"Even if it were me, though I could defeat Luo Tong, I wouldn't have done it as easily as Brother Yuan did. Just one sword strike!"
Having witnessed everything, Mu Chen glanced at his palm, deeply shaken.
A faint black mark flickered in and out of sight on his palm, slowly giving off a sinister chill.
It was the Senluo Death Seal he cultivated.
In terms of sheer power, the Senluo Death Seal surpassed the Great Luo Sword Art.
It was simply that the Senluo Death Seal consumed an enormous amount of spiritual energy.
He estimated that he would need to use up half the spiritual energy in his qi sea to defeat Luo Tong.
"A mid-grade Spiritual Rank sword art?!!!"
Luo Tong gritted his teeth as he thought this.
He had cultivated the Great Luo Sword Art for a long time to achieve such results, yet it was still inferior to Mu Yuan's single strike.
A mid-grade Spiritual Rank spiritual art was extremely precious and rare.
Even their Luo Domain did not possess one.
Northern Spiritual Academy did have spiritual arts of that level, but only its most outstanding, most monstrously talented students who had rendered great service were qualified to cultivate them. Luo Tong was not among them.
Where had Mu Yuan obtained a mid-grade Spiritual Rank spiritual art?
Could his father have given it to him?
Just how many tricks did this guy have up his sleeve?
In the end, Luo Tong reluctantly tossed a jade bottle to Mu Yuan.
Inside lay a thumb-sized emerald-green pill, quietly releasing a rather dense spiritual energy fluctuation.
It was precisely a Spirit Nourishing Pill.
"Haha, Senior Luo Tong, thanks for the concession."
Mu Yuan accepted the jade bottle, then said to Tang Qian'er with a grin:
"Qian'er, see? Getting the Spirit Nourishing Pill was easy. Men and women working together never get tired!"
Men and women working together never get tired!
Why did that sound somewhat ambiguous?
It sounded as though he and Tang Qian'er had some sort of agreement, inviting all sorts of speculation.
With that thought, many students' expressions changed. Could it be that there was something between those two...?
Tang Qian'er's beautiful eyes widened in astonishment!
Sure enough, that bad feeling she had just now had been right.
Her single remark earlier had made Mu Yuan the target of everyone's ire. Now, he was clearly taking revenge on purpose.
He really refused to suffer even the slightest loss. Didn't he know how to give way to girls?
Mu Yuan had, of course, done it deliberately. This little girl had tried to set him up, so how could he possibly take a loss?
Tang Qian'er's eyes flickered. Then, beneath the gazes of countless students, a breathtaking smile bloomed on her lovely face as she held out her delicate hand and said:
"Mm, thank you!"
Since entering the Heaven Grade, when had Tang Qian'er ever smiled like this? She was like a starflower blooming from its bud.
Many students felt their hearts melt, as though they had fallen in love. At the same time, they heard their hearts shattering, because that smile had bloomed for another boy.
At the sight, Luo Tong could not help coughing up another mouthful of blood.
He had made a wedding dress for someone else!
"Brother Yuan, amazing!"
Seeing this scene, Mu Chen recalled the silver-haired girl again. She was a freak who gave even him a terrible headache.
During the half year she had hunted him down, Mu Chen had fought her three times and won twice.
However, during their final clash, the girl had turned the tables. Her black longsword had been like a ghost in the night as it stopped at his throat.
When the two had reached a partnership, even that girl's usually calm little face, so calm that it seemed devoid of emotion, had rippled with a faint smile. The fleeting beauty of it had even dimmed the moonlight.
Mu Yuan's mouth twitched violently, but not because of Tang Qian'er's brilliant smile that seemed capable of melting everything. It was because of what she had said.
Was he supposed to give her the Spirit Nourishing Pill or not?
That was a question worth searching his soul over.
Fortunately, angry shouts rang out across the training grounds at that moment, making Mu Yuan shudder hard.
"Mu Yuan, I challenge you."
"My dream goddess, I challenge you too..."
Several other late-stage Spiritual Movement Realm students in the Heaven Grade general rankings, all ranked higher than Luo Tong, could hardly wait to rush out and give Mu Yuan a brutal beating.
"You're ruthless."
Mu Yuan glanced at Tang Qian'er speechlessly. She was still smiling sweetly at him, her beautiful eyes seemingly brimming with water.
Yet the more she behaved like that, the more riled up the crowd became. Mu Yuan felt as if he was about to be killed by their stares.
"This is an important training ground. How can you make such a racket? You're disgracing the dignity of the East Courtyard Heaven Grade!"
Mu Yuan turned around and rebuked them angrily.
The students actually quieted down, though they continued glaring furiously at him.
"Anyone who wants to spar with me, step forward!"
Mu Yuan spoke domineeringly.
Immediately, quite a few figures stepped out.
"Little Mu, remember all these people."
After saying that, Mu Yuan looked at them again and said:
"You can fight, but the old rules still apply. The loser has to put up a stake!"
If you really wanted to fight, he would naturally accompany you to the end.
Such were the rules of the martial world!
As the ancients said, money could make even ghosts turn millstones. That was absolutely true.
Of course, Mu Yuan was deliberately setting them up again.
Fighting consumed both physical strength and spiritual energy. Without some stake on the line, who would be willing? Wasn't it only right to charge a fee?
"Mu Yuan, we're not idiots like Luo Tong!"
A late-stage Spiritual Movement Realm expert snorted coldly.
"Of course you aren't."
Mu Yuan raised the jade bottle in his hand and said:
"This is my stake. Whoever wins gets it."
Everyone's eyes lit up as they hurriedly asked:
"Are you sure?"
Seeing the Spirit Nourishing Pill, Luo Tong's heart turned ice-cold. With tears streaming down his face, he clutched his chest and continued spraying blood.
Even lying down, he still got hit by stray arrows. Being a person was too hard!!!
"However!"
Mu Yuan added, "Please bring out stakes equal in value to the Spirit Nourishing Pill."
If I put up gold and you put up dirt, that definitely wouldn't do.
The students fell into a brief silence, then each took out quite a few cultivation resources.
One student even brought out a Spirit Nourishing Pill as well.
Tsk, tsk, tsk!
Who said only the sons of domain lords were wealthy? It turned out there were quite a few rich second-generation kids among these Heaven Grade students too.
"Stop making excuses and start already."
Those students could no longer wait to give Mu Yuan a vicious beating.
"Good!"
Mu Yuan was overjoyed.
"It's finally starting!"
One of the students was already itching to make a move.
However, at that moment, Mu Yuan stood with his hands behind his back and spoke calmly:
"Little Mu, I've already picked your opponents for you. Don't lose my Spirit Nourishing Pill!"
In an instant, the entire place fell silent.
"How can someone be this shameless...?"
The students all widened their eyes and angrily berated Mu Yuan.
"Brother Yuan, I knew it!"
Mu Chen smiled bitterly, silently mourning for those people.
They had been tricked by Brother Yuan, yet they would still help him count the money. What pitiful people!
Shaking his head helplessly, Mu Chen slowly stepped forward. Under countless gazes, he entered the field and pointed at the student who had been eager to fight just now.
"Make your move!"
That Heaven Grade student was extremely displeased right now.
These Mu brothers were each more arrogant than the last.
"Fine, I'll teach you, you idiot, a lesson first."
Spiritual energy surged around the student, faint but intense frost fluctuations spreading from him.
"Little Mu, make him leave sideways."
Mu Yuan was extremely displeased to hear him call Mu Chen an idiot, and he spoke coldly.
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