Chapter Nine: The Trial

Watching the ant struggle on the ground, trying again and again to stand but failing every time, Long Yu finally decided to end its suffering. He would put it out of its misery.

“I’m sorry. In your next life, don’t be an ant again. And if you are, don’t cross paths with me.”

Muttering this, Long Yu stepped forward. The ant, its two mandibles opening and closing, tried to attack the human before it, but its body no longer obeyed. Raising his foot, Long Yu stomped down hard on its head. The ant’s skull burst open, gray matter oozing out; it was dead beyond doubt.

“The first trial of the secret domain is complete. Now commencing the second trial…”

The mechanical voice echoed again. At the same moment, a white beam of light shone where the ant’s corpse lay. The body vanished from the arena, the bloodstains gone as if erased.

If he hadn’t experienced it himself—killed the ant with his own hands—Long Yu would never have believed a battle had just taken place here.

“Damn it, there’s a second round?” Long Yu couldn’t help but curse aloud.

“Don’t tell me there’s a third and a fourth! Are you trying to kill me? What’s wrong with this Domain Number 252, so unreliable!” he shouted, glaring upward.

“Please refrain from insulting Number 252. This trial consists of two phases. The second phase begins now.

Originally, Domain 252 had many features to introduce, but you insisted on starting immediately.

And Domain 252 bears you no grudge; it simply follows the rules. If it wished to kill you, it would be no harder than crushing an ant! Please mind your words in the future…”

Hearing the secret domain’s threats, especially the final words, cold and deliberate, Long Yu began to suspect: was Domain 252 controlled by an intelligent life-form? Or was it an AI with its own will?

But Long Yu kept quiet. Sometimes, survival meant keeping one’s head down.

“Just wait,” he thought, “if I ever get strong enough to take revenge, I’ll make sure to teach you a lesson.”

After a brief rest, the second trial began. As the countdown sounded, another white light appeared. When the timer hit zero, a new mutant beast materialized before Long Yu and the light faded completely.

“Shit—it’s a tiger!” Long Yu cursed again, forgetting any threats. “You say you’re not messing with me? What the hell is this…” His mind filled with expletives.

The domain’s mechanical voice replied, “Given your physical stats have reached thirty, we have matched you with a tiger of equal strength. And because of your outstanding performance, I have thoughtfully selected a tiger for you.

Only a tiger is worthy of such an exceptional candidate! Good luck, outstanding challenger!” The voice remained cold and mechanical, but this time Long Yu felt the sting of sarcasm and vengeance—this domain held a grudge!

“Alright, I was wrong, really wrong…” Long Yu pleaded, but it was useless; the trial continued without pause.

At that moment, the controller of Domain 252—a little girl in white, human in appearance—watched the scene with rapt attention. Seeing Long Yu beg for mercy, a delicate smile played on her lips.

This native of Earth dared to speak so rudely to her. She was furious, determined to teach him a lesson and make him witness her power.

Of course, the rules prevented her from killing the challenger outright, but she could make him suffer. It was a privilege to experience such a life-and-death trial—her special gift to him. Not everyone deserved such “special treatment”; he should be grateful.

The girl mused happily to herself, oblivious to Long Yu’s panic below. Had he known how vindictive she was, he would have regretted everything. Clearly, she was a spoiled and vengeful child.

Meanwhile, Long Yu, faced with the tiger’s charge, found himself helpless. A tiger with a physical strength of thirty was just as quick and reactive as he was, but the tiger’s body was built for combat. How could he hope to win?

But if he didn’t defeat this tiger, he would die here. Was he to perish now, just after glimpsing a brighter future?

No—he couldn’t accept that. He would not die like this. Long Yu refused to give up.

Wait, he still had his abilities. If he could just tap into them, perhaps he could defeat the tiger.

Crisis brought clarity. At this moment, cursing the vengeful Domain 252 or anything else would do him no good. Survival was the only truth; death would end everything.

But how could he use his powers?

Dodging another attack, Long Yu began to think hard.

The tiger was losing patience. At first, it had found the weak prey amusing, not even hungry enough to take things seriously. But after missing several pounces, the king of beasts felt humiliated.

Fury overtook the tiger—a mere morsel dared to toy with it? Now, it would use its full strength to restore its dignity.

Long Yu didn’t know the tiger’s thoughts; all he knew was that it had suddenly become more agile, nearly catching him. Cold sweat broke out on his brow.

He had to find a solution—he couldn’t keep evading forever. Using his psychic sense to predict the tiger’s movements was draining, and he couldn’t last much longer.

What now? Psychic powers, spatial abilities—what could they do? In desperation, Long Yu cried out within, but who could answer him?

Was he truly going to die here today? Life’s highs and lows were dizzying; today’s wild swings left him breathless, as if on a roller coaster. But it seemed it would all end here.

“You damn secret domain, I won’t forget you! Damn it all!” Long Yu cursed at the top of his lungs. If he was going to die, what did he care about threats from the domain? He would curse it to his last breath, if nothing else for a fleeting comfort.

The little girl, who had been watching him in despair, heard his cursing and stamped her foot in anger, yet could do nothing. This man clearly believed he was about to die and no longer feared her. What could she do?

The rules forbade her from revealing herself to punish this insolent, sharp-tongued man; otherwise, she’d have stormed down to give him the beating he deserved.