Outside the Eternal Tower, over a hundred kilometers away.
Ye Bai moved slowly along a forest path, his footsteps light and almost silent.
As he reached a fork in the road, the shadow beneath his feet began to twist.
Shadow Nine, surprisingly, appeared on his own initiative!
"Kid, there's something I need to remind you of."
Shadow Nine's tone was serious, lacking his usual laziness.
"The area you're about to enter... is quite different."
Listening to Shadow Nine's warning, Ye Bai looked ahead.
[Ahead: Eternal Forest]
[The most brutal battlefield on the Blue Planet, where countless heroic spirits rest in peace]
[The Supreme Being Nightmare paid a great price to alter the rules of heaven and earth here]
[The spirits of the deceased humans cling to relics, and when someone destined arrives, the spirits will awaken]
[Defeat the relics, gain the spirits' approval, and you can take them away]
Shadow Nine repeated the same information to Ye Bai.
"Senior, if I understand correctly, everyone can only take one item, right?"
"That's usually the case."
Shadow Nine patiently explained,
"These relics are quite ordinary in themselves, but due to the modifications by the Supreme Being Nightmare, they've become high-grade equipment. Each person can only take one piece of equipment from here."
"At the same time, many spirits harbor hatred towards demons, and they are more inclined to choose those with high talent and potential."
Listening to Shadow Nine's introduction, Ye Bai nodded slowly.
If that's the case, those with high-grade talents face multiple powerful choices.
Those with poor talents might end up with nothing.
"Generally, this exercise is placed as the graduation exercise after the summer camp's special training."
Shadow Nine sighed, "It seems the Dawn Plan has been initiated."
"Dawn Plan?"
"Yes, the Dawn Plan is also known as the darkest plan. The details will be explained to you at the summer camp."
Shadow Nine brought the topic back on track,
"What I want to emphasize is that, given your situation, ahem, you know it yourself."
Shadow Nine was well aware of Ye Bai's true identity, though neither had broken the last layer of pretense.
"There will be many pieces of equipment that will choose you, or rather, none will reject you. As for what to choose, that's up to you."
Ye Bai asked, "What about the previous two Supreme Beings?"
"Traceless took a sword, and Carefree took a set of bells and drums."
Shadow Nine turned into black mist again, sinking into Ye Bai's shadow, leaving behind a sentence,
"I'll help you conceal the commotion of the equipment, so you don't have to worry."
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"Thank you, Senior."
"After this is over, remember to give me the photos."
Ye Bai: ......
This old fellow is still hung up on the black history of the Supreme Being Nightmare.
After understanding his situation, Ye Bai carefully tidied his clothes, took a deep breath, and stepped forward.
As Ye Bai crossed a certain line, the Eternal Forest, dormant for nearly thirty years, seemed to come alive in an instant.
Countless birds took flight, circling above the Eternal Forest.
A white cloud slowly descended, covering the forest as if to conceal something.
In the east, south, west, and north, each direction held a shadow.
When the anomaly of the Eternal Forest manifested, the shadows immediately sensed the abnormality and reacted.
Purple smoke rose, and a young man in black and purple attire appeared, looking in a certain direction—where Ye Bai was.
"He's here."
The young man raised his hand, a number—seven—imprinted on his right glove.
Shadow Seven!
...
The blue shadow cast by the sky on the water rippled, and a watery voice emerged.
"This time, it's a bit too early, isn't it?"
Shadow Six!
...
The bamboo forest swayed, a green shadow appeared, and a voice as innocent as a child's spoke.
"It's definitely him. Only a Supreme Seed entering the Eternal Forest would cause such a disturbance!"
Shadow Five!
...
The shade of the trees shifted slowly with the sunlight, a green shadow mixed in, the voice tinged with sorrow.
"History keeps repeating itself..."
Shadow Four!
The [Shadow] level experts from the [Shadow] group, Four, Five, Six, and Seven, all appeared simultaneously!
They had only one task—to guard the Eternal Forest!
This was once the frontline battlefield, and if the Abyssal Plane wanted to launch a counterattack, this would be the prime breakthrough point!
With just four people stationed here, forming the only line of defense, intercepting and killing demons that strayed into the Blue Planet, it was evident how terrifying their strength was!
When they all appeared at once, it was either the most critical moment for humanity or the current situation:
A Supreme Seed had entered the Eternal Forest!
Shadow Six was the first to speak,
"Who's guarding Asura, is it Old Eight or Brother Nine?"
Everyone looked at Shadow Four; they hadn't actively sought out this information.
"Brother Nine, Old Eight had some matters to attend to and went to the Abyssal Plane."
Shadow Seven looked in a certain direction, speaking coldly, "Should we go take a look?"
"It would be fatal."
Shadow Five let out a laugh like a clanging bell,
"Little Seven, you're still too young.
Brother Nine is Brother Nine because he only wants to be Brother Nine, not the Big Brother.
Does that explanation make sense to you?"
A cold glint flashed through the forest, and Shadow Seven drew half of a short blade,
"Haven't seen Fifth Brother in a while, wondering if I can move up in the rankings."
Shadow Seven snorted coldly,
"After all, becoming Shadow Seven in less than ten years isn't a speed I'm satisfied with."
Shadow Five laughed again, as if hearing a joke, letting out that strange laugh once more,
"Little Seven, if you really had the skills, you wouldn't have become part of the [Shadow] now."
This statement seemed to touch a sore spot for Shadow Seven, and he drew the short blade a bit more.
Swish—
The bamboo forest swayed continuously, the green shadow shattered.
"Enough!"
The highest-ranked, most powerful, and most senior Shadow Four growled,
"The Supreme Seed has arrived. You don't think we're the only ones who noticed, do you?"
The four simultaneously looked to the sky, where a lone white cloud drifted.
Apart from this white cloud, the sky was clear and cloudless.
The four had the same answer in their hearts—Supreme Being [Carefree]!
Among the three Supreme Beings, Carefree was responsible for guarding the Eternal Tower.
And the Eternal Forest was right below the Eternal Tower; Carefree could see it with a mere glance.
Asura's arrival naturally couldn't escape those eyes.
This white cloud was Carefree's will.
"Disperse."
With that, a wisp of green smoke dissipated, and Shadow Four was the first to leave.
Shadow Seven snorted coldly, sheathed the short blade, and turned into purple smoke, leaving.
Shadow Six came lightly and left quietly, the blue shadow disappearing into the water.
Only Shadow Five remained in place.
After the other three left, the bamboo forest shook violently, bamboo leaves falling like rain, leaving only bare bamboo behind.
A whisper came from the green shadow in the bamboo forest.
"Little Seven... has grown stronger..."
"Truly worthy of being called the closest to a Supreme Being ten years ago."
"I really look forward to the scene of Little Seven meeting Asura. Will they fight?"
The bamboo forest fell silent once more, with no further sound.
...
Eternal Forest.
Ye Bai had just entered the forest when he immediately heard a familiar call.
"Big Bai, over here, I'm over here!"
Zhao Lin stood by a tree, waving at Ye Bai.
"Where'd you get the fruit? Why are you just standing there?"
Ye Bai approached and found Zhao Lin munching on a green nut.
"I got beaten by the testing machine and have to stay here for fifteen minutes."
Zhao Lin pulled a fruit from his pocket and tossed it to Ye Bai, pointing to the tree beside him,
"This fruit is from the tree. Eating it boosts your spirit! It's good stuff; I'll help you pick a few more later."
Having such rare fruits on the outskirts of the Eternal Forest was quite normal.
Ye Bai looked at the tree and casually said,
"Oh, there's a relic of an Abyssal Demon Battle King buried under this tree, which is why the fruit boosts spirit."
"What?"
Zhao Lin stopped chewing, spat out the food residue, and asked in confusion,
"Big Bai, how do you know that?"
"It's written right here."
"Where? I don't see anything."
Zhao Lin scanned the tree but found no explanation.
Ye Bai gave a look to his shadow, but Shadow Nine remained unresponsive.
Eventually,
Lines of text appeared on one side of the tree, recording the story of the tree.
"It's true!"
After reading the words on the tree, Zhao Lin angrily threw the fruit to the ground, smashing it to pieces.
He even took back the fruit he had given to Ye Bai and smashed it too.
"Ugh, even a dog wouldn't eat this!"
Zhao Lin rinsed his mouth with a bottle of water, visibly upset.
The Abyssal Plane's Demon Battle King, after invading the Blue Planet, first killed two human Battle Kings, then was besieged and died here, causing great casualties to humanity.
In the end, it became fertilizer for the tree.
Zhao Lin couldn't express his disdain for such an existence in words.
After doing all this, Zhao Lin still felt unsatisfied.
"Ahem, Big Bai, help me keep watch."
With that, Zhao Lin began to undo his belt.
Ye Bai: ???
Turning his back, Ye Bai heard the sound of water flowing behind him.
In an instant,
Ye Bai felt like he was back in his high school restroom.
"I'm done."
Zhao Lin finished precisely and even invited Ye Bai,
"Do you want to try it too? It's quite satisfying!"
"No, that's not necessary."
Ye Bai replied seriously,
"I'll save mine for the Demon God."
Shadow Nine: ......
You guys can chat all you want, but could you please move a bit and shift the shadow?
There's water... it's about to flow over....
That's just ungrateful.
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