ASER - Chapter 176
Chapter 176: Obstacles
Had A'Diao knelt?
Cang Wu, who hadn't been paying attention to A'Diao and was looking at the jade wall, heard a "thud." When he turned his head, Chen A'Diao had already knelt.
"Master, do I need to kowtow? How many times? Do I need an incense table and offerings?"
Although the Mountain Head had long known this fellow was hailed as the strongest genius of "Easy Kneeling," he hadn't expected it to be so smooth.
No wonder Qu Jiangnan doted on her.
She was quite obedient.
But what on earth were incense tables and offerings about?
"That won't be necessary. I'm not dead yet." The Mountain Head reached out and pulled A'Diao up. He then taught them the secret art of restriction and warned them not to be greedy for quick success when comprehending the Langya Jade Wall.
"Especially you. Your mental body is too strong. Don't input too many insights at once. After all, it's a Dao Tablet created by the founder during the Star Realm. It has gained some spirituality and is very proud. It can easily attack you proactively. There was a Top Scorer in the past who fought with it and ended up in a vegetative state…"
A so-called vegetative state meant the mental body was completely crushed.
A'Diao: "…"
After the Mountain Head left, Langya Courtyard suddenly became quiet.
Cang Wu appeared to have unparalleled beauty, exuding a noble and striking aura, but he was actually a man of few words and a stubborn disposition. A'Diao thought about how, because she, a female, was prostrate on the ground, he had stubbornly waited outside the door, refusing to enter, thus wasting three days of comprehension time. He was indeed a man of noble character.
"Let me ask, did you specifically wait for me to arrive before moving in?"
Cang Wu looked up at her. "You are the designated master of Langya Courtyard. I was assigned later, so it's only right that I come after you. However, I thought the Mountain Head had told you from the beginning. Otherwise, I would have sought your consent separately."
There was no need to be so polite.
A'Diao didn't care much about this. After all, she didn't consider herself the Lushan Crown Prince, even though she was the Mountain Head's disciple. It seemed everyone else regarded her as some kind of successor.
"If it were someone else, I might not agree, but if it's you, the Mountain Head has good judgment. It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Chen A'Diao."
She spoke casually, but her features were strikingly beautiful and sharp, yet her eyes were full of a rippling smile, creating a contradictory yet captivating impression.
It was pure, youthful spirit.
"Cang Wu. My given name is Daoguang. You can call me whatever you like."
A'Diao, who had extended her hand, narrowed her eyes. "So you are from the Daoguang family. What is your relationship to our nation's Empress?"
But why only a family name? Still, it was as she had expected; several clues added up, pointing directly to the Daoguang clan.
Cang Wu hesitated for a moment, then shook her hand lightly, about to release it. "Older sister."
What was the Empress's younger brother called again? Lord Imperial Uncle?!
Awesome!
With a smack, A'Diao immediately grasped Cang Wu's hand with both of hers, exclaiming excitedly, "I knew it! I was wondering why your unparalleled beauty was blinding me! So you and Her Highness the Empress are siblings! Truly a lineage of peerless individuals. Fate, oh fate! Lord Imperial Uncle, after we've met, please guide and support me. If you lack any insights in your cultivation, just tell me, and I will definitely cooperate…"
She was even more fawning than a typical sycophant, but she didn't look sleazy… just rather… holding on too tightly.
Cang Wu recalled this person's sneaky behavior in the dark, kowtowing to Buddha statues while actually probing them. He knew she rarely spoke the truth, but he still said politely, "We can simply help each other."
However, after A'Diao's antics, the two did become somewhat more familiar. At least there was some fate between them. But A'Diao didn't mention their first meeting at the Buddhist temple. After all, it involved the secret of her bloodline, and she didn't fully trust this person. There was no need to test him with this.
Then, they began to cultivate.
This Langya Jade Wall looked unremarkable on the surface, with no murals or statues, resembling an uncarved raw jade stone, simple and unadorned. That was why A'Diao hadn't noticed the peculiarity of this Langya Courtyard. However, for it to be the traditional residence of successive Top Scorers and a Mid-grade Spirit King Dao Tablet, it was naturally extraordinary.
"I estimate three months is the time limit. If I can't comprehend anything and improve myself within three months, I'll be kicked out. So, mutual assistance can speed things up. As Teacher said, let's cooperate. I'll comprehend Yang, you comprehend Yin, and then we'll exchange insights every ten days. How about it?"
Although her lightning attribute was actually more inclined towards Yin, she possessed the more dominant Yinglong bloodline, which was now considered more inclined towards Yang.
If there was enough time, she could comprehend both Yin and Yang on her own, but it would definitely be countless times slower than having a pure Yin physique help her.
Three months wasn't a very long time.
Thinking of those purebloods within Lushan eyeing her covetously, A'Diao didn't want to have her house snatched away.
"Alright." After Cang Wu nodded, he reminded A'Diao before leaving, "Since you have the Yinglong bloodline, don't touch your Chen family bloodline for now. You can't handle that curse at your current level."
"As for why I know about this…"
A'Diao's eyes flashed, looking at him with some anticipation.
Cang Wu: "Actually, I don't know why either. I had amnesia before, but I remembered when I saw you."
If this person wasn't so serious and didn't seem to be teasing her, A'Diao would have really slapped him with a shoehorn.
But spiritual energy has revived, and yet there's amnesia… What, were you hit by a car?
"It's alright, it's alright. Brother, if you remember anything in the future, you must tell me, okay?"
Cang Wu, who had suddenly become a "brother": "…"
A'Diao was keen on latching onto the golden thighs of this Heavenly Spirit Clan sibling pair, hoping to find a shortcut to obtain some Star Stones in the future. After all, compared to resources like Star Coins and remains, Star Stones were too difficult to acquire, basically monopolized by imperial families and heterodox races. The imperial family was out of the question; they had already turned her into the Crown Prince's Junior Tutor. Her remaining channels were only the heterodox races, or obtaining them from Lushan. But she estimated Lushan valued Cang Wu highly, likely due to a Star Stone trade chain with the Heavenly Spirit Clan. So why should she seek far and wide when the solution was close at hand?
However, she knew to stop before going too far.
Up to now, this person hadn't given her a single bit of Mental Power, indicating that his heart was as reserved as his words.
Winning him over would likely be quite difficult.
A slow and steady approach was necessary.
Cang Wu soon sat down at one end and began to meditate and comprehend. But then he saw A'Diao walk over—to pick durians.
She picked several. Cang Wu wanted to say he didn't eat them, but unexpectedly, she carried the durians back to her side, directly set up a scent barrier, and then… started eating them herself.
His cool eyes briefly took in her gluttonous appearance, then he turned his face away. Cang Wu focused on comprehending and quickly entered a meditative state.
A'Diao, while appearing to eat durian, was actually observing him. After Cang Wu began comprehending, icy radiances flickered around his body, forming energy fields resembling ice phoenixes. The pure and powerful phoenix force, even though Cang Wu tried his best to restrain it, still exerted some pressure.
His bloodline was too strong; ordinary cultivators couldn't withstand it at all.
A'Diao finished her durian, washed her hands, and with a hum, the Yinglong totem on her body activated, blocking the pressure of the ice phoenix.
The two did not communicate, but both were exceptionally intelligent. They consciously controlled their respective power attributes to achieve a perfect state of balance, creating an environment most conducive to their cultivation. Then, A'Diao heeded the Mountain Head's words and first released her mental threads into the Langya Jade Wall.
Initially, there were only a dozen or so… later, twenty, thirty… when there were eighty mental threads, A'Diao sensed the surging pressure within the Langya Jade Wall. She immediately reduced them to seventy, maintaining a safe level to avoid disturbing the Dao Tablet's spirit.
After stabilizing her mental threads, A'Diao focused her senses inward and instantly perceived a vast and boundless cosmic world.
This was a peerless expert of unparalleled talent who had dominated an era. His world was an endless universe, and within this universe, Yin and Yang forces had achieved ultimate balance.
And balance, in fact, was the strongest attribute of the universe.
In just one second, A'Diao glimpsed many cultivation junctures she had never understood before, such as the combination of lightning, space, and dark clouds, and how her main body, with its extremely Yang Yinglong attribute, possessed an innate talent that leaned towards Yin…
After several epiphanies, A'Diao realized the true meaning of this Dao Tablet's existence—to understand it, to create an internal Yin-Yang system. It would give birth to new high-end powers, achieve an sublimation of energy attributes, and elevate the techniques of energy utilization to a new level of sophistication.
This was like the difference between spiritual energy and spiritual power, or spiritual power and spiritual force. Before her cultivation realm advanced, this Dao Tablet provided a higher-level power system.
The earlier one mastered it, the stronger one became, just like that founder who created it during his Star Realm, thus taking a step ahead of other peerless prodigies of his time.
Now, standing on the shoulders of a giant, she naturally had to take this shortcut.
"So, as long as I comprehend to a certain extent and transform the power attributes within my body into a complete system, I will reach its true threshold. Just like comprehending the Doppelganger Dao Tablet and the Mental Attack Dao Tablet, it's a process of conquering, ultimately yielding results."
After A'Diao figured this out, her gains were not small, and she began to reorganize the power within her body.
Half an hour later, she felt pain. The suppression inside was too strong.
Too many mental threads couldn't enter for fear of attracting the tablet spirit's attack, but too few made it difficult to withstand the suppressive force within.
What was she to do?
Moreover, her body was also enduring the suppressive force of the Sixth Heaven.
So this was an extremely superior yet extremely brutal cultivation environment.
A'Diao withdrew from her comprehension and found that Cang Wu next to her was unaffected and still comprehending.
So formidable?
Was she that much worse than him?
Toilet: "Please, he was born with an Ice Phoenix physique bloodline, his constitution tempered since childhood. His body might have been comparable to a Star Realm physique when he entered the Forbidden Stage. And don't forget, his family controls the star ore of dozens of planets. His constitution is even more out of the question… and he should be in the Star Realm already."
That was true, but A'Diao still felt a surge of competitiveness.
She had never been the type to be number one from the start. The aptitudes of people like Dantai Ke were initially stronger than hers, but weren't they all eventually KO'd by her?
A'Diao calmed down and, after some thought, came up with a plan.
If she continued in this state, it would indeed be a transformation under high pressure, but it certainly couldn't compare to others soaring to the heavens on wind and fire wheels. She always liked to take shortcuts.
Toilet: "Are you going to use the suppression array to counteract the suppression?"
No.
A'Diao got up and left, taking five durians with her as she went.
Cang Wu opened his eyes and watched her retreating figure, but quickly resumed his cultivation.
Was he thinking, "How is she so weak?"
No, his thought was: a human, at the Glimmerlight realm, could actually maintain a cultivation state in the Sixth Heaven's Langya Courtyard for half an hour, and she didn't even vomit after eating so much. Compared to three days ago when she first arrived at the Sixth Heaven, her progress was astonishingly fast.
Moreover, her decisiveness was remarkable. She didn't cling to the benefits of the Dao Tablet. Seeing that her current cultivation state was not optimal, she left without hesitation.
He had a premonition—she would soon match or even surpass his cultivation efficiency.
After returning to her residence's cultivation room, A'Diao decisively began to organize her resources. She needed to improve her cultivation conditions to conquer this incredibly awesome Langya Dao Tablet in a shorter time.
Through "life-swapping" and business dealings during the exams, A'Diao had accumulated 1.1 million remains. But the real windfall came from the legacies of Yan Fengbai and Qu Zhen.
When she killed people, it wasn't purely about killing.
Ignoring miscellaneous items, what A'Diao needed most right now were remains and Star Coins.
"Those two dogs had 1.9 million remains and 250,000 Star Coins. So little? Don't tell me Old Dog Qu took it all, damn it!"
A'Diao had been busy organizing Zhao Ritian's identity assets for the past seven days. Anticipating the imperial court's move to consolidate military power, she had to liquidate assets and stabilize her cultivation, leaving no time to sort these. But once she started, it was no small sum.
"Unfortunately, everything belonging to Old Dog Qu was taken by Qu Xia'er… The Qu family's resources were probably also taken by her."
The Qu family's resources rightfully belonged to Qu Xia'er; A'Diao could only look on with envy.
Toilet: "Are you planning to do something to your mental threads and body? Remains for mental threads and meridians, Star Coins for tempering your physique… But Star Coins are very hard to come by. Why don't you make a deal with that roommate of yours?"
A'Diao had the same idea, even pondering how to curry favor with this noble roommate… However, as her thoughts wandered, she casually opened the storage ring Chen Xun had given her. Inside were the chips for Xiao Yuanbao and the others.
But there was something else.
An internal pouch. Curious, A'Diao opened it and poured out its contents. Clatter, clatter… a huge pile of Star Coins nearly buried her.
A'Diao: "!!!"
Toilet: "!!!"
After counting, there were one million Star Coins.
More than the legacy of Qu Zhen, the family head?!!
A'Diao was shocked. After careful consideration, she couldn't help but let her imagination run wild: "Toilet, do you think he climbed onto the Phoenix Couch? Although he's not very handsome, his temperament and intelligence are truly excellent. Maybe Daoguang Jingci likes his type. Otherwise, where would he get so many Star Coins?"
This was put very euphemistically.
Toilet: "…"
Of course, such wild talk was just A'Diao being cheeky. The very nature of the imperial marriage alliance made such a thing impossible. Moreover, Chen Xun was a restrained and cautious person, capable of remaining virtuous even in tempting situations. Having grown up surrounded by beauties in his family, he probably saw any beautiful woman as just a piece of pork. He wouldn't be driven by lust to commit such a heinous crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations.
A'Diao checked the chips of Xiao Yuanbao and Sparrow and quickly understood the origin of the Star Coins.
"He must have done business with the heterodox races using these technological products."
"Holy crap! Amazing!"
It wasn't that the heterodox races lacked intelligent individuals, but their total population was too small, a drop in the ocean compared to the vast human race. Cultivation talent could be nurtured with resources, but technological talent truly depended on intelligence. And intelligence, by its nature, didn't necessarily follow genetic inheritance; it largely relied on quantity to produce quality.
Therefore, the technological strength of the heterodox races was very poor. However, human technology was gradually flourishing and now complemented spiritual cultivation, by no means weak. Thus, the position of Vice Minister of Works that Chen Xun now held was one of real power, far more valuable than A'Diao's title of Crown Prince's Junior Tutor.
So, Chen Xun had made a fortune entirely through his intellect.
Toilet: "But, isn't this smuggling? If discovered, his entire clan would be executed."
A'Diao: "What smuggling? The things he invented himself don't have commercial registration numbers and aren't on production lines. When he's on their turf and casually solves a few technological problems, what's wrong with that? There's no law to prosecute him, and besides, the Heavenly Spirit Clan wouldn't say anything. It's probably a secret."
Alas, technology truly is money.
Look at her, scheming and swindling, yet she doesn't earn as much as his knowledge does.
A'Diao sighed with emotion, put away these Star Coins, and thought about Chen Xun's generosity… Up to now, if she still thought Chen Xun treated her badly, she would be deceiving herself. But she looked at things from a perspective of self-interest.
"Rising together in the same camp. He is in officialdom and needs substantial martial strength, while I am outside the court and also need his help."
A'Diao twirled a Star Coin between her fingers and chuckled softly.
If she could lay down her arms with past enemies for the sake of profit, she naturally wouldn't refuse Chen Xun's goodwill.
After some calculation, she now had almost enough remains and Star Coins for her current plan, but there was still one very important thing.
"I must get the Grade A formula, but the most important thing is the physique formula. It disappeared after the bone displacement. Is this reasonable? Unreasonable!"
A'Diao hadn't upgraded before because she needed a large amount of Mental Power to deal with battles. Later, it was proven that tens of billions of Mental Power could only sustain one or two full-power fights, especially since she often had to fight opponents of higher levels.
Now that her situation had improved, she had to start consuming all her resources to frantically improve herself.
"Unfortunately, I consumed too much Mental Power before. Now… five hundred billion!!!"
A'Diao had been unconscious for three days and hadn't checked her Mental Power value. Seeing it now, she almost had a heart attack.
So much? Where did it come from?
Was it contributed by those Lushan purebloods? A'Diao checked the Mental Power list and found that the Lushan purebloods were only a small part; the bulk came from countless ordinary people across the country.
Perhaps some people only gave a few dozen or a hundred Mental Power points, but there were just too many of them.
These ordinary people, who paid attention to the Lushan assessment and to her, the Lushan Top Scorer, had actually contributed over four hundred billion Mental Power points to A'Diao.
Three days, just three days!
Magazines, it could only be because of the magazines.
A'Diao was silent for a long while, then said, "Toilet, do you think I should live-stream myself taking a bath on the balcony?"
She might even get a trillion Mental Power points.
Tang Song, my nation, people of Tang Song, my countrymen… you are all too lecherous.
This isn't right, but I like it.
If A'Diao were given another chance, she would definitely go back in time and bury those people from the Ministry of Rites alive, picking out the sexiest and most glamorous photos. Or she would go back to that moment and unbutton her shirt to the fourth button…
She had been too conservative. It was her fault.
Earning hundreds of billions by unbuttoning two buttons wasn't shameful, really not shameful.
A'Diao's moral compass skewed once more, but she also began to upgrade.
Upgrade one level!
"Physique, physique, physique, I want physique! Formula, come, come, come!"
A'Diao closed her eyes as if shaking dice. When she opened them, nothing!
Neither physique nor Grade A.
A'Diao's face soured. She kept tapping upgrade, eventually leveling up several times, until she reached level 20.
She had forsaken a large amount of resources and time to focus on the Lushan assessment. It seemed her cultivation hadn't improved much, but the flowers in her courtyard were blooming, and a gentle breeze blew. This vast amount of Mental Power was her most direct gain, and it would naturally bring enormous benefits.
Hum.
Toilet was suddenly enveloped in purple light, melting and reforming into a white ball with a bone-like texture.
At first glance, it resembled porcelain.
This was completely unexpected.
A'Diao paused for a moment, "What is this?"
Toilet: "I don't know. It changed automatically. I don't understand either. Maybe this is my original form?"
A'Diao: "So your original form is a big steamed bun, big, white, and round. It's a bit better than a toilet… Is this a phased upgrade? After all, it's level 20."
Level: 20 (Current Energy: 0 Stars / 20 Stars Energy. 20 Stars Energy needed to reach level 21. (Energy is now star-graded, a quantitative unit based on the improvement in energy quality, generally calculated from the energy unit contained in a planet in the universe. From now on, Mental Power and Spiritual Energy will also be calculated using this star-level unit.) Note: Level 20 provides 500,000 cubic meters of storage space and a 10 cubic meter living space. At level 20, all previously exchanged skills will automatically be upgraded by +70 levels by absorbing ambient spiritual energy.)
Mental Power: 0 Stars.
Synchronized Spiritual Energy Release: 10 Stars.
Exchanged Skills:
1: Little Fists Pummel You to Death (lv25)
2: Seductive Gaze (lv25)
3: Talisman Mastery (lv25)
…
Also 101, 202, 303, 404… all maxed out and ultimately lv80.
Exchangeable Skills:
1: Vacuum Annihilation 505 Array (Single-target offensive state array. Within this array, all energy attributes and other elemental particles in the area can be stripped, creating a vacuum space controlled by the user. It is an instant burst assassination personal space state array. Specific consumption is calculated based on Mental Power and personal spiritual power. Exchange requires 1 Star of Mental Power, subsequent consumption calculated separately, upgrade costs 1 Star of Mental Power per level.)
2: Mental Power Will Cultivation Method Vol. 5-10 (No exchange needed, can be directly imparted by Toilet.)
3: Grade A Version Aptitude Marrow Cleansing Formula (Auxiliary medicinal supplement formula, exchange requires 5 Stars of Mental Power.)
4: 【Space Notes Vol. 3-5】 (Space-type secret art, exchangeable for 10 Stars.)
5: Hidden Dragon Physique Tempering Formula (Physique forging formula, can cooperate with aptitude limits to elevate the body—from skin and flesh to internal organs and bones—beyond human limits, breaking genetic barriers. Exchangeable for 20 Stars.)
Incredibly awesome resources had arrived, but A'Diao looked at the required exchange energy and roughly calculated.
"One star seems to be equivalent to one hundred billion energy units, so these… Damn it!"
She couldn't afford a single one, couldn't afford it!
A'Diao felt her vision go dark.
She might as well go live-stream her bath on the balcony.
Live-streaming a bath was the last resort. A'Diao picked up her phone, swiped and tapped a few times, and then first used the remains to work on her mental threads and meridians.
"I always feel like that old man, the Mountain Head, was hinting at something—my body's volume is only so large. If I have too many mental threads and meridians, adding more is like stuffing more and more data cables into a computer, making it cumbersome. It's time to streamline and purify them."
"And the best way to streamline and purify is through fusion and tempering."
This was very difficult and required even more massive resources. Many people might even think she was foolish. With these resources, wouldn't it be better to improve her cultivation realm?
But she did it anyway.
After A'Diao got busy, time passed… Xu Ye, who was also in Lushan but on the Third Heaven, actually woke up today as well. The suppression she endured was far less than A'Diao's, but its effect on her wasn't much better. She still felt breathless. After getting up to pour water in the kitchen, even swallowing a cup of water felt like swallowing knives.
It was too terrifying.
She had never imagined that cultivation in Lushan would be so arduous… However, her phone buzzed with a message from Xu Zhaoyin.
A message from her own mother, of course she had to read it.
It was a screenshot.
It was a social media post, but not Xu Zhaoyin's; it was from her "good" sister.
This person had posted a nine-photo grid, all pictures of her, Chen Xun, and Chen Yang, seemingly taken by those people from the Ministry of Rites. After posting, there was this text: "Don't quite get why you all spend money on magazines. Am I that good-looking? Okay, seems I am quite good-looking."
Xu Ye: "…"
Xu Zhaoyin: Still tired?
No one knew a daughter better than her mother. Xu Zhaoyin had long known that cultivation in Lushan would be very hard, so she deliberately sent this to cheer her daughter up.
Xu Ye pursed her lips and said faintly: Not tired, but Mother, why did you send me this? It's meaningless.
Xu Zhaoyin: Oh, so I shouldn't send them next time?
Xu Ye paused, then typed two words: Send them.
In the Chen family's old residence, Xu Zhaoyin was amused, her eyes crinkling with a smile.
Meanwhile, Chen Xun, in his office at the Ministry of Works, stared at A'Diao's social media post for a long while, then smiled, but quickly fell into deep thought: A'Diao seems to care a bit about this kind of attention. Why? She has always been someone who needs profit to justify all her words and actions.
In Daoguang's residence.
Daoguang Jingci saw this social media post that had set the entire internet ablaze.
She casually opened it to look.
"It seems the Ministry of Rites isn't incapable of taking good photos… This technique is quite good."
Her finger swiped to Chen Xun's picture.
This person was in a study, leaning against a desk, calculating formulas on a screen panel. He seemed to have been busy for a long time, somewhat disheveled, his shirt half-undone, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and his face smudged with some ink.
The Jingwei attendant saw it and asked curiously, "Is this person very good-looking? I think he's not as good-looking as his older sister and younger brother?"
Daoguang Jingci: "Perhaps because for someone of Chen A'Diao's level, both physical beauty and the brilliance of intellect are stunning enough. Because human nature is not just about lust, but also about admiring strength."
The attendant nodded. "Then, Your Highness, are you the same?"
In her eyes, her master and Chen A'Diao were both people with abundant experience in matters of intellect.
"Different." Daoguang Jingci put down her phone. "She and I are naturally different."
As the Top Scorer, every word and action of hers was known to all. Don't just look at her operating her phone, stirring up a storm; this kind of storm from outside Lushan was fed back into Lushan in less than an hour.
On the Fifth Heaven, amidst the vast and misty rain, upon a suspended pavilion, a youth in a black sword robe that rustled in the wind was wiping his longsword. In front of him, several disciples with dirt-streaked faces were reporting the situation.
They were originally from the Third Heaven. After arriving at the Fifth Heaven, the suppression they felt was too terrifying. They knelt on the ground, not out of respect for the person before them, but because they couldn't hold on.
After listening, the youth said, "So, her Yinglong only has two claws?"
"Yes, we looked carefully. It indeed has two claws."
The youth nodded. Two claws meant this Yinglong was congenitally deficient. And from the assessment until now, seven days had passed, yet this Chen A'Diao hadn't been able to mend the two claws. This showed either a lack of resources or that it required more time, allowing them to predict the speed of her aptitude improvement.
Waving his hand to dismiss them, the youth turned to look at a buzz-cut youth who had arrived as a streak of light. The latter carried a long saber on his back and also had a long saber beneath his feet.
"At her current rate of progress, even if she goes to earn points, she herself is only at the Glimmerlight realm. Even if she possesses Star Realm combat power, the points she can obtain will be limited—because her greatest weakness lies in her physique. She needs a very long time to adapt to the suppression, so the strength she can exert will naturally be far inferior to us Lushan natives."
"Since she is already enduring the suppression, and the Mountain Head also intends to temper her, letting her progress under the suppression of the Sixth Heaven, then we might as well lend a hand and add another layer of suppression for her."
"Should we contact Jiang Wulin and Rong Wan again?"
"No need. Those two have always been reclusive and don't get along with us. They won't easily join forces. Most likely, they still want to observe. They don't even consider that this Chen A'Diao is coming on strong. If we don't contend, she will truly monopolize the palace and dominate the top position."
They didn't look down on Chen A'Diao; on the contrary, it was because they were wary that they wanted to strike early.
The buzz-cut youth's face was grave: "Slow down her progress. After three months, make her get out of the Sixth Heaven and give up that Langya Courtyard!"
This was the test for every generation's Top Scorer, and not every Top Scorer could withstand it. Especially this generation, the revival of spiritual energy was too sudden. This Chen A'Diao always lacked background and foundation, and was an outsider, unlike them, the internal pureblood Lushan natives who had favorable timing, location, and connections.
They wanted to see how long this Yinglong genius could last.
"Regardless, I really dislike this person. She lacks the qualities of a strong cultivator. Look at her… acting like it's a game, still in the mood to post on social media and fool around with those mortals."
Lou Tanglie's face was cold. "She will soon discover that Lushan is not a place where she can afford to be playful."
The two quickly flew away.
In an environment where people like A'Diao were vomiting, they could already fly. This was the biggest difference between outsiders and native purebloods.
But it wasn't necessarily a permanent difference.
Mental Power surged again, directly reaching three stars, and its rate of increase accelerated, especially after the Ministry of Rites saw the popularity A'Diao generated with a single social media post, and the public discussion about the Ministry. Whether for money or other reasons, the Ministry of Rites re-released other versions of the magazine, including different photos.
Another three days later, A'Diao had already fused 100 mental threads and 1000 meridians. Only 1.2 million remains were left.
The consumption was too great.
But A'Diao still ended her cultivation because her Mental Power had reached 25 stars. She decisively exchanged for the most expensive Hidden Dragon Formula and the Grade A Formula.
The Grade A formula was manageable; Star Coins could handle it. A'Diao calculated the demand for half a month, estimating around three hundred billion in funds.
Qu Zhen's legacy was not short of money; reselling materials could generate a wave of funds. Moreover, A'Diao had other financial income—the Ministry of Rites had to give her a share of the magazine profits.
Fortunately, Huayao Bank also cooperated with Lushan and had an office on the First Heaven. A'Diao pulled some strings, and using her official rank as Crown Prince's Junior Tutor, she "comforted" the people at the Ministry of Rites. They could only obediently transfer the money without daring to delay.
With this, A'Diao gathered a large sum of money. But what troubled her were some core materials needed for the Hidden Dragon Formula. Huayao Bank sold some of them, but only for Star Coins. And one of the most important materials, even Huayao Bank didn't have.
CEO: "You can try Lushan's internal store. They should have it, but Lushan's rule is to exchange with points."
A'Diao remembered that the Grandmaster Swordsman fellow had mentioned it before.
A'Diao immediately contacted the Mountain Head and asked two things.
First, where was her reward? Had a dog eaten it?
Second, where could she get points? Was it like clearing pagoda levels?
The Mountain Head had been waiting for her to ask. "The reward is in the black box on the shelf in the cultivation room… As for points, you can consider visiting the Library Pavilion, Mirror Blade Gorge, and Demon Spirit Abyss. The points store is on your watch; check it yourself. Your access has already been set up."
A'Diao went to the cultivation room and indeed found a box on the shelf. Opening it, she saw it was the Dark Origin Staff.
However, it had been upgraded. It was now adorned with dragon scale patterns, and its form was that of a dragon head and tail, vivid and lifelike. It looked very ancient and domineering, even releasing a faint pressure when the box was opened.
There was also a letter beside it.
It was from Master Lu. He said Lushan valued his skills and had hired him. His first creation for Lushan was this staff, custom-made for her, based on the Origin Staff, using top-tier dragon-related materials personally provided by the Mountain Head.
"This Origin Staff is probably the pinnacle of my life's work. After all, the dragon pearl held in the dragon's mouth is the dragon dan of a 16th-level Flood Dragon. Even a peak Grandmaster would go crazy for it."
Master Lu was an interesting person. His words were tinged with a sourness, as if envying A'Diao's uniquely favorable conditions, but also carried a hint of flattery, trying to curry favor with her.
However, A'Diao herself was very surprised.
Such a staff was already difficult to estimate in value. For Lushan to have Master Lu create such a staff, they naturally paid a considerable price.
The dragon dan alone was enough to make A'Diao's eyes turn red.
She even wanted to pry it off and swallow it for cultivation.
"Lushan is truly wealthy." A'Diao opened the points store. After seeing the materials inside, to avoid an overflow of jealousy, she selectively skipped over them and directly found the Climbing Dragon King Branch she needed, which was a section of the main branch of one of the ten great spiritual woods of heaven and earth.
"1000 points. Just one branch segment costs 1000 points."
Although A'Diao didn't have a clear concept of the value of points, after asking her Grandmaster Swordsman bodyguard about the Library Pavilion, Mirror Blade Gorge, and Demon Spirit Abyss, she had some idea.
The points here were worlds apart from the points at the former Jinling Academy.
So, which place should she go to earn points?
A'Diao thought for a moment, then picked up her phone and contacted someone.
On the Third Heaven, Nie Yuanyuan, who was in her cultivation room struggling against the suppression to cultivate, saw the message, and her expression changed.
"Student Nie Yuanyuan, has the Ninth Prince been troubling you lately? After all, you betrayed him. Not everyone is as magnanimous as I, Chen A'Diao. By the way, how many times did you try to kill me?"
Nie Yuanyuan's greatest fear had come to pass. She pressed her aching temples and made a call.
"What guidance does the Top Scorer have?" She understood very well that Chen A'Diao contacting her meant she wanted something.
"Want to bury the hatchet?"
Compared to people like Dantai Ke, Nie Yuanyuan knew that the venomous Chen A'Diao was actually more trustworthy. If she said she'd settle things, she'd settle them, without being two-faced or going back on her word.
"Naturally. Top Scorer, please speak."
"Just one not-too-excessive request—I want your body."
"…"
This wasn't excessive?
From Nie Yuanyuan +6666666!
However, as the two communicated, Nie Yuanyuan quickly understood A'Diao's purpose.
Troublemaker, unscrupulous fiend.
At the same time, just as they finished talking, their watches displayed Lushan Academy's course schedule.
Attendance wasn't mandatory; they were elective courses.
But basically, no one would miss them.
Looking at the course schedule, the nearest class was a lecture on physique cultivation, given by a Lesser Spirit King expert.
A'Diao: "See you in three days, dear Sister Yuanyuan, muah."
Nie Yuanyuan: "…"
Top Scorer, there's no need for this, really no need. I'm already feeling nauseous.
However, she checked the class arrangements. Their group of 20 belonged to the Qian Class, while the pureblood group belonged to the Kun Class. In terms of authority, the purebloods were one level below them. Lushan valued the Qian Class the most, but in terms of current strength, the Kun Class definitely had stronger overall capabilities. However, these courses on the schedule were public lectures, and students from both classes could attend. The difference lay in their private tutors and allocated resources and residences.
Public lectures would probably be a Shura field.
And Chen A'Diao would be the first to bear the brunt.
After the Ministry of Rites gave A'Diao the money, they immediately reported it. The news reached the imperial family and was silently processed. At this time, the Law Enforcement Department was investigating at the Qu family's residence.
They were the overt investigation team. In reality, Lan Shan had reined in his claws, merely going through the motions, as superficial as handling funeral arrangements for the Qu family, not daring to delve into the intrinsic secrets. But at dusk, he sensed a faint, subtle fluctuation.
A group of black-clad individuals arrived.
They went to the Qu family's back mountain and secret chamber areas.
They were the real investigation team, from the imperial family.
After they finished, Lan Shan later pretended to casually take a look.
The secret chambers and the back mountain had been razed to the ground, all traces obliterated.
So, was this an investigation? Or was it to destroy evidence?
Lan Shan dared not think too deeply and quickly left. He had to urgently request a transfer from this post, even if it meant being demoted to an outer regional department.
While certain areas of the Qu family estate turned to ash, far away in the coastal region of Diannan, where mountain ranges met the sea's breath, amidst clouds and surging tides, deep within a cave, the corpse qi was so dense it dripped like liquid.
A living person entering would instantly turn into a corpse.
And in such an area, a woman of such exquisite beauty she resembled an immortal was gently caressing a newly reconstructed corpse.
Lifelike, but a dead person nonetheless.
Qu Xia'er looked at her own hand, which was now perfectly fine, then her gaze fell upon Qu Jiangnan's pale face.
She lowered her eyes.
There would be no more warmth between the dead.
She suddenly remembered when her soul was shattered, watching her young sister pinned to the ground, forced to witness her dismemberment.
At that time, her father had pressured her, threatening to cut off a piece of the corpse if she didn't reveal the secret art. With red eyes, she had only said she knew nothing.
On her way back, she had thought she would surely die, but if she died, her sister could actually live, because she would be the only one left who knew the secret, and the Qu family wouldn't dare to harm her.
She had only underestimated the ruthlessness of her closest kin.
She couldn't imagine how her sister had endured and survived all these years.
If she had known then, she would have been even more ruthless than she was now.
"The world is without Dao, and all living beings are but straw dogs."
"Living person, living corpse, what difference is there?"
"Nannan, are you willing to enter the Corpse Dao with me?"
Qu Xia'er's finger touched Qu Jiangnan's glabella.
Three days later, A'Diao woke up in the morning for breakfast and saw Cang Wu watering flowers in the courtyard. This person only tended to his own side, never coming over to hers. Anyone who didn't know better would think he disliked her, but A'Diao felt this person was extremely reclusive and wouldn't easily befriend others.
He didn't even say anything when she hadn't gone to comprehend for several days.
From a teamwork perspective, she was slacking off. Most people would have exploded long ago.
But this person just ate and watered flowers… It didn't matter; relationships could be cultivated.
A'Diao pushed open the window, munching on bread, and said with a smile, "Hey, Brother Cang Wu, can you help water the flowers on my side too?"
Cang Wu turned around and asked her coolly, "Why don't you do it yourself? A single spell would suffice."
A'Diao: "Naturally, it's because I want to deliberately strike up a conversation with you. You can refuse, and then I'll ask again tomorrow."
The lazy morning light under the window scattered onto her smiling face, giving her a somewhat… mischievous look?
Cang Wu: "…"
From Cang Wu +1.
A'Diao, walking on the road: "…"
Damn! My attempt to chat him up is only worth 1 point of Mental Power?
Chen Yang number two?
The class was on the Fourth Heaven.
But A'Diao didn't rush down impatiently. Instead, she deliberately moved back and forth between the Sixth and Fifth Heavens, observing and comparing, especially at the barrier between the Sixth and Fifth Heavens. There, she felt an abrupt change in suppression.
This abrupt change was like a transition between ice and fire; that extreme instant was the most damaging.
She sensed this destructive power, so she repeatedly entered and exited, observing the differences between the barriers…
This fiddling around caused a delay. At this moment, in a certain academy courtyard on the Fourth Heaven, the open-air traditional classroom was set up with antique-style desks and chairs. Sixteen giant windows were open. The hall, with over a hundred seats, was already mostly full.
Basically, all 19 members of the Qian Class had arrived, while 31 out of 35 members of the Kun Class were present. Four were still missing… No, only 3 were missing now, because at this moment, a buzz-cut youth entered, carrying a saber. His gaze swept around, and he smiled faintly. "The Yinglong genius, Chen A'Diao, who broke my brother's knee bones, is she present today?"
"There are still 10 minutes before class starts. Enough time for a fight."
"Or, if she doesn't come, who among you will fight in her stead?"
The person's gaze quickly fell on Song Ling and Xu Ye.
With these few short sentences, the atmosphere in the hall instantly became tense and confrontational.
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