Seven days after the founding of the Mortal Sect—
A forest outside the imperial city, long ignored and overgrown, was quietly enclosed.
There were no formations.No restrictions.No hidden killing arrays.
Only a single wooden sign stood at the entrance.
Trial ForestLife and death are your own responsibility.Do not force it. You may withdraw at any time.
The first group to enter—
Thirteen people in total.
Shen Yan was among them.
He wasn't the strongest.He didn't have the densest spiritual energy.
But he walked the steadiest.
Su Wan stood outside the forest.
On her phone, thirteen glowing points flickered on the screen.
She gave no instructions.
She only watched.
"This time," she said softly to Xiao Xuanyin,"we don't intervene."
Xiao Xuanyin nodded."Let's see how they choose. How they deal with it themselves."
Inside the forest—
The first one to run into trouble was a middle-aged man.
A blacksmith.
His body was strong, his strength impressive.
But his breathing was chaotic.
The moment spiritual energy surged—
It scattered.
His face went pale, and he collapsed onto the ground.
"I'm done…" he muttered in panic."Am I… ruined?"
There was no lightning.No backlash.No punishment from heaven.
The spiritual energy simply dispersed.
The forest remained quiet.
The man froze.
He looked down at his hands.
They still moved.He was still breathing.
Still alive.
At that moment—
Someone approached him.
Not a powerful cultivator.
It was the inner-palace guide—the same quiet attendant from before.
She crouched down beside him.
She didn't lecture.Didn't scold.
She simply sat with him.
"You're not suited for this kind of cultivation," she said gently."But that doesn't mean you're lacking."
The man opened his mouth—
And suddenly his eyes reddened.
Outside the forest—
A court official whispered,"In an immortal sect, he would've been expelled. Possibly crippled."
Xiao Xuanyin replied calmly,"Which is why we are not an immortal sect."
Deep within the forest—
Shen Yan stopped.
The small spirit beast beside him suddenly growled.
Ahead, shadows shifted among the trees.
A figure stepped out.
Not a demon.
A human.
But his spiritual energy was twisted.
Bones bulged unnaturally.His eyes were hollow.
He looked like someone whose body had been torn apart by power he couldn't bear.
"A… monster…" someone whispered in fear.
Shen Yan didn't retreat.
He asked only one question.
"Do you remember who you are?"
The figure froze.
From his throat came a broken, rasping sound.
"…Zhao… San…"
Outside the forest—
Su Wan's phone vibrated violently.
[Mutated Cultivator Detected][Status: Not Fully Lost][Recommended Response: Stabilize, Not Eliminate]
She looked up instantly.
"Xiao Xuanyin," she said sharply."Don't let them attack."
Inside the forest—
Shen Yan had already sheathed his blade.
He walked forward slowly.
No hostility.No threat.
He sat down.
And deliberately slowed his breathing.
Very slow.
The "monster's" movements began to slow as well.
The warped spiritual energy started to recede.
Not healed.
Just… stopped.
Half an hour later—
The man collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
Asleep.
Alive.
Outside the forest—
Everyone saw it.
Silence fell like a weight.
Someone whispered,"Then… does he still count as a cultivator?"
Su Wan answered.
Her voice wasn't loud—but it was unmistakably clear.
"He does. He just took a wrong step."
Her phone chimed again.
[World Will Confirmed][Rule Updated: Failure ≠ Erasure][Mortal Cultivation System Stability: +30%]
The trial ended.
Out of thirteen—
Six successfully entered the sect.Five chose to withdraw.Two failed—but retained future eligibility.
Zero deaths.
Shen Yan became the first name recorded in the sect's history.
Not because he was the strongest.
But because he chose not to kill.
Because he chose restraint.
Because he chose mercy.
That night—
Xiao Xuanyin stood before the sect's wooden plaque.
After a long silence, he spoke.
"They'll hate us for this."
Su Wan nodded.
"The Immortal Realm will," she said calmly."Because we proved something."
"That their cruelty… was never inevitable."
High above—
In the deepest reaches of the sky—
A faint consciousness descended.
Not an attack.
An observation.
Somewhere in the Immortal Realm—
A young man slowly opened his eyes.
He stared at the star map and laughed softly.
"Interesting."
"No ascension. And yet… Dao is still possible?"
"Then I suppose—"
"I'll have to go down and see for myself."
And far below—
In that quiet forest—
A new path had just survived its first failure.