Chi Ling'Er and Chang Weiyang left in a lovey-dovey manner.
Han Yu summed it up: exchanging two life-threatening pills for the friendship of a Sect Leader and an Elder was quite a profitable deal.
But who knows if Star Sect would end up horribly offended.
It seems entering the Star Sect is not an option, but Han Yu isn't willing to leave in defeat; being here, he might as well observe.
March 11th, sunny, travel is discouraged.
Yet Han Yu, defying the odds, followed the crowd to the foot of Cyan Cloud Mountain.
Ahead lays the Suspended Ladder, similar to the Cloud Ladder, but it's built on a cliff.
The test involves climbing down the Suspended Ladder into the dense forest at the bottom of the cliff to search for the Star Sect tokens hidden all over, and then exiting a maze array after passing through the forest.
Finally, return to the foot of the mountain where a Spirit Testing Pillar is set up, and be selectively recruited based on Spirit Root.
After listening, Han Yu frowned; the Suspended Ladder could be seen as a test of willpower, the search could test attention to detail, and the maze might test wisdom.
But in the end, there's the twist of a Spirit Root test for selective recruitment.
Isn't this like an elaborate way to accomplish nothing?
Lily quietly sneaked up behind him and suddenly clapped her hands, giving Han Yu quite a start.
She had spotted Han Yu and intentionally sought him out from the crowd, but upon arriving, she seemed hesitant to speak.
"Is something wrong?"
Han Yu's intuition was on point, sensing trouble.
Lily nodded, her face flushed with embarrassment, and stammered.
"Master says you're too close to the Evil Sect, not suitable for Star Sect, so you can't take part in the test."
Han Yu wasn't surprised; his visit today wasn't to participate; even the plans of the past few days were merely due to Star Sect's large population.
So he wasn't angry...
Ah, no, not being angry is a lie.
Han Yu waved to cut off Lily's words and asked in a deep voice, "Is your master still cultivating?"
Lily blushed deeply, understanding Han Yu's implication; indeed, her master had been meditating and breathing when he shamelessly refused.
"Or you could pass on... forget it, never mind."
Halfway through speaking, Han Yu regretted and shook his head. Asking Lily to relay the message verbatim would really trouble the young girl—unnecessary.
"Can I at least watch if I'm not participating?"
Han Yu sighed, asking.
Lily nodded quickly, "Observing is allowed; not everyone is here to participate; quite a few are here to observe the ceremony's proceedings."
She pointed to a nearby high platform, saying, "That platform is for observation. From there, you can see the events on the Suspended Ladder and within the cliff bottom."
While Lily explained, Han Yu kept casting glances around, unexpectedly spotting Bai Jingliang on the platform.
Bai Jingliang saw him too.
"Over here!"
Bai Jingliang mouthed before pointing at his feet.
Han Yu quickly understood and, after saying goodbye to Lily, headed toward the platform.
"Why are you here? Normally, shouldn't you be down there?"
Han Yu asked curiously.
Bai Jingliang sighed, unwilling to elaborate, he vaguely replied, "Not everyone can come; someone must stay behind at home."
By this time, most of the participants were in position, and after an announcement from an official, the large group set off.
From the high platform, it looked like a dense crowd of ants, indistinguishable from one another.
After a while, Bai Jingliang's eyes suddenly brightened, pointing forward, "I see my sister."
"Where?"
Han Yu squinted, observing intently, finally picking out Bai Junya from the vast group.
This was thanks to her figure; otherwise, she would indeed be hard to recognize.
Today, Bai Junya wore a convenient, loose robe, but her voluptuous figure was unmistakable while climbing.
Watching, Han Yu felt a heat in his nose, involuntarily murmuring, "What a great figure!"
Bai Jingliang instantly shot a vigilant look at him, "What are you planning? Stop getting any ideas, I'm telling you."
Han Yu intentionally teased him, jokingly saying, "How about I become your brother-in-law?"
Surprisingly, Bai Jingliang seemed lost in thought, genuinely considering the proposal. After a moment, he looked up, seriously asking.
"If you become my brother-in-law, will those special pills be in abundance?"
Han Yu almost burst into laughter; such a trivial request didn't require being his brother-in-law—as long as one wasn't afraid of dying, they could eat their fill.
Yet, Bai Jingliang's mention reminded him of a new pill today, and he couldn't resist checking his mind.
Today's pill seemed rather bizarre—a black pill, as large as an egg, spinning in his mind.
Hardworking Pill: Upon consumption, speeds up cultivation significantly from dawn till noon. Side effect: hearing a rooster's crow causes a lack of coordination and an urge to dance.
Terrifying!
Han Yu wiped the cold sweat from his brow; if an adversary discovered this, they'd surely exploit it to death. Absolutely not consumable.
Thinking of this, he glanced at Bai Jingliang, a smile tugging at his lips, hmm, it's settled.
Unaware he was being targeted, Bai Jingliang continued to ramble, "So, can you or can't you provide them constantly?"
Han Yu chuckled, "Provision is a must, but unfortunately, I have to leave after watching the event, so it's probably not meant to be."
Bai Jingliang's face fell, once again despondent over missing out on the Divine Pill, but he quickly perked up again.
It wasn't just him; a burst of laughter erupted from the high platform.
On the Suspended Ladder, a noble young master dressed in rich silk had climbed down a bit. Looking down, the bottomless cliff made him burst into tears.
Crying wasn't the issue; he even wet himself in fear.
This unfortunate event affected the person below him, who initially thought it was rain, but then realized rain wouldn't be that warm. Looking up, he started cursing.
So that section of the Suspended Ladder remained in a deadlock, with the rich young master too afraid to go down and those above unable to proceed.
Finally, the Star Sect couldn't stand it anymore and sent a disciple to carry him to the bottom of the cliff using Sword Control for the next test segment.
In the subsequent forest challenge, people could barely be seen like shadows; it was hard to tell who was who.
As for the following maze array, it was even harder to discern, ethereal and seemingly haunted.
After watching for a while, the two lost interest and decided to wait at the foot of the mountain.
A full two-hour period later, the examinees gradually returned.
Next, an Elder from the Star Sect would come to conduct the spiritual root test.
Unexpectedly—yet not—that person was Li Tianhai, who descended elegantly on a Flying Sword in a purple robe from the peak to the venue.
It's uncertain if his mental fortitude was too strong; having coughed up blood just yesterday, today he seemed lively and vigorous.
As per usual, Li Tianhai first explained the Star Sect's philosophy to the examinees, which was standard for every disciple recruitment ceremony.
Perhaps it was fate; while speaking, he caught sight of Han Yu, and his tone suddenly accelerated and turned critical.
"One must harbor reverence in their heart, for the heavens and nature, and discern good from evil. Our sect cannot stand those who flirt with the Evil Sect; they are simply of the same ilk."
Li Tianhai continued his speech, directing each word toward Han Yu. Some people turned back with thoughtful expressions.
Han Yu's face darkened immediately, thinking, it's one thing to renege on a bet, or abuse power to prevent my participation, but you might as well point at my nose and swear now.
Once Li Tianhai finally finished his passionate diatribe, the spiritual root test could commence.
"Though I say this and you might not be pleased, I truly admire his ability to speak at you for a full two hours without rest."
Bai Jingliang laughed teasingly with a glint in his eye.
Han Yu kept his face dark, without responding, already planning to leave.
"This place is really quite pointless."
Bai Jingliang nodded in agreement, "Indeed pretty pointless, but its power is immense!"
As each examinee took their turn, they placed their hand on the Spirit Testing Pillar. A golden light indicates a single metal spirit root, red for fire, blue for water, green for wood, and grey for earth.
One examinee's red and green lights indicated dual spirit roots; moderately high-tier.
For three colors, it was moderately low.
Four colors were considered lower tier.
An examinee with a five-colored aura left the recorder shaking their head in disappointment; no talent.
One can be well-rounded, but not in cultivation; cultivation requires sharpness. The more aligned you are with one attribute, the more superior your innate talent in that area. Those with two out of five elements perform well, but those strong in one element are exceptionally gifted.
Thus, single spirit roots are typically considered top-tier aptitude, though they are rare and not standard.
Nearly a hundred examinees went up, with the best being only about a dozen dual spirit roots. The rest were three-series spirit roots or Five Spirits Complete, the norm.
"Hey, my sister, my sister!"
Bai Jingliang suddenly perked up, as Bai Junya gracefully approached the pillar. Han Yu silently recited the Calming Incantation several times while eyeing the alluring figure.
Chanting silently, he continued watching.
Damned, Bai's figure is just as potent as Glazed Bottle medicine.
Bai Junya calmly extended her delicate, porcelain hand, a blue glow illuminating her captivating face.
"It's a water attribute single spirit root!"
The crowd was in an uproar; even Li Tianhai couldn't help but glance over several times.
Bai Jingliang proudly basked in the spotlight's attention, smiling broadly.
"How come it seems like you two siblings already knew your spirit root qualifications?" Han Yu asked curiously.
"What's so weird about it? We were identified once shortly after birth."
Bai Jingliang replied nonchalantly with a smile.
To test spirit roots at birth, even wealthy families don't have such privileges; who knows what background these siblings have, Han Yu pondered.
"This kind of quality can rate moderately high?"
Someone in the crowd grumbled discontentedly.
The two glanced over, as Bai Jingliang showed disdain, "This kind of stuff, seriously lacking in consideration."
The one laughing loudly on stage was none other than the young master who had wet his pants.
The audience jeered, but the young master remained shameless, fanning himself randomly, shaking his head with a "tsk tsk," "It's all fate!"
The many disqualified examinees felt particularly unwilling to accept their fate.
"I scored well on the Suspended Ladder, the forest, even in the maze array, but ultimately lost to something like that; I'm really not convinced."
An examinee with four spirit roots clenched his fist tightly, expressing his resentment toward the young master.
"Who let us be either lower-tier in spirit roots, or flat out Five Spirits Complete commoners."
"I'm willing to make up for it with effort, but the most ridiculous thing is there's not even a chance to exert the effort."
"Didn't they say diligence can make up for lack of talent? Why not give us a chance to be diligent?"
Han Yu shook his head, watching the commotion among the examinees, "This is just like a farce, determining superiority based on spirit root aptitude, like deciding winners and losers from the womb."
Coincidentally, those remarks were clearly heard by Li Tianhai, who had been paying attention all along.