Volume 1 Chapter 27: Meeting Ling Tiandu Again!

"It is truly a cave dwelling occupied by one of the four great talents of the Inner Court; the abundance of spiritual energy here is indeed extraordinary."

Mu Yi entered the cave and found it to be incredibly spacious, complete with a training ground and a dedicated space for meditation. Stepping inside felt like entering a blessed land of the immortals.

"Good. I shall master the three great supreme arts right here."

Mu Yi’s purpose in coming here was simple: to master the three martial arts he had recently acquired.

The Universe-Suppressing Heaven Seal, the Carefree Cloud-Roaming Step, and the Swift Thunder Gale Palm.

The difficulty of mastering any one of these was staggering; even for someone like Mu Yi, currently at the Divine Transformation Realm, they were daunting. Even a Holy Son who had reached the Origin Mansion Realm would find mastering just one of these arts as difficult as ascending to heaven, requiring at least several months of effort. Yet, Mu Yi was determined to master all three within a single week.

Seven days passed like flowing water.

Boom!

Within the third level of the Divine Hidden Martial Realm, a place accessible only to core disciples, one of the most prominent cave dwellings erupted with sound. The whistling of wind and thunder was deafening. As the core disciples practicing nearby passed by this cave, their eyes were filled with shock and fear, for they had never seen anyone practicing in this place create such a violent commotion.

Boom!

With one final, thunderous resonance, the storm inside the cave subsided, and everything returned to silence.

"Mu Yi has come out!"

At that moment, everyone saw a tall man stride out with his head held high. He walked with the vigor of a dragon and the stride of a tiger, his eyes brimming with a spirit that could swallow mountains and rivers.

"Seven days. I have successfully mastered the Universe-Suppressing Heaven Seal, the Swift Thunder Gale Palm, and the Carefree Cloud-Roaming Step. Now, all that remains is to wait for the Dragon Gate Grand Tournament in two months."

Mu Yi gazed into the vast sky, his heart free of regrets.

"Weren’t you all going to find Qi Chao to teach me a lesson? A week has passed; where is he? Could it be that he’s too afraid to show up?"

Throughout the week, while practicing the three supreme arts, Mu Yi had also been waiting for someone: the former owner of this cave, Qi Chao, one of the four kings of the Inner Court core disciples. However, Qi Chao had not appeared, which surprised Mu Yi slightly.

"Senior Brother Qi Chao has been away from the academy during this time. You are just lucky," one of the disciples spoke up. Their eyes were filled with frustration and resentment. These people had originally gone to find Qi Chao with great enthusiasm, eager to see Mu Yi get beaten or even killed. Unfortunately, fate had not granted their wish, as Qi Chao had left the day before and had not yet returned.

"Humph, it is not I who am lucky, but he," Mu Yi smiled faintly. "If he hadn't left the academy early, I would have shown you all what it means for a king to be shattered."

Mu Yi truly did not hold Qi Chao, who was at the peak of the tenth level of the Divine Transformation Realm, in any regard—especially not after mastering the three supreme arts.

"Hm? Such a powerful aura!"

Suddenly, in the distant sky, a formidable aura surged like a breaking wave, heading toward the central plaza of the academy. This aura was strangely familiar to Mu Yi.

"It’s Ling Tiandu!"

In an instant, killing intent erupted from Mu Yi’s pupils—vast and overwhelming, causing the surrounding air to churn with gale-force winds that sent sand and stones flying.

"What’s wrong with him?" The people around Mu Yi were blown off balance, their eyes filled with terror. They could not understand why Mu Yi had suddenly flown into a rage, his boundless killing intent nearly freezing the air solid.

"Ling Tiandu! To think you would appear here!"

Mu Yi’s gaze remained locked on the massive aura passing over his head. He saw Ling Tiandu, and he also saw Qin Wanqing. At this moment, these two wretched souls were standing atop a giant falcon demon beast alongside several other students from the Great Qian Dynasty, looking down upon the world from above.

"Hm? It’s him! Mu Yi!"

As Mu Yi looked up, the beautiful woman in the blue dress atop the giant falcon happened to glance down. When she saw the face of one of the men below, she was quite shocked. This woman was, naturally, Mu Yi’s ex-girlfriend, Qin Wanqing.

"Hm? What is it?" Ling Tiandu noticed the drastic change in Qin Wanqing’s expression and immediately asked.

"It’s Mu Yi!" Qin Wanqing gritted her teeth, her beautiful eyes filled with astonishment. "How could he appear at the Divine Hidden Academy? Is he a disciple here now?"

"His Dantian was destroyed by me, and his meridians were shattered. By all logic, even a god couldn't save him. How could he possibly join the Divine Hidden Academy?" Ling Tiandu said dismissively. "Perhaps you saw wrong."

As they spoke, the giant falcon beneath them carried them further away. The giant beast’s wings stirred up intense gales, sweeping through everything in its path, causing chaos and people to be knocked over in its wake. It was incredibly overbearing. Finally, the flying beast landed in the central plaza of the Divine Hidden Academy. The people atop it disembarked, one and all handsome men and beautiful women, the elite of their generation.

"It’s the people from the Great Qian Academy! What are they doing at our Divine Hidden Academy?" The disciples around the plaza gathered around one after another.

Among the four major academies of the Great Qian Dynasty, the Great Qian Academy was universally recognized as the top, while the Divine Hidden Academy was considered the lowest. For nearly a hundred years, these two academies had harbored deep-seated grievances. Fighting and killing between their disciples when they met outside were common occurrences. Therefore, the arrival of these dozen or so people from the Great Qian Academy naturally drew the attention of everyone nearby.

"Heh, so it is Elder Sima who has graced us with his presence. May I ask what business brings you to our Divine Hidden Academy this time?"

An old man appeared from the sky. Mu Yi recognized him; he was Elder Nie Xun, who had previously guarded the Divine Ability Hall.

"Nie Xun, it has been a long time," said Sima Xiangru, the leading elder of the Great Qian Dynasty, with a calm expression. He possessed a Golden Core Realm cultivation and was on the same level as Nie Xun.

"Nie Xun, I have come today carrying an edict from our Dean, which I ask you to deliver to your Dean Shen," Sima Xiangru said, getting straight to the point. "Furthermore, the Holy Son of my Great Qian Dynasty, Ling Tiandu, awakened his True Dragon bloodline a month ago and successfully broke through to the Golden Core Realm three days ago. He is now one of the eight Golden Core experts of our academy."

"He has come today to seek instruction from one of your academy’s four Holy Sons, Lin Danfeng. I trust that is not a problem?"

As soon as Sima Xiangru arrived, he delivered news that shocked all the disciples of the Divine Hidden Academy present.

"What? This Ling Tiandu was previously only a mid-tier existence among the thirty-two Holy Sons of the Great Qian Academy, his cultivation stuck at the sixth level of the Origin Mansion Realm for years. How could he have successfully promoted to the Golden Core Realm in just one month?"

"Haven't you heard? He awakened the True Dragon bloodline a month ago. That is a powerful sacred body of heaven and earth. Clearly, it was by relying on this bloodline that he stepped into the Golden Core Realm in one leap!"

"Senior Brother Lin is one of the four Holy Sons of our academy, a veteran expert who reached the Golden Core Realm years ago. This Ling Tiandu has only just entered this realm; where does he get the confidence to challenge Senior Brother Lin by name?"

The disciples of the Divine Hidden Academy were shocked and puzzled. Although the Divine Hidden Academy was ranked last among the four, their four Holy Sons were quite formidable. Each of them had reached the Golden Core Realm years ago. Their strength was certainly not something a novice who had just stepped into that realm could compare to.

"Lin Danfeng! I, Ling Tiandu, am here! Come out and fight!"

At that moment, Ling Tiandu seemed to grow impatient. He had no patience for further pleasantries. He took a step forward, and the air around him surged like a storm, like a raging sea. The people nearby felt as if they were in the middle of a vast ocean, and they were swept away, stumbling and falling; some were even sent into a frenzy of coughing up blood.

"Ling Tiandu! What are you doing? Challenging Lin Danfeng is one thing, but to be so arrogant—is this not a lack of courtesy?" Nie Xun’s brows knit together, a sharp light flashing in his eyes as he stepped forward and shouted in anger.

"Hahaha! Arrogant?" Ling Tiandu sneered. "In this world, those with strength are naturally arrogant. Should I act like a coward instead?"

"Nie Xun! Tell Lin Danfeng to come out immediately, or I shall have to ask for instruction from you instead!"

Ling Tiandu’s gaze was fixed firmly on Nie Xun. Nie Xun was no ordinary elder of the Divine Hidden Academy; he held the status of a Heavenly-level Elder. Within the four academies of the Great Qian Dynasty, elders were divided into three grades: Human-level elders (Divine Transformation Realm), Earth-level elders (Origin Mansion Realm), and Heavenly-level elders (Golden Core Realm). Nie Xun was a Heavenly-level Elder, a veteran expert of the Divine Hidden Academy with a cultivation at the second level of the Golden Core Realm.