Martial Dao Tower

Yun Mo and Qing He nodded slightly. Wu Ling's explanation had made things quite clear: Battle Spirit Points were the Martial Spirit Academy's basic resource.

"Anything else? Is there anything we need to watch out for?" Qing He continued asking.

"Not much else. You can fight other people in the academy, but you must remember not to take anyone's life, and you can't fight in anyone's courtyard. The courtyards are something of a forbidden zone. Nobody wants their peaceful days disturbed, and doing so would provoke everyone's anger."

After thinking for a moment, Wu Ling continued with a smile, "An alliance once started a fight in the core students' courtyards. In the end, everyone else gave them a vicious beating. Even the gates of their alliance headquarters were smashed to pieces."

"..."

"Right, do you want to join an alliance? That girl and I just founded one called the Heavenly Terrace. It's very relaxed, meant to offer new students some protection, I suppose. Of course, there are benefits too."

"Let's hear them." Qing He grew interested.

"Alliances are considered affiliated groups within the academy. The academy issues missions from time to time for student alliances to carry out. New student assessments, for instance, are usually taken on voluntarily by an alliance.

"Afterward, they receive rewards in Battle Spirit Points, which are shared among everyone in the alliance."

"Then wouldn't we have to carry out those missions if we joined?"

"For some difficult missions with generous rewards, yes. For most, no. Strong students do have certain special privileges, after all. You only need to serve as the alliance's public face," Wu Ling said frankly.

"Heh, then we have no reason to refuse." Yun Mo smiled. No one would turn down the chance to be a hands-off boss and collect Battle Spirit Points for free.

"By the way, where's that girl?"

"Elder Ling Yi dragged her off. She said no one had been keeping the girl in line before, and after returning from the Spirit Road, her wings had grown much stronger. She needed some proper disciplining." Remembering the look on Wu Yingying's face, Wu Ling's lips twitched as he spoke.

"..."

"All right, those are basically the Martial Spirit Academy's ground rules. You'll have to learn the rest yourselves. I'll head back now. There are still some things to take care of at the Heavenly Terrace."

"I'll come with you and take a look at this Heavenly Terrace." Qing He glanced at Yun Mo, who had lain back down on the lounge chair, then shrugged and followed Wu Ling.

After Wu Ling and Qing He left, Yun Mo gazed at the Martial Spirit Academy's azure sky and sank his awareness into the mark on his wrist.

He sensed faint pulses coming from the mark. It seemed to serve as a locator, probably a special provision the Martial Spirit Academy made for its core students, allowing it to keep track of their whereabouts as much as possible while they traveled across the Martial Dao Continent.

Even if some sudden mishap occurred, the Martial Spirit Academy could quickly send elders to their rescue and ensure their safety. That alone revealed how fiercely the academy protected its own.

The next day.

Yun Mo stood in the center of the Martial Spirit Academy, calmly gazing at the towering, ethereal pagoda before him.

He had originally intended to visit the Martial Spirit Academy's library first. However, exchanging for Spirit Arts and divine arts there required Battle Spirit Points, and the points he had were nowhere near enough. That left him with no choice but to come straight to the Martial Dao Tower.

As part of the Martial Spirit Academy's foundations, the Martial Dao Tower was indeed a precious treasure. It played a crucial role in training the academy's disciples and could be considered one of its cornerstones.

At the same time, the presence of this Martial Dao Tower made the academy's martial atmosphere all the stronger.

Even now, many students were coming and going in front of the Martial Dao Tower. Their expressions made their yearning easy to see: they longed to prove themselves inside the tower and gain the improvements they deserved.

"You're coming to train in the Martial Dao Tower already?" Elder Wu Ji appeared beside Yun Mo, briefly startling him.

"Don't look so surprised. I'm one of the Martial Dao Tower's administrators. It's perfectly normal for me to be here."

Yun Mo looked at the smiling old man and nodded. "I don't have much choice. Everything in the Martial Spirit Academy costs Battle Spirit Points. Without them, you can barely take a single step."

"Actually, I'd recommend that you first walk around the Martial Spirit Academy and experience its atmosphere. That would help you adjust your state of mind."

Stroking his white beard, Elder Wu Ji continued, "I can sense some unrest in your mind. There's a certain impatience to it. Only by settling that impatience will you be able to grow better."

"Heh, thank you for the advice, Elder Wu Ji. Part of the reason I came to the Martial Dao Tower was to settle my mind. I suppose this is my own way of doing that." Yun Mo had a fairly good impression of Elder Wu Ji.

"Then I've spoken out of turn. Since you already have a plan, come with me. I'll take you into the Martial Dao Tower and explain things in detail." Seeing that Yun Mo had his own ideas, Elder Wu Ji nodded slightly.

Every true genius had a unique way of cultivating. Even without guidance, they could recognize what was wrong with them, remove the obstacles in their hearts, and return to their original path.

Clearly, Wu Ji believed Yun Mo was such a person.

The two arrived at a quiet chamber in the Martial Dao Tower. This was where a projection of oneself was formed. Once one entered the battle zone, the physical body would remain here.

"Wu Ling should have told you that the Martial Dao Tower's lower five floors are battle zones, each corresponding to a fixed cultivation realm. Defeating others inside earns you Battle Spirit Points. As a core student, the points you earn are doubled."

"Being a core student doubles even those rewards?" Yun Mo was somewhat surprised.

"Of course. All rewards are doubled. However, right now you can only enter the Martial Dao Tower's third floor. You cannot enter the fourth," Elder Wu Ji said calmly.

Yun Mo did not mind and simply listened quietly.

"After defeating enough people of the same realm in one go, you'll appear on one of the Martial Dao Tower's rankings."

Wu Ji pointed a finger, and a Martial Dao Ranking suffused with golden light appeared before them.

This Martial Dao Ranking belonged to Heaven Transformation Realm cultivators. It displayed the battle records and achievements of a hundred students. The person at the very top had defeated more than twenty opponents in one go.

Looking farther down, even the cultivator in hundredth place had defeated twenty opponents in one go. The gap between them was extremely narrow, which

meant their strength was already very close.

"Besides the number of opponents defeated, the judging criteria also take your condition after battle into account. Once you've defeated twenty people, if you're in better condition than he was, your name will naturally replace his.

"Only after making the ranking will you have the chance to challenge those above your level-in other words, the chance to enter the fourth floor."

"Then, by the sound of it, once I go in, the only way out I leave myself is to fight to the death."

"There are a hundred people in each zone. Perhaps you'll survive to the very end." Elder Wu Ji held high expectations for Yun Mo in his heart. This was the discerning eye he had developed over his long life.

"Then let's begin. Let battle nourish battle." Yun Mo nodded, his expression returning to calm as he allowed the Martial Dao Tower's mysterious light to envelop him.