MJWCATFPITWOC Chapter 7
by VolareAfter the Hanji Mountain incident, Shen Yucheng and Li Juemu parted ways, each returning to their respective sects.
“Beauty, see you next time.” Li Juemu waved with a smile, leaving Shen Yucheng baffled. He only understood when he saw Li Juemu at the Promotion Examination a few weeks later.
During the time after returning to the Futian Sect, Shen Yucheng hadn’t been idle, focusing solely on cultivation. The changes at Hanji Mountain required time for him to process the spiritual power and techniques within him.
During this period, he noticed his spiritual power no longer increasing. After probing his mind, he discovered the giant beast in the subspace was asleep. Previously, he might not have understood, but now he knew the giant beast was borrowing his spiritual power to help it break through faster, a mutually beneficial contract.
The benefit was that the Puppet Master didn’t need to travel around to improve the beast’s cultivation; the drawback was that those with weak spiritual power could hardly use any extra spiritual power during this period.
Generally, people wouldn’t casually form contracts with Demon Beasts; the more powerful the beast, the greater the spiritual power required. However, Shen Yucheng, with his spiritual physique, didn’t have this worry.
He had a pleasant few weeks. The only downside was that Mo Yifeng had become strange. Since they returned, he was always clinging to him, especially during cultivation, wishing he could stick to him all the time.
Shen Yucheng knew this was because Mo Yifeng, a cultivation fanatic, was intensely interested in the new abilities he had gained at Hanji Mountain. Plus, due to the contract’s restrictions, the two couldn’t separate by more than a hundred meters, forcing them to share a room.
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Time flew by, and the day of the Promotion Examination arrived.
The Lingfeng Sect’s barrier was specially lowered, opening the gates for the disciples coming to take the exam.
At dawn, the Drill Ground was already packed, filled with incessant noise. Cultivators in magnificent Daoist robes, adorned with glittering magical treasures, engaged in seemingly friendly chatter, but secretly probed each other’s skills, silently testing this year’s candidates’ levels.
By late morning, disciples from various aristocratic families had mostly arrived, standing in the center of the Drill Ground. One person suddenly said, “By the way, that Shen Yucheng the Cheng Family young master mentioned, is he here?”
The mention reminded people of the bounty Cheng Mufei had distributed throughout the cultivation world. The reward was generous, so most wanted to keep an eye out, hoping to make a quick buck.
“Shen Yucheng probably chickened out at the last minute,” an arrogant voice rang out. Cheng Mufei, dressed in emerald green, leisurely walked to the spectator seats, fanning himself with a gold-edged fan. He was here today to see Shen Yucheng make a fool of himself.
He looked with interest at the elder’s seats floating above. Cheng Mufei’s lips curved into a smile, feigning nonchalance as he said, “Regardless of whether he ran away, is a useless person without spiritual power really making everyone wait this long?”
“Such a grand display.” Cheng Mufei observed the elders’ and disciples’ faces growing colder, laughing inwardly, planning to make Shen Yucheng a target of public criticism.
At that moment, a cultivator in a yellow Daoist robe stood up and said, “Young Master Cheng, there’s no need to speak so harshly.”
Cheng Mufei looked over, scoffing, “Young Master Li, what do you mean by that?”
The Promotion Examination stipulated that only cultivators below the Golden Core stage could participate. Disciples from various sects would be brought to the examination grounds by seniors with Golden Core or higher cultivation levels.
This year, Li Juemu’s sect had appointed him to complete this task.
From the moment he sat in the spectator seats and heard Cheng Mufei’s words, he wanted to rush up and punch him.
The Li Family’s status was on par with the Cheng Family, but he refrained from acting to preserve his family’s reputation, not realizing the other party would become increasingly excessive.
Li Juemu calmly replied, “Young Master Cheng said a certain candidate is wasting everyone’s time by arriving late, but the Sect Leader hasn’t arrived yet, so the examination can’t begin. Is Young Master Cheng also saying the Sect Leader is wasting everyone’s time?”
Many people realized that as long as the Sect Leader arrived, the examination could begin, and there was no need to wait for late candidates.
Cheng Mufei’s face turned ashen. Just as he was about to retort, a stern voice echoed from afar, “What’s going on?”
The voice wasn’t loud, but its pressure filled the area. The elders quickly reassured him, saying it was just a minor squabble among the younger generation.
With the Sect Leader’s arrival, a youth walked slowly, wearing an ink-blue robe that accentuated his slender and upright figure. Many female cultivators and a few male cultivators were moved, whispering in amazement, “Senior Brother Fu is indeed handsome!”
“Why didn’t anyone tell me he’s hosting this year’s Promotion Examination! I would have dressed better if I had known.”
One male cultivator echoed, “Exactly! I would have stolen my mother’s wedding dress!”
“…”
The silence was deafening.
The youth had sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, a high nose bridge, and a perpetual smile on his lips, giving off an elusive feeling. He walked to the center, smiling slightly, “Welcome Sect Leader, elders, and disciples from various sects. I am Fu Lingxuan, the second disciple of the Futian Sect, and I will be hosting this Promotion Examination—”
Fu Lingxuan possessed an elegant and gentle demeanor, always kind and composed when facing others, like a perfect gentleman. “The examination will last for three days. This year, it will be in the form of a competition. The order of matches will be released shortly. Those who haven’t arrived yet should wait in the spectator seats until it’s their turn. That’s all.”
Someone participating for the first time exclaimed, “What? The explanation’s over?”
Others said, “You didn’t know? Examinations hosted by Fu Lingxuan are always like this. Fortunately, this year is a competition, so there’s not much to say. In the past, there was a year when it was a trial-type examination. He didn’t say anything, just told the candidates to get out of the maze as quickly as possible. As a result, everyone was screwed over by the traps and Demon Beasts inside.”
Fu Lingxuan stood on the stage, looking at the uneasy crowd, a hint of cunning hidden in his deep eyes, revealing his treacherous and scheming nature.
At this moment, someone shouted from directly above the Drill Ground, “Damn it, Mo Yifeng, let me down!”
“This is the air. Letting go now will hurt Junior Brother.”
“Would I be like this if it weren’t for you?”
As the words faded, a figure riding a sword landed in the center of the stage. The young cultivators exclaimed wildly again.
“Why!”
“What’s the day today? Senior Brother Mo, who never attends these occasions, has come too!”
Male cultivator: “Oh my god! I’m going to steal my sister’s wedding dress too!”
The Futian Sect’s genius disciples stood together on the stage, their combined beauty striking everyone.
“Talented and good-looking, what did God take away from them!”
The Sect Leader also said, “Yifeng, are you here to take the place of your junior brother this year?”
The Futian Sect Master was in seclusion, so many things were handled by the disciples. In previous years, the Sect Leader had repeatedly invited Fu Lingxuan to stand in for the Promotion Examination, but he was more suited to hosting, so he sought out Mo Yifeng, but had always been refused.
Mo Yifeng bowed, “This disciple is here today to cheer on my junior brother.”
His voice wasn’t too loud or too quiet, just enough for the entire Lingfeng Sect to hear.
Before everyone could react, Fu Lingxuan’s gentle voice rang out, “The junior brother Yifeng mentioned, why am I unaware of him?”
Instantly, the two great beauties locked eyes, invisible fangs and claws clashing in the air, as if to tear each other to pieces.
Shen Yucheng stood on the Drill Ground stage. Never had he been so nervous in front of a large crowd, not even when asked to demonstrate how to do the trash sorting.
Fu Lingxuan’s eyes swept over Shen Yucheng, his pupils shrinking. He had seen countless beauties in the world, but a man as beautiful as this was unique. He said with considerable interest, “Could this be my junior brother?”
Just as Shen Yucheng was about to deny it, Mo Yifeng seemed stimulated by something, turning to block Fu Lingxuan’s view, coldly saying, “He’s my junior brother.”
Fu Lingxuan chuckled, “Isn’t Yifeng’s junior brother also my junior brother?”
The rumors of the two having a bad relationship had spread far and wide. They weren’t that far apart in age and had been difficult to deal with since they were young.
Everyone on the field expressed intense curiosity towards Shen Yucheng, and were shocked by his extraordinary appearance.
“With that appearance, he can already rank among the top beauties in the cultivation world.”
Some of the Futian Sect disciples’ pursuers were dissatisfied with Shen Yucheng’s appearance.
“Looking like that, I think you’ve come to the wrong place. Feng Yao Building is next door.”
Feng Yao Building was the largest brothel in the cultivation world, these words specifically intended to humiliate Shen Yucheng.
The next moment, a silver sword flew over, Mo Yifeng’s natal sword. It was about to strike down, but Shen Yucheng placed his hand on Mo Yifeng’s shoulder, signaling him to stop.
Fu Lingxuan raised an eyebrow. Over the years, besides their Master, he hadn’t seen anyone else able to stop Mo Yifeng.
.
The farce passed just like that. It was rumored that the disciple had sweated a lot and wet his crotch.
Under everyone’s gaze, Shen Yucheng walked to the spectator seats. There were still over a hundred people before his turn. Speaking of which, this was a large-scale examination, with thousands of candidates.
Suddenly, a “Brother Shen” stopped him.
Li Juemu ran over, “Knew you guys would come.”
“But why were you late?” He didn’t think Brother Shen was that kind of person, and there had been a situation when they arrived earlier, so he asked out of curiosity.
Hearing this, Shen Yucheng glared fiercely at Mo Yifeng next to him. He had been cultivating properly last night, but he might have used too much spiritual power in a short time, making cultivation difficult.
Seeing this, Mo Yifeng grabbed Shen Yucheng’s hand without a word, smoothing his meridians.
It would have been fine if he hadn’t smoothed them, but smoothing them caused problems. His body, which was just a little tired, suddenly went weak in the legs.
Mo Yifeng deduced that the Dao Companion Contract caused the two’s spiritual powers to resonate, resulting in greater side effects during fusion.
Shen Yucheng was annoyed, thinking he would just sleep and feel better tomorrow, but things didn’t go as planned.
He had used all his strength this morning to push Mo Yifeng out of the room and change his pants himself, otherwise he would have lost to his pride today.
His legs had only improved slightly just now, but he still couldn’t run.
In the competition later, he would either stand still, or crawl and run.
Li Juemu mourned for him. Being unable to move freely in such a large competition was equivalent to defeat, and Shen Yucheng’s situation was even worse. Cheng Mufei’s bounty would only make people target him more.
Mo Yifeng smiled mysteriously.
Shen Yucheng couldn’t see it from that angle.
They found the best viewing spot in the entire venue, and as soon as they sat down, they heard people around them talking about them.
“Shen Yucheng looks more delicate than a woman. Is Cheng Mufei’s bounty even necessary? Watch, I’ll knock him down with one punch.”
His companion laughed, “Brother Cai, don’t say that. Maybe Shen Yucheng will get weak in the legs when he sees you.”
They laughed, suddenly feeling a chill down their backs. They looked back but saw no one else, so they started laughing again.
They wouldn’t have thought that half an hour later, the names of Brother Cai and Shen Yucheng would echo throughout the Drill Ground, and Shen Yucheng, who they thought was very “delicate,” would defeat him with one move.