CHAPTER 517: CHAPTER 517. THE ENCOUNTER OF TWO PRINCES

"How is the progress, everyone?" Prince Huang Zi asked via telepathy.

Most replied that they were still searching. They were in a world overrun by extremely tall grass. The grass was six meters tall. The peculiar thing was that the height of the grass was also the limit they could fly in this trial stage, so they couldn’t bypass this grass by flying.

The grass didn’t cover the entire ground of this trial stage. There were clearings and paths free of grass. This stage could be described as a maze, where the walls were formed by tall grass, similar to the bamboo fence stage Amon’s team went through. The difference was that they could pass through the grass wall. Nothing prevented them from forcing their way through dense grass to get to the other side. The only drawback was they couldn’t see what was on the other side.

Like the bamboo fence stage, the tall grass here also obscured senses. So, not only could one not see what was on the other side of the tall grass, but one also couldn’t sense them.

Prince Huang Zi’s team had been in this place for more than a day. He was rather unhappy with their pace. The average time it took them to complete a stage was three to four days. There was even a time when they almost hit the five-day limit. If that happened, they would fail this trial and sent back outside.

One thing he took solace in was that they hadn’t failed till now, and it was almost twenty days since the trial started. Considering twenty days was the record of previous venture into this trial, he assumed some of the other teams might have failed and were waiting outside. There was even a probability his team was the only one remaining. If that was the case, his chance of winning was high unless the other teams completed many stages in the short time they spent inside the trial.

In any case, he would do his best to stay inside this trial for as long as possible.

"Hm?" He realized one person from his team hadn’t reported yet. "Gao Zan, I asked for a status report. Make your report!"

No response.

Huang Zi frowned. He was about to ask again when he received a transmission from a different underling. "Your Highness, I found a giant rock sculpture. It is shaped like a giant human baby."

"Good. That must be one of the exit points," Huang Zi replied. He would deal with Gao Zan later. That lazy bump might be taking a rest and ending up falling asleep. "Now, we only need the key. Everyone, hurry up. We must increase our completion speed. Gan Xiong, you stay at that exit point so we know where to go once we find the key."

"Roger, Your Highness. I will–Herghh...!"

Huang Zi was bewildered by the abrupt end of the transmission. He called back, "Gan Xiong, what’s the matter? Did you try to say something?"

No response.

Huang Zi frowned again, but this time, his frown was accompanied by unsettling thoughts.

He didn’t want to assume the worst, but it was better to be safe than sorry. He sent messages to all members, "Everyone, stop what you are doing and gather at my position!"

"Your Highness, is something the matter?" a voice asked.

"Do not question me. Come to me at once!" Huang Zi commanded.

"Ye–Yes, Your Highness, right away!"

Everyone sent the same reply. He noticed that Gao Zan and Gan Xiong still didn’t send any response. He used the mental connection that allowed him to check the locations of his team members. He could estimate Gao Zan and Gan Xiong’s direction and distance from his location but the connection didn’t inform him whether the two were still alive or dead. What he could tell was the two weren’t moving.

Not long after, he received a frantic telepathic message, "Your Highness! There is another team in this trial stage. They are–Ahhh...!!!"

This confirmed his worry. Another team had entered this trial stage and got rid of three of his team members. How did they make contact without notice? Normally, two teams in the same stage didn’t know about each other until they made contact. The chance was completely random, so both teams should learn about each other’s presence at the same time. But from what had happened, it was more like the other team was hunting his team members one by one.

"Your Highness, should we go help Xi Ma?" Jiang Bo asked Huang Zi via telepathy.

"No, he is gone," Huang Zi replied. "Converge at my position with haste!"

"Yes, Your Highness," Jiang Bo replied. His voice was heard again when he broadcast it to everyone, "Those who are near each other, group together before continuing. Try your best not to travel alone. If you encounter the enemy, do not stay and engage them. Defend yourself while retreating to the rally point where His Majesty is at."

Huang Zi looked around him while he waited. This bloody grass blocked even his Spirit Sense. He couldn’t tell if anyone was creeping inside the grass.

Having that thought, he approached the grass and hid inside. Now, the other team wouldn’t know his position as well. Only his team would know, thanks to the mental connection between his team members and him.

He was still as a statue inside the grass but stayed near the edge. This way, he could peek between the grass and observe the pathway he was on a minute ago.

When he sensed his team members were still halfway to his location, he saw movements inside the opposite grass. The grass swayed like something was moving inside. This was how the enemy ambushed his team members. They moved inside the grass until they spotted someone and struck.

He heard rustling sounds from nearby. Someone was moving inside the same patch of grass as he was! He turned his head without making a big movement so as not to expose his location. Considering he was among the ones with the highest cultivation level in all four teams, it was highly likely this person creeping nearby was weaker than him. Even so, he remained still. He didn’t know how many enemies were nearby. He chose not to be careless.

The sounds of rustling grass passed a little behind him. It seemed whoever that was, the person was monitoring the pathway on the other side of this grass.

Suddenly, the person behind him stopped. This person then dashed at high speed in a direction. He also saw the unknown enemy, inside the grass on the opposite side, do the same. The grass swayed fiercely, indicating someone was running inside. Someone burst out of the grass.

The person who was originally behind him also burst out of the grass. The two enemies partnered up before they rushed away. He recognized those two. They were the participants entering the trial with his eighth brother, Huang Zhan.

He heard a panic report from one of his team members, "We encounter the enemies! They are blocking our way. We have no choice but to engage!"

Jiang Bo responded, "I am nearby. I will be on my way!"

Huang Zi checked their location. He was also not far away. Their location was where the two people he just saw were heading toward.

"I will also be heading there," Huang Zi informed. "Please be aware that at least two enemy reinforcements are heading over. Everyone, we will make that location our new rally point. Let’s get these bastards!"

Huang Zi rushed out of the grass and chased after the two people he saw. Those two were both Mystic Stage cultivators. He should be able to take care of them before the two reached their destination.

After some time, they were near the rally point. They could hear the sound of battle from ahead. The two Huang Zhan’s followers were already aware that Huang Zi was chasing them. They continued heading toward their destination because they knew they were not Huang Zi’s equal. The distance between them was getting shorter as time passed.

’They are within range now,’ Huang Zhi thought as he held his weapon, a scepter. It was a weapon excavated from an ancient ruin. Huang Zi confiscated the weapon for himself after learning its grade, which was low-tier runic.

He channeled his aether into the scepter, which crackled with energy. An explosive sound was heard as the scepter unleashed blue lightning.

The lightning hit one of the two runners. The person screamed as the lightning cooked him. Huang Zi’s Spirit Stage’s power channeled through the lightning was too much for him to bear. In a matter of seconds, he was reduced to ash.

His partner was scared witless. He looked back with a panicky expression. The scepter in Huang Zi’s hand crackled again. It was recharging its energy.

*GROWL!!*

A roar reverberated in the air. It hurt the ears of everyone nearby. Even Huang Zi’s concentration wavered a little from the roar. He turned in time just as a huge figure jumped out of the tall grass nearby.

Huang Zi redirected the collected energy to this new target. The blue lightning was discharged again. It collided with the huge figure at point-blank range, which resulted in an explosive shockwave. The explosion threw both sides back.

Huang Zi landed a few meters back and looked at his adversary. It was Prince Huang Zhan atop the Qing Lion.

"Hiya, brother. How are you doing?" Huang Zhan greeted.