The Firefly Forest wasn’t named for an abundance of fireflies. The elemental energy in this area was level four. Nourished by the dense natural energy, many of the mushrooms in the forest had evolved to glow at night.

Yu Fei was instantly awestruck upon entering the Firefly Forest.

As far as the eye could see, mushrooms of every kind emitted ethereal glows of cyan, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Some shimmered on their caps, others glowed from their roots, and there were even mushrooms that continuously puffed out spores of green light. The forest was as beautiful as something out of a fairy tale.

But beneath the beautiful fluorescent glow, many dangers lay hidden.

Yu Fei couldn’t understand it. Though the glowing mushrooms looked similar, some registered as significantly dangerous to his senses. After a moment’s thought, he decided to carefully avoid all glowing objects and headed toward the military base designated as 105 on his map.

After walking for a while, he finally understood the source of the danger. Ahead, an Inner Qi prodigy was tightly bound in a viscous, white fungal mass, only their nose exposed for breathing. The person’s entire body was hanging from a giant spiderweb.

’What a shame,’ he thought. ’I’ve already used up my duplication ability. Otherwise, I could have copied this Inner Qi prodigy’s talent.’

What Yu Fei didn’t know was that these were trigger-activated spiderweb booby traps, installed throughout the Firefly Forest and disguised as various glowing mushrooms. Any prodigy who gave in to their curiosity and touched the mushrooms would likely trigger a trap, getting bundled up and hung on a web.

The designer of this trial had a clear, if harsh, purpose. In the borderlands and the Exotic Origin Realm, many dangers lurked within small, inconspicuous things. Caution was the only way to minimize accidents.

This trial was a warning to those itchy-fingered Martial Artists: control your curiosity.

If one simply avoided these glowing, exotic plants, the Firefly Forest posed no real danger. In fact, it was quite a marvelous experience.

About half an hour later, Yu Fei reached the endpoint marked on his map. As per the rules, he had to pass through a silver-white metal doorframe to register his identity and log his completion of the trial.

He arrived at a camp filled with a cheerful atmosphere. A middle-aged man was grilling some unidentifiable beast meat, the air thick with its savory aroma. His movements were deft. The top button of his military uniform was undone, and he wore a white apron as he worked, humming an unfamiliar tune.

A bonfire burned in the middle of the camp, and many of the prodigies who had already finished were enjoying the food.

Ren Feng was belting out a song into a microphone. Zhuge Zhigang was clutching a roasted beast leg and devouring it with gusto, sending grease splattering everywhere. At the edge of the camp, an expert held a super-powered firearm while a Warrior explained how to use it.

Li Jueyin sat elegantly at a dining table, sampling a glowing green mushroom with her chopsticks. As she took a bite, shimmering green motes of light danced into the air, making her look like a fairy from a storybook.

And there, in the very center of the camp, stood the fabled metal gate. Dark blue patterns flickered across its surface, and its frame was embedded with LED lights. Within the gate, waves of light pulsed up and down, creating an aura of both technology and mystery.

The man at the grill’s ears twitched. As he turned to grab some seasoning, he glanced at Yu Fei out of the corner of his eye and saw Dong Yu smiling in acknowledgment from behind him. The man gave a slight nod before focusing his full attention back on the roast.

Upon entering the camp, Dong Yu parted ways with Yu Fei and headed deeper into Base 105.

Yu Fei watched Ruby walk past him, a wave of relief washing over him. He kept his Illusory Sword Intent active and walked straight through the crowd, appearing like a ghost before the metal gate.

He reached out and touched the waves of light. The steady arcs of light vibrated violently. Yu Fei deactivated his Illusory Sword Intent, then raised his leg and stepped through the gate.

"Student Yu Fei, welcome to Military Base 105. Congratulations on being the 17th to arrive. You have received a bonus of 4,000 points."

The first prodigy to arrive at the camp received a bonus of 20,000 points, with the reward decreasing by 1,000 for each subsequent place.

A soft, robotic female voice echoed through the air. Suddenly, a massive firework shot into the sky and burst, and he looked up just in time to see the brilliant display flash and fade.

This was Base 105’s welcoming ceremony for the prodigies. Each time someone completed the trial, a massive firework was launched in their honor.

The noise instantly drew everyone’s attention. None of the prodigies present had seen how Yu Fei entered; he had simply materialized behind the silver-white metal gate.

Ren Feng’s song came to an abrupt halt. He placed the mic back on its stand, hopped down, and ran over to Yu Fei.

"Whoa, man! That was seriously impressive!"

He didn’t look down on Yu Fei for only being in the second realm; in fact, it made him respect him even more.

Ren Feng came from a family with a profound martial heritage and was incredibly well-read. All the cultivation techniques he practiced were top-tier. For a peer in the second realm to successfully hide from him—a fourth-realm Inner Qi practitioner—was astounding. It made him determined to get to know him.

Zhuge Zhigang glanced up at Yu Fei before burying his face again, resuming his battle with the beast leg.

"Mama said eating meat helps you grow tall!"

Li Jueyin watched Yu Fei quietly, her jaw never ceasing its motion. Even though she chewed the delicious mushroom with her mouth closed, a steady stream of green light motes still drifted from her small, delicate nostrils.

Among the prodigies who had reached Base 105, Yu Fei’s cultivation realm was the lowest. In fact, most of the first sixteen arrivals were already in the Inner Qi Realm; even third-realm practitioners were few and far between.

He smiled. "It was nothing, really. Just a bit of luck."

In his Reversing Destiny Vision, a brilliant silver gem hovered over the energetic young man’s head. Yu Fei suppressed a surge of desire, knowing he was no match for him yet.

’My training time has been too short,’ he reflected. It had taken him nearly two years to go from an ordinary person who struggled just to start on the martial path to someone who could stand among the prodigies of his generation. The Reversing Destiny Pearl’s ability to duplicate talents had been essential, but his own hard work had been an undeniable factor as well.