“Good! Good! Good! What is your name?” The old man praised him three times in a row. He stared at Han Yu, his eyes gleaming with a brilliant light, looking as though he wished he could swallow the boy whole.
A hint of pride showed between the little boy’s brows. He answered without haste, “Han Yu!”
“A good name! And a good child, too. Come, come to me!”
The old man nodded, smiled, and beckoned Han Yu over. With a kindly expression, he took the boy’s small hand, beaming with joy as if afraid someone might snatch this treasure away.
Han Yu stood beside him with his chin raised, an air of pride about him. Though young, he seemed more mature and steady than his peers.
This reaction made the old man nod inwardly, feeling even more satisfied.
The testing continued, and the old man’s anticipation grew.
However, among mortals, those who naturally awakened spirit roots were, after all, a tiny minority.
In the blink of an eye, another thirty-odd children were tested, yet no one else with spirit roots appeared.
The old man’s expression remained calm, showing little disappointment. From time to time, he glanced at Han Yu, eagerness burning in his eyes.
To him, it no longer mattered whether anyone else had spirit roots. As long as he could nurture this seedling well, he would surely reverse Luofu Peak’s standing within Cloudsong Sect.
By this time, only two people remained in the clearing: Su Twelve and a little fatty.
Su Twelve noticed that the little fatty wore brocade garments and had a ruddy complexion. At a glance, he was clearly from a wealthy family.
Before Su Twelve could step forward, the little fatty beat him to it. He trotted all the way up to the Spirit Testing Stone and nervously pressed his chubby little hand onto it.
The next second, the Spirit Testing Stone trembled slightly, yet showed no change at all.
Seeing this, the old man said expressionlessly, “Unqualified. Leave!”
The little fatty had clearly come prepared. Instead of leaving, he dropped to his knees with a thump and kowtowed several times before the old man. “This lowly one is Zhu Hanwei, son of the mayor of Huilong Town. I pay my respects to the immortal lord! This lowly one is wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao and hopes the immortal will give this lowly one a chance.”
“This is a token of respect my father asked me to present to the immortal lord!”
As he spoke, Zhu Hanwei anxiously reached into his clothes and pulled out a sandalwood box.
“Hmph!” Seeing this, the old man’s face turned stern, and the surrounding temperature instantly dropped several degrees.
Zhu Hanwei shivered violently, and the wooden box slipped from his hands, falling to the ground.
The old man was about to rebuke him, but when he saw the cracked box, his pupils shrank. He snatched it up and examined it closely. His face lit up with delight. “Hm? Hundred-Year Cold Jade? I never expected that your father, a mere mortal, could collect such a treasure.”
A smile touched the corners of the old man’s eyes; he was secretly overjoyed.
Hundred-Year Cold Jade was used in artifact crafting. Even for him, gathering it would not be easy. By comparison, taking a boy without spirit roots into the sect was a small concession.
He quietly pocketed the cold jade. Then, stroking his beard with a solemn expression, he said, “Fine. Since you are wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao, I shall give you a chance.”
Startled and overjoyed, Zhu Hanwei immediately kowtowed again. “Many thanks, immortal lord! Many thanks, immortal lord!”
The old man waved his hand. “Enough. Go stand to the side.”
Only then did Zhu Hanwei rise and walk to the old man’s right. As he passed Han Yu, he chuckled and offered a friendly smile.
However, Han Yu stared straight ahead, paying him no attention. Zhu Hanwei gave an awkward smile, not daring to take offense. Judging from the old man’s attitude, he knew Han Yu’s future standing would be high; this was someone he could not afford to provoke.
At this time, Su Twelve also walked up to the Spirit Testing Stone, his face filled with unease.
After a brief hesitation, he gritted his teeth and pressed his hand against the Spirit Testing Stone.
The Spirit Testing Stone gave a violent jolt, then lit up with a multicolored radiance. But that sphere of colored light was dim and weak, flickering unsteadily.
Seeing the Spirit Testing Stone light up, Su Twelve felt a surge of joy. Thank goodness, I have spirit roots too.
But just as he was about to heave a sigh of relief, he noticed the old man’s dark expression, and his heart sank again.
The young woman standing to the side said in surprise, “Master, this child actually possesses the rare complete spirit roots?”
The old man curled his lip. “What kind of garbage spirit roots are those? Every one of his spirit roots is frightfully weak, practically nonexistent. He clearly has the worst kind of mixed spirit roots! In his entire life, this kind of person could only reach the seventh or eighth layer of Qi Condensation at best.”
Having said that, the old man looked at Su Twelve. “Unqualified! Leave!”
Hearing the exchange between the old man and the woman, Su Twelve’s hopes had already begun to fade. The final verdict made him feel as if he had fallen into an icy abyss.
To him, if he could not enter an immortal sect and learn immortal arts, how could he ever speak of avenging his grandfather?
For a moment, Su Twelve’s thoughts were in chaos. After hesitating, his small frame trembled slightly. Unwilling to accept this, he stammered, “Immortal sir, but I… I have spirit roots. Doesn’t that mean I can join the immortal sect?”
The old man said coldly, “What kind of bullshit spirit roots are those? I’ve cultivated for over two hundred years and have never seen any worse than yours. Taking you into the sect would waste our resources and hold back your own progress!”
Su Twelve clenched his teeth and threw a quick glance at Zhu Hanwei. Deep down, he naturally felt this was unfair, but he did not dare throw a tantrum. Instead, he muttered softly, “But he… he doesn’t have spirit roots, yet didn’t he also get to join the sect?”
A person without spirit roots could actually enter an immortal sect just by offering a bribe. This revelation deeply shocked Su Twelve. It seemed the legendary immortal sects were not as wonderful as he had imagined.
The old man appeared lofty and exalted, yet his conduct was no different from Ergou’s father back in the village, who was always looking for ways to take advantage of others.
“Boy, are you trying to teach me how to do things?” Anger surfaced on the old man’s face, and an invisible pressure surged from his body.
Su Twelve’s breathing hitched, his heart violently accelerating. Fear filled his face; he couldn’t speak a single word. This powerful, oppressive aura made him feel as though he were back in Little Stone Village, suffocating beneath the pressure of that black-clothed cultivator.
Seeing this, the woman standing beside him furrowed her brows. She sized Su Twelve up for a moment before speaking. “Grandfather, this child does have spirit roots, after all. Why not give him a chance? Cultivation is not easy. If he can’t endure it after a few years, we can just send him back down the mountain then.”
With his granddaughter pleading on the boy’s behalf, the old man’s expression eased a fraction. He turned back to Su Twelve. “Fine. Go stand on the right. Your aptitude is only a little better than that little fatty’s. I’ll take you both in as servant disciples.”
Hearing this, Su Twelve let out a long breath of relief. He hurriedly cast a grateful glance at the woman, then walked to the side and stood in place.
With Su Twelve’s test finished, there were no other children left in the clearing.
In total, only five people had passed the test. This included Zhu Hanwei, who had bought his way in, and Su Twelve, who was admitted only because the young woman pleaded for him.
The old man turned to look at the group and said indifferently, “Although all of you possess spirit roots, do not rejoice too early! The road of cultivation is still very long.”
“Next, I will take you to the sect to cultivate! From this point on, immortals and mortals are different. If you wish to back out, there is still time.”
Having said that, the old man waved his large hand, and the flying sword strapped behind him shot into the air. Driven by his True Essence, the flying sword expanded against the wind, growing to over ten meters long in the blink of an eye.
The flying sword hovered a meter above the ground. The old man took Han Yu and leaped up onto it.
The others, ushered by the woman, climbed onto the flying sword one by one.
With their departure imminent, aside from Su Twelve and Han Yu, the other three children all had tearful eyes, gazing reluctantly at their respective families in the distance.
The old man’s expression remained indifferent. Having cultivated for many years, such scenes of parting had long since become commonplace to him.
Vast True Essence surged from his body, forming a barrier to shield the children. With that, the long sword rocketed into the sky, carrying everyone into the distance.