Chapter 30 of 100
Chapter 30
16 min read4,083 words
At noon, the melodious sound of a bell echoed from Mount Tai Xuan. The bell was not particularly loud, but it seemed to possess a certain power, piercing through the void and ignoring the distance, spreading over the hundreds of miles of the nine peaks of Mount Tai Xuan.
The bell rang nine times, and then from the seven surrounding spiritual peaks, excluding Tai Xuan Peak, several beams of light soared towards Tai Xuan Peak.
After that, disciples from each branch descended from the other seven peaks, converging towards Tai Xuan Peak.
The nine rings of the bell were the command for all disciples of the Tai Xuan Sect to gather. Upon hearing the bell, no matter what they were doing, they had to put everything aside and rush to the Tai Xuan Hall to heed the orders of the sect leader.
At the entrance of a cave on Cui Ling Peak, the stone door slowly opened, and a young man in white walked out. He was Gu Fei.
Gu Fei looked up at Tai Xuan Peak, a hundred miles away, his eyes flashing with barely concealed excitement. He murmured, "This day has finally come." Then, Gu Fei rushed down Cui Ling Peak.
The magnificent Tai Xuan Hall stood atop Tai Xuan Peak, surrounded by the eight peaks. Below, disciples from all directions continuously gathered.
This was a grand event that occurred once every ten years, and no one wanted to miss it, nor dared to ignore it. Normally, it was impossible to see so many cultivators on Mount Tai Xuan.
The Tai Xuan Sect, one of the three major Daoist sects and a great cultivation sect of the Xuan School, gathered over a thousand cultivators in the square in front of the Tai Xuan Hall in just a short moment.
Seven or eight purple-robed Daoists stood at the bottom of the white jade steps at the front, the elders of the various branches of the Tai Xuan Sect, all great cultivators at the Void Mastery stage.
The disciples of the nine branches stood in neat rows, clearly divided. In the front were the purple-robed elders, followed by the second and third-generation disciples in green robes, and at the back were the young fourth-generation disciples.
The disciples of the Tai Xuan Peak branch stood in the center of the nine branches, while Gu Fei's branch had only one person, creating a peculiar scene. A disciple in white stood at the front, seemingly on equal footing with the purple-robed elders.
There was no other choice; the only disciple left on Cui Ling Peak was Gu Fei. He had to stand at the front, making him stand out prominently. All the disciples couldn't help but be drawn to him.
The elder Daoists, however, had a different feeling. In the past, the nine branches of the Tai Xuan Sect dominated the world, how glorious and spirited they were? But now, Cui Ling Peak was on the verge of extinction. The elders of the various branches couldn't help but sigh.
Facing the strange gazes, Gu Fei remained calm, his heart undisturbed, like a still mirror. No matter what others thought of him, it wouldn't affect his state of mind.
By this time, the melodious bell had long stopped, but its echo still lingered among the nine peaks, lingering in the ears. The disciples of the nine branches of the Tai Xuan Sect had all gathered in the square in front of the Tai Xuan Hall.
The Tai Xuan Sect, which had a history of thousands of years, had only about a thousand disciples, and the majority were young disciples in white robes.
The path of cultivation was like a thousand people crossing a narrow bridge; only a very small number of outstanding individuals could truly excel. If a white-robed disciple could not form a Dao Pill and break through to the Transcendent Realm, he would forever remain a fourth-generation disciple, unrelated to the Great Dao, serving the sect until his lifespan was exhausted and he died of old age in the Tai Xuan Sect.
Suddenly, figures appeared at the entrance of the hall, and eight old Daoists in purple robes walked out. The one in the lead held a拂尘 (fly whisk) and smiled, he was the sect leader of the Tai Xuan Sect, Daoist Xuan Tian. The heads of the seven branches stood behind Daoist Xuan Tian.
"Pay respects to the sect leader!" The thousands of disciples in the square fell silent upon seeing Daoist Xuan Tian and the others emerge from the hall, then they all bowed to Daoist Xuan Tian.
"Hmm!" Daoist Xuan Tian stood on the white jade steps at the front of the square, looked around at the disciples, nodded slightly, and then said, "Disciples, you should all know why we have gathered here today. Today marks the beginning of the ten-yearly Nine Branches Grand Examination of our Tai Xuan Sect. After the examination, our Tai Xuan Sect will open its doors to widely recruit new disciples..."
Daoist Xuan Tian's passionate speech stirred the blood of the disciples in the square. After that, Daoist Xuan Fa, the head of the Bi Yun Peak branch, stepped forward.
Daoist Xuan Fa also looked around the square and then said, "The Tai Xuan Sect is a place where strength speaks. As long as you are strong enough, you can advance to the ranks of the higher disciples. In the future, the heads of the branches, the elders of the branches, and even the position of sect leader, you can all compete for."
"The position of sect leader of the Tai Xuan Sect?" Gu Fei, standing in the front row, his eyes flashed with a sharp light, but he quickly realized, "I seek the ultimate in martial arts, to be the strongest, not to waste time chasing fame and profit."
Daoist Xuan Fa paused for a moment and then continued, "Of course, reaching this height is not easy. I know that among you, there are many outstanding individuals. After today, whether you are a worm or a dragon will depend on your future cultivation. Now, I will explain the rules of the Nine Branches Grand Examination."
The disciples in the square immediately perked up their ears. Although the Nine Branches Grand Examination did not have much direct relevance to most of them, every branch of the Tai Xuan Sect wanted their branch to surpass the other eight.
"Each of the nine branches will send their ten strongest fourth-generation disciples to compete for the top ten fourth-generation disciples. To encourage the disciples to strive for the Dao, the top ten fourth-generation disciples will receive a reward."
When Daoist Xuan Fa said this, the young disciples in the square immediately became restless. They, of course, knew what the reward was.
"The reward is the Essence Condensation Pill, refined by the sect." Daoist Xuan Fa continued.
"Essence Condensation Pill? Useless to me!" Gu Fei couldn't help but frown, but his indifference to the Essence Condensation Pill did not mean others felt the same.
"Essence Condensation Pill!" The eyes of the young disciples in the square lit up. It was an auxiliary spirit medicine that helped cultivators condense their Dao Pill by gathering their essence, energy, and spirit within their bodies.
A cultivator at the Ninth Heaven of the Awakening Realm, after taking the Essence Condensation Pill, had at least a thirty percent higher chance of successfully condensing their Dao Pill. Don't underestimate this thirty percent; even a ten percent increase in chance would make people fight to the death to obtain it, let alone thirty percent.
In the Tai Xuan Sect, those who took the Essence Condensation Pill seemed to smoothly condense their Dao Pill, transforming their bodies and successfully advancing to the Transcendent Realm.
Moreover, the Essence Condensation Pill was not easy to refine, and the method of refining it was a closely guarded secret of the Tai Xuan Sect. It took about ten years to refine a batch of Essence Condensation Pills.
This was why the Tai Xuan Sect held the Nine Branches Grand Examination for the fourth-generation disciples every ten years. After the competition, the top ten disciples would receive the Essence Condensation Pill as a reward. These ten people, already outstanding among the fourth-generation disciples, would, with the help of the Essence Condensation Pill, almost certainly succeed in condensing their Dao Pill.
"Alright! Go back and prepare. The Nine Branches Grand Examination will begin early tomorrow morning!" Daoist Xuan Fa concluded.
"Yes!" The disciples responded, and then they left in an orderly manner, led by the elders of each branch.
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