Heaven Transformation Realm

Qiu Beihai and Liu Qingyun wore dark expressions. As they stared at the Spirit Jade in those five people's hands, viciousness began to spread through their hearts.

"Break through first. We'll deal with them afterward." Even with Ji Xuan's deep scheming, his eyes were lowered now, and an intensely suppressed ruthlessness radiated from him.

Still, he knew that the task at hand took priority, so he began accepting the spiritual energy pouring down from the sky.

Rumble!

After that, everyone communed with their Tokens, doing all they could to absorb the spiritual energy descending from above. Before long, some began breaking through to the Spirit Wheel Realm, and even the Divine Soul Realm.

But once they reached the Divine Soul Realm, the spiritual energy available to them was no longer enough to push them into the Heaven Fusion Realm. This was especially common among those whose Tokens were below level eight.

They stopped absorbing and looked toward the higher reaches of the platform, sighing inwardly. Just as we suspected, the intensity of spiritual energy a Level Seven Token can hold can only push us to the Divine Soul Realm Middle Stage. We're still some distance away from the Divine Soul Peak.

The higher a Token's level, the more abundant its spiritual energy was, and the more dramatically the purity of the empowerment's spiritual energy increased.

For those holding level-eight and Level-Nine Tokens, the spiritual energy empowerment they received had undergone an almost qualitative leap. This was especially true at the highest tier of the platform, which seemed to have become an ocean of spiritual energy. Each stream of empowering energy descended upon them like a pillar of light.

Wen Qingxuan and the other three held their Spirit Jade, furiously drawing spiritual energy into their qi seas to begin transforming them. At the same time, they refined the Spirit Jade in their hands, forming barriers that enclosed them and ensured they could fully absorb every stream of spiritual energy without any escaping.

It was indeed the purity of the spiritual energy that allowed them to act so freely. Though vast, it was not violent. Instead, it followed their guidance swiftly and in orderly fashion.

Rumble...

Their cultivation began breaking through like a blade splitting bamboo. They broke through the Spirit Wheel Realm, reached the Divine Soul Realm, then continued surging upward. Before long, they arrived at the Divine Soul Peak, and the power they possessed began to reveal itself.

Spiritual pressure swept out from them, even whipping up small storms in the ocean of spiritual energy around them.

This forced the Mirror of Judgment to send down a mysterious aura, isolating each person from the others.

Boom!

Another thunderous sound seemed to ring out as Wen Qingxuan became the first to break through the bottleneck of the Divine Soul Realm, reaching the Heaven Fusion Realm. Those below who had already finished their empowerment looked at her with envy.

Without a doubt, her aptitude surpassed theirs by far.

After Wen Qingxuan, Qing He, Wu Ling, and Wu Yingying also broke through to the Heaven Fusion Realm and continued pressing upward.

"These youngsters truly possess extraordinary talent. They have a chance of reaching the peak of the Heaven Fusion Realm," Dean Tian Song of the Azure Heavens Spiritual Academy said with a smile.

"The same is true of those over there." Dean Tianwang of the Martial Spirit Academy gestured toward Ji Xuan and Luo Li, nodding slightly.

"The most frightening of them must be Yun Mo. He broke through the Divine Soul Realm and reached Heaven Fusion in the blink of an eye. What I don't understand is why he has slowed down a little now." Dean Taicang's gaze settled on Yun Mo. If not for the Mirror of Judgment separating them, they would have been tempted to investigate.

Yun Mo had indeed run into trouble.

He drew all that spiritual energy into his hazy qi sea, setting it churning endlessly, then condensed and expanded it. He repeated this cycle until he reached his limit, then began attempting a breakthrough with all his strength.

But just then, the Evil Clan's mark suddenly erupted, seeking to corrode Yun Mo himself.

The Evil Clan's mark... Yun Mo gritted his teeth and formed hand seals, communing with the Jade Bi between his brows to guard his mind and keep himself from becoming lost.

The moment he had broken through to the Heaven Fusion Realm, the mark had begun releasing the Evil Clan's distinctive aura. Cold and sinister, it caused his pupils beneath his closed eyelids to turn pitch-black.

Had he not prepared in advance, he probably would have suffered cultivation deviation immediately. That sinister aura would have erased his consciousness and turned him into an Evil Clan Puppet.

* Ziwei Emperor Art, rectify the mind and hold to the center, extinguish all evil! *

Yun Mo shouted inwardly. He protected himself with the Jade Bi, letting emperor's intent descend upon him to steady his mind. Meeting the enemy as an equal, he held on to his own little patch of territory.

At that very moment, the Ziwei emperor's intent within him began awakening, as though an emperor's might were sweeping across heaven and earth. More terrifying still, thanks to the spiritual energy, a Great Emperor's Phantom appeared behind him, spanning heaven and earth.

Those on the Nine-Tier Platform with him who had finished cultivating looked on in horror. They could faintly sense that domineering presence, as though a sovereign had descended to rule the world.

Qiu Beihai and Liu Qingyun's eyes widened even further, their hearts trembling.

"What is that?!" the people on the lower tiers cried out.

They seemed unable to believe their eyes. Why had a figure seemingly capable of overwhelming heaven and earth appeared behind him?

"Could it be because of the cultivation art he practices?"

"What cultivation art could manifest a figure like that? It almost makes you want to bow down in worship!"

They exchanged bewildered looks, utterly unable to understand.

Even the elders and deans of the Five Great Academies stood on the platform with puzzled expressions.

They had never seen a cultivation art like this. Even through the isolation of the Mirror of Judgment, they could faintly sense that spreading emperor's might.

"There's a cultivation art that can cultivate emperor's intent and condense emperor's might?" Dean Tianwang asked in astonishment and uncertainty.

"You'll probably have to ask him yourself," Dean Taicang said with a smile.

Hum...

After a long stalemate, the Evil Clan's hate mark finally began to dissipate slowly, allowing Yun Mo to let out a long sigh of relief inwardly.

I thought I could reach the Heaven Transformation Realm directly. Who knew that just this mark's rampage would leave me so battered and overwhelmed, forcing me to spend this pure spiritual energy resisting it? Still, the peak of the Heaven Fusion Realm isn't bad... Yun Mo smiled bitterly to himself.

But just as he was about to end his meditation, the emperor's intent that had surged forth and erupted from the Jade Bi gathered together and poured into his qi sea. In a single overwhelming surge, it drove his cultivation straight into the Heaven Transformation Realm.

Thud...

Spiritual pressure belonging to the Heaven Transformation Realm swept outward, battering the barrier established by the Mirror of Judgment.

"The Heaven Transformation Realm..."

Qiu Beihai swallowed. Even though the Mirror of Judgment blocked that spiritual pressure, he could still feel the fear in his heart...

He had just finished his own empowerment as well, reaching the Heaven Fusion Peak, but he had never imagined anyone could use

this to enter the Heaven Transformation Realm.

Wen Qingxuan, Qing He, and the others revealed smiles. They had all achieved their goals as well, advancing to the Heaven Fusion Peak.

"Heh, just as we thought. Our earlier guess was right. His previous foundation, combined with his respectable starting cultivation, still allowed him to reach the Heaven Transformation Realm," Dean Taicang said with a smile.

"If he competes for the Spirit Road Champion's Seat, I'm afraid no one will be able to stop him."

Dean Tian Sheng said indifferently, "Whether he participates is his own business. But that doesn't mean reaching the Heaven Transformation Realm will win him the Champion's Seat."

"Then it seems Dean Tian Sheng has great confidence in Ji Xuan." Tai Cang's smile faded, and he spoke just as calmly.

In truth, they had long been dissatisfied with Tian Sheng's favoritism toward Ji Xuan. That student, Mu Chen, had nearly killed Ji Xuan, only to be expelled from the Spirit Road by Tian Sheng afterward. Although each of them had students they favored, interference like that had ultimately gone too far.

"Let's watch the results of the next trial first. We can also make a few guesses about which academy these students will ultimately choose." The other three deans smiled, easing the somewhat strained atmosphere between the two.