A few disciples whispered amongst themselves, all feeling sorry for that Senior Brother Yin Zhou. Yet they themselves lacked such an opportunity and could only sigh about it.

Within the Golden Thread Pavilion, apart from the Direct Disciples taken in by the various high-ranking members, the rest of the disciples all belonged to the Iron Mountain Tower and were also known as Inner Sect Disciples.

The disciples of the Iron Mountain Tower were also distinguished by rank.

Based on a comprehensive evaluation of factors like talent, Cultivation Level, and combat strength, they were divided into ranks from One-Star to Five-Stars.

The Senior Brother Yin Zhou they were discussing was one of the most outstanding Five-Star Disciples in the Iron Mountain Tower, towering over his peers.

Upon becoming a Five-Star Disciple, one gained the right to choose their own master. They could select any Great Power in the Sect, aside from the Pavilion Master, and ask to be taken under their wing.

What puzzled everyone, however, was that while Elder Zhuan Yu clearly enjoyed accepting disciples and had a great many of them, their quality was remarkably inconsistent compared to the disciples of other Elders.

Some of Elder Zhuan Yu's disciples couldn't even measure up to those from the Iron Mountain Tower.

Even so, Elder Zhuan Yu had never taken a liking to Yin Zhou, despite him being a Five-Star Disciple.

Yin Zhou had tried time and again to be accepted as Elder Zhuan Yu's disciple, only to be repeatedly rejected, yet he persisted.

This affair had become common knowledge within the Golden Thread Pavilion.

Meanwhile, Elder Wen Zhao, one of the seven Internal Affairs Elders of the Golden Thread Pavilion, was just as stubborn. He wanted to take Yin Zhou as his disciple, but was, in turn, repeatedly and politely refused by Yin Zhou.

One could say the three of them were a trio of oddballs.

But now that Elder Zhuan Yu had brought back yet another Direct Disciple, it seemed the delicate balance between them was about to be shattered.

The disciples continued their hushed discussion, but they trailed off and fell silent, their faces instantly paling with panic as they looked up at someone approaching.

He was an incomparably handsome young man in white and green robes, with a pristine air about him. But his eyes shone with a piercingly cold light, and he seemed to emanate a frigid aura.

"Senior Brother Yin Zhou!"

The disciples hurriedly bowed. They had just been gossiping about this very senior brother and had been caught red-handed; it was impossible not to panic.

Yin Zhou shot them a cold glance before his gaze shifted to the direction in which Elder Zhuan Yu had led Yang An away. Clearly, he had witnessed the earlier scene as well.

His gaze was frigid, his thoughts unreadable.

Then, in an instant, a few glints of silver light seemed to flash past. Small, neat cuts appeared simultaneously on the necks of the disciples who had been gossiping, and crimson blood began to trickle out.

Although the wounds healed quickly, the disciples became even more flustered, like thieves caught in the act.

"Scram!"

Yin Zhou spat out a single cold word.

This was merely a lesson. If he ever caught anyone speaking ill of him behind his back again, he, as a Five-Star Disciple, had the right to punish any disciple ranked below Five-Stars. It would just be a bit of a hassle.

The gossiping disciples scattered, fleeing as if for their lives. They dared not linger, lest they face Yin Zhou's full-blown wrath.

After everyone had left, Yin Zhou stared in the direction Elder Zhuan Yu had gone, a dark shadow falling over his face, his dense killing intent impossible to hide.

...

"Master!"

The Golden Demon Tower, Elder Zhuan Yu's personal dao field within the Golden Thread Pavilion, occupied an equally vast expanse of land.

It was situated in a picturesque valley within the Floating City, encircled by mountains whose distant peaks disappeared into a level sea of clouds.

The most striking building was the Golden Demon Tower. Its style was unique, with glittering, golden, dragon-scale tiles adorning its roof. It resembled a mystical pagoda that looked as if it might have descended from the heavens at any moment.

Besides the Golden Demon Tower, there were many other buildings, each with a unique design. Some were even nestled into the landscape, possessing an antique, classical charm.

The area was the size of a small town, yet it possessed the air of an Immortal Family's domain, like an independent Hidden Sect of its own.

By the time Elder Zhuan Yu brought Yang An back to the dao field, many of his disciples had already gathered. They stood outside, bowing in unison to welcome him with the utmost respect.

Seeing all his disciples, Elder Zhuan Yu beamed and nodded, telling them to rise.

Yang An stood behind Elder Zhuan Yu, remaining on high alert. 'If a fight suddenly breaks out,' he thought, 'I need to run far away to avoid getting splattered with blood.'

'This must be a lingering side effect from my time in the Life Crane Sect. I'm just afraid this will turn into another one of those "benevolent master and his filial disciples" scenarios.'

Unexpectedly, however, the scene was perfectly harmonious. The disciples all seemed to be genuinely welcoming Elder Zhuan Yu's return, with no trace of feigned obedience or hidden resentment.

"This is my newly accepted disciple. He will be your junior brother from now on, so look after him."

Elder Zhuan Yu casually introduced Yang An, who immediately stepped forward and bowed to his many senior brothers and sisters.

"I, Yang An, greet my senior brothers and sisters."

"Welcome, Junior Brother! From now on, we're all family."

Yang An quickly heard responses from the crowd; they all seemed quite happy about his arrival.

He frowned to himself. 'This is completely different from what I imagined. How can it be so harmonious?'

'He couldn't sense anything unusual about any of them. It was as if they were all perfectly normal people doing perfectly normal things.'

Having been in this world for so long, Yang An knew better than to judge someone by their appearance. He also understood that things that seemed most normal were often the most abnormal of all.

This was why the scene before him felt so indescribably odd. 'At the very least,' he thought, 'it shouldn't be this harmonious.'

Of course, he couldn't voice such thoughts aloud and could only suppress them, mulling them over in his mind.

The disciples formed two lines, allowing Elder Zhuan Yu to lead Yang An through the middle.

It had to be said, Elder Zhuan Yu had a staggering number of disciples. There were more than forty of them, so many that Yang An felt a bit overwhelmed just looking at them all.

There were tall and short, fat and thin, men and women, beautiful and ugly. There were even some who were human-like, some who were not quite human, and some who were not human at all.

As Yang An followed Elder Zhuan Yu to the end of the line of disciples, he saw every one of them, but none left any particular impression on him.

What surprised Yang An, however, was that his new peers' Cultivation Levels weren't all that impressive. While there were many whose cultivation he couldn't gauge, there were also quite a few who were weaker than him. Some had only just entered the Visceral Stone Realm.

'It seems Elder Zhuan Yu truly does accept disciples without discrimination. Cultivation Level apparently isn't the main factor. Don't tell me he just takes on anyone he likes as a Direct Disciple?'

'To figure out whether these people are normal, the most crucial thing is to understand Elder Zhuan Yu's motive for taking on so many disciples.'

'If I knew that, it would be much easier to make a judgment.'

'He can't possibly be doing this purely out of a sincere desire to teach and pass on his legacy, right?'

Everyone followed behind Elder Zhuan Yu, eventually entering the great hall on the first floor of the Golden Demon Tower.

The interior of the Golden Demon Tower was magnificent, resplendent with glittering gold bricks and jade. A faint, thin mist drifted through the air, and with every breath, it flowed into one's nose and mouth, bringing an exceptionally refreshing feeling.

An info box immediately popped up in front of Yang An the moment he entered.

"[Spiritual Mist Barrier]: Created by Golden Thread Pavilion Internal Affairs Elder Zhuan Yu from Golden Snake Saliva Fragrance and Jade Bone Frost. Prolonged exposure keeps the mind awake and the consciousness clear. The mist is densest closest to the Golden Demon Tower.

Cost of Use: After prolonged inhalation, if one leaves the area covered by the Spiritual Mist Barrier, their mind will become clouded, eventually leading to madness.

Status: Can be Purified!"

After he finished reading the contents of the info box, an increasingly strong sense of deja vu washed over him.

'That bastard! This is basically drug addiction, isn't it?!'

He also noticed the other disciples who had entered. They were all glowing with vigor, greedily inhaling the thin mist with looks of utter rapture on their faces.

'Purify! I have to use Purification on this!'

Without a second thought, Yang An immediately used Purification to eliminate the substance's cost, ensuring he wouldn't be affected by it.

Elder Zhuan Yu leisurely took the main seat at the head of the hall. The disciples arranged themselves into two neat rows below, and Yang An took his place at the very end of the line.

He swept his gaze over the disciples below and asked with a chuckle:

"I haven't tested you all in half a year. Today, with a new disciple joining, is the perfect chance. Let me see how much you've all progressed in this time.

Same old rules. One at a time."

After Elder Zhuan Yu spoke, Yang An quickly noticed a variety of expressions appear on the faces of the other disciples.

Some looked delighted, others panicked. Some remained expressionless, while others trembled with apprehension.

He couldn't help but feel curious. 'What is Elder Zhuan Yu going to test? Is it their strength?'

Soon, a disciple stepped forward, a look of immense anticipation on his face, as if he had been waiting for this moment for a very long time.

"Master, watch closely! Your disciple will now present his humble efforts!"

'This guy's Cultivation Level is only at the Early Stage of Corpse Transformation; his strength is nothing special. Is he about to show off some hidden ace?'

Yang An watched the first volunteer closely, feeling puzzled.

Just then, the disciple gave a loud shout, pressed his palms together, and began chanting.

"Rise!"

Veins bulged on his forehead as his expression twisted into a ferocious grimace. The flesh and blood on his back began to tremble violently, and a massive, fleshy bulge suddenly erupted.

SPLAT!

The fleshy bulge burst open, splattering blood and gore everywhere. In that instant, a black shadow nearly twenty feet tall shot out from inside it.

The black shadow bared its fangs and brandished its claws. It looked like an Evil Spirit, yet it had a humanoid form.

However, it only had an upper body; its lower half was fused tightly to the disciple's own flesh, and it emanated a dense black miasma.

At first, Yang An was a little disappointed. 'It doesn't look like much,' he thought. But when he extended his senses to perceive it, he was stunned.

The disciple's Cultivation Level was only at the Early Stage of Corpse Transformation, but the Evil Spirit-like shadow that had burst from his flesh had a cultivation aura of its own.

'This aura…'

'It's at least at the Late Stage of Corpse Transformation!'