by Translator: Pokka; Author: 我本纯洁 (I Am Pure); Licensed From: Migu
"Our Dragon Phoenix Academy has always been ranked third behind the True Martial Academy and the Nine Palace Academy. The freaks of those two academies are definitely no weaker than Baili Yixiao and Zhan Wushuang. If we really start a confrontation against them, our rank might even drop."
"Being able to compete against geniuses from all over the dominion is in itself a great glory. A cousin of mine is in the True Martial Academy. I heard from him that the freaks over there are incredibly scary. My cousin is a sixth-stage Dragon Ascension Realm cultivator, but he couldn't even get in the top 1,000."
"Are you exaggerating? You make it sound like our academy is filled with weaklings."
...
The disciples were envious of those with a chance to partake in the confrontation of the four academies. That was the true stage of the dominion where they would get to meet more of their peers who were similarly as talented. Partaking in the confrontation would be beneficial for their growth, but unfortunately, many weren't even able to get into the top 100. Thus, they had no way of partaking in the grand event.
As for those actually on the Dragon Phoenix List, they were filled with joy. Their eyes were filled with excitement, and they were extremely eager to start competing against the other academies.
Next, the principal ended the assembly. The primary-grade Dragon Phoenix Battleground event formally ended, and a new battlefield awaited. Everyone left, making use of the final six months they had to properly rest and prepare themselves. At the same time, they would increase their strength as best as they could. After all, their time in the academy had yet to end, so they had to continue working hard. Nobody knew what the future entailed for them.
Xiang Shaoyun, Ouyang Chuanqi, Han Chenfei, and the others headed toward 1 Dragon Villa. The captains of the Overlord Legion were also gathering there. As an influential faction, they naturally needed to gather more and increase their group cohesiveness.
There, Zhuge Zhantian started reporting about the details of their venture into the battleground. Many had died in the battleground. Some were killed by the plants, while some were killed by the other factions. These disciples were the ones who were killed before they could even crush their protective jades.
At this point, the deaths no longer fazed Xiang Shaoyun that much. After all, where there was conflict, there would be death. There was nothing to be said if one died in the midst of competing against others. After all, he himself was nearly assassinated by Gui Mochou.
After saying some words of encouragement, Xiang Shaoyun shifted the topic. He said, "When we were in the battleground, I announced that the ones that managed to get on the Dragon Phoenix List would be awarded that set of equipment. With the result out, the set now belongs to Xuan Yuantian."
He then took out the set of equipment from the ancient stele he had kept with him. When everyone saw the bright and dazzling equipment, their eyes became burning. When they looked at Xuan Yuantian, they were filled with envy. That was a set of sovereign-grade equipment!
Xuan Yuantian blanked out slightly before stepping forth and thanked happily, "Thank you, Overlord."
He had not expected to receive the set of equipment. After all, Tang Longfei and Yuan Xuefen had also entered the Dragon Phoenix List. Xiang Shaoyun should have rewarded the set to Tang Longfei instead. However, he did not do so. One could not deny that Xiang Shaoyun was a fair leader.
Someone close with Tang Longfei asked, "Overlord, Deputy Commander Tang is also on the Dragon Phoenix List. Why didn't you award him the set?"
Everyone focused on Xiang Shaoyun, waiting for his answer.
Xiang Shaoyun smiled and said, "Deputy Commander Tang's rank is lower, so Xuan Yuantian is naturally prioritized. However, both he and Yuan Xuefen will still be rewarded."
Chapter 884: Women Are Trouble
Xuan Yuantian had extracted six strands of draconic aura from the dragon phantom in total. One of them had been given to Lady Shura, and he had five left. He took four out and gave them to Xuan Yuantian, Tang Longfei, Yuan Xuefen, and Zhuge Zhantian.
Although Zhuge Zhantian did not manage to get onto the Dragon Phoenix List, he had contributed a lot to the legion. Thus, he was worthy of this reward. The other Overlord Legion members were filled with envy.
They had not imagined that Xiang Shaoyun would be so generous, sharing even the draconic aura. After all, a cultivator could use it to quickly grow his own draconic aura, and it was something that was rare than dragon liquid and almost impossible to encounter. Giving away a single strand was the same as giving away millions of mid-grade spirit crystals.
Yuan Xuefen was somewhat overwhelmed by the favor and quickly said, "Overlord, this reward is too precious."
"Take it. We are all brothers and sisters here. Those who have performed well should be rewarded. Only then will everyone continue working hard for our common purpose," said Xiang Shaoyun. "I still have a lot of blood devil vine roots as well. They are very helpful for growing your vitality. Those interested can trade me for them."
This was also a method Xiang Shaoyun commonly used to buy the hearts of his followers. He would prioritize them when trading his treasures, and he also used the trade to encourage additional internal trades between them. Trading was a way of improving everyone's relationship with each other. When all that was done, Xiang Shaoyun dismissed everyone.
Before leaving, Ouyang Chuanqi said, "In the coming six months, let's find a time to spar. Otherwise, I will no longer be your match when your cultivation level catches up."
"Sure, we'll find some time," said Xiang Shaoyun with a nod.
"Just don't blame me for bullying you when the time comes," said Ouyang Chuanqi before turning and walking away.
At this time, Han Chenfei said, "Do you have any draconic aura left? I want it as well. You need to be fair!"
She spoke with the tone of a sullen child, and when she did that, she was oddly attractive. A regular man would be completely smitten if they saw her behaving this way.
However, Xiang Shaoyun turned a blind eye and said, "No. If you want, go find some yourself."
He then ignored her and left the villa like everyone else. He started heading toward the armory. Han Chenfei clearly had no intention of letting him go. She went along with him.
"Can you stop being a pest?" said Xiang Shaoyun, annoyed.
His sole intention of recruiting Han Chenfei was to grow the Overlord Legion, not having her sticking to him like this.
"I'm not a pest!" rebutted Han Chenfei. Her expression turned solemn as she continued, "Sorry."
Xiang Shaoyun stopped for a moment before speaking with an indifferent tone, "I have no idea what you're talking about."
He then picked up the pace to shake her off. However, she grabbed his hand before he could leave, and shouted, "I already apologized. As a man, you need to stop being petty!"
Since young, she had always been a lofty child favored by the heavens. She had never apologized to anyone. Even when she wronged someone, nobody would dare to demand an apology from her. But now, she was actually apologizing to Xiang Shaoyun on her own initiative. And Xiang Shaoyun was actually rejecting her apology. That made her feel terrible, and she was on the verge of tears.
Xiang Shaoyun looked at her misty eyes and said with a cold expression, "I have always been a petty person."
He then shook off her hand and sped off.
Han Chenfei was surprised to find that Xiang Shaoyun was completely unmoved, and she shouted helplessly, "You are a bastard with a heart of stone!"
When she saw that Xiang Shaoyun was about to leave her vision, she stomped angrily before chasing after him again.
Xiang Shaoyun did not expect Han Chenfei to continue following him. He sighed inwardly, Women are really troublesome.
He was now extremely sensitive to anything related to romance. He did not wish to have a repeat of what just happened. For now, he just wanted to peacefully grow his strength. As for romance, he would let everything happen naturally.
>
He allowed Han Chenfei to follow him all the way to the armory. After handing over their jade plates, they were allowed entry. Huang Tianji had arrived before them and was on his way out when he saw the two enter together. Instantly, his eyes flashed with a murderous glint.
Xiang Shaoyun looked over and noticed that Huang Tianji had actually reached the ninth stage. Even so, he still fearlessly provoked, "Dear prince, it has been a while. Have you been good?"
"I have been doing well. But that might not be the case for you soon," replied Huang Tianji unyieldingly.
"Soon? Why not now? Let's get on the ring and fight to the death. I have nothing under my name, so I will be honored to fight a noble prince like yourself," said Xiang Shaoyun shamelessly.
Huang Tianji fumed from the provocation. He looked at Han Chenfei and demanded, "Is this the kind of man you like? See how he admits to having nothing under his name? He is destined to be a coarse savage his entire life and will never be cultivated into the nobility."
Han Chenfei was unhappy to see Huang Tianji criticizing Xiang Shaoyun, so she replied protectively, "His coarseness is what I like about him. At least he is real, not fake."
Her reply further infuriated Huang Tianji. He snorted coldly before exiting the armory. He had already made his pick, so there was no need to stay and be frustrated with them.
"Hey, hey, hold on. What about our deathmatch?" Xiang Shaoyun shouted.
Huang Tianji replied, "When the competition of the four academies starts, your death will arrive."
He then left, not bothering to waste any more time with Xiang Shaoyun. But inwardly, he vowed, I will definitely reap your life during the competition!
Although Huang Tianji had broken through into the ninth stage, he still wasn't confident in facing Xiang Shaoyun. After all, Xiang Shaoyun was able to fight Zhan Wushuang, which proved he still couldn't threaten Xiang Shaoyun. He planned to use the next six months to increase his strength to the very peak of the Dragon Ascension Realm. It wouldn't be too late to stomp on Xiang Shaoyun then.
Xiang Shaoyun could guess Huang Tianji's plan, but he had no fear. With his strength and trump cards, he feared nobody.
When Xiang Shaoyun and Han Chenfei entered the armory, they saw rows upon rows of weapons. There were all sorts of weapons, such as swords, sabers, spears, hooks, and whips. Each one was a top-quality emperor weapon with extraordinary strength. Just looking at all these weapons would cause one to be dazzled.
"Truly worthy of being one of the Four Great Ancient Academies. Just looking at tens of thousands of emperor weapons at the same time is enough to shake anyone to their core," lamented Han Chenfei.
Xiang Shaoyun nodded. "That's right. Each weapon is exuding a powerful aura. The workmanship of these weapons is excellent. Any one of them can be auctioned for an extremely high price outside."
He wasted no time and headed to the second floor.
Chapter 885: Shark Devourer Saber
Second floor of the armory.
This floor was similarly filled with numerous shiny weapons. The weapons here were even better than the weapons on the first floor, and almost all of them were peak emperor weapons. There were even some sovereign weapons here. The weapons were displayed in an orderly manner, and even without any astral energy applied to them, they were still shining with a dazzling luster.
Even Xiang Shaoyun couldn't help but stay and appreciate the weapons on the second floor. They looked incredibly impressive, giving one an urge to grab them all.
"Ten Directions Halberd, gold elemental peak emperor weapon, able to enhance one's offensive power by 30 percent."
"Crescent Moon Saber, water elemental peak emperor weapon, able to enhance one's offensive power by 30 percent."
"Bloodvein Sword, fire elemental peak emperor weapon, able to enhance one's offensive power by 35 percent."
...
Each weapon had its name, elemental property, and enhancement rate recorded below it, displaying how extraordinary they were. Han Chenfei was extremely excited to see all the weapons. She picked up an ice elemental sword and lightly swung it about. Immediately, frost energy rippled out, instantly dropping the temperature around her.
"Don't mess around," Xiang Shaoyun warned her.
"I couldn't stop myself. The weapons here are indeed impressive. They are perfectly forged," lamented Han Chenfei as she placed the sword back. Evidently, this sword was still not enough to fully catch her eyes.
"Um. Take your time here. I'm going to the third floor," said Xiang Shaoyun as he started heading to the next floor.
Since Han Chenfei wasn't in the top 10, she couldn't enter the third floor. She could only indignantly say, "I had been too arrogant during the battleground. It won't be long before I get to the top again."
She had always been known as a top-10 freak on the Dragon Phoenix List, but in the first battleground, she had actually dropped to 13th place. She was not reconciled with the result. With her talent and capability, she believed that she deserved a better ranking. Thus, she vowed to prove herself once again.
When Xiang Shaoyun reached the third floor, he found that the number of weapons was much lower. Even so, there were still over 10,000 of them. They were all displayed in an orderly fashion. The room was filled with shiny and dazzling weapons, but as a whole, the atmosphere felt much more oppressive than on the previous two floors.
Each of the weapons on the third floor seemed to possess some sort of sentience and released pulses that gave off an illusion that they were actually alive. They were incredibly extraordinary.
After touring the entire floor and looking over all the weapons, Xiang Shaoyun found himself satisfied with every single one of them. He muttered, "All of them are sovereign weapons, and all of them will be useful to me. But I already have the Overlord Skyslaying Saber and Radiant Saint Sword. What weapon should I pick here?"
In the past, he only aimed to focus on saber techniques. But after obtaining the Light of Wisdom, he could learn anything easily. His comprehension capability was monstrous, and he would be able to quickly grasp any weapon he decided to use. Thus, he wouldn't give up on picking a weapon he felt was right for him, even if it wasn't a saber.
At this time, he recalled the Seven Overlapping Waves Slash that he had obtained from an ancient stele at the battleground. It was a water elemental saber technique. He decided that picking a water elemental saber would be the practical choice. It would still be a saber, but only with a different element. He could still make use of his saber intent with it.
Shortly after, he stopped before a blue saber. The saber had the design of an ordinary saber with a blue edge. Markings of aquatic demons were carved on the blade, while the hilt was shaped like a shark's head. A top-grade demonic core was embedded onto the hilt, exuding a wild sensation.
The saber was named Shark Devourer Saber. It was a top-tier sovereign weapon. Although it wasn't quite as shiny as the other weapons, the edge of its blade was as sharp as shark teeth. It was most certainly an excellent saber capable of cutting through most things.
"You it is," said Xiang Shaoyun as he grabbed the saber.
He returned to the second floor with the saber. At this time, Han Chenfei was done as well. She had picked a rhombus ice shield. It was obvious she wasn't quite interested in the selection on the second floor. After all, she was the young palace master of the Glacier Palace. She definitely had a better weapon already.
The two left the armory together and registered with the elder standing guard outside. Only by doing so would they be able to leave with their selected equipment.
"Shaoyun, there are six months left. Are you going to cultivate in seclusion, or are you going somewhere to continue tempering yourself?" asked Han Chenfei gently, as though their argument from before never happened.
Xiang Shaoyun replied indifferently, "Address me as Overlord. I'm not too used to having my name called. I'll be going to the Book Pavilion to read some books."
"I'm going as well!" Ha
n Chenfei decided to stick with him.
Xiang Shaoyun couldn't even be bothered to give her a response and started heading toward the Book Pavilion. It had been a while since he last read anything. Now would be the time for him to accumulate more knowledge to further enrich his mind. That way, he would be able to make the correct judgment if he was to encounter some weird opponents in the future.
Apart from that, he also needed to memorize more battle techniques so he could fully utilize his nine powers, increase his combat strength, and better prepare himself for the competition of the four academies. He was also preparing for his eventual return to the Ziling Sect.
The 10-year vow he made had arrived. Along their way to the Book Pavilion, many disciples saw them walking together. Because of that, their envy and hatred toward Xiang Shaoyun grew.
Han Chenfei was the number two beauty in the academy. Wherever she went, she would be the center of attention. In the past, she rarely moved around with men apart from Glacier Palace members. But now, she was practically Xiang Shaoyun's tail, obediently following him. In fact, she even looked like she was trying very hard to flatter him. Many people were taken aback.
A lot of people had the urge to ask Xiang Shaoyun one question: "I thought you declared Yu Caidie your woman? Why are you nabbing Han Chenfei as well? Are you going to leave us anything at all?"
Unfortunately, none had the courage to say so to Xiang Shaoyun, who had the strength to fight Zhan Wushuang to a draw.
Soon, the two arrived at the Book Pavilion. After bowing slightly to the elder, Xiang Shaoyun said, "This disciple greets the elder."
The elder lazily raised his eyelids, and a sharp glint flickered in his eyes. He replied, "It has been a while since I last saw you here. Take this chance to properly accumulate more knowledge."
"Yes, elder," replied Xiang Shaoyun respectfully before stepping into the Book Pavilion.
He went straight to a certain corner, selected a few books that he had not read, and started skimming through them.