Chapter 602 - 597: Treasure Amongst Trash
The abruptly violent circumstances left many speechless. Was this how disciples were supposed to be treated? A few of them saw their neighbors seemingly explode with gushes of blood from various cuts. The ambient saber power was absolutely domineering and omnipresent.
"AHHH!" A human cultivator at the Qi Condensation Realm, the False Reality Phase, surged with his qi to establish a thick, seemingly impenetrable ward filled with the power of metal. The faint traces of gold clashed with the slicing saber power in the air and prevented it from inflicting further wounds on his body.
The others reacted the same, establishing their own defenses that halted the intrusion of that saber power.
Su Mei noticed that the saber power was stopped with equal difficulty regardless of cultivation base. There were several cultivators at the Qi Condensation Realm that safely defended against the saber power, yet a few Astral Core Realm cultivators were blasted bloody, their defenses torn apart and their skin suffering as a result.
'It's as if this strange saber power in the air can differentiate between levels, increasing its difficulty towards specific individuals.' As she came to this conclusion, she glanced at the mountain in the far-off distance. That was likely the sect as the massive saber in the sky seemed to have its tip pointed directly at it.
'Is it like the Myriad Dao Palaces?' She had heard about Wei Wuyin's experiences and had her own, and one of them was a set of ninety-nine steps that grew increasingly difficult the further one went up. Yet the power of the stairs adjusted based on the target's cultivation, allowing a form of balance.
With a long, deep breath, her Saber Intent resonated outwards. The saber power in the air grew docile, obedient. However, she didn't move to protect the others. Even those that originated from the Ascendants.
She sent them a spiritual transmission instead: "Ascendants, good luck."
It wasn't that she was merciless, but that this was an opportunity to prove themselves. The point of Ascendants was to forge strong, capable cultivators that could act in Weo Wuyin's interest. If they couldn't become Outer Disciples after Wei Wuyin's nurturing, then that was their own failure.
She took off.
The other Ascendants turned to her, their eyes glimmering with light as they observed Su Mei's swift departure. They were all stronger than cultivators at their level, mostly due to Wei Wuyin's alchemical products and high-level environments. While they might not compare to this new world's cultivators, they were still confident in their might.
Most of them came from the Myriad Monarch Sect, so they were elite cultivators with skill, and from this test, they had passable talent, so they were definitely greater than standard cultivators.
A young woman with long, sleek, blue-colored hair was covered in cuts, and even her torn robe revealed an unusual amount of skin. Although, that skin was covered in blood. However, there was no embarrassment in her eyes, but a fierce, stable light. She was an Ascendant that had been recruited by Xue Yifei, and so her treatment was slightly better, her strength forged by higher quality alchemical products.
Despite only being at the First Stage of the Astral Core Realm, the World Sea Phase, her strength could not be underestimated. After gathering her bearings, she concentrated her astral ward into a thicker form and warded off the saber power. With a low roar, that when coming from her delicate voice was still quite terrifying, she trudged forward after Su Mei.
After receiving the spiritual transmission from Su Mei, one of the leaders of the Ascendants, she was now aware that this trial was her own to conquer. With each step, she bore the might of the saber power clashing against her.
Her actions of standing firm and facing the world left many speechless. She was young, maybe just thirty or so, yet she was utterly terrifying as she exuded a fierce will to move forward. Influenced, the others strengthened their defenses and followed after her.
The mountain with the saber as the sun was their target. The words from Dao Yuwen echoed in their minds as they wished to at least prove to themselves that, yes, they might be considered trash now, but they were good trash with the potential to become treasure.
Of course, not everyone used this opportunity to forge their will. A few were left unable to proceed, sent away as a comet of gentle, nourishing energy enveloped them. Their bodies already experienced almost crippling damage, and they couldn't hold on any longer. These individuals had impure bodies, used impure-quality pills to cultivate to their levels and dampening their potential or just had weak foundations for their cultivation levels.
Unable to adjust, they were left defeated and discarded. They would be External Disciples unless they fought to improve themselves in this dangerous, almost lethal environment.
Su Mei didn't turn back. The distance between her and the mountain was roughly fifteen miles. It might not seem that far for cultivators yet every step was met with an increasingly powerful wave of saber power. It was clear that this saber power, a combination of ambient essence and saber energies, originated from the mountain like a surging tidal wave.
Her Saber Intent allowed her an easy path forward. She didn't think about tempering her astral force using the ambient saber power—it was unnecessary. Her Saber Intent was a result of her comprehensive talent, a part of her abilities, so she merely used her own strength. Yet even her Saber Intent wasn't invincible.
There was a strange energy within the saber power that struggled to regain control of itself. It trembled and vibrated, releasing saber howls that sought to slice at Su Mei. She wasn't too shocked. If Saber Intent could overcome this trial with ease, then Dao Yuwen could've just brought her away.
Her Sky Pressure surged outwards. That strange energy collided with her refined mana and was crushed relentlessly. She kept her reins on the saber power, moving forward and reaching the one-mile mark.
She cut a valiant figure as saber power danced around her like brightly animated lights, exuding a fierce sharpness and lively feeling. It was her Saber Intent, her will, that brought the saber power to life and under her control. Behind her were youths with stern expressions pushing forward while wrapped in various astral forces.
Watching from afar, three figures garbed in black robes levitated in the air looking down at these struggling youths. They were two males and one female, and at their waist was a white-colored scabbard that contained their saber. On the sides of their scabbard was a single character formed by strange, faintly glowing runes. They said: "Solitary."
"Not bad," One of the men commented. He had a short ponytail, was rather handsome, and carried a youthful and valiant air about him.
The other man clicked his tongue, "The one in the front is quite interesting. Her age is young, her cultivation base is absurdly high, and her bodily talent is quite exceptional." Su Mei exuded a light life aura indicating her age was sub-fifty, and her cultivation base was emitting a strange gravitational force that affected the surroundings. These were indications that she was at the Gravity Emission Phase, the Sixth Stage of the Astral Core Realm.
The man with the ponytail chimed in, "Saber Intent; Young Age; High Cultivation. Is she the daughter of the strongest cultivator in the Everlore Starfield?" The cultivators of the Aeternal Sky Starfield referred to the starfield that Su Mei and the others originated from as Everlore Starfield. After all, that was the name that gave it significance.
As for the Imperial Heaven Starfield, Tri-Vision Starfield, or Imperial Dawn Starfield, they were all names that were established in the various eras affecting the population. To them, the starfield had one name and one significance: It birthed the King of Everlore.
"Strongest cultivator? I guess that's possible. Her cultivation base seems a little too sturdy. I can't tell her foundation very well. Curious," the other man said. He was tall, nearly six-feet and a half, and had a slim, lanky figure. Despite his height and slimness, he had a set of eyes that exuded a dangerously sharp aura. If one thought his body was fragile due to its lack of muscle definition, they might find themselves losing their lives.
The female was gorgeous. She had a dignified air and stood in the middle of the two men, clearly having more significance than the two. She was like a breath of air on a battlefield, exuding thick battle intent and a scent of blood aura. Despite that, it did little to diminish her outstanding looks that could attract envy from others.
With a pair of clear cyan-colored irises and untainted pupils, she regarded Su Mei.
The man with the ponytail frowned, "Neither can I. That's strange. She's not a Realmlord yet, but she gives me a feeling of danger."
The tall, lanky man nodded in agreement. "There's quite a few strange ones. Their foundation is far stronger than I expected. That little girl at the World Sea Phase seemed to have a greater reserve of astral force. She made it past the 1-mile mark with little difficulty, still staying strong to the 3-mile mark."
The girl and Su Mei weren't the only ones to shock the duo, as more than a dozen cultivators stood out. They were Ascendants. Wei Wuyin had a certain criteria when selecting or accepting members, and one of them was fulfilled just by the Myriad Monarch Sect's entry requirements: skill and comprehension.
After finding those with sufficient bodily talent, he found good moulds for the Ascendants. They all experienced the life of having low-quality or higher sixth, sometimes even seventh-grade, alchemical products at their fingertips. Therefore, their foundation and natural talents have been improved considerably.
This only became more excessive after the Valkyrie had formed, as they were given higher-tiered and higher-quality products from their respective leaders. Most cultivators at the Astral Core Realm would be lucky if they could refine a single seventh-grade product. For example, Xiang Ling, a long-standing elder of the Myriad Monarch Sect, had only refined three seventh-grade products in her lifetime prior to meeting Wei Wuyin. And two of them were impure-quality.
As the Ascendants adjusted to the environment, they revealed their absolute advantage that others didn't have: a strong, reinforced cultivation base. At a certain point, the leading figures were all Ascendants with Su Mei at the foremost position.
She had already broken past the ten-mile mark!
"This…that's…" the ponytail man was rendered speechless. These dozens of figures were far, far ahead of the others. While the weakest Ascendant had breached the five-mile mark, the strongest non-Ascendant had barely reached the three-mile mark! Furthermore, the former weren't slowing down, but getting quicker!
One must know that the strength of the saber power increased with each mile, exuding outrageously sharp pressure upon the target, yet this was defying this logic. This exceeded some of their top-tier disciples' showing years ago, and there were dozens!
The two males looked at each other, seeing the distinct light of surprised shock in the other's eyes. This test measured their foundation and strength relative to their cultivation, but this was a little outrageous, no?
The gorgeous woman's eyes narrowed. Were this batch of homeless cultivators truly trash? In this new world, they might be able to establish themselves!
However, as she thought about this, Su Mei reached the tall, imposingly wide gate that led to the mountain and her pure black eyes were particularly radiant as she observed the saber in the sky. As if resonating with something, her Saber Intent started to become unusually active as the air around her body exploded with a saber howl!
Then, saber howls started to echo outwards throughout the world! The giant saber that seemed to overwrite the Solar Star in the sky started to tremble!
The three watched from above and their eyes widened slowly and slowly until they were nearly bulging out from their sockets! Even the gorgeous woman lost her composure, her expression growing ashen with disbelief!
"Impossible!" The three simultaneously shouted.
Dao Yuwen's figure arrived at the gate, staring at Su Mei's valiant figure as she seemed immersed in her own world. The saber power in the surroundings were vibrating with increasing frequency, screeching out a call of unfathomable nature! Even the Saber Star above reacted!
"…Saber Heart Intent?" His words were slowly said, yet the shock was unable to be concealed.
Did he just stumble upon a treasure?!