Shortly after Fatty Bai, it was Lin Huang’s turn.
Lin Huang pulled his cloak lower, squeezed through the crowd, and stepped onto the corridor leading to the arena. Looking at the stage not far away, he couldn’t help but feel a mix of excitement and apprehension. Although he was a Martial Saint in his previous life, he was currently only at the Human Element Seventh Heaven. In this Great Xia Dynasty, that was nothing worth mentioning.
"Look... that guy in the black cloak, it’s that traitor Lin Huang!"
Someone in the plaza had recognized Lin Huang. They shouted through gritted teeth, their voice brimming with intense resentment.
The plaza instantly boiled over. Tens of thousands of people glared at the young man on the corridor, hurling foul insults with eyes as sharp as blades, wishing they could tear Lin Huang limb from limb.
"He’s the one who killed Pang Bai and provoked the great war between the Great Xia and the Great Chu! He deserves to die!"
"I can’t believe this heartless bastard actually dares to show his face!"
"Lin Huang, why haven’t you killed yourself yet?! Even that old fart Lin Beichen can’t protect you now!"
Curses echoed endlessly throughout the plaza as the massive crowd surged forward. They wanted to rush the corridor, demand justice from Lin Huang, and make him pay in blood.
In the crowd, Ming Ao looked at the black-cloaked Lin Huang and smiled mockingly. "If I can kill you in the upcoming matches, wouldn’t I become a hero of the Great Xia Dynasty? I’d even earn an Earth Element Pill from Crown Prince Lingyun for nothing.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. This deal is truly a bargain!" Ming Ao chuckled softly.
"Imperial Brother, your move is absolutely brilliant. You’re utterly crushing his spirit. As long as Lin Huang’s mental defenses shatter, there won’t even be a need for Ming Ao to strike. The Divine General’s Mansion will be thoroughly left without an heir," Ling Huangyi laughed from the pavilion.
"Hahaha... I can only say that Pang Bai’s death was too perfect," Crown Prince Lingyun laughed heartily as he watched the universally reviled Lin Huang.
On the corridor, Lin Huang calmly lowered his hood. He looked out at the tens of thousands of people screaming vile insults, wanting nothing more than to slice him into a thousand pieces and tear him apart. His expression remained utterly calm. It even held a trace of coldness.
There was none of the panic, fear, remorse, begging, or crying that everyone expected. He simply stood there quietly on the corridor. His figure was somewhat thin and frail, yet he stood as straight as a spear. Insults, framing, disdain... Lin Huang had experienced far too much of these in his past life. Being condemned by thousands was nothing more than this!
"Hmph, putting on a brave face!" Crown Prince Lingyun sneered. He watched the unfazed Lin Huang with a cold, gloomy expression, feeling quite resentful. "Who do you think you are, Lin Huang, to dare treat the people of this world as if they were nothing?"
As time passed, Lin Huang stepped onto the arena amidst a sea of curses.
"This boy killed Pang Bai and single-handedly provoked a war between two countries. It’s clear his nature is vicious. No matter how strong his talent is, our Four Great Sects should not take such a youth under our wings." At the back of the arena, Hann Shan of the Celestial Thunder Sect spoke up, his face filled with gloomy killing intent.
Back then, Lin Cangxue had killed his most beloved grandson. For the sake of the Thousand Spirits Sword Formation, he had personally orchestrated for Lin Huang to kill Pang Bai, only for it all to end up being in vain. The humiliation he suffered at Tianxiang Tower had long since filled him with endless hatred toward Lin Huang and the Divine General’s Mansion.
"Elder Hann’s words are reasonable. To be so malicious at such a young age—if we were to take him in, I’m afraid it would lead to endless disasters," Qii Lie of the Fengyu Tower chimed in.
The old man from Qianying Valley, Su Li, smiled but said nothing.
Shen Diexin furrowed her elegant brows and said coldly, "Everything will be decided by the rules. Furthermore, it is not up to others to dictate whether my Piaoxue Palace takes someone in or not. You two Elders should mind your own business."
"You..." Hann Shan was furious but held his tongue. "This bitch is acting all high and mighty just because she’s an Array Master," he thought. "When the Celestial Thunder Sect’s Array Master arrives in a few days, let’s see what right she has to be so arrogant."
"Then we’ll just wait and see if this boy can even rank in the top three hundred!" Qii Lie scoffed coldly. He stared at Lin Huang, who had already stepped onto the arena, his expression dark. His withered hand waved within his sleeve, sending out a subtle wisp of aura that completely bypassed the other Three Sects’ Elders and quietly enveloped the Testing Stone in front of Lin Huang.
"Lin Huang, you’re utterly infamous! To still want to enter the Four Great Sects is pure delusion!"
"I bet that Testing Stone won’t show the slightest reaction."
"Taking the top three hundred out of thirty thousand people—who does he think he is? His sister, Lin Cangxue? How ridiculous!"
"He’s already sixteen, and he was paralyzed in bed for two years. Trying to get into the top three hundred is nothing but an idiot’s pipe dream. He just went up there to make a bigger fool of himself."
Inside and outside the plaza, the discussions were endless. No one believed that a sixteen-year-old guy with less than a year of Cultivation could enter the top three hundred. It was absolutely impossible!
On the arena, Lin Huang looked at the faintly glowing Testing Stone in front of him. It gave off a gentle aura, and a colorful stream of Primordial Qi swirled within its transparent center like a dancing sprite.
Lin Huang reached out and touched the Testing Stone. While the Testing Stones of the surrounding Martial Artists emitted dazzling rays of light and manifested golden glows, the Testing Stone under Lin Huang’s palm remained completely motionless without a single change.
Lin Huang frowned. He continued to circulate the Primordial Qi in his body and channel it into the Testing Stone.
Still, nothing happened!
Behind the arena, satisfied smiles appeared on Qii Lie and Hann Shan’s faces. If he couldn’t enter the top three hundred, they wanted to see how Shen Diexin would justify taking him into her Sect.
Unbridled laughter erupted in the plaza. Tens of thousands of people laughed uproariously, the sound surging like endless waves of a tide, one after another.
"See? What did I say? This trash actually thought he could enter the Four Great Sects."
"The dignified Young Master of the Divine General’s Mansion, hahaha... he couldn’t even pass the first round of screening for the Four Sects’ grand selection! This is the biggest joke in the world!"
"This is what they call karma for the wicked!"
"Hurry up and roll down from there! Stop embarrassing yourself!"
Outside the plaza, Crown Prince Lingyun watched the scene from afar, his finger leisurely twirling a lock of hair at his temple. "Losing face in front of the entire Great Xia Dynasty... I refuse to believe you can keep putting on a brave face."
Ling Huangyi also smiled. With Qii Lie and Hann Shan present, Lin Huang trying to pass the Four Sects’ grand selection was nothing but a pipe dream.
"Old Xiao, it turns out I’m the real genius here. How could you be so blind as to take Boss Lin as your disciple? Ah well, I guess I’ll just have to be the one to protect him from now on." Fatty Bai wore a look of utter schadenfreude as he patted Xiao Yishan’s shoulder.
However, before he could even act smug, Xiao Yishan slapped him flat onto the ground. "Even if the disciple I, Xiao Yishan, chose was a pig, he would still be better than you!"
While the crowd laughed and mocked him wantonly, Lin Huang gripped the Testing Stone tightly. He turned his head to glance at the four Great Elders behind him, then slowly closed his eyes. The Martial Soul within his Profound Sea vibrated. A faint trace of the Power of Martial Soul merged with his Primordial Qi, traveling along his meridians and pouring directly into the Testing Stone.
The Testing Stone remained quiet for a moment. Then, the Primordial Qi inside the Testing Stone began to flow rapidly, gradually blooming with a brilliant glow. The golden light that proved his talent emerged along with it.
Following that, the light screen flickered. A row of shining text appeared, forcibly squeezing out the person in the very last place on the screen:
"Great Xia Imperial City Lin Huang, sixteen years old, Human Element Seventh Heaven, six feet of golden light!"
Three hundredth place!
Inside and outside the plaza, everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief. They stared blankly at the scene before them. The previously set conclusion had actually changed, and Lin Huang had managed to rank three hundredth!
On the arena, Lin Huang chuckled softly. The power from his Martial Soul continued to pour into the Testing Stone, making its glow even more dazzling and bright.
Qii Lie looked at the scene, utterly shocked. "What kind of Demon Technique is this brat using?" he thought. "He actually tore through the Primordial Qi isolation restriction I placed on his Testing Stone!"
"How is this possible?! How could he make the rankings?"
"He’s been formally practicing Cultivation for less than a year! It’s absolutely impossible for him to reach the Human Element Seventh Heaven!"
"He’s cheating! He has to be cheating!"
The crowd in the plaza was agitated, entirely unwilling to believe their own eyes.
Crown Prince Lingyun stood up abruptly, his expression indescribably gloomy. "Let’s see how long you can hold on."
However, this was far from over. As the light from the Testing Stone in Lin Huang’s hand intensified, the length of the golden light gradually increased, and his ranking rose alongside it:
Seven feet of golden light, two hundred and fortieth place.
Eight feet of golden light, one hundred and eightieth place.
Nine feet of golden light, one hundred and fortieth place.
...
Watching the golden light on the Testing Stone grow at a rapid pace, the crowd’s eyes widened. Unrivaled hatred welled up in their hearts. "Why?! Why should such a wicked person receive the pity and favor of the heavens?!"
"Is the heavens truly blind?!"
On the arena, Lin Huang remained unmoved by the insults from below. Pinching the Testing Stone in his hand, he let out a sudden shout. The Primordial Qi in his body surged like a roaring river, pouring directly into the Testing Stone.
BUZZ!
With a vibrating hum, the Testing Stone’s brilliance skyrocketed. The beam of golden light violently grew to one zhang and one foot.
On the light screen, Lin Huang’s name instantly shot up to tenth place.
"This..." Shen Diexin stood up abruptly, her elegant brows knitted together. She had hosted countless grand selections, but this was the very first time she had ever encountered a situation like this.
The Testing Stone primarily judged a Martial Artist’s talent based on their age, Realm, and the purity of their Primordial Qi. Judging by Lin Huang’s age and Realm, being able to enter the top three hundred was already a stroke of extreme luck. But for Lin Huang to now be ranked tenth, just how powerful must his Primordial Qi attributes be? And what was his Martial Soul? Shen Diexin was utterly perplexed.
On the continent, after a Martial Artist absorbed Primordial Qi into their body, it would gradually be influenced by the power of their Martial Soul. For instance, a Martial Artist with a Sword Martial Soul would gradually have Sword Qi mixed into their Primordial Qi. If they possessed the power of a Blade Martial Soul, their Primordial Qi would merge with Blade Qi. The higher the Tier of the Martial Soul, the stronger and purer the Sword Qi of a Sword Martial Soul would be.
Since Lin Huang was able to rank in the top ten, then his Martial Soul must truly belong to an incredibly formidable Tyrant Path!
Hann Shan and Qii Lie exchanged a glance, a flash of killing intent quietly passing through their eyes.
While the crowd was still in a state of shock, the Power of Martial Soul violently swept out from the Testing Stone. Like an autumn gale sweeping away fallen leaves, it unscrupulously engulfed the entire arena.
BOOM... BOOM... BOOM-BOOM...
Under the ethereal and faint Power of Martial Soul, the other Testing Stones on the arena surprisingly began to flare up one by one. They bloomed with gorgeous rays of light, ultimately condensing into a brilliant beam that shot into the sky like a firework blooming in the night. The golden light on every single Testing Stone was growing madly.
And Lin Huang’s rank, which had originally stalled at tenth place, began to move once again. Like a butcher’s blade, it brutally struck down every single name ranked above it.
"This is impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"That damn Lin Huang! He must be cheating! This is cheating!"
"The Four Sect Elders will definitely punish him!"
At that moment, the plaza was in total uproar. As they watched the brilliant light shooting into the sky from the arena, their shocked expressions were filled with deep resentment. Why... why did this aristocratic menace to society possess such incredible talent?
The Celestial Path was unfair!
In a restaurant outside the plaza, Crown Prince Lingyun and Ling Huangyi had long since stood up. Their faces were cold and hard, their fists tightly clenched, and an indescribable sinister chill filled their eyes.
"I will grind your bones to dust!" Crown Prince Lingyun’s voice was seeping with unadulterated fury through his gritted teeth. His eyes narrowed, looking just like a vicious, ravenous wolf.
Slaughtering the leaderboards!
Seeing the top ten names being struck down one by one, everyone felt immensely enraged. He was a rat crossing the street that everyone wanted to beat—what right did he have to be so arrogant?!
However, Lin Huang’s name on the light screen didn’t stop because of the crowd’s anger. Just like a terrifying butcher’s blade, it advanced coldly and ruthlessly straight toward the very top.
Finally, after pushing down Lu Wuji and Ming Ao, Lin Huang’s name powerfully appeared directly above Fatty Bai’s.
"Great Xia Imperial City, Lin Huang, Human Element Seventh Heaven, Three Zhang of Golden Light!"
First place, Lin Huang!