Chapter 24

"Regarding today's matter, what are your thoughts?" The Great Elder remained seated at the head of the table, looking at the other elders and said calmly.

The group of elders stammered, unsure of how to respond.

The facts were as solid as iron, and there was no way to argue. Everyone present was an elder, not fools, and they could not lie with their eyes open.

Thus, the other elders all turned their gaze to the Second Elder. Everything was caused by the Second Elder, and it would depend on what he had to say.

"This time it was an accident. I didn't expect any changes to occur. Zichen has great talent, but Wu Sheng's talent is also not ordinary." After a moment of thought, the Second Elder slowly spoke.

"Wu Sheng is my grandson. The first place can be given up, but the core disciple position must be his. I humbly request the Great Elder and the other elders to grant this." The Second Elder bowed to the group of elders.

The Great Elder remained unmoved, while the other elders all stood up, their expressions showing they did not dare to accept such a gesture.

"Although Zichen has great talent, his time in our Lingwu Sect is not long. Although his talent is enough to enter the Inner Sect, his loyalty still needs to be examined." One of the elders suddenly spoke.

"That's true. Wu Sheng's talent is also very high, and he is the Second Elder's grandson. His strength is even greater than Zichen's, and his loyalty can be guaranteed. Therefore, I think this position should be given to Wu Sheng."

"I agree. This year's position was originally intended for Wu Sheng."

The group of elders all spoke up.

"What do you mean?" The Great Elder looked at them.

"We hope the Great Elder will grant Wu Sheng this position." The group of elders said.

The Great Elder was silent, not speaking, seemingly in deep thought.

"Alas, both of them have great talent, but unfortunately, the Sect Leader is not here, and we only have one position. We must give up one, but even in the Inner Sect, it is not a loss, and it can be considered a form of training." After a long while, the Great Elder sighed, his eyes full of regret.

The scene fell silent again.

"If the Great Elder feels this is inappropriate and cannot convince the many disciples, we can try to give Zichen some rewards, such as contribution points." One of the elders said softly.

The group of elders discussed further, and finally, the Great Elder nodded. "Let's do it this way. Tomorrow, Elder Wu will announce this order with me. The contribution points will be twenty."

The contribution points of the Lingwu Sect are exclusive to Inner Sect disciples. One contribution point can be exchanged for one Qi Recovery Pill, and two contribution points can be exchanged for one True Qi Pill.

A five-hundred-year-old Snow Ginseng, if exchanged for contribution points, would only be worth twenty points, which could be exchanged for ten True Qi Pills.

"Yes, the Great Elder is wise." The group of elders nodded.

The Great Elder left directly, and then the other elders also left one by one.

"Zichen, you actually made me lose so much face today, hmph." The Second Elder, who had been smiling and watching the other elders leave, had a cold light flash in his eyes. The bow today was a great loss of face, and he had this account on Zichen.

That night, Zichen could not sleep for a long time, spending the night in worry and unease.

The next morning, on the same platform, many disciples had already gathered. They wanted to see how yesterday's matter would be resolved.

There were many disciples here, and many of them had no backing. If no explanation was given today, it would make many disciples feel disheartened.

Wu Sheng came out, and cheers erupted, but the cheers were not as loud as yesterday. Some disciples even looked at Wu Sheng with cold eyes.

Wu Sheng remained calm and composed, walking to the side of the platform. The elders were already waiting there, but the Great Elder was not present. The Second Elder was sitting in the center.

Seeing the Second Elder in the center, Wu Sheng's lips curved into a faint smile.

"Hmph, truly shameless, just because he has connections?" Lin Xue, standing far away, let out a cold snort of dissatisfaction. Miaokong, however, remained silent, his eyes full of sorrow.

The appearance of the elders today already indicated everything.

Zichen soon appeared, and the crowd cheered loudly, even louder than the boos from yesterday. The cheers were from the disciples of the Lingwu Sect who had no backing. They practiced third-rate cultivation techniques, and Zichen's battle yesterday had made him famous. They felt proud of Zichen.

At the same time, Zichen's ability to defeat a second-rate cultivation technique with a third-rate one gave hope to those disciples who had no backing.

Zichen stood beside Wu Sheng. After a night of restless thoughts, Zichen's spirit was somewhat low, but when he suddenly saw the Second Elder above, he calmed down.

He had already guessed what would happen.

"Backing, huh?" Zichen smiled bitterly in his heart but had to accept reality, consoling himself that getting first place was still good.

"Yesterday, due to some matters, we couldn't announce the rankings. I apologize for that. After a night of discussion among the elders, based on fairness and justice, we have made the following rankings." The Second Elder stood on the platform and began to speak.

"First place, Zichen." As the Second Elder's words fell, cheers erupted from the crowd, wave after wave.

"Second place is Wu Sheng, who narrowly lost. It's a pity, Wu Sheng just accidentally fell off the battle platform." The Second Elder continued.

This time, the cheers were much weaker, and there were occasional boos from the crowd.

Hearing these boos, Wu Sheng and the Second Elder's faces turned very ugly.

"Third place, Lin Xue."

"Fourth, Miaokong!"

"Fifth, Wang Xiong!"

"Sixth, Ke Xue!"

"Seventh!"

""

"Tenth, Lu Ben!"

The rankings were announced, and the cheers from the crowd finally subsided, but no one left. There was still a major highlight to come.

Who would be lucky enough to enter the core and become a core disciple?

If it were before, they would have said Zichen without hesitation, but after yesterday's and today's events, everyone was uncertain.

"Alright, the rankings are complete. I hope these ten young people will achieve greater glory. Next, we will reveal who will be the lucky one to become a core disciple."

Under the expectant gazes of the crowd, the Second Elder looked at Zichen and said approvingly, "If there are no surprises, this person will be Zichen."

"Wow!"

The crowd was in an uproar, wave after wave of cheers. They thought the Second Elder had chosen Zichen. Just as some were puzzled and most were about to cheer, the Second Elder said a "but."

"But!"

A single "but" instantly silenced the crowd, all eyes fixed on the Second Elder.

"But, after a night of discussion among the elders, through a comparison of strength, age, and true qi, we found a more suitable candidate."

The crowd's reactions were varied, with pity, ridicule, contempt, and schadenfreude.

Zichen's heart skipped a beat, but fortunately, he had anticipated this and did not lose composure.

"This person is younger than Zichen, stronger than Zichen, and has higher true qi and combat techniques than Zichen—Wu Sheng." The Second Elder said excitedly, "Our genius, Wu Sheng, has become a core disciple."

The crowd began to cheer. These people were trying to curry favor with Wu Sheng, and some were just being polite. There were no more boos, as Wu Sheng was now a core disciple, and no one dared to provoke him.

Not cheering with the others today was already indirect support for Zichen.

The elders' manipulation was too obvious, and everyone knew it, but no one had the power to challenge it.

Zichen remained calm. He had thought about this scene many times last night.

The Second Elder's speech was not over. After congratulating Wu Sheng, he turned to Zichen and said, "Zichen has great talent, but there is only one core disciple position. After a night of discussion, we, the elders, have decided to give Zichen some compensation."

Zichen looked up in surprise, and the previously dejected disciples, who had been secretly cursing the elders' discussions, also looked up in surprise.

After attracting everyone's attention again, the Second Elder said, "We have decided to give Zichen ten contribution points as compensation."

Ten contribution points could be exchanged for five True Qi Pills. It was a moderate compensation, but compared to the core disciple position, it was negligible.

"Zichen, why don't you thank us? These compensations were hard-won for you." Seeing Zichen standing there, unresponsive, the Second Elder said unhappily.

Zichen came to his senses and hurriedly thanked, "Thank you, Second Elder, thank you, all the elders, and thank you, Lingwu Sect, for your cultivation."

Zichen's response satisfied the group of elders. Wu Sheng, standing nearby, sneered, his smile full of disdain.

"Having talent without backing is useless."

The Inner Sect examination thus came to an end. Some were happy, and some were sad. The disciples saw the reality: the first place reward and the core disciple position were both prepared for Wu Sheng by the Second Elder, but plans often don't go as expected, and Zichen suddenly appeared.

He was strong enough and talented enough, but unfortunately, Zichen had no backing, so he only got first place and did not enter the core.

Moreover, no one knew that the contribution points Zichen should have received were twenty, not ten.

Wang Xiong sneered, a flash of killing intent in his eyes, and left with Wang Meng and others. He needed to plan how to eliminate Zichen.

Su Mengyao also left, having anticipated this scene. Chen Feng also left.

"Zichen, are you okay? Be happy, this world is like this." Miaokong came over, patted Zichen's shoulder, and offered comfort.

Zichen smiled lightly.

Lin Xue, with red eyes, came over. She wanted to speak up for Zichen, but she was powerless. Even Su Mengyao couldn't do anything, let alone her.

The group of elders also left, and it was time to claim the rewards.

"Five True Qi Pills, a first-rate combat technique, and ten contribution points." Thinking of his rewards, Zichen's heart, which had been disheartened, felt somewhat comforted.

"Let's go, let's claim the rewards first." Miaokong said.

Zichen nodded, and the three of them went together.

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