Chapter 17

"Let's sit here."

Tang Qian'er paid no attention to the gazes in the training ground, pulling Mu Chen straight into it. They stopped at a spot near a golden stone pillar, where there were three lotus cushions made of jade-like stone extending from the pillar.

Mu Chen took a look around, his gaze landing on the golden stone pillar. Surprise flashed in his eyes, as he could sense the dense spiritual energy emanating from it. Clearly, this golden stone pillar was one of the few spirit-gathering pillars in this third-level spirit-gathering array. Practicing near a spirit-gathering pillar naturally had better effects than other places.

"This spirit-gathering pillar is probably made of spirit-gathering stones. No wonder it's a third-level spirit-gathering array." Mu Chen praised lightly. Spirit-gathering stones were materials beneficial for cultivation, and they were not cheap. A spirit-gathering pillar entirely made of spirit-gathering stones must have been quite expensive, which was why many people considered the spirit-gathering array a benchmark for a force's financial strength.

Tang Qian'er nodded, sitting down cross-legged. She stretched her slender arms and slightly arched her chest, the clothes outlining some alluring curves, drawing many covert glances from the training ground.

"Qing Shan, you can practice here too."

Mu Chen also sat down, smiling at Tan Qing Shan. He knew this was a pretty good spot for cultivation, and there were usually many people vying for it. However, he wasn't afraid, even though he didn't want to be overly showy, he wouldn't deliberately act low-key to make himself uncomfortable.

As soon as Mu Chen sat on the jade lotus cushion, he felt the surrounding spiritual energy become even denser. He couldn't help but immediately activate the Great Pagoda Technique, drawing the spiritual energy into his body. After being refined by the Great Pagoda Technique, it turned into a thin black spiritual energy, flowing into his sea of qi, making the spiritual energy within gradually grow stronger.

With such dense spiritual energy, Mu Chen clearly felt that the speed of his spiritual energy growth was more than twice as fast as usual.

Even Mu Chen, who was usually calm, couldn't help but feel a surge of joy. He then focused all his attention on cultivation.

Seeing Mu Chen immediately enter a state of cultivation, Tang Qian'er pouted her lips slightly, then closed her eyes and began her cultivation.

However, their cultivation state didn't last long before it was interrupted by the noise from outside. Mu Chen opened his eyes first, looking at Tan Qing Shan on his left. The young man's face was pale, his fists tightly clenched, clearly suppressing intense anger.

In front of the young man, there were two older teenagers, laughing and pointing at Tan Qing Shan from time to time.

"What are you doing?!" Mu Chen frowned, his voice slightly cold.

The two teenagers also frowned when they saw Mu Chen. One of them smiled faintly and extended his hand to Mu Chen. "You must be Mu Chen. I've heard a lot about you. I'm Jiang Li, and he's Teng Yong."

Mu Chen looked at Jiang Li's extended hand but didn't reach out to shake it. From the other's eyes, he sensed some unfriendly vibes.

"What do you want?"

Seeing Mu Chen's lack of response, Jiang Li and the other's faces turned a bit awkward. Then they pointed at Tan Qing Shan and laughed. "Nothing, we just want to switch places with him."

"No, you can try to get here faster next time." Mu Chen said indifferently.

"Jiang Li, what are you doing?!" Tang Qian'er also woke up. Seeing the scene, her beautiful eyes widened in anger, and she scolded.

Jiang Li shrugged. "Qian'er, you should know the rules of the training ground. This spot isn't for newcomers. I'm doing him a favor, so he doesn't attract jealousy."

As Jiang Li spoke, he glanced at Mu Chen. Although they didn't like him, they knew Mu Chen wasn't easy to provoke. His strength wasn't weaker than theirs, and his background wasn't insignificant. So they didn't directly confront Mu Chen but chose Tan Qing Shan, clearly trying to intimidate Mu Chen.

"You!"

Tang Qian'er's eyes were filled with anger, about to speak, but Mu Chen stopped her. He frowned, looking at Jiang Li and the other, thinking for a moment, then said, "I know this spot is for those with strength. I believe I have the qualifications. Tan Qing Shan is my friend, and he will sit here too. If you have any objections or want to show your strength in front of me, I can accompany you."

Their commotion drew the attention of many people, and Mu Chen's words were heard clearly by all. There was a stir, and the newcomers were indeed impressive.

Jiang Li and the other's faces turned increasingly difficult in the commotion, clearly not expecting Mu Chen to be so firm.

They glared at Mu Chen's serious face, but they didn't dare to scold him. They had heard about the battle between Mu Chen and Liu Yang. Even with a spirit vein, Liu Yang was someone they couldn't easily defeat, but Mu Chen had done it. So they had no confidence in defeating Mu Chen.

"Ha, no wonder you're the young lord of the Mu Domain. Your words are indeed bold."

Just as Jiang Li and the other were in a difficult position, an unpleasant laugh came from behind. Jiang Li and the other's eyes lit up with joy.

"Brother Luo!"

Hearing Jiang Li and the other's surprised voices, Mu Chen also turned his head. He saw a figure approaching, about eighteen years old, with slightly sunken eye sockets and thin lips that gave off a cold aura.

"Luo Tong!"

Tang Qian'er's face also turned slightly serious as she looked at the man.

"Luo Tong?"

Mu Chen raised an eyebrow. He wasn't unfamiliar with this name because the man's father was also a domain lord in the Northern Spirit Region. However, Luo Tong had already turned eighteen last year, and his current strength was still at the late-stage Spirit Movement Realm, meaning he had lost the qualification to enter the Five Great Academies.

This also meant that Luo Tong was the "old hand" Tang Qian'er had mentioned, the most troublesome type of person.

"Mu Chen, it's been a long time."

Luo Tong came to Mu Chen's front and grinned, but his smile wasn't friendly. They had known each other for a long time, but they didn't get along.

Mu Chen glanced at him and said, "Are you here to show off your power in front of me?"

"How dare I? You're a genius who qualified for the Spirit Path." Luo Tong smirked, but his feigned surprise couldn't hide his jealousy. When he heard that Mu Chen had qualified for the Spirit Path, he was so jealous that his eyes turned red. Now, he had already passed the age of eighteen and still hadn't reached the Spirit Wheel Realm, which had cut off his chances of entering the Five Great Academies. Thinking about Mu Chen's talent, he believed it wouldn't be difficult for him to enter the Five Great Academies, which made his jealousy burn even more.

Mu Chen withdrew his gaze, not bothering to deal with this jealous and pitiful guy. Compared to Liu Yang, Luo Tong was nothing.

"Move out of the way."

Seeing Mu Chen ignore him, Luo Tong's anger intensified, but he didn't directly challenge Mu Chen. Instead, he looked at Tan Qing Shan and said coldly.

Regardless of strength or background, he clearly didn't take Tan Qing Shan seriously.

"Luo Tong, don't go too far." Mu Chen's voice turned colder.

"What? Not convinced? Want to fight me?" Luo Tong also laughed coldly. He was at the late-stage Spirit Movement Realm and wasn't afraid of Mu Chen at all. Instead, he wanted to provoke Mu Chen's anger to have a chance to teach this guy a lesson.

Mu Chen's dark eyes stared at Luo Tong. Looking into his seemingly bottomless black eyes, Luo Tong's momentum faltered. No matter how jealous he was, he knew what Mu Chen's qualification for the Spirit Path meant. If Mu Chen hadn't been expelled from the Spirit Path, he wouldn't have the right to shout at Mu Chen.

His momentum faltered, but Luo Tong quickly recovered. Regardless of what Mu Chen had experienced, he was now just a mid-stage Spirit Movement Realm cultivator, no match for him.

"Afraid?"

Luo Tong, angry and embarrassed, said.

"Luo Tong, what are you doing?!"

Before Mu Chen could respond, a deep voice came from nearby. Everyone looked over and saw a tall, muscular figure approaching and standing in front of Luo Tong, scolding him.

"Mo Ling, are you overstepping your bounds?" Luo Tong frowned at the muscular youth.

The youth was a well-known figure in the Northern Spirit Academy, ranking just below Liu Yang of the West Academy. He was also at the late-stage Spirit Movement Realm and was likely to break through to the Spirit Wheel Realm within half a year, qualifying him to enter the Five Great Academies. He was a key figure in the Northern Spirit Academy's cultivation.

"It's almost time for the cultivation class. If Master Mo sees you causing trouble, he won't let you off!" Mo Ling frowned, clearly not fond of Luo Tong.

Luo Tong's face turned ugly, but he knew Mo Ling wasn't afraid of him. Just then, a figure slowly entered the training ground, and the students immediately fell silent. It was Master Mo.

Seeing Master Mo, Luo Tong didn't dare to linger, waving his fist at Mu Chen and reluctantly returning to his spot.

"Are you okay? That guy is a bit annoying, but you'll get used to it." Mo Ling looked at Mu Chen after Luo Tong left, smiling.

"Thanks, I'm fine." Mu Chen smiled kindly.

"No problem. I've heard of you, the only one in the Northern Spirit Region to qualify for the Spirit Path. Ha, looks like I'll have some pressure in the future." Mo Ling smiled, waved his hand, and left.

Mu Chen smiled, looking at Mo Ling's back, feeling some goodwill towards the muscular youth.

"Mu Chen, thank you." Tan Qing Shan said gratefully.

"We came together, so of course, I'll take care of you. Don't mind those guys; you'll be stronger than them eventually." Mu Chen smiled.

Tan Qing Shan nodded firmly.

At this moment, Master Mo slowly entered the training ground, glanced at Mu Chen, and didn't say much. He just waved his hand, and several beams of light shot into the stone pillars. The spiritual energy in the training ground became even denser, indicating that Master Mo had fully activated the spirit-gathering array.

Feeling the dense spiritual energy, Mu Chen smiled, closed his eyes, and entered a state of cultivation again, refining the spiritual energy absorbed into his body.

The half-day cultivation time passed quickly. Just as Mu Chen was about to end his cultivation, he suddenly felt a strange sensation emanating from his sea of qi, making him pause in surprise. After a moment, a surge of joy filled his heart. This was... the Great Pagoda Technique reaching the Foundation Building stage?

(Seeking favorites, seeking recommendations!

Even though it's simple, I hope you won't ignore it.)

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