Volume 3, Chapter 384 – Third Realm Cultivation? Disqualified!

“And finally, your overall performance will determine whether you pass this test!”

As the Huayue official’s words faded, the entire venue fell silent.

Lu Zhuxin could see the shock plain on the faces of many people present.

“The first round of the selection is a talent test?”

“This isn’t what we were told!”

Lu Zhuxin turned to Cheng Yinyin beside her. “Little Sister Yin, when your sister from the outer commandery went through the selection, were the rules the same as this?”

Cheng Yinyin shook her head blankly. “She told me the first round only tested cultivation realm and age.”

“As long as you’re under twenty five and have reached Second Realm cultivation, you’d pass the first round.”

Cheng Yinyin’s brow knit tightly as she stared at the spirit platform at the center. “Someone changed the rules of the selection.”

Lu Zhuxin understood at once.

There was only one person present with the authority to change the rules of the selection.

That was Noble Consort Wei Ziqing, the one presiding over it.

With the Empress absent, he held the most power here.

What is that man up to? Lu Zhuxin thought to herself.

Wei Ziqing was a Heaven Mandated Male Lead. Lu Zhuxin didn’t believe he would do something so pointless without reason.

Just as doubt was forming in Lu Zhuxin’s mind, Chi Xiyan’s voice drifted over from behind her.

“This rule is meant to restrict the noble clans of the outlying commanderies.”

“Under the original rules, there was almost no real barrier for any noble family.”

“Second Realm cultivation by age twenty five. Any family could pile on enough resources to reach that.”

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“Great clans like the Nanhe Song family or the Beihe Chi family keep their top talents at home to groom as heirs. They would never be sent off to spend their lives in the palace as a consort.”

“So those who come to compete are, for the most part, children of lesser talent.”

“After the rules for the consort selection were changed, it favors those from smaller, lesser noble families instead.”

“Reaching a sufficiently high cultivation level with limited resources takes both talent and effort. Neither can be missing.”

“Someone like that, in strength as well as character, is simply not comparable to a noble scion propped up entirely by rare treasures and resources.”

Lu Zhuxin looked startled. “So it’s meant to win people’s hearts.”

“Not entirely,” Chi Xiyan continued. “Restricting the outer commandery clans also serves the interests of the noble families in the capital.”

“Letting minor, insignificant clans into the capital wouldn’t affect them at all.”

As she said this, the look Chi Xiyan gave Lu Zhuxin grew increasingly complicated.

This rule made no difference to her.

She held Fourth Realm cultivation and was a sword cultivator of formidable offensive power. Few among the candidates present would be a match for her.

But Chi Muxue was different. Powerful as the Sword Dao Divine Body was, she simply hadn’t had enough time to cultivate. This rule put her at a disadvantage.

“Still, this might turn out to be a good thing,” she murmured to herself.

Not far off, Bu Lianshuang, disguised as a noble young lady, glanced at Chi Xiyan, then at Lu Zhuxin, seeming to want to say something before holding back.

Just then, a chill ran down her spine, and she snapped her head up to look at the man in the phoenix robe at the center of the platform.

Wei Ziqing was flipping through the roster in his hand, giving Bu Lianshuang a faint smile.

Bu Lianshuang’s brow furrowed deeply.

If she remembered right, that man had already looked this way several times.

Who exactly was he looking at?

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Bu Lianshuang frowned and turned her head aside, only to catch Lu Zhuxin staring fixedly at the man, lost in thought.

Bu Lianshuang froze for a moment.

She knew Miss Fox had only approached Chi Xiyan in order to infiltrate the human race and gather intelligence.

That was simply how the Fox Clan operated when it came to espionage.

Wei Ziqing, as a noble consort, held an exalted status and stood close to the Empress herself.

Miss Fox, surely she wasn’t planning to…

At the thought, Bu Lianshuang’s heart sank.

“Bu Lianshuang!”

A voice suddenly rang out in her mind, jolting her fully awake.

It was spiritual voice transmission. Miss Fox was sending her a message through consciousness.

“Xin’er? I’m listening!”

Lu Zhuxin’s tone was stern. “Bu Lianshuang, you are not allowed to go up on that stage for the selection later!”

“Huh?!”

…

Wei Ziqing shifted his gaze to the roster in hand, matching the portraits and names on the page to the girls before him.

“Cheng Lixia, Cheng Lixue.”

“And one more… Bu Ruyan.”

“Which of these could be the girl fated for me?”

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Wei Ziqing’s finger traced idly over the portrait on the roster.

“Wasn’t there also a Cheng Yinyin? Why isn’t she being counted?” the voice from the ring asked.

Wei Ziqing gave a light laugh. “That Cheng Yinyin has put all her effort into her looks alone. Doesn’t seem likely.”

“But these three…” Wei Ziqing tapped his fingertip lightly. “I can’t quite read them.”

“Still, I have a feeling.”

“The final winner of today’s selection will come from among these three girls.”

…

The officials of Huayue Court moved quickly. Once the test was announced to begin, they summoned a great slab of pitch black stone and placed it on the spirit platform in the garden.

“Lin family, Lin Zixuan!”

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, a woman in a pale green robe leaped lightly up onto the platform.

“It’s Sister Zixuan of the Lin family!” Cheng Yinyin recognized the woman and whispered to Lu Zhuxin, “Sister Zixuan is the Lin family’s second young lady. Of all the sisters I know, she has the highest cultivation, at peak Second Realm.”

“Oh.” Lu Zhuxin glanced at the girl, the corner of her mouth twitching slightly.

Peak Second Realm? That girl was clearly already at Third Realm.

This so-called sisterly bond of yours must be made of plastic.

The official presiding over the selection said, expressionless, “Use your strongest technique and attack that stone. That’s all.”

“Yes.” Lin Zixuan’s expression was calm.

She gathered spiritual energy in her hand and silently recited the incantation.

A cold wind seemed to sweep through the garden, an icy aura surging rapidly toward the platform.

Before long, someone in the crowd recognized the technique.

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“That’s the Lin family’s inherited technique, the Frost Feather Incantation. For this young lady to invoke it to this degree, she must have at least Third Realm cultivation!”

“She’s clearly around our age. How can she have such strong cultivation?”

Even Cheng Yinyin marveled. “When did Sister Zixuan’s cultivation advance this much?”

“With Sister Zixuan’s strength, passing the first round should be all but certain.”

“Is that so?” Lu Zhuxin pursed her lips.

Somehow, it seemed to her that the girl’s casting speed was a bit too slow.

“She won’t pass,” Chi Xiyan said with certainty.

Cheng Yinyin overheard this and shot Chi Xiyan a displeased glare. “Lixia, what do you mean by that?”

“Sister Zixuan is a good friend of mine. Can’t you say something nice for once?”

Chi Xiyan glanced at Cheng Yinyin. “Her spiritual power is scattered and her aura is unstable. It’s obvious she’s forced her cultivation level up with pills, without a stable foundation. She hasn’t even mastered the incantation properly.”

“If I were Noble Consort Wei, I certainly wouldn’t let her pass.”

As they spoke, the woman had already completed her technique. She calmed the restless energy in her chest for a moment, then unleashed the incantation in her hand.

Countless feathers gleaming with cold light shot toward the pitch black stone.

Like a sudden downpour, they struck with a clattering, ringing sound.

The barrage continued for several breaths before finally stopping.

Lin Zixuan stepped back to the side, waiting for the final judgment.

A moment later, Wei Ziqing lowered the roster in his hand and looked up to announce the result.

“Lin Zixuan. Disqualified.”