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Chapter 98: Chapter 98: New Record! Where is Luo Cheng?
Luo Cheng, twenty-five thousand five hundred and sixty-six points!
This score shines brightly at the top of the leaderboard, radiant like a star!
The Elder in green responsible for registering the scores was completely stunned.
Zhou Ruo, Yuan Zhilan, Gu Lingfeng, and even Elder He on the high platform—all were left speechless.
Especially Elder He, who hadn’t expected his earlier words to turn out to be prophetic.
Luo Cheng had truly ascended to first place on the Qingyun List!
All the disciples in attendance widened their eyes in shock; their gaping mouths could nearly fit a chicken egg.
The vast square fell deathly silent.
Even Luo Cheng himself was a little surprised.
He had thought his score would only be around fifteen thousand points, but unexpectedly, it exceeded twenty thousand!
"Impossible! How can a good-for-nothing who awakened a Wasted Martial Soul achieve such a high score? There must be some mistake, or he must have resorted to some disgraceful trick!"
A furious shout snapped everyone back to their senses.
Lin Hankong stepped into the square, glaring angrily at Luo Cheng.
Lin Hankong could never have imagined that Luo Cheng not only survived Qingyun Island but also claimed first place in the Green Cloud Trial!
If this were true, Luo Cheng would enter the Outer Sect and become an Outer Disciple, standing on equal footing with him!
This would make it incredibly difficult to take Luo Cheng’s life and avenge his elder brother and family!
Such a development was completely unacceptable to Lin Hankong!
"Indeed, there must be some mistake. Or perhaps Luo Cheng exploited some loophole in the Green Cloud Trial and cheated!"
"Even Gu Lingfeng and Zhou Ruo only scored a few thousand points. How does a Wasted Martial Soul user manage over twenty thousand?"
"Absolutely right! Elder, we implore you to investigate thoroughly and revoke Luo Cheng’s eligibility to compete!"
These accusations stirred the crowd.
The servant disciples present could not tolerate such a "waste" climbing above them and began clamoring for Luo Cheng’s score to be nullified.
The Elder in green snapped out of his daze and hurriedly inspected Luo Cheng’s Identity Token and Jade Book.
"Silence!"
After a moment, the Elder’s authoritative voice rang out across the square, instantly commanding obedience.
"I have carefully verified Luo Cheng’s score, and there are no errors!"
As he spoke, the Elder returned the Identity Token to Luo Cheng, his gaze turbulent with shock.
To join the Sect and participate in the Green Cloud Trial, only to then ascend to first place—such an achievement was hard for anyone to believe.
Upon hearing the Elder’s words, those clamoring to nullify Luo Cheng’s score promptly fell silent, not daring to utter another word.
After all, questioning the Elder meant questioning his authority—an act that could easily cost them their lives!
On the high platform, the ten Elders overseeing the Green Cloud Trial fell into collective silence.
Luo Cheng had ascended to first place!
This outcome had truly defied everyone’s expectations.
One of the Elders looked at Luo Cheng and remarked with emotion, "Over twenty thousand points! This must be the highest score in the history of the Green Cloud Trial. Who could have thought the person to set this record would be him..."
Another Elder spoke up, "In that case, Lin Jintai must indeed have been slain by Luo Cheng. Not only Lin Jintai, but it’s likely Fang Rui and Cao Qing met the same fate at his hands. There’s no other way he could have accumulated such an astonishing score."
"That explanation seems plausible."
The other Elders nodded in agreement.
Elder Qin Mei’s beautiful eyes flickered with surprise. "Still, Fang Rui and Cao Qing were among the top-tier martial artists of the Transcendence Realm Fifth Layer. Could Luo Cheng truly defeat them?"
The group fell silent once more.
This was indeed puzzling.
But the facts were laid bare before them, leaving no room for disbelief.
Someone couldn’t help but ask, "Is Luo Cheng’s awakened Martial Soul truly a Wasted Martial Soul?"
Qin Mei nodded. "During the entrance examination, Elder Chen Xuan and the others personally verified it. There’s no doubt—it’s a Wasted Martial Soul with no stars whatsoever."
The crowd was left speechless.
Elder Chen Xuan was one of the top ten Outer Sect Elders. With his personal verification, there couldn’t possibly be any mistakes.
A starless Wasted Martial Soul!
Such talent could only be described as abysmal!
"Perhaps he possesses some other extraordinary attributes, such as exceptional comprehension, making him a martial arts prodigy..." speculated an older Elder.
The others nodded.
Although rare, cases of individuals awakening Wasted Martial Souls but excelling in other areas were not unheard of.
"What a pity..." Qin Mei lamented.
In martial arts, the Martial Soul was the foundation and core of everything!
No matter how skilled someone was in other aspects, a weak Martial Soul would eventually hold back their cultivation, causing them to become mediocre.
Such individuals often shone briefly, like meteors, only to fade into obscurity.
This was an unshakable rule!
Elder He sat off to the side and had yet to speak. His sinister eyes fixated on Luo Cheng, glinting with deadly intent.
Earlier, he had sought out a servant disciple stationed at the peak of a remote cliff.
From this disciple, Elder He learned the critical details of Luo Cheng’s slaying of Lin Jintai.
He realized that all his plans had already been discovered by Luo Cheng.
"Clever boy. I’ve underestimated you! In that case, I can’t allow you to live any longer!"
Elder He seemed to come to a decision. He took a deep breath, his eyes flashing with cold, murderous resolve.
Now that Yun Mengli had ascended to True Disciple and held a prestigious status, Elder He dared not risk her wrath if Luo Cheng revealed everything to her.
There was only one solution: kill Luo Cheng before he could meet Yun Mengli—make him die without leaving evidence!
Before long, everyone disembarked from the ships, and their scores were registered.
The rankings for this Green Cloud Trial were finalized.
Luo Cheng’s score of twenty-five thousand five hundred and sixty-six firmly placed him at the top.
Second place belonged to Zhou Ruo.
Third place was Gu Lingfeng.
Fourth place belonged to Yuan Zhilan.
Fifth place went to Zhou Bingrui...
Among the top ten, only five were seeded contenders for victory.
Remarkably, even a Transcendence Realm Fourth Layer martial artist had entered the top ten—a feat unprecedented in the past.
The crowd gathered in the middle of the square, awaiting the announcement of results and the distribution of rewards.
"Luo Cheng, congratulations!"
Yuan Zhilan and Gu Lingfeng stepped forward.
Yuan Zhilan looked at Luo Cheng with admiration and smiled, saying, "I knew your score would be high, but I didn’t expect it to be this staggering."
"Even I was taken aback,"
Gu Lingfeng chuckled and then asked, "Did you kill Fang Rui and Cao Qing?"
There was no point in denying it, so Luo Cheng simply nodded. "They caused trouble for me, so I sent them on their way."
Upon hearing this, both Gu Lingfeng and Yuan Zhilan were stunned, their eyes filled with shock.
Fang Rui and Cao Qing’s strength rivaled their own...
Luo Cheng surveyed the square, his voice tinged with melancholy. "So many lives were lost."
Yuan Zhilan sighed deeply. "I just learned from the registering Elder that more than ten thousand servant disciples participated in this Green Cloud Trial, but fewer than seven thousand returned alive. The mortality rate was over forty percent!"
"That many?!"
Although Luo Cheng had anticipated some casualties, he was still shocked by the numbers.
Gu Lingfeng looked a bit somber and remarked, "Servant disciples, after all—they’re expendable. When they die, nobody cares."
Yuan Zhilan added, "Which is why we must strive to improve our strength. Only by becoming strong enough will we earn better treatment and protection from the Sect, rather than dying in obscurity and being buried in untamed wilderness."
Luo Cheng nodded in agreement.
Strength reigns supreme, especially in the Sect, where competition is even more ruthless!
The Sect values elites above all else. An elite disciple can outweigh tens of thousands of servant disciples in worth!
The more value you display, the more the Sect treasures you and protects you—even going to war for a True Disciple in peril.
On the high platform, the ten Elders rose, preparing to announce the rankings and distribute rewards.
Suddenly, Elder He stepped forward, his voice laced with imposing dominance as it surged across the square:
"Luo Cheng, step forward!"
