After a series of twists and turns, Jian Xiaolou finally made it through the gates of Fuguang City. Together with Zhan Tianxiang, she followed a group of other cultivators toward the Fire Refining Sect.
The assessment site was set up in the outer courtyard plaza of the Fire Refining Sect.
Before entering the main plaza, everyone had to walk back and forth across a semi-circular jade platform. It was said this jade, called the Truth-Revealing Stone, could pierce through all illusions of the Three Realms and reveal a cultivator's true nature.
Under the leadership of the Tianyi Alliance, the three Eastern Immortal Continents had a strict system for immortal registration. The major sects were absolutely forbidden from accepting impostors or unregistered individuals.
Jian Xiaolou felt anxious. If she had truly reincarnated through normal means, her origins should be perfectly legitimate—but unfortunately, she hadn't.
Back when her soul drifted over the Jian family estate, it had been pulled down by a strange force.
Though she had been in a dazed, semi-conscious state at the time, she clearly remembered that as she entered the womb, she seemed to have pushed out another ball of light — another soul.
She had long suspected that the light she'd displaced was the one originally meant to be born into the Jian family.
Sadly, she had taken that place, and before the displaced soul could dissipate completely, it had no choice but to reincarnate… into a bird.
How else could she explain why her grandfather's male myna bird had inexplicably laid an egg the very night she was born?
Thinking of this, Jian Xiaolou cast a guilty glance at the old myna perched on her shoulder, dazing off. "Xiao Hei, don't worry. I'll take care of you for the rest of your life."
"Hey, giggly girl up front—move it!"
Seeing her talking to a dumb bird, the cultivator behind her couldn't help but urge her forward.
Gritting her teeth, Jian Xiaolou stepped onto the jade platform and nervously made her way across. Seeing that the senior sister checking records showed no unusual reaction, she finally let out a breath of relief.
When it was Zhan Tianxiang's turn, she wore the same doubtful expression as Jian Xiaolou, but her movements were far more confident—and she also passed without issue.
Next came the essential part of any sect's recruitment: spiritual root testing.
According to the Fire Refining Sect's rules, anyone with a fire spiritual root score of 50 or above would be admitted directly into the inner sect as an inner disciple. However, those with no fire root or insufficient fire aptitude still had a second chance.
Jian Xiaolou knew she had three spiritual roots — earth, metal, and wood. So she didn't bother taking the spiritual root test. Instead, she registered with the senior brother in charge and, along with several disheartened-looking cultivators, proceeded to the second testing area — the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace.
It was a fully enclosed furnace, standing three zhang high, two zhang wide, and three zhang long (approx. 10m x 7m x 10m), with intricate carvings of various familiar and unfamiliar spiritual tools and cold weapons like swords, spears, sabers, and halberds on its surface.
On the outer wall of the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace were over twenty ventilation holes, each about three and a half inches in diameter. Inside the furnace danced glowing red iron essence orbs, in three sizes: half-inch, two-inch, and three-inch.
Cultivators seeking admission to the sect were required to channel their spiritual energy to extract the iron essence orbs from these ventilation holes.
Those who could extract a half-inch orb would qualify for entry into the Elite Pavilion of the Fire Refining Sect, where the sect leader and elders would personally teach the core techniques of artifact forging. However, ever since the furnace was established, only the sect's founding ancestor had ever managed this feat—so this path was basically a dead end.
Extracting a two-inch orb qualified one for the inner sect.
Extracting a three-inch orb meant entry into the outer sect.
There was no time limit, but if a cultivator failed to extract even a single orb before exhausting their spiritual energy, they would lose their eligibility for entry and could only take the strength test—qualifying them only to serve as manual laborers or errand boys.
"Whoa! That's the twenty-second one!"
Just as Jian Xiaolou found a spot in a corner and was preparing to use her spiritual energy to try drawing an iron orb from the furnace, an exclamation of awe suddenly erupted from the crowd.
It turned out that a cultivator named Gao Zhan had managed to extract twenty-two three-inch iron essence orbs from the furnace in the span of just one hour.
Hearing this, Jian Xiaolou couldn't help but click her tongue in amazement. There were at least hundreds packed into this testing field—many of whom had been at it all day without getting a single orb.
"Even if they're only three-inch ones, doesn't this performance guarantee him a spot in the inner sect?"
"I'll bet you even inner sect disciples couldn't pull that many out!"
Amid all the envious chatter, Gao Zhan calmly withdrew his spiritual energy, a self-satisfied grin spreading across his handsome face. It was clear he considered himself a shoo-in for top recruit this year.
Just then, one of the test supervisors seated on a nearby jade platform stood up and called out:
"Junior Brother Gao, please come with me."
A collective gasp swept through the crowd—because the speaker was none other than Shen Yuchu, the chief disciple of the Fire Refining Sect's sect master, Immortal Xuanwei.
The four sparkling star crystals hanging from Shen Yuchu's jade belt marked him as a four-star artifact forger.
Looking up, one could see a total of five test supervisors seated on the jade platform—three men and two women, all in the Foundation Establishment Realm. They were the personal disciples of the sect master and the four head elders, and each one was a four-star artifact forger.
They weren't here merely to supervise the assessment—they were also on the lookout for top-tier talent to recruit for their own masters.
In the seven days since the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace had been opened, not one of them had stood up—until now.
And the one who made them move was Gao Zhan.
Looks like this guy might really be on the fast track to the top.
Jian Xiaolou, buried in the sea of people, gazed longingly like a little puppy, her heart filled with the same envy, admiration, and bitterness as everyone else. But what could she do? On the path of cultivation, hard work and diligence often had little to do with success. It was talent, opportunity, and fortune that ultimately decided one's fate.
Even if you claimed that diligence could make up for lack of talent, you still needed a decent foundation to begin with.
She withdrew her wandering thoughts, exhaled lightly, and turned her full attention to the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace.
Closing her eyes, she activated the qi points throughout her body, allowing her spiritual energy to circulate freely. After a full rotation, the energy condensed into a white aura, which flew out from her spiritual sea and entered the furnace through one of the ventilation holes.
Inside, the iron essence orbs burned with intense heat and were extremely slippery—the smaller they were, the more condensed and powerful they were.
Jian Xiaolou didn't dare to guide her spiritual energy orb too close to the flames at the bottom of the furnace. Instead, she let it hover midair, slowly releasing enticing soul energy, trying to attract the essence orbs nearby.
According to the Fire Refining Sect's theory, if one possessed talent in artifact forging, they would have a fire seed in their soul—a soul flame.
The iron essence orbs would then be drawn to the person's spiritual energy and come under their control.
"All you gods and buddhas out there… I don't kill, I'm vegetarian, I don't lie, I stand tall and walk straight—model girl of the cultivation world here. I won't even dream of getting a half-inch or two-inch orb, just let me have one three-inch orb, please. Boundless Heavenly Venerable… Amitabha…"
Jian Xiaolou prayed wildly in her heart.
In truth, she knew nothing about artifact forging, nor did she have much interest in it. She chose the Fire Refining Sect only because, in the past five years, it was the only sect still openly recruiting disciples. If she wanted to participate in the Heavenly Will Alliance's exam three years later, she had no choice but to join a sect to qualify.
Perhaps some deity really did hear her prayers—within the furnace, around her spiritual energy orb, a few iron essence orbs actually began to gather.
And they were the smallest kind—half-inch.
They bounced around joyfully, circling near her spiritual orb, some of them eager to approach, though oddly hesitant, as if something made them wary.
Jian Xiaolou couldn't see what was happening inside the furnace, but she could feel a wave of heat pressing against her spiritual orb. Her heart surged with excitement.
Meanwhile, Gao Zhan, who had just extracted twenty-two three-inch iron essence orbs, now stood with a dark expression on his face.
Just a moment ago, Shen Yuchu's acknowledgment had practically secured his future path of immortality. He had already begun to imagine a flood of resources flowing his way—only for a dark horse to suddenly appear and ruin everything.
Destroying someone's fortune was like killing their parents.
Gao Zhan stared coldly at the Foundation Establishment male cultivator on the high platform who was currently arguing with Shen Yuchu.
That man was none other than Jiang An, the chief disciple of the Disciplinary Elder.
"Junior Brother Jiang, even you wouldn't be able to extract twenty-two three-inch iron essence orbs, would you?"Shen Yuchu's usual warm and gentle expression was tinged with a trace of thin anger as he stared directly at his junior, who always opposed him.
"I can't, that's true," Jiang An leaned lazily against the back of his chair, raising a thick brow, showing not a shred of respect for the elegant and poised head disciple of the sect leader."But I can extract a two-inch orb. Can he?"
"A two-inch orb gets you into the inner sect, a three-inch into the outer sect.If you want to go from the outer to the inner sect, you must pass the Dragon Prison Mountain trial. That's the rule of the Fire Refining Sect—and of the Heavenly Will Alliance!"
Shen Yuchu had no choice but to soften:"Twenty-two three-inch orbs—surely that counts for more than one two-inch, doesn't it?"
"Big and small—how can they be the same?"Jiang An grinned, tilted his head, and leered shamelessly at the proud twin peaks on the chest of Ye Qingrou to his left, then cast a glance at the completely flat Song Qingman to his right."A hundred Senior Sister Songs, or one Senior Sister Ye—who would you choose?"
"Pfft..."
Ye Qingrou, who had been munching on sunflower seeds while enjoying the show, burst into laughter. With a delicate white hand, she formed a soft cotton-like fist and gave Jiang An a playful punch, scolding with a smile:"You little rascal, what nonsense are you spouting—deserve a beating!"
Song Qingman, on the other hand, slapped the table."Jiang An, you little scoundrel! Your skin's itching again, isn't it!"
Shen Yuchu, usually the image of a refined gentleman, found himself completely upstaged by Jiang An and turned grim. He looked toward the quiet Yue Ze, who had yet to speak:"Junior Brother Yue, what do you think?"
Yue Ze gave no response, sitting upright with both hands together, his eyes unblinking as he stared at the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace.
"Junior Brother Yue?" Shen Yuchu called again.
"Senior Brother Yue?" Even Jiang An found it strange and waved a hand in front of Yue Ze's eyes.
Yue Ze finally blinked and came back to himself."What were you saying?"
Jiang An rolled his eyes."I said, what are you staring so hard at that rusty furnace for? We're talking about that guy Gao Zhan, who just pulled out twenty-two three-inch orbs in one go. Senior Brother Shen is so impressed he wants to promote him to the inner sect on the spot."
Yue Ze chuckled."Even if he pulled out every single three-inch orb in the furnace, his talent in artifact forging will likely remain stuck at the low-grade human level for life.No matter how refined and flawless low-grade artifacts are, what's the use?"
Even Yue Ze had spoken so, and Shen Yuchu, shaking his head, dropped the argument with Jiang An.
As Shen Yuchu sat back down, those in the crowd reacted with mixed emotions—some felt sorry for Gao Zhan, others were secretly gloating.
Under all those complicated gazes, Gao Zhan clenched his fists tightly, his lips pressed so hard they turned purple.
Fine. He would remember this!
Gao Zhan's cold and fierce glare didn't escape Yue Ze's eyes, but Yue Ze only let out a mocking laugh.Hatred without strength to support it was nothing more than a rootless floating weed.
He turned his gaze back to the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace.What were twenty-two three-inch iron essence orbs?He had discovered something far more astonishing.
The furnace had been sealed by the Sect Master, and not even Shen Yuchu and the others could see what was happening inside—but he could.
Inside the furnace, those usually arrogant half-inch iron essence orbs were now boiling in fear—something that had never happened before.
Yue Ze's divine sense swept over the cultivators around the furnace, and finally locked onto Jian Xiaolou, who was drenched in sweat.
"Come on, come on, jump into my bowl already!"
Time ticked by slowly, and Jian Xiaolou kept calling out inwardly.
What was going on?She could clearly feel multiple iron essence orbs trying to approach, but for some reason, she couldn't catch even one of them.
She was too close to see the truth, but Yue Ze, watching from outside, saw everything clearly—As soon as an orb neared her spiritual energy cluster, it sizzled and evaporated, leaving behind only a faint wisp of scorched smoke.
Such a defiant and heaven-tier soul flame—it was practically comparable to the legendary Red Lotus Karma Flame, a phenomenon rarely seen in the world.
What a pity—this little girl seemed to have no idea how to control it.
Yue Ze narrowed his eyes, his mind already starting to scheme.
"Ssssss…"One after another, the iron essence orbs melted inside Jian Xiaolou's spiritual energy cluster.Her spiritual energy was nearly exhausted.She could no longer withstand the extreme heat of the furnace, and signs of spiritual backlash had started to show.
She gritted her teeth and endured—she didn't want to give up.
When she had left home, the Lord of Baiyun City had mocked her overconfidence, and her parents had sighed, saying it was good for her to go out and face failure.No one believed that one day, Jian Xiaolou could enter the Heavenly Will Alliance like her elder brother, Jian Qingyu.
Her eldest sister had asked where her confidence came from.But did she even have any confidence?
But isn't that what living is about?Striving to achieve the impossible?
No matter what—she had to try.
It wasn't just about regaining the Jian family's standing in Baiyun City—It was about finding the truth behind her brother's death, and giving him peace in the afterlife.
She couldn't afford to stop here.
"Jian Xiaolou?"Zhan Tianxiang had just finished testing someone's spiritual roots and walked over—only to see Jian Xiaolou's face flushed purple, like an eggplant.Frowning, she pushed through the crowd and whispered through voice transmission:
"Withdraw your power. Be careful not to damage your core meridians.The Eastern Immortal Realms don't have just one Fire Refining Sect.You have wood-type spiritual roots—studying spirit plants, alchemy, talismans, or formations are all valid paths."
"Long Legs, I really did attract several iron essence orbs just now, but I don't know why I couldn't subdue them," Jian Xiaolou replied, her voice trembling as her spiritual energy cluster approached collapse.Gritting her teeth, she said,"Don't worry, I'm not someone who acts tough.If it really doesn't work out, I'll give up—I'd never joke around with my own life."
Zhan Tianxiang no longer tried to persuade her, and instead released her own spiritual energy cluster into the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace.
She had only known Jian Xiaolou for a single afternoon and had simply traveled alongside her for a short while.Whether she lived or died—what did it have to do with her?
"I can't hold on anymore…"
After enduring for about another quarter of an hour, pain surged through Jian Xiaolou's meridians—If she forced herself any longer, it would truly damage her core.
She began to slowly withdraw her overflowing spiritual energy, letting out a long, weary sigh."I'm sorry… Big Brother…"
Finally giving up?
Yue Ze smiled faintly.Beside him, Song Qingman had been watching him the entire time, and naturally noticed how his gaze had never left Jian Xiaolou.Her otherwise plain features twisted slightly with displeasure.
Yue Ze had already made up his mind—he wouldn't let Jian Xiaolou be eliminated.
He sent a wisp of his own spiritual energy into the Heaven and Earth Spirit Flame Furnace, planning to pick out a three-inch iron essence orb and discreetly send it her way.
But unexpectedly, his spiritual energy was instantly suppressed by a stronger one.That other force quickly and cleanly wrapped around an iron essence orb and withdrew it through the vent—swift and precise.
Who?!
Yue Ze suddenly stood up, his gaze like lightning, shooting toward the crowd below.