togophonebook Chapter 523 Peak Mid-Nascent Soul Stage! The Assessment!
Chapter 523 Peak Mid-Nascent Soul Stage! The Assessment!
A world within a bowl!
Chen Fan sat cross-legged in the quiet room at the back of the courtyard, his spiritual energy rising and falling like the tide.
One month outside is like a year inside a bowl.
Throughout the year, he never left his meditation room, immersing himself entirely in cultivation.
His cultivation at the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm had long been completely stable, and the Nascent Soul within his dantian, identical to his own, was becoming increasingly solid, radiating a faint golden light.
At this moment, Chen Fan formed hand seals, and the spiritual energy around him surged and boiled.
The nascent soul in the dantian suddenly opened its eyes, opened its small mouth, and swallowed all the spiritual power surging in the meridians into its belly like a whale sucking in water.
The nascent soul shone brightly with golden light, its form solidified further, and a hint of indifference, exactly like that of Chen Fan himself, appeared between its brows.
Chen Fan slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of stale air.
Peak of the mid-stage Nascent Soul realm.
He's just one step away from the late Nascent Soul stage.
This step, however, is not easy to take.
There is an invisible threshold between the late and middle stages of the Nascent Soul stage, requiring the Nascent Soul to be cleansed by the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, so that it can undergo a transformation from the inside out.
The amount of spiritual energy required for this step is far beyond what can be achieved in the middle stages of cultivation.
Even with the rich spiritual energy within the golden bowl, it would be impossible to break through in a short period of time.
However, Chen Fan was not in a hurry.
The path of spiritual practice cannot be rushed; haste makes waste.
With the golden bowl in his hand, the flow of time is ten times faster than in the outside world, making his cultivation speed far surpass that of others at the same level. As long as he progresses steadily, breaking through to the late Nascent Soul stage is only a matter of time.
Moreover, there are more important things to do right now.
Chen Fan got up, stretched his limbs, and with a thought, left the golden bowl!
When they returned to the stone chamber outside, it was just beginning to get light.
Today is the day of the internal selection and assessment for the Shangyun Sect.
Chen Fan pushed open the door of the stone chamber, and the cool morning breeze from the mountains rushed in, carrying a bit of damp mist.
He stood in the courtyard, gazing towards the main peak of Luoyun Mountain, where several streaks of light rose and fell, and the faint sounds of bustling crowds could be heard.
A month ago, Elder Li sent a message saying that the internal selection would be held today, and now it seems that the news was true.
Without further delay, Chen Fan unleashed a burst of spiritual light beneath his feet and flew towards the main peak on his sword.
The main peak of Luoyun Mountain, the Wentian Terrace.
This is the only place in Shangyun Sect that is still somewhat respectable.
The platform, spanning hundreds of feet in circumference, was paved with blue flagstones and surrounded by white jade railings, which were covered with dense array patterns.
On the north side of the platform stands a three-zhang-tall stone statue, which is carved to depict a Taoist priest carrying a sword. His face is blurred and his clothes are flowing. It is said to be the statue of the founder of the Shangyun Sect.
When Chen Fan arrived, two or three hundred people had already gathered on the Asking Heaven Platform.
These people gathered in groups of three or five, their cultivation levels ranging from Qi Refining Stage to Core Formation Stage. Most of them were rogue cultivators who had signed up to join the Shangyun Sect over the past month.
The expressions on everyone's faces varied; some were nervous, some were excited, some pretended to be calm, and some whispered among themselves.
Chen Fan's gaze swept across the crowd, and he soon spotted Elder Li's figure on the east side of the platform.
Li Changhe was wearing a brand new gray robe today, with no more patches on the cuffs, and his hair was neatly combed, making him look much more energetic.
A small group of about seven or eight people stood beside him, all of whom had cultivation levels above the late Foundation Establishment stage. One of them was none other than Lu Xiong.
Chen Fan walked over without making a sound.
Elder Li spotted him from afar, a smile spreading across his face as he quickly approached, "Fellow Daoist Chen Mu, you've finally arrived! I was worried you'd missed your cultivation time!"
"Thank you for your concern, Elder." Chen Fan cupped his hands in greeting.
Elder Li looked him up and down, a strange glint in his eyes.
After a month apart, Chen Mu's aura seemed to have become even more refined, and he was showing signs of having one foot in the Core Formation stage.
He nodded inwardly, his smile widening as he turned and led Chen Fan to the small group of people.
"Gentlemen, this is Fellow Daoist Chen Mu, whom I mentioned before. A month ago, Lu Xiong brought his men to provoke us, but he suppressed them with a single finger. I suppose I don't need to elaborate on his strength?"
Upon hearing this, the seven or eight Foundation Establishment cultivators all turned their gazes toward Chen Fan.
Among these people were people of all ages. The one with the highest cultivation level was a white-haired old man at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment, and the one with the lowest cultivation level was at the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
Their gazes toward Chen Fan varied, some filled with curiosity, some with scrutiny, and others with a hint of hidden hostility.
Chen Fan remained calm, merely nodding slightly as a greeting.
Lu Xiong, standing at the edge of the crowd, felt extremely uncomfortable.
Upon seeing Chen Fan, he instinctively took a half-step back, his face twitching a few times, but ultimately he steeled himself and stepped forward, clasping his hands in a fist salute:
"Fellow Daoist Chen, regarding what happened last time... it was my fault for being blind. From today onwards, we are both under Elder Li's command, and I hope you will forgive and forget the past."
He lowered his head as he spoke, avoiding eye contact with Chen Fan, but his tone was still quite sincere.
Chen Fan glanced at him and said calmly, "There's no need to bring up the past."
Lu Xiong breathed a sigh of relief, nodded repeatedly, and stepped aside.
Seeing this, Elder Li chuckled and stroked his beard: "That's right, harmony brings wealth, harmony brings wealth. Since everyone is here, I'll say a few words. Today's internal selection has two stages. As for the specifics of the tests, the Ancestor will announce them personally later. All I can do is secure an opportunity for you all to participate. As for whether you can make it into the top ten, that depends on your own abilities."
He paused, then lowered his voice and said, "If I may be so bold as to say this, although there are many people participating in the selection today, most of them are rogue cultivators who have spent spirit stones to try their luck. There are only about twenty or thirty people who are truly capable. As long as you all perform normally, it will not be difficult for you to enter the top ten."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Chen Fan stood in the crowd, his face calm, but he had already taken in the entire situation around him.
Of the two or three hundred people gathered on the Asking Heaven Platform at this time, there were about seventy or eighty people above the Foundation Establishment stage and five or six Core Formation stage cultivators.
The Core Formation cultivators each occupied a corner, surrounded by many Foundation Establishment cultivators. Clearly, like Elder Li, they were forming factions.
It seems that the Shangyun Sect is not a monolithic entity.
Several Core Formation elders are each recruiting their own people, presumably in an effort to secure more spots and resources for their respective factions in the sect's grand competition.
As Chen Fan was pondering, a commotion suddenly arose on the Asking Heaven Platform.
"What? Only comparing cultivation levels?"
"What about us Qi Refining stage cultivators? When we signed up, they didn't say they'd only consider cultivation level!"
"That's right! We paid spirit stones! Three low-grade spirit stones! Your Shangyun Sect can't cheat us like this!"
Several rogue cultivators in the Qi Refining stage blushed and surrounded the center of the Heavenly Questioning Platform, shouting loudly. There were many others around them echoing their sentiments, mostly cultivators in the Qi Refining stage and the early Foundation Establishment stage.
A black-robed elder at the early stage of Core Formation snorted coldly. His voice wasn't loud, but it resounded like muffled thunder in everyone's ears:
"What are you yelling about? The sect's selection process is naturally based on merit. Your cultivation is so low, you haven't even reached the Foundation Establishment stage. Even if you went to the prefectural competition, you would only bring shame to the sect! Spirit stones? Those three spirit stones bought testing qualifications, not offerings! If you dare to make a fuss again, you will be expelled from the sect!"