Chapter 584: Chapter 366: Registration

Xu Yang’s return to the Celestial Strategy Academy was completely uneventful. He even entered the academy wearing Lu Ren’s face, and no one at the entrance bothered to check his waist token. However, once inside, he changed back to his original appearance and smoothly returned to his courtyard.

"Now that I have the resources, I will focus all my efforts on raising my cultivation for the foreseeable future," he muttered.

After carefully putting away the items he had brought back, Xu Yang sat down on his meditation cushion. Although his innate talent was slightly superior to Lu Wei’s—having mastered the Spirit Bone Techniques, the Dragon Symbols Heart Scripture and the Azure Dragon Dominating Body, which even Lu Wei had failed to learn—he was vastly inferior in terms of resources. He had to hunt down every single bit of his resources himself. Meanwhile, people like Lu Wei had powerful factions behind them that would immediately deliver whatever they lacked.

Forget comparing him to Lu Wei; most of the people on the Lingyun List had more resources than he did, let alone Spirit Bone Celestial Prides like Qi Ning and Leng Qiuyue. At his current realm, talent was undeniably important, but resources could not be ignored either. Even if someone had better talent, a lack of resources would allow others to pull ahead.

Although he was immortal and his body remained at its absolute peak forever, the path of the Martial Dao required something just as vital as resources and talent: cultivation techniques. Even in the Hidden Skills Hall of the Celestial Strategy Academy, he hadn’t seen anything meant for those Above Celestial Essence. Therefore, he was bound to clash with people like Qi Ning in the future to seize the opportunity to ascend the Final Dragon Platform. He couldn’t afford to fall too far behind them.

Reining in his thoughts, he took out a Spiritual Essence Pill and swallowed it. The surging medicinal efficacy dissolved and was refined by the Dragon Symbols Heart Scripture.

[Dragon Symbols Heart Scripture · Second Layer (132/10000)]

Half an hour later, Xu Yang opened his eyes. "A single Spiritual Essence Pill is equivalent to half a month of arduous cultivation."

He had absorbed two-thirds of the medicinal efficacy from this Spiritual Essence Pill, leaving the remaining one-third deposited in his flesh and blood, requiring slow refinement. This was primarily because it wasn’t the kind of top-grade elixir he refined himself. If it had been his own handiwork, there wouldn’t have been so much residual efficacy left unabsorbed.

Standing up to stretch his limbs for a moment, Xu Yang began to comprehend the Yunling Technique. Since Mr. Jin Yu imparted it to him, he hadn’t yet started practicing this secret technique. Now that about ten days had passed, he needed to reach the entry level of the Yunling Technique as soon as possible so he could buy medicinal seedlings and plant them.

By evening, he successfully reached the entry level of the Yunling Technique. Time quickly passed, bringing the next day. The very first thing Xu Yang did upon opening his eyes was check his interface.

[Yunling Technique Entry Level, Points +100]

[Slaying Yang Zheng, Points +10]

[Obtaining Spiritual Essence Pill, Points +10]

...

[Martial Arts Longevity Points: 3472]

Between reaching the entry level of the Yunling Technique and his gains from yesterday, his points had increased by over two hundred. He was only short a little over five hundred points to upgrade and manifest a Spirit Bone.

"The Canglang Sword Technique and the Black Tortoise Mountain-Suppressing Fist are also nearing perfection," he thought. "Once those two martial techniques reach perfection, it should be just about enough."

Three days later, the Canglang Sword Technique was the first to reach perfection. However, since it wasn’t a particularly powerful martial technique, it only added fifty points.

"Good enough!"

Stepping out of the quiet chamber, he headed toward the Logistics Hall. Half a month had passed, and his body had fully recovered to normal. It was time to register his breakthrough to the Celestial Essence Second Layer and collect his academic credits while he was at it. He still hadn’t claimed his reward for his ranking on the Lingyun List either.

"Brother Xu!"

"Brother Zuo!"

Stepping into the Logistics Hall, Xu Yang saw quite a few students from Basic Class A, and everyone exchanged greetings. Zuo Mu, Wenshan, and the others walked over.

"Brother Xu, has your body recovered?"

Seeing that Xu Yang’s physical form had regained its fullness, with smooth muscle lines faintly visible beneath his clothes, they were all greatly shocked. Hadn’t Du Ziming been absolutely certain that Xu Yang was severely injured, which was why he tried to take advantage of the situation? How had he recovered so quickly?

"Fully recovered," Xu Yang said with a smile. He had told them from the beginning that it was just a minor injury; they simply hadn’t believed him.

"Since you’ve recovered, you’re bound to win your upcoming battle with Du Ziming," Zuo Mu laughed.

"I wouldn’t guarantee a victory, but I do have some confidence," Xu Yang replied with a smile.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries with the group, he found the window that issued academic credits and handed his waist token over.

"I am student Xu Yang. My cultivation has broken through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer today, and I am here to register."

His voice wasn’t loud. In the noisy Logistics Hall, it was rather faint, easily drowned out by the myriad of other sounds. But this was Xu Yang—the prominent figure who had beaten Lin Jingyu to death and made a name for himself throughout Yun Province. The moment the words "Celestial Essence Second Layer" left his lips, the massive Logistics Hall fell completely silent. Everyone looked over in astonishment.

In such a short time, not only had Xu Yang healed from the injuries caused by forcefully cultivating the Azure Dragon Dominating Body, but he had also broken through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer?

"Brother Xu, you broke through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer?" Zuo Mu, Wenshan, and the other geniuses of Basic Class A walked over, their faces etched with shock.

"I got lucky and broke through over the past couple of days," Xu Yang chuckled.

"Demonstrate the true intent of your cultivation technique," the teacher behind the window instructed.

Xu Yang nodded. With a thought, a realm alternating between cold and heat instantly emanated from his body.

"That’s enough!" the teacher interrupted.

Xu Yang quickly withdrew his realm. Soon, after finishing the registration, the teacher retrieved his credits and handed them over.

"You are ranked twenty-sixth on the Lingyun List. According to the list’s rules, you earn twelve credits a month. For three months, that’s thirty-six credits. Breaking through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer earns you ten credits by the rules, bringing the total to forty-six credits."

"Thank you, sir!"

Xu Yang put away his waist token and credits. Adding the remaining ones he already had, his total was now eighty-five credits. At another window, he spent two credits to purchase the medicinal seedlings for planting. He had originally planned to go outside and buy them with spirit coins, but since he had just left the academy recently and was worried about drawing attention, he could only use his credits to buy them within the Celestial Strategy Academy. With the seedlings in hand, Xu Yang headed straight back to his courtyard.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the academy.

"Xu Yang broke through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer?"

Du Ziming, who had challenged Xu Yang, quickly received the news of the breakthrough. It was Zuo Mu and the others who came to deliver the message.

"Yes, he just finished registering at the Logistics Hall," Zuo Mu chuckled.

"It seems his injuries from the Azure Dragon Dominating Body weren’t too severe." Du Ziming’s expression darkened slightly. A challenge that was originally in the bag had now developed unforeseen variables.

"Are you still confident, Brother Du?" Zuo Mu asked curiously.

"I still have about an eighty percent certainty," Du Ziming chuckled. "It’s even better that he broke through. It saves me the credits I would have had to spend asking Mr. Jin Yu to intervene. With only half a month left, he probably won’t even have enough time to consolidate his cultivation. I, on the other hand, have long since stabilized mine and have been cultivating at this realm for over a month.

"Besides, I’m not Lin Jingyu. Lin Jingyu was a few years younger than him, but I am not."

After breaking it down, Du Ziming felt completely reassured. They were both geniuses on the Lingyun List. As long as the age gap wasn’t too massive, how much stronger could one really be over the other? Having broken through more than a month earlier, he had not only stabilized his realm but also made solid progress within it. No matter how he looked at it, the advantage was entirely on his side. He had a major faction in Yunzhou City supporting him, whereas Xu Yang did not.

Back at the courtyard.

It took Xu Yang half an hour to plant all the medicinal seedlings. Planting them was only the first step. Once they survived, he would need to frequently use the flesh and bones of Exotic Beasts as fertilizer, supplemented by the Yunling Technique, for them to eventually transform into Spirit Medicine in the future.

"Even though I had to spend academic credits, these things are genuinely good quality," he mused. The seedlings provided by the Celestial Strategy Academy were rare medicinal herbs rarely seen on the market. If he had actually gone out with spirit coins, he might not have been able to find them.

"From now on, I’ll have to spend at least half an hour a day tending to these herbs." While he did want to cultivate his own Spirit Medicine, he didn’t want to plant too many. However, this was a task assigned by Mr. Jin Yu, so he couldn’t just brush it off even if he wanted to.

After watering all the herbs, Xu Yang was just about to cultivate when a knock came from the courtyard door. When he opened it, he found Sun Tao and Jiang Fan, who had hurried over to congratulate him upon hearing the news of his breakthrough.

"Junior Brother Xu, congratulations! Breaking through so quickly is truly unexpected," Sun Tao said with a laugh. He had relied on that bizarre Spirit Medicine to advance so rapidly, and Xu Yang was only half a month behind him. It was highly likely that the timeline of his original breakthrough to the Celestial Essence realm had been faked. Sun Tao knew Xu Yang’s character all too well—he would never reveal his true trump cards to anyone. For all he knew, the guy had broken through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer ages ago. However, as a senior brother, he naturally wouldn’t expose Xu Yang in front of Jiang Fan.

Xu Yang smilingly invited the two into the courtyard and served them tea. "Senior Brother, let’s dispense with the pleasantries between us." He had displayed his true talent in front of Sun Tao, so he didn’t believe Sun Tao couldn’t guess that he had broken through to the Celestial Essence Second Layer a long time ago.

"You guys have all broken through, but I’m still falling a bit short. When we first entered the Purple Sun Sect, neither of your rankings was as high as mine," Jiang Fan sighed. In the beginning, people only knew of him and Li Chuyang. Names like Sun Tao and Xu Yang were completely unheard of in the Purple Sun Sect. But now, if it weren’t for his status as a Young Master Marquis and his utterly useless bloodline, nobody would even know who Jiang Fan was.

"Don’t belittle yourself, Brother Jiang. Once your bloodline awakens, you’ll be on par with the Spirit Bone Celestial Prides. These meager skills of ours will eventually be outshined by you," Xu Yang said with a smile.

The deeper his cultivation became, the more he understood the terrifying might of the Jiang family’s ancestors. One had to realize that even millennium-old clans like the Kong, Xiao, and Qin families didn’t possess any concept of a bloodline, simply because their ancestors had never produced a truly peerless expert.

Jiang Fan smiled bitterly. "Awakening the bloodline is easier said than done. You guys have no idea, but the Jiang family hasn’t seen anyone awaken their bloodline in seven or eight generations. If I had even the slightest chance of awakening it, do you think people like Li Chuyang would dare target me at every turn?"

The decline of the Marquis Mansion was directly tied to the decline of this bloodline, which had lain dormant for seven or eight generations.

"What conditions are required to awaken the bloodline?" Xu Yang asked curiously. He had seen Spirit Bone Celestial Prides before, but he hadn’t encountered a single genius with an awakened bloodline. Such prodigies were even rarer than Spirit Bone Celestial Prides.

"The awakening of a bloodline depends on its purity and concentration. The richer the bloodline, the earlier it awakens. Thousands of years have passed since the first ancestor of the Jiang family, and the bloodline passed down from them has grown exceedingly thin.

"Barring any miracles, I have almost zero chance of awakening it in my lifetime. That is, unless I can find a peerless Spirit Medicine specifically meant to baptize bloodlines, or if I undergo some monumental tribulation," Jiang Fan said, shaking his head. While there were some prerequisites for a bloodline awakening, they were fundamentally impossible to fulfill; otherwise, the Jiang family wouldn’t have gone so many generations without an awakening. He held almost no hope for it.

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