Rise of Humanity

by <unknown>

  Such totem pillars could only be crafted by Qi Practitioners, which meant they were accessible by those tribes with Qi Practitioners. Meanwhile, the spirit that was cultivated by Qi Practitioners was also a type of totem, called the totem spirit.

  The spirit and the totem were tightly related. If a tribe’s Qi Practitioner's totem spirit was a mystical tortoise, then the totem of the entire tribe would also be that particular mystical tortoise. If the entire tribe worshipped the mystic tortoise totem, the Qi Practitioner’s strength would also be increased.

  On the other hand, tribes that did not have any Qi Practitioners would naturally have no totem god pillars. The tribe that Zhong Yue originated from was one of the smallest tribes, so they did not possess any treasures like totem god pillars.

  Just as he walked closer to the hall, an uproar occurred and a loud voice among the crowd could then be heard shouting, “Someone has died!”

  “Someone died in the examination, his soul has completely scattered!”

  Zhong Yue’s heart thumped quicker and he saw two men dressed in white carrying a teen’s corpse out of the hall, which belonged to the outer disciple who had died during the examination.

  This caused the outer disciples to tense up. The examination was very strict and just achieving the Soul Liberty level was not enough. One’s soul must also be very strong and good in combat consciousness as the exam could result in serious injuries.

  If one was unlucky, it could be very deadly!

  Outside of Cloudless Hall, the outer disciples awaiting their turn felt very nervous and worried. They knew that the examination was deadly beforehand, but there was a great difference in seeing for themselves and just hearing it. This had caused some of them to hesitate and even think of giving up.

  Zhong Yue moved forward and thought, In cultivation, one must be determined. If one gives up once, then he will continue to give up in the future. What is the point of cultivating then?

  An old man in white who is in charge of the entire hall sat at the front. His eyes were shut and before Zhong Yue said anything he had already asked, “Which tribe are you from?”

  “Zhong Shan Tribe, Zhong Shan Clan, Zhong Yue!”

  The old man in white raised his head and gave Zhong Yue a measured look. He then said, “Get inside then. Next! Which tribe are you from?”

  “Wei River Tribe, Shui Tu Clan, Shui Qingyan.”

  After Zhong Yue had walked halfway into the hall, he suddenly heard a very nice voice coming from behind, “Zhong Yue? Brother Yue from the Zhong Shan Clan? Is that really you? What happened to you? You have become so thin that I almost did not recognize you anymore.”

  Zhong Yue turned back and saw a young girl following behind him. The girl was about thirteen or fourteen. She had smooth white skin, an extremely pretty face, and wore a white fur hat. Her eyes were crystal clear and she smelled lovely. Shui Qingyan walked toward Zhong Yue quickly while carrying a tiny totem god pillar before her. She then said happily, “It really is you! I went to look for you a few days ago, but you were not there. I even thought that you had an accident and it really scared me! What happened to you? You’re so thin now….”

  Chapter 5: Great Excitement |

  The name of the little young lady was Shui Qingyan, and she came from the Wei River Tribe of the three thousand human tribes of the Great Wilderness. There were a lot of shore around Wei River, which was why the Wei River tribe was often called the Shui Tu Clan and the tribesmen used ‘Shui’ as their surname.

  Zhong Yue was a long-time friend of Shui Qingyan. When Zhong Yue was coming back from his tribe last year, he traveled across the Great Wilderness alone to the holy land of Swords Gate. And that was when he met Shui Qingyan.

  Shui Qingyan’s parents held a position of high prestige within the Shuitu Clan. There were more than ten hunters escorting her to the Swords Gate. However, they were ambushed by a wave of beasts in the middle of the trip—the only survivor was Shui Qingyan. Zhong Yue had stepped forward and saved her, just as she was about to become the final victim that would die under the claws of the beasts.

  The scar on his left arm was the price he had paid to save Shui Qingyan from the beasts.

  Zhong Yue then escorted her back to Swords Gate. Due to this experience, Shui Qingyan acknowledged Zhong Yue as her Elder Brother Yue, forming a close relationship.

  “Qingyan, you’ve reached the level of Soul Liberty already?” Zhong Yue was shocked and he said in disbelief, “You’ve only cultivated for a year….”

  He stopped his sentence midway as he suddenly thought of himself. Her cultivation speed could be considered swift as it had only been a year since she became part of the Swords Gate. Despite this, she was already at the level of Soul Liberty, and was about to participate in the examination test in Cloudless Hall. Compared to the other outer disciples, she had progressed very fast!

  In contrast, under the teachings of Xin Huo, Zhong Yue had practiced the【Sui Sovereign Flame Order Palace Visualization Art】. Within hours, he could free his soul from the body and achieve the level of Soul Liberty. Such a cultivation speed would be unbelievable to the others!

  Of course, given that he had cultivated for so many years and finally had a breakthrough now to the level of Soul Liberty, he was only common within the tens of thousands of outer disciples. As such, he would not attract much attention to himself.

  The two youngsters walked into Cloudless Hall: the hall was indeed worthy of its name of Cloudless.

  Below them was an invisible barrier, and underneath the barrier was a view from a lofty altitude. Magnificent mountains and hills stood like stationary sea waves, and nearly the entirety of the hundred thousand miles of Great Wilderness could be seen clearly!

  Waves of white clouds curled and floated with the wind beneath them. When the two looked around, they could see all sorts of unique sights within the Great Wilderness. There was a frosted ice mountain covered in snow, giant trees that shadowed a thousand miles with their canopy, and a huge lotus that grew exceptionally big. These were all breathtaking scenes.

  Above them, the hot sun dangled high and the moon hung to the side. The sun, moon, and stars were all so close to him now; much nearer than they used to be.

  In Cloudless Hall, there were already more than ten people gathered in front of a high stage. The stage had a radius of a thousand feet, and in the middle stood a little Sword Gate that was shaped like a sword.

  There was a young fifteen-year-old teenager fighting against a dark black peculiar demon.

  The front claws of the peculiar demon were like a mantis, its legs were bent inward and its movements were swift. It came and went like waves of wind. The mantis demon moved around the youngster; waving and slashing him with its scythe-like arms!

  The youngster moved left and right, blocking and countering. Blood flowed from his body and from time to time, he would be wounded by the demon. He was in a bad position!

  The high stage was enclosed by invisible seals, completely shutting it off. The demon was unable to escape. Since it was a demon, it was bloodthirsty by nature. Hence, it crazily attacked and assaulted the youngster.

  On the other side of the high stage, a few examiners dressed in white clothes sat quietly as they waited for the examination results.

  “This mantis demon is a minion-class demon raised by the Swords Gate as a subject for examination use. Fast speed, strong strength, and arms like scythes, it will be impossible to win against it through close combat.”

  Below the stage, there were a number of outer disciples wearing exquisite clothes that clearly suggested that they were all descendants of big clans. They were chatting and discussing, “But the weakness of the mantis demon is very obvious, its frail soul! We only need to liberate our souls from our body, enter its psyche ocean, and imagine the Swords Gate. With a slash of Sword Qi, it will be exterminated and victory will then be in our hands!”

  “Easier said than done.” Another one of them shook his head, “The attack ra
te of the mantis demon is too fast and with its great strength, engaging in close combat will only lead to a fiasco! But if the soul is liberated and slashed by its arm, you will die immediately! Just now, the disciple liberated his soul and he was slashed by the mantis demon. His soul was destroyed and scattered into pieces on the spot, not even the examiner could save him! Only by precisely capturing the fleeting opportunity can the soul enter its psyche ocean and kill its soul!”

  “That’s right, the mantis demon is too quick and its strength is also much stronger than ordinary people. We can’t fight it face to face, we can only defeat it with our knowledge!”

  The purpose of the examination of Cloudless Hall was to test the candidate’s liberation of soul and combat consciousness, both of these elements were equally indispensable!

  Zhong Yue frowned and made a puzzled face, The mantis demon doesn’t seem to be that quick and its strength is not as great as mine. Why did they all say that it can’t be defeated face to face in close combat?

  In his eyes, the mantis demon could not be considered very fast. The powers from its arm-scythe slashes were also somehow lacking. Zhong Yue could clearly capture every movement of the mantis demon. His body seemed to be eager to fight on the stage, it was all so weird.

  Little did he know that because his psyche had become a few times stronger than before, the mantis demon that was quick and swift in the eyes of the others was nothing unusual in his eyes. It could only be called normal.

  This was the beauty of a strong psyche!

  Shui Qingyan took a small totem pillar out from behind her, her eyes glimmering as she said in a low voice, “There are elders of Shui Tu Clan in the Swords Gate and I was given this totem pillar, it helped me a lot while cultivating. Brother Yue, this examination is very dangerous. Later, you can bring in my totem pillar and return it to me after the examination. That way, both of us can pass the exam!”

  Zhong Yue was moved by her suggestion. However, he raised his head and looked at the mantis demon on the stage, then shook his head and said, “It’s fine, I want to it try myself.”

  On the stage, wounds opened all over the body of the youngster, but he grit his teeth and held on.

  Suddenly, one of the examiners dressed in white clothes lifted his finger. The head of the mantis demon burst in midstep and it died on the spot. The examiner’s face was emotionless and he said to the youngster, “You are too exhausted to continue, leave. Next, Jun Shan tribe, Jun Shaofei of the Jun Shan Clan.”

  Another young man climbed onto the stage. It was obvious that the youngster was from one of the big clans as he placed a totem pillar on the ground as soon as he reached the stage. The carvings on the totem pillar gradually grew brighter and emitted waves of energy.

  The Sword Gate that was on the stage opened wide and a black silhouette came rushing out, charging right at Jun Shaofei. In the blink of an eye, its arms that were like scythes were three feet away from the youngster. The next moment, his head would be chopped off. He was left with no time to react!

  Suddenly, the mantis demon slowed down. Its speed was delayed by half a beat. Even though it was still quick, it was not quick to the point that its movements could not be captured like before.

  The totem god pillar is indeed wonderful. Zhong Yue was astonished, his eyes brightened and he was very curious about the totem god pillar. Qi Practitioners use their spirit to make the totem god pillar, I wonder how do they make it?

  Although the speed of the mantis demon was slowed, it was still fairly quick to Jun Shaofei. The battle lasted for another fifteen minutes before Jun Shaofei seized a chance to enter its psyche ocean and destroy its soul. He had won the match and passed the examination!

  Time continued ticking by. One by one, teenagers stepped on the stage and continuous mantis demons rushed out from the Sword Gate. Some of the teenagers could not even last a second and their limbs were permanently taken away by the demon’s slash. However, their lives were saved by the examiners. The others fought a hard battle, but were still unable to defeat the mantis demons.

  There were only two teenagers who could defeat the demons and win the battle. They used the help of the magical totem pillars. But none of the outer disciples that came from the poor families could pass the test.

  It was not long until it was Zhong Yue’s turn. Shui Qingyan was worried so she took out the totem god pillar behind her back and said in a low voice, “Brother Yue, you should use my totem pillar….”

  Zhong Yue’s eyes were brighter than ever. He shook his head and said, “No need!”

  On the high stage, the battle was over. One of the examiners looked at the name list and without the slightest change in emotion, he said, “Zhong Shan tribe, Zhong Shan Clan, Zhong Yue!”

  “Here!” Zhong Yue answered.

  He ran up to the stage and inhaled a deep breath; his eyes stared right at the Sword Gate.

  Below the stage, the outer disciples were looking at him. This youngster was skinny and shriveled, the clothes he wore were rugged and worn-out, and he even carried a medicine basket on his back. He did not even look like a candidate that came to participate in the examination, but more like a disciple that came to harvest spirit herbs.

  Right away, there were peals of laughter coming below from the crowd. One of them quietly laughed, “Child of the poor peasants, it’s best that you don’t come and make yourself a joke….”

  Before he finished his sentence, the crowd could hear a loud bang. The Sword Gate was opened by one of the examiners. The horrible groans of the mantis demon could be heard and a black silhouette rushed out like a sword toward Zhong Yue. The two scythe-like arms swung around swiftly in the air like two sharp blades!

  The two sharp blades were directed toward Zhong Yue in series!

  “Jiao Dragon Winding Body!” Zhong Yue released a roaring shout, much like the spring thunder’s loud boom. At this moment, the crowd in Cloudless Hall could hear deep dragon-like roars. Some of them even seemed to see a ferocious Jiao Dragon winding around Zhong Yue’s body!

  The two blades from the mantis demon slashed down. At the same time, sounds of a body cracking and tearing could be heard. Blood was shed and splattered. The black silhouette flew across the stage and rammed the invisible barrier. It then fell down onto the floor, not moving a single inch!

  On the high stage, stood only a young man.

  The crowd below the stage fell dead silent.

  The white dressed examiners raised their heads one after another. Their eyes were filled with disbelief as they saw the mantis demon lying lifelessly on the floor. Its ribs had been crushed into dust by a fist and the broken bones had pierced its heart. It had suffered a tragic death!

  “Without using his soul, rather, he ended the demon with his fist….”

  One of the examiners was dumbstruck, and mumbled, “Senior martial brothers, should this be counted as a pass?”

  The others looked blankly at each other. In all these years of taking charge of Cloudless Hall, this was the first time they had encountered such a situation!

  Killing the swift and strong mantis demon with bare fists was a piece of cake to Qi Practitioners, but it was an impossible task to outer disciples!

  Now, a mantis demon was dead, killed by the bare fists of Zhong Yue. This situation nearly drove the examiners crazy!

  The indifferent examiners were now stimulated, and fully attentive. However, they still had no clue about how should they evaluate this examinee.

  Chapter 6: Hero |

  Zhong Yue stood on the stage while still using his【Jiao Dragon Winding Body Totem Art】. His psyche had not disperses yet, so there were still light-green energy waves winding like a ferocious Jiao Dragon around him.

  It could be seen with the naked eye. It was a pure expression of power when the psyche was strong enough.

  The Qi Practitioners of the Great Wilderness possessed strong psyches that could be transformed. When the psyche transformed into a bird it could fly, as a beast it could
leap, and as a weapon it could kill. When psyche and inner Qi were combined, they would be unbreakable.

  However, that was for Qi Practitioners!

  Zhong Yue’s psyche was blurry, but still visible. Even if it was not anything close to the psyche of a Qi Practitioner, his overbearing psyche still had a strong impact on the other outer disciples!

  The【Sui Sovereign Flame Order Palace Visualization Art】given to me by Xin Huo is really strong and potent!

  Zhong Yue was excited. He had only practiced the【Sui Sovereign Flame Order Palace Visualization Art】twice. However, not only could he liberate his soul, but the strength of his【Jiao Dragon Winding Body Totem Art】had also increased a lot. It was way beyond what the Swords Gate Visualization Art could have done!

  The teenagers below the stage were dumbfounded as they stared at him. The only exception was Shui Qingyan, who was excited and dancing around. She hopped and jumped, waving her fist to express her happiness. It was like she was the one that passed the examination.

  On the other hand, the examiners were talking and discussing among themselves, without any results.

  “The Swords Gate has never gone through such a thing,” said an examiner with white hair.

  Suddenly, he voiced out, “The purpose of this Cloudless Hall examination is to test the soul strength and combat awareness of the disciples, but the Zhong Shan Clan member used a physique refining technique to defeat the mantis demon. This shall not be counted as a pass. In my opinion, he should be treated as a fail, what do the other junior martial brothers think?”

  “Senior Martial Brother Tian, you are right.” There was another examiner that agreed with him, “If this is counted as a pass, it would disrupt the principle of Swords Gate. We of Swords Gate manifest the spirit and cultivate Sword Qi to protect the Great Wilderness. If the outer disciples make him a model and follow his footsteps, it would emphasize the physique refining techniques and promote the unorthodox ways of Swords Gate. It will not only break the rules of the Swords Gate but worse, it will break the flames of culture of Swords Gate; things will then be irreparable. This examination shall therefore be counted as a fail….”