https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-227-Re-entering-the-Seven-Star-Cave-World/12531884/
Chapter 228: Idiots!
Chapter 228: Idiots! (Seeking Subscription)
This session of the Seven Star Cave Trial had indeed produced many geniuses.
Among the test-takers, there were thirteen Red Marked and nearly a thousand Golden Marked participants.
It was important to note that whether one bore a Red or Golden Mark, it was a recognition given by the Red Kunlun Star Master himself. While it might not represent their full potential, attaining such a mark signified an extraordinary display of innate talent that placed them at the pinnacle of all testers.
And at that moment, under the watchful eyes of Lin Yuan and the other peak masters, the testers were giving it their all, advancing through the star caves one level at a time, striving towards the final Seventh Star Cave.
"That Red Marked participant seems to have awakened some sort of special fire-attributed bloodline. Their potential is quite impressive. Anyone interested?" Third Senior Brother asked, his eyes lighting up with interest.
"You can have them," one of the peak masters offered.
"My path doesn't align with the fire attribute," another replied.
"A special bloodline, huh? It's likely one of those upper-tier fire-attributed bloodlines," someone else commented.
The peak masters discussed their observations as Lin Yuan also turned his attention to the Red Marked tester in question.
"Indeed, they are remarkable," Lin Yuan acknowledged silently, nodding to himself.
While Lin Yuan himself did not possess any special bloodline, he couldn't deny the significant advantages that an exceptional bloodline bestowed upon one's cultivation journey, especially during the early stages. A superior bloodline could even enable its bearer to surpass their current realm in battle.
"Since Third Senior Brother has shown interest, I won't compete for that one," Lin Yuan thought to himself. He intended to heed Red Kunlun Star Master's suggestion and take on a few testers as disciples, but he wasn't particular about who they were. He saw no need to compete with his senior brothers over a single tester.
"I wonder if anyone will pass the ultimate test in this session of the Seven Star Cave," Second Senior Brother mused aloud, a hint of wonder in his voice.
The so-called ultimate test referred to gaining a rudimentary understanding of the 'Xuan Huang' evolutionary path. Lin Yuan himself had achieved this feat, prompting the Red Kunlun Star Master, who was in seclusion at the time and not to be disturbed, to emerge from his closed-door training and accept Lin Yuan as his thirteenth disciple.
It was worth noting that prior to Lin Yuan, the Red Kunlun Star Master had not taken on any disciples for tens of thousands of years. Ordinary testers, even those with Red Marks, rarely caught his eye.
The talent of a Red Marked tester might earn them the potential to reach the sixth stage, but every disciple personally taught by the Red Kunlun Star Master began their journey at the sixth stage as a baseline.
"The ultimate test?"
"In the tens of thousands of years of our Red Kunlun lineage, only Little Junior Brother has achieved it."
"And now we expect another? Impossible!"
"Indeed, how can these testers even compare to Little Junior Brother?"
The twelve peak masters chatted casually. A seventh-stage evolutionary under a hundred years old was an incredible rarity, not just in the Red Kunlun Star Domain but in the entire Annan Star Alliance.
How could there be two such individuals appearing consecutively in the Red Kunlun Star Domain?
Lin Yuan listened to his senior brothers' conversation, occasionally interjecting with a comment or two.
"Big Senior Brother, when do you plan on departing to preside over an external star domain?" Fourth Senior Brother, Zuo Ge, asked in a low voice.
Upon reaching the eighth stage, one had to fulfill the obligation of presiding over a star domain for five hundred years, a duty that fell upon Big Senior Brother.
However, the star domain he would oversee was not one within the established boundaries of the Human Civilization Alliance but rather a newly claimed frontier.
The Human Civilization Alliance was constantly expanding, and its territories were ever-growing.
The star domains assigned to eighth-stage evolutionaries were those at the forefront of this expansion, freshly incorporated into the Human Civilization's dominion.
While the primary threats in these domains were typically eliminated by the powerful beings of the Human Civilization, there might still be remnants of indigenous factions lingering.
It was then up to the presiding star masters to decide the fate of these remnants—whether to allow them to integrate into the Human Civilization or to eradicate them completely. Each star master governed according to their own philosophy, some advocating for universal harmony among the myriad races of the universe, while others held the belief that only their own race could be trusted.
"I'll depart once this session of the Seven Star Cave trial is over," Big Senior Brother replied.
The frontier star domains were not without their dangers, but eighth-stage evolutionaries were no easy targets. It was exceedingly difficult to completely annihilate one, and by that stage, they often possessed the ability to create avatars of themselves.
To encourage eighth-stage evolutionaries to preside over these risky frontier domains, the most powerful beings of the Human Civilization had made a promise—any eighth-stage evolutory who perished at the hands of foreign races during their five-hundred-year tenure would be 'resurrected'.
Hundreds of thousands of years ago, the Red Kunlun Star Domain that the Red Kunlun Star Master presided over was also once a frontier star domain at the edge of the Human Civilization's reach.
However, over the countless years of expansion, what was once a frontier domain had now become an integral part of the Human Civilization's vast territories.
Time passed, and finally, the testers entered the Seventh Star Cave, where they began their earnest contemplation of the hundred-plus statues.
Along the way, Lin Yuan and the other peak masters had already set their sights on certain testers they wished to recruit.
When it came to selecting Red Marked testers, the peak masters would usually give each other a heads-up, as there were thirteen Red Marked testers and thirteen peak masters. As for the Golden and Silver Marked testers, there was no need for such courtesy due to their sheer number.
Normally, the chances of a Golden Marked tester advancing to the sixth stage were much lower compared to a Red Marked tester.
"Little Junior Brother, have you made your choices?"
The Second Senior Brother looked at Lin Yuan with curiosity.
"Almost. I've chosen three this time," Lin Yuan nodded.
Not all testers would be chosen by the Peak Masters. In fact, the vast majority would not be selected, and they would instead become members of the Chi Kun lineage, working hard to join a Peak Master's faction later on.
Just like 'Fang Qing' in the past, he hadn't joined any Peak Master's faction from the start.
On the other hand, the three Red Marked testers from that year had been chosen by several Peak Masters early on.
Being chosen in advance was akin to skipping many detours on the path to cultivation.
"Who are they?"
The Senior Brothers immediately became interested, wanting to know which testers their talented Little Junior Brother had chosen.
"Mo Li, Feng Yu, and Wu Lan," Lin Yuan replied directly.
Mo Li was one of the thirteen Red Marked evolvers. When Lin Yuan chose him, he had already discussed it with his Senior Brothers.
As a Red Marked evolver, Mo Li's talent was remarkable. He had condensed the 'Heart of Battle' at the fourth stage, and his killing power far surpassed those of the same level, ranking him in the top three among the thirteen Red Marked evolvers.
The Heart of Battle was a representation of a certain state, excelling in slaughter and possessing an innate closeness to the rules of killing.
As for Feng Yu and Wu Lan, one was a Golden Marked and the other was a Silver Marked tester. Lin Yuan had chosen them on a whim, simply because they had caught his eye.
Feng Yu cultivated the wind-type rules and was close to enlightenment. He was one of the best among the Golden Marked testers.
As for Wu Lan, she was a Silver Marked tester, and the reason Lin Yuan chose her was simply because she cultivated the martial arts evolution path.
Although the martial arts evolution path was quite famous in the Chi Kun Star Domain, its appearance was extremely recent. There were some martial arts evolvers at the third stage, but most of them were over a hundred years old.
Even if they weren't over a hundred years old, they might not participate in the Chi Kun Star Domain's arena competition.
Therefore, it was quite a feat to come across a third-stage martial arts evolver in this Seven Star Cave trial, and Lin Yuan had casually chosen her.
"Little Junior Brother's choices are quite interesting," the Peak Masters exchanged glances, finding the pattern in his selections amusing.
One Red Mark.
One Gold Mark.
One Silver Mark.
He had spread his choices evenly across the marks.
"Just picked them randomly," Lin Yuan smiled.
Aside from the Red Mark, the other two were indeed chosen at random.
"Little Junior Brother, it seems that the Golden Marked tester you picked was also chosen by Big Senior Brother?" The Second Senior Brother said hastily, as if he had just realized something.
"Chosen by him?"
Big Senior Brother was taken aback, "Is it Feng Yu?"
"Then I'll leave him to Little Junior Brother." Big Senior Brother directly gave way.
A mere Golden Mark, and even if it were a Red Mark, Big Senior Brother would readily give it up if Little Junior Brother wanted it.
"Big Senior Brother doesn't need to do this," Lin Yuan said immediately.
"Let him choose for himself," Lin Yuan thought about it and felt a bit embarrassed to have Big Senior Brother give in so easily.
"Alright."
"Let Feng Yu choose for himself," Big Senior Brother agreed.
After all, it was just a Golden Marked tester, nothing compared to the bond between them as Senior Brothers.
The other Peak Masters didn't find this strange at all. A Golden Marked tester was nothing special; a new batch appeared every fifteen years.
All the evolvers who passed the Seventh Star Cave trial were teleported to a plaza.
Time passed.
In the blink of an eye, the Seven Star Cave trial came to an end.
At this moment, only a few thousand testers remained standing in the plaza.
From the initial 1.5 million, only about one in a thousand had passed, now standing there with nervous expressions.
Because next, their fate would be decided.
Everyone who had passed the seven star caves was now under the watchful eyes of the thirteen Peak Masters.
Based on their performance, the thirteen Peak Masters would select a group to join their factions.
For these testers, it was an opportunity to leap over the dragon's gate.
Being directly inducted into a Peak Master's faction meant skipping countless detours and immediately gaining a prominent status within the Chi Kun lineage.
Fang Qing's figure appeared in the plaza.
"The three testers that the Peak Masters have chosen..." As the current 'manager' of the thirteen peaks, Fang Qing was in charge of various matters concerning the thirteen peaks.
It was his responsibility to notify the testers who had passed the Seven Star Cave trial and were chosen by the Peak Masters.
"The first one, Silver Marked tester Wu Lan."
Fang Qing walked up to a nervous-looking girl and said gently, "The Thirteenth Peak Master invites you to join the Thirteenth Peak. If you are willing, please walk through the thirteenth door."
Oh my god.
She had actually been noticed by the Thirteenth Peak Master.
As a Silver Marked tester, the odds of being chosen by a Peak Master were low, especially by the renowned Thirteenth Peak Master of the Chi Kun Star Domain, known throughout the Annan Star Alliance. Before participating in this arena competition, Wu Lan had already been a fan of the Thirteenth Peak Master, and now she couldn't believe she had the opportunity to join his peak.
Wu Lan felt dizzy, overwhelmed by this unexpected stroke of luck.
The other testers nearby looked at her with envy.
But they could only envy her; the Peak Masters would choose whomever they wished.
After informing Wu Lan, Fang Qing walked towards the next tester, Feng Yu.
"The Thirteenth Peak Master wants me to join as well?" Feng Yu, a handsome young man, hesitated upon hearing Fang Qing's words.
"Indeed."
"If you agree, walk through the thirteenth door later," Fang Qing said before turning away and heading towards the last tester.
"The Thirteenth Peak Master?" Feng Yu had, of course, heard of the Thirteenth Peak Master, the incredibly talented genius of the Chi Kun Star Domain. Reaching the seventh stage before the age of a hundred was simply monstrous.
Additionally, the Thirteenth Peak Master was the only disciple the Chi Kun Star Master had taken in tens of thousands of years.
Logically, Feng Yu should have been overjoyed to accept the Thirteenth Peak Master's invitation.
However, before this, the First Peak Master had also sent him an invitation.
This made Feng Yu hesitate.
While the First Peak Master's talent and natural endowment might not match up to the Thirteenth Peak Master's, he had recently advanced to the eighth stage. Even with the Thirteenth Peak Master's talent, who knew how long it would take to progress from the seventh to the eighth stage?
"The Thirteenth Peak Master is indeed a top genius, but he's too young. How could he possibly know how to teach disciples?" Feng Yu thought to himself.
"Moreover, the Thirteenth Peak Master only invited me to be an outer member of the Thirteenth Peak, while the First Peak Master offered me a position as an inner member of the First Peak, with the potential to become a core member in the future." Feng Yu pondered his options, ultimately deciding to choose the First Peak Master.
After all, one was an eighth-stage evolutionary, while the other was only seventh-stage.
One offered an inner core position, while the other was for an outer position.
Most importantly, the First Peak Master, having trained under the Chi Kun Star Master for countless years, would undoubtedly be far superior to the Thirteenth Peak Master when it came to instructing disciples.
Among the Red Marked testers, Mo Li sat with his legs crossed. As one of the thirteen Red Marked evolvers, Mo Li was certain that he would be valued by the Peak Masters.
At the moment, he was contemplating which Peak Master would invite him.
Compared to Feng Yu, Mo Li had a much more illustrious background and a precise analysis of the various Peak Masters.
"The Thirteenth Peak Master wants you." Fang Qing stood before Mo Li.
"The Thirteenth Peak Master invites me?" Mo Li's eyes lit up, and his heart was filled with joy.
He was from a seventh-stage force in the Annan Star Alliance and had come to the Chi Kun Star Domain specifically to participate in the arena competition, hoping to join the Chi Kun lineage.
After analyzing the situation with the elders in his force, they concluded that it would be best to become a disciple of the Chi Kun Star Master, but that wasn't realistic.
Aside from the Chi Kun Star Master, the seventh-stage evolutionary in Mo Li's force believed that it would be best to join the youngest disciple of the Chi Kun Star Master, the Thirteenth Peak Master.
Although the First Peak Master had reached the eighth stage first, with the Thirteenth Peak Master's talent and natural endowment, it was only a matter of time before he advanced as well.
Furthermore, as the Chi Kun Star Master's youngest disciple, he was already favored. In the future, he might even become the second Chi Kun Star Master, an invincible existence at the eighth stage.
Therefore, the earlier one joined the Thirteenth Peak Master, the more benefits one would gain—this was a great opportunity.
As the 'managers' of the various peaks finished inviting the evolvers, the testers began walking towards the thirteen doors in the distance.
The thirteen doors, from the first to the thirteenth, represented the first to the thirteenth Peak Masters of the Chi Kun lineage.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
After entering the doors, the testers were teleported to a pavilion.
"You didn't choose the Thirteenth Peak Master?" Mo Li was delighted, feeling that his future was bright now that he was under the Thirteenth Peak Master. But when he noticed the number '1' on Feng Yu's sleeve, he was surprised.
The number on their sleeves indicated their choice of Peak Master; Mo Li's sleeve bore the number '13.'
However, Mo Li recalled that Fang Qing, the 'manager' of the Thirteenth Peak, had invited Feng Yu. Why hadn't he joined the Thirteenth Peak?
"Senior Mo Li." Feng Yu bowed respectfully upon seeing the Red Marked tester approaching him. "I chose the First Peak Master."
"You gave up the Thirteenth Peak Master and chose the First Peak Master?" Mo Li looked at Feng Yu in surprise before turning away.
In his heart, he couldn't help but judge:
"Idiots!"
(End of Chapter)
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