Chapter 185: Chapter 183: First Stage Trial

At the foot of Martial Saint Mountain was the entrance to the Saint Martial Sword Sect.

A towering, arched stone gate stood here. On either side were two stone pillars carved with dragons. The patterns of soaring dragons and auspicious clouds upon them were so lifelike they seemed real.

The four dragon eyes emanated a faint, dark light, inspiring awe and fear.

Nalan Qiantian said, "Jiang Chen, do you see those two dragon-shaped pillars? Let me tell you, the eyes on those dragons are real dragon eyes. The founding ancestor of the Saint Martial Sword Sect killed two Tier Four Advanced Demon Beasts, Nine Nether Demon Dragons, and personally gouged out their eyeballs!"

HISS!

Chen Huan and the others all gasped, letting out cries of shock.

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow, taking a deep look at the two dragon pillars. The four dragon eyes glowed with a sinister light, as if they could devour everything.

The heritage of the Saint Martial Sword Sect was indeed terrifying.

"Tch... Nine Nether Demon Dragon? They’re just part of the Half-blooded Dragon Clan, born from a True Dragon and some netherworld creature. Back in my day, this Emperor ate True Dragons and Divine Phoenixes like candy..." the Black Emperor, perched on Jiang Chen’s shoulder, snorted with disdain.

"Where did this little thing come from, spouting such nonsense here?"

"Eating True Dragons and Divine Phoenixes? Do you think you’re an Ancient Divine Beast? What a fantasy!"

"When it comes to bragging, you take the cake!"

This was, after all, the main gate of the Saint Martial Sword Sect.

More than fifty thousand talented disciples had come to take the Saint Martial Sword Sect’s assessment, and the area was already a sea of people. Hearing the Black Emperor’s words, they all shot it furious glares.

Seeing everyone’s eyes turning toward him, Jiang Chen felt a headache coming on.

He snatched the indignant Black Emperor, who was about to continue recounting his grand tales of conquering the Eight Desolates and Six Harmonies, pulled it into his arms, and covered its mouth. He smiled at the crowd and said, "Ahem... this little guy took too many aphrodisiacs and just loves to brag. Please don’t mind him!"

Only then did the crowd let the matter with the Black Emperor go.

The Black Emperor struggled free from Jiang Chen’s hands and said indignantly, "Jiang Chen, why did you cover my mouth?"

"A true hero doesn’t boast about past glories!"

Jiang Chen said, completely exasperated.

The Black Emperor opened its mouth, its eyes filled with fury, but there was nothing it could do.

Ever since that battle back then, it had been grievously injured and had yet to recover. Now, forget eating a True Dragon Divine Phoenix; even if one of those eyeless Nine Nether Demon Dragons showed up, it could easily crush him.

At this thought, the Black Emperor looked aggrieved. Its head drooped, and it slumped back down on Jiang Chen’s shoulder.

"Silence!"

Just then, a vigorous voice descended from the sky, rumbling like thunder. Wherever the voice passed, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi grew turbulent.

Fifty thousand people raised their heads in unison.

From the void, a seven-colored beam of light fell from the sky. It stretched across the heavens like a long rainbow, and upon it, three figures strode through the air.

All three were dressed in silver robes, with the emblem of a golden sword on their chests.

They were Core Disciples of the Saint Martial Sword Sect!

In the Saint Martial Sword Sect, disciples were divided into ordinary disciples, Elite Disciples, Core Disciples, True Disciples, and the supreme Saint Disciples!

Ordinary disciples wore gray, Elite Disciples wore white, Core Disciples wore silver, and True Disciples wore gold. As for Saint Disciples, they were unique, possessing the inherited Holy Robe of the Saint Martial Sword Sect!

The three Core Disciples descended upon the seven-colored rainbow, landing before the mountain gate.

Two men and one woman.

The woman had a graceful figure and delicate features, a rare beauty indeed.

An arrogant expression was on her face. Her indifferent gaze swept over the crowd without lingering. Her ethereal voice, like that of a warbler, announced, "Today, the Saint Martial Sword Sect is recruiting new disciples. Anyone over the age of twenty whose cultivation is below the Martial Arts Ninth Stage, or anyone over thirty whose cultivation is below the True Martial Realm, please leave now. If anyone tries to slip through, they will be discovered and killed without mercy!"

Killed without mercy!

Just three simple words, yet they seemed to make the very heavens change color.

"Who is that woman? Her aura is terrifying..." Sun Peng muttered.

Nalan Qiantian stared intently at the woman, a fiery, possessive desire flashing in his eyes. He grinned. "That is Lin Feifei, ranked fourth among the ten great prodigies of the Outer Sect and one of the Outer Sect’s four great beauties. Not only is her cultivation powerful, but she’s also so gorgeous. Heh heh, believe it or not, I, this young master, will definitely win her over within a year!"

"Young Master Nalan is wise, mighty, and has a magnificent bearing! You and Senior Sister Lin are a match made in heaven!"

"Then we’ll congratulate Young Master Nalan in advance!"

Chen Huan and the others chimed in.

Jiang Chen was a little speechless. He could feel the fluctuations of aura from Lin Feifei; they were tyrannical and immense, on the verge of breaking into the Heavenly Destiny Realm.

’With Nalan Qiantian’s strength, I’m afraid he’ll never catch her eye!’

At the same time, Lin Feifei’s ethereal voice rang out again. "This recruitment for the Sword Sect will proceed with a three-stage assessment, as usual. For the First Stage of the assessment, you will have the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn to climb from here to the Earth Martial Hall, located halfway up Martial Saint Mountain. Anyone who fails to reach the Earth Martial Hall within the time limit will be considered to have failed and will be eliminated!"

"Next, Junior Brother Du Haoyu will supervise the first stage, and Junior Brother Tangg Ning will be responsible for the second." Lin Feifei glanced at the two men beside her, then shot up into the sky, flying toward the peak of Martial Saint Mountain.

Lin Feifei was in charge of this disciple recruitment assessment.

Naturally, she would be presiding over the third stage.

"Junior Brother Du, the first stage is all yours," Tangg Ning said faintly before turning and leaving.

Du Haoyu watched the two of them leave, then turned his gaze to Jiang Chen and the more than fifty thousand other candidates. He said flatly, "Senior Sister Lin has already explained the content of the First Stage of the assessment. I will add one more point: you are absolutely forbidden from using True Essence on the path from the mountain gate to the Earth Martial Hall. Anyone who uses True Essence will be considered to have forfeited the assessment and will be eliminated!"

"I declare the first stage of the assessment officially begun!"

A long stick of incense suddenly appeared in Du Haoyu’s hand.

A flicker of fire appeared at its tip.

The incense stick began to burn with a faint red glow, wisps of green smoke curling upwards.

"Charge!"

"Dammit, we only have one incense stick’s time! We can’t fall behind!"

"Let’s go! Don’t let them get ahead!"

The cultivators immediately surged forward. The sight of fifty thousand people sprinting at once was truly spectacular.

Nalan Qiantian said with a haughty expression, "You few, follow behind this young master. In a moment, people will likely try to stop others from passing them. Only by following me will you be able to reach the Earth Martial Hall smoothly!"

"Then we’ll have to rely on Young Master Nalan!"

"Thank you, Young Master Nalan! We will repay you with our lives in the future!"

Chen Huan and the others said in succession.

Only Jiang Chen remained calm and composed.

Nalan Qiantian glanced at Jiang Chen, somewhat displeased. He thought to himself, ’It seems this Jiang Chen isn’t truly subservient to me yet. In a bit, I, this young master, will use my fastest speed to leave you in the dust. I’ll show you just how big the gap between us is. When that happens, you’ll naturally come begging for my help!’ 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

At this thought, the corners of Nalan Qiantian’s mouth curved up into a sinister smile.

Then, with powerful strides, he began his ascent up Martial Saint Mountain!

His speed was so great that Chen Huan and the others behind him struggled to keep up. Jiang Chen, however, followed behind the group as if taking a leisurely stroll, completely relaxed.

He never fell behind.

After madly dashing for dozens of kilometers up steps that were nearly perpendicular to the ground, even a cultivator at the Peak of True Martial Realm would feel their legs turn to lead, especially since they couldn’t use their True Essence.

Nalan Qiantian’s face was flushed red, and he was gasping for breath. A smug smile appeared on his face. ’I’ve already broken into the top five hundred. With my help, Chen Huan and the others should still be able to keep up. As for Jiang Chen...’

As he thought this, Nalan Qiantian tried to turn and look for Jiang Chen.

However, an unexpected voice sounded from beside him, "Nalan Qiantian, why did you stop? Out of energy? Need my help?"

Nalan Qiantian stared, dumbfounded, at Jiang Chen, who stood beside him with his hands clasped behind his back. His face wasn’t red, he wasn’t out of breath, and he was asking with a look of concern. Nalan Qiantian was utterly baffled. "Y-y-you, how are you here? Weren’t you supposed to have fallen behind?"

Jiang Chen shrugged. "Ah, don’t mention it. I was just planning to follow the group and make it within the time limit. But you guys were so slow, I caught up without even realizing it. You look pretty tired. How about I pull you guys along?"

"Huh?"

Before Nalan Qiantian could even react, Jiang Chen had already grabbed him and was charging forward.

His speed was even a notch faster than Nalan Qiantian’s had been at his peak.

Nalan Qiantian was completely baffled. "H-Holy shit... H-how is he so fast?"