Shuimang Star, the Martial Academy's Head Disciple

The staff member glanced at Chen Lie and Ruan Liusu.

All the contestants were marked, making cheating virtually impossible. Although the staff were suspicious, they didn't investigate further and waved for Ruan Liusu and Chen Lie to leave.

Among the crowd, Jiang Shuining from Jingji Province looked at the virtual screen and smiled slightly.

Her partner, a young man, said leisurely, "248 Crystal Core. Only a combination of people with both Mental Power and martial arts skills like us could achieve that. Below the Blood Refining Stage, even if those people worked themselves to death, it would be impossible to hunt so many Illusion Beast in such a short time."

Jiang Shuining's smile vanished. She glanced at the boys in her team and said calmly, "We're from Jingji Province, forming a separate system from Lanjing and Longhai Provinces. The martial arts education and guidance we receive are all geared towards those from Outer Stars. How can we compare to these inferior provinces?" The boy laughed, "That's true. Our top three provinces on Blue Star are all under the government's key support. There's really no comparison between us and them."

However, since we managed to obtain two bottles of Star Liquid this time, it wasn't a complete waste of half a day.

It is said that Star Liquid is extremely rare and hard to come by even in the Canglan Star Domain. I have already consumed one bottle of Star Liquid, and my Blood Qi Value increased by 0.2 times. I heard from those Super Genius Class that if you can consume ten bottles of Star Liquid Star Liquid within a month, including the miraculous effect of the first bottle, your Blood Qi Value can increase by 0.5 times.

"But the conditions for obtaining this Star Liquid are extremely demanding."

"The amount of Star Liquid is finite and will only decrease. For the long term, the Blue Star government naturally cannot provide too much to each batch of students. So what about those who come after?" Jiang Shuining said.

"I understand this principle, but I don't understand why Blue Star University doesn't allocate more of its limited Star Liquid to us Super Genius Class and their extra-enrolled students? Instead, it holds so many competitions between ordinary Genius Class and uses Star Liquid as rewards. Isn't that a waste? The way of Heaven is to take from those who have more than enough and give to those who have less than enough. The way of man is to take from those who have less than enough and give to those who have more than enough."

"We should gather all the Star Liquid together and supply it exclusively to people like us," the boy said.

"Don't underestimate people from other provinces. There are over 10 billion people on Blue Star, and one large province alone has 300 million people. Among so many people, there are bound to be geniuses. Take Han Keke, for example, the Martial Leader of Nanjiang Province. She is only seventeen years old, but she is already ranked in the top 20 of the Blood-Qi Stage Martial Artist rankings, with a Qi Strength Value of nearly eight times."

"If someone like you or me were to go up against Han Keke, we'd be defeated in a single move." Jiang Shuining glanced at the boy.

"The geniuses on the Blood-Qi Stage rankings are naturally an exception; I'm referring to those from outside the top ten provinces of Blue Star."

"Besides the top ten provinces on Blue Star, there are also exceptionally talented individuals. According to the official explanation, the Martial Leader are determined by the martial arts competitions in each province are only limited by the province they belong to. Their potential is not necessarily weaker than that of you and me."

"There's only one person like that in a province, nothing more to say."

Jiang Shuining remained silent, instead looking at the virtual battle in the center of the arena.

At this moment, students from the Genius Class who knew Jiang Shuining Jiang Shuining to congratulate her, seeing that she had consistently ranked first with 248 Crystal Core. Jiang Shuining simply nodded in response, without saying a word.

The Genius Group from the top three provinces of Blue Star are all arrogant and not just anyone can talk to them.

Just then, the virtual screen in the center of the arena suddenly changed. Jiang Shuining, who was originally in first place, dropped to second place, and the first place was changed to "Ruan Liusu, 270 Crystal Core".

Ruan Liusu and Chen Lie arrived in front of the virtual screen.

Seeing his name appear at number one, he said, "Chen Lie, look, the rankings are finalized. All 57 contestants have completed their handover, and our 270 Crystal Core have secured first place."

Chen Lie nodded and glanced at the big screen. Getting first place was good enough; Star Liquid was a valuable resource.

Even in Taia Star Province of the Central Galactic Empire, Star Liquid is a rare and precious resource that is inaccessible to the lower and middle classes. Only the powerful and wealthy can use it. With Star Liquid, he can make up for his lack of resources and should be able to break through the 15-fold Strength Value in the future.

"As for the first place reward, I'll keep a bottle of Star Liquid for myself, and the rest are yours," Ruan Liusu said again.

Upon hearing this, Chen Lie said, "No need, I only need one bottle of Star Liquid. The rest is yours. If you hadn't invited me to participate in this competition, I wouldn't have gotten the Star Liquid."

"How can that be? Without you, I might not even make it into the top ten, so you have to take the lion's share!"

Chen Lie looked at Ruan Liusu with some curiosity. Was this little girl stupid?

In the world of martial arts, the competition is for resources; how can you push resources away like this?

Or is it that the top twenty wealthy and powerful families on Blue Star are so rich that they don't care about such a paltry sum?

"How about this, we'll split the resources equally. The first-place reward is two bottles of Star Liquid, one SS-Grade Martial Arts Crystal, and one Second-Order Martial Dao Rare Treasure, right? We'll each take one bottle of Star Liquid, and I'll take the Second-Order Martial Dao Rare Treasure. The SS-grade Martial Arts Crystal Stone is yours. How about that?" "Well... okay."

Ruan Liusu nodded.

At this moment, Jiang Shuining and the boy who was assisting him in the crowd were suddenly startled.

They discovered that the record for the most Crystal Core had changed hands, now held by "Ruan Liusu, with 270 Crystal Core".

The leader standing next to Jiang Shuining exclaimed, "How is this possible? Someone actually harvested 270 Crystal Core?"

Jiang Shuining Ning frowned, her face filled with disbelief. "Could it be that the staff made a mistake during the inventory? Or perhaps their team's support is at the Blood Refining Stage, and they didn't count the 270 Crystal Core as half?"

Even with two Blood Refining Stage cultivators working together, it would be difficult to hunt down so many Illusion Beast in just three and a half hours, right?

"I'll go ask!"

Fearing something might happen to the two bottles of Star Liquid, the boy immediately went to the staff at Blue Star University who were organizing the event to inquire. Jiang Shuining breathed a sigh of relief and looked towards the staff's office.

A short while later, her male partner returned.

"How is it? Is there a mistake?"

Upon seeing the boy return, Jiang Shuining quickly asked.

The boy shook his head and sighed, "There's no mistake, it's 270 Crystal Core. We came in second place in this competition." "How is that possible?"

In less than four hours, she harvested more than two hundred Crystal Core. Only someone like her, who excels in both Mental Power and martial arts, could do that. Even for someone in the Blood Refining Stage, it would be quite difficult.

Who exactly is this Ruan Liusu?

"I've inquired several times already, and one person did indeed harvest 270 Crystal Core, 22 more than us."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shuining couldn't help but say, "The second place winner only gets one bottle of Star Liquid. My Strength Value has just broken through seven times and is still unstable. There's a risk that it could drop to six times at any time, so I desperately need the Star Liquid. I'll take this bottle of Star Liquid, and the rest of the rewards for the second place winner are all yours."

The boy himself came specifically for the Star Liquid; his goal in participating in this competition was to obtain a bottle of Star Liquid. However, he faltered halfway through and failed to win first place.

Jiang Shuining had invited him to this competition, so he naturally couldn't steal the spotlight. Hearing Jiang Shuining's words, he could only reluctantly nod. "Ruan Liusu, two hundred and seventy Crystal Core? She won first place? How is that possible?"

At the front of the crowd, Bai Xianxian saw a name suddenly appear and exclaimed in disbelief.

Beside Bai Xianxian, Yue Lin also frowned.

Two Organ Refining Stage harvested 270 Crystal Core in just over three hours; that's really outrageous.

At this moment, Lou Xueru, who also serves as the vice president of Blue Star University and the co-director of the Genius Class, stepped forward.

"Students, this competition has successfully concluded. Rewards can be collected tomorrow morning from the Genius Group Comprehensive Office on the First Campus. We won't take up any more of your time in the Sumeru Illusion Realm. Dismissed!"

As soon as Lou Xueru finished speaking, the students dispersed.

Ruan Liusu and Chen Lie walked out of the venue together. She Chen Liedao, "Chen Lie, aren't you in Class 15 Key Class in the First Campus? So, after I collect the reward tomorrow, I'll just send you the Star Liquid and the second-tier Blood Refining Stage Martial Dao Rare Treasure, shall I?"

"Alright."

Chen Lie nodded and said, "Could we exchange this Second-Order Martial Dao Rare Treasure used in the Blood Refining Stage for a second-tier water-attribute Martial Dao Rare Treasure?"

"It should be possible, I'll ask tomorrow," Ruan Liusu said.

Chen Lie nodded. He was already able to cultivate the third organ of the Organ Refining Stage, the Kui Water Kidney, so he urgently needed Second-Order Martial Dao Rare Treasure with water attributes. "Just now, I was afraid of causing a sensation, so I didn't hand over all the Crystal Core we obtained from hunting Illusion Beast. Now we still have 5 Black Illusion Beast, 31 ordinary Crystal Core, and 12 Large Crystal Core left."

That works out to 105 ordinary Crystal Core, which can be exchanged for over a thousand Galactic Coin.

Should we exchange these Crystal Core?

"Good!"

Chen Lie nodded and went with Ruan Liusu to the Comprehensive Zone Exchange Center of the Five Stars of the Eastern Region.

A student from Blue Star Starry Sky University exchanged 2410 Galactic Coin at a ratio of 1 to 23.

Since Chen Lie did not have an interstellar account, the 2410 Galactic Coin were directly transferred to Ruan Liusu's account.

Ruan Liusu Ruan Liusu hadn't thought much of it when she was hunting Illusion Beast, but she was shocked when these Crystal Core were exchanged for Galactic Coin.

Chen Lie can earn nearly ten thousand Star-Origin Galactic Coins a day by relying on his Consciousness Spirit.

What does this mean?

Once Chen Lie enters Starry Sky University, even without the support of his home planet, he will be able to ensure he has no shortage of resources on his own.

"Chen Lie, I've heard that the thirteen stars of the Canglan Star Domain collect far more Illusion Beast Crystal Core than we do through exchanges with Starry Sky University. With your ability to hunt Illusion Beast, once you get to Starry Sky University, won't you no longer have to worry about martial arts resources?"

Chen Liedao, "I think the exchange rate for Illusion Beast Crystal Core to Galactic Coin is a bit off. Even after we get into Starry Sky University, we might not be able to get that exchange rate."

Ruan Liusu thought for a moment and nodded, "That's true. I heard from my cousin that the exchange rate between Crystal Core and Galactic Coin at Blue Star University was ridiculously low last year. One Crystal Core could only be exchanged for less than 10 Star Dollar in Galactic Coin."

The exchange rate for Crystal Core to Galactic Coin was set by the Thirteen Star Alliance. If they no longer need Crystal Core after a while, they might not even give one Star-Origin Galactic Coins per Crystal Core."

After leaving the Eastern Region Five-Star Comprehensive Zone, Chen Lie bid farewell to Ruan Liusu.

His progress on the Genius Hundred-Match Streak streak was still a bit short, so he found a quiet place and started another Virtual Duel Arena. "Virtual Duel Arena" is matching players...

"Match complete. Opponent: Shuimang Star - Wang Chen (Organ Refining Stage)."

"Entering Virtual Duel Space..."

The scene before Chen Lie suddenly changed, and he was instantly transported to a vast, white space.

Standing on the blank Duel Platform, Chen Lie saw a young man who looked to be seventeen or eighteen years old.

"I am Shuimang Star, Wang Chen, the top disciple of the Martial Academy. Please enlighten me."

"Blue Star, Chen Lie."

Inside the Virtual Duel Space, after announcing their names, the two immediately began fighting.

Chen Lie suddenly struck out with his palm, unleashing a force of over 20,000 jin (approximately 10,000 kg) in an instant.

Wang Chen of Shuimang Star remained unmoved, instead raising his hand and throwing a punch that instantly blocked Chen Lie's palm strike.

"Boom"

When fists and palms collided, a tremendous force exploded outwards.

After one exchange, Chen Lie instantly discerned Wang Chen's strength. He was undoubtedly one of the best in the Organ Refining Stage Shuimang Star, having Organ Refining Stage Completion. He had even cultivated a Treasure Bone while still in the Bone Refining stage, and was truly only a hair's breadth away from the Blood Refining Stage.

Faced with such an opponent, Chen Lie did not engage in a direct confrontation using martial arts, but instead launched a Mental Power attack.

The Mental Power Impact was like a sharp sword, striking straight into Wang Chen's mind.

Wang Chen was attacked by Mental Power, and a sharp pain shot through his mind instantly.

"Are you Divine Sense Master?"

He was virtually unmatched during his Organ Refining Stage on the Shuimang Star; even attacks from ordinary Third-Rank Divine Sense Master couldn't cause him such excruciating pain in his mind. Wang Chen instantly realized that his opponent was no ordinary person, and just as he was about to unleash his full power to end the battle, another wave of intense pain surged through his mind.

Within seconds, Chen Lie launched several Mental Power attacks. Seeing Wang Chen briefly lose consciousness, Chen Lie suddenly struck. "Boom boom boom!"

In an instant, Chen Lie unleashed more than a dozen palm strikes at Wang Chen, the Flood Dragon Phantom swirling around, the force of 20,000 jin exploding in less than a moment.

After realizing what was happening, Wang Chen hastily parried Chen Lie's relentless attack, shouting as he did so.

"My esteemed friend from Blue Star, I concede defeat. Please stop here."

Upon hearing Wang Chen concede defeat, Chen Lie immediately withdrew his attack and looked at him calmly.

Seeing Chen Lie stop and recuperate, Wang Chen cupped his hands and said, "Brother Chen, your attainments in martial arts and Mental Power are so remarkable that you must be one of the most outstanding geniuses on Blue Star."

Among all the disciples in the Shuimang Academy Organ Refining Stage stage of the Martial Academy, none of them could withstand three of my moves without being defeated.

"May I ask what level you are on Blue Star?"

"I am a student in the Key Class at Blue Star University."

"Wang also has some understanding of Blue Star's system. Blue Star University students are divided into different levels. The strongest are the Super Genius Class students, while the Genius Class students, who are one level above the Key Class students, are only equivalent to ordinary disciples of my Shuimang Star Martial Academy."

Even if Blue Star's martial arts are slightly superior to those of our Shuimang Star, surely a student from Blue Star's Key Class Blue Star University class shouldn't be stronger than Wang, the Head Disciple of Shuimang Star Martial Academy?