The test of this generation's Seven Star Cave indeed revealed many geniuses.
There were thirteen just among the Crimson Mark test-takers, and nearly a thousand among the Gold Mark ones.
It should be noted that whether Crimson Mark or Gold Mark, they were all personally recognized by the Red Kun Star Lord, although it couldn't represent all their potential.
But to become a Crimson Mark, at least the displayed talent potential would absolutely be at the top among all test-takers.
And at this moment.
Under the watchful eyes of Peak Masters such as Lin Yuan.
Each test-taker exerted themselves, continuously passing through layer after layer of star caves, heading towards the final Seventh Star Cave.
"That Crimson Mark, probably awakened some kind of special fire-type bloodline, with considerable potential, does anyone want them?" Third Senior Brother's eyes lit up as he asked.
"I'll take them."
"I don't cultivate the rules of the fire element."
"A special bloodline, it seems to be one of those upper-tier fire-type bloodlines."
Peak Masters spoke one after another.
Lin Yuan also carefully glanced at that Crimson Mark test-taker.
"Indeed not bad."
Lin Yuan nodded inwardly.
Although Lin Yuan didn't possess any special bloodlines, he couldn't deny that a superior bloodline constitution indeed provided considerable assistance to cultivation.
Especially in the early stages, upper-tier bloodlines could even achieve cross-tier battles.
"Since Third Senior Brother wants them, I won't contend."
Lin Yuan thought to himself. For Lin Yuan, he was just following the advice of the Red Kun Star Lord, intending to accept a few test-takers.
As for who exactly, it was uncertain. For the sake of one test-taker, should he compete with his senior brothers? Lin Yuan felt it was unnecessary.
"I wonder if anyone has passed the ultimate test in the Seven Star Cave this time?" Second Senior Brother sighed and casually remarked.
The so-called ultimate test was to comprehend the surface of the 'Mysterious Yellow' evolutionary path. Lin Yuan achieved this back then, directly prompting the Red Kun Star Lord, who was in seclusion and not to be disturbed, to actively emerge and personally accept Lin Yuan as the thirteenth disciple.
It should be noted that before this, the Red Kun Star Lord hadn't accepted disciples for ten thousand years. Ordinary test-takers, even Crimson Marks, couldn't catch the attention of the Red Kun Star Lord.
With the talent of Crimson Mark test-takers, at most, they could hope to advance to the Sixth Rank, while among the disciples taught by the Red Kun Star Lord, each one started at the Sixth Rank.
"The ultimate test?"
"My Red Kun lineage, for ten thousand years, has only produced our junior brother."
"Now you want to produce another one? How is that possible?"
"Yes, how can these test-takers compare with junior brother?"
The twelve Peak Masters chatted casually. Among those under a hundred years old, Seventh Rank evolvers, there were few even in the entire Star Alliance.
How could there be consecutive appearances of two in the Red Kun Star Domain?
Lin Yuan listened to his senior brothers' conversation on the side, occasionally interjecting.
"Big Senior Brother, when do you plan to go to the outer star domains to oversee?" Fourth Senior Brother Zuo Ge asked softly.
Entering the Eighth Rank, one needed to fulfill the obligations of human civilization and oversee a star domain for five hundred years.
The star domains here naturally weren't those within human civilization but were newly opened outer regions.
The human civilization alliance was expanding continuously, so the territories of human civilization were constantly increasing.
The star domain that an Eighth Rank evolver needed to oversee was one recently occupied by human civilization.
In these territories, the main enemies were certainly eradicated by the strong of human civilization, but there would still be some remnants of ethnic groups and forces.
It depended on the choices of the star lords overseeing these star domains, whether to integrate these remnants into human civilization or to continue eradicating them, all depending on the star lord's intentions.
Each star lord's governing philosophy was different. Some star lords hoped for universal unity among the cosmos, while others believed in "those not of our kind have different hearts".
"After this round of Seven Star Cave tests is over, I will set out." Big Senior Brother said.
The danger on the edges of human civilization was not low, but Eighth Rank evolvers were not soft targets either. Wanting to completely kill an Eighth Rank evolver? It was very difficult, and by the time one reached the Eighth Rank, they basically had avatars.
The strongest of human civilization had long ago made a promise to encourage Eighth Rank evolvers to oversee the bordering star domains. Anyone who died at the hands of other races during the five hundred years of overseeing a star domain would be 'resurrected'.
Tens of thousands of years ago, the Red Kun Star Lord oversaw the Red Kun Star Domain, which was actually the bordering star domain of human civilization back then.
It's just that after so many years of expansion, the Red Kun Star Domain, which was originally on the edge of the frontier, was now located within the territory of human civilization.
Time passed.
One by one, test-takers finally entered the Seventh Star Cave, beginning to fully comprehend the more than one hundred stone statues.
And after observing all the way, Lin Yuan and the Peak Masters roughly selected the test-takers.
For the Peak Masters, only when selecting Crimson Mark test-takers would they inform each other. There were exactly thirteen Crimson Mark test-takers, one for each Peak Master.
As for the Gold Mark and Silver Mark test-takers? They barely exchanged greetings because there were too many of them.
Even if a rare event occurred where two Peak Masters selected the same Gold Mark test-taker, it would be left for the Gold Mark test-taker to choose which Peak Master to join.
Of course, if they encountered some special Gold Mark test-takers, a Peak Master might inform the others in advance, but such cases were rare.
Normally, the hope for Gold Mark test-takers to advance to the Sixth Rank was much smaller than that of Crimson Mark test-takers.
"Junior Brother, have you made your selection?"
Second Senior Brother looked curiously at Lin Yuan.
"It's almost done. I've selected three this time." Lin Yuan nodded.
Not all test-takers could be selected by the Peak Masters. The vast majority of test-takers would not be selected but would become members of the Red Kun lineage and, through efforts after joining, join under a certain Peak Master.
Just like 'Fang Qing' back then, he didn't join any Peak Master at first.
And the three Crimson Mark test-takers from the same year were chosen by several Peak Masters early on.
Being chosen early by Peak Masters was equivalent to avoiding many detours.
"What three?" Several senior brothers suddenly became interested.
They wanted to know which three test-takers their talented junior brother had chosen.
"Mo Li, Feng Yu, and Wu Lan." Lin Yuan said directly.
Mo Li was one of the thirteen Crimson Mark evolvers, and when Lin Yuan chose him, he had already informed the senior brothers.
As a Crimson Mark evolver, Mo Li's talent was quite good. He had condensed the 'Heart of Battle' at the Fourth Rank, far surpassing others of the same rank. Among the thirteen Crimson Marks, he ranked in the top three.
The Heart of Battle was an expression of a certain realm, proficient in combat, inherently close to the rules of slaughter.
As for Feng Yu and Wu Lan, one was a Gold Mark and the other was a Silver Mark. Lin Yuan had just casually selected them and brought them along if they caught his eye.
Feng Yu followed the rules of the wind element and was about to reach the threshold, ranking among the top of the Gold Mark test-takers.
As for Wu Lan, she was a Silver Mark test-taker. The reason Lin Yuan chose her was solely because she followed the path of martial arts evolution.
Although the path of martial arts evolution was extremely famous in the Red Kun Star Domain, it had appeared for a very short time. Although there were some Third Rank martial arts evolvers, most of them were over a hundred years old.
Even if they weren't over a hundred years old, they might not necessarily participate in the Red Kun Star Domain's arena battles.
So in this round of the Seven Star Cave test, seeing a Third Rank martial arts evolver was quite rare. Lin Yuan simply chose her on a whim.
"Junior Brother's selections seem to follow a pattern," the Peak Masters said, looking at each other with some amusement.
One Crimson Mark.
One Gold Mark.
One Silver Mark.
He covered all the bases.
"Just random picks," Lin Yuan chuckled.
Apart from the Crimson Mark, the remaining two were indeed random picks.
"Junior Brother, the Gold Mark test-taker you selected seems to overlap with Big Senior Brother?" Second Senior Brother seemed to realize something and hastily said.
"Overlap?"
Big Senior Brother was momentarily stunned. "Is it called Feng Yu?"
"In that case, I'll give him to Junior Brother." Big Senior Brother said directly.
Just a Gold Mark. Even if it was a Crimson Mark, if his junior brother wanted it, Big Senior Brother would give way.
"Big Senior Brother doesn't need to do this," Lin Yuan said immediately.
"Let him choose for himself." Lin Yuan thought for a moment and then directly let Big Senior Brother concede. He felt a bit embarrassed.
"Sure."
"Let Feng Yu choose for himself." Big Senior Brother said without objection.
But just a Gold Mark test-taker couldn't compare to the camaraderie between them as senior brothers.
Seeing this, the other Peak Masters on the field didn't find it strange either. Just Gold Mark test-takers, batches of them appeared every fifteen years, which wasn't a big deal at all.
All the evolvers who passed the Seven Star Cave test were teleported to a square.
Time passed.
In the blink of an eye, the Seven Star Cave test ended.
At this moment, there were only thousands of test-takers standing on the square.
From the initial one and a half million to now only thousands, probably only one in a thousand passed.
And now, these thousands of test-takers were standing there nervously.
Because what was coming next would be the moment that determined their fate.
All the scenes of passing through the seven star caves were in the eyes of the thirteen Peak Masters.
Based on their performances, the thirteen Peak Masters would select a group of people from among them to join their ranks.
For everyone present, this was an opportunity like a carp leaping over the dragon gate.
Being able to directly join under a Peak Master, one could gain a decent position within the Red Kun lineage.
Fang Qing's figure appeared on the square.
"The three test-takers that the Peak Master wants to accept..."
As the current 'steward' of the thirteenth peak, Fang Qing was specially responsible for many matters on the thirteenth peak.
After Lin Yuan informed the names of the evolvers who had passed the Seven Star Cave test, it was up to him to inform them.
"The first one, Silver Mark test-taker Wu Lan."
Fang Qing walked up to a nervous-looking girl and said gently:
"The thirteenth Peak Master invites you to join the Thirteenth Peak. If you're willing, you'll enter the thirteenth gate later."
After Fang Qing finished speaking, he pointed to the thirteenth gate in the distance, which belonged to the thirteenth Peak Master.
"I...I'm willing."
Wu Lan's mind went blank for a moment. After reacting, she hurriedly said excitedly.
Oh my god.
She was actually chosen by the thirteenth Peak Master.
As a Silver Mark test-taker, the probability of being chosen by a Peak Master was very low, let alone by the thirteenth Peak Master, who was famous throughout the Red Kun Star Domain and even the Star Alliance?
Before participating in this arena battle, Wu Lan was already a fan of the thirteenth Peak Master. She didn't expect to be able to join the Thirteen Peaks at this moment.
Wu Lan felt a bit dizzy from the sudden benefits falling from the sky.
The other test-takers around looked at Wu Lan with envy.
But they could only envy. Who the Peak Masters chose was the Peak Masters' business.
After informing Wu Lan, Fang Qing went to the next test-taker, Feng Yu.
"Do the Peak Master also want me to join?"
Feng Yu, a handsome young man, hesitated when he heard Fang Qing's words.
"Not bad."
"If you agree, you can walk into the thirteenth gate later."
After Fang Qing finished speaking, he turned and walked away, heading towards the last test-taker.
"Thirteenth Peak Master."
Feng Yu had naturally heard of the Thirteenth Peak Master. He was an extraordinary genius in the Red Kun Star Domain, reaching the Seventh Rank before reaching a hundred years old, which was simply abnormal.
At the same time, the Thirteenth Peak Master was also the only disciple accepted by the Red Kun Star Domain's master in the past ten thousand years.
In theory, Feng Yu should be ecstatic to accept the invitation of the Thirteenth Peak Master.
However, before this, the Grand Peak Master had also sent someone to invite him.
This made Feng Yu hesitate a bit.
Although the Grand Peak Master's talent was not as good as the Thirteenth Peak Master's.
But not long ago, he reached the Eighth Rank. Even if the Thirteenth Peak Master's talent was stronger, who knew how long it would take to go from the Seventh Rank to the Eighth Rank?
"Thirteenth Peak Master is indeed a top genius, but he's too young. How could he know how to teach disciples?"
Feng Yu thought to himself:
"And the Thirteenth Peak Master is only inviting me to become an outer member of the Thirteenth Peak, while the Grand Peak Master, as long as I join the First Peak, I'll directly become an inner member. It's only a matter of time before I become a core member."
After thinking it over, Feng Yu ultimately decided to choose the Grand Peak Master.
After all, one was at the Eighth Rank, and the other at the Seventh.
Most importantly, the Grand Peak Master had experienced so many years and had deeply understood the true teachings of the Red Kun Star Domain's master. In terms of guiding disciples, he must be far superior to the Thirteenth Peak Master.
Among the Crimson Mark test-takers.
Mo Li sat cross-legged, as one of the thirteen Crimson Marks, Mo Li could be said to be one hundred percent valued by the Peak Masters.
At this moment, Mo Li was pondering who would invite him.
Compared to Feng Yu, Mo Li's background was much bigger, and he had a precise analysis of each Peak Master.
"Thirteenth Peak Master wants you." Fang Qing walked up to Mo Li.
"Thirteenth Peak Master is inviting me?" Mo Li's eyes lit up, and he was immediately filled with joy.
He came from a Seventh Rank force in the Star Alliance. This time, he came to participate in the arena battle specifically to join the Red Kun lineage.
After analyzing it with the elders in his force, they believed that it would be best for him to become a disciple of the Thirteenth Peak Master among the Red Kun lineage.
Although the Grand Peak Master had reached the Eighth Rank first, with the Thirteenth Peak Master's talent, reaching the Eighth Rank was only a matter of time.
Moreover, the Thirteenth Peak Master was favored by the Red Kun Star Domain's master and might become the second master of the Red Kun Star Domain in the future, an unbeatable existence at the Eighth Rank.
So.
The earlier he joined under the Thirteenth Peak Master, the more benefits he would receive. This was a great opportunity.
As the invitations from various Peak Masters' 'stewards' were completed.
The test-takers began to walk towards the distant thirteen gates.
From the first gate to the thirteenth gate, each gate represented the first to thirteenth Peak Master of the Red Kun lineage.
Swish swish swish.
After all the test-takers entered the gates, they were teleported to a pavilion.
"You didn't choose the Thirteenth Peak Master?"
Mo Li's mind was pleased. Being under the Thirteenth Peak Master, he only felt that his future was bright.
However, when he saw the number '1' engraved on Feng Yu's sleeve, he immediately felt something was off.
The number on the sleeve represented the test-taker's choice. Mo Li's sleeve was engraved with 'Thirteen'.
But Mo Li remembered that Fang Qing, the steward of the Thirteen Peaks, had invited Feng Yu. Why did he not join the Thirteen Peaks?
"Lord Mo Li."
When Feng Yu saw the Crimson Mark test-taker asking him, he immediately respectfully said:
"I chose the Grand Peak Master."
"Choosing the Grand Peak Master over the Thirteenth Peak Master."
Mo Li looked at Feng Yu with some surprise, then turned and left.
In his heart, he couldn't help but comment:
"Stupid!"
...
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