Su Yuan returned to the group, with surrounding disciples frequently glancing at him and Zhang Wei. Among them, Zhou Wuyou stared fixedly at Su Yuan, his expression shifting unpredictably as unknown thoughts churned in his mind.

Though Zhang Wei had been somewhat deflated by Su Yuan earlier, he still wore a self-satisfied expression, raising his head proudly as he nodded and smiled at the surrounding disciples. Su Yuan, meanwhile, kept his head slightly lowered, maintaining an extremely low profile. This inadvertently allowed Zhang Wei to attract most of the attention, with many gazes shifting back to him.

On the elevated platform, the testing continued. After Su Yuan, the probability of disciples opening one spiritual node increased significantly—basically one out of every three managed to open one node, though none yet had achieved two. It wasn't until the 180th ranked disciple that someone finally opened two spiritual nodes. However, this disciple possessed a mid-grade triple Spirit Root, which failed to cause much of a stir. While achieving two nodes with a mid-grade Spirit Root was decent, it was merely decent.

Based on this progress, both Su Yuan and Zhang Wei were guaranteed to rank within the top 200 in this first cultivation assessment, making the outer sect within reach! Zhang Wei's smile grew increasingly obvious until Su Yuan nudged him in the side and whispered, "Don't get too cocky. The high-grade Spirit Roots haven't made their move yet. Don't let your mentality collapse when they do!"

Zhang Wei raised an eyebrow. "So what if they have high-grade Spirit Roots? I'll catch up to them eventually!" His tone brimmed with confidence. Su Yuan was left speechless.

In the subsequent assessments, every disciple had opened at least one spiritual node, with the proportion of those opening two nodes rapidly increasing. Zhang Wei's smile gradually faded, though he remained confident. Even the last mid-grade Spirit Root disciple at rank 50 had only opened two spiritual nodes, none exceeding three, though they did have over 300 strands of surplus spiritual energy.

Zhang Wei felt the gap between himself and the top mid-grade Spirit Root disciple was only about double. Moreover, based on this ranking, he had actually reached 143rd place, breaking into the top 150! Of course, Su Yuan ranked even higher at 118th! This ranking left Su Yuan somewhat helpless—he was a low-grade Spirit Root disciple, after all. Wasn't this drawing too much attention?

When the ranking reached 49th, the first high-grade Spirit Root disciple stepped onto the platform, drawing everyone's focus. This was the first high-grade Spirit Root to be tested. The light pillar surged dramatically, and the stone slab displayed:

[120 strands of spiritual energy]

[3 spiritual nodes opened]

[Qi Refining Layer 1]

"How is this possible?!" Zhang Wei's eyes widened. "Their progress is nearly three times faster than mine!" The difference between two and three spiritual nodes was immense!

Su Yuan wasn't surprised at all. He had already estimated the gap between Spirit Roots to be roughly two to three times—a mid-grade Spirit Root was three times more effective than a low-grade one, and a high-grade Spirit Root was three times more effective than a mid-grade one, assuming the same number of Spirit Roots. Since Zhang Wei's progress was comparable to a mid-grade Spirit Root, it made sense that even the weakest high-grade Spirit Root disciple was nearly three times faster.

Yet, that high-grade Spirit Root disciple didn't look pleased at all, leaving the platform with a dark expression. Zhang Wei muttered, "He doesn't even seem happy about it?"

Su Yuan chuckled. "He's a high-grade Spirit Root disciple. He's comparing himself to others of his level, not to you."

"There are even stronger ones?" Zhang Wei's confidence took a hit.

The 48th-ranked disciple stepped forward, placing their hand on the jade slab. They had also opened three spiritual nodes, with a spiritual energy reserve reaching 200 strands!

"Ridiculous!" Zhang Wei cursed under his breath. Su Yuan, however, remained calm.

It wasn't until the 15th-ranked disciple that a real change appeared:

[28 strands of spiritual energy]

[4 spiritual nodes opened]

[Qi Refining Layer 2]

"What kind of monster is this?! Is this what a high-grade Spirit Root can do?" Zhang Wei's expression grew solemn.

"Relax, this is just the beginning," Su Yuan said.

Zhang Wei looked at Su Yuan in surprise. He realized Su Yuan was genuinely unshaken—whether facing three spiritual nodes earlier or four now, Su Yuan showed no trace of fear or hesitation. He had always thought highly of his own mental fortitude, but now he saw that Su Yuan's composure far surpassed his. That calmness couldn't be faked—it even gave him the illusion that Su Yuan carried the same bearing as his elder brother, who had already reached Foundation Establishment!

Su Yuan noticed Zhang Wei staring. "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Ah, nothing!" Zhang Wei laughed awkwardly, though his mood inexplicably improved.

Su Yuan found Zhang Wei a bit odd but didn't dwell on it, turning his attention back to the spectacle above.

*If I used up all five days of rest time for cultivation, I wonder if I could compete with these high-grade Spirit Roots?*

Indeed, Su Yuan hadn't cultivated at all since his session five days ago. Originally, he had only 28 strands of spiritual energy remaining, but the passive accumulation from his spiritual nodes had pushed that number to around 60. His natural recovery rate was abnormally high—6 strands per day, better than the results of most low-grade Spirit Root disciples actively cultivating.

Lost in thought, Su Yuan barely noticed as the testing sped along. Soon, the third-ranked disciple stepped up—another high-grade Spirit Root, but this one was a high-grade *single* Spirit Root!

[1278 strands of spiritual energy]

[4 spiritual nodes opened]

[Qi Refining Layer 2]

"This gap... tsk tsk!" Zhang Wei muttered, though his tone had grown more accepting.

Su Yuan was also impressed. This result was outright monstrous—just ten days into cultivation, and they had already opened four spiritual nodes, reaching Qi Refining Layer 2 and leaving everyone else far behind. Compared to mid-grade Spirit Roots, they weren't even in the same league, let alone low-grade Spirit Roots, who couldn't even see their backs.

The last disciple's face turned green—their spiritual energy reserve wasn't even a fraction of this!

The disparity was despair-inducing.

"Liu Muwan, step forward for testing!" The Valley Master smiled warmly at the supreme-grade Spirit Root disciple.

"Understood!" The young woman smiled gently before floating up to the platform as lightly as smoke.

Zhang Wei's expression changed. "The basic lightness technique! She's already started learning spells?!"

Su Yuan pondered. The gap truly was enormous—he hadn't even seen a single spell yet! The *Burning Wood Spirit Tempering Technique* only contained three spells, and the first couldn't be learned until Qi Refining Layer 3.

The testing artifact's light pillar shone brilliantly as golden text appeared on the slab:

[2815 strands of spiritual energy]

[6 spiritual nodes opened]

[Qi Refining Layer 2]

*Hiss—!*

The entire audience gasped, the temperature in the room rising several degrees!

Liu Muwan had just doubled the gap, opening *two* more nodes than anyone else!

Wasn't there supposed to be some limit to cheating?!

When Su Yuan "cheated," there had been an absorption limit to the surrounding spiritual energy. Did supreme-grade Spirit Roots just ignore that?! Suddenly, Su Yuan realized the reason—Liu Muwan must have spent far less spiritual energy opening her nodes. If he could reduce consumption by 10% through comprehension, her Earth-grade high-tier technique might cut it by over 50%!

The disparity was staggering.

Su Yuan muttered to himself, feeling reassured. His two spiritual nodes were nothing noteworthy in comparison. As someone well-versed in the art of laying low, he was secretly pleased.

What Su Yuan didn't know was that, in the Valley Master's evaluation criteria, his ranking was second only to Liu Muwan. Even after high-grade single Spirit Root disciples showed four nodes, the Valley Master hadn't adjusted this. In other words, the Valley Master considered Su Yuan's two nodes superior to the high-grade Spirit Roots' four. As for how much he lagged behind Liu Muwan, only the Valley Master knew.

Finally, it was the last disciple's turn—Ye Bufan!

A faint smile played on Ye Bufan's lips as he walked past Liu Muwan, who was stepping down.

"This time, I'll take the lead," Ye Bufan transmitted to her.

Liu Muwan's delicate brows arched slightly as she turned to observe Ye Bufan's results. When his hands touched the jade slab, new text emerged:

[2230 strands of spiritual energy]

[7 spiritual nodes opened]

[Qi Refining Layer 3]

"Seven spiritual nodes?" Liu Muwan's brows furrowed slightly.

The moment the result appeared, the entire venue fell silent. Everyone stared at Ye Bufan in stunned disbelief.

This was Qi Refining *Layer 3*!

An insurmountable gap!

Compared to him, no one else even qualified as competition!

The old man nodded approvingly. "Well done."

Ye Bufan smiled humbly. "Thank you for your praise, Valley Master Lan."

The Valley Master nodded before addressing the crowd. "Today's testing has concluded. There will be no further assessments until the final evaluation at the end of March. You should all have a clear understanding of where you stand, so I won't elaborate further. Dismissed!"

The disciples dispersed in small groups. Su Yuan and Zhang Wei also departed, though they soon parted ways—Su Yuan headed to the scripture lecture hall, while Zhang Wei returned to focus on cultivation.

Su Yuan walked alone until, deep in a wooded area, a figure suddenly blocked his path.

"Hm? Zhou Wuyou?" Su Yuan's expression turned grave as he eyed Zhou Wuyou—and the eight disciples standing behind him.

He hadn't expected Zhou Wuyou to ambush him like this!

Zhou Wuyou stepped forward alone, his face expressionless.

Su Yuan frowned, watching him carefully while scanning his surroundings for potential escape routes.

"Let me reintroduce myself," Zhou Wuyou said. "Zhou Wuyou, direct descendant of the Zhou family. Low-grade triple Spirit Root. My family deals in pill commerce."

Su Yuan already knew all this. "And?"

Zhou Wuyou continued as if speaking to himself. "Our family has fifteen Foundation Establishment cultivators and one False Core cultivator. We're a reasonably strong Foundation Establishment clan. My father is a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator."

Su Yuan's expression darkened. That was indeed a formidable background.

Foundation Establishment might only be the second major realm, but a single Foundation Establishment cultivator could sustain an entire clan and secure a small spirit mountain. Out of a hundred low-grade Spirit Root disciples, maybe one would reach Foundation Establishment!

"What exactly do you want?"

Su Yuan could guess Zhou Wuyou's intentions—he had no interest in joining the Zhou family or becoming some subordinate.

"After three months, it'll be difficult for me to break into the outer sect. If that happens, my family's resource support will decrease significantly. While it'll still be enough for my cultivation, other areas will suffer." Zhou Wuyou sighed.

Su Yuan simply said, "Oh."

He had heard Zhang Wei's complaints about this guy. He knew where this was headed.

"I've looked into you. You're a low-grade triple Spirit Root with no Fragment Spirit Stones supplied during this period. You spend most of your time attending lectures and reading," Zhou Wuyou added.

Su Yuan's frown deepened. So this guy had been investigating him?

"Sorry, but I have a lecture to attend. Excuse me." Su Yuan stepped sideways, moving toward the scripture hall. He didn't believe Zhou Wuyou would dare attack him here—Immortal Seed Valley evaluated all aspects of a disciple's conduct. Leaving an impression of bullying the weak would have severe consequences.

"Wait!" Zhou Wuyou called out.

Su Yuan quickened his pace.

"I want to cooperate with you!" Zhou Wuyou suddenly declared.

"Cooperate?" Su Yuan paused.

"For these three months, I'll fully support your cultivation, helping you secure a top-50 ranking and inner sect disciple status. Once you become an inner sect disciple, you'll gain the right to recommend one outer sect disciple. I want that recommendation. In return, I'll provide you with pills and Spirit Stones to aid your cultivation." Zhou Wuyou spoke calmly. "I know you're a genius in comprehension. Your current cultivation speed isn't your limit. With enough resources, reaching the top 50 is highly possible. This cooperation benefits us both."

Su Yuan slowly turned, his gaze revealing a trace of surprise. This guy... was nothing like the "useless fool" Zhang Wei had described!