Chapter 45

Over the course of seven days, Hua Xiajiu spent his time extremely productively.

For the first three days, he continuously refined his soul.

In the stone cave, the heart-wrenching low roars seemed to come from hell, making anyone who heard them shudder with cold.

Hua Xiajiu's expression was distorted, and he was drenched in sweat. In his mind, the black staff would strike his soul form every so often.

Over the three days, Hua Xiajiu fainted once. Compared to his first soul refinement in the Cangman Mountains, it felt much better, but the pain he endured was still unimaginable for ordinary people.

However, the results after the pain were very evident. Due to absorbing the soul energy of the scar-faced middle-aged man and the other two, his soul form, which had already grown to nearly ten meters, was forcibly reduced in size by the soul refinement method to about eight meters, making his soul denser and more refined.

For the next three days, Hua Xiajiu repeatedly practiced the Gengjin Technique.

The Gengjin Technique was something Hua Xiajiu had comprehended from the innate magic of the Tiger Demon King. Through the battle with the scar-faced middle-aged man and the other two, he realized that compared to ordinary spells, the Gengjin Technique was more powerful and flexible.

Especially, ordinary spells required specific hand seals to be cast, while he could easily summon the Gengjin Qi from the天地 (heaven and earth) by making his soul consciousness vibrate at a special frequency and control the spell with his will. Therefore, the casting speed of the Gengjin Technique was much faster than ordinary spells, and casting speed was one of the main factors determining victory in battles.

Additionally, the sharpness and solidity of the Gengjin Qi made the attack spells it formed highly penetrative, easily breaking through ordinary defensive spells of the same realm. The defensive spells formed by the Gengjin Qi were also extremely solid, making them virtually unbreakable against ordinary attacks of the same realm.

Moreover, since the Gengjin Technique was directly comprehended from the Tiger Demon King's soul memory, he had already understood the essence of this technique, allowing him to use it more flexibly. With great proficiency, he could easily form different attack patterns and defensive shapes.

Over the three days, the casting speed of Hua Xiajiu's Gengjin Technique became much faster, and the forms he could cast became more flexible and diverse.

On the seventh day, Hua Xiajiu meditated to cultivate his true essence, restoring his soul, true essence, and physical body to their peak state.

...

The next morning, Hua Xiajiu emerged from the stone cave, activated the Wind Traveling Technique, and slowly ran towards Wuling City.

Along the way, he encountered several groups of cultivators, which was rare, as he usually only saw one or two groups in ten days. However, these people were different from Hua Xiajiu; most of them traveled in pairs or with elders.

Everyone was heading to Wuling City, and when they met, they all looked at each other with caution and hostility.

Hua Xiajiu guessed that these people, like him, were coming to participate in the Ziyu Sect's entrance examination.

From Liu Zhongyuan, he learned that the Ziyu Sect's entrance examination was held every five years, with only fifty slots available in the entire Dawu Empire, or fifty qualified disciples could be recruited. In the past, the qualification tokens were mostly held by the cultivation families and sects of the Dawu Empire, and only a few scattered cultivators could obtain a token at great cost.

However, due to the weakening of the Wuling Sect behind the Dawu Empire, the number of slots increased to one hundred, doubling the number of qualification tokens. This was why Liu Zhongyuan, as an inner disciple of the Ziyu Sect, could obtain a token, and thus Hua Xiajiu had this opportunity.

As evening approached, the sky grew darker.

Hua Xiajiu emerged from a mountain range and saw a massive city before him.

The city looked grand and magnificent, with a gentle white light curtain above it. Under this curtain, the city was invisible to ordinary human eyes, only visible to cultivators at the Condensing Spirit Realm and above.

This city was the cultivator city of the Dawu Empire, different from secular cities, specifically built for cultivators.

In every country, there was a cultivator city, built by the sects behind the country. First, it served as a trading place for cultivators within the country, separated from ordinary people to avoid disrupting secular laws. Second, it was used to recruit and guide ordinary people into the sects.

These pieces of information flashed through Hua Xiajiu's mind. He stood outside the city, observing it for a moment, then walked towards the city gate with a strong sense of curiosity.

He moved quickly, and as he approached the city gate, he saw three gilded characters above it.

Wuling City.

These three characters were ancient, having existed for countless years, giving a sense of great antiquity.

"Wuling City? The Wuling Sect is the sect behind the Dawu Empire, once one of the nine major sects, now a second-rate sect. It seems the legend is true that this city was built by the Wuling Sect."

As Hua Xiajiu approached the city gate, two young men who were whispering to each other turned their gaze to him.

"Sir, please pay the spirit stone for entering the city."

Hua Xiajiu had seen these two men before; they wore earth-brown robes and were both at the late Condensing Spirit Realm. Their expressions were filled with hidden worry, and they intercepted everyone entering the city.

Although Hua Xiajiu had expected this, he still showed a hint of caution when he heard about the spirit stone, subconsciously touching his storage bag and saying seriously, "I need to pay a spirit stone, but why didn't one of the groups I saw earlier pay a spirit stone?"

The two young men's expressions turned cold, and they were about to react, but then they seemed to think of something and restrained themselves. The one on the left said, "Anyone entering Wuling City must pay a spirit stone. This rule has been in place for ten thousand years. If you are from one of the three major sects or nine major schools, you don't need to pay."

Hua Xiajiu recalled the memories of Yu Mingfu and others, confirming that what the man said was true. He then asked carefully, "How many spirit stones do I need to pay?"

The two young men exchanged glances, their expressions filled with a mix of sorrow and anger. The one on the left said, "Originally, it was three spirit stones, but now, you only need to pay one. Here is your entry token."

He then took out a wooden token and handed it to Hua Xiajiu.

Hua Xiajiu reluctantly took out a spirit stone and handed it to the man, took the token, and walked into the city.

Although the entry fee was only one spirit stone, Hua Xiajiu still felt reluctant, even though he had nearly two thousand spirit stones in his storage bag.

Hua Xiajiu walked quickly through the city, looking around. Despite it being dusk, the city was bustling with people, lively and vibrant. The streets were lined with various shops, most of which were filled with treasures and surrounded by spiritual energy, making them seem extraordinary. It was clear that the items sold in these shops were not ordinary.

At first glance, Wuling City seemed no different from a secular city. The only difference was that the people in the city were cultivators, and the items in the shops were naturally very different.

All the people in the city were cultivators, and Hua Xiajiu did not see a single secular person on his way. Most of the cultivators were at the Condensing Spirit Realm or the Core Formation Realm.

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