A few days later, Su You and his group finally left the Great Wilderness Mountains behind.
Ahead of them lay rolling peaks, a picturesque landscape of lush greenery, blooming flowers, and soaring orioles, where mountains and waters intertwined into a breathtaking view.
The Wuyou Sect possessed eight main peaks in total. Seven of these were named after the seven emotions—Joy, Anger, Worry, Thought, Grief, Fear, and Surprise. The tallest peak of all was Wangqing Peak, belonging to the Wuyou Sect.
Naturally, a sect of such immense scale could not rely on a single heritage. Within the Wuyou Sect stood eighteen secondary peaks practicing various other cultivation arts, while the seven main peaks each cultivated a distinct method, each with its own merits. Their overall strengths were roughly equal, with only Wangqing Peak—dedicated solely to the Forgetting Emotions Heart Method—possessing the greatest overall strength. Gaining entry to this peak to receive its heritage was exceptionally difficult; only the most outstanding disciples of the seven main peaks were qualified to enter Wangqing Peak.
The Forgetting Emotions Heart Method achieved Dao through the purging of emotions. Rumored to sever the seven emotions and six desires upon reaching advanced stages, leaving one free of cravings and desires and devoted entirely to immortality, it allowed for terrifyingly rapid progress. It was an extremely profound supreme art, yet notoriously difficult to master.
Everyone possessed seven emotions and six desires, which were difficult to sever, yet countless people still yearned for this heart method, harboring delusions of transcending the mortal world and ascending to immortality.
Numerous spiritual peaks towered near the main peaks, inhabited by disciples. In reality, the entire thousand-li radius belonged to the Wuyou Sect, making it vast indeed.
Su You and Su Qian simply found a patch of mountain forest to settle in right at the outer boundary of this domain. The four Wuyou Sect disciples had returned to the sect in advance. They had originally set out to harvest Worry-Free Grass, but time was pressing, and they needed to prepare for the grand opening ceremony. Besides, they had already secured a stalk of Worry-Free Grass, which was of immense value and more than enough to help them prepare adequately.
The grand opening ceremony would take place at the beginning of next month, which meant there were actually less than ten days left. Su You could be said to have arrived at just the right time, catching the Wuyou Sect's once-every-five-years disciple recruitment drive.
As the foundation upon which the sect was established, disciple recruitment was of paramount importance and naturally far from simple. Su You had originally thought it would just be a straightforward measurement of personal aptitude and age—testing things like raw strength and speed in the most direct and brutal way possible. Instead, the Wuyou Sect’s recruitment method was "breaking barriers."
Once the grand opening ceremony began, the various protective restrictions within this thousand-li radius would be mostly lifted, leaving behind only a few special ones. Young cultivators rushing in from all directions would then make their way toward the Wuyou Sect’s main peaks from every possible route, relying entirely on their own strength and means to see who could reach the interior of the main peak's barrier first.
And it was within the barrier of the main peak that the true opening ceremony would take place.
In other words, everyone had to travel a distance of nearly a thousand li, shattering the residual restrictions left along the path, crossing mountains and rivers to charge toward the main peak. The shorter the time taken, the more formidable one was considered.
Fortunately, this region was completely different from the Great Wilderness Mountains. Although many fierce beasts roamed about, there were definitely no terrifying existences of monstrous strength. The main difficulty lay in those obstructing restrictions.
This trial could be considered difficult or simple depending on the perspective. Delicate "flowers" who had never experienced bloodshed and had only grown up indoors would naturally face endless danger all the way. To be honest, people died in every trial. But for someone like Su You, who knocked about the mountain forests day in and day out... it was as easy as eating and drinking.
Most of those who came here wishing to enter the sect were at the Fate-Opening Realm, with only a tiny fraction having reached the Sea-Breaking Realm. After all, when seeking help from a Daoist practitioner to open one's Destiny Plate, naturally the stronger the better; hence, most people chose to enter a powerful sect first and then seek a master to open it.
Cultivators at the Fate-Opening Realm could not fly and could only traverse mountains and ridges, making the journey painstakingly difficult. Yet even Sea-Breaking Realm cultivators were restricted from flying into the sky and had to proceed on foot just like everyone else—after all, the skies over this region were perfectly safe, and simply flying straight in would be cheating.
Walking a thousand li on foot would consume a vast amount of time even for a Sea-Breaking Realm cultivator, not to mention having to scale mountains, cross ridges, and brave obstructing restrictions. Yet this trial imposed a strict deadline of ten days. If any cultivator failed to enter the main peak's territory within ten days, then—regrettably—they could turn around and leave.
See you in five years, if destined.
A sect with a profound heritage like the Wuyou Sect was simply not something ordinary people without real strength could enter.
As for Su Qian—a little girl who had just turned ten and had only practiced cultivation for a short time—under normal circumstances, she would basically have been told to come back in five years. However, Su You was not too worried about this. Having spent a month living in close quarters with each other in the Great Wilderness Mountains, they had come to understand each other quite well. Both possessed the forest-stalking skills of experienced veterans.
Su You was only worried about those restrictions, fearing the difficulty might be too high for Su Qian's meager cultivation to overcome.
The trial did not explicitly forbid traveling in groups, but it restricted the use of spiritual artifacts and magical treasures, and prohibited mutual assistance. Offering help to one another would result in disqualification from entering the sect, as the core purpose of the trial was to test individual aptitude.
As for how they were monitored, it was said that the Wuyou Sect had long since left "Spirit Eyes" in various hidden locations throughout the mountain forests. These were crystal-like spiritual artifacts capable of real-time transmission, allowing the sect elders to monitor the situation across all directions at any time.
While these Spirit Eyes could not possibly blanket the entire forest and leave no blind spots, how could one be certain there wasn't a Spirit Eye nearby while offering a helping hand?
If spotted, it was game over.
...
Finally, the first of May arrived as scheduled.
Rumble—
In an instant, the earth across this thousand-li radius began to rumble. The numerous powerful restrictions used to protect the sect were temporarily suppressed, leaving behind only a few special restrictions of lesser might.
This was the signal that the trial had begun. No one announced it, nor was any announcement needed; the Wuyou Sect's recruitment method had been common knowledge for many years.
Then, as the tremors of the earth subsided, countless figures leaped out from the mountain forests along the thousand-li boundary, charging toward the several main peaks towering into the firmament!
"Brother Su You, we're off!" Su Qian said with curved brows and a crisp voice, looking very happy.
"Let's go, go, go!" Su You declared with high spirits, shouting to pump himself up.
Their purpose in this trip was to find Qianqian's father.
And Qianqian's father was right here in the Wuyou Sect!
Even if Su Qian didn't speak of the past, Su You had already guessed a little. The Wuyou Sect, Wangqing Peak—surely, if not for the Forgetting Emotions Heart Method's ability to make people forget the seven emotions and six desires and sever emotional bonds, Su Qian's father would never have been willing to leave his wife and never come to see such an adorable and touching daughter.
Could it be... that this was just your excuse for breaking up?
Still, Su You couldn't be bothered to dwell too much on those rights and wrongs. He had only one goal now: to accompany Su Qian into the Wuyou Sect and find her biological father.
Whatever Su Qian decided to do when the time came, Su You would support her.
Perhaps the most extravagant wish in Su Qian's heart was simply to catch a distant glimpse of her father...
Pity that Su Qian didn't even know what her father looked like, making this search no easy task.
As for the legendary Forgetting Emotions Heart Method, Su You didn't care much for it. The Hualing Life and Death Dao was a supreme immortal art and Xixi's complete heritage; it was definitely no worse than that technique. Besides, wanting someone to forget their seven emotions and six desires in order to cultivate immortality... Su You would rather die than do it!
Target: Wangqing Peak!
Leading Su Qian, Su You charged directly into the mountain forest ahead.
Before long, they encountered numerous fierce beasts. The danger level of this trial ground was actually no less than that of the Great Wilderness Mountains; its primary safety lay in the absence of those "out-of-bounds" terrifying existences.
Thus, Su You once again gave full play to the essence of the "cowering" path, dodging and evading all the way, and running for his life whenever he saw a fierce beast! Anyway, as long as they passed the trial and reached the vicinity of the main peak, there were no special requirements. Su You had never been fond of killing and fighting!
Before long, Su You and Su Qian finally arrived before the first restriction.
Before them lay a nearly transparent, thin curtain of light, upon which mysterious patterns faintly surfaced. This was the Wuyou Sect's method for testing disciples. If someone were truly lucky enough—or had mastered the essence of the "cowering" path so thoroughly that they encountered no danger all the way and entered the main peak unimpeded—it would be unfair to others. Therefore, this restriction served as the first checkpoint, embodying the principle of equality for all living beings.
Although Su You had never seen this kind of seemingly ordinary restriction, he didn't take it seriously either. He patted Su Qian's little head, stepped forward boldly, and said with composure, "Allow me to make a fool of myself!"
With a single dash, Su You intended to rely on his physical body to hard-carry and directly smash through the restriction.
Thud!
With a booming sound, Su You let out a miserable shriek and was sent flying backward: "Ah—!"
"Pfft..." Su Qian couldn't help but laugh, covering her small mouth as she snickered. It was the first time she had ever seen Su You make a fool of himself, and she found it immensely amusing.
What the hell?
Grieving and indignant, Su You climbed back up. With his strength, how could he possibly fail to clear even the first restriction!
"Brother Su You, let me try," Su Qian said in a soft, sweet voice. She then walked up to the light curtain, placed her hand upon it to sense it slightly, and took a tentative step forward, passing through the light curtain with utmost ease.
Su You's eyes widened in utter bewilderment. Feeling skeptical, he walked over and slowly approached the light curtain... and passed right through it with equal ease.
As it turned out, this was merely the simplest of restrictions designed to test bone age. Anyone under the age of twenty was permitted to enter. Of course, those who launched violent attacks against the restriction like Su You would be bounced right back by an equivalent force.
Su You's expression instantly darkened. His complete confidence had suffered a devastating Waterloo; it was thoroughly humiliating, especially since he had made a fool of himself in front of Qianqian.
So embarrassing!
Next time, I must observe first...
Feeling deeply aggrieved, Su You looked at the smiling Su Qian, then turned back to look at the light curtain. No, this matter could not be allowed to get out!
Su You's gaze locked onto Su Qian with a faint chill. Truly, silencing her was the only option—he really had to silence her!
Su Qian couldn't help shuddering, looking at Su You with timid eyes: "Brother Su You..."
Forget it, she was too cute; he couldn't bring himself to do it!
Indignantly, Su You reached out and kneaded Su Qian's little face, molding those smooth, fair cheeks into various shapes, and muttered, "Qianqian, you saw nothing! Understand?"
"Mmph... I... kno...w..."