Birds flew over the lake. The blue waves of the Lake of Dragons and Snakes at dusk were dyed red and yellow.
On Contention island, the examination had already begun in the night.
Qi Practitioners did not need to eat and sleep on time like mortals. Not sleeping for a night was nothing. The lunch at noon was more of a benefit provided by the Hundred Schools of Thought. They could taste delicacies that were on par with spiritual medicines for free.
Everyone boarded the ship once again and sailed towards a small island in the east. The island was not as big as Contention island, but it was much larger than the other islands.
In the rising night mist, a dignified daoist temple stood high up on the island's mountain. It was not quiet and serene. Instead, it displayed a spirit of looking down on the various schools of thought.
It was rumored that most ancient cultivators were daoists. They were the source of all techniques and mental cultivation methods. Most of the cultivation methods that the hundred schools of thought practised now originated from the school of Daoism.
Although the school of Daoism was no longer the only cradle for cultivators now, there was still a saying that the schools of thought were the greatest. Its influence was evident.
The examination of the hundred schools of thought was carried out one after another, so all the Qi Practitioners would move together every time. They could use this opportunity to understand the locations and features of the various islands.
Regardless of which school they belonged to in the future, they would definitely visit these islands. The spirit of the hundred schools was about the hundred schools resonating with one another and being inclusive. Every single disciple of the academy could go to other schools to learn.
Of course, if they wanted to learn the core parts, they would have to spend some effort and spiritual stones, but it was not impossible. They would not be like those cultivation sects, where they would threaten to kill or cripple their cultivations.
This was also what Li Qingshan admired the most. It was not without reason that the Great Xia empire could suppress the cultivation sects of the world with the help of the Hundred Schools of Thought.
The Qi Practitioners disembarked from the ship. They followed a small path and passed through a forest, arriving before the mountain.
An instructor said, "Those who have registered for the school of Daoism, follow me up the mountain. Those who haven't, wait at the foot of the mountain. Don't go too far."
Li Qingshan discovered that most of the Qi Practitioners followed him up the mountain.
Not only was the school of Daoism the greatest school of thought, but they also had no requirements for talent in yin, yang, or the five elements. Daoism was known as the Three Thousand Great Daos and the Countless Minor Daos. No matter who it was, they would be able to find a suitable path for themselves.
As a result, basically every single person filled in the five spots with the word "Daoism" and made it their first target. Li Qingshan was no different. His target was only between the school of Daoism and the school of the Military, but the school of Daoism was a little more suitable.
Halfway up the mountain, Zhang Xuan was surrounded by clouds.
Li Qingshan realized that everyone had disappeared. He was the only one left on the mountain path. He knew that he had fallen into a formation.
"The exam has begun," a voice boomed.
Li Qingshan roused himself and took a step forward. As soon as he took a step forward, his body suddenly became several times heavier. His true energy was also completely suppressed by the invisible formation. He couldn't even open his hundred treasures pouch, let alone use any magical techniques.
At this moment, all the Qi Practitioners ascending the mountain became ordinary people. This Daoism's Mountain Guarding Formation began to display its astonishing power.
Li Qingshan didn't think much of it. He took another step forward, and the originally wide stone steps suddenly became an extremely narrow path. On both sides were cliffs that were tens of thousands of feet high. He couldn't see the bottom at a glance. It could be imagined that if he fell down, even if he didn't die from the fall, he would lose the right to enter the school of Daoism.
But at this moment, a strong wind surged, moving east and west without any direction.
"Ah!"
With a scream, a Qi Practitioner fell from the mountain path and spun down the cliff. Even though he knew that he would be fine, he couldn't help but be scared out of his wits. Just as he was about to fall to the bottom of the cliff, the scenery around him suddenly twisted and changed. When he looked again, he was back at the foot of the mountain. A group of Qi Practitioners waiting at the foot of the mountain looked at him with contempt.
He called out, "I refuse to accept this! I was blown down by the wind! With my cultivation at the third layer, how can I fend off the protective formation of the school of Daoism?"
"The more chaotic your mind is, the stronger the wind, and the narrower the path. You can't even control your fear when you know it's all an illusion, so what's the point of cultivating? Piss off." A voice boomed out. It was the slovenly daoist priest's voice.
Hua Chenglu curled her lip. "You're clearly the one who's useless. My brother said that if you can calm your mind, even ordinary people can reach the end of this path. Sigh, I wonder if Zijian is fine or not."
The Qi Practitioner finally became dejected. He came from a small clan. With his cultivation, he could already be regarded as a genius in his clan. He was protected like a treasure, so he had never experienced any danger. Only Now did his legs give way from fright, which was why he lost his footing and fell.
However, this principle did not seem to apply to Li Qingshan.
His gaze was calm, and his steps were steady. After experiencing so many battles of life and death, a path like this did not inspire any fear in him. However, the path just happened to become thinner and thinner, and the wind became stronger and stronger, more and more chaotic.
He remained unfazed. His body swayed with the wind each time, but his footsteps remained steady the entire time. He admired the rare sights on both sides, as leisurely as a tourist climbing a mountain.
Towards the end, he basically felt like he was walking on a narrow wall that was over ten thousand meters tall, but he still had the spare time to look around. He thought to himself, The tests of the school of Daoism sure are a little difficult.
The slovenly daoist priest saw this and snorted coldly. "Kid, I'd like to see how long you can last."
With a thought, rain began to fall from above Li Qingshan. The path became even more slippery and difficult to walk on. Suddenly, there was a clap of thunder, so close that it seemed to be right above him. Even if regular people stood on flat ground, they would fall over in fright.
The slovenly daoist priest sniggered and shifted his gaze, looking at someone else.
Sweat dripped from the tip of Yu Zijian's nose as she remembered Hua Chenglu's warning. She stared at the path ahead, afraid to look to the sides.
Suddenly, a violent gust of wind blew over, and her body swayed. Because she was holding a sword, she lost her balance. She was about to fall off the cliff.
The slovenly daoist priest curled his finger, and a gentle gust of wind blew over from the other side, supporting her gently. Only then did she stabilise herself.
"Master, that's not a good idea!" A young daoist priest with thin eyebrows and eyes had been watching on from one side the entire time. He could not help but speak up when he saw how the slovenly daoist priest treated one over the other.
He wore green clothes and a daoist crown. Silk wrapped around his waist, and a tablet hung from his waist. It was engraved with the number "one", the symbol of a primary disciple. His cultivation was at the tenth layer as well.
The slovenly daoist priest reddened. He did not behave as rudely to his beloved disciple as he did to the leaders of the various schools. Instead, he explained himself, "Juechenzi, she's a girl. It's very normal for her to be afraid of heights. No one is born fearless. Temperament was something that could be slowly honed. When it comes to men, you have to be a little more vicious. The edge of a treasured sword can only be sharpened … "
"Master, this treasured sword is still here!" Juechenzi pointed out.
The slovenly daoist priest looked over. Neither the wind, frost, nor the waterfall could make Li Qingshan's gaze waver. Instead, he sped up, rushing through the wind and rain.
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