Chapter 851: The Unexpected Immortal Candidate
"His talent isn't bad..."
"But that's as far as it goes."
Across so many reincarnations, the man never seemed to surpass the Golden Core stage.
Every time, he perished in the calamity of the Red Flame Burning Sea.
It seemed his achievements were destined to be limited; he was no true prodigy.
As he watched Wei Qizheng cup his fist, his eyes filled with gratitude, Ji Shaoli offered a slight nod in return, though his inner thoughts were far less charitable.
And yet...
Ji Shaoli never expected...
...that his sharp judgment, honed over a hundred lifetimes, could actually be so wrong!
The time for the results to be announced drew ever closer.
On Haixuan Island, the cultivators' initial confidence began to fray, replaced by a growing sense of anxiety.
The easy chatter and laughter had vanished.
Everyone wore a solemn expression.
The more restless among them rose to pace back and forth, trying to ease their tension.
Just then, a look of surprise crossed Wei Qizheng's face. He took out his communication talisman and began to read it.
No one knew what message he had received.
A moment later, he shot to his feet, his face a mask of disbelief.
His body even trembled slightly with excitement.
His strange behavior immediately drew the eyes of every cultivator in the room.
A single thought surfaced in all their minds.
"Impossible..."
Meeting the shocked and quizzical stares of the others, Wei Qizheng took a deep breath. "The City Lord," he announced, "has ordered me to the Government Hall at once."
"It's about..."
"...the selection process for the Thirty-Three Immortal Candidates."
The hall fell into a dead silence.
The expressions on their faces froze, stunned by the sheer absurdity of it.
Even Ji Shaoli's face went rigid.
With all eyes fixed on him, their expressions a complex mix of emotions, Wei Qizheng felt a rush of blood to his head, a dizzying sense of elation.
It was only the preliminary selection, of course; the final list had not yet been decided.
But to be chosen from among countless cultivators...
...was in itself a testament to his ability!
In that moment, Wei Qizheng wanted nothing more than to let out a triumphant roar to express the sheer joy coursing through him.
But just as quickly, another thought struck him.
His expression shifted, the pride vanishing from his face.
It was replaced by a dawning confusion.
And then, by dread.
"Brother Ji..."
He turned to Ji Shaoli, his voice weak and pleading. "That Sky Shrouding Hand technique of yours... does it really work?"
That's right. The reality of his situation had just hit him.
He had received the notice for the preliminary selection...
...but he had cheated! He had known the questions in advance!
If this were for some ordinary provincial post, it might not have mattered.
But he was now facing the selection for the Thirty-Three Immortal Candidates—a process watched with intense scrutiny by the entire Myriad Immortals Alliance, from the highest echelons to the lowest ranks!
These candidates were being chosen as the seeds of hope in the fight against the Five Elders Council; a rigorous vetting process was inevitable!
Wei Qizheng could already picture the scene.
Seven or eight Dao Integration cultivators, surrounding him on all sides.
Probing every last corner of his sea of consciousness, leaving nothing unexamined...
Even with his considerable mental fortitude, a chill ran down Wei Qizheng's spine, his hands and feet growing cold.
If he were caught, being struck down on the spot would be the least of his worries.
His name would be proclaimed throughout the land, and he would go down in history as an infamous cheat!
The more he thought about it, the more his courage failed him.
"Brother Ji?" he asked again, his voice trembling.
Just then, Ji Shaoli finally snapped out of his own surprise.
Seeing the rapid play of emotions across Wei Qizheng's face, he instantly understood what the man was thinking.
He immediately offered reassurance. "You needn't worry. The secret arts of our Mutual Aid Association are foolproof."
"However..."
"If you are truly uneasy, I can help you one more time. Follow me!"
Clutching at this lifeline, Wei Qizheng followed Ji Shaoli into a private chamber without the slightest hesitation.
"Meditate here," Ji Shaoli instructed. "Empty your mind and cast out all distracting thoughts."
Wei Qizheng nodded and did as he was told.
Soon, his anxious heart grew calm.
Ji Shaoli nodded to himself.
Then, he waited patiently.
What was he waiting for?
For Lin Ling, of course, who was rushing over with utmost urgency, bearing a storage ring.
Harnessing the surging power of the earth veins, Lin Ling arrived on Haixuan Island in mere moments, bringing Li Fan with her.
They arrived undetected by any of the other cultivators on the island.
The moment they entered the private chamber, Lin Ling rendered Wei Qizheng unconscious.
Li Fan's true self and his clone, Ji Shaoli, both carefully examined Wei Qizheng's body.
After a moment, Li Fan shook his head slightly. "Strange. He doesn't have any special constitution."
"His cultivation talent is outstanding, but only within the confines of this one province. Compared to the true prodigies of the Xuanhuang Realm, there's still a significant gap."
"So why was he chosen by the Myriad Immortals Alliance?"
Li Fan was puzzled.
But his confusion didn't slow his hands in the slightest.
He pressed the cyan Truth Inducing Fruit—flickering between the real and the illusory—against the center of Wei Qizheng's forehead.
In an instant, the fruit turned completely ethereal. A treasure capable of controlling even a Dao Integration cultivator had just been used on a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator like Wei Qizheng!
Li Fan felt no regret.
It was a long shot, but he was willing to take the gamble.
If Wei Qizheng actually managed to pass the selection, using him to uncover the truth behind the Thirty-Three Immortal Candidates initiative would be more than worth the cost.
And if he failed...
Li Fan's expression turned menacing.
...then Wei Qizheng would just have to spend the rest of his life working to repay the debt.
"But the Truth Inducing Fruit alone is not enough," Li Fan mused.
His eyes glinted.
Within his sea of consciousness, the Final Dissociation Disc pulsed with a soft, white light.
An instant later, it materialized in his hand.
Li Fan took a deep breath and instantly set up a ring of arrays around the disc.
Then, using his finger as a sword, he brought it down in a sharp chop.
With a faint tremor, a paper-thin layer was sliced from the Final Dissociation Disc.
As if grievously wounded, the disc instantly dimmed.
It seemed listless and weak.
A pang of regret shot through Li Fan as he saw this.
He quickly returned it to his sea of consciousness to recuperate.
"It's not the original Terminal Stone Disk, after all," he thought, "just a fusion of a slice of it and the Dissociation Disc."
"It inherited the ability to be partitioned, but even slicing off a single piece is a grievous injury to it."
"You'd better not disappoint me, kid."
Li Fan carefully implanted the cicada-wing-thin sliver of the Final Dissociation Disc into Wei Qizheng's sea of consciousness.
With that done, he and Lin Ling quietly departed the chamber.
Only his clone, Ji Shaoli, remained, standing and waiting in silence.
A short while later, Wei Qizheng slowly stirred and woke.
He was dazed at first.
Then he saw Ji Shaoli standing nearby, looking somewhat pale, and memories of what had happened—or what he thought had happened—flooded his mind.
"You've exhausted yourself, Brother Ji."
"I will never forget this immense kindness!"
Wei Qizheng declared, full of gratitude.
Ji Shaoli waved a dismissive hand. "We are all one family in the Mutual Aid Association. It's only natural that we help one another."
"It's been some time since the City Lord summoned you. You should go now."
"Rest assured. With the Association's secret arts protecting you, not even a Longevity Celestial Venerable could uncover the secrets in your mind!"
It was a bold claim, but Wei Qizheng believed it without a shadow of a doubt.
He gave a firm, resolute nod.
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