"Master Mo, I object! With someone like Liu Bai's strength, it's impossible for him to kill a mid-Level spiritual beast alone. He must have cheated!"
Zhang Jie from the Eastern Courtyard suddenly jumped out and protested to his mentor.
"Besides, everyone knows how many experts from the Liu Domain came here before. Who can guarantee that the spiritual beast essence wasn't obtained by other means…"
This last sentence was the real crux of his argument.
However, Zhang Jie had clearly miscalculated this time. Even his own mentor didn't take his side. Instead, the mentor just cast a faint glance at him and said calmly, "Liu Bai had already broken through to the Spiritual Wheel Realm on the very first day, so he absolutely has the strength to slay a mid-level spiritual beast."
After leaving this explanation for the other students who were still harboring doubts, the two mentors ignored Zhang Jie's dissatisfaction and signaled for the assessment to continue.
In the end, Liu Bai naturally and unquestionably claimed first place. As a reward, he received a Spirit Nourishing Pill… Moreover, since he had acted alone, unlike the second and third places who were part of two-man teams, the two mentors discussed and directly awarded him two pills…
Liu Bai naturally accepted them with pleasure.
Although he could raise his cultivation level using experience points, if there were other methods to improve himself, he wouldn't mind saving those points.
The Spirit Nourishing Pill, a thumb-sized, jade-green medicinal pill, was effective for any cultivator below the Divine Soul Realm. It was considered a very common spiritual power-enhancing elixir, but in the Northern Spiritual Realm, it was quite expensive and could only be acquired through the Northern Spiritual Academy's exclusive channels.
"With two pills, I'll keep one to test its effect myself. The other can go to that kid, Mu Bai."
Although his little brother was still only at the Sensing Realm and couldn't use the pill yet, Liu Bai knew full well that with his younger brother's talent, he would soon break through to the Spiritual Movement Realm. In that case, adding this Spirit Nourishing Pill would make him even stronger than he was at the start of the original story.
Who knows—he might even clash with Mu Chen, the Son of Destiny.
Although the original story portrayed animosity between the Mu Domain and the Liu Domain, the true reason they stood opposed wasn't the conflict between Liu Yang or Liu Mu Bai and Mu Chen.
Those were just childish contests of pride. No matter how intense, they weren't enough to provoke a confrontation between two major powers. The root cause was the Liu Domain's aggressive behavior and ambition to unify the Northern Spiritual Realm.
But to Liu Bai, all of this was rather laughable.
It was like two ants shouting at each other from the mouths of their own burrows, completely unaware that the world they were fighting over was just a forgotten corner in someone else's vast home.
Liu Bai had no interest in limiting himself to such a place, nor did he care to become king of a backwater land.
After the cultivation trial ended, the Northern Spiritual Academy gave all students a one-month holiday.
However, Liu Bai didn't return to the Liu Domain. Instead, he decided to stay at the academy for a while.
He went to the Earth Class training ground in the Western Courtyard. Looking at the boys and girls sitting cross-legged below, sensing spiritual energy, Liu Bai couldn't help but feel a little sentimental.
After all, he had also spent more than a year living here in the past.
"Big Brother!"
A surprised and delighted voice rang in Liu Bai's ears.
Soon after, a handsome youth ran up excitedly from the crowd of cultivators below.
His shout startled many of the students, and when they saw Liu Bai's figure, they began to whisper among themselves.
Liu Bai was already a prominent figure in the Heaven Class of the Western Courtyard, rumored to be the strongest student there. Many of the younger students in the Earth Class idolized him.
Among them, a charming young girl in a red dress suddenly had a sparkle in her eyes. Her curvaceous figure far surpassed her peers, making it hard for anyone to look away.
Looking at the youth whose appearance was now even more refined and flawless, the girl's heart trembled slightly. "He's gotten even more handsome…"
Unknowingly, the girl stood up and began walking in the direction of her gaze.
Liu Bai, of course, was unaware that his presence had stirred a girl's heart. He looked at his cheap little brother and couldn't help but pat him on the shoulder. "Not bad. Looks like it won't be long before you break into the Spiritual Movement Realm."
Receiving praise from the big brother he idolized, Liu Mu Bai was clearly thrilled. But he did his best to stay composed and replied in a calm tone, "Yeah, I think so too. Soon I'll catch up to you and make it into the Heaven Class as well."
"Haha, you're pretty confident, brat!"
Liu Bai chuckled and ruffled his little brother's hair while the latter grumbled in dissatisfaction.
"But I'm about to participate in the selection for the Five Great Academies. If you want to catch up to me, you'll have to wait a few years…"
The Five Great Academies held admissions once every three years. Anyone who was over eighteen and hadn't reached the Spiritual Wheel Stage would not be accepted. So, for most students at the Northern Spiritual Academy, missing the opportunity once meant losing the chance forever.
Liu Mu Bai froze for a moment, clearly not having considered this. His expression became a little disheartened.
Looks like the gap between him and his big brother would only grow wider…
"Alright, you're still young. When the next recruitment comes around, I'm sure you'll pass the test. By then, I'll be waiting for you at the Five Great Academies!"
Sure enough, Liu Mu Bai regained his fighting spirit and nodded firmly. "Alright, Big Brother, just wait. Next time, I'll definitely come find you at the Five Great Academies!"
"Good, that's the spirit!"
"To that end, Big Brother brought you a gift today…"
As he spoke, Liu Bai took out a delicately crafted jade box. Inside it was the Spirit Nourishing Pill he had received as a reward from the trial.
"This is a Spirit Nourishing Pill. You should already know its effects. Once you reach the Spiritual Movement Realm, you can use it. Or, you can save it for when you want to break through to the Spiritual Wheel Realm."
Liu Mu Bai's eyes widened.
Of course he knew what a Spirit Nourishing Pill was. But he never expected that his big brother would not only have one—but just hand it to him like this…
"But Big Brother, what about you…"
Before the stunned youth could finish, Liu Bai waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, I've still got one left. Besides, I'm already in the Spiritual Wheel Realm. This pill won't improve me that much."
"What? Big Brother, you've reached the Spiritual Wheel Realm?!"
Liu Mu Bai was shocked once again.
And that exclamation caused a red-dressed girl, who had been approaching steadily, to pause slightly in her steps then walk over with even greater determination.
As Liu Mu Bai was still in shock, a gentle female voice drifted over.
"Brother Liu Bai…"
Liu Bai raised his head and saw a girl's face tinged with a faint blush.
Tsk, such a young age, and she already had a seductive charm. Liu Bai couldn't help but click his tongue in praise.
As for Liu Mu Bai, when he heard someone else calling his brother "Big Brother," he immediately frowned. And when he saw the girl, his frown deepened.
He recognized her. In their generation, she was known as a genius beauty, with talent just slightly below his own. But he never expected that she would also know his big brother.
Right now, Liu Mu Bai was focused entirely on cultivation and had no other distractions. So even when faced with a beautiful girl, he had no feelings whatsoever.
Still, he wasn't stupid. From the situation, he could tell that this girl clearly had ulterior motives toward his brother, which made him a bit displeased. He felt she might become a hindrance to Liu Bai's cultivation.
If Liu Bai knew what his little brother was thinking, he might actually reconsider giving him that gift.
Looking at the girl, Liu Bai naturally revealed a gentle smile and greeted her, "So it's you, Hong Ling."
She had addressed him as "Senior" before, but now she was calling him "Big Brother" right away. It seemed her intentions were not that simple...
The girl nodded somewhat shyly, then asked with curiosity, "Big Brother Liu Bai, did your cultivation training just end?"
"Yeah, we just got back yesterday evening. How have things been at the academy lately? Are you getting used to it? No one's been bullying you, right? If someone has, just find Mu Bai and let this brat stand up for you."
Liu Mu Bai was speechless upon hearing this. Big Brother, if you want to chase girls, can you not drag me into it? I'm cultivating every day here; where would I find the time to deal with such trivial matters!
"No, not at all. Thank you, Big Brother Liu Bai. I bet you encountered a lot of interesting things during your training this time, didn't you? I heard the academy ranks everyone after the training ends. You must have gotten first place, Big Brother Liu Bai!"
The little girl spoke with great certainty, clearly having immense confidence in Liu Bai.
"Of course! With my big brother around, who else could possibly compete with him!" Liu Mu Bai chimed in.
"There weren't that many interesting things. It was mostly dangerous. Especially for those who were fighting for the first time. They all suffered a lot. You two should be careful in the future. Just staying in the academy and cultivating doesn't make you a true expert. Real strength often comes from experiences in the outside world."
"Hong Ling, even though you're a girl, there are many things that you won't be able to avoid. So, work hard."
"Mhm, I'll remember that, Big Brother."
"I will do my best too, Big Brother Liu Bai."
The two young ones nodded earnestly.
Liu Bai didn't stay there long. He had only come to deliver a gift to his younger brother.
As for Hong Ling, she was just an extra...
After returning to the Western Courtyard, he headed directly to the Cultivation Hall.
With a third-Rank Spiritual Gathering Formation, the spiritual energy inside the Cultivation Hall was extremely rich. The best spot, of course, was beside the golden stone pillar in the center, which extended three seats outward.
Liu Bai walked over directly and sat down in one of the seats.
The others glanced at him but said nothing.
After all, rumors of Liu Bai's strength had already spread. Based on his status and ability, he certainly qualified to sit there.
Liu Bai didn't enter cultivation right away. He had tried before after cultivating for an hour, his attributes showed no change. He wasn't sure if it was because of his natural aptitude being too poor, making his cultivation speed too slow to notice any improvement.
This time, he intended to try again.
Aside from now possessing a spiritual Pulse and an improved physique, he also planned to take a Spirit Nourishing Pill. If he still saw no results, he could completely give up this method of cultivation.
Thinking this, Liu Bai took a deep breath, then took out the pill and swallowed it.
This scene was noticed by several others, drawing envious and jealous gazes. There was no helping it—it was a Spirit Nourishing Pill, after all, a treasure they could only dream of.
"He's really taking a pill so openly right here? So arrogant. Isn't he afraid someone might interrupt his cultivation out of spite…"
Someone muttered quietly.
Of course, everyone knew that wasn't going to happen.
Whether intentional or not, interrupting him would bring serious consequences. Some were already considering whether they should leave, just in case.
If something unexpected happened, they might be caught in the aftermath.
Once the pill entered his stomach, Liu Bai felt a surge of vast spiritual energy rushing into his body. It flowed through his limbs and bones, entered his meridians, and finally converged in his Qi Sea, where it was absorbed by his rotating Spiritual Wheel.
Again and again, the Spiritual Wheel kept spinning, and Liu Bai could clearly feel his spiritual power steadily increasing, gradually approaching the peak of the initial phase of the Spiritual Wheel Realm.
This made Liu Bai smile in delight. So it wasn't that his cultivation was ineffective. He just hadn't felt anything before because his spiritual absorption was too slow to detect any noticeable change. In the end, the problem was his former lack of aptitude. Cultivating for just an hour wouldn't show any results at all.
Gradually, five minutes passed, ten minutes, half an hour…
After two hours, the pill's medicinal effects had completely faded. At this point, Liu Bai also felt a fullness emanating from his Qi Sea.
"Pity. Still didn't manage to break through to the middle phase of the Spiritual Wheel Realm."
As expected, it was still a bit too much to hope for a full realm breakthrough from just one Spirit Nourishing Pill.
But Liu Bai didn't panic at all after all, he still had a large stockpile of unallocated experience points...
"Huh?! This…"
When Liu Bai opened his attribute panel, he was immediately stunned, then overjoyed.
Because now, the suffix behind his Blaze Sun Art, which had previously shown zero, had increased to 2,500!
He knew that from the early stage to the middle phase of the Spiritual Wheel Realm only required 2,700 experience points...
"Haha! Just as I thought! Cultivating really does grant experience points. The reason it didn't show before was because of my own limitations."
So his original aptitude had really been that poor? One hour of cultivation didn't even generate a single experience point. Just how long would it have taken him to reach the middle phase through normal training?
That was just pathetic!
It was hard to imagine how someone without talent, without a spiritual pulse, and without a proper cultivation method could survive in the Great Thousand World. Yet in the current Northern Spiritual Realm, there were so many people who cultivated for a lifetime without even reaching the Divine Soul Realm Weren't they all just like that?
However, since he had obtained the result he wanted, from now on, various offensive and movement-type spiritual arts could also be cultivated through his own efforts. Although this method was certainly not as fast as using the cheat system, it was still a means of improvement. At the very least, it meant that he wouldn't be completely useless without the cheat.
.....
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