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墨書 Inktalez
At the intersection of every two streets, there is a space of about thirty meters for cultivators to communicate and rest. Qingyang City is well-connected, and there are many such gathering places. The major sects of the Lianyun Mountain Range often set up stalls to recruit new members in these areas.
Pingyang Valley is a powerful force on par with the Lianyun Mountain Range, Xiaoyao Sect, and Demon Ridge. It is an ideal sect for loose cultivators looking to join a faction. At this moment, the recruitment area was surrounded by hundreds of people, and a temporary promoter was energetically shouting, "Come on! Pingyang Valley is recruiting disciples! Everyone has a chance, and everyone can earn money!"
Pingyang Valley? Xu Feng was not familiar with the Lianyun Mountain Range, but joining Pingyang Valley could provide him with valuable information and better access to Xiaoyao Sect. Xu Feng blended into the crowd and squeezed into the group of loose cultivators applying for recruitment.
There were more than a dozen cultivators responsible for recruitment, all at the Late Stage of Golden Core or above, including two Mid Stage of Nascent Soul experts overseeing the process. The cultivators applying for admission underwent an on-site interview; the secretary simply asked about their identity and background before a nearby instructor tested their combat strength. The test was straightforward: they just had to punch a shield-shaped magical artifact held by the instructor.
The testing proceeded quickly, and over a hundred loose cultivators were selected and arranged in a nearby room.
Xu Feng couldn't help but feel suspicious; this test was too simple—almost careless. It felt more like recruiting laborers; as long as one had hands and feet to work, that was enough.
Sure enough, whispers began to circulate in the crowd.
"Xiao Ming, what are you doing here? Go back! Don't join Pingyang Valley."
"Why? Pingyang Valley is very famous."
"Pingyang Valley is currently clashing with Xiaoyao Sect. They are recruiting disciples just to use them as cannon fodder."
"Oh, then I won't go. I'll just work as a temp at Sacred Cauldron Pavilion instead."
Their voices were not loud, but it quickly spread through the crowd. A commotion arose as cultivators began to leave one after another, yet nearly half of them remained. Cultivating immortality often involves bloodshed; without experiencing trials by fire, even if one miraculously breaks through, they will eventually meet an untimely end.
Modern clerks do not live in peaceful times.
Pingyang Valley was not upset; they understood that those who left were not new to this recruitment process. Such situations had been anticipated long ago.
It turns out they are going to clash with the Xiaoyao Sect. This is great; I can run into the Xiaoyao Sect directly without having to search for them. Pingyang Valley must have a lot of information about the Xiaoyao Sect. It's a pity that the Xiaoyao Sect doesn't recruit disciples; otherwise, I could blend in and might see Cai Shujun soon.
"I want to join Pingyang Valley," Xu Feng said without hesitation as he squeezed to the registration desk.
The registrar didn't even look up and said, "Name, sect, cultivation level."
"Huang Bo, rogue cultivator, Late Stage of Golden Core," Xu Feng provided a different name.
Upon hearing "Late Stage of Golden Core," the registrar finally looked up at Xu Feng and said, "Good cultivation level. You can join our Tiger's Den."
The saying "a tiger falls in the plains and is bullied by dogs" truly applies to Pingyang Valley establishing the Tiger's Den.
The cultivator responsible for testing was also at the Late Stage of Golden Core. He took out a shield artifact for Xu Feng to strike. Xu Feng raised his fist and knocked him back a step along with his shield.
"Not bad, you passed!" The man was slightly surprised; it was rare for someone of the same level to knock him back with a single punch.
Xu Feng was taken to the Temporary Rental Room, where over a hundred selected cultivators had gathered. Aside from more than ten Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivators, all others were above Golden Core, with only a little over thirty at the Late Stage of Golden Core like Xu Feng. There were no applicants at the Nascent Soul Stage.
Xu Feng's cultivation level was considered elite among this group.
Pingyang Valley planned to return to Lianyun Mountain Range the next morning. Xu Feng asked for leave from the supervisor of new recruits at Pingyang Valley and hurried back to Tongfu Inn for an overnight stay. During this time, he refined the Superior Magical Artifact, Willow Leaf Blade, and diluted Earth Immortal Essence into five portions at the maximum tolerable limit. After testing, each portion of Earth Immortal Essence could enhance Xu Feng's strength by eighty percent for five minutes.
With an eighty percent increase in strength, Xu Feng could defeat a Nascent Soul Early Stage cultivator without needing Ultraman.
The next morning, after finishing recruitment, Pingyang Valley set off with over a hundred cultivators toward Lianyun Mountain Range. From the map, Lianyun Mountain Range looked like a giant scorpion; its tail connected to Beast Wasteland, stretching over one hundred thousand miles long and more than fifty thousand miles wide—almost comparable to an entire Liuxiang Kingdom.
Once outside the city, a Yuan Ying Cultivator leading the team sent out a sound transmission talisman toward the sky. Soon after, a massive centipede with four wings flew over and landed in front of everyone.
The Four-Winged Centipede is a Seventh-Level Monster with the combat power of a Nascent Soul Period Cultivator. Its greatest advantage is its ability to carry people; its body stretches over a hundred meters long, easily accommodating one or two hundred individuals.
As everyone boarded the Four-Winged Centipede, it let out a long breath, and its hundred-meter-long body emitted a creaking sound. Its four wings flapped in unison, lifting over a hundred people into the Sky.
The speed of the Four-Winged Centipede far surpassed that of the New Moon Sect's Dapeng. After all, it is a Seventh-Level Monster, capable of human speech like A Qi. Despite carrying so many passengers, it showed no signs of fatigue as it gracefully pierced through the clouds, with the wind rushing past their ears at an astonishing speed.
In the Sky, the cultivators from Pingyang Valley introduced some details about Pingyang Valley to avoid any embarrassment for the newcomers and conducted a simple allocation of personnel.
Pingyang Valley is located in the northeastern corner of the Lianyun Mountain Range, eight thousand miles from the entrance, surrounded by a fifty-mile basin, hence its name "Valley." The largest sect in the western corner is Xiaoyao Sect, which is also Pingyang Valley's biggest rival. However, they did not mention why the two sects were at odds.
Five thousand miles to the north lies the infamous Demon Ridge, home to numerous powerful demons that are elusive and difficult to track. Three hundred years ago, Xiaoyao Sect fought a Great War against Demon Ridge, suffering heavy casualties. Although they survived, they have recently resurfaced like an indomitable force.
Hundreds of cultivation sects in the Lianyun Mountain Range primarily rely on Xiaoyao Sect and Pingyang Valley. Demon Ridge walks its own path but few dare to confront it. Naturally, Demon Ridge does not openly attack cultivation sects; instead, they often take advantage of situations behind the scenes.
Pingyang Valley covers an area of fifty miles and has over two thousand disciples, more than the combined total of Liuxiang Kingdom's Six Major Sects. In addition to internal and external disciples, there are also directly affiliated groups such as the Tiger Slayer Guard and Tiger's Den.
The Tiger Slayer Guard is directly managed by the Valley Master and consists entirely of cultivators above the Yuan Ying stage. Tiger's Den serves as Pingyang Valley's core combat group; most fighting tasks are handled by them, while the Tiger Slayer Guard intervenes only when necessary.
Tiger's Den has over four hundred members, all at least at the Golden Core stage. Xu Feng was assigned to Tiger's Den; given his strength, he could be considered one of the elite within the group.
Pingyang Valley does not have any Refining Qi disciples. Aside from those in core management positions, other disciples are recruited from outside and start at the Foundation Establishment Stage.
Zheguo has abundant Spiritual Energy and serves as a hub for cultivators; thus, there are countless cultivators in Zheguo. Refining Qi disciples are particularly common; if you throw a stone into a crowd, you are likely to hit someone who is a Refining Qi disciple.
Many sects skip Refining Qi training to save time and costs and directly recruit Foundation Disciples from outside. This approach helps quickly enhance sect strength but has drawbacks: these disciples often lack loyalty and may leave if they encounter any dissatisfaction.
Individuals like Xu Feng come to Pingyang Valley solely for information about Cai Shujun; asking him to sacrifice himself for Pingyang Valley is simply out of the question.
From Qingyang City to the Lianyun Mountain Range is less than thirty thousand miles. The Four-Winged Centipede took less than one day to fly into the Lianyun Mountain Range, resting at the entrance for a night before continuing deeper the next morning.
The Lianyun Mountain Range is a branch of the Beast Wasteland, characterized by towering peaks, giant trees, and exotic flowers. The landscape is filled with continuous mountains and dense forests, where one can occasionally see various sects of immortal cultivators.
"Look, ahead is the Xiaoyao Sect. Be cautious when passing through here," a cultivator from Pingyang Valley reminded the newcomers while pointing to a sect below.
The Xiaoyao Sect is situated in a location surrounded by high mountains, but many tall trees have been pruned to a certain height, revealing the sect's location. In the shadows of the trees, some disciples of the Xiaoyao Sect can be faintly seen practicing martial arts, but there are no Refining Qi disciples in sight.
Xu Feng's eyes widened in surprise, but he could not spot Cai Shujun anywhere.
After flying for more than two hours, they finally arrived at Pingyang Valley. From above, Pingyang Valley is located in the center of an enormous basin, with seven towering mountains resembling bamboo shoots standing upright within it. Each mountain reaches a height of over a hundred feet, and their arrangement is strikingly similar to that of the Big Dipper constellation.
The group flew into the training ground of Pingyang Valley, where the Four-Winged Centipede vanished into the forest, its whereabouts unknown.
On one side of the square, dozens of injured Foundation Disciples were huddled together, missing arms and legs, a heartbreaking sight. Upon entering Pingyang Valley and witnessing this scene, the ambitious newcomers felt a chill run down their spines; they all knew they were here to fight but certainly not to die.
Those fallen Foundation Disciples looked at Xu Feng and his companions with expressions of schadenfreude, as if they were watching a group of clueless idiots.
Soon after, several teams arrived and spoke briefly with the leading Yuan Ying Cultivator before separating Xu Feng's group and taking each newcomer to their designated halls.
The thirty or so Late Golden Core Cultivators led by Xu Feng were received by a deputy hall master from Tiger's Den named Yuan Yongyi. Tiger's Den has over four hundred members and twenty deputy hall masters, each managing more than twenty Late Golden Core Cultivators.
With over four hundred Late Stage Golden Core members, any random team could sweep through the Six Major Sects back in Liuxiang Kingdom. However, here in this place, even Late Stage Golden Core members are considered cannon fodder.
Yuan Yongyi led Xu Feng and his companions to a mountain peak that, while not one of the seven major peaks, was still magnificent and imposing with abundant Spiritual Energy. This was the headquarters of Tiger's Den, known as Qihu Peak.
The hall master of Tiger's Den is named Zhang Zhilin, who was out on business and not present in Pingyang Valley at that time. The twenty deputy hall masters were in Tiger's Den's training ground. After a brief discussion among them, Xu Feng and his group were divided among themselves.
Xu Feng was assigned to the team led by Yuan Yongyi, specifically in the Twenty Squad, numbered Ninth. In this team, Xu Feng was the only newcomer.
Yuan Yongyi arranged a training Cave for Xu Feng and introduced the Seven Team Members to him.
"Let's practice Formation Tactics together tomorrow morning. I'll call you then."
"Okay. Captain, when can I meet the other teammates?"
"You've already met them."
"Aren't there more than twenty people in each team?"
"Well, there used to be..."
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