Favoritism, the Hidden Hand!

"Elder, in this test, I opened thirty meridians." Chen Huai'an clenched his fists tightly. They wanted to treat him like thin air? Impossible.

If he let this opportunity slip away without fighting for it, he would waste far too much time. He did not want to do servant tasks. He wanted to focus on cultivating and raising his cultivation.

Only by becoming strong enough and reaching a certain realm would he have the chance to return home, visit his mother, and pay his respects—not toil like an ox or horse on Qingyun Sect's Servant Peak.

"What did you say? You opened thirty meridians?" The elder looked at the furious Chen Huai'an with a face full of mockery.

Elder Tang raised a hand to suppress the enraged Zhang Long, then stared coldly at Chen Huai'an.

"What aptitude do you have?"

"I have a Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root." Chen Huai'an did not conceal it, answering calmly and openly.

Even if he wanted to hide it, he could not.

"Haha... What did I just hear? A Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root? You trash with a Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root managed to open thirty meridians in seven days?" The moment Chen Huai'an finished speaking, several youths in the hall burst into laughter.

Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Roots were acknowledged as the worst Spiritual Roots. Their cultivation speed was even inferior to that of Low-grade Spiritual Roots. Could such a cultivation speed possibly compare to disciples like them, who possessed Mid-grade and High-grade Spiritual Roots?

"You say you have a Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Root. Don't you know that Five Elements Mixed Spiritual Roots are trash Spiritual Roots? With aptitude like yours, forget opening thirty meridians in seven days—even opening one meridian is impossible. Could it be that you can stand shoulder to shoulder with geniuses possessing High-grade Spiritual Roots? You trash, get out of this old man's sight at once, or die." Elder Tang was enraged. A piece of trash actually thought himself a genius and dared to clamour before him.

A terrifying pressure erupted from Elder Tang and bore down upon Chen Huai'an.

Thud!

With a thud, Chen Huai'an could not withstand that sudden, terrifying pressure at all and was instantly pressed flat onto the ground.

Chen Huai'an struggled to rise, but the pressure was like a mountain crushing down on him. Forget getting up—even moving a finger was a distant luxury.

At that moment, Chen Huai'an truly understood what it meant to be an ant.

His strength could be considered somewhat accomplished among his peers, but before these sect elders, he was nothing more than an ant.

No matter how he struggled or leaped about, if they wanted to kill him, they would not even need to move. Releasing the slightest trace of powerful aura would be enough to crush him to death.

The reward for third place in the test was nothing remarkable. Compared to his own life, it was utterly not worth mentioning.

"Elder, I was wrong." Chen Huai'an knew when to yield and when to stand firm. Since the other party was unreasonable, there was no need to provoke him further. He would admit his fault and lower his head first; preserving his life came before all else.

Chen Huai'an spoke those words, "I was wrong," through gritted teeth. He was unwilling in his heart, but before absolute strength, all resistance was futile. Continuing to resist would only bring him humiliation.

"You were wrong? Where were you wrong?" Elder Tang withdrew his pressure and looked at Chen Huai'an with some surprise.

"Elder, I'm just a piece of trash. It's impossible for me to have opened so many meridians. There must have been an error during the test. I won't dare do it again, and I won't fight for it anymore." Chen Huai'an lowered his head deeply.

When beneath another's eaves, one had no choice but to bow one's head. The other party had already formed a preconceived opinion; no amount of explanation would help. Even demanding another test would be useless.

There was definitely something shady going on here. His struggles were useless. Judging by the other party's attitude, he would not believe Chen Huai'an's words, nor was he willing to believe them.

Right now, Chen Huai'an only wanted to leave this place of trouble as quickly as possible.

"At least you know your place." Elder Tang smiled faintly.

"Do any of you still have objections regarding the rankings? If not, those with outstanding results may first choose sect tasks suitable for themselves. This can also be considered a reward from the sect."

After killing the chicken to frighten the monkeys, Elder Tang had established his authority. No one else dared raise the slightest objection. All they could do was obey and accept the arrangements.

Chen Huai'an did not get up. Instead, he lay sprawled on the ground like a dead dog. He knew that everything to come had nothing to do with him.

Although his ranking had been stolen, he had originally possessed priority selection rights. But now that he had questioned the elder's decision, the task-selection privilege would most likely have nothing to do with him.

Lying on the icy floor, Chen Huai'an's heart turned half-cold. What was the law of the jungle? This was the law of the jungle.

In the secular world, if one encountered injustice, one could report it to the authorities and perhaps reclaim some justice for oneself.

But in this lofty world of immortal cultivation, an ordinary person like him did not even have a place to reason things out.

If they wanted to kill him, it truly would be as easy as crushing an ant.

Sure enough, just as Chen Huai'an had expected, everyone who entered the hall received priority rights to choose tasks. All the easy tasks with little work were picked away by them.

As for Chen Huai'an, no one paid attention to him from beginning to end. Only after everyone in the hall had left did he climb up from the ground in a miserable state.

"So this is an elder who has surpassed the Body Tempering Realm. He really is powerful. When will I possess strength like his?" Once Chen Huai'an stepped out of the hall, even the air outside felt fresh.

A sudden feeling arose within him.

Being alive is wonderful.

Inside that hall, he truly had not doubted that the other party might kill him.

His ranking was gone, and so was his priority right to select a task. He truly was unlucky.

Surrounded by several youths, Zhang Long swaggered over to Chen Huai'an.

"Isn't this the great genius Chen, one of the top three in the test? Why do you look like a dog that lost its home?"

"You were the one pulling strings behind the scenes?" Chen Huai'an looked at Zhang Long, a cold glint flashing through his eyes. It was this bastard who had stolen the glory and resources that belonged to him.

"Trash, you can eat recklessly, but you cannot speak recklessly. Be careful not to invite disaster upon yourself." Zhang Long's face was full of ridicule.

"If it wasn't you, then who was it? Let me guess. Was Zhang Hu the one who instructed you to scheme against me?" Chen Huai'an ignored the other's arrogant, smug manner. Right now, he needed to find out whether Elder Tang was deliberately targeting him, or whether someone had been whispering poison behind his back.

Elder Tang was an Outer Sect elder of esteemed status. Chen Huai'an was merely a servant disciple. This was only their second meeting, and he had neither grievances with nor ever offended the man. If Elder Tang was targeting him now, someone must have been wagging their tongue behind the scenes.

And recently, the only person with whom he had a grudge was Zhang Hu. The person who had taken his place was also surnamed Zhang. It was hard not to suspect a connection.

Zhang Long suddenly stepped closer to Chen Huai'an, lowered his voice, and said coldly.

"Kid, if you want someone to blame, blame yourself for not knowing what's good for you and offending someone you shouldn't have offended. Some things do not belong to you. Taking them will only bring you a fatal disaster."

"I refuse to believe that you two brothers can cover the sky with one hand in this sect." Chen Huai'an was certain now. Zhang Hu was the one scheming against him behind the scenes.

At the same time, he understood that the Zhang Family wielded considerable influence within the sect.

With people like them watching him, he had to be more careful.

Though he had been unlucky today and someone had fraudulently taken his ranking, he had not gained nothing at all.

Zhang Hu of the Zhang Family wanted his Spirit Spring Water. He must have either borrowed the power of his Lineage or given Elder Tang substantial benefits. Otherwise, Chen Huai'an could never have left safely today.

Though it was unfair, there were still things within the sect that they feared, things that kept them from acting recklessly.

"Kid, my cousin asked me to pass along a message. Hand over that thing, and you can continue staying in Qingyun Sect. Otherwise, bear the consequences yourself." Zhang Long looked at Chen Huai'an and spoke coldly.