Chapter 1029

Watching Ye Zhangqing and three descend gracefully, the Heavenly Prides present were overjoyed, while the stewards hurried forward to salute.

"Paying respects to Elder Yè Chánglǎo, Peak Master Bai Hua, Peak Master Jueying."

He gave a slight nod, merely gazing at these overjoyed young Heavenly Prides before him, Ye Zhangqing's expression turned somewhat odd.

He, Bai Hua Xianzi, and Jueying being here naturally couldn't be just to preside over the mountain-opening disciple recruitment.

Having a number of Elders present is enough for this matter; he is only here because Hong Zun entrusted him to help complete the second round of the examination.

As for Hong Zun's idea, how to put it—Ye Zhangqing himself finds it somewhat perverse; could this be something a person could come up with?

But since we've come, we can only go along with it; as for the outcome, that's not his concern.

He nodded to the stewards; seeing this, the stewards turned and addressed these young Heavenly Prides.

"Quiet."

"The second round of the examination begins............."

Speaking, they saw the stewards casually wave their hands, and circles of light appeared beneath the feet of these young Heavenly Prides.

"The rule is simple: do not leave the light circle beneath your feet; anyone who steps out is eliminated."

With just this requirement, upon hearing it, the Heavenly Prides were stunned—so simple? As long as they don't leave the circle, sitting there for half a month would pose no problem at all.

"Could it be that this stage is about seeing who can hold their breath?"

The Heavenly Prides secretly speculated, but at this moment, Ye Zhangqing, with the help of Bai Hua Xianzi and Jueying, had already set up the stove.

Watching Ye Zhangqing's movements, the Heavenly Prides were somewhat bewildered—what does this mean? Cooking during the examination? Could they be fortunate enough to eat food personally prepared by the Grand Chef?

The Sect entrance examination even provides meals, and they are personally made by the Grand Chef—many Heavenly Prides couldn't help but burst into joy.

You know, in the outside world, being able to eat a pack of dry rations personally made by the Grand Chef is something that makes countless people envy and resent.

"But now, the Grand Chef is personally cooking for them right in front of them?"

"Thinking this, someone couldn't help but drool."

And seeing the smiles on these young Heavenly Prides' faces, the stewards shook their heads—these little fellows probably don't yet know what they're about to face.

"The Peak Master's idea is simply inhumane."

Ye Zhangqing wasted no words, directly setting up the pot and began preparing delicious dishes.

As time passed, a rich aroma gradually drifted out.

This aroma unreasonably charged straight into the Heavenly Prides' noses; at once, those who were already salivating could no longer hold back.

"What are you doing?"

Looking at the person beside him who inexplicably rose to their feet, their gaze fixed straight on where Ye Zhangqing was.

The person beside him quickly shouted, 'Is this guy not wanting to succeed?'

Unfortunately, his words went unheard; the other person stepped out of the circle with one foot, and the whole person walked out.

"Eliminated."

At that moment, the steward's voice rang out, and this Heavenly Pride directly met defeat.

"This............."

Seeing that just as it began, someone was already eliminated, the many Heavenly Prides present froze on the spot, an awful thought involuntarily surfacing in their minds.

"This examination won't be............."

The originally delighted gazes instantly turned to horror.

"Before, they thought Ye Zhangqing's appearance might bring them a wave of blessings, but now they see—this damn thing isn't a blessing at all; it's just another inhuman act."

"They said it was a perseverance test, yet you damn well use this to test us?"

They stared fixedly at Ye Zhangqing's graceful, unhurried movements; the aroma in the air grew ever richer, and the Heavenly Prides' hearts felt chilled to the bone.

Inside, they all shouted angrily.

"Stop doing this, it's too damn fragrant."

"I can't hold back, I simply can't."

"I don't want to look, I don't want to think... no, I can't hold back."

This aroma is simply too overwhelming, making it impossible for anyone to resist.

The Heavenly Prides who previously thought this stage was very simple now practically have a death wish.

"This damn thing is practically hell mode."

Moreover, Ye Zhangqing showed no sign of slacking off; on the contrary, he was even more earnest than usual in his cooking, each step carried out to perfection.

That aroma was even more fragrant than usual.

"Not to mention these Heavenly Prides, even the stewards nearby were drooling uncontrollably—damn, they could barely hold themselves back."

"Senior Brother, I can't hold it anymore—what should I do?"

"Endure it; with so many people watching, do I want to lose face of the Dao Yi Shengdi?"

"I..............."

Even the stewards were like that; one can imagine the others—soon, more than ten Heavenly Prides couldn't resist leaving the circle and were directly eliminated.

Meanwhile, the stewards forcibly suppressed their desires, feigning calm as they looked at the Heavenly Prides and said.

"What is called perseverance is being unyielding and enduring; if one wishes to become strong yet cannot resist the temptation of a mere meal, what is there to cultivate? Slurp.............."

Hearing this steward's words, the Heavenly Prides' expressions turned odd.

"You damn well, listen to yourself—are you even speaking human words? Which sect uses this to test perseverance?"

"Also, when you speak to us, could you damn well wipe your saliva first? It's practically flowing into a river."

"Anyway, these words have zero persuasive power."

The Heavenly Prides could only close their eyes, grit their teeth, putting on a show of forcibly not caring.

"But Ye Zhangqing's food—can you simply decide not to care and actually not care? That aroma is simply all-pervasive."

This gate is difficult, ah.

The Heavenly Pride secretly thought, they originally believed the difficulty of the First Gate was already high enough, but now compared to the Second Gate, it's simply a minor sorcerer seeing a great sorcerer.

Moreover, the First Gate could still be cleared with spirit stones, but what about the Second Gate? The Rice Ancestor is still lacking a few spirit stones.

Besides that, if Ye Zhangqing wanted spirit stones, it would be as easy as lifting a finger.

Just a word, and those rushing to send spirit stones would probably fill Dao Yi Shengdi to capacity.

So, using spirit stones to clear the way, this method obviously won't work.

Besides, as soon as one leaves the light circle, it counts as failure, so this gate can only be endured.

It's practically like sitting on pins and needles; as time passed, over a dozen more could not endure and were directly eliminated.

The remaining Heavenly Pride who were still persisting, at this moment each had bitten their teeth until they bled.

The blood trickled slowly down from the corners of their mouths.

"Huh? Bleeding?"

"What's bleeding?"

Hearing Bai Hua Xianzi's words, Ye Zhangqing curiously raised his head, only to see that among the many Heavenly Pride inside the light circle, each had blood flowing from the corners of their mouths.

What the hell is this for?

Isn't it just testing perseverance? You didn't even let us make a move, so why are we vomiting blood?

Inadvertently, Ye Zhangqing glanced at the stewards nearby and saw that their mouths also had blood traces.

"What's the situation?"

How come even our own stewards are vomiting blood? Just a moment ago they were fine, right?

Strangely, one or two are suddenly spitting fresh blood; this is just a test of perseverance—no need to risk our lives, right?