"There's no need to worry about that, with three spirit roots, he has already met the criteria for discipleship at Chang Chun Temple. However, the temple doesn't only consider aptitude; character and temperament are also part of their evaluation. Regardless, come May next year, your son can go to Yuhua City to participate in the Initiation Ceremony. As long as he passes the preliminary selection, becoming an outer disciple shouldn't pose a problem," said Zhang Zhi.

On the side, Cultivator Lu shook his head, "That's not ideal. As the saying goes, it's better to be a head of a chicken than the tail of a phoenix. There are too many people wanting to join Chang Chun Temple, and with three spirit roots, I'm afraid he may forever be stuck at the Qi Refinement Realm. It might be wiser to choose a slightly inferior sect where he can receive more attention. Cultivation is not only about aptitude; the resources invested are also very important."

"Those slightly inferior would then be Water Spirit Palace and Bailuo Manor, both sects have Nascent Soul Middle Stage ancestors presiding over them," Yu Qingli said.

"Bailuo Manor is a cultivation family; they rarely recruit disciples outside of their surname, so they don't really count as a proper sect. As for Water Spirit Palace, it used to recruit only female disciples. Although they have started to accept male disciples in recent years, the Sect's disciples all practice Water Magic. I wonder, does your son possess a Water Spirit Root?" Zhang Zhi asked thoughtfully.

"No," Jiang Xiong replied, shaking his head in disappointment.

"Then neither of these options will work. Your only choice may be to look for a sect with just a Nascent Soul Early Stage ancestor in residence," Zhang Zhi added somewhat regretfully.

"Among the sects of this caliber, the one closest to Little Lake City is Shengye Sect. Their disciples are skilled in alchemy and medicine cultivation, and these are the main areas they test for in their entry examinations," Cultivator Lu explained.

"Apart from Shengye Sect, there's the Fire Sparrow Sect in the eastern part of Da Jin. Although they are not as powerful as Water Spirit Palace, they maintain a good relationship with it. It is said that the annual sect competition is jointly organized between the two, with much exchange and learning between them. However, their entry exam mainly assesses the disciples' proficiency in mana control, so if your son wishes to join, he'll need to put in extra effort in this area," said Zhang Zhi emphatically.

"There is also Thousand Sword Pavilion, located in the western part of Da Jin. Everyone in the pavilion practices sword cultivation, specializing in the Gold Element Magic and offense techniques. It is said that within the grounds there is a Sword Cliff where successive generations of ancestors have left their legacies. Any disciple may go there to gain insight. If one is lucky enough to inherit a powerful legacy, it's like ascending to the heavens in a single step. However, their entry examinations have stringent requirements on comprehension, and the participants must have a solid foundation in swordsmanship; this is something to consider," Cultivator Lu added.

Fellow Daoist Jiang nodded repeatedly as he listened, and just then, Fairy Hua furrowed her brows.

"You all have been discussing Da Jin sects; where do you place our Zhao Country sects?"

Cultivator Cui chimed in, "Indeed, our Zhao Country has the Five Thunder Sect, known for its unparalleled Thunder Skill, and the Spirit Talisman Sect, which looks down upon the rest of Central Plains with its talisman making technique. Though smaller in scale compared to Chang Chun Temple, they are both still among the top in Central Plains."

Anxious, Jiang Xiong quickly asked, "What are the requirements to join these two sects?"

"To join Five Thunder Sect, one must pass their Three Thunder Formation, which demands a lot in terms of comprehension, observation, and courage. Joining Spirit Talisman Sect is relatively easier; as long as the disciple has a good memory, can memorize the runes within the stipulated time, and can replicate them from memory, that would suffice," said Fairy Hua.

"I see, thank you for the insight," said Jiang Xiong as he bowed slightly. He then sat back down, seemingly pondering which sect he should have his son attempt to join.

Seeing him leave, Zhang Zhi turned to Fairy Hua, "Fellow Daoist Jiang is currently living in Da Jin. What's wrong with us recommending Da Jin sects to him? But Fairy Hua, you seem impatient, only keen to recommend Zhao Country sects. If not, why don't you recommend some from Wu Country and Chu Country too?"

Fairy Hua snorted coldly but did not reply. Yu Qingli, witnessing the situation, stepped forward and attempted to smooth things over.

"Let's not dwell over such a trivial matter, shall we? By the way, I heard some disciples fled from Five Thunder Sect; is that true?"

"Fellow Daoist Yu is well-informed, indeed. The incident caused quite a stir in Zhao Country's Immortal Cultivation World. It is said that they took several Heart-splitting Bombs from the sect, which are now commanding a price of two thousand spirit stones each on the black market. Whether they still have them is uncertain," Fairy Hua affirmed with a nod.

"Two thousand spirit stones? That's enough to buy two cheaper top-grade magical tools. Isn't the Heart-splitting Bomb just a one-time use magic artifact? Is it really that valuable?" Yu Qingli expressed his surprise.

"That's actually quite cheap. The Heart-splitting Bomb is a unique magic artifact of Five Thunder Sect and only a few ever make it to the market. Besides, its power is comparable to the full force of a peak Foundation Establishment cultivator's attack. If your life hangs in the balance, wouldn't you trade two thousand spirit stones for it?" Fairy Hua asked in return.

"Of course, I would. Maybe one day I'll come across it in the black market," Yu Qingli chuckled.

"Dream on. So far, I haven't heard of anyone actually getting their hands on one. For all we know, the deserters from Five Thunder Sect might have used it up while fleeing," said Fairy Hua, shaking her head.

Yuan Ming, an onlooker seated at the side, sipped his tea with an unperturbed expression, seemingly uninvolved. Yet, inside, he was beaming with delight. It seemed his purchase of those Heart-splitting Bombs had indeed been perspicacious!

With his glib tongue, he had only paid a thousand Spirit Stones for three bombs at the time, which was quite a bargain compared to the prices here.

"Alas, Fellow Daoist Zhang, you just mentioned that the Water Spirit Palace has now started recruiting male disciples too. What's that all about?" Cultivator Cui suddenly asked.

"What else could it be? The number of disciples they can attract has been decreasing yearly. If they don't lower the bar a bit and remove some of the insignificant restrictions, how would they continue to attract top talents?" Zhang Zhi took a sip from his own cup of tea.

"How could that be? Of the Four Major Countries of the Central Plains, Da Jin is the largest by far, with a population in the hundreds of millions—when did it ever lack talented disciples?" Cultivator Cui exclaimed in surprise.

"Heh, let me ask you, why do people say Da Jin's Cultivation World is the strongest in the Central Plains?" Zhang Zhi said with a smile.

"It's obviously because of Chang Chun Temple! It's the only place in the entire Central Plains with a Late-stage Nascent Soul Cultivator presiding. How could it not be strong?" replied Cultivator Cui without hesitation.

"Exactly. If Chang Chun Temple is so powerful, where do you think those talented disciples will be heading when selecting a sect to join?" Zhang Zhi shrugged his shoulders.

"In fact, it's not just what Fellow Daoist Zhang mentioned. Chang Chun Temple has been controlling the imperial governance for hundreds of years. Each Emperor who steps onto the Immortal Path joins Chang Chun Temple. Eventually, Da Jin has almost become their territory. When a prodigy appears, before local sects even become aware, Chang Chun Temple already receives the news and sends someone to recruit them. With this in mind, how can other sects compete with Chang Chun Temple in acquiring disciples?" sighed Cultivator Lu.

"I heard that not long ago, a cultivator from Chang Chun Temple proposed integrating selections of other sects into Chang Chun Temple's own Disciple Induction Ceremony. They claimed it would be more convenient for those who want to join a sect, saving them the trouble of running around. But in truth, it's for them to hoard all the talents from Da Jin for themselves. After all, given the choice, who wouldn't want to join Chang Chun Temple?" said Zhang Zhi, shaking his head helplessly.

"With Chang Chun Temple's domineering behavior, don't other sects have any complaints?" Cultivator Cui frowned.

"Complaints, of course, there are! But what can dissatisfaction do? For years, Chang Chun Temple has been arrogant and oppressive. Who dares to openly show their teeth and snarl at them? Loose Cultivators fear their power, sects fear their strength. Only someone as fearless as Yuan Ming would dare provoke them publicly," Zhang Zhi said with a sense of helplessness.

"The State Preceptor, under the guise of guiding the Emperor's early Cultivation, murdered Yuan Ming in secrecy. While Chang Chun Temple, under the pretense of considering the interests of Da Jin's Cultivation World, suppress other sects—is there any difference? Ultimately, it's still for their own sake! The words 'On what basis?' uttered by Yuan Ming at the abdication ceremony spoke for the hearts of many cultivators in Da Jin, truly exhilarating," Cultivator Lu exclaimed with a sigh, applauding the sentiment.

"Indeed, Yuan Ming's action won the hearts of many. Countless young disciples secretly idolize him," laughed Zhang Zhi, finishing off his cup of tea in a gulp.

Yuan Ming, still sitting quietly on the side with a calm gaze as placid as the water in his teacup, mentally reviewed everything he knew about Chang Chun Temple again and warned himself. While it was right to seek justice and revenge, without absolute strength, such impulses should be curbed.

These onlookers were unconcerned, treating the tales as mere stories to satisfy their vanity. However, should the day come when Chang Chun Temple came knocking at his door, or worse, sent a high-level cultivator to kill him, their casual conversation would probably take on a different tone, potentially saying, "Offending Chang Chun Temple is asking for trouble."

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. This matter doesn't concern us. Speaking of which, the Tianxiang Auction is going to be held soon. Has anyone managed to get an invitation?" Yu Qingli looked around and quickly changed the subject.

"How could that be easy? We Loose Cultivators wouldn't even know where to begin trying to buy an invitation to the Tianxiang Auction," complained Zhang Zhi.

Yu Qingli chuckled and pulled out a purple invitation from his chest, "Look, what is this?"

"An auction invitation? Where did you get that?" Zhang Zhi asked, surprised.

"Heh, a friend of mine recently came into possession of an invitation due to a fortuitous encounter. However, he unexpectedly had urgent matters to attend to and couldn't make it to the auction, so he transferred the invitation to me. Even so, it cost me over a hundred Spirit Stones to get my hands on it," Yu Qingli admitted, somewhat pained by the expense.

"Over a hundred Spirit Stones just for an invitation? I've heard of the grand reputation of the Tianxiang Auction, but is it really worth that much?" Cultivator Cui questioned.

"Of course. Keep in mind that the Tianxiang Auction isn't merely a high-end auction. When the event officially begins, many sects from Da Jin and Zhao Country will set up booths inside the Tianyu Building at the center of the lake. Often, some novel items will be on display. Even if one doesn't have the means to purchase anything, just browsing through and gaining experience and knowledge is worth the price," explained Zhang Zhi with a smile.

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