Questioning

Outside the mental space in the real world. The black light around Yu Yan instantly deepened until it seemed to turn into nothing. Looking at it was like looking into a black hole of nothingness.

This lasted only a little while until it dissipated and calm returned. Following him was Yu Chen but around but the darkness was not as deep as Yu Yan's.

Even so, the Clear Heart Sect Elder was very pleased.

The First Elder maintained a nonchalant expression for a few breaths of time before rising from his lotus position.

Gong!

A loud sound echoed through the open space forcing the Legacies to open their eyes. Their gaze rested on the First Elder as if asking how they had done but his expression remained stoic.

"The next phase, prepare yourselves" he announced, his eyes lingering a little longer on Yu Wei.

Yu Yan was feeling a little confused about these tests but he closed his eyes still. Returning to his peaceful state, he once again started to meditate.

Suddenly, he felt something hit him, like an energy wave suddenly took over the space where he sat, and he found himself in a murky place where everything moved slowly, even his thoughts.

He existed in this murky space for a while when suddenly there was a shattering sound in his mind and he could think freely once again. He saw himself floating around this space, his form inelegant like when he slept.

"Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to show a bunch of people my sleeping habits?" he complained to himself and tried to readjust his position so he could arrange himself like a knight with a sword on his chest.

"Hmm?" he was surprised to find that murky feeling again but this time, his mind was clear. His body, however, felt stuck in the mud.

He thought for a while and his mind drifted once again to the Chaos Spring. It seemed like he wasn't supposed to be lucid.

"What is your name?" a booming voice startled him and he felt his mind freeze for an instant.

The voice echoed throughout this stange space with authority and commanded absolute respect.

"Yu Yan" he replied instinctively.

"Who are you?" the voice asked again.

This time, Yu Yan was not so intimidated. Instead, he felt like he could control his reaction more, and he decided to tease the person messing with him.

"The Patriarch of the Yu Clan"

In the real world, the First Elder suddenly paused and glanced at Yu Yan. His eyes showed some amusement and he hesitated to continue asking.

He did not doubt the effect of the Clear Heart Mirror, so Yu Yan's response left him startled.

Among the crowd, some started to laugh. It was obvious that Yu Yan, who was still a Legacy, had already started to consider himself the Yu Clan Patriarch.

"What is the Dao?" the First Elder continued to ask.

This time, there was some delay in their responses. After all, these were not some cultivators who had established their Dao but had only recently gotten involved in the world of cultivation. Their Dao was either existent or still in its infancy.

"I don't know what the Dao is, but with my sword beside me, I will search for it" Yu Hao was the first to respond. There was no uncertainty in his tone but only firmness and determination.

There was some uncertainty and doubt in Yu Chen's voice as she said, "Me".

The First Elder of the Yu Clan glanced at Elder Zhou who looked away promptly like everything had nothing to do with him.

The corners of his mouth twitched, and he turned to Yu Wei for his response, but Yu Wei seemed even worse; his expression kept changing between certainty and uncertainty. Sometimes, he seemed to be at ease, and other times, he showed signs of struggling. Eventually, he opened his lips and started.

"I don't know what the Dao is but I want power and fame, to be above the masses and to dominate this world"

His words were nothing like a scholar who had taken the Imperial Examinations but instead, like a hero who walked through the Earth with a sword in hand.

While he impressed the crowd, the elites among them were skeptical. Was he not a subordinate of the Prince? What right did he have to ask to dominate the world?

To make things worse, from the last test, his heart was pure from distractions and illusions. If that was the case and his heart was set on dominating the world, why did his actions contradict his dao?

Why was he acting subjective to the Prince?

Everyone stopped thinking further as the weight of Yu Wei's result was too heavy to bear.

The faces of the Yu Clan Elders turned dark and they all turned to the Fifth Elder. But the Fifth Elder acted like he couldn't understand what was going on. He sat there was an impassive expression, his eyes fixed ahead and his back straight on the chair.

The Patriarch watched all of this and he smiled, shaking his head at Yu Wei's antics. Despite all the signs, he still trusted that the children of the Yu Clan were just children.

The First Elder's gaze rested a little longer on Yu Wei, but then he turned to Yu Yan and activated the Mirror to allow him to answer.

Yu Yan replied almost immediately.

"The myriad realms may one day falter, but my Dao is to lead my clan towards eternity as the Immemorial Patriarch"

The crowd almost burst into laughter again. There were a few snickers as some failed to hold themselves back.

This Yu Yan was still thinking he was the Patriarch!

And to make things worse, he added a title for himself!

Maybe he hadn't fully recovered from being a fool and still had some brain defects.

"This your Clan disciple is interesting" the Clear Heart Sect Elder commented. Her eyes fixed on Yu Yan. Why was it that every Yu Clan member with a clear heart seemed to have unwavering loyalty to the clan?

Mei Hua was the same, Yu Chen was the same, and now Yu Yan.

The Sixth Elder, meanwhile, was feeling very pleased with Yu Yan. He knew the Yu Clan's secret. Who cared if he was a fool? As long as his devotion to the clan was true, he would be given the authority.

As long as all their Patriarchs followed the Clan values, the Yu Clan would never fall. This is the effect of a Dao treasure! Something others would never understand.

"One last test left," he muttered to himself, looking at the Fifth Elder with a smug smile.

"The Yu Mountain is a lifeline for our Yu Clan. But some forces are scheming against us for it despite the support from the Imperial Family. How should we treat these friends?" As he asked the question, the First Elder's gaze trolled the audience, his eyes lingering a little longer on some Dignitaries of the Empire and Clan representatives.

"Cut them down with my sword!" Once again Yu Hao responded. As soon as he spoke, his sword light seemed to have been reignited. At first, it existed around him just like an unsheathed sword without any direction, but suddenly, it flared up and seemed to have found a purpose as it filled the area. The intent turning even sharper.

No sooner had it spread out than the First Elder released his Qi instantly suppressing it. Even so, a few of those closer to the front noticed faint cuts on their bodies causing exclamations among them.

Before anyone could rise to say anything, the First Elder quickly apologized.

"Our Yu Hao got a little agitated and offended everyone, I hope Elder Zhou and the Second Prince can forgive us as he is still a hot-blooded youth"

"To have cultivated the Dao to this extent is deserving of praise; everything else is of no consequence," The Clear Heart Sect Elder responded with a smile, her pleasant voice echoing through and calming the crowds.

A few Dignitaries cursed inside themselves at the obvious scheme playing before their eyes.

"It's no matter, no matter," the Second Prince also replied quickly, shaking his head.

The Clear Heart Sect and Prince have already said it was nothing. Who else could stand up and claim compensation for getting wounded?

Also, did they even have the face to stand? After the first flare of sword intent, they had covered themselves with Qi but this second flare directly tore through it and wounded them still. Who could they complain to that their cultivation was not up to par?

The First Elder continued the test and turned to Yu Chen who replied, "We can ready ourselves and wait to take them all on in one swoop"

Yu Chen was, after all, from the Clear Heart Sect. She wasn't thinking about the clan at all. To her, the problem was easy to solve. Contact a Sect Elder, wait for their enemies to make a move, and ask the Elder to eliminate all of them.

An uneasy air doused the crowd as some started to think. The Yu Clan seemed to not be as helpless as they had previously thought. They still had options to deal with enemies!

"Report to the Yamen. Anyone scheming against us is rebelling against the Empire. Report to the Officials and have them deal with it. At most, we'll offer them a few days of mining and lead them to the difficult part of the mines." Yu Wei's response was even more sinister.

The Fifth Elder, who was still acting nonchalantly, felt his cheeks go numb as he struggled to restrain his expression.

He had been supporting Yu Wei because he believed Yu Wei had a chance. He knew there was some secret around the selection but decided to give it a shot anyway. Who knew that the First Elder would change the questions all of a sudden?

Wasn't he supposed to ask abstract questions? Why was his questions now each one more direct than the last?

Was he trying to expose all the Legacy's thoughts to the whole Empire?

And what was wrong with that Yu Wei?

The Fifth Elder knew that Yu Wei could not control his response but he was still mad and wanted to smack the scholar down.

The Dignitaries from the Empire did not know how to feel. Even though Yu Wei just exposed a sinister possibility, if the Yu Clan decided to go through with it, there was nothing they could do!

If they decided to delay their feet, it would be said that the Imperial Family was dishonest in giving rewards and who would the Emperor direct his anger at?

And if they chose to help...

Well at least now, they wouldn't waste their time accepting the Yu Clan's 'gift'.

They pushed Yu Wei out of their minds and turned to Yu Yan.

What would this fool say next?