The last day arrived, but there was no sign of fewer people on Gui Mountain; the foot of the mountain was still jam-packed. Who knew if it was because so many hadn’t had their chance yet, or if the crowd simply refused to leave and just wanted to watch the spectacle.

Shen Hao was dying to go home; he felt that if he stayed any longer in Pingjiang City, something bad was bound to happen to him.

Just like the previous few days, the noisy crowd was filled with sighs and parents quietly comforting their kids, saying that if they couldn’t get into Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute, there were always other Sects. First-class Sects had high Talent requirements, but it was easier with the second and third-tiers. You’re still young; there’s plenty of time to try again.

Every time Shen Hao heard these words, he couldn’t help but smile knowingly. He’d been through something similar himself—couldn’t get into a "985" or "211" university? Well, there were always second or third-tier ones, and failing that, you could always go to some obscure college... Pretty much the same idea.

But by the afternoon, another wave of shock rolled through at the foot of the mountain.

"Five Appearances of Floating Light!?"

One, two, three, four, five! There were actually five distinct dark gold patterns appearing on the Black Wall, lasting a good five or six breaths before slowly fading away!

The most immediate reaction Shen Hao noticed was that everyone who witnessed this around the Black Wall was stunned. Even Yang Qingyun, who’d been controlling the Black Wall for ten days and looked numb with boredom, was stupefied for a moment. Then his face froze in disbelief, as if he couldn’t trust his own eyes.

With Three Appearances of Floating Light, you could already knock on the doors of a first-class Sect like Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute. Four Appearances and you’d probably be called a Talent in the Institute itself. But Five Appearances? A genius among geniuses in a first-class Sect?

The kid himself was beaming with joy. So young, he didn’t quite understand what five Floating Lights meant, but he knew it was something really awesome—better than a lot of other people, way better. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Just look at the expression on Master Pingyang’s face—he grabbed the kid’s hand and wouldn’t let go, squatted down, and spoke kindly with a huge smile. No one knew what he was saying, but you could see the kid nod and silly-grin like a happy little doll.

In the end, it wasn’t until the Institute staff packed up the Black Wall and Age Stone and closed off the special trail behind the mountain—officially announcing the end of this recruitment season—that everyone finally started to come back to their senses, chattering about what had just happened.

Li Shuyang was thrilled. He’d been coaxed down the mountain quite reluctantly, but in the end he’d struck gold. Normally, even a good seedling with Four Appearances would catch some Elders’ eyes, even be taken as a disciple—let alone Five Appearances! In Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute, this was right at the top tier of Talent. Even among his three Direct Disciples, none of them reached Five Appearances at this age.

"Little guy, what’s your name?"

"Li Shuhua? Same surname as me—looks like we were destined to meet!"

"Here, take this little protective talisman. Hang it on you and it’ll keep you safe."

"Hehe, no need to thank me, no need to thank me."

"You and I have a special connection. Now that you’re in the Sect, your situation is quite unique. No matter if you pass the third stage or not, I’ll allow you to enter the Inner Sect directly."

"Shuhua, would you like to cultivate with me?"

The two Cultivators from Gui Mountain Cultivation Institute standing next to Li Shuyang were green with envy at his words, but they understood why.

This was Five Appearances of Floating Light! No one could blame an Elder for coming in person to snatch up a talent like this.

Besides, what others didn’t know was that Li Shuyang had something else on his mind. He was starting to believe the Great Elder’s divination from earlier: if the signs said there would be a "Beast in the Clouds" this recruitment season—then he really had found one. If this kid was trained well, he could very well become the Sect’s trusty guardian—what a blessing!

As for the second half of that divination, "blessing and misfortune arrive together," Li Shuyang just tossed it out of his mind. Blessing or misfortune—who the hell knows? Those kinds of words in a divination were basically meaningless.

"Elder Li, please wait a moment."

Li Shuyang was just getting ready to take his obviously-hypnotized new disciple back to the mountain and flaunt him a bit to his peers, when suddenly someone called him back.

The one who stopped Li Shuyang was an Outer Sect Steward, who looked nervous but respectful.

"Yes? What is it?" Li Shuyang asked, forcing himself to be patient.

"It’s like this. According to our longstanding agreement with the Li City Xuanqing Guard, since they help with maintaining order during recruitment season, we allow them to bring someone of their choice over for some guidance, if they’re suitable. Of course, if you feel none of them are up to snuff, just say so and I’ll send them away."

If someone else was in a hurry to leave, they might just brush this off, but not Li Shuyang. He was steady by nature, and took his duties seriously—never slacking, even if he didn’t really care much about the local Xuanqing Guard anymore.

"Alright, have them bring their pick over. I’ll take a look first." He turned and gently reassured the kid by his side to wait a moment, promising to bring him up the mountain soon. The boy obediently clung to Li Shuyang without a peep, looking around with curiosity and pride.

Soon enough, Liu Chuan arrived with a few Flag Officers in tow. He didn’t bother bringing any of the Xiaoqi under his command, whose Cultivation was barely worth mentioning. In fact, Liu Chuan had zero expectations for this group—compared to the new disciples the Sect had just recruited, these guys might as well have been "alive for nothing."

Could any of them catch the eye of a Profound Sea Realm Cultivator?

Yeah, right.

Everyone felt this was just a formality—they might have some tiny sliver of hope deep down, but it was barely worth mentioning. The odds were just too slim.

Yet to their surprise, Li Shuyang really gave each of them a careful once-over. The group could clearly feel a kind of pressure seeping through their bodies, as if someone was seeing right through them.

"Eh? What’s your name?"

"Huh?"

Swish, swish, swish—more than a dozen pairs of astonished eyes zeroed in on the utterly baffled Shen Hao.

What’s going on?! Shen Hao, this guy... Could it be... Is it possible...?!

Shen Hao was confused from head to toe. Just a moment ago, he’d been thinking that once this was over, he’d take his crew and leave immediately. But in the blink of an eye, Li Shuyang had called him out by name!

"Junior Shen Hao, greetings to Master Pingyang."

"Who is your master?"

"Junior is self-taught, no master."

"How many years have you studied?"

"Um... Started cultivation at thirteen, so it’s been over thirteen years now." Shen Hao could only stick with the fake background he’d provided to Xuanqing Guard—in reality, he’d been cultivating for not even eight years.

"A pity, truly a pity. Missed your time; tough to truly make it big in this life."

Shen Hao: "..."

Wait, what? Was he saying Shen Hao had decent potential but had wasted time, so now he’d never make a name for himself? Was that it?

Then Li Shuyang continued, "But your foundation is still there. Meeting today means we were meant to. I can offer you some guidance with your cultivation troubles—would you like that?"

Shen Hao nodded like crazy, feeling like he’d just scratched a lottery ticket and hit the jackpot.

He’d always cultivated on his own, stumbling and suffering all sorts of setbacks. Who would’ve thought that, one day, he’d get pointers from a Profound Sea Realm Cultivator? If that isn’t ’a fortuitous encounter,’ what is!