The three of them looked eagerly at the Middle-aged Man called Senior Brother Wu by Yun Ning Shuang. As for the robed youth and the other person, they were ignored; they weren't stupid and could see that the Middle-aged Man's status was higher.
"Let's go, follow me," the Middle-aged Man said, stepping forward.
The three followed closely, but Xiao Pang Zhou Peng couldn't help but ask, "Senior Brother Wu, where are we going...?"
The Middle-aged Man stopped. Before he could speak, the robed youth beside him suddenly shouted sternly, "Shut up! Is Senior Brother Wu someone you can just call? You're truly uncouth villagers from the mountains, without any manners."
Zhou Peng was so scared that his entire body of fat trembled, and his legs went soft. Wang Fu quickly supported Xiao Pang to prevent him from falling. But the robed youth didn't want to let them off easily; immediately, a cold snort sounded, like a clap of thunder exploding by the three's ears. Especially Wang Fu, who was specifically targeted, felt a dull pain in his chest and almost couldn't breathe.
"Hmph!"
Wang Fu immediately fell to the ground. Wang Fu and Zhou Peng weren't much better off; the three of them tumbled into a heap, looking utterly pathetic.
"Alright, they just entered the sect and haven't cultivated yet, so their ignorance is forgivable."
Fortunately, the Middle-aged Man waved his hand. He said indifferently, "Remember, in the cultivation world, strength is paramount. Our Luo Yu Sect is the same; entry into the sect doesn't depend on seniority, only on cultivation and strength."
"My name is Wu Jianyang. You should call me Shishu. This is my disciple Wei Ming, he is of the same generation as you. As for Zhao Zelin and Senior Sister Yun who escorted you, they are direct disciples of a Golden Core Elder, so you can address them accordingly," the Middle-aged Man pointed to the two people beside him in turn.
"Yes, Shishu Wu."
Wang Fu and the other two were trembling with fear, no longer feeling the ease and comfort they had before.
A moment later, they arrived inside a hall, the Shu Wu Hall.
"Place your hands on the Spirit Testing Stele one by one."
Wu Jianyang pointed to a large stele about ten feet tall inside the hall, signaling Wang Fu and the other two to step forward.
The three exchanged glances. Zhou Peng was still scared and tugged at Wang Fu's sleeve. Wang Fu sighed inwardly, extended his palm, and placed it on the Spirit Testing Stele.
Within a breath or two, a golden light slowly appeared on the stele, followed by... green, blue, red, and yellow. Five-colored lights were evenly distributed across the stele.
"Pfft..." Seeing the five-colored light, Zhao Zelin directly scoffed, "I thought it was some kind of spiritual root, but it turned out to be the most trashy Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root."
"That's right, coming from a small mountain village, it's already good to have a spiritual root. We shouldn't hope for too much; this is just a formality anyway."
Wang Fu looked at the five colors on the stele and listened to the scoffing beside him. How could he not know that his aptitude wasn't good?
"Junior Brother Zhao, Wutong Village once had a favor done for Elder Zhu of the sect. You should restrain yourself a bit," Wu Jianyang frowned slightly.
Wang Fu felt resentment inwardly but dared not show it.
Suddenly, a loud laugh came from outside the hall.
"Hahaha... Senior Brother Wu, you can't say that. Our Luo Yu Sect is a well-known cultivation sect in the Great Xia Country. Accepting someone with a Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root is already losing face. Are you saying we can't even talk about it?"
A Middle-aged Man with a round belly, less than five feet tall, walked over gracefully. He was dressed in luxurious robes, his two-part mustache gleamed with oil, and when he spoke, a large front tooth sparkled golden. As he approached, he stroked his mustache and grinned widely, making way, "I took a trip to the mortal world and found three boys with spiritual roots. I didn't expect to coincidentally meet Senior Brother Wu also testing spiritual roots."
Behind him were clearly three youths about ten years old.
"Junior Brother Jin, you have good luck. You found three good prospects for the sect on one trip. Congratulations," Wu Jianyang nodded in greeting, then said to Wang Fu and the other two, "This is Jin Xiangui, your Shishu Jin."
"Shishu Jin..." Wang Fu and the other two paid their respects. In their hearts, they had already given this Middle-aged Man, less than five feet tall, the nickname - Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth).
"Not at all," Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) didn't even bother to look at Wang Fu and the others. "Since it's such a coincidence that we all meet here to test spiritual roots, how about Senior Brother Wu and I put up some stakes and have a little competition?"
"My meager possessions, Junior Brother Jin probably wouldn't care for them," Wu Jianyang wanted to refuse. This guy's reputation wasn't very good.
"Alas..." Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) raised his voice, "If Senior Brother Wu's cultivation over these years is considered meager possessions, wouldn't we Junior Brothers be even worse off?"
"I heard Senior Brother Wu obtained a five-hundred-year-old Flame Pattern Grass a few days ago. Senior Brother also knows that the cultivation method I practice is fire-attribute. Since Senior Brother won't need it anyway, how about a bet?" Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) grinned, instantly sparkling golden. "I have a six-hundred-year-old wood-attribute spiritual grass here..."
"What spiritual grass?" Wu Jianyang's heart stirred. The cultivation method he practiced was exactly wood-attribute.
"Hehe... Azurelight Grass."
"Azurelight Grass..." Wu Jianyang pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement. "Since Junior Brother Jin is so generous, how could I, Wu, refuse?"
"Senior Brother is straightforward." Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) waved his hand and called out to the three youths behind him, "Liu Yang, you go and try."
One person walked out from among the three youths. He held his head slightly high, looking a bit arrogant. However, dressed in luxurious clothes, he indeed had the capital to be proud compared to Wang Fu and the other two youths in rough linen clothes.
Light appeared on the Spirit Testing Stele: red, yellow, and green light.
"Hmm, not bad, mid-grade three-attribute spiritual root of fire, earth, and wood," Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) said confidently. "Haha... Senior Brother Wu, I accept your concession."
Wu Jianyang's expression didn't change; his emotions were unreadable. However, Wang Fu could feel a faint hint of malice directed towards him.
"Ah, truly an unexpected misfortune." He felt bitter inside.
"Cao Jiang, Zhang Sen, you two go as well," Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) waved his hand, signaling the other two richly dressed youths beside him to also go and test. "Senior Brother Wu, I'll let these two boys test first, do you mind?"
"It's fine. Since we're betting, the final result is what matters," Wu Jianyang's expression was calm.
A moment later, the two finished their tests, and three beams of light appeared on the Spirit Testing Stele for both of them.
Gold, yellow, green.
Blue, red, yellow.
The three youths brought by Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) all had mid-grade three-attribute spiritual roots.
"To think there isn't even one high-grade spiritual root, how disappointing," Da Jin Ya (Big Gold Tooth) spread his hands, feigning regret, but everyone present could see his smugness.
A mid-grade spiritual root already surpasses the majority of Cultivators. Not to mention other sects, even within the Luo Yu Sect, Cultivators with high-grade spiritual roots are extremely rare.
"You two, go and test as well," Wu Jianyang's emotions were unreadable.
Zhou Peng glanced at Wang Feng beside him, who was even more timid than himself, and sighed. In the end, he bore it all himself, forgetting the moment he had pushed Wang Fu forward earlier.
His chubby hand pressed against the cold stone stele, and soon, light burst forth.
The golden light and the blue light were exceptionally dazzling.