48. Raising the Banner, The True Master Arrives

A moment later, Meng Shenji stood up to offer a few words of encouragement, followed by Ning Fengzhi, and finally, the Crown Prince concluded the proceedings.

After finishing his closing remarks, the Crown Prince extended an invitation to Ling Yun, and the group of seven walked out of the Soul Fighting Zone.

The students in the Soul Fighting Zone were no fools; they could see the writing on the wall. It was obvious that the education committee members and Ning Fengzhi had come specifically for Ling Yun.

Envy, jealousy, and resentment—a multitude of emotions began to spread throughout the Soul Fighting Zone.

The soul fights continued, but the remaining participants no longer possessed their initial passion.

On the way, the group talked as they walked. The conversation was primarily led by Meng Shenji and Xue Qinghe, with Ning Fengzhi occasionally chiming in, all discussing the current state of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy.

It truly felt like an inspection.

Since they were already there, Xue Qinghe and Ning Fengzhi naturally wouldn't ignore such a formality; they covered every aspect that needed to be inspected.

Throughout the process, Ling Yun followed quietly, doing his best to minimize his presence.

Yet, everyone present was intentionally or unintentionally focused on his every move, and Ning Fengzhi was becoming increasingly satisfied with Ling Yun's performance.

Ling Yun knew how to hide himself; several times, when he wasn't looking directly at Ling Yun, he could barely feel that such a person was even there.

The sophistication of his breath-concealment technique made Ning Fengzhi curious about the master behind him.

Ning Fengzhi absolutely did not believe that Ling Yun could have achieved this through self-study without any guidance.

Ling Yun's methods were too comprehensive and too balanced; even someone like him, who was accustomed to seeing geniuses, was deeply shocked by Ling Yun's performance.

The thoughts of the other five were much the same as Ning Fengzhi's.

Sword Douluo wanted to find the person behind Ling Yun to spar in the way of the sword. He hadn't made any progress for a long time and was in need of a like-minded peer.

After the inspection concluded.

In the conference room used to entertain distinguished guests.

Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, and Ling Yun were left alone, while the others remained in the adjacent room.

Before entering the conference room, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe patted Ling Yun on the shoulder and said, "Do not be nervous. You are a part of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy and a genius of the Empire."

Ling Yun understood what Xue Qinghe meant: if Ning Fengzhi invited him to join the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he was free to refuse if he didn't wish to join.

Inside the conference room.

Ning Fengzhi said, "Xiao Yun, do you know? You have shattered my understanding of the word 'genius.' I find it hard to imagine what kind of person your teacher must be."

Ling Yun's thoughts raced faster than ever before; in the blink of an eye, he grasped the meaning behind Ning Fengzhi's words.

It was time to weave a tall tale again. He didn't mind flying a false flag; when traveling abroad, one's identity is whatever one claims it to be.

"Is Uncle Ning asking about these abilities of mine?"

"I do indeed have that in mind. So, would it be convenient for you to speak about it?"

When Ning Fengzhi said this, there was no sense of using his status to pressure others; it felt like a conversation between friends.

Coupled with his auxiliary-type soul power, he gave off a very relaxed feeling.

"It's not a matter of convenience, it's just that I'm afraid you won't believe me."

"Oh? Then I would very much like to hear it," Ning Fengzhi said with a hint of curiosity.

Ling Yun began to fabricate his story: "My teacher is very powerful. He feels as vast as the sky to me. Every time I see him, I feel incredibly small, like a speck of dust between the vast heaven and earth."

"Every time he appears, he wears a cloak, his eyes are purple, and he holds a scepter nearly three meters long in his hand."

"After that scepter erupted with a bright purple light, I appeared in a place shrouded in clouds and mist. Looking into the distance, magnificent golden palaces were hidden atop high mountains."

"The light flashed again, and I was already in a wooden hut. Beside the hut stood a towering tree. This tree seemed to be the source of all life force; I only had to take a single breath to feel my entire body purified, as if I were floating toward immortality. My teacher told me that it was the Tree of Life."

"The Tree of Life belongs to my teacher's wife."

"I stayed there until I was twelve. Afterward, my teacher and his wife each left me a portion of their power. Then, the light from my teacher's scepter flashed, and when I opened my eyes again, I had become a child once more."

"If it weren't for the fact that I can still use everything my teacher taught me and that the power truly exists, I would have thought it was all a dream!"

"..."

As he spoke, two specks of light appeared in Ling Yun's right hand, resembling seeds. One was filled with the aura of destruction, and the other with rich life force, all wrapped in a sliver of divine power from the Ice and Fire Dragon King.

A pirated Seed of Life and Seed of Destruction were born.

Sword Douluo and Ning Fengzhi were terrified, especially Ning Fengzhi, who actually felt an urge to prostrate himself before the light in Ling Yun's hand.

The next second, two rays of light descended from the sky, instantly piercing through the ceiling of the conference room and landing in Ling Yun's hands.

Immediately after, the light followed the meridians of his arm and spread to Ling Yun's forehead, forming a pattern of a scepter overlapping with a tree.

The Yin-Yang Mirror instinctively wanted to refine these two foreign divine powers, but fortunately, Ling Yun reacted in time and sent a mental command.

Ling Yun never expected that by fabricating a background, he would actually summon the real masters.

Just as he used the Qi of Creation and the divine power of the Ice and Fire Dragon King to create the Seed of Life and the Seed of Destruction, the God of Destruction and the Goddess of Life in the God Realm sensed it.

Now, there was no way the two of them would let him get away.

The couple had long grown weary of life in the God Realm, but they couldn't rest easy; they had been looking for successors, yet they could never find someone who could perfectly withstand their divine power simultaneously.

Several times, when they found someone capable of inheriting one of their divine positions, they would consider the other and give up on passing the mantle down.

The couple kept putting it off like this.

Since Ling Yun had the ability to produce both the Seed of Life and the Seed of Destruction, and possessed Twin Martial Souls, they would not stand on ceremony.

In the conference room, a brilliant light erupted from Ling Yun's forehead; as the purple radiance flickered, both Sword Douluo and Ning Fengzhi felt an endless sense of majesty.

When the green light shimmered, both Sword Douluo and Ning Fengzhi felt an incomparable sense of comfort, and the minor, deep-seated hidden injuries that Sword Douluo had previously ignored simply vanished from his body.

The bottleneck of level 97 loosened, and he had a premonition that within half a month of seclusion, he would be able to break through.

Whether it was the green light or the purple light, both made the two men feel as insignificant as dust.

The radiance lasted for nine breaths before fading away.

With a shift of Ling Yun's will, the pattern on his forehead grew fainter and fainter until it disappeared entirely.

"Great kindness needs no thanks. From now on, as long as you are not looking to cause trouble for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, this old man will help you with whatever you need."

"Thanks to the power you just released, this old man will certainly break through to level 97 within half a month," Sword Douluo said, his joy fully apparent.

"It is truly incredible. Xiao Yun, when you have time, come visit the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. There are many children of your age there; you young people should make more friends."

Ning Fengzhi handed Ling Yun a token; the front bore the image of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, while the back was engraved with the character 'Ning'.

Ling Yun accepted the token without refusal and said, "I will certainly go when I have the chance!"

Ning Fengzhi wore a smile, and after chatting with Ling Yun for a while longer, the three of them walked out of the conference room together.