"What do you want?" Victor Wu retreated several steps again, his eyes full of panic and wariness.
"Relax, I won't kill you." Ian Song smiled, then turned to the crowd and said, "Each of you can go up and slap him once. I'll add another thousand taels of silver for everyone."
"I'll go first!"
Ryan Chen strode forward, raised his hand, and slapped out...
A crisp slap rang out, and five bright red finger marks appeared on Victor Wu's face.
As the saying goes, the first step is the hardest. Maybe some people hesitated because of Victor Wu's status, but with Ryan Chen taking the lead and the lure of a thousand taels, as soon as Ryan stepped aside, someone else immediately came up and slapped Victor's other cheek.
Victor instinctively tried to dodge, but Ian Song's cold voice sounded: "Stand still and take it, or I'll kill you myself!"
Hearing Ian Song's threat, Victor didn't dare dodge anymore. Still, his resentment toward Ian multiplied several times over.
The sound of slaps rang out one after another. Victor Wu's face was already swollen like a pig's head, but to save his own skin, he could only stand there obediently and let everyone slap him. His heart was full of hatred and frustration, silently plotting how to make Huang Liang pay ten or a hundred times over when he got the chance.
After everyone had finished slapping Victor Wu, Ian Song impatiently waved his hand: "Get lost. If you know what's good for you, don't mess with me again, or next time it won't just be slaps."
Victor Wu didn't say anything tough. He glanced at Ian Song, then turned and walked away.
The next morning.
A loud, booming voice rang out in the Trial Forest, announcing that the assessment was over.
More than four thousand people participated in the third round, but only a little over 2,700 passed. Over a thousand were eliminated.
Still, compared to three years ago, this year's elimination rate wasn't as high.
Those who failed were teleported straight off Pristine Way Mountain, while those who passed were led by a middle-aged man in a black robe embroidered with a mysterious bird, back to the massive Martial Arena Plaza.
The middle-aged man in the black bird-embroidered robe stood at the front of the Martial Arena Plaza. His expression, previously cold, now carried a hint of a smile: "Congratulations, everyone. From now on, you're officially members of the Pristine Way Sect."
At these words, most people's faces lit up with joy and excitement. Quite a few even clenched their fists secretly.
Martial arts cost a ton of resources—rich families write poetry, but the strong ones practice martial arts.
To become truly strong, you need family support or a sect to rely on. Otherwise, as a lone cultivator, you'll never get very far.
The middle-aged man in the black bird-embroidered robe continued, "My name is Bi Fang, the general steward of the outer sect. I hope that after joining the sect, everyone will follow the rules. If anyone dares to break them, don't blame me for being ruthless."
For a moment, everyone felt a chill in their hearts.
At that moment, several outer-sect deacons arrived, leading hundreds of white-robed outer-sect disciples.
Each of these hundreds of outer-sect disciples carried a stack of books and a bundle of tokens in their arms.
Bi Fang's voice rang out again: "The book contains the Pristine Way Sect's 108 rules and regulations. You must memorize them within three days. After that, outer-sect deacons will randomly test you, and anyone who can't answer will be punished."
These tokens are your proof of identity. Nearby, you can use them to collect three sets of uniforms from the laundry courtyard, get three daily meals in the outer-sect canteen, and enter the Library Pavilion once a month. On a wider scale, the token lets you freely enter or leave any city in Tianhe State, Ling State, or Yan State.
"Now, everyone line up and come forward one by one to receive your rulebook and identity token."
When receiving your rulebook and identity token, you must also report your name and place of origin again.
"Now, all junior brothers who have received your rulebook and identity token, please follow me!" a white-robed outer-sect disciple called out loudly.
"Brother Huang, let's go!" Ryan Chen reminded Ian Song.
"Alright!" Ian Song nodded and quickly walked toward the outer-sect disciple.
As Ian Song moved, seventy or eighty people followed him. These were all candidates who had benefited from him in the third round and now wanted to get in his good graces, knowing he was a rich young master worth befriending.
Ian Song grinned and cupped his fists at the outer-sect disciple. "Senior Brother, may I ask your name?"
The outer-sect disciple was sharp-eyed. When Ian Song moved, seventy or eighty people responded, so he knew Ian had an extraordinary background.
He smiled warmly. "No need to be so polite, Junior Brother. My surname is Zheng, given name Wu. You can call me Senior Brother Zheng."
"So it's Senior Brother Zheng. I'm Leon Huang. I hope you'll look after me from now on!" As he spoke, Ian Song discreetly slipped a banknote into Zheng Wu's hand. Since his mother had given him five hundred thousand taels, he wasn't shy about spending it.
Zheng Wu was a clever guy. He smoothly accepted the banknote, and as he tucked it into his sleeve, he glanced at the amount—ten thousand taels. His eyes narrowed slightly in surprise. This junior brother was seriously generous; he'd better not offend him.
"By the way, Senior Brother Zheng, where are we headed next?" Ian Song asked with a grin.
"Of course, I'm taking you to your new lodgings!"
Maybe it was because of that ten-thousand-tael banknote, but on the way to the residential area, Zheng Wu kept stopping to explain the functions of all the outer-sect buildings to Ian Song, offering helpful tips and reminders. In short, he was extremely enthusiastic.
No wonder the Pristine Way Sect rules over three states—it's truly a giant among sects. Even the outer-sect residential area is massive.
After nearly half an hour of walking and stopping, Zheng Wu finally led Ian Song and the others to the residential district.
According to Zheng Wu, even before their batch joined, the Pristine Way Sect already had nearly ten thousand outer-sect disciples.
Since every outer-sect disciple gets their own private courtyard, the residential area stretches as far as the eye can see.
Zheng Wu smiled, "Brother Huang, this is the newly expanded residential district—built less than a year ago. All the furniture is brand new. Each of you can pick one courtyard to live in. Oh, and don't forget to register with me after you've chosen!"
"Thank you for your help, Senior Brother!"
Ian Song thanked Zheng Wu again before going to choose his courtyard. Having experienced three worlds, he easily caught the hint in Zheng Wu's words: mentioning the new courtyards meant there were also old ones.
Whether he'd be shown to a new or old courtyard depended on Zheng Wu's mood.
After picking their courtyards, everyone registered with Zheng Wu. He gave a few reminders before leaving, satisfied.
Ian Song had just returned to his new courtyard when someone knocked on the door—it was Ryan Chen and several others, all now respectfully calling him Senior Brother Huang.
Just then, the system notification sounded, telling him he'd completed his first task of joining the Pristine Way Sect and earned fifty million reputation points.
Since these people clearly wanted to follow him, Ian Song didn't hesitate. He made it clear: stick with him and there'd be plenty of benefits. After all, his next mission was to become the sect master of the Pristine Way Sect, and he'd need allies to reach that goal—so building a team was essential.