Chapter 5808 Natural Selection
“Go ahead. I will do my best,” said the race leader.
The race leader seemed to be able to read Long Chen’s thoughts.
He understood that once they entered Sovereign Mountain, the Bi family would not take their defeat lightly. If the other branches of the Bi family were to learn of this, they would definitely send punitive forces. While the Bi family was at fault, Long Chen’s ruthless response would not be viewed as justified by those who wished to hold onto power.
This was a ticking time bomb that could detonate the moment they reached Sovereign Mountain. No one could predict the chaos that might unfold.
However, Long Chen had no regrets—nor did Luo Zichuan. A blood debt had to be paid in blood.
As Long Chen had said, the current grievance between the Luo family and the Bi family was settled. But if the Bi family sought revenge, history would merely repeat itself.
Thus, Long Chen wanted the race leader to help mediate things if the Bi family tried to make things hard on the Luo family once they arrived at Sovereign Mountain. After all, the race leader’s own bloodline carried weight—if he stood with the Luo family, they would have little to fear from the Bi family.
In truth, there was no need for Long Chen to even ask. The race leader had already made his stance clear.
“Many thanks, race leader. If you ever need assistance in the future, you can send word to the High Firmament Academy,” said Long Chen.
When the time came for them to enter Sovereign Mountain, countless violet blood branches would gather. And where there were people, there would be conflict. Whether the violet blood race could truly unite or descend into further chaos remained to be seen.
Long Chen could only hope that they had a wise leader. If the Sovereign Mountain was as chaotic as the outside world, then there was little hope for the violet blood race’s revival.
After bidding farewell to the race leader and Luo Zichuan, Long Chen hugged Luo Yanfeng and the others one by one before turning to leave.
Watching him leave, Luo Yanfeng and the others were silent. They felt as if the world had lost its luster.
The race leader surveyed the remaining violet blood disciples and sighed.
Long Chen’s arrival had disrupted his plans. Too many disciples remained, and too few had undergone the true tempering he had envisioned. As a result, their bloodlines were still dormant.
Among those who had not yet awakened their bloodlines, there were many with immense potential. If they were brought to Sovereign Mountain as they were, they would be rejected. Their opportunity would be lost.
But sending a group of untested disciples into the outside world on their own would be no different from sending them to their deaths. They needed to select the strongest geniuses—those who could thrive in Sovereign Mountain’s competitive environment.
And the only way to determine that was through battle.
There would be bloodshed, and death was unavoidable. In the face of battle, everyone stood on equal ground. This was the fairest method of selection.
Currently, the race leader had two options. The first one was to take only those whose bloodlines had already begun awakening to Sovereign Mountain, while the other was to seek opponents of similar strength—those who could force more violet blood disciples to awaken their bloodlines through combat.
If they departed for Sovereign Mountain now, Luo Yanfeng and the others would have a high chance of passing their initial selection.
However, as time passed, more heavenly geniuses would arrive, and the selection process would become increasingly difficult. The competition would grow fiercer.
According to the race leader’s estimates, if they left now, based on historical trial standards, the top disciples had a seventy percent chance of passing.
But if they delayed, the odds would shift dramatically. As more candidates arrived, Sovereign Mountain’s limited resources would force them to raise the trial’s difficulty.
At that point, even Luo Yanfeng and the others might not pass—let alone anyone else. After all, the violet blood race had countless branches scattered across the world. How many hidden monsters like Long Chen existed among them? Long Chen had already said it, they were nothing more than frogs at the bottom of a well.
If they encountered geniuses of his caliber... how could Luo Yanfeng and the others possibly compete?
“Don’t worry. You should leave for Sovereign Mountain with the first batch of children,” said the Shadow Guard.
“You...” The race leader was startled.
“I will stay behind to look after the others,” declared the Shadow Guard.
Luo Zichuan’s heart shook. To be honest, he had never had a good impression of the Shadow Guard. He hadn’t expected him to make such a sacrifice.
Not only the disciples, but even seniors like them had to pass the trial to get into Sovereign Mountain. Furthermore, the older that they were, the harsher the trial would be.
For those who had lived too long, their room for growth was almost nonexistent, making their trials even more difficult. If the Shadow Guard didn’t seize this opportunity to enter Sovereign Mountain with the first batch, he would likely never set foot there.
Sovereign Mountain wasn’t just a place—it was the birthplace of the violet blood race, their land of glory. It was a sacred ground where countless souls of violet blood experts yearned to return.
There, they could find the history of their branch and their ancestors. That place was the true home of the violet blood race.
Over the years, the nine heavens and ten lands had changed, scattering their people far and wide. Many had perished, their dying wish unfulfilled—to return home.
And yet, when that long-awaited chance finally arrived, the Shadow Guard chose to forgo it.
His decision stunned Luo Zichuan. He had never particularly liked the Shadow Guard, but this sacrifice made him reevaluate his opinion.
The older one was, the harder it became to resist that deep-rooted longing. For those nearing the end of their lifespan, every moment became infinitely precious. It was truly an immense sacrifice.
“Hurry along,” said the Shadow Guard. “But I want to keep as many resources as possible. I hope to cultivate another group of awakened experts in time for them to enter Sovereign Mountain.”
Hearing this, the race leader nodded.
On that very day, their preparations began. Many aged Elders remained behind, not because they wanted to, but because they simply weren’t qualified to enter Sovereign Mountain.
Only “young” Divine Emperors like Luo Zichuan had the qualifications to test their luck in Sovereign Mountain.
Luo Zichuan secretly distributed the last batch of Heavenly Dao Fruits that Long Chen had given him. But even with this gift, these disciples wouldn’t be able to accompany them. The bare minimum requirement to enter the trial was an awakened violet bloodline—without it, they stood no chance.
Thus, the violet blood race was forced to split apart. The first batch carried the greatest hopes, while the second batch would be left to fate.
As for this place, it would be abandoned. Once the resources were depleted, those left behind would become wanderers in the vast cultivation world.
Back then, as prisoners in their minor world, they had spent every day longing for freedom. But now that the seals on the nine heavens and ten lands had broken, they realized that survival itself was a brutal struggle.
This world’s laws were just that cruel. They all had to fight over resources. As a result, the strongest lived on, while the weak died. There was no pity or mercy in the cultivation world.
Even the race leader, Luo Zichuan, and the Shadow Guard were bound by this law.
However, there was one man in this world who had never cared for these rules.
A reckless, defiant fellow who wielded a black saber.