Flame Enhancement, Promotion to Spirit Fire!

Su Xin unleashed his sword, channeling the power of the first level of the Primal Energy Realm into the low-grade Spirit Sword in his hand. A layer of sword energy formed, making the sword appear larger and more powerful!

His sword technique followed a path of great force and heavy impact. The sword strike towards Xia Wuji was like a mountain pressing down.

This was the Su family's ultimate skill, the Yellow-grade top-tier Mountain Splitting Sword Style Fifteen Forms.

Facing Su Xin's incoming sword strike, a cold glint flashed in Xia Wuji's eyes, and the Jinghong Sword was instantly drawn from its sheath.

"Swish!"

Su Xin only saw a dazzling sword light flash before his eyes. The next moment, a stinging sensation appeared at his neck.

He instantly broke out in a cold sweat and hastily stopped, daring not to move an inch.

This was because a sharp and icy edge was already pressed against his throat, piercing his skin. If he had moved forward even half a step, the sword would have completely pierced his neck.

Everyone was stunned.

None of them had seen how Xia Wuji had drawn his sword. They only saw a dazzling sword light, and then this happened.

"Fast!"

"Too fast!"

"Grasping the sword, drawing it, and striking, all in one fluid motion within an instant. And the timing and angle of this strike are simply perfect!"

"What an incredible sword technique!"

Exclamations of awe followed.

"Let our Young Master go!"

"Sheathe your sword, or don't blame us for being rude!"

"Do as we say, immediately!"

Su Xin's guards were all extremely nervous. They drew their weapons and surrounded Xia Wuji.

Xia Wuji merely gazed coldly at Su Xin and said, "Tell them to scram."

As he spoke, the sword tip trembled slightly, releasing a sliver of its edge. The skin on Su Xin's throat split open wider, and blood began to flow down.

Su Xin's legs trembled, his Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty, and his entire body was drenched in cold sweat. He quickly shouted, "Scram, all of you, get away from here..."

This was the first time he felt so close to death.

His life hung in the balance, at someone else's whim.

Su Xin's guards retreated a short distance.

Su Xin looked at Xia Wuji and said, "Brother, as they say, we become friends through conflict. Why don't you put your sword away, and we can talk things through?"

"Scram!"

Xia Wuji's sword was suddenly retracted. He used the side of the blade to deliver a fierce lash, and with a smack, the flat of the sword struck Su Xin's cheek.

"Ah!"

Su Xin cried out in pain and was sent flying.

"Young Master..."

"Young Master!"

A group of Su family guards rushed towards where Su Xin had fallen.

Su Xin lay on the ground, unconscious. A three-finger-wide bloodstain was glaringly visible on the spot where the sword had struck his face.

"Where did that kid go?" one of the guards shouted.

"He's gone..."

"Let's get the Young Master back for treatment first!"

"Wait!"

"Where's the Young Master's sword?"

"I didn't see it... Could it have fallen in some corner? Hurry and look!"

A moment later.

The group of guards looked at each other in bewilderment.

Su Xin's low-grade, first-tier Spirit Sword... was missing!

On the other side, Xia Wuji took advantage of the chaos and left the troublesome situation.

He knew the Su family of the Great Chu Dynasty was very famous, no less so than the Lin family where Lin Piaoxue belonged. Moreover, the Su family had a very close relationship with the Great Chu Imperial Family.

Today, Su Xin, the second young master of the Su family, had provoked him on the street. But since Su Xin had offered up a low-grade, first-tier Spirit Sword, Xia Wuji felt that a slight lesson was sufficient.

Xia Wuji found an inn in Qingyun City to stay in.

After entering the guest room, he took out Su Xin's low-grade, first-tier Spirit Sword.

"Although the Jinghong Sword is still only a quasi-Spirit Sword, it's enough for me to use for now. I need to continue strengthening my Sword Seed!" Xia Wuji muttered to himself and immediately began circulating the Eternal Sword Canon.

In his dantian, the Sword Seed hummed, emitting light and sharpness.

The low-grade spirit sword in Xia Wuji's hand, which contained a first-tier low-grade spirit sword, gradually dimmed, its sharpness also waning.

After a quarter of an hour.

This low-grade spirit sword had turned into scrap iron.

"With the current strength of the Sword Seed, when performing Man-Sword Unity, the duration can reach at least a quarter of an hour."

"But it's still a long way from releasing Sword Intent."

After sensing the changes in the Sword Seed, Xia Wuji then took out the Earth Core Fire Stone again.

Earth Core Fire was a Heaven and Earth Spirit Fire. The Earth Core Fire Stone had only been tainted with a trace of its aura, but even so, it was of great use.

Xia Wuji formed hand seals and cast the Sky Burning Art, a technique for controlling fire, to refine the trace of Earth Core Fire aura within the Earth Core Fire Stone.

The temperature of the entire room rapidly increased. In the next instant, the Beast Fire that Xia Wuji refined suddenly burst from his fingertips.

The aura of the Earth Core Fire slowly merged into the Beast Fire.

The Beast Fire flickered violently, its flames leaping. Within the light, a small phantom of a Blazing Flame Tiger seemed to roar.

Suddenly, the firelight surged, and the temperature soared. Just as the room was about to be ignited, Xia Wuji abruptly retracted his Sky Burning Art hand seals.

The scorching heat no longer spread, and the leaping flames quickly stabilized. A tiny flame burned in Xia Wuji's hand.

"Low-grade spirit fire!" Xia Wuji looked at the tiny flame, a look of joy appearing on his face.

The previous flame could only be considered unremarkable. Now, it had finally achieved a level and possessed a grade. Whether used for alchemy or artifact refining, the effect would be tens of times better than before.

It was also quite lethal in combat.

With a thought from Xia Wuji, this low-grade spirit fire was retracted into his dantian, circling and burning the Sword Seed, tempering it and constantly enhancing its strength.

For the next two days, Xia Wuji stayed in the inn, cultivating in peace.

He consumed the usable resources in his storage ring, and his cultivation realm broke through again.

Sea of Qi Realm, fifth level.

On the third day at the inn, Xia Wuji stopped cultivating and left the inn because today was the registration day for the Azure Star Academy assessment!

Xia Wuji walked down the street and saw many young talents from different places heading in the same direction.

Just then, a voice filled with surprise rang out.

"Brother Xia!"

Xia Wuji looked in the direction of the sound and saw Huang Hu and Xu Lan.

Huang Hu, with Xu Lan, quickly walked up to Xia Wuji.

"Brother Xia, I finally found you. After that night, the people from Azure Star Academy arrived early the next morning and took us to Qingyun City, but you went to track the whereabouts of those Bloodfire Demonic Cult villains... You had me worried sick."

Huang Hu was a very enthusiastic and sincere person.

Xia Wuji smiled faintly and said, "I entered Qingyun City three days ago, but being unfamiliar with the place, I found an inn to stay in and didn't go out much."

Xu Lan also nodded at Xia Wuji and smiled, "I've always heard Brother Huang say that Young Master Xia saved him three times during the breakout, and today I finally get to meet Young Master Xia."

"If it weren't for Brother Huang bringing guards to look after me, I might have met with misfortune that day as well," Xia Wuji said.

Huang Hu laughed, "Brother Xia, let's not be so formal. Come on, let's go register together!"

Xia Wuji grunted in agreement.

The three of them walked together, and Huang Hu introduced, "Brother Xia, have you heard the rules for this assessment?"

Xia Wuji's eyes flickered, "Does Brother Huang know?"

He hadn't paid any attention to it.

Huang Hu said, "Our chances are very high this year because Azure Star Academy is expanding its enrollment. In previous years, Azure Star Academy only recruited ten people, but this year the quota has been expanded to thirty!"

"Moreover, I heard that if one can rank in the top three in this assessment, there's a chance to be quickly promoted to an Inner Court Disciple!"

"In Azure Star Academy, the status of disciples is divided into several levels: Outer Court Disciples, Inner Court Disciples, Core Disciples, and True Disciples."

"Normally, those who newly join Azure Star Academy are only Outer Court Disciples."

"The cultivation conditions for Outer Court Disciples are undoubtedly the worst, while the cultivation conditions for Inner Court Disciples are more than ten times that of Outer Court Disciples!"

Huang Hu said this and rubbed his hands helplessly, "Of course, we'll strive to enter the top thirty and become Outer Court Disciples. As for the competition for the top three, we can just watch the excitement."

Xia Wuji heard this and smiled faintly, remaining silent.

Before long, the three arrived at the registration venue for the Azure Star Academy assessment.