Chapter 101 - Something Happened to the Trial Stone?

There was a moment of silence. After all, they had been caught gossiping behind his back. The Infinity Sect broke the silence with an embarrassed smile.

“We were just casually discussing. Please don’t take it to heart, Elder Mo.”

Mo Jianming seemed to be smiling yet not smiling at the same time. His sharp eyes seemed to be able to see through their inner thoughts, and there was actually a feeling that there was nothing they could hide.

“I’m afraid someone is disappointed that I’m not injured.”

Upon hearing this, there were indeed a few people who had slightly unnatural expressions, but they were fleeting and so fast that no one could catch them.

Mo Jianming didn’t bother to argue with them. After all, he knew what these people were thinking. They thought that he was injured and that the Sword Sect’s strength had declined, so they wanted to seize the Sword Sect’s resources and benefits.

“As long as I’m here, no one is allowed to touch the Sword Sect’s resources and benefits.”

His voice was cold, and the sword intent from his body was strong and powerful. It was like an unshakeable mountain of swords, majestic and powerful, making others feel fear.

“Elder Mo, what do you mean by this? You speak as though someone is trying to harm the Sword Sect.”

Some people complained that Mo Jianming was making a fuss.

Mo Jianming’s expression was indifferent, but the words he said were exceptionally sarcastic. He said, “Whether or not there is, I’m afraid only those people would know in their hearts.”

The atmosphere suddenly became a little awkward. In the end, it was the people from the Misty Illusory Manor who came out to smooth things over.

“I say, what is everyone doing? Today is the sect returning ceremony. Not only is it a big day for those sects, but we haven’t gathered together in a long time. Why make the atmosphere so tense?”

Everyone laughed and exchanged a few more words to break the tense atmosphere. They quickly skipped the previous topic.

“Speaking of which, there are a lot of sects this year. I wonder if there will be any potential talents.”

“Even if there are potential talents, I’m afraid there aren’t many.”

“In the last sect returning ceremony, the Dao Seeking Sect and Heaven Sect were in the limelight. Don’t fight with us this time.”

“I remember that the Misty Illusory Manor and the Yaochi Holy Land also had quite a lot of gains from this ceremony, right? ”

Although the Sword Sect was considered the strongest among these sects, they kept a low profile and had a very high threshold. They either had to be talented or had a tough heart, which was suitable for practicing the way of the sword.

Even if one had outstanding talent, if they did not have the right attitude for it, they would be rejected. Therefore, in every sect returning ceremony, the number of disciples that the Sword Sect accepted was very few.

However, for other sects, other than the strict selection of disciples, it was fine as long as the potential talent was outstanding and had a strong foundation.

“Dong!”

The melodious sound of a bell came from afar, and the originally lively square instantly became quiet. The entire place was so silent that even the sound of a needle falling could be heard.

“Shh! The sect returning ceremony is about to begin.”

In the middle of the square, a pillar of light suddenly lit up. The names of various sects and clans were densely written on it together with their basic information. It was a dazzling sight.

“As long as your name is lit up, it means that you have passed the preliminaries. You can stay and wait for the challenges later.”

An old voice rang out. It was the artifact spirit within the pillar of light.

The sect returning ceremony was such a grand event, and there were simply too many sects that had rushed over from all directions. If there weren’t thousands of them, there would be at least hundreds. If they were to select them one by one, it would probably take days and nights to finish.

Thus, the sect leaders who had founded the seven great sects first thought of this method and worked together to create this spirit artifact, which could be said to have saved a lot of trouble and time.

As the names lit up one by one, the crowd cheered in excitement.

“That’s great! Our Green Peak Sect’s name is on it!”

“Our Sunset Sect is also among them.”

“I told you the Hidden Sword Manor would definitely pass.”

At the same time, there were many dejected people. After observing for a long time, their sect’s name was still gray. This meant that they were not qualified and could only wait until the next sect returning ceremony.

“This is depressing. This is already the second time. I’ve been waiting for 50 years, and I still haven’t passed this time. What’s the reason for this? I don’t even know when the next sect returning ceremony will be held.”

Some people were full of complaints and left the square unwillingly. Even if they were unwilling, there was nothing they could do. There were so many experts here, so they couldn’t cause any trouble at all.

The screening conditions of the light pillar were closely related to the sect’s overall strength, the level of the sect’s disciples, and the level of the sect master. If the sect missed any of the requirements by a little bit, it would be judged as a ‘Fail’.