Beast Taming: I Have an Immortal Mansion

But Fang Qingyuan stuck to his decision. He was far more interested in the Tier Five Spiritual Power here than in some trial with unknown circumstances. The moment he sensed the density of the Spiritual Power in this place, a memory surfaced. 'Back when I faced the Celestial Tribulation for my Core Formation,' he thought, 'the concentration of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi that gathered when the Immortal Mansion's will merged with the world's will... it felt very similar to this.'

"Cultivators who wish to withdraw from this trial, please step forward and stand to my left."

Gui Qingkong called for those who wanted to withdraw to step out. To admit fear and quit at a time like this, in front of nearly two hundred Golden Core Cultivators and the assembled elites of the Cultivation Realm, required considerable courage.

At this, many of the Cultivators who had just been clamoring fell silent. The remaining few dozen looked at each other, but not a single one took the first step.

Fang Qingyuan waited for a few breaths. Seeing that no one was moving, he stepped out from the crowd.

After walking out, Fang Qingyuan didn't need to look back to feel the hundreds of gazes fixed upon him—some scrutinizing, some contemptuous, some curious.

Turning around, Fang Qingyuan saw that Tu Dai'Er's expression was calm, Cao Qingmei seemed to be lost in her own world, and Chu Wen looked slightly regretful.

"Good. Knowing when to retreat is also a form of courage. Which sect are you from?"

Gui Qingkong looked at Fang Qingyuan and offered a few words of casual praise. Fang Qingyuan was about to announce his sect, but on second thought, he realized, 'Gaining fame right now might not be a good thing.'

After only a moment's hesitation, Gui Qingkong lost his patience. He shifted his gaze from Fang Qingyuan to the twenty or so other Golden Core Cultivators who had stepped out, encouraged by Fang Qingyuan's action.

Most of these Golden Core Cultivators had strange auras; they were clearly all sorts of unorthodox practitioners. They probably cultivated techniques with major hidden dangers and feared that something would go wrong with their Cultivation Techniques during the sealing and unsealing process inside the Land of Trial.

"The rest of you, don't wander off. Everyone, please wait a moment. The Ancestor will be here shortly to say a few words to you."

After giving these simple instructions and seeing that everyone had calmed down, Gui Qingkong left them with those words and flew away.

'A Divinity Transformation Ancestor?'

A stir went through the crowd upon hearing this news. Many people straightened their backs, intentionally or not, hoping to make a better impression on the arriving Divinity Transformation Ancestor.

This Divinity Transformation Ancestor of Jixia City had the surname Gui and the given name Zheng. In his early years, he was a Cultivator of the Great Zhou Academy but later left for unknown reasons to strike out on his own, eventually becoming the Lord of Jixia City.

He was known to be easy-going and fond of jokes, yet there were never any rumors of him acting unscrupulously. He was an upright gentleman with the personality of a playful old rascal. Moreover, he was happy to support the younger generation. As long as one could catch his eye, anything was possible—guidance, Daoist Magical Artifacts, and even the right to use Jixia City's Tier Five Spirit Land.

Over thousands of years, he had helped countless people. It would not be an exaggeration to call him a living Bodhisattva on the path of cultivation for many Cultivators.

The benefits of leaving a good impression on such a Divinity Transformation Ancestor were self-evident.

Fang Qingyuan, however, didn't pay this much mind. 'Trying to win the favor of a Divinity Transformation Cultivator among nearly two hundred Golden Core Cultivators is just too difficult.'

A moment later, a figure drifted out from a thatched cottage on the distant horizon.

Although the person appeared very far away, his every move was imprinted with perfect clarity in everyone's eyes.

With a single stride, the newcomer crossed the vast distance. This sudden shift from extreme far to extreme near clashed with the crowd's perception, and the faces of some Golden Core Cultivators instantly turned pale. They were clearly not taking it well.

As he drew near, Fang Qingyuan saw that the man was dressed in a simple, loose-fitting white Confucian robe. His full head of white hair was neatly tied back and wrapped in a blue kerchief. He looked ancient.

Yet, one could still faintly tell from his features that he must have been very handsome in his youth. Gui Zheng was a bit thin, with a constant smile playing on his lips. As his benevolent gaze swept over them, the minds of the Golden Core Cultivators who had been feeling unwell just moments ago instantly calmed.

In the presence of the Divinity Transformation Ancestor, the crowd fell completely silent, quietly waiting for Gui Zheng to speak.

This was a bona fide Divinity Transformation Cultivator, a being whose power could be considered at the apex of this world. For many of the Golden Core Cultivators present, this was their first time seeing a Divinity Transformation Cultivator. Fang Qingyuan was no exception; he looked on with the same admiring gaze as most of the other Cultivators.

Gui Zheng's arrival greatly increased the prestige of this trial. After questioning the crowd about their perspectives on one's true self, Gui Zheng revealed the reason for the trial's massive scale.

It turned out that during his cultivation some days ago, he had sensed a great change might occur in the future. He had therefore invited these Golden Core Cultivators to participate in the trial, hoping to produce a few more Nascent Soul Cultivators to bolster the Cultivation Realm's strength for what was to come.

Fang Qingyuan didn't dispute the explanation, but the reasons sounded far too remote to him.

Fortunately, Gui Zheng was not like some pedantic scholar who delighted in excessive ceremony. After stating his intentions, he announced the start of the trial. With a wave of his sleeve, a sensation of twisting space washed over them, and in the next instant, the world before their eyes transformed.

When Fang Qingyuan opened his eyes again, he found himself teleported to an unfamiliar place. Without sparing a glance for his surroundings, he immediately focused on assessing the condition of his own body.

After a brief moment of self-inspection, Fang Qingyuan discovered that his Magical Power and Divine Techniques had not been sealed. Realizing this, he instantly felt relieved.

He looked ahead and saw a large, dead tree. The rest of the area was nothing but white sand. Fang Qingyuan released his Divine Sense, but it was blocked by an invisible barrier less than ten li out, unable to penetrate any further.

'Looks like this will be my cultivation spot for the next five days.' Sensing the dense Spiritual Power in the air, Fang Qingyuan's face lit up with joy. He walked over to the dead tree, sat down, and wasted no time in beginning his cultivation.

As Spiritual Power entered Fang Qingyuan's body at a frenzied pace, it vanished without a trace. Unseen by anyone, deep within Fang Qingyuan's body, the Immortal Mansion enveloped by his Golden Core had opened a small gate and was beginning to devour all this Spiritual Qi.

Meanwhile, the bottleneck of his Early-stage Golden Core, which had already been showing signs of loosening, was now becoming even more fragile. It looked as if it was about to be forcibly broken through at any moment.

「Three days later.」

A surge of power erupted from Fang Qingyuan's body. In that silent moment, his cultivation had advanced to the Fourth-Layer Golden Core.

Only then did Fang Qingyuan open his eyes. He looked ahead and saw a figure slowly approaching.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!