Half a year passed in the blink of an eye.
Over those six months, Lu Qingshan continued giving one lecture a month, slowly improving his comprehension.
Lu Qingshan did not waste the rest of his time, either. He consumed one of the Blood Dragon Fruits he had purchased from the Treasure Pavilion each month and had now used seven.
His strength had increased again, rising from domain lord level 6 to domain lord level 7 peak.
He would probably only need to consume one more Blood Dragon Fruit for his strength to rise to domain lord level 8.
Slow improvement had its advantages. Lu Qingshan only needed to spare a few minutes each day to adapt to his strength for a smooth transition, without any worry of being unable to control his power.
"Another year has come around..."
Seven months ago, Lu Qingshan had already prepared the gifts he would bestow this time.
Once the time came, he sent messages to Lei Ming and Parisi.
Before long, the two arrived at the manor.
"Greetings, Teacher."
The two bowed in unison.
Lu Qingshan looked at his two disciples and slowly nodded.
Even without his urging, both had cultivated diligently, and their strength had improved noticeably.
Both were now Star Level Nine, and their domains had also broken through to the sixth-level domain.
With this strength, they could already rank among the top tier of the Ganwu Dojo's nearly one million elite students.
Parisi in particular had the Blade Race's genes for combat flowing through his veins. After raising both his strength and domain to the pinnacle among the dojo's elite students, he had very few opponents left who could match him.
It could be said that, barring any surprises, he already had one of the places in the Ganwu Mystic Region firmly in his grasp.
Lei Ming was no slouch, either. Ten years of life-and-death trials had given him extensive practical combat experience. Whether he could defeat Parisi in an actual fight would only be known once they fought.
Lu Qingshan knew that his two disciples had been competing in secret; he simply paid it no mind.
After all, competition bred progress...
"Are you both ready for the dojo tournament and the Ganwu Mystic Region Qualification Battle at the end of the year?"
Lu Qingshan spoke slowly.
"Teacher, I'm ready."
Lei Ming answered in a low voice.
Parisi said coldly, "Teacher, rest assured. In this Secret Realm Qualification Battle, I'll definitely secure the right to enter the Ganwu Mystic Region!"
"I have confidence in both of you... but you still mustn't be careless. Judging by previous years, your level would probably be sufficient, but this year's Secret Realm Qualification Battle seems somewhat unusual. According to the information I received, the various branches of the Ganwu Dojo will also send disciples to compete in the Virtual Universe in this tournament..."
To keep his disciples from taking their opponents lightly, Lu Qingshan's gaze grew stern.
"Don't underestimate anyone. Even the Ganwu Dojo in the most remote place might have a genius. Both of you must guard against arrogance and impatience, and treat every opponent equally."
The Ganwu Universe Country was so vast. Although most geniuses gathered at the Ganwu Dojo's headquarters, there were inevitably some pearls left hidden in the sea.
Take the Genius Battle in Luo Feng's year, for example.
The emperor of the Black Dragon Mountain Empire probably never would have dreamed that their little intermediate Universe Country would produce someone who could fight his way into the top ten in the entire universe!
"Also, I've prepared some gifts for you."
With a wave of his hand, Lu Qingshan took out the Lanke Fruits and Cloud-Touching Vine seedlings.
"The Ganwu Mystic Region's system for nurturing geniuses is on a completely different level from the Ganwu Dojo's. If you enter the Ganwu Mystic Region, you'll have to follow their arrangements and venture into various places. The risk of death is considerable. Consider these two Cloud-Touching Vines and Lanke Fruits my final protection for you as your teacher."
"These resources are enough for you to raise your Cloud-Touching Vines to the universe rank. When you encounter a life-or-death crisis, they might save your lives."
Neither Lei Ming nor Parisi was a newcomer to the universe. Having spent so long at the Ganwu Dojo, they had both learned about Cloud-Touching Vines and Lanke Fruits.
Two hundred Lanke Fruits each amounted to hundreds of billions of Universe Coins. The total for both of them was an astronomical figure.
Other people's teachers-not just domain lords, but even World Lords-would probably be unwilling to spend such precious resources on nurturing their disciples.
"Teacher, my junior brother and I have already received too many gifts from you. You should keep these resources for your own cultivation. I don't want to become a burden to you."
Lei Ming's eyes reddened slightly.
He already had the authorization to look up what that treasure brimming with life energy, which his teacher had given him years ago, actually was.
Nine-Leaf Spirit Ginseng...
A supreme treasure worth as much as half a galaxy.
His teacher had only been at the Universe Level back then, yet he had given him such a treasure.
Even now, they had yet to be of any help to their teacher, while his gifts to them grew more generous each time.
"Teacher, please take them back. I, Parisi, fear no challenge. Even in the Ganwu Mystic Region, I won't disappoint you!"
Parisi stood ramrod straight, his expression unreadable beneath the blue scales covering his face.
"Accept them." Lu Qingshan's tone brooked no argument. He continued, "Only by staying alive can you become a source of support for your teacher in the future."
Seeing that their teacher seemed somewhat displeased, the two disciples could only accept his gifts.
Words could no longer express the gratitude they felt toward Lu Qingshan, their teacher...
After handing them the Lanke Fruits and Cloud-Touching Vines, Lu Qingshan sent them away.
Watching their figures disappear, Lu Qingshan felt a little more gratified.
Although he had taken disciples and bestowed gifts more for his own benefit than out of genuine consideration for them, Lu Qingshan had indeed given them treatment nearly equal to that of disciples of ordinary immortal deities.
Having poured such enormous resources into them, Lu Qingshan did not expect them to truly become a source of support for him in the future, but he wanted even less to raise two ungrateful wolves.
Their character and conduct had not disappointed him.
He returned to the secluded chamber.
Lu Qingshan then checked his gains.
[You gave your disciple Lei Ming 200 Lanke Fruits, triggering a hundredfold return. You received 5,000 cubic meters of Locke Divine Water.] [You gave your disciple Parisi 200 Lanke Fruits, triggering a hundredfold return. You received 5,000 cubic meters of Locke Divine Water.]
It was actually Locke Divine Water.
Lu Qingshan was a little surprised.
He had originally hoped to receive a few more Life Fruits in return. After all, they were hard currency that could easily be converted into cash anywhere.
Speaking of Locke Divine Water, Lu Qingshan thought of that lucky fellow named Panxi...
The amount of Locke Divine Water that fellow had obtained through his fortuitous encounter seemed rather large!
"Nasus, look up the value of Locke Divine Water for me."
"Yes, Master. I've finished looking it up for you." As Nasus spoke, a virtual screen appeared in the air, displaying an introduction to Locke Divine Water.
"In ancient times, a powerful human named Luo Ke discovered this divine water with astonishing vitality in a mystic region and named it after himself.
Locke Divine Water can be used to heal injuries, nurture plant life, and assist cultivation. It contains more life force than Life Fruits and is highly effective even for injuries at the immortal level and immortal plants.
Locke Divine Water is astonishingly valuable. At the most recent high-level auction, one cubic kilometer of Locke Divine Water sold for the astronomical price of 8.9 million Hunyuan Units."
One cubic kilometer was worth 8.9 million Hunyuan Units, and he had 10,000 cubic meters here.
Lu Qingshan did the conversion.
His Locke Divine Water was worth approximately 89 Hunyuan Units.
(End of chapter)