Chapter 1452 — The Ice Palace's Trial, Part One
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"Father, there is indeed an important matter I must discuss with you." Yu Xiaochen spoke gravely, then glanced at Yu Yi beside him. Yu Yi had always stayed at his father's side, and so Yu Xiaochen did not know whether he could truly be trusted.
"Speak freely. Yu Yi is a man I trust; he will be a capable arm at your side in the future!" The Yu Family Ancestor read his son's meaning and waved a hand.
Yu Xiaochen nodded, then handed the letter in his hand to his father, the Yu Family Ancestor, and said, "Father, a letter has come from the Ice Palace. The Ice Palace's trial will be held soon!"
"Oh? The Ice Palace's trial is beginning again?" Even a man of the Yu Family Ancestor's steady temperament showed astonishment at Yu Xiaochen's words. He drew a deep breath, opened the letter, read it through swiftly, and said, "This is our chance — the chance of the hidden Yu family! To think the Ice Palace's trial has come round again! In my youth I took part in one; you were not yet born then. After that trial I became an outer sect disciple of the Ice Palace. Five years flew by in a blink, and truly I benefited beyond measure!"
Yu Xiaochen naturally knew of his father's experiences in youth, and knew what the Ice Palace's trial signified.
The Ice Palace's trial was an invitation to trial issued by the Ice Palace, one of the ancient sects — a trial established for the outstanding talents of the younger generation. When the trial ended, those who won the highest places would obtain the chance to remain in the Ice Palace and become outer sect disciples, and once one became an outer sect disciple, one's future was limitless!
Even if only an outer sect disciple, that was already enough! Outer sect disciples — as the name implies — were unaffiliated cultivators permitted to cultivate within the Ice Palace, yet without a master to instruct them directly. Ordinarily they could also obtain some measure of spiritual medicines for their use, though besides cultivation they were also required to shoulder the daily labors of the Ice Palace: fetching water, chopping firewood, patrolling the mountain, sweeping and cleaning, cooking.
And the people within the Ice Palace would, at regular intervals, point these outer sect disciples toward the way. Each outer sect disciple had a term of cultivation of five years, and after five years, unless one possessed particularly outstanding aptitude and could remain to take a master and become an inner sect disciple, all the rest had to leave.
Yet even if only five years, the spiritual qi of heaven and earth where the Ice Palace stood was beyond comparison with ordinary places. The Yu Family Ancestor's soaring ascent began in those five years — from a talent at the peak of the late Yellow Rank to, in five years' time, a talent at the peak of the late Mystic Rank, all at a stroke!
Though such a speed of cultivation could not be called the fastest, it still counted among the foremost, for there were others who broke through to the Earth Rank!
Of course, had the Yu Family Ancestor known how long Qiu Lingshan took to break through from the peak of the early Yellow Rank to the early Mystic Rank, he would likely have died of rage.
"Yes, Father. That is why, the moment I received this letter, I came up the mountain to see you!" Yu Xiaochen said.
"The standard for entry set out in this letter has been raised, but our Yu family is still qualified. The standard for this trial has been raised from above the mid Yellow Rank in the last one to above the early Mystic Rank, and the trial surety has risen to the astronomical sum of a hundred million." The Yu Family Ancestor said, "But these are trifles."
"Yes. But the letter also mentions that there are two forms of reward. Which one are we to choose?" Yu Xiaochen asked, nodding.