Slender willows sway in the breeze

Chapter 56 Entering the Hidden Valley Palace
Liu Mingyan replied, "Don't worry, Uncle."

He had only just reached the Foundation Establishment stage, and if it weren't for following them, he probably wouldn't have been able to save his life. Now, he knew that his abilities were far from sufficient to compete for the qualification to enter the sect, but he would do his part to give his third sister more opportunities.

There are forty-four people in total. Excluding the team leaders Mo Linhou, Liu Shiyuan, and Xing Man, the leader of Shengxuan Kingdom, there are thirty-one people left.

The third sister still has a good chance.

The other disciples were also secretly looking for partners to ensure they could successfully enter the sect.

Behind the main hall, on a tall ice wall, are carved two five-clawed dragons, exuding an air of solemnity.

Beneath this ice wall sat several sect elders dressed in different attire, each sitting on a small mat, watching them with smiles.

These disciples are not necessarily the ones with the highest cultivation level.

But being able to stand here requires not only skill but also luck.

Luck is also a reflection of ability.

An elder, dressed in a white Taoist robe, appeared to be around seventy years old with gray hair. He stood up, his eyes deep and seemingly able to see through the mundane world, and he looked at them with loving eyes.

"My dear friends, I am the Second Elder of Yaohua Palace. You may call me Elder Lang. I presume you have all already quietly chosen your companions, so let me explain the rules for selecting disciples in Yaohua Palace..."

This Elder Lang, whose real name is Lang De, is actually 179 years old this year. He has the cultivation level of the early Mahayana stage and is respectfully addressed as Lord Maode by the disciples of the sect.

After Elder Lang sat down, another elder, who looked to be about the same age as him and dressed in magpie feather-colored clothes, stood up. He had a kind and benevolent face, just like Elder Lang.

From the moment he entered the hall, the elder's lips never left his mouth; he was like a friendly old man next door, without any airs.

It greatly increases one's goodwill.

"I am the Second Elder of the Misty Palace, surnamed Di. You may all call me Elder Di. Now, I will explain the selection criteria of the Misty Palace..."

Elder Di's name is Di Sheng. He is 191 years old this year and has a mid-stage Mahayana cultivation level. He is known as Lord Yu Sheng.

After the two elders finished their introduction, Liu Sijun basically understood that each sect had different standards for selecting disciples, and one had to meet the standards of any sect to join.

This is still easy to understand.

Next, Elder Cai Yanpei of Yougu Palace introduced their selection criteria.

Because of his master, Liu Sijun paid special attention when Cai Yanpei, the Grand Elder of Yougu Palace, stood up.

He looked older than Elder Lang and Elder Di, and was actually nearly three hundred years old. Even with the nourishment of spiritual energy, the years had left deep marks on his face. The deep lines on his face did not make him look kind and detached, but rather gave him a sense of unfathomable depth.

Her master had told her about the people and events at Yougu Palace, so she was no stranger to Cai Yanpei.

He was the first person to discover the body after the death of the former palace master, Feng Ze.

It was under Fengze's prayer mat that he found his master's personal belongings, which led everyone in the palace to believe that Fengze was killed by his master.

The master tried his best to defend himself and asked Elder Wan, the most respected elder in the sect, to trace the source using the method of tracing back, but to no avail.

Afterwards, Elder Wan became the sect leader, and Cai Yanpei became the Grand Elder. Of Feng Ze's four disciples, three died in an accident while training outside.

These are all news reports that came out later.

In this way, only the master was still alive.

Cai Yanpei and Palace Master Wan are the most suspicious. Putting aside everything else, Feng Ze's downfall and Xu Hechen's wrongful conviction are the biggest beneficiaries.

Cai Yanpei looked at them: "Yougu Palace focuses on alchemy, with cultivation as a secondary activity."

"This time, the other two palaces will select six disciples, while my Yougu Palace will only select two. It doesn't matter if you don't have a foundation in alchemy. As long as you are interested in joining Yougu Palace and pass this elder's test, you can be selected."

"Elder Cai, how can one determine if someone has talent for alchemy?"

Upon hearing this, Cai Yanpei glanced at the disciple who had asked the question, then raised his left palm and condensed purple spiritual energy into a small fireball, which he then threw at the disciple.

The disciple instinctively used his weapon to block.

However, the fireball seemed to have a soul, relentlessly attacking the disciple. Finally, the fireball grew larger and enveloped the disciple.

Elder Lang said, "Elder Cai, isn't this going too far?" "I know what I'm doing; I'm just testing the limits of what he can handle."

After about ten breaths, Cai Yanpei casually waved his left hand, and the fireball on the disciple's body suddenly disappeared.

"Elder Cai, do I have a chance?"

He overheard Elder Cai and Elder Lang's conversation and now wanted to know the result of the test.

Does he have talent for alchemy? Can he enter the Hidden Valley Palace?

"can."

Cai Yanpei nodded: "What's your name?"

“Disciple Chengfeng, a native of Minyue Kingdom.”

Cheng Feng is the fifth prince of Min Yue Kingdom. Min Yue Kingdom is a small country sandwiched between Dayu Kingdom and Feng Lei Kingdom. Its area is only one-sixth of that of Dayu Kingdom. There are only ten people who came to the Frozen Domain for training this time.

Cai Yanpei took out the Yougu Palace disciple token and handed it to Chengfeng: "On the fifteenth of October, take this token and report to Yougu Palace on time."

The token is made of jade and is semi-transparent, with the three large red characters "Yougu Palace" engraved inside.

It looks simple, but not everyone can obtain this disciple token.

Cheng Feng was overjoyed.

The other disciples all showed expressions of envy.

Even though some disciples did not initially aim for Yougu Palace, they still felt envious at this moment.

One of the three palaces, it's not something you can just enter on a whim.

Fortunately, the selection criteria for the other two palaces and Yougu Palace were different, so Elder Cai selected his disciples first, and Elder Lang and Elder Di remained silent.

This can be considered an interlude.

Next came the introductions of the elders from the other sects. After that, the disciples began to choose their sects based on their own strength.

If there are more spots than available, then there will be a lot of competition.

Liu Mingyan asked telepathically, "Third Sister, which one do you choose?"

“The Palace of the Secluded Valley”.

There was no hesitation.

"I think with Third Sister's strength, she can even compete with Yaohua Palace."

Liu Sijun smiled; she felt the same way.

But she didn't come here just for herself. Her master saved her life and treated her with immense kindness. Now that she had the chance to enter the Hidden Valley Palace, she couldn't let this opportunity slip by.

"Fourth brother, my mind is made up. There are several people here who have just established their foundation. You also have a chance."

He smiled shyly and said, "I'll do my best."

After the selection, another round of competition ensued. Liu Mingyan performed very well, but those who could come here were all the chosen ones. He lacked experience in major battles and was eventually eliminated.

Chu Yanming and Lü Ruoying were selected to enter the Misty Palace, while Ji Qiyuan and Wei Siqi were selected to enter the Yaohua Palace.

Liu Sijun then entered Yougu Palace as he wished.

Yougu Palace is not as famous as Yaohua Palace and Piaomiao Palace. Liu Shiyuan was very dissatisfied with Chu Yanming being selected to enter Piaomiao Palace at the peak of Foundation Establishment, and with Liu Sijun being single-mindedly devoted to entering Yougu Palace even though he had already formed his core.

"Liu Sijun, are you doing this on purpose?"

"Yes, yes, I did it on purpose. What does Father want?"

(End of this chapter)