Chapter 23: Sect Assessment (1)

Posted byYours TrulyOctober 11, 2023Posted inZanxing

After school, Zanxing packed up her belongings and picked up the oiled paper umbrella by the door.

Tian Fangfang shouted from behind, “Junior sister, aren’t you going to have lunch?”

“You go ahead, I’ll go later,” Zanxing said, raising her umbrella and rushing into the rain.

When she arrived at the Chu Hong Terrace, it was raining today, and it was also just past noon. Most of the disciples in the sect had gone to have lunch. Zanxing found a place to sit down, regardless of whether her clothes would get wet in the rain. She started to read the manual “Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff” again using her spiritual awareness.

The discussion about “truth and falsehood” with Daoist Yueguang in today’s class was actually something she made up on the spot. But at the last moment, a stroke of luck inspired her, and she thought of the bottleneck in her staff technique.

For the past five days, she had practiced diligently every night, and her staff technique had become proficient, but it still couldn’t match the elegance of the woman in her spiritual vision. She had been studying the woman’s staff technique repeatedly, but now that she thought about it, this flashy technique was called “Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff”.

She had the staff but not the flower.

This staff technique, without the flower, was no different from other staff techniques outside. However, because of the addition of the words “flower-picking”, it took on a touch of romantic charm. The real fierceness of this technique lay in the “falling flowers” stirred up by the staff. Those flowers, as if carried by the air currents, could accurately and effortlessly break through the opponent’s defenses, becoming the most powerful weapon.

The purpose of picking flowers isn’t for show; it’s better suited for offense.

“I see.”

Zanxing tightened her grip on the iron staff, closed her eyes, and found herself surrounded by osmanthus trees near the Chu Hong Terrace. It was autumn, and the osmanthus trees were in full bloom, filling the air with their fragrance. Zanxing circulated her elemental energy and swung her staff horizontally in front of her. The fragrant breeze stirred by the staff’s movement was soft and alluring, but within this fragrance, there was a subtle, almost imperceptible sense of killing intent. Zanxing could clearly see within the falling flowers stirred up by the staff, there was a straight flow of energy, like the lingering shadow of another staff.

This lingering shadow was like the surface of water, rippling layer by layer. She could even see the tiny ripples within, each marking the path of a blooming flower. At this moment, the Xiao Yuan Pearl in her chest surged with energy, and the surrounding spiritual power flowed into Zanxing’s body. She felt as though the staff she was holding had endless power. In the midst of the rippling reflections, a straight line appeared.

Without hesitation, she aimed her strike at that line.

“Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff, First Form—Mirror Flowers, Water Moon!”

For a brief moment, it seemed as if the rain stopped.

Countless shadowy flowers suddenly appeared in the ripples in the air, layer upon layer, like clouds and waves, rushing towards a massive rock in front of her.

Accompanying them was the iron staff in the woman’s hand.

With a resounding “boom,” it struck.

The massive rock turned into fine powder, the fragrance of osmanthus trees lingered. When she looked up, the flower shadows and the water’s surface had all dissipated, leaving only a woman in a gray robe, standing in the midst of the rain-soaked world. Her long hair was already drenched by the rain.

A mountain sparrow let out a cry and flapped its wings, flying to another tree as if startled by this commotion.

Zanxing lowered her head and looked at her own hands.

It seemed like she had just broken through.

…..

In the following days, Zanxing continued her usual routine, leaving early in the morning and returning late at night, dedicated to her studies.

Fellow disciples also became aware that the sect assessment was imminent and began putting in extra effort. For a while, the entire Chu Hong Terrace was bustling with activity, resembling a university library during final exams. If you arrived late, you would struggle to find a seat.

Perhaps the most pleased with their dedication was Xuan Lingzi, the sixth senior uncle of the Taiyan Sect. Tomorrow was the day of the sect assessment, and Xuan Lingzi sat in the hall, checking the names of his disciples while secretly enjoying a roasted chicken he had bought from the base of the mountain.

The mountain’s ingredients were abundant in spiritual energy, and the kitchen was clean and tidy, which was good, but the food lacked the deliciousness of the dishes from the foothills. Additionally, not too long ago, Master Shaoyang Zhenren had felt that he had gained some weight, which he believed was detrimental to the sect’s image. As a result, he had initiated a grain-abstaining diet, and Xuan Lingzi had gone hungry for about ten days until he couldn’t resist indulging on this particular night.

When Ziluo entered, Xuan Lingzi was in the midst of concealing the roasted chicken beneath him. Ziluo sighed and said, “There’s no need to hide it, Sixth Senior Uncle. I’ve already seen it.”

Xuan Lingzi cleared his throat and added, “Ziluo, among all these disciples, you are my favorite… Please, don’t inform Master Shaoyang.”

Pretending not to hear the last sentence, Ziluo changed the subject, “Senior Uncle, the preparations for tomorrow’s assessment are all in order. Master Shaoyang Zhenren mentioned that this sect assessment is specifically to recruit new disciples for you. You should at least have a full stomach.”

Among the seven disciples of Master Shaoyang, apart from the youngest seventh junior disciple, only the sixth junior disciple, Xuan Lingzi, has not yet personally passed on his teachings to any disciples. He himself was quite lax in his actions, often indulging in eating and sleeping without much ambition. This time, Master Shaoyang has declared that those who pass the sect’s assessment will become inner disciples, and among the top three in the inner disciple assessment will be Xuan Lingzi’s direct disciples. They had to provide Xuan Lingzi with some responsibilities, after all.

Xuan Lingzi waved his hand indifferently, “The Sect Master does show favoritism. Senior brothers already have their personally chosen disciples who are outstanding talents that were identified from a young age and nurtured within the clans. Meanwhile, I have to search among ordinary cultivators. Ziluo, didn’t you mention that there are no particularly impressive candidates among the new disciples this time?”

In their sect, selecting personal disciples usually involved identifying extraordinary talents with exceptional spiritual roots from a young age and providing them with early training. However, those found among itinerant cultivators from all over the place tended to have either average aptitude or were too old, missing the ideal cultivation period. In any case, they weren’t considered the cream of the crop.

“It’s not entirely like that. In my opinion, among the new disciples in this sect assessment, Hua Yue is quite promising. He’s the only one among the newcomers who has reached the Golden Core stage. Even in our sect, he’s considered exceptional,” reassured Ziluo.

“Golden Core is not that impressive. Oh, by the way,” Xuan Lingzi remembered something, “What about that young man who chose the incomplete scripture last time, and the girl who found the ‘Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff’?”

Ziluo replied, “I’ve discreetly investigated. Neither of them has shown anything particularly outstanding, but they are very diligent. They spend the most time each day practicing on the Chu Hong Terrace. However, both of them ranked in the middle during the recent Lianshan Flower Competition, and their cultivation levels aren’t exceptional. In this sect assessment, there’s no guarantee they’ll make it into the top thirty.”

Xuan Lingzi pondered for a moment before saying, “Well, at least they have unwavering determination and aren’t afraid of hardships. We’ll see what progress they’ve made in the past half-month tomorrow.”

“Let’s see how it goes tomorrow,” Ziluo concurred.

….

That night, Zanxing didn’t sleep very peacefully because tomorrow was the sect assessment. If she couldn’t make it into the inner sect, she would have to live with this scar on her face forever.

To claim that she didn’t care about her appearance would be dishonest, but perhaps, more importantly, when a person puts in effort, they always hope for some kind of reward. Once the desire for victory and success was ignited, it was impossible not to care about the outcome.

Moreover, in life, one always needed something to look forward to.

Zanxing turned over and placed her hand over the location of her Xiao Yuan Pearl in her chest.

At the very least, she hoped that if she were to lose, it wouldn’t be too unsightly.