Dragon Tamer - Chapter 1286: 1290: Entry Level

Chapter 1286: Chapter 1290: Entry Level

Zhu Minglang, holding someone else’s invitation, entered the South Mountain Sea.

Upon the South Mountain Sea, there are Mist Fairy Bridges. These bridges don’t always appear on the turquoise sea surface; they only form out of the nearby sea mist when you approach the rocking and rolling waves, materializing a mist bridge less than ten feet ahead.

This bridge is akin to a solitary sea boat. Perplexingly, when someone reaches the end, sea mist condenses underfoot to form another section of the mist bridge ten feet forward. As for the mist behind, it dissipates on its own after the person walks past.

Thus, one does not seem to be walking on an elongated sea mist bridge, but rather traversing the seas on mist, exuding an immensely graceful and adventurous Immortal Hero’s aura!

There is a multitude of fairy islands in South Mountain; they are scattered across like stars on a board. If one were to soar into the skies and look down, they would find that the layout of the Southern Heavenly Palace Immortal Sect fully corresponds to a splendid star chart, mirroring the distribution of stars during a certain season’s night sky, even those isles that only reveal small rocks above the sea level.

And when the stars above fully align with the islands of South Mountain on that one day, the true visage of the entire Southern Heavenly Palace would be vividly revealed—a genuine miracle.

Zhu Minglang, after making numerous inquiries, learned that this Southern Heavenly Palace is the most influential Immortal Sect in all of Jun Tian, overseeing the rotation of stars, the cycle of sun and moon.

To unravel the mystery of the Flare Print, Zhu Minglang could surely use Huangyu’s identity to infiltrate the inner workings of the Southern Heavenly Palace.

Today, the South Mountain Sea is bustling with extraordinary activity—it’s because each year, the Sea recruits Disciples from the Nine Major Divine Provinces.

The requirements for recruitment are not overly strict; whether one be a member of the Royal Family Nobles or an ordinary citizen, they just need a simple invitation to participate in the trials for Outer Sect Disciples.

As for the invitation, it is not too difficult to obtain—one from a reputable school, an Immortal’s House or the introduction of a kingdom-city is sufficient.

Zhu Minglang originally thought the invitation discarded by the young man who hanged himself was precious, only to find out later that they were even sold in the market, and that a piece of broken Liuli would suffice.

Entry may not be strict, but the selection is incredibly brutal.

When Zhu Minglang arrived at the first fairy island, the place was already packed with people.

This is a large island, half of which connects to another plain of the Spiritual Mountain. Zhu Minglang noticed many people came from the flatlands of that Spiritual Mountain Plain, whereas those like himself who boldly walked the Mist Fairy Bridge were in the minority.

Most importantly, he didn’t drown.

Not everyone has the means to traverse the Mist Fairy Bridge; those with impure hearts oftentimes find themselves sinking into the mud boats at the bottom of the sea.

Regrettably, this unique method of arrival does not provide Zhu Minglang with any advantage.

He still must participate in this preliminary selection for entry.

Those who come for the selection are mostly Cultivators, but there are also some Loose Immortals and Loose Gods. Even they must start from the beginning if they wish to become true deities of the Southern Heavenly Palace. Hence, this selection is a mixed bag of both the mighty and the mediocre.

The selection is divided into Outer Sect Disciples and Outer Sect Servants.

If an Outer Sect Servant performs well and serves loyally for three to five years, they can still be promoted to the ranks of the Disciples.

The Southern Heavenly Palace’s selection carries no bias; even the Crown Prince of a Country, no matter how much gold and jewels he offers to the Palace yearly, only obtains an invitation just like the one in Zhu Minglang’s hand.

Including some famous Immortal Sects, their heirs wanting to learn and become disciples in the Southern Heavenly Palace must follow the same process and ascend step by step.

This promotion process is extremely simple.

Contests!

Rounds of contests.

A series of competitions, layer by layer.

As a place that venerates martial prowess, the Southern Heavenly Palace only admits those with superior strength. Therefore, their selection method involves round after round of elimination, followed by more rounds of competition.

The Southern Heavenly Palace abides by a master-disciple system.

Th𝒾𝙨 𝘤h𝓪pṯɛr ɩṡ pⲟ𝑠ƚҽ𝗱 b𝙮 Ҡɪ𝖙ᥱɳՕν𝑒𝓁

All Outer Sect Disciples will face the same rotation of official instructors.

Outer Sect Disciples undergo Inner Gate promotion contests each season; those who successfully advance become Inner Sect Disciples and are then assigned to certain masters for more generalized teaching and cultivation.

Inner Sect Disciples partake in annual contests.

Those who excel in the annual contests, similar to achieving a place on the golden ranking board, get chosen by renowned Immortal Masters to become Direct Disciples…

Direct Disciples are assigned to different fairy islands and, like the next generation, follow their master closely. They serve their master while also receiving individual nurturing, and their growth rate is remarkably noticeable.

Understanding that the selection system of the Southern Heavenly Palace is relatively fair and transparent, Zhu Minglang feels it is an excellent place to go undercover.

Of course, the most important thing is that he also stands to gain quite a bit by joining the Great Immortal Sect himself; even if his strength improves rapidly, there are some naturally talented individuals ahead of him covering for him. If he modestly conceals some of his power, it won’t take long for him to bring back his Sword Spirit Dragon.

“Hey, it’s your turn! Huangyu, don’t you have your name—Huangyu—written on your hand? Why are you standing there like a block of wood?” a pudgy boy nudged Zhu Minglang.

Zhu Minglang glanced at the pudgy boy and remembered he was using the name Huangyu now.

Such an ordinary name, he couldn’t even remember it himself.

“Oh, so I just go up and fight, and if I win, that’s it?” Zhu Minglang asked.

“Of course not, you must rank within the top thousand!”

“A thousand slots, that’s quite a lot, huh?” Zhu Minglang remarked.

“There are no less than thirty thousand people, and that’s just today…” the pudgy boy said.

“No problem, I’m confident I can stand out.”

“You’re too confident. To tell you the truth, it’s a knockout system, layer by layer. Even if they select a thousand people for the Outer Gate, if you’re unlucky and face a Royal Family Noble or a descendant of an Immortal’s House, you’re done for,” the pudgy boy explained.

Zhu Minglang’s name was called.

He found that his luck was quite good. Although he arrived late, he didn’t have to wait long. Some people had been waiting for a whole day and night, afraid to leave even for urgent matters, in case they missed their name being called.

The contest took place on a white sandy area, where a gigantic Spider Dragon had woven an incredibly splendid silk nest as the arena, enveloping the sand with what resembled cocoon silk, causing Zhu Minglang to feel a certain affinity.

The contest was one-on-one.

Zhu Minglang’s opponent was a flashy-dressed young master, wielding a fan.

With a sweep of his fan, a fog of shadows appeared in front of him, and from within, a Blood Shadow Dragon crawled out, exuding a deathly presence and fierce gaze.

“Please, go ahead!” The fan-wielding young master also observed decorum, waiting for Zhu Minglang to call out his Dragon.