Holy Guiding Spirit Furnace (4)

"Oh." Long Haochen was still immersed in the insights he had gained from cultivating Internal Spiritual Power and the spiritual furnace. He gave a simple reply and followed Li Xin out the door.

Li Xin tidied her long hair and tied it back into a ponytail with a blue ribbon. She led Long Haochen out and back into the main hall, then went straight up to the third floor.

Nalan Shu was already waiting there. Seeing them approach, he smiled at Long Haochen. "How was your rest? Are you satisfied with your accommodations?"

Long Haochen first bowed to Nalan Shu before answering, "The accommodations are already very good. Thank you, Uncle Nalan."

Nalan Shu smiled faintly. He liked this child more and more. Despite having such a powerful father, he did not possess the slightest trace of arrogance.

"You have already completed Sacred Awakening, which proves that you possess the strength of a knight. But since you have joined our Haoyue Branch Temple, you must be registered. That is why I called you here to test your current spiritual power. Starting tomorrow, you will study the skills and techniques of a Guardian Knight with the knight class. If there is anything you do not understand, come directly to me."

"Alright." Long Haochen agreed, then flipped his wrist and drew the heavy sword slanted across his back. Since his father had forbidden him from revealing his Punishment Knight abilities, he carried only one heavy sword, while the other was naturally stored within the Forget-me-not Ring.

"Little brother, you're switching to Guardian Knight training?" Li Xin looked utterly confused.

Long Haochen chuckled. "It was my own choice after I went back from the last test."

The tool for testing spiritual power was no different from last time: the same black stone pillar.

"Begin." Nalan Shu nodded to Long Haochen.

Long Haochen's gaze sharpened. He stepped forward, and the heavy sword in his right hand slashed down like lightning. A distinct layer of golden light now covered the blade. This was not a skill, but the manifestation of Internal Spiritual Power being infused into it.

With a muffled bang, a gentle blue halo rose from the walls surrounding the testing hall. Both Nalan Shu and Li Xin stared tensely at the top of the black stone pillar.

"Two hundred and sixty-eight." A huge number appeared there.

Nalan Shu and Li Xin both sucked in a breath. Li Xin cried out, "You're only two points of spiritual power away from becoming a third-rank knight. Little brother, are you really a normal human? A third-rank knight not even twelve years old!"

One and a half years ago, when Li Xin had first met Long Haochen, she had only been a knight at this level herself. Yet in merely a year and a half, Long Haochen had more than doubled his spiritual power. Although this rate of improvement was related to the simultaneous increase of both Internal Spiritual Power and External Spiritual Power, it could still only be described as breathtakingly brilliant.

Long Haochen sheathed his sword and stood still. He was not surprised by this spiritual power number, but it was clearly not his true spiritual power cultivation level. After merging with the Holy Guiding Spirit Furnace, his Internal Spiritual Power had dropped by more than fifty points. Otherwise, his spiritual power cultivation level should have been that of a fourth-rank knight approaching the fifth rank.

"A genius, a true genius!" Nalan Shu muttered.

Li Xin blinked her large eyes and glared fiercely at Long Haochen. "What a pity—you're too young. Otherwise, your big sister would definitely claim you for herself first."

Seeing her expression, Long Haochen could not help blushing. He still clearly remembered how, more than a year ago, Li Xin had grabbed his hand and made him touch certain soft, towering places.

"Come on, let's eat." Li Xin grabbed Long Haochen, greeted Nalan Shu, and ran out with him.

After leaving the Haoyue Branch Temple, Li Xin led Long Haochen into the largest restaurant nearby.

The moment they entered, a server came forward to greet them. "Miss Xin'er, you've come."

Li Xin nodded. "We're here to eat."

The server glanced in surprise at Long Haochen, whose hand Li Xin was holding. "The two of you may go up to the second floor."

Li Xin shook her head. "Forget it, there are only two of us. We'll sit in the main hall. We'll take that window seat over there. Bring the menu—I'm starving to death."

As she spoke, she pulled Long Haochen over and sat down.

By now, half the tables in the restaurant hall were occupied. The moment Li Xin and Long Haochen sat down, she began ordering. But the way she ordered truly opened Long Haochen's eyes.

Taking the menu from the server, Li Xin pointed at it five or six times in quick succession. Just as Long Haochen was wondering why the server was not writing anything down, Li Xin said, "Mm, not these. Bring everything else."

That one page of the menu had a full twenty or thirty dishes!

"Sister Xin'er, that's too much. We won't be able to finish it," Long Haochen hurriedly said. He had gained another layer of understanding of this sister of his. Her bold, valiant spirit that did not yield to men made him feel very comfortable around her.

Li Xin's expression darkened. "How could we not finish it? You're still growing—you need to eat more."

"Oh, please. What do you mean, making him eat more? You're obviously just a bottomless pit yourself." Just as Li Xin finished ordering, a somewhat cool voice rang out with a hint of mockery.

Long Haochen turned his head and saw two men and a woman entering the restaurant. As they passed by his table, they stopped. The speaker was the young woman among them.

The young woman wore a dark blue robe. Faint elemental fluctuations caused a pale blue halo to ripple indistinctly over its surface. On her left breast were three stars, surrounded by six golden lines.

A Mage Robe. Was she a mage? Long Haochen's knowledge of mages had so far been limited to what his father had told him. This was his first time seeing one.

Three stars and six golden lines represented a third-rank, sixth-level profession. She was already a true mage. The titles of the first three mage professions were magic attendant, magic apprentice, and mage.

Bang! Li Xin slammed her palm on the table and shot to her feet. "Lin Jialu, who are you calling a bottomless pit?"

Lin Jialu snorted. "Whoever eats the most, that's who I'm talking about."

Only after examining the Mage Robe did Long Haochen finally notice the young mage's appearance.

It could be said that both Lin Jialu and Li Xin were rare beauties, but their styles were completely different. Li Xin was straightforward and heroic, possessing a lively beauty brimming with vitality. Lin Jialu, on the other hand, had the delicate, graceful beauty of a refined young lady.

She had fair skin and a medium build, with pale blue hair cascading down her back. Delicate brows, a lovely nose, and blue eyes—her facial features were softer as well, making people easily feel the urge to protect her.

However, she held a Magic Staff about two feet long in her hand. The staff was made entirely from a black wood. Several thin branches of the same color extended from its tip, clutching a water-blue gemstone as large as a fist. The magical elemental fluctuations from this staff were far richer than those emanating from her Mage Robe.

"You want to fight again, don't you?" Fury blazed in Li Xin's eyes as she took one step forward and arrived in front of Lin Jialu.

The two young men who had entered the restaurant with Lin Jialu hurried forward and guarded her from the left and right, their faces filled with nervousness. Both wore warriors' leather armor, making it obvious that they were Lin Jialu's guards.

Mages feared sneak attacks most. Compared to their destructive magic, their bodies were far more fragile. Therefore, outstanding mages were always accompanied by attendants.

"Please calm down, ladies. Just last month, you were punished by the Governor and the Chief," the warrior on the left reminded them cautiously.

"Hmph." Li Xin and Lin Jialu snorted angrily almost at the same time, glaring at each other without yielding an inch.