Chapter 33: Cripple Her

“I’ll only escort you this far. You go in alone. The priority for this exam is self-preservation. Everything else is secondary. If you don’t succeed this time, there’s always the next. Over ten thousand candidates apply, limited to those under fifty years old. Many are already at the Core Formation Stage, and a few rare geniuses might even be at the Nascent Soul Stage. The relationships between the great clans here are deeply intertwined and complex. Remember the identifying marks of each clan I told you about. Don’t be afraid of offending people; what you should fear is offending people you can’t afford to offend.”

On the day of the exam, Moyi Guihua escorted Huo Zhi to the entrance of the Inner City. Uncharacteristically serious, she sent a Sound Transmission to Huo Zhi.

“Sister Moyi, thank you. I will remember!” Huo Zhi gave Moyi Guihua a respectful bow.

“Go on then. I’ll get cleaned up and wait for you!” Moyi Guihua tapped Huo Zhi’s shoulder with her index finger.

“…” Huo Zhi slapped Moyi Guihua’s hand away and walked forward.

This woman’s seriousness probably couldn’t last more than three seconds.

To take the exam and enter the Immortal Talisman Sect, one first had to enter the Inner City. The Examination Token served as the entrance pass.

Huo Zhi used her Examination Token to enter the Inner City, where members of the Immortal Talisman Sect were waiting to guide them.

Following the guide, Huo Zhi felt something was off. Looking around, she saw several cultivators wearing clothes embroidered with the Moyi seal-script character clustered around her.

“These should be members of the Moyi Clan. Is it just a coincidence that they’ve all gathered here? They’re here to take the exam too. They shouldn’t be following me on purpose,” Huo Zhi shook her head, thinking she was overthinking it, and continued forward.

Further behind this group were two more women, one tall and one short. Their appearances were ordinary, utterly unremarkable. One had a blank expression and looked very stern, while the other, with heroic brows and eyes, had a hint of urgency in her gaze.

These two were precisely Linlang and her employer, Beimen Duoduo.

“Hey, why are you following the Moyi Clan people? They operate as a group, advancing and retreating together. Following the same guide as them means you’ll end up in the same group. They’ll gang up and eliminate you for sure! You’ll definitely be eliminated.” Beimen Duoduo urgently sent a Sound Transmission to Linlang.

“They won’t,” Linlang transmitted back in a low voice, continuing forward.

“…” Beimen Duoduo stomped her foot, but ultimately followed Linlang.

“This is it then. If I don’t pass this exam, let me tell you, I’m not paying you a single Spirit Stone,” Beimen Duoduo huffed.

“If I don’t pass, I won’t ask for any Spirit Stones,” Linlang stated.

Linlang already knew the examination rules from Beimen Duoduo.

Now that they’d entered and were being grouped, the Moyi Clan members were sticking close to Huo Zhi. Their purpose was obvious.

Linlang couldn’t just sit by and ignore it. She’d consider it repaying Huo Zhi for the Spiritual Rice she’d given her and for teaching her to draw talismans.

The group followed the guide to a gate formed of Spiritual Qi.

“Check your belongings. You are not permitted to carry Storage Bags. Your clothing must have no runic patterns. You may only carry one auxiliary Talisman Artifact of Profound-Grade or below. Those who’ve finished checking themselves, proceed through this gate,” the guide announced to the crowd.

Huo Zhi already knew this rule. She was already compliant. She walked over directly, queued up, and passed through the gate.

It was like a security scanner—anyone non-compliant simply couldn’t pass through.

The moment Huo Zhi stepped through, she felt dizzy and disoriented. After half a minute of vertigo, her feet landed on the ground. Her vision continued to spin wildly, her center of gravity shifted, and she collapsed.

For a moment, Huo Zhi didn’t try to look around. She propped herself up on the ground and waited for the dizziness to subside. As she recovered, she noticed that it was unusually silent around her. Opening her eyes, she found she had been teleported into a small booth. Ahead were a desk and chair. Further beyond, she could see rows of small cubicles, each with a person seated inside. Each cubicle was isolated from Spiritual Sense; only vague silhouettes were visible—impossible to see clearly or probe.

“Welcome to the Moxu Sub-Realm of the Immortal Talisman Sect. The first stage of the Grand Examination now begins: the Talisman Master Knowledge Assessment. After completion, submit your exam paper. Those who answer eight hundred out of one thousand questions correctly will proceed to the next stage. The exam begins promptly at the hour of the Dragon (7-9 AM).”

A voice announced.

Huo Zhi already knew this process well.

Basic knowledge assessment: Talisman Materials, essential common knowledge for Talisman Masters, etc. These had been Huo Zhi’s main focus in recent days.

Fortunately, her memory had greatly improved since her cultivation increased. She also had 006 as a cheating tool; she could ask it anything she didn’t know.

At the designated hour, the exam paper was delivered into her cubicle and placed on her desk. Huo Zhi sat down and began answering the questions.

The questions were all basic. Huo Zhi answered them with relative ease. When she finished, she placed the paper in the designated spot. After it was taken away, she sat cross-legged and rested for a while.

She felt the Examination Token hanging at her waist twitch. Picking it up, she saw that her score and ranking were now displayed on it.

“Stage One Score: 986 points. Rank: 821st place.”

The questions she got wrong were also displayed, scrolling across the token.

Huo Zhi looked at the missed questions and smacked her forehead. She’d written characters incorrectly!

The format was set to traditional Chinese characters. Although Huo Zhi recognized many, she was still used to writing simplified ones by habit. All of those had been marked wrong!

She was only a dozen points shy of a perfect score, a very good result, yet she was still ranked over eight hundredth place.

Only the top fifty would be admitted!

Everyone else was a top scholar. Their memory for foundational Talisman Material knowledge was incredible!

Looking at the ranking, Huo Zhi clenched her fists. It would be utterly humiliating if she ended up being flat-out eliminated.

As Huo Zhi waited for the second stage, within the inner sect of the Immortal Talisman Sect, atop an Immortal Platform wreathed in dense Spiritual Qi, quite a few people were closely watching the exam rankings flashing on a massive jade stele.

Any Examination Token issued to a clan member was marked with the clan’s symbol, along with the examinee’s name.

Some clans also gave tokens to talented retainers or distant relatives; it wasn’t uncommon for someone bearing the clan’s mark not to share their surname. They were all considered part of the same clan.

“Those foundational questions in Stage One—anyone who isn’t lazy can memorize them. A perfect score is normal. A fast mind and fast hands just give the fastest results. Once again, first place goes to the Wenren Clan. Our Nanmen Clan’s best is only eighth. How pathetic.” A cultivator dressed in golden Daoist robes said. He was a disciple of the Nanmen Clan within the Immortal Talisman Sect.

“Who can match the Wenren Clan in sheer speed! Your Nanmen Clan isn’t doing too badly—twenty of your examinees are ranked within the top hundred. But look at our Beimen Family. That girl, barely sixteen, insisted on taking the exam, and even secretly grabbed two extra Examination Tokens. A complete waste—all of them are ranked outside the top thousand. Looks like they won’t be far from elimination.” Another cultivator from the Beimen Family commented.

“Have you all noticed? Among the Moyi Clan this time, there’s someone ranked in the eight-hundreds. This Huo Zhi… is she a retainer or a relative of yours? A ranking like that is truly a wasted opportunity.” A cultivator from the Nanmen Clan speaking as he scanned the rankings spotted Huo Zhi, who bore the Moyi Clan’s mark.

“Hmph, it’s just repaying an old favor. She has nothing to do with our Moyi Clan. Don’t lump her in with us,” Moyi Xiu’er, who was also watching the rankings from the side, commented flatly.

The name Huo Zhi. It was within her expectations. Such a poor ranking. She’d even specifically instructed the Moyi Clan members taking the exam to deal with her. What a waste of effort.

Looking at the situation, she might be eliminated before they even needed to act!

“Oh? I see. Your Moyi Clan has been lagging behind in securing examination quotas for the past few years as it is. Now you’ve even given a spot to an outsider, leaving you with only a handful left. Will any of you even manage to get admitted this year?” the Beimen Family cultivator said, as if watching an entertaining show.

“That’s none of your concern. The clan has nurtured several talented individuals this year. They will surely distinguish themselves,” Moyi Xiu’er retorted.

“Then we’ll wait and see,” the Beimen Family cultivator replied.

“Look, the rankings are changing again. Looks like the second stage has concluded,” someone said as time passed, and the rankings on the stele shifted.

The second stage required providing ten sheets of Basic Talisman Paper and various Talisman Materials. Successfully drawing one talisman was enough to advance to the third stage.

This time, the scoring was not only about speed but also success rate. Whoever could draw quickly and accurately received the highest score.

First place received one thousand points. Each subsequent rank lost one point for being slower. Ties in submission time shared the same score.

Those whose scores dropped to zero after this stage were eliminated.

After the second stage, the ranking list changed once again.

First place remained Wenren Liluo from the Wenren Clan. A few names further down the list shifted significantly. One name that rapidly shot up caught the attention of several observers: it was Huo Zhi, bearing the Moyi Clan’s mark.

Her score jumped from 986 to 1986, and her rank skyrocketed to 220th place.

“No way! This Huo Zhi is actually quite formidable. She scored a perfect thousand in the second stage! That means she drew the fastest! How interesting. Her foundational knowledge wasn’t great, but her Talisman Drawing is both fast and excellent.” The Beimen Family cultivator exclaimed in surprise, staring at the ranking.

“Moyi Xiu’er, you just said this Huo Zhi has nothing to do with your clan. That’s good then. If she passes, my Nanmen Clan will recruit her!” the cultivator from the Nanmen Clan declared.

“Recruit her for what! That was just luck. The next stage won’t go so smoothly!” Moyi Xiu’er’s expression soured considerably.

To have jumped so high in the rankings after just the second stage… No. The third stage would definitely be different.

The first two stages were done individually. But during the third stage, everyone would be grouped together.

Moyi Xiu’er fixed her gaze intently on the changing leaderboard. The geniuses her clan had carefully trained were still within the top hundred, thanks to their advantage from the first stage. That was still acceptable.

In the third stage, Huo Zhi would surely be eliminated. She only needed to focus on the Moyi Clan’s rankings now.

At that very moment, Huo Zhi was being teleported into a massive hall where the third stage assessment had already begun.

All around her were the examinee cultivators—a dense, sprawling mass. The sight reminded Huo Zhi of a university sports field during a mass assembly; there must have been several hundred people.

“You are now trapped here. There are two doors through which you can leave. The front door is guarded by an Ice Thorn Snake; the back door, a Crimson Flame Wolf. You must select the appropriate Talisman Materials, draw defensive talismans, and escape this place to proceed to the fourth stage. In one hour, both doors will open.”

A voice transmitted directly to every cultivator in the hall.

This stage required drawing talismans to survive and escape, testing the examinees’ reaction speed, Talisman Drawing speed, and coordination.

Moyi Guihua had warned Huo Zhi about this stage: Be very careful of others. Quickly find your Talisman Materials, activate the Protective Barrier on your brought-in Talisman Artifact, and draw your talismans as fast as possible.

Huo Zhi didn’t dare waste a moment. She immediately ran to search for the Talisman Materials.

Before she could even reach the material racks, she sensed several people closing in on her—all cultivators wearing clothes embroidered with the Moyi seal-script character.

Two of them sprinted towards her from both sides. A sense of danger spiked in Huo Zhi’s instincts, and she urgently ran forward.

The two pursuers were clearly physically adept and caught up with Huo Zhi in just a few strides.

“First, disable both her arms. Let’s see how she draws talismans then!” one of them said.

Huo Zhi’s breath caught. These Moyi Clan members were absolutely ruthless!

During the second stage, when she was given ten blank talisman papers, she had drawn on all ten. She’d submitted one, leaving nine talismans in her hand. Now, she immediately activated one. Just as they were about to grab her, a Binding Talisman shot out and tied up the man on her left. She hurled an Ice Barrier Talisman at the one on her right.

Huo Zhi tried to flee, but with a thud, she slammed into an invisible wall of Qi. The next moment, an arm tightened around her waist. Other Moyi Clan cultivators had caught up. They, too, had drawn excess talismans and now used a binding talisman against her, trapping Huo Zhi.

Huo Zhi turned to retaliate, but a Spiritual Energy Net was already flying towards her.

She tried to run, but her speed was insufficient. Just as the net was about to ensnare her, a body wrapped around her. With a roll, they deftly tumbled out from beneath the net’s coverage simultaneously. A Fire Bullet Talisman struck the net, blasting it into tattered, burning shreds, rendering it useless.

“Sister, thank you so much!” Huo Zhi scrambled out of the roll and saw an unfamiliar face, immediately thanking her profusely.

“…No need.” A low, raspy voice responded. The woman immediately hauled Huo Zhi up from the ground and shoved her aside.

“Go get Talisman Materials! I’ll handle them!” The woman barked at Huo Zhi just as another woman grabbed Huo Zhi by the arm and started dragging her toward the material racks.

“My god, this girl is really bold! Offending the Moyi Clan! There are nine Moyi Clan members here! We’re doomed, doomed!” The woman dragging Huo Zhi shouted as she ran.

This woman was the disguised Beimen Duoduo. The one who had just saved Huo Zhi was, of course, Linlang.

“You two are together?” Huo Zhi asked Beimen Duoduo.

“Yeah. The Moyi Clan… they’re not easy to mess with! Forget it, let’s just hurry and get the materials!” Beimen Duoduo said.

Huo Zhi glanced back. The woman who had saved her was now entangled in a fight with five Moyi Clan cultivators. That woman also had spare talismans she’d drawn previously—all of the fire element.

She seemed to be handling it with ease. Huo Zhi decided she’d better find the Talisman Materials quickly, and also help them draw their talismans to repay their kindness.

“Choose… which materials should we choose? Why isn’t she beating them faster?!” At the material racks, Beimen Duoduo was momentarily at a loss.

“What’s your element?” Huo Zhi asked, already grabbing the materials for a Freezing Talisman and an Ice Escape Talisman.

“Main element Space, a bit of Fire. But I’m terrible at it,” Beimen Duoduo replied.

“Space element! Then take the materials for Teleportation Talismans!” Hearing this, Huo Zhi immediately grabbed teleportation materials, and then also some for Fire Arrow Talismans. Soon she could barely hold everything.

“I’m a terrible artist—one success out of ten is good for me! Fine, I’ll take these anyway! Oh, right! She said to set this place on fire once we have the materials!” Beimen Duoduo also grabbed a large handful of materials. When neither could hold any more, she activated a Fire Bullet Talisman. The materials on the racks caught fire, erupting into flames.

The materials here weren’t high-grade; many weren’t fire-resistant. Combined with the relatively high-level fire from the talisman, the entire area instantly became an inferno.

“…” Huo Zhi stared at the fierce blaze and quickly sprinted away with Beimen Duoduo.

Wasn’t this a bit too ruthless?!

What if someone tried to rob them for their talisman materials later?!