Choosing a Sect

"The second round: live combat."

Zhao Tieshan pointed toward the ten arenas in the center of the plaza.

"Pair up and spar. Those who perform well will earn the sect's favor. Now, draw lots to determine your opponents."

Lin Ye drew the number three arena, and his opponent was a tall, thin youth at the third level of Body Tempering named Wang Hu.

"Lin Ye, sorry about this."

Wang Hu grinned, "Even though we have no grudge, I cannot afford to lose this match."

Lin Ye nodded, "Understood."

The two of them stepped onto the arena.

A crowd had gathered around the arena, including Zhou Ming, who stood with his arms crossed, looking as if he were waiting for a good show.

"Begin!"

Zhao Tieshan gave the order.

Wang Hu let out a low shout and struck first.

He also practiced the first three forms of the basic fist manual, aiming a punch directly at Lin Ye's face.

Lin Ye dodged to the side, his gaze calm.

In his eyes, Wang Hu's fist technique was full of openings.

He did not want to reveal his strength too early, so he simply circled around casually.

He intentionally exposed flaws, letting Wang Hu nearly succeed several times, which drew gasps from the crowd below.

"He really is a piece of trash."

Zhou Ming sneered aloud.

On the arena, Lin Ye figured it was about time, found an opening, and slammed a Mountain Crushing Force into Wang Hu's chest.

"Bang!"

Wang Hu retreated three steps and fell to the ground, his face turning pale.

"Lin Ye wins!"

Zhao Tieshan announced.

Lin Ye helped Wang Hu up and whispered, "I accept your concession."

Wang Hu gave a bitter smile, "You held back on that punch just now, didn't you?"

Lin Ye smiled but didn't answer.

In the following matches, he did the same thing, winning every round "narrowly" to advance to the next stage.

The sneers from below gradually faded.

"This kid has some tricks."

On the high platform, the beautiful woman in red from the Chiyan Sect raised an eyebrow.

"Just lucky."

The middle-aged man in black robes from the Heishui Fortress snorted coldly.

Only the elder from the Qingyun Sect took a look at Lin Ye.

The competition continued.

Lin Ye appeared to be in danger at every turn, yet he fought steadily and managed to break into the top ten.

Zhou Ming, relying on his fourth level of Body Tempering cultivation, advanced with ease.

"The final round: the top ten ranking battles."

Zhao Tieshan's voice rang out once more.

"The rules are simple: two people fight, the winner advances, and the loser is eliminated. Now, draw your lots."

Lin Ye drew the number two lot.

His opponent was one of the favorites to win the entire assessment.

"It's over, Lin Ye's luck has finally run out."

"Li Yan is at the fifth level of Body Tempering, and his Kaishan Palm is practiced to perfection; he even shattered the wooden training dummy at the martial arts hall last time."

"It's already impressive that he made it to the top ten, considering he's only at the third level of Body Tempering!"

Lin Ye remained calm as he walked onto the arena.

Li Yan was waiting on the stage; he was a head taller than Lin Ye, his body covered in knotted muscles.

"Lin Ye, it was luck that you made it to the top ten."

Li Yan said in a muffled voice, "But this is where it ends. Just admit defeat yourself, so you don't get hurt."

Lin Ye shook his head: "Please, enlighten me."

Li Yan frowned: "Then don't blame me."

As soon as the words fell, he took a step forward, and the arena trembled.

"Kaishan Palm!"

His palm struck out, the wind of the blow whistling with the faint momentum of splitting mountains and cracking rocks.

He couldn't take this head-on.

Lin Ye's eyes narrowed.

He shifted his feet, his figure sliding away like a swimming fish.

"Huh?"

Li Yan's palm missed, and he was slightly stunned.

He hadn't expected Lin Ye to be able to dodge.

"Again!"

Li Yan let out a low roar, his palms striking out in quick succession, layers of palm shadows sealing off all of Lin Ye's retreat paths.

This time, Lin Ye did not dodge.

He took a deep breath, lowered his waist, and slowly pulled his right fist back to his side.

Starting with the stance of Mountain Crushing Force, his fist momentum shifted, transitioning from Mountain Crushing Force to Layered Wave Force, and then to the fifth form he had deduced: Army Breaking Force.

"Ha!"

Lin Ye threw a punch.

Fist and palm collided head-on!

"Bang—!"

Li Yan felt as if he had been struck by a heavy hammer; he retreated three steps, his blood surging.

Lin Ye only retreated one step, standing firmly.

The entire arena was deathly silent.

Third stage of Body Tempering, clashing with the fifth stage of Body Tempering and remaining undefeated?!

"This..."

Zhou Ming widened his eyes, unable to believe it.

On the high platform, several sect representatives also sat up straight.

"That punch just now..." A beautiful woman from the Chiyan Sect had a flash of brilliance in her eyes: "Three forms linked together, the force stacking up; this kid's understanding of fist techniques..."

The middle-aged man in the black robe also nodded slightly: "Although his cultivation is low, his combat awareness is excellent."

Elder Xu finally opened his eyes completely, and the gaze he directed at Lin Ye held a hint of interest.

On the arena, Li Yan shook his numb arm, his expression turning grave.

"I underestimated you."

He said in a deep voice: "Next, I will use my full strength."

Lin Ye did not speak, simply settling into his stance.

"Mountain Splitting, Rock Cracking!"

Li Yan roared, his muscles bulging as he struck out with a palm; the wind of the blow faintly took on a physical form, accompanied by a piercing sound of breaking air.

This was the ultimate move of the Kaishan Palm, said to be able to split mountains and crack rocks when practiced to the extreme.

Lin Ye's eyes narrowed.

He could only meet attack with attack.

His thoughts raced, the blood in his body surging as he layered the forces of Mountain Crushing Force, Layered Wave Force, and Army Breaking Force, finally fusing them into the sixth form he had deduced: Sun Piercing Force.

This form, concentrating all his strength into a single point, was his strongest move to date.

"Come!"

Lin Ye did not retreat but advanced instead, throwing a punch.

Fist and palm collided violently!

"Boom—!!"

A thunderous explosion rang out, and the shockwave kicked up a cloud of dust.

The dust settled.

Lin Ye stood on the arena, blood at the corner of his lips, his momentum undiminished.

Li Yan collapsed to the ground, having completely lost his ability to fight.

"I lost," Li Yan said bitterly.

"I concede."

Lin Ye wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and stepped down from the ring.

The crowd below was deathly silent.

Everyone stared at the youth in simple cloth robes, their eyes filled with complex emotions.

Body Tempering Third Level, defeating a Body Tempering Fifth Level opponent by skipping two stages?

"This child, my Chiyan Sect wants him!" The beautiful woman in red stood up abruptly.

"Bullshit, he should join my Heishui Fortress!" The middle-aged man in black robes retorted immediately.

The representatives from Tiejian Villa and Jindao Sect exchanged glances and shook their heads with bitter smiles. They knew that a genius like this would never fall to them.

Only Elder Xu of the Qingyun Sect remained silent.

Zhao Tieshan took a deep breath and announced, "Lin Ye wins, advancing to the top five."

In the following matches, Lin Ye won two more, ultimately placing third.

First place went to Zhou Ming, who was lucky enough not to encounter any Body Tempering Fifth Level opponents; relying on decent martial arts and a mortal-grade longsword, he secured the top spot.

Second place was a Body Tempering Fifth Level youth named Chen Feng, whose swordsmanship was fierce.

"The assessment is over."

Zhao Tieshan announced loudly, "Now, will the representatives of the major sects please select their disciples."

The beautiful woman from the Chiyan Sect was the first to stand up, looking at Lin Ye: "Lin Ye, are you willing to join my Chiyan Sect? I guarantee you will be an inner disciple the moment you enter."

The middle-aged man in black robes also stood up: "My Heishui Fortress can offer you the position of a core disciple, with cultivation techniques and medicinal pills at your disposal."

The crowd below erupted in an uproar.

Inner disciple! Core disciple!

For a youth from Qingshi Town, this was a dream treatment.

Everyone looked at Lin Ye, their eyes filled with envy.

Zhou Ming gritted his teeth; he had taken first place, yet no one had even spoken to him!

Lin Ye, however, remained silent.

He was waiting.

Waiting for the Qingyun Sect to speak.

Sure enough, Elder Xu of the Qingyun Sect slowly stood up and looked at Lin Ye: "Are you willing to join my Qingyun Sect?"

"To join the Qingyun Sect, you must start as an outer disciple. If you cannot break through to the True Qi Realm within three years, you will be expelled from the sect."

Another uproar broke out below.

An outer disciple? And he had to break through to the True Qi Realm in three years?

These terms were far worse than those of the Chiyan Sect and Heishui Fortress.

The beautiful woman from the Chiyan Sect laughed: "Elder Xu, the rules of your Qingyun Sect are too strict. Lin Ye, come to my Chiyan Sect, and I guarantee you will reach the True Qi Realm within five years."

The middle-aged man in black robes added, "My Heishui Fortress offers the same."

Everyone assumed Lin Ye would choose the Chiyan Sect or Heishui Fortress.

But Lin Ye looked at Elder Xu: "Does the Qingyun Sect have stronger cultivation techniques?"

A flash of appreciation crossed Elder Xu's eyes: "The Qingyun Sect possesses three profound-grade techniques, nine spirit-grade techniques, and countless mortal-grade techniques. But how much you can learn depends on your own ability."

Lin Ye took a deep breath, cupped his hands, and bowed.

"Disciple Lin Ye is willing to join the Qingyun Sect."

The entire arena fell silent.

Zhou Ming widened his eyes, looking at Lin Ye as if he were an idiot.

The beautiful woman from the Chiyan Sect frowned: "Lin Ye, have you thought this through? The treatment for an outer disciple of the Qingyun Sect is not as good as being an inner disciple of my Chiyan Sect."

The middle-aged man in black robes also said, "Are you confident you can reach the True Qi Realm in three years?"

Lin Ye straightened his back, his gaze calm.

What he wanted was never preferential treatment, but stronger techniques and a higher ceiling.

Only the Qingyun Sect was worthy of his ambition.

Elder Xu finally revealed a faint smile: "Good. Follow me back to the sect in three days."

He paused, then looked at Zhou Ming and Chen Feng: "Are you two willing to join the outer sect of my Qingyun Sect?"

Zhou Ming was overjoyed and nodded quickly: "I am! I am!"

Chen Feng also cupped his hands: "I am willing."

Elder Xu nodded and selected seven other youths who had performed well, making a total of ten, and stopped there.

The other sects also selected their respective disciples.

"Once I reach the Qingyun Sect, there will be even more techniques."

A glimmer of anticipation flashed in Lin Ye's eyes. He looked at the striking golden number, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

201 points in hand.

Qingyun Sect, wait for me.