Peerless Spirit Master - Chapter 19

Ye Guilan slept in a daze, and when she woke up, she felt just like last time-her head heavy and her feet light.

Ye He pushed the door open, thoughtfully wiped her face, and handed her a cup of warm water.

Her father’s warm palm brushed her cheek as he helped her sit up. “How do you feel after a nap?”

Ye Guilan yawned. “Much better, but I still haven’t managed to break through to the Spirit Gathering Level. I’m a bit discouraged.”

Ye He chuckled, turned her around, and began to help her comb her hair. “I told you, don’t rush. Take it slow.”

Ye Guilan nodded. Ye He’s hands moved through her hair-clumsy, but not completely unskilled. Ye Guilan knew he wanted to be close to her, so she didn’t refuse.

“Dad, can you tell me about the small sect selection in advance?”

Ye He paused while tying her hair. “Why do you want to know?”

“I just want to see if I should prepare. I don’t know what the assessment will be, or what the requirements are to enter a small sect.”

Ye He finished tying her hair and looked at his daughter, who turned around with an expectant face. The corners of Ye He’s mouth twitched as he spoke helplessly, “I’ve never been to a small sect, so I don’t know the entry requirements.”

Ye Guilan was stunned. Dad has never been to a small sect?

“Then your strength…”

“That’s not important. With your strength, getting in won’t be a problem.” Ye He grinned at her. “No matter what the assessment is, you’ll be fine.”

Really? No matter what the assessment is, I’ll be fine? Could it be…

“Dad, you’re not really planning to buy me a spot, are you?”

Ye He laughed. “I have full confidence in my daughter. But… if we have to buy one, that’s not out of the question.”

For a moment, Ye Guilan didn’t know what to say.

After breakfast, the father and daughter headed to the assessment site. Even before they arrived, there was already a huge crowd-people packed tightly together.

Looking at the size of the gathering, Ye Guilan wondered if half the people in Abyss Capital had come here.

Ye He led her quickly into the crowd. The people on the outskirts weren’t candidates; the real assessment line was inside, a snaking queue stretching from one end to the other.

Seeing the length of the line made Ye Guilan’s scalp tingle. Even if she waited until nightfall, she might not get her turn.

“Let’s come back tomorrow, and earlier,” Ye He said after glancing at the sky. They had arrived too late today.

Ye Guilan nodded, and the two decisively left the crowd. On their way out, many more people were still heading in.

Watching people squeeze in to join the line, Ye Guilan muttered in confusion, “Isn’t the small sect selection assessment supposed to last several days? Why is everyone lining up on the first day?”

Someone in the crowd, there to watch the excitement, glanced at the father and daughter. “First time here, huh?”

Ye Guilan nodded. The man smiled and said, “The first day is for registration. Only those who register can participate in the assessment. It’s still early now, but if you wait too long to line up, you might not get to register.”

Father and daughter exchanged a glance, then turned and squeezed back into the crowd without another word.

Ye He suddenly turned around, took out a card, and handed it to the man who had spoken. “Thanks for the reminder.”

The man looked at the card, took it instinctively, and was about to ask what it was, but the father and daughter had already disappeared into the crowd.

After squeezing through the crowd and joining the registration line, the snaking queue had already grown much longer in just that short time. Ye Guilan, who had been at the end of the line, saw more and more people lining up behind her.

Everyone who rushed to join the line was sweating profusely. “Made it, made it.”

The line moved at a decent pace, but there were simply too many people. The snaking queue was densely packed.

Ye Guilan was a bit surprised that, despite the dense crowd, there were no arguments or fights. In her previous world, gatherings of this size always led to some kind of incident.

Everyone lined up obediently. Even accidental bumps didn’t lead to complaints or quarrels.

After several turns, Ye Guilan realized the reason. Up ahead, several fierce-looking Magical Beasts stood by, with a few Beast Tamers holding spirit energy chains beside them.

Ye Guilan smiled. It seemed that anyone who tried to cause trouble would be immediately escorted out.

“Is this your daughter’s first time participating?”

A parent behind them, perhaps bored from waiting, tried to make small talk. Ye He turned around, and his outstanding appearance made the man pause for a moment. Ye He smiled and replied, “It’s my daughter’s first time.”

Ye Guilan turned around and greeted him. The man couldn’t help but praise, “Such a beautiful daughter.”

“Thank you.”

Ye He subtly shielded Ye Guilan. The man chuckled, “This is my child’s third time here. The first time, we didn’t manage to register. The second time, we were eliminated right away.”
It seemed as if the conversation box had been opened. “The assessment content for the Minor Sect Selection is strictly confidential, so no matter how hard we try, we have no idea where to put our efforts.”

“I see.”

Ye He appeared unconcerned, but still responded politely. Ye Guilan couldn’t help but frown when she heard this. If they didn’t even know what the exam would cover, there was no way to even try to guess the topics.

In her previous life, she was young, and the following years were spent in a hospital bed due to illness, but she had still experienced all the major events of life, and exams were an important part of that.

Back when she took the high school entrance exam, she had burned the midnight oil for several nights, hoping for one last push, but ended up pushing herself straight into the hospital, never to recover.

“Can’t you just ask the kids who’ve already taken the test?”

Ye He asked, but the man shook his head. “Revealing any content will result in a permanent disqualification from entering the Minor Sect. Even if you get in, you’ll be immediately expelled. There have already been several cases.”

The man sighed. “If you can’t get into a Minor Sect, your future is ruined.”

Ye He raised an eyebrow and gave a soft snort through his nose. Ye Guilan looked up-did she hear that right? Did her father just snort?

After that, the conversation was clearly one-sided, with Ye He responding only out of basic courtesy.

Listening to the man’s idle chatter behind her, Ye Guilan learned that entering a Minor Sect in this world was not so easy. For this world, the Minor Sects were the gateway to the path of the strong.

If you couldn’t open that door, couldn’t walk through it, you might spend your whole life standing still.

“There’s nothing we can do. If your family doesn’t have a foundation, if you’re not from a high-ranking family, you don’t even get a chance.”

The middle-aged man shook his head. “My family is a Fifth-Rank Family, and there are a lot of kids at home. If my son can’t get in, he’ll be laughed at when he goes back, and he won’t even be able to get the family supplies he used to.”

Ye He gave a noncommittal “oh.” The middle-aged man couldn’t help but ask, “Brother, what rank is your family? Judging by your fine clothes, are you Fourth or Third Rank?”

Ye He smiled. “It’s just me and my daughter, and a little maid who takes care of us. Only three people.”

The man was stunned for a moment. “You haven’t even joined a family? Just three people… No wonder. Looks like life is tough for you too.”

“It’s all right, just an ordinary life.”

The conversation behind them continued as the line moved forward. Maybe the chatting was too exhausting, because the conversation finally ended.

By dusk, they had finally reached a spot near Ye Guilan.

Ye Guilan glanced back. The length of the line didn’t seem to have shortened at all.

Standing in line for so long made Ye Guilan stretch uncomfortably. Ye He reached out and gently massaged his daughter’s shoulders, helping her relieve some of the soreness and discomfort.

Finally, it was Ye Guilan’s turn.

On the table was a thick stack of books, recording the names of all the applicants. Ye Guilan glanced at the number of names on just one page and couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose.

It really was a case of thousands of troops crossing a single-log bridge. She had thought that, in her previous world, thousands or tens of thousands of people competing for a few dozen spots at top high schools was already extreme, but compared to this… it was nothing.

“Name.”

The person recording names didn’t even look up. After Ye Guilan reported her name, she was handed a number plate. The person waved her away, indicating she could leave.

Ye He stepped forward. “Just recording names?”

The recorder didn’t look up. “Yes. Next.”

Father and daughter turned to leave. Ye Guilan looked down at the number plate in her hand. On it was a number: 9999.

Ye Guilan glanced at the still-snake-like line, put away her number plate, and walked out with Ye He. Among so many applicants, where would her Apprentice Ninth Level strength rank?

Ye Guilan looked at the number on her plate, a little shocked by the sheer scale.

To stand out from here, only strength would do. Apprentice Ninth Level… how could she rely on that?

Ye Guilan couldn’t help but look up at Ye He. He didn’t seem concerned at all, even smiling at her, reaching out to pat her hair. “Don’t worry.”

Ye Guilan’s heart skipped a beat. Maybe, to get into the Minor Sect, she’d really have to rely on money.

“It’s a bit strange. Why are there so many Magical Beasts at this selection? It’s making people uneasy.”

“Yeah, there’s never been this many before. Usually just one or two to maintain order.”

At the mention of Magical Beasts, Ye Guilan couldn’t help but speak up. “There were so many Magical Beasts roaring last night. I wonder what caused it.”

“Maybe it was triggered by one, or maybe something else happened.”

Father and daughter walked back together. When they passed a Magical Beast shop, Ye He pushed open the door and went in. Ye Guilan followed.

“Boss, what happened last night?”

Someone was asking the shopkeeper for news. “The Magical Beasts in Abyss Capital roared half the night, then suddenly all went quiet at the same time. It’s too weird. Did something happen?”
Ye He was selecting items, apparently choosing parts from Magical Beasts that could be used as medicinal ingredients. Ye Guilan quietly followed by his side, her ears perked up in attention.

“Let me tell you, I heard a bit of gossip. It seems these Magical Beasts have all been frightened.”

“Frightened?”

The shopkeeper nodded, “Yes, no one knows what scared them into howling, and then something seemed to intimidate them, so they stopped making noise.”

“Intimidated by what? What was it?”

The shopkeeper lowered his voice, “Some Spirit-seeing experts from Abyss Capital said there’s an Illusory Spirit Expert here.”

Ye Guilan’s dark eyes widened slightly. An Illusory Spirit Expert? Here? In a Third-Rank City? Shouldn’t such people only appear in First-Rank Cities… or even among the four great families?

Ye He finished selecting his items, paid, and left. Ye Guilan held back for a long time before finally asking, “Dad, did you hear what they just said?”

“I heard. What about it?”

Ye Guilan swallowed nervously, “Is it really possible that there’s an Illusory Spirit Expert here?”

Ye He paused, thought seriously for a moment, then looked down and smiled at his daughter. “What would an Illusory Spirit Expert be doing here? Joining in the excitement of a minor sect selection?”

Ye Guilan nodded after hearing this. “That’s true.”

Back at their lodging, Ye Guilan washed up and sat on the bed. Tomorrow was the day the minor sect selection would truly begin its assessment.

She couldn’t take the Primordial Spirit Nurturing Liquid anymore; her body couldn’t handle it.

She took out a full box of Lesser Primordial Pills, grabbed one, chewed it a few times, and swallowed.

Inside her body, something on her Spirit Seed suddenly flashed, but she didn’t notice at all, and it quickly dimmed again.

One pill had little effect. Ye Guilan didn’t expect to break through to the Spirit Gathering Level with the Lesser Primordial Pills, but they could at least help consolidate her strength.

After swallowing a few more Lesser Primordial Pills, her Spirit Seed flashed again, then quickly went dark.

“Roar-!”

Just like yesterday, beastly roars erupted once more throughout Abyss Capital.

Ye Guilan was stunned. Why were these Magical Beasts howling again?

“Awoo-!”

All kinds of agitated beastly roars mingled together, rising and falling in waves.

Ye Guilan frowned and swallowed two or three more pills amidst the roars. The Magical Beasts outside began howling again.

The Beast Tamer families in Abyss Capital were nearly driven mad. What was wrong with these Magical Beasts? Even those in the Beast Rings wouldn’t settle down, and those outside acted as if possessed, howling non-stop.

They tried every method to quiet the beasts, and just when the noise lessened, it started up again.

The Beast Tamers were left dizzy and helpless; it was the first time they had so little control over their own spirit beasts.

What on earth was going on!

Several families’ Beast Tamers grew increasingly agitated and furious. The Magical Beasts all showed signs of fear and timidity, clearly affected by something.

Within Abyss Capital, could someone be playing tricks?

During the minor sect selection, there had been incidents of deliberate sabotage before, but such a widespread Magical Beast disturbance was truly unprecedented.

A dozen Beast Tamers ventured out into the night, bringing their spirit beasts to search every corner of Abyss Capital, determined to find the source of the chaos.

On Ye Guilan’s side, she finished the entire box of Lesser Primordial Pills, lay on the bed, and fell asleep to the sound of beastly roars.

Inside her Spirit Space, her Spirit Seed flashed with light again, and the roars of Magical Beasts outside suddenly intensified.

“Over there!”

The Beast Tamers sensed their spirit beasts’ abnormality, identified the direction, and rushed over immediately.

Several figures from all over Abyss Capital converged toward the place where Ye Guilan and Ye He were staying, each with a grim expression.

On the bed, Ye Guilan turned over, hugging the quilt beside her.

Outside, moonlight streamed in through the window. A figure flashed past her window, silently opened it, and stepped inside, approaching her to observe closely. After a moment, the youth looked at her in surprise.

Outside the window, the Beast Tamers drew nearer.

The youth frowned, pulled the quilt over her exposed waist, then leapt out the window.

In the cool night wind, the youth stood at a high corner of the roof.

He pressed his feet down, his dark eyes watching the approaching Beast Tamers below.

“Ye Guilan, you owe me twice now.”

He murmured softly, and a wave of energy instantly spread from him. Then, pushing off with his feet, he rode the night wind away.

The Beast Tamers were stunned, then turned to chase after him.

After this wave of disturbance, the beastly roars in Abyss Capital quietly faded away, and the night returned to tranquility.