Chapter 1320: You Should Be Able to Sleep

“Damn it, damn it!”

Zhang Qian trembled, his face darkening. He had hoped for an extraordinary performance that would launch him to success, but to his surprise, he was ultimately eliminated. What’s more, that person actually surpassed him by one rank and passed the assessment directly! He had previously envisioned that once he entered the elite class, his status and authority would increase, making it easy to deal with the other party. He never anticipated this result.

“Brother Yun, it was this fellow, Zhang Xuan, who attacked me and took my spot!”

He clenched his fists and looked up at a young man not far away. This was Zhang Yunfeng, another Zhang Clan genius who had made it into the elite class, ranked forty-sixth.

“I know about your situation, but didn’t you bring it on yourself?” Zhang Yunfeng raised an eyebrow and snorted, “I wouldn’t even dare provoke someone from the Iceberg Palace, but you wanted to show off the moment you arrived. You deserved to be taught a lesson!”

“Yes, I admit I was outmatched and brought shame upon myself,” Zhang Qian said. “But this guy openly disdained the Zhang Clan, claiming that Zhang Clan members always interfere when they see a beautiful girl... his tone was arrogant... I simply couldn’t tolerate it!”

“Don’t try to provoke me! Regardless of whether he disrespected the Zhang Clan or not, you revealed your identity and still tried to engage him; that was indeed quite arrogant. Don’t worry, in a moment, I will teach him a lesson and make him understand that his meager talent doesn’t qualify him to act so presumptuously in the Saint Son Hall!” Zhang Yunfeng said indifferently.

“Thank you, Brother Yun...” Hearing his agreement, Zhang Qian’s eyes lit up, and he excitedly clenched his fists.

Zhang Yunfeng’s bloodline was considerably purer than his, already having reached the first rank. Furthermore, his cultivation was also superior, having reached the early stage of the Domain Realm. If he were to make a move, it was predictable that Zhang Xuan would undoubtedly be defeated and suffer greatly.

“Mm.” Zhang Yunfeng said no more. To him, someone who emerged from such a small place was merely a brief interlude in his cultivation journey, not worth dwelling on.

“Next are the students from the ordinary class!”

Ignoring the crowd’s astonishment, Elder Haoyu waved his hand again. The sky shimmered like silver, and name after name flashed into view. Soon, all the names were displayed. Seeing Zhang Jiuxiao’s name among them, Zhang Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although his ranking wasn’t high, reaching over four hundred and sixty, he had genuinely passed the assessment and become a member of the Saint Son Hall. Ma Minghai and the others who accompanied them also successfully advanced, seven in total. While not an overwhelmingly large number, it was quite good proportionally.

“Next are the auditing students!”

After announcing the ordinary students, Elder Haoyu’s voice continued, and then a list of five hundred more people appeared. The Saint Son Hall officially recruited around five hundred students in total for the elite and ordinary classes, plus another five hundred auditing students. As the list of five hundred appeared, sounds of excitement and disappointment rose and fell.

Zhang Xuan took a look. Of the thirty-three individuals who came from the Qianchong Empire, seven advanced, and four became auditing students. With more than one-third succeeding, their results were quite commendable.

“Those on the list, please remain; everyone else, please leave!”

With the list now public, Elder Haoyu dropped all pretense of politeness. He waved his hand, clearly dismissing the others. The talents who had not been selected for either the ordinary or auditing classes had no choice but to leave dejectedly. An assessment is an assessment; no matter where it takes place, it is equally ruthless. Once one fails, turning things around requires paying a price many times greater than before.

In less than ten minutes, only the thousand people who had been selected remained on the plaza.

“Welcome, everyone, to the Saint Son Hall!” Elder Haoyu pointed mid-air, and countless identity tokens immediately appeared in everyone’s hands. “These are your identity jade tokens. They will automatically display your corresponding responsibilities as students!”

Zhang Xuan looked at the jade token that had fallen into his hand. The auditing tokens were light blue, ordinary student tokens were light yellow, while his, as an elite class student, was black. He looked down to see the character ‘圣’ (Sheng, meaning Saint) carved in seal script on the jade token, exuding an ancient, vast aura. Around it, intricate patterns layered like human eyes, seemingly endless. With a flick of his finger, a drop of blood merged into it. He immediately felt integrated with the jade token. From then on, when entering the Saint Son Hall, he would no longer be affected by its formations and could move freely.

Zhang Jiuxiao had also refined the jade token in his hand by this time, his face filled with satisfaction. As a collateral branch disciple, he was originally not highly regarded, but becoming a member of the Saint Son Hall clearly changed his status.

“This year... perhaps I’ll be qualified to attend the annual meeting!” His eyes shone.

The Zhang Clan’s annual meeting was typically only attended by core disciples and accomplished collateral branches, so he could never go. But now, as one of the Saint Son Hall’s five hundred members, his status had rapidly risen. Upon returning to the clan, he would be qualified for such high-level meetings.

“All of this is thanks to Teacher Zhang!” Knowing that his current achievements were greatly due to the help of the person before him, Zhang Jiuxiao exhaled, full of gratitude. Although he was a Zhang Clan disciple, he hadn’t received any substantial help from the clan. In contrast, Teacher Zhang had been tirelessly diligent throughout their journey, never holding a grudge despite their initial rivalry. Both his character and his profound understanding of knowledge earned Zhang Jiuxiao’s complete admiration.

While he was reflecting, Elder Haoyu’s voice echoed from the sky once more: “The assessment has concluded, and your identities are now set. I surmise that many of you still harbor some resentment and a desire to compare yourselves with others. Rest assured, the Saint Son Hall offers you this opportunity. Up next is a challenge match!”

“Excellent, I’ve been waiting for such an opportunity...”“Challenge matches are rarely held. I didn’t expect us to be here for one. This time, I must become a student of the Saint Son Hall!”

A wave of excitement swept through them, and everyone’s eyes lit up. Those who could come to the Saint Son Hall usually did their homework beforehand. Although challenge matches weren’t always mandatory, they had occurred countless times in the past and could be researched.

“The so-called challenge is quite simple,” Elder Haoyu said. “Auditing students can challenge members of the ordinary class; if successful, they can take their place! Ordinary class members can also challenge elite class members. Each person gets only one challenge opportunity, and failure will result in a corresponding punishment. I presume you are already aware of these rules. If not, they are also recorded in your identity jade tokens!”

“Recorded?” Zhang Xuan extended his spiritual sense and looked at the jade token in his palm. Indeed, he found many regulations of the Saint Son Hall, including those concerning challenge matches. This competition was designed for fairness—the strong would rise, the weak would fall, ensuring the survival of the fittest. Similarly, challenging a higher rank from a lower status was considered a great disrespect; failure indicated a lack of self-awareness regarding one’s strength and warranted punishment. Some punishments were physical, others involved paying compensation, and some were apologies... they were not uniform. However, all required the victor’s satisfaction. In other words, challenges were permitted, but one also had to assess their own capabilities. Questioning the results of the Saint Son Hall’s Mountain Gate Assessment naturally also incurred corresponding penalties.

“Begin!”

With a loud shout, Elder Haoyu waved his hand, and a circular platform slowly emerged from beneath the ground in the center of the plaza. Elder Hanzhu stated the rules, and everyone gathered around, each recalling the introductions and names on the list, planning their challenges.

“I challenge Xue Ning, the five hundredth-ranked ordinary student!” A shout rang out. It was one of the auditing students.

“This Zhao Qi is the top-ranked auditing disciple, meaning he’s precisely ranked 501st. Harboring resentment, he’s challenging the 500th-ranked individual!”“No wonder, the score difference between these two shouldn’t be much!”“Yes, anyone in their shoes would definitely want to fight for it!”

Those who had spoken from the crowd all nodded in agreement. This type of challenge wasn’t a questioning of the Saint Son Hall’s fairness, but rather a display of unwillingness to accept the outcome. The two were not far apart in rank; the latter was merely an auditing student, while the former had become a member of the Saint Son Hall. Anyone in their shoes would feel a bit unconvinced and want to use this opportunity to prove themselves.

With a whoosh! Having declared his challenge, Zhao Qi leaped onto the platform.

“As you wish!” With a leap, a young man from the ordinary class also came onto the platform.

Zhang Xuan glanced at him. It was none other than Young Master Xue San from the Saint Clan Xue, who had clashed fiercely with him over the Heavenly Drunken Ambrosia back in the Qianchong Empire, losing fifteen high-grade spirit stones in the process. During that battle, the guy spun so fast he made himself sick, becoming the laughingstock of countless people. He didn’t expect that in just over ten days, spurred by shame, the man’s cultivation would advance further, already reaching the Pseudo-Out-of-Body Realm. This level of strength was not exceptional among the many geniuses being assessed for the Saint Son Hall, but it certainly indicated considerable talent.

“Xue Ning,” Elder Hanzhu said, “what aspect did you excel in during the Mountain Gate Assessment? In what area will you accept your opponent’s challenge?”

The Saint Son Hall’s selection of talent wasn’t based solely on strength; there were many comprehensive considerations. Since he was accepting a challenge, he naturally had to face his opponent using his most proficient area.

“The reason I passed the selection was due to my speed and attack power. If the opponent can suppress their cultivation to match mine and defeat me in battle, then I will concede defeat!” With his head held high, Xue Ning’s eyes shone with deep confidence. Even though the Saint Clan Xue was only a third-rate influential clan, their ultimate move, the Golden Silk Slash, was not to be underestimated. Had he not encountered a freak like Zhang Xuan, he would have been considered invincible among those of the same cultivation level. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have passed the Mountain Gate Assessment and become a member of the Saint Son Hall.

“Suppressing my cultivation to fight you? Alright!” Nodding, Zhao Qi let out a loud roar, and his cultivation rapidly decreased, quickly becoming similar to his opponent’s, reaching the Pseudo-Out-of-Body Realm.

Boom! The two immediately engaged in battle. True to their reputations as geniuses, both their moves were extremely refined, each stronger than the last. Various energies surged, making it difficult to determine a victor quickly.

“Teacher Zhang... who do you think will win?” Zhang Jiuxiao looked over.

“Xue Ning should be slightly more skilled!” Zhang Xuan said.

“I also think he will win!” After remarking, Zhang Jiuxiao remembered something and couldn’t help but look over: “By the way, Teacher Zhang, how did you successfully pass the Mountain Gate Assessment and become an elite class student? Could you share your experience?”

The person before him knew everything about cultivation, master teachers, appraisal, calligraphy, and painting—mastering every field. He couldn’t fathom what exactly Zhang Xuan relied on to succeed in the assessment, and his heart was filled with curiosity.

“Experience?” Hesitating for a moment, Zhang Xuan said with a look of profound emotion: “Firstly... you need to be good at sleeping!”