After cultivating the Manual of Heaven-Defiance, Yang Xuan had decided he would never settle for a mediocre manual. This, however, raised a problem: how would he find the other volumes? There was a chance there were more inside the Crimson Bear Sect, but he doubted it. As usual, he scoured the system for possible solutions. There was only one option which showed potential. It was a qi detector - he would choose a certain type of Qi, and it would detect the location of Qi of the same affinity. If this "heaven-defying" Qi truly was unique, then that should lead him to the next volume.
However, it cost an obscene amount of SP: 10,000. He only had 159 SP. He remembered that tutorial on SP. The system said he could gain SP by defeating "enemies." Yang Xuan doubted mortals qualified as enemies, but cultivators and savage beasts? It was rather likely that they qualified. And to get to both savage beasts and cultivators, joining the Crimson Bear Sect was the best solution. And it just so happened their monthly recruitment was in a few days.
Having made up his mind, Yang Xuan continued cultivating until the dawn of recruitment day. Then, he headed to the sect. It was a good morning: birds were chirping, and the sun was shining. As he arrived to the gate, he could see many children around the age of ten. Most of them were accompanied by older individuals. Other than the children, there were also a few older cultivators here. Some of them were accompanying the children, but others were here to take the test themselves. His Qi senses felt overwhelmed with all the sudden stimuli.
[Your skill [Qi Sensing] has leveled up. It is now [Level 4].]
And now his sensitivity had increased even further. Yang Xuan took a moment to adjust, and then he walked up to the sect gate. The guard stopped him: "Begone, beggar!" The guard kicked him away. Yang Xuan continued standing, unfazed by the foot in his gut.
"I am a cultivator. Where must I go for the outer disciple trials?" Yang Xuan asked the guard, as if he hadn't just kicked him. The guard's friend snickered at him, and the guard's face became redder than a rooster's comb.
"Child, you dare?! How dare you try to make a mockery of me?" The guard fumed.
"Mockery? What is this nonsense? I simply asked you where I should go. I see now that was a mistake - you clearly lack the necessary intelligence to engage in a normal conversation," Yang Xuan calmly stated. Immediately, the guard's rage grew even further. Yang Xuan could almost hear him sizzling. In a mere split second, the cultivator's fist was in front of Yang Xuan's eyes. The man looked comical as he squatted to match the five-year-old's height. Yang Xuan wisely concluded that fighting with the sect's guard would not make the best impression and instead strafed to the side, deftly dodging the blow. The cultivator's fist collided with the ground, cracking it.
Yang Xuan decided to simply ignore this guard and ask his snickering partner instead. "Your fellow guard here seems to be having some difficulties-" Yang Xuan paused to dodge another blow and then continued, "Could you be so kind as to help me in his stead?"
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The first guard, seemingly incapable of learning, tried to punch Yang Xuan again. Unfortunately, when Yang Xuan dodged again, the guard slammed straight into the sect wall and was knocked out.
"Ha, I like you! I am Zhang Xiao. Follow me! All of you, not just him," The guard's friend, Zhang Xiao, beckoned.
"Ah, I am Yang Xuan. I hope my exchange with your partner will not cause any issues," Yang Xuan told him.
"Worry not, my young friend, he has simply brought shame to himself. I am certain the inner disciples will not appreciate his actions once I report back to them. Just between you and me, I've always hated that arrogant trash," assured Zhang Xiao.
Zhang Xiao told another Crimson Bear cultivator to guard in his stead, and then began leading Yang Xuan and the other cultivators. Zhang Xiao led them to a large building. There were already some cultivators lining up in front of it. Zhang Xiao instructed them to join the line and then left.
After lining up, Yang Xuan inspected the building. Its name was written on it in calligraphy: "The Crimson Pavilion." It was a large, imposing structure made of dark wood. Yang Xuan turned his attention to the front of the line. One Crimson Bear cultivator stood at the end. It was still a long way away.
Hours later, Yang Xuan had finally reached the front of the line. Soon enough, the cultivator directed him to enter the pavilion. Inside, there were five disciples sitting at a table in the middle of the room. There were some strange objects directly in front of him. One of the cultivators spoke up, "Head to the artifact in front of you and touch it."
Yang Xuan did as the cultivator instructed, and a voice announced: "Qi Gathering Realm, first stage."
Some of the cultivators looked surprised; they had likely thought Yang Xuan was lying about being a cultivator. Still, the cultivator continued instructing him, "Now, go to the next artifact in front of you and punch it as hard as you can. Do not hold back."
Yang Xuan walked up to the next artifact. This artifact had a large circular pad and a display at the top. Yang Xuan did not want to reveal his full power, and so he punched the machine with only about half his strength. The number "118" appeared on the display.
'Ah, this must be my Body Force. If I remember correctly, a first stage Qi Gathering Realm cultivator should have a Body Force of about one hundred. Grandpa Gui really was right. My true Body Force is higher than even a ninth-stage Qi Gathering Realm cultivator!'
The cultivators were a little surprised, but it appeared this was not that peculiar, exactly as Yang Xuan had intended. The cultivator spoke again, "Now, you shall face the trial." As soon as he said so, something began moving toward Yang Xuan. But something was off; even with Yang Xuan's elementary Qi sense, he could tell the Qi inside this creature did not flow the same way as in a human. As it neared further, the reason became obvious.
It was a mannequin.