Chapter 1 Brother and Sister

  At the most intense moment, a voice with a slightly playful tone came in, and when everyone in the great hall looked over hastily, they couldn't help but feel a tightening in their hearts.

  "Hasn't this kid left yet?"

  At the same time, more than one person comes up with the same idea.

  Suddenly, by the side of the main hall, a slender youth standing by the door appeared in everyone's line of sight. It was Lu Chen, whom Zuo Qingxuan had been searching for but couldn't find.

  At this time, Lu Chen was bent over with his back arched, his hands grasping the door frame, his chest heaving constantly, fine beads of sweat hanging from his forehead, his long hair disheveled and unkempt. Even his usually immaculate Taoist robe was soaked halfway through, making him look as if he had just walked out of a torrential downpour, utterly bedraggled.

  Lu Chen appeared, and the grand hall immediately fell silent. After a long while, Zuo Qing Hua, who had been crying until she was tearful, finally came back to her senses and threw herself at Lu Chen, embracing him tightly.

  "Brother, you didn't leave, that's great."

  Feeling the softness close to him, Lu Chen's heart was filled with emotion, but when he saw Zuo Qinghua's clean skirt, his dirty hands hesitated, unsure of what to do. After a moment's thought, Lu Chen finally gently patted Zuo Qinghua's fragrant shoulder with his hand, using the gentle tone that only he had ever used with her, saying: "What's wrong? Why are you crying? Didn't I promise you I'd wait for your return? Don't hold on like this, it doesn't look good in front of so many people."

  Upon hearing this, Zuo Qinghuan finally came to her senses and quickly struggled out of Lu Chen's arms, laughing through tears: "Bad brother, you're still making jokes at a time like this. I'm not going to pay attention to you anymore."

  One brother and one sister, flirting and quarreling in front of everyone, the surrounding disciples watched with cold sweat, also didn't know if this was the Qianyu Gate or the two people's private boudoir.

  Wang He didn't need to say anything more, the cold gaze revealed in his eyes was almost enough to turn into two sharp swords and slash Lu Chen into a thousand pieces.

  Ling Yu was also gloomy, but she didn't say anything. It would be useless to say anything anyway. He knew that this little girl had made up her mind to protect the trash in front of her. If he said a few more words, he might provoke the little girl into anger and make things difficult for himself.

  A person, if they are not afraid of death, cannot be threatened with anything.

  Force won't work, can only find opportunities to be gentle.

  Qingyun Zhenren sat at the top, having had enough of it for a long time. His red old face was like a ripe persimmon. He suddenly slapped the table and shouted loudly: "How dare you! This is Qianyu Hall, not a place for your flirting and quarreling. Stand up straight!"

  When Qingyun Zhenren got angry, Left Chancellor He spat out his tongue and made a ghost face, standing obediently to the side, no longer speaking.

  Lu Chen, however, unexpectedly came forward and bowed deeply, saying: "Elder, please calm your anger. I was so focused on my cultivation that I lost track of time. I am willing to accept punishment."

  "Really? Changed sex?"

  As soon as this was said, all the disciples were shocked and had never seen Lu Chen so proper before.

  Qingyun True Person was also stunned, the anger that had risen up suddenly like encountering a basin of cold water, extinguished. He didn't understand how this kid could change his personality in just one short month, however, not to mention whether he reached the qualification for entering the sect, just because of this mistake in cultivation timing, it's hard to add responsibility, after all, he is also for continuing to stay in Qianyu Gate. No way, Qingyun True Person only glared at Lu Chen with one eye, saying: "The matter of punishment, will be discussed later, you first join the ranks."

  Although he said so with his mouth, Qingyun's heart was as clear as a mirror: "What penalty? Once the assessment is over, I'll be sent down the mountain directly. Out of sight, out of mind."

  "Yes." Lu Chen bowed again, his expression extremely respectful, but no one knew that in his heart he was seething with anger: "Hmph, who does he think he is? If Master didn't order me to humble myself, I wouldn't have bowed even if you paid me. This Daoist master would never stoop so low."

  Everyone has arrived, and the elder is even more reluctant to pay attention to Lu Chen, this outsider. The test officially begins.

  A group of named disciples took out their full strength and demonstrated the gains from their cultivation over the past year, one by one, in front of the elders.

  Sometimes there are disciples who break through the three-layer boundary of practicing Qi, and after gaining the satisfaction of the elders' eyes, they return to their teams one after another. Even more, many young boys and girls who did not meet the standards left the stage in disappointment one by one.

  In a short period of time, more than 100 named disciples have completed the demonstration. Apart from Zuo Qinghua and Wang He, who are both at the peak of Qi Refining Fourth Layer, there are also two named disciples who have just entered the peak of Qi Refining Third Layer, with exceptional talent. The rest are mostly newly-entered Qi Refining Third Layer disciples, with more than 50 people exceeding the standard, clearly surpassing the scope of selective recruitment.

  "Lu Chen"

  The last one, Qingyun impatiently clicked on Lu Chen's name and thought: "Hurry up and leave."

  "Brother~" Hearing Lu Chen being called, Zuo Qinghan secretly clenched her fists, and the worried look in her eyes inadvertently flowed out.

  On the other hand, Chen Hu was still resentful of Lu Chen's deception with those few pieces of low-grade spirit stones, and naturally looked down on him with disdain.

  Wang He was even more eager for Lu Chen to come down the mountain earlier, and the anxiety in his heart was even harder to express.

  All the disciples didn't think much of Lu Chen, and for this entire month, Lu Chen's constant wailing day and night had already made them unbearable, looking forward to him being expelled from the mountain gate.

  Lan Yu Zhenren's eyes were tightly closed, as if he couldn't even be bothered to look.

  As for the other two elders, if they weren't still waiting for the martial arts assessment and selection of disciples, they would have returned to their own residences to rest.

  Still with that nonchalant and careless expression, upon hearing Qingyun call out to him, Lu Chen walked up to the front of the hall with a steady pace, thinking to himself: "Should I bring out my full strength and let them have a good look, or just give them a small demonstration?"

  After some deliberation, Lu Chen finally decided to leave the most dazzling opportunity for Hua'er and just aim to reach the third layer of Qi cultivation himself. Moreover, reaching the third layer in just a month was already astonishing enough; if he were to reveal his full fourth-layer strength, it would be too shocking and attract unwanted attention, so three layers would suffice.

  No mistake, the current Lu Chen indeed has the capital to be arrogant. As expected by Lu Chen, the true yuan contained in the innate stone vein is extremely majestic and powerful. With the benefit of the Guiding Qi Pill, Lu Chen sat quietly for five days and finally broke through the third layer of Qi Refining and reached the extremely high realm of the fourth layer. Being able to reach such a high level in just one year would already be like Left Prime Minister Hua's talent, let alone that Lu Chen actually only used one month.

  Everyone was impatiently waiting for Lu Chen's final humiliation, who would have thought that behind the scenes, he was thinking of showing off his strength. If people knew what Lu Chen was thinking at this moment, they might have dropped their eyeballs.

  He walked calmly to the front of the hall, his eyes fixed on one spot, with an air of confidence and elegance that was unmatched. His eyes shone with self-assurance, and he even glanced at Xiāo Lǐ Huā, winking playfully at her.

  Then an unbelievable scene finally appeared.

  Lu Chen's smiling expression paused for a moment, his arms slowly rose, palms facing inward, and gently clenched.

  "Cheers!"

  Peng

  Invisible vital energy rises from the soles of the feet, instantly transforming into a clear and extensive flow that reaches the top of the head. Within a 50-centimeter radius around his body, the air is filled with a dense yet refined aura, real and powerful.

  "Hmm"

  Everyone in the grand hall was stunned, as if struck by five thunders, their brain cells suddenly stopped working. The entire magnificent Jade Temple fell silent, plunged into a dead silence.