Nightmare Immortal Era

Chapter 102: Entering the Outer Sect

"I didn't expect that you've only been studying for less than a year and you're already applying for graduation!" Fang Zhuo looked at the seemingly ordinary young man in front of him and found it somewhat unbelievable.

"I also have to thank Senior Lin for giving me a Nine Orifices Enlightenment Pill!" Yang Ning smiled and said, "Based on my personal abilities, I can only cultivate my physical body to the Fourth Layer of the Fifth Stage!"

In fact, he didn't take this pill. He planned to study its principles and wait to mass-produce it in the future.

Fang Zhuo was taken aback. Could it be Lin Tianheng? Did their relationship turn around so quickly?

"Even with the Nine Orifices Enlightenment Pill..." Fang Zhuo thought for a moment. He seemed to have never seen anyone eat this kind of thing, so he didn't know if it would lead to such fast cultivation speed.

But since it is claimed to be one of the three Divine Pills, perhaps this is normal?

"Holding this token, you can join the Inner Sect!" Fang Zhuo said, "There is also a test at the Outer Sect management office, which you can choose to participate in or not. But it's better for you to participate!"

"A test? What kind of test?" Yang Ning asked.

"Character!" Fang Zhuo patted Yang Ning's shoulder. "Both of you are geniuses since childhood and have never experienced setbacks. While this is good, it can also lead to a distorted understanding of the world. Participating in a test will be beneficial for your future!"

"Is that so?" Yang Ning nodded. "Then I'll give it a try!"

Fang Zhuo nodded and said, "I have already informed the Outer Sect elders, and they have already arrived. Let's wait outside!"

"Okay!" Yang Ning nodded and followed Fang Zhuo to the rooftop of the office building. Just as they were about to say something, they suddenly heard a dragon's roar, followed by a strong gust of wind and the sky instantly darkening.

Fang Zhuo remained calm. "Elder Yun has arrived!"

Yang Ning was not panicked either. After all, this road was filled with the Cloud Mist Information Matrix, and he had seen this Outer Sect elder making a grand entrance all the way!

Before long, a qilin with four hooves, stepping on white flames, standing at a height of a hundred meters, and shining with blue and golden scales descended from the sky.

On the back of the qilin stood a woman dressed in a green robe, with a low collar revealing a touch of white cleavage. Her figure was curvaceous, and she walked with a graceful and elegant demeanor.

"Are you Yang Ning?" the woman spoke, her voice as clear as a bell. "You've only been cultivating for less than a year, and you're twelve years old this year?"

"Yes!" Fang Zhuo quickly introduced, "Yang Ning is not only a genius in cultivation, but also in artifact refining."

"Who asked you?" The woman glanced at Fang Zhuo impatiently, then flicked her sleeve. The green sleeve extended in the wind, just like the Heavenly Silk, directly wrapping around Yang Ning's waist!

"Oh!" Yang Ning was startled and tried to break free, but the sleeve was tightly bound and he couldn't escape at all!

"This is the Spirit Qi Mixed Water Sleeve. Do you think you can break free with your Physical Body Realm cultivation?" The woman reached out her hand and pulled Yang Ning onto the qilin. "Let's go!"

"Hey!" Yang Ning hurriedly said, "Are we leaving just like this? I haven't brought my people and things yet!"

And Ning Rong Su Bai, I have to mention her too!

He thought he could stay for a few more days after reporting, but who would have thought that this Outer Sect elder would be in such a hurry?

"I'll have them come over by flying boat later. I'm in a hurry!" The elder said, taking out a square object and flipping her hair. Suddenly, she revealed a smile. "Sisters, this is the newly recruited Outer Sect disciple I received. Isn't he cute? Let me tell you secretly, he's only twelve years old this year, and he's still a little shota!"

"Uh..." Yang Ning was at a loss. "Elder, what are you doing?"

"What's with the 'elder' title? Just call me Sister Yun! My surname is Yun, and my name is Lang. Just call me Sister Yun!" The female cultivator smiled and said, "You probably don't know about this, but this is the newly released identity jade card in the sect. It's called a mobile phone. It not only has all the functions of the identity jade card, but also many additional features that the identity jade card doesn't have. For example, this live streaming. By the way, do you have a mobile phone? If not, I can give you one."

"Uh..." Yang Ning hesitated for a moment, and then a mobile phone was stuffed into his hand.

"Let me teach you how to use it. Register your information. What username do you want to use?"

"Uh, let's go with Young Master Ning!" Yang Ning was a bit confused. Deep Blue had created countless alternate accounts online to generate popularity for videos and guide discussions.

The modern vocabulary used by Yun Lang came from Deep Blue.

But Yang Ning didn't actually have any alternate accounts. He had planned to create one, but he didn't expect the first one to be given to him by an outer sect elder.

"Young Master Ning, come, open this Deep Blue live streaming app, search for Princess Yun Lang of the Extreme Eternal Sect, follow her, and then give likes to my previous videos!"

"Wait, you're giving me a phone just for this?" Yang Ning couldn't help but laugh and cry.

Moreover, he knew that inner sect disciples were very enthusiastic about promoting mobile phones, but he didn't expect it to be this intense. Giving away phones directly?

It seemed that some apps on Earth would give money for promotion in the early stages, but giving away phones directly was a bit exaggerated.

"It's just a phone. I've spent a lot in my live streaming room!" Yun Lang waved her hand casually.

For inner sect disciples, a mere ten thousand taels for a phone was nothing. Was that considered money?

Moreover, Yun Lang served as an outer sect elder, not only enjoying good treatment but also having plenty of benefits. Giving away a few phones was like playing for her.

"But once you follow, you can't unfollow. It's best to watch my live streaming every day. I do it every day!" Yun Lang said.

"Okay!" Yang Ning nodded, then exited Yun Lang's live streaming room. He saw that there were over four thousand viewers, and the barrage was densely packed with various discussions.

This was probably what the barrage looked like when it was just invented. After a few more years, everyone would be used to it and wouldn't bother sending messages.

After leaving the live streaming room, Yang Ning started watching others.

There were quite a few inner sect disciples doing live streaming, and the content was quite diverse. Some were in battles, some were meditating, some were giving lectures, and some were flying in the sky, capturing the scenery from below.

The disciple with the most followers was surprisingly not Lin Yuanxi, but Taindao Yi, with a staggering 647,000 followers!

Keep in mind that the total number of mobile phone users was still less than one million. Yet, sixty percent of them were following him?

What's even more impressive was that he had never done a live stream. He only posted one video, which was a self-introduction.

"Junior Brother, don't just treat this phone as a toy. It's a tool that can help us cultivate!" Seeing Yang Ning constantly browsing the live streaming rooms, Yun Lang reminded him, "You'd better do some live streaming or post some videos. That way, when you reach the Qi Refining Stage and cultivate Divine Abilities, you'll have luck!"

"Okay, okay!" Yang Ning nodded. He really needed to have a public account. Otherwise, his rapid progress in the Physical Body Realm was due to consuming the Nine Orifices Enlightenment Pill. But when he reached the Qi Refining Stage, if he continued to make rapid progress, and there was no country backing him up, what would be the reason for his progress?

"But that's still far away for you. Don't forget, although you've reached the Ninth Layer of the Physical Body Realm, you're still one layer away from the Qi Refining Stage. Many people get stuck at these two stages for a lifetime!" Yun Lang said.

"Are these two stages difficult to cultivate?" Yang Ning asked.

"They're very difficult!" Yun Lang nodded. "Let's talk about the Tenth Layer of the Physical Body Realm, the Divine Sea stage. This stage requires you to open your own Divine Sea. It not only requires powerful spiritual energy but also strong willpower and unwavering determination!"

Yang Ning nodded. He was confident in his spiritual energy, but he was indeed weak in terms of willpower. It seemed that his next task was to make up for this weakness.

"After you open the Divine Sea, the next step is to cultivate Qi!" Yun Lang continued, "Spiritual energy is a violent energy that requires strong physical and mental strength, as well as robust blood and energy, to absorb. Any weakness can lead to failure in cultivating Qi."

"What happens if you fail?" Yang Ning asked.

"Good question. If you fail, the spiritual energy will destroy your meridians, muscles, blood, and even your brain. In mild cases, your cultivation will be completely wasted, and you'll be bedridden. In severe cases, you'll die directly, and your body will turn into dust and merge with the heavens and earth."

"Wow!" Yang Ning gasped. "That's harsh."

"Of course, if you can break into the top three of the Mountain and River Ranking, the sect will reward you with a Hengyang Pill. This pill can support your meridians and prevent them from being overwhelmed by spiritual energy. But to be honest, entering the top three of the Mountain and River Ranking is even harder than reaching the Qi Refining Stage!"

"Many people have already broken through the Qi Refining Stage but haven't even entered the top ten of the Mountain and River Ranking!"

"How do you get on the ranking?" Yang Ning asked.

"Through challenges!" Yun Lang said casually. "The Mountain and River Ranking is only related to combat power. You can challenge someone with a higher ranking than you. As long as you win, you can take their place. However, you can only challenge someone within 500 ranks higher than you!"

"How many people are on the ranking in total?" Yang Ning asked again.

"All disciples who aspire to be on the Mountain and River Ranking are on it, about 400,000. But only the top 100 are publicly listed!"

Yang Ning nodded. "So, with 400,000 people and advancing 500 ranks at a time, I would have to challenge 800 times to reach the top? If I challenge once a day, it would take me over two years!"

"Two years? It's not that simple!" Yun Lang chuckled. "It would be good if you can enter the top 100 within ten years!"

"Ten years?" Yang Ning pondered. "If someone graduates from the Immortal Ascension Academy at 18 and still hasn't broken through the Qi Refining Stage by the age of 28?"

"I told you, many people never break through the Qi Refining Stage in their lifetime!" Yun Lang lightly laughed. "Perhaps they lack determination, or perhaps they lack courage. Who knows?"

"To be honest, I shouldn't have told you so much. Back then, I knew nothing. I only had hot blood and risked my life to charge forward, and it worked!" Yun Lang shrugged. "The more you know, the more you lack courage."

She mainly wanted to show off during the live broadcast, so she wouldn't normally tell outer disciples so much.

"We're here!" Yun Lang brought Yang Ning to the sect, but it wasn't in the inner sect with continuous mountains. Instead, it was a massive palace complex, somewhat similar to Extreme Eternal Palace, but without the imposing aura of Extreme Eternal Palace.

"This is the accommodation area for outer disciples!" Yun Lang said. "Scan this QR code and download an app for the outer disciples' accommodation area."

"Do you see the map? The blue represents rivers, the yellow represents roads, the squares represent residences, the red ones are occupied, and the green ones are unoccupied. Choose a green one."

This app was developed by Deep Blue according to Yun Lang's requirements, so Yang Ning naturally knew how to use it. He quickly chose a residence.

It was located by the river, backed by a mountain, somewhat remote, but it was perfect for a disciple like Yang Ning who didn't like socializing.

"Alright, registration is complete, and this house is now yours. Settle your people in later!" Yun Lang operated on her phone, and Yang Ning saw that the green square turned red.

"Phones are really convenient. If it were before, I would have to take you to see the house, and it would take a long time to settle in!" Yun Lang praised. "By the way, there are a few more apps you should download."

Yang Ning nodded and followed Yun Lang's instructions to download a few more apps.

Mission Posting Center: Used to accept and post missions.

Extreme Eternal Sect Supply Store: Used to purchase various daily necessities.

Artifact Refining Master Association Store: Used to buy and sell weapons, and you can also find artifact refining masters for customization.

Alchemist Association Store: Same as before, but here it's for elixirs.

Symbol Array Association Store: Same as before, but here it's for talismans and formations.

Mountain and River Ranking: Responsible for registering, scheduling challenges, ranking, and more. It also includes player introduction videos, battle videos, commentary, and so on.

If you want to challenge someone, it's a good idea to first understand your opponent through this software. Nowadays, there's a popular saying among the outer disciples: "No one, no cultivation method can withstand research."

Previously, apart from the end-of-year ranking battle, there weren't many spectators for regular battles. Coupled with the fact that everyone focused on their own cultivation, those ranked lower didn't care about what cultivation method or martial technique those ranked higher used.

But now, everyone's videos are being uploaded online for hundreds of thousands of outer disciples to watch and study. This has led to tens of thousands of people in the comment section discussing how to deal with the opponents in the videos.

With more people discussing, cultivation methods and techniques are naturally easier to decipher, and many people have suffered setbacks because of this.

Some people even reject using smartphones because of this and have applied to the sect to ban the dissemination of battle videos.

But smartphones are advocated by the inner disciples, so they don't care about what the outer disciples say. If the outer disciples have any objections, they can only keep it to themselves.

"Alright, just a few more groups, and we're done!" Yun Lang flipped through the notes on his phone, confirming that he had done everything he needed to say and do. Finally, he breathed a sigh of relief. "Do you have any more questions?"

"I heard the principal say that there's a test to enter the outer sect?" Yang Ning asked, "I didn't hear you mention it just now?"

"A test?" Yun Lang was taken aback and asked, "Are you sure you want to participate in the test?"

"Is it not allowed?"

"No problem, but not many people want to take the test right after graduating, so I asked just to be sure!" Yun Lang said seriously, "The entrance test can be life-threatening. Are you sure you want to participate?!"

"Life-threatening!" Yang Ning frowned. His willpower had always been a weak point, and he really needed to experience it on the edge of life and death.

But what if he really died?

And isn't there a way to train his willpower without resorting to such dangerous methods?

However, this test is only dangerous for ordinary Physical Body Realm cultivators, right? What do I have to fear?

If I don't even dare to participate in this entry-level test, what's the point of talking about training my willpower?

Moreover, to be honest, a sharp mind arises from a killing intent.

After training for so long, he really wanted to find a place to test his abilities!

"I will participate!" Yang Ning said seriously.

"In that case, follow me!" Yun Lang beckoned.

"Um, shouldn't we settle down first?" Yang Ning asked.

"After you come out alive from the test, it won't be too late to settle down!"

Yang Ning understood the meaning behind her words. If he died in the test, there would be no need to settle down.

"Phew!" Yang Ning let out a long breath. There shouldn't be a problem. I can do it!

(End of this chapter)