Chapter 393: Opposition

For the next few days, Zhou Yuan remained in his cave dwelling, consolidating the surging Genesis Qi he had gained from advancing to the Fourth Heaven. As Li Qingchan had mentioned, this Heaven-tier mission was exceptionally important, so Zhou Yuan wanted to strengthen himself as much as possible.

During these days, the Heaven-tier mission was officially announced by the sect, undoubtedly causing a considerable stir within the Cangxuan Sect. Countless disciples were eager and coveted it. Everyone knew that a Heaven-tier mission represented Heaven Credit, and the value of Heaven Credit within the Cangxuan Sect was so great that even the Saint Sons could not ignore it. Thus, every time a Heaven-tier mission appeared, it would lead to fierce competition among the top disciples of each peak. Although Heaven-tier missions also carried danger, under the allure of Heaven Credit, no one could resist.

This time was no exception. Therefore, when this Heaven-tier mission, named "Black Flame Province," was announced, the top purple-belt disciples throughout the Cangxuan Sect immediately began a frantic struggle for it. After all, the Cangxuan Sect had a large number of purple-belt disciples, but this Heaven-tier mission only required ten slots. Li Qingchan and Zhao Zhu, as captains, already occupied two of those slots. This left only eight remaining slots, making the intensity of the competition imaginable.

While those purple-belt disciples were fiercely contending for slots, Zhou Yuan had already secured his ahead of time, thanks to Yaoyao's influence. Thus, he remained peacefully in his cave dwelling, cultivating without worry.

Soon, five days had almost passed.

Inside the cave dwelling, Zhou Yuan sat cross-legged on a large boulder by the cliff edge. In front of him floated various types of green wood. Though different in kind, they all shared ancient, weathered marks on their surfaces. Evidently, these were aged ancient woods, filled with Wood Genesis Qi. These century-old ancient woods were what Zhou Yuan had painstakingly acquired from the sect's Glazed Pavilion over the past few days. Their purpose was for him to cultivate the "Taixu Green Wood Imprint" he had obtained.

"'To cultivate the Taixu Green Wood Imprint, the first step is to form the 'Taixu Mark' within one's body,' Zhou Yuan murmured to himself. 'Only by successfully cultivating this mark can the Wood Genesis Qi from the ancient wood be imprinted onto the physical body.'" And to inscribe the "Taixu Mark" internally, one also needed the Wood Genesis Qi contained within these ancient woods.

Zhou Yuan took a deep breath, closed his eyes slightly, then clasped his hands. Genesis Qi enveloped all the ancient woods. Following this, faint green wisps of energy seeped out from the ancient wood, streaming into his body through his nostrils. Zhou Yuan's spirit immediately took control of these vibrant green streams of energy, then carefully manipulated them, guiding thread-like wisps into his flesh and blood, leaving behind extremely subtle and intricate marks.

Inscribing the "Taixu Mark" was an incredibly intricate process because it permeated almost Zhou Yuan's entire physical body and merged with his flesh and blood. Even a slight error would lead to failure. Therefore, completing the first step of cultivating the "Taixu Green Wood Imprint" was clearly no simple task.

Zhou Yuan immersed himself in cultivation. Two hours quickly passed. His eyes gradually opened, and he looked at his arm, where a faint green light flickered before slowly receding.

"'After several days of diligent cultivation, this Taixu Mark is only one percent complete…' Zhou Yuan let out a bitter laugh. He had been cultivating with all his might for the past few days, yet the progress was quite slow. It seemed that just inscribing this Taixu Mark within his body would take a considerable amount of time."

Of course, the most crucial reason for this slow progress was the scarcity of Wood Genesis Qi. Zhou Yuan glanced at the ancient woods before him. As the Wood Genesis Qi was extracted, the woods began to turn into dust. These ancient woods were, at most, about a hundred years old, so their Wood Genesis Qi wasn't particularly abundant. However, finding thousand-year-old ancient wood in the Glazed Pavilion was quite difficult.

Zhou Yuan sighed, then swept away the dust in front of him with a flick of his sleeve.

"Hmm?"

Just as he finished cultivating, his expression suddenly shifted. His figure blurred slightly, turning into a streaking shadow that darted out. A dozen breaths later, he arrived at the entrance of his cave dwelling. There, he saw Shen Wanjin wiping sweat from his forehead, waiting.

"'Brother Yuan, have you finished cultivating?' Shen Wanjin asked, visibly pleased to see Zhou Yuan emerge."

Zhou Yuan smiled and nodded, asking, "What happened?" By Shen Wanjin's appearance, it seemed he had been waiting for a while.

A grave expression appeared on Shen Wanjin's plump face as he whispered, "Tomorrow is supposedly the day the mission departs, so the final selections for the slots must be confirmed today."

"Over the past few days, the top purple-belt disciples from various peaks within the sect have been fiercely fighting for these eight slots, practically drawing blood."

"It's said that most of the slots have now been confirmed... and your slot, Brother Yuan, has also been revealed."

Shen Wanjin hesitated, then added, "Apparently, it has caused quite a bit of opposition."

Zhou Yuan's expression remained calm. He wasn't surprised by this outcome. After all, he was merely a newly promoted purple-belt disciple, still far from the caliber of those seasoned, top-tier purple-belt disciples. Many veteran purple-belt disciples had missed out on a slot, yet he, a newcomer, was selected. Naturally, this provoked opposition. In the eyes of many disciples, his slot was clearly obtained through favoritism, even if... that was indeed the case.

"'Sister Qingchan should be able to suppress this opposition, right?' Zhou Yuan said. After all, Li Qingchan was the captain of this mission and held the right to recommend participants."

Shen Wanjin gave a wry smile and said, "Sister Qingchan can indeed suppress the opposition from other disciples, but the current problem is that Zhao Zhu from Sword Cometh Peak is strongly opposing it, using his authority as co-captain."

"'Zhao Zhu is also a Saint Son, and his reasons for opposing are quite legitimate, which has garnered him considerable support...'"

"'Zhao Zhu insists that you must be removed.'"

Zhou Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly. It was Zhao Zhu again...

"'Normally, selections for sect missions require the agreement of both captains. Now that the captain and co-captain are at odds, it's making things difficult...'"

Shen Wanjin looked at Zhou Yuan and said, "Sister Li sent me earlier to ask Brother Yuan to go to the Mission Hall." He looked worried. The Mission Hall was currently filled with many purple-belt disciples from various peaks. If Zhou Yuan went there, he might well lose his slot.

"'Brother Yuan,' Shen Wanjin said slowly, 'Sister Li secretly told me she would do her best to protect you. However, due to Zhao Zhu's strong opposition, you'll also need to prove yourself when the time comes. Otherwise...'"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuan's expression remained calm, showing no signs of panic.

"I understand." He nodded. He hadn't expected Zhao Zhu's involvement to complicate things so much. Li Qingchan calling him there probably meant she intended for him to demonstrate his capabilities. If he proved himself even moderately competent, Li Qingchan would have a stronger reason to forcibly keep him. However, if his performance was poor, even Li Qingchan might not be able to withstand the pressure.

"Let's go."

He raised his head, eyes slightly narrowed. Stamping his foot, Genesis Qi surged from beneath him, soaring skyward.

Trying to take his slot... Did they truly think Zhou Yuan was such an easy target?!