Chapter 678: Innate Divine Power

“Jiang Hong, you’re finally back. What took you so long?”

Just as the lead youth reached the intersection ahead, another youth stepped out and complained, “It’s so late! You took far too long, didn’t you?”

“You think I wanted to? They walk way too slowly. If I went any faster, they would’ve gotten lost long ago,” Jiang Hong retorted, dissatisfied. “If you think it’s too slow, you can go yourself the next time we need to recruit people!”

“No, no, I hate this kind of stuff. These people are sluggish, just way too slow.” Jiang Yi glanced over, immediately seeing how many people there were. “Fifty-seven in total. You picked quite a few!”

“It’s alright. We’re just picking some people for odd jobs anyway. As long as they don’t look too unpleasant, it’s fine.” Jiang Hong couldn’t care less about the total number. It was obvious this detail was beneath his notice.

“True. But fifty-seven is a bit much. It seems we only need fifteen at most, and you brought back fifty-seven…” Jiang Yi shook his head.

Jiang Hong’s expression immediately fell. “Are you saying that after we pick fifteen, I have to take the rest of them back?”

“That’s right. Nothing to be done about it; it’s your job. You can’t just abandon them here, can you?” Jiang Yi said helplessly. “The message just came down. How was I supposed to know this would happen?”

“This is such a screw-job! They should’ve told us earlier! I wouldn’t have brought so many people back…” Jiang Hong was extremely disgruntled. He had to take people back? How could he not be annoyed?

When the others heard this, their hearts sank. They had traveled over mountains and rivers to get here, only to be told that most of them would be sent back. Wasn’t this a bit of a raw deal?

“Everyone, please be patient. For those who fail and have to return, we will provide some compensation. You don’t need to worry.” Of course, Jiang Yi wasn’t going to let them make the trip for nothing; they would still be given some form of compensation.

However, everyone was still dissatisfied. Even if the compensation was decent, it certainly couldn’t compare to the opportunity of staying with a major power.

But at this point, all they could do was follow the rules.

“We’re keeping all the women. We only need three of the men, not too many,” Jiang Yi added.

At this, the expressions of many of the men darkened. The men were the majority here, so the selection would undoubtedly be from among them. Since all twelve women were being kept, that meant only three spots were left for the men.

This was truly cruel. A classic case of gender inequality! How was this still selecting people for odd jobs? It was basically just picking maids.

“There’s a stone here. All of you, come try one by one. Anyone who can’t lift it is eliminated!” Jiang Yi didn’t waste any words, gesturing for them to lift the huge boulder to the side. It weighed at least five hundred jin, which was no easy feat.

Although they felt helpless, they could only go up and try to lift it one by one. Some could move it, some couldn’t. As for Yi Tianyun, it goes without saying that he lifted it with ease. However, he pretended it wasn’t easy; he still had to keep up appearances.

After lifting it, he felt a bit emotional. ‘It feels like I’m back in the trials of the past. I’ve already broken through to the Saint King level, yet here I am, taking a test. And the content is so ridiculously simple, no one would believe it if I told them.’

‘I just want to infiltrate from the very bottom and see how Shi Xueyun is doing. It would be even better if I could give her a surprise. Just thinking about it is making me a little excited.’

Wu also passed without any issues. Otherwise, being so well-built would have been for nothing.

“Didn’t see that coming! You’re pretty strong!” Wu nudged Yi Tianyun and said admiringly, “I thought you were gonna fail. If you had, that would’ve been a real shame. Then I’d have no one to talk to.”

“Does no one talk to you back home?” Yi Tianyun asked with a faint smile.

“Yeah. Everyone says I’m too dumb, that I can’t learn anything. Besides being a bit strong, I don’t have any other skills,” Wu said, scratching his head and letting out an honest, simple-minded laugh.

“Being a bit strong is a skill in itself,” Yi Tianyun said, looking at him meaningfully. ‘If he weren’t a bit older, he would definitely be a talent worth cultivating.’

It wasn’t that his talent was astonishing, but rather that he was exceptionally gifted with strength. He possessed a special Bloodline Power within his body. The Eye of Investigation identified it as the Power God Bloodline, a bloodline of immense power. However, it was so thin in him that it was practically non-existent.

If his cultivation level were to increase, it was truly possible that the Bloodline could be further awakened. At that time, his strength would definitely be several times greater than his peers at the same stage. This was the terrifying aspect of Bloodline Power.

Wu’s ancestor was likely a Saint King level expert. It was just a pity that by his generation, the family had declined and was no different from an ordinary household.

“There are still more than ten people left. Alright, continue by lifting this stone!” Jiang Yi once more pointed at the huge boulder nearby. It was nine hundred jin, almost double the weight.

Soon, they took turns going up to lift it. This time, even more were eliminated. One after another, they ended in failure. Not a single person could move it.

When it was his turn, he lifted it with a light heave, though he made it look like he used some effort.

“You can even lift this? Not bad, not bad.” Jiang Yi looked at Yi Tianyun and nodded. “Good strength. It seems your cultivation isn’t low. You must be at least at the sixth or seventh level of the Body Refining Stage, right?”

“More or less,” Yi Tianyun said with a calm smile, then stepped back to the side.

The others looked over, their eyes filled with jealousy, but that was all. What could they do when they were simply not as skilled?

Then it was Wu’s turn. Wu walked up to the boulder, wrapped his arms around it, and tried to hoist it up with a sudden burst of force. The entire boulder moved, but it sank back down just as he lifted it a little.

“Failure.” Jiang Yi shook his head. Just as he thought Wu couldn’t lift it, Wu let out a loud roar, his face turning bright red.

A surging Blood Qi erupted from his entire body, making him seem as if he had grown a size larger.

“Get up!” Wu roared, and actually managed to forcibly hoist the massive boulder! The others watched, dumbfounded. This was basically innate divine strength!

Watching from the side, Yi Tianyun’s eyes lit up. ‘Wu obviously just used his Power God Bloodline. It allowed his second-level Body Refining Stage cultivation to erupt with power that even someone at the fifth or sixth level couldn’t match. That’s absolutely terrifying.’

“Good kid! Innate divine strength!” Jiang Yi praised.

“Hmph, what’s the use? No matter how strong those two are, they’re still just here for odd jobs. At their age, do they still have any future in cultivation?” the nearby Jiang Hong sneered. His gaze toward Yi Tianyun and Wu was filled with contempt. From the very beginning, he had looked down on this group of people. No matter how well they performed, they had already missed the optimal age for cultivation.

Jiang Yi shook his head. The words were crude, but the reasoning wasn’t wrong. That was indeed the case. No one would waste resources on them; it would be too much of a waste.