The Imperial Capital.
In the empty underground space, several humans stood in the darkness, each with a faint glow emanating from behind them.
A person wearing First Seat black patterned mask and a magnificent black robe sat on a throne suspended high in the air. His face could not be seen, but the patterns on the mask were constantly writhing, as if they were alive.
His eyes were calm as he looked down at the group below and asked indifferently, "Why did the mission fail?"
"With only four seats and 20,000 insignificant employees, why did we fail?"
He was met with silence...
An endless silence fell. The people standing below lowered their heads slightly, not daring to even breathe.
At that moment, a figure emerged from the darkness.
A man wearing a six-eyed mask, with a strangely eerie blade emanating a purple aura at his waist, stepped out.
His gaze swept over the group before shifting away. He walked to the foot of the throne, knelt on one knee, and said, "Your Excellency, the Inland Academy Tournament is about to begin."
Should we join in?
"The Godless Cult has already begun its operations."
The cult leader, seated on his throne, looked down at the crowd. Though his aura was not outwardly displayed, his invisible power was terrifying. His voice was cold, as if devoid of emotion.
"Is it that time of year again for the Academy Tournament?"
"The Child of Destiny will also appear here..."
At this moment, a wisp of black mist appeared in his eyes. If one looked closely, one could see that there were actually beams of light flashing inside, and Li Chen's figure appeared within them.
I don't know how much time has passed.
The cult leader ceased his investigation, his gaze sweeping over the other seats. His eyes narrowed slightly, as if he were somewhat tired, and he announced, "Those who failed the last mission will be punished with five years of their lifespan."
"This First Seat, you're leading the charge, aiming for Canghai Pass. I want to see the pass fall, not news of mission failure."
"Our time is running out; our My Lord has been waiting for a long time."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
The man wearing the six-eyed mask nodded slightly, then stood up, glanced coldly at the other seats, snorted, and disappeared in a flash.
Immediately, the other seats also began to leave quickly one after another.
The cult leader, high on his throne, suddenly produced a jet-black bead in his hand, muttering, "It seems the Godless Cult... that guy has also gone through reincarnation."
"But will this time we usher in a new golden age, or will we return to find everything changed, just like in the last world? My Lord, where are you now? I am still waiting for your return..."
Time slowly passed...
The sun rises.
The Battle Institute were unusually lively today, with many students buying breakfast by the roadside and chatting about today's combat rankings.
Li Chen, Jianping, Su Xian were challenged as expected. These people came to watch the battle, learn some combat techniques, or appreciate the aesthetics of combat.
Jianping took a bite of a steamed Baozi and asked, "Su Zhe, that guy hasn't come out of seclusion yet?"
Li Chen shook his head. He wasn't entirely sure either, but he understood that breaking through to the Withered Sea Realm wasn't easy.
At this moment, Su Xian, who was standing to the side, took a sip of soy milk and asked, "How many shows are you having today?"
"I only have one game."
Jianping looked quite helpless and said, "Three matches, but they're all for students who use swords, coming here to learn techniques."
"Sparring in Sword Dao"
That's true. After all, there are quite a few students in the academy, and many sword-wielding students now aim to become Jianping.
Almost all of his challengers are students learning Sword Dao.
Unlike Su Xian, who challenged him solely for his number one spot.
As for Li Chen, he is rarely challenged. After all, if we were to use Ranking Board to determine his strength, he should have taken Su Xian's throne long ago.
He simply found it too troublesome; there were too many people eyeing the top spot.
However, since he won the Canglan Tournament, his name has become quite famous in the academy.
Their daily routine at the academy consisted of this: visiting the Battle Institute to defeat the challengers, then returning to the Secret Realm to cultivate—a routine of three points.
It was even more boring than being in the Ruined City.
Jianping sometimes complained that it would have been better not to come back at all, as honing his Sword Dao in this way was pointless, since his Sword Dao was primarily about killing, and without killing, how could he improve?
The only way is to improve your cultivation level.
The three of them walked along the road, and every now and then a few female students would come up and chat them up.
However, none of the three of them actually talked much. Among them, only Su Xian usually interacted with girls more, while Li Chen and Jianping were completely clueless.
One is devoid of emotion, the other treats a sword as his wife.
They soon arrived at the Battle Institute.
There are already people fighting on the battlefield.
It was just very boring, with nothing fancy or fancy. It was basically the two of them using their abilities to cause trouble for each other.
They can shout out some incredibly cringeworthy move names.
Sitting in the audience, Li Chen was thoroughly enjoying the show, and sometimes he even wondered why he never encountered a battle like this.
What an interesting opponent...
Just as the group was watching the match, Ji Shao walked over with Ji Mumu. Her long legs were quite eye-catching, and Ji Mumu's petite figure contrasted sharply with Ji Shao's. The two had their own unique charms, which attracted the attention of many male students.
However, upon seeing the three people sitting where they were heading, her feelings became incredibly complicated.
Jianping patted Su Xian, who was looking at the news on the Student Badge, and whispered, "Su Xian, your wife Ji Shao is here."
Su Xian said helplessly, "I've already told you Ji Shao is a hothead, not my wife. Stop listening to gossip."
Suddenly, Su Xian felt the temperature rising, and only then did he sense something was wrong.
A pleasant but slightly sinister voice rang out.
"Su Xian, who are you talking about, the fire bucket?"
"Do you want to die?!"
A moment later...
Ji Shao glanced lightly at Su Xian, whose face was somewhat dark, then turned to Li Chen and said, "This is my younger sister, Ji Mumu. I want her to join our Academy Tournament team."
Li Chen glanced at Ji Mumu and said, "Strength, ability, the standard is being able to last 10 rounds against Jianping."
Ji Mumu looked at Li Chen and then at Jianping with some curiosity. She naturally knew about the Academy Tournament.
She was a little confused. Today, Ji Shao said he would take her to participate in the Academy Tournament, and she thought he was joking, but it turned out he really came.
Besides, she knew the people in front of her.
She recognized both Li Chen, who was standing in front of her now, and Jianping, whom he had just mentioned, but she had never met them in person.
I never expected to see him today, especially not in this way.