Chapter Eight: No Justice in This World

Mountaintop of the Azure Sun Sect.

The Head of the Five Peaks gazed down with a calm expression, the elders behind him standing quietly.

Among them, the only woman glanced at the elder in the center, who wore a splendid brocade robe, and spoke:

"I never expected you, Sect Master, to come join the excitement today. Truly a rare sight..."

She wore a white long dress, pale blue peonies embroidered at the cuffs, with threads of silver outlining drifting clouds. The hem was adorned with a dense row of blue waves and cloud patterns; a pale yellow brocade wrapped her chest, and as she gently turned, her skirt unfurled in graceful motion.

Her every gesture, every movement, was as elegant as willow branches swaying in the wind.

"Sister Tianhui, you jest. I heard that not only did two disciples with special spiritual roots appear this time, but also someone with a gold attribute spiritual root. It's a great blessing for our sect..."

"We haven’t seen such an occasion in many years. If I hadn’t come out to witness it myself, I would have been restless. Hahaha..."

The Azure Sun Sect Master stroked his beard and laughed, the others joining him in laughter.

"Sister Tianhui, those two girls with special spiritual roots—you must guide them well. The hope for our sect’s future prosperity will rest on their shoulders..."

The elder in coarse robes, smiling, was the Head of Cattle Peak, known as Master Funiu.

Hearing this, Tianhui, Head of Jade Maiden Peak, felt a surge of joy. Indeed, those two girls with special spiritual roots were fated to her; in all the Azure Sun Sect, Jade Maiden Peak was the perfect place for their cultivation, offering both the ideal environment and suitable techniques.

"All depends on your support, brothers. I promise to nurture them with utmost care and bring glory to the Azure Sun Sect..."

The elders smiled, stroking their beards.

"Brother Zangfeng, what do you think of that brown-robed youth below?" Master Funiu pointed to the foremost boy on the stone steps.

"Not bad," replied the white-robed elder beside the Sect Master, his expression serene as still water.

He was Master Zangfeng, Head of Sword Concealment Peak, the foremost expert outside the Grand Elders, and a true master of the sword.

He had pursued the sword to its utmost all his life and, but for his lack of interest in secular power, would have become Sect Master himself. Though in his sixties, he exuded an ethereal air, his posture light, three thousand white hairs cascading over his shoulders and shimmering faintly.

At this moment, his gaze was fixed upon Lin Cheng below. Though Lin Cheng had used the Heaven-Deceiving Array taught by the white-robed sword cultivator to conceal his Five Elements Sword Body and transformed his golden sea of elixirs into an ordinary dantian, Master Zangfeng had clearly noticed something extraordinary about him.

"His dantian opened on its own; gold attribute spiritual root. He must be the one Zhou Qing spoke of," said Master Zangfeng, pointing at Lin Cheng, who was supporting Fatty Lin as they made their way up.

The others turned their gaze to Lin Cheng.

"Hmm... He seems a promising candidate."

"Brother Zangfeng, it seems you’re considering taking him as a disciple. He did not abandon his friend along the way; he must be a person of deep loyalty. Congratulations, Brother Zangfeng," Tianhui smiled gently at him.

Then the silent Master Yuyang spoke: "Cultivators must avoid acting on emotion. If entangled by worldly feelings, they will never amount to much..."

Tianhui countered, "Brother Yuyang, you are mistaken. One without emotion, loyalty, or virtue—even if their cultivation reaches the heavens, they are no better than a puppet..."

"What do you mean by that, Sister Tianhui?" Master Yuyang's face grew cold.

Seeing this, the Sect Master quickly interjected, "Enough, we are all fellow disciples. Someone has passed the test already. Brothers and sisters, see if any of the disciples catch your eye..."

Ahead, the brown-robed youth stepped onto the last stone step, arriving at the mountaintop plaza of the Azure Sun Sect. Barely had he caught his breath before the sight before him left him stunned.

A vast plaza of green stone lay ahead, a square martial stage at its center, and behind it, a grand structure with nine ridged roofs and double eaves stood tall. Interlocking brackets and yellow tiles crowned the roof, resembling a golden imperial hall. Clouds and mist swirled atop the mountain, as if they stood in a celestial realm.

Soon, more people passed the test, with Zhang Bao among them.

"Hold on, Fatty, just thirteen more steps—we’re almost there..."

Lin Cheng supported Lin Hu, whose strength was gone and who moved forward only by sheer will. Staring at the end of the stone steps so near, Lin Cheng’s eyes shone with excitement.

Fatty Lin could no longer respond. Ten steps, nine, eight, seven... three, two, one.

At last, both set foot on the mountaintop of the Azure Sun Sect. Lin Cheng had no time to marvel at the scenery, for he noticed Fatty Lin had already fainted.

As the last rays of sunset faded, Elder Zhou Qing surveyed the thirty-some who had passed and announced in a clear voice:

"The test is over. Those who failed will be escorted down by the sect. To those who passed, congratulations—you are now disciples of the Azure Sun Sect. You will be given rooms to rest; gather here at dawn tomorrow to be assigned to your respective peaks."

Lin Cheng sighed. Out of over a hundred candidates, only thirty-some passed; he couldn’t help but feel grateful.

Fatty Lin remained unconscious. Led by a sect disciple, the two were taken to a side room.

After helping Fatty Lin onto the bed, Lin Cheng sat cross-legged on the floor and began to cultivate.

A bell tolled in the early dawn, its sound echoing throughout the Azure Sun Sect.

Lin Cheng opened his eyes to find Fatty Lin awake. Though still somewhat weak, a night's rest had restored him.

"Let’s go, let’s go, we have to gather at the plaza..."

Outside, voices sounded—some urgent, some anxious, some expectant.

Shaking his head to clear it, Fatty Lin got up and asked, "Did we pass the test?"

"Of course we did. With the handsome and mighty Lin Cheng here, how could we fail?"

"Let’s go to the plaza. Today we’ll be assigned to our peaks—hopefully we’ll get an awesome master..."

With that, Lin Cheng dragged Lin Hu toward the plaza.

Many were already gathered there. Lin Cheng noticed, besides the thirty-some who had passed yesterday, quite a few disciples had come to witness the ceremony.

Most wore green or blue robes, lined up neatly on either side, with some purple-robed disciples among them.

In the crowd, Lin Cheng saw Xu Xin’er and Xiao Cui, whom Elder Zhou Qing had brought up the mountain the day before. The two stood quietly to one side.

Seeing Lin Cheng and Lin Hu, Xiao Cui quickly pulled Xu Xin’er over.

"Lin Cheng, Lin Hu, you both passed the test too! That’s wonderful!" Xiao Cui greeted them happily.

Xu Xin’er smiled at them, "Congratulations."

"Why didn’t you have to climb the steps to pass the test? Was it some kind of backdoor?" Fatty Lin asked, clearly curious.

Upon hearing this, both girls were exasperated.

Lin Cheng shot Fatty Lin a look, then turned to Xiao Cui.

"Xu Xin’er has a special spiritual root. I suppose you do as well, Xiao Cui?"

Xiao Cui nodded gently.

Fatty Lin wailed, "Is there no justice? All of you... Are you trying to drive me mad?"

Thinking of his lack of a complete spiritual root, he pounded his chest in frustration.