"How is this possible? This speed of clearing the trial—did Lingyun inform him of the challenges in advance?" exclaimed a voice from the right.
"Ridiculous! With Lingyun's temperament, how could he do such a thing? Don't project your despicable private actions onto others!" a gentle female voice from the left retorted sarcastically.
"Lingdie, stop your nonsense..."
Before the person could finish, the elder in the center, the Law Elder, furrowed his brow, and a heavier mist enveloped the figures and voices of the cultivators on the cloud platform.
Then he spoke, "Indeed, based solely on your mentality, you are above average. The cultivation of true essence relies heavily on one's mindset; I hope you will maintain this in the future."
Bai Yichen was slightly out of breath; that last narrow path had indeed been pressure-filled, and he felt mentally and physically exhausted.
Seeing this, he quickly bowed and said, "Thank you, senior, for your guidance. I am fortunate to uphold my aspirations and meet my mentors' expectations!"
"Good! The Supreme Master has gone to the Jijian Pavilion, allowing me to take charge of various sect matters. Since you have passed the assessment, there is nothing more to discuss!"
The Law Elder's words were like a hammer sealing the nail. Moments later, the cultivators on the platform reappeared, but regardless of their inner thoughts, they all simultaneously replied in agreement.
Seeing this, the Law Elder nodded slightly and then said, "As I will conduct the initiation ceremony for this child, you may disperse."
Various lights of green, white, blue... flew out of the hall, and in an instant, only the Law Elder on the platform, the man below, and Bai Yichen remained.
The Law Elder waved his long sleeves, and the world spun around him. When Bai Yichen regained consciousness, he found himself in a solemn and majestic hall.
Inside the grand hall, forged of bronze, stood a massive stone statue in the center, depicting an old man in a purple robe. Though his appearance was ordinary, his gaze was deep and profound, as if reflecting the starry river.
"This is our Taiyuan Sect's founding ancestor, Master Yuanxu!" the Law Elder's voice echoed.
Then the elder recited the sect's rules beneath the statue of the ancestor for Bai Yichen to hear.
To put it simply, there was nothing lengthy, just a few brief points.
The core rules were that one must not deceive the master or destroy the ancestor, must not privately pass on sect techniques, and must not harm fellow disciples, among other things.
Afterward, as per the Law Elder's instructions, Bai Yichen knelt forward, performing three bows and nine kowtows.
He suddenly felt that the statue's eyes seemed to have a glimmer of spirit, gazing intently at him. A vast power swept over him, and in a daze, he thought he saw the ancestor slightly nodding, as if in approval.
"The ceremony is complete!" The Law Elder's voice rang out once more.
Bai Yichen returned to his senses from that vastness, suspecting that had he harbored ill intentions, he might have been cast into the cycle of reincarnation.
However, when that force swept over him, it seemed completely unaware of the seed of reincarnation within him. Could it be that the origins of the reincarnation seed were so profound?
But before he could ponder further, he heard the Law Elder say to him, "In our sect, every one hundred and fifty years is considered a generation. After you join, you will be in the same generation as Yuanhao."
At this, Yuanhao formally saluted Bai Yichen, who promptly returned the gesture. This person was the one who had first led him into the sect.
"Very well, since you have officially joined, you must choose a new Dharma name according to the Yuan generation. I wonder if you plan to keep the last character like the former Lingfeng?"
Perhaps because he had officially joined, the Law Elder seemed more lenient.
After pondering for a moment, as if recalling something, Bai Yichen said, "Since I have entered Taiyuan and the past is behind me, I would like to take the character 'Chen.' Is that acceptable?"
As he spoke, Bai Yichen used his true energy to illustrate the character he meant.
"You indeed have a strong opinion. In the past, Lingfeng wanted to change his name but couldn't. Today, when you are allowed to keep yours, you want to change it; you two…"
The Law Elder couldn't help but feel emotional.
Bai Yichen simply smiled in silence.
"Alright, the remaining matters after your initiation will be handled by Yuanhao."
Before Bai Yichen could ask anything else, a gust of wind blew, and he and Yuanhao were brought to the foot of the mountain.
A surge of ambition flashed through Bai Yichen's mind; after all, being led around three times in one day was inevitably a bit frustrating.
Even though he was temporarily in a lower position, he couldn't remain in that position forever!
As the Heart Refinement method circulated, Bai Yichen seemed to have a clearer understanding of what he sought.
"Junior Brother Yuanchen, next I will take you to the Affairs Office to complete the registration and receive the various benefits for inner disciples."
Suddenly, a finely crafted small boat appeared ahead, growing to a cloud boat over ten meters in size before slowly landing in front of the two.
Yuanhao clasped his hands and said, "Earlier, we were in a rush, so I directly used the Profound Light to bring you to Xuanyuan Peak. Now that we are not in a hurry, it's perfect for you to ask any questions you may have."
"No need to be polite, Senior Brother; you've been very considerate. I indeed have many questions to ask you," Bai Yichen responded readily.
Afterward, the two boarded the cloud boat first, and with a flash of white light, the boat soared into the sky.
The white light enveloped them like a protective shield, and the people on the boat felt no wind howling at all.
Bai Yichen was the first to ask, "I heard my senior brother mention Xuan Yuan Peak just now. Is that the peak we were at earlier?"
"Exactly. This peak is also the main peak of our Taiyuan Sect, where the Supreme Master, Law Elder, Ritual Elder, and several other Yin Spirit Elders reside. Additionally, important places like the Yuan Tian Hall and Ancestor Hall are also located on Xuan Yuan Peak.
Apart from this peak, the sect has six other main peaks.
They are the Qing Zheng Courtyard at Ze Fu Peak, which oversees the sect's laws and is currently managed by the Law Elder.
The Shu Wu Courtyard at Cang Liang Peak handles various affairs of inner and outer disciples and is overseen by Senior Ling Jiu.
The Chuan Fa Courtyard at Bi Tian Peak is responsible for the techniques and spells passed down to many disciples, led by Senior Ling Ming.
The Bai Yi Courtyard at Tong Han Peak manages various arts of cultivation for inner and outer disciples, including alchemy, formations, and talismans, overseen by Senior Ling Yuan.
The Ming Li Courtyard at Xi Xiang Peak manages sect ceremonies, etiquette, and receiving guests, and is currently overseen by the Ritual Elder.
Finally, the Gong De Courtyard at Zhi Tai Zhen Peak oversees the records of the merits and evaluations of many disciples, led by Senior Ling Cang.
Thus, daily operations within the sect are maintained by these six courtyards. Additionally, the outer sect has four lower courtyards responsible for the outer disciples, but these are not related to us for now."
Yuan Hao seemed to anticipate Bai Yichen's question, so he spoke at length.
Bai Yichen nodded thoughtfully, suddenly recalling the earlier trial with the treasure mirror.
"Do outer sect disciples also need to undergo that trial to enter?"
"Ha ha, naturally not. That's only for entering the inner sect; the outer disciples have their own recruitment methods. However, if they wish to enter the inner sect, they must go through that trial."
Yuan Hao praised, "But junior brother is indeed remarkable. Although you haven't cultivated the upper-level techniques, your true energy is solid enough to subdue your true energy during the final Qi trial."
Indeed, that final Qi trial involved extracting the true energy from the test taker, gradually forming a wall of energy.
If one did not comprehend this layer of barriers, or if their achievements were not complete, it would be difficult to fully control their own true energy, making success unlikely.