After passing the Immortal Trial Platform, they arrived at a cliff thousands of feet high.
Sun Hedao whispered, "Senior Brother Yun, I have something to say."
Yun Li nodded, "What is it, Junior Brother Sun?"
"That Zhou Shu, we can't let him pass directly."
Yun Li looked slightly puzzled. "What's going on? Inner disciples can recommend a casual cultivator to join the outer sect. This is the sect rule of the Heyin Sect. Why not?"
Sun Hedao's expression was quite serious. "Junior Brother knows, but according to my investigation, Zhou Shu's aptitude is extremely poor. His physique is like that of a child, his comprehension is extremely low, and his character is appalling. Our sect really can't allow a casual cultivator like him to join directly."
"Ah? With so many shortcomings, is he still a cultivator?"
Yun Li was stunned and said in surprise, "Why would Yan Yue recommend him?"
Sun Hedao acted righteously and said seriously, "That Zhou Shu is a bit slippery and good at sweet talk. Yan Yue didn't know the overall situation and was fooled by him. And as a guide, you have a heavy responsibility. You must strictly control it and not let useless trash sneak into the sect and ruin the good reputation of the Heyin School."
Yun Li nodded and said thoughtfully, "If that's the case, what junior brother said makes sense. Let's test it first. If Zhou Shu really doesn't meet the requirements of the sect and can't get in, there's nothing we can do. After all, the overall situation is more important."
He thought about it and didn't care about it. After all, he was just a casual cultivator. As for the bad Zhou Shu mentioned by Sun Hedao, the upright him was not even interested in looking at him.
He glanced at Sun Hedao with a hint of respect, "Junior brother, you are so wholeheartedly concerned about the sect. After accepting the guidance mission, you even went to investigate the details of the independent cultivators. I admire you. I am ashamed of myself."
"No, no."
Sun Hedao showed a humble expression and bowed.
Turning his head, he looked at Zhou Shu with a very proud look, feeling quite satisfied.
I will not let you down this time. You want to enter directly? No way! If you want to pass the test, then it depends on whether you have the ability.
There was a soundproofing array under the feet of both of them. The independent cultivators could not hear what they said. Worried that it was a problem with the test, a few traces of panic appeared on their faces.
But Zhou Shu didn't need to guess what they were talking about. It was nothing more than erasing the opportunity to be exempted from the test that should have belonged to him. But he just watched calmly, as if it had nothing to do with him.
There was no way to win here, and there was no need to argue. It was just a test.
Sun Hedao's hatred intensified at Zhou Shu's indifferent expression. "You didn't resist? How pointless!"
Yun Li said straight to the point, "Welcome everyone to our Heyin Sect's entrance exam. I'm Yun Li from the Heyin Sect, and this is Sun Hedao. We'll be in charge of your testing and guidance. Please stand apart; the test will begin shortly."
With that, he brought a stack of paper scrolls and handed them out to a dozen or so casual cultivators.
Many of them stared blankly at the scrolls, confused by their meaning.
The scrolls consisted of only three thin pages, each depicting a figure wielding a sword in various poses, each depicted in crude brushstrokes. There were a few lines of small annotations on the sides. The scrolls contained
three sword techniques: "Lonely Smoke in the Desert," "Drinking Horses from the Ice River," and "Wild Geese Descending from the Flat Sands."
Zhou Shu studied the scrolls, thinking to himself, as Yan Yue had said, the first stage was to allow the cultivator to comprehend the sword technique, a test of their comprehension.
After handing out the paper booklets, Yun Li said slowly, "For the first round, the booklets in your hands contain three sword techniques from the Jianghu. You will have half an hour to understand them, then demonstrate your understanding. I will determine whether you pass based on your performance." As
soon as these words were spoken, the wandering cultivators erupted in a commotion.
"What? Jianghu sword techniques? We're cultivators, not warriors. Why should we learn this?"
"Isn't this putting the cart before the horse? A sword technique like this, without even a blade of light, what's the point?" "
This test is incomprehensible, the Heyin Sect..."
"Everyone, please be patient."
Yun Li stepped forward, his expression serious. "The Heyin Sect excels in sword cultivation, so naturally, we recruit new disciples in this area. What's the most important thing for a sword cultivator? It's not spiritual power or physical strength, but comprehension! This book of sword techniques will test your comprehension."
"The sword techniques of the martial arts world and the sword techniques of cultivators may seem very different, but they share commonalities. These three sword techniques were carefully selected by our seniors. How much you can understand and comprehend from them depends on your comprehension."
Yun Li pointed at a wandering cultivator not far away. "If you truly wish to join the Heyin Sect, stop making noises and focus on studying sword techniques like him."
The wandering cultivators looked in his direction. They saw a wandering cultivator sitting cross-legged on the ground, concentrating on studying a scroll, remaining silent from beginning to end.
This wandering cultivator was, of course, Zhou Shu.
"Learn, learn." The wandering
cultivators stopped talking and began to study.
"Wandering cultivators really have no rules. Only that one person is okay." Yun Li shook his head and returned to his seat, waiting quietly.
Sun Hedao, standing nearby, stared intently at Zhou Shu, his voice etched in his mind. "Why are you pretending? Can you really comprehend these few sword techniques?" I've been studying sword techniques for years, but when I got this paper book, I couldn't understand it without Uncle Wang's guidance. How could you possibly learn it?
Meanwhile, Zhou Shu was immersed in his swordsmanship, oblivious to everything around him.
"Time's up,"
Yun Li said, approaching the wandering cultivators. "Everyone, demonstrate the sword techniques you've mastered. You go first."
He gestured to the cultivator closest to him.
The cultivator, built like an iron tower, burly and strong, took two steps forward and shouted in an unusually loud voice, "I'm sorry, but those moves are so strange. I, Zhu Dashan, am in great shape and can't learn them." The crowd erupted in
laughter. "This guy turns out to be quite clueless.
I just saw him poring over the paper book for ages, and I thought he had some skills..."
"Haha, that's killing me."
"Well, you're right, those three moves are incredibly difficult to learn, especially the one called "Pingsha Luoyan." Not only does he have to fold his body, but he also has to thrust his sword horizontally behind him. It's hard to even imagine, let alone execute."
"No matter how difficult it is, I'll try. I can't make a fool of myself like him."
Listening to the discussion, the towering cultivator Zhu Dashan felt a little embarrassed and rubbed his hands.
Yun Li, however, smiled faintly. "Not bad, Zhu Dashan. Step aside, next."
After that, several cultivators followed suit, each barely managing to execute the sword stances. The moves "Smoke in the Desert" and "Drinking Horses from the Ice River" were fine, but the "Falling Wild Geese on the Flat Sands" was truly difficult.
One cultivator simply lay on the ground, performing the move in a
prone position, looking quite awkward. The onlookers burst into laughter, but many secretly cursed, "Why didn't I think of that?"
Yun Li, however, remained expressionless, rarely saying a word.
"Your turn,"
a wandering cultivator responded.
He looked to be in his twenties, tall and slender, with a faint smile on his face, a look of complete confidence.
"Those at the seventh level of Qi Refining Realm are just different,"
someone nearby said enviously.