It wasn’t until the afternoon of the next day that Wen Shuangbai finally finished crafting the essential tool their team needed to traverse the Skyreach Mountains—the Vinewood Armor.
The design was inspired by modern spacesuits.
The body, arms, and legs were fashioned from the trunks of trees they had previously felled, then fused together using spiritual energy.
To prevent any trace of human presence from leaking out, Wen Shuangbai first carved isolation array patterns onto the surface of the wood, sealing away their auras.
For extra caution, she then wrapped the entire structure with vines that Senior Sister Li Zhuohua had gathered overnight.
Once the crafting was complete, Wen Shuangbai meticulously inspected every inch of the armor. Finding no flaws, she handed it to her teammates with a satisfied smile. "Alright, friends, time to suit up!"
The entrance to the Vinewood Armor was located at the lower back.
The five of them worked together to stuff the unconscious Lu Jiayao inside. Wen Shuangbai tossed in a few spirit stones to ensure he could breathe.
"Who’s carrying him?" Xie Ziyin suddenly asked.
Shen Hefeng immediately took a step back, clutching his injured side. "This old man is too wounded to bear the burden."
Yin Xuan stepped forward, speaking softly, "I’ll—"
"I’ll carry him!" Li Zhuohua barged in, shoving Yin Xuan aside with an air of absolute determination—as if daring anyone to challenge her.
Yin Xuan: "……"
And so, unsurprisingly, Li Zhuohua secured the honor of hauling Lu Jiayao.
However, the ancient tree Wen Shuangbai had chosen for the Vinewood Armor was no ordinary timber—it was rare spiritwood, and incredibly heavy.
Li Zhuohua herself had to wear her own set of armor, and carrying an additional one made movement cumbersome and awkward.
After a moment’s thought, Wen Shuangbai suggested, "Let’s just drag him, then."
She used her Firefeather Whip to lash Lu Jiayao securely to Li Zhuohua’s back.
…
By afternoon, the sun blazed fiercely over the secret realm.
A three-tailed lizard lounged lazily on the ground, basking in the heat.
Then—thud, thud, thud—the earth trembled as heavy footsteps approached, kicking up clouds of dust that choked the poor lizard.
"……"
It whipped its head around, only to see five towering vine-covered figures marching through the haze with heroic strides, their presence overwhelming!
And on the ground behind them… something was being dragged.
The lizard froze, its tiny brain struggling to comprehend these tree-like, yet human-like creatures.
But it didn’t matter—it scurried into the underbrush and vanished in an instant.
Wen Shuangbai and her team trudged forward with difficulty.
The Vinewood Armor was unbearably bulky, severely restricting their movements.
It reminded Wen Shuangbai of military drills from her past life—marching in formation, forced to move in rigid steps.
Back then, it was discipline. Now, it was necessity.
Groaning internally, she marched onward, step by step, toward the Skyreach Mountains.
Every beast along the way fled at the sight of them.
Before entering the forest, Wen Shuangbai paused. Through the transparent "tree eye" of her armor, she exchanged glances with her teammates.
Just one glance—because each of them had only one eye.
The material for the eye had been repurposed from the protective lenses of her spirit saw.
The lenses themselves were crafted from Moonview Stone, a rare and expensive material resembling glass, which she had taken from Qi Yaoling’s family during a previous competition.
With limited Moonview Stone to spare, she had to be frugal—each teammate got one eye.
As for Lu Jiayao? Well, he was unconscious. He didn’t need one.
In a way, his timing was impeccable.
If he’d been awake, Wen Shuangbai calculated, they’d each have gotten only 0.833 of an eye.
After a brief sigh, she stepped into the forest.
The moment they crossed the threshold, the dense canopy plunged them into darkness.
But unlike yesterday, no vines attacked. No strange phenomena occurred.
The forest had mistaken them for its own.
The cultivators of Xuantian Continent were stunned.
[……This… this actually worked?!]
[I take back everything I ever said about artifact refiners! I used to think they just fixed swords and were useless, but now I see—they’re terrifying!]
[Well, I really do just fix swords… Maybe not all refiners are like Wen Shuangbai…]
Assured that the vines wouldn’t strike, the Qingling Mountain team quickened their pace.
Li Zhuohua clomped ahead, dragging Lu Jiayao’s log-like armor (since he was unconscious, Wen Shuangbai hadn’t bothered with arms or legs—just a hollowed-out trunk with Lu Jiyao stuffed inside) behind her.
The onlookers winced as the log smashed into rocks, trees, and anything in its path.
[Won’t Lu Jiayao get smashed to pieces?!]
[No way!] replied one keen-eyed observer. [Wen Shuangbai stuffed all their leftover vines inside his armor for cushioning! She said it was for impact resistance!]
[……Damn. That’s genius.]
Before setting out, Shen Hefeng had instructed them to head northwest to cross the Skyreach Mountains.
One hour passed. Then two.
Wen Shuangbai had no idea how long they’d been walking.
Trapped inside the cramped wooden shell, the isolation array muffled all sound. Her only window to the outside was the single tree eye.
The world beyond was an unchanging deep blue, like the sky before dawn.
Time lost all meaning here.
Even the scenery remained static—ancient trees draped in vines, dense undergrowth, and thick humidity.
The sameness played tricks on her mind. Were they even moving? Or just walking in circles?
The endless silence and monotony gnawed at her nerves.
What if they were lost? What if they wandered until they died?
Sometimes, she itched to unseal the armor, step out, breathe fresh air, hear the wind rustling through the leaves—
No. No!
Wen Shuangbai snapped out of it.
She halted abruptly, casting a worried glance at her companions.
Li Zhuohua led the way, unwavering.
A sword cultivator since childhood, her discipline was unshakable. Doubt never crossed her mind—her philosophy was simple: keep moving forward, no matter what.
Every six steps, Li Zhuohua paused to check on the others.
Once she confirmed they were still following, she forged ahead.
Just seeing her senior sister’s back filled Wen Shuangbai with reassurance.
As long as Li Zhuohua was there, everything would be alright.
She turned around with difficulty to check on her companions behind her.
To her surprise, when she looked back, Xie Ziyin was standing just two steps behind her. Though she couldn’t see his face, Wen Shuangbai recognized him instantly. After all, she had personally crafted the vine-tree armor he wore, and Xie Ziyin was the tallest among them, with proportions so perfect they seemed unreal.
When she stopped, he stopped too, tilting his tree-like head to look at her. Through the Moonview Stone embedded in the armor, Wen Shuangbai could clearly see a pair of cold, almost indifferent eyes, a tear mole beneath one of them, his gaze dark and icy as if asking, What’s wrong?
Wen Shuangbai blinked at him, signaling that everything was fine.
She then glanced further down the path.
Shen Hefeng was injured. Though Xie Ziyin had treated him before their departure, his recovery was still incomplete, leaving him weak and lagging at the rear.
Yin Xuan, meanwhile, leaned casually against an ancient tree, taking a breather. He waited until Shen Hefeng was six steps ahead before lazily catching up, then rested again, then repeated the cycle…
At this moment, he was comfortably propped against the tree, letting Shen Hefeng go first. His entire demeanor radiated an effortless ease, as if he weren’t participating in a grueling trial to Escape the Ancient Sky-Reaching Forest, but rather strolling through the woods on a leisurely vacation.
Aside from not being able to lie down, Yin Xuan felt pretty good.
What he didn’t know was that Shen Hefeng, deeply offended by the sword cultivator’s attitude, was cursing inside his tree armor: "In all my years, I’ve hated music cultivators the most, followed by healers and artifact forgers, and then sword cultivators. Why can’t I shake off this damn sword cultivator? Am I really that slow? Impossible! I, Shen the First, will definitely outpace Silver Blockhead, overtake the Poison Couple, and surpass Senior Sister Zhuohua! Hahahaha!"
Mid-laugh, Shen Hefeng’s tree-like body abruptly halted. He raised both arms to the sky and burst into maniacal laughter.
[Great, Shen Hefeng’s lost it again.]
Wen Shuangbai: "……"
Well, no need to worry.
None of her teammates were normal.
So Wen Shuangbai continued marching stiffly up the mountain.
Since the vine-tree armor kept their limbs rigid and unbending, this was the only way they could climb.
After a while, bored and unsure how long the journey would take, she decided to multitask—practicing the second level of the Yaoling Heart Technique.
The first level of the technique strengthened the body when practiced normally and melted materials when reversed.
The second level, however, enhanced the melting ability regardless of how it was practiced.
Now, Wen Shuangbai could refine materials much faster than before.
As she trained, the sky suddenly darkened, and a torrential downpour began.
Rain poured relentlessly into the forest, soaking leaves, vines, and soon forming small puddles in the muddy earth.
The already treacherous path became a slippery, muddy mess.
Each step sank deep into the ground, and pulling their feet free required immense effort.
The vine-tree armor, essentially a massive, cumbersome spiritual wood strapped to their bodies, made movement difficult even on a good day. Now, with the worsening conditions, the challenge doubled.
After half an hour in the rain, even Li Zhuohua—with her sword-forged bones—began to ache.
She focused on the sensation.
Her legs burned as if filled with lead, every muscle and meridian throbbing with pain.
Li Zhuohua’s eyes gleamed.
This was the feeling! The exhilarating agony that sent her spirit soaring! She hadn’t experienced it in so long!
Absolutely glorious!
She loved Star Moon Valley. She loved the forest. She loved this storm!!
Ah, let the rain pour endlessly!
Li Zhuohua pressed on, climbing six steps before glancing back to confirm her juniors were still following.
Seeing them persist, she concluded they must feel the same as her.
Clearly, no one needed rest. Satisfied, she continued happily.
Exhausted but unwilling to admit defeat, Wen Shuangbai kept up.
If Senior Sister can keep going while dragging Lu Jiayao along, why can’t I?
She followed, so Xie Ziyin followed.
And since they were all pushing forward, how could Shen Hefeng—self-proclaimed Number One Under Heaven—fall behind? Even if he coughed up blood from exhaustion, he would never be the first to stop!
Yin Xuan sighed softly. "……Sigh."
—
After two more grueling hours in the storm, even the indomitable Li Zhuohua finally tired.
Since the rigid tree-legs made sitting or lying down impossible (lest they struggle to stand again), she paused beneath an ancient tree, leaning against it to rest.
Seeing her stop, Wen Shuangbai—who had long exhausted her spiritual energy and was running on sheer willpower—also staggered to the nearest tree and slumped against it.
Xie Ziyin walked over and leaned against her without hesitation.
Wen Shuangbai: "……?"
Moments later, Shen Hefeng arrived and, without a word, slammed heavily into Xie Ziyin’s side.
Damn those Sky Net Sect bastards—this is killing me!
Xie Ziyin: "……"
Was this charlatan blind? Plenty of other trees around.
Before Shen Hefeng could catch his breath, Yin Xuan ambled over and lazily leaned against him.
Wen Shuangbai, now sandwiched at the center: "………………"
The storm raged on without end, day and night.
Step after miserable step, rest after brief rest, the group trudged forward—until, finally, two days later, they emerged from the Sky-Reaching Mountain Range!
They frantically unlatched the armor at their backs, scrambling out one after another.
Wen Shuangbai clutched her vine-tree armor, wiped the rain from her face, and accepted the spirit-restoring pill Xie Ziyin tossed her. Taking a deep breath of fresh air, she grinned wearily. "Finally… out."
Those days had nearly suffocated her.
Yin Xuan collapsed onto his back, arms crossed over his stomach, eyes closed in serene bliss as the rain drenched him. "Heavenly… I can lie down." It had been too long.
Meanwhile, Li Zhuohua dashed around, kicking her legs, leaping and spinning in exhilaration. "I’m faster now!"
"You are," Wen Shuangbai agreed, stretching. Freed from the armor, her body felt incredibly light, her movements swifter, her cultivation even showing signs of a breakthrough.
Not bad at all.
After a moment’s thought, she carefully stored the vine-tree armor in her spatial ring.
Once the trial ended, she could have the couriers of Caiyuan Tower train in them—imagine them darting over water like weightless phantoms, delivering goods with godlike speed!
Heck, she could even sell them.
Her marketing angle was ready: "The Xuantian Continent’s ultimate weighted training gear—guaranteed to make you light as a feather!"
While Wen Shuangbai plotted business ventures, Shen Hefeng watched Xie Ziyin distribute spirit pills—first to Wen Shuangbai, then Li Zhuohua, then Yin Xuan, and finally, finally, to him.
Shen Hefeng scowled. "I always said you were a venomous quack. Now I’m sure."
Xie Ziyin scoffed and walked off after confirming Shen Hefeng’s injuries were nonexistent.
Adjusting his Taoist hat, Shen Hefeng swallowed the pill and began divining the location of Divine Evolution Temple.
The result?
"Disaster," he announced, studying the hexagrams. "The monks are next. Those bald fools have drawn the short stick—bloodshed and calamity await."
Wen Shuangbai immediately snapped back to attention, narrowing her eyes as she asked, "The Heavenly Net Witchcraft Sect?"
During her free time, she had watched every match of the other major sects.
Back in Tianjia Village, the Divine Evolution Temple had held back their strength—only to be dragged into the same predicament as the well-meaning Jade Rhinoceros Valley inside a turtle shell formation.
By the time they reached Zhuoguang City, the Divine Evolution Temple had begun to exert their full power, outperforming the Heavenly Net Witchcraft Sect.
If Wen Shuangbai’s guess was correct, the current ranking of sacred stones was: Purple Flame Realm, Qingling Mountain, Divine Evolution Temple, Heavenly Net Witchcraft Sect, and Jade Rhinoceros Valley.
For the Heavenly Net Witchcraft Sect to claim first place, they would need to eliminate the top three.
Wen Shuangbai suspected that while the sect had cast puppet hexes on them, their real target in this round was the Divine Evolution Temple.
The turtle-shell divination couldn’t reveal such minute details, but Shen Hefeng agreed: "Most likely those damned descendants."
Li Zhuohua unsheathed her Flowing Rainbow Sword. "Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go settle the score!"
