After Marrying the 'Long Aotian' in Drag to Counter Bad Luck - Chapter 16

Inside the pocket dimension.

Rong Nianfeng closed his eyes and silently recited the incantation exactly as the voice had instructed. Before long, a secret manual slowly materialized in his hands.

Was this the Registry of Spiritual Herbs?

“There is a refining cauldron in front of each of you. Placing a correct combination of spiritual herbs into it will count as one successfully paired plant. No whispering to one another is allowed, and no cheating will be tolerated.” The deep, resonant voice was laced with spiritual energy, transmitting clearly into the ears of everyone inside the pocket dimension.

Two hours, no more and no less.

Rong Nianfeng weighed the secret manual in his hand, figuring that the time should be more than enough.

He sat cross-legged on the ground, flipping through the book with one hand while propping up his chin with the other, watching the scene unfold with a look of utter boredom.

All around him, cultivators had already begun flipping through their manuals, attempting to pair the herbs floating above their cauldrons. Unlike the previous sword array, which demanded a massive amount of spiritual energy, alchemy only required them to bring two fingers together, place them against their foreheads, and draw out their spiritual energy.

Naturally, success was not guaranteed every time. The score achieved would manifest directly on the refining cauldron. Although some cultivators kept tossing paired herbs inside, no scores appeared on their cauldrons. It seemed they were merely hoping to strike it lucky.

Jie Yueqiu sneered softly, “Since when did my Alchemy Peak start attracting such trash?”

His words implied that any cultivator acting in such a manner would never have another chance to catch his eye. This meant that if these cultivators failed to perform exceptionally well in the other three trials, they would have no choice but to pack up and return home.

The disciples of the Alchemy Peak trembled, deeply terrified that their elder would take his anger out on them.

“Why must Elder Jie be so enraged? It is not as if there are no good prospects this year.” Another elder smirked, gesturing toward a corner of the pocket dimension.

On that particular refining cauldron, the score had already reached four hundred points.

Moreover, a mere fifteen minutes had passed.

Jie Yueqiu raised an eyebrow in surprise, his fingertips lightly tracing the rim of his teacup, “Is that person Fu Xingzhi of the Blood Sect?”

“Yes. Who knows what the Blood Sect is plotting this time. Perhaps they simply wish to kick us while we are down.” The elder narrowed his eyes, a look of displeasure written all over his face.

After all, the grand recruitment of the sect was the only pretext that allowed outsiders to enter the Xuantian Sword Sect openly.

Both the Blazing Flame Sect and the Blood Sect had sent their own top prodigies here. Aside from the fact that the spiritual veins of the Xuantian Sword Sect were more suitable for cultivation, one could easily guess their underlying motives.

The Grand Sect Tournament two years from now would be far more than just a minor squabble among disciples.

If a sect could ascend to the ranks of the upper-tier sects, or even replace one entirely, the rewards would be monumental.

Jie Yueqiu remained utterly indifferent. His pitch-black eyes looked as dark as lacquer as he said coldly, “Prodigies? If worst comes to worst, we can just snatch them over.”

The elder was left speechless.

He had forgotten this individual’s usual way of doing things.

Whenever Jie Yueqiu set his sights on something, he would use every possible means to obtain it.

Of course, there were exceptions.

The elder glanced at Immortal Venerable Wuji beside him and let out a sigh.

Ten years ago, when the eight-year-old Ye Xingchen participated in the trials, he secured the top spot in all four trials. Qiu Nian, the Master of the Corpse Puppet Pavilion, rarely took on a core disciple even once in a decade, though he had a mountain of outer sect disciples performing chores. Because his temperament was completely unpredictable, the elders feared that a brilliant gem would be covered in dust, so they did not allow Ye Xingchen to choose him at all.

That left the elders of the other three peaks nearly coming to blows. The elder of Chenxing Peak argued until his face turned red, but he ultimately lost the dispute. In the end, only Jie Yueqiu and Immortal Venerable Wuji remained, neither willing to back down. No one knew what kind of underhanded tricks Immortal Venerable Wuji had employed, but he ultimately managed to whisk Ye Xingchen away.

To this day, the two still could not stand the sight of each other. Jie Yueqiu was an extremely vengeful person, which was the sole reason he had never personally refined any pills intended for Lingyun Peak.

As if they shared a telepathic bond, Immortal Venerable Wuji spoke up, “Rest assured, I have no interest in that boy.”

Jie Yueqiu mocked, “Do you truly believe you could outrival me?”

Right at that moment, someone gasped softly, “Look quickly, that person’s score has already reached seven hundred!”

The attention of the rest of the crowd was drawn toward the indicated direction. Inside the pocket dimension, rich spiritual energy was gradually dispersing around a young man dressed in black robes. On his refining cauldron, the numbers were continuously climbing without any sign of stopping.

“Xie… Xie Si’an? I have never heard of this name before!”

“Good heavens! His ranking was also number one in the previous sword array!”

“It feels as though I am looking at Ye Xingchen from ten years ago.”

“We were so distracted by Ji Yang’s interruption during the sword array that we did not even notice such a figure.”

The crowd erupted into a flurry of hushed discussions, and the elders on the platform were noticeably unable to sit still any longer.

Unlike Ji Yang and Fu Xingzhi, this Xie Si’an had never sworn allegiance to any other sect.

This meant that he was highly likely to become the next peerless prodigy.

The pocket dimension was also in a state of restless commotion. The spiritual energy around the participants was rushing toward a single direction. Although this particular trial did not require an excessive amount of spiritual energy, the upcoming trials for formations and puppet manipulation would demand far more.

However, when they saw the numbers on that cultivator’s refining cauldron, utter despair was the only emotion left in their hearts.

They no longer stood a chance.

Rong Nianfeng had switched to holding his book with both hands at some point. He stared at the man in the center, who possessed sharp features, a majestic bearing, and deep, dark eyes. Understanding dawned upon him instantly.

Xie Si’an was the very source of Ye Xingchen’s misfortunes in the original novel.

Born with dual spiritual roots and possessing remarkable talent in the path of the sword, he broke through from the mid-Foundation Establishment realm to the Golden Core realm in just a single year of cultivation.

His emergence caused everyone to gradually forget the existence of Ye Xingchen.

It even led to mockery and humiliation.

Even the people within Ye Xingchen’s own faction began to face various degrees of suppression. Aside from Immortal Venerable Wuji and his inner circle, the outer sect disciples of Lingyun Peak were also instigated by other elders to hurl vicious words at them.

Since Xie Si’an had appeared exactly as the plot dictated, it meant that the storyline had not deviated yet.

Thinking of this, Rong Nianfeng felt completely refreshed. He hummed a little tune and continued his trial at a leisurely pace.

Two hours later, Xie Jingzhi stared at the numbers on Rong Nianfeng’s refining cauldron, his eyes shining brightly, “Wow, how did you manage to pair two thousand plants in just two hours?”

Had this occurred earlier, it surely would have caused a massive sensation. However, compared to Xie Si’an with his four thousand plants and Fu Xingzhi with his three hundred plants, his performance could only be considered decent.

Rong Nianfeng replied miserably, “Have you ever heard of the Blue Romance of Life and Death?”

Xie Jingzhi frowned, deliberating for a long while before replying, “I have not.”

“Then it is best that you never know. Advising someone to study medicine is inviting the wrath of heaven.” Rong Nianfeng patted his shoulder, sighing heavily.

In the subsequent formation trial, Xie Si’an took the first place beyond any suspense. To Rong Nianfeng’s surprise, Xie Jingzhi managed to secure the second place.

He let out a yawn and asked half-seriously, “Xie Si’an also shares the surname Xie. You two cannot possibly be relatives, can you?”

Xie Jingzhi carefully tucked the compass back into his robes and shook his head, “We should not be.”

At this moment, the familiar voice echoed once more inside the pocket dimension, “The final trial is puppet manipulation. Any disciple who wishes to withdraw may crush their jade token to return to the Xuantian Hall. The elders of the various peaks will determine whether you are qualified to be admitted under their tutelage based on your performance in the previous trials.”

Puppet manipulation meant controlling puppets. Aside from puppets, it also involved raising ghosts, which could only be controlled after forming a binding covenant. Cultivators often had to pay a corresponding price for this path. Rumor had it that Qiu Nian, the Master of the Corpse Puppet Peak, fed the entities with his own flesh and blood, constantly regenerating and constantly being consumed, which was why he always wore a black robe to conceal his body.

“The Corpse Puppet Pavilion is incredibly sinister, and the little ghosts devour humans. There is no telling when one might be consumed by them instead. Besides, puppet masters can only attack from a distance. In a secret realm, one could die without even knowing how it happened.”

“I should be able to go to Lingyun Peak to become an outer sect disciple.”

“Those elders are weirder and more terrifying than the last.”

Before long, only a few dozen people remained inside the pocket dimension.

Xie Jingzhi spoke in a low voice, “I wish to go to Chenxing Peak, so I am afraid we cannot travel together in the next trial.”

Having been inside for too long, Rong Nianfeng was running out of physical strength. Fortunately, his results on the Alchemy Peak’s side were quite good, so he should be able to secure a position as an inner sect disciple.

He crossed his arms and nodded, “Alright, then I shall just head to the Alchemy Peak.”

Going to the Alchemy Peak might allow him to refine some highly nourishing pills. If the original plot could not be avoided when he delivered equipment to Ye Xingchen in the future, leaving him on the verge of death, he might still be able to use those pills to prolong his life.

“See you at the Xuantian Hall.” After saying this, Xie Jingzhi crushed the jade token in his hand and vanished from sight.

Rong Nianfeng paused for a moment, intending to leave as well.

He gave his token a squeeze.

Nothing happened. He was still inside the pocket dimension.

He figured his method of opening it must be wrong.

He closed his eyes and squeezed it again. With a sharp cracking sound, the jade token shattered completely, yet his body remained inside.

Rong Nianfeng was completely speechless.

As expected, when a person suffers from misfortune, even drinking water can get stuck in their teeth.

Little did he know that back in the Xuantian Hall, beneath the black robe, a profound and unreadable look flickered across Qiu Nian’s eyes. He quietly withdrew the puppet strings that had been concealed in the shadows.

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