Lin Yi carefully read through the contents of the Spirit Refining Art. After a long while, he nodded slightly.
Lin Yi discovered that he seemed to possess extremely high talent in cultivating Spiritual Energy.
He found the incantations in the secret manual very easy to understand.
"Gather the divine light and reach the heavenly heart. With a tranquil heart, the spirit is at peace; with a settled spirit, the mind is calm..."
The incantations of the Spirit Refining Art slowly arose in Lin Yi's heart. His mind gradually became focused, with all his thoughts merging into one!
Half an hour later, Lin Yi's mind suddenly grew hazy. Strands of Spiritual Energy seeped out from his mind and slowly spread outward.
As his Spiritual Energy spread, Lin Yi, whose eyes were closed, could clearly "see" the scene inside the room. Then, his invisible Spiritual Energy drifted outward, covering the entire small courtyard before spreading toward the back mountains...
The spread of his Spiritual Energy was unstoppable!
Faced with this invisible Spiritual Energy, others remained completely unaware, yet their words and actions had already been observed.
This feeling filled Lin Yi, who had just begun cultivating Spiritual Energy, with novelty.
Only after a quarter of an hour did Lin Yi slowly withdraw his Spiritual Energy and stop cultivating, joy flashing in his eyes.
He had officially entered the basics after merely cultivating Spiritual Energy for the first time.
There were no years in cultivation.
Before he knew it, nearly four more months had passed, and the year's end had arrived.
With the arrival of the year's end, Qingyang Town gradually reached the peak of its liveliness.
Numerous forces from within a hundred miles came flooding in, bringing Qingyang Town's number of visitors to its highest point in years.
This was not only because the year's end had arrived, but also because Qingyang Town's Hunting Competition was scheduled for the first day of the new year.
The Hunting Competition would be held at the Beast Horn Arena outside Qingyang Town.
It was Qingyang Town's most magnificent structure. Its area was enormous, even encompassing a forest stretching for dozens of miles.
At the center of that forest stood a colossal platform fashioned from several small mountain peaks. Countless gazes would be fixed upon it.
The champion of the Hunting Competition would also be born there.
Amid countless expectant gazes, the day of the hunt finally arrived.
The atmosphere in Qingyang Town had completely boiled over. A mighty sea of people surged toward the Beast Horn Arena, and the sight made one's blood race.
On a high platform, Lin Yi and the core members of the Lin Family looked down at the dense forest below. Leading them was naturally Lin Family Patriarch Lin Zhentian.
"The hunt begins here. That forest below connects directly to the deep mountains, so it contains many savage beasts. Everyone participating in the Hunting Competition will receive a token marking their identity before being thrown inside. In that forest, you'll have to rely on your own abilities to escape from the beasts' claws."
Looking at the forest below, Lin Xiao explained the rules of the competition to Lin Yi.
"Besides that, you'll have to find a way to take ten identity tokens from other people. Only then will you be qualified to step onto the giant platform at the center of the forest. The Hunting Competition hunts more than beasts. More importantly, it hunts people."
"I understand." Lin Yi nodded slightly to show that he understood.
"By the way, I heard that Lei Family's Lei Li recently broke through to the Earth Yuan Stage as well. If you encounter him during the hunt, you must not let your guard down."
At this moment, Lin Zhentian suddenly reminded Lin Yi.
Lin Yi smiled. "Don't worry, Grandfather. I'll be careful."
In fact, Lin Yi did not take Lei Li seriously at all.
Even if they were in the same stage, Lin Yi was completely confident that he could defeat Lei Li.
Not to mention that during these nearly four months, his cultivation had broken through twice and reached the late Earth Yuan Stage. Dealing with an early Earth Yuan Stage Lei Li would be a piece of cake!
"Mm. What kind of result the Lin Family can achieve this time will depend on your performance." Lin Zhentian nodded slightly, his eyes filled with satisfaction as he looked at Lin Yi.
"Heh heh, Lin Zhentian, long time no see. It seems that your old bones are still as tough as ever."
Just as the Lin Family members were talking, a laugh suddenly came from nearby.
Hearing that laugh, Lin Zhentian, Lin Xiao, and the others all frowned, while the smiles on their faces faded somewhat.
Lin Yi looked in the direction of the voice and saw a large group of people approaching in a grand procession.
Wherever this group passed, the crowd quickly scattered, clearly showing great fear.
Lin Yi recognized them at a glance. They were people from the Lei Family and Xie Family.
At the very front of the group, Lei Family Patriarch Lei Bao and Xie Family Patriarch Xie Qian walked side by side.
Behind them, Lin Yi also spotted two familiar figures. They were none other than Xie Yingying and Lei Li, with whom he had clashed at the Marketplace before.
Lei Li and Xie Yingying naturally noticed Lin Yi as well. A smile rose on the former's face, and he waved his hand at Lin Yi from a distance, his provocation unmistakable.
"Old Lei, don't worry. These old bones of mine will enter the coffin a little later than yours." Lin Zhentian looked at the approaching members of the Lei and Xie families and laughed loudly.
After exchanging a round of verbal barbs, both sides went their separate ways.
Led by Lin Zhentian, the Lin Family group entered the very center of the Beast Horn Arena, which also offered the best view.
From there, they could not only overlook the dense forest below, but also clearly see everything on the giant platform.
Most of those able to enter this area were relatively powerful forces from Qingyang Town.
When these people saw the Lin Family arrive, they rose one after another to greet Lin Zhentian.
After exchanging some pleasantries, Lin Zhentian led everyone to sit down on a stretch of stone seats.
As the Lin Family members took their seats, many more forces gradually appeared behind them, making the atmosphere at the scene even more heated.
After waiting a while longer, the people from the Mad Saber Martial Hall also arrived, led by its master, Luo Cheng.
When he saw the people from the Mad Saber Martial Hall approaching, Lin Zhentian rose with a smile and clasped his hands toward Luo Cheng in greeting.
Faced with Lin Zhentian's greeting, a slightly stiff smile also appeared on Luo Cheng's expressionless face.
Because they had to face the suppression of the Lei and Xie families, the Mad Saber Martial Hall and the Lin Family had maintained a fairly good relationship over the years.
After a round of greetings, Luo Cheng led the people from the Mad Saber Martial Hall to take their seats not far from the Lin Family group.
With the arrival of the Mad Saber Martial Hall, the forces of Qingyang Town had basically all gathered.
Thus, when the bright sun rose high, Lei Bao stood up as well. His stern gaze swept around, and the Beast Horn Arena briefly fell silent.
"Everyone, today is the liveliest day in Qingyang Town. I won't say more about the rules of the hunt. As long as you can obtain ten identity tokens, you'll be able to climb onto that giant platform. There, the true champion of the hunt will be born!"
Lei Bao's low voice, infused with his Yuan Power, echoed through every corner of the Beast Horn Arena. Everyone could hear it clearly.
"The identity tokens have already been distributed to each family. Now, the younger generation of every family may enter the Beast Horn Arena and begin the hunt!"
"Yi, take the identity token and be extra careful." Lin Xiao took a black-and-yellow wooden token from his robes. The character "Lin" was carved into it, along with several intricate patterns.
Lin Yi stuffed the wooden token into his robes without wasting words. He walked straight to the edge of the high platform, ignored Lei Li's provocation, and leaped down into the dense forest below.
Before you continue