Chapter 300

Wang Yu's heart jolted at these words; he immediately rose and exited the secret chamber, heading straight for the cave's entrance.

Moments later, the thick cave door slowly opened, and Wang Yu stepped out—only to see three figures standing beside the pond outside the cave.

One was "Li Shu," the other two a pale-faced scholar in Confucian robes and a tall-crowned man around thirty-five or thirty-six.

The pale-faced scholar and Li Shu were smiling as they conversed; the tall-crowned man remained silent, his face icy with coldness.

Seeing Wang Yu emerge from the cave, the pale-faced scholar fell silent and turned to him with a smile.

"Are you Wang Shizhi?" the scholar asked with a smile.

"Disciple Wang Yu, at your service, Senior Uncles," Wang Yu bowed to the three.

"No need for idle talk—I and Yun Shidi have been ordered to assess your application for True Disciple status. If you pass, you will be granted the sect's True Disciple title."

"Are you ready for the assessment?" The pale-faced scholar spoke bluntly, his purpose laid bare; beside him, the tall-crowned man stared coldly up and down at Wang Yu.

"Since I submitted the application, I am ready to undergo the assessment at any time—but how exactly will it be conducted?" Wang Yu replied without hesitation.

"It's simple. The Elders' Council and the Sect Master accepted your application primarily because you killed several demonic True Disciples in the Jialan Secret Realm with astonishing strength, bringing great glory to the sect."

"Therefore, to become a True Disciple, you must truly surpass all Qi Condensation disciples—only the top student of both inner and outer sects qualifies. Thus, your strength alone will be tested."

"The test is straightforward: Yun Cang, my younger brother, has just achieved Foundation Establishment and has not yet begun studying his Foundation Establishment technique. If you can withstand his full-force strike without injury, you pass." The pale-faced scholar gestured toward the tall-crowned man as he spoke.

Yun Cang? A Yun clan cultivator?

Hearing this, Wang Yu glanced again at the tall-crowned man, surprised—but his voice remained steady as he replied:

"Then I rely on Senior Uncle Yun's guidance."

"I warn you—I will not hold back. If you feel you cannot withstand it, best surrender early. Also, this space is too confined—let's go outside," Yun Cang said coldly, then turned and walked toward the bamboo grove behind him.

The bamboo grove instantly dissolved into rolling white clouds, parting to reveal a narrow path.

Clearly, the minor illusionary barrier at the cave's edge held no resistance against a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Yu Bin followed without hesitation.

Seeing this, Li Shu also smiled and followed.

"Wang kid, this Yun Cang is the Foundation Establishment cultivator the Yun clan has put forward to compete for True Disciple status. You'd better have some sense of what you're facing," came an old man's voice in Wang Yu's ear—he stiffened slightly.

…

Moments later, on an open patch of ground beyond the bamboo grove, Wang Yu and the tall-crowned man stood facing each other at a distance.

Above them, hovering midair, were Yu Bin and Li Shu.

Both watched below with keen interest, clearly eager to see Wang Yu's true strength.

"I've heard you killed three demonic True Disciples in the Jialan Secret Realm. Demonic True Disciples rank by strength, and none are anything but seasoned combatants, their hands soaked in blood. So I'm curious too—can you truly withstand a second-rank strike?" The tall-crowned man spoke coldly, slowly drawing from his sleeve a small, rusted bronze hammer, no more than half a foot long, its head flanked by two curved horns, faintly shaped into a lifelike ox head.

"Evil Ox Hammer? How did the Yun clan give this second-rank artifact to Yun Cang? This weapon is infamous for its brute force—can Wang Yu really withstand it? Could the higher-ups not want him to pass?" Li Shu's face changed slightly as he spotted the bronze hammer; he glanced at Yu Bin, probing.

"Not at all. I never heard the Yun clan gave this hammer to Yun Cang—likely he borrowed it privately," Yu Bin said, his expression darkening as he glared at the bronze hammer.

"Then it's troublesome. If Wang Shizhi truly can't withstand it, Brother Yu will have a hard time explaining back to the higher-ups," Li Shu chuckled lightly.

The pale-faced scholar's eyes flickered repeatedly, but he said nothing more.

Below, Wang Yu's ears twitched slightly.

Already in his subtly activated overdrive state, he had clearly heard the two Foundation Establishment cultivators' conversation; his gaze sharpened on the ox-headed bronze hammer, and he flicked his sleeve.

"Swoosh. Swoosh. Swoosh."

Three pale-red mirrors flew out, circling his body as they spun; he inhaled deeply, and his upper body suddenly swelled, tearing his robes to reveal a vivid, lifelike tiger-head pattern on his back.

After exhaling, his body swelled again, growing into a two-zhang-tall miniature giant, golden mist curling over his skin and rapidly coalescing into a shimmering golden armor.

Seeing Wang Yu's transformation and summoned artifacts, the tall-crowned man smirked, flicked his wrist—and the ox-headed bronze hammer shot skyward. He formed hand seals, muttering incantations.

The bronze ox-head hammer emitted a deep hum, swelling violently with the wind—within moments, it had grown to the size of a two-story pavilion, its surface flashing dozens of pale-white spiritual shadows that spun into a massive white ox-head phantom, which let out a low, resonant "Moo" toward Wang Yu.

Spirit essence!

No—second-rank artifacts cannot have spirit essences. This is a captured beast soul!

This is a rare soul artifact!

Wang Yu's eyes twitched as he saw the white ox-head phantom—but as a weaponsmith, he instantly recognized its true nature; even so, his expression turned grave.

He let out a low roar, raising his hand to cast a spell toward the main mirror of the Zi-Mu Floating Mirrors.

Instantly, the three pale-red mirrors blazed crimson, projecting twelve pale-red spiritual runes that formed a layered crimson light shield, wrapping Wang Yu in three protective layers.

This was unmistakably the Three-Layer Flame Shield formation of the Zi-Mu Floating Mirrors.

Seeing this, the tall-crowned man said nothing—he pointed a single finger at the giant hammer in midair, channeling his internal Qi through the air into the weapon.

The next instant, the bronze hammer spun rapidly, faster and faster—until a deafening howl filled the air, and a thick, white whirlwind coalesced overhead, roaring downward with a low "Moo," crashing toward Wang Yu like a beast diving for prey.

The roar was thunderous, terrifying—like a dragon hunting.

Wang Yu's face darkened; he formed another hand seal. The three-layer flame shield above him instantly reshaped, stacking upward into a single massive crimson light shield—three layers thick, three zhang wide, blocking the blow directly above his head.

"Boom!"

A deafening, earth-shattering crash echoed as the white whirlwind slammed into the thick light shield.