Chapter 14

Buzz…

There were ripples of weak light emitted from the crystal ball.

“You’ve passed the first test!”

An elder in charge of monitoring nodded and announced the result indifferently.

This crystal ball was specially used to test the spiritual power of Level Nine Qi Gathering Realm cultivators.

Judging from the brightness of the light it emitted, Duan Cheng was just at the intermediate level.

The second test was about actual combat.

There were 30 puppets refined by the elders in this stage. As long as one could hold out for the time it took for an incense stick to burn under their siege, it would be considered a success.

Of course, if one could defeat them, he would obtain even better results.

Duan Cheng took a deep breath and stepped into the formation of the second test with a heavy heart.

Buzz…

A black shadow flashed before his eyes.

In the next moment, 30 puppets surrounded him.

“Mystery Sword Move!”

“Drawing Sword Move!”

“Swinging Sword Move!”

The longsword in Duan Cheng’s hand clashed with the puppet, producing a series of clanging sounds.

The puppets were made of hard materials, and the longsword could only leave a shallow mark on them.

In the beginning, Duan Cheng was still barely able to withstand the siege of 30 puppets.

However, as time passed, he gradually felt powerless.

Both his arms, legs, and chest were injured.

“It looks like he can’t hold on any longer!”

“Duan Cheng cultivates the yellow-level middle-rank martial arts, but he is still awkward with them. He is also unapt with the movement techniques. I think it’s a little difficult for him to hold out for the time it takes an incense stick to burn!”

“There’s hope, but he has to pay a hefty price.”

A few outer sect elders stood together and looked at Duan Cheng who was in the middle of the field, and commented.

Duan Cheng might choose to give up if he couldn’t hold on anymore.

If his life was in danger, the elders would step in to save him, but this also meant that he completely failed!

Time passed by slowly.

In the field, the wounds on Duan Cheng’s body increased, and traces of blood flowed out from the corner of his mouth. Anyone with discerning eyes could see that he was struggling to hold on.

“Time’s up, you’ve passed the test!”

Finally, a voice of redemption rang out, and the puppets stopped attacking.

At this moment, the bones in Duan Cheng’s arms were already fractured, but he did not care. Instead, his face was filled with excitement.

After a short rest, Duan Cheng dragged his tired body to the third test.

An ancient stone tablet about three meters tall stood in the center.

Duan Cheng silently walked to the stone tablet and placed his hand on it.

Buzz…

A hazy light shone down from the stone tablet and shrouded him.

Soon, four golden words appeared on the stone tablet: Middle-Grade Upper-Class!

“Middle-grade upper-class, you’ve passed the test!”

When the two monitoring elders saw this scene, they looked at each other and nodded slightly.

Talents were divided into low grade, middle grade, high grade, top grade, and super grade…

Each grade was divided into three classes: lower class, middle class, and higher class.

The lowest requirement for the talent test was the lower class of middle grade.

If one’s talent was lower than this, it would be considered a failure!

When Duan Cheng heard what the two elders said, he immediately heaved a long sigh of relief.

Then, he focused on the stone tablet in front of him.

Half the time it took to brew a pot of tea had passed, but there was no change in his body.

Without comprehending any cultivation method or martial art, Duan Cheng could not help but leave disappointed.

“Challenges completed, you are rated qualified! Duan Cheng is promoted to an inner sect disciple!”

One of the monitoring elders stepped forward and announced loudly.

“Although he passed the tests by just meeting the minimum requirement, he was still qualified.”

“It’s a pity that he was unable to comprehend any cultivation method and martial art from the mysterious stone tablet…”

“This result is already not bad. Though there are many outer sect disciples, at least half of them don’t even have the chance to participate in the outer sect trial!”

“The outer sect trial is the last chance that the Great Mystery Sect gives to us average disciples. Not everyone can grasp it!”

…

Many disciples were discussing Duan Cheng’s performance.

They were not surprised by this result. Most of the disciples who participated in the outer sect trial ended up with such results.

Many outer sect disciples who had reached the ninth level of the Qi Gathering Realm even failed!

“Next, Wang Yan!”

…

The trial continued.

Dozens of outer sect disciples went to the field in succession, but none of them achieved any amazing results.

Among them, three outer sect disciples failed.

“Next, Liu Yang!”

When the monitoring elder shouted this name, the surrounding crowd fell silent.

Then, an uproar broke out.

“He’s coming! He’s finally here!”

“The show is about to begin. Senior Brother Liu Yang is finally on stage!”

“Haha, guess how long Senior Brother Liu Yang can hold out under the siege of the puppets?”

“How long can he hold out? You should ask how long it will take to defeat those puppets!”

“No more than 15 minutes, I guess!”

“15 minutes? It won’t take more than 10 minutes!”

…

With Liu Yang’s appearance, the atmosphere in the place reached its peak.

As one of the few recognized geniuses in the outer sect, Liu Yang was quite famous among the outer sect disciples.

“Liu Yang is quite good, I just don’t know if he’ll be able to comprehend the black-level cultivation methods and martial arts.”

“There’s a high chance!”

“Eh, why isn’t Old Wu here? Doesn’t he think highly of Liu Yang?”

“Old Wu has been in closed-door cultivation for a long time. He might be at the critical moment of his breakthrough now.”

“Hmm? Another breakthrough again? This old fart is always one step faster than me!”

…

Elder Xie, Elder Wang, Elder Li, and the two elders in charge of monitoring stood together. They looked down at Liu Yang and talked.

The outer sect elders would more or less invest in these genius outer sect disciples.

It was most worthwhile to invest in these geniuses before they grew up.

Of course, there were unspoken rules between the elders.

If anyone could find a budding talent, that person would be the talent’s “exclusive investor”.

For example, Liu Yang was first discovered by Elder Wu.

The other elders would not be able to compete to invest in him.

The elders who came to watch the outer sect trial were all because there were disciples they valued and invested in among the participants.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have the time to come here to watch the outer sect trials.

Elder Wang invested in Lu Zhen.

Elder Li invested in Mu Qingxue.

Elder Xie invested in Su Chen.

“Elder Wu did choose a good time to cultivate in seclusion! Otherwise, he would probably be hopping mad today.”

Elder Wang suddenly smiled as he watched Yang Liu walk toward the crystal ball.

“Oh? Seems like you are so confident in Lu Zhen’s strength and talent?”

Elder Li raised his eyebrows and asked.

Elder Wang and Elder Wu, who was in closed-door cultivation, had always been at odds. They liked to compare everything, even the outer sect disciples they invested in were no exception.

Since Elder Wang said so, it was obvious that he thought Lu Zhen would be able to suppress Liu Yang.

“Hehe, you’ll know in a while.”

Elder Wang chuckled and pretended to be mysterious.