The Strongest in the Mining Cave Volume 1 Chapter 9 Outer Gate Assessment

  After waiting for two hours, the queue of a thousand people finally dispersed by half, and it was almost time for Chu Yi and Tie Niu to enter the trial field for assessment.

  Chu Yi had already possessed the initial cultivation of the Innate Realm, so he didn't need to worry about not being selected. What he was considering now was how to cross the threshold of being an outer door disciple and become an inner door disciple of the Supreme Profound Yang Sect in one move.

  Although there is only one word difference between the two, their treatment is vastly different. As for this point, Chuyi had already understood it clearly in his previous gossip with Tie Niu.

  The Supreme Mysterious Yang Sect is one of the nine major sects, and on the Xuan Yuan Star, it is an absolute overlord-level existence. There are more than 1 million disciples in the sect, among which 90% are outer door disciples, while the remaining 10% are the foundation of the Supreme Mysterious Yang Sect, recognized as elite inner door disciples.

  Above the inner door disciples, there are also close transmission disciples, who are selected from among nearly 10,000 inner door disciples as the most outstanding ones.

  In the Supreme Mysterious Yang Sect, any personally transmitted disciple is a lofty existence, even if compared to the elders within the sect, their status may not be much higher.

  Even some of the masters who have come out of the palm teachings or are direct disciples of the great elder, their identity and status, as well as their cultivation strength, must be higher than those of ordinary elders.

  At this moment, what Chu Yi is striving for is the opportunity to become a direct disciple at the fastest speed, which concerns whether he can return to Earth in his lifetime, and whether he can live a good life on this cultivation planet. Chu Yi will definitely go all out.

  Moreover, to be honest, after three years of hard work in the mine, Chu Yi had gradually come to like cultivating. The feeling of constantly gaining more powerful strength made him feel very pleased, and pursuing even stronger power and higher cultivation was now seen by Chu Yi as a challenge to himself.

  "This is your token, go ahead." At the entrance of the trial field, a man in green clothes handed over two jade tokens with numbers printed on them to Tie Niu and Chu Yi.

  Crossing the threshold, one enters a vast plaza that spans dozens of acres. In front of the main building stands a high platform built with emerald-green jade, over 100 meters square in size. More than ten people dressed in white robes stand atop it, members of the Supreme Void Yang Sect who are here to serve as examiners for this trial selection.

  As they entered the trial arena, Iron Bull excitedly pulled Chu Yi towards the high platform in the square and ran while pointing at the examiners on the high platform: "Chu brother, aren't those the immortals?"

  Following Tieniu's gaze, Chuyi unexpectedly discovered that he could see through the cultivation of everyone on the high platform at a glance. Surprised, Chuyi gained a certain understanding of the wonders of the Divine Origin.

  "Sixteen examiners, eight of whom were Innate Sixth Realm, five of whom were Innate Seventh Realm, two of whom were Innate Eighth Realm, and one of whom was even an Innate Ninth Realm... With my current cultivation strength, I seem to have the qualifications to take on the role of examiner as well!"

  With a smile in his heart, Chu Yi was already pulled by Tie Niu to the front of the high platform. The more than 100 people who entered the arena listened to the announcement and held up their number plates as they climbed onto the huge high platform for testing.

  At first glance, the test project seems simple, but its difficulty is by no means something an ordinary person can accomplish.

  Seeing the people who went on stage one by one failed and returned, Chu Yi couldn't help but doubt the rumor that Wushang Xuan Yang Sect would recruit 10,000 outer sect disciples this year. After all, the difficulty of the assessment projects was not ordinary high, and it was hard to imagine that anyone could complete them all.

  It has been more than half a time since Chu Yi stepped into the trial field, and nearly half of the hundred people have been eliminated. Surprisingly, not one person passed the assessment, with a passing rate of zero.

  "Next."

  The voice of Examiner No. 6 interrupted Chu Yi's thoughts, and Tieniu took the stage.

  "The first round, thousand jin stone lock continuous lifting."

  In front of Tie Niu was a stone lock about the size of a gourd, its quality was top-notch Qingtian stone polished to perfection. The Qingtian stone is renowned for its exceptional quality and hardness, second to none among all stones. Although it wasn't large in volume, its weight was absolutely as heavy as that famous examination official had said, weighing over a thousand catties.

  Unlike others, Tie Niu was not afraid of this assessment at all. It was as if it was tailor-made for his innate divine power. With a gentle breath and opening his voice, the big black man surprisingly pressed down on the lock with one hand, and spat out a "start" word from his mouth, effortlessly lifting the stone lock over his head, without any signs of exertion.

  Tie Niu's divine power apparently satisfied the sixth examiner, who nodded slightly and said: "Just lift it ten times, and you'll pass this test."

  Miners on this side of the mine have been engaged in high-intensity physical labor for many years, and there is no shortage of strong and powerful individuals. However, those who can lift heavy weights as easily as Tie Niu, tossing thousands of kilograms around with ease, are hard to come by, not even half a person can be found.

  Soon, Iron Bull completed the number of times set by the examiner, and the latter led him to another examination site ten steps away. This was an independent area about ten zhang square, all shrouded in a white glow, and nothing could be seen inside. The examiner pointed to the white light circle and said: "Go in, hold on for the time of one incense stick, and you will pass the test. If you are thrown out of the light circle halfway, it will be considered a failure."

  Iron Bull was indeed kind-hearted, and upon hearing that passing this test would mean passing the assessment, his small eyes blinked a few times. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention around him, with an agility that completely did not match his massive physique, he stuffed five middle-grade Five Elements Spirit Stones into the pocket of Examiner Number Six.

  It's clear that this sixth examiner wasn't the first time he had secretly accepted bribes. He reached into his pocket and touched the spirit stones, a faint smile appearing on his face as he thought to himself: "This guy is really generous, five middle-grade Five Elements Spirit Stones! That's equivalent to one month of sect stipend for me. Who would have thought that in such a poor place, I could still make some extra money..."

  "You can go in now, don't worry, I think you have a natural talent and it shouldn't be difficult for you to pass this test."

  Tie Niu heard this and felt even more confident in his heart. Without saying another word, he lifted his foot and charged into the light circle.

  At the same time, Examiner No. 6 raised his hand and conjured a small flame to light the incense on the table beside him, but what people didn't notice was that this flame not only lit the incense, but also burned away one-third of it in an instant, thereby greatly reducing the difficulty of Tie Niu's test.

  "I've taken your money and spent it for you; I'd say I've been benevolent to the utmost. As for whether you have a predestined connection with immortals, that's up to you now."

  Time passed minute by minute, second by second. Suddenly, a loud noise like the sound of a drum burst out from within the white circle, and Iron Bull's massive body was violently blown out from it. Almost at the same moment, the last flame on the incense stick went out.

  Victory or defeat?

  He helped up Tie Niu, who had fallen flat on his face. The latter's nose was blue and his face was swollen, but he hadn't hurt any bones or tendons. The sixth examiner's expression turned serious as he said, "Very good, you are the first to pass this test. This year, one of the outer sect disciple positions in the Supreme Void Sect will be yours."

  As they spoke, the sixth examiner took out a jade plaque with a nine-star pattern and handed it to Tie Niu: "Go down and wait, you have passed the assessment. When today's trial selection is over, someone will come to guide you with this Nine Yang Jade Token."

  ——————————————

  At the time when Tie Niu was summoned away, Chu Yi was also called by Examiner No. 1 to the high platform. Originally, relying on Chu Yi's innate first-grade cultivation, he could have revealed a few points of his cultivation and would have been exempt from this examination. After all, a cultivator who has entered the innate realm already possesses a physical body that far surpasses that of ordinary people, making these ordinary tests almost effortless.

  But Chu Yi didn't do that, not because he deliberately kept a low profile, but because Chu Yi simply didn't want people to know that he had already possessed the Xiantian cultivation. The reason was simple: so far, Chu Yi hadn't seen any of the five Golden Dan True Men who were rumored to be coming today.

  The test that was as similar to Tie Niu's as two peas in a pod, for Chu Yi, was naturally not worth mentioning. Although Chu Yi had cultivated the "Refining Spirit and Conquering Heaven Technique", fellow cultivators of the same realm couldn't see through his cultivation depth, but if he were too revealing, it would inevitably raise suspicions. Everything had to be done just right, this was the result that Chu Yi wanted.

  But after entering the white light circle, Chu Yi encountered something he did not expect.

  As soon as Chu Yi entered the white light circle, he felt that the spiritual energy of the surrounding heaven and earth was stagnant. Obviously, this light circle was a kind of confinement space technique that could isolate external connections. Inside the light circle, there was a monster with a height of about five meters, with a tiger head and a human body, looking extremely ferocious.

  "Roar!"

  That tiger-headed man suddenly let out a loud roar and pounced on Chu Yi with an astonishing speed, his sharp claws generating wind, as if even the air was about to be torn apart. The strength of his attack was so powerful that it almost made Chu Yi feel like he was fighting against a Xiantian cultivator.

  Fortunately, Chu Yi had been prepared early on and with the circulation of his spiritual energy, he spun around like a top, dodging the sudden attack at the last moment.

  "This is also too absurd, if it's just a test for ordinary people, how can such a powerful guy come out... With the strength of this monster in front of me, even I have to go all out to deal with him, then isn't my newly recognized little brother Iron Cow's promotion hopeless?"

  It turns out that Chu Yi was unaware that this white light circle was a kind of magic weapon specially refined by the Supreme Mysterious Yang Sect for the "Great Trial Selection", called "Beast Soldier Token".

  Each "Beast Soldier Token" seals a hundred-year-old weather beast, and the strength of the beast in the token will vary depending on the person's strength who enters the token's seal range. The lower limit is ten times the power and speed of an ordinary person, while the upper limit is equivalent to the strength of a Xiantian Ninth Realm cultivator.

  Of course, due to the Rune Circle's seal, the demonic beast's spiritual intelligence has been erased, and it can only attack based on instinct. Moreover, it has been given a command not to harm human lives, so its strength has also decreased somewhat. Even if it were to exert its full power, it would be difficult for it to match a true Innate Ninth-Order cultivator.

  That tiger demon didn't care about the astonishment in Chu Yih's heart, the ferocious strength and speed that came with its birth were perfectly demonstrated at this moment, its body flashing, pouncing, colliding, biting, or sweeping, its attacks were relentless, almost blasting Chu Yih out of the forbidden circle.

  Being forced into such a sorry state also truly made Chu Yi's heart burn with anger as he had originally wanted to quietly pass the assessment.

  This time, Chu Yi no longer made any evasive movements, but instead, with a fierce flame rising from his palm, he furiously slapped out the "Fierce Flame Palm" that had been accumulating divine energy. Instantly, a thick column of pure white flames burst forth, engulfing the tiger demon who only knew how to attack and did not know what evasion was.

  "Blazing Palm" was originally the most basic attack spell, its value existed equally to the fact that all martial artists would know "Black Tiger Heart Piercing" without exception.

  The original power of the "Blazing Flame Palm" is a unique and unparalleled divine yuan force in the world, which also makes the "Blazing Flame Palm" undergo a fundamental change, with its power increasing several times, and the flames condensed are five times hotter than ordinary flames.

  The tiger demon's spiritual intelligence had dissipated, and it was pierced through the chest by Chu Yi's palm. The flames spread, but instead of extinguishing its demonic powers, they fueled them like oil on fire, causing the white flames to surge higher. In just a few breaths' time, this hundred-year-old tiger demon was reduced to ashes, without even leaving behind any residue.

  If this scene were to be seen by other innate realm cultivators, they would definitely stay far away from Chu Yi in the future. They could kill a demon beast with at least eighth-level innate strength with one palm, unless they had a powerful artifact, otherwise it would be impossible for them to be Chu Yi's opponent.

  Even Chu Yi himself couldn't believe that this palm strike was so powerful, previously when he tried it out on inanimate objects, he didn't think it would have such great power.

  Ke Chu Yi was unaware that the rock formations within Huayun Mine were comparable to jadeite, being extremely hard and resilient. This was also the main reason why the yield of spiritual stones in this area was relatively scarce.

  At the moment when the tiger demon was destroyed, the "Beast Soldier Token" hanging from the waist of Examiner No. 1 suddenly burst out with a red glow, and then fine cracks appeared on the jade token, shattering it.

  "Has the Beast Warrior Symbol been destroyed?!"

  The first examiner was shocked and didn't come to his senses until he saw Chu Yi, with his clothes in tatters, slowly walking up to him.

  "Sorry... didn't hold back and finished off that old tiger demon..."

  At this point, Chu Yi had nothing to hide anymore, so he might as well reveal his true strength at the First Heaven Initial Boundary, although it was not his intention.

  The first examiner's eyebrows slightly furrowed, sizing up Chu Yi for a moment before thinking to himself, "Unexpectedly, among these miners, there is actually someone who can cultivate to the Xiantian realm. This person is not to be underestimated, but that 'Beast Soldier Symbol' contains a tiger demon equivalent to the 9th level of the Xiantian realm. How could this person, with only initial Xiantian cultivation, possibly destroy it... unless he has a sharp magical artifact? No, even a high-quality magical artifact wouldn't be enough to make up for the difference in strength between them. Could it be that he possesses a spirit artifact that is even more powerful than a magical artifact?"

  As soon as the first examiner's gaze turned to Chu Yi, his expression softened a bit, and it seemed that Chu Yi, who had become a congenital realm cultivator through self-study, had already stably obtained the quota for an outer door disciple. Moreover, if Chu Yi really possessed a spiritual instrument as he suspected, he would have to maintain a good relationship with him. After all, spiritual instruments were rare treasures, and among the 100,000 outer door disciples of the Supreme Void Yang Sect, there were not many who possessed them.

  "You have entered the Innate Realm, you could have been exempt from the trial..."

  The examiner first scolded with a straight face, then relaxed his eyebrows and said: "Forget it, in short, you have already obtained the quota of an outer disciple. This is the Jiuyang Jade Tablet, which will serve as proof. In the future, when you enter the sect, we will be considered master and apprentice."

  Chu Yi detected the deliberate friendliness in the other party's tone, smiled and took out three mid-grade Five Elements Spirit Stones, quietly stuffing them into the other person's hand, saying: "Thanks to Brother Shifu's appreciation, please accept this small token..."

  "This young man has real ability and knows how to conduct himself, he will definitely make a name for himself in the sect one day!"

  This time, the "big trial selection" was able to be assigned as an examiner, and each of them was a figure who had done well among the 100,000 outer disciples. This number one examiner was also a personal genius, quietly collecting three spirit stones, and sighed in his heart, his impression of Chu Yi had changed from good to excellent.