Chapter 521 - 288: Who Did You Say You Want to Challenge?

Chapter 521: Chapter 288: Who Did You Say You Want to Challenge?

"Many people’s Cultivation improves quickly before the Primordial Spirit Realm. Once they reach it, the process slows down. It’s not the person’s fault; this Realm just inherently requires a lot of accumulation."

Jiang Man looked at the twenty Elixirs and nodded seriously, showing he understood.

’Though I don’t really get what she’s saying.’

’But twenty Elixirs... that’s nearly one hundred thousand Spiritual Source.’

’She gave them to me just like that. She’s a truly good person.’

’The Ji Family came too late. If they had been here sooner, I wouldn’t have had to suffer so much.’

Ji Meng also extended her hand.

"I’m at the Middle Stage of Primordial Spirit."

In the end, Ji Linglong gave her another twenty Void-Invoking Summer Yuan Pills.

After Ji Meng got them, she whispered to Jiang Man, "I’ll sell them to you later at a thirty percent discount, Young Master Jiang."

Jiang Man was delighted. ’A new discount!’

"You two go cultivate. We will re-evaluate and arrange a new plan for you," Ji Shoumo said.

Afterward, Jiang Man began his Cultivation, while Ji Meng wandered around the room.

The house had two floors and a sizable courtyard with some Spirit Grass growing in it.

She gazed out from the second floor, taking in the sight of overlapping mountain ranges, misty valleys, and even a waterfall cascading down.

She found a spot on the balcony and sat down. After watching Jiang Man enter a state of Cultivation below, she took out a book and began to read.

Meanwhile, Ji Shoumo and the other two watched from a distance, tailoring a Cultivation plan.

"He started cultivating the moment he got the Elixirs. He’s probably just putting on a show for us. But being willing to put on a show is a good thing. He seems very poor; he looked quite excited when I gave him the Elixirs," Ji Linglong said.

"Let’s not worry about that for now. Since he has a Cultivation Skill, he must have received guidance from someone, perhaps a prodigy from his clan. We won’t interfere with that. We just need to arrange his Cultivation schedule and teach him how to nourish his body and circulate his power," Ji Shoumo said.

The others had no objections.

In the evening, they saw someone arrive via Sword Control to deliver an ox and a small Spirit Pet that looked like a raccoon dog.

Jiang Man did not stop cultivating.

「That night.」

Ji Meng went back.

Jiang Man still showed no reaction.

"So focused?" Ji Linglong commented.

Late into the night, Jiang Man remained in a state of Cultivation.

Ji Chenfeng was surprised. "He’s really not taking a break? Isn’t it bad to push himself like this right after advancing to the Primordial Spirit Realm?"

"Let him be. It won’t be a problem for a short while. After reaching the Primordial Spirit Realm, the strain on one’s Heart Spirit is reduced. He’ll be fine," Ji Shoumo said.

「Until dawn.」

Jiang Man emerged from his state of Cultivation.

’I’m still a ways off from advancing. One night isn’t enough.’

’It’s going to take more time. Advancing to the Middle Stage of Primordial Spirit is harder than I expected.’

"Master, who was that woman from yesterday?" the Tengu asked, approaching Jiang Man.

"Why do you ask?" Jiang Man asked curiously.

"I’m a little scared of her," the Tengu said after a moment’s thought. "The moment she arrived, I fell to my knees. Brother Niu just stood in the corner eating grass, not daring to meet her gaze."

Jiang Man told it that it would get used to her after seeing her more. Then he turned to the Old Yellow Ox. "Old Huang, you didn’t turn into an ice sculpture?"

The Old Yellow Ox said calmly, "She wouldn’t dare make a move with so many people around. Besides, she’s only at the Primordial Spirit Realm, so she couldn’t do anything to me anyway."

Jiang Man wasn’t bothered. As long as a fight didn’t break out, it wasn’t a problem.

If a fight did break out, the three of them would be finished.

"Who brought you here yesterday?" Jiang Man asked.

"Chang Qiweng. He’s renting a Flying Sword to work as a delivery man," the Old Yellow Ox said.

Jiang Man sighed. ’Even Old Chang is using Sword Control now.’

"It’s time. You need to go report in." At that moment, Ji Shoumo and the others walked over.

Jiang Man nodded and left with them.

"From today onward, we will be responsible for your safety. But our protection is only temporary. You need to get stronger as quickly as possible," Ji Shoumo said.

Jiang Man indicated that he understood and promised to spend all his remaining time on Cultivation.

After that, they arrived at the registration office.

As they got there, Ji Meng and her group arrived as well.

"Good morning, Miss Ji Meng," Jiang Man said with a smile.

"Good morning, Young Master Jiang," Ji Meng replied, smiling as she drew near.

As she walked, the gentle chime of a Silver Bell could be heard.

"Young Master-in-law," Xiaoqing greeted respectfully.

"There should be other people reporting today. You should be careful," Ji Linglong reminded them.

Then, they went to the registration desk.

They smoothly received an Inner Sect Token, a Flying Sword gifted by the Inner Sect, and a simple Magic Robe.

In addition, there was a Simple Primordial Spirit Skill, a Simple Body Refining Technique, and a Simple Observation Method.

These were all free. After advancing in Cultivation, there would also be some free Basic Techniques.

It was the same for every Realm.

When Jiang Man received the sword, he was filled with emotion.

’The Sect is giving out Flying Swords.’

Jiang Man tested it and found it to be decent, a bit better than the first one he had obtained.

"You’re testing a piece of junk like that?" A man sneered at Jiang Man. "Have you never seen a Flying Sword before?"

"People from the Sect are generally poor. It’s normal for them to have never touched a Flying Sword," the woman next to the man added.

Jiang Man looked at the two of them, took out a notebook, and asked curiously, "What are your names?"

"Shen Jinxing," the man said.

"Shen Baimin," the woman followed up.

They didn’t seem worried at all.

Jiang Man wrote down their names. ’They insulted me today.’

Seeing Jiang Man’s action, the two weren’t concerned. Instead, they asked with a smile, "Are you from the Sect’s newest batch of recruits?"

Jiang Man nodded.

Shen Jinxing asked with a smile, "Then you must be quite outstanding, right? Otherwise, someone so poor wouldn’t be able to enter the Inner Sect. I wonder if you’re qualified to be one of the simulation opponents?"

"I should be. I heard that the assessment for people from the Immortal Sects to enter our Sect is to fight against people from here. Are you going to challenge me?" Jiang Man asked.

"We have three chances and can choose from three difficulty levels. You don’t look very strong, so you must be in the weakest tier, right?" Shen Baimin said with a chuckle. "In that case, we’ll use our first chance to simulate a fight against you. What’s your name?"

"Jiang Man, of Cloud Mist Peak. My rank should be among the top," Jiang Man stated his name and rank.

He hadn’t participated in a long time, so he could only say "among the top."

"’Among the top’? So not in the top three?" Shen Jinxing wore a look of understanding, then said, "Fine. Let me see just how much this ’top rank’ of yours is worth. If I win, I’ll be sure to remember you writing down my name."

The man spoke with ease and confidence.

He clearly looked down on the Sect’s new recruits.

Just then, Jiang Man received a message telling him to go to the back to have his stats recorded.

So they could be used in the simulation.

Jiang Man didn’t make things too difficult for the assessor.

He used his Golden Core state, but pushed the Hundred Rivers Series to its maximum.

’Golden Core versus Golden Core. That’s not bullying.’

The Fairy recording his information stared at the level of Cultivation Jiang Man was displaying and fell silent for a long time.

In the end, she moved Jiang Man’s name to the special admission category.

Anyone who could survive ten of his moves would be admitted.

And they would be free to choose any of the twenty lower houses of the Inner Sect, giving them direct access to stronger individuals.

After that, she was busy for a long time before finally finishing all the recordings.

A total of only eighteen people were recorded: eight for the easy tier, six for the normal tier, three for the difficult tier, and one for the special admission tier.

Afterward, the assessments began.

Ten people came in at once.

All of them were from the Immortal Sects.

A man bathed in a golden glow was first in line. He looked at the assessor and said, "Senior, I wish to challenge the difficult tier."

The young Fairy nodded, and three names appeared: Wei Ran of Peach Blossom Peak, Meng Xiaoxiao of Red Water Peak, and Ji River of Celestial Bright Peak.

The man chose Wei Ran.

This first person was probably the top candidate this time.

Shen Jinxing and Shen Baimin were also in the crowd.

When they saw that Jiang Man’s name was not among the three, they were naturally relieved.

It seemed their guess was correct. The guy was just an ordinary "top ranker."

"Brother Shen, who are you going to challenge later?" a man asked Shen Jinxing.

Hearing this, Shen Jinxing laughed. "I’m not sure yet. I just made a bet with someone here and have to challenge him. I don’t know if he’s in the easy or normal tier."

"From the looks of it, he’s not in the difficult tier."

This was a little trick of his, a way to avoid openly saying he was challenging someone in the easy tier.

Shen Baimin gave a similar excuse.

The people around them could tell at a glance that they were just trying to save face. They all understood that this person was, in all likelihood, in the easiest tier.

So, they also chimed in, "In that case, we should probably challenge him too, to see what this person is made of. What was his name again?"

"Jiang Man. Jiang Man of Cloud Mist Peak," Shen Jinxing said.

He, of course, understood what these people were thinking.

So no one called anyone out, allowing everyone to save a bit of face.

Just then, the man bathed in light emerged from the Array.

"Defeated," the assessing Fairy announced. She then reminded him, "You have two chances left. You should try to start from the easy tier. If you fail three times, even if your strength is sufficient, you won’t be able to enter the Sect because you made the wrong choices."

"Take a good rest and think it over."

"Next."

At this, Shen Jinxing stepped forward.

He looked at the assessing Fairy and said respectfully, "Senior, this junior has an agreement with a Student Cultivator and needs to challenge him. I wonder if he is on the list."

The young Fairy asked casually, "Who?"

"Jiang Man."

"Jiang Man? Jiang Man of Cloud Mist Peak? You want to challenge him?"

The moment she heard the name, the young Fairy was astonished.

Especially when the others also said they wanted to challenge Jiang Man, she was completely bewildered.

’Are all the candidates in this batch so strong?’

’Challenging the legend of the Outer Sect?’

’The three in the difficult tier combined couldn’t withstand a single full-power strike from him.’