Chapter 8: Sour Grapes

“Wen Xuxu, don’t listen. It’s just hate.”

Bian Chunzhou pulled him into a quiet corner. Three days had passed, and today was the day of the Mountain Exam. Thanks to Wen Xuxu taking first place in the preliminary trial, most of the merchants in Langyuan City had opened their doors to him with friendly gestures. The city’s top inn, Yunxian Pavilion, had even offered them a free stay in a first-class room equipped with a spirit-gathering array. At the same time, however, it also drew a lot of bitter haters whispering behind their backs.

Yonglu Mountain was a major sect of the world, and its recruitment drives always drew countless eyes. Jinding Pavilion had even set up a dedicated news section to gather information on the rising stars of cultivation featured on the preliminary trial lists of the five major sects. For instance, which clan had produced another genius, or how some penniless kid had suddenly risen to prominence. Wen Xu was the latter.

Three days ago, no one had ever heard the name Wen Xu. But now, at least within Langyuan City, even the city lord likely found the name familiar.

The clans and merchants operating in the city were highly skilled at winning people over, offering all kinds of discounts and perks. If he had come from an elite clan, he might have been too proud to accept these favors, but Wen Xu was not. Furthermore, Old Scholar Wen, the man who had adopted him, was far from wealthy. Wen Xu had learned long ago that compared to fleeting reputation, tangible benefits in hand were what mattered most.

“I don’t mind. Besides, didn’t you say so yourself? I earned these perks.” In truth, it was a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Bian Chunzhou waved his hand. “You’re just too good-tempered. What you earned is what you earned. Whatever, some people in this world just left their brains in their mother’s womb and speak without thinking.”

Wen Xu realized he was always hearing all kinds of novel insults from his new friend. Excellent, today was another new one.

“Actually, my temper isn’t as good as you think.” It was just that he had only recently arrived and did not want to make unnecessary enemies.

“Really?”

“Of course.”

Bian Chunzhou: I don’t believe you.jpg^[1].

Disbelief was written all over Bian Chunzhou’s face, but fortunately, Wen Xu was “blind.” The two of them smoothly continued their friendly conversation. They had not spent the last three days doing nothing. Staying in a room with a first-class spirit-gathering array was a first-time experience for both Bian Chunzhou and Wen Xu.

Bian Chunzhou was slightly better off, as he already had a cultivation level of the third layer of Qi Refining. Wen Xu, on the other hand, was a completely blank slate. The first time he had ever circulated his Qi through a full cycle, he had relied entirely on the effects of a Qi Replenishing Pill.

Now, sitting on the spirit-gathering array, even though he was not practicing any cultivation technique, he could still instinctively draw upon the abundant spiritual energy in the air. This energy slowly gathered around him, and a portion of it entered his body, flowing gently with his breath. It eventually settled in his sea of Qi before slowly rising back up. Repeating this cycle, it completed a major cycle.

It was a subtle sensation. For once, Wen Xu did not know how to describe it in words, but he felt happy and excited. It was a purely physical instinct. His health had never been particularly good due to his childhood experiences and years of relentless studying, which caused him to fall ill whenever the seasons changed. But just now, he felt the hidden ailments in his body being completely repaired and smoothed over by the spiritual energy.

He felt comfortable from head to toe, inside and out.

And this was merely the beginning of cultivation.

Wen Xu looked forward to his future life as a cultivator even more. Of course, it would be even better if he could form a Golden Core soon and return to seek his revenge.

So, when all was said and done, the key still lay in his spiritual root.

Generally speaking, cultivators could test their spiritual roots at seven or eight years old. This was especially true for those from established clans, as spiritual roots were largely hereditary. For example, if both parents were cultivators, there was a fifty percent chance their offspring would be cultivators too, with similar spiritual roots. A fire spiritual root would not produce a water spiritual root, and an earth spiritual root would not randomly give birth to a wood spiritual root.

Although the five elements generated and overcame one another, they still had to follow basic natural laws. Of course, single-element spiritual roots were extremely rare. Most cultivators had multiple spiritual roots, meaning almost any combination was possible. Therefore, large clans would always keep a Spirit Testing Stone on hand to test their children’s spiritual roots early. If a child possessed an excellent spiritual root, they would receive focused cultivation and be sent to major sects to learn skills, thereby strengthening the clan’s power.

But spiritual roots could undergo a secondary development when a cultivator reached adulthood, and this phenomenon was not uncommon. Because of this, most major sects recruited disciples between the ages of eighteen and fifty. Of course, the five major sects were much stricter, only accepting those under thirty.

After all, those in the Qi Refining Stage could not maintain a youthful appearance. A fifty-year-old in the Qi Refining Stage was already an old man with one foot in the grave. As for someone who had already established their foundation, such a case was extremely rare. Anyone capable of reaching Foundation Establishment before fifty would not have remained without a master until that age. Besides, the five major sects did not accept disciples who already possessed established techniques.

Geniuses were the exception, of course. If word got out that Sword Venerable Meixi of the Suitian Sword Sect wanted to switch sects, let alone the Hehe Sect and Yonglu Mountain, even the Buddhist cultivators of Kudu Temple would line up outside the Suitian Sword Sect’s gates overnight to claim him.

Then again, because spiritual roots were not entirely stable before adulthood, the cultivation world did not encourage testing them too early. For one, they feared that genius cultivators might be forced to grow too quickly, like pulling up crops to help them grow. Secondly, they worried that malicious individuals might deliberately destroy another’s spiritual root. Yet, even if it was forbidden on the surface, many tested them in secret. This was especially true for cultivation clans, who likely had a Spirit Testing Stone for every member in their secret family grounds.

Wen Xu felt that the cultivation clans of the cultivation world were not much different from the royalty and nobility of the Mortal Realm; they simply held different kinds of power.

“What are you thinking about? Don’t be too nervous. Look at you, you reached the second layer of Qi Refining in just three days. I think you’re definitely a genius!” With the Mountain Exam about to begin, Bian Chunzhou whispered as he followed the flow of the crowd.

The preliminary trial had weeded out most of the candidates, but a hundred Qi Refining cultivators still remained. It was said that Yonglu Mountain’s Mountain Exam and Heart Trial were conducted together. The former tested the candidates’ martial talent, while the latter evaluated their character and disposition. Combined with the search and harvesting of spiritual plants in the preliminary trial, it was easy to see that Yonglu Mountain’s recruitment was highly targeted.

Three days were more than enough for the two of them to get acquainted. Since Bian Chunzhou was naturally outgoing, Wen Xu spoke with less restraint than before. “Since we’re friends, you naturally think the best of me. If you were the examiner, I certainly wouldn’t be nervous.”

They spoke in hushed tones, bothering no one, yet someone lacked all sense of propriety and came over to provoke them. “Two country bumpkins. ‘If you were the examiner’ indeed. A blind man and a hick. Don’t think that just because you scraped through the preliminary trial, you can coast through the Mountain Exam.”

“You-“

“What about me? Am I not allowed to speak the truth?” The speaker wore a robe embroidered with cloud deer. The deer along the hem seemed to run and leap as if alive, showing it was no ordinary garment. He clearly came from a wealthy background. “Wen Xu, I’ve heard of you. You must be pretty pleased with yourself for taking first place, aren’t you?”

Wen Xu tilted his head up to “look” at him. Because his eyes were covered, he could not actually see the man, but he could sense the sheer hostility in his aura. “What do you mean by that, fellow Daoist? We have never met. I don’t believe I have ever offended you.”

Bian Chunzhou, who had been about to stand up for his friend: …Wow. For some reason, I feel like a proud parent watching his kid grow up.

“Are you playing dumb or are you genuinely clueless? Wen Xu, you didn’t even register for Yonglu Mountain’s preliminary trial, did you? You didn’t register, yet you snuck into the Poyun Secret Realm and got lucky enough to pick the King Danxiang Grass, which is the only reason you took first place. Do you deny it?”

No one had known Wen Xu’s background at first. But after three days, the news that he had fallen from the Mortal Realm into the Poyun Secret Realm had already spread like wildfire. After all, the cultivation world had plenty of special methods to investigate a person’s origins.

Wen Xu tilted his head, his voice carrying a distinct chill. “Are you questioning me, fellow Daoist?”

“If that’s how you want to take it, I won’t stop you.”

Wen Xu let out a soft laugh. He actually looked very handsome when he smiled; even with his eyes covered, it did not detract from his good looks in the slightest. “You know full well that I am nobody of importance. Three days ago, I was merely a mortal. How could I possibly influence Yonglu Mountain’s decisions? If you truly have doubts about my results, why don’t you ask the Yonglu Mountain elder behind you directly?”

Unbeknownst to them, the Yonglu Mountain elder presiding over the Mountain Exam had arrived silently. However, it was not Elder Zhan this time, but Elder Zhao Qi of the Discipline Hall.

Elder Zhao was highly famous in Yonglu Mountain, notorious for fiercely defending the sect’s reputation. If you fell into his hands, there was no point in begging for mercy; your best bet was to immediately and submissively admit your mistake. Unfortunately, the cultivator who had come to provoke them did not recognize Elder Zhao.

His heart skipped a beat when he heard Wen Xu’s words. But when he turned around and saw a short, plump, middle-aged cultivator with a genial, harmless face that lacked any sort of imposing majesty, he scoffed, “Ask I shall. Why shouldn’t I ask about someone like you, who flouts Yonglu Mountain’s rules?”

Elder Zhao glanced at the blind youth before shifting his gaze to the candidate who had spoken. “Boy, what do you think Yonglu Mountain’s rules are?”

“I…”

“When has Yonglu Mountain ever declared that one must register to participate in the exam? A cultivator’s path is guided by fate and their own heart. Since this boy had the fortune to enter the Poyun Secret Realm during the preliminary trial and gather the King Danxiang Grass, it is his own destiny. Yonglu Mountain would naturally never shut its doors to such a person. But if you dislike our rules, you are free to go to other immortal sects to find the rules you want.”

What kind of person did Zhao Qi detest the most? It had to be crooked trees^[2] like the one before him, spoiled rotten by the rules of their aristocratic clans. Did he really think Yonglu Mountain was his own backyard? Zhao Qi would never show favoritism to anyone based on their background.

And Yonglu Mountain, of course, would not either.

The instigator’s face flushed red instantly. He had worked so hard to pass the preliminary trial. If not for his friend constantly whispering in his ear that they would have passed together if not for Wen Xu’s sudden appearance, he wouldn’t have been so blinded by folly as to actually question Yonglu Mountain’s rules. “I am sorry. I was arrogant and spoke out of turn. Please forgive me, Elder.”

Elder Zhao did not even spare him a glance, acting with utter coldness. “Oh? Why are you still here? Do you need this elder to personally escort you out?”

Bian Chunzhou: Wow, wow, wow. This elder is so fierce. I love it!