Spirit Water Village had a total population of just over six hundred, and among them, the cultivators who had reached the Qi Refining stage amounted to only about thirty in total.

Yet today, several hundred Qi Refining cultivators had gathered here. How "spectacular" was that!

Bai Sui shuttled through the crowd, having already stopped to listen to several groups' conversations, and had picked up many tidbits she hadn't known before.

For a time, she listened with great interest.

But soon, she lost interest, because as she listened on, the useful information grew less and less, while mutual flattery increased considerably.

Life is like a play, all relying on acting; interaction between people indeed still depends on flattery.

When she got tired of listening, she decisively shifted grounds. Thus, like a diligent young melon-seeking badger, she continuously shuttled back and forth among the melon fields, searching for fresh and tasty melons to eat.

"Hey, little girl, what are you doing over here?"

Just as Bai Sui was listening with great enthusiasm, a male cultivator in a brown robe beside her noticed her and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

This area, after all, was a place for cultivators. Mortals, either out of timidity or a sense of their lower status, wouldn't dare to brazenly wander in front of cultivators. Besides, this spot was a little distance from the village entrance. He hadn't expected an ordinary little girl to come all the way here.

From the looks of her, she'd also been secretly eavesdropping on their conversation for quite a while.

"Ah!" Seeing she had attracted the attention of a young cultivator, Bai Sui blinked, revealing an innocent expression.

"I was bored, and seeing so many people over here, I just came to take a look..."

‘Oh, what a naive and adorable little girl.’

Perhaps finding the little girl cute, the brown-robed cultivator naturally had no intention of blaming her. He chuckled, "Judging by your age, you should be under ten, right? The testing is about to start soon; everyone else has gone to line up. Why aren't you heading over?"

"I'm going. I'll go line up in a bit." Bai Sui answered seriously.

"Uncle, if the test results are good, can I join the Crimson Sun Sect?"

"Whoa, you even know about the Crimson Sun Sect?"

The brown-robed cultivator became interested.

"Mm!" Bai Sui nodded. "I heard from others that the Crimson Sun Sect is super powerful!"

"Hahaha, right, right."

The brown-robed cultivator nodded repeatedly and offered some guidance, "As long as the test results are good and you have spirit roots, then there's hope for cultivation! But having spirit roots alone doesn't guarantee joining the Crimson Sun Sect. Spirit roots have five attributes in total. Only those with triple spirit roots or better talent will be accepted by the Crimson Sun Sect. And if you have dual spirit roots or a single spirit root, there's even hope of joining the inner sect!"

"Aren't more spirit roots better? Why is having only one spirit root the best?"

Seeing that the brown-robed cultivator was kindly, Bai Sui pretended to be ignorant and deliberately fished for information.

The brown-robed cultivator couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this, "Having all five elements complete is certainly good, but there are pros and cons. The path of cultivation is not easy. A person with all five attributes naturally has them mutually generating and overcoming each other. To progress, they must rise together and fall together; all attributes must be improved simultaneously! And this is extremely, extremely difficult. How can it compare to those with a few specific attribute talents, whose cultivation path can focus on a single direction, enhancing strengths and avoiding weaknesses, pursuing practical results? Ah, why am I saying all this to a little girl like you? You can't understand these profound principles anyway."

The brown-robed cultivator shook his head and sighed.

It was because he himself was a quadruple spirit root cultivator. For him, cultivation was naturally ten thousand times harder than for others. Not to mention those with all five elements complete; they probably couldn't even step into the Qi Refining stage.

Bai Sui opened her mouth, about to say something, when suddenly a cry of surprise rose from the crowd. Then everyone's gaze turned toward the sky.

A pale blue streak of light flashed across the sky. In the blink of an eye, a flying boat over ten meters long hovered above the testing site.

After a faint halo of light dissipated, the flying boat vanished, but four more people appeared on the testing platform.

The leader was a male cultivator around fifty. His gaze was deep, imposing without anger. He stood over 1.8 meters tall, yet his frame looked very lean. A long white robe fluttered audibly in the wind. He was indeed the Crimson Sun Sect's Outer Sect General Manager whom the cultivators had been talking about earlier: Li Haichang.

Beside him was another man with a square face, looking a few years younger than Li Haichang. He stood with one hand clasped behind his back, his splendid attire appearing perhaps not as ethereal as Li Haichang's, yet his presence was in no way inferior.

"It's Market Master Song! I never expected even Market Master Song to come for this testing!"

A stir went through the crowd, clearly recognizing the person on the platform.

This Market Master Song was the most powerful person in all of Jade Pool Market. His cultivation had likewise reached the Late Fusion Stage, and he was the authority dispatched by the Crimson Sun Sect to oversee Jade Pool Market.

With the sect arranging for Li Haichang to come and preside over the testing, it was only proper and sensible for Market Master Song, as a fellow sect member, to come and lend his presence.

Behind the two major figures were a young male cultivator and a young female cultivator, both looking to be just over twenty.

The male cultivator was handsome and elegant, holding a book scroll, bearing the romantic ease of a literati; the female cultivator's expression was cool, strikingly beautiful and captivating, her long hair fluttering in the breeze, the wind chimes in her hair tinkling crisply from time to time.

These two young cultivators were clearly outstanding talents of the Crimson Sun Sect, specifically tasked with handling the testing.

Bai Sui stood in the distance gazing over, unable to help but click her tongue secretly. The cultivation world really was full of handsome men and beautiful women. It seemed the higher the talent, the better the external appearance.

* * *

With the arrival of the Crimson Sun Sect members, the atmosphere reached a climax. The village heads of Spirit Water Village and several neighboring villages came forward to pay their respects, saying some very flattering words of courtesy, then bowed with clasped hands and respectfully withdrew.

"Alright, time is pressing. Why don't we get started quickly?"

Li Haichang smiled and said to Market Master Song.

Market Master Song revealed a faint smile and nodded in response, "Everything shall follow Senior Brother Li's arrangements."

"Mm."

Li Haichang nodded gently, then slowly walked to the center of the testing platform. Addressing everyone present, he proclaimed loudly, "Today is the eighth day of the tenth month of the 8650th year of the Xuanming Calendar, a crucial day for our Crimson Sun Sect's once-per-decade selection of disciples. I, Li Haichang, humbly serve as the Crimson Sun Sect's Outer Sect Miscellaneous Affairs General Manager, and am specially responsible for the examination at this location today..."

Li Haichang swept his gaze around. Seeing everyone listening attentively, he nodded and said, "Without further ado, everyone has been waiting here for a long time. Let the examination begin now."

Having said this, he signaled with his eyes to the two disciples beside him.

The two young disciples immediately understood. They took out the spirit pearls prepared in advance for detecting talent, then each stepped forward a few paces and began testing the children who had long since formed two lines.

"Place your hand on the spirit pearl, then hold your breath and wait for the result."

The talent-detecting spirit pearl could reveal the tested person's talent. Any attribute spirit value greater than 20 would trigger a reaction. Otherwise, there would be no reaction.

The first children in line followed their instructions, then watched nervously.

About five seconds passed.

"The spirit pearl shows no reaction, no spirit roots. Next." The male disciple's tone was flat.

The tested child, upon hearing he had no talent, couldn't help but feel dejected, looking as if he was about to cry.

And the child behind him was even more nervous.

"The spirit pearl shows no reaction, no spirit roots!"

"Next..."

The tested children came one after another, but seven or eight in a row all showed no cultivation talent.

Suddenly, the spirit pearl lit up briefly. The male disciple glanced at it.

"Four-colored glimmers of metal, earth, blue, and green. Metal attribute spirit value 35, earth attribute spirit value 40, water attribute spirit value 32, wood attribute spirit value 46. Metal-Earth-Water-Wood Quadruple Spirit Roots. Judgment: Lower cultivation talent."

"Next... Fire attribute spirit value 55, earth attribute spirit value 49, wood attribute spirit value 51. Fire-Earth-Wood Triple Spirit Roots. Judgment: Medium cultivation talent."

"Wow!"

With two children possessing cultivation talent appearing in a row, a wave of exclamation rose from the mortal crowd.

Although it was only lower and medium talent, it was still a very happy matter.

‘For trash talent like this, is it worth making a fuss about?’ A trace of disdain and helplessness flickered imperceptibly in the eyes of the male disciple responsible for the testing. For a dual spirit root genius like himself, even ordinary triple spirit roots were considered "trash.”

‘Though it's triple spirit roots, the spirit values are so poor, they aren't even qualified to enter our sect's outer sect!’

Though he thought so in his heart, he didn't dare be the slightest bit careless with the work at hand. The talent testing continued methodically.

On the other side, the female disciple was also continuously testing the children.

In front of her was a youth of twelve or thirteen years.

"Metal attribute spirit value 79, fire attribute spirit value 82, water attribute spirit value 75, wood attribute spirit value 86. Metal-Fire-Water-Wood Quadruple Spirit Roots. Judgment: Upper-medium cultivation talent."

Although he had quadruple spirit roots, the spirit values for each attribute were quite high, making his overall talent better than the average triple spirit root.

"What a pity. With these spirit values, it's actually quadruple spirit roots."

Her expression changed slightly, showing a bit of regret.

High spirit values meant suitability for cultivation, but too many spirit roots meant that advancing realms would be more difficult.

Truly tasteless when eaten, yet a pity to discard.

* * *

Bai Sui had quietly slipped away before the surrounding cultivators noticed.

After all, at her age, there was no reason not to participate in the testing. Staying here too long would easily give her away.

She pushed hard to the edge of the testing platform and observed the entire detection process from up close.

This kind of testing was similar in method to the one Senior Uncle Peng had given her two years ago, except that the spirit pearl used by the Crimson Sun Sect was more advanced than the one at that time. It could not only detect spirit roots but also specifically display the spirit value of each attribute.

She was very curious about her own numbers and secretly thought to herself: If there's a chance in the future, I definitely need to get a spirit pearl like theirs!