Testing Spiritual Roots

After emerging from the miasma-filled valley, Chen Changming made his way to this remote little village. He gave Uncle Liu, a villager, ten taels of silver in exchange for six months of lodging.

During these three months, his injuries had fully healed.

If it had only been flesh wounds, Chen Changming would have recovered in a month, but the cut from Zhu Fang's blade had been deep, damaging his lungs, which was why it took three months to mend completely.

Throughout this period of recuperation, although Chen Changming practiced the Spirit Armor Art over two thousand times each day, no strange phenomena manifested, and he remained at the peak of the Xiantian realm without any breakthrough in his cultivation base.

It seems that without the aid of Black Gold Stone, it is very difficult to break through in the Spirit Armor Art...

The youth thought to himself.

With this realization, he stopped practicing the Spirit Armor Art so desperately and instead set aside time to study the Heavenly Furnace Body-Refining Technique gifted to him by the great red demon.

This body-refining cultivation method was extremely difficult, even in its introductory stages. After two or three months had passed, Chen Changming had only just managed to grasp the first layer of the technique's incantations.

Perhaps my aptitude is just too poor.

Closing his eyes, the youth gave a self-deprecating smile.

Zhu Fang hadn't been wrong back then; his mixed five-element spiritual root was truly mediocre. Why, it had taken him an entire day just to memorize the circulation path of the Spirit Armor Art.

It was indescribably terrible.

Despite his poor aptitude, the naturally optimistic Chen Changming remained confident in his cultivation.

During these three months, he had also spent some time practicing the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade.

Compared to the Heavenly Furnace Body-Refining Technique, this blade art was much simpler. It took him only a few days to master the essential techniques and perform the full set.

Since the Spirit Armor Art was not easy to break through, Chen Changming devoted most of his energy over the last two months to the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade. With each repetition, his blade technique grew more refined; as he swung, it whistled with the wind, giving him quite the air of a martial arts expert.

Do not forget.

Chen Changming was also at the peak of the Xiantian realm. Now that he had skillfully mastered a blade art, if he were to wander the pugilistic world, this youth who had just turned ten would definitely be considered an expert.

This was the advantage of those with spiritual roots practicing martial arts.

For ordinary people, it was impossible to progress so quickly in martial arts; without decades of hard work, reaching the peak of the Xiantian realm was impossible!

The difference between having a spiritual root and not having one was vast in martial arts—and for cultivators, the difference in cultivation speed between trash spiritual roots and top-tier ones was even greater.

This difference was as vast as the distance between the clouds and the mud!

Practicing at the same time, those with top-tier spiritual roots broke through easily and effortlessly, while those with trash spiritual roots struggled at every turn, finding every step a difficult ordeal.

"Lad, you're at the right age. Do you want to go and give it a try?"

Uncle Liu looked at the honest-looking youth in plain clothes, a gentle smile on his face.

Three months ago, the dark-skinned, gaunt, and blood-covered youth had stumbled into his home, giving him quite a scare. However, after the youth sincerely requested to stay and produced ten taels of silver, he hadn't said anything more.

He only earned two or three taels of silver a year; ten taels were enough to support him for five years of hard labor.

Greed overcame his fear, so Uncle Liu arranged for the heavily injured youth to stay in the west wing. As they interacted more, he discovered that the youth was humble, low-key, and honest. Although he possessed martial arts, he lacked the rough, reckless air of typical wanderers.

Because of this, Uncle Liu felt increasingly at ease.

The relationship between the old man and the youth grew more harmonious, to the point where Uncle Liu eventually began to treat the youth like his own grandson.

Hearing Uncle Liu's words, Chen Changming smiled slightly. "Uncle Liu, that is exactly what I was thinking."

After speaking, he stepped forward and took another ten taels of silver from his cloth bag, personally pressing them into Uncle Liu's hand.

"Uncle Liu..."

Chen Changming's gaze was earnest and held deep meaning.

Uncle Liu felt quite embarrassed, but he still accepted the silver and said with a beaming smile, "Let's go. I'll take you there and just say you're the son of my distant nephew."

"Many thanks, Uncle Liu."

Chen Changming was overjoyed and followed Uncle Liu out of the house.

Ever since he had entered Uncle Liu's home that night, he hadn't stepped out once. Uncle Liu had lost his wife in middle age and had no children of his own; he had very little contact with the villagers, so no one had seen Chen Changming, the stranger, until now.

Having Uncle Liu arrange an identity would make it easier for him to handle any inquiries from the Lingxiao Sect.

The square at the entrance of the village was packed with people. Since the two arrived late, they could only stand at the back.

"Uncle Liu, who is this child?"

A middle-aged woman noticed the unfamiliar face of the youth in plain clothes and asked curiously.

"He's the child of my distant nephew. His family suffered a disaster a while back and he was the only one left, so he came to seek refuge with this old man..."

Uncle Liu sighed.

Seeing Uncle Liu lie so convincingly, Chen Changming secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"This child is truly pitiful."

The middle-aged woman glanced at Chen Changming, her eyes stinging as if she were about to sob. Just then, someone shouted, "The Immortal Master is here!" This caused a commotion among the crowd, and she hurriedly looked toward the distance.

Following the gaze of the crowd, Chen Changming looked as well.

In the distance, where white clouds drifted, a small cyan dot grew larger and larger, eventually transforming into a cyan spirit boat. Two handsome youths in white robes stood at the prow, their sleeves fluttering and long swords strapped to their backs. Their noble temperament made them look like immortals descending from the heavens.

Having already seen powerful figures like the silver-robed woman and the great red bird, Chen Changming's horizons had already been broadened, so he wasn't particularly surprised. Nevertheless, a sense of envy rose in his heart, and he hoped that one day he, too, could roam freely between heaven and earth just like them.

The spirit boat descended above the crowd, and two young men leaped down, standing before the many villagers.

"Greetings, Immortal Masters!"

Countless people bowed and cupped their hands in salute, and some in the front even knelt down.

Faced with this scene, the two Lingxiao Sect disciples remained unfazed, nodding with smiles on their faces. One of them waved his hand, and a silver stone flew out, landing before the crowd.

"Heh..."

The young man waved his hand and said with a smile, "I won't waste time with unnecessary words. Anyone between the ages of seven and ten may come forward to test their spirit roots. As long as a spirit root is detected, you will have the chance to join the Lingxiao Sect."

An old man in the front cupped his hands and bowed, asking in surprise, "Immortal Master, in previous years, wasn't it enough to just test positive for a spirit root to join the Lingxiao Sect? Have the rules changed this year?"

The young man smiled.

"Indeed, they have changed. Recently, there have been many people with spirit roots in various places, and our Lingxiao Sect has limited resources, so we will no longer accept those with low-grade spirit roots..."

"So that is how it is."

The old man looked enlightened, though his expression was somewhat complex.

Chen Changming, standing at the back of the crowd, felt a chill run down his spine. His Five Elements Mixed Spirit Root was the worst in the world. If he didn't produce that token, would he be unable to even step through the gates of the Lingxiao Sect?

"Those with the worst spirit roots can still join the sect, provided they pass the sect's assessment."

Seeming to sense the mood of the villagers, the young man smiled and explained further.

"Fortunately, there is still a chance."

Hearing this, Chen Changming let out a soft, secret sigh. Although he possessed the token that could make him an inner sect disciple directly, he did not want to reveal it unless absolutely necessary.

The youth knew very well that if he used the token to become an inner sect disciple and occupied such a coveted position, he would likely be "remembered and cared for" by countless people. In time, even the higher-ups of the Lingxiao Sect would find him an eyesore.

The silver-robed woman who had looked down on him so disdainfully that day would certainly not become his patron.

Therefore, Chen Changming decided to rely on his own strength to pass the test and successfully enter the Lingxiao Sect.

Just as the youth was lost in his thoughts, the spirit root testing began.

One youth after another failed before the Spirit Testing Stone; not a single one was found to have a spirit root!

"Sigh, the feng shui of your village really is poor. There hasn't been a single one this year..."

Seeing this, both young men wore expressions of disappointment.

As they spoke, Chen Changming walked from the crowd to the Spirit Testing Stone and placed a hand upon it.

The silver Spirit Testing Stone immediately emitted a faint, five-colored glow.

"Five Elements Mixed Spirit Root?"

The two young men exchanged a glance, feeling both amused and frustrated.

The worst spirit root in the world was this Five Elements Mixed Spirit Root, and yet they had actually encountered one.

"Wow, a spirit root!"

Uncle Liu looked pleasantly surprised.

The other villagers also grew excited, whispering among themselves. In the hearts of these simple folk, merely testing positive for a spirit root was already a joyous event of the highest order.

The two young men walked up to Chen Changming and looked him up and down. One of them turned stern, his gaze unkind as he asked, "To be at the peak of the Xiantian realm at such a young age is rare. Have you practiced martial arts?"

"Yes, Immortal Master."

Chen Changming bowed, then drew his steel blade and began to perform the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade.

For a moment, blade light flashed and shadows danced, leaving the surrounding villagers stunned and cheering in succession.

"So it is the Five Tigers Soul-Severing Blade..."

The two young men exchanged a glance, their expressions relaxing. It was a very common martial art in the pugilistic world.