Chapter 3399: Chapter 3399: Poisonous Leeches

The other creatures from the Other Shore entered the No-break Maze without hesitation and Zen, Egan and Kirk followed in behind them.

The maze itself was not complicated. Its purpose was not to trap and confuse creatures but to usher them through the tests the maze provided.

If one was strong enough, he or she would be able to pass through and make their way to the third page to choose his or her bloodline.

The weak, however, would be eliminated or die.

The process of becoming a powerful warrior had always been this cruel.

“Such a form does not allow us to exercise our true strength,” Zen complained to the Primeval Lord of Heaven.

He could not even move freely now that he was in the form of a picture, and so naturally his fighting ability was reduced.

Zen was not the first to complain.

Other methods could have been employed for the purpose of selecting Other Shore creatures to obtain the bloodline abilities. A competition in an area of the Grand Plain Stage could be held, or a trial could be set up in a place similar to the Soul City or the Land of Bone Tribulation.

This would have been better as in their form in the Eternal Scroll Painting, it was impossible to show their strength.

“Don't worry, you will not be in this form forever,” said the Primeval Lord of Heaven with a smile. “Remember the hexagram arrays?”

“Sir, do you mean to say there are also hexagram arrays in the maze?” Zen asked, his eyes lighting up.

Just a moment ago he had returned to his original form and he felt like a drowning man that had just climbed ashore. It was obvious he wished to fight in his standard form.

“Yes, that is correct,” the Primeval Lord of Heaven answered, nodding his head.

The reason the Eternal Scroll Painting was designed this way was because of how difficult it was to build a passage from the chaos to the Other Shore.

In the context of the vortex, even for that mysterious civilization, it was quite difficult to transport creatures one at a time. Perhaps it was the stubbornness of the Instant Civilization that had the trial still set in the passage to this day.

It was because of this that, even though they were unhappy with it, every Other Shore creature that entered the passage would be compressed into a picture.

It was true that when their forms were flat, their strength was suppressed. But even for an incredibly powerful civilization like the Instant Civilization, it was impossible to allow Other Shore creatures to maintain their true form throughout the passage. And so the hexagram arrays were created as a compromise.

They had made their way through a fair distance of the maze when they came to their first fork in the road. Those Other Shore creatures made their choices quickly and moved on.

Zen had learned that one could choose either path and reach the destination as long as one was strong enough to handle it.

The difference between the paths were the beasts on them.

Some of the Other Shore races had already learned the arrangements of the beasts and had their choices ready.

As for Zen, his mind was totally blank.

“Zen, left or right?” Egan stopped and asked.

“Well... Is there any difference?”

Zen hoped the Primeval Lord of Heaven would offer some advice, but he revealed that the arrangements of the beasts in the No-break Maze changed over time and so after so long, they would have changed too much for him to be of any use here. ℝÂＮȮ฿Εŝ

“Of course there are differences,” replied Egan, “According to the last ten openings of the Eternal Scroll Painting, the right will prove more troublesome, while the left path is much safer!”

“Then why did they choose the right one?” Zen asked confusedly of some of the Other Shore creatures.

Their choice didn't seem to surprise Kirk at all. “The information different races have collected varies. Perhaps, for them, taking the right path will be easier.”

“Since this is your first time in the No-break Maze, you can follow us,” Egan suggested.

He might not have seen Zen fight with his own eyes, but he believed Zen must have some merits to be invited by two great races.

“Okay,”

Zen replied, accepting the invitation. Although it was possible for the Primeval Lord of Heaven to lead him through, the Eternal Scroll Painting changed constantly, not to mention, his impression of the Three Eyes race was good.

They decided on the left passage and came across several forks in the road along the way.

Every fork further divided the Other Shore creatures into different paths. Four forks later and it was only the three of them left on this one. Now, two thin lines that twisted like waves formed the curves of the channel before them.

There were many circular objects on the walls on either side and Zen didn't have the slightest clue as to what they were.

“Zen, I think it'd be best to walk faster on this road. The things you see on the walls are Poisonous Leeches. If we get caught by them, we'll be in big trouble,” Egan warned.

This was the most treacherous section of the road ahead. Once they passed through here, the rest would be much easier.

“Got it,” Zen nodded.

They made some preparations at the intersection and suddenly all three of them rushed along the curving passage.

Zen changed his method of charging forward and could now keep up with Egan and Kirk. They all seemed to be swimming through a river course and made great strides in their advance.

Just as they entered the curved passageway, the circular objects began breaking apart and worms as thick as arms poured out. They appeared to have wings and flew at them It turned out the circular objects were in fact eggs containing disgusting worms.

Zen followed closely behind Egan and Kirk, not forgetting to observe the beasts.

“Zen, stay close and don't fight these Poisonous Leeches. Even if you kill them all, more will just appear,” Egan, who marched on the front line, reminded Zen.

The Poisonous Leeches weren't very strong but they were large in numbers and highly poisonous. Thus, most of the Other Shore creatures opted not to choose this path.

But then, Kirk suddenly yelled out in shock, “Egan, there's something wrong with the eggs ahead of us!”

Egan saw the eggs and his face lost all its color too.

The eggs on both sides of the path were slightly black on the surface.

The white eggs contained ordinary Poisonous Leeches, while the slightly black eggs contained Chill Poisonous Leeches. These were far stronger than the ordinary Poisonous Leeches.

There had always been Chill Poisonous Leeches on this path, but before, there had only been one or two at the end of it.

They were difficult to deal with but not that big a problem if one could run fast enough.

But now, they had only traveled a little part of the journey and had already encountered quite a few Chill Poisonous Leeches. This was beyond Egan's expectations.

“All we can do now is to continue pushing forward!” said Egan, gritting his teeth.

They were almost completely blocked off by the leeches behind them, making retreat impossible.

They were left no choice but to rush out with all the strength they could muster.

A rush of cold spread from the black eggs when they cracked open.

Zen, Egan and Kirk immediately felt the drop in temperature. Black Chill Poisonous Leeches burst from the eggs and surrounded them.

At the front, Egan and Kirk stretched their bodies out to avoid the group of Chill Poisonous Leeches.

But behind them, Zen had been stopped by the leeches.

He was unable to pass through and one concern grew within him: would his physical strength still be the same now that his form had changed?