Chapter 3

"Why does the common name sound more like a scientific name than the scientific name itself?" Lu Yang muttered softly behind him.

"Because the first Pure Yang Spirit Root senior called his own spirit root the 'Single Spirit Root.'" Yun Zhi's cultivation was unfathomable, and Lu Yang's soft mutter was as clear as if he were speaking right in her ear.

Yun Zhi paused for a moment and continued, "In the cultivation world, there is a tradition of respecting the old senior with a Single Spirit Root."

It seemed that adding this sentence would enhance the persuasiveness of her words.

Meng Jingzhou passed the first test as a matter of course, and after him came Lu Yang.

"Huh?! Another Single Spirit Root?!" Dai Bufan's pupils constricted. He had just complained about not encountering a Single Spirit Root all day, and now there were two in a row.

"Me, a Single Spirit Root?" Lu Yang pointed at himself, his heart pounding, feeling as if he were hearing things, and his lips involuntarily curled up.

"Indeed, you are a Mutated Single Spirit Root, a Sword Spirit Root." Dai Bufan nodded affirmatively; he had never made a mistake in identifying spirit roots.

A Sword Spirit Root, a natural sword cultivator, sharp and invincible, the most formidable in attack!

Senior Sister Yun Zhi glanced at Lu Yang with a hint of surprise. She had agreed to ride in the carriage on a whim, but she hadn't expected that the two people in the carriage would both be top-notch cultivation geniuses.

The crowd's eyes grew even more eager, beginning to calculate the eligible young girls of Lu Yang's age, wishing to snatch him and make him a son-in-law for their backing forces.

Unlike Meng Jingzhou, who had the support of the Meng family, Lu Yang was clearly a commoner with no backing.

With such excellent talent and no backing, he was the perfect candidate for a son-in-law.

The most crucial point was that he could marry and have children!

Lu Yang felt that the crowd was looking at him strangely and quickly entered the second test.

Behind Dai Bufan was a bamboo grove, and the second test took place in this grove.

"How about it, what kind of spirit root do you have?" Meng Jingzhou quickly emerged from the shadow of the Single Spirit Root and asked Lu Yang with great interest.

So what if it's a Single Spirit Root? The path to immortality is strewn with many bones, and women are just red powder skeletons. He didn't need any beauties or fairy maidens by his side!

On the contrary, although Lu Yang could pass the first test, he was probably only at the level of a Dual Spirit Root. As a transcendent genius, he should care for ordinary geniuses.

"Sword Spirit Root."

"Damn."

"Huh?" Lu Yang was completely confused.

After another half day, those in the back gradually entered the second test, and Dai Bufan eliminated those whose root bones did not meet the standard.

Listening to the discussions of those in the back, it seemed that a few people with special constitutions had appeared, but before he could inquire about the specifics, Senior Sister Yun Zhi appeared before the crowd, casually saying, "The second test begins," and then disappeared, leaving everyone puzzled.

A thick mist gradually rose, like smoke and waves, vast and surging, like a huge veil enveloping everything in the bamboo grove.

The crowd instinctively tried to struggle, but it didn't have much effect. They felt powerless, and their consciousness gradually sank.

This was the Illusion Bamboo Grove, a part of the sect's protective array, which they could not resist.

Yun Zhi casually drew a circle, dispelling the mist, creating a space, and asked the disciples of the sect to stand behind her.

Dai Bufan chuckled, "Falling into the Illusion Bamboo Grove will make them forget their identities, forget the test, forget everything, and react most genuinely. I wonder how many will pass the second test this time."

"I hope more can pass. This batch has several good seeds, and it would be a pity if they fail the second test."

Yun Zhi had not eliminated Meng Jingzhou and Lu Yang from the test because Meng Jingzhou's test questions were not from this year but from twenty years ago.

"I wonder which elder sold them."

"Who do you think can pass the second test, Junior Brother Dai?"

"Of course, it's the ancient barbarian. The ancient barbarians are known for their simple hearts, and their character is beyond doubt."

"I think the Single Spirit Root and the Sword Spirit Root are also good, they look like honest people."

Yun Zhi thought of the scene where Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had discussed how to cheat in the carriage and felt that they didn't seem like honest people at all.

...

"Where am I?" The ancient barbarian, named Man Gu, looked around in confusion, forgetting what had just happened.

He held an old axe, standing by a river, the ripples on the water were quite beautiful.

Man Gu's hand slipped, and the old axe fell into the river. Just as he was about to retrieve it, the river began to bubble, the bubbles growing larger and larger, and a fountain surged up, revealing a fairy-like figure. Three axes of different styles floated before him.

"Young man, I am the River Spirit. Did you just drop this old axe, this Spirit Tool Mountain-Cleaving Axe, or this Immortal Tool Heaven-Cleaving Axe?"

The Spirit Tool Mountain-Cleaving Axe and the Immortal Tool Heaven-Cleaving Axe were famous in the Central Continent. Even a talentless mortal could soar to the top and become a giant if they obtained these two axes.

Man Gu blurted out, "It's the old axe."

The River Spirit smiled, "What an honest young man. Then these three axes are all yours."

Man Gu passed the second test.

"See, I told you Man Gu would definitely pass the second test. Let me see how the Single Spirit Root and the Sword Spirit Root will choose." Dai Bufan watched with great interest.

The second test was about honesty, and the standard for passing was to obtain the three axes.

The River Spirit was not an illusion; he was born in the river surrounding the bamboo grove, a naturally formed being.

He transformed into countless forms, entering the illusion to test everyone.

The River Spirit liked honest people, and the only way to pass the second test was to honestly answer the River Spirit's question and let him give the three axes.

...

"Huh? How did the axe fall into the river?" Lu Yang was a bit puzzled. He felt as if some mysterious force had forced the axe to fall.

The River Spirit appeared again, gently asking Lu Yang, "Young man, I am the River Spirit. Did you just drop this old axe, this Spirit Tool Mountain-Cleaving Axe, or this Immortal Tool Heaven-Cleaving Axe?"

Lu Yang squatted down, his gaze sweeping over the three different axes, and looked at the River Spirit as if he were a fool, his eyes filled with pity: "Two of these axes are yours. Don't you know which two are yours, and you're asking me?"

The River Spirit's smile froze, not knowing what to say, and could only follow Lu Yang's words: "I indeed don't know which two axes are mine."

Lu Yang looked at the River Spirit warily, "If I choose one of the axes, don't suddenly remember which two are yours and take it back."

"Absolutely not." The River Spirit said with a solemn oath.

"Let me see all three axes."

The River Spirit handed all three axes to Lu Yang.

Lu Yang turned around and threw all the axes into the river, "Ask me the question again."

The River Spirit reflexively asked, "Did you just drop the old axe, the Spirit Tool Mountain-Cleaving Axe, or the Immortal Tool Heaven-Cleaving Axe?"

Lu Yang smiled, "All of them."

The River Spirit: "..."

The River Spirit gritted his teeth, "What an honest young man. Then these three axes are all yours."