Chapter 626: "The Eternal Everlasting Spring Scripture"

Chapter 626: The Scripture of Eternal Spring

As the contestants completed the course one after another, the fourth stage came to a definitive close.

With the times from the first four stages tallied, the overall scores of each team were finally ranked.

Gazing at their own team's results, the expressions of those present were a mixture of joy and sorrow.

Everyone understood that the time taken in the upcoming fifth stage would determine which six teams would ultimately advance.

As the fifth stage officially commenced, a speck of dark cloud suddenly materialized in the sky, and then, like a drop of ink splashing into water, the clouds swelled violently, enveloping the crowd overhead in the blink of an eye.

Immediately after, droplets of rain began to fall, swiftly escalating into a raging tempest.

The objective of this fifth stage was to alter the celestial phenomena, turning the violent storm back into a clear, bright sky.

The time each contestant consumed in this process would constitute their score for this stage.

Dao Qiankun was seen stepping upward into the heavens, his hands bringing together a black and a white bolt of thunder that collided with a deafening roar, transforming into a pillar of light that pierced the firmament and swept across the world.

Blinding radiance illuminated the entire realm, as if a hundred thousand bolts of lightning had detonated simultaneously in the air.

As the incandescent glow gradually subsided, the wind and rain in the sky had ceased at some unknown moment, and the dark clouds that had shrouded the arena vanished without a trace in an instant.

Witnessing this scene, Zhang Yu drew a deep breath, his nerves, previously exhilarated by victory, cooling down once more.

He glanced at the timer in his ocular relic, thinking to himself, "So fast."

"Dao Qiankun's overall strength at this moment still surpasses mine."

"To catch up with him, to seize first place in the Grand Ten League, I must continue to push forward..."

One by one, the contestants for the fifth stage took the field, each employing their own methods to alter the weather; two performances in particular caught Zhang Yu's attention, and he etched their names deeply into his memory.

One of them, bearing a dragon's head and a human body, was Ying Mingchi, the top student of Heavenly Demon University; he and Ying Zhoufan were the only two remaining contestants from their university in the Grand Ten League.

Unlike Ying Zhoufan, this Ying Mingchi had not merely transformed into a dragon form, but possessed the true bloodline of a high-tier dragon clan.

Transforming into a white dragon, he let loose a roar that sent the sky-filling black clouds rolling backward, swiftly bringing the violent storm to a halt.

However, because his interference with the weather covered too vast an area, even exceeding the boundaries of the examination grounds, the moment he finished... a flurry of weather citations rained down, projected directly from the Spirit Realm before him, wrapping him up like layers upon layers of caution tape.

The other was Xu Haixuan, the top student of the Talisman Department at Myriad Methods University; setting up a divine altar on the spot and deploying his talismans, he directly summoned a Spirit Realm interface named Weather Controller, ending the storm in mere moments.

With the conclusion of the fifth stage, the final rankings of the entire relay race emerged.

Zhang Yu looked at the rankings projected in the sky, thinking, "First place goes to Dao Qiankun's team and mine."

"Second place is the team of that dragon Ying Mingchi, Ying Zhoufan, and Di Lianzhong, the top student of White Bone University."

"Third place is the team of Cang Shenyu, Tian Shenggong, Senior Sister Ye Xingli, and Xu Haixuan, the top student of the Talisman Department."

"Fourth place is Kuang Tianqing's team."

"Fifth place is the team of Wen Wuya and A Zhen."

"Sixth place is the team of Jiu Tianliu and those from the Finance Department..."

Thus, the list of thirty participants for the final round was completely finalized.

All students from Elixir Cauldron University had been entirely eliminated by this point.

Mu Qiansi, the top student of Dual Cultivation University, was also eliminated amidst the surprised and unexpected gazes of the crowd.

Seeing the thirty students in the rankings, Zhang Yu knew the ultimate champion would be born from among them; every single one would be his opponent, his rival in the contest for first place in the Grand Ten League.

...

After the relay race concluded.

In the rest room of Myriad Methods University, True Lord An Zhen looked at the advancing students before him and said, "In one week, the final match will begin."

"From the team battle in the first round, to the relay race in the second, and now to the final match... according to the school's predictions, it should be a pure individual combat."

Hearing this, Zhang Yu nodded slightly, sensing that the events of the Grand Ten League were gradually shifting from team-oriented to individual-focused.

True Lord An Zhen continued, "The exact format of the final match has not been announced yet; I'm afraid we will only know on the day of the competition."

"But no matter what the content is, it will inevitably test individual capabilities, and the entire process will certainly not be short."

"The next seven days are your opportunity to rest well and make a final sprint; use whatever assets, means, or ideas you have while there is still time. I won't say anything more."

After True Lord An Zhen departed, Ye Xingli turned to Zhang Yu and asked, "Junior Brother, how do you plan to arrange this coming week?"

Zhang Yu replied, "I'll continue my cultivation, and take the opportunity to adjust my magical treasures and dharma relics."

"The Seven Severances Dharma Relic suffered considerable wear and tear during this relay race and needs some repairs." Just then, Dao Qiankun's voice rang out, "Care to join me for a meal? My treat."

Zhang Yu and Ye Xingli turned their heads simultaneously to see Dao Qiankun walking over with a smile, followed by Li Shiwei, second in the Dao Arts Department, and Yan Qianji, first in the Artifact Refining Department.

Meeting Li Shiwei's hostile gaze, Zhang Yu wondered when he had ever offended the other party.

As for Dao Qiankun's invitation, Zhang Yu naturally agreed without hesitation; the continuous battles, competitions, and cultivation, along with multiple severe injuries and self-healing, had taken a heavy toll on his body, and a high-quality meal to replenish himself would be perfect.

Arriving in the reception hall of Dao Qiankun's flying ship, after eating his fill, Zhang Yu lay back in satisfaction, feeling his flesh, blood, meridians, and dantian all nourished.

Just then, Yan Qianji was heard asking, "Brother Dao, Kuang Tianqing's team ranked a bit poorly this time; are the Four Heavenly Demon Schools not going to protect her at all costs anymore?"

Dao Qiankun said indifferently, "They are merely securing a few extra spots while ensuring Kuang Tianqing advances."

"The Soul Formation elders of the Four Heavenly Demon Schools have reached a unified will, determined to push Kuang Tianqing to take first place."

At this point, Zhang Yu couldn't help but feel curious and asked, "Brother Dao, why can the Soul Formation elders of the Four Heavenly Demon Schools act in unison to support Kuang Tianqing alone, while the Soul Formation elders of Myriad Methods, Vajra, Immortal Armament, and Heavenly Sword cannot unite to support you in winning the championship?"

Li Shiwei couldn't help but glare at Zhang Yu again, silently cursing him as a sycophant for stealing the words he had wanted to say.

Although everyone present was a top student at Myriad Methods University, including Yan Qianji, a disciple of a Soul Formation elder, they still knew little about the true intentions of the Soul Formation elders.

And if there was anyone present who surely understood the schemes of the Soul Formation elders, for some reason, everyone including Zhang Yu just had a feeling... Dao Qiankun should know.

Feeling the curious gazes of the crowd, Dao Qiankun smiled faintly and said, "Because the Soul Formation elders of the Four Heavenly Demon Schools... are getting old."

"Their average age is greater than that of the Soul Formation elders from Myriad Methods, Vajra, Immortal Armament, and Heavenly Sword."

"Therefore, the Soul Formation elders of the Four Heavenly Demon Schools find it easier to reach a consensus, to achieve the same idea and goal, which is... life extension."

"Unlike the Soul Formation elders here at Myriad Methods who each have different immortal sect techniques as their goals, as far as I know, the Four Heavenly Demon Schools have already determined which immortal sect technique Kuang Tianqing will choose after winning the championship."

"That technique is called the Scripture of Eternal Spring, capable of extending one's lifespan by ten thousand years."

Dao Qiankun sighed, "Once the Soul Formation elders of the Four Heavenly Demon Schools obtain this technique and complete their life extension, the next few hundred or thousand years will be their era; I'm afraid the Nascent Soul cultivators below the tenth layer of Kunxu will never see the light of day again."

"For the next ten thousand years, the Four Heavenly Demon Schools will remain in a position of absolute dominance."

"Wealth will continue to concentrate, and the assets of these Soul Formation Sovereigns will thoroughly permeate every inch of the universities."

Hearing this, Zhang Yu felt a chill in his heart, as if he could already see the dozen or so Soul Formation elders outliving generation after generation of prodigies, draining the lifeblood of generation after generation.

But another question surged in his mind: "The immortal sect technique is awarded solely to the champion; how will the Soul Formation Sovereigns obtain it?"

Dao Qiankun said lightly, "If military-grade techniques are something many cultivators can access but lack the qualifications to cultivate and use."

"Then immortal sect-grade techniques are such that one cannot even access the related knowledge, making unlicensed cultivation utterly impossible."

"But for the Soul Formation elders, as long as Kuang Tianqing can master the Scripture of Eternal Spring, they will have plenty of ways to continue investing resources in her, allowing Kuang Tianqing to independently create her own copyrighted life-extension technology."

"After all, the Scripture of Eternal Spring was specifically chosen; it is not top-tier among the life-extension techniques of the immortal sects, so its relative difficulty is not that high."

Yan Qianji frowned and said, "Will the Heavenly Court and the sects tolerate such a thing? Allowing the Soul Formation elders of the Four Heavenly Demon Schools to control the lower realms for over ten thousand years?"

Dao Qiankun cast him a sidelong glance and said, "How can you be certain this is not the design of some exalted being in the Upper Realm?"

"Do you truly believe that everyone above is content with the present state of Kunxu?"

"Of course not. It is merely that they harbor differing visions and reflections regarding the future course of Kunxu, each seeking to reshape it along a divergent path."

"Divergent visions breed divergent choices, which in turn sow the seeds of contradiction and conflict, ultimately spilling over into the Lower Realm."

...

Back aboard his skyship, Dao Qiankun’s words echoed through Zhang Yu’s mind, prompting a silent musing: "If I claim the championship, what manner of immortal sect technique should I choose?"

"If a Spirit Transformation master seeks to extract the immortal arts of the sect from me, could I possibly stand in their way?"

Zhang Yu shook his head, sensing that resistance would be futile, or perhaps, that there was no valid reason to resist at all.

"Which is to say, the immortal technique I choose will inevitably alter the fate of Kunxu as well, will it not?"

Shaking his head once more, Zhang Yu decided it was far too premature to dwell on such matters; banishing his stray thoughts, he reached out to his company to arrange the recruitment of demon-blooded descendants.

"Gather a batch of these demon scions and draw their blood under the guise of a medical examination, to see if their essence might complete the Myriad Transformations Divine Scripture of the Demon Saint."

"Yet this stratagem will yield, at best, the blood of low-tier demon scions; as for the high-tier ones..."

Pondering for a moment, Zhang Yu sent a message to Ying Zhoufan: Are you about?

After waiting ten minutes without a reply, Zhang Yu followed up: I wish to purchase the blood of high-tier demon scions.

Ying Zhoufan replied at once: Just the blood? Do you want the marrow too? What of the flesh, the soul, and the breeding stock? Buy the lot and I shall grant you a discount; should any questions arise, contact me anytime for guidance on how to consume and cultivate them.

(End of Chapter)