The true disciples from the Central Celestial Dynasty, those above the average standard, were all sent to the State of Jin. They were astonishingly talented prodigies; their strength far surpassed that of the true disciples of Jin. Even Shijian alone possessed the might to defeat all the other true disciples of Mount Hua. Now, with ten of them together, their presence was as imposing as dragons and tigers.

However, if the true disciples of the Central Celestial Dynasty were geniuses, then Lu Yuan was the genius among geniuses—a genius beyond comprehension.

The attacks from the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples were exquisite and peerless.

Lu Yuan's attacks, however, were unimaginable.

Everyone watching, no matter how much they had experienced, was shocked beyond measure. It was simply too unbelievable that Lu Yuan could unleash such a sword strike.

The battle continued.

Then, the attacks from the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples remained fierce and brilliant, yet Lu Yuan’s assault wove more than ten different Sword Intents within a single stroke. No matter how hard the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples pressed, facing such impossibly brilliant swordsmanship, they could only fall into a disadvantage, constantly moving toward defeat.

Bang!

This was Dian Wuji being struck in the shoulder by a sword point. He immediately used his technique to staunch the bleeding, but it could not conceal the fact that he was injured.

The true disciple whose sorcery had reached the Tianxin Zai Shou realm gasped sharply. The long sword had just been at his brow; had Lu Yuan not suddenly shifted the blade at the last second to pierce his right shoulder, he likely would have died from that very strike.

And the true disciple with the "True Blood Eye"—his eyes could pierce through every technique, but what use was that? Lu Yuan’s movements had reached a point where he could not discern any flaw; every action seemed spontaneous, without set form—how could he possibly find an opening?

The true disciple who had been so proud of mastering the Fire Sword Intent suddenly realized how terrifying Lu Yuan’s strength truly was. He prided himself on one Sword Intent, while Lu Yuan commanded more than ten. This put him to shame tenfold, if not more.

The true disciples of the Central Celestial Dynasty were all stunned; they had never witnessed such terrifying swordsmanship.

Every one of them was deeply shaken. Lu Yuan’s power was too formidable. Even placed within the Central Celestial Dynasty, such strength would surpass the average true disciple, and even the top-tier true disciples might not be able to defeat Lu Yuan.

However, within the Central Celestial Dynasty, there was the senior disciple known by the title "Son of the Law," Senior Brother Hua. He could surely defeat Lu Yuan.

The Son of the Law!

This was the universally acknowledged foremost figure among all the true disciples of the Central Celestial Dynasty. It was said that when Senior Brother Hua was first born, the horizon was filled with seven-colored light. When he was three, he supposedly fell off a cliff. A normal three-year-old falling off a cliff would certainly have died, but this Senior Brother Hua coincidentally consumed a Vermilion Fruit beneath the precipice, causing his power to surge dramatically. Not only did he reach the fifth level of Qi Condensation at age three, but he also laid a solid foundation for his future.

At the age of six, he encountered a dying old man who imparted all his knowledge to Senior Brother Hua. And Senior Brother Hua was divinely gifted, grasping much of the esoteric knowledge by age six.

From age seven to ten, it is said he possessed no particular ultimate techniques, but in his eighth year, he acquired a ring containing a soul that had lived for three thousand years.

At eleven, he joined the sect of one of the largest immortal gates in the Central Celestial Dynasty and was judged to possess innate celestial talent.

At fourteen, he took only three years to master skills that required thirty years for other true disciples.

Subsequently, his magical power advanced continuously, and it is rumored he has long since entered the Great Dao Realm.

This person, revered as the Son of the Law, was the head among the true disciples of the Central Celestial Dynasty, naturally not someone Lu Yuan could compare to.

Nevertheless, for Lu Yuan to cultivate such might in such a desolate backwater, while he might not equal Senior Brother Hua, it was still terrifying.

The purple-robed Venerable Daoist could not help but stroke his beard. To cultivate such swordsmanship in the Southern Realm was truly frightening! If this Celestial Envoy had not known that the "Son of the Sword" had already emerged in the Central Celestial Dynasty, he might have assumed Lu Yuan was one of the legendary Seven Sons—the Son of the Sword. But since the Son of the Sword already existed, Lu Yuan could not be him.

If not the Son of the Sword, still achieving such cultivation—truly remarkable!

Of course, the Celestial Envoy also knew that Lu Yuan still could not compare to the Son of the Law or the Son of the Sword; both had already reached the cultivation level of the Great Dao Realm.

However, Lu Yuan's condition was even more alarming: he lacked great fortune. A person without monumental luck cultivating to this degree in such a barren place was astonishing.

"Retract your swords," Lu Yuan moved his wrist, forcing the opponents' final blades to withdraw.

Lu Yuan shook his head: "The true disciples of the Central Celestial Dynasty are nothing more than this." Such dismissive words were enough to make them spit blood. Every one of those Central Celestial Dynasty true disciples was profoundly arrogant; being so openly scorned by someone from the Southern Realm was unbearable, yet Lu Yuan’s recent victory left them speechless.

Finally, one of them blurted out: "What's so impressive? If you’re really capable, challenge Senior Brother Hua, the Son of the Law, in our Great Jin Dynasty!"

"Is that so? Very well, the Son of the Law, Senior Brother Hua," Lu Yuan nodded.

This initial assessment concluded here.

In this round of evaluation, the overall strength of Mount Hua's true disciples was mediocre, with only an occasional exceptionally outstanding disciple. By normal standards, Mount Hua should not have passed this assessment, as the performance of one excessively outstanding disciple could not represent the average level; it could only be described as the occasional emergence of a monstrous anomaly.

However, this purple-robed Celestial Envoy, after careful observation, discovered that the immortal gate of Mount Hua had an ancient pattern: every one or two generations, a prodigy like Lu Yuan would appear. The second generation had one, the third generation had one, the sixth generation had one, and the eighth generation had two—Yan Cangtian and Zhou Qingxuan.

This immortal gate was quite interesting. In the end, the purple-robed Celestial Envoy allowed Mount Hua to pass this initial assessment.

Of course, this was only the first trial; several more assessments followed.

The second task, for instance, involved testing the Spiritual Veins.

Assessing the Spiritual Veins required time, meaning the purple-robed Celestial Envoy had to remain here for a period. During this time, the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples, being arrogant and unwilling to associate with the other Mount Hua disciples, were idle. They had heard rumors that beneath the earth of the State of Jin lay a horde of demons.

This piqued the slight curiosity of the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples.

In the Central Celestial Dynasty, there were no subterranean demons. The Central Celestial Dynasty possessed a majesty vast as the Heavenly Court, where no demon could find purchase; any demon would be completely swept clean. These Central Celestial Dynasty disciples became interested in the underground fiends and planned to execute some of them.

Naturally, the expedition by the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples to slay the demons provoked resistance.

However, the strength of these Central Celestial Dynasty true disciples was formidable, and the cultivation methods they used were utterly profound. The Heart Method whose sorcery was matchless flowed like the vast currents of the great river to the edge of the sky; the Heart Method mastered by Shijian, who comprehended Sword Intent, manifested as nine transparent swords floating above his head; and when Dian Wuji activated his Heart Method, faint electric flood dragons seemed to undulate around his body. The disciple with the True Blood Eyes, upon activating his Heart Method, generated a sheet of white light behind him, within which appeared the roar of a tiger, the glide of a whale, and the snarl of a leopard. Every Heart Method these individuals employed was a Sect-Guarding level technique.

When they displayed their Heart Methods, they looked towards Lu Yuan.

Lu Yuan hadn't come here intentionally; he was merely acting as a guide for the moment. Lu Yuan activated his Heart Method. In terms of Heart Methods, Lu Yuan’s Cloud Dragon Ten Transformations was merely Peak-Guarding level, not Sect-Guarding level; it was a tier below theirs.

This gave the Central Celestial Dynasty's true disciples a slight sense of regaining face. Although the ten of them together couldn't defeat Lu Yuan, they had ultimately surpassed him in the realm of Heart Methods.

Lu Yuan felt nothing about this.

Simply put: he was unconcerned.

Even using a Peak-Guarding level Heart Method, he had defeated those who used Sect-Guarding level methods.

Back when he studied under Ancestor Yan, the method Ancestor Yan practiced was the Eastern Peak's Rising Sun Heart Method, which ranked a tier lower than the Cloud Dragon Ten Transformations. At that time, Ancestor Yan had said: "Swordsmanship, Heart Method—swordsmanship; what is formidable is not the technique, but the person himself."

"And it is the same for the Heart Method. What is formidable is not the method, but the person himself."

"The most powerful person, even using the most common, street-level beginner Heart Method, can achieve the strongest effect. You may not grasp this yet, but even using your simplest technique, the 'One Sword Comes West,' you can defeat many who use ultimate-level swordsmanship," Ancestor Yan had explained. Lu Yuan understood these words perfectly; it was indeed the truth.

The time allotted for this assessment finally concluded.

Since all candidates passed this trial, the subsequent assessments would naturally be spaced out over some time. However, passing these two initial trials alone was enough to make Chu Duan’s name resonate throughout the State of Jin.

The purple-robed Celestial Envoy departed Mount Hua with the Central Celestial Dynasty contingent, heading for the next stop, the State of Yuan. Before leaving, he asked Lu Yuan if he was interested in accompanying him to the Central Celestial Dynasty. Lu Yuan shook his head: "I am a man of Mount Hua; I was, I am, and I will always be. I will not defect to another sect."

As he spoke these words, Lu Yuan looked towards Mount Hua.

Mount Hua stood tall and enduring.

To be a man of Mount Hua was to possess the spirit and backbone of a Mount Hua disciple.