Dark Moon Era

Han Xing’s shameless attempt to woo Ro Xin easily garnered attention and discussion.

After all, Darkness Port placed the group of young geniuses under the spotlight. Everyone enjoyed studying everything about them as well as everything they did that could affect the challenge.

Moreover, Han Xing was a well-known candidate and so were the Ro siblings.

Therefore, almost everyone in Darkness Port knew that Han Xing liked Ro Xin. Some even viewed his daily attempt of wooing Ro Xin and how she rejected him every time as a spice to their mundane life.

“Ro Xin, the sun and moon, and heaven and earth can prove my feelings for you. Even if you can’t feel it now, do you have the heart to reject these dainty flowers and let them wither?

“I spent a fortune to get these for you. They are the flowers from the old civilization that have changed the least, and they have a beautiful name called ‘carnation’.

“If you don’t accept them, when I bring them back, Tang Ling might cook and eat them without my knowledge! He’s really gluttonous. Believe me! He eats almost everything!”

Han Xing was standing outside the Ancient Path Drugstore with a bouquet of carnations in his hand, confessing to Ro Xin loudly.

This display happened almost every day in different ways.

There was always a crowd around him, and although they were always guessing whether Ro Xin would accept Han Xing’s flowers or not, no one dared to start a bet for it because his failure rate was too high.

Under the public’s gaze, Han Xing was delighted and even moved by his own effort.

Look, this is my heaven-shattering love for you!

Han Xing also believed he did the smart thing by diminishing Tang Ling while wooing Ro Xin. He ought to amplify Tang Ling’s weak points to highlight his own strong points.

Of course, Han Xing had no strong points at all, so all he could do was trample Tang Ling’s name as much as he could.

“Is this b*stard doing it on purpose? Can’t he just come into the drugstore? Why must he blabber at my entrance?” Gu Dao was munching on a pig’s head as he looked askance at Han Xing.

However, Gu Dao did not care or interfere since he was not involved or shamed.

“Brother, he is so relentless! Help me deal with him!” Ro Xin’s face was as red as a beet. She might very well be the most famous girl in Darkness Port at the moment, and it was all Han Xing’s fault.

Ro Xin was not in the mood to be in a relationship. She had devoted her mind to learning medicinal knowledge and had the burden of avenging the Ro Drifter Camp on her shoulders. On top of that, she still had to take care of her stupid brother. She had her plate full at the moment and probably in the foreseeable future.

“Huh?” Ro Li was reluctant to do it.

“Aren’t you going to help me?” Ro Xin raised a brow.

“Fine, I’ll go.” Ro Li was afraid of his own sister, thus he tended to listen to whatever she said. After showing some resistance, he reluctantly walked out.

“Look, it’s Ro Li!”

“Yeah! Who would’ve thought that he’d be the black horse?!”

“I’m actually studying him as a candidate. I think his dumb appearance is the reason why he’s the black horse.”

“How so, good sir?”

“Just look at him! A black horse like him is probably a ringer. Look at his dumb looks. It’s the typical look of someone being skilled at pretending to be dumb in order to achieve his goal. I suspect there’s great wisdom behind his looks.”

“Are you sure about that?”

The moment Ro Li came out, the discussion among the crowd became riled up.

In recent weeks, other than the Cardinal Four, the Sword Maniac Han Xing, and the young Peacock Sovereign, Ro Li was the most eye-catching candidate.

After all, the brother and sister were not the people’s favorite from the start. They did not belong to the genius circle and they got into the challenge because of their relationship with Tang Ling.

Amidst all the results of flying colors, the two of them came out as a joke during the first stage by barely achieving an A rating.

As they progressed through the stages, even getting a B or a C rating was also entirely up to luck. There were several times when they failed the first run and were forced into a dangerous situation.

However, as time went by, the people looked at them differently.

Ro Xin got along fine because of Gu Dao’s support on top of her own gifted talent in medicinal knowledge. She earned herself the title of ‘Pretty Healer’ using her own unique approach to medicine besides the challenge.

A healer was not suited to take on the Hell Ledge Challenge since her strength was not fighting to begin with. However, Ro Xin was resilient. While she might not be good at fighting, she was smart and would find a way around the challenge. She used poison and her silver needle techniques to push herself to the fourth stage and cleared every single one of it with an S rating.

The challenge was set at the Hell difficulty and was open specifically for the geniuses. A young healer having such a result at the fourth stage was considered astonishing, so everyone held high hopes of the Pretty Healer’s future.

“Her healing techniques are great and she’s made it to the fourth stage of Hell Ledge Challenge. She should be able to become a Purple Moon Warrior.”

“I know, right? As a Purple Moon Warrior who excels in healing, her future will be bright!”

What everyone thought was also a fact in this situation.

Healers were usually weak. Therefore, a healer who could balance combat and healing techniques at the same time would have a future brighter than anyone else. Everyone expected Ro Xin to carve her name in this era.

Of course, only Gu Dao knew how much he had invested in Ro Xin to increase her combat abilities and nurture her into a Purple Moon Warrior.

Ro Xin’s talents moved Gu Dao to the core. He even took her in as his disciple.

Compared to Ro Xin’s achievement, Ro Li was a lot more amazing.

He was a dumb-looking hunk without any eye-catching performance that cleared every stage with an SSS rating and made it to the eighth stage. He was one of the first few who cleared the sixth stage, the stage that was widely acknowledged as the hurdle to the next level. How could he not be popular?

No one knew what Ro Li’s exact talent was. It was similar to Precise Instinct, but upon a second look, everyone realized the difference between his talent and Precise Instinct.

Precise Instinct was a calculative ability, but Ro Li’s talent was something like prediction.

On top of that, he seemed to have a strong sensing ability for talent elements. He could even release attacks that were similar to a talent ability’s attack such as lightning, fire, and so on, but it was still slightly different from true lightning ability.

Of course, it was different. Ro Li’s ability was something even more powerful than his spirit. Tang Feng once described his ability as having originated from his own soul.

Ro Li’s ability could see through the surface and grasp the truth, thus it was only natural for him to predict movements or danger. Since he was able to grasp the truth, he could also sense and discover the talent element within something such as metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, and he could siphon them to his use.

In order to allow Ro Li perform better, Gu Dao went through numerous books of the old civilization. Despite his efforts, the assistance that he was able to provide was limited.

Gu Dao was a master of healing, after all. He believed that Ro Li needed a special master that could bring out his potential.

However, such a talent was extremely rare. Where should Ro Li look for such a master to guide him? Gu Dao believed such an expert might only exist in ancient Huaxia of the Dongsheng Continent.

As for Ro Li’s current performance, it was because Gu Dao had put him through various treatment sessions and tuned his body to perfection. Only then could Tang Ling’s bone marrow come into play.

In short, the Ro siblings were starting to garner attention, especially Ro Li.

On the other hand, the well-known geniuses such as the True Capital Seven, the Dark Nine Feathers, the Stardust Sixteen, and the others were not getting enough attention. People thought they might not be underperforming but were actually saving up for a critical moment to unleash their astonishing potential, hence they stayed passive on purpose.

Ever since Tang Ling got hurt, he had not challenged any stages, and even Tang Long stopped after clearing the sixth stage.

“Get going, you dimwit.” Neglecting the crowd’s comments, Ro Li was frustrated when he saw Han Xing. Why could Han Xing not lay low and try to go after Ro Xin in a normal way?

Feeling wronged, Han Xing went up to Ro Li and whispered softly, “Bro, my dear brother-in-law, shouldn’t you be on my side?”

“I’ll stand on your head! I’m getting into trouble myself! Get going, you…” Ro Li was signaling Han Xing with his eyes. He was actually on the same boat as Han Xing, but he could not afford to let Ro Xin know.

Indeed, the stupid Ro Li had succumbed to Han Xing’s sweet persuasion while Han Xing was also generous when it came to bribing his future ‘brother-in-law’ with all kinds of benefits.

Ro Li actually did not care about the bribes or whatever. He was only concerned about his sister’s one-sided feeling for Tang Ling ending badly. Everyone knew that Tang Ling and that queen were together and that Han Xing was infatuated with his sister. Therefore, it was better to help Han Xing than to tell Ro Xin to wait for a fruitless end, was it not?

In the end, Ro Li sided with Han Xing out of love and care.

“Then, can you deliver the flowers to her for me?” Han Xing was relentless as he shoved the carnations into Ro Li’s hand.

Ro Xin, it’s fine! Even if you reject me 10,000 times, I’ll still love you always! As long as you aren’t married, I will always love you!

Han Xing’s resilience was on full display in this kind of strange place.

“I’ll deliver your *ss instead! Are you dumb or what? In the old civilization, a carnation is a flower for your mother. Is my sister your mother now? You’d better take it back and feed Tang Ling with it!” Ro Li was speechless. He thought he was the dumb one, yet Han Xing seemed to be even dumber than him.

“Are you for real?” Han Xing blinked dully.

“I am!” Ro Xin was upset by Han Xing’s stupidity.

“Oh, damn! Well, I won’t give it to Tang Ling anyway. I’ll just go get a refund.”

Money should not be wasted even if it was just buying flowers. He would rather get his money back than give it to Tang Ling as a snack.

However, Han Xing did not think of why would Tang Ling even eat his carnation.

…

“You’ve improved a lot.”

Zero’s cold voice came from the darkness. Even though it was meant to be a praise, there was no emotions attached to it and one could even feel the ruthlessness and brutality in between the lines.

Tang Long was quiet.

Did he improve a lot? The first step in improving Precise Instinct should be altering his pineal gland.

When reaching the sufficient energy level, his pineal gland had transformed into a vertical eye, or at least, just the shape of it. He still had a long way to go before it could transform into a real eye.

In order to form the shape of an eye, he had to increase his observation using his spirit from sensing the roughest structural layer to the most detailed internal structure. The process consisted of three different levels.

As long as he could reach the third level accordingly, his pineal gland would transform into a real vertical eye.

Tang Long had attained the second level for some time now and was able to observe the internal structure of things with more precision.

Using a living being as an example, on the first level, Tang Long could only sense muscles and bones and he could only pick up the weakness when the muscles or bones moved.

On the second level, his observation was much more detailed. He could sense the tissue, joints, and even the flow of the blood.

According to Zero, the third level would allow Tang Long to sense even smaller details. The body of a living being would become a mere structure that could move or generate strength under Precise Instinct, including the organs and blood.

Until then, the first enhancement of the Precise Instinct would be complete.

As a matter of fact, how long had it been since Tang Long started learning from Zero?

It had been a little over two months. Tang Long’s Precise Instinct had reached the second level and was stable enough, so was it not fast enough?

However, Tang Long was not satisfied with his achievement because he knew that Tang Ling was also enhancing his Precise Instinct.

Who would be faster? Tang Ling or him?

After all, in terms of Precise Instinct, Tang Ling and Tang Long were at the same starting line. Other than Zero, not even the faction behind Tang Long could find another person who could systematically enhance Precise Instinct.

Precise Instinct had been growing freely and Tang Long had reason to believe that he and Tang Ling were at the same starting line.

Because of that, Tang Long was extra concerned about how far Tang Ling had reached with his Precise Instinct.

There must be someone powerful behind Tang Ling as well! Was it Boss Huang?

“Today’s training ends here.” Zero did not care what Tang Long was thinking about. He merely reminded Tang Long that time was up.

“I have a question. Between Tang Ling and I, which of one us has a higher mastery of Precise Instinct?” Despite hesitating, Tang Long could not hold his urge back. He did not hope for Zero to answer such an insignificant question.

The answer he got was silence.

Tang Long sighed in his heart. He stood up and bowed at the dark, or where Zero was supposed to be, before he turned around.

Just as he reached the exit, Zero’s cold voice entered his ears. “Precise Instinct-wise, yours is stronger at the current level.”

Tang Long’s body froze for a moment. He then turned around and thanked Zero for the answer.

Was gratitude necessary for answering such a question?

Zero was silent after that.

Tang Long’s Precise Instinct was indeed stronger than Tang Ling’s, but he misunderstood something. He and Tang Ling did not really start at the same starting line, even in terms of Precise Instinct.

Precise Instinct grew along with battles and was tightly connected to the resources one had.

Tang Long had been through countless more battles than Tang Ling since he was young and had grown up in a systematic environment.

In terms of resources that could enhance his spirit, albeit them being rare, Tang Long was able to get them. On the other hand, Tang Ling had nothing. He relied on battles that pushed him to the line of life or death and fought his way to where he was today.

Tang Long was asking whose Precise Instinct’s level was higher and Zero gave a clear answer. However, Zero did not elaborate on the details behind the facts.

Tang Ling and Tang Long were similar in many, many aspects, but there was one thing that differentiated them and Tang Long somehow was not Tang Ling’s match when it came to this—battle consciousness.

That was the reason why Tang Ling’s performance defied even the heavens and Zero would never go into detail about that.

…

Time slipped by peacefully.

All the news in Darkness Port revolved around the young geniuses, but they were indeed a bunch of strange teens. A while ago, they were challenging the Hell Ledge non-stop, but after around ten days, everyone seemed to have stopped.

It was already in the middle of January. The coldest days had passed and spring was around the corner.

As if spring was getting closer day by day, people’s patience for the dry and cold weather wore thin. A lot of people felt frustrated about the weather without any reason.

The depression and restlessness also happened among the young geniuses.

In the cultivation rooms, the training rooms, and even the mercenary missions, the young geniuses were everywhere, working their best to become stronger. They even put their lives at risk. They trained and worked passionately and conservatively. It felt like when it was time, they would explode into shinier stars, and they did as expected.

The young geniuses realized that those who challenged the Hell Ledge Challenge from the start were just trying to position their strength and observe their opponents. The important period would be around April.

After everyone acknowledged this, they spent more time strengthening themselves and not garnering illusive attention for themselves.

The moment for them to explode like the Big Bang should be delayed to a perfect time.

When time ran out, no one would have the option to walk away anymore. It would be certain that everyone would give their best in the challenge and try to achieve the best results.

The results at that point would be the most authentic.

The geniuses were smart, and because of their wisdom, their minds were always clear. Once they agreed on that thought, everyone stopped their challenge at the Hell Ledge.

Currently, the best result in Hell Ledge was reaching stage nine with an SSS rating. It was not achieved by a single genius, but a multiple of them, or more precisely, six of them. They were the Cardinal Four, Han Xing, and the black horse, Ro Li.

Many others paused their progress at stage six as if clearing it was a type of acknowledgement.

More than 80% of the geniuses stopped at stage six.

As for the last place in the ranking, it was Tang Ling who did not show up after clearing the first three stages.

No one laughed or criticized him though. Based on his performance during the first three stages, he would be more than capable to clear two more stages and reach the fifth stage.

Whether or not the sixth stage was an obstacle for Tang Ling, who knew? Even so, he would be able to clear it in a few attempts. Everyone agreed about that.

Even if someone laughed at him, Tang Ling did not care.

Moreover, he had new problems on his plate, so he did not have the mood to care about what people thought of him.

He was broke! He did not have any money left! All the geniuses were smart and even skipped the arena whole, hence he could no longer win money from bets. Where would he get the money to support his cultivation?

He was out of options. Tang Ling believed it was time for him to go work for once.

Smithing in Dvesha Moha could earn him money, but it would take him ages to earn enough for a single session of cultivation.

After he made up his mind, Tang Ling decided to complete two things first.

Firstly, he decided to finish drawing the first layer of the spirit body array the next day.

Secondly, it was time to talk to Boss Huang about getting a job outside.