239: 【Special gift】, flying second floor!

That night, stars dotted the black curtain, adding a touch of brilliance to the endless darkness.

In Lu Sheng's room in the Star Academy dormitory building.

Lu Sheng sat cross-legged on the bed, his expression more serene than ever.

His gaze involuntarily passed through the window, leisurely falling upon the myriad stars in the night sky.

In his mind, the scene from that afternoon, when Elder Li led the new students of the forty-sixth batch in their oath, kept replaying.

In a short period, Lu Sheng felt as if he had experienced several generations.

First, there were the graduating students of Star Academy, representing the present of Star Academy.

Then, there was the aging Elder Li, representing the past of Star Academy.

Finally... it fell upon Wang Ziyan and the group who had just entered Star Academy, bearing their responsibilities; they... represented the future of Star Academy!

Past, present, future... three representations, in a short time, impacted Lu Sheng's vision and stirred his heartstrings.

His gaze diffused leisurely, as if it pierced through the walls of Tianxing City and entered the endless Demonic Qi World.

He seemed to traverse within the Demonic Qi World, eventually reaching the majestic Tianxing Great Wall.

Passing through the Tianxing Great Wall, he stepped into the Otherworldly Demon Battlefield.

Blood, brutality, and ravines filled Lu Sheng's vision.

It spread... eventually, merging into the infinite, dark world.

A moment later, Lu Sheng slowly closed his eyes.

At this moment, Lu Sheng felt an unprecedented tranquility in his heart.

Time passed bit by bit, but Lu Sheng remained in this extremely profound state, his heart as still as water.

Who knows how long passed, just as the stars on the black sky gradually dimmed, and a hint of dawn tore through the darkness beyond the horizon.

A faint ripple, however, emanated from within Lu Sheng at this moment.

Beneath this ripple, there seemed to be a profoundly peaceful undulation.

Gradually, behind Lu Sheng, a faint, indistinct phantom slowly emerged—a very blurry figure.

But, strangely, with the appearance of that figure, the entire room was filled with an extremely comfortable sensation.

As if... embracing a spring breeze.

Suddenly, Lu Sheng slowly opened his eyes, and as he did, the blurry figure behind him also opened its eyes at that moment.

Those eyes slowly opened, revealing a gentle expression.

The figure spread its arms, as if to embrace something.

"Guard!"

Lu Sheng murmured softly.

Concept... Guard!

As Lu Sheng's soft murmur echoed, an unprecedented sense of security instantly enveloped the entire room.

Lu Sheng looked out the window again, and the blurry figure behind him gradually dissipated at this time, finally vanishing between Heaven and Earth, as if it had never appeared.

Past, present, future... the people of Star Academy bore only one responsibility.

The responsibility of Guard!

To Guard the peace of Great Xia with their flesh and blood!

To protect the myriad household lights!

It was also at this moment that Lu Sheng comprehended his third Concept.

Guard Concept!

Gradually, Lu Sheng slowly withdrew his gaze, and with a slight thought, the System interface appeared.

【Host: Lu Sheng!】

【Cultivation: Spirit Transformation Sixth Layer! Body Refining Eighth Layer Early Stage!】

【Martial Arts: Luohan Fist (Perfection), Nine Stars Body Refining Art (Major Achievement), Hidden Dragon Formless Sword (Exiting the Abyss Middle Stage), Barren Sword (Perfection), Thousand Flows (Perfection), Heaven and Earth Hammer (Major Achievement), Ninefold Wind Sword (Whirlwind First Layer)】

【Martial Arts Talent: 【"Slaughter"】 (Purple+), 【Good Luck】 (Green+), 【Hundredfold Amplification】 (Red+), 【Human Immortal Physique】 (Gold+)】

【Refresh Count: 8!】

【Slaughter Value: 0】

The Refresh Count had accumulated to eight, and in just half a month, he would be able to exchange for a new red talent.

"Both the 'Slaughter' and Hidden Dragon Concepts have advanced to Fifth Tier, and although the newly comprehended Guard Concept is only First Tier, I don't know why, but it provides me with an even greater boost than a typical Third Tier Concept."

Lu Sheng stroked his chin.

"Is it because the Guard Concept is special, or something else?"

Lu Sheng was a bit puzzled. Logically, Guard and "Slaughter" are opposing Concepts and should belong to the same tier.

But why did the Guard Concept feel so much stronger to Lu Sheng than the "Slaughter" Concept?

Confusion surfaced in Lu Sheng's mind.

"Never mind, I won't worry about it. While there's still some time before heading to the Otherworldly Demon World, I'll seize the Opportunity to improve my cultivation. If I can raise the Guard Concept, that would naturally be for the best!"

Lu Sheng shook his head, burying the confusion deep within his heart. Then, he took a deep breath, dismissed the System interface, and began to Cultivate by operating the Hidden Dragon Formless Sword... In the blink of an eye, half a month passed.

In the room, Lu Sheng sat quietly cross-legged on the bed, a terrifying energy fluctuation emanating from his body.

Behind him, there was a hammer phantom filled with the Concept of "Slaughter", a sword phantom roaring like a Flood Dragon, and an extremely peaceful human figure.

Three completely different Concepts floated behind Lu Sheng.

A moment later, Lu Sheng opened his eyes, and the phantoms behind him instantly dissipated.

Immediately after, a powerful aura spread from within Lu Sheng's body.

"Spirit Transformation Eighth Layer!"

"Both the 'Slaughter' and Hidden Dragon Concepts have advanced to Fifth Tier Peak, and the Guard Concept has also reached Third Tier. However, this Third Tier Guard Concept is already almost on par with the Fifth Tier Peak 'Slaughter' Concept. As expected, this Guard Concept is quite special!"

Lu Sheng stroked his chin. The more he Cultivated the Guard Concept, the more he could feel its unique and different aspects.

This Guard Concept seemed to transcend all other Concepts.

Even... the more Lu Sheng Cultivated the Guard Concept, the more he discovered that it seemed to have a subtle sense of incompleteness, always feeling as if something was missing.

This feeling of being able to sense it but not grasp it made Lu Sheng somewhat scratch his head in frustration.

"Forget it, once I raise this Guard Concept to Ninth Tier, I'll naturally understand."

Lu Sheng shook his head, then suppressed this emotion, and immediately reopened the System interface.

The Refresh Count had once again accumulated to ten!

He could exchange for a red talent!

Lu Sheng looked at the scene before him, his eyes flickering gently.

"System, exchange for a red talent!"

【Ding, deducting ten Refresh Counts. Randomly refreshing a red talent for the Host. Please wait...】

The familiar, cold voice of the System resonated in Lu Sheng's ears.

【Ding, System refresh successful. Congratulations to the Host for obtaining the red-quality talent — Special Gift!】

【Special Gift: Each time the Host advances a major Realm, different Opportunities will arise! The strength of the Opportunity depends on the Host's current strength!】

As the System's cold voice echoed in Lu Sheng's mind, when Lu Sheng looked at the information before him, he couldn't help but gasp.

Each time he advanced a Realm, an Opportunity would arise?

What a terrifying Martial Arts Talent this was.

Then... would the Martial Arts Realms he had previously experienced be compensated for this time?

Lu Sheng felt a slight anticipation in his heart.

Just as Lu Sheng was thinking this, suddenly, a series of cold System voices directly echoed in Lu Sheng's mind.

"Ding, detecting Host has entered the Martial Artist Realm, rewarding First Grade Qi Blood Infusion!"

"Ding, detecting Host has entered the Blood Refinement Realm, rewarding Second Grade Qi Blood Infusion!"

"Ding, detecting Host has entered..."

"..."

"Ding, detecting Host has entered the Spirit Transformation Realm, rewarding Eighth Grade Spiritual Qi Infusion!"

A series of voices instantly exploded in Lu Sheng's mind.

In an instant, Lu Sheng only felt as if countless Qi Blood instantly surged into his body.

However, as soon as these Qi Blood entered his body, they were instantly devoured by the golden Spirit Pill within Lu Sheng's body, transforming into Lu Sheng's own Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi.

Immediately after, an extremely turbulent Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi furiously surged through Lu Sheng's limbs and bones, ultimately flowing into Lu Sheng's Dantian.

Gradually, a brand new golden Spirit Pill began to emerge in Lu Sheng's Dantian.

Nine pills!

Spirit Transformation Ninth Layer!

However... it was not over yet!

Another nascent golden Spirit Pill slowly appeared, but it looked much smaller compared to the other nine Spirit Pills.

A moment later, Lu Sheng opened his eyes, and a look of shock appeared in them.

"This..."

"The Realms I crossed before really brought me an improvement. Now I am already at the Peak of Spirit Transformation, just half a step away from entering the Flying Heaven Realm!"

Lu Sheng's face showed a shocked expression.

One must know that condensing these golden Spirit Pills was not easy. Only with Lu Sheng's Hundredfold Amplification and Human Immortal Physique, coupled with numerous resources, was he able to condense two pills in half a month.

And this Special Reward directly allowed him to condense one Spirit Pill and one nascent Spirit Pill.

"This is only a red talent. If I can raise it to a golden talent, will the rewards be even more generous?"

Lu Sheng thought to himself, looking at the tenth nascent Spirit Pill in his Dantian, a gleam of light flashing in his eyes.

"Perfect, I'll strike while the iron is hot, condense the tenth Spirit Pill, step into the Flying Heaven Realm, and see what the rewards for the Flying Heaven Realm are!"

A sharp glint flashed in Lu Sheng's eyes.

Immediately, he took a deep breath, took out many Heaven And Earth Treasures, swallowed them in one gulp, and began to digest the energy within these Heaven And Earth Treasures.

He was preparing to make a Breakthrough into the Flying Heaven Realm in one go!

...Meanwhile, in Lin Xuan's courtyard.

Lin Xuan sat quietly in the courtyard.

Suddenly, behind Lin Xuan, a black vortex, like a black hole, slowly emerged. Along with the appearance of the black vortex, an extremely evil aura permeated the Heaven and Earth.

Immediately after, an arm stretched out from within the black vortex. The arm held a black token.

A black lion was carved on the token, standing on a mountain Peak, overlooking the world, letting out roars.

Just by looking at the static pattern, one could feel an extremely domineering aura spreading out.

"Killed a powerful expert of the Lion Demon Clan, approximately at the Late Stage of Spirit Transformation. It's perfect to have him impersonate this person. All other arrangements have been made. Try to send him over within a week, otherwise, if it takes too long, the Lion Demon Clan will notice something is wrong!"

A hoarse voice came from the black vortex.

At this moment, Lin Xuan, who had been keeping his eyes closed, finally opened them.

The arm directly threw the black token to Lin Xuan, still speaking in a hoarse voice: "This person's identity and experience have already been recorded in the token. Have him familiarize himself with it. If anything goes wrong, even with our people inside the Lion Demon Clan, it will be very difficult!"

Lin Xuan's gaze fell on the token carved with the black lion, then he smiled faintly.

"Understood!"

After saying that, the arm also directly retracted into the black vortex.

Gradually, ripples appeared in the space, and the black vortex also disappeared from the courtyard.

The space healed, as if nothing had ever appeared.

Lin Xuan weighed the black token in his hand, the corners of his mouth slightly rising.

"The Lion Demon Clan, one of the three major clans under the Beast Demon Royal Clan. The Lion Demon Emperor is an outstanding individual among the Devil King experts. Although he cannot compare to the Emperors of the Royal Clan, his combat power is comparable to the top five of the Ten Saints of Great Xia."

"However, with the Beast Horn of the Beast Demon Royal Clan, there shouldn't be much of a problem!"

A faint light flickered slightly in Lin Xuan's eyes.

After a moment of contemplation, Lin Xuan still stood up, preparing to find Lu Sheng.

"After waiting for so long, this guy must be getting a bit restless, right?"

Lin Xuan smiled faintly, then took a step, directly disappearing from the courtyard.

In just an instant, Lin Xuan's figure appeared directly at the door of Lu Sheng's bedroom.

However, just as he was about to knock on the door to wake Lu Sheng, Lin Xuan seemed to discover something, and a hint of doubt appeared in his eyes.

"Hmm? This fluctuation..."

Lin Xuan sensed the energy fluctuations coming from the bedroom, and his expression gradually changed from doubt to a strange look.

"He made a Breakthrough?"

Lin Xuan murmured softly.

As soon as his words fell, an extremely turbulent energy fluctuation spread directly from the room, like ocean waves, hitting layer after layer.

It instantly broke through the confines of the room and diffused outwards.

Feeling this extremely turbulent energy fluctuation, the corners of Lin Xuan's mouth couldn't help but twitch slightly.

"How long has it been? No more than three months in total, right? This guy... actually broke through to the Flying Heaven Realm??"

Lin Xuan murmured softly, and even he, an expert of the Dao Entry Realm, couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion in his heart when he sensed the fluctuations of the Flying Heaven Realm.

A Martial Artist of the Flying Heaven Realm was undeniably powerful. One must know that when Lu Sheng first entered Star Academy, Lan Zhan was only at the Peak of the Flying Heaven Realm, half a step into the Golden Body Realm.

It could be said that a Martial Artist of the Flying Heaven Realm was qualified to become a teacher in a first-class Martial Arts Academy, and even looking across the entire Great Xia Territory, Martial Artists of the Flying Heaven Realm were considered true mainstays.

And this Lu Sheng... in just over a year since joining Star Academy, he had directly broken through to the Flying Heaven Realm.

This speed was simply terrifying.

Although the concentration of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi in the Great Xia Territory had increased fivefold, and everyone's Cultivation speed had improved.

But it shouldn't be as terrifying as Lu Sheng's, right?

So much so that when Lin Xuan sensed Lu Sheng's Breakthrough, he, an expert of the Dao Entry Realm, fell into silence.

A moment later, Lin Xuan rubbed his temples and couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh: "It seems I need to seize the time to ascend to a Saintly Position, otherwise, if this little guy continues to Cultivate, I'm afraid it won't be long before I'm surpassed by him!"

Although Cultivation becomes increasingly difficult in the later stages of a Martial Artist's Realm, given Lu Sheng's Martial Arts Talent and his terrifying improvement over the past year, Lin Xuan did not think it would be difficult for Lu Sheng to surpass him.

Lin Xuan smiled bitterly, preparing to wait a while for Lu Sheng to consolidate his Cultivation before knocking on the door.

But at this moment, an even more terrifying energy fluctuation than before permeated the air.

"This is..."

Feeling this terrifying energy fluctuation, Lin Xuan was completely dumbfounded. He stared blankly at the room in front of him, and a hint of shock gradually emerged in his eyes.

"Flying Heaven... Second Layer!!"

Lin Xuan spoke with some difficulty, the shock in his eyes growing even more intense.

If Lu Sheng's Breakthrough to the Flying Heaven Realm just now was surprising to Lin Xuan, then now, after only a few minutes, he had directly advanced from the Flying Heaven First Layer to the Flying Heaven Second Layer.

This promotion speed was truly terrifying.

For a moment, even Lin Xuan's brain seemed to have frozen at this point.

Lin Xuan really couldn't understand what kind of Prodigy could continuously break through so many Realms.

One must know that this was the Flying Heaven Realm, not something as simple as the Qi Blood Realm or Blood Refinement Realm.

This... this was truly a bit exaggerated, wasn't it?

Lin Xuan looked at the door, his entire face filled with a complex expression.

A moment later, feeling the energy fluctuations in the room gradually return to calm, Lin Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He had even suspected just now whether Lu Sheng was going to advance another minor Realm.

But now it seemed he had been overly worried.

Yet, even so... Lu Sheng's situation just now still stirred up waves in Lin Xuan's heart.

After waiting for a while, Lin Xuan finally knocked on the door.