"It’s finally over."

"Five."

"Our Mount Hua can send five people to the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment." For Mount Hua, having five candidates qualify for the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment was a matter of considerable prestige, causing Chu Duan to feel immense joy. At this moment, invitations poured in; people from various nations did not immediately depart but mostly sought to make the acquaintance of Lu Yuan.

Great Qin. Great Yue. Great Wu. Great Ye. Murong. Bai Pin. Six nations. He was only somewhat familiar with Great Qin; he hadn't heard much about the more distant ones.

Lu Yuan was still contemplating which invitation to accept when another one arrived.

It wasn't an invitation from any nation, but from... the Purple Robe Angel, Ye Zixu.

As everyone knew, the Purple Robe Angels represented the Central Celestial Dynasty.

Why would he seek out Lu Yuan?

If it were a trivial matter, he could have stated it directly on the stage just now.

Naturally, Lu Yuan declined the other invitations and proceeded to meet the Purple Robe Angel.

Ye Zixu was temporarily staying at the Five Wheels Palace. Lu Yuan followed the summons and arrived at one of the great halls within the palace. Ye Zixu stood with his hands clasped behind his back. When he stood this way, it seemed as if rolling purple vital energy converged upon him. Compared to the Purple Cloud Sage of a Thousand Miles, this Ye Zixu was the true embodiment of "Purple Clouds Spreading a Thousand Miles, Purple Qi Coming from the East."

"Greetings, Grandmaster of Purple Clouds..." Lu Yuan called out clearly, performing a gesture of respect for an elder.

Ye Zixu turned around. His eyes were somewhat deep, his features chiseled as if carved by a blade: "Very good, you are excellent. A talent like you, placed in the Central Celestial Dynasty, would likely be considered a supreme genius. For the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment three years from now, I hope you strive hard. If you manage to enter the Central Celestial Dynasty, you can look for me..."

Essentially, this was Ye Zixu's core message.

Although Ye Zixu belonged to a powerful faction within the Central Celestial Dynasty, even the greatest powers must strive to recruit supreme geniuses.

Of course, all of this hinged on Lu Yuan successfully entering the Central Celestial Dynasty.

"Although you can nearly be called a supreme genius, the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment is not easily passed. Although it is called the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment, in reality, it involves far more than just one hundred countries. You people from these regions likely do not yet know how many nations truly exist on the continent."

"On the continent, there are a total of nine hundred and ninety-nine nations. Including the Central Celestial Dynasty, that makes a thousand kingdoms..."

"And the reason it is called the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment, rather than the Thousand Kingdoms Assessment, is because the character for 'thousand' is a noble character within the Central Celestial Dynasty, so it is not used in the title..."

Nine hundred and ninety-nine nations!

Lu Yuan was genuinely shaken.

He had initially assumed there might be, at most, two or three hundred nations, but he never expected nearly a thousand.

"There aren't that many nations on the surface," Lu Yuan asked. "Hmph, of course there are. You have traveled too little and naturally do not know. Moreover, in this world, countries do not only exist on the central continent. There are also maritime nations in the North Sea, West Sea, and East Sea..."

"Furthermore, not all these nations are as large as Jin. Jin can only be considered a small nation. In the south, there are several large nations whose participants in the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment are far more numerous. Your Jin could send twenty people, while Qin has forty. The state of Hua, which has some ties to your Mount Hua, can send sixty participants to the assessment..." He hadn't paid attention to the Mount Hua Immortal Sect before, but after a figure like Lu Yuan emerged, he looked up their background data.

"And the strongest nation in the south, Great Yong, can send a full two hundred people to the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment..."

"Therefore, those who qualify for the Central Assessment might number tens of thousands."

Lu Yuan was shocked again. His opponents numbered in the tens of thousands.

"Moreover, figures at the Grandmaster Realm will participate in this assessment. Your current strength is still only at the first layer of the Great Dao Realm..."

Lu Yuan was stunned once more—even Grandmasters would participate!

Imagine how terrifying that was.

Nine hundred and ninety-nine nations, tens of thousands of opponents, and simultaneously, the presence of Grandmaster Realm combatants.

The Hundred Kingdoms Assessment was not easy.

If he were to participate now, Lu Yuan was certain he would fail; there wouldn't be even a sliver of a chance for success.

Masters like clouds, Great Dao practitioners like rain, and even Grandmasters were present.

This was the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment.

The largest-scale assessment on the continent; success meant entry into the Central Celestial Dynasty of the Earthly Heavenly Court.

Ye Zixu gave a few brief instructions and then departed with his angel contingent to the next destination.

After Ye Zixu left, Lu Yuan hadn't even processed everything! So many experts! So many participants! Such a difficult assessment! What they called the qualification assessment now was merely an appetizer. Only the true Hundred Kingdoms Assessment would be the real main event, the grand spectacle.

Difficult! Difficult! Difficult!

But then, he thought again: How can we who strive for the pinnacle fear difficulty?

The harder it is, the greater the challenge.

Lu Yuan picked up his wine gourd and took a drink, feeling his blood boil with excitement.

Three years hence, the ultimate battle: competition among tens of thousands of Great Dao realm cultivators from nine hundred and ninety-nine nations.

Exhilarating!

He returned to Mount Hua, which was bustling with activity.

Even at Changchun Residence, usually a quiet place, visitors came frequently. Lu Yuan grew quite weary of it and simply hung up a notice indicating he was in seclusion. As for his person, he flew up to the White Cloud Immortal Realm. The White Cloud Immortal Realm was a tranquil place. Watching the clouds gather and disperse over the sea of clouds, Lu Yuan's mind gradually settled.

The wine was warm.

Smooth upon entry.

Lu Yuan took a sip, deciding to sleep first.

One must know how to enjoy life.

Lu Yuan casually sipped his small wine.

Life, indeed, was full of poignant reflection.

Now, there was essentially nothing urgent.

Indeed, the Heaven-Aiding Alliance was hidden in the shadows, but with the great mountain that was Zhou Qingxuan, and with Chu Duan present, it would be far too difficult for the Heaven-Aiding Alliance to breach Mount Hua. Things should remain stable for the next three years. Matters between the Three Sects should not erupt significantly during this period. After three years, he would proceed to the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment, striving his utmost to enter the Central Celestial Dynasty. One of his goals in entering the Central Celestial Dynasty was to enhance his strength there, then return to quell the various factions and dissolve the conflict of the Three Sects into nothingness.

Thinking this way, he gradually drifted off to sleep.

When he awoke, the sun was already setting.

Watching the sun set from the ground was entirely different from watching it from the clouds above.

From the ground, the sun appeared high in the west, slowly sinking.

But from the sky, watching the sunset felt as if the sun was sinking on a plane parallel to his own, extinguishing the very last trace of afterglow.

Lu Yuan took a sip of wine, planning to return to Changchun Residence to sleep, preparing to descend from the cloud layers. Just then, a streak of sword light pierced the air. Fang Ru had arrived: "I heard you favor the clouds, and indeed, you are here..."

"Greetings, Martial Uncle Fang..." Lu Yuan performed a salute.

Fang Ru thought to himself, Lu Yuan truly is Lu Yuan; even now, famous across eight nations, he shows no arrogance. Senior Brother Li accepted a disciple truly to be envied. It was a pity Senior Brother Li himself could not see it. He briefly collected his emotions: "Lu Yuan, I have something important to discuss with you this time."

"Oh..." Lu Yuan was momentarily surprised. "What is it?"

"The state of Yuan also has twenty people qualified for the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment. Among them, the top rank belongs to your former opponent, the Reincarnated Spirit Child, Tiemuer..."

"That's him, is it," Lu Yuan shrugged, showing no particular concern.

The Reincarnated Spirit Child Tiemuer was indeed not to be underestimated, but now that he knew there were actually nine hundred and ninety-nine nations, with countless experts existing, he didn't have the leisure to track every single one. What he needed to do now was strengthen himself; that was the primary task, not worrying about others.

"The matter of the Reincarnated Spirit Child Tiemuer is indeed not of major consequence. The truly big news is—" Fang Ru drew out his voice slightly: "Great Yue, Great Wu, Great Ye, Murong, Great Qin, Great Yuan, and our Jin—the seven nations bordering the coast—plan to have those who pass the qualification assessment undergo joint special training together..."

"Great Yue, twenty people; Great Wu, twenty people; Great Ye, twenty people; Murong, sixty people; Great Qin, forty people; Great Yuan, twenty people; and our Great Jin, twenty people. The two hundred who pass the qualification assessment will train together. The training location has been set in Yue, as Yue is located centrally among our seven nations, making travel convenient for all seven."

"All seven nations will dispatch figures at the Grandmaster Realm to instruct you during the training. For our Jin's side, the Grandmaster Realm figure permanently stationed there will be Grandmaster Zu Qianqiu..." Fang Ru stated.

Initially, Zu Qianqiu genuinely could not leave his post.

But now?

The subterranean demons were annihilated, and simultaneously, Yuan and Jin signed a three-year non-aggression pact, allowing Zu Qianqiu to be free.

Two hundred candidates qualified for the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment would gather, instructed by numerous Grandmasters. Everyone understood that while there was competition between the seven nations, in reality, with only nine hundred-plus nations in total, it was better if their own people became stronger.

Hence, this Seven-Nation Special Training was organized.

The Seven-Nation Special Training—that was something worth noting.

However, where should he go now? Or perhaps, instead of following Martial Uncle-Grandmaster Zhou for training, Lu Yuan intended to visit Guasi Peak.

"Well then, everyone, farewell." Lu Yuan stood with Renowned Master Yuanyang, Renowned Master Lieyang, Renowned Master Huifeng, and Renowned Master Zixia. Lu Yuan waved goodbye to the North Peak Martial Uncles, Martial Brothers, and Martial Sisters. He had already visited Guasi Peak, and Martial Uncle-Grandmaster Zhou had seen him. However, he stated he would wait until Lu Yuan had completely mastered Reincarnation before teaching him Yin-Yang, so for now, he wouldn't include Lu Yuan in the special training.

Thus, Lu Yuan decided to head to Great Yue.

Ye Fang and Ye Yuan were consumed by envy and jealousy; Yue was famous for its beauties.