Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
The next day at dawn, a number of cultivators had already gathered in front of the mountain gate. They came from the south and the north, male and female cultivators, and they were all gathered together as if discussing something.
"Hey, line up, line up! Show some order! Who's next?"
The crowd immediately began to scramble for it, shouting "Me! Me!"
The fortune-telling Taoist priest looked at this person and then at that person, unsure of who to tell his fortune about first.
"Calculate it for me!"
The shout was loud and clear, full of energy, and everyone turned around to see who it was.
A young man dressed in black, with his hair tied up in a high ponytail, walked slowly over. After he sat down, he placed a cold sword horizontally on the table.
"Tell me your fortune." She looked directly at the young Taoist priest who was telling fortunes.
The young Taoist priest shook his head: "Young master, what you're doing is cutting in line."
The boy raised an eyebrow and turned to look at the people around him.
This person's cultivation level was clearly higher than the others. When he turned around, although everyone wanted to reprimand him for cutting in line, their strength did not allow it, so they could only wave their hands with awkward smiles.
The young Taoist priest said nothing more, but handed the boy a pen and a piece of paper, saying, "Please write a word, young master."
With a flourish of his pen, the young man wrote the character "潇" (xiāo, meaning elegant or carefree) on the paper.
The young Taoist priest picked it up and took a look; the characters were actually quite well written.
"What does the young master wish to calculate?"
The boy replied, "When will my life end?"
The young Taoist priest was surprised. Most people calculate their fortune, their Taoist luck, and their romantic luck, but this was the first time he had encountered someone asking when they would die.
He examined the character carefully again, coughed lightly, and then began to show off his divination skills, which he had only learned a few days ago.
"Young master's calligraphy is vigorous and powerful, penetrating to the core, which suggests that he comes from a wealthy family and has been practicing calligraphy since childhood."
The boy nodded: "Not bad."
The young Taoist priest added, "It's a pity that such beautiful characters have a fatal flaw."
The boy moved closer and asked, "What's your weakness?"
“Look, the three dots of water on the left should be evenly distributed, dividing the upper, middle and lower parts equally, and running through the character ‘萧’ on the right. The two characters should be well coordinated. But you, sir, have stuck the left water dots together and separated the upper and lower parts, making the character unbalanced.”
The boy didn't care about the writing; he asked again, "When will I die?"
The young Taoist priest's lips twitched. "Are you in such a hurry to be reincarnated?"
"Xiao means clear and deep water. If I'm not mistaken, young master should have a water-based spiritual root, right?"
The boy nodded, and his gaze toward the young Taoist priest finally changed somewhat.
"Water is one of the five elements, and fire is incompatible. Young master, you are destined to face a fire tribulation. You will definitely meet someone with a fire spiritual root in the future. Meeting that person will be a tribulation. Whether you can survive depends on fate."
The boy pondered for a few seconds, then asked, "There are so many people with fire elemental roots, how can I know who that person is?"
The young Taoist priest smiled mysteriously: "Young master, just remember that the human heart is like water, unfathomable. The answer lies in your name."
"The answer is in the name..." The young man frowned and pondered for a long time. He thanked the young Taoist priest, paid the money, and got up to leave.
As soon as he left, everyone started scrambling for the seats again, pushing and shoving each other until the next person managed to get one.
Before the mountain gates even opened all morning, the fortune-telling Taoist priest had made a fortune, filled his alms bowl with gold, and happily packed up his stall, turning around and taking a shortcut back to the Qingyun Sect.
Qing, Li Jiang, and the sect leader Lu Chang were walking towards the mountain gate when they suddenly saw a person dressed as a Taoist priest carrying a large bundle slip into the mountain gate.
A disciple, quick-witted and agile, immediately pulled him over.
"It's you! What are you doing dressed like that? Anyone who didn't know better would think you were a fortune teller!"
You're absolutely right.
The young Taoist priest looked at the group guiltily, his gaze settling on Qinghe. "Senior Sister."
This young Taoist priest was none other than Yu Fang, the disciple who used to deliver meals to Luhua Terrace.
Qinghe knew where he had gone, waved his hand to indicate that he didn't need to be nervous, and then advised him: "Making a fortune is a good thing, but those people outside may become your fellow disciples in the future, and it won't look good then. It's best to earn less of their money."
Yu Fang suddenly smiled: "Senior sister, don't worry. I disguised myself when I set up my stall. Their cultivation level is low, so they naturally can't tell."
Qinghe nodded, "That's good." Then she walked up to Yu Fang and whispered, "How much did you earn this time?"
Yu Fang also whispered, "At least this number." After saying that, he held up five fingers.
Qinghe was surprised, and looked at Yu Fang with great satisfaction: "Well done, share some with me."
Yu Fang readily agreed, "No problem!"
Li Jiang heard their conversation, the corners of her mouth curled up slightly, but she didn't say anything.
While they were chatting and laughing, the people down the mountain couldn't wait any longer.
As the sun rose higher, some people grew impatient and began to complain, "Why hasn't anyone come out yet? Is this prestigious sect, Qingyun Sect, just putting on airs and making a fool of us?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than someone mocked him: "Judging from this fellow Daoist's rosy complexion and strong voice, his cultivation must be stronger than ours. Why don't you climb these steps and go to the mountain gate to observe for yourself? It's better than complaining here!"
The man wanted to argue, but after looking at the stone steps in front of him, he finally shut his mouth.
The platform at the foot of the mountain is connected to the mountain gate by 381 white marble steps. The area is surrounded by barriers and formations. Anyone who is not authorized will accidentally trigger the formations, resulting in crippling or even death.
Nobody wanted to be the first to stick their neck out, so they just waited.
As to how they knew such detailed information, the crowd pointed to the large stone tablet in front of the platform—
The sign above reads "Qingyun Sect" in large characters; below it reads: "There is a barrier formation inside. Do not force your way in. We will not be responsible for any deaths or injuries caused to those who disobey our warnings."
Such a distinguished style, truly unique.
After two incense sticks had burned, the vermilion gate finally opened, and a group of people walked out.
Sect Leader Lu Changwei stood at the front, flanked by Qing and Li Jiang, along with several other disciples.
Lu Changchao glanced around at the people below him, his eyes sharp.
The crowd stopped whispering, straightened their backs, and stared at the newcomer.
The atmosphere instantly fell silent.
Qinghe easily found Mo Junqian among the hundred or so people. The reason was simple: he had such a good temperament and was so handsome that he stood out from the crowd and it was hard not to notice him.
Mo Junqian clearly noticed her gaze, smiled slightly at her, his eyes clear and his appearance exceptionally handsome.
Qinghe's expression remained calm as she looked away.
I looked around again but couldn't find the female lead; she must have been disguised.
At this moment, Lu Chang spoke up: "Today is the Weigu Trial of Qingyun Sect. You have all come from afar, and I imagine you have been preparing for a long time. I would like to advise you all first: the trial is not a game. If anyone is trying to take advantage of the situation or cheat their way through, please leave as soon as possible to avoid losing more than you gain."
His aura was powerful, and his words carried a terrifying pressure, clearly intended to intimidate everyone.
The crowd below was bustling with people, looking around, but no one spoke up for a moment.
It was the male cultivator standing at the very front who spoke up: "Senior, rest assured. Now that we have come here, we sincerely wish to join your sect. We will do our utmost and will not back down easily."
One person speaks, and everyone agrees.
Lu Chang nodded: "In that case, please wait here for a moment. I will send my disciple to distribute the items needed for the trial to you. After that, I will take you to Weigu Valley."
Someone asked, "Senior, why choose another path instead of entering through the main gate?"
Li Jiang spoke up: "To prevent anyone from taking advantage of the situation, the road leading to Weigu from inside the gate has been blocked. Moreover, the shortcut to Weigu takes less time and won't waste too much time."
Everyone understood, and Lu Chang gave Li Jiang an approving look.
Of course, he wouldn't say that the reason they weren't allowed to enter the gate was because the Qingyun Sect was poor, so poor that all they had left was the gate, and he was afraid that these free laborers would feel cheated and run away before even participating in the trial.
A short while later, Lin Nan and Mu Dong came out, carrying a large pile of things, which were the Sky-Piercing Jade and brocade pouches of pills prepared for the cultivators.
After directing everyone to line up, Lin Nan began distributing the items, while Mu Dong explained the process from the side.
"This jade token is called the Sky-Piercing Jade. It has an array on it. If someone encounters danger during the trial, they should break it. The array will then send you outside Weigu Valley, but you will also lose your qualification for the trial. This brocade pouch contains three pills. If someone is injured, they should take one, but its effect will only last for one hour."
Everyone listened carefully, for this concerned their lives and could not be taken lightly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com