Myriad Realms Gatekeeper

The entire ceiling flipped back again.

——All the candidates from Azure Academy had left.

The proctor from Guixu High School opened the water bag at his side and poured all the water onto the ground.

The water didn't splash when it hit the ground; instead, it gathered together to form a circular pond.

"All candidates from Guixu High School, come here and jump down, quickly!"

The proctor from Guixu High School shouted loudly.

The first candidate bravely jumped down, and before he could surface, the current swept him away.

——He disappeared!

"Hurry! On the other side of the water flow is the Guixu Great Ship, protected by an Ancient Magical Barrier, safe from any disaster — don't hesitate, jump quickly!" the proctor shouted loudly.

Hearing this, the candidates felt somewhat reassured.

One by one, they jumped into the water and left the place.

The proctor from Xirang High School strode to the wall, reached into his bosom, and pasted a painting onto it.

The painting depicted a herd of horses, each one lively and in various galloping poses.

"Get on the painting! Quick!"

The proctor commanded.

The ordinary candidates pondered with doubts in their minds.

However, Nangong Sirui was the first to step forward, heading straight for the wall.

To the suppressed gasps of many candidates, he didn't hit the wall but instead appeared directly inside the painting.

A horse with graceful steps came up to him.

Nangong Sirui mounted the horse, casually took out a folding fan, flicked it open with a snap, and while fanning himself, he looked back at the people outside of the painting.

The girls all showed looks of admiration and appreciation.

Many boys swore inwardly, calling him "neither manly nor ladylike".

But, with this demonstration, everyone else was no longer afraid.

Shen Ye stepped into the wall and found himself in a vast open meadow.

Meanwhile, Nangong Sirui had a beautiful maidservant behind him, vigorously massaging his shoulders and neck.

Another was offering him water.

Yet another was massaging his legs.

And another was kneading his hands.

Mother… egg…

Shen Ye was beginning to regret being classmates with this guy.

Suddenly.

A wild horse with a pitch-black body and snow-white hooves came galloping intensely and stopped in front of Shen Ye, snorting loudly.

"Horse Treading on Flying Snow."

Nangong Sirui, shaking his fan, commented with a hint of envy in his voice.

The black horse with snow-white hooves stopped in front of Shen Ye, and speaking with human words, said:

"Disciple of the Chaos Heaven Sect?"

"Yes," Shen Ye replied.

"I am the fastest and steadiest horse here; you should ride me," said the black horse.

"Just because I am a disciple of the Chaos Heaven Sect?" Shen Ye asked.

"You also defeated the demons from the outside world, living up to your name as a disciple of the Chaos Heaven Sect!" the black horse replied.

Shen Ye mounted the horse and suddenly had some realization—

Back in the hall, when he became a disciple of the Chaos Heaven Sect, the inexplicable meaning in all those pairs of eyes.

At that moment, Xiao Mengyu also appeared in the painting.

She immediately saw the horse that Shen Ye was riding and exclaimed, "Horse Treading on Flying Snow!"

"What does this term really mean?" Shen Ye asked, lowering his voice.

"This horse is very famous; within the Legal Realm, it possesses various Divine Skills, capable of carrying riders away from all kinds of catastrophes; it's a renowned Divine Horse!" Xiao Mengyu explained.

"I still don't quite understand the Legal Realm," Shen Ye sighed.

A steady voice arose:

"You are in the Legal Realm now."

Shen Ye turned to look, only to see that everyone had mounted their horses by now.

The proctor, also on a horse, said tensely:

"Even Divine Spirits need to draw strength from the Legal Realm, so everyone must remain reverent within the Legal Realm—we're only passing through for now, and we'll leave soon."

He pointed in a direction and said, "Follow me, everyone; we will soon arrive at the school."

"Yes!" everyone responded in unison.

The herd of horses set in motion.

Before long, they had left the range of the painting and were galloping across the meadow.

The proctor motioned with his hand, and the painting flew to him from not far behind, landing in his hand and carefully put back into his pocket.

Riding on Flying Snow, Shen Ye felt as if he were riding a gentle mist, and even he himself felt as light as a swallow, as if he might take flight at any moment.

The horse ran freely, quickly leaving the herd behind.

Then it would slow down occasionally, looking back as if waiting for the others to catch up.

Shen Ye also turned his head to look back—

And found himself facing everyone's envious, jealous, and resentful gazes.

"Is the Ancient assessment difficult?"

Xiao Mengyu caught up and asked in a low voice.

"Difficult—I would probably die ten thousand times to have one chance to pass," Shen Ye replied.

"Tell me all about it when we get back," Xiao Mengyu said.

"Okay," Shen Ye replied.

Suddenly, Xiao Mengyu drew her Remnant Snow Sword and thrust it into the void next to her.

Clang!

A clear sound rang out.

Two swords collided.

A gray Xiao Mengyu emerged from the void beside her.

It was a Curse!

Xiao Mengyu began to fiercely fight with it.

At that moment, the horses stopped.

One after another, gray shadows emerged from the candidates and attacked them.

Even a powerful gray shadow appeared from the proctor himself.

"Not good!"

The proctor shouted, ignoring the shadow's attack, grabbed it, and dashed off into the distance.

After a while.

Thunderous roars came from afar.

——It seemed his power was too great, and using it here might harm the candidates.

Everyone was plunged into a fierce battle.

After all, these gray shadows matched their own strength and were not easy to dispatch.

"I will help you!" Shen Ye said.

He rushed forward, joining Xiao Mengyu in confronting her shadow.

With his help, Xiao Mengyu felt much more at ease and exclaimed loudly, "I'll suppress her, so she can't use the Luo Shen Sword Technique. Wait for your chance—"

The two swords clashed again, entangling with each other.

Shen Ye appeared behind the shadow, pressing his hands onto its body.

Boom!

Thunder Shock Palm!

The shadow took a solid hit, let out a mournful howl, and then dissipated into ash and smoke.

A line of faint glowing text appeared:

"Lei Kexie, your Thunder Attribute attack is the nemesis of this cursed shadow."

"Quick, let's help the others!" Xiao Mengyu said.

"Okay!" Shen Ye said.

They charged towards Zhang Xiaoyi.

—This created a three-on-one situation, where one was a Sword Saint, and another possessed a Thunder Attribute Palm Technique that could vanquish evil.

After a few brief exchanges, the shadow was again destroyed.

The three of them didn't stop, rushing to Guo Yunye's side and dispatching another shadow four on one.

The tide of battle began to change swiftly.

Until at last, everyone joined together to besiege Nangong Sirui's shadow, quickly annihilating it.

Safety at last!

Everyone cheered.

—Frankly, this outbreak of the curse had been shockingly perilous.

Indeed, several students had nearly lost their will under the grip of fear, but fortunately, everyone saw that Shen Ye, Xiao Mengyu, and the others had overcome the curse and were continuously rescuing each classmate.

No matter how difficult it was to hold on, they had to persevere!

We will win!

With this belief, the students miraculously all survived.

"What about the proctor?" Zhang Xiaoyi asked.

"Don't move; that kind of battle is not something you can join," Xiao Mengyu said.

Shen Ye was about to speak when suddenly he felt dizzy.

Guo Yunye immediately caught him.

"What's wrong with you?" Xiao Mengyu asked.

"It's nothing—strange, I feel drained, like I can't muster any strength," Shen Ye said.

A beautiful maid from Nangong Sirui's side came over and examined Shen Ye closely.

"Young Master, he has been through too many battles; he is now utterly drained and must rest. He cannot fight anymore," the maid said.

So that was it.

Everyone relaxed a bit.

"None of you go over there. Stay with Shen Ye. The only ones who can assist with the proctor are me and Xiao Mengyu," Nangong Sirui said.

"I can't either," Xiao Mengyu said.

Nangong Sirui looked at her in surprise.

"I used a high-powered skill earlier in the exam, and I haven't recovered yet; if I force myself to fight now, I might not be of help but a hindrance," Xiao Mengyu admitted frankly.

"What is the situation over there?" Nangong Sirui asked.

"Young Master, if that proctor loses to his Curse Shadow, none of you can defeat it," the maid said.

—Everyone would die.

This was not acceptable.

"Rest here; I will go and help!" Nangong Sirui said.

He leapt onto his horse and sped towards where the proctor was battling at an incredible speed.

Xiao Mengyu helped Shen Ye onto the back of Flying Snow and wrote a few words in the air with her finger silently.

"If anything goes wrong, you run first."

Run...

That reminded Shen Ye.

Yes.

He couldn't fight, but the horse carrying him seemed quite formidable.

"Flying Snow, can you help us fight?" Shen Ye asked.

"I cannot fight unless you equip me with some weapons for battle, then I can give it a try," Flying Snow said.

"Just weapons?"

"Weapons signify your approval for me to engage in battle."

Shen Ye drew out the Dusk Shortsword.

Flying Snow raised its head and bit the sword's hilt in its mouth.

In that instant,

A line of faint glowing text emerged:

"Your adversary has absorbed the swordsmanship that was once practiced with this sword: Tai Bai."

"To use this swordsmanship, I need your approval."

"The current Spirit of the Dharma Realm will use your swordsmanship and your sword. Do you approve?"

"I approve!" Shen Ye said swiftly.

"Your adversary wishes to use your Power of Lightning."

"Grant it!"

He suddenly felt like all his strength had been drained.

—Some kind of power had been borrowed by Flying Snow.

The horse stood in the same place, accumulating power. The snowy glow around its body intensified, even enveloping Shen Ye within.

"Sword Momentum!"

Xiao Mengyu exclaimed.

Yes.

The horse was gathering tremendous power for that one sword strike!

Everyone looked at Flying Snow and then towards the distant battlefield.

—The proctor and Nangong Sirui were locked in a fierce battle with that malevolent Curse Shadow.

Suddenly,

Flying Snow glanced at Shen Ye.

Shen Ye knew it was ready, but still couldn't help asking,

"Are you set?"

Flying Snow nodded.

Shen Ye took a deep breath and shouted loudly, "Go!"

Flying Snow raised its hooves high—

Boom!

The snowy glow floating from its body exploded outward, turning into a swift windborne snow.

For all to see,

Shen Ye, riding on Flying Snow, rushed forward like a thundering remnant shadow!