As the contestants walked deeper into the village, they felt an increasing sense of eeriness.
Around them were either large, uneven ore rocks or vast stretches of plains and mountains. The whole village seemed to be a forced combination of spaces from different places, a complete contradiction.
Yu Nian's follow - up cameraman was a young, dark - skinned guy named Xiao Qi.
He was struggling to carry the camera as he followed Yu Nian. After just a few steps, he was already out of breath.
"Sister Yu Nian, wait for me..."
Yu Nian turned to look at him. Seeing that besides the camera, Xiao Qi was also carrying a lot of heavy equipment, she reached out and took the equipment from him, then walked forward with ease.
Xiao Qi felt a warm feeling in his heart and followed Yu Nian somewhat shyly.
He originally thought Yu Nian was an aloof person, but after getting in touch with her, he found that she was not as hard to get along with as he had imagined. So he whispered a reminder:
"Sister Yu Nian, although this is a competition, you should talk more. Take this opportunity to increase your exposure!"
Yu Nian thought for a while and said calmly, "When will we get something to eat?"
Xiao Qi: ... Do you have some obsession with getting food?
Before long, Yu Nian passed by a gentle hillside and saw several contestants gathered there, seemingly arguing about something.
Yu Nian stepped forward and saw an old man hunched over in front of the contestants. He was plain - looking, with all his hair and beard white. There was no spiritual energy around him, and he was just like an ordinary person.
Yu Nian noticed that there were several shackles made of mysterious iron tied between the old man's feet. When the iron chains rubbed against the ground, they made a harsh sound.
This was the punishment for a cultivator who had committed a major mistake in a powerful sect in the early years.
The old man was standing at the foot of the mountain with a beaming smile, blocking the only way for everyone to go up the mountain.
"Dear friends, please stop. I've been guarding this Fushou Village for many years. If you want to pass this mountain, you need to answer the riddle I give you."
The contestants sized up the old man and said rudely, "Where did this beggar - like old man come from? Don't block our way!"
"Right! Is this mountain yours? Why can't we go up?"
No matter what the contestants said, the old man stood firmly at the crossroads and refused to move an inch.
Just as a contestant was about to attack the old man, Yu Nian suddenly walked out of the crowd and nodded slightly at the old man.
"Please give me the riddle."
The crowd was suddenly stunned. A few contestants recognized Yu Nian as the champion of the preliminary round and wanted to make friends with her. So they stepped forward and said, "Why waste your breath on this old beggar, Fellow Daoist Yu? Just beat him away!"
Hearing this, the old man opened his eyelids and couldn't help but take a look at the girl in front of him.
Yu Nian had smooth eyebrows and eyes. She stood calmly in the mountains and forests, with a steady temperament and a humble yet confident speech.
She should be a well - educated person from a great sect. So the old man asked, "Which sect's disciple are you, young friend?"
Yu Nian: "Qingxin Temple."
The old man was a bit surprised. "Do you want to pass this level, young friend?"
Yu Nian nodded. There was no sign of arrogance or contempt on her face. "Please give me your guidance, Daoist Priest."
The old man suddenly burst into laughter. He laughed maniacally, and his voice echoed throughout the mountains and forests, scaring away a flock of mountain birds.
While everyone was still in a daze, they saw the old man take out a wooden mallet from his long sleeve and strike the big bell beside him heavily. Then he returned a salute to Yu Nian.
"Young friend, you've passed. Please go up the mountain."
Everyone: ???
"Why?"
"She didn't do anything. Why can she go up the mountain??"
"Old man, are you here to cause trouble?!"
Fu Sui stared coldly at Yu Nian's receding figure on the mountain path and said unwillingly, "What exactly is this level testing? Why stop me but let her pass smoothly?"
Bai Jiming was also a bit unwilling. After glancing at the camera, he said, "I heard that Yu Nian has always had a good relationship with President Feng. Could it be that she got special treatment..."
After saying that, he suddenly covered his mouth, as if extremely regretful. "Look at my memory. I forgot we're live - streaming..."
Bai Jiming's words were clearly broadcast, and the bullet comments on the screen instantly scrolled crazily.
[I knew a little girl like Yu Nian couldn't be that good. It turns out she got there through connections. How shameless!]
[Right! Why is she the only one who passed?]
[But Bai Jiming's strength is not that great either. Is the last - place contestant trying to put down the first - place one?]
[Yu Nian is the champion of the preliminary round. There's no need to question her strength, right??]
...
The old man seemed to see everyone's dissatisfaction and suddenly curled his lips.
"Dear fellow Daoists, this level tests etiquette. A person cannot stand without etiquette, and things cannot succeed without it. If I don't let Young Friend Yu Nian go up the mountain, should I let you go up?" The old man paused and glanced indifferently at Bai Jiming. "Spreading rumors and belittling your fellow cultivators just by talking. Is this your way of cultivation?"
Bai Jiming's face turned red then white. He closed his mouth awkwardly.
Fu Sui's face also looked a bit ugly. He asked the old man, "Then what should I do now to pass this level?"
The old man stroked his beard, with a sly smile in his eyes.
He pointed to the swill bucket emitting a gloomy aura beside the vegetable field at the foot of the mountain. "Help me water this vegetable field."
Fu Sui was stunned, and his face darkened menacingly. "What?"
The old man didn't say a word, just smiling.
Fu Sui gritted his teeth hard and walked stiffly to the vegetable field.
The bullet comments on the screen burst out a series of mocking remarks.
[I never thought I'd see the great Fu Sui carrying manure in my lifetime!]
[I don't know why, but I really want to laugh!]
...
Just like this, with a gloomy face, Fu Sui did an hour of farm work before finally walking onto the mountain path.
By this time, an hour had passed since the start of the competition. The contestants were getting impatient and took out their compasses one after another. They walked in groups of two or three towards different fork roads.
Yu Nian was not in a hurry. She calmly stood in place and observed her surroundings.
Fushou Village was a huge Bagua formation. If one wanted to break this formation, they had to find the eye of the formation.
But in such a complex and chaotic magnetic field, it was difficult to even figure out the general direction of the eye of the formation, let alone its exact location.
Yu Nian silently recited a few incantations and released her powerful divine soul, carefully sensing the location of the eye of the formation.
When Yu Nian opened her eyes again, she saw a dazzling golden light shooting straight into the sky not far away. That was the eye of the formation.
It was just that the location of the eye of the formation was special. One had to bypass many mountain peaks to reach it.
With a clear destination, a relaxed smile appeared on Yu Nian's face.
Most of the other contestants walked and stopped, wandering around the village with their compasses.
Only Yu Nian walked nimbly, hardly pausing, and moved forward smoothly all the way.
This scene was completely captured by the aerial camera and broadcast.
The bullet comments on the screen scrolled crazily again.
[This person is a bit strange. How can she find a way out in such a complex Bagua formation without a compass?! Is this reasonable?]
[From the aerial view, Yu Nian's speed is even faster than that of the great Fu Sui! She's so amazing!]
[The one above is exaggerating. She just got lucky in the preliminary round! How could Yu Nian be better than the great Fu Sui?]