Chapter 481 Scared away two prodigies?!

Only seven days have passed.

Not only had his cultivation reached the Purple Crystal Tier 5 Peak, but he also descended from the sky riding a Beast with a royal bloodline at the Amethyst Tier 6.

And his Void-Splitting Profound Gold Eagle, although it had broken through, was only at the Purple Crystal Level 4.

Purple Crystal Level 4 against Amethyst Tier 6, a gap of two full minor ranks.

Not to mention the Bloodline suppression from that avian beast.

His Void-Splitting Profound Gold Eagle was trembling in fear within his Beast Taming Space right now, and the feeling of terror transmitted through the contract made Feng Ziyue's legs go weak.

"Will he... will he come to cause trouble for me? He will definitely come to cause trouble for me... I almost crippled his Beast with a sneak attack back then... and I even declared that I was his enemy in front of so many people..."

Feng Ziyue's lips were trembling violently, and he involuntarily took a step back. His back hit the railing, and the cold sensation made him shudder.

"What are you panicking about?" A low, steady voice came from the battle stage nearby.

Feng Yu stood with his hands behind his back. His strength, ranked twelfth on the Heavenly Ranking, gave him an Aura that commanded respect without anger.

Right now, he was frowning as he looked at the blue-purple figure in the sky. His expression was much calmer than Feng Ziyue's, but his slightly clenched fists hidden in his sleeves betrayed his inner shock and anxiety.

"Amethyst Tier 6? He became Amethyst Tier 6 after only being out for seven days."

Feng Yu's voice was deep and slow. It was as if he was talking to himself, or perhaps evaluating a tricky opponent.

"This growth speed is truly abnormal. Either he encountered a Heaven-Defying Opportunity, or... he has been hiding trump cards from us all along. Either way, it is very troublesome."

"However..." His tone shifted, and he withdrew his gaze from the sky, landing it on the figure beside him who had remained silent the entire time.

"You don't need to panic, Big Brother is back now."

As he spoke, a figure walked slowly from the center of another battle stage to the edge. The morning light shone on him, revealing a Face with deep, well-defined features.

He was slightly older than Feng Yu and Feng Ziyue. His eyebrows were like blades, his eyes were steady to the point of indifference, and between his brows was a composed air that only those who have held high positions for a long time could possess.

He was none other than the Sect Leader of the Jingfeng Sect, ranked sixth on the Heavenly Ranking, Sect Master Feng Tianyang.

He wore a dark cyan martial outfit with a dark gold belt around his waist, and his entire being was like a sharp sword that had not yet been unsheathed.

The things he had experienced during his time training outside were far beyond what Feng Yu and Feng Ziyue could compare to while Cultivating safely in the academy.

The cold hardness and composure that seeped from the bones of a true expert who had experienced life-and-death tempering could not be imitated by Geniuses in a greenhouse.

"Is this the Heavenly Saint Student who you said bore a grudge against the Jingfeng Sect, and even got Su Qingying to help him?" Sect Master Feng Tianyang spoke slowly. His voice was not loud, but it carried an inherent, imposing pressure.

"An Amethyst Tier 6 avian beast, top-tier Bloodline, and judging by its posture, it seems to be equipped with a Sun-Level treasure. This Beast configuration is already qualified to enter the top twenty of the Heavenly Ranking. It seems this Sacred Student has indeed encountered an extraordinary Opportunity during this trip out."

He paused, his gaze piercing through the morning light and landing on the tall, straight figure on the back of the Little Skylark. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, but there was no smile in his expression, only the cold indifference of someone examining prey.

"However, you don't need to panic. So what if it's Amethyst Tier 6? So what if it has a top-tier Bloodline? The threshold of the top ten of the Heavenly Ranking is far from something that can be crossed just by contracting a high-rank Beast. If he dares to make a move against you, I naturally will not stand by idly. No one can touch the people of the Jingfeng Sect."

He withdrew his gaze. His tone was calm but resolute.

"When the time comes, not only will I make sure he cannot touch you... I will also make sure he cannot get a spot for the Molten Cavern. So what if he is a Heavenly Saint Student? Being beaten on the arena stage in public and failing to get a spot is humiliation enough to make him the laughingstock of the entire school, and he will never be able to lift his head again."

"He will lose the dazzling radiance of his status as a Heavenly Saint Student."

Hearing this, Feng Ziyue let out a long sigh of relief. The panic on his Face finally subsided a little, replaced by a sense of relief like one who had just survived a disaster.

Feng Yu also nodded slightly, but his tightly furrowed brows did not fully relax. Because he noticed that although Sect Master Feng Tianyang spoke lightly, his eyes had never left the lightning-patterned divine feathers of that avian Beast from start to finish. Someone who truly did not look down on their opponent would not stare at them for so long. Clearly, Sect Master Feng Tianyang was also wary of something.

Meanwhile, on a battle stage in the very center of the Colosseum, Qian Rongrong was sitting cross-legged alone in the middle of the stage. She was wearing a goose-yellow dress today, with her ink-black hair casually tied back with a white jade hairpin. She didn't look like she was here to fight in the arena, but rather like she was here for afternoon tea.

Her cultivation was only at the Gold Rank, but no one dared to step onto the stage under her feet to challenge her. Not only because she was the Young Miss of the Qian Family, but also because a young man was standing on the stage behind her, leaning lazily against the railing.

Qian Luoyun, the absolute Prodigy currently ranked second on the Provincial Capital's Heavenly Ranking. A Purple Crystal Ninth Rank Peak Beast Tamer. A true top-tier figure among the younger generation of the Provincial Capital.

His appearance was overly delicate, his eyes were always slightly narrowed, and a lazy smile hung on the corners of his mouth. He looked like a Young Master from a noble Family who hadn't woken up yet.

But if anyone looked down on him because of this, they would definitely pay a painful price. Because the sharp edge that occasionally flashed in those slightly narrowed eyes was more heart-stopping than any Killing Intent.

He had come today purely to accompany his sister to get a spot. After all, he was the eldest Young Master of the Qian Family, and the Qian Family, being a top financial consortium Family in the Provincial Capital, naturally had a few spots. Qian Luoyun didn't need this spot at all. He was just joining in the fun. And by the way, he wanted to see if this Heavenly Saint Student was now qualified enough to make him look at him properly.

When the Wind-Thunder Divine Roc in the sky unleashed its terrifying pressure, Qian Luoyun's slightly narrowed eyes suddenly opened for a fleeting moment.

Inside his Beast Taming Space, the Beast connected to his Bloodline suddenly let out a low roar. That was not fear, but Battle Intent. A scorching Battle Intent that only ignited when encountering an opponent worthy of a fight.

Qian Luoyun was stunned for a moment. Then he smiled lightly. "Interesting."

His voice was still lazy, but if one listened carefully, a hint of hard-to-detect seriousness was hidden beneath that laziness. "Among peers, it is rare to find someone who can make this guy actively ignite its Battle Intent. It seems this Heavenly Saint Student truly has some capability."

Qian Rongrong looked up from the battle stage at the Divine Roc in the sky that was blocking out the sun. Her little mouth was formed into a small circle, and her goose-yellow sleeves fluttered gently in the morning breeze.

Her bright, lively eyes were filled with amazement and a trace of slight defiance. "This guy... is too good at showing off. Making such a big scene, stealing the spotlight from the entire venue. But this Beast is really beautiful... The sky-blue and deep purple divine feathers are much more majestic than the Beast Brother has! Brother, look, look, its lightning patterns seem to be glowing! This Aura is almost catching up to your Beast!"

Qian Luoyun shook his head helplessly. He reached out and tapped his sister on the head lightly. "Are you here to watch the competition or to look at birds? But you are right... This avian Beast is indeed extraordinary. Being able to emit a pressure close to the Brick Stone Rank at Amethyst Tier 6, its Bloodline has likely reached the top tier. Such a Prodigy, I can get to know him when the time comes and make friends."

...

Under the arena, Liu Qingshuang, Xiao Chen, and Lei Qing were gathered at the edge of a relatively deserted viewing stand. All three of them had varying degrees of injuries.

Liu Qingshuang's right sleeve was torn, and one could vaguely see bloodstains on her arm cut by wind blades. There was still a trace of uncleaned blood at the corner of Xiao Chen's mouth; that was an internal injury caused by a space-cutting strike from Feng Ziyue's Void-Splitting Profound Gold Eagle just now. Lei Qing was the most miserable. His left trouser leg was scorched by lightning over a large area, and he was limping as he walked.

The three of them had repeatedly climbed onto the battle stage. Repeatedly, they were targeted and suppressed. Every time they just stood on a battle stage, Feng Ziyue or Lin Feng would immediately follow them onto the stage to challenge them, knocking them down.

It was not that their strength was insufficient. Liu Qingshuang, Xiao Chen, and Lei Qing were originally the top three of the earth ranking, and after absorbing treasures in Ash Town, they had all broken through to the Amethyst Tier 1 and 2. Relying on their ability to fight above their rank, they already had the combat power of the top thirty of the Heavenly Ranking.

But Feng Ziyue's Void-Splitting Profound Gold Eagle was Amethyst Tier 4, and Lin Feng's Beast had also broken through to the Amethyst Tier 3. With the two of them taking turns targeting them, the three could not get any advantage even if they joined forces.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that this was not a competition for spots at all; it was clearly deliberate suppression. The people from the Jingfeng Sect and the Lin Family just wanted to make sure the Longxiang Pavilion could not get a single spot for the Molten Cavern.

"This bunch of bastards..." Lei Qing punched a stone pillar beside him. His rugged Face was filled with frustration and anger.

"Feng Ziyue and Lin Feng are doing this on purpose! Every time we go up, they come up. They leave after fighting and don't even defend the stage. They are clearly targeting us! And that Feng Yu, if it weren't for the sake of his reputation as a Heavenly Ranking expert, he would probably have come down to the field too!"

"Calm down." Liu Qingshuang's voice remained cold. She reached out to press the wound on her right arm, her brows furrowed tightly.

"They just want to provoke us. The more they do this, the less we can afford to lose our composure. When Jiang Yun left, he entrusted the Longxiang Pavilion to us, we cannot lose Face for him..."

Before she could finish, the terrifying pressure that suddenly erupted in the sky made the three of them freeze simultaneously. They looked up abruptly. Just in time to see the Wind-Thunder Divine Roc, with its wingspan covering the sky, swooping down from the clouds. The lightning light intertwined with wind and thunder dyed half the sky blue and purple.

When the voice of Vice Dean Ming Jing clearly read out the two words 'Jiang Yun', Lei Qing was the first to cry out.

"Jiang... Jiang Yun?! " He took a sharp step forward, pulling at the wound on his leg, which made him wince in pain, but he didn't care at all. He just stared fixedly at the figure standing with his hands behind his back in the sky.

"That is Jiang Yun?! That avian beast is Jiang Yun's Beast?! The Storm Thunder Sparrow we saw in Ash Town?! Damn it, this change is too huge!!"

"It is not the Storm Thunder Sparrow." Xiao Chen's voice was steady, but the shock surging in his eyes could not be suppressed no matter what. As the second place on the earth ranking and the owner of the Heavenly Sword Beast, his perception of Beasts was sharper than Lei Qing's.

"His Beast seems to have completed an evolution!!!"

"And it is the complete form after evolution, the divine feathers have formed, the lightning patterns have emerged, and the Bloodline has reached a higher level."

"Compared to the Storm Thunder Sparrow we saw in Ash Town, it is not only several times larger, but its entire species grade has undergone a transformation. This is evolution, not a simple Breakthrough in Realm."

"When we parted ways back in Ash Town..."

Liu Qingshuang's voice remained cold and clear, but those who knew her could see the shock in her heart from her slightly trembling fingertips.

"That avian was only a Gold Rank Storm Thunder Sparrow. We absorbed the treasures from the Bone Burial Area and thought our progress was fast enough... Purple Crystal Second Stage, plus combat power that surpasses our Realm, allowing us to rank in the top thirty of the Heavenly Ranking. But Sacred Student, he..."

She paused, a flash of extremely complex emotion appearing in her cold eyes.

There was shock, admiration, a trace of imperceptible disappointment, but more than anything, it was a heartfelt sense of awe.

"He has already moved ahead of us. An Amethyst Tier 6 top-tier Bloodline Beast; with this configuration, let alone the top thirty of the Heavenly Ranking, he's easily in the top fifteen. And only seven days have passed. Seven days ago, we could still fight side by side. Seven days later, he is already standing in a place we can only look up to."

The three of them fell silent at the same time.

In this silence, there was no jealousy, no unwillingness, only a complex feeling of being left far behind and unable to catch up.

But soon, that silence was replaced by a rekindled burning heat.

"He has returned at just the right time."

Liu Qingshuang raised her left hand, slowly clenching her fingers until her knuckles turned white.

"With him here, Longxiang Pavilion has a true backbone. Feng Ziyue and Lin Feng have been bullying us all day... It's time for us to settle this score!"

It was not just them. Every corner of the Colosseum, every student, was experiencing the same shock at this moment.

Those Seniors who had witnessed Jiang Yun's invincible Gold Rank record when he first enrolled were now looking at the Amethyst Tier 6 Wind-Thunder Divine Roc in the sky, an indescribable sense of absurdity rising in their hearts.

Seven days ago, they could comfort themselves by saying that although his combat power was strong, his Realm was low. Seven days later, he descended from the sky riding an Amethyst Tier 6 Divine Roc, not even giving them Face regarding his Realm.

Those who had once mocked him for overestimating himself when he issued challenges, and who had sarcastically called the Longxiang Pavilion a group of misfits when it was founded, now felt their Faces burning with heat.

He had spent seven days going from Gold Rank Eight to Amethyst Tier 6. This speed, let alone slapping Faces, was essentially pinning you to the ground and grinding you repeatedly.

As for the new members of Longxiang Pavilion who already admired Jiang Yun, they were moved to tears of excitement.

The Pavilion Master had returned.

Not only had he returned, but he had done so in such a shocking and domineering way.

It made them, as students of Longxiang Pavilion, feel incredibly proud.

Those who had been gossiping before, saying the Pavilion Master had died outside, now had their Faces swollen from being slapped. The pleasure of watching their own Pavilion Master slap the Faces of everyone present was more exhilarating than any words.

Amidst the interwoven gazes of shock, astonishment, and disbelief from the entire audience, Little Skylark slowly folded its wings and descended steadily from the sky above the Colosseum.

Its posture was calm and majestic; its long purple feathers swayed gently in the morning breeze. The cyan-purple Wind-Thunder light swirling around its body pulsed with every breath. The thunder halo hanging above its head had not yet dissipated, and the fine arcs of electricity remaining on the edge of the halo crackled in the air, shrouding it in a layer of semi-transparent thunder light, making it look as majestic as the descent of a deity.

It was descending toward the central battle platform of the Colosseum.

On that platform, two Heavenly Ranking experts, one at the Amethyst Tier 5 and one at the Amethyst Tier 6, had been fiercely competing for a spot.

One was a veteran expert in the top thirty of the Heavenly Ranking, whose Beast was surrounded by blazing, sun-like fire attribute spiritual power. The other was an even tougher character in the top twenty-five, whose command of thunder power was rarely matched among the younger generation.

The two were locked in an intense battle, and the defensive formations on the platform were buzzing from the impact. However, when the sky-covering shadow of Little Skylark descended, the movements of the two Heavenly Ranking experts froze simultaneously.

It wasn't that they wanted to stop.

It was their Beasts that stopped first.

The Blazing Lion, at the very moment it was about to exhale its innate true fire, had the flames suddenly extinguish in its throat because it felt an irresistible tremor surging from the depths of its Soul. This tremor was not an alert to danger, but a more primitive fear engraved deep within its Bloodline.

The Bloodline suppression of the Ancient Wind-Thunder Divine Peng.

The Thunder-Patterned War Hawk was even more miserable.

It was an avian.

Little Skylark's Bloodline suppression had a double suppression effect on avian-type Beasts.

When the miniature thunder storm patterns rotating in Little Skylark's pupils swept over it, the Thunder-Patterned War Hawk trembled like a sieve, its wings pulled tightly against its sides, not daring to even lift its head.

It wasn't that it didn't want to fly... it simply couldn't fly.

In front of the Ancient Wind-Thunder Divine Peng, any avian taking flight was a provocation to the Divine Peng's authority.

"Wh-what is going on?!"

The Beast Tamer of the Blazing Lion, a burly man with a fleshy Face, was staring dumbfounded as his Beast lay prostrate on the ground, shivering. The fear he felt through the contract was so intense that even his own hands were trembling slightly.

He looked up at the Wind-Thunder Divine Roc slowly descending; the thunder patterns on its cyan-purple divine feathers were flashing with a heart-palpitating light in the morning sun. The moment their eyes met, he felt a stinging pain in the center of his forehead. It was not a physical stinging pain, but an impact on the level of Mental Energy; the pressure emitted by the Divine Roc was already strong enough to affect the Beast Tamer's own Sea of Consciousness.

"Quick... come back!"

The other Beast Tamer was more decisive. The moment he felt Little Skylark's pressure, he made his decision. He suddenly raised his hand to activate the entrance to his Beast Taming Space, forcibly recalling the Thunder-Patterned War Hawk that was shaking too hard to fly, then jumped off the battle platform without looking back. He didn't even have time to take the steps at the edge of the platform, jumping directly from the half-zhang high platform. He stumbled several steps upon landing and nearly fell, but he didn't care about his image, scrambling into the crowd.

"We concede!! We don't want this spot anymore!!"

Seeing his opponent run faster than him, the burly man's Face changed, and he hurriedly recalled the prostrate Blazing Lion into his Beast Taming Space before leaping off the platform. His landing was slightly more elegant than the other's, but the horror and panic in his eyes were undiminished.

The two ran dozens of zhang before stopping, looking back at the battle platform with lingering fear. They saw that the Wind-Thunder Divine Roc had already landed steadily, its folded wings acting like a huge shield across the edge of the platform, shrouding the entire platform in its steady and terrifying pressure. And the young man on the Divine Roc's back hadn't even glanced at them from beginning to end.

This scene caused the entire Colosseum to fall into a deathly silence once again.

"Ran... they ran?!"

On the southeast spectator stand, a student's eyes were about to pop out.

"The two Prodigy experts in the top thirty and top twenty-five of the Heavenly Ranking... Amethyst Tier 5 and Amethyst Tier 6... just... just ran away like that?! They didn't even fight!! The other party didn't even say a word!! He didn't do anything!! The two of them just forfeited and ran!!"

"They didn't just run; they were scared away." A slightly older student next to him pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose, his voice full of deep shock.

"The Bloodline pressure of that avian Beast is too terrifying. We are far away in the stands and can only feel the aftershocks, and our hearts are already tightening. Those two were standing on the battle platform, facing the pressure of the Divine Roc's descent directly... that kind of oppression is not something we can imagine. Their Beasts were so suppressed by the Bloodline that they couldn't even stand steadily; how could they fight?"

"But this is too absurd... That's the top thirty of the Heavenly Ranking! The top thirty elite prodigies of the entire Sky Dome Academy! That Heavenly Saint Student didn't even say a word, didn't release a single skill, and just by having his Beast stand there, he scared people away... If this gets out, the Heavenly Ranking of the entire provincial capital will tremble!"

"It's more than just getting out... This battle, subduing the enemy without fighting, is more intimidating than any crushing victory. Look at the Faces of all the Heavenly Ranking experts in the arena... even those tough characters on the edge of the top ten are frowning. Because they are all weighing the same thing: if it were them standing on that platform facing this giant avian Beast, how long could they last?"

Indeed. At this moment, on the various battle platforms of the Colosseum, the Faces of those Heavenly Ranking experts who had originally been sitting securely had changed subtly. Some frowned, some squinted, some silently clenched their fists, and some subconsciously began to evaluate the combat power of that Divine Roc.

Of course, they wouldn't be scared away directly like those two. The difference in combat power between the top twenty and the top thirty of the Heavenly Ranking is still significant. But the oppression displayed by that Divine Roc was enough to make them re-evaluate this suddenly returned Heavenly Saint Student from a negligible newcomer to a strong enemy that cannot be underestimated.

And on the battle platform, Little Skylark slowly folded its wings, its long feathers making a faint rustling sound in the morning light, as solemn as a war flag being furled.

Jiang Yun walked down slowly from its broad back, his feet landing on the hard stone slabs of the battle platform. He stood firm. He turned around and faced the main spectator stand at the highest point.

The morning light spilled from behind him, casting a layer of pale golden halo over his tall, straight figure. The Falling Star Rank Mental Energy field around him, not yet fully retracted, made him appear even more unfathomable within the halo.

He wore a deep cyan martial outfit, and the residual lightning from the Wind-Thunder Calamity Domain still flashed occasionally between the folds of his hem, emitting extremely faint crackling sounds, giving him an awe-inspiring pressure with every gesture.

He did not look at anyone. He did not look at those who had just been discussing his life and death, he did not look at the shocked Heavenly Ranking experts, and he did not look at the Longxiang Pavilion members whose eyes were red with excitement. He simply faced the main spectator stand. He clasped his hands together in front of him, bowing respectfully without servility or arrogance.

"Student Jiang Yun! Greetings to all Deans and Seniors."