455: Chapter 455 Entering the Academy

The main peak's grand hall.

Xuan Yangzi sprang up from his throne, his breathing ragged.

"A complete trial world? Time acceleration? This..."

After the extreme shock came an indescribable ecstasy and awe for Gu Changge's unfathomable methods.

"Junior Brother Changge, you have truly given the Sect an unimaginable fortune this time!"

At the summit of Zizhu Peak, Gu Changge did not stop after sending the message regarding the Myriad Tribulations Battlefield.

After a brief contemplation, he took out two treasures from the System space and placed them into a Storage Ring.

One was myriad tribulation profound water, and the other was an improved version of the Marrow Cleansing Pill.

Both of these treasures had miraculous effects on one's skeletal structure and Aptitude, allowing for a complete transformation.

With a gentle flick of his sleeve, the Storage Ring turned into a streak of light and pierced through space. In the next moment, it quietly appeared before Xuan Yangzi, floating in mid-air.

Xuan Yangzi was startled by the sudden glow of the treasure. Before he could fully recover from the shock of the Myriad Tribulations Battlefield, Gu Changge's calm voice echoed in his mind once again.

"Senior Brother, there are two items in the ring: myriad tribulation profound water and Marrow Cleansing Pills. You have seen their effects before; they can improve Aptitude. Use them at your discretion to enhance the skeletal structure and Aptitude of the Sect's Disciples."

Xuan Yangzi instinctively extended his Divine Sense to inspect the Storage Ring.

With one look, he felt as if he had been struck by lightning, freezing in place.

Inside the storage space, on one side, was a mountain of jade bottles, each containing ten Marrow Cleansing Pills as smooth as jade.

On the other side, a massive jade vat was filled with dark and deep myriad tribulation profound water. Dao patterns flowed on the surface, emitting a heart-palpitating chill and vitality.

Xuan Yangzi's lips trembled as he uncontrollably recalled the scene where Gu Changge had said he only had "a little" of this stuff.

"Is this what you meant by 'not much'?"

...One day later.

Deep within the Azure Cloud Secret Realm, at the entrance of the newly appeared vortex, streaks of light shot in like swift arrows.

The entire Secret Realm became a scene of chaos.

"Boss, move! Move! You're in my way!"

"Third brother, what's the rush! This Secret Realm isn't going anywhere!"

Beyond the vortex lay another vast world.

"Holy crap!! The Spiritual Qi here..."

Before the words could finish, a brilliant sword light soared into the sky, accompanied by Ye Guying's cold yet excitedly trembling voice:

"The war shadows of myriad races here can actually simulate the intent of life-and-death combat... Good! Good! Good! My path of the sword can finally take another step forward!"

Similar scenes were constantly playing out across the Myriad Tribulations Battlefield.

"I found a great treasure here..."

"I found a good treasure too!"

"Could this pool be Innate Spirit Marrow?!"

"Could this Ore be a divine material for refining Imperial Weapons?"

Exclamations, wild laughter, and the booming sounds of Breakthroughs rose and fell one after another.

Xuan Yangzi stood near the entrance, watching the chaotic scene before him, his lips twitching uncontrollably.

But soon, the twitching of his lips turned into an irrepressible smile, eventually becoming a hearty laugh.

"Hahaha! Good! What a Myriad Tribulations Battlefield! What a Junior Brother Changge!"

He could almost see the backbone of the Azure Profound Sect growing stronger at a visible rate within this magical world!

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

When the first light of dawn pierced through the sea of clouds and fell upon the majestic Dao Yuan Mountain, the entire mountain range was already bustling with people.

All the Prodigies who passed the assessment, along with many more Cultivators from various parties who came to observe, had gathered on the massive white jade square in front of the grand Mingxin Hall.

Although the crowd was large, the square was not noisy; instead, it was filled with a solemn yet burning sense of anticipation.

Everyone's gaze was focused on the very front of the square.

Led by the five including Xiao Ruobai, Fang Hanyu, and Ling Xi, the twelve peerless Prodigies who had successfully reached the nine-thousandth step stood at the very front of the line!

After three days of rest and consolidation, their auras had become increasingly profound.

Especially the three who had just stepped into the Saint Realm; although they tried their best to restrain themselves, the occasional flow of Dao Rhyme still caused the surrounding Void Realm to distort slightly, leaving others in awe.

Wang Xiaopang and Mo Yu were equally eye-catching.

Behind them were Wang Zhan, Chu Daolin, Qin Wuye, Jiang Ruofeng, Lei Dong, and others.

Li Xuanfeng, Mu Chenyu, and the other seven Azure Profound Sect Disciples stood quietly at the end of the line of nine-thousand-step Prodigies.

Their auras were deep and calm, like still pools, drawing many curious glances.

"Clang—!"

A grand and majestic bell toll echoed from deep within Mingxin Hall, spreading across the fields and cleansing the soul.

In an instant, ten thousand rays of rosy light and thousands of auspicious colors appeared.

Led by the Academy Head, Immortal Master Xuanji, dozens of Elders with auras as deep as the sea stepped slowly out of the hall.

The Dao Rhyme emanating from each Elder made the young Prodigies present feel bursts of heart-palpitation.

Immortal Master Xuanji's gaze was gentle yet piercing as it slowly swept over every Prodigy below, pausing slightly on the dozen or so at the very front, the satisfaction and expectation in his eyes growing stronger.

He did not speak immediately, but this silent gaze made the already solemn atmosphere on the square even more dignified.

Everyone understood that a brand new era was about to officially begin with Immortal Master Xuanji's words.

Immortal Master Xuanji's gaze swept across the crowd, and his old, peaceful voice clearly reached everyone's ears. Without much embellishment, it carried an undeniable authority:

"From this day forth, for a period of three years, you are Disciples of my Daozang Academy. Within the Academy, killing fellow Disciples is forbidden; otherwise, everything depends on your own abilities and your pursuit of Opportunity."

"On the path of cultivation, working behind closed doors is not the way; sparring and discussing the Dao is the correct path."

"In two days, the Academy will open the Dao Accumulation Pool. This is a place of fortune left over from ancient times, rich in Dao Rhyme, which can temper the Dao foundation and cleanse the Divine Soul. Whether you can seize it depends on yourselves."

After Immortal Master Xuanji finished his announcement, he departed with the Elders.

The remaining time was for their own arrangements.

Under the guidance of the Academy's deacons, the new Disciples went to their assigned Immortal Caves to settle in.

The Immortal Cave area was located on several Spiritual Vein nodes with the densest Spiritual Qi on Dao Yuan Mountain.

The higher one's ranking on the Heavenly Ladder, the better the location of the Immortal Cave and the denser the Spiritual Qi, some even coming with basic cultivation facilities like small Spirit Gathering Formations and meditation mats.

Unsurprisingly, the five including Xiao Ruobai, Fang Hanyu, and Ling Xi obtained three adjacent Heaven-Grade A-rank Immortal Caves located at the highest point.

Not long after everyone settled in, a transmission talisman turned into a streak of light and flew into Xiao Ruobai's Immortal Cave.

Xiao Ruobai took it and swept it with his Divine Sense. A gentle and clear voice of a young man came from within:

"Fellow Junior Brothers and sisters who have just entered the Academy, I am Lu Chenzhou, a Disciple of the Academy. I have heard of your brilliant talents and have long looked forward to meeting you."

"Tomorrow at noon, a modest banquet will be held at Yunhai Terrace, firstly to welcome you all, and secondly to provide a quiet place for fellow Daoists to discuss the Dao."

"If you have time, I hope you will grace us with your presence. Other fellow students from the Academy will also be there."

At the same time, other True Disciples who had entered the Academy also received transmissions with the same content.

"Interesting."

Xiao Ruobai put down the transmission talisman, a glimmer of interest flashing in his eyes.

"Is this to test our mettle, or do they truly want to make friends?"

"We'll just go and see."

Fang Hanyu's tone was cold as his gaze pierced through the window of the Immortal Cave, looking at the distant mountains shrouded in mist.

"It's a good chance to see the level of the Disciples trained by this Daozang Academy itself."