Chapter 353: Altar of the Deep Valley

Duan Rong and the others followed the flow of people, walking neither fast nor slow.

About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn later, they heard a chaotic, noisy din coming from ahead.

After following the mountain path and turning past a large rock protruding by the roadside, they saw that the entrance to a canyon not far ahead was actually packed with a dense, thick crowd of people.

There was also a person wearing tight-fitting clothes and an Escort Waist Token, standing on a large blue stone at the canyon entrance, shouting: "Don't all block it here. Move to both sides; there are still paths into the valley on both sides."

The crowd surged, rubbing shoulders and treading on heels, and the tide of people swept Duan Rong and the others toward one side.

Seeing the crowd was congested, Duan Rong grabbed Xiao Yu's hand.

The two walked forward with fingers interlaced in the flow of people, and Xiao Yu looked at Duan Rong's profile from time to time.

They bypassed another canyon entrance, and only at the next entrance did the flow of people become less crowded.

As soon as Xiao Yu saw the crowd was no longer dense, Xiao Yu pulled Xiao Yu's hand free from Duan Rong's.

Duan Rong turned his head to look at Xiao Yu.

Xiao Yu's face flushed slightly and said softly: "Too many people. It doesn't look good."

It didn't matter when they were squeezed in the crowd just now, but now that the crowd was slowly thinning out, it was indeed a bit conspicuous for him and Xiao Yu to be like that.

Just as Xiao Yu pulled away from Duan Rong, Ximen Kankan and Shen Mizhi pushed through the crowd one after another and ran over to the two of them.

The crowd had been like a tide just now, and they had been separated for a while.

Looking at the canyon entrance not far away, Ximen Kankan said: "I just squeezed over to take a look. Further that way, there is another entrance with even fewer people than here; let's go there."

Duan Rong smiled slightly; it was hard for Ximen Kankan with such a bulky figure to have been able to squeeze to the front.

Duan Rong and the others followed what Ximen Kankan said, circled forward a bit more, and arrived at another canyon entrance, where the people were somewhat sparse.

They followed the sparse flow of people and walked slowly into the canyon.

Along the way, no one actually checked their Sect Cloud Token or approval slips.

They walked along the mountain path at the canyon entrance for a while and then entered a valley.

This valley was towering on all four sides, and five canyons could lead into it. At this moment, every canyon entrance was filled with a dark, dense crowd of people.

Whispering sounds rose within the valley, like birds chirping in confusion.

Many people looked at the towering mountain bodies on the four sides of the valley with shocked expressions.

Standing in the crowd, Duan Rong felt his scalp tingle as if struck by electricity.

"What is this?"

He saw that the mountain peaks on the four sides of the valley had actually been carved into four enormous stone statues out of the entire mountain mass.

And if everyone stood there, they would only reach about as high as the toes of those stone statues.

These four enormous stone statues, carved using the entire mountain as a base, were precisely the divine statues of the Four Great Wisdom Kings from the Womb Treasury Sutra.

"Why would the first round of the assessment be here?"

Duan Rong's eyes flickered, and thoughts churned within his heart.

The other Registered Disciples only felt that those four enormous divine statues were towering into the clouds, majestic and spectacular.

But Duan Rong's shock lay in the fact that this deep valley was, in its entirety, a massive Mandala.

It was just that this massive Mandala towered into the clouds, as if communicating with the laws of heaven and earth; what kind of terrifying Divine Soul pressure was this?

What kind of person could possibly practice the Womb Treasury Sutra in this place?

Could such an existence even still be human?

And in the center of the four enormous divine statues, which was the center of this deep valley, stood a wide Altar of white marble, with railings, steps, and a dais, all complete in regulation, and the various carved patterns were also quite exquisite and delicate.

In the center of the Altar stood a Great Cauldron; inside the Great Cauldron, three sticks of high incense, as thick as a person's arm, were emitting curling blue smoke that shot straight into the sky above the Yougu.

And not far from the feet of those four enormous divine statues that towered into the clouds, there stood an offering table, and on those offering tables were placed three large black iron plates, with the heads of three sacrificial animals—ox, sheep, and pig—placed on the plates.

And on the ground in front of the offering tables, sixteen human figures sat cross-legged on cushions.

They were all wearing loose Daoist robes, sitting with their eyes closed, and each person had a palm-sized incense burner placed in front of them.

Inside the incense burners was clearly some kind of incense, emitting faint blue smoke and fragrance.

Just at this moment, a team of people wearing tight-fitting clothes and hanging Escort Waist Tokens walked over; these people were all from the Inner History Department.

Duan Rong had already known beforehand that this assessment for Registered Disciples to advance to Outer Sect Disciples was hosted by the Inner History Department and co-organized by the Ruling Sect Justice Division.

But along the way, Duan Rong had not seen anyone wearing the Escort Waist Token of the Ruling Sect Justice Division.

Among that team, the leader was a middle-aged man with a slender build and a thin face; he walked to the front of the crowd at the canyon entrance and took a Copper Chime from the hand of a person behind him.

He held the chime hammer and struck the Copper Chime hard.

"Ding~"

A clear, crisp sound, quite penetrating, drifted far away.

The crowd instantly quieted down.

That person scanned the crowd and said: "Listen well! When I strike the Copper Chime again later, the first round of the assessment will begin. Understand?"

"Understand!" a few scattered voices replied from the crowd.

The person continued: "Once the assessment begins, you walk forward. See those two lines? Cross that White Line, and the first round of the assessment is passed! If you cross that Red Line, not only is the first round of the assessment passed, but the second round of the assessment can also be exempted!"

Following the person's words, the group of Registered Disciples all looked forward.

They saw that a few zhang away in front, there was indeed a quite conspicuous White Line.

And three zhang beyond that White Line was a blood-colored Red Line.

And that Red Line was only about half a zhang away from the Altar in the center of the Yougu.

"If you can step onto the Altar, the third round of the assessment is also exempted, and you will directly advance to become an Outer Sect Disciple!" The person's final words caused a stir in the crowd.

"Directly become an Outer Sect Disciple?!"

"What does this mean?" People in the crowd had already begun to discuss. "Do we just walk over?"

"Who doesn't know how to walk!?"

"There must be some trick to this! What if there's a trap?!"

Duan Rong was in the crowd, his eyes flickering; once that person finished announcing the rules, he already knew what this first assessment was truly testing.

Not long after that person finished announcing the rules, a melodious horn sound suddenly rang out within the valley.

The moment that horn sound rang out, the sixteen figures sitting cross-legged before the offering tables at the feet of the four colossal statues that towered into the clouds suddenly moved.

With a flip of their hands, they opened the lids of the incense burners in front of them and sprinkled a type of incense into the burners.

It was unknown what sort of substance that incense was, but the moment it was sprinkled into the burners, thick smoke billowed up.

They then picked up the copper chains on both sides of the incense burners, their figures suddenly becoming as fast as ghosts, their movement techniques exquisite, and they began to leap and traverse across the folds of the towering statues' robes.

Wisps of thick smoke began to rise all around the bodies of those giant statues!

Finally, the sixteen ghost-like figures came to a steady stop.

One could see four figures sitting cross-legged on top of the statues' heads, with an incense burner emitting thick smoke placed in front of each figure.

On the two shoulders of the statues, two figures were also sitting cross-legged on each, and two trails of thick smoke were also curling up from the shoulders of the statues!

On both sides of the statues' two large feet, two figures were also sitting cross-legged, and likewise, two trails of thick smoke emerged.

And there were four more figures on the ground, sitting around the statues, with four trails of thick smoke also rising up.

Sixteen figures, sixteen trails of thick smoke!

Duan Rong's eyes were filled with astonishment.

"This... isn't this a Smoke Offering?"

But as far as he knew, a Smoke Offering was an auxiliary ritual method only used when practicing the Filthy Blood Divine Art. Yet the Womb Treasury Sutra had no steps for a Smoke Offering...

Just as the thick smoke was rising everywhere within the Yougu, on the top of a certain mountain peak to the southeast of the Yougu, more than a dozen figures were sitting on more than a dozen white marble chairs standing near the cliff.

This mountain peak was quite precipitous, but why were there white marble chairs on the summit? And who were the people sitting on those white marble chairs?

The moment the thick smoke was everywhere, a figure suddenly stepped through the void, riding the wind, and landed before the group on this mountain peak.

Stepping through the void and riding the wind could only be achieved by a powerhouse of the Dongming Realm borrowing Law Power.

The person who arrived was one of the Elders of the Taiyi Sect's Elder Council, and also the Department Head of the Inner History Department, Zhu He.

This person was also one of only two candidates capable of competing for the next Sect Master.

As soon as Zhu He landed, he cupped his hands and said, "Everyone, my apologies. I, Zhu, am late!"

Just as Zhu He finished speaking, several people rose from their chairs and looked at him.

One of them smiled and said, "No matter! Department Head Zhu has to toil over this assessment matter, and there are many complex affairs. Besides, the assessment hasn't started yet, so it doesn't count as late."

Just as this person's voice fell, another person let out a cold snort and said, "Indeed. Department Head Zhu is busy with many things, so naturally, he doesn't hold us people in his eyes. What does being a little late matter? It's good enough that you could come at all!"

A sharp glint flashed slightly in Zhu He's eyes, but his face remained as breezy as a smile, showing not a hint of anger. The person who had spoken to provoke him was called Ge Rusong, who had always been at odds with him.

Although Zhu He did not speak, someone wanted to retort to Ge Rusong, but Zhu He gave that person a look, and the person sat back down.

Zhu He walked to his own chair and was just about to sit down when he heard a faint female voice come from the very head of the group.

"If Department Head Zhu hadn't come, I would have been prepared to let my Hanyan sit in your seat. I'm afraid that if this child stands for too long, she will play out of tune when playing the zither later."

The one speaking was Lin Youjian, the only female Elder in the Taiyi Sect's Elder Council; usually, everyone gave her a wide berth, and even Sect Master Chu Qiushan was often left speechless by her, let alone Zhu He.

Seeing Lin Youjian provoke him, Zhu He was not angry at all; he smiled slightly and said, "Come, Hanyan, your master has spoken. Come, let you sit."

Standing behind Lin Youjian was a female disciple with a slender figure; her hair was coiled up, bound by a jade hairpin, and she wore a pale green dress with a moon-white lining. As if to block the wind and sand on this mountain peak, her face was covered by a light white veil, and only a fair, thin face could be vaguely seen beneath the veil.

This woman was named Jiang Hanyan; at this moment, she had a sword tied at her waist and a black ancient zither strapped to her back.

Jiang Hanyan cupped her hands toward Zhu He and said, "Hanyan would not dare! My master is only joking with Department Head Zhu. The Department Head need not take it seriously."

Seeing Jiang Hanyan neither humble nor arrogant, and responding appropriately, Lin Youjian could not help but smile in appreciation.

Jiang Hanyan was Lin Youjian's only disciple.

And those who could be taken as disciples by Elders of the Elder Council were all Core Disciples of the Sect, whose cultivation realm was at least the Qi Cyclone Realm.

Seeing the appreciative expression on Lin Youjian's face as she looked at Jiang Hanyan, Zhu He said no more and quietly took his seat.

The seat next to Zhu He was empty; that was the seat of Sect Master Chu Qiushan.

It was just that in recent years, he basically no longer came to attend such occasions.

After all, he would be stepping down in six years, and regarding this point, these old fellows did not find it strange.

And on the other side of Chu Qiushan's empty seat sat Lv Zhongtang.

The moment Zhu He sat down, the two of them just nodded expressionlessly, which counted as a greeting.

As soon as Zhu He sat down, the second horn sound within the Yougu rang out melodiously.

The moment that horn sounded, Jiang Hanyan stood at Lin Youjian's side and cupped her hands, saying, "Master, the time has come."

Lin Youjian nodded and said, "Mm. Hanyan, you go."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Hanyan took a slight step forward and said to the various Elders, "Uncles and Aunts, Hanyan takes her leave!"

After Jiang Hanyan finished speaking, her figure suddenly leaped up like a large bird, jumping directly off the cliff.

Those Elders of the Elder Council watched Jiang Hanyan's back and all nodded slightly.

This Jiang Hanyan had excellent natural talent, and she was humble and well-behaved; not only did her master Lin Youjian regard her as a bright pearl, but everyone in the Elder Council also had a very good impression of her.

In the valley.

One could see that the moment the second horn sound rang out, the sixteen figures on each statue suddenly began to change their hand seals, and their mouths were even whispering incantations.

"This is..."

Duan Rong's eyelids twitched wildly.

Following the figures on the statues beginning to form seals and chant, the statues, amidst the swirling smoke, suddenly began to emit a faint blood-colored light from their eyes.

At that very moment, Duan Rong could almost be certain that this was the ritual method of a Smoke Offering!

Although he had never seen the practice method for a Smoke Offering in the Womb Treasury Sutra, just because he hadn't seen it didn't mean it didn't exist.

After all, he only possessed the first twelve levels of the Womb Treasury Sutra; perhaps the subsequent techniques of the Womb Treasury Sutra contained the method for the Smoke Offering.

Just as the eyes of the colossal divine statues towering into the clouds at the four corners of Yougu flashed with blood-red light, a slender figure was seen, skirts fluttering, leaping down from the summit of a Lone Peak in the dark southeast, her toes occasionally tapping lightly against treetops and stone walls as she bounded repeatedly.

After several leaps, she landed as lightly as a falling leaf drifting with the wind onto the Altar in the center of the dark valley.

As soon as Jiang Hanyan landed, she sat cross-legged before the Great Cauldron on the Altar, in which three tall incense sticks were inserted.

At this very moment, at the mouth of the valley where Duan Rong was located, the sound of a Copper Chime suddenly rang out.

These Registered Disciples naturally remembered the rules: the moment the Copper Chime sounded was the moment the examination began; as long as they crossed the White Line, the first round of the examination would be considered passed.

And at the very instant the Copper Chime sounded, Jiang Hanyan was seen taking the black ancient zither from her back on the Altar and placing it horizontally before her.

Her expression behind the light veil was calm, and as her plain hands plucked the strings, a clear hum suddenly echoed throughout the valley...

The Registered Disciples at the mouth of the valley were just about to move when, the instant that clear hum rose from the Altar, an extremely powerful pressure of the Divine Soul suddenly descended.

Everyone's body trembled slightly.

Even Duan Rong was no exception; he was not pretending, for the moment that Divine Soul pressure descended, his body had become as if frozen.

As for the other Registered Disciples, their situation was even worse, with many of them instantly turning deathly pale.

Because this sensation occurred the moment that clear hum sounded on the Altar, many Registered Disciples glared with indignation at Jiang Hanyan, who was currently sitting cross-legged on the Altar, calmly playing the zither.

They believed that their pain was caused by the zither music!

But Duan Rong knew very clearly that the one who had suddenly unleashed that extremely powerful Divine Soul pressure was actually the four divine statues at the four corners of Yougu, whose eyes were flashing with a faint blood-red light.

The incantations, hand seals, and Smoke Offering had awakened those four divine statues.

And the zither music sounding from the Altar was, on the contrary, protecting their Divine Souls, allowing them to endure the pressure suddenly descended by the four deities without their Divine Souls shattering and dying!

This was also the key to the first round of the examination.

(End of this chapter)