Over the following ten days, Yang Guanfeng and Elder Yu came to the Restricted Grounds every night, passing on pure spiritual power to aid Chen Yang's recovery.

Ten days later, Chen Yang had regained his vitality, and his spiritual power was even more abundant than before.

"Ancestor, the people have arrived at the gate."

Seeing that the nurturing session was complete, Yang Lingqing spoke from the doorway.

"Mm. Lingqing, come with me."

"Yes."

The two leaped down the mountain together, landing in the inner courtyard square of the Yang estate.

Yang Feiyun and Yang Xiaolei were already waiting there with their people. Upon seeing the two arrive, they knelt in salute.

Today was the day the Yang family tested the clan children. The main gate of the Yang estate was already packed with people.

Adults leading children made up a crowd of over a hundred.

The adults gazed up at the towering gates of the Yang family, their eyes filled mostly with nervous tension.

The children trailing behind them showed much more excitement and anticipation.

"Steward, sir, can my child really go up Mist Mountain and become an immortal?"

The middle-aged man at the front of the line asked with a bowed waist.

The old steward of the Yang family turned his head and smiled. "This old man cannot say for sure. The master of the house has said it all depends on immortal destiny."

"Immortal destiny! Right, immortal destiny!"

The middle-aged man nodded repeatedly. "My child has had great luck since he was young! He fell into a river at five and didn't drown. He got lost on the mountain for three days at eight and survived. He is exactly ten this year, and even when chased and bitten by two wild wolves during the Beast Tide, he managed to escape!"

"Pfft... Zhao Dapeng, your boy isn't lucky. He is just plain cursed."

"Hahaha!"

The surrounding crowd burst into laughter, which considerably eased the previously tense atmosphere.

At that moment, Yang Feiyun stepped out.

After conducting a headcount, he discovered an extra family of two.

"Huh? Why is there an extra child?"

Before the old steward could answer, a man from the line dragged his child forward and dropped to his knees with a heavy thud.

"Great Master! My daughter just turned fifteen five days ago. Please show mercy! Let her try as well! I beg you!"

His daughter followed behind him, kowtowing so hard her forehead thumped against the ground.

The Yang family had explicitly set the limit for children between the ages of ten and fourteen. Now that his daughter had just barely missed the requirement, he truly could not bear to let this chance slip by.

Yang Feiyun looked down at the father and daughter.

He remembered them. This family was surnamed Wu, originally consisting of six people. The father was Wu San, and the girl was Wu Tong.

The girl's three older brothers had all joined the Yang Clan Soldiers and perished in battle during the Beast Tide.

The girl's mother had also been mauled to death by wild beasts while protecting her. Now, only the father and daughter remained.

According to the rules, this was not allowed. However, in honor of her three brothers' sacrifice, Yang Feiyun decided to let the girl in to try.

"Fine, stop kowtowing. Get up and stand at the very back."

Upon hearing this, the Wu father and daughter wept with gratitude. They kowtowed heavily toward the Yang family gates a few more times before following along, their hearts brimming with joy.

Following the Beast Tide, the Yang estate had undergone a round of renovations.

Thanks to Elder Yu's involvement, it now possessed a trace of immortal aura alongside its grand appearance.

Passing through the corridors, the children craned their necks to look around, constantly letting out gasps and exclamations of awe.

"What a huge rockery!"

"That pavilion is so tall, and there is wisteria climbing all over it!"

"Look at those carvings and murals! They must be the work of immortals!"

"Really? Didn't they say immortals all live on the mountain?"

"Tsk, look at you with your lack of worldly experience. The immortals on the mountain are all from the Yang family too!"

"Ohhh!"

Arriving at the inner courtyard square, the crowd caught sight of Yang Guanfeng and Yang Lingqing. They sensibly shut their mouths and stood respectfully with their hands at their sides.

"Fifty-six people?"

Yang Lingqing swept over them with her Divine Sense and noticed an extra person.

"Reporting to Immortal Master Lingqing, there is a girl who was fourteen when the order was given but turned fifteen just a few days ago."

Yang Lingqing glanced back at Yang Guanfeng, who signaled for her to decide the matter herself.

"Mm, then count her in."

Yang Lingqing did not dwell on it. To her, one person more or one person less made little difference.

"Line up in the order determined earlier! When a name is called, step forward!"

"Zhao Qi."

"Here!"

Zhao Dapeng's son, Zhao Qi-the child who had been notoriously unlucky since birth-stepped forward.

The boy looked entirely ordinary. He was neither tall nor short, neither fat nor thin, seemingly devoid of any outstanding features.

"Extend your hand."

"Yes, Ancestor Immortal Master!"

Zhao Qi rolled up his sleeve and offered his arm.

Yang Guanfeng lightly placed a hand on it and released a thread of spiritual power.

A moment later, he let out a soft sound of surprise in his heart.

"Could such a thing be? The very first one is a success?"

He could scarcely believe it. Reaching out to check a second time, he confirmed that this child named Zhao Qi had all twelve Qi Nodes perfectly intact. He truly possessed the aptitude for cultivation.

"Not bad. Come stand behind me."

Hearing this, Zhao Qi froze in place. His father had already rushed up in a panic to shove him.

"The Immortal Master is speaking to you! What are you standing there for like a fool? Hurry up and go!"

"Oh, right."

Zhao Qi nodded hurriedly, thanked Yang Guanfeng, and walked behind him.

Zhao Dapeng's face was flushed red, his heart blooming with absolute joy. Facing the envious glances cast by the bystanders, the back he had bent over fields for half his life now straightened like a rod.

"Next."

"Step down."

"Continue."

"Step down."

...

Following Zhao Qi, over fifty children in a row possessed no aptitude.

Either their Qi Channels were broken, or their Qi Nodes were missing entirely.

Such a situation was the true norm. Yang Guanfeng had originally arrived with the expectation that not a single one would pass.

Chen Yang had also observed the entire process. Unfortunately, his reach was still not long enough to stretch down the cliff, otherwise he would have liked to "feel" these children for himself.

In the blink of an eye, all fifty-five children had been tested.

Apart from Zhao Qi, no one else had the aptitude for cultivation.

Mm, looks like it's over. Still, finding even one child with cultivation aptitude is already a massive gain. Old Yang's luck really isn't bad at all, Chen Yang thought to himself.

With the fifty-five tested, Yang Guanfeng turned his gaze to the final father and daughter. The bloodstains left on their foreheads from their earlier kowtowing had not yet fully faded.

Wu San looked at Yang Guanfeng with a terrified expression. He felt as if he were staring up at an impossibly towering peak. The immense pressure in his chest made it difficult to breathe.

Yang Guanfeng only glanced at him briefly before sweeping his gaze past him.

It was perfectly normal for a mortal to react this way when standing before a cultivator.

But when he looked at the girl beside the man, he found that despite her frail appearance, she was gazing back at him with unusually steadfast eyes.

Yang Guanfeng had evaluated countless people in his life. He could be certain that this was not the ignorant fearlessness of a newborn calf unafraid of a tiger.

"Come forward."

Since the girl's name was not on the roster, Yang Guanfeng simply beckoned her over.

Wu Tong clenched her fists, then stepped forward with firm determination.

Yang Guanfeng rested his fingertips against Wu Tong's arm and released a wisp of spiritual power.

Once the spiritual power entered her body, he sensed that its circulation was extremely turbulent.

Yet, interestingly enough, although the spiritual power stumbled and struggled to move, it was never completely blocked, and it ultimately made its way through.

"Lingqing, come take a look."

"Yes."

Yang Lingqing stepped up to perform a second check. A moment later, she turned to Yang Guanfeng and nodded.

Though it was exceedingly difficult, the path was indeed open.