Attitude

"Demon slaying! It's actually the Demon Slaying series of assessment tasks?!" "Damn it! I made sure beforehand that scions from several major clans would be taking the exam this time before coming, so why haven't I seen a single one?! We're finished now. The deacons didn't receive enough money, so their 'drawing of lots' drew the hardest of the thirty-four tasks... Ten thousand Pure Yang Great Pills straight down the drain! My entire family saved for ten whole years just to secure this chance for me..." "Are there any wealthy cultivators left? Hurry and take the Prodigy Assessment to appease the deacon and elder so they'll lower the difficulty!" "Where would we get wealthy cultivators? Anyone in the Golden Core realm who can be called rich belongs to a great clan. Clan members are taken as direct disciples by the Void Cavern elders backing them from the moment they're born—a cut above even inner disciples. Why would they ever need to test for the inner sect?" "It's over... My family has been targeted by a demonic villain. We were just waiting for me to become a Heavenly Dao Sect inner disciple so we could use the sect's name to deter him from acting rashly. If I fail this assessment, that monster won't hold back at all. My entire family is doomed." A commotion rippled through the four hundred-plus examinees. Expressions of fear and despair appeared in the eyes of many. Having just finished speaking with the elder, Xiang Yunlong returned to the scene. Taking in everyone's reactions, he sneered inwardly. *You think paying a mere ten thousand Pure Yang Great Pills is enough to throw around the name of our Heavenly Dao Sect? Nothing in the world comes that cheap.* On the surface, however, he spoke in a righteous, impartial tone: "The Nine Demon Lineages are the greatest enemies of our Ten Immortal Sects. As immortal cultivators, upholding justice and exterminating demons must be your sacred duty. If you lack even the courage to confront demons, why bother cultivating immortality? Why pursue the Dao? Therefore, your assessment task this time is to face this rank-nine great demon and hold out within the formation for ten breaths." Having said that, he paused slightly. "However, every sect grants preferential treatment to talent. Our Heavenly Dao Sect places paramount importance on nurturing geniuses and prodigies. Thus, I can offer you all one more chance: anyone who considers themselves a genius or a prodigy may apply for the corresponding assessment. You have three minutes to consider. After three minutes, the assessment officially begins, and from that point onward, you can only enter the sect by raw strength." Yaoguang calmly watched the grand spectacle staged by this deacon and the Void Cavern elder. Although he had heard more than once that the so-called Ten Immortal Sects were merely coalitions of interest formed by people huddling together for warmth, where the elders, peak masters, branch masters, and sect masters formed the rentier class while the rest were the exploited class, seeing it now... his eyes were truly opened. The rumors circulating outside painted far too rosy a picture of these top sects. *The supreme powerhouses actually possess the strength to establish order on Beihai Star. Yet due to Beihai Star's peculiar situation, the very pinnacle of cultivators are solely focused on ascending to immortality and departing for the Immortal Realm. They do not care in the slightest about Beihai Star's future. As for the Void Shattering experts right beneath those who attain the Dao, chaos allows them to reap greater profits and achieve the Great Dao far faster—and the same holds true for Void Refining and Void Cavern experts.* Yaoguang gradually saw Beihai Star's true colors. *I even suspect that the chaos on Beihai Star is intentionally indulged by them just so they can better sell the 'sense of security' offered by top sects, thereby forcing accomplished cultivators to do whatever it takes to join them.* They vigorously propagated the idea that the outside world was an abyss of misery, engulfed in war and turmoil where survival was never guaranteed from one day to the next, and that only by joining their sects could one enjoy peace and stability. That way, no matter how harshly the sects exploited the middle and lower strata or treated them like beasts of burden, as long as they could scrape by, those lower ranks would never dare abandon the sect. In contrast, formidable cultivators who reached the Void Cavern realm broke free from the limitations of the lower and middle ranks. Blessed with foresight and tremendous strength, they enjoyed far greater options and were never bound to a single sect; top sects would eagerly scramble to recruit them. *Void Cavern. Only by attaining Void Cavern does one truly possess a voice on Beihai Star and gain the most fundamental rights of 'freedom,'* Yaoguang told himself. However... it would not be long. Once he became an inner disciple, he would immediately compete for the position of true disciple. After securing the status of true disciple, he would head to Great Shang to claim the bounties on Tong Yan and the others, then spend some time hunting in the Sea of Storms to amass enough Pure Yang Great Pills to form an Azure Blue Golden Core. Once his Azure Blue Golden Core transformed to the second stage—the mid Azure Blue Golden Core stage—he would advance directly to achieve Void Cavern. Three minutes passed quickly. Intimidated by the sheer difficulty of the demon-slaying task, three more candidates opted for the Genius Pathway. However... it was only those three. The Genius Pathway required as many as thirty thousand Pure Yang Great Pills. Even for a Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivator from a sect on par with the Ten Immortal Sects, scraping together money from every possible angle yielded barely over a hundred Pure Yang Great Pills a year. Thirty thousand pills... That was equivalent to saving for three hundred years! And that assumed three hundred years without eating, drinking, or spending anything on cultivation. Under normal circumstances, if a Radiant Sun Golden Core disciple could save thirty thousand Pure Yang Great Pills within a millennium, they would already be considered exceptionally adept at managing their finances. Xiang Yunlong waited for three minutes, then dragged things out for another minute or two. Seeing that no one else was stepping forward for the Genius or Prodigy Pathways, he had to resign himself to bad luck for drawing such a crowd of paupers. He waved his hand decisively. "The assessment begins. Numbers one through ten, enter the formation!" At his command, the operation of the formation seemed to shift, no longer hindering human cultivators. Gritting their teeth, ten Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators stepped into the formation. These rank-nine great demons, comparable to Azure Blue Golden Cores, were by no means brainless beasts. They knew full well what actions would spare them hardship in the days ahead. Since this batch of candidates had failed to satisfy the Heavenly Dao Sect elder, the beasts could slaughter them mercilessly. It would vent their hatred for humanity while currying favor with the human Void Cavern expert. Why not seize such an opportunity? Thus, the moment the ten Radiant Sun Golden Core candidates entered, the rank-nine great demons—seemingly docile just a moment before—erupted into violence, roaring as they pounced on the human cultivators. Within just a few breaths, three Radiant Sun Golden Core examinees were brutally torn apart, their blood splashing across the ground. Of the remaining seven, all except one who struggled desperately fled the formation, their eyes filled with sheer terror. "I'm not doing this! I quit! I won't test anymore..." "Hmph! As one of the Ten Immortal Sects, our Heavenly Dao Sect has always demanded the utmost excellence in recruiting disciples! If your talent falls short, you must demonstrate sufficient combat prowess. Lacking both talent and strength, you still wish to enter our Heavenly Dao Sect?! Do you truly think our Heavenly Dao Sect is a rubbish dump?" With a furious wave of his sleeve, Xiang Yunlong unleashed a violent surge of force that swept up the six fleeing Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators and hurled them straight down the mountain. "Get out of the Heavenly Dao Sect!" Perhaps in their respective cities, clans, or sects, they were universally revered eldest martial brothers, the hopes of their families, or the shining stars of their sects. But in Xiang Yunlong's eyes, their inability to pay proved they had no backing. Their weak cultivation proved they had no talent. Against Radiant Sun Golden Cores who had neither backing nor talent and were not even members of the Heavenly Dao Sect, bullying and humiliating them weighed on his conscience not at all. Subjected to such humiliation, the six were shaken, terrified, and enraged. Yet... after glancing at the Void Cavern elder presiding over the assessment, their fear, anger, and indignation were forced back down their throats. Life on Beihai Star had long taught them how to revere the strong. Under these circumstances, having crashed onto the lower slopes, the six scrambled awkwardly to their feet and hurriedly fled. "Useless trash," Xiang Yunlong sneered contemptuously in his heart. He glanced at the examinee in the formation who had held out desperately, only to... end up truly dead at the hands of the rank-nine great demon. Pointing at one to mock the rest, he remarked, "Blind fools who can't read the room—don't they know their own place?" His gaze turned back toward the crowd, and in a condescending posture, he announced, "You've seen the difficulty of the assessment. If you aren't confident, leave as early as possible so you don't throw your lives away for nothing. All right, next batch." Out of ten candidates, six had failed and four had died; not a single one passed. Such an appalling casualty rate immediately terrified the remaining candidates. Yet ten thousand Pure Yang Great Pills represented virtually the entirety of what many Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators could save in a lifetime. As perilous as the trial was, the opportunity bought by those ten thousand pills was worth risking their lives for. Among the four hundred-plus candidates present, fewer than thirty withdrew out of fear. The rest still gritted their teeth and stepped forward for the assessment one group after another. In the next batch of ten, two more died gruesome deaths, while the other eight reacted quickly enough to flee the formation, failing the assessment. Watching the eight escape, Xiang Yunlong even cursed internally, wondering why the sect had designed these formations to allow free entry and exit. Those who couldn't pass ought to just die inside. Unable to even afford the Genius Pathway, they would likely only take the exam once in their lives and would never be considered "repeat customers." Yet upon further reflection, it was precisely because the formation allowed free passage, giving candidates an escape route when overpowered, that these Radiant Sun Golden Core cultivators held on to false hope. Furthermore... if the mortality rate was too high, it would strike fear into others. When fewer examinees came, their own revenue would shrink as well. A trial consisting of ten breaths per round naturally progressed with great speed. However, the pass rate was shockingly low. Among the first one hundred and thirty candidates, only eight managed to pass—not even ten percent. Meanwhile, the death toll reached twenty-five, nearly twenty percent. Compared to his treatment of the others, Xiang Yunlong's attitude toward those who passed was noticeably better. After all, anyone capable of surviving the demon-slaying trial might one day have a shot at contending for the position of true disciple. "Next batch." As Xiang Yunlong spoke once more, Yaoguang stepped forward from the crowd and entered the formation. The moment he stepped into the formation, he sensed something keenly. From the outside, this formation area appeared to span a mere hundred meters across, but the space within was tenfold larger. Moreover, moving inside the formation felt like wading through water; the dispersal of energy and the explosive release of power were both inhibited. "Roar!" Even as the thought crossed his mind, a rank-nine great demon that had devoured several Golden Core candidates came charging with a ferocious roar. Its savage visage and the residual blood clinging to its jaws were enough to deal a heavy mental shock to any cultivator. Yet Yaoguang's expression barely changed. He did not draw the Swimming Dragon Sword, but struck straight out with a Sky-Cleaving Strike. The step following inner disciple was competing for true disciple, and the Heavenly Dao Sect had even fewer true disciple slots than the Taiyi Immortal Sect—only eighty-eight in total. Among those eighty-eight true disciples, only six were Incandescent White Golden Cores, while the remaining eighty-two were all Azure Blue Golden Cores. If he wanted to seize a true disciple seat, he had to display strength on par with an Azure Blue Golden Core. Therefore, facing this rank-nine great demon, his Sky-Cleaving Strike—even without the enhancement of the Swimming Dragon Sword—still forced the rank-nine beast straight backward. And this was the very first time since the assessment began that someone met a rank-nine great demon in direct, frontal clash. This sight made Xiang Yunlong's heart skip a beat. Even more notably, the Void Cavern elder presiding over the assessment opened his eyes at once, a flicker of pleasant surprise in his gaze.