Degrade from Nobility to a Humble Slave

In a single breath, Zen sprinted a few hundred feet, where he saw a colorful light strip hovering in front of him. Thinking it might be the entrance to the third layer. He investigated, and sure enough, it was. He plunged headlong into the light, disappearing.

Passing through the band of light was like walking into a different world. The scene in front of him differed from the second layer.

The lush trees were replaced. Instead, there were bare hillsides and stone forest composed of jagged rocks. Caves at least ten feet deep dotted the slopes, and black noxious smoke rose from the openings. It looked like a sad and lifeless site.

The disciples who passed through the band earlier were not in sight at the moment. He tried to figure out where Nory was but, Zen appeared to be off Nory's trail. 'Where on earth has Nory gone? Maybe he found somewhere safe after he got to the third layer because disciples from the noble clans might come looking for him. Hope you are safe now, my brother!' thought Zen, sincerely praying for Nory's safety as he began to make his way through the third layer.

After making his way up a hillside, Zen stepped into the jagged rocky forest.

The crystal fragments he had in hand were far from being enough to pass the Blooded Test, so he hurried on his way. He needed to get enough crystal fragments as soon as possible, as this wasn't a safe place to remain.

Unreal beasts on the third layer were all higher level and therefore more challenging to fight. Generally speaking, the strength of the three-grade beasts was comparable to that of a person at the marrow refining level. And since the unreal beasts were transformed from evil creatures, they were even stronger. Animals of the same level were generally more powerful than their human counterparts.

For that reason alone, Zen knew that he needed to be vigilant. He looked around warily, continuously as he walked through the forest. He had taken only two steps, and he heard a sound. The hairs along his arm and scalp tingled when he listened to the hissing of a snake.

The hairs on his neck stood up, alerting him that something was following him.

toward the strange hissing sound, scanning every inch very carefully, only to find that nothing but the jagged

doubt, Zen wrinkled his brow, making a face while wondering, 'Was that an illusion, or am I just

the forest. However, as he was passing under a stone arch formed by some jagged rocks, a shadow fell, cast from the

Leaning back, he pressed himself close to the ground, allowing him to nimbly elude the shadow. While at the same time, he rolled sideways, and narrowly avoided being whipped by the snake as it dropped, thrashing its body where Zen had been a second earlier. Zen tilted his head slightly, peering at a deep groove that was cut into the spot where he had been a second prior.

found a three-grade beast blocking his path. It was

first go, the gigantic boa slithered out of reach, scuttled into the surrounding stone forest. The boa looked around savagely with its

few steps back, leaning against a stone so that the boa couldn't take him from behind. Then stared at the boa, as long as it attacked him from the front,

and flicking its tongue at

pinned to the stone, motionlessly watching, unwilling to fall for the ploy of being lured away no matter how hard

their most significant shortcoming was that they were not patient like the humans hunting them. So, Zen patiently kept

Yet an hour later, the encounter was still a cat and mouse game.

behind Zen and raised its tail, preparing to strike. Since Zen's back was against the stone, the crafty serpent let loose enough of its muscular body to coil itself around the

would flee or try to crush him in retaliation, Zen knew he had only this one chance, and if he couldn't annihilate it in that first strike, the prize would be lost. So, he was determined not to give it a chance. With a plan in mind, Zen offered no resistance, allowing the beast to entwine

boa's enormous body. Gravel and dust dropped to the ground. At the same time, the hold the boa had on Zen tightened until he was firmly

the habits of constrictors. After they wrapped their prey, they would slither and slowly tighten themselves with each breath, feeling the heartbeat slow, and heat coming off their victim. They would not stop until their prey ceased breathing. The prey suffocated slowly,

boa constricted against him, Zen inhaled deeply, filling his lungs with air and closed his