Gu Xun inquired what business the other party had with him, and upon seeing this, the person revealed the purpose of their visit.
"Student Gu Xun, you and Student Dong Qianqiu have passed our academy's virtual challenge tournament—a feat no one has accomplished in years. The academy has specially established a lottery event in recognition."
Gu Xun and Dong Qianqiu exchanged glances at these words. Dong Qianqiu desperately wanted to retort; You drop a twenty-stage trial at the end of the first semester, with a thousand-year spirit beast guarding the final level?
What are spirit masters averaging around seven to eight years old supposed to fight with? Of course, Dong Qianqiu knew better than to voice it.
"Oh, that's nice."
Gu Xun remained indifferent to the lottery, and the speaker knew full well that such things held little appeal for him.
The main focus was on Dong Qianqiu. The dean then raised his hand to introduce the two assessors.
"These are your two examiners for this session; Wang Wei and Shi Mo. They will escort you to the lottery area shortly."
Gu Xun nodded in acknowledgment before following them to the designated zone. The lottery area was a five-by-five grid.
Twenty-five colored tiles lay within—gold, white, purple, black, red, blue, and more.
"This is the lottery area. You may each select one square to land on, after which your prize will appear."
Gu Xun and Dong Qianqiu both looked at the twenty-five tiles on the lottery platform. Dong Qianqiu nudged Gu Xun with his elbow.
"How about... you go first?"
"No, I doubt there's anything worthwhile among these prizes. You go ahead."
"Huh? Me?"
Dong Qianqiu froze at the suggestion, but Gu Xun nodded. Could there possibly be anything here that Gu Xun actually wanted?
"What else? You don't think I need these things, do you? Hurry up, stop dawdling."
Gu Xun pulled Dong Qianqiu forward, causing him to stumble to the lottery platform.
"Is it okay if I give my draw to Dong Qianqiu?"
Gu Xun asked the proctor. The proctor froze for a moment, then recalled that Gu Xun was backed by a powerful figure—clearly someone with deep connections.
It made perfect sense that he wouldn't care for their prizes. Realizing this, the proctor relaxed and nodded.
"Certainly. As long as it's voluntary, the academy respects every student's choice."
Dong Qianqiu felt deeply moved seeing Gu Xun relinquish the prize to him. Perhaps Gu Xun truly held these rewards in low regard.
But the fact remained that Gu Xun had saved the better items for her. She needed to reach the rank of Spirit Grandmaster quickly—he couldn't afford to hold anyone back.
"Student Dong Qianqiu, you may begin."
The proctor activated the lottery machine, and the twenty-five colorful blocks before her instantly lit up.
"Mhm. And thank you, Gu Xun."
"Don't make it sound like you're offering yourself in return. I genuinely don't care for these lottery prizes."
Gu Xun waved dismissively, and Dong Qianqiu's face flushed crimson at his words.
"Who said anything about offering myself?!"
"Ahem... I'm still here."
The proctor, observing Gu Xun and Dong Qianqiu's playful banter, could only clear his throat to remind them he was present.
"Oh! Sorry, sorry!"
Startled by the proctor's sudden voice, Dong Qianqiu jumped and immediately apologized.
Dong Qianqiu then prepared for the lottery draw. After adjusting her stance, she selected a blue square to land on.
A flash of blue light erupted as the system's mechanical voice announced:
[Congratulations! You have drawn a 500-year extension to your soul ring lifespan.]
[Please proceed to the Spirit Pagoda to claim your reward.]
"Five hundred years!"
Dong Qianqiu covered her mouth in disbelief—never expecting the reward to directly extend her soul ring lifespan by five centuries.
"Alright, Dong Qianqiu, please proceed with your second draw."
The proctor, Shi Mo, noticed Dong Qianqiu's stunned expression and gently reminded her.
Snapping back to reality, Dong Qianqiu nodded repeatedly. Gu Xun glanced around, suspecting this lottery device might be manually operated.
Dong Qianqiu soon returned to the lottery platform. After a moment's hesitation, she turned to Gu Xun.
"What color do you like? Or maybe you could draw for me?"
"You go ahead. As for color... gold, I guess."
Gu Xun kept his hands in his pockets, utterly unmoved. Seeing this, Dong Qianqiu had no choice but to draw herself.
As Dong Qianqiu looked at the lottery platform, she landed directly on the golden block area.
The moment Dong Qianqiu lightly touched a golden block, it immediately shimmered with golden light, accompanied by the familiar mechanical prompt from the system.
[Congratulations! You have won the opportunity to enter the Basic Spirit Ascension Platform]
[Please proceed to the Spirit Pagoda to claim your reward.]
"Spirit Ascension Platform?"
Dong Qianqiu froze for a moment before realizing it was the platform that accelerated soul ring maturation.
"Congratulations, Dong Qianqiu, on winning access to the Basic Spirit Ascension Platform. You may bring up to four companions with you."
Seeing that multiple people could enter together, Dong Qianqiu immediately flashed an adorable smile.
"Thank you, Examiner Shi! Gu Xun, we can go to the Ascension Platform together!"
Dong Qianqiu immediately approached Gu Xun to share the news. Gu Xun hesitated—his soul rings could advance on their own, seemingly bypassing the need for the Spirit Ascension Platform.
"Well, if you want to go, just call Qiu'er and Huihui when the time comes. We'll all go together."
"Great! Great! We'll definitely go together then!"