Promotion Ceremony

"Such a pity. Give me ten more days, and I would definitely reach perfection."

Dong Lin shook his head, still unsatisfied.

The three days were up. It was time to head to the Mystic Heaven Hall and attend the promotion ceremony.

The Mystic Heaven Hall stood halfway up Black Mountain, at roughly the same elevation as the Thunder Division.

However, the Mystic Heaven Hall was on the due north side of Black Mountain, while the Thunder Division was on its flank.

The promotion ceremony for direct disciples was one of the few ceremonies held on Black Mountain, with inner sect disciples and outstanding outer sect disciples invited to watch.

Ordinary sect ceremonies were generally held on an open stretch of ground at the foot of the mountain.

The supervisors of each outer sect branch would select outstanding outer sect disciples to attend.

This ceremony allowed inner and outer sect disciples to enter Black Mountain, which was an immense opportunity for ordinary disciples.

Unlike inner sect disciples, who could all attend, the slots for outer sect disciples were determined by the supervisors of their respective branches.

Many outer sect disciples had exhausted every means and fought until their heads bled over a single slot in just a few days.

After all, the concentration of spiritual energy on Black Mountain was immensely beneficial to ordinary cultivators.

Spending even half a day on Black Mountain could save them who knew how many years of bitter cultivation.

Perhaps they could even use that dense, pure spiritual power to break through a bottleneck that had troubled them for years.

Perhaps the sect wanted to restore its disciples' confidence after the mountain closure had just ended and rumors were running rampant.

This ceremony was unprecedented in scale.

Outside the Mystic Heaven Hall, the broad plaza was already filled with sect disciples who had come to observe the ceremony.

Dozens of ceremonial disciples clad in black brocade robes stood upon auspicious clouds, floating three feet above the ground.

They stood solemnly on either side of the hall entrance.

A massive scroll depicting an immortal sect was unfurled behind the Mystic Heaven Hall, wrapping around it. Within the painting were immortal mountains and seas of clouds, cranes crying and pines whispering in the wind.

Mist drifted through the air, and a thick layer of spiritual fog blanketed the entire plaza.

At that moment, Dong Lin felt as though he had entered a true immortal realm.

Dong Lin entered the hall. His master, Zheng Huayuan, was speaking with several Elder Hall elders who were likewise dressed in purple robes.

Today's ceremony was presided over by Sect Master Xuan Sheng.

All of the Elder Hall elders had attended.

It was a grand occasion unseen in the Heaven Sect for a hundred years.

"Who would have thought that this mountain closure would give us old fellows a chance to gather as well?"

"Yes. It has been nearly decades since we last gathered so completely."

"What a pity about Origin Mountain. Such a huge batch of spirit mines was simply handed over.

Do you know how much it cost us to get our hands on them back then?"

Qi Xiuyuan, the deputy hall master of the Law Enforcement Hall who had long been stationed outside, complained bitterly.

Origin Mountain was far from the sect's reach, yet its profits were enormous.

Even as the deputy hall master of the Law Enforcement Hall, he inevitably had certain unsavory interests tied to resource sites far from the sect.

Yet with this mountain closure, all of it had been handed away for nothing.

For such a strategic resource, who knew whether they could successfully seize it back five years later.

Li Huo Heavenly Venerable wore a gilded Dharma robe today, looking every bit the immortal.

Upon the high platform in the center of the plaza, he presided over the ceremony in orderly fashion.

Including Dong Lin, a total of three inner sect disciples were being promoted at this ceremony.

The other two were also standing in the hall, awaiting their investiture.

One was Gu Chen, a swordsmanship prodigy favored by the Fourth Elder.

It was said that he had been born with an innately lucid sword heart and possessed extraordinary talent in the immortal path's sword arts.

At just seventeen, he had already reached the Qi Refining Peak, and his swordsmanship was superbly refined.

Gu Chen stood beside the Fourth Elder, Zheng Lichuan, dressed in a neat blue robe with an iron sword hanging at his waist.

He stood tall and straight, with handsome features and a steadiness between his brows that did not match his age.

The other was Tao Yan, a female cultivator taken in by the Sixth Elder, Bai Suxin. She wore an elegant moon-white robe.

Her features were lovely and clear, and her temperament seemed ethereal and detached from the world.

What Elder Bai had valued in her was also her inborn talent: the Primordial Yin Physique.

Cultivating yin-attributed spells with this physique yielded twice the result with half the effort.

Before even reaching Foundation Establishment, she had already switched to the Profound Yin True Water Art under Elder Bai's arrangements.

In just one year, Tao Yan had returned to the Late Qi Refining Stage after restarting her cultivation with a new art.

At only sixteen, Tao Yan was already far ahead of many immortal cultivators in the prime of her youth.

They are all freakish geniuses favored by heaven, Dong Lin inwardly sighed.

A melodious bell rang out, and the investiture formally began.

"Gu Chen, Dong Lin, and Tao Yan have cultivated diligently, possessed steadfast Dao hearts, and united virtue with conduct. From this day onward, you are promoted to direct disciples. You are granted Black Tier inner sect status, direct disciple jade tokens, and Mystic Nether Robes. May you continue to advance without cease, bring glory to the sect, and never disgrace the name of the Heaven Sect's direct disciples!"

"So direct disciples were promoted straight to Black Tier? Then reaching Foundation Establishment before eighteen was not so necessary after all."

Dong Lin nodded faintly.

Today, the three newly promoted direct disciples would demonstrate their core immortal arts for everyone, in hopes that all would observe and learn carefully.

"They are only at Qi Refining, while most of us below are inner sect disciples in the Foundation Establishment Realm. Isn't this rather lacking in reference value?"

An inner sect disciple in the Foundation Establishment Realm quietly voiced his doubts.

"Direct disciples are direct disciples for a reason. They naturally have their own exceptional qualities. Just watch carefully."

"We get to witness Senior Brother Gu's exquisitely brilliant swordsmanship again!"

"Junior Brother Gu, who took first place in the last outer sect competition? He truly has some skill."

"Junior Sister Tao's Heavenly Yin Water Arrows are extraordinarily sinister. The last time I sparred with her, she shattered my Azure Wood Shield Technique at the Foundation Establishment level with three arrows."

"She can break a Foundation Establishment-level shield technique? Then that is indeed worth watching."

"There is also Dong Lin. Does anyone know him?"

"Never heard of him."

"I have not heard of him either."

"I think he is from our Second Division. I saw him once while attending lessons at the Immortal Arts Hall."

"How strong is he?"

"I never saw him in the outer sect, and I have never seen him make a move. Hard to say."

Gu Chen was the first to demonstrate.

On the constructed demonstration platform stood a mannequin wearing a high-grade Black Tier defensive artifact. Even without spiritual power activating it, it possessed defensive strength comparable to the Early Foundation Establishment Stage.

This ensured that it would not suffer serious damage during the demonstration.

Gu Chen stood still for a moment and closed his eyes.

One breath, then two.

His black sword left its sheath. With a turn of his wrist, sword light flashed with chilling sharpness.

The sword shadows split into over a hundred flickering streaks, moving so quickly they blurred.

Every so often, one or two Sword Qi streams filled with profound intent shot forth from his blade.

The mannequin instantly became like a small boat tossed about amid wind and waves, swaying violently in every direction.

In only a few breaths, more than a dozen deep gashes appeared on its armor.

"Excellent!"

"Brother Chen is amazing!"

Thunderous applause erupted below the stage. Every disciple was stunned by Gu Chen's exquisite swordsmanship.

Gu Chen remained expressionless. He gave Sect Master Xuan a slight bow, then leaped down from the platform.

Tao Yan immediately followed, leaping onto the platform.

With a wave of Profound Yin energy, she alternated between icy rain and sharp arrows, freezing the mannequin until it became stiff and rigid.

Finally, she used a fire art. Ice and fire struck together, shattering the protective mirror on the armor's breastplate.

Terrifying indeed. In terms of sustained attacks against a stationary target, this girl's offensive power was at least comparable to that of an ordinary Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivator.

When it was Dong Lin's turn to take the stage, even he had no clear measure of his own strength. He only vaguely felt that his lightning arts could rival those of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

As for exactly how powerful they were, that still depended on the circumstances.

At that moment, he was on Black Mountain. Slightly farther up was the spiritual mist that shrouded the mountainside.

The interior of the Mystic Heaven Hall was not exposed to the outside world, yet no matter how Dong Lin sensed it, the sky here was no different from the sky outside.

After all, to cast the Mystic Spirit Heavenly-Thunder with the lightning art he had mastered, he had to be in an open area.

If he were inside an enclosed room or cave, then with Dong Lin's current strength, it would be almost impossible for him to unleash this lightning art.

Perhaps that was the marvel of this immortal artifact.