"What?"
The mocking laughter that had filled the plaza suddenly stopped.
Many people froze in place with dull expressions, as though they could not believe what they had just heard.
What was going on?
Had Li Yun not failed to derive even a single variation? Had he not simply swung his sword once and stopped? How could such a performance result in a superior grade instead of elimination?
"I refuse to accept this."
Crown Prince Xing Tian’s face was filled with resentnt as he roared loudly, "This is unfair. Li Yun clearly did not perform even one variation. He should have failed. How did his result beco superior?"
"That is right. We do not accept this."
"How can favoritism appear in the Heavenly Sword Sect’s assessnt?"
It was not only Crown Prince Xing Tian who protested. Almost ninety percent of the people present began shouting in indignation, especially those who had already been eliminated. Their voices were even louder than the others, as if Li Yun’s success had directly mocked their own failure.
"A group of fools. What do you know?"
The green-robed elder sneered coldly. His gaze swept across the crowd, and his voice carried a sharp pressure that instantly made many people quiet down. "The reason I gave Li Yun a superior grade is because the highest grade I can give is superior. Otherwise, how could a re superior grade be enough to asure his talent?"
"You people only know how to imitate blindly, and even then, most of you cannot imitate properly. anwhile, after watching only three demonstrations, Li Yun fused all eighteen variations of the Falling Star Sword Technique into one strike. That is sothing even I have not managed to do. Is this level of comprehension sothing you fools can compare with?"
He paused for a mont, and his expression beca even more serious.
"To tell you the truth, setting everything else aside and speaking only in terms of comprehension of the sword path, Li Yun is stronger than ."
The green-robed elder’s words caused the entire plaza to fall into dead silence.
Everyone stood there dumbfounded, their minds roaring as though thunder had exploded inside their heads.
What had they just heard?
The chief examiner of the Heavenly Sword Sect’s Outer Sect assessnt had actually admitted in front of everyone that his comprehension of the sword path was inferior to that of a disciple participating in the assessnt.
If this matter spread, it would likely shake the entire Heavenly Sword Sect.
Anyone qualified to serve as the chief examiner of a stage was at least an elder-level figure, an existence standing far above ordinary cultivators. Even if such a person did not specialize purely in the sword path, his understanding was still not sothing an ordinary Mortal Core Realm cultivator could compare with, let alone a 1st level Essence Qi Realm cultivator.
"Impossible."
Crown Prince Xing Tian’s face turned crimson.
He had been slapped in the face by Li Yun once again, and this ti, the slap was even more ruthless than before.
He had loudly declared that Li Yun was trash, but in the end, Li Yun’s comprehension ability was so terrifying that even the chief examiner openly admitted inferiority. This contrast was like the sharpest blade cutting into his pride.
As for those who had followed Crown Prince Xing Tian in mocking Li Yun, their faces turned pale and red in turns. Regret surged in their hearts, and many of them wished they could slap themselves hard.
A genius with extraordinary aptitude and such monstrous comprehension ability was not soone they could afford to offend. Yet out of all people, they had chosen to mock this prodigy-like figure. Was that not simply asking for trouble?
In the distance, Princess Yuehan gazed at Li Yun with her beautiful eyes shimring faintly. No one knew what she was thinking.
Even farther away, Xue Wuyan’s usually expressionless face finally showed a subtle ripple.
From childhood until now, he had always been used to standing in first place. Whether in the small land where he had been born or after a major figure of the Heavenly Sword Sect brought him into the sect, he had always been the strongest among his generation. In every aspect, he had never been surpassed by anyone.
This was the first ti he had tasted what it felt like to be defeated.
Regardless of what anyone thought, the na Li Yun had now been forcefully engraved into the hearts of everyone present.
After this brief storm passed, the remaining tests beca dull and tasteless. Soon, the weaker groups from places like Mistcloud Prefecture and Cloudriver Prefecture also completed their comprehension tests.
Among these weaker territories, only one person managed to obtain a passing grade, while the rest were ruthlessly eliminated.
With this, the second round of the Outer Sect assessnt officially ended. In this round alone, more than one hundred and ninety people were eliminated. Adding in those who had been eliminated during the previous stage, exactly three hundred contestants remained.
Soon, the green-robed elder disappeared from the plaza.
In his place appeared a stern elder dressed in a deep violet robe.
If the previous silver-haired elder’s aura had been distant and dignified, and the green-robed elder’s aura had been calm and indifferent, then this violet-robed elder’s aura was sharp and oppressive.
His face was cold, his eyes were stern, and his entire body overflowed with killing intent. Standing there, he gave everyone the feeling of a sword that had already been drawn from its sheath, making them afraid to approach him carelessly.
"I am in charge of the final stage of the Outer Sect assessnt, the combat assessnt."
The violet-robed elder’s expression was cold, and his voice was powerful as it spread across the plaza. "The location of the combat assessnt is the Crimson Fla Secret Realm. Next, each of you will receive a token. Within the Crimson Fla Secret Realm, your task is to use every thod available to seize the tokens of other examinees."
"The assessnt period is one month. After one month, any examinee without a token will be directly eliminated. As for the remaining examinees, their rankings will be decided according to the number of tokens in their possession. The top fifty will beco Outer Sect Disciples, while everyone else will be placed among the Preparatory Disciples."
The violet-robed elder’s gaze swept across the crowd before he continued coldly, "In addition, during the assessnt, you may act alone or form teams, but tokens that have already been obtained cannot be given to others in any way. Anyone who violates this rule will be eliminated without exception. Do you understand?"
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