Chapter 89: Quota

With each step up the stairs, new black mist integrated into his body, and the illusions grew stronger.

Intense illusions assailed him, pulling at Meng Chuan's consciousness, threatening to make him completely succumb.

“No one can stop me.”

“If I can't even overcome illusions, how can I eradicate all demons?” Meng Chuan's will solidified like a blade. This 'blade' was forged to slay demons, and thus, it had to cut through every obstacle on his cultivation path.

He continued to advance with great difficulty. As he progressed, the black mist grew denser, and the illusions' influence on his physical body and consciousness became increasingly profound.

Even with his will like a blade, under layers of illusions, his consciousness gradually became clouded.

His memories grew increasingly blurred, and the illusions felt more real. He even began to lose sensation of his physical body.

“Buzz.”

An invisible force emerged within his consciousness.

“Hmm? Soul power?” Meng Chuan suddenly awoke, his memory fully restored, completely nullifying the illusions' influence.

Although he hadn't intentionally used his soul power, at the very moment he was about to succumb, his soul power automatically began to repel the black mist.

“Soul power is formidable; it easily blocks these illusions. But how can I temper my will this way?” Meng Chuan thought. He immediately retracted his soul power, preventing it from resisting. The illusions once again invaded, enveloping him layer by layer, and Meng Chuan’s consciousness gradually sank. Yet, his 'soul power' still maintained a final sliver of his awareness.

This sliver of awareness allowed him to recognize the illusions, but he couldn't break free from them. Furthermore, he could no longer sense his physical body.

His entire consciousness felt trapped within a dark cage.

Though his soul power could shatter this dark cage with a mere thought, Meng Chuan chose not to.

“Since I can no longer sense my physical body, I naturally can't go any further. I must have failed,” Meng Chuan mused.

Outside.

King Donghe and the others watched from a distance. After Ji Yuantong stopped, their focus shifted even more to Meng Chuan.

If Ji Yuantong was a rare genius who appeared only once every decade, then Meng Chuan's spiritual perception talent was truly astounding, something seen only once every few centuries. For this reason, the gods and demons present paid close attention to Meng Chuan. If he possessed a significant flaw in his inner will, it would be ten times worse news than Ji Yuantong stopping at the seventeenth level.

Thirty levels, forty levels, fifty levels, sixty levels.

Watching Meng Chuan steadily ascend, the gods and demons gradually relaxed. Reaching beyond sixty levels indicated excellent inner will.

At the sixty-sixth level, Yan Feng stopped.

At the sixty-eighth level, Meng Chuan also paused.

“Hmm? Is Meng Chuan stopping?”

“Sixty-eight levels is quite impressive; it places him tenth among the geniuses in this assessment.”

“To become a Great Sun Realm God-Demon, one’s inner will must reach the peak of the dark altar at the one hundred and third level. At eighteen years old, he has already reached sixty-eight levels. With natural growth, he should easily reach the altar's peak within ten years.”

The gods and demons were quite pleased with Meng Chuan's performance.

However, Meng Chuan paused for a single breath at the sixty-eighth level. Just as his eyes began to darken, they swiftly returned to normal. To everyone’s surprise, Meng Chuan continued to ascend. His renewed ascent was fueled by his anger at his own weakness and fear, which solidified his demon-slaying will into a blade-like resolve, intent on cutting through all illusions.

“Hmm? He was almost succumbing, yet he broke free from the illusions again? Such a breakthrough in the heat of the moment is truly rare,” Elder Yi said with a smile.

King Donghe nodded, saying, “His inner spirit is very strong. When faced with difficulties, his resolve only deepens, allowing his will to become even more refined.”

Under the watchful eyes of the gods and demons, the other geniuses gradually came to a halt.

Zong Sha also stopped at the seventy-first level, placing eighth among the hundred geniuses. This was an incredibly outstanding achievement.

At the seventy-fifth level, Meng Chuan stopped once more. This time, black mist enveloped his head, and his eyes gradually turned pitch black. Although he struggled for a moment, they ultimately became completely dark, and his entire body froze like a statue.

“Seventy-five levels, excellent,” King Donghe said with a smiling nod. An invisible force enveloped Meng Chuan and moved him to an empty space nearby. The black mist quickly left Meng Chuan’s body, retracting back into the dark altar.

Without the black mist, Meng Chuan quickly regained consciousness and full control over his physical body.

“Was I moved down?” Meng Chuan looked up. Four individuals were still struggling to ascend above him.

Among those still climbing, only Yan Jin possessed an exceptionally strong God-Demon foundation; the other three were relatively unknown.

“Meng Chuan, you reached the seventy-fifth level,” Princess Li Ying said, approaching with a bright smile and much greater enthusiasm. “You're the fifth among our hundred participants. However, ranking isn't the most important thing; inner will is crucial for cultivating into a 'Great Sun Realm God-Demon.' As long as you can reach the peak of the dark altar, that’s what matters. Given you've reached seventy-five levels now, you'll likely reach the top within three to five years.”

Meng Chuan sighed inwardly. As expected of a royal princess, she was incredibly knowledgeable.

He himself knew far less about Great Sun Realm God-Demons; his father’s body refinement God-Demon lineage had the Great Sun Realm God-Demon as its theoretical limit.

“We're in a much worse situation,” Princess Li Ying chuckled. “I only reached the thirty-ninth level, so I'll need to dedicate more effort to strengthening my inner will in the future. Thankfully, it generally takes twenty to thirty years to cultivate into a Great Sun Realm God-Demon, so there’s ample time to gradually improve one’s inner will. Oh, and did you know, Ji Yuantong stopped at the seventeenth level?”

“Seventeenth level?” Meng Chuan was surprised.

“Yes, I imagine the God-Demons of Yuanchu Mountain will have quite a headache over that,” Princess Li Ying remarked.

As Meng Chuan and Princess Li Ying chatted briefly, they saw Yan Jin finally stop at the eighty-first level. After him, only two geniuses remained in ascent.

Zuo stopped at the eighty-fifth level.

Zhang Lie stopped at the ninety-third level.

Zhang Lie's previous assessments had been mediocre, with his preliminary ranking at ninety-ninth. However, in this dark altar assessment, he ranked first, reaching an astonishing ninety-third level, not far from the summit.

Neither he nor Zuo had ever consumed rare natural treasures. Both came from ordinary families and had endured significant hardships to reach their current standing.

“They simply lacked opportunities and family support,” Meng Chuan mused, looking at Zuo and Zhang Lie.

Such was human destiny.

Had they been born into prominent families, pampered since childhood, favored by destiny, and provided with excellent cultivation resources, they would have experienced fewer hardships and likely wouldn't have reached the ninety-third level today.

“All assessments conclude now,” King Donghe announced clearly. “Please rest for half an hour. Yuanchu Mountain will finalize the list of the twenty chosen candidates after deliberation.”

“The final list is about to be decided.”

“Will I be chosen?”

“My preliminary and final performances weren't top-tier, but they weren't poor either; they were quite average. I should make it into the top twenty.”

Many of the geniuses were extremely nervous, pondering how Yuanchu Mountain would make its selections.

For many of them, securing a spot meant an instant rise to prominence. Without one, they would have to slowly accumulate merits on the battlefield, and without guidance from renowned masters. At Yuanchu Mountain, powerful God-Demons provide guidance, the most formidable legacies can be learned, and rare resources are extensively utilized for cultivation. The vast majority of Great Sun Realm God-Demons in the Great Zhou Dynasty originated from Yuanchu Mountain.

Meng Chuan walked over to his father, Meng Dajiang, where Yan Jin also joined them.

“Both of you performed well,” Meng Dajiang said cheerfully. “In my opinion, you’ll both definitely secure a spot.”

“Yan Jin, you were in the top ten in the preliminary selection, and I'd say top five in the final,” Meng Chuan nodded. “You're definitely getting a spot.”

“You should be first,” Yan Jin said with a faint smile. After years of striving, his primary goal had been to enter Yuanchu Mountain, and now it seemed there would be no unexpected outcomes.

The gods and demons were also discussing the large group of talented individuals who had participated in the assessment.

Meanwhile, King Donghe, the slovenly man, the woman in green, and Elder Yi were deliberating to decide the final twenty spots.

“Ji Yuantong’s inner will has flaws, but his physical and spiritual perception talents are exceptionally high. As long as he addresses the weakness in his inner will in the future, he can absolutely become a powerful God-Demon for our human race. He must be given a spot,” the slovenly man stated. “Other disciples who reached thirty or fifty levels on the dark altar will need to focus on tempering their inner will. For Ji Yuantong, simply having him exert more effort in this area should suffice.”

“I believe we need to devise a specialized plan to 'temper his inner will,'” the woman in green suggested. “Based on his childhood experiences, we can establish a new plan. This could involve significant life turns, desperate escapes, finding hope in despair, marriage, and starting a family… We should be willing to delay his progress by ten or even eight years if it means compensating for his shortcomings in these areas.”

“Indeed,” King Donghe nodded. “I also agree to grant him a spot, but a detailed plan must be formulated on how to strengthen his inner spirit.”

“You don't need to concern yourselves with these details,” Elder Yi said with a slight smile. “There are several old fellows on the mountain; let them devise the plans. Throughout Yuanchu Mountain’s history, we’ve had some peerless geniuses with weak inner wills.”

Exceptional talent in certain areas often leads to direct recruitment.

For example, Liu Qiyue, possessing the Phoenix Divine Body bloodline, was directly recruited without any assessment. Even if she has cultivation flaws, we simply find ways to compensate for each one.

For ordinary geniuses, dedicating too much time to other areas would hinder their cultivation. Yuanchu Mountain wouldn't consider it worthwhile to invest excessive effort in their development.

However, for certain prodigies... exceptions can naturally be made.

“Ji Yuantong’s spot is settled, but what about Zhang Lie?” the woman in green asked. “Zhang Lie ranked first on the dark altar, but his other performances were quite mediocre. How can he fight against demons in the future if he only possesses a strong inner spirit but lacks sufficient combat prowess?”

“He is indeed too mediocre,” the slovenly man nodded. “We could try directing him towards the Illusory Demon lineage.”

“He might not be well-suited for the Illusory Demon lineage; perhaps only the Blood God lineage would suit him,” King Donghe remarked.

“Let’s give him a spot,” Elder Yi said. “We can let him try both the Illusory Demon and Blood God lineages. If he doesn't become a High-Grade God-Demon within ten years… then he will be expelled from the inner sect.” He added, “Yuanchu Mountain has its rules: disciples must become God-Demons, and at the very least, High-Grade God-Demons! This is one reason for the strength of Yuanchu Mountain’s God-Demons. If they fail to achieve High-Grade God-Demon status within ten years, they are expelled from the inner sect and become ordinary outer sect disciples.”

King Donghe and the others deliberated over each individual spot. Each one was incredibly valuable, so naturally, they proceeded with great care.