"Incredible, that jade has actually reached the first level of the fifth layer."

At this moment, the second protector was staring at the jade stone on the great hall, which was glowing, his gaze filled with shock.

"Li Lin has also reached the first level of the fifth layer," exclaimed the chief protector, absolutely stunned. It had been only three months since Li Lin broke through a level of martial spirit, and now he had entered the first level of the fifth layer, meaning he had the strength equivalent to a first-level martial general.

His cultivation had not yet reached the level of a martial general, but his strength had, which was shocking.

"Hongling has also reached the first level of the fifth layer. Has this girl's strength increased significantly recently?" Elder Yang was also somewhat surprised at this moment.

"Chi..."

The stone door opened, and once again, a disciple in green clothes walked out of the stone room listlessly.

"Bai Tao, ranked nineteenth on the Dragon List, he failed too." Inside the great hall, there were already more than thirty disciples who had failed, watching the newly emerged disciple in green clothes, all with a hint of surprise in their eyes.

"Sect Master, there are exactly twenty disciples left in the Martial Spirit Illusion Land now," said the chief protector to Yun Xiaotian after the green-clothed disciple came out.

"It's only the ninth day, right?" Yun Xiaotian said lightly.

"Replying to the Sect Master, it is indeed the ninth day," said the chief protector.

"Zhao Qinghai, Han Feng, Qu Daojue, three people have already reached the third level of the fifth layer. Zhao Qingtian, Dong Pan, Long San, have all reached the second level of the fifth layer. Ling Feng, Du Zichun, Zeng Chuxiong, Li Lin, Hongling, etc., have all reached the first level of the fifth layer. This batch of disciples seems to be slightly stronger than the last one," Yun Xiaotian said lightly, a smile crossing his eyes.

"It seems that we, Yunyang Sect, have some confidence in this Three Sects and Four Gates Conference," Elder Yang said lightly.

"Alright, notify them to come out. These twenty disciples will enter the secret land in three days." Yun Xiaotian slowly stood up and was the first to leave the great hall.

"Should we break through?" In front of Li Lin, a stone golem about ten meters tall stood in front of him. This golem had reached the initial stage of the fifth level, its strength absolutely formidable.

The golem's body was made of huge rocks, its aura powerful, like a giant.

Facing this golem, Li Lin hesitated. Even if he really fought, Li Lin had no confidence at the moment. This was a fifth-level golem, its strength so formidable that even a first-level martial general would find it difficult to deal with, fearing that only by truly risking his life might he have a chance.

"So the disciple's trial ends, and the competition is over."

Just as Li Lin was undecided, the chief protector's voice suddenly came into his mind.

"Did I make it into the top twenty?" Li Lin smiled slightly, not too surprised in his heart. Reaching the first level of the fifth layer, almost equivalent to having the strength of a martial general level, it was no problem for him to enter the last twenty.

"The Martial Spirit Illusion Land competition is over. The disciples entering the secret land are Zhao Qinghai, Han Feng, Qu Daojue, Zhao Qingtian, Dong Pan, Long San, Ling Feng, Du Zichun, Zeng Chuxiong, Li Lin, Yun Hongling, Cuiyu..."

A protector then announced the twenty people entering the secret land in the square.

"Brother Lin is going in, good job." In the crowd, Yang Wei, Yue Buqun, Lai Yuejing, Peng Chuanxiong, the four immediately cheered.

As the names of these twenty people were announced, all the disciples envied and jealously admired them. Entering the secret land, without any accidents, at the worst, they could mix up a protector's position in the sect, which was very high. A protector from the Yunyang Sect had an absolutely high status when going out.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Chi..."

Inside the great hall, twenty stone doors opened, and twenty disciples walked out, almost all of them glancing around to see who else was entering the secret land with them.

Li Lin walked out of the stone door, his gaze also sweeping through the crowd. Qu Daojue with the war saber, Ling Feng the flying eagle, Du Zichun the ghost hand, Long San with the domineering saber, and others were among them, as well as Zhao Qinghai, Zhao Qingtian, Han Feng, Dong Pan, etc., also unsurprisingly among them. After all, the top ten disciples on the Dragon List were not known for vain.

"Hongling, Cuiyu." Two figures appeared in Li Lin's gaze. Yun Hongling entering the top twenty was not too surprising for Li Lin, but Cuiyu being among them surprised Li Lin. Du Gu Binglan was not among them, but her maid could compare with the top disciples of the Yunyang Sect, which was indeed surprising.

"Lin'er, good job, you didn't disappoint me." Seeing Li Lin, Yu Yufeng immediately walked up to him. After so many years, he finally had a disciple who could enter the secret land. In his excitement, his eyes were somewhat moist.

"Greetings, Master." When Li Lin saluted Yu Yufeng, he felt several cold gazes on him. Glancing sideways, it was none other than Zhao Wujie, Zhao Qingtian, Zhao Qinghai, and Li Shaohu, a few people from the Zhao family.

Li Lin did not pay them any attention, silently noting it in his heart.

"Hmph!" A light snort sounded from beside Li Lin, and then a green figure flitted by. Looking over, aside from Yun Hongling, naturally, there could be no others. Li Lin could only smile bitterly.

At this moment, inside the great hall, all the direct disciples were either joyful or sorrowful. Several disciples ranked in the teens on the Dragon List had made mistakes in the Martial Spirit Illusion Land and were replaced by disciples ranked in the twenties. Between them, strength played a big part, but luck was also a factor. After all, if the rankings were not too far apart, their strengths were basically similar.

When the twenty disciples who could enter the secret land walked out of the great hall, the disciples on the square cheered. These twenty were undoubtedly the strongest twenty among all the young generation, their strength already at a level most disciples looked up to.

All direct disciples then left under the guidance of their masters on flying beasts, and the watching disciples finally dispersed. However, several disciples were left behind by the protectors to clean up. Over these nine days, there were many scraps of dry food, water bottles, and other items on the ground, leaving the square in a mess.

"Junior brother, well done. Now our lineage can also hold our heads high and chest out," said Ma Fang to Li Lin in the courtyard where Yu Yufeng lived.

"You flatter me, senior brother." Li Lin said with a light smile.

"Lin'er, you will enter the secret land in three days. There is half a year's time inside the secret land, so you must be careful. There are dangers everywhere within the secret land, and in past years, there have been disciples who unfortunately perished. So, be very careful," Yu Yufeng solemnly instructed Li Lin.

"I will be careful," said Li Lin. "Master, what kind of dangers are there inside the secret land?"

"This secret land was sealed a long time ago by some of the top experts of our Yunyang Sect to protect the Martial Spirit Sacred Fruit. The land itself is an ancient land that was discovered by the experts of our Yunyang Sect to have the Martial Spirit Sacred Fruit, so they jointly sealed it within the Yunyang Sect," Yu Yufeng explained lightly.

"Ancient land?" Li Lin was surprised, hearing the term for the first time.

"You know too little, so it's not surprising that you're shocked," Yu Yufeng said with a slight smile, then continued, "When your strength improves, you will naturally know a lot of things. These are things that your master also only heard from your grandmaster and cannot explain clearly to you. In short, the dangers within the secret land are similar to those in the Misty Mountain Range, with many beasts within. Also, there are some ancient formations inside the secret land that even the strong of the sect dare not enter lightly. Marks have been made on the outside of these formations, and you must not enter them rashly. The dangers inside are enough to cause ordinary disciples to lose their lives."

"Ancient secret land, ancient formations, Martial Spirit Sacred Fruit, this secret land is really not simple," Li Lin thought to himself, realizing he knew too little about the Spirit Martial Continent.

"You don't need to worry too much. In past years, of the twenty disciples who entered the secret land, only a very few perished, unless their luck was particularly bad. If it were too dangerous, the sect wouldn't allow you to enter. But indeed, there are dangers, and of course, there are many treasures. The strong of the sect left many martial techniques in the secret land, and since it is an ancient land itself, if you're lucky, you can also obtain some unexpected treasures. It's said that there are many places within the secret land that even the strong of the sect have not fully explored. If you have the chance, you can naturally have unexpected joy," Yu Yufeng said again.

"Master, what level are the beasts within the secret land generally?" Li Lin asked.

"They are mostly fourth to fifth level. If you're unlucky, you might encounter mid-fifth level beasts. Higher level beasts have either been tamed or killed by the strong of the sect, so there shouldn't be sixth level beasts," Yu Yufeng explained.

"Having beasts is good," Li Lin thought to himself. There was half a year's time in the secret land, and with beasts inside, he could practice as he did in the Misty Mountain Range, also having a source of demon cores.

"Lin'er, your three beasts cannot be brought into the secret land. The strong who set up the seal in the secret land were afraid of the beasts inside running out, so there are restrictions within the secret land that prevent any beast from entering or leaving," Yu Yufeng explained.