Outer Sect Hall

Li Mo felt a sense of relief now that he no longer cared about his assessment results.

But Yang Guang had actually defeated Yang Zhiman using his martial arts and movement techniques, surprisingly making it into the top 128 of the assessment. This truly made Li Mo, Ma Ling, and Niu Li lament the unfairness of fate, thinking the guy had gotten incredibly lucky.

However, Li Mo also noticed that Yang Zhiman's cultivation had reached the middle stage of Qi Refining Layer 3, which was actually higher than Yang Guang's. It seemed Yang Zhiman was no ordinary person, but simply lacked the means available to early-stage cultivators when facing a martial artist.

Yang Guang, on the other hand, was beaming. The rewards he would receive this time were substantial, bringing him closer to his goal of 109th place. If he could break into the top 100, the rewards would be even greater.

"Luck is also a part of strength!"

The three of them rolled their eyes at his words.

To Li Mo's slight surprise, Wang Feng had also been defeated.

He knew Wang Feng had reached Qi Refining Layer 4 over six months ago, and likely had Qi Refining Layer 5 cultivation now. Yet, during the duel, Wang Feng hadn't used any magical artifacts. It wasn't as if Wang Feng couldn't afford them, which left Li Mo puzzled.

So, he hurried over to ask.

"Why didn't you use any magical artifacts?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yidan couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle.

Zhao Xiaonan was as confused as Li Mo, while Wang Feng sighed helplessly.

"When I returned this time, my family had indeed prepared two handy magical artifacts for me. But Ye Xuan said she was afraid I'd be too flashy and get into trouble everywhere. She was going on a relatively dangerous mission, so she took them both."

Li Mo couldn't help but smile upon hearing this.

"Then didn't you learn a few more powerful spells?"

Wang Feng gave a sly smile and leaned in to whisper in Li Mo's ear.

"I'm currently learning a dual cultivation secret technique, and Ye Xuan is also practicing it. In the future, when we cooperate, you wouldn't understand the pleasure of it, hehe."

Li Mo was dumbfounded.

"As for Lingmu Sect's year-end assessment and graduation assessment results, they are minor matters. I don't need to find a position through Lingmu Sect anyway."

"Then how will you find a position after graduation?"

Wang Feng replied, "I just need to graduate smoothly. When the time comes, I'll go back to Yuan City and pull some strings. I'll get a position in the court through the recommendation of filial piety and integrity, and then find a way to transfer Ye Xuan to Yuan City, where she can take a nominal position in the Four Seas Hall."

Recommendation of filial piety and integrity?

Li Mo was truly envious upon hearing this.

The Outer Sect had five halls: Special Service Hall, Treasure Gathering Hall, Supervisor Hall, Four Seas Hall, and Scattered Leaves Hall.

Cultivators who joined the Special Service Hall would serve in the Gan State's Heaven's Mandate Bureau as Inspectors, responsible for maintaining public order in various regions, and would enjoy the official ranks and salaries of the Da Gan Kingdom.

The Treasure Gathering Hall, needless to say, was responsible for managing Lingmu Sect's commercial properties in various regions.

The Supervisor Hall was where Ye Xuan currently worked. It was similar to mine development, recruiting disciples, large-scale construction, resource exploration, and maintaining flying ship stations.

In comparison, the Four Seas Hall was indeed a nominal position.

Disciples serving in the Four Seas Hall had only one requirement: to stay away from Muzhou, gather intelligence on major events happening in their respective locations, and send it back to Lingmu Sect regularly.

This was essentially Lingmu Sect's intelligence department.

As for the final Scattered Leaves Hall, it was an elegant term.

Disciples who entered this hall were essentially left to fend for themselves. They were disciples deemed to have no cultivation value by Lingmu Sect, and their status in the outside world was essentially the same as rogue cultivators. Their only value was possessing spiritual roots.

The Four Seas Hall would periodically organize social events for unmarried disciples of the Four Seas Hall. When Lingmu Sect recruited disciples in the future, the descendants of these Scattered Leaves Hall disciples would be investigated more thoroughly, saving the need to spend Spirit Stone to test their spiritual roots. That was all.

A portion of those eliminated from the Enlightenment Hall would join this hall.

After the third-year graduation assessment, many disciples whose cultivation was below Qi Refining Layer 4 would also be placed in this hall.

"So that's how it is."

Li Mo, realizing his worries were unnecessary, said no more and took his leave.

He wondered if there were other individuals like Wang Feng among the current batch of disciples. After thinking carefully, Li Mo concluded there probably weren't. After all, outsiders who came to Lingmu Sect with ulterior motives should enter through the prefecture capital Anle City, meaning they should have been in the introductory classes taught by Ding Wei.

And Wang Feng's arrival might have been pre-arranged, with the Ye Family having already contacted the sect's higher-ups.

"That's not right."

Li Mo mused thoughtfully.

"The head of the Advanced Study Hall, Ye Qing, is herself a Golden Core ancestor of the Ye Family. There's no need for unnecessary complications!"

Could it be that the rogue cultivators among the higher-ups of the Monster sect harbored grievances against the Four Great Families?

The Four Great Families were indeed deeply entrenched in Lingmu Sect. Through intermarriage, they had formed complex networks. If the rogue cultivators didn't unite, it would naturally be difficult to resist.

The experience Wang Zhu had as a gatekeeping Dao boy in the Treasure Gathering Hall was a microcosm of the conflict between the two factions.

However, every sect likely had similar underlying issues. Lingmu Sect was not unique. But what differed was that if the sect's Nascent Soul Realm cultivators were strong enough, or if the sect was developing rapidly, these underlying issues would be suppressed, or there would be enough cultivation resources to distribute.

But at this moment.

Lingmu Sect's only remaining Nascent Soul Realm cultivator had been in seclusion for ten years. Coupled with Lingmu Sect's development setbacks, the conflict between disciples from aristocratic families and rogue cultivators had naturally become more pronounced.

Li Mo had been in Lingmu Sect for quite some time.

Compared to the Pingshan Society, he had grown to like everything here and considered it his home. He truly didn't want to see Lingmu Sect decline due to the conflict between the two factions.

"Look, Ye Yimeng is here."

At Yang Guang's words, Li Mo looked over.

Facing the stern Hall Master of the Advanced Study Hall, Ye, he was actually looking at the woman beside him with doting affection.

Compared to when he first met this female cultivator more than half a year ago, Li Mo felt she had become even more beautiful. She had transformed from a captivating beauty with soul-stirring charm into a dignified and enchanting demoness, radiating an extraordinary purity and allure. Under Hall Master Ye's careful instructions, she calmly walked towards the arena barrier.

"Tsk tsk, truly worthy of being the Night Pearl of Qingming Mountain," someone beside him exclaimed, and many were drawn to Ye Yimeng.

"What Night Pearl?" Li Mo asked, surprised.

Seeing Li Mo's reaction, Yang Guang smiled and explained.

"Some say she is not only the young lady of the Ye Family but also a fairy of our Qingming Mountain, hence she's called the Night Pearl of Qingming Mountain."

Li Mo suddenly understood.

However, although Ye Yimeng was still beautiful, the crowd's reaction was not as intense as before. She didn't evoke the same fervent admiration as Zhao Huaxue. Most people were watching with simple appreciation.

On one hand, everyone had matured considerably since they first joined. On the other hand, for cultivators, the desire for romantic love would gradually be suppressed by the joy of comprehending the Great Dao.

But that Zhao Huaxue herself seemed to have issues. She seemed to exude an indescribable, special beguiler's power that captivated many male cultivators.

Ye Yimeng's opponent was a second-year female disciple. Compared to Ye Yimeng's calm composure, this disciple seemed quite stressed. As the match officially began, both sides summoned different magical artifacts and interspersed various low-level spells, engaging in a magical duel.

Judging by Ye Yimeng's movement techniques, she clearly had some martial arts foundation, though not profound. And as Yang Guang had said, her magical power was very deep. After a prolonged battle, as it reached a critical moment to decide the winner, Ye Yimeng suddenly raised her hand.

"I concede."

The female cultivator fighting her stopped, first in shock, then in embarrassed anger.

"What do you mean by this?"

Ye Yimeng smiled and replied, "It's not that I intentionally yielded, but my cultivation of qi is well-done. Outsiders cannot see through the reality. In truth, my magical power is exhausted, and I can no longer continue."

After bowing, Ye Yimeng tore off an evacuation talisman from her body and left the barrier. The female cultivator on the stage looked at her with suspicion. Many cultivators below the stage activated their Spirit Eyes but found nothing. Li Mo also frowned. Just as he was about to believe her, he suddenly noticed that the hundred birds on the divine tree were all silent, exceptionally quiet. He was stunned. Only after Ye Yimeng left did the spiritual birds on the divine tree become active again.

"What's going on?" Li Mo instinctively sensed that Ye Yimeng must possess a great secret.

"Whatever the secret is, it's best to stay away from her." Li Mo, who also harbored secrets, was not curious about Ye Yimeng's. He certainly didn't want his curiosity to attract the attention of someone with such fortuitous encounters and a complex background.

In the subsequent battle for the loser's bracket, Li Mo was forced to concede due to excessive exertion and failed to enter the top two hundred.

The third day.

With Yang Guang's defeat, the year-end assessment was over for their group of four. Next were the battles among the second-year disciples. As for how Jiang Sheng, who possessed the Three Yang Physique, would rank, the four were not too concerned.

Thus, Li Mo found his grand-aunt, Chen Rong, from the Alchemy Hall, and informed her that he was preparing for his assessment tomorrow.

"Alright, wait for my news tomorrow." Li Mo then watched the matches from below for a while longer, learning a lot about combat experience. He could see that many first-year disciples seemed to have been greatly impacted by this assessment, vowing to strive harder.

Compared to the battles between first and second-year disciples, the duels among third-year disciples could be described as giving their all, using every trick in the book. This was because the graduation assessment not only concerned the current assessment rewards but also the future distribution of their respective halls, their specific positions, and their future prospects. Naturally, they had to prepare well and strive for the best. Li Mo also had a feast for his eyes because of this.

Suddenly.

He noticed that one of the combatants in the current match was none other than Tian Fen, who had taught him the summoning of the Thunder Slave. His opponent, a female disciple, seemed to be from a prominent family. Li Mo remembered that when he was watching yesterday, this female disciple had summoned various magical artifacts one after another, and her strength was extraordinary.

As the match began, the two quickly engaged in a fierce battle. Li Mo could almost be certain that the strength of these two was no less than that of the Heavenly Talisman Sect cultivator who had killed the Nine Rivers Thunder Dragon, Zhou Tai. Although Tian Fen's magical artifacts were fewer than the female disciple's, he possessed a complete set of three flying swords, coupled with his endless array of lightning and fire dual-attribute spells. The battle between them was truly spectacular. Tian Fen's cultivation was at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and the female disciple was likely at the same level, making it a clash of titans, evenly matched.

"I wonder when I will possess such strength."

Li Mo felt a pang of envy.

As the battle between the two continued, it seemed to have reached a critical juncture where both sides were at their wit's end. The female cultivator suddenly let out a cold laugh and produced two Spirit Talismans, summoning two majestic stone lions that lunged at Tian Fen from the left and right, their steps shaking the ground with a rumbling sound.

Tian Fen's gaze grew serious.

Immediately after, something seemed to explode within him. Astonishing electrical light burst from his body, his aura instantly surging. To the female cultivator's shocked gaze, Tian Fen rapidly zipped past the two stone lions, his three swords merging into one, and with a single strike, he shattered her umbrella-shaped magical artifact.

With a flash of light from an Evacuation Talisman, the female cultivator appeared outside the barrier.

"You!"

The female cultivator turned to look at Tian Fen within the barrier, still in disbelief.

Tian Fen, on the other hand, knelt on one knee, panting heavily, and greeted her with the posture of a victor.

Below the stage, Li Mo's eyes were nearly bulging out of his head. In that instant, Tian Fen's speed had been incredible, his burst of power immense.

He suddenly recalled that Tian Fen had once said he would teach him the Lightning Techniques if he gathered three hundred Spirit Stones.

Could this be the ability he had just displayed?

The more Li Mo thought about it, the more excited he became, wishing he could gather three hundred Spirit Stones immediately.

However, three hundred Spirit Stones was no small sum. With his mere fourth level of Qi Condensation, it was just a pipe dream.

After a sigh, Li Mo turned and left, preparing for an early rest to conserve his energy for tomorrow's alchemy assessment.