117: Chapter 117 A Killing Intent Begins

The point calculation work in the Chuyun City plaza continued in an orderly manner.

There were so many participants in the assessment that even with the Sect's Divine Artifact handling the automatic ranking, the tabulation alone took the better part of a day to complete.

Sun Shaoping ultimately achieved an excellent result, placing fifth on the overall ranking.

The four Prodigies ahead of him had all long since stepped into the Spirit Realm, and were top-tier Geniuses renowned throughout their respective territories.

Before this, Sun Shaoping was only slightly known within the Great Qi Dynasty; once outside of Great Qi, no one knew him. Now, with his Mortal Realm cultivation, he had crushed a crowd of Spirit Realm Cultivators, becoming the biggest dark horse of this assessment—a feat that could be called legendary in the history of the Chuyun Immortal Sect's assessments.

Besides Sun Shaoping, among the Great Qi Dynasty's team, Jiang Yuewu from the Yunxi Sect had used her cautious nature to advance steadily within the Secret Realm, successfully breaking into the top five thousand and smoothly securing her qualification for entry into the Chuyun Immortal Sect.

This girl, who had directly conceded when facing the Third Prince during the Great Qi Heavenly Pride Competition, had now achieved results that made countless people in Great Qi envious, while the Third Prince would never be able to walk out of the Secret Realm again.

On the plaza, the five thousand successful Prodigies stood in the center. They came from various Dynasties and Sects of all sizes, having stood out from tens of thousands of competitors to successfully knock on the gates of the Chuyun Immortal Sect. Every face was filled with longing and enthusiasm for the future path of cultivation.

As for those Prodigies who failed to be selected, they could only turn and leave the field with hearts full of regret. In reality, being able to walk out of the Secret Realm alive was already a tremendous stroke of luck.

Because Disciples from the Xuanye Demon Court had infiltrated this assessment, the fighting within the Secret Realm had been brutal and filled with murderous intent. Although Lin Qing had detected it immediately, the cleanup work had still lasted for several days. The number of Prodigies who fell during this period was high, making the final death toll of this assessment the highest in recent years.

Tens of thousands of young Geniuses from all over were buried forever in the Secret Realm, turning into a handful of soil, with no future left at all.

On the vast plaza, there were those who were happy, those who were sorrowful, those who were regretful, and those who were relieved. The noise lasted for a long time before it gradually returned to peace.

After the rankings were finalized, the results were posted, and the crowds had dispersed, Spiritual Qi rose once again above the Void Realm.

Lin Qing, dressed in white, flew up with a group of Chuyun Immortal Sect Elders and hovered above the plaza.

Looking down at the five thousand selected Disciples below, Lin Qing's voice was clear and grand, carrying Spiritual Qi as it spread across the entire plaza:

"Congratulations to all you Prodigies. Having endured the tempering of the Secret Realm and the bloody competition, you have stood out and achieved excellent results in this entrance assessment."

"From this day forth, you are Disciples under my Chuyun Immortal Sect. There are countless talents in the world, and the fact that you were ultimately able to remain here is enough to prove your talent, Heart-Nature, and perseverance."

"After entering the Sect, the Sect will provide you with Cultivation Techniques, resources, and protection. However, the path of cultivation is not a smooth road. Where there are gifts of Opportunity, there are also trials of hardship."

"I hope that after entering the Sect, you will be able to settle your hearts, study diligently, strictly abide by the Sect's rules, uphold your original Dao and morality, help one another among fellow Disciples, and advance together. Do not rely on your talent to be arrogant, nor engage in internal strife and mutual slaughter."

"The mountain gates have opened, the immortal Dao lies ahead. Everyone, follow me into the Sect!"

As his voice fell, Lin Qing waved his wide sleeves in the air.

A gentle and vast torrent of Spiritual Qi enveloped the entire field, softly lifting up the five thousand newly recruited Disciples below. Although most of them were at the fifth stage, it was still somewhat difficult for them to fly to the Sect relying solely on their own strength.

The next moment, Lin Qing turned around and took the lead, with the group of Elders following closely behind, leading the vast procession of new Disciples as they broke through the clouds and flew toward the Chuyun Immortal Sect, which was suspended high in the sky.

Previously, these participating Disciples could only gaze from afar at the immortal islands of the Sect above the sea of clouds from Chuyun City, feeling only that they were ethereal, majestic, and extraordinarily sacred.

Only until today, when they were truly close, did they genuinely feel the majestic atmosphere of a top-tier Immortal Sect.

Immortal mountains stood floating in the air, endless mists of Spiritual Qi drifted down, and strange flowers and Immortal Plants covered the ground. The Prodigies were dazzled, exclaiming in admiration one after another.

A moment later, everyone landed on the central plaza of a main island.

The subsequent trivial entry procedures, such as registration, issuance of identity tokens, allocation of courtyards, preaching of Sect rules, and explanations of rank permissions, were handled by Sect deacons or Disciples who had accepted the tasks.

After settling the new Disciples, Lin Qing did not linger and went to the Sect's main hall with the group of Elders to report on his duties.

Inside the majestic and solemn main hall of the Chuyun Immortal Sect, Lin Qing bowed slightly to the Sect Head and the various high-level Sect officials sitting in the main seats:

"Sect Head, Senior Brothers. This entrance assessment has concluded, and all five thousand selected Prodigies have been brought back to the Sect and properly settled."

"However, a large number of Xuanye Demon Court Disciples infiltrated the Secret Realm during this assessment, causing a massive number of Prodigies to be killed or injured. The Demon Court's conspiracy was hidden, and this Junior Brother failed to detect it in advance. I ask for the Sect Head and Senior Brothers to punish me."

On the main seat, the white-haired Sect Head with the demeanor of an immortal slowly raised his hand, gently stroked his long beard, and spoke slowly:

"Enough, this matter cannot be blamed on you."

"This batch of Demon Court Disciples all carried high-level Magic Treasures to conceal their auras. Not to mention you failing to detect it in advance, even we did not capture a single trace of abnormality beforehand."

Several Elders seated on the side also nodded in agreement, speaking with solemn expressions:

"The Sect Head's words are absolutely correct."

"It is just that in recent years, the Xuanye Demon Court has expanded rapidly. Countless small and medium-sized nations have been secretly infiltrated and controlled by the Xuanye Demon Court, and their provocations against our Immortal Sect have become increasingly frequent and rampant. According to this trend, a full-scale war between the two factions is likely only a matter of time!"

"I suggest that our Sect should take the initiative to attack, increase the intensity of our clearing and counterattacks against the Demon Court's forces, and suppress their momentum of expansion!"

Inside the main hall, the group of Elders spoke one after another, discussing the subsequent counterattack against the Demon Court.

Meanwhile, in the dark and eerie main hall of the Xuanye Demon Court, a group of people had gathered as well.

Above the main hall, the Demon Court Sect Master, Fang Mingyuan, sat on the main seat with a gloomy expression. His voice, carrying endless fury, resounded through the entire Demon Palace:

"Where on earth did this Lin Qing pop out from?!"

"Not even thirty years old, yet his combat power is so terrifying that even Fang Shuo had no power to resist in his hands."

"What is the Intelligence Department doing?! Such a terrifying figure, yet our Sect did not receive a shred of information in advance, causing our Sect to lose a Prodigy in vain!"

The system of the Xuanye Demon Court is slightly different from that of the Chuyun Immortal Sect.

The Chuyun Immortal Sect emphasizes that the capable should occupy the positions; talent, strength, and merit determine one's resources and status.

However, the core power of the Xuanye Demon Court is completely monopolized and controlled for generations by a few large Families.

The Demon Court does not recruit people like the Immortal Sect, which holds a selection once every ten years and selects carefully; instead, it constantly plunders young Prodigies from all over the world throughout the year, using cruel Gu-raising methods to temper and filter them.

Under such a cruel model, the base number of Demon Court Disciples is extremely large, the lower-level fighters are fierce and fearless of death, and the quantity and quality of their top-tier combat power are not inferior to the Chuyun Immortal Sect at all.

An Elder in the hall replied:

"Sect Master, this Lin Qing is carrying a top-tier concealment Magic Treasure. He must be a peerless Prodigy secretly cultivated by the Chuyun Immortal Sect!"

"I naturally know that!"

Fang Mingyuan snorted coldly in anger, the murderous intent in his eyes becoming increasingly cold:

"This time, with Fang Shuo's fall, our Sect not only lost a top-tier Prodigy, but even I was severely punished by the God Realm masters of the Sect!"

His gaze was cold as he ordered in a deep voice:

"Put Lin Qing on the must-kill list, ranking him directly at the first place among all Chuyun Immortal Sect Disciples!"

"Eliminate this person at all costs; we absolutely cannot let such a Genius continue to grow!"