Outer Academy News

But the amount of information was equally enormous, enough to let people learn what had happened outside the moment they emerged from seclusion in their cultivation palace or cultivation cave.

Only Inner Academy news came at a different price, and only Inner Academy disciples could purchase it.

In any case, Lu Qing had not seen any intelligence jade slips from the Inner Academy being sold.

--[Gu Xuantian of the Outer Academy has already reached the Qi Nourishment Seventh Layer. He will probably advance to Foundation Establishment before long. I heard his master specially gathered Flood Dragon Pearl Moon Essence from the Southern Sea Region for him to use in his Foundation Establishment.]

--[Gu Xuantian of the Outer Academy has Heaven-Grade Aptitude—how terrifying. Wouldn't the other two be the same? I remember that a fellow disciple who entered with me, someone with Superior Aptitude, only barely reached the Qi Nourishment Second Layer after a month, right?]

--[Extra! Extra! The Entry Trial Tournament for the three hundred and eighty-first generation of new disciples is about to begin.]

--[Those ranked in the top three of the Entry Trial Tournament can cultivate in Firecloud Grotto-Heaven for three days.]

--[Bai Yunqing has drawn many new disciples to his side. Is he trying to challenge Senior Brother Lin's faction?]

--[There are many new disciples with Superior Aptitude in this batch, quite a few with Earth-grade Aptitude, and several with Heaven-Grade Aptitude too. Does anyone know what is going on? This phenomenon has never been seen before.]

--[Comparisons kill people. Superior Aptitude is everywhere these days.]

The information displayed at the front of the jade slip consisted of news that had remained largely unchanged over the years.

As for the newly updated information at the back, calling it intelligence would be a stretch.

Lu Qing felt that the messages recorded on this jade slip were more like a message wall.

Of course, thanks to this message jade slip, Lu Qing swiftly grasped everything that had happened over the past month after emerging from seclusion.

His cultivation was still meager; a month of seclusion already counted as a long time.

According to the sect bulletin, those senior brothers and sisters in the Inner Academy might not encounter a single such event in over a decade.

From this, one could imagine that the higher one's cultivation, the longer one's seclusion would last.

Now that he had emerged from seclusion, Lu Qing saw a notification appear on his disciple jade token.

"The Entry Trial Tournament for the three hundred and eighty-first generation of new disciples in the Outer Academy is about to open for registration. It will begin in three days. Disciple Lu Qing, please prepare yourself."

A familiar feeling washed over him.

Lu Qing selected his name, confirmed his registration, then closed the notification.

The Entry Trial Tournament was the first sect tournament in which all disciples were required to participate.

Only the later grand tournaments were unrestricted. Those wishing to enter the Inner Academy would register, while those who wished to play it safe and wait for next year's Outer Academy Grand Tournament would choose to forgo it.

This minor tournament alone was specifically aimed at newcomers, with older disciples excluded for the time being.

Lu Qing also noticed another message.

This message was closely tied to him—or, more precisely, closely tied to the Ominous Hexagram. If he had not divined that Ominous Hexagram, Lu Qing would not have remained in seclusion for an entire month.

--[The Servant Academy has reportedly discovered traces of a Blood Demon from the Demonic Path.]

--[The Blood Demon exposed itself and was captured by the head of the Painting Academy, reduced to ashes on the spot.]

--[Apparently, this Blood Demon killed quite a few Immortal seedlings in a remote province last time, including one with Superior Aptitude. It had come to replenish its blood food, only to run straight into the Painting Academy.]

--[What a coincidence—the Outer Academy disciple who accepted the mission there was also from the Painting Academy.]

Lu Qing finally learned who this unfamiliar enemy was. It was that old fiend from the Demonic Path last time; the whole sequence of events was now clear.

"Good riddance."

"No wonder it said it would stay here for a month. One month later, this Blood Demon died just before I emerged from seclusion."

He recalled what had happened in Profound Heaven City last time.

And the secret in the room next door when he had stayed at the inn.

Thinking back on it carefully, that secret was likely that people from the Demonic Path had come to ambush and kill this batch of Immortal seedlings from Profound Heaven City.

They had selected and killed those with good aptitude.

The Liu Family's younger son had likely been targeted for precisely that reason.

There was one fewer enemy in Lu Qing's little notebook.

This enemy, who had originally required the most time to kill, had died through such a coincidence.

Who could have expected that disciple to be connected to the head of the Painting Academy?

Had Lu Qing gone himself, he would surely have met the fate shown in the Ominous Hexagram.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

When he stepped outside, the White Crane Boy flew over.

"Lu Qing, you can owe me one Spirit Stone this time. Repay me when you have Spirit Stones in the future."

The White Crane Boy was easy to talk to.

He was already accustomed to being owed payment.

"Naturally."

Flying as a streak of rainbow light was an ability belonging to Foundation Establishment cultivators. To fly, one could only rely on spiritual artifacts, but low-level cultivators lacked sufficient Spiritual Power and could barely control them.

Not to mention that those who had only just entered the sect had no spare Spirit Stones at all.

"Spirit Stones are hard to earn."

"Exactly, exactly." The White Crane Boy agreed wholeheartedly.

His impression of Lu Qing improved somewhat.

Anyone who understood that Spirit Stones were not easy to earn naturally won the White Crane Boy's favor.

As for the other Spirit Cranes belonging to those filthy rich people, the White Crane Boy suffered bitterly from comparison.

"Ah."

Man and White Crane sighed silently together high in the sky.

After arriving at the designated gathering place,

Lu Qing bid the White Crane Boy farewell.

Quite a few people had already gathered on the platform atop the great mountain.

Some were chatting, while others had taken out tokens or strange spiritual artifacts to speak with others.

Lu Qing held the jade slip in his palm. With a thought, he began reading the latest messages that had appeared.

Lu Qing now deeply understood that the Spirit Stones spent on the jade slip were indeed worth it.

Once it was purchased, it was practically lifetime service.

These messages, appearing one after another on the jade slip, converged from every corner.

--[The venue for this trial tournament is a Trial Micro-Realm. I heard an elder obtained it from a Minor Realm.]

--[Jealous, jealous. Trial Micro-Realms have so many good things. Isn't this treatment of the disciples too good?]

--[A Trial Micro-Realm has plenty of benefits, but you need to live long enough to claim them. The major dangers inside must have been cleared away, but places that pose no danger to elders are another matter for these disciples.]

Just like the disciple jade tokens, these miraculous cultivation methods were beyond the comprehension of new disciples.

The assessment used for the trial tournament was not the traditional arena-duel format, but a Trial Micro-Realm.

A Trial Micro-Realm, a level above even secret realms and Grotto-Heavens.

As Lu Qing read each message, he could not help but sigh. "I never expected them to use a Trial Micro-Realm."

"There are many treasures inside. With abundant opportunities come dangers at every turn."

Lu Qing glanced within his mind. The Ominous Situation Panel had not appeared, and his heart relaxed slightly for the moment.

Perhaps it was because the Trial Micro-Realm had not yet opened, so no ominous situation had formed.

Lu Qing waited quietly.

Another group of people arrived after some time.

These young men and women seemed like Heaven's Pride. Each rode in on a spiritual artifact, while several at the front

rode spiritual beasts beneath them—not the ordinary Spirit Cranes for which common disciples paid Spirit Stones when going out, but other spiritual beasts.

Phoenix feathers glittered brilliantly, tails trailing streaks of golden cloud. Then Flood Dragons appeared, each with a single horn and white scales like weapons of war, followed by a feathered crane radiating spiritual energy that let out a cry.

For a moment, the entire scene fell silent.