Chapter 109: The Top New Students of All Years Gather
Duanmu Xingling wore a light blue long dress, its hem trailing long on the ground. Her shoulders and back were draped with white barbarian bird feathers that shimmered with flowing light, and her slender waist was tied with a snow silkworm ribbon, making her appear resplendent and noble.
She had long, jet-black hair, crystalline and translucent skin, long eyelashes, rosy lips, a slender neck, and full breasts and hips. She had the face of a thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl, but her body was even more curvaceous, voluptuous, and graceful than a twenty-year-old woman—truly a stunning seductress.
It seemed she had just bathed before coming to Zhang Ruochen's residence.
Zhang Ruochen opened the door and caught a faint, delicate fragrance. Looking at Duanmu Xingling standing outside, he was quite amazed. "Senior Sister Duanmu, why are you dressed so lavishly?"
"Don't women like to dress beautifully? During the day, we can only wear the martial uniforms prescribed by the academy. Can't I dress up nicely at night?"
Duanmu Xingling appeared very playful. She extended a soft hand and placed it on Zhang Ruochen's shoulder, deliberately teasing him. She smiled, "Junior Brother, do you think your senior sister is beautiful?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "Beautiful!"
"Then tell me, am I more beautiful, or is that Junior Sister Zi more beautiful?" Duanmu Xingling gently bit her lips, putting on a pitiful expression.
"Both are beautiful!" Zhang Ruochen said.
He had to admit, this Senior Sister Duanmu was truly a little enchantress, possessing a charm that could tempt a man into sin.
Zhang Ruochen didn't want to continue the previous topic, so he picked up her jade hand from his shoulder and took out a translucent space bracelet, placing it in her palm. He smiled, "Senior Sister Duanmu, this space jade bracelet is for you. Just infuse your true qi into it, and you can open its inner space."
Although Duanmu Xingling had mentally prepared herself, she still felt a sense of unreality when she held the space jade bracelet.
Was it really a space treasure?
Duanmu Xingling took the space jade bracelet, infused it with true qi, and indeed sensed the vast space within.
This space jade bracelet wasn't like the legendary space treasures that could contain heaven and earth or form a small world of their own. But for storing personal treasures, it was more than sufficient. For a martial artist, it was still a priceless treasure.
Duanmu Xingling put the space jade bracelet directly on her wrist, stroking it repeatedly. Her beautiful eyes shimmered with radiant light, clearly showing her delight. Her voice was sweet and soft, "Junior Brother, this is a space treasure. Although its grade is low, if you sold it, it would definitely cause a frenzy. It could sell for at least five hundred thousand silver coins. If two Heavenly Extreme Realm martial arts legends were to target it and bid against each other, it might even sell for five million silver coins. Are you really willing to give it to your senior sister?"
Zhang Ruochen stood straight, exuding a noble and elegant aura, fully displaying the demeanor of a prince. He smiled, "It's just a storage bracelet. To me, it's not worth much."
The aura he carried wasn't just that of a prince from this life, but also the aura of the son of Emperor Ming from his previous life. It was an elegant aura like a spring breeze, noble yet calm, confident yet low-key. Ordinary princes from commandery kingdoms couldn't imitate it.
Duanmu Xingling stared at Zhang Ruochen and shook her head. "Alright! Your senior sister won't accept your space jade bracelet for nothing. This drop of half-saint true liquid is for you."
Duanmu Xingling took out a delicate small jade bottle and handed it to Zhang Ruochen. The bottle still carried a faint scent of her body.
Zhang Ruochen's eyes lit up. He didn't refuse and put away the half-saint true liquid.
A drop of half-saint true liquid was a very important treasure for him right now.
"The value of a drop of half-saint true liquid is still far less than this space jade bracelet." Duanmu Xingling's brows furrowed slightly. "Consider this your senior sister owing you a favor. If you encounter any trouble in the Western Courtyard in the future, just tell me. Whoever dares to be your enemy, I'll be the first to deal with them."
Zhang Ruochen knew that only now had Duanmu Xingling truly considered him a friend.
Before, she was at most a classmate with a slightly better relationship.
Duanmu Xingling seemed to remember something else. "One more thing. The day after tomorrow morning, the Divine Power Hall will open briefly for one hour. Don't miss the time."
"Thank you for the reminder, Senior Sister," Zhang Ruochen said.
Duanmu Xingling's smile was incredibly beautiful. The more she looked at Zhang Ruochen, the more she liked him. They were both princes, but how could the other princes be so different from him?
"The Divine Power Hall only opens once a month, for just one hour at a time. Other students never get a chance to cultivate there. Only the top new student of each year is eligible to enter." Duanmu Xingling reminded him once more before leaving.
After Duanmu Xingling left, Zhang Ruochen murmured to himself, "The Divine Power Hall must be where the Martial Market Academy cultivates top geniuses."
Top geniuses enjoyed far more resources than ordinary students.
As long as they could cultivate top talents, no matter how precious the cultivation resources, the Martial Market Bank was willing to share them.
For example, half-saint true liquid was extremely precious in other major powers. But in the Martial Market Academy, even the lowest-level outer court disciple could receive one drop per year.
Wealthy and generous—that made a difference.
Zhang Ruochen looked at the drop of half-saint true liquid in his hand, a joyful expression on his face. He opened the small jade bottle, and a faint fragrance emanated from it, spreading throughout the room.
To prevent the medicinal power of the half-saint true liquid from dissipating, Zhang Ruochen immediately released his space domain, containing the escaping medicinal qi within a three-meter radius.
Having reached the late stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm, his space domain had grown stronger, now able to cover an area of fifty meters in radius.
Zhang Ruochen took a gentle breath, and all the escaping half-saint true liquid was drawn into his body.
"Crack, crack!"
The bones and muscles inside Zhang Ruochen's body rumbled, producing faint popping sounds.
The true qi in his thirty-six meridians flowed rapidly, circulating wildly, transporting the medicinal power of the half-saint true liquid to every corner of his body.
After the medicinal power of the half-saint true liquid completed a full cycle through his body, Zhang Ruochen felt that all his meridians had become more resilient.
"Just by inhaling a wisp of medicinal qi, I gained such benefits. If I consumed the entire drop of half-saint true liquid, how much stronger would my martial body become?"
Zhang Ruochen couldn't wait to enter the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal and consume that drop of half-saint true liquid.
As soon as he swallowed the half-saint true liquid, an extreme cold surged from his abdomen, causing Zhang Ruochen's entire body to tremble. A layer of frost formed on his skin.
That layer of frost continued to thicken. After half an hour, Zhang Ruochen was completely frozen inside a two-meter-tall ice crystal.
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged in the center of the ice crystal, his eyes tightly shut, his hands resting on his knees. The thirty-six meridians in his body activated simultaneously, continuously absorbing the medicinal power of the half-saint true liquid.
One day later.
The drop of half-saint true liquid was fully absorbed into his Jade Pure True Qi. As the Jade Pure True Qi flowed, the medicinal power of the half-saint true liquid began to spread throughout his body.
The cold within his body disappeared, replaced by a scorching heat. His abdomen felt like it contained a ball of fire, as if his entire body was about to burn.
The ice crystal on Zhang Ruochen's body began to melt, turning into ice water, which was then evaporated by the heat.
Two more days passed.
Zhang Ruochen's body returned to normal, but his skin emitted a faint white light. His entire body was wrapped in true qi, with strands of true qi constantly entering and exiting his pores, like countless spirit snakes.
By the fourth day, Zhang Ruochen had completely refined the drop of half-saint true liquid. His meridians had become wider, and even the capacity of his qi lake had increased by about one-tenth.
Martial artists at the same cultivation level usually had qi lakes of roughly the same size.
But by consuming the half-saint true liquid, his qi lake had expanded.
This meant that at the same cultivation level, Zhang Ruochen's true qi would be deeper than that of other martial artists, allowing his body to store more true qi.
People like Duanmu Xingling and Huang Yanchen received nearly ten drops of half-saint true liquid each year to enhance their physiques. The amount of true qi their qi lakes could store was certainly far beyond that of ordinary Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Perfection martial artists.
Zhang Ruochen had only refined a single drop of half-saint true liquid, yet he had gained tremendous benefits.
His bones, muscles, and internal organs had all been tempered. Zhang Ruochen could clearly feel that his strength had increased significantly.
His cultivation had also improved noticeably, and he was not far from the perfect stage of the late Mysterious Extreme Realm.
"Half-saint true liquid is indeed a wonderful treasure. If only I could get more of it!" Zhang Ruochen let out a long breath, feeling comfortable throughout his entire body.
The reason Zhang Ruochen could fully refine a drop of half-saint true liquid in just four days was because he had thirty-six meridians, making his refining speed much faster than other martial artists.
If it were another martial artist at the late Mysterious Extreme Realm, it would take at least twenty days to fully refine a drop of half-saint true liquid.
Zhang Ruochen calculated the time and realized that the Divine Power Hall was about to open. He immediately left the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal and hurried toward the Divine Power Hall.
Early morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten.
Eight young students had gathered outside the Divine Power Hall. Among them, six were female, and only two were male.
These eight were the top new students of the Western Courtyard over the years.
Zhang Ruochen was the ninth, and the last, to arrive outside the Divine Power Hall.
Apart from Zhang Ruochen, the weakest among the other eight was at the Great Extreme stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm. That person was last year's top new student, Xue Ling.
The remaining seven were all at the Great Perfection stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm.
This year's top new student was "Zhang Ruochen," last year's was "Xue Ling," two years ago's was "Yuchi Tiancong," three years ago's was "Duanmu Xingling," four years ago's was "Luo Shuihan," and five years ago's was "Huang Yanchen."
Yuchi Tiancong was also an extraordinary young genius. Having joined the Martial Market Academy only two years ago, he had already reached the Great Perfection stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm, astonishing many elders.
There was another male student, the top new student from nine years ago, named Tuo Muzi. He had remained at the Great Perfection stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm for six years.
This year, he was already twenty-nine years old. If he couldn't reach the Earth Extreme Realm before the age of thirty, he would never have a chance to become an inner court disciple of the Martial Market Academy.
The transition from the Great Perfection stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm to the Earth Extreme Realm was a major watershed. Many geniuses who had originally cultivated quickly could become stuck at this stage for ten, twenty years, or even their entire lives.
Therefore, it couldn't be said that Tuo Muzi had low talent. It was simply that breaking through to the Earth Extreme Realm was truly too difficult.