Heavenly Master: Anti-superstition and pry into my Dragon-Tiger Demon-Conquering Hall, right?

Maoshan, martial arts field.

At this moment, the viewing seats were full. Representatives from various sects and disciples were sitting upright with solemn expressions.

On the martial arts stage in the center of the martial arts arena, as Patriarch Sanmao announced the formal start of the competition, the red-robed Taoist priest who was responsible for presiding over the competition immediately appeared on the stage and said loudly:

"This Maoshan competition is divided into four rounds!"

“Now let’s start the first round—comprehending the Maoshan Hundred Ghosts Picture!”

This statement came out.

Everyone's eyes turned to the left side of the martial arts arena.

There, at this moment, an ancient picture has unfolded.

Maoshan Hundred Ghosts Picture!
  According to legend, this picture was drawn by the founder of the Maoshan sect after he hunted hundreds of ghosts.

On the surface, this picture just shows the terrifying and ferocious appearance of a hundred ghosts.

But there is a mystery hidden in it. In the past, the founder of the Maoshan sect used great magic power and used paintings as tools to set up various illusions and spiritual attacks in the paintings.

There is nothing special about this painting on ordinary days, but once the magic method is used, it can have a great impact on the people who view the painting.

Even if you are a cultivator, if you are not strong-willed, you will not be able to bear the illusion of hundreds of ghosts.

Not to mention ordinary people, just one look at them may make them feel depressed and helpless.

Once upon a time, the Maoshan Hundred Ghost Map was an excellent magic weapon to test the will of the disciples.

As the presiding Taoist Master finished speaking, the expressions of the more than a hundred inner and outer disciples suddenly became condensed, and they all came to sit down cross-legged in front of the Hundred Ghosts Picture.

In every Maoshan competition, both inner and outer disciples can participate. In this regard, Maoshan treats everyone equally and gives all disciples ample opportunities.

And as all the disciples sat down cross-legged, a faint light suddenly emerged from the originally ordinary Hundred Ghosts Picture.

Even during the day, this faint golden light can still be seen by everyone.

"here we go!"

In the audience seat, a Taoist disciple subconsciously muttered something in a low voice.

This habit of speaking caused the Taoist elder sitting aside to glare at him lightly.

Then he carefully looked at the figure at the front of the seat, and found that there was nothing strange about him. The Taoist elder breathed a sigh of relief.

With Master Longhu present, even the Taoist elders like them did not dare to act arrogantly, and they were under great pressure.

"Be honest with me!"

The elder of the Taoist sect scolded, and the disciple who spoke naturally could only cluck his head like a quail, not daring to make a mistake.

Watching Maoshan Hundred Ghosts, this sounds like a very easy thing.

However, it is not easy to stick to the incense under the influence of the Hundred Ghosts Picture.

The standard for instinct assessment is that a disciple must survive one stick of incense to be considered qualified.

Then the qualified disciples will decide the winner based on how long they persist.

hum!
  As the light on the Hundred Ghost Diagram burst out, for a moment, the world in the eyes of all the disciples changed drastically.

In the eyes of the disciples, the environmental space around them was collapsing and shattering, and soon it was reduced to ruins.

Dead silence, vanity, gloom, withering...

All kinds of dark side emotions rushed into my heart instantly, and the depressing atmosphere made people feel breathless.

And this is just the beginning.

brush!
  In the originally dead world, hideous and terrifying figures suddenly appeared. They look up to the sky and roar, with strange shapes and a terrifying aura about them.

If an outsider sees this scene, they will find that these figures are exactly the Hundred Ghosts on the Hundred Ghosts Picture!

"Jie, Jie, Jie, another reckless human being has broken in. Die!"

These ferocious figures let out eerie laughter, their figures were illusory, and their eyes were full of scarlet light.

As soon as they appeared, they rushed directly towards the Maoshan disciples.

He was so aggressive that he seemed to want to eat everyone alive.

But when an ordinary person sees this scene, his instinctive reaction may be to be frightened and back away.

Even monks and those with weak minds may be frightened by this sudden appearance of hundreds of ghosts.

At the scene, several Maoshan disciples who had just started had this instinctive reaction.

Seeing Baigui rushing toward him, several disciples who had just entered the outer gate subconsciously wanted to retreat.

This retreat.

The environment around them changed instantly. The originally dead world had disappeared, and even the ghosts and ghosts disappeared without a trace.

In their sight, there were only fellow senior brothers sitting cross-legged with solemn expressions.

And, placed on the table, is the slowly burning Taoist incense!

Seeing the incense stick inserted in the incense burner, not even a tenth of which was burned out, these disciples couldn't help but turn pale, and their eyes were filled with disappointment.

By this time, several disciples already knew that they had failed the first round of assessment!
  Several disciples had bitter expressions on their faces, shook their heads and sighed, then silently stood up and retreated to the side, quietly waiting for other fellow apprentices to continue taking part in the assessment.

"Someone failed so quickly. This Hundred Ghosts Picture looks very simple!"

Seeing that a disciple failed so quickly, the young Taoist disciples who had been sitting obediently in the audience seats could not help but murmur in their voices.

Many of these young disciples went down the mountain to observe the ceremony for the first time after joining various great sects, so they were naturally unfamiliar with the Maoshan Hundred Ghost Map.

Now that I see someone from the same sect failing so quickly in the first round of assessment, I can't help but feel extremely strange about Maoshan Hundred Ghosts.

Upon hearing the mutterings of the young disciples, the older generation of Taoist priests also sighed quietly and said bluntly:
  "To cultivate the Tao, you must first cultivate your heart. Once your heart is complete, the Tao will be at your feet!"

"If the will is not firm, the responsibilities will be arduous but the road will be far away!"

These words seemed to be the advice of the older generation of Taoist priests to their disciples, and they also seemed to be a reminder to themselves.

There is a long way to go!
  As a monk, if your mind is not firm, it will be difficult for you to ascend the great road!
  Under the picture of a hundred ghosts, in the incense burner on the table, incense smoke is lingering, and incense ashes are constantly falling.

Time passed quietly.

In just a few minutes, nearly half of the Maoshan disciples could no longer hold on and had no choice but to exit the observation state.

These disciples were all outer sect disciples. They were deficient in both cultivation and mental state, so they failed to pass the assessment time of a stick of incense.

Finally, when the stick of incense was burned out, only sixteen disciples were still observing the Hundred Ghosts Diagram.

Among these sixteen people, all inner disciples passed the assessment standards, and the remaining eleven were all outer disciples.

Eleven outer disciples have passed the assessment standards. These people are considered dark horses in this selection. They all have the opportunity to become the successors of this generation of Maoshan Headmaster.

At this point, sixteen people have successfully passed the first round of assessment.

But the competition doesn't end there!

The Taoist priest who was on guard at the side brought new incense and lit it.

The first round of real competition officially begins now! (End of chapter)