C19 The High Sect Selection
"Dong!" "Dong!" "Dong!"
Shortly after Su Yun and his companions arrived, the plaza was filled with the reverberating sounds of bells and drums.
Eyes from across the river and throughout the plaza converged on an open-air pavilion at the forefront. Seated there were three individuals, clad in uniform white and blue robes, each adorned with an embroidered white cloud symbol on their chests.
They were representatives from the High Sect, envoys of the Yuntian Sect!
As the bell and drum echoed, a middle-aged man with black hair, who had been seated at the center, rose and stepped to the edge of the pavilion, facing the multitude gathered below.
"The appointed time has come. The Yuntian Sect selection process now begins!"
His voice, imbued with Soul Power, boomed across the plaza, "The selection consists of two rounds. The first tests your Soul Power, and the second, your combat skills. Those who succeed in both rounds will be welcomed as the newest disciples of our Yuntian Sect!"
Hua!
The announcement sent a wave of excitement rippling through the crowd of young men and women.
The influence of the Yuntian Sect extended across the eastern regions of the Tiancang Empire. They stood as a formidable sect, prominent throughout the empire.
To join the Yuntian Sect was the aspiration of countless young Soul Cultivators in Yunhe City!
In anticipation of this triennial event, many had been preparing for a year or even two, and now, the moment had arrived. Words were unnecessary; their pulsing excitement spoke volumes.
"A total of 580 individuals have passed the preliminary trials and secured a spot in the official selection. We will proceed by dividing you into groups of twenty to test your Soul Power on stage. From each group, the top five will face off in a Soul Power contest, with the final two victors advancing to the next round," the middle-aged man continued.
At this, a wave of nervousness washed over those less confident in their abilities.
With only two out of every twenty advancing, the odds were a daunting one in ten!
"Now, as I call your names, step forward to the arena!"
The middle-aged man with black hair was indifferent to their anxiety as he picked up a roster and began to call out names:
"Huang Yuan!"
"Dong Ji!"
"Yun Zhi!"
...
Twenty names, each belonging to a youth—boys and girls alike—whose faces were etched with tension. Amidst the sea of onlookers, they ascended the grand platform in the square.
A long table, set up well in advance, awaited them on the stage, adorned with a line of twenty crystal balls, each the size of a human head.
"Place your hands on the crystal balls and channel as much Soul Power as you can into them!" the man projected from the balcony above. "Let the test commence!"
Upon hearing his command, the twenty young men and women wasted no time. They pressed their hands against the crystal spheres, funneling their Soul Power within.
"Buzz!" "Buzz!" "Buzz!"...
Simultaneously, twenty beams of light ascended from the crystal balls.
In the first second, the beams rose uniformly.
By the second, three beams lagged, their ascent halted.
And then, with each passing second—third, fourth, fifth...—more beams fell out of sync. By the tenth second, only three of the original twenty continued their climb.
But their persistence faded after a mere two seconds, and they too ceased to rise.
A striking scene unfolded on the platform: twenty beams of varying heights shimmered above the crystal balls, each reflecting the effort of the youth before it.
"The top five, with the highest beams, will remain. The rest are eliminated," the middle-aged man declared from his perch, his voice steady and dispassionate.
His words turned the complexions of the fifteen with lower beams pale; one by one, they bowed their heads and descended from the platform. Their forlorn silhouettes drew murmurs of sympathy from the crowd.
Such brutality!
In a mere matter of seconds, fifteen hopefuls were decisively cut from the competition. But the harshness of the trial made the rules crystal clear to all who watched: the height of the light was the measure of their Soul Power.
As the remaining contestants observed the nearly three-meter-tall beams on the platform, they gauged the standard set before them.
"Now, let the Soul Power contest begin!" the man with the black hair addressed the final five. "Remove your hands from the crystal balls, then gather your full Soul Power and touch the spheres once more to infuse them!"
Remove your hand and touch it again?
The five young men on stage, though confused, complied with the instruction.
"Buzz!" "Buzz!" "Buzz!"...
As they released their hands and placed them back on the crystal balls, all five orbs pulsed with a strong surge of Soul Power.
"Ah!"
Caught off guard, one of the youths was knocked back several steps, ending up seated on the ground with a thud.
"Dong Ji, you're out!"
The black-haired middle-aged man announced his name.
"Ah?"
Dong Ji looked bewildered upon hearing this.
The man explained calmly, "When you infused the crystal balls with Soul Power for the second time, they became interconnected, creating a repulsion of Soul Power. The one with the weakest infusion is ejected by the crystal ball!"
With this revelation, a collective understanding dawned on the audience.
The four remaining contestants gripped their crystal balls tighter, desperately channeling more Soul Power into them.
But within seconds, another was repelled by the force emanating from the crystal ball.
Seeing this, the last three contestants frantically poured their Soul Power into the orbs.
The rules were clear: if one more was repelled, the remaining two would automatically advance. None of them wanted to be the next to go.
Yet, inevitably, another contestant's efforts fell short, and he was repelled.
"Yun Zhi, you're out!"
The voice of the black-haired middle-aged man sounded, leaving Yun Zhi devastated.
So close, yet so far!
"Group one, Huang Yuan and Lin Yun move on to the next round!"
The two youths left on stage couldn't hide their elation.
Below, cheers erupted from the crowd, including members of the Lin family, proud that their own Lin Yun had advanced.
Meanwhile, Yun Yan and the Yun family elders could only sigh in resignation.
Yun Zhi, one of their five hopefuls in the selection, had come agonizingly close to advancing, a fact that was deeply regrettable.
Lin Zongshan and the Lin family's senior members couldn't resist sending a taunting glance towards the Yun family.
Yun Yan and his companions couldn't help but scowl at the unfolding events.
"Now for the second group."
The black-haired middle-aged man on the loft once again lifted the roster and called out names:
"Nie Yong!"
"Han Fei!"
"Dong Tianlong!"
...
As he reached a certain name, a burst of cheers erupted from the audience.
A strikingly tall, black-haired youth with chiseled features ascended the stage to the adulation of the crowd.
Dong Tianlong!
The premier prodigy among the younger generation of the Dong family from the other side of Yunhe City!
"Begin the test!"
The black-haired middle-aged man was unfazed by the crowd's enthusiasm. Once he finished reading the names and all twenty youths were positioned on the stage, he declared the start.
"Hum! Hum! Hum!"
Twenty crystal balls simultaneously glowed to life.
This time, however, one light shone far brighter than the rest. In a mere three seconds, it had soared to the previous group's top height of three meters and continued to climb.
It stood out like a beacon, dwarfing the other nineteen lights.
"Wow!"
The crowd gasped in awe at the spectacle.
Even the three middle-aged men on the loft adjusted their brows slightly.
Particularly as the light neared the five-meter mark, their eyes betrayed a flicker of expectation.
Alas, just shy of breaking the five-meter threshold, the light halted.
The trio exchanged a silent 'pity' and their faces settled back into neutrality.
"My goodness! That's incredibly high!"
"Dong Tianlong, the young master, truly lives up to his reputation!"
"And look at the runner-up – barely half as high!"
...
The spectators were abuzz with astonishment.
The standout performer was none other than Dong Tianlong, who had earlier been the center of everyone's attention.
Members of the Dong family in attendance beamed with pride.
He was their Dong family's unparalleled talent!
The subsequent Soul Power competition was equally astounding.
The instant they channeled their Soul Power into the crystal balls, the four youths besides Dong Tianlong were simultaneously jolted back.
"When the Soul Power within one crystal ball is overwhelmingly strong, it will forcibly expel the Soul Power from the other four!"
The black-haired middle-aged man from the loft offered this explanation, enlightening the onlookers.
As they turned their gaze back to Dong Tianlong, their looks were filled with newfound respect.
Truly the Dong family's top prodigy!
"Moving on to the third group."
The middle-aged man with black hair continued, reading from the list:
"Dong Lin!"
"Lin Feng!"
...
As he announced the second name, a surge of cheers rose from the crowd, rivaling the excitement that had greeted Dong Tianlong's appearance.
From the Lin family's entourage, a young man in green robes stepped forward with measured strides.
He was Lin Feng, the Lin family's premier genius, a youth whose talent stood on par with Dong Tianlong's.
His entrance was met with eager anticipation from the Lin family, particularly from Lin Zongshan.
After all, Lin Feng was his eldest son, his source of immense pride!
"Su Yun!"
But Lin Zongshan's anticipation was short-lived; his expression stiffened and quickly darkened as the middle-aged man called out the next name.
A chilling gaze swiftly located Su Yun among the members of the Yun family.
"Is it my turn now?"
Su Yun seemed oblivious to the intense stare, merely arching an eyebrow upon hearing his name.
"Kid, give it your all!"
Yun Yan gave him an encouraging slap on the shoulder.
Su Yun nodded slightly, his gaze involuntarily drifting to Yun Yilan standing nearby.
Yun Yilan was already looking his way.
Their eyes met.
But in a fleeting moment, Yun Yilan's gaze darted away, her face swiftly taking on an icy demeanor.
She seemed utterly indifferent to whether or not Su Yun was about to compete!
Seeing this, Su Yun could only smile wryly and make his way to the arena.
Meanwhile, across the way.
Lin Feng, standing next to Lin Zongshan, caught sight of Su Yun and remarked with a frosty tone, "Father, rest assured. I won't let him get past this round!"
With that, he too headed for the arena.
...
