The woman stood on the competition platform. After the rosy clouds dispersed, her original appearance was revealed. Her gray robe was covered with blood stains from whip marks, her hair was disheveled, and she looked more bedraggled than the defeated opponent.

However, her gaze was calm, without the slightest waver.

Duan Xiangrao, who had been knocked off the platform by Zanxing’s staff strike, couldn’t get up for a long while. After a moment, she was helped up by fellow disciples and looked at Zanxing with complete disbelief: “How is this possible…”

How could she, with her late Foundation Establishment cultivation, possibly be defeated by Yang Zanxing?

“The match is over.” Zanxing looked at her and said, “I am the inner disciple.”

This competition had been unfair from the start, and the system wasn’t very reasonable either. Drawing lots was entirely based on luck. Logically speaking, with Duan Xiangrao’s cultivation level, entering the top thirty should have been without suspense, yet she had drawn the same lot as Zanxing. If two very strong people were matched together, there could only be one victor, making it regrettable for the remaining one.

But the path of cultivation involved not only cultivating the heart and practice, but also cultivating opportunities. Sometimes it was just that little bit of difference that separated one from the Great Dao.

No matter how unwilling Duan Xiangrao was, the assessment had ended.

The list of thirty inner disciples was finalized. Tian Fangfang came over to help Zanxing walk down from the platform. Only after stepping down did Zanxing realize her back was already soaked through with blood.

Zi Luo announced the next arrangements, including reassigning accommodation. Of the one hundred and twenty newly admitted disciples, only thirty had become inner disciples. The remaining ninety would have to move out of the small wooden buildings they had previously lived in.

When Zanxing returned, Duan Xiangrao was just finishing packing her belongings, preparing to leave. Seeing Zanxing limping in, she didn’t speak, only glanced at Zanxing with eyes full of venom and unwillingness, then stepped forward and brushed past Zanxing.

Duan Xiangrao had schemed in every way to enter the Taiyan Gate solely to break through in cultivation. To stop here today naturally filled her with ten thousand kinds of unwillingness. But Zanxing had no choice in the matter either.

Tian Fangfang helped her heat water in the room. Zanxing removed her clothes and immersed her entire body in it.

The mountain stream water was rich in spiritual energy. Though it couldn’t compare to a medicinal bath, it was still beneficial for her just-injured body. This was the first time in Zanxing’s life that she had been beaten. The pain from the whip strikes on her back only now began to slowly spread, making her suck in cold breath.

With one person fewer in the room, it felt empty. Zanxing placed both arms outside the wooden tub, leaning against its edge, and sighed heavily in her heart.

She had now become a variable in the book “Nine Heaven Summit.” The original story would spare no effort to erase her, but… she touched her heart, where the male protagonist’s golden finger, the Xiaoyuan Pearl, would instinctively protect her.

So under the Xiaoyuan Pearl’s protection, she had broken through repeatedly, found “Qing E Nian Hua Gun” under the Xiaoyuan Pearl’s guidance, and even her rapid comprehension of “Jing Hua Shui Yue” was thanks to the Xiaoyuan Pearl.

The Xiaoyuan Pearl would instinctively protect its master, whether she was Mu Cengxiao or Yang Zanxing. And the original story, because the Xiaoyuan Pearl protects her, would spare even less effort to erase her.

This was an unsolvable vicious cycle.

Zanxing suddenly remembered something and looked up at her palm. Today in the dining hall, a red mark had appeared on her palm. Looking at it now, the red mark seemed deeper.

What was this?

She rubbed hard, but still couldn’t remove it. This mark somehow made her feel uneasy.

Just as she was thinking, there came a knocking sound from outside. Zanxing stood up, threw on some clothes, and went to open the door. Outside, Zi Luo walked in carrying a stack of clothing.

“Junior Sister Zanxing,” Zi Luo placed the clothing on the table and turned with a smile: “Now that you’re an inner disciple, you need not wear the gray gauze robes of outer disciples anymore. These are some garments. If you don’t like wearing them, you can use spirit stones to buy other styles in Pingyang Town below the mountain. The classes are also different. This is the daily schedule for inner disciples—you can look at it when you have time.”

Zanxing thanked Zi Luo, then said: “Senior Sister Zi Luo, the injury on my face…”

“I asked Master before. The demon beast ‘Yu’ has dense demonic energy, different from other demon beasts. Ordinary high-level spiritual medicines might not be able to cure it.” Seeing Zanxing’s surprise, Zi Luo continued: “Don’t worry. I came today precisely to tell you about this matter. Change your clothes first and come with me to see someone.”

Zanxing replied: “Alright.”

The inner disciples’ clothing was indeed different from the outer disciples’. The previous gray gauze robe had already been very soft, but this current gauze robe was practically weightless. The gauze was finer, the color a beautiful sage green with a touch of gray added to the light green, creating a hazy, ethereal appearance.

In short, it had a very minimalist aesthetic.

The embroidery was still of phoenix birds, and the matching hair ribbon was adorned with small pearls, making it look more refined.

After Zanxing dressed, she went out with Zi Luo.

The autumn night was cool. On Gufeng Mountain, clouds and mist swirled, and the fragrance of osmanthus trees perfumed every corner. On such a night, even without cultivating, taking a walk was enjoyable.

As they walked, Zi Luo explained to Zanxing: “In our Taiyan Sect, Master has taken seven disciples in total—we have seven senior uncles. The Master Yueguang you saw is one of them. You’ll meet the other senior uncles during classes. The one we’re going to see now is Fourth Senior Uncle.”

Passing through an outer courtyard, a small hall appeared before them.

The hall didn’t look large. Above the entrance was a plaque with a large red character “Dan” (Pill). Two small furnaces were placed at the door, with flames dancing beneath them. Upon entering this courtyard, it immediately felt several degrees warmer than outside.

A small child wearing a hat at the entrance saw Zi Luo and hastily called out loudly: “Master, Senior Sister Zi Luo is here!”

“Come in—” came a slightly hoarse voice from inside.

Zanxing and Zi Luo walked into the hall. Inside the long hall was empty, without even tables or chairs, pitifully sparse. In the center of the great hall stood a massive pill furnace as tall as a person. The furnace was currently “hissing” and smoking, with a cluster of flames burning vigorously beneath it.

Seated cross-legged before the pill furnace was a man wearing yellow gauze robes and a black gauze hat with a round taiji diagram embroidered in the center. His face had black and purple patches, as if smoke-stained, appearing to be around forty or fifty years old. His grizzled hair was tied in a small braid behind his head, a piece of grass dangled from his mouth, and he casually tossed spiritual fruits from the ground into the pill furnace.

While refining pills, this person was also humming, singing with great enthusiasm, bobbing his head. Zanxing worried he might topple headfirst into the fire.

“Junior Sister Zanxing, this is Fourth Senior Uncle,” Zi Luo said.

This was Li Danshu, the fourth disciple of Shaoyang Zhenren, skilled in pill refinement.