Countless water snakes, like aquatic plants, coiled around the outside of the protective shield, eyeing it menacingly.
This assessment is just the beginning; it's already more difficult than the final stage of the new disciple trial.
The water snakes outside, like countless thick strands of hair, kept crashing against the protective shield built by the four senior brothers.
"I'll put them on the east side." An Zhengzheng made a decision immediately and summoned a large number of talismans.
Zhou Xu pasted talisman paper on the west side.
Countless water snakes were repelled as soon as they approached the talisman; some of the weaker ones even bled on the spot.
The once clear lake surface was instantly stained red with blood.
A dragon's roar erupted, echoing across the lake.
The water snakes scattered and fled.
"The dragon is about to emerge!"
Senior Brother Pei Jin's prediction was accurate. The blood was dispersed by the rushing water, and a dark blue-green dragon swam out from the bottom of the lake.
Its entire body was covered in black scales, and its huge eyes gleamed with white light.
It's sweeping everyone away.
Those white-glowing eyes swept over the male cultivators one by one, finally landing on An Zhengzheng.
With just one glance, the dragon froze.
Generally speaking, it is men who crave wealth, power, and fame the most.
Women, love is enough. Why do you have such a strong desire for wealth and power?
That's materialism! That's neglecting your family! That's a tomboy no one wants; she'll never get married.
They should contribute to men's career achievements and dedicate their lives to them.
How can one crave wealth, power, fame, and status?
An Zhengzheng's desires were too strong, which attracted the dragon to crash into her.
"Junior sister, be careful!" Senior Brother Pei Jin frowned and shielded An Zhengzheng from the attack.
An Zhengzheng summoned her natal sword, the Xuan Tian Han Shi Sword, which quickly condensed into an ice ball under her wielding.
An Zhengzheng stepped onto the ice puck with every step she took, engaging in a fierce battle with the dragon.
“An Zhengzheng, your desires are too strong. You’d better recite the Sutra of Purity and Tranquility…” Zhou Xu was almost knocked away by the dragon’s tail, but he managed to stay upright.
Senior Brother Pei Jin sensed something was wrong and asked An Zhengzheng, "Junior Sister, haven't you practiced the sect's introductory technique, the Purification of Mind Technique?"
By practicing the art of purifying the mind, one can suppress desires for worldly fame and fortune. The deeper one's practice, the more one can detach oneself from the world of fame and fortune.
This is a cultivation technique that only disciples of the Ruthless Path can practice.
Reflected in the waters of Jin Yin Lake, An Zhengzheng's desire for wealth and power became unmistakable.
"No!"
An Zhengzheng moved swiftly, her sword strikes fierce, relentlessly slashing at the scales.
The dragon only attacked An Zhengzheng, leaving no room for the others to attack, as they were all struggling against the vortex created by the dragon's movements.
An Zhengzheng was, after all, a disciple in the Qi Refining stage. Although he was quite capable, he only had about ten years of cultivation experience. When he fought against a dragon of this level, he quickly fell into a disadvantageous position.
Upon seeing this, Senior Brother Pei Jin shouted, "Junior Sister, sit here and practice the Pure Tranquility Sutra. I'll set up a shield for you for a quarter of an hour."
"Practice the Pure and Tranquil Sutra?" An Zhengzheng decisively refused: "I don't want to."
Once you begin practicing the Pure Land Sutra, any subsequent inclination towards fame and fortune will backfire.
She could no longer entertain such thoughts.
"What are you doing!" Zhou Xu didn't understand her. "Is fame and fortune really that important? You're going to cultivate immortality anyway, why are you so fixated on this!"
Zhou Xu became even more agitated when he thought about how An Zhengzheng ignored his advice and insisted on doing business.
An Zhengzheng did not explain. Seeing that she was becoming increasingly unable to defeat the dragon, she made a decision and cut her finger with the sword, and blood flowed out.
While chanting incantations, he managed to buy himself a chance to survive, and the scales from the dragon's heart were ripped off.
It was startled and, without bothering anyone else, not even looking at An Zhengzheng, rushed to find the scale that had fallen from its chest.
"Senior brothers, hurry up!" An Zhengzheng took this opportunity to escape, but she no longer had the strength to kill the dragon.
Upon seeing this, the senior disciples who rushed up joined forces to surround and kill the dragon.
The dragon died, and its corpse melted away like sea salt and vanished without a trace.
An Zhengzheng and the others swam up from the bottom of the lake.
Exhausted, An Zhengzheng took several bottles of Qi-boosting and blood-tonifying pills to recover. She was then slapped on the back by the dragon, leaving her feeling very weak.
After being given several more pots of herbal medicine, I feel much better now.
Seeing her in such a disheveled state, Zhou Xu smirked and said, "I didn't expect you to be so greedy for fame and fortune."
She really deserved it. If An Zhengzheng hadn't been so persistent, she wouldn't have been targeted by Jiaolong.
An Zhengzheng took a few breaths to catch her breath. When she heard his sarcastic remarks, she retorted, "Thank you for the compliment."
Zhou Xu snorted coldly; he was completely unyielding!
He had never been this angry with anyone before, yet An Zhengzheng was determined to wallow in self-pity.
Yu Tiao, still shaken, asked An Zhengzheng, "If you had listened to Senior Brother Pei Jin just now, you wouldn't have gotten that tail whipped. Is it really that hard to recite a little sutra?"
An Zhengzheng nodded.
What a joke! After reciting the Purification Sutra, she can no longer think about doing business, earning spirit stones, or becoming famous. Otherwise, every time she has that thought, she will suffer a backlash that reduces her cultivation level.
Pei Jin looked at her with regret in his expression: "If you neither practice the Purification Technique nor recite the Purification Sutra, you can only rely on yourself to control your thoughts and intentions."
If one's resolve in the Dao becomes unstable, there is no hope of becoming a god, and all one's busy life will be in vain.
An Zhengzheng stood up. Although her body had almost fully recovered, she still had some aftereffects. She said calmly, "I believe in myself. I won't linger in the world of fame and fortune when I ascend to heaven."
The male cultivators present all shook their heads inwardly; who could predict the future?
If you are so attached to things now, you will definitely not be able to let go when you ascend to immortality. Otherwise, you wouldn't have to recite the Pure and Tranquil Sutra from the very beginning of your sect.
An Zhengzheng is too arrogant.
"What do you, a young lady, need so much fame and fortune for?" Senior Brother Peijin asked, puzzled.
An Zhengzheng smiled without saying a word.
Without the process of making money, how could she lead her sister to prove to the world that women can also inherit family businesses and are no less capable than men?
Without accumulating enough capital, how could she find a way out for women everywhere?
Without sufficient fame, how could she inspire people to think, "Perhaps I can be like that female cultivator..." when they are in despair?
She was unwilling to give up fame and fortune, but firmly believed that she would not lose herself in them.
Because fame and fortune are her means, not her desires.
An Zhengzheng and his group walked through the woods to the second test.
The second test is the test of desire, which requires them to team up and go into the snow-capped mountains to pick a Tian Shan snow lotus.
"To prevent everyone from getting separated, I used magic to tie everyone up with ropes." Brother Peijin tied everyone up with ropes.
The order is: Senior Brother Pei Jin, Second Senior Brother Mo Hai, Third Senior Brother Shui Yun, Fourth Senior Brother Yu Tiao, An Zhengzheng, and Zhou Xu.
Zhou Xu has a fire elemental root constitution, and the snow mountain was a test for both him and his Crimson Flame Sword, which is why he was the last one standing.
"Let's be on the safe side; a blizzard is likely."
Peijin tightened the ropes even more to prevent the group from getting separated.
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