Chapter 83: Primary Election Concludes

Meng Dajiang watched his son from a distance.

Currently, the powerful Godfiends of Yuanchu Mountain were all focused on his son. The three Godfiends overseeing the assessment were all intently watching Meng Chuan, indicating the high level of attention he was receiving.

He truly stood out!

His son had now surpassed all other prodigies. Even the extraordinarily gifted Ji Yuantong had only made it through the seventh round, while his son was already starting the tenth.

Meng Dajiang could clearly sense the envy, jealousy, and admiration in the gazes of the large group of prodigies watching Meng Chuan from afar.

"Chuan'er," Meng Dajiang's pride swelled.

"Nianyun, our son is truly exceptional. He will definitely enter Yuanchu Mountain and receive the best cultivation." Meng Dajiang was so excited watching from the sidelines that his blood was boiling, feeling even more thrilled than his son, Meng Chuan, who was undergoing the assessment.

The Godfiends watched, and the other prodigies also looked at Meng Chuan with mixed feelings.

The tenth round of the assessment continued. The hailstones moved with terrifying speed, and Meng Chuan's body became a blurred phantom. Each of his movements was minuscule; the hailstones appeared to pass through his 'body,' but in reality, none of them struck him.

When the hailstones stopped, Meng Chuan was still standing within the circle.

"He passed the tenth round too?" Ji Yuantong, Zong Sha, Chu Yong, Yan Feng, Jin Huan, Yan Chitong, Li Ying, and the other prodigies were stunned. When the disparity in ability was ridiculously large in a certain aspect, all they felt was disbelief!

"So Meng Chuan is this powerful," Yan Jin muttered, closely watching the lone figure.

"Continue!"

Donghe King's voice was full of anticipation, his eyes showing a hint of fervor. The hailstones suspended in mid-air whistled down again, their speed continuing to soar. Each hailstone seemed to strike, but they merely 'pierced' Meng Chuan's illusory body, clearly only hitting a phantom.

This sight left the other prodigies somewhat numb; the difference was simply too vast.

Suddenly, one hailstone truly stopped and turned into powder when it 'struck' a phantom. Meng Chuan also stopped, and the hailstones ceased falling.

"He failed," everyone understood.

After dodging several hailstones in the eleventh round, Meng Chuan still failed.

However, this outcome left the other prodigies speechless.

"His spiritual perception is truly extraordinary," Donghe King said with a smile to the disheveled man and the woman in green. "Ji Yuantong's spiritual perception is strong, but we might find someone like him every three to five years. As for Meng Chuan's spiritual perception... it might take centuries to find another like him. With such strong spiritual perception, condensing a Primordial Spirit will surely be easy for him. His potential is immense; the key now is to cultivate him well."

"He still needs to comprehend blade intent, grasp the soul of the blade... he must cultivate step by step," the disheveled man also nodded. "You can't get fat with one bite; no matter how high one's talent, it's useless without dedicated practice."

"A peerless unpolished jade has arrived at our Yuanchu Mountain. Now it's up to us how we cultivate him," the woman in green smiled.

"Indeed," Donghe King nodded.

The aura they emitted was so powerful that ordinary mortals dared not look directly at them, and their voices were shielded from detection.

Meng Chuan stood rooted, feeling a bit dazed at that moment.

"I still couldn't dodge that one hailstone; my body is still a bit too slow," Meng Chuan thought to himself.

What Meng Chuan didn't know was this:

For a normal prodigy dodging hailstones, they first see them with their eyes or sense them through their domain of 'momentum.' After sensing them, the information is transmitted to the brain, a process that takes a very short amount of time. The brain then formulates a response, which also takes time, and this response is then transmitted to the body, again requiring time.

It's a three-stage process:

Receiving, thinking, and commanding the body. This is the complete reaction process.

However, for Meng Chuan...

His ten-zhang domain was actually directly perceived by his 'Mind-Soul' within his brow space. The Mind-Soul directly 'saw' everything, and after seeing, the Mind-Soul thought and responded.

Therefore, Meng Chuan completely bypassed the process of 'information transmitting to the brain.' His Mind-Soul directly 'saw,' and the Mind-Soul's processing was even faster than other prodigies' brain-based thoughts!

The only thing that remained the same as others was...

The Mind-Soul commanding the body, transmitting instructions to various parts of the body—hands and feet—to dodge. This process of commanding the body was identical to that of other prodigies.

If Meng Chuan were to use 'Mind-Soul power,' integrating it into every part of his body, then the Mind-Soul commanding the body would involve directly manipulating the entire body through Mind-Soul power, making the body's control even faster! In that case, he might have reached the fourteenth or fifteenth round.

Currently, he hadn't used his Mind-Soul power.

Relying solely on the unique nature of his 'Mind-Soul' within his brow space, Meng Chuan had passed ten rounds and failed in the eleventh.

"Meng Chuan," Donghe King's voice rang out, "You did well."

Hearing the praise, Meng Chuan's heart filled with joy.

Donghe King then turned and left.

The disheveled man, smiling, announced loudly, "The three preliminary assessments are concluded. Please rest aside. Yuanchu Mountain will determine the preliminary ranking based on these three assessments. The top one hundred will be able to participate in tomorrow's final selection; those not in the top one hundred will be eliminated."

After speaking, he and the woman in green also turned and departed, though both glanced at Meng Chuan as they left.

"Haha," the group of Marquis Godfiends who had been watching also rose and left.

"Meng Chuan, well done," a familiar voice echoed in his ear. Meng Chuan looked up and saw Marquis Nanyun smiling at him from afar before departing with the other Godfiends.

Meng Chuan stood alone within the circle.

"Young Master Meng, please follow me." An attendant from the Blazing Sun Palace immediately came to guide him.

Meng Chuan nodded.

Soon, he arrived at a hall where dozens of prodigies were gathered with their families and friends. As soon as Meng Chuan entered, he immediately drew a lot of attention.

"Chuan'er," Meng Dajiang came to greet him.

"Father," Meng Chuan smiled.

"That was brilliant," Meng Dajiang patted Meng Chuan's shoulder. "Your great-aunt will be very happy when she hears this."

Meng Chuan nodded gently, his great-aunt was still back home, awaiting news.

"Let's wait here. Yuanchu Mountain needs to finalize the top one hundred rankings in detail," Meng Dajiang said. "This ranking is very important, so it should take a while."

"Mm, I wonder what rank I'll be," Meng Chuan said.

"You should be confident of being in the top two," Meng Dajiang stated. "Ji Yuantong is the only one who can compete with you."

Meng Chuan also nodded, "My main weakness was the first assessment."

There were three assessments.

Meng Chuan ranked twenty-third in the first assessment, but first in both the second and third assessments.

Ji Yuantong, on the other hand, ranked first in the first assessment, fifth in the second, and second in the third. It was worth noting that Ji Yuantong's second assessment involved dashing through a passage while carrying a heavy hammer weighing several hundred jin, truly showcasing his monstrous physical talent.

"Meng Chuan," Yan Jin approached. Everyone else had family and friends, but he was alone. He said, "Congratulations, you'll definitely secure a spot in the Yuanchu Mountain assessment this time, and you'll be in the top three for the final selection too."

"I hope so," Meng Chuan smiled.

"Meng Chuan," a clear female voice rang out.

Meng Chuan turned his head to look.

A woman in purple walked over. She was the center of attention wherever she went, possessing an innate nobility, and her smile could melt hearts.

"Princess," Meng Chuan said politely.

"I've long heard of your great reputation," Princess Li Ying said with a smile. "But you're even more formidable than I imagined. Once we enter Yuanchu Mountain, we must spar and see if you can dodge my arrows."

After the three preliminary assessments, Princess Li Ying felt confident. She was the second-ranked divine archer among the prodigies this time, with only Zong Sha being slightly stronger than her. Yuanchu Mountain highly valued divine archers... With her abilities, she was confident that Yuanchu Mountain would admit her.

"We shall spar then," Meng Chuan smiled faintly.

"It's a deal then," Princess Li Ying said, glancing at Yan Jin. "Young Master Yan's dual-sword mastery is exceptional. We must also spar once we enter Yuanchu Mountain."

"Alright," Yan Jin responded with just a single word. He was always willing to accept a challenge.

Every battle was an opportunity to refine himself.

After a brief chat, Princess Li Ying smiled and left. Born into royalty, she was accustomed to befriending those who could benefit her, and it was clear that both Meng Chuan and Yan Jin were individuals she considered valuable to befriend.

Time passed.

Occasionally, people would come to chat with Meng Chuan and Meng Dajiang! After all, everyone could see that while the final ranking wasn't certain, it was undeniable that Meng Chuan had secured a spot.

The sky gradually darkened, and the snow fell heavier and heavier. The prodigies, their families, and friends waited anxiously, either in the various halls or in the corridors.

"The rankings have been finalized!" A voice echoed from afar.

The goat-bearded man, holding a golden scroll and followed by other attendants, walked slowly through the swirling snow from a distance.

"The preliminary rankings are set," Meng Chuan and Meng Dajiang watched from afar. They merely wondered if he would be first or second; he surely wouldn't be third! The other prodigies and their families were much more nervous, many fearing they wouldn't make it into the top one hundred and thus be unable to participate in the final selection.

May our great homeland forever prosper!