Liu Bai's actions caught everyone off guard. Even the two Elders were stunned and didn't know whether they should intervene.
However, recalling what they had said earlier, the two ultimately chose to remain silent. It was best to let the young man handle things his own way.
"Junior Liu Bai, are you truly willing to give up the Spiritual King Crystal?" Wei Fan asked in surprise and disbelief.
He had been envious of Liu Bai and Yue Qing a moment ago, but upon witnessing this scene, an uncontrollable excitement welled up in his chest.
"Of course," Liu Bai replied calmly, his tone filled with certainty.
"I'll offer three million Spiritual Values!"
Before Wei Fan could continue speaking, another voice rang out, cutting across the crowd.
Wei Fan's expression instantly darkened as his sharp gaze swept toward the bidder, only to see that it was Xing Rui.
"What are you looking at? That's all the Spiritual Values I have. If you can offer more, then go ahead!" Xing Rui said bluntly, his tone brash and unyielding.
Wei Fan snorted coldly, unwilling to argue with such a fool. "Three million and five hundred thousand Spiritual Values!" he declared firmly.
Though that wasn't his entire fortune, it was close enough to emptying his pockets. The pain in his expression was obvious.
The other students, who had been considering making a bid, immediately fell silent.
They couldn't compete. Even among the top twenty of the Heaven Ranking, few possessed such wealth. To scrape together even one million Spiritual Values was difficult enough, let alone three million.
Everyone knew that while the Spiritual King Crystal was indeed valuable, it was still not comparable to a Deity-grade Art.
In the Spiritual Value Hall, a lower-grade Deity-grade offensive technique was priced around three million Spiritual Values. Apart from those like Wei Fan who urgently needed this Spiritual King Crystal, no one would sell everything they owned just to compete for it.
After a long silence, just as Liu Bai was about to announce that the Spiritual King Crystal would go to Wei Fan, Chu Lin—who had been hesitating all this time—suddenly spoke up.
"Junior Liu Bai, besides Spiritual Values, would you accept a trade? I don't have enough Spiritual Values, but I can offer something else of equal value!"
The moment he said this, Wei Fan nearly choked on his breath, his anger flaring. "Chu Lin, don't make a mess of this! Junior Liu Bai already said the highest bidder wins. If you don't have Spiritual Values, stop wasting everyone's time!"
Chu Lin wasn't the least bit intimidated. "The highest bidder wins, yes, but he didn't say it had to be paid only in Spiritual Values. How is this unreasonable?"
Liu Bai thought for a moment. Among his Five Elemental Spirits, he was still missing Water and Wood. He already had his eyes on a Water-attributed Spiritual Beast Essence—the Blackwater Serpent Essence in the Spiritual Value Hall—but Wood-attributed ones were extremely rare. Even the Hall didn't have any.
With that in mind, Liu Bai looked between the two and said, "I can accept a trade, but I only need a Wood-attributed Spiritual Beast Essence, at least of the Heavenly Grade, middle tier or above. Alternatively, I'll accept information related to one."
He lacked nothing else. With enough Spiritual values, he could exchange for anything else he needed in the Spiritual Value Hall anyway.
The crowd fell silent at his words.
Everyone was curious why Liu Bai still required Spiritual Beast Essences, but such items were rarely owned by anyone present.
And with a minimum requirement of Heavenly Grade middle tier, that made it even more difficult.
Liu Bai hadn't been expecting much, but to his and everyone's surprise, Chu Lin said, "I don't have a Wood-attributed Spiritual Beast Essence, but I once encountered a Green Spirit Bird during a mission in the Northern Heaven Continent."
Liu Bai's eyes immediately lit up.
"The Green Spirit Bird?"
That beast ranked thirty-second on the Earth List of the Myriad Beast Record, only a step away from being a high-tier Heavenly Grade Spiritual Beast—limited mainly because it wasn't adept at combat.
But that didn't matter. Liu Bai didn't want it for battle.
The key was that the Green Spirit Bird was rumored to carry the bloodline of the divine Myriad Spirit Bird, giving it immense potential for cultivation.
"Senior Chu Lin, are you certain about the Green Spirit Bird's location?" Liu Bai asked eagerly.
Chu Lin nodded. "It's still there, but the Green Spirit Bird belongs to a sect that keeps it as a guardian beast. If you wish to obtain its Spiritual Beast Essence, it might be troublesome."
Liu Bai nodded lightly and glanced at the others.
Seeing that no one else spoke, he turned to Chu Lin with a faint smile. "Senior Chu Lin, you provided the information I needed but not the Essence itself. So if you can also offer the same amount of Spiritual Values as Senior Wei Fan, this Spiritual King Crystal will be yours."
Chu Lin's expression brightened at first, but then he grimaced.
Three and a half million Spiritual Values—that was his entire fortune.
If not for his generous share from the last mission, he couldn't have afforded this amount at all.
But faced with such a rare chance to overtake his peers, Chu Lin clenched his teeth and emptied his pouch.
Afterward, Liu Bai handed over the Spiritual King Crystal, distributed the remaining Spiritual Soldier and Spiritual General Essence Light among Su Xuan and the others, and left the Spiritual Light Realm alone.
The two Elders, seeing that Liu Bai had finished his "stunt," said nothing more. Their gazes swept over the crowd, and their powerful voices echoed through the air.
"The final battle has ended. I hereby declare this year's Hunting War officially concluded!"
As his last word fell, countless radiant beams of light shot down from the heavens, enveloping every participant.
Above the Northern Sea Plaza.
Countless students looked up at the vast light screen slowly fading from the sky, excitement still blazing on their faces. Though Liu Bai and the Guardian had only exchanged a single move, that one strike had left the entire Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy in awe.
The rising sun and descending sword river were forever branded into their minds.
Many couldn't help but sigh. Over the years, the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy had produced many talented individuals, but few could compare to Liu Bai—achieving such brilliance as a freshman.
Everyone knew that from this day forward, Liu Bai's reputation within the academy would not lose to any of the top three on the Heaven Ranking.
Swoosh!
Figures appeared in the sky one after another, but they didn't stay for long. They streaked across the heavens in streams of light, rushing in all directions.
They needed to find secluded places immediately to refine and absorb the majestic spiritual power now surging within their bodies from the Spiritual Light Baptism.
Watching this, the students below couldn't help but feel a surge of envy. After this Hunting War, a new wave of powerful experts would soon emerge within the academy.
Soon after, the figures of Liu Bai, Chu Lin, and Yue Qing appeared above the plaza, instantly drawing countless gazes.
"It's Liu Bai! And Yue Qing and Chu Lin too!"
"Huh? Why didn't they undergo the Spiritual Light Baptism?" someone asked in confusion, noticing that the trio's bodies showed no sign of overwhelming spiritual fluctuation.
"You fool, isn't it obvious? The Spiritual Light Baptism they are going to receive is not the ordinary kind!"
"There are different levels of Spiritual Light Baptism?" a new student beside him asked in confusion.
Hearing this, the senior student showed a proud smile and explained patiently, "Of course. The ordinary Spiritual Light Baptism happens the instant one leaves the Spiritual Light World. The Spiritual Light they gathered automatically transforms into Spiritual Energy and pours into their bodies. Although this energy is considered pure, a large portion of it dissipates during absorption, and in the end, they can only refine about fifty or sixty percent of it."
"But the Spiritual Light Baptism that Liu Bai and the others are going to receive is different. It is said that the Elders of the Spiritual Academy personally perform the baptism for them. The effect of such a baptism naturally cannot be compared with the ordinary one."
"That's strange though. Wasn't Liu Bai the only one who took part in the final battle? Why are there three of them now?"
"I heard that the winners of the final battle are rewarded with a Spiritual King Crystal."
"But that would make two, not three…"
This question stumped everyone, for the students outside could only see the general picture and did not know what had truly happened inside.
At this moment, the two Elders appeared before the three.
One of the gray-robed Elders looked at Liu Bai with a complicated expression before turning to Yue Qing and Chu Lin. "You two should go back and rest first. Three days from now, report to the Discipline Hall to receive your Spiritual Light Baptism."
Yue Qing and Chu Lin left excitedly.
Then, the gray-robed Elder turned his gaze to Liu Bai and suddenly asked, "Liu Bai, earlier outside I saw you skillfully setting up a Fifth-Rank Spiritual Array. Can you tell me what your current Array Path realm is?"
Liu Bai's eyes flashed with surprise, clearly not expecting such a question.
However, he still answered truthfully, "I have long reached the Advanced Heart Array Realm, but I have yet to touch a higher level."
The gray-robed Elder nodded slightly. "As I expected. With your current mastery, being able to control a Fifth-Rank array is already remarkable. But if you wish to explore even higher-level formations, you will need to comprehend deeper truths of the Array Path."
"I am Sikong Ling, an Elder of the Spiritual Array Hall. If you encounter any confusion regarding arrays, you may come to the Spiritual Array Hall to find me."
Liu Bai was overjoyed and quickly bowed respectfully. "Many thanks, Elder!"
He had not expected someone to personally offer to guide him in array studies. That was undoubtedly a great opportunity, and Liu Bai naturally would not refuse.
"Good, no need for formalities." Sikong Ling nodded in satisfaction.
After Liu Bai left, the Elder beside Sikong Ling chuckled. "You old fox, I was wondering why you were so eager this time. So that's your plan. Aren't you afraid that old man Chi Huo will come trouble you when he finds out?"
Such blatant poaching would infuriate anyone.
"Heh, am I supposed to fear that old thing? Besides, Liu Bai is a student of the academy, and as the Grand Elder of the Spiritual Array Hall, why shouldn't I guide him? What can that old man possibly say?"
The other Elder was speechless at his shameless tone.
However, the two did not know that Liu Bai did not return to his residence afterward but instead went straight to the Artifact Refining Hall.
Although he was unaware of the rivalry between the two old men, since he had always addressed Elder Chi Huo as his teacher, and the latter had cared for and guided him for so long, Liu Bai naturally would not keep such matters from him.
But Chi Huo's reaction was completely different from what the two Elders had imagined.
After hearing about the Spiritual Array Elder's offer to instruct Liu Bai, Chi Huo did not get angry at all. Instead, he burst into hearty laughter.
"Hahaha, excellent, this is wonderful!" Chi Huo patted Liu Bai's shoulder and said, "Although I always say that old man Sikong is useless and was even defeated in the Array Path by a little girl, that old fellow still has some real skill. He's a genuine Spiritual Array Grandmaster. Receiving his guidance will be of great benefit to your future progress in the Array Path."
Liu Bai's heart stirred.
He was not surprised that Elder Sikong was a Spiritual Array Grandmaster. After all, one would not be qualified to manage the Spiritual Array Hall of the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy without such skill.
What intrigued him was the "little girl" Chi Huo mentioned, who had once defeated Elder Sikong in the Array Path. If he guessed correctly, that so-called little girl must be Ling Xi.
Liu Bai knew a bit about this woman.
Ling Xi was adopted by Qing Yanjing, Mu Chen's mother, on her journey back to her clan after parting with Mu Chen and his father. Originally, Ling Xi had lived in the Ancient Buddha Clan, but for some reason, she left, and even her memories had been sealed.
She learned a great deal about the Array Path from Qing Yanjing. Although young, her mastery was extraordinary.
If Liu Bai remembered correctly, she also cultivated the Yin Scroll of the Great Pagoda Art, which complemented Mu Chen's Yang Scroll perfectly. After discovering Mu Chen's identity, she passed the Yin Scroll to him according to Qing Yanjing's instructions.
At this time in the story, Ling Xi had only recently arrived at the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, invited by the Dean to assist in setting up formations.
When she first arrived, Sikong Ling had sparred with the seemingly delicate girl, only to be utterly defeated. That humiliation had since become a running joke among the older generation of the academy.
However, the current Ling Xi was utterly cold toward everyone.
Even though Liu Bai had thought about consulting her on the Array Path, he ultimately gave up on the idea.
After all, he was not Mu Chen, and there was no connection between them. There was no need to seek rejection for no reason.
Just because she was a beautiful woman didn't mean he had to flatter her. That would make no sense.
....
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