Inside a cave at the top of the gorge.
Xia Manggan stood at the entrance, helplessly glancing at the clouds overhead.
There were far too many Divine Senses sweeping over him from within those clouds.
More than twenty in total.
Some assumed his soul was not powerful enough to notice them and probed him far too excessively.
Whoosh~~~
Xia Manggan's Divine Sense burst forth from within his body, forming an invisible seal around him.
As for the three particularly excessive Divine Senses that had even tried to inspect the interior of his Divine Body—
He split off several strands of Divine Sense and met them head-on.
It was understandable if the Divine Sense of someone who might become his master in the future wanted to inspect the inside of his Divine Body.
After all, if he wished to seek the Dao under a master, he had to reveal some of his capabilities. Otherwise, how could his master teach according to his aptitude?
But just any random person wanted to inspect him...
Who the hell did they think they were?
"Eh? This little fellow's soul has reached the Divine Sense level?"
"It really has. He used Divine Sense to seal off the area around himself... Ah, fire!"
"It's a Divine Sense attack!"
"This little fellow knows a soul secret art."
The three Primordial Spirit Daoists suddenly changed expression.
One of them, a burly middle-aged man who had only entered the Primordial Spirit Daoist level in recent years, felt as though his soul had been scorched by flames and cried out in pain.
"He is a member of the imperial Xia Mang Clan. How deep do you think his family's foundations are? Do you really believe that merely cultivating a few more years than him gives you the right to bully him for being young?" Immortal Hanshan swept a glance over the burly man and snorted coldly. "You brought this upon yourself."
The burly man shrank back.
Even though his soul was still throbbing with pain, he did not dare utter another sound.
The other Primordial Spirit Daoists secretly laughed at the sight.
Ever since their headmaster martial brother had returned and said that a monstrous genius who had comprehended the true meaning of the Great Dao of Life and Death would be entering the Academy to seek a master and cultivate—
Before Xia Manggan had even arrived, the matter of his master had already been settled through 'friendly' discussions among several Immortals of the Black-White Academy.
With the man's future master right there, using Divine Sense to take a close look out of curiosity was one thing.
But they had actually wanted to inspect the secrets of his Divine Body!
Were they asking to be beaten?
Even if Xia Manggan had not counterattacked, Immortal Hanshan probably would not have let them succeed.
After this incident—
The Primordial Spirit Daoists all withdrew their Divine Senses and no longer dared inspect him so freely.
Moreover, when they looked at one another, their eyes were filled with amazement.
He was only at the Purple Mansion stage.
His Dao Comprehension Realm was extraordinarily high, his soul was equally powerful—
And he even possessed a soul attack secret art strong enough to make a Primordial Spirit Daoist suffer.
One had to know that the Primordial Spirit Daoists of the Black-White Academy generally possessed the strength of Earth Immortals or Loose Immortals when outside.
For Xia Manggan to achieve this much—
It could only be said that ordinary Black-White Academy recruits were geniuses among elites, monsters among geniuses.
But Xia Manggan was a monster among monsters!
Xia Manggan opened his eyes.
Whoosh~~~
Within his sea of consciousness, the Buddha figure that seemed like the Sun Star illuminating the Myriad Worlds slowly faded away.
This was his Visualization Method—
Inner Observation of Great Sun Tathagata Buddha.
It was the visualization technique contained within the Body Refining Divine Ability he cultivated.
When visualizing the Buddha's form, it could not only refine his soul and strengthen his spirit, but also draw upon the Supreme Star beyond countless dimensions—the Sun Star.
This would help increase the speed at which he absorbed Divine Power and temper his Divine Body.
For him, it could not have been more suitable.
Originally, although this Visualization Method possessed the effect of protecting the soul, it only worked after external Divine Sense, Divine Will, or Yin entities such as vengeful ghosts entered the sea of consciousness.
But Xia Manggan's first life after transmigrating had been in the Yang God World.
He had even been Emperor Gan Yang Pan, who had passed the Ninefold Thunder Tribulation.
During this month of secluded cultivation in the quiet room, he combined the soul thought attack techniques he had excelled at in his past life with the Great Sun Tathagata Dharma Body visualized through Inner Observation of Great Sun Tathagata Buddha...
In the end, he created a secret attack art specifically for souls—Spirit Refining Technique.
It could imbue Divine Sense with a scorching damage property akin to True Fire.
Any Divine Sense or Divine Will it touched would instantly feel as if someone had thrust a hand into a blazing fire, suffering unbearable pain.
As for the stronger applications of Spirit Refining Technique—
There had not been enough time, and he had no soul secret arts from this world to use as reference, so he did not continue deducing it further.
At that moment—
Whoosh!
A figure shot in through the cave entrance. After landing, he put away his flying sword, revealing a youth dressed in beast-hide clothing.
"Ji Ning."
Xia Manggan looked toward the newcomer.
It was Ji Ning, who had charged through the Puppet Formation after him.
"You know me?"
Ji Ning froze in astonishment.
In his view, Xia Manggan was of imperial blood. Even when facing Beishan Yin, he had shown no courtesy and called him by name directly.
He had even taken Beishan Yin's son, Beishan Hu—a noble young lord whose status was comparable to Beishan Baiwei's—as a follower.
How could such a top-tier aristocrat have someone like him in his eyes? And how could he remember his name?
But he quickly recovered, realizing that his instinctive question might sound offensive. He immediately clasped his hands and remedied it. "I never expected that after meeting only once at Cave of Carefree, and after another month had passed, Brother Xia Mang would still remember Ji Ning."
"You made me two thousand jin of Essence Liquid. How could I forget so quickly?" Xia Manggan smiled. "Besides, we're joining the same sect and taking the assessment on the same day. That makes it even more fated."
"It truly is fate."
A friendly smile appeared on Ji Ning's face as well. Though I regard him as someone to surpass, he does not necessarily have to be an opponent. He can also be a friend.
At that moment—
Boom!
Crash!
Break!
Amid several explosions and furious roars—
Several more figures broke through the Lightning Law attacks of the Puppet Formation and rushed into the cave.
After entering, they first warily surveyed their surroundings before turning their attention to Xia Manggan.
After all—
Even Ji Ning, who had entered afterward, had relied on movement techniques and sword arts to seek gaps among the thousand Lightning Law strikes, passing through the thunder zone only through cleverness.
Yet Xia Manggan, the first to cross the thunder zone, had used no tricks at all. He had simply relied on a magic treasure to withstand every bolt of Lightning Law and force his way through.
The difference in strength he displayed was crystal clear to them all.
A black-robed youth cupped his hands toward Xia Manggan. "Fellow Daoist, I am—"
Before he could finish, Xia Manggan turned away and continued looking down at the Puppet Formation below.
He had greeted Ji Ning because Ji Ning was this world's chosen one, a person of great fortune. Ji Ning was crucial to many events in the original story and would also become his fellow disciple.
As for the others?
They could not even enter the Black-White Academy. They did not even qualify to be casual acquaintances of his. Xia Manggan could not be bothered with them.
"..." The black-robed youth secretly fumed and swore bitterly that he would definitely enter the Black-White Academy.
The other young cultivators nearby had initially wanted to get acquainted with Xia Manggan as well.
But after seeing the black-robed youth rebuffed, they immediately abandoned that thought.
He really is arrogant.
Ji Ning thought, Looking at it this way, him taking the initiative to greet me was actually quite respectful.
Thinking this, Ji Ning secretly shook his head.
Was he actually feeling secretly pleased just because someone had taken the initiative to greet him?
The influence of strength and status truly was immense.
The second round, the Puppet Formation assessment, allowed the duration of one incense stick.
Very soon—
"One incense stick's time is up."
As the middle-aged man in ink-wash Daoist robes shouted loudly, the eight hundred and ten dragon heads below the cave entrance all stopped at once.
The cultivators still struggling to charge upward tried to continue flying.
But they were blocked by a stream of light like thick ink, flung out with a sweep of the middle-aged man's sleeve.
That light looked like Origin Force, yet it formed an enormous landscape painting in the air.
The landscape painting then rapidly expanded, becoming like a half-real, half-illusory world that enveloped all nine hundred-plus eliminated young cultivators before carrying them back toward the Academy entrance.
"The Great Dao of Heaven and Earth?" Xia Manggan nodded slightly.
As expected of a Primordial Spirit Daoist from the Black-White Academy.
The Dao Comprehension Realm revealed by that single move of transforming Origin Force into a painting was enough to crush many Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals.
"Haha, I saw the change in that little imperial fellow's expression just now."
"Among all the Primordial Spirit Daoists in our Academy, Junior Brother Shuimo ranks among the top in terms of Dao Realm. He has cultivated for a relatively short time and looks young enough. That was sufficient to intimidate him and display the depth of our Academy's foundations."
"Exactly."
Above the clouds—
The Primordial Spirit Daoists who had been watching Xia Manggan continuously communicated through Divine Sense.
Because of Xia Manggan, even the Primordial Spirit Daoist responsible for this entrance assessment had been carefully selected and specifically arranged.
Whoosh!
Ink Daoist teleported into the cave.
"Greetings, Senior."
Ji Ning and the others all bowed respectfully.
"Greetings, Senior." Xia Manggan clasped his hands as well.
"Mhm." Ink Daoist nodded slightly at Xia Manggan before sweeping his gaze over Ji Ning and the others.
This time, aside from Xia Manggan, nine others including Ji Ning had passed the Puppet Formation assessment.
"You." Ink Daoist pointed at a blue-robed youth whose eyes kept shifting. "You used a Dao talisman and violated the rules. Will you leave on your own, or should I send you away?"
"I would not dare trouble you, Senior." The blue-robed youth gritted his teeth and immediately transformed into a streamer of light, flying out of the cave.
"Your name is Mu Zishuo?"
Ink Daoist then looked at a white-robed youth. "Take out your Puppet and let me inspect it."
This was one of the rules of the Black-White Academy entrance examination: to prevent examinees from using any external objects apart from their own abilities.
Standing nearby with nothing to do, Xia Manggan used the Eye of Fortune to inspect the Fortune Values of those in the cave.
The highest still belonged to Ji Ning, the world's chosen one. Compared to his Fortune Value of 1,000 one month earlier, it had now risen to 1,100.
Moreover, as time passed—or rather, as he drew closer to becoming a Formal Disciple of the Black-White Academy—Ji Ning's Fortune Value increased more rapidly.
It seems Fortune Value is not fixed. Taking a master, joining a sect, obtaining a fortuitous encounter, learning a great Divine Ability, or even becoming friends with a person of great fortune can all increase it.
Xia Manggan secretly mused, And the closer one gets to an opportunity, the faster Fortune Value increases.
After looking at Ji Ning, he examined the others.
Sure enough—
Mu Zishuo's Fortune Value was also growing rapidly, already reaching 234. It far exceeded that of ordinary Purple Mansion cultivators and even the vast majority of Wanxiang Daoists.
As for the remaining few, their Fortune Values had not changed at all.
Clearly, even though they had passed the second round of the Black-White Academy assessment—
They ultimately would not be able to enter the Academy and become Formal Disciples.
That was why their Fortune Values would not fluctuate.
The Eye of Fortune talent can be used to gauge someone's encounters and gains over the near future, granting an ability similar to seeing through one's fortune.
While Xia Manggan was secretly contemplating this, Ink Daoist spoke. "You nine have passed the most basic screening for entry. Next comes the final screening. If you pass it, you will become disciples of our Black-White Academy. If you fail, you will have no choice but to return home."
"There's still one final screening?"
Ji Ning was secretly shocked.
Of more than nine hundred people, only nine remained, yet they still had to be screened further?
No wonder everyone who entered the Black-White Academy was an unparalleled monstrous genius.
Following Ink Daoist through the deep cave for a while, the group arrived at a fork in the passage.
"This is the final entrance examination."
Ink Daoist pointed at the nine forks ahead. "Beyond each of these nine paths, one Formal Disciple of our Black-White Academy stands guard."
What?
The expressions of Ji Ning and the other seven changed.
Formal Disciples of the Black-White Academy were guarding them?
Those were all disciples who had cultivated some of the finest techniques and possessed all kinds of formidable methods!
Meanwhile, every one of them was only at the Early Purple Mansion Stage in Qi Refining. How could they compare?
"Don't worry." Ink Daoist reassured Ji Ning and the others. "The guards you encounter will merely be Formal Disciples at the Purple Mansion stage. They are permitted to use only one method, while you may go all out. Moreover, you do not need to defeat the guarding disciples. As long as you break out of the mountain cave, you will have succeeded."
Hearing Ink Daoist say this, the expressions of Ji Ning and the others eased somewhat.
"You."
Ink Daoist looked at Xia Manggan. "Take the first path on the left... Be careful. Don't let your guard down."
After saying that, he turned to Ji Ning and the others. "Choose freely among the remaining eight paths. Once you have passed successfully, we will gather at the summit of this mountain."
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~~~
Ji Ning and the others all turned their gazes toward Xia Manggan.
He had been directly assigned a path.
Ink Daoist had even warned him to be careful.
Could the guarding disciple Xia Manggan had to face be different from ours?
Starting on December 13, Suifeng would launch a support event for the new book's sprint. As long as you followed the story daily and posted screenshots in the support group, you could grab luck-based red packet rewards. For details, please see the pinned event post in the book review section. PS: The more readers who joined the support event, the larger the luck-based red packets Suifeng would send out each day. Everyone was welcome to join Suifeng's reader group and participate in the support event.
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