Chapter 54 - 22: A Thousand Peaks Stand Tall, a Hundred Schools Contend

Chapter 54: Chapter 22: A Thousand Peaks Stand Tall, a Hundred Schools Contend

Dong Hao was naturally aware of the difficulties in reforging the Cyan Glaze Sword, but since he was the one to bring it up, he must have had a solution.

"Brother Jiang, my uncle happens to be a Senior Artifact Refiner. With his help, your Bamboo Sword can definitely be reforged into a Middle Grade Magical Artifact."

"Don’t be so quick to refuse. The second round of the assessment will test your combat ability. If you want a good ranking, you’ll need a suitable weapon."

At these words, Jiang Xuan could no longer refuse. Besides, after becoming a Clear Heart Swordsman, he had been desperately hoping for a good sword. The two factors combined were enough to make Jiang Xuan cup his fists toward Dong Hao and say, "Then I’ll have to trouble you, Brother Dong."

"Haha, it’s a small matter!"

Now that Jiang Xuan had agreed, Dong Hao knew his spot in the Inner Sect was mostly secure.

Setting aside Jiang Xuan’s character, one thing alone left him little room to back out. If he accepted the favor but didn’t help in return, he would be considered treacherous and be scorned by everyone.

Furthermore, entering the Inner Sect meant taking a master. Even in the Shenxiao Sect, which believed one must fight for their place on the Great Dao, no master would be willing to accept an ungrateful wretch as their disciple.

Jiang Xuan was aware of this, but since he had agreed, he naturally had his own considerations.

’What Dong Hao wants is just for me to help him get into the Inner Sect. He isn’t asking me to compete for first place, nor is he trying to block my own path... As long as I’m strong enough, it shouldn’t be hard for both of us to enter the Inner Sect together.’

...

Receiving an "excellent" rating finally put Jiang Xuan’s anxious heart at ease, and for once, he relaxed and chatted idly with Dong Hao for a long while.

But he didn’t let himself slack off. When it was time for the evening session, he still entered a meditative state along with Dong Hao and the others.

Although he had already cultivated once that afternoon, now that his Primordial Sea Spirit Core was formed, the qi and blood throughout his body had a true foundation. During this evening session, the amount of Spiritual Qi he refined was actually greater than before.

This time, however, Jiang Xuan didn’t open any new acupoints.

All the Spiritual Qi he refined was completely absorbed by the thirty-six acupoints he had already opened, leaving not a single trace behind.

The First Realm of Cultivation was called Spirit Core Awakening, a name that unequivocally demonstrated the Spirit Core’s importance.

Once the Spirit Core was formed, not only did the Extraordinary Power within Jiang Xuan’s body gain a governing hub, but the already opened acupoints throughout his body also gained a core nexus, allowing them to resonate in unison and undergo a complete transformation.

’Three Spirit Cores means three complete transformations. No wonder it’s always said in the Cultivation Realm that one’s Realm is the true foundation of Cultivation.’

Although he hadn’t nurtured any new acupoints, the fact that all thirty-six of his existing ones had been nourished and tempered still filled Jiang Xuan with a solid sense of fulfillment.

When the evening session ended, it was time for dismissal. On previous days, Jiang Xuan would always be the first to leave, but today he stayed behind with Dong Hao and all the other students who had received an "excellent" rating, under the envious and jealous gazes of their fellow disciples.

They didn’t have to wait long. Once all the other students had departed, Lecturer Song Zhou’s figure suddenly glided before them.

The first thing he did upon appearing was to put these high-spirited youths in their place.

"WUUUMMM—"

An immense aura suddenly unfurled, its pressure instantly silencing the group. His icy voice followed, "Don’t think you can rest easy just because you got an ’excellent’ rating."

"The first assessment was merely to sift out a few barely acceptable prospects."

"I can tell you this plainly: the vast majority of you will not be promoted to Inner Sect Disciple a hundred days from now."

"Seven to nine people. That’s the number of students from the Chen Daoist School who have made it into the Inner Sect in previous years. This means that out of you forty-odd ’excellent’ students, at least three-fourths will be eliminated!"

"RUSTLE—"

At his words, the students who had just been feeling so arrogant instantly paled. As they looked at each other, their gazes held a newfound, unconcealable wariness.

But while some in the crowd reacted strongly, others remained completely unfazed.

Many of them already knew the inside story, while others were simply full of confidence in their own strength.

Qin Feng, for example, who had been the first to condense his Spirit Core, was now watching the others panic with amusement, not the least bit concerned himself.

But his composure didn’t last long.

Glancing at the unconcerned Qin Feng and the coolly detached Xie Hanyan, Song Zhou continued, "You should also know that our Shenxiao Sect is a Northern Major Sect. We have countless peaks and a hundred competing lineages. These many lineages are then divided into the Upper, Middle, and Lower Veins."

"Although disciples of the Upper, Middle, and Lower Veins all belong to the Shenxiao Sect, and there are no nominal differences in rank among Inner Sect Disciples, I trust you can figure out the disparity in resources, benefits, and status for yourselves."