Chapter 64

Jiang Yi dismissed the maid who had come to help him, personally picked up a cup of tea, and invited Ji Tingyu to sit down. Only then did he ask curiously, "Not competing for the top ten? What does that mean? Hmm... Miss Ji, I apologize, but I am completely unfamiliar with this Blood Refinement."

Ji Tingyu had originally come to give him a hint, to remove any lingering doubts in Jiang Yi's heart and to forge a bond of friendship. Jiang Yi was full of secrets and wonders, and befriending such a person would be beneficial for both her and the Ji family.

Seeing Jiang Yi sincerely seeking advice, she couldn't leave immediately and patiently explained, "The Spirit Beast Mountain Academy recruits three hundred students each year from dozens of cities in the six countries. The cities where they recruit are not fixed, as most of the recruitment takes place in the Divine Martial Kingdom and the Great Xia Kingdom, and the number of students recruited is too small. Therefore, the other vassal states have secretly protested. The academy has thus opened a special Blood Refinement for recruitment, where any vassal state's martial artist under eighteen years old and at the third level of the Cauldron Casting Realm can sign up. However, your group only accepts fifty people."

Jiang Yi nodded and asked, "How many people usually participate in the special Blood Refinement?"

Ji Tingyu pondered for a moment and shook her head, "It's hard to say. Sometimes over a thousand, sometimes a few hundred. This time, the number is neither too high nor too low, probably around seven or eight hundred."

"So many people? The competition is intense," Jiang Yi was secretly surprised. Seven or eight hundred people competing for fifty spots, he had originally thought that with his strength, the Blood Refinement would be like a game, but now he had to take it seriously.

"Indeed!" Ji Tingyu sighed, "Actually, your group is much more brutal and difficult than ours. I arrived ten days earlier and gathered some intelligence. This time, there are three world-class geniuses who have already broken through to the Purple Mansion Realm in your group, as well as over a dozen noble young masters and misses, and some are relatives of the academy's formal students. That's why I suggested you not compete for the top ten, but to ensure you make it into the top fifty."

Jiang Yi asked in confusion, "Why compete for the top ten? Is there any benefit?"

"Uh..."

Ji Tingyu was thoroughly defeated by Jiang Yi. He wanted to enter the Spirit Beast Mountain Academy but hadn't even gathered any information? Was he too confident in his own strength, or was he just naturally clueless?

She sighed and explained again, "Of course there are benefits. Think about why so many people are vying to enter the Spirit Beast Mountain Academy. It's because the academy has excellent mentors, secret techniques for taming spirit beasts, and many other wonders, such as cultivation rooms with twice the density of spiritual energy compared to the martial hall, a library with tens of thousands of martial techniques, divine steles for comprehending special realms, and various elixirs in the alchemy room. If you want to use or obtain these things in the academy, you either have to pay a sky-high price in purple gold, or you have to exchange them with points. The Blood Refinement is the best way to earn points. For example, the first place in your group can earn a thousand points, and a thousand points can allow you to learn a high-grade Earth Rank martial technique for free!"

"Ah, I see. I understand, thank you for your guidance, Miss Ji!" Jiang Yi suddenly understood, remembered it carefully, and thanked Ji Tingyu with a bow.

"Alright, I should go back."

Ji Tingyu's purpose was achieved, and she got up to leave. At the door, she suddenly turned and smiled, "Jiang Yi, good luck! I hope to see you in the academy."

Jiang Yi watched Ji Tingyu leave. Jiang Yunhai quietly came in from the back hall, smiled at Jiang Yi, and said, "Young Master, why didn't you see that girl off? You're so lacking in manners, it's hard to win a girl's heart."

"Ah? I don't understand these things!"

Jiang Yi's face turned awkward, and he rubbed his nose, "Grandfather, I never thought about pursuing Miss Ji. A woman as smart as her, I'm not really fond of."

"Indeed! This Ji family girl is good in every way, but she's too smart and too ambitious. Such a woman is indeed not suitable for you."

Jiang Yunhai nodded in agreement and then instructed, "Alright, Young Master, the things I wanted to tell you, the Ji family girl has already told you. Go into seclusion now. Try to break through to the fifth level of the Cauldron Casting Realm within five days. Of course, if you can't, don't force it. Remember, you must come out of seclusion after five days."

"Alright!"

Jiang Yi nodded and immediately returned to his room to cultivate. Cultivation, which used to be a torment for him, was now a pleasure. Feeling the essence energy surge like a spring, and seeing his strength rapidly increase, the joy was indescribable.

...

As the date of the Spirit Beast Mountain Blood Refinement approached, the Spirit Beast City became increasingly lively. All the large and small inns and hotels in the city were fully booked, and many private residences were rented out. The streets were bustling with traffic and activity.

The five days passed in a flash. On the square outside the southern gate of Spirit Beast City, a large crowd gathered early in the morning, numbering in the thousands. Dozens of mentors from the Spirit Beast Mountain Academy were also present, waiting for the sun to rise to officially begin the Blood Refinement.

Of these thousands of people, only about a thousand were actually participating in the Blood Refinement, divided into two large formations. One side was Ji Tingyu and the other special recruits, while the other side had at least eight hundred people, clearly those like Jiang Yi who were participating in the special Blood Refinement.

Ji Tingyu was still wearing her beautiful yellow dress, like a blooming yellow rose. She was surrounded by Jiang Henshui, Liu He, and several other elegantly dressed young masters. A graceful lady, a gentleman's ideal, Ji Tingyu's beauty naturally attracted the attention and pursuit of men wherever she went.

"Hmm?"

However, her thoughts were not on the young masters around her, nor on the few outstanding young masters and misses in the other formation. Her gaze swept over the opposite formation, her beautiful eyes filled with doubt. The Blood Refinement was about to start, but Jiang Yi still hadn't appeared?

"Hmm?"

A cold, white-robed woman among the mentors also scanned the crowd. Seeing that Jiang Yi had not appeared, her eyes showed a faint disappointment and resentment. She had kindly given him a hint, and Jiang Yi was so careless with this opportunity?

"The rules of the competition are known to many, but I will restate them," a tall, muscular mentor in black battle armor stepped forward, his gaze sweeping the crowd to suppress the noise. He pointed to the mountain ahead and said, "Do you see that mountain? That's Spirit Beast Mountain, and the academy is at its peak. Your task is to hunt beasts and climb the mountain. Each beast has a token of a different color in its body. A group of students must obtain nine tokens of different colors and reach the academy gate within three days to pass the Blood Refinement. As for the second group, you must obtain three times the number of tokens. Of course, the more tokens you obtain, the more special rewards the academy will give you!"

The martial artists participating in the Blood Refinement nodded; they were all familiar with these rules. The mentor checked the time, raised his hand, and declared, "I must emphasize one point: the Blood Refinement is a trial. If you are not a match or lack confidence, do not act recklessly, or the academy will not be responsible for any injuries or deaths. Of course, you must not intentionally kill others during the Blood Refinement. If discovered, you will never be admitted. Alright... the Blood Refinement begins. Group one, start from the east side of the mountain. Group two, start from the west side."

"Whoosh!"

At that moment, a figure suddenly flew out from the city wall, as if... thrown out with great force from inside the city.

"Bang!"

The person landed heavily on the ground but rolled a few times to dissipate the force and was not injured. He stood up, took out a registration token from his chest, and said with an awkward smile, "Sorry, I overslept. Please forgive me, mentors."

"..."

The crowd looked at each other in surprise. This guy was really bold, daring to be late for such an important event? And his entrance was so dramatic...

"Cauldron Casting Realm, fifth level!"

Mentor Su and Ji Tingyu's eyes lit up. They knew that Jiang Yi's lateness was not due to oversleeping but because he had just broken through. He had flown out because Jiang Yunhai, fearing Jiang Yi would miss the Blood Refinement, had thrown him out from inside the city.

"Jiang Yi!"

Jiang Henshui, Liu He, He Dao, and Leng Qianqian's eyes narrowed. This troublemaker had also come? It seemed that life in the Spirit Beast Mountain Academy would not be peaceful...