As the spirit tablet lit up, after exchanging glances, a disciple made the first move. Li Xuan and Xi Chu Yun looked at each other and did not rush to test.
Moreover, with a disciple going first, they could observe for a while.
"Red light appeared! Heavens, it's still climbing towards orange!"
When the first disciple stopped, a red light shot up from the spirit tablet. As it grew, it was rapidly turning towards orange.
"Liu Qing, second-class disciple," Elder Chen Yuan said loudly, glancing at the spirit tablet. As he spoke, an orange token flew towards Liu Qing.
"With the strength of the mid-stage Hedao realm, achieving second-class disciple status is quite good. Junior brothers and sisters, let's continue," Xie Yu Shan said with a smile.
Perhaps emboldened by Liu Qing's start, everyone began to queue up and get tested.
Time passed, and many red lights appeared during the process, drawing envious glances from the crowd. After all, first-class disciples were entitled to their own cultivation cave.
However, everyone knew that the spirit tablet was foolproof. One's strength at this moment was difficult to improve. As the crowd gradually thinned, Xi Chu Yun slowly approached the spirit tablet.
Seeing Xi Chu Yun appear, everyone fell silent and watched intently. After all, Xi Chu Yun had been close to Li Xuan throughout their journey. Furthermore, his late-stage Rongdao realm strength made him a top contender among them.
Xi Chu Yun held his breath and then gently struck out a palm. An invisible wave of energy surged towards the spirit tablet. As if a muffled sound came from within the tablet, it instantly erupted with an orange light.
The orange light rapidly condensed, showing a tendency to transform into red light in an instant. Seeing this, the crowd gasped in astonishment.
"This person's strength is actually so formidable! Judging by this, he should have no problem becoming a first-class disciple."
"This junior brother, once he joins the Xuan Sect, we'll have to call him senior brother from now on."
"If I remember correctly, this senior brother also reached the seventh level in the Divine Soul Tower earlier. It's only natural that he would be a first-class disciple."
"..."
As the light turned red, Xi Chu Yun withdrew his hand and nodded slightly at Elder Chen Yuan.
"Xi Chu Yun, first-class disciple," Elder Chen Yuan announced emotionlessly. After tossing out a red token, his gaze slowly shifted to Li Xuan.
As of now, out of the more than three hundred people who chose the Langya Peak, only Li Xuan had yet to be tested.
"Congratulations, Brother Chu Yun," Li Xuan said with a smile to Xi Chu Yun.
"You flatter me, Brother Li. Brother Li, it's your turn," Xi Chu Yun replied with a smile, then stepped aside.
Li Xuan smiled, took a deep breath, and slowly closed his eyes. In an instant, he threw a punch.
*Boom!*
With a thunderous sound, a powerful and pure force surged into the spirit tablet. Everyone present stared at the spirit tablet with wide eyes.
However, after a few breaths, the spirit tablet showed no signs of any light.
"What's going on? Why is there no light?"
The crowd murmured in confusion.
*Bang!*
Just then, a loud bang echoed, and everyone turned to look at the source of the sound. At a glance, they were shocked again. The three-zhang-sized spirit tablet had, before their eyes, disintegrated into powder and scattered away.
"The spirit tablet was shattered!"
"My heavens, how strong is this Senior Brother Li Xuan's power! He actually shattered the spirit tablet!"
"..."
This scene once again captivated everyone's attention. Countless exclamations arose, and their gazes towards Li Xuan were filled with a hint of reverence. Might made right, it was displayed to the fullest.
Li Xuan, the cause of all this, looked at Xie Yu Shan with some surprise, clearly not expecting his single punch to reduce the spirit tablet to powder.
"Li Xuan, first-class disciple," Xie Yu Shan said, looking at Li Xuan with a touch of surprise, then offering a wry smile to Elder Chen Yuan. In Elder Chen Yuan's usually placid eyes, a different kind of gleam gradually appeared. After a moment of contemplation, he announced Li Xuan's rank.
"Holy Son Yu Shan, the test is concluded. Take them to their respective residences," Elder Chen Yuan said, and then his figure slowly vanished.
"Farewell, Elder Chen Yuan," Xie Yu Shan nodded immediately, then addressed Li Xuan and the others: "Junior brothers and sisters, your ranks have been assigned, and you will be considered fellow disciples from now on. Now, you may follow the guidance of the tokens in your hands to your respective abodes."
"The classification of ranks this time may not be entirely satisfactory, but you need not dwell on it. As long as your strength improves in the future, you will receive corresponding resources. And for those junior brothers and sisters who have achieved first-class disciple status, do not be arrogant. If you are surpassed by your junior brothers and sisters, you will also be relocated. That is all, you may disperse."
"We respectfully obey your teachings, Senior Brother Yu Shan," everyone said, bowing to Xie Yu Shan. With that, they dispersed in groups of three to five, tokens in hand, and vanished from the scene.
"Junior Brother Li Xuan, come with me to see the Peak Lord," Xie Yu Shan said with a smile as the crowd dispersed.
Li Xuan nodded and replied, "Please lead the way, Senior Brother."
"Senior Brother Yu Shan, does the Peak Lord have any taboos? I worry that I might speak out of turn and displease the Peak Lord," Li Xuan asked thoughtfully after bidding farewell to Xi Chu Yun, as he followed Xie Yu Shan.
Xie Yu Shan smiled and shook his head. "Junior Brother Li Xuan, you can rest assured. Master is a very easy-going person. Furthermore, Master did not hesitate to compete with several other Peak Lords to recruit you as a disciple, so he will not be displeased by anything you say. In fact, this is only the second time I've seen Master act this way for a disciple."
"The second time?" Li Xuan's ears perked up at Xie Yu Shan's words, sensing an underlying story. He immediately inquired.
Xie Yu Shan did not hide anything and said directly, "The first time Master acted like this was over a decade ago. At that time, I was just a chief disciple of Langya Peak. The Holy Son Chu Kuang Tian, back then, was poached by Peak Lord Cheng En, just like you, junior brother, after choosing our Langya Peak. Master was furious at the time. To this day, Chu Kuang Tian has become a Holy Son of Hong Shang Peak."
"Already a Holy Son of Hong Shang Peak? Senior Brother Yu Shan, is this Senior Brother Chu Kuang Tian among the ten people this time?" Li Xuan was shocked. To reach the Holy Son level in just over a decade showed immense talent. It was no wonder Gong Zimo and Hong Cheng En had quarreled so fiercely over him.
"Naturally, he is among our ten. At that time, the man in purple who stood beside Senior Brother Wan Yu Quan was Junior Brother Chu Kuang Tian," Xie Yu Shan nodded and said.
"So that was Senior Brother Chu Kuang Tian. Senior Brother Yu Shan, are there any other things I, as a disciple of the Xuan Sect, need to know?" Li Xuan pondered for a moment, recalling Chu Kuang Tian's appearance. He nodded and continued to ask.
"Hmm, there are a few things you should know. Remember this: although you are now a first-class disciple, you are only an introductory disciple. If you encounter elite disciples or those of higher ranks, even if they are weaker than you in strength, you must still address them as senior brother."
"To make identification easier, Xuan Sect disciples wear different colored robes according to their rank. These are white, green, black, and purple, corresponding to Elite, Outstanding, Chief, and Holy Son, respectively."
"Furthermore, apart from the introductory disciples being divided into five grades, each of the other levels has three grades. The rings on their sleeves indicate their grade. One ring signifies first grade. The attire for you introductory disciples is determined by the light you emitted from the spirit tablet earlier. Junior Brother Li Xuan's attire is red."
Xie Yu Shan stopped and looked at Li Xuan, saying, "However, given your strength and talent, Junior Brother Li Xuan, you will likely soon be wearing white or even green robes."
"Senior Brother Yu Shan flatters me. In that case, Senior Brother Yu Shan, are you a second-grade Holy Son?" Li Xuan smiled, glancing at Xie Yu Shan's sleeve, and replied.
"Junior Brother Li Xuan has sharp eyes. Let's go, Master likely knows we're here by now," Xie Yu Shan said with a smile. He then turned and walked back towards the peak.
Li Xuan followed closely, but in his heart, he was filled with curiosity and speculation.
What would be the ranks of the other nine Holy Sons?