Chapter 188
Not only can it enhance her understanding of swordsmanship, but the spiritual materials themselves can also be crafted into magical artifacts.
Moreover, the Ziwei Sacred Land cares about her very much, and she might even gain something unexpected!
She could never forget how the ancient Great Xia fell, and how the Ziwei Sacred Land reaped the greatest benefits from it!
The legacy of the ancient Great Xia likely fell largely into the hands of the Ziwei Sacred Land.
When she reaches the summit of the Eastern Pole in the future, she will never forget the hatred for her ancestors!
"Thank you for your kind words, senior. I will certainly live up to your expectations!"
Xiao Minghuang bowed and expressed his gratitude.
"Yes, go. Remember one thing: the path of cultivation is long and arduous. Take care!" The old man nodded slightly, waved his sleeve, and a portal of light unfolded in front of Xiao Minghuang.
"Yes, I will heed your teachings!"
Xiao Minghuang answered respectfully, and then stepped into the portal of light.
The next moment.
She then returned to the training ground where she had been.
In the blink of an eye, a figure in white robes appeared on the field, exuding the aura of the third level of the Spirit Seed Realm.
The white-robed figure's face was hidden beneath a hood. As soon as he appeared, his blood and spiritual energy circulated rapidly, condensing into a long sword, which he thrust fiercely towards Xiao Minghuang.
The sword's edge was sharp and carried a powerful destructive force!
"A mere first-level Spirit Seed Realm is nothing to fear..."
Xiao Minghuang chuckled, then pointed her fingers to form a sword, and a pure white sword light slashed out from the air, instantly shattering the white-robed figure!
Less than a quarter of an hour after the white-robed figure disappeared, another figure appeared.
This time, his cultivation level has reached the second level of the Spirit Seed Realm!
Xiao Minghuang remained expressionless and slashed at the enemy.
Her cultivation had already reached the third level of the Spirit Seed Realm, and her true combat strength was enough to kill those in the Nascent Primal Embryo Realm. Dealing with these ordinary enemies in the Spirit Seed Realm was as easy as cutting melons and vegetables.
As she once again shattered the trial enemies, a sense of awareness arose within her.
"It seems we don't need to wait for the trial subjects to appear on their own; we can summon them in advance, which will save some time."
Immediately, with a thought, a white-robed figure at the fourth level of the Spirit Seed Realm materialized...
Outside world.
After entering the Trial Gate, all cultivators will first face the Spirit Testing Platform to test their spiritual roots and physique. Afterward, they will be teleported to the Trial Tower to fight against the guardians inside.
If you fail, you will be teleported outside the tower.
Outside the tower, you can see the top 10,000 people who are making the fastest progress in climbing the Trial Tower.
At this moment, on the Trial Tower, countless names are rapidly changing, which means that talented cultivators from various states are climbing quickly. No one's performance can remain stable; almost in the blink of an eye, they will be surpassed by those who come later.
But as time went on, some truly talented geniuses quickly entered the top 100, leaving the other cultivators far behind!
"Number 100: Wang Fei!"
"Ninety-ninth place: Han Li!"
"Seventy-eighth place: Fang Wen!"
"Seventieth place: Ye Ruoshui!"
"Fifty-first place: Murong Qing!"
"No. 49: Lin Wanqiu!"
"Thirty-sixth place: Wei Chenxi!"
"Twelfth place: Ning Weiwei!"
"Seventh place: Wang Yan!"
Fifth place: Qi Wangshu!
Fourth place: Lin Tianyang!
Third place: Su Changge!
"Second place: Qi Mingdao... Qi Candidate from the Ziwei Sacred Land, is only ranked second?"
Countless people couldn't believe their eyes.
Although the first trial of the Holy Academy Trials, the Trial Tower, offers no rewards, many heirs of powerful factions choose to enter it for training, honing their combat skills in battle, and preparing for the actual combat in the second trial.
Therefore, the ranking in the Trial Tower can be seen as a preview of the ranking in the second stage.
Qi Mingdao, the number one disciple of the Ziwei Sacred Land in this era, possesses a natural Heaven-rank Five Elements Spiritual Root and carries the inheritance of an Emperor. He is the favorite to win this trial and the number one seed!
But they only ranked second?
When they looked at the first place winner, they were stunned.
"Jian Chen? Who is this person?"
Everyone was puzzled.
Some people frowned; they had never heard of such a person, not even by name.
"Just watch and you'll see. The Trial Tower has only just begun, and soon Qi Candidate will kick this Jian Chen down!"
"Every trial produces some so-called dark horses, but in the end, aren't they all direct descendants of the holy land families?"
"That's right. Those unknown Rogue Cultivator, with neither background nor resources, have already shown their potential too early. What's the use of them even if they achieve a ranking in the Trial Tower?"
"Once we reach the second trial, these Rogue Cultivators will be exposed for who they really are!"
After that, the rankings in the Trial Tower changed rather slowly.
Even beyond the top 1,000, disputes continue, with one group rising and another falling.
However, within the top 1,000, changes are very slow, and it often takes a long time for even minor ranking shifts to occur.
However, several lesser-known names have been added to the list of those within the top 100.
These names, like Han Li's earlier, are completely unknown and seem unremarkable, like some country bumpkin who appeared out of nowhere.
"There seem to be quite a few dark horses this year."
The crowd asked in confusion.
However, something even more surprising happened.
"Did you all see that? A man named Xiao Minghuang's ranking has risen very quickly. It seems like only an hour has passed, and he has climbed from not being on the list to over nine hundredth place!"
"... She's still rising; in the time I was speaking, she'd already climbed to over 800!"
The cultivators who noticed Xiao Minghuang's name were greatly surprised.
The rankings displayed on the Trial Tower are arranged according to the speed of completion.
This means that the faster you complete the level, the higher your ranking will be.
There may be two or more cultivators at the same level, but whoever clears the level faster will rank higher.
Jian Chen, who is ranked first, is currently stuck on the 90th floor and has not yet made it.
Qi Mingdao, who is in second place, is still on the 85th floor.
Xiao Minghuang, who climbs the tower at an extremely fast speed, has already reached the fiftieth floor in just two hours, and is already approaching the seventieth floor, which is the worst among the top one hundred students.
"Her ranking seems to be continuing to improve."
"Who exactly is she? How come she seems like she could make it into the top 100?"
"It's not a possibility, it's a certainty that we'll be in the top 100!"
"Xiao Minghuang... I feel like I've heard that name before..."
"... I remember now, Xiao Minghuang comes from the Southern Border, and is said to be a princess of a country."
"The princess of the dynasty is comparable to a direct descendant of a noble family in the holy land."
"Fellow Daoist, you are mistaken. How can the remote and impoverished Southern Border compare to the sacred families of the Hundred Sacred States?"
"If we disregard the strength of their respective factions and consider only their personal abilities, this Princess Xiao is in no way inferior to the true disciples of the sacred lands or the direct descendants of noble families in the Hundred Sacred States!"
216. The 90th Floor: An Opponent at the Great Perfection of Sword Intent [Please Subscribe!]
"It seems that Princess Xiao might become the dark horse of this year's trials."
"That's not necessarily true. Look at the top 100; there are quite a few names you've hardly heard of. There are really a lot of dark horses this year."
The crowd was buzzing with discussion.
For the cultivators present, being able to break into the top 100 was enough to be considered a dark horse genius.
The difficulty of the Trial Tower increases with each floor, becoming more dangerous and challenging as you progress, with increasingly stronger opponents.
Inside the tower.
Xiao Minghuang has overcome numerous obstacles and has already climbed to the eighty-ninth floor.
She knew nothing about what was happening in the outside world.
Not far from her stood a figure in a gray robe, exuding the aura of the peak of the Spirit Seed Realm. His entire body resonated with sword intent, like a divine weapon about to be unsheathed, its sharpness fully revealed.
The opponents in the Trial Tower did not appear out of thin air.
The guardian of each level is chosen from the strongest among those who have previously attempted to clear the level.
The guardian of the 89th level appears to be a sword cultivator!
He wore a gray robe and was thin, yet he exuded an unparalleled sense of oppression.
Xiao Minghuang stared intently at the person before her.
"This feeling... Sword Intent at its Great Perfection!"
Involuntarily, the Great Perfection sword intent within her seemed to sense the provocation and actively revived, its sword intent surging in her pupils, almost bursting forth.
With a thought, Xiao Minghuang conjured a pure white longsword in her palm.
"War!"
Xiao Minghuang took a step forward, brandishing his longsword. Countless sword shadows flashed, numbering as many as five thousand, falling like a rain of swords. The Sword Qi was like a rainbow, enveloping the entire space.
Rumble...
In an instant, the two clashed fiercely, their swords flashing across the sky.
Both were at the Great Perfection of sword intent, and were evenly matched in their swordsmanship.
However, the guardian's sword intent is pure sword intent. In terms of sword techniques alone, it may be stronger than Xiao Minghuang's, but in terms of power, it is slightly inferior.
Xiao Minghuang's sword intent, however, was even more refined and profound. Each strike contained the power of stars and flames, and each thrust of his sword carried terrifying destructive power.
The sword light and Sword Qi collided and vibrated endlessly.
A series of violent roars emanated, sending chills down one's spine.
Xiao Minghuang's sword strikes continued relentlessly.
The defenders, on the other hand, can only passively defend and gradually find themselves at a disadvantage.
This was not because the guardian lost to Xiao Minghuang in swordsmanship, but because she used supernatural powers other than swordsmanship.
"Let's end this competition here!"
Xiao Minghuang's gaze sharpened, and a golden-red flame ignited between his brows. The tip of the sword trembled slightly, and the flame suddenly gained momentum, flowing along the longsword and into the blade.
Buzzing...
In an instant, the longsword rang out, its Sword Qi surged, and the raging flames swept in all directions like a fire dragon.
The sword intent was like a vast, endless sea, sweeping away and heading straight for the guardian.
The guardian's gaze sharpened slightly, not daring to be negligent. He swung his longsword fiercely, unleashing an extremely sharp sword light that shattered the void and met the Sword Qi head-on.
"Boom!"