Traveling through time to cultivate immortality: a life and death test

In the cave atop the Forbidden Department's peak, in the Grand Elder's abode, Su Xingchen was cultivating with his eyes closed when suddenly, an ancient jade pendant on his desk ignited with a vibrant light. He instantly opened his eyes, baffled by the signal the jade pendant, which had remained silent for millennia, had now emitted. He immediately grasped the pendant with a single wave of his hand, channeling his consciousness into it, sending a message into his mind.

"What a genius! What a genius! He actually created his own prohibition theory and solved one of the world's most difficult problems!" Su Xingchen spent an hour carefully studying the proof process. It was indeed logically coherent and without any mistakes. He was immediately impressed.

"Which gifted disciple created this masterpiece?" He instantly extended his vast spiritual sense to the central square, sensing a young man in white sitting cross-legged beside a stone platform. Could he be the one who provided the answer? Su Xingchen flashed out of the cave and was in front of Liu Xing in the blink of an eye. Elder Su's invisible arrival left Liu Xing completely unaware, and he sat patiently, waiting.

"His magic power and spiritual awareness are three times that of those at the same level. He has the strength to challenge opponents two levels higher. There should be no one in the sect who can match him. It seems that his cultivation method is special." Elder Su carefully examined Liu Xing and came to a conclusion that surprised him.

"He cultivated the golden silkworm Gu, and wow, it's a fourth-level Gu King!" Elder Su looked at his dantian and was shocked again.

"A third-level Jiaolong spirit pet, from the Winged King clan, with such a strong dragon bloodline! A fourth-level mountain cat spirit pet, with Qilin bloodline!" Elder Su peered into his soul and discovered two spirit pet imprints. Tracing the imprints, he discovered the spirit pet's true form. The power of a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator was truly unfathomable; he had a clear view of Liu Xing's every situation.

"This boy has such great fortune, I have never seen such a thing in my life!" Su Xingchen thought while stroking his beard. He was so startled that he accidentally broke several strands of his beard, and he grimaced in pain.

"Could it be that this boy is the rising star of my Qianji Sect?" Su Xingchen remembered the prediction made by his junior brother Bu Suanfeng.

"Judging from his bone age, he's already reached the late Foundation Establishment stage, barely a hundred years old. Apparently, he's blessed with great luck. What a shame, his spiritual roots are of the lowest caliber, typically confined to the Qi Condensation stage. How did he cultivate?" Su Xingchen was filled with curiosity. Ultimately, he chalked it up to good luck, as consuming a large number of cultivation-boosting elixirs could forcefully elevate one's realm. He'd guessed that this was almost entirely accurate. At his level, chance might be even more important than aptitude.

"Such a dense evil aura!" As he continued to observe, he discovered more and more. He was even more astonished by the density of Liu Xing's evil aura. It must have taken countless battles and countless slain beings of his level to gather it. He hadn't expected this boy, despite his gentle and harmless appearance, to possess a killer within. This was just as well; those who hesitated wouldn't make it far on the path to immortality. Harnessing this evil aura effectively would greatly aid his future cultivation. On the contrary, failing to properly manage it could easily lead to obsession.

Liu Xing sat cross-legged on the ground, waiting for over an hour, but there was no response. He wasn't impatient at all, and was extremely patient. Elder Su nodded in satisfaction; this boy had a very good character. According to ancestral precepts, whoever could solve a world-class problem must be personally accepted as a disciple by the Great Elder. Because no one had been able to solve the problem for thousands of years, this ancestral precept had gradually been forgotten. Now, if it weren't for the ancient jade pendant's magical power, he would have almost forgotten it. Liu Xing's excellence, coupled with his desire to accept a disciple, only strengthened his resolve. He hadn't accepted a disciple in five hundred years, and barring any unexpected events, Liu Xing would be his last disciple. Elder Su then casually cast a concealment barrier to cover the two of them, then emerged simultaneously. Liu Xing regained consciousness the moment Elder Su appeared. He had been unaware of being approached quietly, and his heart tightened. If it had been an enemy, he would have been dead long ago. But then he realized it must be a Nascent Soul cultivator.

"Junior Liu Xing, an outer disciple, pays his respects to Elder Su." Liu Xing immediately stood up and recognized Su Xingchen, the number one person in Qianji Sect, so he bowed respectfully and paid his respects.

"You know me, so I don't need to introduce myself. Let me ask you, did you complete the proof of this problem by yourself?" Su Xingchen has a sharp eye and can expose all lies.

"That's right." Liu Xing answered truthfully.

"Good! Good! Good! My Qianji Sect has such a genius, and there is hope for its great prosperity." Elder Su said with emotion!

"I want to take you as my disciple, are you willing?" Elder Su looked at Liu Xing and asked.

"Disciple Liu Xing, I greet Master!" Liu Xing was overjoyed and immediately bowed, performing the ritual of three kowtows and nine prostrations. Just kidding, there weren't many people in the mortal world worthy enough to be a disciple of the Grand Elder of the Thousand Machines Sect. Not to mention how much he could learn from his master, just this status alone would be of immense benefit to him. He no longer needed to fear the likes of Ge Teng.

"Hahaha, good disciple, my master's cultivation cave is on the top of the mountain. You can pack up and come to my cave at noon tomorrow. This is the restriction token." After Su Xingchen finished speaking, he threw a token to him, looked at Liu Xing with satisfaction, and disappeared.

"Farewell, Master." Although Liu Xing didn't see how Elder Su left, he still had to observe proper etiquette as a disciple. He bowed and saluted, then stood up and flew towards his own cave abode after a long moment.

"Yeah! My bet paid off!" Upon arriving at the cave, Liu Xing was overjoyed. He'd been feeling incredibly constrained along the way. This time, solving the puzzle had soared him to new heights, earning him a spot as the Grand Elder's disciple. At least the sect's middle and higher-ups wouldn't dare to do anything to him. As long as he didn't seek disaster or intentionally offend the elders, he should have no trouble advancing within the sect. This status was a valuable barrier and a stepping stone to success. He needed to figure out how to leverage it to further his cultivation.

Liu Xing was excited all night and couldn't calm down to practice properly, so he simply moved a table to the entrance of the cave, asked Jiao Jiao and Duo Duo to accompany him, and started drinking.

"Congratulations, master, for meeting a famous teacher. You will soar to great heights in the future!" Jiao Jiao grabbed the wine glass with his claws and toasted Liu Xing in a proper manner.

"Master, I toast to you too!" Duoduo's emotional intelligence is not as good as Jiaojiao, but he also knows that he should be happy with his master at this time.

"Okay, cheers!" Liu Xing was in a very good mood and picked up the glass and drank it all.

"Come with me to visit the master tomorrow. Maybe you will get some good fortune." Liu Xing said happily.

"Great! Great!" Jiao Jiao and Duo Duo were also very happy and looking forward to tomorrow.

They drank and admired the moon, their bond deep, until late at night. Liu Xing's emotions were released, and he gradually calmed down. He thought about the possible questions his master might ask tomorrow, preparing his responses. His background was clean, and his cultivation had been bumpy, yet he had been blessed with many opportunities. He wasn't afraid of interrogation; the main thing was to keep those two core secrets from being discovered.