True Solution of the Sword Dao
Chapter 440 - 404 Trial One

Chapter 440: Chapter 404 Trial One

Lin Fei lay on his bed, staring at the mobile phone in his hand, the white light from the screen illuminating his face.

The phone clearly displayed a message that had just arrived.

"Thank you." The sender was Xu Ke.

Only those three words. However, Lin Fei could sense some kind of vague sincerity within them.

"To think that it was used so soon. That one-time number," he closed the phone, lightly tossing it in his hand.

It was now past two in the morning.

The other two in the dormitory were sound asleep.

Only Lin Fei was awake.

He only needed two to three hours of sleep every day to fully recover his energy.

Lying in bed, Lin Fei began to communicate directly with Jin Yi in Ping City through the Sword Canon Space to understand the situation in the Southwest Province. Now the entire Southwest Province was under his control, though only nominally at the moment without full actual control, but his forces were steadily expanding their stability outward.

"The trainees for the trial have been confirmed, sir. When do you plan to start the trials?" Jin Yi asked.

"One last procedure is needed. It depends on whether the other side is prepared or not," Lin Fei said indifferently.

*****************

Ice Island, near the polar circle

The sky was a pale blue, drawing close to evening.

The vast lake reflected the pale blue as well, with the undulating hills along the shore covered in white snow, tinged with a faint blue by the evening sky.

On the lake shore, a young man in a thick black coat was gasping, his breath visible in the air, leaping forward from one waterside rock to another.

Around him, the world was painted in shades of blue. Everywhere he looked, it was all pale blue.

Hopping from one stone to the next, the man was now far from the inhabited areas of Ice Island, in a location very close to the polar circle. The temperature was becoming increasingly cold.

Here and there on the lake surface, chunks of ice floated by.

After about ten more minutes of progress.

The young man finally stopped on a stony area by the shore.

"This should be the place," he tightened his coat, his breath misting in the air as he muttered to himself, "One of the most terrifying Earth Dragon Dens, Galathos...the sealed land of forgotten tales...hehe."

He carefully pulled out a miniature computer, only the size of a palm, and square in shape.

Suddenly, a metal rod popped out from the side of the computer. It was foldable, extending and clicking into place to prop up a small metal umbrella, resembling a satellite signal receiver.

The silver umbrella automatically turned full circle as if searching for the best signal direction before clicking into a stop.

On the computer screen, a satellite map of Ice Island instantly appeared, showing the island as no more than the size of a green bean on Earth. The map then rapidly zoomed in.

The speed of the zoom increased.

Finally, the image jumped to the man’s location, focusing directly on the blue lake beside him.

In the middle of the image were shades of blue, with several chunks of ice drifting slowly along the lake’s current.

The man cautiously entered a set of commands into the computer.

A ripple of light, like spreading water rings, suddenly appeared on the screen.

"Indeed, this is the place."

He sighed with relief, pressed some button on the computer, and the small pot-shaped receiver automatically folded back and disappeared into the computer.

After stowing away the computer, the man gently unzipped the upper part of his coat, revealing his neck.

Immediately, an exquisite and ornate golden pattern on his right neck began to emit a faint golden light.

"It begins," he murmured, touching the golden pattern with his fingertip.

Pop!

A ring of faint golden halo suddenly emanated from his fingertip. The man’s entire body released a dazzling white light, completely engulfing his figure in the glow.

The light lasted only for two seconds before it completely dimmed.

But the figure that reappeared was no longer the original man, but a handsome young man in a black shirt and casual pants—it was Lin Fei, who had been in Hua Nation.

Lin Fei stood on the lake shore, gazing at the vast expanse of lake before him.

The lake resembled a huge sapphire, a singular entity. The waters were calm as a mirror.

"Ice Island’s Galathos Earth Dragon Den, a place of horror where five B-rank powerhouses once fell. It will serve nicely as the site for collecting trial creatures." He had come directly in his own body this time; the man before had been Yuan Yicheng in disguise. As he teleported over, Yuan Yicheng also transported to his position, taking up his appearance to act as a locator and wait for his return teleportation.

The Sword Canon’s teleportation was arguably the most perfect form of transport, requiring very little strength, and it was extremely convenient. Its only weakness was its lack of safety during transport; it could easily be blocked or interfered with.

Lin Fei straightened his shirt collar and faced the lake, stepping directly into the water.

Step by step.

Gradually the water engulfed his feet, shins, thighs, waist...

He walked unhindered into the lake, submerging completely until no trace of him could be seen, just the ripples spreading out where he had been.

************

The cold lake water was blocked by an invisible force surrounding Lin Fei, forming an elliptical shape and completely isolating him.

He disregarded the water’s buoyancy, standing upright as he moved deeper into the lake.

The surroundings were a dark blue, with only a pale blue fluorescence refracting down from above.

Beneath was a pitch-black lakebed, its depth indiscernible, just an expanse of darkness that mimicked an abyss, giving the illusion of profound depth.

A sense of oppressive, empty stillness slowly spread out.

Lin Fei frowned slightly, his feet moving incessantly towards the bottom of the lake. Each step felt as though he was stepping on solid ground, as if something were just beneath his feet. Walking in the water was akin to descending stairs, utterly effortless.

The darkness around him grew more intense, the blue glow from above dimming with each passing moment.

Lin Fei didn’t know how long he had walked, but he knew it was to a very deep place.

Only darkness surrounded him, the blue surface of the lake reduced to a tiny speck above, while currents ceaselessly tore at his body, all easily shattered by him.

No sound, no light, no scent—only water.

It seemed as though there was no sign of life around him.

Suddenly, Lin Fei stopped in his tracks. He habitually reached for his waist only to grasp at air. He then remembered the Black Demon Sword had completely vanished. Its essence was its malice and demonic mark, but with the disappearance of this mark, it was as though it had been utterly destroyed, never to coalesce again.

"How troublesome," he murmured softly as a small white orb of light suddenly appeared in his palm. Radiating a soft white glow, it immediately illuminated the surrounding area within a dozen meters in the water.

Yet beyond those dozen meters lay unending darkness still.

This was a miniaturized version of the Starshine Sword Technique, the first layer of the Star Shattering Sword Technique. A minute amount of sword shadows continuously emanated in all directions, which effectively consumed Lin Fei’s True Force. This served both to illuminate and protect by acting as an early-warning system.

The white light was not actual light but white sword shadows formed from True Force.

Naturally, the first layer of the Star Shattering Sword Technique couldn’t be driven by True Qi, so Lin Fei opted to propel his sword force with True Force.

Lin Fei continued onward without stopping.

The light above gradually disappeared completely. All around him turned pitch black.

Lin Fei felt an overwhelming loneliness, as if he was completely enveloped by this dark world, the only person, the only living being.

Ice Island was famously a land of ice and fire, with numerous volcanoes and extremely abundant geothermal energy. Even in the unnamed lake, there should have been fish. Yet, despite diving for so long, Lin Fei had not seen a single fish. It seemed that there was no life beneath this lake.

The water pressure around him grew stronger, as expected with increasing depth. This was the only criterion by which Lin Fei could judge whether he was still moving, as darkness surrounded him from all directions, making it impossible to see whether he was moving or not.

After an indeterminate period, a strange pulling force suddenly caused Lin Fei to shift slightly.

He distinctly felt a profound and massive force below him relentlessly pulling at him.

"It’s a vortex..." Lin Fei slightly furrowed his brows. He suddenly realized that the white sword shadows he had released were being pulled into a conical shape by the force of the vortex below, with numerous shadows swiftly swept away into its grasp.

He simply withdrew his sword force, and darkness enveloped the area once more.

In his perception, beneath him was a colossal vortex with a diameter of several kilometers, frantically absorbing anything it could, like a giant disc with a completely invisible hollow at its center.

"It must be here."

Lin Fei completely relaxed his body, and he was suddenly pulled down by a strong force, gradually falling into the dark center of the vortex.

His speed increased, plunging like an arrow into the deepest part of the massive currents.

The lakebed once again fell into dead silence.

About half an hour later.

Again, a faint hissing sound was heard. A white light shot up sharply from the center of the vortex below.

Then, like an arrow, it rocketed towards the surface.

Within just a few seconds,

the blue fluorescence of the lake’s surface became visible once more.

Whoosh!!

The blue surface of the lake was suddenly disturbed, creating rippling waves.

Lin Fei emerged from the surface, hovering over the lake.

His clothes were still dry, not a single droplet of water on him, but his expression was extremely grave.

"So it’s that kind of thing..." he said in a low voice. "No wonder none return alive..."

Suddenly, his expression changed, and he instantly turned into a vanishing shadow, reappearing far away in mid-air.

"Heh..."

Right where he had emerged, a soft exhalation was heard over the lake.

A few bubbles surfaced before calmness was restored, as if nothing had ever happened.

***************

Lin Fei flew several kilometers away before gradually coming to a halt.

He then teleported back to Yan Capital University in Capital City.

From the school, he went directly into the Sword Canon Space.

Yuan Yicheng was already waiting for him there.

Lin Fei’s figure slowly solidified, appearing in the topmost seat of the Extinction Holy Hall.

To his left and slightly below him, Yuan Yicheng sat on a seat.

Now, he carried three longswords on his back, crossed in such a way that they resembled the aureoles or halos behind the depictions of buddhas. Unlike the white or golden halos, his were three silver longswords.

This indicated that his Heavenly Net Bright Moon Sword had reached a certain level. Lin Fei was unclear about the specifics, as he had not delved into studying this one of the four Sword Techniques of April. But from the aura emanating from Yuan Yicheng, it was evident that his strength seemed to grow more profound. Perhaps it was not a huge leap, but it always felt like he was continually progressing with each visit. He always seemed stronger than before.

(To be continued. If you like this novel, you are welcome to vote for it with Monthly Tickets at Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)