Chapter 32: The Splendor of First Place

Little Fatty had no doubts about his own ranking.He was now fifth from the bottom, having knocked down quite a few people with his single point.

Thanks to the help from the Spirit Gathering Hall, his progress could be described as astonishingly rapid.

He worked hard himself, and his family was also willing to provide him with resources.

It was just too exhausting.

Simply following Jiang Man's cultivation routine was already more effort than what most people put in.

If not for his abundant resources.

He truly wouldn't be able to keep up with others who worked this hard.

However, no matter how hard he tried, the final outcome would still be the same—unable to obtain a spot, unable to join the Mist Cloud Sect.

So although he worked hard, he had still accepted his own mediocrity.

Just because he couldn't walk the best path didn't mean he had no path to walk.

Right now, he still needed to prevent scoldings and comparisons from his family.

Because of Jiang Man's rise, his family members would constantly compare him with Jiang Man.

Especially now that the other had entered the top dozen ranks.

There was only about a ten-rank difference between them, not a huge gap, something that could be pursued.

If he could do it, why couldn't he?

To make his family understand that he truly couldn't do it, he could only place his hopes on Jiang Man.

He hoped the other could break into the top ten.

Although Jiang Man had said that reaching top ten this time would be difficult, making it to eleventh or twelfth would also be acceptable.

Although the gap would still be about ten ranks, the meaning would be different.

So he had been waiting all along for the noon announcement of the rankings.

As for Jiang Man not showing up, he didn't really mind.

They had already talked about it yesterday, though he didn't know what Jiang Man was busy with.

Perhaps it was still related to the previous incident of being detained.

That matter should have been significant, but strangely, all three of them ended up fine.

This indicated that Chang Qiwen also had someone backing him.

During the wait, Song Qing came over to ask about Jiang Man's situation.

He truthfully informed him.

Afterwards, Song Qing asked what rank Jiang Man might roughly achieve.

Little Fatty hesitated for a moment before saying, "If things go well, maybe eleventh or twelfth place."

Hearing this, Song Qing sighed with emotion—this progress was too fast.

It was hard to imagine how many resources Luo Xuan had given Jiang Man to allow such rapid improvement.

He felt envious and also longed to become Luo Xuan's guard.

He didn't need too much—just one-third of Jiang Man's resources would be enough.

Or even one-tenth would do.

At least he could openly stay in Lucky Cloud City.

Instead of having to return to his village.

Finally, it was time for the rankings to be announced.

Little Fatty immediately focused his gaze on the tenth position.

Tenth place: Xie Kecheng, fifty points.

What a pity.

Little Fatty felt quite helpless.

He then looked at eleventh and twelfth places.

Surprisingly, they weren't there either.

"Impossible? Did he underperform?"

Normally, during test assessments, underperformance shouldn't occur.

Then he checked thirteenth and fourteenth.

Not there.

Fifteenth and sixteenth.

Still not there.

For a moment, he thought he might have made a mistake and should have been looking in the top ten.

Next, he looked at ninth and eighth.

Not there.

Seventh and sixth.

Also not there.

Fifth and fourth.

Still not there.

Suddenly, he felt confused.

Where did Jiang Man go?

"Song Qing, have you seen Jiang Man? Why can't I find him?" Little Fatty nudged the Song Qing beside him and asked.

At that moment, Song Qing mechanically raised his hand and said, "Look there."

Little Fatty followed the direction Song Qing pointed.

Then his entire body froze in place, a strange chill spreading through him, making his scalp tingle.

He saw the ranking at the very top.

First place: Jiang Man, sixty-four points.

"Fake, right?" Little Fatty couldn't quite believe it.

Not just him—others felt the same.

They knew Jiang Man would show some improvement.

But they never imagined he could reach the top.

First place.

Achieving first place requires not only talent but also massive resources.

Especially reaching first place in such a short time—the resources needed would be astronomical.

They had thought first place might be Luo Xuan or Fang Yong.

But Jiang Man...

How could it be him?

Luo Xuan stood in place, also extremely surprised.

Fang Yong was even more shocked.

Cheng Yu narrowed her eyes, lost in thought.

Chang Qiwen recalled the previous events, feeling that Jiang Man had intentionally feigned weakness to try to get him sent to the Enforcement Division.

Then some voices started spreading.

"Wasn't Jiang Man trained by Luo Xuan? How did he surpass Luo Xuan?"

"Not sure, maybe there's some inside story?"

Hearing these voices, Luo Xuan silently left.

Before, she felt such rumors were giving Jiang Man face, but now it felt like they were slapping her in the face.

On the other side.

Jiang Man entered a courtyard.

This courtyard had three layers of compounds, and Jiang Man was in the outermost compound, which contained six rooms.

"Go wait in Room One. People will gather soon. You can't wander around freely here. Everyone with this type of token should go to Room One. There are three types of tokens in total," the guard patiently explained.

Hearing this, Jiang Man expressed his gratitude.

Afterwards, the guard lingered for a moment.

Seeing this, Jiang Man had no choice but to give ten Spirit Source.

Only then did the guard leave satisfied.

A few words had cost him ten Spirit Source.

Being a guard here really made earning Spirit Source easy.

After waiting here for a while, Jiang Man saw people entering one after another.

These people would observe those already inside upon entering.

Especially their external appearance, like clothing.

The five people who entered later wore fine silks and satins.

Only Jiang Man wore coarse hemp clothes.

The gap was self-evident.

A tall, well-built man approached Jiang Man and asked curiously, "Which family cultivated you as a live-in son-in-law?"

Jiang Man: "..."

After a pause, the man shook his head and said, "But even a live-in son-in-law isn't as shabby as you. You're probably a death guard who's already signed a life contract, right?"

"Is it the Luo family?"

"Their family doesn't have any outstanding individuals, and their foundation seems to have some issues too. Finding a death guard would be quite normal for them."

"Forget it, no need to answer me. I didn't plan to befriend you anyway."

Jiang Man: "..."

The others also chuckled lightly.

No one paid any attention to an ugly duckling.

Jiang Man didn't mind either—time would prove everything for him.

It's just that he hadn't been awake for long yet.

But within six months at most, all these people would be his defeated opponents.

No need to rush.

Soon, everyone quieted down.

Then two young people entered, one male and one female.

The man looked completely at ease, his aura profound, making everyone instinctively lower their heads.

Everyone was inwardly astonished—what level of great cultivator was this?

Even those originally arrogant men and women didn't dare show the slightest negligence.

"I won't verify your qualifications. Now I'll speak, you listen. Don't ask questions, comprehend on your own," the man said, looking at the people below. "Understood?"

Everyone bowed their heads, indicating understanding.

At this moment, whether rich or poor, everyone was equal before this great cultivator.

"Sit," the man's voice fell as he casually waved his hand. "Study the book for half an hour. After half an hour, I'll explain for one hour. You can comprehend until midnight."

"After midnight, leave the books behind. We'll determine if you succeeded, then you may leave."

Jiang Man took the book and immediately began examining it.

What met his eyes were five large characters: "Water Wood Visualization Method."

He immediately activated the Heavenly Mirror Hundred Books.

Then the pages stopped at the last page.

Jiang Man: "..."

Afterwards, Jiang Man opened the book to examine it. The first page contained the visualization method pattern and records.

The pattern depicted a large cauldron formed by the convergence of water and wood.

Beside it was written: It is said that between heaven and earth, misty vapors rise, water nourishes wood's virtue. Take the image of Kan and Li exchanging and aiding each other, emulate the opportunity of natural growth and development. Use the Green Dragon of Jia and Yi as the essence, use the Black Tortoise of Ren and Gui as the function. Merge the achievement of water and fire complementing each other, form the cauldron of vitality through water and wood.

Jiang Man continued reading further.

He found these texts obscure and difficult to understand. Without guidance, even if given to him, he might not comprehend them, let alone learn them.

This...

Was too difficult.

Without foundational support, it was like reading a celestial script.

No wonder simplified methods were universally used.