In the blink of an eye, it was already the 1st of February and the day of the trials. People from all across the world were impatiently and excitedly waiting for the arrival of the cultivator which would open the new world they have been dreaming about for the past half a year.

Those with strong confidence in themselves have already put everything in order with their businesses, their family, and friends, as well as mentally prepared themselves for the journey they were about to undertake. People of all ages, genders, and beliefs were staring between their clocks and the skies, hoping to be the first among everyone here to participate in the trial, the first to distinguish themselves from the masses in the eyes of the powerful cultivators.

There was another person quietly waiting on his balcony in the small and previously quiet city, somewhere in Europe. Herman was enjoying his lunch, seemingly unaware of the bustling world outside his walls. Upon finishing everything on his plate, he walked back inside the kitchen, washed it clean, took his coffee mug, and sat on the chair facing the TV.

The news was the same, no matter which channel one was checking out: the preparations for the trials of the Immortal World. There were even some interviews that positively surprised Herman, where people who listened to his advice decided not to participate this time around and hold on for six more months, all to increase the quality of their Spiritual Roots to the max.

Of course, others didn't take the intel given out in the tutorial seriously and believed that the 'benefactor' was trying to stop others from participating so that he would get a headstart. Upon hearing that, Herman smiled and shook his head. It was both true and not true.

"The reason why I encouraged them to first make sure they have Superior Spiritual Roots is because of the conversion. Once one passes the trial and is recognized as being at the Qi Gathering Realm, the Absorption in their attribute panel gets automatically converted to superior quality one. However, if one has even Advanced Spiritual Roots, upon conversion they would only have 5-10 points in Absorption, instantly falling behind the others. It's much better to wait a while and properly secure your foundations. But, it's true that having less competition, especially the crappy one, is within my expectations as well."

Even with all the negative points for waiting half a year, the main reason behind it is a good thing was, cementing of one's foundations without having to use marrow cleansing pills or other treasures once in the Immortal World. More simply put, the casting of one's Spiritual Roots can be compared to the foundation of a building. Irrelevant of the materials used to build the house, or how many floors it has, if the foundation is weak and shaky, the whole building will collapse sooner or later during winds and storms. Especially later, when the competition between the 361 worlds participating this time around becomes fierce and rivers of blood begin flowing.

A second reason was the difficulty of creating a foothold for earthlings in the Immortal World. Factions and alliances, as well as the territories that belong to them and them only, are impossibly hard to gain and even more so to defend. The enemies one has to face in the Immortal World are not just the participants from the 361 worlds and yes, 361 worlds, as people from Earth will also fight against each other for resources and territory, but they also had to fear the indigenous population of the Immortal World. The locals are fiercer and stronger than the 'players' of this game brought about by that undying old fart Clear Lake. Generations upon generations of geniuses created through bloodbaths and massacres, brought about descendants that at the same cultivation level can easily beat even three to five LinkWill's at once.

Of course, that is only the current LinkWill because once merely one month in the Immortal World passes, the roles will be reversed and not even five geniuses at the same cultivation level would be able to face him without being trashed half an inch away from death.

"It's already 11:50 AM, so in about 10 minutes the fun will commence. My body refinement level should be somewhere around Mortal Flesh III or IV, so the results I'll gain will be significant during these trials. After all, with danger comes opportunity."

Soon after, two large doors appeared in the skies, and through them, six different people stepped into the wide sky looking at the world under them in disdain. One of them was the 'savior' that appeared the first three to four times. Just by looking at his face, one could easily deduce that he wasn't very pleased with the appearance of the other five people around him. From the smug faces they had, they were probably examiners of other worlds that had good results and came here only to gloat at old man Jing's misfortune. In their eyes, Earth was a primordial world among the last on the list of 361 participants and they were most likely expecting to embarrass its examiner by comparing results.

"That whatever-Snake that bullied us is also among them, so I guess he's trying to get a little bit of revenge since he is no longer in the same realm as the old man, meaning that they cannot fight on equal terms anymore. He's probably very frustrated about that matter and tries to calm his Tao heart by knocking the old man down a peg or two."

Again, not daring to speak those words aloud, Herman guessed the identity of the other five members as proctors or better put, judges for the trials. Usually, an examiner would have the option of choosing among his/her proteges, as even Qi Gathering realm cultivators would suffice for the type of participants our world has to offer. Judging from his look reminiscent of someone swallowing a fly whole, he must've been coerced into having the others act the judging part.

[The six months deadline is up, so we will now begin the trials effective immediately. The trials consist of only two assessments...](Jing)

[Hold on old man! Don't you think it's rather impolite not to introduce the judges?](?)

[Hmpf! Besides yours-truly, there will be five other judges assessing your progress. They are also examiners belonging to other worlds that participated in the trials already.](Jing)

[That's kind of a simple introduction. Why don't you also tell them that among the worlds we guided, there are two in the top 150 and three in the top 100 as well? Are you afraid they might crack under pressure? Don't worry old man. You know as well as we do that you could count yourself lucky if you manage to get yourself half a million participants total. Maybe some of them might even have medium quality Spiritual Roots.](?)

[Little Snake, did you forget that I can smack your face so hard, that even your mother won't recognize you anymore? Do you truly believe that I won't beat the crap out of you if you keep spouting nonsense, even if your backer, young master Ling is here?](Jing)

Judging by the tone of his voice, the old man was quite pissed since he was certain that this whole scheme made to embarrass him was concocted by this slippery bastard in the form of retribution for his previous humiliation. However, he couldn't act out against the five of them. While four, including the stupid one doing the trash talk, were all more than two sub-realms under him, the fifth one wasn't someone he could casually touch. As the young master of a renowned clan, he couldn't even act against his lackeys.

After all, one had to first look at the master, before beating the dogs.

[Elder Jing is too serious. We are only here to lend a helping hand, that's all. Even if the world I guided managed to reach 93rd place when it comes to the number of people ascending, as well as the quality of their Spiritual Roots, we aren't here to make things difficult for this small primordial world. Rather, we are here to assist with the recruitment process. I even brought out two of my clan treasures to do so.](Young master Ling)

[Oh!? There is no need for the young master to bother himself with that. We will proceed with the same examining methods that were carried for every participating world.](Jing)

[Don't sweat the small stuff, Elder Jing. I got permission to use the Heaven Ascending Steele and the Warring Drums of my clan from the respectable Clear Lake. Since you boasted about the potential this world has, it's best to give them this opportunity and further refine them in preparation for their entry to the Immortal World.](Young master Ling)

Gnashing his teeth in frustration and clenching his fists until his knuckles became white, cultivator Jing drew in a deep breath to calm himself. Since his old master gave his consent, he couldn't do anything but agree and play along with the idiotic plan these morons came up with. If only he would've been at Half-Immortal realm... he would've loved to slap these dimwits so hard that they would pass through five different void barriers at once!

Unfortunately, his current cultivation level and status wouldn't allow him to do so and he was barred from interfering with Earth in the past couple of months as well for some reason, therefore he was also completely unaware of their progress. He could only hope that they didn't stagnate and who knows, maybe there might even be some geniuses that cast Advanced Spiritual Roots, helping him smack the faces of these young and arrogant youths since he couldn't physically abuse them himself.

Also, the words spoken by the Ling silk-pants master weren't entirely wrong.

[People from Earth that desire to embark on the road of cultivation. An incredible opportunity has presented itself in front of all of you. Young master Ling here has brought to your world two impressive clan treasures that will not only assess your progress but will also provide you a boon in the case of you being able to pass their evaluation. The Heaven Ascending Steele consists of one thousand and one steps and with each step, your body will be bathed with both Primordial Qi and a constantly increasing pressure. The more steps you climb, the more benefits your meridians and physical body gain. The second treasure, the Warring Drums will also test the physical strength of your body, as well as your potential. Upon striking it, several reverberations would pass through one's bones and marrow, cleansing your body further of any impurities and enhancing your potential to unimaginable heights. You should thank young master Ling for such an immense opportunity.](Snake)

[Hmpf! Trying to trick unaware people to their misfortune. Why don't you mention that the pressure from the Steele could also crush one's body and the reverberations from the drums can even burst one's heart if they aren't strong enough to withstand it, Little Snake. Do you truly believe I won't beat you half to death if you keep spouting nonsense!?](Jing)

[Elder Jing, what brother Purple Snake said isn't wrong after all. Where in the Immortal World or the Heavenly Realm does such a pie from the sky fall? One of the main rules of our world is that there is no opportunity without danger present. Even if every person in this small world is a heaven-defying genius, what's the point of cultivating if they are cowards that are too scared to participate even in something as insignificant as the trials we are presenting?](Young master Jing)

Somewhere back on Earth, Herman was listening to their banter with a deadpan expression. He was almost impressed with the shamelessness of this trashy young master and the little snake. To say that the Steele created by a level 6 blacksmith as well the drums are something small and insignificant... these bastards are truly shameless to a new degree.

Thinking of something, Herman smiled and activated a system's feature. He was charged a total of 25 Spirit Jades in return for which he would be able to send a world-wide message, detailing the two treasures to all possible participants having access to the system.

Not even five minutes later while the people in the sky were arguing among themselves, every human on Earth received a warning message containing a lot of details regarding the trials. Usually, such a message would only cost about 10 Spirit Jades, however, adding the option to remain anonymous even to the six cultivators present costed an extra 15.

"People of Earth! As most of you could tell, we are being looked down upon by these five new arrivals and they are instead looking forward to humiliating our small world. While it's true that the trials are difficult and dangerous, they still depend on one's hard work and will. If you trust in me like you did the previous two times you bought and used my tutorials, please move according to my instructions only. First off, I hope that the people who cast inferior quality Spiritual Roots wouldn't participate in the trials this time, as it would decrease the overall ranking of the world. Rather, I would like for you to stay behind and fortify your foundations for the next trials half a year away. Afterward, all those with medium quality Spiritual Roots take note of the following: the maximum number of steps you can climb on the Steele will be between 200-250. Any more and your body might suffer internal injuries or even die because of collapsed organs. For the drums, the number of strikes decides the reverberation's strength. For every five strikes at your full strength, a reverberation would occur that will wash the impurities in your bones and marrows. The maximum for people with Medium Spiritual Roots is five reverberations. Any more and your lungs, hearts, and veins will certainly burst and kill you as result. For those with Advanced Spiritual Roots, the maximum is between 500 to 750 steps and at most 15 reverberations. Do take note of your body's limits and don't just climb the stairs stupidly! Use your breathing and rotate your Spiritual Qi to absorb the Qi the Steele exudes! The same for the drums! If you feel that after a certain number of reverberations you are about to drop dead, don't force yourself to go higher! This is not a movie or a book where you can make an amazing comeback! You will die if you are stubborn! For those with Superior Spiritual Roots, you should walk easily between 750 to 1001 steps and withstand between 25-40 reverberations, depending on the individual. All of you, irrelevant of the quality of the roots you've cast, are the geniuses and hopes of our world. Don't throw your life away for something as useless as pride! I am expecting great things from all of you in the new world!"

The message shook the minds of everyone, sparking a desire to show-off in front of these five retards, and slap their faces with their actions. Some weren't exactly satisfied with the arrangements Herman made, especially those with low-quality Spiritual Roots. However, once LinkWill, Harper, and a few others exerted their authority, that only served to reinforce the directions Herman set for everyone. Envy and LinkWill realized that the sender might've been Herman Roy and weren't very pleased about following his instructions, however, being humiliated wasn't something that a proud son of heaven could stand for.

One the other hand the six people arguing in the skies were taken aback when they noticed that a worldwide message was sent using the system's interface. Not only that, but the anonymous function was used as well alongside with it, shielding their eyes from both the sender and the contents. Therefore, not only were they surprised at seeing someone using such a function to hide the message sent to everyone in this small world except them, but they were also sneering at the idiot who spent 25 Spirit Jades to do so. Even for young master Ling, such expenditure wasn't something he would be willing to part with.

While he might possess enough Spirit Jades that he painstakingly earned, such hard to come by currency, anyone would be a scrooge about it and think at least three times before deciding if to spend it or not.

[To think that there is someone as ignorant as this person in such a small world. He probably barely earned 25-30 Spirit Jades and he used almost all, if not all of it to show off. He would probably rip every strand of hair on his head once he finds out how important this currency is in the Immortal World.](Young master Ling)

With a cold harumph, he mocked Herman, unknown to him that not even his entire clan combined wouldn't possess as many Spirit Jades as this small and insignificant ant has. Old man Jing also had a bitter smile on his face, cursing in his mind at the fact that he forgot to mention the importance of Spirit Jades to everyone in this small world.

Sighing resignedly, he gestured with his sleeves and the two treasures flew in front of him.

[Since everyone is ready, let the trial begin. Those willing to climb the Steele only have to think about it and imagine themselves taking the first step. You shall be brought upon it with just your thoughts. Only those who climb one hundred steps would be allowed to pass to the next trial and receive the bathing of the drum's reverberations.](Jing)

[Elder Jing, I understand that this is the world you are examining and that you wish for many to pass. However, what's the point of trash entering the Immortal World, only to litter our streets?](Ling)

[Young master's meaning is?](Jing)

[We should set the standard higher. Isn't this world of yours full of potential? Then it shouldn't be a problem for such geniuses to climb at least 200 steps now, would it?](Purple Snake)