Could it be that I am the cruel villain?
Chapter 225 - 156: Another Day of Tailgating

Chapter 225: Chapter 156: Another Day of Tailgating

"Purple Cloud Palace holds small selections every year, crudely put, it’s internal recommendations, just like in my case."

"Those favored by prominent sect members are directly taken away, or those who have relatives and friends within the sect, comprising about eighty percent of the overall numbers."

"The grand selection occurs every five years, limited to those under thirty years old; however, this age limit isn’t set in stone but rather a flexible range, the threshold of which is uncertain."

"At the very least, among the group from Fengzhou this time, there are two who are already past thirty years old. These participating members either don’t understand the rules or might be ignorant about the limitations."

"But would Yu Ying be ignorant of the rules?"

While mindlessly following the team, Jiang Feng filtered through the information obtained today in his mind.

The reason he concluded that there is "flexibility" was mainly due to the attitude displayed by Yu Ying and his senior sister; the former actively brought in people over thirty years old to participate, proving that age is within a controllable range.

Otherwise, why would that woman who’s always fussing with cotton bring in ineligible people just to get scolded?

The latter kept mentioning "outstanding performance."

This phrase is ambiguous. You fight your way through and punch everyone to death, achieving smooth progress—isn’t that outstanding performance?

But if you silently survive to the final round using your wits to overcome challenges, is that considered outstanding performance?

You have the financial and human resources to bribe everyone to carry you up the mountain, is that considered outstanding performance?

That’s why there are both "rigid" and "flexible" situations.

"It’s quite interesting; they didn’t just gather us all to fight it out, which would clearly save more time and effort, yet they chose the most time-consuming and labor-intensive method."

Initially, Jiang Feng thought these guys had too much time on their hands and were a bit foolish; resolving it by fighting everyone directly could finish the ordeal in a few selection rounds over seven or eight days, yet they chose to run a battle royale instead—wouldn’t that make everyone think of slacking off?

But now he thinks about it.

It was intentional.

Yes, because Purple Cloud Palace aims to recruit, to bring in talented youth and various qualified talents, it’s not merely a competition or election; they don’t need you to have the strongest physical power.

It’s whether you are useful to the sect.

If they were just to gather everyone to fight, would it be fair for those with lower cultivation realms?

It would also be unfair for younger people, such as the frail-looking little girl walking ahead in the distance.

That child is still asking around town about new faces, but regretfully her Qi Refinement Level Five cultivation realm is too low.

Although most participants are in Qi Refinement, a vast majority are at Qi Refinement Level Seven or Eight Peaks; Level Five is indeed a bit too childlike.

Moreover, she can’t offer any particularly compelling terms for exchange.

He has seen many teams with decent overall cultivation realms, mixed with one or two low-level but good-looking female cultivators; a pretty exterior is indeed a part of taking shortcuts.

Regrettably, that little girl asking for help is frail and undoubtedly malnourished, her facial features not even fully developed, carrying a hint of girlish immaturity.

Thus, the result she got was only rejection.

"No wonder my senior sister was so confident about me, and so was Yu Ying; they must feel that even if I can’t overtly surpass others, I could definitely blend in and sneak into the final round, right?"

Thinking about this, he couldn’t help but feel both amused and bitter. Did they think he couldn’t fight directly, but could use clever tricks to stealthily make his way up the mountain?

Anyway, Jiang Feng never expected his senior sister to believe in his capabilities, because when she fled, he was only at the Qi Refinement seventh level, and she probably didn’t imagine he could encounter such a great opportunity.

"Using a hundred-li distance into the mountain as a test condition, this method isn’t just about testing raw strength, but a multi-faceted assessment."

"Survival skills, interpersonal relationships, or intelligence, even if you come from a prestigious family and could clear the way to Purple Cloud Palace by spending Spirit Stones, you’ve got to have something extraordinary."

"Having a particular skill, it’s not difficult to reach the sect entrance successfully. Moreover, even if you can’t reach it smoothly, as long as you can prove your potential and capability, that’s fine."

"Can I just head straight into the mountain and pick a fight with someone at the Core Formation Stage, and even if I lose, as long as I can inflict significant injury on them to prove my strength, can I enter the sect lying down?"

The youth suddenly revealed a carefree smile.

If you don’t have any special skills, just earnestly fight your way up the mountain, demonstrating your abilities and connections, preferring to be a lone ranger shows confidence in your unusual strength.

If you have no abilities and no connections, and even have communication disorders, why would Purple Cloud Palace take you in?

If you have nothing special about you and your realm is not high, yet you still managed to meet the criteria, doesn’t this sufficiently prove the person’s intellectual excellence?

Able to succeed among nearly ten thousand people to enter the final round, isn’t this much more powerful than those brutes who only know how to fight?

Entering the sect and being required to have at least two Tokens is to ensure you’ve competed with someone, possessing the minimum strength, and the one-month timeframe provides everyone plenty of leeway.

In other words, even if you are unlucky and robbed of your Token by someone at the Core Formation Stage or Foundation Establishment Peak right after entering the mountain, you still won’t be eliminated immediately.

"The one-month period is also interesting; even if this hundred-li road is tough, at most seven to eight days are needed to complete it."

"But it is specifically one month."

"That means the time spent on travel is only less than one-third, and the rest is all about competing with opponents, fighting for the number of Tokens, and logically, quite a few people should be able to reach the entrance."

"If I’m not mistaken, reaching the sect entrance is just the so-called written test, similar to the civil service examination back in the day; afterwards comes the second round, the interview, which should be about the number of Tokens."

"It is said that only a few dozens qualify each time, at most a hundred, and having two Tokens is the minimum requirement, with no upper limit, which means it’s likely that some with specialized skills might be specially recruited along with those who ranked high in the number of Tokens..."

"You, you scoundrel! Take my sword!"

The stuttering voice jolted him awake.

He reflexively raised his hand, but realized that the girl in front of him hadn’t actually thrust at him, but just put on a ferocious facade, somewhat like a startled stray dog on the street.

Regaining his senses, Jiang Feng instinctively surveyed his surroundings, realizing this was not a noisy marketplace but a rather secluded and dirty alley, which also looked quite old by the looks of it.

Behind the girl, there was a dilapidated house, seemingly long uninhabited, probably her temporary refuge, which explained why this young girl had taken such a defensive stance.

Emotions stirred up as he realized he had been following her inadvertently throughout his ponderings, ending up right at someone else’s doorstep, no wonder she was upset.

"You... you debauchee followed me for half an hour, you really think I’m easy to bully! I must warn you, in the town there is, there are..."

The girl tried to look menacing, but the trembling longsword revealed her nervousness; speaking of which.

The sword in this young lady’s hand was probably about as long as she was tall.

Thus, Jiang Feng tried to help her finish her sentence.

"Is there a enforcement team from Purple Cloud Palace?"

"Uh-huh!"

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