The Mount Tai Trials Academy was built with a single goal in mind—to gather elites on behalf of the government. These elites were selected from the Aurora Academy's branches across the five supercities. Anyone talented enough could enter and receive resources and guidance.

Zhu Qingyu, Chunyang, and others had all started out as members of the Trials Academy. With the founding of the Celestial Court, the Academy had taken on a new role as its reserve pipeline.

Completing the trials of the Trials Academy gave one a chance to enter the Celestial Court. Students and outsiders alike were eligible, but the number of people who actually made it in was astoundingly small.

Not long ago, word had come down that thirty-six individuals would be chosen to enter the Celestial Court. Their strength could be lacking, but their potential had to be good enough. Of course, the orders were from King Lu himself.

Many students rushed to sign up. After several days of screening, just over three thousand qualified for the next round of trials, and they would be overseen directly by Elder Ji, Zhu Qingyu, and the others.

Naturally, the competition grew fiercer day by day. Every day, a large number of students were eliminated. They threw everything they had into lasting as long as possible.

Today, the trials continued as usual in the Trials Academy's main plaza. Nine hundred candidates were competing for one hundred spots. In other words, for every nine of them, eight would be eliminated. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

All the students were incredibly nervous; the competition was just too brutal.

"Chen Song, I heard that back in the old days, you were King Lu's classmate in university. Why don't you just go to the higher-ups and tell them that you have some connections with King Lu?" said a student with a grin to another student.

The young man next to him looked a bit shy and had an ordinary appearance. He was none other than Chen Song. He had listened to Lu Yuan's advice back then and returned to his hometown, where he had found some spiritual fruits and exotic herbs. He cured his father's illness and became an Awakened himself.

Eventually, he reached the Unfettered Realm and worked his way into both the Aurora Academy and the Trials Academy. Of course, even in the new era, Chen Song remained as ordinary as ever.

He froze at his classmate's words and then shook his head. "T-that wouldn't be appropriate, would it?"

"What's wrong with it? With your strength, the fact that you've made it this far is already a stretch. Today's trial will probably knock you out," another student chimed in. "Unless... you and King Lu were never actually classmates?"

The others turned to look at him, their expressions skeptical. King Lu's classmates were not exactly well known, and the most famous one was the Zhou Family's eldest daughter, Zhou Yunqiong.

Chen Song's connection to Lu Yuan was discovered by accident. At first, everyone was fascinated, peppering him with questions and asking him to reach out on their behalf. They all wanted a chance to get close to the invincible King Lu.

However, the humble and honest Chen Song refused to entertain them. Eventually, his fellow students at the Trials Academy began to doubt if the connection was even real.

"I-I..." Chen Song did not know what to say, and his face flushed with embarrassment. He did have a connection to Lu Yuan, but it was not a close one. They had not spent much time together. Under those circumstances, he had no desire to make use of the other man's name for personal gain.

Hence, he did not bother defending himself against his classmates' doubts. In his heart, the gap between himself and Lu Yuan was simply too vast. In this new era, it was like comparing a mortal to a god.

Before long, Chen Song steadied himself. If he could make it to the end, he would keep going. If not, that'd be fine, too. He would continue evolving anyway.

Soon, the trials resumed. It was straightforward enough. The trials consisted of combat, tests of raw strength, and willpower. The bloodline requirements were not particularly strict. As long as their bloodline was good enough, it was fine.

On an elevated platform, Zhu Qingyu and Ice Fairy watched over the proceedings. Elder Ji and the other top officials sat behind them. King Lu would make use of the survivors of the trials, so the trials demanded their full attention.

"Everyone who's made it this far is honestly quite impressive. It's a shame we only need thirty-six." Ice Fairy looked out at the students on the field and sighed. She knew that the reason she was in this current position wasn't that she was particularly gifted. It was all because she had gotten a head start.

Zhu Qingyu nodded at the remark but said nothing. There was no helping it. Since Lu Yuan had said thirty-six, they would only recruit thirty-six.

Cruel, but it was the reality. The beings from the Outer Cosmos would also be cruel upon their descent. Strength was everything, and the Celestial Court would stand at the forefront of the battles against those invaders. Hence, it had to be formidable enough to do so.

As time went on, more and more candidates were eliminated. Midway through the testing, Elder Ji and the officials who had been sitting calmly on the platform suddenly rose to their feet.

The students all turned to look in the same direction, and their eyes burned with excitement. Some could not even stop themselves from trembling, and every face showed deep, unconcealed reverence. It was the kind of expression that appeared only in the presence of a true powerhouse and someone they genuinely respected.

Lu Yuan was here, and he was calmly walking toward them. He had spent the past few days in seclusion, but the gains had been modest. He had decided to simply step out for a walk, and since the trials for his Thirty-Six Celestial Generals happened to be underway, he decided to come here and take a look.

"King Lu." Elder Ji and the others greeted him at once. "A few more days, and we should be done with the trials."

"Good. Thank you for the hard work." Lu Yuan smiled and gestured for the selection to continue. He watched for a while before turning around to leave. He planned to visit the Jade Emperor Peak to see the Golden-Winged Great Peng, as he had matters to discuss with it.

Just as he was about to leave, he spotted a familiar face among the crowd.

His classmate, Chen Song. This alone would not have meant much, but at the time, he had paid five hundred thousand to buy that cauldron from Chen Song.

The small bronze cauldron had played a critical role in his path of evolution. Without it, he couldn't have entered the Mausoleum at Mount Li or reached Shennong's Altar.

Lu Yuan originally planned to seek Chen Song out once things had stabilized and offer his help if it was needed. He had not expected to run into him at the Trials Academy.

This karmic debt... it's time to pay it off.

"King Lu, that's your classmate, isn't it?" Elder Ji noticed where Lu Yuan's gaze had landed. "We were aware of the connection, which is why he was specially recruited into the Trials Academy back then. Shall we place him directly among the thirty-six?"

After Lu Yuan's rise to prominence, the officials paid close attention to every detail of his background, so they knew about his relationships with other people.

"No need. A trial ought to be fair," replied Lu Yuan, shaking his head. Direct interference would not be appropriate. He could handle this another way. He leaned in and whispered a few words to Elder Ji. Then, he turned around and walked away.

Elder Ji made his way over to Zhu Qingyu and passed along the message.

Zhu Qingyu nodded. She stepped to the front and stopped the trials. The students were confused. Had King Lu left additional instructions for them?

"Chen Song, I think King Lu noticed you and has decided to let you pass directly," someone said.

The others glanced over with amused smiles. Of course, none of them took it seriously, believing it to be just a joke.

Chen Song said nothing, but disappointment stirred in his chest. This was the closest he had ever been to Lu Yuan.

Right then, Zhu Qingyu calmly said, "Will the person named Chen Song step forward, please? King Lu has just said that you are to enter the Celestial Court directly, outside the thirty-six slots. He also wishes to speak with you privately."