"Since Junior Brother Lin has spoken thus, there should be no harm in me speaking frankly. I also believe that, despite your great affection for talent, you wouldn't compete with us, the Jiuying branch, for family disciples to the point of losing all decency," the scholar said with a slight pondering, before adopting a tone of mockery.
Hearing this, Junior Brother Chu and the others couldn't help but feel quite embarrassed.
Although the Jiuying lineage had been in decline for some time, being so directly confronted by the other party naturally gave them the feeling of being slapped in the face.
"Rest assured, Junior Brother Gui, just name the disciples you are interested in. If there's any competition, I will make the decision. This time, no matter what kind of talents emerge among the family disciples, they will be let to choose from your lineage first," the Sect Leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect said with a solemn tone, seemingly feeling somewhat guilty towards the Jiuying branch.
"Thank you, Sect Leader Senior Brother!" the scholar replied with joy, bowing and thanking the Sect Leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect.
Seeing this, some of the others looked at each other, unsure of how to react.
"Actually, among the disciples from outside, I am merely picking the lesser of evils. I only took interest in a few disciples with some potential, but whether they can truly pass the spirit opening ceremony is still uncertain, far from being comparable to the innate spirit disciples that Junior Sister Lin and the others are competing for. Among the three rogue disciples, Junior Brother Zhu and I have made contact, and preliminarily, the disciple named Gao Chong likely has a good chance of possessing the Nine Spirits Vein, while another rogue disciple named Yu Cheng possesses some spirit eye talent and can cultivate our lineage's Ghost Dove Technique, with the hope of reviving the Dove Eye Technique in our Sect. The last rogue disciple, while average in ability, had in his youth consumed a piece of rot-poison spirit grass, and hence the Yuan Energy in his body naturally contains a certain corrosive poison; if he can pass the spirit opening ceremony, there may indeed be some surprises. As for the other family disciples, I've made contact with a few, but only one from the Lei Family named Lei Zhen is worth noting. This disciple also has a certain chance of being of the Nine Spirits Vein, and I believe he must have inherited quite a bit of the Lei Family's special bloodline power," the scholar expressed his judgment one by one, causing Junior Brother Chu and the others to be quite tempted, but the earlier words of the Sect Leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect made them hesitant to object aloud.
"Junior Brother Gui, Lei Zhen is my own nephew, I'm afraid he can't be entrusted to your Jiuying Sect. I plan to personally cultivate him," a previously silent figure suddenly said in a low voice.
"I had anticipated that you would say as much, so my observation of Lei Zhen was just that—observation. I did not truly make contact," the scholar answered without surprise, instead sighing with an expression of regret.
"Thank you for your understanding, Junior Brother Gui," Junior Brother Lei said, with a hint of apology.
"So it seems, Junior Brother Gui, you intend to use all three nominated slots on these three rogue disciples," interjected Junior Brother Chu, unable to hold back any longer.
"Indeed, that is the case. Why, does Junior Brother perhaps intend to change his mind and swap out the spirit vein disciples he previously selected with those chosen by our lineage?" the scholar said with a light laugh.
"Haha, since Senior Brother took an interest first, I will not attempt to take what you love," Junior Brother Chu yawned, hastily responding.
While Gao Chong and the other two rogue disciples weren't bad, compared to the disciples they were interested in, their qualifications were clearly inferior, and they were not willing to trade for them.
"Good, as long as these three rogue disciples can pass the spirit opening, they will belong to the Jiuying branch. I also hope that the Jiuying branch can regain its former glory. Only when all eight branches work together with one heart and mind can we make our entire Barbarian Ghost Sect stronger," the Sect Leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect said, softening his voice upon seeing this.
Some nodded slightly at these words, while others remained indifferent.
Frowning inwardly, the Sect Leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect was about to say more when a spirit apprentice disciple flew over from the plaza on a grey cloud, bowing from a distance and reporting:
"Reporting to the Sect Leader, the Spirit Pool Great Formation is ready and can be activated at any time."
"If the preparations are complete, then let's begin," the Sect Leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect replied without hesitation.
"As you command, Sect Leader!" The disciple bowed to take the order, then flew back the way he came.
At the same time, in the midst of many family disciples, Liu Ming was continuously eyeing a girl among the spirit vein disciples of the Barbarian Ghost Sect.
In fact, it wasn't just him; countless gazes had already swept over the girl incessantly.
Even among the Barbarian Ghost Sect disciples, many would sneak peeks at the girl every so often.
The appearance of the Barbarian Ghost Sect girl was truly astonishing.
Seemingly only thirteen or fourteen years old, she was blessed with a delicate nose and apricot-shaped lips, her skin was fairer than snow, and her long, black hair draped over her shoulders. When her bright eyes twinkled, an indescribable charm radiated from within, inducing a rapidly beating heart at every movement, conveying a breathtakingly stunning impression.
The girl seemed accustomed to being watched, indifferent to the many eyes on her, still wearing a smile and appearing unfazed.
After watching the girl for a while, Liu Ming suddenly bit the tip of his tongue to forcefully pull his gaze away from her face, inwardly exclaiming, "Incredible."
Could this be the legendary naturally seductive body form? At such a young age, she was already so captivating; should she grow a few years older, she might cause even greater disaster.
But what struck him as odd was that, given her supposed presence among the opposite group earlier, no one had noticed her until a while later when suddenly such an enchantingly beautiful girl appeared.
Even more chilling to him was the fact that not only young men stole glances at her, but even some young women looked at her with a touch of admiration.
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This girl is really too sinister; it's best to keep a distance.
Liu Ming quickly made up his mind.
The others didn't possess Liu Ming's strong willpower. At first, they all sneakily glanced over, but once they noticed the girl didn't care, they immediately grew bolder, and their gazes became somewhat brazen.
After an unknown amount of time, the girl finally furrowed her brows, and her bright eyes casually swept towards the disciples of the noble families.
All the young men who met her gaze turned red-eared and lowered their heads, but there were a few who, like Lei Zhen, held a sense of superiority in their status and met her intense gaze head-on.
When the girl's eyes passed over Liu Ming, she noticed he was not looking at her like the others, but focusing on the magic array in the center of the square. Her gaze hesitated, seemingly surprised, but then swept past without further concern.
A thunderous boom resounded!
A milky white column of light suddenly burst forth from the silver array, reaching up into the unseen void above.
The embedded clear crystals in the square also lit up with dazzling white light, and the entire array started emitting a deep hum, as silver patterns flickered, now dimming, now brightening.
Almost simultaneously, Liu Ming felt the air around him grow dense as if something had suddenly appeared in the nearby void.
After a slight hesitation, he took a deep breath and immediately felt a sense of freshness permeating his body, invigorating his spirit.
This major turn of events finally snapped those who were still entranced by the Barbarian Ghost Sect girl's bewitching power out of their reverie, and they all turned to look at the silver magic array on the square with surprised expressions.
At the same time, up on the grand platform, the leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect saw the huge magic array activated and immediately ordered the others.
"Junior Brother Lei, proceed as we discussed earlier, you will preside over the ritual. The rest of you, assist him accordingly. The Spirit Awakening Ceremony is crucial for our sect's future, so none of you must be careless," he instructed.
"Yes," the scholars and others replied, bowing with a solemnity born of dread.
Looking at the several figures of clearly distinguished status standing on the platform, many of the noble family disciples suddenly rose into the air, flying directly towards the center of the square without any support beneath them.
This caused a stir among the other disciples of the noble families.
The disciples of the Barbarian Ghost Sect, on seeing these eminent figures approach, suddenly knelt in unison, all saying in chorus:
"Greetings, Uncle Masters!"
"Rise. Soon, listen to our commands and enter the Spirit Gathering Array in groups of a hundred. Heh, once inside, your fate is in your own hands. And once the spirit sea has opened, you will be forever separated from the mortal plane! I'll ask one more time, is there anyone who does not wish to take the risk and wants to back out?" a shadowy figure spoke in a deep voice, it was none other than Junior Brother Lei who had been mostly silent on the platform earlier.
But on hearing this, whether it was the disciples of the Barbarian Ghost Sect or the noble family disciples, none replied.
By this point, naturally, no one would be foolish enough to back out.
"Good, very good!" Junior Brother Lei said the word "good" twice in the air, then fell silent.
Liu Ming, amidst the crowd below, curiously observed the figures in the sky.
Now, even if he used all his might, he simply couldn't see through the haloes that enshrouded their true faces and felt somewhat frustrated.
But when he inadvertently swept his gaze toward the ranks of the Barbarian Ghost Sect disciples, he was shocked to find that the enchanting girl had vanished and even struggled to clearly recall where she should have been.
Liu Ming, though usually very bold, couldn't help but feel a chill down his spine at this turn, as if he had seen a ghost in broad daylight.
On the noble families' side, it seems others had also noticed the absence of the enchanting girl, and a commotion stirred with many wearing expressions of disbelief.
On the platform above, the sect leader of the Barbarian Ghost Sect swept his gaze over a slightly more delicate-looking girl among the disciples, chuckled, and then said to Junior Sister Lin, who had also stayed behind and not presided over the ritual:
"Jialan's Nightmare Physique is truly astonishing. Before even opening her spirit sea, she already possesses such remarkable effects. Once she becomes a Spiritual Apprentice, there's no telling how much power she'll wield."
"Hmph, if it weren't so, I wouldn't have fought with Senior Brother Chu for her like this. What a pity, though. As rare as this spirit physique is, it makes cultivation extremely difficult for the possessor. And facing opponents significantly more advanced in cultivation, the Nightmare Physique doesn't hold much of an advantage," Junior Sister Lin said after a snort of displeasure.
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