The Villainous Demon Lord’s Handbook for Success: Rebirth - Chapter 10

Ning Fuyi blinked, and the string of characters vanished, leaving only a seemingly ordinary petal on the table.

What exactly was Chu Qingqiu trying to do? Was it possible she discovered that Ning Fuyi had witnessed her injury the other day and wanted to threaten her in secret? Ning Fuyi shivered at the thought.

No, there was something fishy about this; she must not fall for it.

Ning Fuyi huffed and swept the petal aside.

Ignoring this interlude, she looked around the hall. The disciples were all seated properly, a dense crowd of heads filling the room, while Chu Qingqiu stood by the door as if waiting for something.

Li Chaoan and her “Sesame Cake” and “Noodles” were sitting to Ning Fuyi’s right. The soot on Li Chaoan’s face had been washed off, but her missing patch of hair couldn’t be restored so quickly; she had hidden it behind a tasseled forehead hairpin.

She was currently glaring at Ning Fuyi with wide eyes. Ning Fuyi couldn’t be bothered to deal with her and continued to rest her eyes on the table.

After a while, the sound of disorganized footsteps echoed outside the hall. Feeling Liu Wenzhu straighten up beside her, Ning Fuyi opened her eyes to see three elders entering, excluding the Chief Elder.

They were Elder Pingyao, the male Elder Jingshan from the other day, and Perfected Man Yuanming, a younger man who had just returned from Zhaoyao Mountain today.

Upon entering, the three of them first paid their respects to Chu Qingqiu.

Ning Fuyi let out a soft snort through her nose. Even if others couldn’t hear it, she still had to maintain her attitude of disapproval.

Next came Mei Chengsi. Ning Fuyi snorted even louder this time, drawing stares from the surrounding disciples and glares from both Sect Leaders and the elders.

“Silence,” Elder Pingyao said sternly. She shifted her gaze away from Ning Fuyi, her voice commanding, “Hurry and greet the Sect Leaders.”

The disciples had not yet adjusted to the change in leadership. Reminded by Elder Pingyao, they rose one after another, bowed toward the door, and said in unison, “Greetings, Sect Leaders.”

Compared to the glowing and proud Mei Chengsi standing beside her, Chu Qingqiu appeared quite indifferent, merely nodding slightly to signal for everyone to sit.

“There have been many upheavals in the sect recently. We know you are all grieving, but the Zhaoyao Assembly is imminent. This event is of utmost importance to the Yunjia Mountain Sect. You must gather your thoughts and give your all to comfort the late Sect Leader’s soul in heaven,” Elder Pingyao sighed, then continued, “Disciples of the North Courtyard have shallow cultivation and do not yet possess spiritual tools, so you would normally not be qualified to participate. However, this Zhaoyao Assembly has specifically established matches for disciples at or below the Mirror Realm, so you cannot stay out of it. You must practice diligently.”

“Therefore, today we will test your elemental affinities to organize the ranks and prepare for the selection of participants. No one is allowed to be absent.” As Elder Pingyao finished speaking, she flipped her palm, and a jade sundial appeared. It landed on the floor and grew steadily larger.

It stopped expanding once it reached the height of a person.

Seeing this “Holy Heaven Dial,” which they rarely got to see, the disciples immediately grew excited. Forgetting everything else, they began whispering to one another, making the hall quite noisy.

Even Liu Wenzhu was visibly excited. She lightly pulled Ning Fuyi’s sleeve and whispered, “Yiyi, that’s the once-in-a-century Zhaoyao Assembly. Are you really not interested?”

“Not at all,” Ning Fuyi shook her head. She tapped the edge of the table listlessly. Regardless of her interest, with her meager cultivation, how could Elder Pingyao possibly let her go? If other sects saw her, they’d laugh; it would be the Yunjia Mountain Sect losing face.

“Don’t worry, with your talent, you’ll be absolutely fine,” Ning Fuyi comforted Liu Wenzhu.

She knew Liu Wenzhu had been looking forward to the Zhaoyao Assembly for a long time and that she was definitely qualified. As the eldest daughter of the Liu family, one of the greatest cultivation clans, she had been burdened with high expectations since childhood. Consequently, she always wanted to distinguish herself early to meet her family’s hopes.

Liu Wenzhu took Ning Fuyi’s hand, looking at her with heartache.

“What use is her ‘interest’?” Li Chaoan spoke up from across the aisle, her chin tilted. “It’s not like she hasn’t used the Holy Heaven Dial before. She couldn’t even trigger a single element. She’s been cultivating for over twenty years and is still in the Initial Realm. Letting her go? It would be my godmother’s and the Yunjia Mountain Sect’s face being dragged through the mud.”

“Li Chaoan!” Liu Wenzhu slammed a fair hand onto the table. A crack suddenly appeared in the stone, jolting Ning Fuyi so hard she nearly fell off the bench.

“What? I’m only telling the truth,” Li Chaoan tilted her head with a shallow smile.

“Wenzhu,” Ning Fuyi stopped Liu Wenzhu from arguing further. She turned to study Li Chaoan, looking her over from head to toe and back again.

In her previous life, she had many infamous titles, and her favorite was “Cold-Blooded Killer.” Though she didn’t have the chance yet, she could start planning how to kill her later; the method was a bit of a dilemma.

Should she burn her directly with fire, or toss her into the River of Three Paths to feed that turtle that had cultivated into a spirit in the latrine?

Li Chaoan didn’t know what Ning Fuyi was thinking, but being stared at like prey made her scalp tingle. She couldn’t help but shrink back, her mocking words faltering.

Fury burned in her heart. She had always been superior to Ning Fuyi; when had she ever lost ground before her? Now, she was being intimidated by a single look—it made no sense.

Just as she was about to snap back with more sarcasm, Elder Pingyao spoke up from the front, her gaze fixed directly on them as she warned, “The Sect Leaders are present! No noise!”

Li Chaoan immediately shut her mouth, biting her lip to look obedient. Ning Fuyi also withdrew her murderous gaze, sitting upright and looking composed.

While undercurrents surged on their side, the disciples at the front were being called by name. They stood forward one by one, pricking their palms to drop blood onto the dial’s needle. The blood vanished the moment it touched the needle, and the sundial then acted like a mirror, displaying the disciple’s cultivation level and elemental affinity.

Generally, cultivation levels were divided into nine realms: Initial, Mortal, Rising, Mirror, Transformation, Immortal Body, Void-Piercing, Great Mahayana, and True Deity. Even the four Great Elders were only at the Void-Piercing realm. In the entire cultivation world, those above that level could be counted on one’s fingers.

Even Ning Changfeng had only reached the high stage of Great Mahayana. Rumor had it that Chu Qingqiu had broken through Great Mahayana to become a True Deity, but since Chu Qingqiu had lived in seclusion, the world only knew the Exalted Goddess’s power was unfathomable; no one knew if the rumors were true.

Furthermore, everyone’s immortal energy fell into five elemental categories: Wind, Thunder, Water, Fire, and Wood. Among people in the same realm, the strength of different affinities varied. Fire and Thunder were primary combat elements and the most powerful; Water and Wood focused on healing and were secondary; Wind was considered ordinary and widely recognized as the weakest.

Of course, Chu Qingqiu was the exception; she was the only person who could use Wind techniques to defeat others of the same realm across all other elements.

However, not everyone was Chu Qingqiu. One’s most suitable elemental affinity could only be determined after breaking through the Mortal Realm. The disciples in the North Courtyard had started late and hadn’t been tested yet, which was why everyone was so nervous, hoping for a stronger affinity.

“Shi Shuishui,” Rong Jin called from the register. A plump girl ran forward nervously to drop her blood.

Though there was no sunlight, the needle’s shadow suddenly began to spin, stopping on a character. Then the sundial transformed into a mirror surface, showing a flurry of morning glory flowers.

Everyone’s immortal energy was unique, so the specific images displayed were different.

“Mortal Realm, Wood,” Rong Jin announced loudly. The girl breathed a sigh of relief and ran back to her seat, covering her face.

One by one, they went forward, some joyful and some disappointed, as sighs filled the room.

“Li Chaoan,” Rong Jin called.

Li Chaoan rose and passed Ning Fuyi with her head held high, her skirts unfurling behind her like clouds. Standing before the Holy Heaven Dial, she dropped a bead of blood without the slightest hesitation.

The Holy Heaven Dial responded instantly, with piercing lightning flashing across the mirror surface.

“Mirror Realm, Thunder,” Rong Jin said.

At those words, a buzz erupted among the other disciples. Everyone was envious; possessing Mirror Realm cultivation at such a young age with the most powerful combat element, Thunder—how could they not be?

The elders also cast satisfied glances her way.

On her way back to her seat, Li Chaoan kept her eyes on Ning Fuyi. The moment Ning Fuyi looked up, she curled her lips triumphantly and mouthed something; though inaudible, it certainly wasn’t anything nice.

Before Ning Fuyi could retaliate, Rong Jin spoke again, calling her name. The eyes of everyone else immediately converged on her, followed by constant whispering.

Everyone knew Ning Fuyi lacked talent and was still in the Initial Realm after over a decade of practice. Testing her affinity in public was just setting her up to be a laughingstock.

Ning Fuyi paused, then rose and passed Li Chaoan, hearing a low, mocking laugh.

She had long grown accustomed to public embarrassment in her previous life, so she didn’t feel much now. She casually made a small cut on her hand.

Fresh blood flowed from her palm, dropping steadily onto the needle.

As expected, the needle remained motionless, and the dial face showed no change. Ning Fuyi heard several suppressed laughs. She shrugged and turned to walk back.

Li Chaoan had already returned to her seat and was looking at her with her nose in the air, but in the next second, she looked away, her mouth agape in shock.

“Yiyi! Yiyi, look!” Liu Wenzhu also jumped up, pointing behind Ning Fuyi, her small face flushing a faint peach-pink with excitement.

Ning Fuyi, confused about what was happening, turned around only to be stunned by the sight.

Amidst a chorus of gasps, the needle began to rotate slowly. Simultaneously, the massive dial face transformed into a mirror and, with a blub-blub-blub…

Produced a bunch of dainty pink bubbles.

Support The Villainous Demon Lord’s Handbook for Success: Rebirth