Chapter 1723: How to Pass

“There are about fifteen minutes remaining. If you have questions, speak now!” Deacon Li of the Law Enforcement Hall added. His voice was heavy, giving the impression of a mountain pressing down. Elder Liu had been thorough, but people still asked questions.

“Senior, are repeated failures allowed within the twelve-hour period?” (TN: The text says one day and one night, which is 24 hours, but the character asks about 12 watches/shichen).

“A stage lasts for that entire duration. Failures are allowed as long as you have time to continue refining!”

“Senior, how is the time for requesting materials calculated?”

“It is included in your time. If you don’t want to waste time, don’t ask for overly expensive materials!”

Soon, silence fell. Elder Liu scanned the disciples. Seeing no more questions, she nodded. “Good. The assessment begins now. Once you receive your pill, choose a room. The pill must not touch your skin directly.”

With a wave of her hand, streaks of red light shot toward the crowd. Li Yan saw the light arrive. When he reached out, the momentum vanished, leaving a red pill floating before him. He didn’t hesitate. Circulating his spiritual power to wrap the pill, he bowed to the two elders and walked to the right.

The others did the same. The group of six led by the jade-faced youth also moved toward one side. Soon, the hall was empty.

Li Yan chose a room at random and walked in. The stone door shut automatically with a low rumble. The space inside was small, about two fathoms wide. Before him stood a man-high cauldron. In a corner to his left was a small Bagua formation. Other than that, the room was empty.

Li Yan walked to the cauldron and scanned it with his Divine Sense. Then, he raised his hands, performing a hand seal. A spark of spiritual light hit the base of the cauldron, but nothing happened. The seal flickered a few times and vanished. He then tested the Bagua formation in the corner, which was also dead.

He walked back to the stone door. On the back of the door was a circular indentation. He flicked the jade pendant into it.

Hum!

The moment it seated, a low humming sound filled the room. Soft light shone from above. The cauldron and the corner formation flashed once, and then silence returned.

Many others in different rooms were performing similar tests, checking the equipment before embedding their pendants. Most, however, simply embedded the pendant immediately upon entry.

In the hall outside, Elder Liu raised a hand and wiped the air. A blue light screen appeared before her and Deacon Li. Soon, figures appeared on the screen from various angles. These were the scenes from each stone chamber. The grand formation controlled every room, and the sub-formations transmitted everything inside.

“How many were recommended this time?” Deacon Li asked sternly, breaking the silence.

“Nine. Here is the list,” Elder Liu said, as if expecting the question. She handed a jade slip to him.

He took it and immersed his sense. After a moment, he looked at the names appearing above the stone doors and matched them to the screen. “Every time there’s an event like this, these random people get mixed in, wasting a perfectly good opportunity for someone else!” he muttered with dissatisfaction.

Elder Liu glanced at him. Deacon Li was known for being blunt. The Internal Selection was essentially a shortcut. In addition to recruiting outsiders, everyone in the sect had relatives. When someone with a favor asked for a recommendation, could they refuse? Some were recommended by Body Integration seniors; the departments in charge of the list had to compromise.

“We only select ten. If someone has no skill, they have no skill. The gap is too wide for anyone to complain. Why let it disturb your heart, Daoist Li?” she said plainly. She was on decent terms with him, so she offered a word of advice. But she knew her junior brother would likely offend someone today. In her mind, she might nudge the rankings for someone with a special background and decent performance, but Deacon Li would surely reject them outright.

Deacon Li didn’t respond, his gaze fixed on the screen. Elder Liu knew he was going to focus on those nine. She said no more. He was from the Law Enforcement Hall; he was here to be the objective judge.

…

Li Yan sat cross-legged before the cauldron. The red pill floated in the air before him. Without wasting time, he raised a hand, manifesting a thin blade of spiritual power. With a flicker of dark light, he sliced a tiny, nearly transparent sliver from the pill. He used another thread of Qi to pull the sliver toward him.

He felt the energy through the thread—it was warm, seemingly mild in nature. Simultaneously, his Divine Sense enveloped the pale red sliver for careful inspection.

Thirty breaths later, Li Yan touched the sliver with his finger, having retracted all spiritual power and defenses. Elder Liu had said the pill wasn’t lethal, so at most he would be injured.

The moment his finger touched the sliver, the transparent material stuck to his skin. He felt a brief warmth before it seeped into his skin and vanished. In that instant, a flickering, blurry image tried to form before his eyes, but it was so faint he barely noticed before his mind cleared. He looked at his finger—no damage, no burns, and no discoloration.

‘A hallucinogenic toxic pill!’

Li Yan closed his eyes. He was exceptionally sensitive to toxins and quickly identified the effect. The pill could be crushed into powder to be inhaled or absorbed through the skin. The blurry image had been the precursor to a hallucination, which his physical body had forcibly suppressed.

After a moment, he opened his eyes. Elder Liu had said the assessment was being recorded. The sect had means to see everything in this room. With his cautious nature, he couldn’t afford to show any flaws. His eyes held a lingering trace of confusion as they opened, which quickly faded into normalcy. He looked at the red pill again, observing it for a longer duration.

Then, he used the spiritual blade to cut a larger, semi-transparent slice. He didn’t use Divine Sense this time. He wrapped it in spiritual power and sent it directly into his mouth. He closed his eyes again. The moment it entered, the blurry images flashed again…

In his mind, he began to analyze.

‘The toxin is potent. Even if I swallowed the whole thing, the hallucination would only last a flash for me. If I want to refine the antidote within 24 hours with absolute certainty, the best way is to use my Fragmented Poison.’

‘Creating a pill is no problem, but under surveillance, how can I use the Fragmented Poison antidote without revealing its origin?’