The Momentum of Rise

Compete with cultivation clans!

The Fang Manor disciples were frightened, and even Fang Hanyu subconsciously tightened his grip on his sword sheath.

Zhou Xue said no more and took the lead onto the street, following the crowd. Fang Wang and the others followed close behind.

Along the way, Fang Wang kept sensing the auras around him. Not everyone could conceal their aura as well as Zhou Xue; he sensed quite a few fluctuations of spiritual power.

Many people had already cultivated spiritual power, though there were also mortals like the Fang Manor disciples, so they did not stand out.

It seemed that so-called cultivation clans varied in strength. Perhaps even a family whose ancestors had produced just one cultivator could be considered a cultivation clan.

As Fang Wang pondered this, he soon discovered a figure with extraordinarily abundant spiritual power, nearly on par with his own.

The man wore a bamboo hat and black robes, carried a book case on his back, and had a gourd hanging from his waist. His strange attire drew many glances.

Taiyuan Town had a main street. At its very end lay a vast lake, enclosed by the surrounding mountains and Taiyuan Town. The lake spanned more than a hundred zhang across, its waters a deep green that shimmered beneath the sunlight.

A row of men and women in matching robes stood by the lake. Each was straight-backed; the men handsome and the women beautiful, like disciples of an immortal sect. They were presumably Taiyuan Sect disciples. Taiyuan Sect robes were based in white, with black cuffs, shoulders, waistbands, and boots, all embroidered with exquisite patterns.

Zhou Xue stopped, and Fang Wang and the others halted around her. Looking around, they saw no fewer than five hundred people gathered there, with more still arriving.

Fang Wang could not help but sigh inwardly. Back in Nanqiu City, he had never even known the cultivation world existed. Now, far from the mundane world, he found so many people pursuing the immortal path.

Nanqiu City counted as one of Great Qi's most prosperous cities, and countless martial arts masters had passed through it. Fang Wang had befriended many of them, yet had never heard of cultivation. The gulf in understanding between immortals and mortals was truly immense.

Zhou Xue remained silent, while the others from Fang Manor whispered among themselves. Fang Hanyu looked around everywhere. He seemed calm, but Fang Wang noticed the kid had kept a death grip on his sword sheath the whole time. He was clearly nervous.

After waiting for roughly half an hour, more than a thousand people had gathered by the lake. There were even people whose cultivation Fang Wang could not see through at all.

Dong—

The bell rang again, silencing everyone by the lakeshore.

Fang Wang focused his gaze and saw that a male disciple was striking the bell. The bell was only palm-sized and entirely bronze in color, yet when tapped lightly with an iron pin, it produced an effect that shook mountains and startled forests.

Another male disciple stepped forward. He looked to be in his early thirties and carried himself with refined elegance.

"I am Guan Linfeng, a disciple of Taiyuan Sect's Fifth Vein. Today, I will preside over the entrance examination. It consists of two stages. The first is Spirit Drawing. Each of you will come before me in turn and place your hand on the spirit stone in my hand. Anyone who makes the spirit stone glow may immediately proceed to the next stage."

"The second stage lies behind me. Leap across this lake and cross that mountain, following the guidance of the white cranes in the sky as you proceed onward. The road is rugged. If you shout the words 'I give up,' someone will naturally come to rescue you. The farther you travel, the higher your score. Remember: do not stray from the direction indicated by the white cranes. If you die otherwise, you will have only yourself to blame."

This disciple who called himself Guan Linfeng did not speak arrogantly, yet his words carried an indescribable pressure.

Fang Wang looked up. Sure enough, a white crane circled above the mountain peak ahead. Looking farther on, he saw other white cranes on the horizon. From where he stood, they formed a straight line.

At the sight of the great lake before them, the Fang Manor disciples immediately panicked. Aside from Zhou Xue, Fang Wang, and Fang Hanyu, the rest only possessed superficial martial skills even if they had practiced martial arts. How could they leap across this lake, let alone cross a mountain at least a hundred and fifty zhang high?

Zhou Xue spoke to reassure them. "As long as you can make that spirit stone light up, you will be admitted. The second stage is for those who already have a foundation in cultivation to compete in."

Hearing this, everyone immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

Fang Hanyu looked at Fang Wang and asked, "Can your Sword Control Technique fly over that mountain?"

Fang Wang raised his brows and asked with a smile, "What? Want me to take you with me?"

Fang Hanyu rolled his eyes and snapped, "How could that be? I was just asking. I don't need you to take me, and you shouldn't take anyone else either. Flying with someone using sword control must consume a lot of spiritual power. You should do your best to bring honor to Fang Manor."

Those words were also a reminder to the other Fang Manor disciples.

Fang Wang shook his head with a laugh and said nothing more.

At that moment, someone had already approached Guan Linfeng. A long line soon formed, and Zhou Xue led the group over to join it.

"Pass!"

Guan Linfeng's voice rang out from ahead. Then Fang Wang saw a man leap into the air as a flying sword emerged from the Storage Bag at his waist, rapidly enlarged, and landed beneath his feet, carrying him toward the horizon.

The sight caused quite a commotion and made many people yearn for Taiyuan Sect even more.

A Fang Manor youth named Fang Mo sighed. "If one masters the Sword Control Technique, wouldn't that guarantee the highest score?"

Zhou Xue shot him a glance. "How could it be that simple? How do you know how long the journey is, or whether demons and monsters in the sky will obstruct you?"

Fang Mo scratched his head and smiled sheepishly.

The first stage proceeded quickly, averaging one person every ten breaths. Fang Wang and the others were not too far back in the line, so they waited patiently.

Under Zhou Xue's arrangement, Fang Wang stood first in line, while she stood at the very end so she could look after the others more easily.

Her thoughtfulness made Fang Wang wonder whether she was truly a Demonic Cultivator.

Could a Demonic Cultivator become an Immortal Venerable?

Was she merely trying to frighten him?

As Fang Wang pondered, he realized he was finding Zhou Xue increasingly unfathomable. Ever since she had adapted to being reborn, she had become mysterious and profound. Over the past few days, for instance, he had heard her footsteps leaving every night deep into the darkness, though he had no idea what she was going off to do.

He had considered whether he should desperately flatter Zhou Xue to obtain more cultivation methods, but quickly discarded the thought. Setting aside whether Zhou Xue would fall for that sort of thing, he did not want to humble himself so completely.

Besides, he could not follow Zhou Xue's path entirely. Zhou Xue had been reborn, which meant she had failed in her previous life. He had to forge a stronger path of his own.

Time swiftly passed amid Fang Wang's thoughts.

Gradually, it became Fang Wang's turn for the examination. Earlier, he had noticed that the light each person caused the spirit stone to emit varied in intensity, while more than half could not make it light up at all.

He had already cultivated spiritual power, so naturally he was not worried. He was merely curious how brightly he could make it shine. He suspected that the better one's aptitude, the brighter the light it produced.

He walked before Guan Linfeng and pressed his right hand against the spirit stone in Guan Linfeng's hand.

A cool sensation slipped into his palm. Then he felt a pulling force tugging at the spiritual energy within him. He did not resist. As his spiritual energy flowed into the spirit stone, it burst forth with light.

"Pass!"

Guan Linfeng said, his expression unchanged.

Fang Wang was somewhat disappointed as well. The light was clearly brighter than that of those before him, yet it apparently did not represent aptitude. Perhaps it was merely related to one's cultivation.

He did not dwell on it. After cupping his fists to Guan Linfeng in salute, he headed toward the lakeshore. With a leap, he jumped into the lake, his feet skimming the water as he rode the waves away.

This did not draw the attention of the Taiyuan Sect disciples. Others had done the same before; after all, not everyone knew the Sword Control Technique.

Guan Linfeng called over another disciple to take his place, then turned to watch Fang Wang. Fang Wang's figure swept across the lake like a wild goose in flight before stepping onto the mountain wall and striding upward as though walking on level ground.

Fang Wang's display invigorated Fang Hanyu and the others. No matter what, with Fang Wang here, Fang Manor would not lose face. Though Fang Manor held no name or standing here, they still carried a thread of pride in their hearts.

"Not simple."

Watching Fang Wang reach the summit, Guan Linfeng murmured to himself, his eyes brimming with admiration.

"This batch of disciples is extraordinary. I fear one of them may rise to become the chief disciple of a lineage. I wonder who will seize that high-grade magical artifact and stir the winds and clouds."

Meanwhile, Fang Wang stood atop the mountain. The breeze stirred his fitted white robes, and the two long strands of hair by his temples streamed behind him, revealing his handsome features.

The magnificent plain before him left Fang Wang stunned. He had not expected such scenery beyond the mountain. Two rows of lofty peaks stretched to the ends of heaven and earth, while a vast plain lay between the two mountain ranges. From where he stood, it looked like a scar cleaved open by an immortal's single sword strike.

Fang Wang did not linger over the view. He leaped down, the fierce wind howling around him as he plummeted all the way down. Just before reaching the ground, he drew the treasured sword at his waist, twisted his body in midair, and thrust the sword into the mountain wall. The blade carved through the rock, sending shattered stones flying as his descent slowed drastically.

Worthy of the treasured sword he had bought with a hefty sum—it really was tough!

When he was less than five zhang from the ground, he had nearly come to a stop. He immediately kicked off the mountain wall, pulling the blade free as his body flipped through the air, and landed steadily on the grass.

He sheathed his sword and ran in the direction indicated by the white cranes overhead.

Although his Sword Control Technique at Great Perfection allowed him to fly on this sword, the expenditure was immense. After all, this was not a dharma sword and could not channel spiritual energy; it could only be driven while wrapped in spiritual energy. Thus, he did not intend to use it prematurely.

He had a feeling that battle might await at the end of this road.

If it were merely a contest of who could run farther, it would simply be a competition of spiritual energy. The Taiyuan Sect should not be so careless.

Fang Wang raced across the plain, using spiritual energy to execute Shadowless Steps. Its consumption was far lower than sword flight, while his speed surpassed even a thousand-li horse. At a glance, his toes seemed barely to touch the ground; wherever he passed, blades of grass and debris flew.

Before long.

Fang Wang spotted two figures ahead, fighting near the mountain wall on the left. Their movement techniques were exceptionally agile. One wielded a curved saber and slashed out bolts of lightning; the other held a folding fan and swept forth fiery winds, setting the grass within ten zhang ablaze.

Fang Wang only glanced at them in passing and did not stop.

As expected, using such a long route for an examination could not possibly be as simple as it appeared.

A sharp whistle tore through the air above Fang Wang's head. He looked up and saw a woman in yellow, wearing a conical hat and a white veil over her face. Three sword sheaths were strapped to her back, giving her the appearance of a wandering martial heroine. Most importantly, she was not flying by sword control—she rode atop a crimson gourd.

That was just too...

Fang Wang was envious. It was definitely a magical artifact, and this woman's cultivation could not be low. He reckoned she was at the eighth or ninth level of the Qi Nurturing Realm.

He only watched her for a few moments before maintaining his pace. He was in no hurry to catch up.

In the sky.

Gu Li stood upon her treasured gourd and gazed into the distance. Her eyes were unfocused, clearly lost in thought. Even with a veil over her face, her brows and eyes were enough to stir one's imagination.

Suddenly, she seemed to sense something and turned her head. A black-clad man, also wearing a conical hat, was flying toward her on a sword. He was incredibly fast, soon streaking past her side.

"Ninth level of the Qi Nurturing Realm. It seems Father was right—the Taiyuan Sect is showing signs of rising. But I have no intention of losing to my peers!"

Gu Li snorted coldly and began to accelerate.