Chapter 1 Rebirth

  The entire square was bustling with activity, the lights shining brightly. Chen Xuan and Zhai Yunsheng found a secluded corner, sat down for the night, recovering from the fatigue of traveling continuously for a month, adjusting their state to its best.

  When the first ray of sunlight shone onto the square, the entire square was filled with excitement, everywhere interspersed with thrilled voices.

  It's been a year and I can finally participate in the Danxuan Gate Recruitment Conference again. Last year, I wasn't selected, but this year I must be chosen. All sorts of voices are coming from everywhere, some excited, some nervous, and others with an attitude of "I must get it".

  "Look, the examiner from Danxuan Gate has arrived." A loud shout came from the crowd.

  Chen Xuan also looked up at the sky and saw that there were about twenty people flying over to the square, able to fly in mid-air. This required at least the strength of a True Martial Realm cultivator.

  Dozens of people fell on a high platform in the square, and the atmosphere of the entire square changed instantly, giving people a sense of reverence.

  The entire square suddenly fell silent.

  "Welcome to Dan Xuan Gate." At this time, an old Taoist with a fairy-like demeanor walked out.

  "Master Yuan Yu Zi is the host of this grand election."

  "Do you know that this Xuan Yu Zi is an elder of the Longevity Hall, one of the four halls, and his actual strength has reached the peak of the Earth Spirit. Fifty years ago, he single-handedly stormed the Qi Men Mountain stronghold, beheading the five leaders of the Qi Men Mountain stronghold. At that time, Xuan Yu Zi was only at the initial stage of his Yuan Wu boundary cultivation, and it is said that the five leaders of the Qi Men Mountain stronghold were all at the Yuan Wu boundary level, with the great leader being at the late stage of the Yuan Wu boundary. The Qi Men Mountain stronghold was notorious for its evil deeds, killing and looting everywhere, but Xuan Yu Zi single-handedly slaughtered the entire Qi Men Mountain stronghold, causing a sensation at the time."

  A murmur of discussion came from below.

  Chen Xuan also sized up this mysterious jade pendant, its luster was restrained, absolutely not as gentle and calm as it appeared on the surface.

  This year, all the elders of the Longtang have come out in force. In previous years, it was only the low-ranking elders from the 16 Peaks and the Four Halls who came to assess, but this year is different. Strange rumors have been circulating among the people below, with wave after wave of different discussions.

  I heard that this year, four geniuses who have reached the Lingwu realm are also participating in the Grand Smelting. Perhaps the Fourth Pavilion will come out and want to recruit these four disciples into their own pavilion as well. An 18-year-old Lingwu realm is indeed a genius! A wave of envy spread from below.

  "Everyone be quiet."

  At this time, an old man standing beside Xuanyuzi said:

  The entire square fell silent once again.

  "Next, I'll introduce you to the rules of this election. Although it's the same every year, I still have to repeat it. In previous years, we only accepted 1,000 disciples, but this year we plan to add another 1,000 on top of that, so more disciples will have the opportunity to join our Danxuan Gate."

  As soon as he heard that this year they would be accepting one thousand new disciples, every young face in the room lit up with excited smiles. This way, at least his own chances would increase.

  The old man looked at the performance below and nodded before continuing.

  "Just like last year, the seventh-rank station is on the left, the eighth-rank station is on the right, and the ninth-rank station is in the middle. Someone once asked us why we didn't choose both the ninth and eighth ranks, why bother choosing the seventh rank."

  The old man suddenly paused after finishing speaking. Chen Xuan was also wondering why he didn't choose the good ones, but instead chose the seventh, eighth and ninth grades. Do you have the same doubts today? I'll explain it to you again today.

  "Balance and resources are also important, this is the reason I'm saying, a sect can't have all postnatal ninth-grade disciples, it will cause disharmony in the sect. Luck plays a role in every major selection, good luck is also one of the main factors for cultivators, without good luck, it's hard to go far on the road ahead. So we will recruit disciples evenly every year, rules are the same as before, postnatal seventh-grade on the left arena, eighth-grade on the right arena, ninth-grade in the middle arena, only by defeating the puppet on the arena can you advance, losers will be eliminated, each puppet corresponds to your level, now let's start grouping, everyone go to their corresponding place."

  Chen Xuan understood why the sects were competing with each other after listening to the old man's words.

  Chen Xuan arrived at the very center of the square, seeing that there were already many arenas arranged, each with a puppet on it. The entire square had over a hundred such arenas, big and small. Looking around, he estimated that there were about 5,000 people to his left, with the Seventh Rank occupying about half of them. To his right, there were approximately 3,000 to 3,500 people.

  The number of post-ninth rank is just over a thousand, and Chen Xuan was also shocked at first sight. In Hongling Town, 18-year-old post-eighth rank are extremely rare talents, but here, post-ninth rank are piled up, and anyone who comes out can be considered a once-in-a-thousand-years talent in their own family. It seems that choosing to come out is the right decision after all.

  Chen Xuan's eyes also underwent a subtle change, no longer limited to Hongling Town. He thought he was a genius, but only after coming here did he realize that what he considered genius was just the most ordinary cultivation level. It seems he still needs to work hard.

  Half an hour had passed and everyone was separated.

  A dozen or so people on the platform had finished dividing things up below and nodded to each other. At this point, the old man stood out again.

  "Four disciples who had already reached the Spiritual Martial Realm passed this round directly and walked to the back of the square, waiting for the next round of testing."

  As soon as the old man finished speaking, Chen Xuan saw four young men and women walking out from in front of him. There were three boys and one girl, all under the age of eighteen, with proud faces walking towards the back of the square.

  "Do you know where these people come from?"

  A young man next to him asked.

  "I don't know."

  Another young man replied.

  "Let me tell you, the boy in blue is Han Jiang of Tong City's Han family, the girl in purple is Feng Ling, daughter of Lishui City's lord. The grey-clad boy seems to be a wandering cultivator who obtained a rare opportunity and has also come to participate in the Grand Smelting. As for that last boy in black, I don't know his background either."

  The young man who was introduced to everyone spoke with a proud and arrogant tone.

  "My elder brother is a disciple of the inner door of Danxuanmen's Heavy Sea Peak, these are all what he told me, this is also why the Elder Hall Xuan Yu Zi and others came, they all want to pull these few young people under their own door."

  The young man looked around after finishing speaking.

  At this time, several people beside him immediately started flattering him.

  "Afterwards when entering the sect, still need many senior brothers to take care of."

  "Alright, alright."

  The boy waved goodbye.

  Chen Xuan roughly understood the origins of these people from their conversation, each one being a proud son of heaven. The Han family of Tong City was also mentioned by several senior brothers on the road as a large and powerful clan.

  "Alright, let's get started then. The old man said this as he watched the four young men and women walk towards the square behind him."

  "Elder Xuan, I don't know which one of the four you have taken a liking to."

  An old man with red hair standing on the right side of Elder Xuan Yu Zi spoke up.

  "I wonder which of the four people Elder Ye has chosen."

  Xuanyuzi didn't answer Ye Shuangshuang's words, but instead continued to ask.

  "Cunning as an old fox."

  Ye Chang Lao secretly despised him in his heart, but still smiled and replied.

  "I've taken a good look at the young man in blue clothes; after all, he comes from a large family with a solid foundation."

  Xuanyuzi smiled after hearing Ye Zhanglao finish speaking, "It seems that this time your Executive Hall is also well-prepared, and you have investigated all of these people clearly."

  This time, both Dantang and Qiankuntang have sent people over. It seems that they also want to recruit these four young men into their ranks.

  "Hmm, this time's Grand Selection is even more intense than the previous years' Genius Disciples. It seems that our Danxuan Sect will have to make a big impact in our generation. The four Lingwu Realm disciples can choose their own hall this time, and no one else is allowed to participate."

  Xuan Yu Zi said to the other few people around him, including Dan Tang and Qian Kun Tang's several elders. It seems that Xuan Yu Zi has a significant influence in Dan Xuan Men. After he finished speaking, more than a dozen others nodded their heads, while the several elders from Shi Liu Feng didn't dare to speak up at all.

  Chen Xuan, of course, did not know about the discussion between the elders above. At this time, he was already standing on the stage, looking at the puppet in front of him. Except for being made of wood, its movements and martial arts techniques were no lower than those of a real person; they were even more fluent than those of a real person, and stronger than those of someone with the same level of strength.

  The day after tomorrow, the nine-product competition will have about thirty rings. Chen Xuan and others arrived at the second round before they went up. After all, it's not too early to expose one's own strength. Chen Xuan did not choose to directly solve the puppet, but instead chose to play a game of cat and mouse, displaying his "Nine Changes of Phantom Shadow". The puppet couldn't even touch Chen Xuan after twenty or so moves. Then, Chen Xuan landed a Thunder Fist on the puppet's chest, knocking it out. After that, the puppet didn't move again. Chen Xuan knew he had passed the test and walked down from the ring.