The Five Elements of Spiritual Qi

As the copper gong's clang faded, the atmosphere in the martial arena tightened to the breaking point.

On the hundred Spirit-Gathering Platforms, the once-colorless spiritual light began to change.

As the Law Net turned, the spiritual qi descending from the sky was directed precisely onto each stone platform.

Some platforms glowed fiery red, making the surrounding air scorchingly hot; others flashed with sharp white light that carried a bone-piercing edge. Still others shone with the heavy yellow of earth or the fresh green of wood.

Five-Element Spiritual Qi, and even a few variant attributes, revealed themselves in full.

Most of the examinees looked bewildered and flustered.

They had only just broken through to Qi Refining. How could they have seen so many kinds of spiritual qi?

Even those from great Aristocratic Clans had, at most, heard of them. They likely could not identify them all at a glance.

Faced with so many choices, they had no idea which platform to pick. Some threw caution to the wind and charged straight for the nearest one.

Chu Bai stood where he was, in no hurry to move.

His gaze swept across the hundred platforms like a hawk's. The heightened perception granted by his Quick-Witted Fate Destiny covered the entire arena in an instant.

Fire was scorching, metal was sharp, earth was dense...

He quickly assessed the situation. My main cultivation method is Pure Bathing Spirit Flow, and its foundation is Pure-Origin Spiritual Qi. Though Pure-Origin Spiritual Qi is compatible with all methods, absorbing fire- or metal-attributed spiritual qi in a race against time would be inefficient. The clash of attributes could also damage my meridians.

I need a Water Attribute or Attribute-less Spirit-Gathering Platform!

The Attribute-less platforms were the most sought after. Several quick-eyed, quick-handed examinees had already claimed them.

After all, they could use those platforms without worrying about clashing attributes. And since it was first come, first served, with switches allowed only after each round ended, the faster they grabbed one, the better.

Chu Bai gave up on them without hesitation and kept searching.

Suddenly, his eyes locked on a platform about twenty paces ahead to his left.

It gave off a faint, deep-blue glow. Its aura was cool and gentle, and condensed water vapor had left the surrounding air slightly damp.

That's the one!

Just then, another examinee nearby seemed to notice the platform's advantages. He moved, ready to rush over.

Trying to beat me to it?

The corners of Chu Bai's mouth rose.

Had all those months of sparring at the Zhao Residence been for show?

He shifted his feet lightly and flashed forward like a ghost. Though he had moved later, he arrived first. Under the other examinee's stunned gaze, Chu Bai landed squarely on the platform and sat down cross-legged.

"Hmph!"

Seeing the spot taken, the examinee was unwilling to give up, but he knew private fighting was forbidden during the assessment. He could only turn away in frustration and look for another platform.

Chu Bai paid him no mind. As soon as he sat down, he formed a hand seal, closed his eyes, and focused.

"Rise!"

As he circulated the Minor Qi Gathering Technique at full strength with his [Proficient] mastery, Chu Bai seemed to turn into a vortex.

Drawn toward him, the Water Attribute spiritual qi drifting across the platform surged into his body like water into a great whale's maw.

This absorption was entirely different from his usual cultivation.

Normally, he cultivated to refine spiritual qi into Spell Power and store it in his dantian. It was like eating food to build flesh.

In this assessment, however, he had to draw spiritual qi into his body, send it through his meridians, and use his body as a filter to strip away its most violent impurities before channeling it into the Jade Ring on his finger.

He was like a god of wealth passing through: the flow mattered, not what he kept.

This method was several times faster than ordinary cultivation!

As the first wisp of filtered, pure spiritual qi entered it, the specially made Jade Ring, dull and dark until now, glimmered with soft white light.

The scoring had begun!

But as spiritual qi flowed endlessly through his meridians, the side effects began to appear.

The Law Net had forcibly gathered this spiritual qi. Though it looked pure, it contained all manner of tiny, mixed particles from the world around them.

Without deep refinement, it was like muddy water carrying silt and sand.

And when silt and sand flowed through a pipe, they naturally left sediment behind.

After only fifteen minutes, Chu Bai felt a thin layer of impurities clinging to the walls of his meridians. It brought a distinct sense of blockage and a prickling pain, as if countless tiny ants were crawling through his blood vessels.

He opened his eyes slightly and glanced around.

Many of the examinees nearby had their brows tightly furrowed. Some even had their faces twisted in pain. They had no choice but to slow their absorption and devote most of their attention to clearing impurities from their meridians. Their once-rapid absorption visibly faltered.

So this is the first round's challenge... It tests how much the meridians can withstand and how well they can reject impurities.

Chu Bai understood. A confident smile touched his lips.

Too bad that won't work on me.

With a thought, he called upon the wisp of deep-blue Pure Bathing Spell Power in his dantian.

"Wash it away!"

The deep-blue Spell Power flowed like a clear spring over a dry riverbed, surging through every limb and bone.

Wherever it passed, the stubborn impurities clinging to his meridians melted and broke apart like snow meeting boiling water. They were washed completely clean!

The blockage and prickling pain vanished. His meridians became clear and smooth again, even stronger than before.

"Phew..."

Chu Bai let out a long breath. His whole body felt at ease.

Without impurities in the way, his absorption did not slow. It grew faster and faster!

The spiritual qi above the platform nearly formed a small funnel, pouring into his body without pause before being converted and channeled into the Jade Ring.

The Jade Ring on his finger shone brighter and brighter. Its faint initial glow gradually became as bright as a firefly, standing out among all the examinees.

Not far away, a young man who had chosen a Fire Attribute platform was drenched in sweat. Fire spiritual qi was violent to begin with and carried even more impurities. It burned through his meridians with a searing pain, forcing him to stop and rest.

He glanced toward Chu Bai without thinking, then stared wide-eyed.

"Is... is that guy made of iron? How is he not slowing down? He's getting faster!"

Even Gu Qinghe, who gritted his teeth and kept going through sheer determination, could only smile bitterly at the sight of Chu Bai's unhurried manner and the smile on his face. Gu Qinghe's own pace was hardly slow.

The gap seemed to have widened again.

Before they knew it, an hour was almost up.

Just as Chu Bai was immersed in the pleasure of racking up points, the enormous golden Law Net overhead gave a deep tremor.

Humm—

Golden light rippled across the entire arena like a wave.

The spiritual qi attributes on the Spirit-Gathering Platforms grew wildly unstable. The once-gentle Water Attribute qi began to dissipate, replaced by a rising, scorching heat.

The first round is over. The attributes are about to change!

Chu Bai's heart tightened. He immediately stopped circulating his technique and prepared for whatever came next.