Each peal signaled the passing of a trial and meant that its rewards had been given.
David's group didn't know whose team had succeeded in the eighth trial but they were sure of one thing: Those rewards were now gone, they would have to pass the ninth trial to obtaining anything!
The cultivators in the group became dejected, they had just passed the third trial and endured a great deal of pain just to discover that their exploration had become longer.
It's not that they didn't have confidence in defeating the trials, they were a group formed by twenty rank 3 cultivators after all, they could deal with any threat that the separate dimension placed on their way.
Yet, they had just returned to the Inheritance ground and they were fairly confident in succeeding in the eighth trial, finding out that surpassing it wouldn't reward them was a heavy blow to their morale.
David put a pensive expression when he heard the peal, his mind seemed to evaluate something as he sat in silence.
Noah wasn't particularly disappointed with the event, it was his first time entering the dimension so he hadn't invested anything yet, his position was different from the others in his group who had already attempted in the eighth trial and were confident in their chances to surpass it.
That's why he was able to focus more on his surroundings and could partially guess what David was thinking.
'He is wondering if we should exit the dimension now.'
Noah could understand those thoughts because that approach was the safest one.
The team could simply give up on this exploration, regroup in the sect, and wait for reports about the ninth trial before attempting on a new exploration.
That would allow them to prepare for the new test without advancing blindly, it would give them a great advantage and reduce the risks that accompanied an unknown trial.
The separate dimension blocked all types of communication with the outside world, powerful items were needed to send messages outside the inheritance ground but they would need a cultivator in the heroic ranks to activate them.
Yet, said cultivators couldn't enter the dimension, leaving only the teams that explored it as a source of information.
'With all the information that we have, it's obvious that this separate dimension targets cultivators at the peak of the human ranks. Also, it allows us to form a fairly large team which further ease its difficulty, the real danger here is the unknown.'
Noah reviewed the known information about the Inheritance ground in his mind.
Twenty rank 3 cultivators could easily handle the trials, even a lower number of warriors could manage to pass each of them.
Yet, the real threats were the different scenarios of the tests.
Generally speaking, only the second trial could have been faced without any preparation, any organized team would have quickly set up a battle formation and dealt with the peak rank 4 dragon.
Yet, the first and third one were more complex, they required meticulous planning and certain drugs to be passed safely.
'The next trials also need a certain degree of preparation, but the teams have become variegated after more than two years of preparation. Our group is ready for any unexpected situation even if our battle prowess isn't the best that the sect could offer.'
Noah continued to evaluate the situation.
After eight trials, the teams from the more powerful organization had begun to modify their composition to cover the various types of difficulties of the separate dimension.
It was normal to think that they could hope to pass the ninth test since they were ready to complete those that came before.
'However, being prepared for the new trial won't assure the rewards. This same situation could happen due to the time wasted to gather information.'
Exploring the separate dimension wasn't a fast process, especially if one wanted to pursue the safe approach.
The time spent to reach the ninth trial from the beginning summed with that used to gather information and reorganize will amount to a few months, which was enough for another team to succeed in the ninth test.
"Let's keep going, David. The way I see it, now we are on equal ground with the strongest teams, we also have a chance."
One of the solid stage cultivators spoke to David when he saw that the latter was still deep in his thoughts.
"I agree. Every team is now equally unprepared, this works to our advantage since we have a team ready for any situation."
Another solid stage cultivator spoke, she shared the view of the previous one.
David sighed when he heard that, the truth was that he was of a similar opinion but he had to think about the entirety of his team, he couldn't just base his decisions on the strongest cultivators.
He turned toward the others behind him before opening his mouth to speak.
"You all know that the eighth trial has been passed so it might seem as if all your efforts have been for nothing. Yet, this might work in our favor: We are already at a good point and the composition of our team can face many unexpected situations apart from being prepared for the next tests."
David took a brief pause to make sure that the cultivators in his team evaluated his words carefully.
"Continuing to explore now will involve a higher danger than you expected but it's also our best chance to seize the rewards of the ninth test. I and the others in the solid stage need a rank 4 cultivation technique to prepare for the heroic ranks so we are willing to risk our lives but you still have time, I don't want to force you in this journey."
David continued, his words carried good intentions toward his fellow members of the sect, the expressions of many brightened up when they heard his caring tone.
Noah wasn't sure if David's performance was an act of some sort or if he was really worried about the well-being of the members of his team but he decided to remain silent, he wanted to continue the exploration after all.
It was with silent nods that David's team decided to continue its journey in the separate dimension before it focused on recovering from the injuries of the recent test.