Xiao Chen’s name had not only spread among the probationary disciples but had also reached the ears of the nine Outer Disciple institutes.
Long before the Outer Disciple Ceremony began, many had guessed that Xiao Chen would surely choose the First Courtyard.
And just as they expected, here he was.
At eighteen, he had reached the entry-level of the Yellow Extreme Realm, completely meeting the basic requirements.
The female Disciple personally led Xiao Chen into the First Courtyard.
Unlike the other Sword Institutes, the First Courtyard seemed somewhat deserted.
But this was normal.
Given the First Courtyard’s standards, very few could become its disciples.
As they walked toward the First Courtyard’s main hall, the young woman gave Xiao Chen a brief introduction to the Courtyard’s situation.
The young woman’s name was Chen Ling’Er.
She was twenty-two this year, and her cultivation had already reached the Little Perfection of Yellow Extreme Realm.
From Chen Ling’Er, Xiao Chen learned that the entire First Courtyard currently had a total of one hundred and sixty disciples.
If he passed the assessment, he would become the one hundred and sixty-first Disciple.
It had to be said, just over one hundred disciples was an exceptionally small number.
The other Sword Institutes had at least a thousand members each.
But from another perspective, this only proved how strict the First Courtyard’s requirements were.
They would absolutely not accept anyone who wasn’t a genius among geniuses.
They soon arrived outside the First Courtyard’s main hall.
When Xiao Chen and Chen Ling’Er got there, an Elder from the First Courtyard was already waiting for them.
He was a middle-aged man dressed in a simple cyan robe.
Chen Ling’Er bowed to this Elder and said, “Elder Mu, this is Xiao Chen.
He is eighteen and at the entry-level of the Yellow Extreme Realm.
He has chosen our First Courtyard.”
Hearing Chen Ling’Er’s words, Elder Mu nodded faintly and then sized Xiao Chen up from head to toe.
He had also heard Xiao Chen’s name.
As the most outstanding person among this batch of probationary disciples, it was natural for an Elder of the First Courtyard to pay some attention.
“I will be presiding over this assessment, Xiao Chen.
Let me be blunt: while your talent is outstanding, that doesn’t guarantee you’ll pass the First Courtyard’s assessment.
If you fail, you won’t be able to enter any of the other Sword Institutes, and you will have wasted this god-sent opportunity.
Before we begin, I will give you one last chance to reconsider.
Are you certain you want to choose our First Courtyard?” After sizing Xiao Chen up for a good while, Elder Mu finally spoke slowly.
During the Outer Disciple Ceremony, every person only had one chance to choose a Sword Institute.
Once they failed, they would lose the opportunity to become an Outer Disciple of the East Sword Pavilion.
Hearing Elder Mu’s words, Xiao Chen nodded without the slightest hesitation and replied, “Thank you for the reminder, Elder.
This Disciple has already made his decision and has no need to reconsider.”
‘I already made up my mind before coming.
The First Courtyard is where I belong.
In the East Sword Pavilion, where geniuses are everywhere, the First Courtyard is undoubtedly the battleground where dragons clash.
That being the case, I must naturally come here to compete.
In this gathering place of true geniuses, I will shine with my own light and write my own legend.’
Seeing no hesitation in his firm and clear eyes, Elder Mu nodded in satisfaction at Xiao Chen’s response.
For a Disciple of the First Courtyard, talent was important, but so was one’s disposition.
If he didn’t even have this much confidence, how could he be worthy of becoming a Disciple of the First Courtyard?
His first impression of Xiao Chen was very good.
Next, the assessment began.
The entire assessment for the First Courtyard was divided into two steps.
The first step was the foundation test.
One’s foundation was always the most important thing.
If a person didn’t build a solid foundation during the Vein Opening and Foundation Establishment Realms, then even if they broke through to the Yellow Extreme Realm, they would be nothing more than an empty shell.
Taking a fist-sized jade stone from his Storage Ring, Elder Mu said, “This is called the Foundation Test Stone.
Infuse your Spiritual Power into it, and the stone will glow with different colors depending on the stability of your foundation.
From lowest to highest, the colors are white, green, blue, purple, and gold.
Only those who reach purple light are considered to have passed.”
As Elder Mu slowly explained the test’s requirements to Xiao Chen, dozens of First Courtyard disciples had already gathered outside the main hall.
The First Courtyard had few disciples to begin with, so the dozens gathered here already constituted nearly half of its members.
They had all come to see what skills this potential new Disciple of the First Courtyard possessed.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Xiao Chen slowly pressed his right hand onto the Foundation Test Stone.
Spiritual Power surged into it, and just as expected, a bright light emanated from the stone.
First, it was a white light, but it quickly changed to green, then blue, and finally reached purple.
The appearance of purple light meant that Xiao Chen’s foundation had already met the First Courtyard’s requirements.
But it wasn’t over.
Just as the purple light shone, a faint golden light began to emerge.
In just over ten breaths of time, the purple light completely faded, replaced by a dazzling golden radiance.
“Golden light…
This…
Could it be that our First Courtyard is about to have another person with an Extreme Foundation Establishment?”
Seeing the golden light flare up, the expressions of many First Courtyard disciples changed slightly.
They were all geniuses among geniuses, but people who could achieve the golden light—those with an Extreme Foundation Establishment—were rare.
So far, there were only three in the entire First Courtyard.
Even including Xiao Chen, that would only make four.
Extreme Foundation Establishment.
Even these true geniuses of the First Courtyard couldn’t help but feel a little envious.
Like everyone else, a flash of excitement crossed Elder Mu’s eyes when he saw the golden light.
A fourth genius with an Extreme Foundation Establishment!
This was the kind of supreme Celestial Pride the First Courtyard truly needed.
The Foundation Test Stone assessment was complete.
With his Extreme Foundation Establishment, Xiao Chen had naturally passed perfectly.
Next was the test of his basic Sword Technique, which required reaching the Transformation Realm.
Just like one’s cultivation foundation, the foundation of one’s swordsmanship was also extremely important.
The moves of a basic Sword Technique might seem simple, but nearly every Sword Technique could be said to have evolved from it.
Only by truly mastering the basic Sword Technique to its absolute limit could one hope to become an outstanding Sword Cultivator.
A basic Sword Technique that had reached the Transformation Realm.
Hearing this requirement, Xiao Chen said nothing more and, in front of everyone, directly performed the basic Sword Technique.
The simple moves of the basic Sword Technique—thrust, flick, chop, parry, hang—were executed one by one by Xiao Chen.
These seemingly simple moves took on a different quality in Xiao Chen’s hands—a quality that could only be achieved after reaching the Transformation Realm.
“Pinnacle of the Transformation Realm.
Not bad, not bad…”
Xiao Chen had passed two consecutive assessments perfectly.
Extreme Foundation Establishment and the pinnacle of the Transformation Realm—whether it was his cultivation foundation or his Sword Technique foundation, Xiao Chen had achieved something close to perfection.
Even Elder Mu, with his Celestial Human Realm Cultivation, couldn’t find a single flaw.
“That guy’s named Xiao Chen, right?
Extreme Foundation Establishment, pinnacle of the Transformation Realm…
He’s really something.
Looks like the First Courtyard is about to get lively again…”
“Hmph.
So what if a new Disciple has some talent?
For at least the first year, even if he’s a dragon, he’ll have to coil up.
Even if he’s a tiger, he’ll have to sheath his claws.”