Chapter 9: The Knight's Holy Temple Arrives

With a thought, a white glow burst forth from his chest almost instantly. In front of Long Dangdang, the white light spread out like a blooming white lotus, coalescing around his body to form a protective shield three meters in diameter. Although it looked somewhat translucent, Long Kongkong tried punching it and felt an extremely strong resilience, even with a rebound force that sent him sprawling on his bottom.

This was the effect of the Holy Spirit Protection that came with the Holy Lotus Spirit Furnace.

The two mages from the Magic Holy Temple told Long Dangdang before they left that the application of the spirit furnace was different for every mage, each with their own way of using it. The specifics required self-exploration and constant attempts. The spirit furnace was a treasure of heaven and earth, and its mysteries were still not fully understood by humans, so he needed to experience it himself.

"That's pretty cool! Girls would definitely like it. How about we switch?" Long Kongkong, looking at the blooming white lotus, his eyes shining brightly.

Long Dangdang replied irritably, "Get lost!"

"It should be you who gets lost. You have to go to the Knight Academy tomorrow. Have a good walk, I won't see you off. Now you are Long Kongkong, and I am Long Dangdang." Long Kongkong said smugly.

Long Dangdang frowned and asked, "Is there anything noteworthy on your side?"

"Nothing much. The homeroom teacher is called Wei Huo, a very strong type. My desk partner is called Xi Feng, a strong type of the same age. I don't know the others, I was too preoccupied with being gloomy. What about your side?" Long Kongkong asked.

Long Dangdang replied, "You've met the homeroom teacher, Teacher Siyu. My desk partner is called Aisha. We can switch, but you mustn't ruin my reputation and must act like me."

"I know, isn't it the shy and dark type? I can do it." As he spoke, he reined in his carefree expression, his eyes instantly becoming calm and clear, with a hint of shyness on his face.

If there were outsiders present at this moment, they would surely think the two of them looked like one person looking in a mirror.

"I'm a bit nervous," Long Kongkong said in a show of pretense.

"Get lost!"

"I already said it's you who should get lost. Don't mess up! I promised to lead the whole class to success."

"Help me take notes at the Magic Academy tomorrow, I'll need to review them."

"Go on, stop talking."

Long Dangdang left, heading to the dormitory of the Knight Academy.

Long Kongkong sat on the bed, curiously touching his chest. At this moment, the golden glow on his body had completely disappeared. He even took off his clothes and looked in the mirror, finding no difference in his body, but the warmth inside him persisted. It seemed as if the surrounding air had become warm, and his chest and abdomen felt warm and comfortable.

He had also learned meditation today, cultivating spiritual energy. Whether it was magic spiritual energy or inner spiritual energy, it was cultivated through meditation, though the methods of applying spiritual energy were different. In essence, spiritual energy was similar. One communicated with heaven and earth, the other with oneself. As cultivation deepened, the differences would become more apparent, but initially, magic spiritual energy and inner spiritual energy were quite similar.

With his lazy nature, he would definitely not have cultivated anything, and would have just gone to sleep. But because he was curious about the newly obtained Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace, he still tried meditating according to the method Wei Huo taught today.

At first, he didn't feel much, and gradually, Long Kongkong's restless nature made it hard for him to sit still. What was this "five hearts toward the sky," visualizing oneself, and feeling oneself draw in the elemental energy of heaven and earth? He felt nothing.

Just as he was about to end his meditation and go out to find something to eat, suddenly, the warm feeling in his chest and abdomen seemed to ripple slightly, like a small warm lake rippling with a circle of waves. These ripples quickly spread throughout his body, and in an instant, he felt a thorough comfort, so comfortable that he even moaned.

All the pores on his body seemed to open at this moment, making him feel incredibly comfortable, even his slightly hungry stomach relaxed.

Was this the effect of meditation?

Not long after, about a minute, another wave of warmth rippled from his chest and abdomen, quickly spreading throughout his body, bringing another wave of comfort.

Long Kongkong subconsciously relaxed, the comfort was so wonderful that he quickly immersed himself in it. The continuous waves of warmth enveloped his body, and the previously disappeared golden glow began to faintly reappear on his chest.

Even if a strong mage from the Magic Holy Temple were present, they wouldn't know what was happening to Long Kongkong.

The Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace, while somewhat redundant in a certain sense, was produced in very limited quantities. Additionally, this type of spirit furnace could not be inherited; it would dissipate with the host upon death, making it rare. The spirit furnace Long Kongkong absorbed today was indeed the last one in the world.

However, no matter how inferior a spirit furnace was, the six Holy Temples would never give it to someone with only ten and nine innate inner and magic spiritual energies! This was the most ordinary person, lacking the qualifications to become a cultivator. Even if they tried, it would be ineffective.

Those who were granted a spirit furnace by the Holy Temples had to have at least fifty inner spiritual energies, the minimum threshold. Only geniuses could fully utilize a spirit furnace! The Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace, with its potential to increase innate spiritual energy, was previously given to those with very high innate spiritual energies, like Long Dangdang, hoping they could make further progress.

In the history of the six Holy Temples, there was once a cultivator with fifty-five innate inner spiritual energies who, through the Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace, increased his innate inner spiritual energy by ten points, the highest record.

Long Kongkong, under Long Dangdang's manipulation, was undoubtedly the one with the worst talent to ever receive a spirit furnace, regardless of the type. However, he inadvertently met the conditions of the Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace, absorbing it successfully.

In fact, the host required by the Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace was purity. Its ability to absorb elemental energy determined this. What is purity? The less one possesses, the purer they are in relation to nature. Long Kongkong's situation, with both innate spiritual energies being only ten, was actually rare among ordinary people. This inadvertently met the requirements, allowing the Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace to absorb elemental energy with minimal interference from the host, achieving an unprecedented level of integration with Long Kongkong's body.

This is why, during his first meditation, Long Kongkong, influenced by the Primordial Vortex Spirit Furnace, entered a state of complete absorption.

On the other side, Long Dangdang, who had arrived at the Knight Academy dormitory, had a different experience.

Wearing the Spirit Awakening Necklace and beginning to meditate, he understood what the fire mage meant by the spirit gathering array given to him.

The Spirit Awakening Necklace was a silver chain with a silver crystal-like rhombus pendant, simple and elegant.

When he started to meditate, he vaguely felt some strange things in his consciousness. The next moment, a cool sensation emanated from the pendant, quickly spreading throughout his body, giving Long Dangdang a distinctly clear and transparent feeling.

The strange sensations he had previously felt became clearer. In his consciousness, he saw some faint colors. As he focused on these colors with the help of the Spirit Awakening Necklace, the cool sensation became more pronounced, and more and more coolness flooded in, making his consciousness clearer and the colors more distinct. Soon, Long Dangdang was immersed in the cool, transparent feeling.

He didn't know how long it had been, but when he subconsciously opened his eyes, he was surprised to find that the sky outside was already bright. In his own perception, it seemed like only a few minutes had passed!

Blinking, Long Dangdang quickly got out of bed and went to the window to look outside. Instantly, he felt that the world in his eyes seemed to become more vivid, with all the colors appearing so bright. As long as he focused, he could see everything clearly. The transparent feeling was like eating a piece of ice watermelon on a scorching summer day, except that his transparency seemed to be in his brain.

"Knock, knock, knock!" At this moment, a knocking sound suddenly rang out. A deep voice came from outside, "Long Kongkong, are you awake?"

Long Dangdang was startled, and the next moment, he realized they were calling him. He quickly replied, "Awake, awake."

He walked to the small living room and opened the door. Seeing the person in front of him, he felt that the person was probably half a head taller than him, exuding a strong presence.

"Sir Holy Knight, please come in." The burly man stepped aside and made a gesture to invite him in.

Behind him was a middle-aged man, slightly shorter than the burly man but not by much, exuding a steady and solemn aura.

Long Dangdang, being very smart, immediately realized that this must be someone from the Knight's Holy Temple, and they had come early in the morning.

Seeing Long Dangdang, the Holy Knight's eyes immediately lit up, not because of his good looks, but because of the brightness in his eyes. The clarity in his eyes reflected a pure heart and a pure spirit. At the level of a Holy Knight, this kind of perception was very acute.

"Are you Long Kongkong? With eighty-seven innate inner spiritual energy?" the Holy Knight asked. The burly man also entered and closed the door. Long Dangdang guessed that this must be the homeroom teacher, Wei Huo.

"Um, um." Long Dangdang decided to speak as little as possible to avoid being caught by Wei Huo.

"Let's test it." The Holy Knight didn't say much and immediately took out a testing stone and handed it over.

Soon, the room was filled with a brilliant golden light. Both Wei Huo and the Holy Knight from the Knight's Holy Temple had their eyes instantly filled with excitement.

"Good, good, good!" The Holy Knight looked very satisfied and handed over a storage ring.

Long Dangdang secretly rejoiced, having already put away the storage ring given by the Magic Holy Temple when he heard the knocking.

"Your talent is outstanding. In the history of our Knight's Holy Temple, you can rank in the top ten. This is the assistance given by the Holy Temple. But remember, to become a true knight, talent and effort alone are not enough. You must also have a pure heart. The ten commandments of the knights must be etched in your heart, and you must never deviate from the path. Otherwise, the Holy Temple's tribunal will come for you." The Holy Knight said seriously, clearly not as casual as the two mages from the Magic Holy Temple.

"Yes!" Long Dangdang replied earnestly.

The Holy Knight's expression softened a bit and said, "In the next two years, you must reach the third rank. With your talent, this is very simple. After the third rank, you can choose to become a guardian knight or a punishment knight. At that time, the Holy Temple will give you new assistance. This storage ring contains two knight swords, a knight shield, a close-fitting inner armor for protection, and a rare knight skill. With your talent, I hope you can master this skill within the next two years."

"Yes!" It sounded similar to what the Magic Holy Temple had given, but without the cultivation assistance.

The Holy Knight said, "There are no shortcuts in a knight's cultivation. Only by giving your all, enduring hardships and efforts, and toughening your will and body, can you overcome obstacles. I share this with you."

"Thank you, Sir Holy Knight." Long Dangdang said respectfully.

The Holy Knight nodded, touched his chest with his right hand, and a soft white light immediately emanated. The light was gentle, pulsing with a special energy wave, yet giving a sense of stability.

It was not the sacred light energy. The Holy Knight's right hand swept across his chest, and when he opened his palm again, a small white tripod cauldron appeared in his palm, emitting a soft, pulsing light that was irresistibly attractive.

A spirit furnace?

Sure enough, they gave a spirit furnace!