nyslfriends Chapter 56 The Battle of the Hidden Dragons
Chapter 56 The Battle of the Hidden Dragons
Above the spacious square.
It was an incredibly high staircase.
At the end of the steps stand two thick stone pillars, with a stone tablet lying between them, engraved with the three characters "Xuanxiao Sect" like silver hooks and iron strokes.
"Is there another assessment required?"
Qin Jiu looked away, a puzzled expression on his face.
He couldn't help but turn his head to look at Qi Yuan.
The latter seemed to know what he wanted to ask, and said in a low voice: "The sect will arrange opponents of the same level for you based on your own strength. They will guard the arena on the stone steps. If you can pass through, you can enter the sect. If you can't pass through, you will only have the option of joining the Divine Guard Army."
"Junior Brother, you must give it your all this time when you challenge the Jade Ladder."
"This concerns your future martial arts resources."
"You just need to know that even among inner disciples, the resources the sect allocates will differ depending on the potential each individual demonstrates."
"Is that so?"
Qin Jiu nodded thoughtfully.
And in front of the crowd.
At this moment, Zhou Yingxue spoke again, saying, "Everyone, please rest well today. Tomorrow at dawn, each of you should bring your identity tokens and gather here. Junior Brother Qi, please have someone arrange accommodations for them."
"Jiang Shaoyu, Zhu Jin..."
"You lot, come with me to the mountain gate."
She named several names in succession.
He immediately walked up the steps.
Followed by.
Several figures quickly emerged from the crowd and followed.
Qin Jiu was also among them.
He looked at the four people beside him with a surprised expression. Two of the young men were actually experts at the Inner Strength level, and they were not old, appearing to be between twenty-three and twenty-seven years old.
"All of you have the potential to become great talents. Elder Zheng once bestowed upon you tokens. Now, come with me to see the sect leader."
"There should be one tomorrow..."
"A special assessment for you."
"Special assessment?"
Several people looked at each other.
Some people even followed up with a question.
Zhou Yingxue simply shook her head, offering no further explanation.
"Gentlemen, my name is Zhu Jin, and I am from Jingshui County. Since we have met today, we are now fellow disciples. We should visit each other more often and support one another. What do you all think?"
On the road.
Zhu Jin, dressed in a long blue robe, greeted the others with a solemn expression.
She has absolutely no airs.
Even when facing several third-level martial artists.
They were all very polite.
The fact that these individuals possessed tokens given to them by Zheng Dahai indicates that they had all undergone preliminary selection and must possess something special about them.
Therefore, even the other one, Nei Zhuang, whose expression looked very indifferent.
He couldn't help but force a very stiff smile.
He bowed to each of them in greeting.
"Jiang Shaoyu, Pinglin County..."
"My name is Qin Jiu, a native of Songshan County."
There were no instances of the group looking down on each other.
Instead, they chatted and laughed all the way.
The atmosphere was quite harmonious.
Soon.
Qin Jiu and the others followed Zhou Yingxue up the steps and went straight in, arriving at a magnificent palace.
Inside the hall at this moment.
Eight figures sat on either side, while on a high seat in the palace sat an elderly man who exuded an air of authority despite his lack of anger.
It seemed as if they were specifically waiting for a few people to arrive.
"Greetings, Sect Master and Elders."
Zhou Yingxue led her people in and immediately bowed to the old man sitting in the main seat.
The latter nodded, his voice carrying a powerful strength.
The sound slowly echoed within the hall.
"These must be the disciples Zheng Dahai has chosen, right?"
"yes......"
Zhou Yingxue immediately began to introduce him.
At this time.
Qin Jiu also learned from her that these two were internally strong, one with excellent physical constitution and the other who had cultivated secret power.
As for the other two third-level martial artists...
Both are beings with extraordinary potential.
"Um."
The old man nodded slightly, his gaze falling on Qin Jiu and the others, and said, "I am Shen Wuyai, the sect master of Xuanxiao Sect. Our sect has been established for over 1,300 years, and through the changes of time, countless heroes have brought glory to the prefecture."
"You were recommended by the elders of our sect."
"Then tomorrow, you will be qualified to begin the True Inheritance Assessment."
"The land beyond the pass is in turmoil. I hope you will all give full play to your strength and shine brightly in the path of martial arts, so as to illuminate the prefecture and not tarnish the name of Xuanxiao."
"This disciple will certainly not fail Xuanxiao's expectations!"
......
The next day at dawn.
Dozens of figures gathered at Baiyu Square.
His eyes were fixed intently on the towering stone steps.
There, from top to bottom, on each step, stood two figures, their auras arranged neatly from high to low, from inner strength to first refinement. Roughly counting, there were nearly two thousand people.
Below the steps, several elderly figures stood.
One of them spoke weakly.
The words, however, echoed clearly in everyone's ears.
"This is the Jade Ladder of our sect. Those who enter the first level of cultivation can enter the outer sect after passing one step; enter the inner sect after passing nine steps; become a core disciple after passing thirty-six steps; become a true disciple after passing seventy-two steps; and become a personal disciple after passing one hundred and eight steps."
"Those who enter the second stage of cultivation..."
"Those who enter the Three Refinements must pass seventy-two steps to enter the outer sect; pass one hundred and eight steps to enter the inner sect; pass three hundred and sixty steps to become a core disciple; pass seven hundred and twenty steps to become a true disciple; pass one thousand and eighty steps to be appointed as a personal disciple..."
"Enter to strengthen..."
The words fell slowly.
Everyone held their breath.
"To be appointed as a personal disciple... does that mean one can become a personal disciple?"
in the crowd.
Qin Jiu asked Qi Yuan.
Hearing this, Jiang Shaoyu and the others also turned to look, their breathing becoming somewhat rapid.
Qi Yuan shook his head and said, "That's not the case. To put it bluntly, the position of personal disciple is a test for candidates to become personal disciples. If an inner sect elder or even the sect master takes on a disciple, they will be selected from the candidates."
"But please don't have too high hopes."
"Those white jade steps are all guarded by the Divine Guard Army. Just take the first three hundred steps as an example. Don't be fooled by the fact that they are only guarded by martial artists at the third, second, and first levels of cultivation. Even a martial artist who has just entered the inner strength stage may not be able to get through them."
As Qi Yuan spoke.
He couldn't help but sigh.
His face held a hint of reminiscence, as if he were recalling his own past ambitions when he ascended the white jade steps.
"Don't underestimate any of them."
"There are some monsters who, during the third refinement, cultivate secret power, but they continue to hone themselves in the Divine Guard Army. Not to mention, the further they go, the more terrifying their inner strength becomes. They are the elite selected from among thousands of troops. As long as you all give it your all and leave no regrets, that will be enough."
When he said those two sentences.
The assessment has begun.
The disciples who joined the sect were divided into four tiers based on their martial arts level, from low to high.
There were more than ten martial arts practitioners among them.
They climbed the stone steps one after another.
However, the vast majority were stopped before reaching the third tier.
Only a few managed to hold on until the sixth level, but they were too exhausted to continue. Although they were all at the same first level of cultivation, each step required them to face two other martial artists of the same level on their own. After a series of battles, their stamina simply could not sustain them.
Soon.
After an elderly man finished taking notes.
He was a second-level martial artist.
At this time, the sun was high in the sky, and it was gradually approaching noon.
All the second-stage martial artists have completed their assessments.
Qin Jiu and the other three also left the crowd at this time.
Walk to the front of the stone steps.