Xiao Zhan that he hadn’t anticipated; the black lotus, after absorbing Meng Zehao’s energy, would partake some of the energy back to him!

This is a commonality of the Death Aura.

But this time, the feedback was different; it was a large amount, nearly ten percent!

Previously, the effect was at most one percent.

And, another thing that shocked Xiao Zhan was that this ten percent feedback, a certain ratio would be absorbed by the body and become a permanent part of him!

Does this mean Xiao Zhan could use the Absorption Star Technique?

Of course, it was an exaggeration to call it the Absorption Star Technique; the amount of permanent energy converted was not even worthy to hold the shoes in comparison.

However, the appearance of this phenomenon was a good omen.

If Xiao Zhan concentrated on researching this skill, maybe the amount of energy conversion would increase in the future!

Spirit Manipulation Technique, Death Lotus!

...

Xiao Zhan’s scythe rested on Meng Zehao’s neck, looking down at him from above, "Do I have the qualifications now?"

Xiao Zhan knew that since he could appear here, Qin Wanfeng must have arranged everything properly.

Zhan Yuntian’s dissatisfaction with himself was nothing more than wanting to test him. Now, this result should shut him up.

Meng Zehao lowered his head, full of dejection.

He had never imagined that he would lose to a Sixth Grade Spirit Master. If this were to spread, where would he put his face?

However, his defeat did not lead to mockery.

Ye Qingtian, Yun Dong, and several other Family Heads closed their mouths very tacitly, trying to maintain a quiet atmosphere.

Still, the current silence was deafening.

Xiao Zhan’s strength had taken them by surprise; they had originally thought that Xiao Zhan was just a gilded member Qin Wanfeng had inserted to experience the process with them.

But unexpectedly, Xiao Zhan truly possessed such strength.

For a moment, their gazes towards Xiao Zhan became much more serious.

They were also just Seventh Grade, not much stronger than Meng Zehao. Xiao Zhan’s recent display of the black lotus that caused one’s heart to skip a beat—if it were them, they wouldn’t dare to deal with it rashly either.

They now understood the true intent of Qin Wanfeng.

But after understanding, their gazes towards Xiao Zhan were already filled with a fervent fighting spirit!

As Seventh Graders, they absolutely could not lose to a young Sixth Grade!

"Enough."

At this moment, Zhan Yuntian finally stood up and stopped Xiao Zhan from continuing.

His purpose had been achieved.

He saw Xiao Zhan’s mettle, just as Qin Wanfeng had said, not to be underestimated.

In his opinion, he thought that at most Xiao Zhan would only hold on for a few minutes against Meng Zehao, which would have been quite impressive. But unexpectedly, Xiao Zhan managed to counter and defeat Meng Zehao!

This was way beyond his expectation.

Fighting across different grades, he had seen a lot, including himself, who often fought across grades.

But to be Sixth Grade and able to defeat a Seventh Grade, this kind of leapfrogging, he had never seen before, and he himself could not do it either.

Initially when he was Sixth Grade, at most he could only fight to a draw with a Seventh Grader!

He walked over to Meng Zehao, pulled him up, and then said, "Although Xiao Zhan is here due to connections, he does have the qualifications. It was supposed to be Qin Wanfeng who participated, but he gave his place to Xiao Zhan."

After speaking, he looked at the others, "If any of you are willing to give up your spots, you may do so as well, regardless of strength."

Upon hearing this, Meng Zehao’s face suddenly became awkward.

If this was the reason, why the hell didn’t you say it earlier?

Made me take a beating for nothing.

Seeing that no one voiced any objections, Zhan Yuntian continued, "Rest for tonight. The formal cultivation experience begins tomorrow, lasting a total of three months. By the end, only one of you will remain."

Having said that, Zhan Yuntian directly exited the grand hall.

The crowd looked at each other, having nothing more to say, and then followed the maid’s lead back to their own rooms.

Xiao Zhan entered his room, and as soon as he stepped in, his brows furrowed.

He felt a mysterious irritability.

He released his perception, finding nothing special about the room—it was quite ordinary, and there was nothing different from the layout of a normal house.

An illusion?

Xiao Zhan didn’t believe that he would be having an illusion, but he still exited the room and tested it.

The result was surprising; when he stepped outside, the irritability disappeared.

And when he entered again, the feeling emerged once more.

"No need to test anymore, it’s not an illusion. It’s the building materials of this room, a large quantity of magnetite that disturbs the mind have been used, that’s why we’re experiencing this irritability," said Ye Youlong at this time.

Xiao Zhan rubbed his head, "It seems to be deliberately arranged by Zhan Yuntian, but the purpose behind such an arrangement is unknown. Is the trial already starting?"

This irritating state of mind simply couldn’t be brushed away.

The longer one stayed in the room, the more irritable one would become. One might collapse at any moment.

Just then, Xiao Zhan heard noise coming from outside.

Since the door wasn’t closed, the sounds were very clear.

"Someone come!"

Listening to this voice, it seemed to be Ye Qingtian’s voice.

Xiao Zhan stepped out to look.

And he saw Ye Qingtian questioning a maid, "What’s going on with this room? It’s a mess, how can one rest? Swap it out for another one immediately!"