430: Daoist Academy Opens

Chu Daolin defeated Ji Xuanye within a hundred moves and departed gracefully, leaving behind a heavily injured and blood-coughing Ji Xuanye and a deathly silent battlefield.

The news swept through the Central Region with incredible speed, like a prairie fire, and spread frantically toward the four regions and eight directions!

"The Great Zhou Prince, Ji Xuanye, has been defeated!"

"A hundred moves! Only a hundred moves! He is a top-tier Prodigy of this age, a powerhouse of the Saint Realm!"

"Chu Daolin, of the Chu Family! That Family has been silent for tens of thousands of years; how can they still have such a terrifying successor?"

"An Ancient Freak! It must be an Ancient Freak sealed until now who has emerged!"

The world was in an uproar, and all parties were shaken.

The impact of this battle far exceeded that of an ordinary clash between Prodigies.

Ji Xuanye represented the top Imperial Dynasty power of the current age and was a highly influential Prodigy in this Golden Age.

His crushing defeat was like a bucket of ice water poured over the heads of many high-spirited contemporary Prodigies, making the deterrent power of the words 'Ancient Freak' clearer and heavier than ever before.

However, this was only the prelude.

Just as the tremors caused by Chu Daolin had yet to subside, shocking news came once again from the Eternal Ice Fields of the Northern Plains.

An Ancient Prodigy awakened from the profound ice and, on the day of his emergence, sought out Leng Qianqiu, the successor of the Northern Plains' Ice Emperor Palace.

Leng Qianqiu possessed the Profound Ice Saint Physique and world-shaking Divine Abilities. He was hailed as a rare genius of the Ice Emperor Palace, unheard of in ten thousand years, and had already entered the Saint Realm.

The two sides fought fiercely for half a day atop a Ten-Thousand-Foot Ice Cliff, shattering hundreds of miles of mountains and rivers.

In the end, Leng Qianqiu was no match. He coughed up blood and fled in defeat. Had the Leng Family's Old Ancestor not intervened in time, he would have almost been suppressed and killed on the ice fields!

When the news spread, the world fell silent once more!

"Even the Profound Ice Saint Physique was defeated!"

"Another Ancient Freak!!"

"Could it be that this era truly belongs to those sealed ancients?"

Feelings of panic and oppression began to spread in the hearts of some contemporary Prodigies.

Case after case, incident after incident, everything seemed to confirm a terrifying conjecture.

The Golden Age had arrived, with Opportunities gushing forth, but the ones who first enjoyed these dividends and used them to crush the current age were likely those Ancient Freaks who had accumulated for countless years just to compete in this lifetime!

The contemporary Prodigies under a hundred years old might be completely suppressed!

"Could it be that we Cultivators of this generation, after decades of bitter Cultivation, are truly inferior to the ancients who slept for eons?"

Some contemporary Prodigies growled unwillingly, their Dao Hearts shaken.

"No! We still have hope!"

Someone clenched their fists, an unyielding fire burning in their eyes.

"Don't forget the Eastern Region! We still have Battle Asura! He's an existence who can fight across Realms!"

As soon as these words were spoken, hope was rekindled in many eyes, but it was immediately extinguished by a more rational voice.

"Battle Asura is indeed exceptionally talented and rare throughout history. However, his Cultivation time is too short; he is likely still lingering in the King Realm.

Faced with those who are already in the Saint Realm, or even the middle or Late Stage of the Saint Realm, the gap in Realm is like a chasm that cannot be easily bridged by talent alone."

The atmosphere became heavy once again. The absolute gap in Realm was a cruel reality.

Just then, a voice filled with memory and alarm rang out: "Battle Asura might lack the Realm, but what about Azure Rakshasa?"

Azure Rakshasa!

The moment that name was mentioned, the surroundings instantly fell silent. Deep awe, and even a hint of fear, appeared on many faces.

Years ago, outside the Emperor's Tomb, the mysterious and unfathomable Azure Rakshasa had defeated the Saint Wang Zhan with a single finger in front of everyone!

Such nonchalance and profundity—her terrifying nature far exceeded the performance of ordinary Ancient Freaks!

"Right! We still have Azure Rakshasa!"

"If she takes action, she might be able to compete with these Ancient Freaks!"

"And Sword White Robe, his sword is equally terrifying!"

The fire of hope was ignited once more.

These few mysterious Prodigies became the spiritual pillars for contemporary Cultivators against the Ancient Freaks.

However, before the shadow of the Ancient Freaks could dissipate, another piece of news exploded across the world.

In an Ancient Thunder Marsh at the border of the Central and Southern Regions, someone witnessed an earth-shattering battle!

A young man surrounded by undying Battle Intent, seemingly walking out of an ancient battlefield, Qin Wuye, fought for over a thousand rounds against a young man controlling ten thousand bolts of lightning like a descending Thunder God!

Lightning and Battle Intent collided, shattering a thousand miles of territory, but in the end, neither could do anything to the other and they went their separate ways.

The result of this battle left everyone dumbfounded.

Qin Wuye was a confirmed Ancient Freak who had been Sealed since ancient times, possessing unparalleled combat power.

As for that lightning youth, some suspected he was also a sealed ancient, but top powerhouses could sense that the Thunder Dao he invoked was full of the vigor of the new generation.

It was completely different from the Dao Rhyme of the Ancient Freaks, which carried a slightly decadent aura from eons of accumulation.

This was something only a Cultivator who grew up in the complete heaven and earth of this era could possess.

He was by no means an ancient sleeper, but a contemporary Prodigy who truly cultivated and grew up in this world!

A contemporary Prodigy could actually fight against a powerful Ancient Freak, Zhan Tiange, for over a thousand rounds without a victor?

This news was even more shocking than Chu Daolin defeating Ji Xuanye!

It was like a bolt of lightning piercing the night sky, dispelling the gloom hanging over the hearts of the contemporary Prodigies, proving that even without eons of accumulation, the people of this age also had supreme Prodigies who could compete with ancient kings!

"Who is he? Which sect or faction does he come from?"

"Why was such a figure unknown before?"

"We Cultivators of this generation are not necessarily inferior to the ancients!"

The identity of that lightning youth remained a mystery; no one knew his Origin.

But with one hard-fought battle, he set a powerful example for all contemporary Prodigies, and the landscape of the Golden Age became even more blurred and filled with infinite possibilities.

Ancient Freaks emerged out of nowhere, crushing the current age.

On Zizhu Peak.

Xiao Ruobai, Fang Hanyu, Ling Xi, and Wang Xiaopang stood in attendance, clearly aware of the news from the outside world.

"Revered Master," Battle Intent flickered slightly in Xiao Ruobai's eyes.

"That Chu Daolin seems quite interesting."

Gu Changge's gaze swept casually over the four Disciples before him, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips.

"What, seeing the excitement outside, you little fellows are feeling restless too?"

The four had different expressions, and Xiao Ruobai grinned.

How could Gu Changge not know their thoughts?

"Go on." Gu Changge waved his hand.

Soon, four obscure streaks of light quietly left Zizhu Peak, heading toward the Central Region.

Deep in the endless starry sky, the Nirvana Emperor, Xing Tianao, who had consolidated his Emperor Realm cultivation, slowly opened his eyes.

His Emperor Might was restrained, and his gaze was calm, yet it seemed to reflect the heavens.

He took a step forward, and in the next moment, he appeared silently before an ancient mountain range teeming with majesty and permeated with endless scholarly fragrance and Dao Rhyme.

This was precisely Dao Zang Academy.

Three days later, at the first light of dawn.

An ancient, vast Dao Rhyme, seemingly originating from the source of the ten thousand Daos, shot up into the sky from the core of the Central Region, Dao Yuan Mountain!

The Dao Rhyme was formless, yet it instantly spread to every corner of the Xuanhuang Great World.

Regardless of their Realm level or location, the Dao Hearts of all living beings trembled slightly, as if struck by the most primordial sound of the Great Dao.

Immediately after, a scene that shook the ages slowly unfolded across the sky of the Central Region.

Endless Great Dao runes manifested from the Void Realm, converging into a golden river that spanned the horizon.

Within the long river, phantoms of scripture scrolls floated, the voices of ancient sages chanting sutras echoed, and three towering, majestic, though blurred, Emperor figures loomed at the end of the river, looking down upon the mortal world.

Simultaneously, a peaceful, vast voice that seemed to penetrate the Soul rang out:

"The Great Dao flourishes, and the flame is passed on."

"Dao Zang Academy hereby reopens its mountain gates."