Chapter 302: Selection and Trial

Chapter 302: Chapter 302: Selection and Trial

"Seniors, these three are the important figures I mentioned. They’re said to be from a top-class Sect on some Super Large Oasis."

"As for the other Nascent Soul True Monarch, that is the Lord of Huixing City."

As soon as Zhang Chi and his group arrived, the three Foundation Establishment Female Cultivators hurried over to greet them. Yang Zhi immediately began explaining the backgrounds of these important figures to them.

"The mission is to protect these three important figures as they travel into the Desert Sea to hunt a Tier Four Low Grade Demon Beast. However, those who join the mission won’t have to fight personally; we just need to help maintain an Array," Yang Zhi continued.

Of course, she was speaking via voice transmission, so she didn’t have to worry that any of her potentially offensive words would be overheard by the important figures.

"Good. You’ve done well. Here are some Spirit Stones as your reward. For the next year, continue to watch this Task Jade Pendant for us."

Zhang Chi and the others nodded in satisfaction.

At the same time, their gazes swept over the Task Jade Pendant. They saw that all the other mission listings had temporarily vanished, leaving only the one Yang Zhi had described.

"Thank you, Seniors!"

Yang Zhi and her companions checked the Spirit Stones and were overjoyed. They thanked them profusely before stepping aside.

"What do you two think? Should we take this mission?" Lang Shiyuan asked via voice transmission.

"They’re from a Super Large Oasis, so they should be astonishingly wealthy and can definitely afford Nascent Soul Spiritual Objects. But they’re recruiting nine people, which means at least nine of them. That seems a bit unlikely," Shen Jianping transmitted.

Zhang Chi nodded and immediately started his analysis.

"Right. If they can’t produce nine Spiritual Objects but still make such a claim, there are only two possibilities. One, they’ll go back on their word, but that’s impossible because both sides will certainly sign a Spirit Contract."

"Besides, given their extraordinary backgrounds, they must care about their reputation. That leaves only the second possibility: there will inevitably be casualties among the Cultivators on this mission, and not just a few."

"Makes sense. Otherwise, this mission would be far too simple. Besides, if they could really afford that many Nascent Soul Spiritual Objects, they could just hire Nascent Soul Early Stage Cultivators to help."

Lang Shiyuan wholeheartedly agreed.

"That being said, this is an incredibly rare opportunity. It would be a huge shame to miss out if it turns out we’re just overthinking things. So let’s sign up first and play it by ear!" Shen Jianping said, gritting his teeth in determination.

"I feel the same. What about you, Fellow Daoist Zhang?" Lang Shiyuan immediately nodded and then looked toward Zhang Chi.

"I agree. But with so many competitors, there’s no guarantee we’ll be chosen. If we had arrived any later, we probably wouldn’t have even gotten the chance to see these three important figures!"

After a moment’s thought, Zhang Chi nodded in agreement.

His current strength was already impressive. He was confident he could escape with his life even if he had to face a Nascent Soul Early Stage expert or a Tier Four Low Grade Demon Beast alone.

Besides, since his earlier divination had pointed to this being a great opportunity, it couldn’t be a crisis that guaranteed death.

Therefore, he naturally wouldn’t let this opportunity pass him by.

The three of them then walked quickly to the Jade Pendant and, after performing the necessary steps, accepted the mission—or rather, signed up for it.

The mission didn’t disappear afterward, but the number of people who had accepted it already reached fifty.

Most of them would surely be eliminated; who would actually be chosen depended on the three important figures.

In truth, the other Golden Core Peak Cultivators were no fools. They had come to the same conclusions, but just like Zhang Chi and his friends, their only choice was to take the gamble.

Furthermore, it was clear they weren’t the only ones who had hired Low Tier Cultivators to watch the Jade Pendant.

If the mission didn’t have a strict Cultivation requirement that prevented Low Tier Cultivators from accepting it directly, the number of applicants would have been even higher.

After a little more time passed, more Golden Core Peak Cultivators rushed over. The number of people accepting the mission continued to increase, soon exceeding two hundred.

’As expected of a large Oasis in the Endless Desert Sea. A single Immortal City has this many Golden Core Peak Cultivators, and this definitely isn’t even all of them!’

’Thank goodness we hired three Foundation Establishment Cultivators to keep watch here. Otherwise, we definitely would have missed this opportunity!’ Zhang Chi marveled inwardly.

"Alright, that’s enough time. Everyone who signed up, come over. Line up in the order you registered and await our test."

Soon, the Golden Core Peak woman among the three important figures spoke up.

Although her Cultivation was the lowest and she looked the youngest, she seemed to be the decision-maker of the trio. The other two had no objections to her arrangements.

"Did you all hear that? Do as this Fairy says immediately! If anyone dares cause trouble, don’t blame me for being merciless!"

The Huixing City Lord immediately chimed in, his gaze sweeping over the crowd of Golden Core Cultivators as he issued a cold warning.

"Yes, Senior!"

"Rest assured, Senior! We wouldn’t dare cause trouble here!"

All the Golden Core Peak Cultivators were startled and quickly put on placating smiles.

Then, they dutifully formed a line, with Zhang Chi and his two companions among them.

As for the other onlookers, they all quickly distanced themselves from the Golden Core Peak Cultivators, afraid of disrupting the order and inviting trouble upon themselves.

The Golden Core Peak Cultivators who arrived late could only regretfully accept that they had missed their chance.

However, the City Lord and his group didn’t make these people leave, so they all watched from the sidelines.

’Arriving early did have its benefits after all,’ Zhang Chi and his companions thought, feeling somewhat fortunate as they stood in the middle of the line.

At the same time, however, they couldn’t help but feel nervous, wondering what kind of test awaited them.

"What is your background?"

At that moment, the youthful-looking Golden Armor Nascent Soul True Monarch directly questioned the first Golden Core Peak Cultivator in line.

"I am a Loose Cultivator from Huixing City. In my early years..."

The Golden Core Peak Cultivator was a burly, bearded man who radiated a fierce aura, yet now he was extremely cautious and seemed to lack confidence.

"That’s enough. You’ve passed. Go stand over to the left and wait for the next test."

But before he could finish speaking, the Golden Armor Nascent Soul True Monarch cut him off and waved him aside.

"Yes, thank you, Senior!"

The bearded man was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed. He hurriedly bowed respectfully before shooting a somewhat smug glance at the people behind him and striding over to the empty space on the left.

’What’s going on? Are Loose Cultivators more likely to pass? Looks like this mission really is dangerous!’

The other Golden Core Peak Cultivators couldn’t help but feel surprised, and their worry only deepened.

Just as they suspected, the Golden Armored Nascent Soul Youth only selected Golden Core Peak Cultivators with no significant background. Whether they were Loose Cultivators or from Minor Sects and small families, they all passed with ease.

Conversely, cultivators from Major Sects and large families, even those from the Beichen Sect, were eliminated immediately.

Yet no one dared to question the decision, much less lie.

After all, while Golden Core Peak was only one step away from Nascent Soul, the difference in Combat Power was a world apart.

Anyone who lied would be immediately sensed by the Nascent Soul expert or exposed by other Cultivators, and the consequences would be far more severe than mere elimination.

The cultivators with powerful backgrounds were disappointed, but that was the extent of it.

Even without this mission, they had other avenues to pursue.

In fact, this selection process confirmed that the mission was truly dangerous, because if a cultivator with no background died, it wouldn’t cause any trouble for the recruiters.

So for them, giving up on this opportunity was not necessarily a bad thing.

At the same time, these rejected cultivators didn’t leave. Instead, they waited on the sidelines for the final results.

That way, they would know which Cultivators had a chance to obtain a Nascent Soul Spiritual Object, and they could figure out how to get it from them afterward.

"I am from Golden Wind Oasis, a small oasis..."

Soon, it was Zhang Chi’s turn. He spoke up proactively before the man could even ask.

"You pass!"

He hadn’t even finished speaking when the man waved a hand, signaling him to go wait on the left.

"Thank you, Senior."

Zhang Chi wasn’t surprised, but he was still inwardly delighted and quickly did as instructed.

Lang Shiyuan and Shen Jianping were next, and unsurprisingly, they both passed directly as well.

Apparently, in the recruiters’ eyes, coming from a small oasis was synonymous with having no background. Which specific small oasis or which faction they belonged to was completely irrelevant.

"I never thought we’d be treated like Loose Cultivators with no backing."

"I know, and it actually turned out to be a good thing."

Lang Shiyuan and Shen Jianping privately exchanged voice transmissions with Zhang Chi, feeling both pleased and a little stung by the assessment.

After a while longer, all two hundred-some people had been screened, leaving only about fifty who had passed.

Apparently, most cultivators without a major backer never even had the chance to cultivate to the Golden Core Peak.

Even among these fifty-odd people, most were like Shen Jianping and Lang Shiyuan—not truly without any backing, just that their backing wasn’t significant enough.

"Spread out and stand firm. I will now throw a single punch. If you can remain standing, you pass. You may use any means to defend or even attack."

Just then, the Golden Armor Nascent Soul True Monarch returned to the veiled Female Cultivator’s side. The other Nascent Soul Female Cultivator, a towering figure built like an iron pagoda, strode forward. Her voice boomed like a great bell as she announced the next test.

"Yes, Senior!"

The expressions of the Golden Core Peak Cultivators flickered, but they could only comply.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

They scrambled to employ their various techniques, and the area instantly filled with multicolored lights.

Some used Defense Talismans, some used shield-type Defensive Magical Treasures, and still others employed various Divine Secret Skills or even offensive measures.

Lang Shiyuan, for his part, summoned his Lifebound Magical Treasure, the Silver Pearl, and spat a large mouthful of Lifebound Essence Blood onto it before positioning it in front of him to block.

Shen Jianping did likewise, summoning his Lifebound Flying Sword to circle fiercely around his body, forming a protective barrier of Sword Light.

At the same time, they both activated Tier Three Peak Defense Talismans and pushed all their personal defensive measures to the limit.

Lang Shiyuan, for instance, also brought out his Magical Treasure Shield.

He did not, however, summon his pair of Silver Halberds. For a typical Golden Core Cultivator, using too many Magical Treasures at once only diminishes the Mighty Power of each individual item, making it an unwise tactic.

Besides, the pair of Silver Halberds were not of high quality, and since they weren’t Shield-type items, their defensive capabilities were mediocre at best.

’This is interesting!’

Zhang Chi, in contrast, was relatively calm. He immediately circulated his Celestial Net Evil Body Technique to its absolute limit. His body trembled slightly, and five layers of Celestial Net Gang Force, invisible to the naked eye, instantly materialized on the surface of his skin.

Next, Zhang Chi circulated his Spiritual Power and summoned a full set of Magical Treasure Armor. Black light instantly flowed across its surface, greatly enhancing his defenses.

At the same time, he waved his hand to summon a black Magical Treasure Shield, which enlarged until it resembled a wall, shielding him from the front.

He took all these precautions because he knew this Nascent Soul Female Cultivator’s Combat Power was bound to be immense.

Furthermore, even with his many trump cards, he didn’t want to stand out too much, so he had to make it look like he was taking this test seriously.

Both the Shield and the Armor were items he had personally refined or upgraded. They were both Middle Grade Magical Treasures, so their defensive power was exceptionally strong and certainly more than enough for this test.

Moreover, by using so many Middle Grade Magical Treasures, he wouldn’t have to worry about anyone discerning his true strength, even after he succeeded.