Lin'an City's sycamore leaves have fallen and grown, grown and fallen again. Now it is the second year that Zhou Qi has lived in Yang Residence.
In the past two years, no one has been looking for trouble.
The remnants of the Wang Family have scattered, and those small and medium-sized Lineage who once relied on the Wang Family have come to apologize and beg Yang Zhenshan to show their kindness.
Yang Zhenshan did not kill them all, but only took over their shops and some spiritual fields.
In the past two years, Zhou Qi has almost never left the yard.
Get up at 9 o'clock every day, sit cross-legged and meditate, and run <Golden Core Cultivation Manual·Part 1>.
Very occasionally I go out, just for a walk in the Yang Residence back garden, or to eat a bowl of noodles at the city gate.
The servants in the courtyard changed twice, but everyone who was assigned to serve him knew one rule: when Mr. Zhou was in retreat, he was not allowed to knock on the door even if the sky fell.
In the past two years, Zhou Qi's proficiency has not stopped for a day.
Ten hours a day, unstoppable
With his strength, he no longer needs to sleep, it's just his body getting used to it, and he has to lie down for a short while every day.
Today's Zhou Qi is Golden Core, Third-Layer Peak.
The proficiency level has also accumulated to more than 500,000 points.
The Golden Core Realm in the dantian is a whole circle larger than it was two years ago, with golden light flowing all over the body and slowly rotating.
With each turn, strands of golden Spiritual Qi emanate from the elixir body and flow along the meridians to the limbs and bones.
There seems to be a trace of Daoism hidden in it.
At this moment, he was standing in the courtyard with his hands behind his back.
Yesterday Yang Zhenshan sent someone to notify Great Yong Dynasty that registration for the 365th Ascension Selection Grand Ceremony has begun.
Zhou Qi has been waiting for Lin'an City for two years, and finally the day has come.
Three days later, Yongjing.
The city gate is still the same city gate, towering like a mountain and stretching for dozens of miles.
But it's far more lively than it was two years ago.
Zhou Qi was riding on the horse and saw a long queue at the city gate from a distance.
There were load bearers, cart drivers, donkey pullers, and horse riders, all kinds of people crowded around, at least 30% more than the last time we came.
The guard guarding the gate looked at the road signs much faster than usual, and his eyes were not as lazy as before.
Because many of the people in line were monks with strong auras, they did not dare to neglect them.
Zhou Qi handed him the road guide. The soldier glanced at him, then looked up at him, and waved his hand to let him go.
After entering the city, he first found an inn to stay.
The inn is in the south of the city, not far from the registration place.
There are dozens of rooms in the third courtyard, all of which are occupied by people from all over the country who came to participate in the selection.
The hall was full of monks, some were talking loudly, some were discussing in low voices, and some were sitting alone in the corner, closing their eyes and meditating.
Zhou Qi asked for an upper room, put down his luggage, and went out.
The registration site is in a newly opened square in the south of the city.
The square is very large, a hundred feet square, and is surrounded by wooden fences, leaving only one entrance and one exit.
There were several queues at the entrance, with twenty or thirty people in each queue, and the order was quite orderly.
The outside of the square was full of people watching the excitement. There were three floors inside and three floors outside. There were crowds of people and chatter and discussions.
"Did you see that? The one in white is the genius from the Liu Family in the north. It is said that Foundation Establishment, Sixth Layer!"
"What is the sixth floor? The young master who just passed by, Zhao Family to the west, Foundation Establishment, Seventh Layer!"
"Tsk tsk, they are all big shots..."
Zhou Qi stood outside the crowd and glanced at the registration site.
There were several tables at the entrance, and behind each table sat an old man who looked like an examiner, checking the applicants' information one by one.
Next to the table stands a stone as tall as a person, which is translucent and has runes faintly flowing inside - Spirit-Testing Stone.
There is also a huge stone in the center of the square, which is translucent and has runes faintly flowing inside. It is Spirit-Testing Stone.
The surface of Spirit-Testing Stone is engraved with dense scale lines, from "1st beginning" to "9th peak", a total of twenty-seven levels.
That's for formal testing.
The registration process is very simple: first hand in the directions and report your identity, the examiner will record the basic information, and then go to Spirit-Testing Stone and inject Spiritual Power with all your strength. The height the light beam reaches is your strength.
The examiner will announce the result on the spot, and if you pass, you will be registered and Token will be issued.
Zhou Qi walked to the end of the line and stood still.
There were seven or eight people lined up in front, most of them middle-aged people in their thirties, wearing various brocade robes, with jade pendants and long swords hanging on their waists. At first glance, they were the children of the Aristocratic Clan.
They knew each other and were talking quietly.
"Brother Zhang, what state have you reached?"
"Ashamed, I just broke through Foundation Establishment, Fourth Layer. Where is Brother Li?"
"Foundation Establishment, Sixth Layer Middle Stage, try to get into the top ten this time."
"Top ten? I heard there are a few ruthless people this year. The one Su Family in the north is Su Wenyuan. It is said that he is already Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer..."
"Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer? What's better than that? Just give it away..."
Zhou Qi listened to a few words and roughly judged that this class of students was not very good.
It's guaranteed to be delivered to all eight floors.
The queue was not long, and people in front came forward one by one to report information, measure Spiritual Power, and receive Token.
When it was the turn of the young man in brocade clothes in front of him, Zhou Qi took another look.
The man was in his early twenties, with a face like a crown of jade, a white brocade robe, and a green jade pendant hanging around his waist.
He walked up to Spirit-Testing Stone, took a deep breath, and pressed his palm on the groove.
Spiritual Power injection.
The light beam rose from the bottom at an extremely fast speed, breaking through Foundation Establishment, First Layer, the second floor, the third floor... and then stopped only at Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer.
The whole place was in an uproar.
"Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer!"
"So young? Whose genius is he?"
"I don't know... I've never seen it..."
The young man in brocade retracted his hand with a calm expression, as if he had already anticipated the outcome.
The examiner glanced at him, made a note in the book, and handed over a piece of Token.
Zhou Qi Looking at that back, I always felt that it looked familiar.
The body shape, posture, walking pace... it looks like I've seen it somewhere before.
He stared at it and swept over it silently.
System Panel pops up:
[Name: Xiao Huo]
[Realm: Foundation Establishment, Eighth Layer (peak)]
[Remarks: I am blessed with great luck, the son of destiny]
Zhou Qi The corners of his mouth raised slightly.
Xiao Huo?
No wonder I dared to show my true face to others, but it turned out that I had changed my face.
The destined son who was robbed by him at Black Market two years ago at Cultivation Method.
At that time, it was only Foundation Establishment, Second Layer. In two years, it jumped to Foundation Establishment, Eighth-Layer Peak. This speed is really amazing.
So scary.
Zhou Qi withdrew his gaze and said nothing.
His face was not covered, but when Black Market and Xiao Huo fought two years ago, his face was covered with a cloth, so the other side probably couldn't recognize him.
Sure enough, when Xiao Huo passed by Spirit-Testing Stone, his eyes swept across the queue, and naturally passed by Zhou Qi without stopping for a moment.
It's Zhou Qi's turn.
He walked to the table. The examiner was an old man named Foundation Establishment, Ninth Layer. He had gray hair and was wearing a pair of reading glasses. He was looking down at the roster.
Zhou Qi has never seen this person before. He should be the person brought to the test by the Immortal Sect's messenger.
"Name?"
"Zhou Qi."
"Where are you from?"
"Lin'an City."
"Lu Yin."
Zhou Qi hand it over to the road.
The old man took it, glanced at it, looked up at him again, and made a few notes in the book.
"What realm?"
Zhou Qi thought for a while and said, "Foundation Establishment, Ninth Layer."