Chapter 204: Nine Dragon Mirror

The first day, no tests began.

However, the city lord's cultivators had divided the vast square into two sections.

One section lay before a massive hall, the other behind it.

The next morning, the tests began.

The city lord's guard organized everyone methodically, grouping thirty people into each small team, sending one team at a time into the huge hall for testing; after the test, these people exited from the back of the hall.

They were then immediately expelled from the city lord's mansion and forbidden to reenter.

"What exactly are they testing?" Bai Long asked, baffled.

No one else knew what the test was either!

No one knew.

Because those who had taken the test were immediately expelled from the city lord's mansion; those who had tested and those who had not never met.

But everyone knew that, reportedly, this test related to comprehension.

Because the number of participants was so enormous, He Pingsheng did not get his turn on the first day.

He was finally called on at noon the second day.

Fortunately, Wang Dun, He Pingsheng, Zi Xian, Zi Lan, and Bai Long were all in the same small team.

"Follow me!" A city lord's disciple dressed in standardized Daoist robes led He Pingsheng and the others to the front of the massive golden hall.

"Don't rush—take turns one by one!"

"After the test, those who pass will receive a black token; this token is your pass to Divine General Mountain. In half a month, you may board a flying vessel here at the city lord's mansion with this token to travel to Divine General Mountain!"

"Inside, don't speak out of turn!"

"Answer only what they ask you!"

"Understood?"

The city lord's disciple looked at them all, stern-faced.

Everyone rose and replied: "Understood!"

"Good!" he said. "First one in…"

Each cultivator who entered took only a dozen breaths to complete the test.

Wang Dun stood ahead of He Pingsheng and entered before him.

He Pingsheng silently counted the time in his mind.

Wang Dun's time was about one-third longer than that of the other cultivators.

Then, someone at the entrance called: "Next!"

He Pingsheng took a deep breath and walked in.

As he entered, he continued silently counting the time in his mind.

The hall was empty, save for nine tables placed side by side.

Behind each table sat a cultivator.

He Pingsheng dared not casually scan their cultivation levels.

But he knew instinctively: anyone qualified to test them must be beyond Foundation Establishment.

"Huh…" Before He Pingsheng even reached the nine, a woman's voice said: "What's this? Both these kids used disguise talismans!"

"What are they trying to hide?"

He Pingsheng's heart jolted.

What did this mean?

Wang Dun's disguise talisman had been seen through.

His own disguise talisman had been seen through too.

Fortunately, aside from that woman's remark, no one else cared why he used a disguise talisman.

"Foundation Establishment second layer!"

"A bit weak!"

The cultivator behind the first table said: "Come here, boy!"

He Pingsheng walked forward respectfully.

The man looked at him and asked: "What kind of spiritual root?"

He Pingsheng dared not lie: "Five-element spiritual root."

Five-element spiritual root was no taboo.

In this world, spiritual roots were countless; though rare, five-element roots were not unheard of.

At least in Dingxiang City alone, there were surely hundreds or even thousands of cultivators with five-element roots.

It was that common.

"Heh…" The first cultivator sneered: "So you're a medicine bottle… come here!"

He pulled out a bronze mirror slightly larger than a palm and placed it before He Pingsheng.

"Calm your mind, focus closely…"

"If you see anything inside the mirror, tell me what it is!"

He Pingsheng gazed at the mirror.

A miraculous sight occurred.

The plain mirror suddenly revealed a pattern.

It flashed once and vanished.

"What did you see?" the tester asked.

He Pingsheng realized: since they asked what he saw, it meant they had not seen it themselves.

So he answered truthfully: "A dragon."

The man asked: "Color?"

He Pingsheng said: "Red."

"Hmm." The tester nodded. "Go to the next one."

He Pingsheng walked to the second person.

She was the female cultivator who had just remarked on his disguise talisman.

She pulled out a mirror nearly identical to the first and said: "Look. Tell me what you see."

He Pingsheng's gaze fell again on the mirror.

"Another dragon—this time orange…"

Seeing this, He Pingsheng began to understand.

In the cultivation world, different colors represented different ranks.

Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, purple—generally, the later the color, the higher its prestige.

For example, thunder: legend said purple lightning was the strongest.

By that logic, the third mirror should show a yellow dragon.

Then green, cyan, blue, purple…

"Next!"

He Pingsheng stood before the third person.

The third cultivator was a middle-aged man with two streaks of white hair at his temples.

He Pingsheng stared at the third mirror.

But as he looked, he froze.

Not yellow!

Shouldn't it be yellow?

Why was the third one a purple dragon?

"What are you staring at?" The white-haired man waved his hand. "Don't waste time. Not seeing anything is normal—move on."

The man assumed He Pingsheng was stunned because he saw nothing.

But the moment the white-haired man spoke, He Pingsheng jolted violently, as if pierced by a needle.

Not seeing it is normal?

What did that mean?

It meant ordinary cultivators truly could not see this purple dragon.

Then if they couldn't see it, why place it third? Shouldn't it be placed further back?

Why deliberately scramble the order?

I get it…

He Pingsheng suddenly understood.

He thought of a possibility.

Normally, if the mirrors were arranged in red-orange-yellow-green-cyan-blue-purple order, cautious cultivators might see something but dare not speak it.

But by suddenly scrambling the order, they forced you to speak what you saw without preparation.

This test… is terrifying.

In an instant, a thousand thoughts surged through He Pingsheng's mind; his back hairs stood on end—but outwardly, he still feigned fearful humility as he approached the fourth table.

He raised his eyes.

On the fourth table, the mirror showed a Golden Dragon.

This gold…

It was not among red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, or purple.

Good heavens…

He Pingsheng dared not breathe loudly, only shook his head.

Indeed, the fifth person's face showed a bland expression, waving his hand: "Next!"

The fifth!

He Pingsheng finally saw the dragon he had been seeking: a yellow dragon.

"This is a yellow dragon!" he blurted out.

"Hehe…" the fifth person chuckled: "Good. Next!"