This time, for the various national assessments, the Central Heavenly Dynasty dispatched four assessment teams—one for the East, South, West, and North. Ye Zixu was in charge of the Southern team. Traveling this way, he found some minor surprises only in the Great Yong Kingdom, discovering that it was indeed one of the four great powers on the continent besides the Central Heavenly Dynasty, boasting quite a few remarkable individuals, some at the fifth and sixth levels of the Grand Dao Realm.

But along the rest of the journey, there were no further pleasant surprises.

Therefore, Ye Zixu held no great expectations for this assessment.

Basically, after the explanations were finished, he simply sat to the side, letting the vice envoy handle things while he, the true Celestial Envoy, dozed off.

It was only when the brilliant light flared now that he was startled awake.

Purple—a seventh-tier potential.

Quite good; to find someone with seventh-tier potential in such a remote place was truly unexpected.

"White light gathers the sun and moon, purple qi arrays the Big Dipper and the Ox." However, Ye Zixu was merely surprised for a moment before dismissing it.

A seventh-tier potential—such figures were far too numerous in the Central Heavenly Dynasty. They were only rare in small places like the Jin Kingdom. A seventh-tier potential could be called a genius in the Central Heavenly Dynasty.

Unfortunately, if the Central Heavenly Dynasty lacked anything, it certainly wasn't geniuses.

Eighth-tier potential was further divided into various layers: top-tier geniuses, peerless geniuses, geniuses seen once in a millennium, and so on, an endless list.

Then there was the ninth-tier potential, spoken of as the legendary Seven Sons of Fortune, beings whose talent could not simply be described as genius; they were entities born benefiting from the grand destiny of heaven and earth, an exaggeration to the extreme. If Lu Yuan had possessed only seventh-tier potential like those in the Central Heavenly Dynasty, Ye Zixu likely wouldn't have even batted an eyelid. But now? It was enough to make Ye Zixu’s eyelid twitch once.

Those born within the Central Heavenly Dynasty naturally possessed exceptionally high standards.

Ten points!

This was Lu Yuan’s score on the first round of the potential test.

A potential score so high was unheard of, and while it meant little in the Central Heavenly Dynasty, it was certainly not the case in the Great Jin Kingdom.

As for the others, most scored in the sixes or sevens on the first round.

Still, Lu Yuan scoring high in the first round was not entirely unexpected, given that he was generally acknowledged as the top genius of the Jin Kingdom. But things would not be so easy moving forward; the next stages weren't about potential, but about testing genuine strength, not just a casual measurement like this. Since only the top twenty qualified for the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment, these giants were eager to show their mettle.

The second round tested offense.

This offense test, however, was not conducted in front of the crowd but inside the Five Wheels Palace.

The assessment format involved batches of five entering at a time.

The Huashan Immortal Sect was scheduled last, taking the grand finale position. Before them, the others went first, starting with the Wudang Immortal Sect members. Their five representatives were the first batch to enter; no one knew what the test inside entailed. When they emerged, they generally scored fives, sixes, and sevens.

The second group to enter was mostly comprised of members from the Kunlun Immortal Sect. Their results were quite dismal; after emerging, they yielded a large cluster of scores in the threes, fours, and fives, causing many to shake their heads. No one understood what the Kunlun Immortal Sect’s test was, but their results were clearly a full notch below Wudang’s.

The Qingcheng Immortal Sect masters who entered later performed more normally, mostly scoring fives, sixes, and sevens.

Overall, scores in this second round were quite low; the highest anyone achieved was seven points, with no one hitting eight.

The rotation continued until finally, it was time for the grand finale: Lu Yuan.

Entering with Lu Yuan were Master Yuanyang, Master Huifeng, Master Yuzhen, and Master Zixia, with Lu Yuan making up exactly five people.

As they entered the palace, the interior was utterly silent, creating an immense, palpable sense of pressure.

The five entered the Five Wheels Palace.

Within a grand hall in the Five Wheels Palace, stood a middle-aged man in purple robes exuding imposing might.

In the Central Heavenly Dynasty, purple was the color of nobility.

All Celestial Envoys, representing the dignity of the Central Heavenly Dynasty, wore purple robes.

The purple-robed Celestial Envoy spoke, "I am one of the vice-envoys for this round of assessment. This second round, testing offense, will be managed by me." Hearing this, a thought arose: With this man’s astonishing presence, he must be close to the Grandmaster Realm, if not already there. How could anyone possibly contend with him?

The Central Heavenly Dynasty was truly brimming with experts. The entire Jin Kingdom barely had five Grandmasters total, including those allied with the demonic forces, yet the Central Heavenly Dynasty could dispatch envoys who were Grandmasters or Vice-Grandmasters casually.

The purple-robed vice-envoy smiled faintly, "I naturally will not use much of my power. How about this: whatever your cultivation level, I will match it. The rules for this round are as follows: behind me are ten white jade spheres. For the first seven spheres, I will go easy, allowing you not to use your full strength."

"After the seventh, I will use my full strength to shatter one sphere—one point per sphere shattered. The time limit is one hundred breaths. However, for a border nation like yours, it’s unlikely you possess talent capable of this..." The purple-robed vice-envoy wasn't being arrogant; he was merely stating a fact. Previously, none of the others managed to break even a single white jade sphere after he grew serious.

Achieving this record brought the purple-robed vice-envoy no pride; it was simply as it should be, considering he was from the Central Heavenly Dynasty.

If a vice-envoy sent by the Central Heavenly Dynasty couldn't achieve this, what right would he have to the title?

Celestial Envoy.

An emissary of Heaven.

This was naturally a supreme challenge. Master Yuanyang went first. He immediately drew his two spirit swords: the White Emperor Spirit Sword and the Colorful Cloud Spirit Sword. These two swords were rumored to be a single integrated spiritual weapon of immense power. Lu Yuan had only witnessed such an integrated weapon once before, when dealing with Sima Changbai. He hadn't expected to see such a sword in Master Yuanyang’s hands again.

Master Yuanyang bowed after drawing his swords. The purple-robed vice-envoy smiled faintly, "Please proceed." Master Yuanyang naturally did not hold back. Though he was a leading figure in the Jin Kingdom, he knew he couldn't compare to those from the Central Heavenly Dynasty, so he acted without ceremony. He immediately unleashed the move, Bidding Farewell to the White Emperor amidst Colorful Clouds, a magnificent strike! Coupled with his integrated spirit swords, a blinding flash shot past.

So fast! Faster than me, Lu Yuan thought, startled, realizing that Master Yuanyang’s execution of Bidding Farewell to the White Emperor amidst Colorful Clouds was significantly swifter than his own use of the White Emperor Sword Dao.

Crack! The white jade sphere on the side was struck down—four in one sword stroke, beautiful!

Master Yuanyang waved his hand again, executing A Thousand Miles of Jiangling in a Single Day, a strike even faster than the previous one. Three more white jade spheres were shattered. As this rapid sword attack headed toward the eighth sphere, the purple-robed vice-envoy finally moved. With a flick of his wrist, a spirit sword brimming with ancient authority sprang forth.

This single sword strike filled the air with phantom sword shadows. This was no longer about fixed sword moves. Lu Yuan had never witnessed such swordsmanship; a thousand moves, ten thousand moves seemed contained within this one strike. Countless sword spirits, countless sword legends, were all manifested in this single thrust.

What a vast sword strike this was, what a convergence of the spirit of countless swords! It was like a river or a great flood composed of sword techniques.

In an instant, it resembled a meteor piercing the firmament.

Master Yuanyang’s A Thousand Miles of Jiangling in a Single Day was undoubtedly exquisite, but facing this level of swordsmanship, it stood no chance. You offered one move; the opponent offered thousands upon thousands, the essence of myriad sword paths concentrated into a single strike. No such technique had ever been seen in the Jin Kingdom. The Central Heavenly Dynasty was truly the Central Heavenly Dynasty.

Master Yuanyang’s sword continued its striving effort. At this moment, his tip was not far from the white jade sphere, yet it was an insurmountable distance.

No matter what stronger ultimate moves Master Yuanyang unleashed afterward, they were useless. Against the successive strikes formed from the collective spirit of countless swords, there was simply no path forward.

While Master Yuanyang was still struggling, the one hundred breaths expired.

His final score was seven.

Next was the second person, Master Huifeng. His supreme technique was the Thousand Three Hundred Styles of Changing Clouds and Mist. This sword move was vastly superior to those used by other elders of the Southern Peak, yet against the purple-robed vice-envoy, he only managed to break six. Upon reaching the seventh, once the purple-robed vice-envoy became slightly serious, resistance became impossible.

Master Yuzhen, who went next, was weaker still; she could only shatter five white jade spheres before being unable to proceed further. However, considering the Central Peak was the weakest of the Five Peaks, her inability to break the sixth sphere after piercing the fifth was somewhat expected. In terms of breaking through established moves, her skill truly wasn't strong; she had always been the most low-key among the Masters.

Finally, Master Zixia of the Qi Sect fought with some spirit, shattering seven white jade spheres before being halted. This time, he employed numerous magical arts, giving Lu Yuan quite an education. However, he consistently failed to surpass the barrier of eight. Once the purple-robed vice-envoy became fully focused, not a single additional sphere could be pierced.

At last, it was Lu Yuan’s turn.

It was finally my moment.

Lu Yuan now understood why the Kunlun Immortal Sect members generally scored threes, fours, and fives, while others averaged fives, sixes, and sevens. It made sense: the Kunlun members largely relied on treasured artifacts to win. But in this test, artifacts were mostly useless, as they weren't suited for such fine, precise offense, which demanded true, innate striking power. No wonder the Kunlun scores were so low.

And this Central Heavenly Dynasty vice-envoy’s swordplay was indeed fascinating. A single sword release manifested thousands upon tens of thousands of sword strikes, as if the essence of infinite sword paths had converged. Interesting.

Lu Yuan raised his hand, and a sword materialized within it.

Nourish my spirit sword, O nourish my spirit sword. A new round of trials was about to commence.

Let us fight side by side, old friend.