Spirit Hall Infiltration, the Mysterious Mechanical Way! Hu Liena's Curiosity!

Outside a city gate in the southern part of the city, where crowds had gathered.

Waves of amazed exclamations rose from the queue entering the gate.

It was because one of the girls in line was exceptionally seductive and dazzling.

The girl had flowing short golden hair, looking neat and capable without losing any feminine softness.

Her fitted yellow-pink outfit was simple yet dignified, its intricate patterns seeming to proclaim her noble bloodline.

The tight outfit outlined her curvaceous figure to perfection.

Her alluring posture was as picturesque as a poem, captivating the hearts of all who saw her.

That inescapable charm made it easy for anyone who glanced at her to become lost in it.

"Tch, those looks are so irritating. A bunch of trash martial soul masters dare stare at Nana like that? I really want to gouge out their eyes. We should have taken a less crowded path."

The red-haired youth standing beside the girl spoke unhappily.

He had an ordinary face and an exceptionally sturdy build.

Yet he possessed striking fiery-red hair, flame patterns covering his body, and even his eyes were dark red.

The silver-haired youth on the girl's other side merely glanced at the surrounding soul masters without saying anything.

He wore silver-white clothing and stood over 1.9 meters tall, with a slender frame, pale skin, and extraordinary good looks.

He had a pair of crimson eyes and short silver hair, with a streak of gradually reddening hair at the tips. Crimson butterfly patterns adorned the corners of his eyes, and his features bore some resemblance to the girl before him.

"Keep a low profile. If you dare cause trouble, you'll go straight back." Hu Liena shot the red-haired Yan a glare. "How are we supposed to blend in if we take some deserted route? You want to expose yourselves before we even enter the city?"

Though Yan had been reprimanded, he greeted the girl with a smile. "Nana is right to lecture me. I'll keep a low profile."

The three of them were Spirit Hall's most outstanding young-generation soul masters.

Hu Liena, Yan, and Xie Yue!

"This Great Wall is really troublesome!" Xie Yue frowned as he looked at the towering walls before him.

The Great Wall's walls were slightly shorter than those of the City of Slaughter, but they were still over two chi tall.

They were not particularly tall, yet they stretched on without end.

To enter Chang'an, one had to pass through the Great Wall first!

And after crossing the Great Wall, there was another inspection before entering the city.

Such cumbersome inspections.

Greatly increased the difficulty for spies to enter and leave.

The Xing Luo Empire could openly send people over to visit.

But because of Qian Renxue, relations between Spirit Hall and the Chang'an Empire were tense as well.

Thus, they could only secretly send people over to observe.

It was troublesome for them, but for the citizens of the Chang'an Empire, it brought a powerful sense of security!

It was not only soul masters and armies that could not get through, but soul beasts as well!

Fortunately, Chang'an was conducting a large-scale recruitment of soul masters from across the continent this time.

Therefore, the inspections at the city gates were not very thorough, consisting only of simple questions about one's name, age, and origins.

Hu Liena and the other two casually fabricated some information and slipped through.

The three soon entered the southern district.

This place was much smaller than Spirit City.

The quality of the soul masters coming and going was also far lower.

Soul-master civilians below level ten could be seen everywhere, along with some soul masters in their teens and Soul Grand Masters in their twenties.

Third Ring Soul Masters were already rare!

Four-ring Soul Sects were even scarcer!

Five-ring Soul Kings were as rare as priceless treasures!

"Hahaha! With such a foundation of soul masters, what do they have to fight Spirit Hall with?" Yan looked around, then covered his mouth as he laughed.

All three of them were peak Four-ring Soul Sects.

Here, they could already be considered soul masters at the pinnacle of combat strength!

Yet soul masters like them could be found everywhere in Spirit Hall!

"The continent's soul masters have long since been divided up among the major powers. Jixia Academy has only just opened, so having this many soul masters respond is already quite good!"

Hu Liena's seductive eyes moved about as she carefully committed everything she observed to memory.

Although the quality of the soul masters was not high, their numbers were considerable!

As the center of this major event, Jixia Academy was also packed full of soul masters pouring in from every direction!

"I wonder who'll serve as teachers at this Soul Master Academy. Surely it can't be these trash Soul Masters and Soul Sects, right?" Xie Yue shook his head in disdain.

These people's strength and talent weren't even on par with theirs!

They simply weren't qualified to be their teachers!

On the Great Wall.

A soldier was respectfully reporting something to Xue Luochuan, who was drinking tea in a rocking chair.

Xue Luochuan nodded slightly after listening. "Mm, you may leave."

Then, his deep eyes turned toward the southern city as he lazily stretched.

"Quite a few people came. Do as you please—as long as you don't cause trouble, feel free to look around."

Spirit Hall, Xing Luo Empire—

Quite a few people had come, both openly and in secret.

But he was not worried in the slightest. As long as they did not make trouble, everything was fine.

If they dared to cause trouble, Li Xin and the others would naturally suppress them with thunderous force!

Before long, Hu Liena and the other two had learned a great deal at the registration area.

"Those who turn twenty-five in a year and have cultivation above Soul Elder will graduate and enter the military to serve the empire?"

"So their large-scale recruitment of Soul Masters is to build a Soul Master army!"

Hu Liena was shocked inwardly.

She had originally thought that the Chang'an Empire merely wanted to gather Soul Master forces.

She had not expected the Chang'an Empire to be in such a hurry!

They intended to forge a Soul Master army within a single year?

Many Soul Masters were deeply dissatisfied upon hearing that they would have to join the military.

Many Soul Masters from other regions did not immediately join Jixia Academy, choosing instead to enter and look around.

All Soul Masters of the Chang'an Empire, however, could only enter by force.

Their trade had been restricted. They could buy, but they could not sell.

If they did not take Soul Master missions at Jixia Academy, they would starve to death!

However, entering was easy; leaving was difficult!

Once they entered, they could not leave the Great Wall unless they accepted a special mission!

And powerful experts stood guard atop the Great Wall!

Ordinary Soul Masters had no chance of escaping without a sound!

Some local Soul Masters were extremely dissatisfied.

But after hearing that they would receive substantial subsidies of varying amounts every month, they stopped making a fuss.

They cultivated so diligently for money and status in the first place.

Now that the Chang'an Empire had provided them with a platform, and escape was impossible, they could only resign themselves to staying!

"What a brilliant method!" Hu Liena could not help admiring Xue Luochuan's domineering tactics!

Mercy could not command an army.

For Xue Luochuan to strengthen the empire in such a manner, his abilities could not be underestimated!

The three of them mingled with the sightseeing group and entered as well.

Jixia Academy was not particularly grand, but it had been arranged very appropriately.

Teaching buildings, dormitories, dining halls, flowers, greenery, fountains—everything was there. It looked like a proper advanced Soul Master Academy.

Its teaching methods were rather unusual as well.

There were three teaching buildings in total.

The rooftops bore enormous words: "Martial Way," "Magic Way," and "Mechanical Way."

At the academy entrance stood plaques introducing the three teaching buildings.

The Martial Way was the discipline of close-combat Soul Masters.

The Magic Way was the discipline of long-range Soul Masters.

The Mechanical Way was the discipline of Soul Tools.

However, guards stood before the Mechanical Way building. Ordinary students and visitors were not allowed inside.

Hu Liena found this somewhat strange.

"Could there be some treasure hidden inside?"

Research into Soul Tools on the continent was not yet especially advanced, but Soul Tools were still a formidable field!

Some powerful master craftsmen among Soul Engineers, such as Lou Gao, could also create many powerful Soul Tools!

However, this involved certain technical secrets.

So it was understandable that it was not open to outsiders.