Mortal's Journey: Reborn as Xin Ruyin, she begins by possessing Qi Yun's body.

In front of the main hall of the Yellow Maple Valley sect, the plaza paved with bluestone slabs is as smooth as a mirror. On both sides stand two rows of ancient spirit wood banners, surrounded by spiritual energy, exuding the weight and solemnity of a thousand-year-old sect.

The sect leader of Zhongling Dao was already standing on the steps of the main hall, quietly waiting for everyone to return.

Although he was over a hundred years old, he still looked like a middle-aged man, with a face as handsome as jade, three long strands of beard hanging down to his chest, wearing a brocade robe embroidered with yellow maple patterns, and surrounded by a layer of faint but profound spiritual energy.

The unique aura of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator is calm, restrained, and imposing without anger. Every move he makes exudes the demeanor and profound knowledge of a sect leader.

The flying boat landed slowly, and Wang Xing was the first to leap down. He quickly walked up the steps, bowed to Zhong Lingdao, and said respectfully, "Sect Leader, your disciple Wang Xing has successfully brought back the disciples selected for this Ascension Conference."

Zhong Lingdao slightly raised his hand, his tone calm and approving: "Junior Brother Wang Xing, you've worked hard. These must be the disciples selected for this Ascension Ceremony?"

His gaze slowly swept over Qi Yunxiao and the others behind Wang Xing, his eyes gentle yet with a hint of scrutiny.

Wang Xing quickly bowed and replied, his tone becoming increasingly humble: "I dare not accept the words 'hard work' from the sect leader. Taking on the task of recruiting disciples is simply my duty, and it is what I should do."

Upon hearing this, Zhong Lingdao smiled faintly, but said nothing more. He turned his gaze back to the group behind Wang Xing and began to take a detailed account.

A moment later, however, his brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, and he asked with a hint of doubt in his voice, "According to the rules, our sect should only select ten disciples for this Ascension Ceremony. Why are there eleven standing here now?"

Wang Xing was already prepared, and upon hearing this, he immediately stepped forward, bowed, and reported, "Sect Leader, it is indeed true that ten disciples were selected through the arena competition this time."

The additional person was someone who possessed the sect's Ascension Token, which had been lost for hundreds of years. He found a disciple at the Heavenly Mist Platform and earnestly requested to join the sect.

"This disciple knows the Ascension Order is of great importance and dares not make a decision on his own. Therefore, I brought him back with me and handed him over to the sect leader for a decision."

"An Ascension Token?"

Upon hearing this, a look of shock flashed across Zhong Lingdao's eyes.

He had been in charge of Huangfeng Valley for many years and knew the significance of the Ascension Token. The last time a cultivator held an Ascension Token and joined the sect was hundreds of years ago.

At that time, he was not yet the sect leader, and had only seen relevant records in the sect's ancient books.

I never imagined that I would witness the Ascension Order reappear in my lifetime.

After the initial shock, he composed himself and glanced at Qi Yunxiao, Han Li, and the others again.

He asked with a somewhat solemn tone, "Who is the disciple who has come to join our sect, bearing the Ascension Token?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Han Li slowly walked out from the crowd, his figure upright and his expression calm, without the slightest arrogance.

He bowed respectfully to Zhong Lingdao, his tone both respectful and firm: "Greetings, Sect Leader. I am Han Li, the one who holds the Ascension Token and humbly requests to become a disciple of Huangfeng Valley."

Zhong Lingdao's gaze fell on Han Li, and he carefully examined him.

Han Li was dressed plainly, with an unremarkable face and even slightly dark skin. His spiritual energy fluctuations were stable, indicating that he was only at the eighth level of Qi Refining.

Among the disciples, he was extremely inconspicuous, with neither outstanding appearance nor particularly powerful aura, and looked no different from an ordinary rogue cultivator.

He was secretly surprised. How could such an ordinary cultivator possess the Ascension Token, which had been lost for hundreds of years?

He didn't ask any further questions, but calmly withdrew his gaze, nodded slightly, and said in a gentle tone, "Since you possess the Ascension Token, we shall proceed according to the sect's established practices. You shall first go with these disciples to test their spiritual roots and see how their aptitude is."

He paused slightly, turned to look at Wang Xing, and ordered in an unquestionable tone: "Junior Brother Wang Xing, after the spiritual root test is over, you will lead the other ten disciples to Junior Brother Lin to collect their entry items, complete the formal entry procedures, and familiarize them with the sect rules."

"Your disciple obeys."

Wang Xing quickly bowed and agreed.

Zhong Lingdao looked at Han Li again and added, "As for Han Li, I will personally make arrangements for him after the spiritual root test is over."

Han Li bowed slightly and respectfully replied, "This junior will follow the sect leader's arrangements."

Qi Yunxiao, watching this scene from the side, secretly understood that although the Zhongling Sect Leader appeared calm, he must be very troubled in his heart.

After all, Han Li holds the Ascension Token, which not only allows him to enter the sect but also gives him a Foundation Establishment Pill.

The interests involved behind this are enough to give him a headache.

The Spirit Testing Hall is only a few steps away from the sect's main hall. The hall's doors are ancient and heavy, engraved with ancient spirit patterns, and make a low "creaking" sound when pushed open.

The hall was empty and devoid of any extraneous furnishings. The only feature was an intricate spirit-testing array carved on the floor. The array's patterns crisscrossed, gleaming with a faint silver light, and spiritual energy seemed to flow between the patterns, giving it a mysterious air.

The sect leader of Zhongling Dao stood calmly on one side of the hall.

Wang Xing stepped forward and said loudly to Qi Yunxiao and the others, "Listen up, disciples. When I call your names, step forward and stand in the formation."

This spirit-testing array can accurately measure your spiritual root aptitude, and if you have any special physical constitution hidden, it can also detect it. Do not have any distracting thoughts; simply focus on circulating your spiritual energy.

The crowd responded in unison, "Disciples obey."

"Zhang Nanxiong!"

Wang Xing was the first to call out a name. The cultivator who had narrowly won the final bloody battle at Tianwu Terrace and was still somewhat exhausted immediately stepped forward. He was still a little unsteady, but he could not hide the tension and anticipation in his heart.

He took a deep breath, stepped into the spirit-testing array, and slowly circulated the spiritual energy around his body.

In an instant, the magic array's spiritual light surged, and a soft white light emanated, enveloping Zhang Nanxiong.

A moment later, the white light gradually faded, transforming into red, yellow, and white light that evenly surrounded him. The light was not intense, but it was clearly visible.

"Fire, Earth, and Metal are the three spiritual roots, true spiritual roots, with average aptitude."

Wang Xing glanced at the light emanating from the magic circle and announced the result in a calm tone.

Three spiritual roots are the norm. If it's a pseudo-spiritual root, it would be truly unbelievable for a rogue cultivator to reach the twelfth level of Qi Refining.

Zhang Nanxiong bowed slightly and withdrew from the magic array. Although he looked somewhat disappointed, it was within his expectations.

"Next up, Gu Litao!"

Following Wang Xing's voice, a muscular cultivator dressed in shorts strode into the magic array.

As the light shifted, the three-colored spiritual light reappeared, indicating the presence of three spiritual roots once again.

The next six people were tested. Each person stepped into the magic array and a three-colored light appeared, indicating that they all had the aptitude of three spiritual roots.

This was not an accident, but rather quite logical.

Having dual spiritual roots is already rare, but having unique spiritual roots is even rarer.