King of Ten Thousand Years

”Steward, a little help counting these!”

Luo Tian shouted.

”Yes, yes!”

The steward finally snapped back to his senses, stammering his agreement.

”So many! Are those really Demon Cores?”

”That’s way too many! How did he do it?”

”You don’t even need to count. Just one look and you know Xiao Feng lost the bet!”

The once-quiet surroundings instantly erupted.

Everyone felt slapped in the face by this turn of events.

Even Xiao Feng had lost to Luo Tian.

”That many?”

The Eighth Prince blurted out.

He had expected Luo Tian’s Demon Core count to be high, since he had killed so many geniuses from the Chilong Dynasty.

But this was just too much!

Yuwen Xuan and Ke Yuexuan stared at Luo Tian as if he were a monster.

’No wonder he sold me four Demon Cores so cheaply...’

Yuwen Xuan’s face was numb with shock.

For Luo Tian, four Demon Cores were a trivial amount.

All eyes were on him, and even the Elders looked over in surprise.

”Two hundred sixty-one Demon Cores!”

Finally, the steward finished counting.

The crowd was stunned once again by the result.

Luo Tian had over a hundred more Demon Cores than Xiao Feng. The outcome was no longer in doubt.

”Impossible! He must have cheated!”

Xiao Feng suddenly roared, his emotions running high.

He had been certain of victory, already waiting for the Dragon Blood Stone to be handed to him.

But reality had dealt him a harsh slap in the face.

Xiao Feng could accept defeat, but he couldn’t tolerate being so utterly crushed.

”I have inspected them carefully. These Demon Cores were all harvested within the last three days. There are absolutely no issues,”

the steward said coldly.

Xiao Feng questioning Luo Tian’s integrity was the same as questioning his own.

With those words, Luo Tian’s results were set in stone.

Two hundred sixty-one Demon Cores!

”Oh! I forgot, there’s one more!”

A corner of Luo Tian’s mouth curled up. Just like Xiao Feng had done earlier, he was revealing his Demon Cores in two batches.

This time, Luo Tian only took out a single Demon Core, but it was the most valuable one in the entire arena.

Its appearance made the expressions of the three great geniuses turn incredibly ugly.

It was the Demon Core of the Giant Wolf Spider!

”This Demon Core is of unusual value, equivalent to twelve Low Tier Spirit Level Demon Cores!”

”Therefore, Luo Tian’s final tally is two hundred and seventy-three Demon Cores!”

the steward announced once again.

In reality,

on the second day of the hunting assessment, Luo Tian only had sixty or seventy Demon Cores.

Afterward, he killed three of the Eighth Prince’s trusted aides, instantly gaining sixty more Demon Cores, and then went on to hunt down many other geniuses from the Chilong Dynasty.

On the third day,

when faced with the Eighth Prince and his group’s attempt to encircle and kill him, Luo Tian took the initiative and attacked.

Several geniuses ranked in the top twenty of the Human List, including Xia Yun who was ranked fifth, died at his hands.

That was how Luo Tian’s Demon Core count reached such an astonishing number.

So, in a way, he had the geniuses of the Chilong Dynasty to thank for it all!

”This kid is full of surprises!”

the Big Fat Elder exclaimed in shock.

”Indeed. How did he manage to get so many Demon Cores?”

The dignified and elegant Female Elder studied Luo Tian carefully, her beautiful eyes filled with curiosity.

Luo Tian’s results didn’t just slap the faces of the other geniuses in the assessment; they also slapped the faces of the Elders.

At the beginning of the assessment,

the Three Great Elders had unanimously agreed that Luo Tian would definitely have to hide cautiously during the second test, that he would struggle to accomplish anything, and might even end up dying.

But in the end, Luo Tian’s performance towered over everyone else’s!

Soon, everyone’s results were announced.

”The Yunxiao Sect assessment is now over!”

”Number of candidates who passed... fifty-one!”

the gray-haired old man announced the result.

”Brother Fang, did I hear that right? Only fifty-one people passed?”

The Big Fat Elder looked stunned.

That was far too few.

In the past, the Yunxiao Sect took in over eighty new disciples each year, with the lowest number never dropping below seventy.

But this year, there were so few.

”You heard correctly...”

The gray-haired old man, Fang Qi, had a somber look in his eyes.

It was true that only fifty-one had passed this time, and in terms of quality, they were far inferior to previous years.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call this the worst recruitment assessment the Yunxiao Sect had seen in a hundred years.

This made the three Elders’ expressions turn grim.

The future of the Sect depended on these new seedlings.

And this was not a good omen.

’We have to find out why.’

”Why were there so many deaths in the second test? What happened during the assessment?”

Elder Fang Qi asked in a deep voice, an invisible pressure blanketing the entire arena.

The area instantly fell silent.

”Elder, toward the end of the assessment, there was a Giant Wolf Spider with a cultivation at the Spirit Sea Realm Sixth Layer that killed many geniuses...”

The news of this incident spread completely, and the Elders even managed to ask about some of the finer details.

”This boy actually snatched the spoils from right under the noses of the three great geniuses!”

The Big Fat Elder gave Luo Tian a deep look.

Luo Tian’s performance in the second test was truly beyond his expectations.

”The Giant Wolf Spider alone couldn’t have caused so many casualties. What else happened?”

Fang Qi continued his questioning.

As for what other major event had occurred besides the Giant Wolf Spider... many people hemmed and hawed, not daring to speak, their gazes all turning to the Eighth Prince.

The Eighth Prince was taken aback. ’Why are you all looking at me?’

But when Elder Fang Qi’s gaze also fell upon him, the Eighth Prince had no choice but to confess everything: ”There was also the matter of Luo Tian... slaughtering the geniuses of my Chilong Dynasty...”

As the Eighth Prince of the Chilong Dynasty, admitting this was an utter humiliation.

The Three Great Elders were all stunned.

The conflict between Luo Tian and the Chilong Dynasty had been clear since the first test.

’Logically, in the second test, it should have been the Chilong Dynasty hunting down Luo Tian! How did it turn into Luo Tian hunting the geniuses of the Chilong Dynasty?’

”So you’re telling me... that’s why this kid has so many Demon Cores? Don’t tell me he got them all from killing the Chilong Dynasty’s geniuses?”

the Big Fat Elder said.

”It seems that might actually be the case!”

The dignified Female Elder glanced around. Of the many geniuses from the Chilong Dynasty who had participated in the assessment, only a dozen or so remained.

’It’s hard to imagine just how many people Luo Tian had to kill to accumulate that many Demon Cores.’

Normally, even if someone resorted to robbery, they wouldn’t go so overboard.

After all, every genius present had a significant background. It was clearly unwise to offend too many major powers.

But what Luo Tian had done couldn’t be described as merely ”overboard”—it was utterly insane!

”So you’re the one who slaughtered the Chilong Dynasty’s geniuses, and you’re also the one who lured the Giant Wolf Spider, causing heavy casualties?”

Elder Fang Qi looked at Luo Tian, somewhat speechless.

’Remember, Luo Tian also caused a large number of deaths in the first test.’

’Is this kid a walking disaster?’

”Elder, I’m innocent!”

Luo Tian said with righteous conviction.

’He was, in fact, innocent. But when the death toll reached a certain point, no explanation would suffice.’

Luo Tian had already left the Three Great Elders with the impression of being ”utterly insane” and a ”walking disaster.”

”Alright. From this moment on, you are all members of the Yunxiao Sect!”

Fang Qi announced loudly.

”Of course, you are merely Lower Sect Disciples of the Yunxiao Sect! Only by becoming an Upper Sect Disciple will you have truly entered the inner circle of the Yunxiao Sect. I look forward to seeing you in the Upper Sect,”

the Big Fat Elder added.

With that, the three Elders stepped into the air and departed first.

”Luo Tian, I, Xiao, will one day repay the humiliation of this day!”

Xiao Feng said, his face dark as he spoke each word with deliberate force.

’The road ahead is long. I will definitely make Luo Tian regret this.’

”Xiao Feng, have you forgotten something? What about the four thousand Spiritual Essence Coins? Are you trying to go back on your word?”

Luo Tian demanded payment, his face devoid of expression.

”...”

Xiao Feng’s imposing aura instantly vanished.

”I only have sixteen hundred Spiritual Essence Coins on me. I’ll definitely pay back the rest within three months!”

Xiao Feng said, sounding rather helpless.

He had never even considered that he might lose, so he had forgotten all about it.

Four thousand Spiritual Essence Coins!

’My heart is bleeding!’

Afterward,

a few stewards led the fifty-one new disciples to the foot of the Yunxiao Sect’s mountain.

The three giant peaks before them were the Yunxiao Sect.

The layer of clouds in the middle served as the dividing line; below was the Lower Sect, and the unseen part above was the Upper Sect.

Soon, the group entered the Yunxiao Sect’s Lower Sect.

All around them were magnificent palaces and halls, ancient and weathered pagodas, and a vast Martial Arts Arena. A grand and majestic aura washed over them.

Moreover, the Spiritual Qi here was extremely dense, as it was built at the source of the Celestial Extreme Mountain Range.

”Even the residences of the Golden Students at the Sun Chasing Holy Mansion can’t compare to one-fifth of this place!”

Luo Tian exclaimed in amazement.

And this was only the Lower Sect. The Upper Sect was surely another world entirely.

”All of you, follow me!”

A steward led the group to a majestic hall for registration.

”Steward Li, are these this year’s new disciples? There are so few of them?”

a steward working there asked.

”Yes, there were some... unexpected circumstances this year.”

Steward Li glanced at Luo Tian but didn’t elaborate.

Next, everyone registered one by one. Anyone with more than twenty Demon Cores had the excess converted into Sect Contribution Points.

Within the Sect, Contribution Points were extremely sought-after, as using the Sect’s many facilities required them.

However, the ways to obtain Contribution Points were few.

Therefore, this assessment was essentially a bonus for the new disciples, though only the stronger ones could obtain it.

Soon, it was Luo Tian’s turn.

The steward in charge of registration recorded Luo Tian’s information and then handed him a white Token bearing the Yunxiao Sect’s emblem.

Next, the steward recorded Luo Tian’s relevant information and his Contribution Points onto the Token.

”What? Ten thousand and sixty Contribution Points?”

The steward was flabbergasted and turned to Steward Li. ”Is this a mistake?”

...

Luo Tian received his Token and robes, then was led to the living quarters for Lower Sect Disciples.

All Lower Sect Disciples had their own private pavilion.

In the surroundings, many older disciples were sizing up the new batch.

Luo Tian noticed that almost all of these older disciples had cultivation levels around the Fourth or Fifth Layer of the Spirit Sea Realm. He even sensed the aura of someone at the Spirit Sea Realm Sixth Layer.

And this was just the Lower Sect!

”These are the new disciples?”

”Why are there so few of them? And the quality isn’t great either. There’s even someone at the Peak of Spirit Sea Realm First Layer?”

”Since when could someone at the Spirit Sea Realm First Layer get into the Yunxiao Sect?”

Several older disciples shot disdainful and contemptuous looks at Luo Tian.