Blood and torn pieces of vellum continued falling across the Trial Ground.
The Chronicle Lord forced himself to stand.
The platform beneath him had already been divided into several sections. Some remained suspended, while the others had collapsed upon the participants below.
Several Junior and Senior Scribes were trapped beneath the vellum slate.
Those who remained conscious immediately attempted to protect the children, but the explosions continued appearing in different parts of the Trial Ground before anyone could determine where the attacks came from.
The Chronicle Lord looked toward the sky.
He could not see any enemy.
There were no flying Ink Beasts, Ink Carriages, or cultivators standing above the formations of the Dragon Brush Sect. Not even a single projectile could be seen entering the Trial Ground.
The attacks simply appeared.
Boom!
Another explosion occurred near the eastern section.
The Chronicle Lord raised his right hand.
Several golden characters formed in front of him and spread across the area. They became a large barrier before the explosion reached the participants gathered below it.
The barrier shook violently.
Several characters immediately disappeared.
The Chronicle Lord's face became pale.
The power behind the attacks was not something the ordinary Grand Scripts of the Dragon Brush Sect could easily stop. Even he needed to use a large amount of Ink to block only one explosion.
More importantly, he still did not know who was responsible.
"Find the attackers!" he ordered.
Several Senior Scribes spread their senses throughout the Trial Ground.
Some searched the sky. Others examined the damaged Grand Scripts and the land beneath the platform.
They found nothing.
There was no foreign Ink Signature left behind by the explosions. Each attack formed inside the Trial Ground and disappeared after destroying everything within its range.
It was as though the explosions had already been written into the formations before the trial even began.
Below the platform, the children had completely forgotten about their examination.
Only several moments ago, they had been holding the testing papers while waiting to discover the quality of their Ink Imprints. Some of them had already begun imagining how their lives would change after entering the Dragon Brush Sect.
Now, they were trying to escape.
A young girl with a Thin Imprint crawled away from a burning pillar. One of her legs had been struck by falling vellum slate, but she continued dragging herself forward using both hands.
"Mother!"
She called repeatedly.
No one answered.
Near the destroyed examination table, the boy who awakened the Crimson Hawk Imprint remained beneath a section of the broken platform.
The red light surrounding him had already disappeared.
His father and several members of the Fang Clan attempted to reach him, but an explosion struck the path between them.
They were forced backward.
Another boy stood several steps away from a severed arm and continued staring at it. He had not yet realized that the arm belonged to him.
The screams gradually spread throughout the Trial Ground.
Parents attempted to enter. Sect assistants attempted to save the surviving participants from further peril.
The Junior and Senior Scribes tried to stop the explosions.
None of them could properly understand what was happening.
The smell of blood and burning Ink filled the air.
The Trial Ground had become completely different from the place Yang Lujia entered only a short time ago.
Meanwhile, Yang Lujia remained near the seat that should have belonged to Zhuquan De.
Part of the platform collapsed above him.
A large piece of vellum slate fell directly toward his head.
Yang Lujia saw it approaching, but before he could move, the stone suddenly changed direction.
It struck the ground beside him.
Several smaller pieces followed.
None of them touched his body.
Boom!
An explosion occurred near the remaining portion of the platform.
The force threw three Junior Scribes from their seats. Their defensive Ink shattered, and their bodies struck the ground several dozen steps away.
Yang Lujia remained standing.
Even the ends of his robe barely moved.
He looked around him.
There was no barrier.
He had not activated any scripture. He still did not know how to properly control Ink, and he could not sense the Ink Manuscript inside his body.
However, nothing had injured him.
'What the hell is happening?'
Yang Lujia looked below the platform.
The children were still trapped among the debris.
Some of the elders had already reached them, but there were too many injured people and too many explosions occurring at the same time.
He wanted to help. However, his feet remained in the same place.
Yang Lujia did not know whether whatever protected him would continue doing so after he moved. He possessed no cultivation that he could knowingly use. He had no techniques and no scriptures.
Even if he reached one of the children, he did not know whether he could protect that child from the next explosion.
More possibilities immediately entered his mind.
He might become another person the Scribes needed to rescue.
He might distract them from the participants.
The protection around him might disappear.
He might die before reaching anyone.
Yang Lujia knew that he was thinking too much.
However, understanding that did not stop the thoughts from appearing.
He had already died twice.
His third life had also nearly ended before he completed his first thirty-seven breaths.
Even after living inside the Verdant Archive for fifteen years, the fear of dying again had never completely disappeared.
"You are already strong enough," a familiar voice suddenly entered his mind.
Yang Lujia froze.
"Grandpa?" He looked around.
Zhuquan De was not inside the Trial Ground.
The old man had left the Dragon Brush Sect several hours ago. Yang Lujia also could not see any Script or other method that could explain how the voice reached him.
Still, he was certain it belonged to Zhuquan De.
"Why are you still standing there?" the old man asked. "Several of those children are still alive."
"What do you mean I am strong enough?"
"You truly believed I kept you weak for fifteen years?"
"You refused to teach me how to cultivate."
"Because I could not teach you."
"That is not the same as being strong."
"It is connected."
Yang Lujia looked toward the people below. "Explain properly."
"Your Blank Imprint has been gathering Ink since you were young."
Yang Lujia's eyes narrowed. "That is impossible. Every time I attempted to absorb Ink, it disappeared."
"It did not disappear."
"Then where did it go?"
"Into your Ink Manuscript."
"I cannot even perceive my Ink Manuscript."
"But that does not mean it does not exist."
Another explosion occurred.
Boom!
A section of the spectator area collapsed.
Several people disappeared beneath the falling stone.
Yang Lujia's expression became darker.
"Grandpa, this is not the proper time for one of your incomplete explanations."
"I know."
"Then speak clearly."
Zhuquan De remained silent for several breaths.
"Your Ink Manuscript is sealed," he eventually said. "The Ink entering your body was absorbed by it, but the seal prevented you from sensing what happened afterward."
"For fifteen years?"
"Yes."
"How much Ink did it absorb?"
"Enough."
"That is not an amount."
"I cannot explain everything right now."
"Why not?"
"Because you will continue asking questions instead of moving."
Yang Lujia looked toward the injured children again.
The old man was correct.
"What can I do?"
"You may not possess any techniques or scriptures, but your body has already been strengthened by the Ink gathered within your Manuscript."
"How strong is it?"
"I will not tell you."
"Why?"
"Because you will either become careless or refuse to believe me."
"I already do not completely believe you."
"That is normal."
Yang Lujia sighed. "What should I do?"