"For the next month, all of you will remain inside the Frostbound Heavenly Range," Elder Mu Cang continued. "Roughly one hundred thousand ordinary Frostfang Beasts are scattered throughout the mountains. On top of that, there are one hundred and eight Commander-class Frost Beasts, nine Monarch-class Frost Beasts, and three Sovereign-class Frost Beasts."
The atmosphere on deck turned noticeably more serious as he went on to explain their strength.
"The ordinary Frostfang Beasts have combat power comparable to cultivators at the 1st level of Spirit Manifestation Realm. The one hundred and eight Commander-class Frost Beasts match the 2nd level, and the nine Monarch-class Frost Beasts match the 3rd. As for the three Sovereign-class Frost Beasts, their strength is comparable to cultivators at the 4th level of Spirit Manifestation Realm."
Many expressions changed at that, but Elder Mu Cang was not finished.
"There’s something else you need to understand. The environment inside the Frostbound Heavenly Range is extremely unusual, because the frost qi filling the air will suppress your strength, and the deeper you travel into the range, the heavier that suppression becomes. The demon beasts living there, however, are perfectly adapted to it. Not only do they escape the suppression, the frost qi actually strengthens them."
Everyone’s heart sank a little further.
"So although an ordinary Frostfang Beast technically sits at a cultivation level comparable to the 1st level of Spirit Manifestation Realm," he continued calmly, "its actual combat power will usually fall somewhere between the perfection stage of the 1st level and an ordinary cultivator at the 2nd. The same principle applies to the higher classes, so the Commander-class Frost Beasts are stronger than normal 2nd level cultivators, and the Monarch-class Frost Beasts are more dangerous than ordinary 3rd level cultivators."
His expression grew a shade more serious when he reached the last group.
"As for the three Sovereign-class Frost Beasts, their true combat ability lies somewhere between the perfection stage of the 4th level of Spirit Manifestation Realm and the 5th level. I strongly advise anyone who lacks the strength to handle that not to provoke them."
Silence settled over the deck as cultivators traded serious looks. The ordinary beasts were already stronger than their stated levels suggested, so the higher classes would naturally be more dangerous still, and the three Sovereign-class Frost Beasts carried combat power reaching toward the 5th level of Spirit Manifestation Realm.
For most members of the Celestial Prodigy Camp, simply running into one could be fatal.
At last, everyone understood one thing clearly. This half-year trial was not going to be easy.
"The main goal of this trial is hunting," Elder Mu Cang said, and his voice carried clearly across the frozen mountain range. "Each of you will be given a special Frosthunt Token, and it will automatically record every point you earn over the coming month."
He looked over the hundreds of geniuses in front of him before he went on.
"You will earn one point for every ordinary Frostfang Beast you kill. A Commander-class Frost Beast is worth one hundred points, and a Monarch-class Frost Beast is worth one thousand. If you manage to kill a Sovereign-class Frost Beast, you will be rewarded with ten thousand points."
Many people’s eyes lit up at once, but the elder’s next words changed the mood in an instant.
"There is one more thing. Fighting between participants is not forbidden during this trial," he said in the same calm tone. "You may even kill other participants and take the points stored in their Frosthunt Tokens."
A strange silence fell over the crowd, because the trial had suddenly become far more dangerous.
Elder Mu Cang kept speaking as though he had not noticed how everyone’s expressions had changed.
"When the month is over, every hunting point you hold will be converted into Celestial Prodigy Camp points at a one-to-one ratio. On top of that, you will receive a bonus based on your final ranking. Whoever takes first place will receive an extra fifty thousand points, while second and third place will each receive thirty thousand. Those ranked fourth to tenth will get ten thousand each, and those ranked eleventh to one hundredth will get five thousand. Participants ranked from one hundred and first to three hundredth will receive an extra one thousand points."
Several of the weaker cultivators grew hopeful when they heard this.
"What about everyone below three hundredth?" one of them asked.
Elder Mu Cang paused for a moment. With all of their expectant eyes on him, he answered flatly, "They will receive nothing extra."
The hope on those faces disappeared immediately, and a few of them exchanged bitter looks.
Li Yun, Bai Yuchen, Huang Tianze, and the other strong geniuses reacted very differently, and a sharp light appeared in their eyes. With rewards this large, a good performance could bring in tens of thousands of points in a single month, which was as much as several months of ordinary saving inside the Celestial Prodigy Camp.
"That is enough," Elder Mu Cang said as he raised his hand. "Take your Frosthunt Tokens and begin."
He waved his sleeve, and hundreds of dark-blue tokens flew through the air and landed neatly in the hands of every participant.
He looked at them one last time, and his expression turned serious. "I will come back to this spot one month from now. I hope all of you are still alive when I do."
The Voidpiercer Warship beneath his feet rose into the sky at once. A moment later it turned into a streak of light and vanished beyond the horizon.
As soon as Elder Mu Cang was gone, the mood among the participants changed completely. Many cultivators stepped back right away, and those who had been standing close together began to put distance between themselves. Even friends who usually got along well became cautious around each other.
Killing another participant at this point would bring very little benefit, since almost every Frosthunt Token still held zero points. However, the number of Frost Beasts in the Frostbound Heavenly Range was limited, and every competitor who disappeared meant one less person fighting over the prey.
That alone was enough to put everyone on guard. Nobody dared to fully trust the people standing next to them, and even cultivators who were on decent terms kept a safe distance without thinking about it.

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