Five Years Passed, the Mountain Gates Opened Wide!

Let us drink and sing, for life is short.

The wind blows bleakly, five years have passed in vain.

Cultivating immortality transcends time; life flows like fallen petals on flowing water...

The thunderclouds Purple Firmament Peak were thicker than they had been five years ago, with thunder rumbling and lightning Lei Ming. The purple-gold lightning, like a raging dragon, rolled and roamed within the clouds, day after day.

Every now and then, lightning strikes, luring the lightning-struck stone forest.

The Thunder Pool grew ever wider, its waters thick as mercury, a deep purple like paste, exuding a chilling aura of destruction...

Around the Thunder Pool, many thunder- Spirit Plant grew, radiating life energy.

In the stone forest, a group of thunder-elemental bear demons lay coiled, inhaling and exhaling thunderous energy.

Not only that.

The peaks of White Cloud Temple also reveal a new atmosphere.

Compared to five years ago, the White Cloud Temple has undergone a complete transformation.

The Great Maple Mountain Range and Clear Wind Mountain Range have completely merged, their earth veins are connected, flowers, grasses and spiritual trees grow wildly, and all kinds of spiritual energy converge and blend, making it a treasure land.

The 800-li Beast Pasturing Mountain has become the largest resource treasure trove for White Cloud Temple.

Demon Beast, spirit medicine, and mineral veins continuously transformed into Spirit Stone, filling the sect's treasury and making White Cloud Temple grow ever stronger!

Meanwhile, the Zhao Clan family, relying on its management of Beast Pasturing Mountain, regrouped and added two Foundation Establishment cultivators within five years.

It gradually regained some of its former glory.

The Sun Clan, on the other hand, was secretly exerting their influence.

The Blood Sha Sect's covert operations are like maggots clinging to bones in Fenghe Commandery.

For five years, Fenghe Sect has remained secluded, leaving the mortal cities and Rogue Cultivator markets under its jurisdiction riddled with holes from White Cloud Temple's infiltration.

Even the immortal seedlings of the Fenghe Sect were secretly lured and sent to White Cloud Commandery.

As one thing declined while another rose, White Cloud Temple ushered in its unprecedented prosperity in a century.

In front of the main peak gate of the Cloud Sword Mountain Range.

Today is the once-in-a-decade opening ceremony for disciples at White Cloud Temple.

The white jade steps stretch from the foot of the mountain to the halfway point, where tens of thousands of ordinary teenagers and children gather, creating a bustling and noisy scene.

Some young, Rogue Cultivator even hoped to use this opportunity to make a living.

Compared to previous years, the number of participants this year has more than doubled.

Thirty percent of them were refugees and Rogue Cultivator who spoke with the Fenghe Commandery accent.

With the Fenghe Sect closing its mountain, its control over the mortal world has weakened considerably. Coupled with the secret guidance of the White Cloud Temple, these aspiring cultivators flocked to White Cloud Commandery like rivers flowing into the sea.

At the end of the steps is a spacious white jade plaza.

In the center of the square stands a three-zhang-tall Spirit Stone.

A young man dressed in a light blue outfit with cloud patterns stood with his hands behind his back beside the monument. He was tall and straight, with handsome features and a calm and composed demeanor. A longsword with a sheath hung at his waist...

A giant ice bear, the size of a calf, lay at my feet.

Now, Sun Chengzu is seventeen years old and has reached the Qi Refining Ninth Layer. Five years have washed away the childishness on his face.

Standing here, he is like Shan Yue.

The dozens of disciples maintaining order around them all wore expressions of awe.

"Senior Brother, the time has come."

A disciple stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and called out "Senior Brother" with complete sincerity; among the younger generation of White Cloud Temple, no one could surpass him in this respect...

"Open the mountain gate and welcome disciples."

Sun Chengzu's voice was gentle, yet it clearly reached the ears of everyone in the square.

The grand formation at the mountain gate suddenly activated.

The clouds and mist dispersed, revealing a long staircase leading to the heavens.

"Quiet!"

Sun Chengzu's gaze swept across the crowd below, and the noisy sea of people instantly fell silent.

"Stepping onto these steps severed ties with the mortal world. Those with weak wills, retreat; those with treacherous intentions, retreat; those who are weak and sickly, retreat."

He raised his hand and waved it, and the eyes of several stone lion puppets at the edge of the square lit up with red light, emitting a faint pressure that enveloped the long steps.

"Climb the steps!"

Tens of thousands of children and young people began to climb.

Some people were overwhelmed by the puppet's oppressive aura after taking only a few steps and collapsed to the ground; others gritted their teeth and persevered, only to collapse from exhaustion halfway through.

Cultivating immortality is like a thousand troops crossing a single-plank bridge.

Sun Chengzu watched quietly. He had seen life and death, and his heart was as firm as Boulder. But when he saw several ragged children, their feet covered in blood blisters, desperately clinging to the stone steps and climbing upwards...

A barely perceptible hint of admiration flashed in his eyes.

One hour later.

Of the tens of thousands of people, fewer than two thousand made it to Baiyu Square.

"The spirit test begins," Sun Chengzu ordered.

The disciples guided the children to line up and place their hands on the spirit-testing stele.

"No Spirit Root, descend the mountain."

"Five Spirit Roots, a menial disciple."

"Four Spirit Roots, outer disciple."

The monotonous announcements echoed across the square, vividly illustrating the cruelty of the cultivation world...

Without Spirit Root, one doesn't even qualify to stay and work as a handyman.

At this moment, more than twenty children walked up to the stone tablet. They were dressed in the same clothes and looked nervous. These were the children sent by the Sun Clan's mortal lineage.

The fact that they've made it this far proves that they possess Higher Vehicle character and temperament!

Sun Chengzu's eyes flickered slightly. Coming from the Sun Clan, he naturally hoped that his Lineage could produce more outstanding talents.

Just then, a chubby-faced boy stepped forward and placed his hand on the stone tablet.

Three beams of light shone on the monument: red, yellow, and blue.

"Fire, Earth, Wood —Three Spirit Roots! Enter the inner sect!" the disciple in charge of announcing shouted.

Upon hearing this, the boy's eyes lit up, and he jumped up excitedly, bowing deeply to Sun Chengzu: "Greetings, Cousin Chengzu!"

Sun Chengzu nodded slightly. "Go register at the inner gate, don't be negligent."

Next, the ordinary disciples of the Sun Clan stepped forward one after another for testing. In the end, seven people were found to have Spirit Root, including two with Three Spirit Roots and five with Four Spirit Roots.

Average qualifications.

Sun Chengzu was not surprised. The birth rate of Spirit Root was extremely low. Among so many children of the right age, the fact that two had Three Spirit Roots was already a blessing from their ancestors.

These seven individuals will be the fresh blood of the Sun Clan's future.

Furthermore, they will be placed on various peaks of White Cloud Temple.

Testing continues.

Suddenly, the spirit-testing stele burst forth with a dazzling light.

Two beams of light shot into the sky, shining brightly against each other. For a moment, the entire venue fell silent. Even the Foundation Establishment elders who were watching the ceremony on the high platform all stood up to look at them.

"Dual Spirit Roots of water and fire!"

"Dual Spirit Roots of water and wood!"

Standing in front of the spirit-testing Spirit Stone tablet were a pair of twins, a boy and a girl.

The older brother's hand was still pressed on the monument, his face full of confusion, while the younger sister clung tightly to her brother's clothes, looking around timidly.

"A promising talent!"

A streak of cyan sword light descended from the sky and landed on the plaza.

He was a Foundation Establishment elder of the Yun Clan. Upon seeing two promising talents, he disregarded all decorum and immediately wanted to take them under his wing.

"I, Cloud Sword Peak, want these two little children!"

Immediately afterwards, another burst of fire fell, and the Foundation Establishment elder of the Zhao Clan arrived.

"Nonsense! A perfect match of water and fire makes him an excellent candidate for weapon forging; he should rightfully join my Artifact Refining Peak!"

Several Foundation Establishment elders disregarded their status and began to fight over it in public.

With Dual Spirit Roots, as long as one doesn't perish along the way, Foundation Establishment is a certainty, and one might even have an extra 10% chance of breaking through to the Golden Core stage.

The brother and sister shrank back, clearly having never seen such a scene before, and were somewhat frightened.

Sun Chengzu frowned slightly, stepped forward, and stood in front of the brother and sister.

"Elders, please show some respect."

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority.

"Nephew Chengzu, what do you mean by this?" Elder Yun Clan, his face displeased.

Sun Chengzu cupped his hands in greeting. "According to the sect's rules, the decision to admit a disciple with Dual Spirit Roots should be made personally by the sect leader or the grand elder."

"Since the abbot is currently in the North Sea and the Grand Elder is in seclusion, they should be settled on the main peak first, and then reassigned after the Grand Elder emerges from seclusion."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the elders:

"If you all fight over this in public, it will disrupt the sect's rules and regulations, make you a laughingstock, and cause you to lose face. Wouldn't that just invite criticism for no reason?"

First they brought up the rules, then they brought up Yun Tianfan.

The elders froze, unwilling but forced to give up.

"You little rascal, you sure know how to use the rules to intimidate people."

Elder Zhao Clan snorted and left with a flick of his sleeve. Sun Chengzu returned the greeting with clasped hands, defusing a factional conflict with ease.

"The spirit-testing competition continues, next one!"