Cultivation: From Poor Peasant to Celestial Lord

Streaks of white light flashed like a downpour, brilliantly illuminating the entire Cyan Stone Square.

As the Spirit Realm Space completely collapsed and dissipated, the gloomy and oppressive scenery of the Black Cloud Mountain Range instantly faded. In its place were the familiar buildings of the Daoist School and the countless eager eyes in the stands.

Chu Bai felt the ground become solid beneath his feet, the sensation of standing on firm earth returning.

He subconsciously glanced around. The once-massive group of over a hundred people had now dwindled to just a few scattered figures.

Aside from him and Ji Li, Lü Qing, Wang Qingli, Wu Jianfei, and Jiangg Yingqiao were also among them—all familiar faces.

The dust had settled on the top ten.

This meant that regardless of the outcome of the third-round tournament, the ten of them had already secured the coveted Immortal Official positions from this year’s Dayuan Prefecture Daoist School!

They exchanged glances. Even the ever-stern Lü Qing’s resolute face broke into a rare smile of relief.

Their nerves, stretched taut for the entire day, finally eased at this moment.

The victor is crowned king.

After a brief silence, deafening cheers erupted from the stands, the wave of noise threatening to blow the very roof off the Daoist School.

"He did it! He really did it!"

"Chu Bai actually got an Immortal Official spot! He clawed his way through a pack of ravenous third-year elites to get it!"

"A miracle! This is a true miracle!"

In the instructors’ section, Instructor Lei’s face was flushed red with excitement. He slapped his thigh and shot to his feet, ignoring the presence of his colleagues as he broke into a wide-mouthed, boisterous laugh:

"HAHAHAHA! Good kid! You’ve done this old man proud!"

Even the normally composed Zhou Changkong’s hands were trembling slightly, his face alight with joy. He turned to Instructor Lei and said:

"Old Lei, our student has made history at the Daoist School today!"

"Never before, since the Dayuan Prefecture Daoist School was founded, has a first-year student managed to graduate and attain the Official Status of an Immortal Official!"

"Even that prodigy from the Xu Family only began to distinguish themself in their second year. What Chu Bai has done... is truly unprecedented!"

Jii Yu, who was standing to the side, nodded in admiration, her beautiful eyes shimmering. "To be able to teach such a student is truly our good fortune. We old-timers are really basking in his reflected glory today."

At this moment, Chu Bai was undoubtedly the most dazzling figure on the stage.

While it was a supreme honor for the other nine to secure their positions, he alone was the most special, the most incredible presence among them.

He had been enrolled for barely a year!

And his competitors—even the losers he’d personally eliminated—which of them hadn’t been senior students enrolled for three years, with years of arduous cultivation under their belts? Which of them wasn’t an elite, nurtured with the full backing of their family?

Surrounded by such powerful enemies, Chu Bai was not only not crushed, but instead, with an almost brutish force, had fought his way into the top ten!

Moreover, everyone knew this was no fluke.

Whether in the first round’s fight for Dharma Artifacts or the second round’s Demon Hunting slaughter—a truly Chaotic Scene—the combat prowess, mentality, and methods Chu Bai displayed were all genuine. It was pure strength!

"Senior Brother Chu! That’s Senior Brother Chu!!"

In a corner of the stands, Zhang Shan was so excited he leaped onto his seat, waving his arms and yelling, looking even more crazed than if he himself had won the championship:

"Let me tell you! I’ve been on a team with Senior Brother Chu! I even sparred with him in our practical combat class! A pity I was defeated by a single move..."

Zhang Shan paid no mind to the strange looks he received from those around him; he even puffed out his chest with pride.

Since the man was destined to graduate early and become a high-and-mighty Immortal Official, calling him "Senior Brother" was not only justified, but a source of pride!

The stands were a sea of jubilant cheers, a coronation for the victors.

Meanwhile, at the edge of the square, the students who had been eliminated in the second round watched the figure on the stage—the center of everyone’s attention—with incredibly complicated expressions.

Especially when Chu Bai’s gaze swept over them, many couldn’t help but shiver.

Even though they were back in the real world and their injuries had been treated immediately, the fear that stemmed from the depths of their souls had not faded.

This was especially true as Chu Bai’s Evil Qi was now even more potent. The layer of black Evil Qi surrounding him was so dense it was almost tangible and had yet to dissipate. Standing there, he looked like a God of Slaughter who had just crawled out of hell.

Chem Wangming stood at the back of the crowd, his face deathly pale. When he saw that figure, he involuntarily took a step back.

The image of being instantly obliterated by Chu Bai’s single strike in the Spirit Realm replayed in his mind like a persistent nightmare.

That sense of powerlessness, the despair of being crushed by absolute strength, left him with a lingering fear.

’Is this... what a real monster is like?’

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the shadow taking root in his heart.

’No, I need to recover quickly. Although becoming an Immortal Official is out of the question, the regular graduation exams are in a few days. If my Dao Heart is clouded by this and it affects my future, then I’ll be truly ruined.’

The eliminated students wouldn’t be so crushed that they couldn’t recover, but after this battle, those two figures were destined to become an insurmountable mountain in the hearts of their entire class.

...

High above, the clouds were parted by an unseen aura.

Four figures stood unsupported in the void, gazing down upon the masses below.

"The Immortal Official Examination today... in your opinion, Judge, how is this year’s batch?"

The Dean of the Daoist School stroked his long beard, a hint of anticipation in his murky, ancient eyes.