The middle-aged man showed a faint smile when he heard the older man’s words. “I respect my esteemed shifu’s compassion, but there are things he oversimplifies. If these so-called ‘elites’ were given such a grand opportunity without any obstacles, they wouldn’t give it the weight it deserves. Only after they’ve overcome a few obstacles will they appreciate the benevolence we—the Melodic Ice Palace—have shown them!”

　　“Then why not explain to them directly that they need to battle with each other, and that only the winners may enter Snowy Mountain?” a person next to him questioned.

　　The middle-aged man sighed. “For them to win through duels is nearly meaningless. Many of these so-called ‘elites’ were created by using large amounts of resources. Just because they have a high cultivation level doesn’t mean their innate talent is actually better than someone at a lower level, yet those with lower cultivation are certain to lose in a duel. What does it matter to us whether they’re in the mid or late stages of Spirit Stage? We can bridge the gap easily enough, it’s just a matter of using a few more resources. What we’re looking at this time is something other than cultivation level!”

　　“Something other than cultivation level?” the pale-faced elder asked, slightly taken aback.

　　The middle-aged man nodded. “Things like intelligence, foresight, temperament, or their abilities in things like alchemy, smithing, spells, and music. Even something like luck is more important than their cultivation tier. Of course, the most important of all is to see whether they dare to fight! Daring enough to take what the rules say they can, and then daring and clever enough to judge the situation and take what the rules don’t forbid! This is where true ability lies!” After speaking, he paused and let out a sigh. “After all, when faced with such an opportunity, a high cultivation level doesn’t guarantee success….”

　　—

　　Inside Cold Soul Valley, battles cropped up one after another; deaths were rampant all over the place and everyone feared for their own life. That single wooden door was no longer enough to guarantee someone’s safety. Ever since that goddamned person had revealed the “verbal abuse” method, it was difficult for people to stay indoors and avoid a fight now that others were saying such things about their ancestors.

　　At first, when people tried to take over a cottage—whether it was through deception or simply challenging from the outside—there had at least been a bottom line that wasn’t crossed. If the people inside the cottage felt their victory was uncertain, they could easily hide themselves indoors like a turtle and simply acknowledge they weren’t a worthy opponent. Now that this new approach had been revealed, things were no longer so simple.

　　Sometimes the most simplistic method was also the most effective. A person wouldn’t lose face if they simply didn’t fight, but now that others were going so far as to curse their ancestors, how could they pretend not to hear? No matter what the situation was, they had to leave their cottage in order to safeguard the face of their ancestors. If the news were to spread otherwise, it could mean public humiliation for their entire clan.

　　During such a time, it was actually the Myriad Beasts Sect who was securely hiding in their cottage. Although a number of people had come knocking on the door—some were polite, others vicious, and a few who’d had prior business with the sect wanted to “chat”—Elder Moye had grown clever and refused to open the door for anyone at all. It was to the point that he didn’t answer the door at all and simply shut it tight while having everyone inside the cabin play dead.

　　Ying Qiaoqiao was feeling rather worried since Fang Xing hadn’t returned in all this time. She wanted to go out and search for him, but Elder Moye had stopped her. “There is no need for you to worry about him. Although I think the boy is very clever and definitely a sprout worth nurturing, he is still a servant and not worth you taking such a huge risk. Besides, he is nothing more than a servant—why would anyone else pay him any mind now that everything is in such chaos? That boy is in no danger. Once things settle down, I’ll take him as my pupil and improve his status!”

　　Ying Qiaoqiao finally settled down after hearing these words. To her, the fact Elder Moye was willing to take Fang Xing as his pupil was indeed a very good thing. The Myriad Beasts Sect was half sect, half kingdom, and its hierarchy was incredibly strict. Their Ying family was effectively the royal family of the Bohai Kingdom, whereas the other disciples—aside from those who inherited one of the three main beast spirits—were basically ministers and civilians. Fang Xing’s status within the Myriad Beasts Sect was as a servant disciple, but if Elder Moye took him in as his own pupil, it was equivalent to rising up to the position of nobility in one go.

　　These two would never have imagined that the Fang Xing they were so worried about had already returned to their spirit ship with eight high-grade Spirit Stones and had been busy estimating the battle prowess of the others.

　　—

　　Fang Xing had only managed to sell his method to eight groups before people simply started copying the methods from others without paying him first. Such a thing left him infuriated—these large clans were just too stingy!

　　Despite this, Fang Xing had achieved his purpose. First, he’d wanted to throw all of Cold Soul Valley into chaos; with such open disorder, the Myriad Beasts Sect—who were the first to take over a cottage—seemed very reasonable and inconspicuous by comparison. Second, he’d wanted to gather information and understand the battle prowess of all the other sects and clans, which he’d managed to do for everyone except for the Xiao clan and Prince Chu Huang in the deepest parts of the valley. With this, if the Myriad Beasts Sect were to come across any other trouble, it would be much easier to resolve.

　　With so much chaos, three days passed in the blink of an eye.

　　By the morning of the third day, eight disciples dressed in Melodic Ice Palace garb flew on their clouds through the blizzard-like weather. The three elders in the lead were in Foundation Stage, while the remaining disciples were in Spirit Stage tier eight or nine. Once this group of people arrived at the sky above Cold Soul Valley, the leading Foundation Stage elder swept his attention across the valley and cupped his hands towards those who were staying on empty grounds. “Dear all esteemed Daoists, we—the Melodic Ice Palace—have erred in not preparing enough space and neglecting all of you important guests. Please do follow me—Yingshi—to the banquet….”

　　The elder’s voice was crisp and loud, covering the entire valley. Those who’d stationed themselves on the empty plains of the valley were all groups who’d lost in the race to take over a cottage. They were all anxious and worried about potentially being kicked out of Cold Soul Valley for failing to take over a cottage, and they’d gathered together to discuss how to dispute this with the Melodic Ice Palace if it truly came to it.

　　When the group suddenly heard the elder say such things, however, they were filled with sudden comfort. They could tell this Elder Yingshi was a Foundation Stage elder and held an important position within the Melodic Ice Palace. His status within the Chufung Kingdom was thus also extremely high, and so for him to come out to personally invite others to the banquet was a show of extreme politeness—it didn’t seem as though things were being done in a strictly business-like manner.

　　Under Elder Yingshi’s guidance, all of the groups gathered their weapons and flew towards the western skies. When some recognized this as the direction of the Melodic Ice Palace, they were even more contented. Although they’d been defeated in the competition to obtain a cottage, it seemed as though the Melodic Ice Palace didn’t view them poorly for it and was instead inviting them over—perhaps their loss wasn’t a stroke of misfortune. The competition over cottages had never been officially declared, after all; it had only been a rumor, and a rumor couldn’t be taken as definite fact.

　　A sumptuous banquet had been prepared within the grand hall of the Melodic Ice Palace. When everyone arrived, Elder Yingshi was extremely polite and asked everyone to sit before offering wines to drink. Everyone felt as though a stone had been lifted from the bottom of their hearts and they began to drink to their heart’s content.

　　After hours of drinking, Elder Yingshi felt it was time and smiled. “Dear fellow Daoists,” he spoke in a clear voice, “for you to travel such great distances to our Melodic Ice Palace after receiving our Black Ice Order, I—Yingshi—would like to thank everyone on behalf of the Melodic Ice Palace. However, to tell you the truth, our palace master had prepared a small trial for all the young elites. You have unfortunately not passed the trial and are therefore no longer eligible to study here.”

　　Silence.

　　The people who’d been so happily drinking were suddenly left in a state of shock.

　　Even after Cold Soul Valley had devolved into a chaotic mess, there had still been some people who hadn’t joined in. Some were too proud and had refused, others felt starting brawls over a small cottage was shameful, and there were some who disdained fighting without official orders from the Melodic Ice Palace. When Elder Yingshi personally came out to invite them to the banquet, they had been relieved. Never had they expected him to completely dash any hopes they might have had.

　　The fight over the cottage had indeed been a test set by the palace….

　　A large-bodied old man in Foundation Stage tier seven stood up. “Elder Yingshi, this is a bit much. How could something like a mere fight over cottages be considered a trial?” He was the guardian of the Zhu clan from the Black Swamp Kingdom. Compared to the other clans that had arrived, the Zhu clan’s battle prowess was considered above average, but while he was fighting for a cottage, he’d been heavily wounded by a sneak attack set by the guardian of the Mo clan from the Hundred Mile Kingdom. They’d been unable to fight with the other clans afterwards and hadn’t gotten a cottage in the end. They were the ones who felt the most indignant about this development, and so they were the ones to stand up to object first.

　　Elder Yingshi smiled. “Although it is a mere fight over cottages, it still shows many things. A loss is a loss!”

　　The Zhu clan’s guardian coldly replied, “I am not convinced. If you Melodic Ice Palace mentioned this was a trial from the beginning, everything would have been fine and all the clans would have fought for it using their full abilities. Yet you hadn’t said a single word in advance, and now you tell us it was a trial all along? How do you intend to convince everyone to go along with something like that?”

　　The guardian’s words brought agreements from the crowd, and they all began to rant against the Melodic Ice Palace for being unfair. This was something they’d discussed in Cold Soul Valley before coming here: it was the Melodic Ice Palace who hadn’t made things clear in the first place, so of course they would object!

　　Even when faced with everyone’s questions, Elder Yingshi maintained a calm expression. “This incredibly rare opportunity was offered by our grand-elder of the Melodic Ice Palace. It is precisely because you know how rare this chance is that you sent your elite youths here. Since this opportunity came from us—the Melodic Ice Palace—the rules are naturally set by us, the Melodic Ice Palace. If you have any complaints, why not intrude upon the Snowy Mountain so you can deliver your grievances to our grand-elder and the other old seniors in person….”

　　Those who had more detailed information immediately shut their mouths. Even if their guts were magnified tenfold, who would dare to complain to those old monsters? Not even clan masters would dare!

　　“Hmph, since the Melodic Ice Palace is the host, and since the host has declared it so, we cannot be so thick-skinned as to remain. However, there is something I still have to say: we’ve come all this way here to your Melodic Ice Palace, yet now we’re left to return empty-handed. Aren’t you pushing things too far?” someone openly spoke their dissatisfaction with a sneer.

　　Elder Yingshi smiled. “What do you mean leaving empty-handed? Hasn’t the Black Ice Order already been delivered to all of you?”

　　The grand hall turned silent as everyone was left dumbstruck.