Chapter 98: Chapter 87: Cyan Wood

Time flew by. Six or seven days passed in the blink of an eye.

The Yuelai Inn was still bustling with people, a clamor of voices filling the air.

In a corner, Chen Qing sat alone. Before him were stir-fried seasonal vegetables, a braised fish, and two large bowls of rice.

He thought to himself, ’Six or seven days have passed. It seems I didn’t make it through the first round of selection.’

’But there are still a few more rounds, a few more chances.’

After making inquiries, Chen Qing knew his own qualifications weren’t bad. Aside from a slightly inferior Root Bone, his skeletal age, strength, and comprehension were all in the upper-middle tier among the current batch of apprentices.

“Brother Chen!”

A young man hurried over and asked in a low voice, “Have you heard anything?”

Chen Qing shook his head. “Not yet.”

The newcomer was named Yang Zhicheng. He was from Muyang County, and his uncle had once been a disciple of the Wutai Sect’s Li Fire Institute.

High hopes had been placed on Yang Zhicheng since he was young. After reaching the Transmutation Force realm, he had come here with a token and a letter of recommendation to try his luck.

Yang Zhicheng’s brow furrowed slightly. “I heard that Yu Manwen and Zhang Cheng both passed. The Geng Metal Institute and the Kun Earth Institute each took one.”

Chen Qing’s hand paused. Then he said, “Don’t worry. There are still opportunities after the cross-review.”

He had figured out some of the inner workings over the past few days.

The so-called cross-review involved randomly dividing a stack of registers into Five Parts, which were then distributed to the five Deans.

If no one was selected from a register, it would continue to circulate randomly. Disciples who remained unselected after five rounds had no choice but to leave.

Every month, disciples holding letters of recommendation or those who had endured three years in the Outer Courtyard and advanced to Transmutation Force would come to apply for the review.

During the cross-review, each Dean had different priorities—some focused on Root Bone, others on family background, age, or comprehension.

If his register came before a Dean who prioritized Root Bone, it was normal for Chen Qing to be rejected.

“Sigh!”

Yang Zhicheng tugged at his sleeve, his voice bitter. “I’ve asked around. There are seventeen or eighteen people at the Transmutation Force level in this batch. Wu Yuanhua, with his Seven Forms Root Bone, was picked by the Gui Water Institute in the first round. Our… our chances are mostly gone.”

And with the five major institutes having limited spots, the competition was fierce.

If several top-tier prospects appeared in the same batch, the chances of being selected became slim.

What’s more, when candidates had similar qualifications, there were also those with connections vying for a spot behind the scenes.

So, whether one could enter the Wutai Sect also depended partly on luck.

Unfortunately, this particular batch of disciples had many with excellent aptitude, and Yang Zhicheng had long been on edge.

Chen Qing said slowly, “Let’s just wait a bit longer.”

He didn’t know which institute had his register now. Although the cross-review was halfway over, there was still a chance.

Yang Zhicheng’s brow was tightly knit, but he nodded.

After all, the cross-review wasn’t over yet. Perhaps things would take a turn for the better at the last moment.

…..

Gui Water Institute.

Chu Jinyun, the Dean, dressed in a simple robe with a cyan hairpin, stood barefoot in her silk stockings by the edge of a pond.

With a wave of her fair hand, fine grains of bait scattered onto the water’s surface.

Several Treasure Fish immediately followed, vying with each other and churning the pond, creating bursts of tumultuous golden splashes.

“Master, the registers for the cross-review!”

Nie Shanshan came forward, holding the registers.

She was the most outstanding disciple of the Gui Water Institute. Her moon-white Martial Attire clung to her exquisite figure. Her brows were sharp like swords, yet the corners of her eyes held a trace of gentleness.

Chu Jinyun clapped her hands. “Bring them here, let me see.”

She took the registers and glanced through them, a hint of disappointment showing on her face. “In this batch, there’s no one as talented as Wu Yuanhua.”

“A Seven Forms Root Bone, reaching Transmutation Force at seventeen… such a genius is rare even in Yunlin Prefecture,” Nie Shanshan said.

The best prospects were all snatched up in the first round. The ones left, who had been passed around, were merely the leftovers from others’ tables.

“Yes, a Seven Forms Root Bone is indeed rare.”

Chu Jinyun’s fingertip slid across the register, her gaze landing on two names.

One was Zhang Rui: nineteen years old, Transmutation Force, a Five Elements Root Bone. Utterly unremarkable. However, his father, Zhang Chenpei, was her Brother Zhang from years ago.

The other was Chen Qing.

Chu Jinyun’s brow furrowed as she fell into contemplation, weighing her options.

The Gui Water Institute’s prestige among the various institutes was currently weak. The main reason was that its core Upper-Grade Martial Arts, the Thousand Layered Wave Sword Technique, was incredibly difficult to cultivate.

Other than Nie Shanshan, not a single other disciple had reached Great Success.

Chu Jinyun also wanted to select a few outstanding disciples to bolster the institute’s reputation.

“Let’s go with this Chen Qing.”

She finally spoke. “A Four Forms Root Bone, from a humble background, yet he reached Transmutation Force. Moreover, his entry-level Fist Technique has reached Perfection. He must have a certain degree of comprehension in addition to his hard work.”

Comprehension was something intangible and hard to define; one could only infer it from the progress a person made in their Martial Arts Cultivation.

Unsurprisingly, Chen Qing’s comprehension was quite good among this batch of disciples.

The Thousand Layered Wave Sword Technique was one of the most difficult Martial Arts to cultivate, so aside from Root Bone, the quality Chu Jinyun valued most was comprehension.

Nie Shanshan replied, “Yes, Master. I will go register it now.”

She also felt that, among the names on the list, Chen Qing was an excellent choice.

Although his Root Bone was slightly inferior, reaching Transmutation Force at eighteen only highlighted how extraordinary he was.

The Treasure Fish in the pond stirred up a golden light, sending ripples across the water. Gazing at the familiar scene, Chu Jinyun’s thoughts couldn’t help but drift back to her youth, when she first entered the Wutai Sect.

Back then, Brother Zhang had often guided and looked after her. The memory of his kindness was still fresh, and she herself had once solemnly promised to repay him in the future.

But alas, Zhang Chenpei’s family had suffered a sudden misfortune. After returning to his hometown dejectedly, all contact with him was lost.

For so many years, the guilt of this unfulfilled promise had been buried deep in Chu Jinyun’s heart.

Now, her Brother Zhang’s only remaining bloodline in this world was on the register she held in her hand.

If she were to give up even this last chance to repay his kindness, wouldn’t she be proving herself to be an ungrateful person?

Furthermore, when she was in the underworld someday, how could she face her Brother Zhang again?

At this thought, the last trace of deliberation and hesitation in her heart was crushed by guilt and softened.

“Shanshan!” she called out again, suddenly snapping back to the present.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep