Chen Ganliu's retreat this time lasted thirty or forty days.
The other disciples serving as examiners knew that his identity was "extraordinary," and they did not dare disturb him. As a result, the "rumors" about Chen Ganliu spread more and more.
Inside the quiet room, Chen Ganliu opened his eyes indifferently. When he calculated how much time had passed, he could not help but be slightly startled. I thought I had only been in seclusion for a few days. How have thirty or forty days already gone by?
I'm still an examiner. How could I have been this slothful?
I wonder what people will say about me.
His true qi trembled slightly, shattering all the demonic qi remaining on his body. He vaguely realized that demonic qi must have dispersed while he was cultivating. After thinking for a long while, he still had no idea how to explain it, so he simply stopped thinking about it.
During this retreat, the wisps of demonic qi obtained from refining the Wood Demon Pearl had shed their turbid impurities and transformed into wisps of spirit qi. Only seven remained; all the others had scattered into fragments.
Chen Ganliu felt endless regret and secretly mused, Although the Heavenly Demon Vein Shifting Method can defy Heaven and change fate, it is ultimately no easy feat. I wonder how many of these seven wisps of spirit qi will eventually transform into spirit veins, and what kind of spirit veins they will become?
He moved his hands and feet a little, feeling his true qi course through his entire body with incomparable ease.
The wisps of demonic qi had not only wrapped around a spirit vein, but also contained abundant spiritual vitality. Although he had failed to refine several of them, their collapse released a great amount of pure spirit qi. He refined it with the Azure Emperor Jia Yi Art, and his cultivation rose by a substantial margin—enough to equal eighty or ninety years of arduous work. With such vigorous true qi, opening his acupoints would surely be much easier.
Chen Ganliu felt too embarrassed to continue cultivating in seclusion. He pushed open the door and stepped outside, only to see a young Green Leaf Sect disciple approaching him head-on. The disciple hurriedly greeted him.
When this young Green Leaf Sect disciple saw Chen Ganliu emerge from seclusion, his true qi surging and his cultivation having risen another level, he thought to himself, The rumors are true. He really does possess some demonic cultivation art. Otherwise, how could his magic power have risen so greatly in just a few dozen days?
An ordinary person would have to cultivate in seclusion for several decades to achieve such progress.
Great Elder Xu's lineage has deep roots in the sect. I'm only an ordinary disciple—I must not offend him.
The young disciple's thoughts raced, but he smiled and returned the salute. "Ancestor-Master Nan's cultivation has advanced again. Truly, congratulations."
Chen Ganliu hurriedly asked, "Has anything happened with the examination this time?"
The young disciple quickly replied, "Nothing happened."
He knew that Chen Ganliu was worried he had delayed matters by staying in seclusion too long, so he specially explained, "True Person Qingyao, who is presiding over this grand examination, knew that Ancestor-Master Nan's cultivation was important and has already covered for everything."
Chen Ganliu let out a sigh of relief. As he passed the disciple, he secretly mused, I should go thank Senior Brother Qingyao.
True Person Qingyao was the fourth disciple of the current sect master. Like Yu Qinghong and Chen Ganliu, he was a third-generation disciple of the Green Leaf Sect.
However, because the Golden Radiance Young Lady Xu Qiongyin had accepted disciples rather late, True Person Qingyao had actually cultivated for more years than his senior, Yun Susu. His cultivation was also deeper. He had already reached the perfected Golden Core stage, and he had managed many of the Green Leaf Sect's affairs on behalf of his master, earning great authority. In the hearts of disciples from every generation, he carried immense weight.
Chen Ganliu dutifully made a round of inspections before going to see True Person Qingyao.
This senior brother had cultivated for more than three hundred and eighty years, but because his cultivation was profound, he looked no more than thirty. When he saw Chen Ganliu, he did not put on airs as a member of the sect master's lineage. Instead, he asked gently, "Junior Brother Nan has been in seclusion for quite some time. It seems your gains have not been small. However, the path of cultivation cannot be rushed. The grand examination is about to end, so you should avoid going into seclusion for now."
Chen Ganliu hurriedly said, "This junior had only just entered the sect and received a Daoist text from Junior Sister Yu Qinghong. I became so engrossed in it that I lost track of time and nearly delayed important matters. I heard that Senior Brother Qingyao covered for me. I am deeply ashamed."
True Person Qingyao could not say that he was satisfied or dissatisfied with this junior brother. Although the two were fellow disciples, they did not belong to the same lineage when traced back to their founding master. He also did not wish to rebuke Chen Ganliu. After saying a few indifferent words, he took on the air of seeing his guest out.
Chen Ganliu knew that Senior Brother Qingyao was extremely busy and did not want to take up too much of his time. After bidding farewell, he left. He was planning to return and continue cultivating when he suddenly saw two disciples arguing.
He could not simply ignore such a matter, so he shouted, "Why are you arguing?"
When the two disciples saw that it was him, both wore somewhat discontented expressions. One of them said in a low voice, "Even demons are being accepted. Sooner or later, the Green Leaf Sect will turn into a demon sect!"
That person flicked his sleeve and turned back to his quarters. The other disciple wore a face full of anger, gave Chen Ganliu a salute from afar, and also returned to his residence.
Chen Ganliu could not be bothered to explain. He watched until both men had returned to their rooms, then thought to himself, The one who was mocking me, inside and out, seems to have been Li Sizhong. I also vaguely remember the other one. What was his name again? Hu Yansheng, I think.
I heard his father was a scholar, while his mother was a fox demon. He was born half-human and half-demon. After suffering humiliation in the human world, he carried the Green Leaf Spirit Talisman passed down by his ancestors and came to Green Leaf Mountain to seek a master.
I remember that he has considerable talent with the Green Leaf Spirit Talisman. He should definitely be able to pass the entrance examination this time.
Does Li Sizhong discriminate against demons this severely?
Not only does he mock me to my face and behind my back, he also bullies Hu Yansheng, who is half-human and half-demon?
Chen Ganliu returned to his residence and thought, I'll patiently wait another ten or twenty days. Once this entrance examination ends, I can return to Dragon Cloud Cave to cultivate. I won't need to bother with these trivial matters.
He had not expected that all the examiners would grow increasingly busy in the days that followed.
Quite a few disciples saw that the three-month deadline was approaching but had still failed to master the Green Leaf Spirit Talisman, and they became restless. The atmosphere, which had originally been harmonious, grew sharp. Arguments broke out frequently, and sometimes people even came to blows.
Although most of these Green Leaf descendants possessed no true magic power, quite a few of them knew some martial arts, making their fights extremely dangerous.
Sometimes Chen Ganliu had to break up six or seven conflicts in a single day, leaving him with no time to cultivate.
All he could do was sigh and hope the three months would pass quickly so he could free himself.
Fortunately, the Green Leaf Sect's entrance examination, held once every five years, had been conducted countless times over the past several centuries. With a perfected Golden Core expert like True Person Qingyao overseeing it, and the other young disciples also experienced, the final dozen or so days passed without incident. Before long, only the last few days remained.
True Person Qingyao arranged for the young examiners to divide the candidates into ten examination halls, with five examiners in each group. Following the Green Leaf Sect's longstanding rules, they began inspecting the disciples' three-month talisman studies.
The group of examiners Chen Ganliu belonged to happened to draw Li Sizhong in the third session. This man was skilled at boasting, but had little talent for talisman arts. He could not even complete all thirty-six talismans. Of the twenty-odd talismans he had drawn, seven or eight contained flaws. He could not even properly trace the talisman patterns, let alone comprehend their divine intent.
The five examiners in their group discussed the matter briefly and unanimously determined that he could not pass.
Li Sizhong's face flushed crimson. He suddenly pointed at Chen Ganliu and shouted, "He's an examiner—can he draw all thirty-six of our sect's spirit talismans?"
"If he can draw all the spirit talismans and grasp their divine intent, I'll accept it. Otherwise, I refuse!"
"Why shouldn't I be allowed to pass?"
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