"Strength isn't that hard to come by."
The Arhat Panda led them to the other side of the mountainside platform, in front of a cliff. Chains stretched across the chasm, embedded directly into the opposite cliff face. Peering down, there was no bottom in sight. The wind howled, and bolts of lightning occasionally flashed around them.
Yet many bear-type spirits were clinging to the chains, training... ahem, playing, swinging on the iron links like they were on a swing set. It made anyone watching break out in a sweat.
"Part one of the trial is for you to walk across the iron chains to the other side, then come back. Spirits can help, but you must step on the chains—no riding flying spirits."
The Arhat Panda paused, looking at the eight of them. "Who wants to go first?"
Su Hao was, of course, a bit intimidated. It wasn't about the risk of falling to his death, but... it looked terrifying.
Among the eight, the youngest, a girl of about sixteen or seventeen, stared at the cliff and the frequent gusts of wind and lightning, on the verge of tears. Her elder, a female quasi-champion, comforted her, "Don't worry, you won't die from the fall... I mean, you won't fall."
"I'll go first."
A middle-aged master stepped forward, walking to an empty chain—no bears on it. He said to his spirit, a Blast Bat, "Protect me."
With that, he stepped onto the chain. The middle-aged man walked across it as if on flat ground, the Blast Bat merely blocking some sudden lightning strikes. In less than two minutes, the master had made the round trip.
Another master followed suit. Relying on their enhanced physical bodies from the feedback and their honed reflexes and balance, they easily completed the round trip. After all, as masters, their mental fortitude was far stronger than Su Hao and the other juniors.
"My turn."
Just as Su Hao stepped forward, Wu Hang rushed past him, snatching the third spot.
Su Hao shrugged. What's the rush?
Wu Hang's Steel Bone Lizard was utterly useless; his Blazing Fire Butterfly had to grip his collar, struggling to keep him balanced. He also had to watch out for the wind and lightning, carefully taking five or six minutes to return. Su Hao noticed the back of his shirt was completely soaked.
Wu Hang even gave him a chin-up gesture.
"Too competitive. Why bother?"
Su Hao wanted to say, look at how many flying spirits you have. His gaze swept over Die Xiaodie, the Dull-Headed Crow, and Erha Lin. All could fly. All had protective abilities. So...
"Just you two."
Su Hao called out to Die Xiaodie and the Dull-Headed Crow.
Water Lin Beast: "???"
"Xilu~?"
"Xilu~?"
It called out urgently.
Su Hao remained unmoved. That Erha Lin was way too prone to getting cocky and had no self-awareness. Bringing it along would be way too insecure. No way!
Su Hao stepped forward a few paces, testing the chain. It swayed. He had a sense of it now. He definitely couldn't stand steady—Li Songting might manage. But he wasn't scared.
He walked straight onto it. Die Xiaodie's psychic power clamped around him from both sides, keeping him balanced as he moved forward. The Fire Fluff Crow hovered above him, its wings spreading and extending, quickly turning into a pair of massive seven-to-eight-meter wings shielding him. Plus, the Dream Butterfly's psychic shield provided a second layer of protection. Full of security.
Pretty impressive.
Su Hao tilted his head slightly upward, not looking at the chain below—since the Dream Butterfly had fixed his direction, he couldn't step wrong. So he walked faster and faster, completing the round trip in two or three minutes. He felt refreshed. Joyful. Wanting more.
King Wu patted King Lu smugly. "See, that's my junior."
"He's not your apprentice."
"But I taught him, and he's better than the students you've trained."
King Lu: WTF!
He turned his head away.
The remaining four tried one by one, all completing the "strength test" without incident. The most thrilling was the sixteen-year-old girl. She had only one spirit, an entry-level Wind Whisper Swallow. The swallow was small and weak, and with great effort from both the girl and her spirit, she finally crawled across the chains. But those with experience knew the first part of the trial was more symbolic. Gaining the recognition of the Bear King Mountain's spirits was the real challenge.
The Arhat Panda leaned on a wooden staff and said, "You have one day to move around the mountainside. Use your charm, strength, or anything else—no limits—as long as you gain recognition from other spirits. Tomorrow, after noon, I'll gather the spirits to vote. If you get more than 20 votes, you'll be considered successful and can find a bear cub to contract with."
The Arhat Panda added, "Mm, each spirit has only one vote. They can abstain but can't vote multiple times."
With that, it called King Bear and the others away, leaving only Su Hao and the other seven competitors.
Wu Hang's gaze met his, as if to say: This round, I'll win.
Su Hao shrugged. To be honest, dealing with spirits was his specialty. One meal won't do, try two; two won't work, add more seasoning. He'd observed that the Bear King Mountain spirits were all foodies. Why else would most of the supplies be food-related?
"Ahem, good thing I came prepared."
He looked at Water Lin Beast. After the fight, he'd hung the luggage back on it. He called Water Lin Beast toward the stone hall, pondering which jade powder combo to use.
Meanwhile, the others also started moving.
"Guno?"
Die Xiaodie flew to his head, asking if it could move freely.
"Guno~"
It added that it could help canvass for votes.
Su Hao thought for a moment. Die Xiaodie was indeed a cultured butterfly; he trusted it, so he agreed.
"Guno (o?▽?)o~"
Die Xiaodie fluttered its wings and flew off lightly.
...
On Bear King Mountain.
All the computers were set up in the main hall—large, medium, and small models lined up in rows, looking like an internet café. At that moment, a Tyrant Bear was instructing the cubs.
It roared.
"Be gentle!"
"Do you know how expensive these computers are?!"
"Whoever breaks a keyboard, get out!"
It spoke in spirit language, its voice shaking the air.
Die Xiaodie flew a bit farther, looking around. Bear-type spirits were excitedly and carefully handling mice and keyboards, battling away at the computers. Seeing this, Die Xiaodie felt right at home, incredibly comfortable.
It flew and flew, landing behind an Electric Bear. The screen showed a game popular in Dragon Country—actually, worldwide. A 5v5 battle game called "Spirit League," where spirit tamers choose spirits to develop, lane, and team fight.
The Electric Bear was controlling another Electric Bear. After clearing a wave of wild spirits, it finally reached level twelve. The screen's spirit let out a roar.
"Woo—"
The Electric Bear evolved into a Thunder Roar, its body swelling significantly, surrounded by arcs of lightning, with a striking lightning mark on its chest.
The Electric Bear was thrilled. Its paws worked the custom mouse and keyboard.
But suddenly,
a Boxing Kangaroo leaped from the grass, unleashing a combo that sent the Thunder Roar flying into the air and crashing down hard. The screen instantly turned black and white.
The player controlling the character froze. Its eyes flickered with electricity. It let out a roar, raised its paw to slam down...
Then stopped mid-swing.
Reason told it: can't, can't, can't...
But dying to the computer again and again, the Electric Bear felt wronged and furious, with no outlet.
Die Xiaodie watched it and sighed.
So embarrassing for a spirit!
It landed in front of the computer, using psychic power to push the Electric Bear aside.
"Guno~"
Watch me!!