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

Because a large number of people were eliminated in the first round’s spiritual root test, fewer than a hundred test-takers remained for the second round.

Guided by the disciples of Falling Cloud Valley, Qi Yuan stepped onto the small path almost simultaneously with the others.

A moment of dizziness washed over him. When Qi Yuan regained his senses, he found himself in a lush, verdant forest. His feet sank into soft soil, and he realized he was now holding a sharp long blade in his hand.

Such a realistic illusion!

Although his knowledge of formation arrays wasn’t profound, he had a discerning eye. This illusion formation was not only extremely lifelike but also seamlessly integrated with heaven and earth, operating in a self-sustaining cycle. It was clearly the work of a grandmaster of formations.

Qi Yuan surveyed his surroundings, his expression gradually turning grave.

He discovered that after entering, his mind had become much more muddled, and his thinking had grown somewhat sluggish.

Being able to affect a Golden Core Perfection stage cultivator proved the formation’s grade was extremely high. He absolutely could not let his guard down; otherwise, he might truly capsize in a tiny ditch.

Mental fortitude was not equivalent to spiritual root aptitude and had little relation to one’s cultivation level.

When he entered the Supreme Mystery Sanctuary, the mental fortitude test he underwent was merely being shone upon by a top-tier spiritual treasure, the Heart-Questioning Mirror. He passed in a daze and was immediately taken in as the personal closed-door disciple by the Sanctuary’s Sect Master. That event had caused a sensation throughout the entire Supreme Mystery Sanctuary at the time…

After reminiscing for a moment, Qi Yuan began walking forward.

Although this formation seemed to be attempting to interfere with his memories, he had cultivated a secret technique specifically for resisting soul attacks—the “Luo Tian Soul Refining Art.” Therefore, he hadn’t completely lost his memory and vaguely knew he was participating in an assessment…

Outside the formation.

Light shimmered on water-like surfaces, and mist rose gently.

In mid-air floated numerous water mirrors formed from magical power, displaying the situations of the test-takers within the formation.

After confirming the illusion formation was operating normally, Elder Yin Qingyuan, in charge of the Entry Pavilion, gave a faint smile and said clearly:

“The Illusory Life Universe Formation was laid down a thousand years ago by a Void Refinement stage formation master who was a guest in our valley. It integrates with the sect’s grand protective formation. Inside, there are also three checkpoints personally designed by our Founding Ancestor. Passing them counts as clearing this round.”

“Once activated, the Formation Spirit within will manifest countless avatars to test everyone. Anyone entering this formation will have their memories of this period erased, forgetting about the test itself, allowing them to make choices with their most genuine inner nature.”

“After a millennium of nurturing, Senior Formation Spirit has long since developed sentience. The illusions are now even more perfected than before. Even a Void Refinement cultivator trapped within would find it difficult to escape in a short time.”

“My father is currently in seclusion attempting to break through to the Nascent Soul Peak stage and truly cannot spare any time. Thank you very much, Elder Yin, for presiding over matters. Xirou expresses her gratitude here.”

Hearing this, Bai Xirou nodded slightly. First, she performed an elegant bow toward Yin Qingyuan, then turned her gaze to the images floating mid-air, revealing an expectant look as she thought to herself:

For Falling Cloud Valley to rise again, nurturing new disciples is of paramount importance. I hope we can find some promising seedlings this year.

……

Inside the formation.

As Qi Yuan walked through the forest, a commotion suddenly arose in the distance.

“Help!”

“Hehehe, little beauty, in these wild mountains and desolate plains, even if you scream yourself hoarse, no one will come to save you…”

Qi Yuan looked toward the sound and saw a disheveled beauty being chased by a bandit-like burly man. The two were quickly running toward him.

The beauty screamed for help as she fled and soon reached Qi Yuan.

“Young master, please save me!”

Seeing Qi Yuan, the beauty seemed to have grabbed onto a lifeline and immediately rushed toward him.

“Get out of the way! If you dare ruin my good time, I won’t let you off!”

The bandit brandished his sharp blade, issuing a fierce warning to Qi Yuan.

Understanding dawned on Qi Yuan internally, but his expression remained unchanged on the surface. With a swift movement of his body, he sidestepped past the beauty throwing herself into his arms. Stepping forward, he delivered one slash that killed the bandit outright.

The head rolled off, and blood splattered everywhere—it all looked incredibly real.

“Thank you for saving me, young master. This humble one is endlessly grateful.”

At this moment, the beauty’s face was flushed red, and her clothes were disheveled—revealing large patches of snowy white skin inadvertently—which, coupled with her pitiful appearance, made her seem even more alluring.

Yet Qi Yuan responded with a cold laugh.

“Monster! Stop pretending! I knew you weren’t human at first glance.”

With that said, he punched the beauty before him to the ground and then quickly untied his belt… using it to bind her up tightly from head to toe.

“Young master… you… what are you doing?”

The beauty was terrified and struggled repeatedly.

“Let’s not even discuss whether or not a delicate young lady could possibly appear alone in such wilderness. You’re wearing such cumbersome long skirts, yet you ran faster than that eight-foot-tall brute—it doesn’t look at all like you’re some weak woman without strength enough to truss a chicken.”

“Most importantly… you’ve been running through this muddy ground for so long… yet there isn’t even a speck of mud on your embroidered shoes… Who are you trying to fool here?”

Listening to Qi Yuan’s calm reasoning point by point… “the beauty” finally stopped struggling… transforming into a wisp of green smoke that vanished without a trace.

Seeing this scene… Qi Yuan showed no surprise on his face whatsoever… instead revealing an interested expression…

Interesting…

He originally thought this checkpoint was just a simple test involving feminine allure… but unexpectedly, there were hidden intricacies…

He chose to capture her alive not because he was moved by lust… but because he wanted to see if there were any other special scenarios…

Of course… it seemed there weren’t any additional surprises for now… but he should have passed this checkpoint…

As these thoughts raced through his mind… Qi Yuan casually wiped off the bloodstains on his blade… and continued walking forward…

……

At the same time.

The expressions of all the present Falling Cloud Valley cultivators weren’t too pleasant… because what was displayed in their magical mirrors was truly unsightly.

The illusion formation automatically generated scenarios based on the different genders of test-takers: male test-takers encountered bandits chasing beauties; female test-takers encountered villainous women chasing handsome men…

Probably due to the different scenarios, female test-takers performed well at this checkpoint, while the male test-takers’ side became an ugly spectacle filled with all sorts of grotesque behaviors.

Apart from roughly half who resisted temptation after heroically saving the beauties, quite a few chose to take over after killing the bandits themselves.

Another portion felt cowardly, fleeing quickly away.

Even worse, some actually acted as accomplices, excitedly standing behind the bandits waiting their turn.

Most utterly depraved among them: one pervert unhesitatingly killed off the beauty, leaving only the bandit behind.

Fortunately, those deemed failing often got teleported out before they could even undo their pants, announced eliminated on the spot. Otherwise, Falling Cloud Valley, this immortal cultivation sect, would have turned into a party scene.

“How outrageous! What kind of demons and monsters are these?! I never imagined worldly morals have fallen so low. Truly utterly disappointing!”

“Ahh! That newcomer I had high hopes for clearly had decent aptitude. I never expected him to be so worthless!”

“The first illusion checkpoint is already simple enough. Just don’t move a lustful heart and you can pass easily. Even fleeing the incident can be explained as a cautious nature and barely counts as passing. Yet it turned out like this… nowadays, these youngsters…”

“Huh? Look over there. Someone perfectly passed the first checkpoint!”

Right then, a light exclamation came from among the Falling Cloud Valley crowd, drawing the attention of everyone present.

Following the pointing finger, they saw the recording image of when Qi Yuan underwent the first checkpoint.

Watching the scene within the water mirror, Yin Qingyuan narrowed his eyes slightly, then spoke calmly.

“Good! He discovered the hidden information in this checkpoint. It indeed counts as a perfect pass…”

“This Big Qi wasn’t deluded by feminine charms. He handled matters courageously and resourcefully, observing the minutest detail. Although his spiritual root aptitude is a bit lacking, his mental fortitude is quite good…”

Bai Xirou also nodded slowly, saying:

“The path of immortal cultivation is fraught with dangers, traps, and schemes everywhere. The slightest misstep leads to death and destruction beyond redemption. It requires cultivators not only to avoid indulging in feminine charms but also to maintain vigilance at any time…”

“Originally, the first illusion checkpoint tested precisely these things. You must discover the 【beauty】’s improprieties to count as passing. But due to the pass rate truly being too low, later rules were relaxed to become ‘just don’t commit evil deeds’ to count as passing…”

After speaking, she sighed lightly, murmuring:

“Since the Founding Ancestor passed away, our Falling Cloud Valley has been declining daily. Talented entry disciples are fewer and fewer. The last time a tester appeared perfectly passing this checkpoint was already nine years ago…”

“Who?”

Apart from some insiders, many surrounding disciples who had recently entered Falling Cloud Valley showed curious expressions…

Although they also experienced the illusion formation tests, they had never heard the inside story about a perfect clearance…

Before Bai Xirou answered, Yin Qingyuan raised his eyebrows faintly, replying:

“That person is none other than your Senior Sister Bai Xirou…”

“And at that time, she was merely ten years old…”