Tradition, No One Can Break It!

Inside the Quiet Room.

Xia Manggan pondered various possibilities.

Countless flashes of inspiration continuously surfaced in his mind, eventually taking shape as a soul secret art he named the Soul Devouring Wheel.

According to his conception, it would use half of his soul as material, with the Life and Death transformation technique from the Wheel of Life and Death of the Heavens, as well as the Yin-Yang mutual generation and transformation technique from the Hunyuan Infinite Wheel passed down by the Hunyuan Heavenly Immortal—the technique of crushing everything like a millstone—as its foundation.

He would transform the Soul Extinguishing Awl into the Soul Devouring Wheel.

Once activated, it could attack and kill an enemy's soul, mutually exhausting itself against the opponent's soul as though the two were consuming each other.

Yet the enemy soul that was consumed would not simply be allowed to vanish. Instead, it would borrow death to achieve rebirth, swallowing and transforming it into the power of the Soul Devouring Wheel.

If it succeeded, the Soul Devouring Wheel would not only never be exhausted, but would continuously devour enemy souls in battle, becoming ever stronger.

It would be as if the Soul Devouring Wheel could cultivate on its own, just like his true body or Second Primordial Spirit.

If that were truly the case, its power would have no limit. It would absolutely become the most terrifying soul-killing art!

"The concept may be perfect, but it is ultimately only a concept. I need to truly attempt cultivation before I can determine whether it will work..."

After pondering for a moment, Xia Manggan swept his Divine Sense toward the courtyard outside the Quiet Room.

There, he saw Beishan Hu and Beishan Baiwei—two clansmen who had been enemies in the original story—actually sitting together and drinking.

"Beishan Hu."

Xia Manggan's Divine Sense transmitted a voice through the void.

"Young Master." Beishan Hu hurriedly set down his wine cup.

"I need a vessel capable of cultivating a Second Primordial Spirit," Xia Manggan ordered. "It does not matter what it is, so long as it can house a Primordial Spirit."

"Yes, Young Master." Beishan Hu immediately replied, "I shall return and seek my father."

A vessel capable of cultivating a Second Primordial Spirit was a rare treasure to any Immortal cultivator.

Even the most ordinary vessel would be comparable to at least two or three top-grade Heaven Rank magic treasures, worth hundreds of thousands, perhaps even over a million jin of Essence Liquid.

More importantly, such items could not be bought even with money.

Even if one wanted to purchase one, it took luck to encounter someone willing to sell.

Thus, an item of this level was already beyond Beishan Hu's means. Beishan Yin had to personally handle it.

Beside him, Beishan Baiwei secretly clicked his tongue.

No wonder Young Master Xia Manggan had dismissed his congratulatory gift with such disdain.

He casually asked for a rare treasure worth hundreds of thousands of jin of Essence Liquid, and Beishan Hu had not hesitated in the slightest.

Compared with that, the three top-grade Earth Rank magic treasures and ten thousand jin of Essence Liquid he had brought seemed far too petty.

Thinking of this, Beishan Baiwei hurriedly said, "Young Master Xia Manggan, after I return, I will also report this to my father and have him search for a vessel for a Second Primordial Spirit."

"Mm, thank you for the trouble. Whatever amount of Essence Liquid is ultimately spent, I will reimburse you at full price."

Having given those instructions, Xia Manggan withdrew his Divine Sense into the Quiet Room, leaving them to handle the matter.

Ever since he had taken Beishan Hu as a follower, he had indeed had far fewer concerns.

Not only did Beishan Hu care for Ah Huang every day and prepare all sorts of food for it.

He could also use his connections to search for desired rare materials and magic treasures, just as he was doing today.

Whether it was receiving visiting guests, keeping track of and handling information from the Academy, Anchan City, and even Anchan Commandery, Beishan Hu's status and abilities were extremely useful.

"I'll help their father and son out when I get the chance..." Xia Manggan smiled, took out a Jade Bottle, and placed it before him.

Inside the Jade Bottle was all the Essence Liquid he had exchanged from his Essence Cards, a total of ninety-nine thousand jin.

For the past two days, he had been refining the Xiantian Restrictions within the Wuji Ring and had not yet had the time to break through in Qi Refining cultivation.

Now that he wished to cultivate a soul secret art and attempt to forge the Soul Devouring Wheel, he naturally needed to first raise his Qi Refining cultivation from the Purple Mansion Stage to the Myriad Manifestations Stage.

The higher his Qi Refining cultivation, the greater the enhancement to his soul.

That was also why he had asked Beishan Hu to seek a vessel for a Second Primordial Spirit.

With his Dao Comprehension Realm and no shortage of resources,

as long as he had a vessel, he could immediately cultivate a Second Primordial Spirit and rapidly raise its cultivation to the Primordial Spirit Daoist Stage, or even the Void Return Earth Immortal Stage.

At that point, his true body and Second Primordial Spirit would have different bodies but share one soul. The strength of his soul could even surpass that of most Earth Immortals and Loose Immortals.

When testing the forging of the Soul Devouring Wheel, he could also divide the soul of his Second Primordial Spirit instead, without needing to risk the soul of his true body.

Within the endless void of the Purple Mansion space.

A chubby little child with a topknot was happily playing in the lake of Origin Force.

Not far away, an Ancient Stone Ring floated upon the lake's surface, slowly absorbing the surrounding Origin Force.

"Waaah, when will Master reach the Earth Immortal Stage? This little Origin Force isn't even enough for a single gulp." The Little Fatty Spirit lay on its back atop the lake of Origin Force, kicking up splashes with only its tiny feet.

Suddenly—

"Rumble~~~"

The entire Purple Mansion space violently trembled.

Boundless surging Heaven and Earth energy rushed in, rapidly transforming into Origin Force and pouring into the lake like a celestial river.

"Hm? Master is breaking through to the Myriad Manifestations Stage?"

The Little Fatty Spirit lazily beckoned, drawing the Wuji Ring over. It then sat on the ring's outer edge and watched everything with utter boredom.

It was the spirit of a Xiantian Spirit Treasure.

So long as it was willing, even an ordinary mortal who had never cultivated could refine it by dripping blood upon it.

But if its master's strength was too weak, he would be unable to fully unleash all of its power.

"With the size of Master's Purple Mansion space at Purple Mansion Perfection, if he breaks through the Purple Mansion Stage and reaches Perfected Wanxiang Stage, he should barely be able to activate enough of my power to match a mid-grade Heaven Rank magic treasure." The Wuji Ring Spirit sighed.

Back when the Hunyuan Heavenly Immortal had discovered the Wuji Ring, it had only recently been born under the workings of the laws of Heaven and Earth in that minor world.

Only five layers of Xiantian Restrictions had formed within the spirit treasure's body.

The Black-White Diagram conceived and controlled by the workings of Heaven and Earth had only just taken shape as well.

Even it—the Wuji Ring Spirit—had not yet truly formed consciousness before the Hunyuan Heavenly Immortal took it away and refined it.

Thus, among Xiantian Spirit Treasures, the Wuji Ring could only be considered a low-grade item of ordinary quality.

Even if it unleashed all of its power, it would only be comparable to a mid-grade Pure Yang magic treasure.

It was unlike other Xiantian Spirit Treasures that had fully matured under the nurturing of Heaven and Earth, which possessed at least nine layers of Xiantian Restrictions within them.

No matter how weak their power was, they could still rival top-grade Pure Yang magic treasures.

Of course.

The Wuji Ring also had its own advantages.

It could continue to grow.

As long as its master completed the Xiantian Restrictions within it, its rank could be elevated.

Moreover, because the Wuji Ring's Xiantian Restrictions were incomplete, it was instead like an oil painting with only its initial base coat applied. Its master could freely paint over that foundation as he wished.

Unlike other Xiantian Spirit Treasures, which already contained a complete set of nine or even more layers of Xiantian Restrictions.

Their power might appear greater, but their foundation had already been fixed. Their potential for improvement was limited, and their masters could not freely alter them.

Splash, splash, splash~~~

The endless celestial river of Origin Force continued to pour in.

Before long, the lake of Origin Force within the entire Purple Mansion expanded more than tenfold, absorbing several thousand jin of Essence Liquid.

Yet under the astonished gaze of the Wuji Ring Spirit, Xia Manggan's Purple Mansion space seemed capable of expanding without limit, growing along with the swelling lake of Origin Force...

"I remember Hunyuan once saying that being able to refine eight hundred jin of Essence Liquid at the Purple Mansion Stage counted as laying the foundation of a Heavenly Immortal. When he broke through to the Myriad Manifestations Stage, he refined over fifteen hundred jin of Essence Liquid, nearly twice as much as others..." The Wuji Ring Spirit muttered. "How much Essence Liquid has Master absorbed already? Three thousand jin? Five thousand jin? Why hasn't he reached his limit yet?!"

Night.

Inside a grand hall in the western district of the Black-White Academy.

Ji Ning sat cross-legged atop a stone pillar, looking down below.

"Is there any senior brother or sister who wishes to offer guidance?"

Within the great hall.

The expressions of over a dozen third-generation disciples were all unpleasant.

Bu Ying in particular.

They had already failed to invite Xia Manggan, and several senior brothers and sisters who had agreed to make a move—among the top-ranked Myriad Manifestations disciples—had been quite dissatisfied. They had directly left the Dao Discussion Hall and returned to their own estates.

Now, they old disciples who had entered the Academy years ago had also suffered at the hands of another newly admitted junior brother.

Not only had they failed to teach him a lesson, they had instead been taught a lesson by him and lost quite a few Black-White Pills and much Essence Liquid.

The more Bu Ying thought about it, the more stifled he felt.

"If no senior brothers or sisters are willing to offer guidance, then Ji Ning will return to his estate to cultivate first."

After saying this, and seeing that none of the old disciples responded, Ji Ning leaped down from the stone pillar.

"Senior Brother Ji Ning, Senior Brother Ji Ning!"

Mu Zishuo, who had long been jumping with excitement, immediately came forward. "That was so satisfying! Those old disciples wanted to teach us new disciples a lesson. Hahaha, now that they've lost two matches in a row, they've truly lost all face this time."

"It was only a spar." Ji Ning shook his head with a smile.

"This is about face." Mu Zishuo quickly said, "When I lost two matches this morning, those old disciples kept mocking me. Now that Senior Brother Ji Ning has won, you've helped this junior brother regain some face."

As he spoke, Mu Zishuo looked toward Bu Ying and the other old disciples. Seeing their awkward expressions, he smiled even more happily.

"Junior Brother Ji Ning, today you defeated Yinxue Wenjian, then defeated me..." Bu Ying looked at Ji Ning. "Prepare yourself well. This Dao discussion sparring will not end so easily. Tomorrow—tomorrow, stronger senior brothers and sisters will make their move. Not only you, but all of you newly admitted disciples will ultimately be defeated. You will all learn that there is always a higher heaven and a greater person! This is the tradition of our Black-White Academy. No one can break it."

After saying this, Bu Ying and the other Formal Disciples all left the Dao Discussion Hall.

"A tradition aimed at all new disciples..."

Ji Ning's heart stirred, and his eyes lit up.

Perhaps this time, he would see Senior Brother Xia Manggan's true strength.

That night.

The entire Black-White Academy seemed to stir into action.

Not only did magic treasure streamers fly in and out,

some even left Anchan City and shot toward the Anchan Branch of the Yinglong Guard.