As Ye Xuan passed through the Dragon Sect, it suddenly opened up before him, and he found himself back on the Martial Arts Square.
In the center of the square, aside from those who had participated in the elite disciple examination before, there stood a group of very conspicuous figures. Their attire was different from that of ordinary Inner Sect disciples, and Gu He, who had just sparred with Ye Xuan, was conspicuously among them.
Besides them, Fei Yue and Leng Wusheng were present, along with two female disciples. From the aura of the latter two, they, too, appeared to be elite Inner Sect disciples.
One of these female disciples had a delicate and ethereal beauty, dressed in a tight-fitting short skirt that caught the eye, while the other was quite obese and her face was covered with freckles, making them a striking contrast of beauty and ordinary.
Ye Xuan even wondered if this exquisite woman had purposely chosen such a companion to make herself look like a celestial beauty descended to earth, dazzling anyone who laid eyes on her.
"Ye Xuan, congratulations on passing this season’s examination. From now on, you are a new member of the Inner Sect elite class."
The beautiful woman smiled at Ye Xuan and then made the announcement.
Hearing this, Ye Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, and immediately looked towards Fei Yue. Becoming an elite Inner Sect disciple within two months—he had achieved that now, hadn’t he?
"Junior Brother Ye, now that you are an elite Inner Sect disciple, do you have any understanding of the power dynamics within the elite class?" asked Ugly Senior Sister as she stepped forward and examined him briefly, twirling her small braid.
"The power within the elite class?"
Ye Xuan hesitated, unaware that there were power struggles within the elite class.
He glanced at Fei Yue, who seemed unsettled by these remarks.
"It seems you are not aware," said the beautiful woman with a gentle smile. "Inner Sect disciples forming factions has become tradition because we, the elite Inner Sect disciples, are the future pillars of our Sect. The least we can become are Inner Sect elders, and it’s wise to join forces early to accomplish great things."
"Junior Sister Xia is right", she said plainly, "This time, we want you to join our organization, the Lily Garden."
Ye Xuan’s face showed a trace of embarrassment, then he felt slightly vexed. Since it was named ’Lily Garden,’ shouldn’t it only recruit female disciples?
"The kind intentions of both Senior Sisters are appreciated," he replied, "but I currently have no plans to join any organization."
Regardless of what Lily Garden was, Ye Xuan had no intention of joining any factions. As a newcomer, he would undoubtedly be manipulated by others as a subordinate in these organizations, which usually had many rules and complicated personal relationships. Having spent a long time in a large sect in his past life, Ye Xuan knew exactly what these organizations were like.
"Ha, Ye Xuan, it’s not surprising that you, as a newcomer, would think this way. But you might not know that once you become an elite Inner Sect disciple, joining an organization is mandatory; otherwise, you will find it very difficult to move forward in the elite class. You should consider it carefully," said Xia Yuchu as her smile faded and her tone became much colder.
Ordinary Inner Sect disciples weren’t forced this way; indeed, they were even screened thoroughly before being allowed to join. But elite Inner Sect disciples were considered the backbone of the Sect, the outstanding future figures. Despite Ye Xuan’s current low level of cultivation, he would undoubtedly be a talent in the future, and it was better to recruit him early rather than let others snatch him away.
"Ye Xuan, joining our Lily Garden would be purely beneficial for you, without a single disadvantage. Consider your decision carefully to avoid any regrets," said Ugly Senior Sister, staring coldly at Ye Xuan.
At her words, Ye Xuan furrowed his brows. The tone of these two women carried a hint of threat, as though he would immediately offend these two women and the Lily Garden behind them if he refused.
"Xia Yuchu, Wang Ruo, stop wasting your breath," Fei Yue suddenly interjected, "This young man has already agreed to join us, the Four Demons. He won’t join your Lily Garden."
Caught in a dilemma, Ye Xuan was startled by Fei Yue’s sudden remark.
After hearing this, Xia Yuchu and Wang Ruo frowned slightly before finally looking towards Ye Xuan and asking, "Is this true?"
"Fei Yue Senior Sister is correct. Although I would like to accept the generous offer from the two Senior Sisters, I have a prior agreement with Senior Sister Fei Yue. Once I passed the elite Inner Sect disciple examination, I would join them, so I’m afraid I cannot accept your kind offer."
Ye Xuan was feeling uneasy about how to wrap things up when Fei Yue spoke those words, there was no doubt she was offering him a way out, and he naturally preferred aligning with the Inner Sect Four Demons over joining something like the Lily Garden.
"Fei Yue, this time the elite disciple assessment is supervised by Senior Sister Wang and me. Now you’ve recruited him, isn’t this against both reason and emotion?"
Xia Yuchu looked somewhat unhappy, after all, it was rare for an Inner Sect elite disciple to emerge, and although Ye Xuan’s cultivation was weak, he still was an Inner Sect elite disciple—one who didn’t appear often each year.
"Well, next time when it’s our turn to oversee the assessment, we can just give you the chance, Lily Garden. I’m taking this young man. If you have any objections, talk to Elder Brother Xue Lingzi."
Fei Yue walked up to Ye Xuan’s side, displaying an extremely domineering posture, pulling Ye Xuan toward her side.
Hearing the term "Elder Brother Xue Lingzi," Xia Yuchu and Wang Ruo both changed their expressions slightly, a hint of wariness flashing in their eyes. Clearly, they harbored some fear for this name inside.
Elder Brother Xue Lingzi was indeed the leader of the Inner Sect Four Demons and one of the very ruthless characters among the elite students. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be possible for just four of them to occupy such a prime cultivation spot as the Spirit Frost Hall.
"Alright then, a lady does not compete for what others love, since you had an agreement beforehand, let it be. Fei Yue, this time I’ll give face to your Four Demons."
Xia Yuchu just glanced at Ye Xuan, then turned and left, "Senior Sister Wang, let’s go."
As the two women left, some other Inner Sect disciples who had been surrounding the area also dispersed one after another.
"What’s with this Lily Garden, do they have a strong influence within the Inner Sect?"
Ye Xuan watched the two women walking away and couldn’t help being surprised; it was just mentioned that once someone becomes an Inner Sect elite disciple, they must join a certain faction, otherwise they would hardly be able to move an inch.
"Indeed, as they said, each Inner Sect elite disciple belongs to their own factions, forming alliances is traditional. However, even though Lily Garden is not weak, it isn’t top-tier. The two most powerful organizations in the Inner Sect are the Crown Prince Party and the Gentleman Sect." Fei Yue explained softly.
"The Crown Prince Party? Gentleman Sect?"
Ye Xuan was stunned again, he hadn’t known about these two factions since he joined.
"Both organizations are no simple matter." A rare seriousness appeared on the stunning face of Fei Yue, "The members of the Crown Prince Party mainly consist of the higher-ups of Xuantian Sect and the Elders’ descendants. They are distinguished, exceptionally talented, and have grown up cultivating within Xuantian Sect, receiving the best treatment; thus the Crown Prince Party is very powerful. As for the Gentleman Sect, its members mainly come from martial arts noble families in the Yunlan Domain, with no shortage of exceptional talents. Although their reputation might be slightly lesser than the Crown Prince Party, their overall strength is not far behind."
"Under the Crown Prince Party and Gentleman Sect are organizations like Lily Garden and Incense Burning Society. Their influence may be strong, but compared to the previous two, it is still quite far off."
Fei Yue patiently introduced to Ye Xuan.
"So it seems, the power of the Crown Prince Party and Gentleman Sect should not be underestimated." Ye Xuan finally had a better understanding of the situation within Xuantian Sect’s Inner Sect, indeed the Inner Sect elite class was the core of power for Xuantian Sect disciples, enjoying the most concentrated resources and full of talents, naturally proud and arrogant, unwilling to yield to others, even just among Inner Sect disciples, the competition was this fierce.
However, this also to an extent reflected Xuantian Sect’s sect ethos, after all, if the higher-ups’ struggle was intense, then among the disciples, it wouldn’t be much better.
"Why did Senior Sister Fei Yue offer to help me out?" Ye Xuan turned to look at Fei Yue beside him, he was also somewhat surprised, she could have just ignored it, not needing to aid him.
"Help you out? Should I just watch you join Lily Garden?"
Fei Yue turned her face aside, then stepped closer to Ye Xuan until she was very near, even allowing Ye Xuan to smell her body scent.
"Now that you’ve passed the Inner Sect elite disciple assessment, you qualify to reside in the Spirit Frost Pavilion and join our Inner Sect Four Demons. Would you have me break my promise?" Fei Yue approached Ye Xuan without feeling awkward, her beautiful face getting closer.
However, Ye Xuan didn’t retreat at all, he merely leaned back a bit, his expression unchanged, "Of course not, but aren’t you afraid of offending the people from Lily Garden, Senior Sister Fei Yue?"
"What’s there to be afraid of?"
Fei Yue dismissed it casually, "Even people from the Crown Prince Party and Gentleman Sect wouldn’t dare to provoke us casually. Even if the people from Lily Garden are upset, they wouldn’t dare to trouble us."
Although the Inner Sect Four Demons were fewer and seemed weaker, their leader, Elder Brother Xue Lingzi’s strength was enough to rank him among the top three in the Inner Sect elite disciples, even the faction leaders of the Crown Prince Party and Gentleman Sect weren’t sure of defeating him, so Fei Yue was not the least worried that people from Lily Garden would make trouble over this matter.
Even Fei Yue’s own strength was sufficient to rank in the top ten of the Inner Sect, their Inner Sect Four Demons were able to dominate not by numbers, but by strength.