Sect Hierarchy

The Fu Family was truly detestable—arrogant and spiteful...

The old Daoist could not afford to provoke them, but he could afford to avoid them!

Before long, all eight groups had finished being tested.

Out of five or six hundred people, one hundred and twenty were ultimately retained.

The eliminated candidates were all taken away by the blue-robed disciples and sent out of the mountain gate.

The remaining people lined up again and gathered together.

Among them, only Yu Yunyi and Fu Chao possessed supreme-grade spiritual roots; twelve had high-grade spiritual roots; the rest were people like Li Yunjing.

Very soon, disciples of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect took them away according to their respective cultivation levels and spiritual root attributes.

Prodigies such as Yu Yunyi and Fu Chao were naturally taken away personally by the old Daoist.

The treatment afforded to True Disciples was beyond comparison with that of ordinary disciples.

Watching Yu Yunyi leave, Li Yunjing shook his head slightly, then cast that lovely figure from his mind.

The cultivation world was even more realistic than the mortal world.

Without ability, one should not indulge in wishful thinking.

For now, the most important matter was to gain a foothold among the menial disciples and quickly learn everything about the cultivation world.

What he lacked was the foundation of cultivation. Compared to the others entering the sect, he was far too far behind.

At the very least, he had to catch up to the others before he could think about anything more.

Li Yunjing would never do something as lofty in ambition yet feeble in ability as setting his sights too high.

From the moment he entered the sect, he would have to chase down and surpass his fellow disciples of the same generation.

Only after accomplishing this step could he hope for more.

There was no need to think too much about everything. He would keep his feet on the ground and take things one step at a time.

What Li Yunjing did not know was that his spiritual roots had been changing all along...

The power of that "Creation Divine Thunder" had been continuously transforming him.

This was an all-encompassing evolution.

Before obtaining this fortuitous opportunity, Li Yunjing's spiritual roots had merely been low-grade, their radiance less than three inches long.

Yet after only one day, his spiritual roots had broken through a level and become mid-grade spiritual roots.

How far they would reach in the future was beyond imagining.

Moreover, beyond his Five Elements Spiritual Root, Li Yunjing had awakened another faint spiritual root.

This spiritual root carried the power of lightning.

It was simply too faint; even the Stone Mirror of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect had been unable to detect it.

The emergence of the Thunder Spirit Root would bring Li Yunjing even more possibilities in the future.

The True Disciples, Inner Disciples, and Outer Disciples were selected and left with the disciples of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect.

Only thirty menial disciples remained on the plaza.

A gray-robed Daoist stepped out and swept his expressionless gaze over everyone present.

"Menial disciples, follow me!"

Upon hearing this, everyone remained silent and followed him away from the plaza.

Beyond this circular plaza were eight roads, all paved with cobblestones.

Li Yunjing and the others followed the gray-robed Daoist onto the western road.

Along the way, Li Yunjing felt rather dizzy.

They twisted and turned through countless pavilions, towers, and gardens. After a full hour, the group finally followed the gray-robed Daoist to the front of a palace.

The plaque above this palace bore three large characters: "Menial Hall"!

This Menial Hall was where menial disciples were assigned.

At this moment, more than a dozen Daoists clad in gray Dao robes stood on the plaza before the Menial Hall, their gazes exceptionally sharp and keen.

These people had come to receive the newly arrived disciples and were responsible for assigning work to these newcomers.

When Li Yunjing's group stepped onto the plaza, these people began sizing up the newcomers.

They were looking to see which of these oxen and horses could work the hardest, so they could swiftly make their choices later!

"Wait here!"

The gray-robed Daoist who had brought Li Yunjing and the others here gave the order coldly.

Then he strode quickly toward the side entrance of the palace ahead.

"Bang!"

Not long afterward, the two great doors of the Menial Hall slowly opened.

Two young Daoists in Blue Dao Robes emerged. After glancing at the newly initiated menial disciples outside, they called out loudly, "Line up properly. All of you, come in."

Clearly, aside from the actual stewards, the specific affairs of the Menial Hall were all handled by Outer Disciples.

Everyone remained silent and filed in according to the Outer Disciples' instructions.

Within a dim hall, several middle-aged Daoists with imposing auras sat in chairs. Every one of them possessed a presence more powerful than Steward Li's had been.

Clearly, these Daoists were Foundation Establishment experts.

They were all stewards of the Divine Firmament Dao Sect.

Within the Divine Firmament Dao Sect's power structure, aside from the four ranks of disciples, there was also the Dao Protector Army, responsible for waging war in all directions. Above the Dao Protector Army were the sect stewards, who handled specific affairs.

The minimum requirement for a steward was cultivation in the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Above the stewards were the elders and the Sect Leader.

Those were lofty positions that could only be held by those in the Golden Core Realm. These Golden Core ancestors either controlled a mountain peak and led a hall, or were responsible for commanding the Dao Protector Army.

Above the ordinary duties, the Divine Firmament Dao Sect also had the mysterious Grand Elder Council.

That place was filled with great cultivators of the Nascent Soul Realm.

They were the foundation that allowed the Divine Firmament Dao Sect to command the Southern Heaven Continent.

Such figures could roam the world for thousands of years. They were genuine earthly immortals.

Nascent Soul Realm cultivators no longer concerned themselves with the sect's specific affairs.

These great figures each cultivated in seclusion within secret realms of the Divine Firmament Mountain Range, seeking to break through their realms and gain even longer lives.

Entering the cultivation world did not mean becoming immortal.

Every realm was a struggle against heaven.

Qi Refining Realm cultivators could live for at most a little over two hundred years. Of course, one's exact lifespan depended on cultivation level, cultivation technique, and whether one had consumed any spirit pills or heavenly treasures.

In short, Qi Refining Realm cultivators could generally reach a lifespan of two hundred years.

Foundation Establishment cultivators, meanwhile, could live for four or five hundred years.

Golden Core ancestors could live for a thousand years or eight hundred more. At such a realm, they could already look down upon the world, sitting back to watch clouds gather and disperse, and the world change.

Above that was the Nascent Soul Realm.

At that realm, one could live for at least three thousand years, and perhaps even five or six thousand years.

Within the Divine Firmament Dao Sect, the number of Nascent Soul Realm cultivators had always been a secret.

This was the sect's greatest secret. Even the Sect Leader could not know the exact number.

"Brother Li, do you see any outstanding talents among this batch of disciples?"

At this moment, these Foundation Establishment stewards began examining the newly arrived disciples. One middle-aged man asked.

"I think this batch of disciples is quite good."

"I heard there are several promising seedlings who can advance to the outer sect, but advancing into the Foundation Establishment Realm will likely be somewhat difficult."

A middle-aged man wearing a Water-Fire Dao Robe smiled.

The Water-Fire Dao Robe on his body was clearly a magical treasure. Wisps of water-cloud mist curled around it, crimson light shining from within and making him look like one of the Gods and Devils.