◎ Zhenshan Stone Training ◎
The 9999 levels of Zhenchuan were essentially the Clearwater Sect’s Inner Sect three-year simulation and two-year final exam prep.
Lin Shuang had long seen through it.
“Levels 3353 to 3361—the elders’ personal guidance.”
Her soft couch hadn’t even been hauled out of Zhenchuan by Meng Zi before she was once again transported—this time, straight to Level 3353.
Inside the teleportation array, the surroundings twisted with thick spiritual mist.
She could barely see a thing.
She quickly calculated—3353 to 3361. Nine levels in total.
As expected.
Every set of nine levels was a complete testing suite, covering all major topics.
“Divide this level by nine, remainder five?” Meng Zi calculated swiftly.
This was a combat trial.
Since entering Zhenchuan, the three of them had never once set foot in a combat level.
They’d always stuck to perception, defense, or agility layers—safer ones, less likely to get them killed.
Just as Lin Shuang had suggested: tackle the easier questions first.
But it seemed the elders had seen right through that strategy.
Their first round of guidance? Drag them straight into a combat trial.
Lin Shuang’s eyes flickered. Huangfu Yuan lowered his gaze, his thoughts unreadable.
[Level 3353: Will you aid me in reaping souls?]
They opened their eyes to find themselves once again in the familiar setting of Li Family Village.
Only this time, Elder Li hadn’t yet appeared.
Instead, the pink-robed elder, Li Min, stood before them.
“In next year’s Spring Equinox Twelve Sect Competition, a single win will count as advancement in Zhenchuan levels.”
“Technique scrolls, spirit stones, contribution rewards—all will be distributed according to Zhenchuan regulations.”
“If any of you become the top mid-Foundation disciple among the Twelve Sects, there will be additional rewards.”
With a wave of her hand, the entire treasure exchange rack of Zhenchuan appeared behind her.
“Below Level 4000—choose any three items per person.”
“From Level 4000 to 6000—choose one item.”
Lin Shuang, previously wearing the expression of a pained mask, immediately perked up when she caught sight of the twelfth volume of “Crafting Talismans with Shao Ke by Your Side”, shelved at the 6000-level tier—available for ten-day borrowing.
Her eyes gleamed.
Meng Zi had been about to decline—but the dazzling array of items labeled ‘150,000 spirit stones,’ ‘90,000 spirit stones,’ ‘120,000 spirit stones’…
Huangfu Yuan let out a faint smile. His gaze settled on a book atop the 6000-level shelf—“Elder Shui’s Great Events Diary (with Formation Comprehension Origins)”, priced at 520,000 spirit stones.
These comprehension notes often carried a trace of the elder’s spiritual will.
Extremely faint—but if you gathered three to five of them, you might just barely piece together a usable strand.
If drawn out, one could then search the elder’s divine consciousness and probe their sea of knowledge.
Maybe—just maybe—he could uncover the truth of what really happened back then, and every person involved.
A smile curved Huangfu Yuan’s phoenix eyes. “Very well, I’ll participate.”
“Bring it on, Twelve Sects!” Meng Zi roared skyward, brandishing his blade.
Lin Shuang rubbed her brow. “The Twelve Sects includes Clearwater Sect, Senior Brother Meng.”
Still, when her gaze returned to Elder Li Min, she could not entirely hide her excitement.
“I’ll join as well.”
The elder truly knew how to kill several birds with one arrow—an approach Lin Shuang deeply appreciated.
“I am willing to fight for Elder’s sake.”
Elder Li Min: “…”
“Hey, if I win this battle, does that make me an Inner Sect elite?”
Lin Shuang finally remembered her actual reason for entering Zhenchuan this time.
“What about the Outer Sect duels I signed up for? Elder, can you request that I be exempted from those?”
Elder Li Min: “…They’re held at the same time…”
“The Outer Sect arena is typically near the Inner Sect’s. You’re already going—why not stand in the middle and fight both at once?”
“….”
Lin Shuang took a step back.
She’d been played.
The elder had seen right through her!
She clutched her chest, her entire dantian trembling.
Meng Zi: “…”
Huangfu Yuan: “…”
She was having one of her moments.
Looking at her made them feel remarkably normal by comparison.
Somehow…comforting. Like their inner demons had all vanished. How odd.
“All right. Training begins.”
Elder Li Min snapped her fingers.
A flash of spiritual light surged toward the skies over Li Family Village!
[Elder’s Personal Guidance: Nine Consecutive Trials!]
[Temporary requisition of Zhenchuan Levels 3353 to 3361. All disciples currently undergoing trials must exit immediately.]
[Trial records will be preserved. No penalty of 300-level deduction. Disciples may proceed to nearby stone layers for training!]
In an instant, the red bulletin spread across Zhenchuan.
Even deep within the Ten-Thousand-Serpent Valley, disciples forcibly keeping themselves in meditation were abruptly stirred awake.
Staring at the announcement, many could not help but show envy.
To receive personal instruction from an elder—such privilege was reserved for the Sect Master’s own disciples.
In ordinary days, among all Clearwater Elders not in seclusion or traveling abroad, there were barely a dozen available.
Too many monks, too little porridge.
But soon, their expressions turned solemn.
A projection slowly materialized.
[This Ninefold Guidance is held in preparation for the Clearwater Sect’s participation in the Twelve Sect Competition. All disciples may observe.]
[Let all disciples understand—the effort behind preparing for this battle is no small feat.]
[No matter next year’s outcome, blame not your fellow sect members.]
[Furthermore, during this private instruction, if any mid-Foundation disciples watching the projection gain insight and improve their strength, they may challenge the three participants at any time.]
[Victory means replacing Huangfu Yuan, Meng Zi, or Lin Shuang as Clearwater’s representatives!]
[Clearwater Inner Sect—hear this! The battle to become the strongest sect in the Donghua Territory is about to begin. From this day forward, no slacking!]
[The nine-level trial will remain open for ten days after guidance ends. You may come and attempt it!]
Gasps rippled throughout the crowd.
Within the projection, three disheveled figures suddenly appeared across from Lin Shuang—clothes dusty, small snakes clinging to their shoulders.
One carried an erhu, tall and elegant—Mei Xin.
One held a sword in guarded stance—Chen Xingchuan.
And the last wore a patchwork robe—Dao Dong.
Li Min nodded at them. “You three will also join this closed-door trial. As substitutes for the mid-Foundation stage arena, you will accompany the training. Punishment in Ten-Thousand-Serpent Valley will resume afterward.”
“If your performance exceeds that of Lin Shuang’s group in this trial, you will take their place.”
She tapped the air. Without allowing a word of protest—
A towering mountain descended from mid-air.
Roughly a hundred meters high.
With a thunderous crash, it slammed into the ground, raising clouds of dust.
The massive rocky peak radiated traces of spiritual energy. On its face, five characters slowly emerged:
I Am the Mountain and Sea Sect
Li Min folded her hands behind her back, solemn. “Use your strongest attack. Shatter this mountain—and you’ll pass this level.”
The six stood frozen.
[…]
[Oh wow.]
[The Mountain and Sea Sect again… do they hate us that much?]
[Our two sects have long fought—over resources, over disciples. The animosity runs deep.]
[It’s fine if we don’t place first. But losing to the Mountain and Sea Sect? Absolutely not. Remember that.]
“What are you all standing around for? Came here to daydream?”
“Complete this level with excellent results and you’ll qualify as level master—earning Zhenchuan’s elite rewards!”
Without hesitation, Meng Zi charged forward, appearing instantly before the mountain.
Dao Dong followed, then Mei Xin, with Chen Xingchuan close behind.
Blades and swords flew. Formation disks clashed. The erhu cried out.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Rocks trembled and shook. All four were blasted backward in an instant—
And crashed headfirst into the dirt beside Lin Shuang and Huangfu Yuan.
The ground cracked open, forming four neat carrot-shaped holes.
[!]
[…]
“Too weak! Again!”
Li Min barked.
“Huangfu Yuan! Lin Shuang! What are you two waiting for?!”
Expressionless, Huangfu Yuan soared forward on his sword.
Lin Shuang sighed, rubbed her brow, and dashed ahead. From her mustard seed pouch, she drew her broad blade.
This hundred-meter-high mountain radiated dense spiritual energy.
Stronger than the combined force she’d felt when the previous three opponents were bound together.
There was simply no way to cut it down.
Wasn’t this just a waste of her spiritual power?
With a sigh, Lin Shuang hoisted her wide sword and activated Dantian No. 11 to its peak.
This was a trial.
Success or failure didn’t matter—it was all about doing her best.
Clenching her teeth, she slashed with her sword.
Bang!
She vanished from where she stood.
Huangfu Yuan had just paused his palm in front of the stone mountain when, in an instant, the ends of his hair were caught—dragging him along as he too was flung backward!
Huangfu Yuan: “!”
Meng Zi and the other three had barely pulled their heads out of the dirt when they looked up—and saw Lin Shuang flying away… flying… until she vanished from sight…
Two thudding crashes echoed, spaced closely together—coming from at least a hundred li away.
If they hadn’t all reached the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment, they might not have heard it at all.
[…Did she fly out of the projection frame?]
[Damn, I didn’t know the Li Village map was this huge. First time learning that.]
[Sounds like it’ll take two hours flying back.]
[That’s the Zhenshan Stone—if your attack power is below its toughness, it’ll launch you back.]
[The greater the difference, the further you get blasted…]
[At this point, I’m convinced she’s still in Qi Condensation.]
She flew farther than anyone else at the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment.
And she dragged Huangfu Yuan along with her.
[This stone likely needs at least sixth-layer Foundation Establishment strength to break. Anything less and you’ll be launched.]
[From Qi Condensation to sixth-layer Foundation Establishment… no wonder she vanished.]
A vein twitched at Elder Li Min’s temple.
Far away, outside the projection’s field, Lin Shuang was trying to crawl out of a crater, clutching her forehead.
“As I suspected… Dantian No. 11, still at Qi Condensation Stage Three, isn’t enough.”
She made a mental note.
But as she pushed herself up, her hand landed on a warm, solid chest.
Lowering her gaze, she met a pair of deep black phoenix eyes.
In that moment, his pupils had tightened into whirlpool-like vortexes.
“Junior Sister, you tore out one of my hairs.”
A sharp crease appeared at the end of Huangfu Yuan’s brow.
Lin Shuang looked down. Sure enough, her palm held a strand of sleek black hair, shiny and unmarred.
But in the blink of an eye, as it left its owner, the hair turned pure white, tinged with silver at the tips, and even gave off a trace of flame.
…Oops.
She had pulled out a transformation hair.
His disguise was now broken.
“Can it still be put back in?” Lin Shuang tried to poke the strand into his thick hairline.
Huangfu Yuan lowered his gaze. “Hah. Shall I dig out your Dantian and shove it back in too?”
“…”
No need to get so dramatic.
It was an accident, okay?
Moving slowly, Lin Shuang propped herself up on his chest and rose, under his increasingly shadowed gaze.
She tucked the red-and-white strand into her mustard seed pouch—time to destroy the evidence.
“Senior Brother, the elder is on her way. How long are you planning to lie there?”
Huangfu Yuan covered his brow, still seated in the pit.
Beep. “Xiao Ai reminds you—don’t rush into training when feeling down.”
“How about a storybook break?”
In the next instant, a copy of A Fairy Crossdresses and Descends to the Mortal Realm was stuffed into his hand by her soft white fingers.
Lin Shuang dusted herself off and stepped onto her wide sword.
“Time to head back. One hour’s journey.”
Huangfu Yuan looked down at the book’s tiny cover text:
—Her heart in turmoil… Will her identity be revealed this time?
His pitch-black pupils suddenly narrowed to a thin slit.
That agitation he failed to suppress—she noticed?
Was this her way of warning him? That if he kept acting like this, Elder Li Min would catch on?
So she took him along in that blast—flung a hundred li away.
One hour.
Flying sword travel back to Li Village would take an hour. She’d calculated it—to give him time to regain composure?
Huangfu Yuan closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he looked complicatedly at the radiant woman now reclining on a cushion, flipping through her storybook.
“Senior Brother, you drive this time.”
“…”
Sure enough, they returned by flying sword—one hour later.
And were greeted by Elder Li Min’s stormy, unreadable face.
Meng Zi and the others were still throwing their best attacks at the Zhenshan Stone, only to be knocked back into the same old craters again and again.
Now they lay sprawled on the ground, glancing resentfully at Lin Shuang and Huangfu Yuan.
Their hands trembled. They were gasping for breath.
Their spiritual energy was nearly drained—meanwhile, Lin Shuang and Huangfu Yuan strolled in like they’d been out shopping.
Elder Li Min stood atop the stone, grinning coldly at them.
“Next time you get blasted that far, I’ll stuff you two into the Zhenshan Stone.”
Lin Shuang coughed lightly.
Huangfu Yuan glanced at her from the side.
Just as the four others prepared to rise again for another round, Lin Shuang suddenly said, oddly,
“Unless your full-strength strike surpasses the fifth stage of Foundation Establishment, there’s no way to break this stone, right?”
The four froze.
Each one of them—every single one—was at the fourth stage.
Breaking into the fifth… was easier said than done.
Rubbing her wrist, Lin Shuang looked back at their battered figures, their scattered aura.
Sigh.
She gave a quiet exhale.
Facing Elder Li Min, she said, “Elder, my wrist hurts.”
“…”
[Hahahahaha!]
[Is it break time now?]
“I disregarded my limits,” Lin Shuang pressed her brow, “and now I’ve injured my wrist. I’ll need time to heal. Damaged Dantian No. 11 too. That’ll take time to recover as well.”
“Totally not worth it.”
Elder Li Min’s eyes widened.
Number Eleven what?
Dantian?
[No. 11 beeping again!]
[So she has more than just the No. 6 Dantian from the Ten-Thousand Volume Library?]
[She talks about Dantian No. 11 like it’s her wrist… did she name the meridian paths her sword energy flows through?]
[…But meridians already have names!]
[So No. 6 is the pathway for her Rather Return Than Stay technique? Makes sense now.]
The projection burst into debate.
Outside the projection, in the Level 6000 Resting Pavilion, Zhao Keran covered her mouth.
Even when the green-robed elder gave her a curious glance, she pretended not to see.
This was VIP content.
She couldn’t talk about it.
Zhao Keran looked back at the screen—at Lin Shuang standing before the Zhenshan Stone.
Though she’d been flung away earlier, because she’d landed on Huangfu Yuan, her robes still flowed gracefully—utterly unscathed.
Only the red cords tying her sleeves had come undone, fluttering wildly in the wind.
“Fast-Track Clothing Lesson.”
Behind the counter, the green-robed elder perked up.
“When working, wear fitted clothes. When resting or alone, wear loose ones.”
She raised a brow.
Pfft. Obvious.
She looked again at Lin Shuang. Now with her sleeves billowing, she looked positively celestial before the Zhenshan Stone that required fifth-stage power to break.
“What, does she think this outfit helps her attack?”
What kind of logic is that?
“No,” Zhao Keran said, wiping the table. “Senior Sister is clocking out.”
“….”
“Fast-Track Combat Lesson: When you meet someone you can’t beat, just leave.”
Zhao Keran’s eyes sparkled.
“Gonna stand there and wait for the enemy to feed you? Sure—last supper style.”
Green-robed elder: “…”
Level 6000 disciples: “…”
And in the projection, sure enough—Lin Shuang stopped Meng Zi and the others.
With a dust-smeared forehead, she wiped it with a handkerchief. “Let’s go. Time to do our homework.”
Meng Zi and the others: “?”
She turned to Elder Li Min and gave a respectful nod.
“Elder, when you brought us into this level, you said anyone below the fifth stage can’t leave.”
“This Zhenshan Stone clearly requires fifth-stage strength to overcome.”
“And we don’t have it.”
The corners of the four disciples’ mouths twitched.
True.
But who says it out loud with such shameless composure?
“Elder, see you at fifth stage.”
Lin Shuang turned, waved, and stowed away her sword.
She walked off.
“Junior Sister has a point. Cultivation doesn’t lie.”
Huangfu Yuan followed behind her.
[??]
[…]
[Are they… allowed to do that?]
[Elder: Trial begins. Disciples: Sorry, too dumb, I’ll come back when I become smarter. ]
[So this is what the elder wanted us to learn… how hard they’re preparing for the competition…]
[Hahahaha, is she gonna do the same on stage? Meet a Mountain and Sea Sect expert: “Oops, bye, I’m off to level up.”]
[Funny—but I feel our mid-tier team is doomed.]
The projection flared up again.
Even those still training on-site began hesitating.
Training… but leaving the elder alone here? That really okay?
Watching Lin Shuang and Huangfu Yuan walk away, Mei Xin hesitated.
Meng Zi grew agitated. Seeing how far they’d gone, he panicked. “Hey! Wait up!”
They were a team.
If they left, what was he doing here?
“Elder, I’m going to train too.”
He shouldered his blade and trotted after them.
Mei Xin, Chen Xingchuan, and Dao Dong were speechless.
Elder Li Min’s expression was inscrutable, while Meng Zi practically skipped away.
What was going on? Were they all making up their own rules?
Chen Xingchuan hesitated only briefly. Then he bowed deeply.
“Elder, I too am at the peak of the fourth stage. I’ve yet to break through.”
“I shall go cultivate first.”
[He’s leaving too.]
[Tch. That loss to Lin Shuang left him with inner demons.]
[Exactly. Following her now, subconsciously, means his spirit has yielded.]
[From the moment he returned to the Outer Sect—Inner Sect Chen Xingchuan is ‘dead.’]
The audience harshly criticized.
A cultivator may lose, but their spirit must remain unbroken.
Just as those comments floated across the screen…
Lin Shuang and her group had already reached the edge of the projection—where Li Village’s wheat fields and distant thatched huts came into view.
Suddenly, a familiar elder rushed out, accompanied by three hundred villagers.
It was the elder from Li Village!
They were overjoyed—like family reuniting.
With smiling faces, whole families in tow, they rushed up and grabbed Lin Shuang’s hand, shaking it with delight.
“Fairy Lin! Ah, Immortal Meng…”
“I saw heavenly signs at home—couldn’t believe it…”
“If the immortals are leveling up, stay at my house, please!”
“No, Elder Li, she should stay at my house!”
“Mine! A hundred years ago an immortal stayed there—his bed’s still intact! Doubles your recovery speed!”
[?]
[!]
“Hey, don’t fight! Fairy Lin must stay with me—our wheat’s almost ready for harvest. A hundred years ago, an immortal decreed: whoever harvests it shall break through!”
[??]
Lin Shuang blinked in surprise—then smiled knowingly.
Just as she expected.
Why was a simple combat trial like the Zhenshan Stone set inside the Li Village replica map?
Because it required the use of Li Village’s items.
Brute force alone wasn’t enough to pass this level. Trying to muscle through brought no benefit.
This was a Ninefold Trial trial—a level personally designed by the elder for disciple advancement.
If you didn’t use it to train or improve, just barged in to smash rocks—
Wasn’t that a waste?
No rewards at all…
Lin Shuang smiled and supported Elder Li gently. “Then Grandpa, forgive our intrusion.”
“What are you saying!” Elder Li patted his chest. “You taught so many of our children the Rather Return Than Stay sword technique and helped us reclaim our spring! Pick any room you like!”
“Immortal Meng as well.”
“Ah, Immortal Huangfu is here too…”
Elder Li’s expression grew complicated.
Huangfu Yuan: “…”
Back during the Xiao Fang trial, he’d received the evaluation: too aloof. Li Village had since avoided assigning him any missions.
“…Fine, you’re all welcome.”
Elder Li grudgingly relented. “The children studying alchemy have some questions for you too.”
He personally led them to the five thatched huts and gave up the village head’s residence for their use.
He lifted the tattered mat—to reveal a jade bed underneath, perfect for spiritual recovery.
Opened a broken cabinet—inside were insight-stimulating pills.
Lifted the wooden lid of the well—within bubbled a spiritual spring, overflowing with energy.
“Is there anything else you need, Immortals?”
“You must tell me.”
Elder Li still felt he hadn’t done enough.
With a clap, a dozen village aunties burst in, carrying nectar, steaming spiritual rice and dishes.
All of it was Inner Sect-grade food: fasting pills, spiritual tea, spiritual wine—things normally found only in Clearwater’s elite dining halls.
[!]
[Incredible!]
Back in the projection before the Zhenshan Stone, Li Min looked at the stunned Mei Xin and Dao Dong and shook her head.
“Still dazed?”
“Then break the stone now.”
“Or go cultivate!”
The two immediately came to their senses, bowed to the elder, and rushed toward Li Village.
Watching them go, Li Min let out a soft sigh and vanished.
Elder Li gave the main hut to Lin Shuang’s group.
Chen Xingchuan got the second hut, smaller and drafty.
Mei Xin arrived third.
Elder Li shook his head. “No rooms left. If Immortal doesn’t mind, I have a firewood shed.”
When Dao Dong arrived fourth, Elder Li spat.
“No rooms. Shed’s gone too.”
“Immortal may do as he pleases!”
He tossed out a ragged straw mat.
[…First come, first served?]
[Apologies, Chen Xingchuan. I shouldn’t have mocked you earlier. You were right.]
Chen Xingchuan now sat cross-legged in the leaky hut, gazing through the window slats toward the shed and straw mat.
A flash of gratitude crossed his eyes.
Thank goodness.
The Chen family had lost to Lin Shuang three times.
From Chen Sheng’s duel, to Senior Brother, you dropped your treasure, to his own loss against her—
If even now he hadn’t realized Lin Shuang thrived in Zhenchuan, and failed to follow her lead—how foolish would that be?
Chen Xingchuan shook his head.
Those who understand the times are true heroes.
He closed his eyes and entered meditation.
Outside, Dao Dong and Mei Xin wore bitter smiles.
Lin Shuang sat on the jade bed, sipping spiritual tea from the aunties, spiritual food in hand.
She waved to them.
“Senior Sister Mei Xin, Senior Brother Dao Dong—hurry up. Start building your favorability score. You two don’t have enough.”
Then she ducked her head again. “Ah, Senior Brother Meng, put down Elder Li’s Undying Divine Robe. You’re not exhausted…”
“Senior Brother Huangfu, put down that spirit chicken leg… it’s not lunchtime yet…”
Dao Dong, Mei Xin: “!!”
[Undying Divine Robe?! The one that restores spiritual energy on demand?]
[Li Village is on par with my Level 6000 cave mansion.]
[You can only enjoy it if your favorability is high enough?]
[Dao Dong didn’t just fail to earn Li Village’s respect—he helped their rival village during Xiao Fang’s trial…]
[Worse. He activated a formation that injured a hundred Li villagers…]
Just then, a series of villagers appeared outside Dao Dong’s hut.
“Peh.”
“Peh.”
“Peh peh peh!”
Dao Dong: “…”
[…]
[So favorability really does matter.]
[In every NPC trial level of Zhenchuan, caution is essential…]
[Mei Xin helped the Wang family too but didn’t hurt Li villagers—so her standing’s slightly better.]
[But Dao Dong challenged Lin Shuang, and had to side with Wang Village against the 300 youths.]
[Nonsense. He could’ve gone after Meng Zi. If Meng Zi’s blood loss exceeded 60%, the match would’ve ended—and the villagers would’ve vanished.]
[But Dao Dong ignored him and hurt a hundred villagers instead. From Li’s perspective—who wouldn’t spit at him?]
Back in the projection, Lin Shuang gently sipped her spiritual tea, closed her storybook, and sat on a bed made of spirit stones.
She glanced outside with some sympathy at Dao Dong.
Zhenchuan was like an exam simulator.
Fail a level, and you’re dropped 300 floors.
Lose favor with an NPC clan, and you’ll have no lodging, only scorn.
But beyond the sect?
Lin Shuang closed her eyes.
Resources in the world were limited. Cultivators battled like fish in a river.
If two cultivation clans clashed, what would a neutral party do?
Take a side—and risk the other’s enmity.
Act too ruthlessly—and the feud might last generations.
Li Village’s trials hid the Clearwater Sect’s warning to disciples.
Take a side—and karmic entanglements begin.
Strike—and grudges form.
So do you stay out of it, or dive in?
Do you ally with the strong, or aid the weak?
In Zhenchuan, there’s no choice. You accept your role as soon as you enter.
But outside Clearwater Sect—the world is vast. You act as your Dao heart dictates.
And all consequences must be borne by you alone.
Zhenchuan’s lesson to disciples goes only this far.
Lin Shuang nodded and reopened her book.
“I underestimated these Li Village trials.”
“The ancestral hall, Xiao Fang, the spirit spring feud—I took sides too fast, without learning the truth. That was my mistake.”
She shook her head.
Those two questions—she didn’t get full marks.
No wonder the rankings for Level 3000’s You Finally Arrived were so strange.
The phrase carved into the ancestral hall had said: “Ranked by Li Village’s favorability score.”
But Clearwater’s trials shouldn’t rank based on popularity.
Lin Shuang rubbed her forehead. “So we were biased from the start.”
Just then, spiritual light descended and enveloped her.
Lin Shuang: “?”
[?]
[Lin Shuang has discovered the hidden truth within the Li Village trial—what you hear is not always the truth.]
[Level 3000 evaluation updated to: Grade A+!]
[Indeed—Li Village claimed their ancestral hall was burned, that Xiao Fang lied about marriage—but how do you know they didn’t burn Wang’s ancestral hall first? Or make promises before breaking them?]
[In the spring dispute, you relied too heavily on one side’s words.]
[Right or wrong—cultivators aren’t divine judges. Rushing to intervene causes more harm than mortals can bear.]
[Congratulations, Lin Shuang—your enlightenment came fastest!]
[Congratulations, Huangfu Yuan—second to comprehend!]
[?]
Lin Shuang: “??”
She clutched her forehead as the blessing energy poured in, and looked toward Huangfu Yuan by the tea table.
He wore the same helpless expression—and the same look of disdain.
He didn’t want this gift either.
And in the projection, everyone saw the ancestral hall inscription shift:
[Level 3000 Masters: Lin Shuang, Huangfu Yuan, Meng Zi.]
Their names atop the pillar instantly turned gold.
[Disciples ranked by favorability score.]
The small characters shimmered, twisted—
And transformed:
[Disciples ranked by evaluation score: Lin Shuang and Huangfu Yuan comprehended the deeper meaning. Grade A+. First and second of the century.]
[!]
[……!]
[I always thought it was based on favorability…]
[No wonder. I always felt that the disciples from Wang Village were at a disadvantage in the Level 3000 rankings. Turns out this was why.]
[If you haven’t gained insight, a mountain is just a mountain. But once you’ve understood, the mountain is no longer a mountain—only then do the words on the stone pillar change.]
[Once she explained it, all the observing disciples understood. That’s why now you all see the real ranking criteria on the stone pillar.]
[…Zhenchuan runs deep!]
[So that’s why high-level disciples can’t casually give hints. But if someone like her figures it out and says it aloud, it’s fine.]
[Strange, though… this should’ve triggered a ding-ding-boom-boom-style alert~]
Inside the Level 6000 Resting Pavilion—
The green-robed elder and the pink-robed elder, Li Min, sat on opposite sides, both looking conflicted.
Zhenchuan’s “ear-blocking mechanism” was only meant to prevent the sharing of level-clearing tips and secret techniques.
Who would’ve guessed Lin Shuang and Huangfu Yuan would end up at Level 3350-something… only to expose the secrets of Level 3000?
Their sudden realization triggered a spiritual blessing and reshuffled the level master rankings.
The two elders pressed their temples.
“Well, this was something the disciples needed to understand eventually.”
“Though being told isn’t as fulfilling as figuring it out yourself.”
“But still… better to realize now than too late.”
“So it’s a leak. Let it leak.”
They both sat back down, pretending not to care.
But soon the green-robed elder straightened his neck, glaring at the stunned Level 6000 disciples sipping tea and munching melon seeds.
He barked:
“Anyone who didn’t gain insight before—come rent a cave residence from me. Minimum three years! So you remember what you learned today!”
Level 6000 disciples: “…!”
Li Min smiled faintly.
In the projection:
Elder Li’s shout suddenly rang from outside the window.
“Immortals, terrible news—strong winds have picked up over the river! Could you help us harvest the wheat?”
Lin Shuang had just suppressed the heavenly spiritual blessing. At his voice, she rose to her feet in a breath.
Less than half a stick of incense later, the six of them stood staring, dumbfounded, at the field outside—full of thick, towering stalks of golden wheat.
Qi Condensation Peak wheat.
Foundation Establishment Stage One wheat.
Foundation Establishment Stage Two wheat.
Foundation Establishment Stage Three wheat.
…
Every stalk in the field had turned into level-up monsters.
Lin Shuang inhaled deeply.
Then she smiled and stepped into the field.
This mission was pure and simple. No tricks.
XP: here she came.
A fresh wave of Li Village favorability: here she came.
Author’s Note:
Zhao Sect Master’s Journal 45:
“Senior Sister was blasted away by the Zhenshan Stone, rested for an hour, flirted with the demon king for an hour, pondered the leveling strategy for an hour, read a novel for an hour… Four birds with one stone. I didn’t miss any, right? As expected, Senior Sister never deceives—resting truly is for launching stronger!”
—A disciple, a hundred years later: I’ve learned.
—Meng Zi: Was I really present for that? I truly feel leashed and clueless. What were those two even doing?
—Zhou Xuanwu: …
The upcoming duels will be deeply tied to the trials of Level 9000.
This marks the start of Volume Two: The Level 6000 Trials!
Level 3000 is complete—which means we’re one-third (or maybe halfway) through! Let’s accelerate. Go go go, our girl’s leveling up!
See you tomorrow~