Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique

"It’s them..."

Long Xiaotian let out a soft cry, but his face quickly filled with a smile. In his view, although far fewer people passed the assessment than expected, the ones who remained were that much more refined. ’A new power doesn’t need mediocrity.’

"Liu Feiyuan, Ta Shan, Jilal, Alice, Guo Zijie, and... Xiaopeng..."

The surprise in his eyes was impossible to hide; Shi Mu Hua seemed quite moved upon seeing the last, small figure. Mu Chen took it all in. ’Shi Mu Hua has exceptionally high standards, which means his friends are bound to be extraordinary,’ Mu Chen thought. ’The fact that he even noticed me is proof enough, though it sounds a little boastful.’

"Hey! Big Brother Mu Hua! Haha, I knew you’d pass the assessment!"

Just as everyone was looking at the six newcomers, the group also spotted Mu Chen and the others. The short, skinny youth named Xiaopeng waved his hand frantically, his voice ringing out in a cheer, his expression ecstatic.

WHOOSH...

With a whistling sound, the six landed beside Mu Chen’s group. As he looked them over, Mu Chen noticed that aside from Guo Zijie, who was completely unscathed, the others all looked a bit battered. Though they had changed into fresh clothes, various wounds were still clearly visible.

’That makes sense,’ Mu Chen mused. ’For Outer Mountain members who are already Emperor Realm Martial Artists, the lethality of an Emperor Realm Poison Cauldron Master is undeniable. No one would willingly face that.’

"Hmph, to think that I, the great Jilal, would actually fall behind you all! This is an utter disgrace!"

The moment he landed, the blond-haired Jilal seethed with indignation, Thunder crackling around his arms. But before he could fly off the handle, a fair hand smacked the back of his head with a crisp WHAP.

"Idiot, that’s enough out of you."

"Damn it! Alice, you crazy woman! Why’d you hit me again?!"

"Foolish."

"Oh, you crazy woman! You’re abusing your fiancé, you know that?! I’m definitely going to report you!..."

"Shut up!"

...

"A family disgrace. Please excuse the embarrassing display."

With that, Alice looked at everyone helplessly and apologetically, but most of their gazes landed on Mu Chen.

Everyone who heard this silently agreed. It truly was a family disgrace. Jilal’s absurd and overly excitable personality brought them more exasperation than amusement.

"Er... I’m used to it already."

Mu Chen rubbed his nose, surprised that Alice, whom he had only met once, was looking at him as she spoke. But just as they were about to continue their conversation, a gruff laugh suddenly rang out.

"Haha... Little rascals, you’re the most interesting batch of new students this old man has ever seen. Ignoring us old folks is one thing, but to chat away as if no one else is around..." Who else could it be but Zhu Jiuqian.

The moment he finished speaking, everyone in Mu Chen’s group stiffened. They had been so focused that they had completely forgotten about the group of old monsters from Holy Tomb Mountain standing right behind them. ’Well, this is just great,’ Mu Chen thought. ’We’ve certainly made a memorable first impression.’

"No need for those expressions, is this old man so scary?" Zhu Jiuqian laughed again. "Alright, save the chatter for later. The assessment period has ended. The first thing to say is, of course... Little rascals, welcome to the Martial Artist Sacred Land, Holy Tomb Mountain!"

As he spoke, Zhu Jiuqian even opened his arms wide, holding them out in a welcoming gesture, though not for an actual hug.

"Cool, right? Wasn’t that imposing?" Zhu Jiuqian whispered to Dilaka and Shan Qiuhen beside him, looking at them from the corner of his eye.

The mouths of the two men twitched. They both shuffled closer to Murong Yan, silently chanting, ’We don’t know him. We don’t know him.’

"..."

’It seems Holy Tomb Mountain isn’t just filled with geniuses, but even more eccentrics,’ was Mu Chen’s immediate thought.

"The time for jokes is over." Finally, Dilaka, who had been silent all this time, spoke up. "Congratulations are indeed in order. Congratulations on becoming a part of Holy Tomb Mountain. I have just a few words for you, and then I will announce a matter decided by the Dean."

Suddenly, the surrounding atmosphere became solemn. Even Zhu Jiuqian, who had been joking just moments ago, couldn’t help but wipe the smile from his face.

"If I’m not mistaken, only a few of you have heard some information about Holy Tomb Mountain from your elders, but all of that is irrelevant. Although Holy Tomb Mountain is called the most authoritative academy on the continent—bar none—it is fundamentally different from an ordinary educational academy."

"First, Holy Tomb Mountain has no specific rules or regulations. We don’t need a group of walking corpses who rigidly adhere to conventions. Therefore, except in a few special circumstances, you have absolute freedom within Holy Tomb Mountain."

"Second, competition in Holy Tomb Mountain is everywhere. Resources, residences, treatment, and all the things that create hierarchies on the continent must be earned through your own strength. Under the supervision of the Holy Punishment Field, absolutely no opportunism or trickery will be tolerated."

"As for the third and final point, open and honorable duels between those of the same level are permitted anytime, anywhere within Holy Tomb Mountain. Remember, they must be open, honorable, same-level duels. Of course, you can choose to accept a person’s duel, or you can choose to refuse it. However, as the price for refusal, you must satisfy that person’s demand. If a Martial Artist of a higher level challenges you to a duel, you can also choose to accept or refuse. The only difference is that refusing does not require you to satisfy their demand."

"Furthermore, there is one and only one requirement for duels: you must not kill your opponent. Otherwise, the Holy Punishment Field will be the last sight you ever see in this life!"

GULP...

Dilaka’s tone was exceptionally cold and merciless as he spoke. After hearing his words, the Outer Mountain members who had led Mu Chen here did nothing but swallow hard, not daring to make the slightest sound.

"The Holy Punishment Field... Just what kind of place is it...?"

Mu Chen murmured softly. The name had come up with extremely high frequency over the past three days, and it seemed the Outer Mountain members would pale at the mere mention of it. Surprisingly, this time, the extremely curious Mu Chen didn’t have the slightest desire to probe further. His keen intuition told him that nothing good could be found there.

"Alright, Old Di, don’t you get tired of scaring these adorable new students every year?"

Shan Qiuhen rolled his eyes after listening and took over, "The basic situation inside the mountain is roughly those three points Great Elder Dilaka mentioned. However, there are many specific and tedious matters that you’ll need to discover for yourselves once you’re inside. We won’t elaborate further here."

"Normally, the task of welcoming new students doesn’t require four Elders to appear together, but this year’s situation is quite special. But before we get to that, the Basic Level members from the Outer Mountain who were assisting with the assessment may now return. The fact that you’re standing here means you failed to complete your mission. However, as compensation for the three days you went without Cultivation, your allotted time in the Five Elements Sacred Domain will be increased by three days. I wonder, are you satisfied with this compensation?"

"Satisfied? Of course we are!"

In an instant, the Basic Level members from the Outer Mountain, who had been silent under Dilaka’s intimidation, began to cheer. Each of them erupted with astonishing auras and shot directly toward the inner part of the mountain. In less than five seconds, the space that had held over a hundred people was completely empty.

"The Five Elements Sacred Domain? What’s that?" Ye Shuangshuang blinked and looked at Long Xiaotian.

"Don’t look at me, I don’t know either." Suddenly being stared at by Ye Shuangshuang, Long Xiaotian couldn’t help but look embarrassed. "Although I know a little about Holy Tomb Mountain, just as Great Elder Dilaka said, it’s only very superficial, peripheral information. I can’t even be sure if it’s accurate. But since we’re about to go in, we’ll find out about these things soon enough, right?"

"That’s right. Once we’re inside, everything will become clear," Shi Mu Hua chimed in from the side.

Now, the only ones left were Mu Chen’s group, Long Xiaotian, Shi Mu Hua, and the six, including Ta Shan, who had just arrived. All the while, the four Elders were watching them with beaming smiles.

Dilaka gave Mu Chen a deep look and said with a smile, "Now that those little guys have left, it’s time to talk to you about official business."

"Official business?!"

"Yes, official business." Dilaka nodded. "Actually, based on the content of the assessment, you can see that this year’s test was worlds apart from previous years. It didn’t match your Martial Artist Realms and strength, did it?"

At his words, the fourteen who passed the assessment all fell silent before nodding in agreement. It was true. If they weren’t all so exceptional, it was likely none of them would have passed. The test was completely out of sync with their Martial Artist Realms and any normal assessment logic. ’Even I was forced to use my Extreme Wood Attribute just to scrape by,’ Mu Chen thought. ’Otherwise, I would have been eliminated too.’

Dilaka smiled, "Of course. Because this assessment wasn’t the new student assessment, but... the Inner Mountain assessment."

"Ah?"

"What?!"

"The In... Inner Mountain assessment?!"

...

For a moment, cries of shock erupted from the fourteen of them.

Shan Qiuhen continued, "That’s right, the Inner Mountain assessment. In other words, by passing this assessment, you will unconditionally and directly enter the Inner Holy Tomb Mountain and become Inner Mountain members."

"This..." Mu Chen frowned slightly after hearing this and asked, "Then what would have happened if we hadn’t passed this assessment?"

Shan Qiuhen replied, "You would have failed, of course. However, your performance would have determined whether you could still enter Holy Tomb Mountain as an Outer Mountain member. Fortunately for them, all the other new students who entered the Mist Forest with you passed the Outer Mountain assessment. The only difference is that they will become Outer Mountain members. Mu Chen, are you satisfied with that answer?"