To select the right candidate, during the New Year holiday in Shuishui City, Li Zhanying returned to the royal capital and holed up in his Yu Hua Palace, carefully combing through the family genealogy to make his choice.
"What? Ancestor, I'm also going to take the Heart Trial?"
In Yu Hua Palace, Li Zhouxuan looked at the list handed to him by his ancestor, and his feelings could no longer be described as mere surprise.
How could it be him? How could he be on this list?
His ancestor must want him to pass the Heart Trial, not just to make up the numbers, right?
But what if he actually passed? Would that mean giving up being the emperor?
Although cultivation was undoubtedly better than ruling as emperor, it wasn't like he hadn't tried cultivating before.
From the age of three, his elders had steered him toward cultivation, continuing until he was twelve. But when they realized he lacked talent, they started grooming him for the throne instead. Even then, he didn't give up on cultivation entirely, still meditating several hours during his free time to consolidate his meager progress.
But even after all these years, he was still stuck at the first level of Qi Refinement!
Sitting at the head of the room, Li Zhanying stroked his long beard and gently said, "In our Li family, if we talk about heart and character rather than cultivation level, I believe in you the most. You've been sharp and thoughtful since childhood, but you've had bad luck in cultivation... If you can pass the Heart Trial this time, then that will be your fate. What's an earthly throne compared to that?"
Upon hearing this, Li Zhouxuan fell silent.
His ancestor was right. The throne of Pusi Kingdom was not irreplaceable. For the Li family, a change in emperor wouldn't make much difference.
The country had been stable for a thousand years, and there were established guidelines for small matters, with elders available for counsel on major decisions.
Besides, Li Zhouxuan wasn't dying; he would only be going to Lingxian Sect for cultivation. If the new emperor faced any challenges, a message sent through a transmission talisman or even a brief return visit could resolve any issues.
Hadn't Mo Yuanjiao, that kid who joined Lingxian Sect, been regularly visiting the capital without any restrictions?
Clearly, Lingxian Sect didn't mind such things.
As long as he trained diligently and fulfilled his sect duties, it wouldn't be hard to occasionally return to the capital to advise the new ruler.
Although Li Zhouxuan hadn't even seen what the Heart Trial looked like, he had already arranged everything in his mind for what he would do after joining Lingxian Sect.
If he didn't pass, so be it. But if he did, he would have a clear plan for how to proceed.
Li Zhanying observed the changes in Li Zhouxuan's expression and knew the young man had already made his decision.
Sure enough, in the next moment, Li Zhouxuan looked up with determination in his eyes and said, "Ancestor, I will not disappoint you. I'll do my best to pass the Heart Trial!"
Among the list of Li family members that Li Zhanying had chosen to take the Heart Trial, only Li Zhouxuan's candidacy required any discussion. The rest were notified directly.
Now that Li Zhouxuan had agreed, Li Zhanying wasted no time, gathering his chosen disciples and swiftly heading to Lingxian Sect to meet with Liu Yunan.
On the fourth day of the New Year, while Shuishui City was still immersed in a festive atmosphere, the mountain base of Lingxian Sect had already activated its protective array, blocking both sight and spiritual senses. Outsiders were prevented from entering to avoid residents or others from accidentally stumbling in or spying.
When Liu Yunan saw that Li Zhanying had only brought five people, he was quite surprised.
He had thought that the Li family might bring a whole group, following the principle of "the more, the better."
What if none of the five passed? Would they have to return and find more candidates, delaying things and risking not being ready for work to resume on the seventh day?
Moreover, Liu Yunan glanced curiously at one of the five people standing quietly nearby.
Why did this person look so familiar?
Uncertain, he took another look.
Wait, isn't this Li Zhouxuan, the current emperor of Pusi Kingdom? He's here to take the Heart Trial? Seriously?
If he passed, would he give up being emperor?
Or could it be a twin brother?
Liu Yunan was puzzled, but this was a matter for the Li family. He was more concerned about whether five candidates would be enough and whether they would all pass the Heart Trial, so he hesitated before asking Li Zhanying, "Senior Li, are these five all the candidates? Would you like to bring more, just in case?"
Li Zhanying smiled and shook his head, pointing to the five young people waiting beside him.
"These five are the most resilient and virtuous members of our Li family. If they cannot pass the Heart Trial, then perhaps our Li family is simply not fated to join your sect, and we will not force it."
Hearing this, Liu Yunan could only nod in agreement, then added, "If more than one of these five passes the Heart Trial, and your family is willing, they are all welcome to join our sect."
Li Zhanying smiled and nodded, "Thank you for your kindness."
Of the five, there were four men and one woman, but noticeably absent was Li Zeyuan, the Li family's Golden Core cultivator.
It wasn't that Li Zhanying was reluctant to let him go; rather, after careful consideration, he had concluded that Li Zeyuan's temperament and management abilities were not ideal. His success in reaching the Golden Core stage was largely due to his single spiritual root talent.
Li Zhanying had put careful thought into selecting these candidates.
Lingxian Sect had made it clear that those taking the Heart Trial needed to possess resilience and strong character.
But how do you define resilience? How do you define good character? These qualities can vary depending on perspective.
After all, aside from a few truly vile or exceptionally noble people, most individuals believe themselves to be good. But this kind of self-perceived "goodness" is subjective and varies from person to person.
Therefore, while considering his choices, Li Zhanying also referenced successful examples.
This gave the Li family a slight advantage over other sects and royal families who were trying to get their own candidates into Lingxian Sect.
After all, Lingxian Sect already had two disciples who had grown up under the shadow of the Pusi Kingdom's royal capital.
Mo Yuanjiao and Xuanyuan Haoyue.
Mo Yuanjiao had passed the Heart Trial years ago and, according to reports, had done so remarkably quickly.
Xuanyuan Haoyue's trial was affected by some unforeseen events, so there was no clear distinction in timing among the candidates from that round. However, her subsequent outstanding performance in both cultivation and handling matters within the sect proved that she very much met the standards Lingxian Sect had set.
Although Li Zhanying didn't know Mo Yuanjiao and Xuanyuan Haoyue particularly well, as the Li family's patriarch in the royal capital, it was quite easy for him to gather information on these two youths with ties to the royal family.
He had learned about their lives and how they conducted themselves over the past ten years, and from that, he could gauge their character.
Thus, the five candidates he brought with him had been carefully selected, using Mo Yuanjiao and Xuanyuan Haoyue as reference points and matching them against their own individual strengths.