After a brief moment, Xu Su felt a tightening sensation around his waist as his body grew light, and his body was suddenly lifted upwards.
Turning his head, Xu Su saw the lanky senior helping him ascend the cliff. With one hand around Xu Su's waist, the senior disciple climbed up the cliff with nimble legs. At the same time, Xu Su noticed that the sun had already reached the center of the sky. It was noon.
"So I failed the test after all." Xu Su felt depression set in his heart. It seemed unfair. Even though he had desperately pushed forward, almost to the point of disregarding his life, why couldn't he compare to the other children?
In the blink of an eye, the top of the Heart Refining Cliff appeared before him, there were six other children resting on top of the cliff in front of him. Aside from the six, Mu Yan was also there, conversing with a middle-aged old man wearing dark blue garb. Division Head Li, as well as Protector Zhao, were also standing near him. They were waiting for the senior disciples to escort the rest of the children up the Heart Refining Cliff.
After all the children had been escorted up the cliff, Division Head Li stepped forward with a solemn expression on his face as he began to address the kids:
"This time around, only seven of you passed. Out of this group, six will enter my Hundred Forge division and formally become our sect's Inner Disciples." Division Head Li spoke slowly at the crowd of children.
"As for Mu Yan, the first disciple to reach the top of the Heart Refining Cliff, he performed outstandingly and, as such, will be directly sent to the Seven Supreme Division to learn the sect's secret skills and martial arts." After speaking, Division Head Li glanced at the old man wearing the dark blue garb. The old man twirled his beard around one hand while nodding in satisfaction at Division Head Li.
"As for the others… ," Division Head Li contemplated the outcome of the remaining children for a moment before rubbing his chin and saying softly:
"Zhan Yue and Xu Su, although these two did not pass the test, they still performed admirably. Their determination will allow them to cope with the pain of practicing martial arts. The two of you will be Unofficial Disciples assigned to an instructor of our sect for the next half year. After half a year, you will be tested again. If you pass, you'll be able to become Inner Disciples, but if you fail, you will be sent to join the Outer Disciples, helping the sect handle its external affairs.
Xu Su stole a glance at the person named Zhan Yue. Like Xu Su, Zhan Yue had begun climbing the rope but failed to reach the summit of the Heart Refining Cliff before midday.
"Protector Zhao, give the rest of the children some silver coins and send them back to their homes," said Division Head Li as he gave a cold stare at the children who failed the exam.
"Understood!"
Protector Zhao complied with the order and he led the remainder of the children back down the cliff.
"Zhang Chung, Mu Ying Rui, the two of you will assist me in sending the rest of these children to the Vice Division Head and Instructor Lei."
Two senior disciples stepped forward and separated Xu Su and the rest into two groups before leading them down the cliff. One of the senior disciples was the lanky senior that had always been behind Xu Su. As they were descending the cliff, Xu Su could not help but steal a glance at Mu Yan and discovered that he was still chatting with the old man in a dark blue robe, seemingly without any intention of moving from the spot.
"He's different from the rest of you. In the future, he will most likely be a core disciple. Only core disciples are sent to the Seven Supreme Division to train in the sect's secret arts. Once he completes his training, at the very least, he will have the rank of a Protector." The voice belonged to the long and thin-faced senior, who could tell what Xu Su was thinking.
From his tone, Xu Su could hear undisguised hints of envy mixing with jealousy.
"Hmph, isn't Mu Yan just pulling strings and depending on his family's connections? If it wasn't for his older cousin being married to Vice Sect Leader Jang, how could he be selected as a core disciple with such meager skill? He already surpassed the age limit but he was still sent to the Seven Supreme Division," the other senior said in a freezing tone that made chills run down people's spines.
"Zhang Chung, have you gone mad? How dare you gossip about the Sect Leader's decisions? If this news were to be spread, both of us could suffer severe punishments and end up in dire straits!" After hearing Zhang Chung's words, the senior with the long and thin face felt startled and rapidly checked his surroundings to make sure no one heard Zhang Chung's words. Only after ascertaining that there were no other disciples around did he heave a sigh of relief.
The senior with the cold countenance snorted as if he were harboring hatred in his heart, but after Mu Ying Ru's warning, he stopped talking. Only then did Xu Su understand that the senior with the cold countenance was Zhang Chung. Listening to their conversation, Xu Su could roughly understand what they were talking about. Mu Yan entered the Seven Supreme Division, not because of his own skills, but because he had the backing of the Vice Sect Leader!
As they walked along the mountain path, the two seniors both thought of the sect's internal affairs, which filled them with sadness. Lacking the mood to converse, they silently led the children forward. The rest of the children also dared not speak out of turn; perhaps they were thinking of the differences between the Seven Clouds Sect and their hometowns.
Just as they were passing through a forested region, an old man emerged from the woods. He appeared to be over sixty years old, and was tall and thin with a yellow tinge to his skin and a head full of white hair. As he approached them, he coughed with every step, causing many of them to worry that he was suffering a great deal and could collapse at any moment.
The senior disciples, upon seeing this old man, did not show a trace of worry on their faces. Instead, they respectfully greeted the old man with a bow.
"Physician Wu, this disciple greets you. Is there anything that you need this disciple to handle?" Zhang Chung, unlike his previously cold demeanor, now had an expression full of respect. To Zhang Chung, this old man in front of him was worthy of more respect than Division Head Li and even the Sect Leader.
"Oh, is this the latest batch of disciples?" The old man continued coughing and asked with a hoarse voice.
"Yes, among the eight of them, six are official Inner Disciples and two are Unofficial Disciples," responded Zhang Chung.
"Coincidentally, I'm currently in need of some manpower, specifically an alchemy apprentice and an herb gatherer. Let these two follow me instead." Physician Wu randomly raise his finger and pointed, just as luck would have it, towards Xu Su and Zhan Yue, the two Unofficial Disciples.
"This disciple will obey your words. These two Unofficial Disciples actually caught the eyes of the esteemed Physician Wu, their karma must be exceptional… The two of you, why are you still standing there? Hurry and come to pay your respects to Physician Wu. If you are able to learn a thing or two about the arts of healing from this esteemed elder, you will be extremely fortunate." The two seniors had no traces of hesitation or objection on their faces. The senior with the long and thin face, Mu Ying Rui, flattered Physician Wu in order to curry favor with him.