The First Round Commences

Typically, in the Xuqi Sect entrance exams where the participants battled against the Xuqi Sect Elders, those with the highest cultivation levels would participate first, and those with the lowest cultivation levels would go last. This arrangement was mostly for the sake of the spectators; even though cultivators with peak stage cultivation bases were more powerful, there wasn't really any excitement in their matches, since they were basically guaranteed to win. It was only when those with early, mid and late stage Origin Soul Realm cultivations took the stage, that there was any uncertainty towards the outcome of the battles and tests. By putting the strongest first and the weakest last, there was actually more build-up in the excitement.

However, this ruleset could only make Yaan smile wryly…didn't this mean that he would be going last?

To enter the Xuqi Sect, possessing Mid Origin Soul Realm battle power was the minimum requirement. There were some at the early stage and a few at the initial stage who could achieve this, but what about the Spirit Core Realm?

It was impossible.

There were a rare few Spirit Core Realm geniuses who could display 'pseudo Origin Soul Realm battle power', meaning that they could keep up with an Initial Origin Soul Realm cultivator for a few moves before they began to fall into a disadvantage. Yaan became renowned in the Fragment Sect because he was considered to be one such individual.

But these individuals couldn't hope to match a Mid Origin Soul Realm cultivator, no matter defeat such a powerhouse!

As such, Spirit Core Realm cultivators almost never entered the Xuqi Sect's entrance exam, and when they did enter, they always failed.

'Not only will I need to wait until last, but this is going to make me stand out even more…' Yaan felt a bit helpless about this. He didn't particularly want to attract the attention of the Southern Continent's most powerful individuals and organisations, but it's not like he could just leave at this point.

No, really, he never had any choice other than to go along with what the Immortal Ancestor dictated…

Yaan glanced at the white-haired man again, but all he could see was an indifferent gaze. After meeting other immortals, Yaan now understood that the expressionless poker face of this person was his unique trait, not something universal to all immortals.

Yaan would not kneel to the Immortal Ancestor, nor did he feel any lingering fear towards him. However, even so, he had no choice but to go along with his wishes, since the only other alternative was death. This was somewhat contradictory, causing a sickly feeling to sprout within Yaan's heart, but he ignored this feeling and did what needed to be done.

One day, he would escape from this person's clutches, so for now, he would just endure until that time.

Soon enough, three individuals flew out from the grand protector's entourage, silently taking their places on the marble pillars. As Yaan watched the first three competitors fly across, landing atop the pillars and facing their opponents, he was reminded of his days in the 4th Trial Realm. This podium-based one on one combat was quite similar to the setup in the 4th Trial Realm…really, this sort of thing should be Yaan's forte.

Whoosh!

Gusts of wind blew outwards from the three podiums as all six individuals released their auras. Whilst many were stunned to see that all three participants were Peak Origin Soul Realm cultivators, Yaan instead thought it was a bit strange for a different reason.

"Nirvana Realm cultivators only very rarely attempt the Xuqi Sect entrance examination. At the very most, a cultivator can remain at the Nirvana Realm for a few years, but it's more common to fail after three years, when the Nirvana Death Heavily Calamity descends. With such a short period of time spent at this level, there are very few Nirvana Realm cultivators at any one time, and most individuals at this realm choose to spend their time in seclusion, preparing for their Immortal Ascension Tribulation."

The Xuqi Sect Immortal Lord helpfully explained the lack of Nirvana Realm cultivators for Yaan, but this didn't make him feel good at all…he didn't even say anything, but she answered his question anyway…was he really so easy to see through?

The battles on the three podiums soon began.

Actually, Yaan had never seen Origin Soul Realm cultivators fight before, so he was quite interested in these battles. Besides that, he understood his own strength and had confidence in his abilities, but it was impossible to know for sure how he measured up to other cultivators if he had not witnessed their abilities in person.

Watching these battles helped Yaan to understand the strength of those at the late and peak stages of the Origin Soul Realm.

On the first podium, two old men who each looked like they had one foot in the grave faced one another. One was a Xuqi Sect Elder, known only by his odd title 'Old Elder'. The other was a lone cultivator, apparently renowned throughout the Southern Continent for his spear techniques. He was known to others as 'Old Spear'.

Oftentimes, cultivators' titles were extremely straight forwards, as they tended to just describe a person's most famous trait.

Whoosh!

Old Spear made the first move, his spear became like a phantom, transforming into dozens of spears in an instant. However, Old Elder was quick to react, holding out a handful of beads. Each bead shot out towards the spears with a ray of light, before slamming into the phantom images and causing them to detonate. Explosions enveloped the stage, immediately forming an extremely chaotic scene.

On the second stage, an old woman faced a young woman. The old woman was strangely dressed in rags, identifying her to those in surroundings as the lone cultivator 'Eccentric Granny'. She didn't attack first, but waited for the Xuqi Sect Elder, Xuqi Yi, to attack. Xuqi Yi stretched out her delicate hand, showcasing her multi-coloured fingernails. Seven lights shot out from her fingernails, fusing together into a ball of energy in the air.

Whoosh!

The ball of energy plummeted down towards Eccentric Granny, but the old woman laughed crazily and stretched out her arms to either side. After doing this, she suddenly screamed, creating a sound wave which managed to push back the ball of energy.

On the final podium, an old man faced off against a middle aged woman. The man's name was Xuqi Ren, he was an elder of the Xuqi Sect and a member of the Xuqi Dynasty. As for the woman, she was also a member of the Xuqi Dynasty, her name was Xuqi Jean.

Bang!

The intensity of the battle reached its peak with the very first move. Xuqi Ren was at the late stage whilst his opponent was at the peak stage, and yet, he managed to hold his own against her ferocious attack. Xuqi Jean held out one palm, controlling an array of flying needles, all of which were surrounded in red light, as the needles rained down in a storm upon the old man. Xuqi Ren looked up calmly, but he was clearly very focussed right now. He waved his hands repeatedly and formed multiple hand seals every second. His spell caused layers of runes to form from multi-coloured mist in the air, stacking atop one another and strengthening the spell continually. However, these layers were broken down by Xuqi Jean's flying needles, causing the two to enter a deadlock.

Explosions of lights flashed about on the stage - the intensity of this battle was easily the greatest of the three. Like Yaan, many people present had never seen a battle between Origin Soul Realm powerhouses before now. These fights left a deep impression on them, causing their hearts to stir as desires formed within them…

Everyone who was yet to reach this stage couldn't help but think…when would they achieve such incredible power?

After their desires calmed down, some people were left feeling slightly nervous. The battles continued to escalate by the second, until it really seemed as if the extreme explosions of light and the frantically flying treasures might shoot off stage and into the audience at any moment!

But how could the Xuqi Sect not prepare for this?

"The podiums suppress the strength of the individuals within?" Yaan voiced his guess aloud.

"Indeed, it's very impressive that you could see through this so quickly." The Xuqi Sect Immortal Lord nodded. "But rather than the individuals themselves being suppressed, it is actually the intensity of the attacks which is dampened by the formations."

"I see…" Yaan nodded slowly. As he continued to examine the three podiums and whilst watching the colourful display of lights go on, his eyes shone as he deduced further details.

'These formations not only suppress the intensity of all attacks, but they also prevent anything from leaking outside of the podium. Also, although the intensity is suppressed, the profundity behind the utilised methods is unaffected. This means that the participants are not restricted from showcasing their full abilities.'

Based on his analysis of the formation, Yaan was able to estimate the original intensity behind each of these attacks. He remained calm and nodded to himself slowly, but others were not nearly as calm as him after learning about the suppression formations.

"This, this is their power when it's suppressed? Just how powerful would these cultivators be without the suppression?"

"Incredible! My horizons have been broadened today, it was indeed worth making the journey across the continent to witness this!"

"Sigh, I'm still too weak compared to the Peak Origin Soul Realm…can I really pass this examination?"

…

The chatter amongst the audience was very lively, but from where he stood, Yaan could barely hear the noise at all. That said, he understood everyone's excitement…

These battles were basically the highest level battles that took place on the Southern Continent!

But unlike others, Yaan did not feel overpowered as he watched these fights. Instead, he had a thought.

'Peak Origin Soul Realm…hmm…'

Soon enough, the three battles came to an end. The victors were, as expected, the three individuals at the Peak Origin Soul Realm. These three had all reached the peak of the realm some time ago, which was the reason for their going first. They were naturally much stronger than Late Origin Soul Realm cultivators.

Honestly, all three individuals were stunned by the strength of these Xuqi Sect Elders! It was clear that the Xuqi Sect Elders had practiced the Xuqi Sect's techniques, and it was probably because of this that they were able to keep up with cultivators at the peak of the realm for so long.

The Xuqi Sect's Elders were indeed impressive, but more so than the elders themselves, it was the Xuqi Sect's foundation and affluence which allowed its members to grow to such an extent.