Liang Country, Golden Cloud Valley.
The third stage of the Immortal Sect assessment, Fantasy Heart Platform.
On the circular platform made of white jade, one or two hundred youths were enveloped by a faint purple light, falling into an illusion. Their expressions were either furious, fearful, or heartbroken…
“Hiss!”
Lu Chang’an let out a muffled groan and suddenly awoke.
His brows furrowed, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans appeared on his forehead. Deep within his mind, a Seal seemed to break open, enduring a torrent of information!
“Not bad! The third to awaken on the ‘Fantasy Heart Platform’, indicating superior will.”
Not far away, several Sect Immortal Masters commented privately.
The Fantasy Heart Platform was the final stage of Golden Cloud Valley’s entrance assessment, testing one’s state of mind and will.
“Lu Chang’an, Medium Grade Spiritual Root, third place on the Fantasy Heart Platform, can be considered a small immortal seedling…”
“Hmm? Qi Refining first layer, nearly eighteen years old?”
“What a pity…”
A few sounds of regret came from around.
…
“Liang Country Cultivation World… Golden Cloud Valley entrance assessment…”
“Lu Chang’an, nearly eighteen years old?”
“Breaking the mystery of the womb this time was much later than in my previous life, missing the best age to enter Cultivation.”
On the Fantasy Heart Platform, Lu Chang’an’s face flickered, and his gaze was profound.
From this life’s memories, he was in a different Cultivation region from his first and second lives.
“Upon awakening in this life, nourished by the Nine Imprint Tablet, my initial Soul strength is actually even stronger than in my second life?”
Lu Chang’an’s brows relaxed, and his expression returned to normal.
That’s right, the Nine Imprint Tablet!
He closed his eyes slightly, seemingly conserving his energy.
Deep in his mind, an ancient, dark stone tablet appeared, its surface outlined with abstract patterns.
The Nine Imprint Tablet was the mysterious ancient tablet he accidentally touched on Earth, thus beginning his mystical Cultivation Reincarnation journey.
Lu Chang’an didn’t know the origin of the stone tablet and named it himself based on its external features.
The front of the stone tablet.
From top to bottom, there were nine rectangular framed imprints.
Inside the first imprint, a handsome man with a straight figure holding a talisman brush was engraved.
In the second imprint, an old man with a white beard wearing a black robe and stepping on a escape light was depicted.
The first two imprints were still and dim, the figures resembling funerary portraits.
The third imprint, however, was a faint white flickering phantom of a youth.
It was indistinct, not yet truly etched into shape on the stone tablet.
This phantom of a youth perfectly matched the current Lu Chang’an.
The remaining six framed imprints below were all blank.
“Counting from the first life when I Transmigrated from Earth to the Cultivation World, this is now the third life.”
Lu Chang’an’s consciousness withdrew from the Nine Imprint Tablet and briefly sorted through the experiences of his first two lives.
In his first life, he first arrived in the Cultivation World with ordinary Aptitude, a Loose Cultivator, struggling along and barely Cultivating to Qi Refining ninth layer.
The only thing he was good at was drawing talismans.
Ultimately, to compete for a Foundation Establishment Opportunity, he was outmatched and died in a battle.
In his second life, he was born into a Cultivation family with High Grade Spiritual Root. With the Cultivation experience and talisman art bonus from his first life, he advanced rapidly, Cultivating to the Peak of the late Core Formation stage, which was quite glorious for a time.
But in the end, he failed to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage, and his Dao dissipated.
“In my first two lives, I only explored the superficial abilities of the Nine Imprint Tablet. Based on my deductions, I need to at least advance to the Nascent Soul Stage, for my Soul to undergo a qualitative change, before I can unearth the true secrets of the Nine Imprint Tablet.”
At this point, Lu Chang’an had already clarified the purpose of this life.
“Nascent Soul Stage!”
If he couldn’t reach this realm, the Nine Imprint Tablet might lead him to continue the Reincarnation of the next life… at most nine Reincarnations.
Of course, this was an optimistic guess.
Perhaps there were only “Three Lives and Three Worlds.”
Then, if he failed in this life, what awaited him would be complete annihilation!
…
“Ah! No…”
As time passed, the youths on the Fantasy Heart Platform awoke one after another, and the scene became noisy, interrupting Lu Chang’an’s thoughts.
“Lu Chang’an, when did you wake up?”
Several youths nearby looked at Lu Chang’an, who had woken up earlier, with some surprise.
“Good luck, just a bit earlier than you all.”
Lu Chang’an calmly sized up the two men and one woman in front of him.
They were all immortal seedlings brought from Hengshui Prefecture and had met on the way.
Zhao Siyao, Medium Grade Spiritual Root, from a scholarly family.
At only fourteen or fifteen years old, she was already slender and graceful, with bright, intelligent eyes and lips like cinnabar, clearly a beauty in the making.
Lin Yi, Low Grade Spiritual Root, the illegitimate son of Marquis Guang’an.
The sixteen or seventeen-year-old youth, dressed in luxurious clothes, with sword-like brows and heroic eyes, had the highest Cultivation among them, reaching Qi Refining third layer.
At this moment, Lin Yi’s expression was unhappy.
Li Ergou, Low Grade Spiritual Root, from a farming family.
Dressed in coarse linen short clothes, he was thin and dark-skinned, looking a bit flustered and timid, not daring to approach Lin Yi and Zhao Siyao too closely.
“Lu Dage, the third stage was so difficult. If it weren’t for my old hen’s morning crow suddenly sounding, I would have almost fallen into a life of luxury…”
Li Ergou patted his chest, still feeling lingering fear, and naturally moved closer to Lu Chang’an.
Due to differences in social status, the few immortal seedlings from the same region had varying degrees of closeness.
The royal nobility and subtle arrogance on Lin Yi made Li Ergou instinctively fearful.
Zhao Siyao, as a young lady from a prestigious family, was well-educated and polite, treating everyone with courtesy and never looking down on Li Ergou and Lu Chang’an, who came from humble backgrounds.
Li Ergou, however, dared not look directly at the beautiful and lively Zhao Siyao.
When her gaze occasionally landed on him, it would make him blush and feel at a loss. Fortunately, his face was dark, providing some concealment.
Li Ergou only got close to Lu Chang’an.
Lu Chang’an was an orphan.
At the same time, he had another identity: he was a Jianghu person, a Gang expert.
To be precise, he was the adopted son of the Nujiang Gang leader in Hengshui Prefecture.
Lu Chang’an had excellent Martial Dao Aptitude since childhood, and at a young age, he was already a second-rate expert in the Jianghu.
According to the original plan, he was to take over his adoptive father’s Gang leader position in a few years.
It wasn’t until two years ago that he befriended a down-and-out Daoist priest and learned that he actually had a Cultivation Spiritual Root, and it was a Medium Grade Spiritual Root, which was not bad.
The trajectory of his life took a turn.
During the third stage of the Golden Cloud Valley assessment, the “Fantasy Heart Platform,” he recovered his memories from his previous life.
…
“Ergou. You possess a Spiritual Root. Once you embark on the immortal path, whether you were once a king or a general, or a farmer or a carter… the past is but fleeting clouds.”
Lu Chang’an looked at the humble, timid Li Ergou and gently patted his shoulder.
After two lives of Cultivation Reincarnation, Lu Chang’an’s original heart remained unchanged; he hadn’t become an old monster with centuries of wisdom.
This was the miraculous aspect of the Nine Imprint Tablet.
He felt as if he had awoken from an immersive movie, his consciousness returning, only with two more lives of Cultivation memories.
He possessed more life experience and his horizons were greatly broadened.
His original heart was still the same as when he first Transmigrated to the Cultivation World.
“Mm-hmm, I know, thank you, Lu Dage…”
Li Ergou rubbed the back of his head, feeling a touch of warmth.
“Lu Chang’an, what place did you get in the third stage, ‘Fantasy Heart Platform’?”
At this moment, Lin Yi’s expression was irritable and uneasy, and he couldn’t help but ask.
Lu Chang’an glanced at Lin Yi, the Marquis’s illegitimate son, thoughtfully.
If he remembered correctly, in the third stage, “Fantasy Heart Platform,” Lin Yi was the last among them to awaken.
In terms of Cultivation, Lin Yi was the highest among them, reaching Qi Refining third layer.
However, in the third stage, which tested one’s state of mind and will, Lin Yi’s performance was the worst!
Li Ergou, who came from a farming background, was even slightly better than him.
“It seems to be third place,” Lu Chang’an thought.
“Third place?”
Lin Yi’s pupils constricted slightly, and his face looked bad, as if he couldn’t accept such a disparity.
In the first two stages, his overall performance had steadily surpassed Lu Chang’an’s.
“I didn’t expect Lu Dage’s will to be so formidable, truly worthy of being a Martial Forest young hero! Congratulations…”
Zhao Siyao was also surprised, raising her finely arched eyebrows, her eyes subtly shifting.
On the way to the Sect, Lu Chang’an, as a Jianghu person, was experienced and easygoing, and he conversed familiarly with Zhao Siyao.
Coupled with being the oldest, the latter called him Lu Dage.
The relationship between the two, even with Lin Yi, who came from a royal family, trying to befriend Zhao Siyao, was not as good.
Lin Yi’s mood worsened, but he forced himself to regain composure and casually mentioned:
“It’s a pity, if Brother Lu could have achieved first place on the ‘Fantasy Heart Platform,’ he would have been able to disregard the results of the first two stages and directly pass the assessment, becoming an Outer Sect Disciple of ‘Golden Cloud Valley.’”
“First place on Fantasy Heart Platform, directly entering the Sect?”
Lu Chang’an was startled, unaware of this detail.
He felt a slight regret in his heart; if he had broken the mystery of the womb a few days earlier and gained the Soul amplification from the Nine Imprint Tablet, passing the entrance assessment would have been a sure thing.
Even with two lives of Cultivation memories, Lu Chang’an didn’t want to be a Loose Cultivator.
He deeply understood the hardships of a Loose Cultivator’s life in his first life.
The immortal Dao of longevity, “Wealth, Companions, Techniques, and Land,” none are dispensable.
The last ranked “Land” refers to the place of Cultivation.
And in the Cultivation World, almost all Spiritual Veins, blessed lands, and grotto-heavens are occupied by Sects, aristocratic families, and powerful Yao Beasts.
Mortal regions are called “Spirit-Poor Lands,” where Spiritual Qi is extremely thin and barren.
Completely unsuitable for Cultivating!
Without a Spiritual Vein Cultivation ground, the efficiency can differ by more than ten times!
The first ranked “Wealth” refers to Cultivation resources, such as Spirit Stones, Medicinal Pills, Magic Treasures, etc.
Without a Cultivation ground and without Cultivation resources.
At the initial stage of entering the immortal Dao, even for a powerful figure undergoing re-Cultivation, it wouldn’t be so smooth.
Therefore, Lu Chang’an would not miss the Opportunity to enter the Sect.
“Those whose names are called, step forward!”
Before long, an attendant from Golden Cloud Valley floated in mid-air and began to announce the list of those who passed the assessment.
New book released, seeking continued readership, collections, recommendations… Currently still in the signing process, only after which will tips and monthly passes be possible.