Supreme Sword Exalt

The low hill was desolate and bleak, with weeds and bushes growing wild. Although the spirit qi was slightly denser than other places, it was still extremely limited. At a glance, the area seemed ordinary and completely unremarkable. The only thing special about it was the two shoddy, thatched huts halfway up the mountain.

Twenty to thirty young people stood in a daze at the foot of the mountain, completely bewildered. Gu Han was one of them.

Opposite them, a big man of a man—ten feet tall and dark as a tower—smiled broadly. A sharp boning knife was strapped in his waistband. Today, he wasn’t carrying that big black pot on his back.

“Everyone, welcome to the entrance examination for Fengwu Court. Even though you are all talented individuals with solid foundations, the procedure is still mandatory,” he said, full of gratification.

A young man in the crowd asked, somewhat puzzled, “Is this place really Fengwu Court?”

“Of course!” The big man nodded. He pondered briefly and bent down, groping around in the weeds for a bit. Finally, he lifted up a stone tablet that was one-third broken and covered in dirt. “Look, see! This is it!”

Gu Han’s gaze shifted, landing on the stone tablet. Fengwu Court...

His heart sank. It’s over. I’ve been scammed.

The others were also dumbfounded. That stone tablet... Are you serious? It’s clearly a shoddy prop to fool people!

The young man who had asked earlier was already pale. “Then this should be Fengwu Court’s outer court, right?”

Instantly, the group began to speculate wildly.

“Definitely!”

“Yes, yes! Maybe after we pass the exam, we can see the real inner court!”

“Tsk tsk, quite particular, aren’t they!”

Even Gu Han quietly sighed in relief. Right, the outer court! It has to be the outer court!

The big man waved his hand. “Hey! Fengwu Court has never had any distinction between inner and outer courts!”

Everyone’s hopes were dashed with that one sentence, their hearts turning frigid.

Taking in everyone’s expressions, the big man shook his head. “Now, now, you mustn’t judge a book by its cover. Although Fengwu Court may seem a bit down on its luck, its foundation is not one bit inferior to Yuqing Sect! Hehe, if you are fortunate enough to pass the examination, I will be your senior brother. I should first explain the situation to you—”

Gu Han’s eyes widened. “Wait! A-aren’t you a chef? How did you become a senior brother?”

The big man gave him a friendly smile, seemingly having remembered him. “I am a chef and a senior brother!”

Gu Han’s heart was now thoroughly chilled. “Then, how many people are there in Fengwu Court?”

The big man held up three fingers.

The young man who had spoken first frowned deeply. “Thirty? That’s too few, isn’t it?”

The big man shook his head. “Nope, three!”

The crowd instantly erupted.

“Three?!”

“Only three people, and you still have the nerve to call it a sect?!”

“Exactly! You can’t lie to people like this!”

“I skipped Qixia Court, traveled day and night for half a month to get here, and this is what I got?!”

“Alright, time to go! I don’t want to stay in this dump a moment longer!”

Amid the discussion, Gu Han’s face had already darkened like the bottom of a pot. He grabbed Ah Sha’s hand, turned, and started to leave. This is it? This is one of the two courts? Compared to Great Qi Martial Academy, it’s lacking—no, it’s far, far worse!

Everyone shared the sentiment. The twenty-some young people all wore expressions of having been deceived and swindled, turning to leave one after another.

The big man grew anxious. “Don’t leave!”

He had exhausted all his strength to lure this oblivious bunch. How could he bear to let them leave so easily?

“Don’t you want the position of chief disciple?” he asked.

Everyone walked even faster. You still have the audacity to bring that up? With only three people, does it even matter?!

At last, Gu Han understood why Murong Chuan seemed so baffled when he chose to go to Fengwu Court. I am jumping straight into a pit of fire!

The big man sighed somewhat helplessly. “Even though you’ve come all this way...”

Upon hearing this, Gu Han stopped in his tracks. Right, since I’m already here...

Not only had he wasted several days to reach this place, he had almost died at the hand of that demoness. The more he thought about it, the more it felt like a loss.

Quite a few shared his thoughts. Ultimately, more than half of the people ultimately chose to stay. In truth, they were all like Gu Han, with no real choice. As for the rest, they had basically vanished from sight.

“Ah, forget it, since we’re already here.”

“Right, Fengwu Court is one of the two courts, after all.”

“Exactly! With our strength and foundation, it’s their honor to have us join.”

“Ah, Fengwu Court is destined to become famous throughout the Eastern Wasteland because of us.”

Everyone discussed, saying things they themselves didn’t believe, desperately trying to comfort themselves. As for the examination the big man mentioned, none of them took it seriously. What examination can such a ‘sect’ possibly have? It’s probably just a formality to maintain their last shred of dignity.

The big man’s dark face was full of smiles. Keeping so many people had far exceeded his expectations. “Good! Choosing Fengwu Court shows you all have good judgment!”

Everyone looked at him with disdain. Pft! Good judgment, my ass! We don’t have any choice, okay!

Someone complained loudly, “Stop stalling! Start that so-called examination quickly!”

The big man nodded. “Right, we should hurry. I still have to go back to cook later.”

Everyone was speechless. You certainly haven’t forgotten your identity as a chef!

Ah Sha unabashedly rubbed her belly. “Young Master, I’m hungry.”

Gu Han patted her head, his expression turning somewhat unfriendly. “Wait a little longer. Later, you can eat as much as you want.”

Secretly, he made up his mind. Even if he didn’t join Fengwu Court, he had to eat his fill. He didn’t come all this way for nothing!

The big man paid no heed to everyone’s reactions. With a smile, he reached into his storage ring and took out a piece of profound jade. It was palm-sized and pure white. Even more peculiar was the exquisitely beautiful carving on its surface, depicting a heavenly phoenix with nine tail feathers. At a glance, everyone felt as if the phoenix would come to life.

The big man became serious. “Alright, the examination officially begins!”

Gu Han stared at the jade. “Is this the examination?”

The big man nodded. “Yes. Quite simple, right? Just infuse your spirit power into the profound jade.”

As he spoke, he gently exhaled a trace of spirit power. Immediately, one of the tail feathers gained a touch of crimson red.

The big man explained, “Light up six tail feathers, and you’ll pass the examination.”

Everyone sucked in their breath. That’s it? Even the entrance exam is so questionable...

The big man, nonchalant as ever, asked, “So, who wants to go first?”

“Me. I’ll go first!” The young man from before stepped up with an unfriendly expression. He took the profound jade, turned it over a few times, looking completely unconcerned. “Watch closely!”

Despite feeling somewhat disdainful of the examination, everyone instinctively fixed their eyes on the profound jade. The profound jade trembled slightly as the young man infused his spirit power into it, but that was all. It remained pure white, without a hint of any other color.

Everyone stared at each other in confusion. What’s going on?

The young man couldn’t save face. “Damn it!”

He held nothing back, unleashing his full cultivation at the third stage of the Essence Gathering realm. A powerful aura rose from him as he poured more spirit power. This time, the profound jade did react. Crimson hue quietly crept up from the bottom of the jade, spreading onto one of the tail feathers. However, it was extremely slow, and when it barely covered half of the second tail feather, it seemed to run out of steam, unable to advance further.

The young man’s face flushed red. It seemed he had also reached his limit. The crimson color not only stopped advancing, but began to slowly fade away.

The big man shook his head, somewhat disappointed. He could tell that this young man was not weak. In fact, he was one of the best among the dozen or so people.

In the blink of an eye, the profound jade returned to its original color.

That young man’s face was as red as tomato—half was from exhaustion, and another from embarrassment. He raised the profound jade, about to smash it on the ground. “What kind of broken thing is this?!”

“What are you doing?!” The big man’s expression changed. He hurriedly snatched the profound jade back. In his haste, his tone had already become a bit stern. “This is Fengwu Court’s treasure, passed down to protect the court! If you break it, you’ll bear immense responsibility! You fail!”

The young man lost his temper. “What a lousy examination! Now I finally understand why Fengwu Court has no disciples! With examinations like this, who could possibly pass? No wonder you can’t recruit any disciples!”

Upon seeing the strange looks on everyone’s faces, he was mortified and even more furious.

The big man ignored him, sweeping his gaze over the others. “Well? Is anyone else willing to try?”

Another person stepped forward. “Me!”

Compared to the previous one, his cultivation level was higher. He was around the fourth stage of the Essence Gathering realm. However, the result was a great disappointment. Even with all his strength, he only managed to light up the first tail feather.

The previous young man immediately shut up. Not far away, Gu Han was full of thoughts. He had already discerned some clues. In this examination, cultivation level was secondary. Bone structure and potential seemed to be the main factors.

The big man’s face showed even more disappointment. “Is there anyone else?”

“Me!”

“Let me go first!”

“Count me in!’

Unexpectedly, rather than discouraged, the group became even more enthusiastic. They were actually in sync. Having lost all hope for Fengwu Court, all they wanted now was to humble the chef.

Yet in the end, over a dozen people had been humbled by that profound jade. Even the most outstanding performer had only managed to light up three tail feathers. Everyone’s hearts were filled with mixed emotions, ranging from dejection, shame, annoyance, and reluctance to accept.

The big man couldn’t hide his disappointment. “In that case—hm?”

Suddenly, his gaze fell upon Gu Han, who had remained silent in the crowd. Right! There’s still this last one!

He forced himself to perk up. “Young brother, do you want to give it a try?”

In truth, although he could tell Gu Han was extraordinary, he didn’t hold much hope for him either. No one understood better than him just how difficult it was to light up six tail feathers.

Everyone’s gaze instantly fell upon Gu Han. After looking him over for a few moments, everyone secretly shook their heads. His cultivation level doesn’t seem to have reached the Essence Gathering realm yet. He definitely has no chance!

Ah Sha lifted her head. “Young Master, try it. You can definitely do it!”

Gu Han hesitated a little. Having learned about Fengwu Court’s true state, he had lost most of his interest in this examination.

Ah Sha tugged his sleeve again. “Young Master, since we’re already here...”

This sentence moved Gu Han once again. Since I’m already here, not trying seems like a bit of a loss too?

Besides, he planned to stay for a barbecue later. He should at least save this guy some face. After thinking this, he reluctantly took the profound jade from the big man’s hand. “Alright.”

The big man offered Gu Han a perfunctory word of encouragement. “Young brother, give it your best shot...”

Before he could finish, a stream of liquid spirit power had already poured into the profound jade. Almost in an instant, the first tail feather had completely turned crimson red, followed immediately by the second, the third... It was happening so fast that it left people no time to react. Everyone was completely stunned.

The big man’s eyes widened, cheering from the bottom of his heart, “Young brother, quick! Quick! Give it more! More!”

Gu Han thought for a moment. “Well, should I try going all out?”

The big man’s eyes widened even more. “All out? You haven’t even used your full strength? Quick! Go all out! Let me see what your limit is.”

Before he finished speaking, an overwhelmingly powerful aura suddenly erupted from Gu Han. Aside from Ah Sha, the other dozen or so people were almost sent flying.

When everyone finally managed to steady themselves, they looked at the jade again and were rendered speechless. Not only were all nine tail feathers completely lit up, but even the heavenly phoenix itself had turned crimson red!

Compared to before, it was even more divine, vivid, and lifelike. As Gu Han’s aura surged, the phoenix reddened until it was finally the color of blood.

In the next moment, a faint, almost inaudible sound reached everyone’s ears. A crack finer than a hair silently appeared on the profound jade.