Chapter 2198: Chapter 1569: Leap (Wishing Everyone a Happy 2026!)

At the same time, due to this betting pool, quite a few cultivators personally arrived at Liang Country’s territory, wanting to see the situation of this sect with their own eyes.

But unexpectedly, the sect was completely shut off, the mountain gate concealed by thick fog, with not a trace of people visible; if it weren’t for the Mountain Protection Array, they wouldn’t think this was a sect at all.

"Is the Tongtian Sect planning to isolate itself, not intending to communicate or make contact with the outside world?" a certain cultivator curiously remarked.

"It could also be because of insufficient strength, worried about being targeted by some ill-intentioned cultivators, hence the caution."

"Looks like this sect won’t last long; but fortunately, my bet was on ten years, and not many Spirit Stones are involved."

...

They never intended to come closer to the Tongtian Sect, because they initially assumed this sect was of little significance.

Yet, if they had observed even a bit carefully, they would have discovered the high grade of the Mountain Protection Array’s formation, far exceeding their understanding!

Unfortunately, they didn’t and merely glanced briefly before leaving.

Moreover, unbeknownst to them, while they were surveying Ascension Mountain, Wansheng within the mountain also noticed their presence.

Had they not been deemed harmless, they would have surely not been let off easily.

However, this incident served as a warning bell, other forces have begun to notice the Tongtian Sect!

Though the spread is still limited, as time passes and the sect regains strength, it will inevitably enter certain powers’ sights.

Just whether these forces remember the deep ancient grudges from tens of thousands of years ago is uncertain.

But whether they remember it or not, the karma of the demise of the Tongtian Sect in the past still needs to be settled!

Wansheng swiftly dismissed these thoughts, focusing on the group of children just beginning their spiritual journey, patiently guiding them.

...

Sun rises and moon sets, time flies.

In the blink of an eye, it was already the agreed date for recruitment.

However, Li Zhirui was still in retreat trying to improve and perfect the Cultivation Technique, rendering him unable to recruit disciples; thus, this task fell to Wansheng.

Technically, being just a lingering soul, it should not leave the relic.

This relic is both its prison and the very reason for its existence.

And after the relic merged with Ascension Mountain, its range of movement expanded but still couldn’t leave.

Yet, before Li Zhirui’s retreat, he infused a sliver of power from his Sect Leader Jade Seal into a Jade Pendant, enabling Wansheng to temporarily leave the mountain gate.

Thus, when the second recruitment day arrived, while the Sect Leader was still in retreat, Wansheng had to venture into the Mortal World.

Moreover, following a year of guidance, it changed its doctrine of indiscriminate teaching to acknowledging Li Zhirui’s notion of elite cultivation selection.

The reason is simple: it simply couldn’t handle the workload alone!

Thus, this time, Wansheng not only did not increase the number of recruited disciples, but decreased them directly to around a hundred.

Furthermore, it announced it wouldn’t descend from the mountain to recruit for five years.

Originally, it did not plan to recruit any servant disciples, but was moved by the exceptional willpower of a few youths and made an exception for them.

The reason why it made an exception for them was because they actually journeyed on foot to Ascension Mountain!

Had it not been for their good luck, witnessed by Wansheng on its return to the mountain gate, they might have perished in the wilderness.

They might have been reckless, but with strong willpower and decent luck, these attributes alone were enough for Wansheng to make exceptions.

"In the coming year, you need to enter the Qi Cultivation Stage; if you can’t even achieve this, then you can only be sent back to the Mortal World."

In this Spiritual Energy-rich environment of Ascension Mountain, coupled with Wansheng’s guidance and abundant Spiritual Objects provided monthly, even those with poor talents should become Qi Cultivation Practitioners; failure indicates lack of affinity with practice, thus not worth wasting time.

The young ones felt apprehensive, fearing their own elimination.

"First, follow me to the Ancestor Hall to pay respects to past Sect Leaders and the Sect’s Ancestor Master."

Wansheng didn’t directly fly, but led these children walking step by step, which in itself was a hidden test.

This test wasn’t of physical endurance; as long as your willpower is strong, it will actively help replenish your strength.

Although the test doesn’t mean much now, nor brings any rewards or special attention, it will undoubtedly prove useful in the long run. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

After all, they are still too young; testing willpower at this stage is somewhat unfair to them.

An hour later, some children managed to reach the Ancestor Hall by walking, while others couldn’t persist and were brought over with Wansheng’s Mana.

After tidying up their attire and appearance, Wansheng led the children inside to introduce Tongtian Sect’s heritage and origins, as well as the enormous contributions some predecessors made to the sect’s development.

"Bow!"

"Bow again!"

"Three prostrations!"

After performing a series of ceremonies, they were considered true disciples of Tongtian Sect.

Compared to the first batch of disciples, their rituals were much relaxed, given that the previous disciples were part of Tongtian Sect’s initial rebuilding, so naturally things were more emphasized.

And once the second batch of disciples was inducted into the Tongtian Sect, Wansheng became even busier, wishing it could split itself into several parts.