Chapter 1

The distant south stretches on, mountain ranges linked, birds flying in circles, today's trial.

"Ao!" The deafening tiger roar made many nearby Qi Refining cultivators tremble and scatter, but some skilled and bold ones went toward the sound.

Jiang Yu, acting as a hunter, was instead closely pursued by the Crimson Flame Tiger, instantly becoming prey; she wished she had more wings to fly.

Unfortunately, she couldn't fly at Qi Refining Fourth Layer; the paper crane she had just ridden was also destroyed by a single fire breath from the third‑order Crimson Flame Tiger.

Even if she had a Swift Travel Talisman on her leg, she didn't have the one behind her; it was as fast as the four legs of a late‑stage Qi Refining cultivator.

Whoosh, another burst of fire chased her from behind.

Jiang Yu's thoughts raced; she twisted her body ninety degrees and sprinted in a straight line. As the Crimson Flame Tiger rushed past where she had just been, she swiftly slapped her storage bag, seized a crossbow, and raised it to fire.

She poured all her golden spiritual power into the arrowhead; whoosh, the gold‑glowing arrow struck precisely into the tiger's hind leg.

"Roar!" the Crimson Flame Tiger sprinting at full speed didn't expect the fleeing two‑legged beast to suddenly turn and attack; its huge body lurched and collapsed.

As it tried to leap up for a tiger pounce, Jiang Yu had already attached fire spiritual power to the second arrowhead and shot it at the tiger's eye.

The Crimson Flame Tiger startled and leapt up, while Jiang Yu anticipated its move; with her last fireball talisman she threw it—boom—smashing into the tiger's body.

Boom, the massive tiger's body collapsed with a sound, and three‑tenths of its fine fur was burned away.

Jiang Yu frowned; her fire talisman was still too weak, and it didn't even blow the demon beast into the sky.

Worried the Crimson Flame Tiger was feigning death, she swished and shot a third arrow; just as it was about to pierce the tiger's neck, with a clang, the arrowhead was split by a sword light.

"Fellow Daoist, you've gathered the designated spiritual herb, wounded it to win—do you really need to slaughter it completely?" A male cultivator at the peak of Qi Refining landed, quickly pulling out the arrowhead's medicine packet and bandaging the tiger.

After a few more Reviving Techniques, the Crimson Flame Tiger groaned and opened its eyes; its tiger eyes looked at the male cultivator with nothing but resentment.

Jiang Yu stared, dumbfounded, especially when the male cultivator said: "Fellow Daoist, you don't meet the recruitment standards of the four great sects; please seek elsewhere."

She immediately exclaimed: "No, isn't this tiger your spirit beast?"

"Yes, you may wound it but not kill it."

"But..."

"Look." The male cultivator pulled open the Crimson Flame Tiger's neck, a jade tablet gleaming: "If you were a disciple of a great sect, besides talent and combat ability, you also need discernment."

"Your combat ability is not bad, but you didn't immediately notice it was a spirit beast with an owner."

"Junior takes my leave." The standards set by others, no matter how abstract, cannot be overturned by a lowly cultivator.

Jiang Yu expelled a mouthful of turbid air, rubbed the shoulder scratched by the Crimson Flame Tiger, then turned and left.

Although she didn't obtain this round's pass token, today's trial, besides the four great sects Profound Heaven, Grand Supreme, Myriad Swords, and Spirit Abyss recruiting disciples, also accepts the mid‑small sects Falling Moon, Grand Void, Hundred Refines, Return to Origin, and others.

She didn't believe it; with her three spiritual roots, other sects would surely want her.

This damn thing—she missed the first‑tier cut, she can only strive for a second‑tier key point.

Jiang Yu swallowed the last Reviving Pill, circulated her Lightness Technique, and proceeded to the next stage: Heart‑Refining Lake.

When she arrived, on the misty‑spiritual lake surface, everywhere were trial cultivators stepping on lotus leaves to cross to the far shore.

Scanning the surroundings, she did not see Wan Xiyue, who had entered the cultivation world together with her; presumably her friend, being of higher cultivation, had already crossed the lake.

Jiang Yu picked a lotus leaf and leapt; when she landed on the fourth leaf, a mud‑truck came speeding straight at her.

Thanks!

She drew her sword and slashed, thinking: That was from my past life; it's dead, don't disturb my mind again.

The scene shattered; she sprang onto another lotus leaf, and as she neared the lake's center, darkness suddenly fell ahead, and she heard a fierce shout from behind: "Halt!"

She instinctively turned back—and it was the kidnapper who had abducted her in this life.

Fine, looking for abuse, huh!

Jiang Yu had modest success with three years of sword practice, and having just advanced to the fourth layer of Qi Refining, her spirit was high.

She turned and unleashed a flying sword slash; whoosh, it sliced off the kidnapper's head. Wanting to strike another blow to vent, the illusion was already gone.

How boring! Jiang Yu leapt again.

Suddenly before her eyes flashed the scene: her hometown hit by an inexplicable flood, scattering her from her present‑life kin; she had just scrambled ashore when the kidnapper seized her.

At that time, on the vehicle she and others ate their moldy biscuits; after resting a night and seeing the river, she seized a chance to jump off the cart and was pursued—then she lacked the strength to fight, only able to flee.

When caught and held down, she flung a handful of muddy water into the pursuer's eyes, leapt into the surging stream, and grabbed a piece of driftwood to escape.

Just after escaping the tiger's jaws, she thought to shelter from the rain in a ruined temple along the way; upon entering, she saw a middle‑aged woman pressing a girl's head and grinning wickedly.

Seeing her, the woman instantly kicked the incense burner; with a thud it smashed toward her face.

She happened to be tired and slid into a sitting position; narrowly dodging the burner, the stone in her hand swooshed out and struck the woman's arm.

The girl seized the moment, head‑butting to break the woman's restraint; in their struggle they even managed to launch a fireball and a waterball that collided.

Jiang Yu initially thought her vision was blurred from the blow, leaning against the door panting heavily.

But seeing that both ended up badly wounded, the woman spat blood profusely, retreated to the door's edge, and still didn't forget to swing her sword at herself.

Jiang Yu, furious, lunged forward and grabbed the woman's leg, tripping her.

The girl also lunged at the right moment, thrusting her sword through the woman's heart; both survived.

And the girl was naturally Wan Xiyue.

In the ensuing time together, as they nursed each other's wounds, when I asked whether there were immortals, she tested my spiritual roots for me; we then found the cultivation world side by side and have supported each other ever since.

Later Jiang Yu learned that Senior Sister Wan Xiyue had discovered that her grandaunt (the middle‑aged woman) intended to possess her body; she secretly lit a confusion incense on the firepit, enabling her, with only third‑layer cultivation, to endure against the woman whose cultivation had dropped to the fifth layer of Qi Refining.

Suddenly water splashed onto her face; Jiang Yu came to her senses and saw Wan Xiyue looking frantic, brandishing her sword on a lotus leaf ahead.

She rubbed her eyes, thinking it might still be an illusion, but when the sword light flew toward her head, she raised her sword to block; with a clang she knew it was a real person.

"Senior Sister Wan!"

And Wan Xiyue, seeing her grandaunt revived again, struck out with renewed vigor.

This was hard on Jiang Yu—she was being chased and struck by the sword light.

Even if she jumped to another lotus leaf, Wan Xiyue kept pressing the pursuit; she kept shouting "Senior Sister!" without waking her, but instead drew the attention of the cultivators observing the trial.

"Huh, this little cultivator hasn't entered the illusion."

Originally, while several people were talking, Jiang Yu was nearly struck into the water by Wan Xiyue, who had flown onto her lotus leaf.

Fourth layer Qi Refining can hold its own against sixth layer; not bad.

I don't know how her spiritual root is.

Hey hey, little girl, hold on!

Originally, while several people were talking, Jiang Yu was nearly struck into the water by Wan Xiyue, who had flown onto her lotus leaf.

Know that falling into the water means elimination; dropping your held magic artifact also counts as a loss.

Jiang Yu's method: she doesn't want to fall into the water herself, but also can't let her friend be eliminated.

She gripped her sword with both hands, blocking Wan Xiyue's sword, urgently channeling water spiritual power, she sprayed a jet of water from her mouth—puff……

Seeing that most of the lotus leaf was about to sink, Wan Xiyue was promptly awakened by the water, she sheathed her sword and seized her: 'Jiang Yu…'

Without waiting for them to steady, Jiang Yu grabbed her waist belt, leapt onto another lotus leaf, let go, and jumped away again.

Unexpectedly, a cultivator had already landed on the leaf ahead of her.

'Fellow Daoist, lend me strength.' Wan Xiyue flicked a spirit stone at the cultivator.

Taking it for a concealed weapon, he swung his sword to deflect it; in that instant Jiang Yu stepped on his blade and leapt onto a farther lotus leaf, landing firmly.

But in an instant, the lotus leaves racing toward the shore split into a single file of nine, and cultivators swooping from left and right began fighting over them.

?? Human Race and Yao Race cultivation equivalence:

? Qi Refining ===== levels 1-3

? Foundation Establishment ===== levels 4-5

? Golden Core ===== levels 6-7

? Nascent Soul ===== levels 8-9

? Divine Transformation ===== level 10

? Artifact grades:

? Magic artifact (low, medium, high, supreme grade)

? Magic treasure (same as above)

? Spiritual treasure (acquired, innate)

? Immortal artifact

? Spiritual herbs and fruits grades:

? Divided into levels 1-10, corresponding to Yao Race levels.

? Talisman formation grades:

? Elementary, divided into low, medium, high, supreme grade.

? Intermediate, same as above

? Advanced, same as above

? Pill grades:

? Different cultivation levels require different pills.

? Divided into low, medium, high, supreme grade.