Is It Wrong to Bully the Novice Village for System Rewards?

After Yin Qingyuan announced the age restriction, no one present left.

Those who could make it here couldn’t possibly be unaware of whether they met the age requirement. Falling Cloud Valley was secluded deep in the mountains, a long and arduous journey. If someone couldn’t even meet such a basic, hard requirement, they wouldn’t have idly traveled all this way to endure the elements for nothing.

Having come all this way, how could they be willing to leave without trying?

Seeing this, Yin Qingyuan wasted no more words. With a wave of his hand, two Falling Cloud Valley disciples behind him quickly carried over a wooden table. On it lay a ruler-sized piece of jade, completely transparent.

Seeing the Spirit Testing Stone on the table, Qi Yuan immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

The quality of the Spirit Testing Stone used by Falling Cloud Valley wasn’t high; it was a relatively basic method for testing spiritual roots. Using the 【Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing】 talent granted by the system would easily allow him to slip through.

If he encountered the kind of massive, top-grade Spirit Testing Stone used by the Supreme Mystery Sanctuary, that would be troublesome.

Of course, top-grade Spirit Testing Stones were extremely precious and rare; a small sect like Falling Cloud Valley couldn’t obtain one.

“Spiritual root aptitude is the foundation of the Great Dao. Without spiritual roots, no matter how great your abilities, you cannot set foot on the path of cultivation.”

“The first stage of the assessment is testing spiritual roots. Only those with spiritual root aptitude of Four Spiritual Roots or above may proceed to the next round.”

“Next, please form an orderly line. Place your hand on the Spirit Testing Stone in turn. The stone will automatically display the tester’s aptitude.”

Yin Qingyuan’s voice carried across the entire area, making everyone’s spirits lift.

Soon, a short and thin youth was the first to step up to the table, carefully placing his hand on the Spirit Testing Stone.

The next moment, faint five-colored light slowly appeared on the stone.

“There’s a reaction!”

The short, thin youth’s face was full of excitement as he eagerly turned to look at Yin Qingyuan.

“Five Spiritual Roots. Unqualified. Next.”

Yin Qingyuan’s expression remained impassive.

“Huh?”

Hearing this, the youth wilted like an eggplant bitten by frost, hanging his head dejectedly as he returned to his spot.

Then, one tester after another stepped forward nervously to receive their judgment.

“Gold-Earth-Fire Three Spiritual Roots. Aptitude is good. Pass.”

“You possess no spiritual roots. Unqualified.”

“You possess no spiritual roots. Unqualified.”

…….

The vast majority present were from ordinary mortal families. Apart from some rogue cultivators and young masters from wealthy clans like Wang Luchuan who had cultivators serving their families, others had no way of knowing beforehand if they had any aptitude.

Therefore, this stage was an exciting and tense lottery draw. Those whose spiritual roots met the requirements saw hope for the immortal path and were ecstatic. Those without spiritual roots or with useless roots were dejected and sadly eliminated. The atmosphere was tense to the extreme.

Soon, under everyone’s watchful eyes, Wang Luchuan strode forward spiritedly and placed his hand on the Spirit Testing Stone.

Immediately afterward, a cyan-blue light burst forth from the stone, noticeably several times brighter than that of the earlier Three Spiritual Roots cultivator.

Seeing this, Yin Qingyuan nodded in satisfaction and said with a smile:

“Wang Luchuan. Wood-Water Dual Spiritual Roots. Exceptional aptitude. Pass.”

“Hiss! It really is Dual Spiritual Roots!”

“Young Master Wang is mighty and domineering!”

“Young Master Wang is awesome!”

……

Amidst a wave of flattering applause, Wang Luchuan cast a provocative glance at Lin Zhen, who was standing dumbfounded not far away, before swaggering off with great satisfaction.

After Wang Luchuan, several more individuals whose spiritual roots met the requirements passed successively.

Qi Yuan walked calmly up to the front and unhurriedly placed his hand on the Spirit Testing Stone.

The next moment, a distinct four-colored light bloomed from the stone.

“Big Qi. Four Spiritual Roots. Pass.”

The entire process was utterly uneventful and unremarkable, just like his current appearance, which drew no attention. Only Bai Xirou specifically glanced at him, a trace of imperceptible pity flickering in her beautiful eyes.

Bai Xirou had a rather good impression of this “righteous” rogue cultivator. She had arrived late yesterday; if he hadn’t intervened in time, that youth she wanted to save would have died.

Although this man’s looks were somewhat plain, he was at least a kind-hearted person willing to help others—a breath of fresh air in this cultivation world where virtue was increasingly lost.

It was just a pity that Four Spiritual Roots aptitude destined one for a rough and difficult path on the Dao, forever barred from Foundation Building.

Noticing Bai Xirou’s gaze upon him, Qi Yuan nodded at her with a smile in return, while inwardly sighing with emotion.

Even though I’ve kept such a low profile and disguised myself so unattractively, I still manage to catch the attention of a beautiful female cultivator… This damn charm of mine truly can’t be hidden……

The original host inherently possessed Five Spiritual Roots—essentially useless roots. It was only after one system enhancement that they improved to Four Spiritual Roots level, just enough to pass Falling Cloud Valley’s spiritual root test.

Although simply revealing his true aptitude would shock everyone present and dazzle them instantly… one mustn’t forget his purpose here wasn’t to show off. His goal was to complete his mission without exposing his identity; naturally, he couldn’t stand out too much.

……

“Liu Yingying. Four Spiritual Roots. Pass.”

“Lin Zhen. Three Spiritual Roots. Pass.”

At this moment, when Yin Qingyuan announced Lin Zhen’s spiritual root aptitude, Qi Yuan was momentarily stunned.

Out of curiosity about this Child of Destiny yesterday, he had specifically taken advantage of Lin Zhen’s inattention to secretly probe his spiritual root aptitude using an arcane method.

But last time’s result was clearly Four Spiritual Roots… How had it become Three Spiritual Roots overnight?

As if thinking of something, he looked thoughtfully at Lin Zhen’s right hand and noticed that the mysterious ring of unknown origin had disappeared without a trace at some point—as if it had never existed at all.

Truly worthy of being a Child of Destiny… Even I misjudged him earlier! How terrifying!

After everyone completed the first stage, less than thirty percent qualified to remain for the next round—a frightening elimination rate.

Of course, this result was already quite satisfactory for Falling Cloud Valley. The entrance test was held every three years; last time, those with qualifying spiritual roots numbered less than twenty percent.

Aside from certain mysterious clans with special bloodlines, among mortals, those possessing spiritual roots were often fewer than one in ten—and most of those were Five Spiritual Roots holders.

Although Five Spiritual Roots encompassed all five elements, perfectly sensing heaven-and-earth spiritual energy became muddled and chaotic, making it difficult to draw qi into the body; hence, they were called useless roots.

Therefore, even though Four Spiritual Roots weren’t much better, many small-to-medium sects would still accept them. After all, being able to cultivate meant there was the slightest sliver of hope for nurturing, which was stronger than doing nothing and waiting for the legacy to die out.

“Now we proceed to the next round.”

With those words, Yin Qingyuan flicked his sleeve, causing the dense fog at the valley entrance to rapidly disperse, vaguely revealing a winding, narrow path.

From the outside looking in, green trees provided shade, birds sang, and flowers bloomed—a scene of tranquil, peaceful serenity.

“As long as you pass through this path successfully to complete the temperament test, you will automatically become a disciple of our Falling Cloud Valley.”