Shentu Yun slowly stood up.

Her demeanor was imposing.

Her gaze swept over almost everyone in the courtyard.

For every Disciple who wished to join her, her requirements were extremely strict, even harsh.

This also ensured that all her Disciples were Cultivators who truly possessed Talisman making talent.

To become a powerful Talisman Maker, Aptitude is extremely important.

Without good talent to support them, even if they put in a lot of hard work, it would all be in vain.

Suddenly, as her gaze swept over Yang Che, her heart stirred, and a deeply moved expression appeared in the depths of her eyes.

In just a flash, she had already moved her gaze, continuing to look at the next person, fearing that someone might notice the fluctuation in her heart.

Mo Shaotian, the Nascent Soul cultivator, had his eyes fixed on his younger sister, Mo Wenyue, and thus did not notice the unusual look in Shentu Yun’s eyes.

However, the Early Golden Core Stage cultured middle-aged scholar, who had been silently watching Shentu Yun, seemingly unwilling to move his gaze for a moment, caught this subtle change in Shentu Yun’s eyes.

While greatly surprised, he couldn't help but cast a hidden, gloomy glance at Yang Che.

At this moment, Yang Che was also greatly puzzled.

He felt that Shentu Yun’s gaze seemed to linger on him for a brief moment, but it also felt like his own illusion.

However, Yang Che clearly felt the unfriendly gaze of the cultured middle-aged scholar.

Yang Che thought to himself that he had never seen this cultured middle-aged scholar before, so he was naturally very puzzled by his gaze.

But soon, he sneered inwardly.

If this middle-aged scholar didn't provoke him, then so be it, but if he dared to actively seek trouble, then he couldn't be blamed for being ruthless.

At this moment, Shentu Yun’s expression remained indifferent.

After retracting her gaze, she whispered to a beautiful middle-aged woman with Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivation beside her, “Zhong Rui, first test the Soul strength of all these people.

The top thirty will stay, and the rest can go back.”

“Yes, Master.”

Zhong Rui acknowledged the command, nodding in affirmation.

This Zhong Rui was precisely the beautiful middle-aged woman who was previously responsible for collecting the full pattern star stone and registering names at the entrance of the ancient residence.

It was evident that this middle-aged woman was highly valued by Shentu Yun.

A nearly transparent, crystalline orb appeared in the hand of the beautiful woman, Zhong Rui.

The moment he saw the orb, Yang Che instinctively cursed inwardly, “Oh no!”

However, when he realized that this orb was not the special kind used to test Immortal Root Aptitude, he subtly breathed a sigh of relief.

When Cultivators individually reached out to test on the orb, Yang Che discovered that its function was to test a Cultivator’s Soul strength.

This orb was quite miraculous; it was not affected by a Cultivator's cultivation, and could purely measure the strength or weakness of a Cultivator’s Soul.

As a Cultivator with considerable Formation accomplishments, Yang Che quickly discerned that a rather intricate Formation Restriction was embedded within the orb.

There were hundreds of people in this ancient courtyard.

Yang Che’s own cultivation had reached the Early Golden Core Stage, so he judged that if the top thirty were chosen, it would be quite easy for him.

As expected, after the middle-aged beautiful woman Zhong Rui tested everyone’s Soul, she determined the top thirty, and Yang Che was among them, ranking eleventh.

This ranking made Yang Che’s face show bitterness again, once more confirming the helpless fact of his relatively weak Soul.

Aside from the Seven Core Formation Cultivators, there were even three Foundation Establishment Late Stage peak Cultivators whose Souls were stronger than his.

Although Yang Che felt a slight bitterness in his heart, he did not fall into deep despair.

He believed that as long as he refined and consumed the ‘Soul Pill’, his Soul would definitely be greatly enhanced.

Moreover, to become a formidable Talisman Maker, Soul is only one aspect; Comprehension Ability of the Dao of heaven and earth and the study of Formation are also crucial.

Soon, the Cultivators whose Soul strength did not meet the requirements left one by one, very unwillingly.

With a Nascent Soul cultivator present, even if they were extremely unwilling, they would never dare to cause trouble.

Among the thirty who remained, Yang Che found that the elderly Shi Yizhu, the sturdy dark-skinned man Niu Rong, and Mo Shaotian’s younger sister Mo Wenyue were all present.

It was only then that the dark-skinned sturdy man Niu Rong, who was at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage cultivation, noticed Yang Che, and immediately walked over with his characteristic honest smile, cupping his hands and saying, “Zhang Daoist, you’ve come too.”

Yang Che smiled faintly, cupping his hands in return.

At this moment, Shentu Yun had already spoken, saying, “Next, all thirty of you will undergo my assessment.

The assessment will not only be related to Talisman making, Talismans, and Talisman techniques, but will also involve knowledge from other areas.

There will be a total of ten questions, and you will have half an hour to answer them.

Finally, based on your answers and your Soul strength, I will select the top six to become my Named Disciples.”

After Shentu Yun finished speaking, she lightly waved her hand, and Yang Che and the others each received a specially made Jade Slip.

“The questions are in the Jade Slip.

Within half an hour, engrave your answers and names on the Jade Slip and hand it back to me.”

After speaking, Shentu Yun suddenly glanced at Yang Che inadvertently, and then added with profound meaning to everyone:

“For those among you whose Soul Power is at a disadvantage, the answers to these ten questions will be extremely important.

If your answers are not good enough, there will definitely be no further opportunities.

Therefore, you must provide the most meticulous answers.”

With that, Shentu Yun stopped speaking, slowly closed her eyes, and began to rest.

Yang Che and the thirty others immediately sat cross-legged on their meditation mats, immersing their Divine Sense into the Jade Slip to carefully examine it.

When Yang Che saw the ten questions, he was slightly stunned, then a hint of joy rose in his heart.

These ten questions were indeed mostly related to the Dao of heaven and earth and Formation Restrictions; Tianxie Ziyin had touched upon almost all of them when she taught him the fragmented Dao of Talisman making.

Now, for Yang Che, these ten questions were not only not difficult, but rather somewhat simple.

Moreover, because Tianxie Ziyin’s knowledge was so vast, Yang Che’s horizons were not only greatly expanded, but he also gained some insights and understandings of his own.

After careful consideration, Yang Che diligently engraved his answers one by one onto the Jade Slip.

When he finished the answers in the Jade Slip, he noticed that the other Cultivators around him were all still struggling to answer.

Especially the elderly Shi Yizhu next to him, who had a bitter expression on his face, scratching his ears and cheeks, as if these questions were very difficult for him to answer.

And that sturdy dark-skinned man Niu Rong, surprisingly, had a calm and composed expression, as if he was confident of success.

Yang Che quietly cast his gaze towards Mo Wenyue again, finding that she too was deep in thought, seemingly unsure how to answer.

As for the Crimson Robed Youth Mo Shaotian, he kept looking at his younger sister, also showing signs of anxiety and concern.

Yang Che thought for a moment and decided to wait until someone else submitted their Jade Slip before he did, absolutely not wanting to be the ‘early bird’.

Soon, some of the Core Formation Cultivators had finished answering and returned their Jade Slips.

Seeing this, Yang Che waited a little longer before getting up and returning his Jade Slip.

Soon, as soon as half an hour was up, whether finished or not, the Jade Slips had to be returned.

Yang Che saw the elderly Shi Yizhu shaking his head repeatedly, apparently not having answered very well.

Mo Wenyue also seemed somewhat dissatisfied with her answers; although her face showed worry, her complexion was much better than Shi Yizhu’s.

On the other hand, the sturdy man Niu Rong looked composed and confident, as if victory was already in his grasp.

After collecting all thirty Jade Slips, Shentu Yun slowly said, “The six Disciple candidates will be determined by the answers in these Jade Slips.

If any eliminated person has questions, I will provide an explanation.”

With that, Shentu Yun began to examine the Jade Slips one by one using her Divine Sense.

She examined them extremely carefully.

When all thirty Jade Slips had been inspected, she selected six of them and placed them separately.

The rest were all gathered together.

“Zhong Rui, you announce the final candidates for Master.

Those whose names are called, please step forward.”

“Yes, Master.”

Soon, Zhong Rui announced the final candidates based on the names on the Jade Slips.