To Azure Heights! (Bonus update for a full month-ticket vote and a 4,000-word make-up chapter!)

"Hello."

Their hands clasped.

Lu?

He had to be a relative of Lu Yiyi's.

Xu Yuan thought it over.

"You're a remarkably talented young man with a bright future. I welcome you to Heavenly Palace," Lu Qingxuan said.

"Thank you," Xu Yuan said.

"The company works closely with Nine Luminaries University. I've seen your Monthly Exam results. They're excellent."

"If you don't mind, the company can recommend you directly for admission to Nine Luminaries University."

"What do you think?"

Lu Qingxuan waited for his answer.

"Thank you for the company's kindness, but the university I have my heart set on is Luofu. I'm sorry." Xu Yuan cupped his hands.

You didn't slap a smiling face. The man had praised him the moment they met, so Xu Yuan owed him every courtesy.

Lu Qingxuan didn't mind at all. Still smiling, he said:

"That's fine. Luofu is excellent too. What plans do you have for your future?"

Plans...

He didn't really have any.

“To become the strongest Cultivator, I guess. Nothing else,” Xu Yuan said.

Lu Qingxuan laughed and shook his head.

“Do you know cultivation has nine paths? Each might produce Cultivators of extraordinary achievement, but no one can master them all. A person's energy is limited.”

"That's true," Xu Yuan agreed. "Then I'll change my answer."

"Oh? I'd like to hear it."

“To become a happy Cultivator.”

Lu Qingxuan burst out laughing.

Happy?

You've been cultivating with everything you have. Even Mo Daosheng, suppressing his cultivation to fight you, couldn't beat you.

Becoming the strongest is probably what would make you happy!

"...That, I can accept."

Lu Qingxuan thought for a moment, set his wineglass aside, and said:

"How about a spar? I'll suppress my cultivation to the Fourth Layer of Qi Refining."

"But what would we be sparring for?"