Li Cunxu planned to transplant the Golden Tree to Bengma Island. Though the Golden Tree was entirely shimmering with gold and could easily be underestimated, it indeed could grow golden fruits and golden leaves.

Upon reaching the Golden City, Li Cunxu was stopped by two Gold Guards completely clad in gold.

"Respected Beast Master, riding mounts is not allowed in the city. Please dismount."

Subsequently, the Gold Guards summoned a driverless car to transport Li Cunxu to his accommodation.

It was a super luxurious single room.

There was a private cinema, a swimming pool, a battle room capable of enduring gold-level combat, and a training room of the same security level as the battle room.

Every contestant received such treatment.

"The Golden Competition's organizers sure are generous."

There were still three days until the start of the Golden Competition, and during these three days, contestants began to gradually enter the Golden Secret Realm.

For these three days, Li Cunxu stayed in his room, practicing his instant step technique.

The so-called instant step is essentially a spiritual power-assisted sprint.

When spiritual power adheres to one's legs and erupts at an incredibly fast speed, it enables the Beast Master to evade attacks.

Jingle~

A phone notification sounded.

It was a message from Grandpa.

A package had arrived at the villa gate of Li Cunxu's school, and Grandpa asked him to pick it up.

Li Cunxu grasped the Golden Key and silently recited 'return' in his heart. His figure reappeared at the villa, and upon opening the package, his mind was filled with mixed emotions.

Sky blue, gentle fabric with magnificent, noble golden cloud patterns—this was a piece of gold-grade armor, the Cloud Patterned Cyan Robe, made from the silk of Cyan Gold Silkworms, and considered a top-grade among golden armors.

Gold-grade armor can carry four defensive skills.

The four defensive skills of the Cloud Patterned Cyan Robe are Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield, Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield, Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield, Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield.

All four skills are Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield.

The Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield is the signature defensive skill of the Cyan Gold Silkworm. Ordinary gold-level skills rarely break the Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield, and this Cloud Patterned Cyan Robe has four layers, with Four-Layered Cyan Gold Cloud Pattern Shield stacking, even a low-level lord beast would have to struggle to break through it.

With this Cloud Patterned Cyan Robe, Li Cunxu no longer worried about his safety in the competition.

"The ultimate armor, my only shortcoming is compensated."

"Grandpa, really, even with the danger on the front lines, he's still distracted enough to get me armor."

Li Cunxu felt somewhat ashamed; not only could he not help Grandpa, but he was also causing trouble and distraction for him.

When he informed Grandpa about signing up for the Golden Competition, Li Cunxu had anticipated this outcome. In truth, he really didn't want to inform him.

But he couldn't avoid it. Even if he didn't win the championship, Li Cunxu knew his outstanding performance in the Golden Competition would attract Li Shiji's enemies' murderous intentions.

Li Shiji's enemies could tolerate a talented Li Cunxu, but not an overly talented one.

In their eyes, an overly talented Li Cunxu wasn't Li Cunxu, but a young Li Shiji.

One Li Shiji had already been such a headache for them; if another Li Shiji, the second generation (Li Cunxu), appeared, they would go crazy.

To prevent them from going mad, Li Cunxu had to let Li Shiji know the situation and be prepared.

Li Cunxu had a premonition that if he won the Golden Competition, Li Shiji's enemies would likely dispatch a king-level assassin to eliminate this young Li Shiji.

"What a troublesome time!"

...

The Golden Competition began.

Three thousand Golden Beastmasters under thirty gathered at the Golden Plaza.

A long dragon's roar echoed throughout the city.

A majestic Golden Dragon descended onto the plaza center, its overwhelming presence knocking people around it over.

A man stood atop the head of the Golden Dragon.

The majestic and domineering Golden Dragon seemed mismatched with the man's aura on its head.

The man's demeanor was portly, with a large belly, his fingers adorned with gold rings symbolizing wealth, a thick golden chain that could leash a dog around his neck, and when he grinned, he revealed a huge golden tooth embedded in his smile, presenting a vivid image of a nouveau riche.

Li Cunxu did not underestimate him because of his appearance.

He was no ordinary person; he was the famous Golden King.

In the previous generation's players, the Golden King was incredibly popular.

Working for the Golden King could bring very generous rewards, and any task issued by the Golden King was something players eagerly competed for.

In fact, in order to snatch an important task from the Golden King, five out of the top ten super guilds engaged in a massive battle royale.

The Golden King was not only wealthy and magnanimous in his actions, but he also had unparalleled wisdom beyond his appearance.

The Golden King schemed against a Blood God Divine Son, resulting in the Blood God Divine Son being tragically sealed. During the scheming, he also reaped considerable benefits. After this event, the Golden King quickly broke through from King to Venerable King, becoming the Golden King.

The Golden King stood atop the Golden Dragon, looking at the crowd with satisfaction.

"This year's young men are quite impressive!"

"I'll skip the unnecessary talk, let's get to the point."

The Golden King clapped his hands, and a golden tower rose from the ground.

"Everyone knows the rules of the Golden Competition over the years. On the eve of the Golden Competition, there's a Golden Trial, and only those 256 people who pass the Golden Trial can participate in the intense championship contention."

"And the artifact behind me, the Illusory Golden Tower, is your place for the Golden Trial."

"The Illusory Golden Tower has seven floors. That means you need to pass seven levels."

"Those who clear all seven levels will definitely participate in the Golden Competition."

"For those who don't reach all seven floors, don't worry too much—the more levels you clear, the higher the chance you'll be selected as a contestant."

Someone raised a hand and asked, "What if more than 256 people clear all seven floors?"

The Golden King wasn't annoyed by the interruption and chuckled, "Don't worry, it's unlikely. Those who clear all seven floors are good candidates to win the competition; surely this year won't produce 256 winning-worthy candidates."

"Everyone, do your best! To motivate you, I left a small gift behind each level, which you can get by clearing the level."

"Alright, less small talk, head over and start clearing!"

The crowd swarmed into the Illusory Golden Tower, disappearing once they got five meters in, as if absorbed by the tower. Simultaneously, the Mechanical Celestial Eye inside the Illusory Golden Tower began live broadcasting the contestants' trial footage.

Before long, some people got ejected from the Illusory Golden Tower.

Li Cunxu didn't squeeze in immediately; the trial would last a day and a night, so the time was ample.

Others who hadn't rushed in either included some popular candidates for the championship.

As he approached the Illusory Golden Tower, Li Cunxu's vision turned white. When the light faded, he found himself inside the tower.

The surroundings were bare, with only a single river.

Li Cunxu felt the river was peculiar. It was wide and deep, with a slow current, almost at a turtle's pace.

There was a sign by the river.

Li Cunxu ran over to read it, and it said [Checkpoint – Sinking River].

[In the Sinking River, all who enter it will sink to the bottom.]

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