"Ah?" The old man froze again. "You want all of them?"
"Is there a problem?"
A pained expression appeared on the white-haired old man's face as he said, "Take out the spirit stones first. What if you don't have that many?"
Xu Chuan casually took out fifty mid-grade spirit stones.
Seeing this, dark lines formed on the white-haired old man's face. He sighed, "Fine, you get a bargain, Daoist friend."
Xu Chuan was even more speechless. He did not actually think he could buy anything of value; however, the restriction on this wooden casket was truly extraordinary. He could let Xu Mingxian study it.
If he could figure it out, then the five thousand spirit stones would be well worth it.
Xu Chuan put the wooden casket into his storage pouch and turned to leave. The white-haired old man flicked his sleeve robe, and the items on the stall instantly vanished.
Watching Xu Chuan's departing back, he muttered, "A mere Foundation Establishment kid is this rich and overbearing? He handed over five thousand spirit stones without batting an eye.
I took a massive loss!"
This kind of business was obviously a scam at first glance. Any ordinary person could guess that most of the boxes were empty, and even if there were items inside, they would likely be worthless trinkets.
Naturally, no fool would buy one for a thousand spirit stones.
Moreover, Golden Core stage cultivators were rarely seen on the streets, so the chances of anyone discovering the miraculous nature of the wooden casket were extremely slim.
'Foundation Establishment Perfection, yet his divine sense has crossed into the Golden Core stage, and his surging vitality is comparable to a Golden Core stage cultivator. He truly possesses the aptitude of a top-tier prodigy. He must be here to participate in the Prodigy Grand Assembly.
Let this old man see how you perform at the Prodigy Grand Assembly.'
Stroking his beard with a faint smile, he walked into the crowd and soon vanished completely.
Xu Chuan found a pill shop, took a stroll inside, and asked about the prices.
The prices for pills related to mana recovery, healing, and detoxification had all risen significantly compared to what he remembered.
It was likely due to the Prodigy Grand Assembly.
Otherwise, even if the prices of pills sold in Profound Moon City were higher than those in the various cities of Heavenly Azure Prefecture, they would not be this outrageously expensive.
Afterward, he visited a few more pill shops, and the situation was largely the same.
Next were the spirit grass shops. However, there were not many rare spirit grasses; their stock was not even as abundant as his own medicine garden.
He also visited the artificing shops and talisman stores.
They did have good items, such as low-grade magic treasures or Tier 3 treasure talismans, but they were the foundational treasures of the stores and were not for sale.
High-level immortal cultivation resources like these were usually only seen at auctions or traded privately among high-level cultivators.
It was completely unrealistic for them to be placed in shops for sale like tier one or tier two resources.
This was because there was no massive supply of such items to ensure continuous and stable sales.
Grandmaster smiths, grandmaster talisman crafters, or grandmasters of array formations would use the magic treasures, treasure talismans, or Tier 3 array tools they refined to trade for favors or exchange for the materials they needed.
Profound Moon City was massive. Xu Chuan had explored less than a tenth of it before the sky began to darken.
Returning to the residence for the Heavenly Azure Prefecture participants, he found that Ye Fan and Xu Deyue had already returned and were cultivating quietly in their rooms.
Xu Mingxian returned even later than Xu Chuan.
He had spent most of the day at the formation square, comprehending and deducing the teleportation array.
Although it was impossible for Xu Mingxian to fully comprehend this grand teleportation array at his current level, some of its formation patterns were interconnected with smaller teleportation arrays.
As the grand teleportation array operated time and time again, he observed it carefully and made deductions. Surprisingly, he gained some enlightenment and managed to break through several difficult points regarding teleportation arrays.
After returning, he came to see Xu Chuan.
"Judging by your expression, it seems you gained something."
"Just a slight harvest," Xu Mingxian said, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
"Your father also obtained a few good items. Take them and study them."
Saying this, he flicked his sleeve robe, and five zitan wood boxes appeared on the table.
Xu Mingxian immediately noticed their special nature. "This restriction is so profound. The person who placed this restriction definitely has a mastery of formations no inferior to mine, perhaps even higher."
"Your father also noticed this, which is why I spent five thousand spirit stones to buy them and bring them back for you to study. As long as you can fully understand them, the money was well spent.
As for the items inside, I presume they are nothing special."
"It won't be difficult for me. With about a month's time, I can crack it, thoroughly understand it, and deduce its method of laying restrictions."
The key point, naturally, was deducing the method of laying the restrictions.
Simply cracking it wouldn't even take a day for the current Xu Mingxian.
"Then I will open them and take a look."
"Mhm."
Xu Mingxian casually picked a zitan wood box and opened it. "Oh? There's actually something inside. 'Array Formation Notes'."
After flipping through a few pages, Xu Mingxian's pupils suddenly shrank, and he looked sharply at Xu Chuan. "Father, this wooden casket actually contains something incredible.
These 'Array Formation Notes' should have been written by a grandmaster of array formations. The insights recorded inside hold extraordinary value for an array master.
It's definitely worth more than tens of thousands of spirit stones!
Just a quick glance at the insights regarding teleportation arrays is already extremely helpful to me."
Hearing this, Xu Chuan was filled with astonishment. "It's real?"
"Would a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator actually put such precious items into a blind box game?"
"Father, are you sure it was a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator?"
"I used my divine sense probing, but didn't detect anything amiss... unless he was a Nascent Soul stage cultivator!" Xu Chuan's expression turned serious. "Let's look at the other wooden caskets first.
When I bought all five of his wooden caskets in one breath, his face showed some pain. Perhaps there are good things in all of them."
Xu Mingxian flicked his sleeve robe, and the remaining four wooden caskets on the table opened one after another.
Inside were, respectively: a fist-sized dark blue spirit stone, a cyan hexagonal jade talisman, a porcelain bottle, and a small crystal vial containing a single drop of milky-white liquid.
"This is a high-grade water-attribute spirit stone!"
Xu Chuan blurted out as he felt the dense spiritual qi radiating from the dark blue spirit stone.
The Xu family had been doing business for so long, yet they had never acquired a high-grade spirit stone; the best they had ever traded for was mid-grade.
"Could the jade talisman be the Thousand-Mile Talisman the old man mentioned earlier? It's a Tier 3 treasure talisman, a life-saving item."
Xu Chuan then opened the porcelain bottle. This time, his expression was much calmer, though a hint of surprise still flashed across his eyes. "A high-grade Heavenly Spirit Pill."
"What is this last one? A spirit liquid? It looks somewhat familiar..." Xu Chuan muttered to himself, unstopping the crystal vial.
Instantly, a rich, exotic fragrance hit his nose, jolting his mind and lifting his spirits.
"It's high-grade Moon Essence Spirit Liquid!"
"What is Moon Essence Spirit Liquid?" Xu Mingxian asked.
"When the light of supreme yin moonlight gathers in a specific, peculiar location and accumulates over countless years, it condenses into this type of spirit liquid. It is highly beneficial to those who practice yin-cold cultivation methods.
It is considered a rather precious Tier 3 cultivation resource.
Of course, it can also be collected artificially using special methods. Anyone possessing such means would have to be at least a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.
Even then, it would take decades or even a century to obtain just a few drops.
The reason your father knows of it is because this spirit liquid has another special effect: it can help demonic beasts gain sentience.
Its effects are second only to the legendary Emperor's Flowing Sap.
However, Emperor's Flowing Sap is a gift from the heavens that rarely appears even once in a millennium."
Xu Mingxian was slightly taken aback. He looked at Xu Chuan and said, "Father, could that senior be an ancestor of our Xu family?
Otherwise, why would he be so generous?
He must undoubtedly be a Nascent Soul cultivator!
I fear even a late-stage Golden Core cultivator couldn't easily produce these items, let alone be generous enough to give them away."
In Xu Mingxian's eyes, compared to the value of these items, a mere five thousand spirit stones truly made no difference from giving them away for free.
"An ancestor of the Xu family?"
Xu Chuan's mouth twitched slightly. "You're overthinking it. Your father just encountered an opportunity by chance and forcefully bought all of them. Originally, he only intended to let me choose one.
He probably didn't expect that a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator like me would carry so many spirit stones."
"Then who is this senior, and why would he give you an opportunity for no reason? Why don't you do a divination on it, Father?"
Xu Chuan shook his head. "Since it involves a Nascent Soul cultivator, I wouldn't be able to deduce anything."
"Besides, even without divining, I have a rough idea of who this person is."
"Who?" Xu Mingxian was intensely curious.
"You shouldn't ask. The methods of Nascent Soul cultivators are unimaginable. If we speak his true name and he senses it, he might take everything back in a fit of rage."
"In that case, let's just drop it," Xu Mingxian said. "Father, about these 'Array Formation Notes'..."
"Take it. Other than you, who else in our Xu family could comprehend it?"
"Thank you, Father. I will take my leave now." Xu Mingxian cupped his fists, left, and returned to his own room to study the Array Formation Notes.
Xu Chuan stared at the Moon Essence Spirit Liquid in the final wooden casket and murmured, "With this, the descendant of the Ancient Locust Tree King should be able to truly gain sentience and become a demon."
He closed all the wooden caskets and sent the rest into his storage ring, save for the one Xu Mingxian had taken away to study.
Then, he sat cross-legged on the bed and devoted himself to studying divine abilities and creating cultivation techniques.
People from the other prefectures also arrived one after another. To avoid conflicts, the disciples of the Profound Moon Sect arranged for them to stay in separate areas.
The very next day.
Factions within Profound Moon City had already set up betting pools.
The pools displayed the names of all the participants from every prefecture, including their realms, strengths, and specialties, with bets available for every individual.
Anyone could place their wagers over the next ten days.
After ten days, the preliminary rounds of the Prodigy Grand Assembly would officially begin.
Xu Chuan only heard this news a few days later. Since Xu Mingxian and the others were in secluded cultivation, he made a special trip to check it out.
The information for some people was quite comprehensive, but for most, there was no description of their ultimate moves or specialties.
After noting down the information of the other prefectures, he focused on Heavenly Azure Prefecture.
Xi Tianqing, Cang Daoling, and Shen Feiyu had no betting odds.
Upon asking, Xu Chuan learned that whenever the Profound Moon Sect hosted the Prodigy Grand Assembly, it was always divided into arena battles and a secret realm points scramble.
The arena battles consisted of randomized paired combat to eliminate half the participants.
The remaining participants would enter a secret realm modified by the Profound Moon Sect three days later to fight for identity tokens and points.
To prevent strong contenders from clashing too early, the Profound Moon Sect granted each prefecture a multiple of three slots based on their number of Nascent Soul powers.
A Nascent Soul-level power could have three seed slots, allowing them to bypass the arena and enter the secret realm points scramble directly.
For the remaining seven out of Heavenly Azure Prefecture's top ten, the odds were all one to one point five.
As long as their luck wasn't terrible, they had a high probability of entering the secret realm points scramble.
Starting from Ye Fan, the odds jumped significantly. Ye Fan's odds were one to two.
For Xu Mingxian, it was one to three.
Although Xu Mingxian was ranked thirty-sixth in Heavenly Azure Prefecture, factoring in his magic tools and other assets, his true strength put him at twenty-first.
As for those ranked at the very bottom in terms of strength in Heavenly Azure Prefecture, their odds were almost all one to five or one to six.
It couldn't be helped. In the eyes of outsiders, unless the participants from Heavenly Azure Prefecture were lucky, anyone ranked outside the top ten had very little hope of making it into the secret realm points scramble.
"Chen Tianlei is one to four. I wonder how his luck will fare."
Xu Chuan pinched his fingers to divine it—moderately auspicious.
After some thought, he placed a bet of three thousand spirit stones each on Xu Mingxian and Chen Tianlei.
An unusually large number of people had placed bets against Heavenly Azure Prefecture.
This was because everyone knew that Heavenly Azure Prefecture had been weak for a long time.
Therefore, many people placed bets, but most only wagered tens or hundreds of spirit stones. Xu Chuan was the first to directly drop three thousand spirit stones.
After placing his bets and collecting his receipt, Xu Chuan left.
Many people saw this and broke into widespread discussion. "Who is that person? Could he be a scion of a top Golden Core aristocratic family? To make such a massive bet?"
"Xu Mingxian and Chen Tianlei don't seem like anything special. One relies entirely on magic tools and external items to prop himself up, and the other just has somewhat strong defense with no particularly powerful offensive moves.
You can't use items other than magic tools in the arena battles, unless you refined them yourself.
Still, throwing in fifty spirit stones to test the waters wouldn't hurt."
In the blink of an eye, the day the Prodigy Grand Assembly opened arrived.
At a certain square in Profound Moon City that spanned hundreds of acres, three circular cyan-stone arenas, each about ten feet high and a hundred meters in diameter, rose from the ground in a triangular formation.
The forces from the eight prefectures occupied the eight directions surrounding the arenas.
There were numerous low tables and futons here, provided for the leading elders of the eight prefectures, the participating disciples, and their entourages to sit.
The outer perimeter was packed with spectators, standing shoulder to shoulder. The sounds of discussion rose and fell, as everyone eagerly anticipated witnessing the bearing of the prodigies.
At the same time, the victories or defeats of the disciples from the eight prefectures directly affected the returns on their own bets.
A short while later.
Suddenly, a streak of light raced across the sky. Amidst flashing spiritual light, an old man wearing a moon-white Daoist robe descended onto the eastern arena.
The old man had a lean, austere face, and the long beard under his chin was white as snow. He exuded the pressure of a Golden Core Perfection stage expert. It was precisely Elder Qingxuan of the Profound Moon Sect, who was hosting these preliminary rounds.
He was a Golden Core stage cultivator who had achieved major accomplishment in his divine ability, possessing an illustrious reputation and the title of True Lord Qingxuan.
True Lord Qingxuan swept his gaze across the venue, his voice carrying over the square via mana: "The Prodigy Grand Assembly preliminary rounds begin today.
First will be the arena battles. Through one-on-one paired combat, half of the participants will be eliminated.
Three days later, you will enter the secret realm, where you will scramble for points to decide the seventy-two official selection slots.
Do any Daoist friends have objections? If so, you may raise them now."
After a moment, seeing no response, True Lord Qingxuan continued, "Then let us begin the bracketing."
"Since there are three hundred and sixty-three participants in the arena battles, there will be one lucky individual who, like the seed participants, will directly earn the right to advance to the secret realm scramble."
As his words fell, Elder Qingxuan raised his hand and waved it. Hundreds of tokens glowing with spiritual light flew out from his storage pouch and hovered above the arena.
These tokens had been submitted by the various prefectures, engraved with the names of the participating disciples and their affiliated factions.
He formed a hand seal, and as his mana surged, the tokens spun rapidly in the air, twinkling like stars.
A moment later, a token engraved with the words "Heavenly Azure Prefecture - Ye Fan" stood out from the crowd and floated in mid-air.
"The lucky cultivator this time is Heavenly Azure Prefecture's Ye Fan."
He then continued to manipulate the tokens to arrange the matchups.
At this moment, a voice rang out from the Greedy Wolf Sect's side: "Daoist Friend Green Wood, your Heavenly Azure Prefecture's luck is truly quite good, gaining one more slot for the secret realm scramble.
This one was truly worried that aside from those three free seed slots, your Heavenly Azure Prefecture wouldn't manage to get a single person in."
"True Lord Canglang, what is the point of being so strange and sarcastic? Those with strength will naturally get in, while those without strength won't make it no matter how much you talk.
If you have the free time to worry about my Heavenly Azure Prefecture's cultivators, you'd be better off showing more concern for the disciples of your own sect.
Last time, your sect's Daoist Friends Li Yang and Black Dove brought disciples to my Heavenly Azure Sect to steal spots, but they all ended up dying. You can't possibly be ignorant of that."
Elder Wood responded coolly.
To the Greedy Wolf Sect, this matter could be considered the most humiliating incident they had faced in hundreds of years.
"Hmph, Daoist Friend Green Wood's tongue is growing sharper as well. I hope you can remain this calm when you see the results later."
True Lord Canglang coldly snorted. The pressure he emitted left the surroundings as silent as a cicada in winter.
Elder Wood was at the late stage of Golden Core, and also a True Lord who had achieved major accomplishment in a divine ability. Among the Five Elements Elders of the Heavenly Azure Sect, he ranked first.
The other four had not mastered their divine abilities to major accomplishment.
Only those with a major accomplishment in a divine ability had the qualifications to attempt a breakthrough to the Nascent Soul realm. As for the rest, unless they possessed great opportunities and fortune, they had no hope of breaking through the Nascent Soul bottleneck.
Therefore, figures at the level of Golden Core True Lords were also known as Nascent Soul seeds.
However, among these people, not even a tenth would actually manage to step into the Nascent Soul realm.
In just the blink of an eye.
The sky displayed a list of one hundred and eighty-one pairs for combat.
Deacons from the Profound Moon Sect recorded them into a ledger one by one.
"The arena battles will commence in fifteen minutes. Any disciple whose name is called will step onto the arena. It is forbidden to use items other than magic tools, unless you refined them yourself.
If there is a danger of death, this True Lord will step in to intervene, but conversely, that person will be considered eliminated."
With those words spoken.
True Lord Qingxuan sat cross-legged in the void, quietly waiting for the fifteen minutes to pass.
A Profound Moon Sect deacon shouted loudly: "Profound Moon Prefecture's Liu Xuanfeng and Greedy Wolf Prefecture's Ji Mo, quickly ascend Arena A!"
"Profound Moon Prefecture's Zheng Tao and Cangshan Prefecture's Wang Ming, quickly ascend Arena B!"
"Heavenly Azure Prefecture's Wang Chuan and Cangshan Prefecture's Yun Fan, quickly ascend Arena C!"
Those whose names were called rapidly leaped onto their respective arenas.
As soon as they mounted the stages, True Lord Qingxuan flicked his sleeve robe, raising three array light screens to prevent the arena battles from affecting the outside.
"That guy from Heavenly Azure Prefecture is doomed. Yun Fan ranks eighth among Cangshan Prefecture's seventy-two participants. Even though their rankings within their own prefectures are identical, the disparity in their strength is quite massive."
"That's right. I reckon that Wang Chuan is only on par with someone ranked seventeenth or eighteenth in Heavenly Azure Prefecture."
Wang Chuan's face was extremely solemn, and he inwardly sighed at his terrible luck. However, he wouldn't surrender so easily, gripping the long blade in his hand tightly.
As soon as the matches began.
The battles on the three arenas instantly became incredibly fierce. Tier one magical arts were fired instantly, while sword lights and blade flashes continuously collided.
The battle on Wang Chuan's arena lasted the longest. Because there was a significant strength gap between the participants on the other two arenas, victors were decided in just a hundred breaths, and the next pairs of combatants stepped up.
Fifteen minutes later.
Despite fighting with everything he had, Wang Chuan still lost.
However, the power of his Raging Fiend Saber Art earned his opponent's respect, who stated bluntly that Wang Chuan possessed the strength of a top-fifteen cultivator in Cangshan Prefecture.
"Group thirty-three, Heavenly Azure Prefecture's Xu Deyue and Greedy Wolf Sect's Mo Sheng, quickly ascend Arena A!"
As the Profound Moon Sect deacon's voice faded, two figures moved simultaneously.
From the Heavenly Azure Prefecture side, Xu Deyue's plain white dress fluttered. Tapping her toes against the ground, she glided onto Arena A like a swallow, holding the Heavenly Water Sword with a tranquil expression.
On the other side, from the Greedy Wolf Sect, Mo Sheng, clad in tight-fitting attire of pitch black, moved crisply. He stepped through the air and arrived, the blue-steel sword in his hand gleaming with a cold light.
When his gaze swept over Xu Deyue, it carried a hint of disdain.
"I heard that the Xu Mingxian who caused my sect to lose tremendous face last time is your father, right?"
Hearing this, Xu Deyue furrowed her brows slightly.
"Then I'll send you down first!"
"It's Mo Sheng from Greedy Wolf Prefecture!"
Murmurs erupted all around.
"He ranks ninth on Greedy Wolf Prefecture's Prodigy Roll. Although his ranking isn't at the absolute top, Greedy Wolf Prefecture's overall strength is tyrannical. Their top ten likely all have the strength of Heavenly Azure Prefecture's top five."
"I've heard that the 'Parting Sorrow Sword Art' he practices is a ruthless Demonic Dao technique. Anyone who clashes with him either ends up dead or crippled!"
"Xu Deyue's strength isn't weak either. I heard she fought Heavenly Azure Prefecture's number one, Xi Tianqing, and only lost by a narrow margin."
"That was probably because Xi Tianqing held back!"
Mo Sheng said no more. He pinched a hand seal, and a faint black glow appeared on his blade. Launching his sword art, he thrust straight at Xu Deyue's heart with piercing killing intent.
Xu Deyue's expression remained unchanged. Twisting her wrist, her sword gleamed with rippling watery light as she raised her hand and unleashed the first stance of the Heavenly Water Sword Art.
A clear stream of sword qi cascaded down like a pouring river, colliding with Mo Sheng's black-lit sword qi.
Clang! With a crisp sound, both of them retreated half a step.
Surprise flashed across Mo Sheng's eyes. He hadn't expected Xu Deyue to actually withstand his full-powered attack.
Before Mo Sheng could recover his wits, Xu Deyue urged her sword momentum forward once again.
The Heavenly Water Sword buzzed loudly as layers of watery waves surged along the blade. Carrying the momentum of waves crashing against the shore, she slashed toward Mo Sheng. The sword wind carried the roar of a surging tide, making Mo Sheng's eardrums throb with pain.
Mo Sheng dared not be negligent. Pushing his sword art, his black sword qi transformed into a wave, attempting to neutralize her water-based momentum.
However, the power of the Heavenly Water Sword's stance proved superior. The water wave crushed the black glow, numbing Mo Sheng's arm and nearly causing his sword to slip from his grasp.
A look of disbelief appeared on his face.
Then, the third stance of the Heavenly Water Sword Art descended. Seeing the vast ocean phantom condensing above his head, he forcefully burned his essence blood and unleashed the strongest move of his sword art.
A thirty-foot black-red sword gleam surged forth, carrying a monstrous wave of hatred, as if trying to pierce through the heavens.
Boom!
The vast ocean phantom and the sword shadow collided, causing the arena to tremble violently.
True Lord Qingxuan nodded slightly, clearly acknowledging Xu Deyue's strength.
The spectators also experienced a drastic change in expression. None of them had expected Xu Deyue's strength to be this formidable; her sword art seemed a tier superior to the 'Parting Sorrow Sword Art'.
Mo Sheng had to burn his essence blood just to barely match it.
However, just as the energy shockwaves diffused, Xu Deyue had already formed a hand seal and condensed a Cold Heaven Seal, shooting it toward Mo Sheng.
Mo Sheng, suffering from the shockwave's impact and the disrupted flow of his mana due to burning his essence blood, was struck directly by the Cold Heaven Seal and perished on the spot.
The crowd hadn't expected Xu Deyue to be so ruthless and unyielding.
Of course, Xu Deyue acted this way because the other party had threatened members of her Xu family.
As for why her Cold Heaven Seal progressed so rapidly, it was largely due to Murong Yun's guidance, on top of her own innate talent for the cold Dao. Furthermore, there was a period when the Xu family's clan fortune skyrocketed, boosting her cultivation speed even further.
Xu Deyue hadn't merely mastered the nine seal stances. Under Murong Yun's guidance, she was already practicing the step of merging the nine seals into three.
The step of merging nine seals into three was not mentioned in the cultivation art; it came directly from Murong Yun's teachings.
With her discerning eye, Murong Yun could naturally tell at a glance how to achieve major accomplishment in this seal method as quickly as possible.
For a Foundation Establishment cultivator, attempting a straightforward nine-seals-into-one path was simply too difficult; it approached the difficulty of initially comprehending a divine ability.
Xu Deyue stepped down from the arena.
Immediately, new disciples stepped up to take the stage.
However, True Lord Canglang voiced his dissatisfaction. "True Lord Qingxuan, why didn't you step in to stop it? You just watched as my sect's disciple died at the hands of this female cultivator!"
True Lord Qingxuan threw him a side glance. "Accidents always happen in the arena. The difference in their strength was not large, and neither party showed any intention of conceding. Naturally, this True Lord had to watch until the very end.
Moreover, while the little girl from Heavenly Azure Prefecture's final cold seal was powerful, your sect's disciple had the strength to defend against it. However, he had suffered the impact of the residual shockwaves and the backlash from burning his essence blood.
This caused him to endure the full brunt of the cold seal's might, perishing on the spot.
Canglang, if you had reminded your disciple to surrender earlier, he wouldn't have died. So, do not pin the blame on this True Lord.
If you refuse to accept this, you may go complain to my sect's Sect Master about me yourself."
The Sect Master of the Profound Moon Sect?!
That was a Nascent Soul stage cultivator who deeply detested demonic cultivators. How could he possibly dare complain to him?!
"Hmph!" True Lord Canglang coldly snorted, saying no more.
In reality, True Lord Qingxuan had done it on purpose.
His divine sense could penetrate the arrays, keeping a constant eye on the three arenas. He naturally realized long beforehand that Xu Deyue had been forming a hand seal to condense the cold seal with one hand exactly when their attacks clashed.
He also bore no good will towards demonic cultivators, which was why he had simply stood by as a cold bystander.
'Were it not for the Grand Elder's command to spare the Greedy Wolf Sect, how could we have let your kind survive until today!' True Lord Qingxuan thought to himself.
Not long after, it was Xu Mingxian's turn.
His luck was good. His opponent was a disciple ranked at the very bottom of Flowing Moon Prefecture, and he won the match solely by relying on his magic tools.
Chen Tianlei faced a disciple from the Profound Moon Sect, an opponent of middling strength among Profound Moon Prefecture's participants.
Almost no one was optimistic about his chances.
However, no one knew that his strength had massively increased after obtaining the Taotie Shield that Xu Chuan sold him.
After an arduous battle, he defeated his opponent, pulling off quite the upset.
Chen Changge burst into hearty laughter, exclaiming "good" three times in a row.
A Golden Core cultivator from Heavenly Azure Prefecture cupped his fists and said, "Daoist Friend Chen, your clan's disciple is quite strong. He deliberately hid his strength last time, didn't he? If he had used that shield, he might have broken into the top ten."
"That must be the kid's opportunity. He is always accustomed to hiding his clumsiness and pretending to be weak; he isn't like this Chen at all. It is my first time seeing this shield as well."
Chen Changge didn't reveal the shield's origin, glossing over the subject. Naturally, the others didn't press him for details.
True Lord Green Wood looked at Xu Chuan and said, "Your Xu family is doing quite well. All three of your participants made it into the second round."
Xu Chuan cupped his fists in reply. "Thank you for the undue praise, True Lord Green Wood. It was all just luck."
"Luck is also a part of strength. Take Wang Chuan, for example. With his strength, he had a decent chance of obtaining an official selection slot, but his luck was poor, and he was eliminated during the arena battles."
Soon, it was Yan Kuangtu's turn. He also defeated his opponent and advanced to the second round.
The Golden Crow sank in the west.
With the conclusion of the final group's battle, the arena matches came to an end.
True Lord Green Wood had a rather amiable expression.
In this round of arena battles, the top seven all advanced to the second round, along with Xu Mingxian, Ye Fan, Chen Tianlei, Yan Fengwu, Wenren Jie, and Shangguan Hong.
A full thirteen people made it through, far exceeding previous years.
They ranked fourth among the eight prefectures, closely following the Greedy Wolf Sect.
The Greedy Wolf Sect only had eighteen people.
In the past, the Greedy Wolf Sect usually had twenty-four or twenty-five.
This time, they vastly underperformed, leaving True Lord Canglang's face as black as coal.
"Those who have advanced to the second round, go back and rest well. We will gather here in three days to enter the secret realm!"
"Yes, True Lord Green Wood."
That night.
The members of the Xu family gathered in Xu Chuan's room.
"I asked around. Although the secret realm battle doesn't care about life or death, the Profound Moon Sect will hand every participant a jade tablet. If you crush it, you'll be teleported out of the secret realm in three breaths.
If the three of you manage to meet up and join forces, you naturally won't have to fear anyone.
However, entering the secret realm involves random teleportation.
So, before Mingxian manages to find the two of you, try to avoid fighting unless you are absolutely confident.
If you can't escape, you can forfeit your identity token, or simply crush the jade tablet to teleport out.
It doesn't matter if you lose; it's just a Prodigy Grand Assembly.
What matters is keeping your lives!
You are all prodigies!
But only those who survive and grow up are true prodigies!"
"Yes, Father!" "Yes, Grandfather!" "Yes, Honored Master!" they replied.
After the short meeting concluded, the group returned to their respective rooms to sit in quiet cultivation.
Xu Deyue communicated with Murong Yun. "Honored Master, is there still a way to rapidly enhance my strength?"
"Your strength is already at the absolute peak among Foundation Establishment cultivators. Your sword art and seal method are both extraordinary, and your mana is thicker than ordinary cultivators at the same realm.
With the added boost of your constitution, the power of your cold Dao spells and the like has also increased significantly."
"Then, from your perspective, Honored Master, how many of those who fought during the daytime arena battles can defeat this disciple?"
"None can say they would win for sure, but going purely by strength, there are about ten or twenty people who have a high probability of beating you."
"Then, counting the thirty-three seed participants, even if this disciple makes it into the top seventy-two, I will probably rank in the lower-middle tier."
"Pretty much. Ultimately, the time since you met this master has been too brief. If I gave you another five or six years, you would certainly be able to compete with those prodigies who have grasped sixty or seventy percent of divine ability power."
Xu Deyue fell silent. She glanced at Ye Fan, who was meditating and cultivating not far away, and asked again, "If Ye Fan reaches Foundation Establishment Perfection, how would this disciple compare to him?"
Murong Yun was silent for a long time before replying, "Deyue, why must you compare yourself to others? With this master's teachings, you are destined to be a peerless prodigy of your generation."
"It seems I wouldn't be able to match him." Xu Deyue sighed softly.
Dodging the question at a time like this was the answer itself.
"Those who follow the path of dual cultivation of Dharma and body and manage to fully mature were rare even in ancient times. They all became true major divine ability experts.
Of course, in ancient times, anyone beneath the Divine Transformation stage was considered second-rate.
Very few ordinary body cultivators make it to the Nascent Soul stage. Not just any cultivator is suited for this path."
Pausing for a moment, she added, "However, your husband is indeed somewhat suited for it. The nature of his mana is a bit peculiar. Do you know why?"
Xu Deyue answered, "I have heard about it. Right after my husband was born, a Seed of Withered Wood restriction was placed on him. Despite possessing a Heavenly Spiritual Root aptitude, he couldn't cultivate normally and was stuck at the 1st Layer of Qi Condensation, entirely unable to retain any mana in his body.
Any mana he cultivated would be devoured by the Seed of Withered Wood.
Later, he practiced the Martial Dao, unlocking his acupoints, clearing his meridians, and stepping into the Innate Realm, but he similarly could not retain the true qi he cultivated.
He trained bitterly day and night, tempering his physical body until he forcefully reached the Peak Grandmaster realm of the Martial Dao.
Both his cultivator's mana and his martial true qi were absorbed by the Seed of Withered Wood, fusing into a unique kind of power.
It also seems there were factors owing to Grandfather's deliberate nurturing.
In the end, Grandfather helped him undo the Seed of Withered Wood. That energy caused his body to undergo a metamorphosis, entering the second tier, while his realm also leaped straight to the 9th Layer of Qi Condensation."
"So that's how it is. With such a unique experience, he truly is a prime seedling suited for the dual cultivation of Dharma and body. However, the resources required for body cultivators are incredibly rare—even more so than those for ordinary immortal cultivators.
The Foundation Establishment stage is still manageable, but trying to break through to the Golden Core and cultivating at the Golden Core level will be extremely difficult.
If he doesn't encounter any great opportunities later on, a mere Heavenly Spiritual Root aptitude won't be enough to match you.
Wait... I just remembered a secret art. It might actually be able to help you right now. It can push your divine sense to the absolute limits of the Foundation Establishment stage. Then, with the help of the Spirit-Nourishing Pill, you can break through to the Golden Core level.
Having a Foundation Establishment divine sense undergo a metamorphosis into a Golden Core divine sense is also a great opportunity.
It can cause your divine soul to transform, vastly elevating your comprehension.
Use the remaining two days to comprehend the Cold Heaven Seal. With your special constitution, you should be able to master merging the nine seals into three.
The power of the seal method would be comparable to twenty percent of a divine ability's power.
Then, among the final seventy-two participants, even if your strength isn't at the very top, you will at least rank in the upper echelons.
If you spend enough time in the Prodigy Roll later, perhaps you might even be able to merge the nine seals into one, rivaling those prodigies who have mastered eighty or ninety percent of their divine ability power."
"What secret art is it?"
"The Yin-Yang Harmony Great Joy Secret Art!"