Overlord of the Wilderness

The woman in the long green dress produced five tokens, made of a material that was neither gold nor jade. With a flick of her wrist, the five tokens shot out, landing perfectly in the hands of Zhaang Ye, Yang Guyuan, Du Hong, Zhou Lihuo, and Yin Chenyun.

The woman in the long green dress spoke, her voice unhurried. ”These five tokens are your credentials for entering the Sect. All five of you, keep your tokens safe. In half a year, someone will come to escort you.”

Zhaang Ye caught the Token. He noticed the other young masters staring at it with undisguised envy, like starving wolves eyeing a plump sheep.

The Thirteen Kingdoms’ Tournament for New Talents had now officially concluded. The various Hall Masters and young experts began to depart. Zhaang Ye, Wei Jingtian, and Fang Caiying followed the four Hall Masters of the Wei Kingdom True Hall and mounted a Flying Pseudo Spirit Beast for the return journey.

「In the Wei Kingdom True Hall.」

”Wolf-toothed Purple Flower Grass, Hundred-Year-Old Leaf Fruit, Centennial Jade Ginseng, Thousand-year-old Purple Leaf Grass, Yin Yang Harmony Grass, Celestial Fragrance Jade Flower, Jade Calamus, Long Li Sky-Catching Grass, fruit of the Jade Bamboo…” As he watched Zhaang Ye pull out the Medicinal Herbs, the Fourth Hall Master’s face lit up. He let out a hearty laugh. ”Excellent, excellent! Good lad, I never imagined you’d gather so many Medicinal Herbs in the Little World! Wonderful, just wonderful!”

The other three Hall Masters also beamed with delight. The Third Hall Master, who excelled at Alchemy, had already lunged forward and was clutching the Medicinal Herbs to his chest. ”Wonderful, wonderful!” he exclaimed. ”Zhaang Ye, with a harvest like this, I will personally refine two Innate Golden Pills to help you break through to the True Dao Realm!”

Zhaang Ye’s heart leaped with joy, and he quickly thanked the Hall Masters. The Innate Golden Pill was a legendary Elixir capable of tempering True Qi, expelling its impurities, and slowly converting a Martial Artist’s True Qi into Innate True Qi. With the help of two Innate Golden Pills, the time it would take him to reach the Half-step True Dao would be drastically reduced. ’The more of these, the better!’

The Great Hall Master chuckled. ”Zhaang Ye, you have six months remaining before you must depart for the Sect. During this time, you are free to browse the entire library of our Wei Kingdom True Hall. If you have any questions about your Cultivation, you may also consult us at any time. We hope that you will be able to raise your Cultivation level even higher in these next six months.”

Zhaang Ye nodded slowly.

The Fourth Hall Master then added, ”Zhaang Ye, your current strength is comparable to that of a Half-Step True Dao Expert, which makes me very proud. However, outside the Land of Divine Abandonment, masters are as common as clouds, and the young talents hoping to enter the Sect are as numerous as the stars. You must distinguish yourself from all of them if you hope to earn the Sect’s attention.”

”In the six months you have left, you must consolidate your Cultivation and strive to achieve a good result in the Green Cloud Sect’s entrance tournament.”

Zhaang Ye was taken aback. ”A Sect entrance tournament? Does every disciple who enters the Sect have to participate in this competition?”

The Fourth Hall Master nodded. ”Exactly. The Green Cloud Sect is one of the greatest Sects in this vast region, and countless young masters wish to join. Upon arrival, all prospective disciples must undergo a brutal competition. Those who emerge victorious will be highly valued by the Sect. On the other hand, those who suffer repeated defeats will lose their eligibility to join entirely.”

Zhaang Ye clenched his fists and said with confidence, ”Don’t worry, Master. If there’s one thing I’m not afraid of, it’s a fight.”

”Heh heh heh!” Seeing Zhaang Ye’s confidence, all four Hall Masters chuckled.

The Fourth Hall Master chuckled. ”Zhaang Ye, do you know the rules of the Green Cloud Sect’s entrance tournament? Do you have any idea how many young masters take part in it?”

Zhaang Ye shook his head slightly.

The Fourth Hall Master’s expression grew serious. ”Every twenty years, the Green Cloud Sect opens its gates to recruit a new batch of disciples. This means the entrance tournament is also held only once every twenty years.”

”Everyone who qualifies for the tournament is a young genius who has passed through rigorous selection trials in their home regions. The Green Cloud Sect’s sphere of influence is immense, so the number of geniuses under its purview is as vast as the starry sky. In the last tournament, for instance, there were over three thousand participants…”

Zhaang Ye was visibly moved. ”Over three thousand… That’s a huge number. What level of strength do they typically possess?”

The Fourth Hall Master spoke slowly, ”Those three thousand geniuses are the ones who fought their way to the top from a pool of millions of young masters. The very weakest among them are at the Late-stage Martial Arts Ninth Layer. The strongest have even cultivated their Innate True Qi to eighty percent, with combat strength not much weaker than that of a True Dao Expert…”

Zhaang Ye couldn’t help but draw in a sharp breath. After a Martial Artist reached the Peak of Martial Arts Ninth Layer, they would begin to slowly convert their body’s True Qi into Innate True Qi. Once their Innate True Qi reached fifty percent, they were considered a Half-Step True Dao Expert.

Half-Step True Dao Experts also varied in strength. Generally speaking, the more Innate True Qi they possessed, the more powerful they were. Of the two Envoys from the Sect, Shi Shuanglong’s Innate True Qi had reached sixty percent, and even the formidable Yang Guyuan had been unable to withstand a single one of his attacks. As for the woman in the long green dress, her Innate True Qi was at seventy percent, making her far stronger than Shi Shuanglong.

After cultivating his Dragon Elephant Skill to the Late Stage of the Sixth Level, Zhaang Ye was confident he could defeat Shi Shuanglong. But when it came to facing the woman in the long green dress, he wasn’t sure of his chances at all.

’The woman in green was already that powerful with only seventy percent Innate True Qi. A young genius with eighty percent would be several times stronger than her. Even with my Dragon Elephant Skill at the Late Stage of the Sixth Level, I wouldn’t stand a chance!’

At that moment, Zhaang Ye finally understood the meaning of the saying: there is always a higher mountain, and a person better than the last.

The Fourth Hall Master continued, ”The Green Cloud Sect selects its disciples entirely based on their performance in the tournament. The top ten can enter the Inner Sect directly and become Inner Sect Disciples. Those ranked eleventh to fiftieth will become Official Disciples of the Outer Sect.”

”Those from fifty-first to one hundredth will become probationary Outer Disciples. And those ranked from one hundred and first to three hundredth will become servant disciples, forced to await the next selection.”

Zhaang Ye asked in surprise, ”Servant disciples? All the contestants are geniuses who fought their way to the top of their respective powers. Why would they be willing to become mere servant disciples?”

The Fourth Hall Master chuckled. ”As one of the greatest powers in this vast region, the Cultivation Resources the Green Cloud Sect possesses are simply unimaginable. By joining the Green Cloud Sect, even as a servant disciple, one can learn a great deal and greatly accelerate their Cultivation speed. That’s why so many people would fight for the chance to become one.”

Zhaang Ye felt a pang of yearning. ”If even servant disciples can learn so much, then Outer Sect Disciples and Inner Sect Disciples must have access to far more.”

The Fourth Hall Master nodded slightly. ”Precisely. Outer Sect Disciples can undertake various Sect missions and enjoy a wide range of benefits. Even if they are stationed outside the Sect, they become an Overlord in their own right, presiding over their own sphere of influence…”

At this, the Fourth Hall Master’s tone became serious. ”Zhaang Ye, although you didn’t kill Gu Yunsong during the tournament, he has grown suspicious of you and will certainly not let the matter drop. You must work hard to improve your strength and strive to become an Outer Sect Disciple. That way, not even the Fourth Elder will dare to move against you rashly.”

A sense of danger washed over Zhaang Ye at the mention of the Fourth Elder. He nodded slowly. ”Rest assured. With my current combat strength, becoming an Outer Sect Disciple shouldn’t be too difficult.”

The Fourth Hall Master said, pleased, ”Confidence is good. Your strength is improving rapidly. I hope you will seize these next six months to consolidate your Cultivation and strive to place within the top one hundred in the Green Cloud Sect’s entrance tournament, securing your spot as an Outer Sect Disciple.”

Zhaang Ye nodded slightly and turned to leave.

Watching Zhaang Ye’s departing figure, the Fourth Hall Master suddenly let out a soft sigh. ”What do you all think? Can he really place in the top one hundred at the Sect’s entrance tournament?”

The Third Hall Master mulled it over for a moment before replying, ”I’m afraid that will be incredibly difficult. Outside the Land of Divine Abandonment, the Heaven and Earth Essence Qi is exceptionally dense, and there are far too many geniuses. While Zhaang Ye’s combat strength is impressive, I fear it’s not yet enough for him to become an Outer Sect Disciple.”

The Second Hall Master nodded in agreement. ”In the last thousand years, not a single genius from the Land of Divine Abandonment has managed to place in the top one hundred. Although Zhaang Ye is powerful, I feel it will be extremely difficult for him to break into the top one hundred. His rank in this tournament will likely be somewhere around two hundredth place.”

The Great Hall Master’s Cultivation was the most profound, and his insight the sharpest. After hearing the judgments of the other two Hall Masters, he chuckled. ”I, on the other hand, feel that Zhaang Ye will most certainly place in the top one hundred.”

The Second, Third, and Fourth Hall Masters all asked in unison, ”And why do you say that?”

The Great Hall Master chuckled, then his expression turned serious. ”The reason is simple: fortune. That boy, Zhaang Ye, has immense fortune, and his Comprehension is also outstanding. It is precisely because of this great fortune and Comprehension that he is always able to advance his Cultivation so rapidly, leaving his peers far behind. There are still six months until the Sect’s entrance tournament. I dare say that in this time, Zhaang Ye will definitely make another breakthrough and become even more formidable.”

The Second, Third, and Fourth Hall Masters all shook their heads and chuckled in disbelief. The Fourth Hall Master laughed. ”Great Hall Master, Zhaang Ye’s strength has already had several consecutive breakthroughs. It’s impossible for him to improve again in such a short period, unless he were to learn some heaven-defying Cultivation Technique. And while his Comprehension is good, he’s not going to invent some heaven-defying technique out of thin air. Therefore, his strength definitely can’t improve so quickly again.”

The Third Hall Master nodded. ”Indeed. Once a Martial Artist reaches the Martial Arts Ninth Layer, every single Small Tier of improvement is incredibly difficult. It is absolutely impossible for Zhaang Ye to improve again in such a short time.”

The Second Hall Master nodded in agreement.

The Great Hall Master remained completely unmoved, simply chuckling. ”Then we shall wait and see.”(To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian.com to vote with Recommendation Tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)