42: Chapter 42 Inner Disciple Assessment

A few hours later, three streaks of sword light pierced the sky and landed before the mountain gate of the Xuanyang Sect.

Recognizing the Sect robes worn by the three, the mountain-guarding Disciples respectfully cleared the way.

The moment she stepped into the mountain gate, Mo Qingling let out a long sigh of relief!

They were finally back!

"Junior Brother Baili Yunche."

As the three were about to part ways, Mo Qingling suddenly called out to stop him.

Baili Yunche paused in his tracks and turned around. "Is there something else, Senior Sister Mo?"

Mo Qingling asked, "Junior Brother Baili Yunche, are you going to participate in the Inner Sect Grand Competition six months from now?"

"I think with your strength, you can definitely secure a place in the top thirty!"

"The Inner Sect Grand Competition?"

Baili Yunche was slightly startled, a look of confusion appearing in his eyes.

Having spent ten years in the Waste Pill Room of the Miscellaneous Chores Peak, working and Cultivating every single day almost isolated from the outside world, he was completely unaware of the Inner Sect Grand Competition.

Seeing his expression, Mo Qingling couldn't help but chuckle. "Don't tell me you don't even know about the Inner Sect Grand Competition?"

Baili Yunche scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed. "The Miscellaneous Chores Peak is out of touch with news, so I really haven't heard about it."

Hearing this, Mo Qingling said, "Then let me explain it to you. As the name suggests, the Inner Sect Grand Competition is a contest among Inner Sect Disciples."

"It is held once every three years. Those who register must be Inner Sect Disciples with a Cultivation below the Golden Core Realm."

"There are plenty of benefits to this Inner Sect Grand Competition. As long as you break into the top thirty, you'll receive generous rewards, including at least one Spiritual Artifact."

"The higher your ranking, the better the reward. I heard the top ten can even enter the Xuanyang Heavenly Pool to Cultivate, where Spiritual Qi is so dense that Cultivation progresses by leaps and bounds."

Baili Yunche nodded. These rewards indeed sounded pretty good.

But Mo Qingling's next words made his eyes light up instantly.

"Most importantly, as long as you break into the top three, you have the chance to take a Nascent Soul Elder as your Revered Master! This is an Opportunity many could only dream of!"

"Take a Nascent Soul Elder as a Revered Master?"

Baili Yunche blurted out, unable to hide the surprise in his voice.

Mo Qingling blinked and, seeing his reaction, chuckled. "Well, tempted?"

"Is that really true?" Baili Yunche still couldn't quite believe it.

A Nascent Soul Elder!

Those were beings standing at the very top of the Xuanyang Sect, each possessing powers that could reach heaven and earth.

If one could become a Disciple under a Nascent Soul Elder, not only would they directly attain the status of a True Disciple—second in status only to the Saint and Saintess—

But with guidance from a Nascent Soul Revered Master in future Cultivation, how many detours could one avoid!

Mo Qingling nodded and explained patiently:

"Of course it's true! In fact, there are many Inner Sect Disciples whose Cultivation has already reached the Foundation Establishment Ninth Layer, yet they refuse to break through to Golden Core for a long time just to participate in the Inner Sect Grand Competition and vie for the chance to take a Nascent Soul Elder as Revered Master."

"After all, once they break through to Golden Core, they can only become Core Disciples and lose eligibility to participate in the Inner Sect Grand Competition. Thus, many deliberately stay stuck at the Foundation Establishment Ninth Layer and only break through after the competition ends."

Having heard this, Baili Yunche had already made up his mind.

He had to participate in this Inner Sect Grand Competition!

Not for those Magical Artifact rewards, not for the Xuanyang Heavenly Pool, but solely for the Opportunity to take a Nascent Soul Elder as his Revered Master!

He looked at Mo Qingling and asked the key question: "Senior Sister Mo, you said earlier that only Inner Sect Disciples can register for the Inner Sect Grand Competition. Do you know how one becomes an Inner Sect Disciple?"

"Ah?"

Mo Qingling froze, her beautiful eyes widening. "Are you still an Outer Sect Disciple?"

Baili Yunche scratched his head in slight embarrassment. "I'm actually still just a Utility Disciple..."

"A Utility Disciple?!"

Mo Qingling exclaimed in shock, and nearby Mo Qingfeng was equally dumbfounded.

"You really are a freak!" Mo Qingling couldn't help saying.

Baili Yunche smiled wryly and didn't explain.

She took a deep breath to compose herself before continuing:

"If you want to advance to the Inner Sect, you need to pass an assessment. Once you pass, the Sect will assign you new quarters where the Spiritual Qi is more than ten times denser than on the Miscellaneous Chores Peak, offering much better Cultivation conditions."

"Where is the assessment held?" Baili Yunche asked.

"Zhishi Peak," Mo Qingling said. "I happen to be free right now, so I'll take you there."

"Thank you, Senior Sister Mo."

...

Zhishi Peak.

Unlike the desolate and run-down Miscellaneous Chores Peak, Zhishi Peak was lined with pavilions and halls, exuding solemnity and grandeur everywhere.

Spiritual plants were planted along both sides of the mountain path, and the air was rich with Spiritual Qi, refreshing one to the core with a single deep breath.

Baili Yunche followed Mo Qingling up the steps, and before long, they arrived in front of a grand hall.

Zhishi Hall...

The hall doors were wide open, and the faint sound of humming came from within.

As the two stepped inside, they saw an old man in grey robes reclining on a chair behind a desk in the center.

Holding a wine gourd in his hand, he had a plate of pickled vegetables and a steaming bowl of tofu before him, eating with relish.

"Pickled veg and piping tofu on my plate, even the old Immortal Emperor can't match my state~~"

With eyes half-closed, he swayed his head to and fro, thoroughly immersed in his song.

Baili Yunche swept his gaze over him and immediately sensed a powerful aura; he was definitely a Golden Core Cultivator!

In the Xuanyang Sect, only those in the Golden Core Realm could serve as Deacons.

The man before them must be Deacon Wang, Steward Wang Ganju, who was specifically in charge of the Inner Sect assessments.

The two stepped forward and bowed in unison.

"Deacon Wang."

Only then did Steward Wang Ganju lift his eyelids, lazily casting a glance at them and giving a nonchalant "mhm."

"What brings you here?"

Baili Yunche took a step forward and respectfully said, "Deacon Wang, Disciple Baili Yunche wishes to take the assessment to advance to an Inner Sect Disciple."

"Inner Sect Disciple?"

Steward Wang Ganju set down his wine gourd, scanned Baili Yunche with his gaze, and said indifferently, "Hand over your identity token, and I'll make the arrangements."

Baili Yunche unfastened the token from his waist and presented it with both hands.

Steward Wang Ganju took it and glanced casually, only to find the two prominent characters "Utility" clearly written on the back of the token.

Steward Wang Ganju's eyebrows furrowed slightly. He raised his head to look at Baili Yunche with a strange gaze. "How are you still a Utility Disciple?"

A few other Utility Disciples handling other matters in the hall perked up their ears upon hearing this conversation.

Baili Yunche said frankly, "I am indeed a Utility Disciple. Why, is a Utility Disciple not allowed to take the Inner Sect assessment?"

Steward Wang Ganju froze for a moment, then shook his head and explained:

"That's not it, but according to the rules, you must first pass the Outer Sect Disciple assessment and become an Outer Sect Disciple before taking the Inner Sect Disciple assessment. Moving up level by level is the standard convention."

In the Xuanyang Sect, Disciples were mainly divided into five ranks: Utility, Outer Sect, Inner Sect, Core, and True.

Utility Disciples went without saying—they did all kinds of dirty and exhausting chores.

Outer Sect Disciples were Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators of average talent.

Inner Sect Disciples were Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivators, serving as the backbone of the Sect.

Core Disciples were Golden Core Stage Cultivators, already considered core members of the Xuanyang Sect.

As for True Disciples, they were those who had taken a Nascent Soul Elder as Revered Master, having a high probability of becoming great Nascent Soul Cultivators in the future.

Steward Wang Ganju was also somewhat surprised, as this was his first time encountering someone like Baili who sought to skip ranks for assessment.

Baili Yunche pondered for a moment after listening and asked, "Do the rules explicitly state that one cannot skip ranks for the assessment?"

Steward Wang Ganju froze again. He thought for a moment and shook his head. "In the rules... it really doesn't seem to say you can't."

"Then that's fine." Baili Yunche smiled faintly.

"Taking the Inner Sect Disciple assessment directly skips the procedure for the Outer Sect Disciple assessment and saves Deacon Wang some trouble as well. Isn't that a win-win for both of us?"

Steward Wang Ganju opened his mouth, momentarily at a loss for a counterargument. Feeling that Baili Yunche made some sense, he was about to process his assessment procedures.

Right at that moment, whispers suddenly came from the side.

"Huh? Isn't this that trash who guards the Waste Pill Room on Miscellaneous Chores Peak?"

"Let me see... It really is him! He's called Baili Yunche, right? Supposedly born with crippled meridians, still at the Third Layer of Qi Refinement after ten years of Cultivation—he's utterly disgraced the Xuanyang Sect!"

"What is he doing at Zhishi Peak? And talking with Deacon Wang?"

"From the sound of it... he seems to be here to take the Inner Sect Disciple assessment?"

"Pfft—hahahaha! Did I hear that right? A Utility Disciple wants to directly take the Inner Sect assessment? What a complete absurdity!"

"That's hilarious! If he can pass the Inner Sect assessment, I'll eat three pounds of shit right on the spot!"

Those Utility Disciples made no attempt to hide their chatter. Their voices grew louder, and their gazes toward Baili Yunche were filled with contempt and ridicule.

Among them, a burly young man laughed the hardest, a trace of malice lingering in his eyes.

This person was none other than Zhang Jianren, who had been taught a lesson by Baili Yunche previously.

Having had several ribs broken by Baili Yunche, his injuries were still unhealed, leaving him walking with a slight limp. Seeing Baili Yunche now, his eyes burned with fierce hatred.

"Tsk tsk tsk, Baili Yunche, are you here to make an absolute fool of yourself?"

Zhang Jianren spoke in a sarcastic, mocking tone.

"A Third Layer Qi Refinement trash dares to come for the Inner Sect assessment? I suggest you hurry up and scram back to your Waste Pill Room to be an obedient Utility Disciple! Don't embarrass yourself here!"

The other Utility Disciples chimed in, their laughter becoming even more grating.

Although they were also Utility Disciples, seeing their fellow Utility Disciple Baili Yunche actually attempt to leap straight to heaven by taking the Inner Sect assessment made them feel thoroughly uncomfortable.

Why should he?

Everyone is a Utility Disciple, so why should you, Baili Yunche, get to skip the Outer Sect and go straight into the Inner Sect?

"I was wondering why it was so noisy here—turns out there are dogs barking!"

Baili Yunche mocked.

"You! How dare you curse at me?"

Zhang Jianren pointed at Baili Yunche, flustered and enraged.

"I didn't name you, you stepped into the role yourself! Was the lesson I gave you last time not enough? What, is your skin itching for another beating?"

Baili Yunche cracked his knuckles as he spoke.

"You..." Zhang Jianren's face flushed red, unable to utter a word for a moment.

...