"Damn it, damn it!"
Zhang Qian's face turned livid.
He had been hoping that he would be able to outdo himself and soar to the top, but who could have thought that he would still fail in the end? On the other hand, that fellow had actually surpassed him by a rank!
He had thought that he would be able to teach the other party a lesson once he became a member of the Elite Division, but who could have thought that things would turn out this way?
"Big Brother Yun, it's this Zhang Xuan fellow who made a move on me. My slot was also pushed down by him!"
Zhang Qian clenched his fists tightly as he glared at a young man not too far away.
The other prodigy of the Zhang clan who had entered the Elite Division was Zhang Yunfeng, and he was ranked 46th.
"I know about your matter. Aren't you the one who provoked me?" Zhang Yunfeng harrumphed coldly. "Even I dare not provoke those from the Glacier Plain Court, and yet, you tried to show off as soon as you arrived. You deserve to be taught a lesson!"
"Yes, I admit that I am inferior to him, so I humiliated myself. However, that fellow openly looked down on the Zhang clan, saying that the members of the Zhang clan like to poke their noses into the hearts of beautiful women … I can't help but feel infuriated by his arrogance!"
Zhang Qian said.
"There's no need to goad me. Regardless of whether he looked down on the Zhang clan or not, it's indeed a little arrogant of you to make a move on him after revealing your identity. Don't worry, I'll teach him a lesson later on and let him know that he doesn't have the right to act so arrogantly in the Sanctum of Sages! "
Zhang Yunfeng said calmly.
"Thank you, Brother Yun!"
Zhang Qian's eyes lit up, and he clenched his fists tightly in excitement.
Zhang Yunfeng's bloodline was significantly purer than his, reaching Grade-1. Not only so, his cultivation was also higher than his, reaching Grand Dominion realm primary stage. If he were to make a move, that fellow named Zhang Xuan would surely be defeated miserably.
"Un."
Zhang Yunfeng fell silent.
To him, a fellow who had popped out of nowhere was nothing more than an interlude in his cultivation.
…
"Next up are the candidates from the Ordinary Division!"
Paying no heed to the astonished crowd, Elder Liu waved his hand grandly.
Silvery light flashed in the sky, and names began appearing one after another.
Soon, all the names were displayed, and Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that Zhang Jiuxiao was on the list.
Even though his ranking was not too high, only in the 460th place, he had still cleared the examination and become a member of the Sanctum of Sages.
Ma Minghai and the others who had come with them had also successfully advanced. There were seven of them in total. Although it wasn't very good, according to the ratio, it should be quite good.
"Next are the auditing students!"
After announcing the names of the ordinary students, Elder Vast's voice sounded once more. Following which, another five hundred names appeared.
The Sanctum of Sages had officially recruited a total of five hundred students, including the elites and ordinary students.
As the list of 500 people appeared, voices of excitement and disappointment rose one after another.
Zhang Xuan took a look.
Of the thirty-three people who had come from the Qianchong Empire, seven of them had advanced, and four of them had become spectators. This was not a bad result.
"Those on the list can stay. The rest of you, please leave!"
Since the name list was already out, Elder Vast Universe didn't stand on ceremony any longer. He waved his hand with the intention of sending the guest away.
The geniuses who weren't selected could only dejectedly leave.
An examination was an examination, and no matter where it was, it was bound to be cruel.
If they failed, they would have to pay a price many times greater than before in order to make a comeback.
In less than ten minutes, only the thousand people who had been selected were left in the square.
"Welcome to the Sanctum of Sages!"
Elder Vast waved his hand, and innumerable identity tokens immediately appeared in the hands of each of the candidates. "These are your identity tokens. They will automatically display your responsibilities as a member of the Sanctum of Sages!"
Zhang Xuan looked at the descending jade token.
The spectators' token was light blue, the ordinary students' token was light yellow, and as a member of the Elite Division, his token was black.
Lowering his head to take a look, there was a 'Sage' character inscribed on the token. It carried an ancient aura, and there were innumerable inscriptions around it, reminiscent of a person's gaze.
With a flick of his finger, he sent a droplet of his blood into the token, and it immediately fused together with the token. This allowed him to enter the Sanctum of Sages without being hindered by the formations, allowing him to move freely.
At the same time, Zhang Jiuxiao had also assimilated the token in his hand with a satisfied look on his face.
As an offspring of the side family, he had not been valued much, but as a member of the Sanctum of Sages, his standing had changed.
"I might just be qualified to participate in the annual assembly this year!"
Zhang Jiuxiao's eyes glowed in excitement.
The annual assembly of the Zhang clan had always been reserved for the core members and members of the side family, so it had been impossible for him to attend it. However, as one of the five hundred members of the Sanctum of Sages, his standing had risen by leaps and bounds. Now that he had returned to the Zhang clan, he was finally qualified to participate in the annual assembly.
"This is all thanks to Zhang Shi!"
Knowing that his current achievements were largely due to Zhang Jiuxiao's help, Zhang Jiuxiao heaved a sigh of relief.
Even though he was an offspring of the Zhang clan, he had not received any substantial help from the Zhang clan. On the other hand, Zhang Shi had worked tirelessly throughout the entire journey, never harboring any grudges against him just because they had been rivals in the past. Regardless of whether it was his character or his comprehension of knowledge, Zhang Jiuxiao was deeply impressed by the latter.
Just as Zhang Jiuxiao was deep in thought, Elder Liu's voice suddenly sounded in the sky once more. "The examination has come to an end, and everyone's identities have been decided. I believe that there are still some who are unwilling to accept the results of the examination, so don't worry, the Sanctum of Sages will give you this opportunity.
"That's great! I've been waiting for such an opportunity!"
"It's rare for the Sanctum of Sages to hold a challenge, but I didn't think that I would be able to participate in it. This time, I must become a student of the Sanctum of Sages!"
The eyes of the crowd lit up in excitement.
Those who were qualified to join the Sanctum of Sages had all done their homework beforehand. While the Sanctum of Sages did not have to participate in the Sanctum of Sages every single time, it was common to find out about it.
"The Sanctum of Sages is very simple. Spectators are allowed to challenge members of the Ordinary Division, and if they succeed, they will be able to replace them. Those from the Ordinary Division are allowed to challenge members of the Elite Division as well. However, each of them only has a single chance to do so, and if they fail, they will be punished accordingly, "Elder Liu said.
"I believe that all of you should have some understanding of this by now. If you really don't understand, there are records of it in your Identity Jade Token."
"There are records of it?"
Zhang Xuan activated his Spiritual Perception to take a look at the Identity Jade Token in his hand. As expected, there were many rules in the Sanctum of Sages, and one of them was related to the Sanctum of Sages.
The Sanctum of Sages was a competition for the sake of fairness. The strong would rise while the weak would be relegated to the bottom. Similarly, it would be disrespectful for a person of lower cultivation to challenge a person of higher cultivation. On the other hand, if one were to fail, one would be unable to see one's own strength clearly, and one would be punished accordingly.
Some of the rules were to be punished, some were to pay compensation, and some were to apologize.
However, the rules had to be approved by the victor first.
In other words, it was fine for one to challenge another, but one had to act within one's means.
Those who questioned the results of the Mountain Gate examination of the Sanctum of Sages would be punished accordingly.
"Begin!"
With a loud bellow, Elder Liu waved his hand, and a circular dueling ring slowly rose from the ground at the center of the square.
After Elder Han Zhu explained the rules, the crowd quickly gathered around the dueling ring, and they began recalling the names on the list, intending to issue a challenge.
"I would like to challenge the 500th ranker of the Ordinary Division, Xue Ning!"
A voice suddenly shouted.
It was one of the spectating students.
"That Zhao Qi is ranked first among the spectating students, which means that … he happens to be ranked 501st. Feeling indignant, he wishes to challenge the 500th ranker!"
"It's no wonder. The difference in score between the two of them isn't too big!"
"Indeed. Anyone would want to challenge him as well!"
…
Those who had stepped out from the crowd nodded in agreement.
It was not that they were questioning the fairness of the Sanctum of Sages, but that they were indignant.
The difference between the two of them wasn't too big, but the latter was only a spectating student whereas the former had become a member of the Sanctum of Sages. Anyone would feel indignant and want to make use of this opportunity to prove themselves.
Hula!
After declaring his challenge, Zhao Qi leaped onto the dueling ring.
"As you wish!"
A young man from the Ordinary Division stepped onto the dueling ring as well.
Zhang Xuan took a look at him.
The young man was none other than the Third Young Master Xue of the Xue Clan, the one who had fought with him over the Tianchen Brew back in Qianchong Empire and lost fifteen concentrated high-tier spirit stones to him.
Back then, that fellow had spun around too quickly, causing him to vomit, and he had been mocked by many.
Who could have thought that in just ten short days, he would be able to advance his cultivation to Quasi Leaving Aperture realm?
His strength might not be much among the geniuses of the Sanctum of Sages, but there was no doubt that he was talented.
"Xue Ning, what did you test in the Mountain Gate? In what aspect did you accept the challenge? "
Elder Han Zhu asked.
The Sanctum of Sages did not select geniuses based solely on one's strength. Since he had accepted the challenge, it went without saying that he would have to face his opponent with what he was best at.
"The reason why I cleared the selection is due to my speed and offensive prowess. As long as my opponent suppresses his cultivation to the same level as mine, I'll be considered to have lost!"
Raising his head, Xue Ning's eyes were filled with confidence.
Even though the Xue Clan was only a Tier 3 Sage Clan, their ultimate move, Golden Silk Thread, was not to be underestimated.
If not for the monster Zhang Xuan, he would have been invincible among those of the same cultivation realm.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to clear the Mountain Gate examination and become a member of the Sanctum of Sages.
"I'll suppress my cultivation to fight you!"
Nodding, Zhao Qi bellowed. His cultivation swiftly descended to the same level as Xue Ning, reaching Quasi Leaving Aperture realm.
Hong long!
The two of them clashed with one another.
As expected of geniuses, their moves were exquisite, each stronger than the last. All kinds of energies clashed with one another, making it difficult to determine the victor within a short period of time.
"Zhang Shi … Who do you think will win?"
Zhang Jiuxiao asked.
"Xue Ning should be slightly more skillful," Zhang Xuan replied.
"I also think that he'll win!"
Zhang Jiuxiao remarked. Then, he suddenly recalled a matter and asked, "Right, Zhang Shi, how did you manage to clear the Mountain Gate examination and become a student of the Elite Division? Can you tell me about your experiences? "
The young man before him was proficient in cultivation, master teacher, appraiser, painting … There was not a single aspect that he wasn't familiar with. Zhang Jiuxiao really couldn't figure out how he had managed to clear the examination, so he was filled with curiosity.
"Experiences?"
Zhang Xuan hesitated for a moment before replying, "First of all … you have to be able to sleep!"
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