Chapter 1

The Great Xia Kingdom, Tian Shu Prefecture.

In the city of Nansheng in June, the scorching sun was like a blazing fire, roasting the earth.

Nansheng Intermediate Academy.

A spacious and bright training ground.

Numerous young men and women, with youthful and innocent faces, wearing practice uniforms, sat around the perimeter, their eyes fixed on the center of the field where two figures were rapidly sparring. The wooden swords in their hands clashed with a crisp sound, echoing throughout the training ground.

The two figures in the center were both about fifteen or sixteen years old. The young man on the right had a tall and slender build, a handsome face, and sharp eyes. His physique and demeanor were both excellent. Without mentioning anything else, just his top-notch appearance alone drew the bright, admiring gazes of some of the young women, who looked at him with a hint of shyness.

"Li Luo, go for it!"

Some of the bolder young women cheered for him.

In front of Li Luo stood a robust young man with a rough and rugged face, dark skin, and a physique that contrasted sharply with Li Luo's, making him look like a black bear.

So when he heard the cheers for Li Luo, he immediately felt a bit jealous, baring his teeth and shouting, "Li Luo, I won't hold back!"

He took a step forward, causing the floor to tremble. The wooden sword in his hand sliced through the air, creating a whistling sound as it struck toward Li Luo.

As the sword shadow descended, Li Luo's eyes flickered. He lightly touched the ground with his toes and darted forward, his steps as agile as a flying sparrow, easily evading the heavy and fierce strike.

"That's the Wind Sparrow Step!" someone in the crowd exclaimed, filled with admiration. The Wind Sparrow Step was a low-level phase technique, and many in the field knew it, but few could use it as skillfully as Li Luo.

Li Luo's figure, like a flying sparrow, approached the robust young man. He suddenly drew his wooden sword with a swift motion, a faint light flashing as it stabbed toward the robust young man's chest at incredible speed.

"The Little Spirit Light Sword!" another person exclaimed in surprise. Li Luo's sword strike was like a hanging antelope horn, swift and fierce, making them all marvel at the fact that the top talent of Nansheng Academy was indeed well-deserved.

As the sword shadow approached, the robust young man's expression changed. However, his strength was not to be underestimated. In a critical moment, he steadied himself, stomped his foot, and quickly retreated several steps.

At the same time, a faint silver light appeared on his body, and his hand holding the wooden sword seemed to transform into a blurry silver bear paw.

A low bear roar could be faintly heard from within the robust young man's body.

Seeing this, the many students in the field exclaimed in surprise, "That's Zhao Kuo's Fifth Rank Silver Bear Phase! It looks like he's getting serious!"

Amidst the many exclamations, Zhao Kuo took a step forward, causing a crack to appear in the floor. The heavy sword in his hand, carrying a fierce and brutal force, created a wave of wind as it struck toward Li Luo.

A silver light rose from the wooden sword, and a piercing whistling sound filled the air.

"Violent Slash!"

The robust young man roared, his red light slicing down and colliding directly with the incoming sword shadow.

Bang!

In the next moment, the two swords clashed.

In the intense collision, the wooden sword in Li Luo's hand almost shattered instantly. A brutal force, like that of a raging bear, surged forward, shattering the entire wooden sword.

The force sent Li Luo reeling back several steps.

Li Luo steadied himself, looked at the broken wooden sword in his hand, and smiled helplessly, saying, "Alright, Zhao Kuo, you win."

"Ah."

At these words, some of the young women in the field let out a sigh of regret, while many of the young men smirked, naturally feeling a mix of envy and jealousy toward Li Luo, who was so popular among the girls.

"Such a pity. Li Luo's attack was more fierce, and he was better at using phase techniques than Zhao Kuo. If he had a phase, he would have definitely won this match," someone commented.

"Indeed, Zhao Kuo has a Fifth Rank Silver Bear Phase, with incredible strength. His phase power is probably at the Fifth Seal level. He truly is the strongest person in our Second Academy now."

"Li Luo's talent and insight in practicing phase techniques are indeed remarkable, but he was born with an empty phase, which is a significant weakness. Without strong phase power to support his techniques, even if he masters them perfectly, they won't be very effective."

"Haha, don't pity him. Who is Li Luo? He is the young lord of one of the four major estates of the Great Xia Kingdom, the Luo Lan Estate. His parents are the youngest ennobled nobles in the Great Xia Kingdom. In just ten years, they established the Luo Lan Estate, which has become one of the four major estates in the Great Xia Kingdom. They are well-known not only in the Great Xia Kingdom but also beyond its borders."

"Hey, when did you start talking about old news? Since his parents went missing in the 'Battlefield of Dukes' three years ago, the Luo Lan Estate has declined significantly. From what I've heard, there are now significant divisions within the estate, and it might even split in the future. His position as young lord might not last long."

"Oh? Is that so? The current leader of the Luo Lan Estate should be... Senior Sister Jiang Qing'e, right?"

At the mention of this name, all the young men in the field looked more excited, as she was a legend in Nansheng Intermediate Academy.

However, when they thought about the relationship between this legendary senior and Li Luo, their gazes toward him became somewhat strange.

As the young men and women in the field whispered to each other, Zhao Kuo walked over to Li Luo, patted his shoulder, and grinned, "Are you okay? Don't blame me for winning unfairly."

Li Luo smiled. Zhao Kuo was straightforward and had a good relationship with him. Moreover, there was nothing unfair about this match.

After all, being born with an empty phase was his biggest flaw, and he couldn't blame Zhao Kuo for it.

On the sidelines, a middle-aged man named Xu Shan Yue, a teacher at the Second Academy,收回了目光，他的眼神中同样充满了惋惜。

Li Luo's insight was extremely outstanding, and any phase technique in his hands could be practiced faster than others. In this regard, he clearly inherited the strengths of his two talented parents, and even surpassed them.

But what was regrettable... Li Luo was born with an empty phase, which made it difficult for him to cultivate phase power.

Human cultivation relies on one's phase, which is the fundamental basis for cultivation.

By using one's phase to absorb and refine the energy of the world, the final result is called phase power.

Human phases come in countless varieties but are broadly divided into two categories: elemental phases and beast phases.

Elemental phases are the various elements of the world, such as water, fire, wind, and lightning. Beast phases, on the other hand, are said to have originated from the early days of humanity when a supreme being infused the spirits of beasts into human bloodlines to strengthen humanity, thus creating the beast phases.

Both elemental and beast phases have ranks, ranging from one to nine.

When human children grow to around ten years old, a channel in their body opens, known as the phase palace.

When the phase palace appears, it naturally gives rise to one's phase.

For example, Zhao Kuo's phase palace awakened a Fifth Rank Silver Bear Phase, a type of beast phase.

The characteristic of this phase is immense strength, and when combined with phase power, it has a formidable destructive force.

However, Li Luo's problem lies here. After his phase palace opened, it did not reveal any phase, leaving it empty, which is why it is called the extremely rare empty phase.

Without a phase to absorb and refine the energy of the world, Li Luo naturally found it difficult to cultivate strong phase power... This was the fundamental reason he lost to Zhao Kuo.

Because his phase palace had no phase.

Regarding Li Luo's empty phase, the academy had conducted many tests. Due to the exceptional talents of his parents, the academy's leadership had high hopes for Li Luo, expecting him to eventually enter the most prestigious higher academy in the Great Xia Kingdom, the Holy Profound Star Academy.

In his first year, Li Luo lived up to these expectations, showing remarkable talent in phase technique cultivation, and was directly promoted to the First Academy, which gathered the most talented young people in the entire Tian Shu Prefecture.

However, as time passed and the students reached the age when their phase palaces would manifest, he faced the most awkward situation.

While others had their phases, he... had a phase palace that was empty.

Lacking a phase, although Li Luo's progress in phase techniques was always faster than others, his phase power improved very slowly, and after a year, it was even below the average level of the First Academy.

The cultivation of phase techniques is to enhance phase power, but if the phase power is weak, even the most advanced techniques have limited power.

After multiple tests, the academy's leadership concluded that this was due to Li Luo's physical condition.

This condition, lacking a phase, made it difficult to absorb and refine the energy of the world, making future cultivation particularly challenging.

This result led the phase master of the First Academy to directly apply to the academy's leadership to demote Li Luo to the current Second Academy.

This was normal, as the First Academy was the pride of Nansheng Academy, and the phase master naturally did not want Li Luo to hold them back. More importantly, Li Luo's parents had been missing for a long time, and without these two pillars, the Luo Lan Estate, which was the weakest among the four major estates, had become somewhat awkward in the Great Xia Kingdom.

Thus, Li Luo eventually came to the Second Academy.

Xu Shan Yue sighed inwardly. When Li Luo first came to the Second Academy, Zhao Kuo was not his match, but in just half a year, Li Luo was already being suppressed by Zhao Kuo.

At this rate, in the next half year, Li Luo's ranking in the Second Academy would likely continue to decline.

If Li Luo's final performance was only this, he would probably not be able to enter the prestigious Holy Profound Star Academy, which everyone aspired to.

Xu Shan Yue looked at Li Luo's tall and slender figure and his calm, handsome face, feeling even more regretful. This young man had already worked very hard, but because his parents were so outstanding, others had high expectations of him, and now, his parents' excellence had become a kind of pressure.

After all, people only say that a tiger father cannot have a dog son, without understanding the deeper issues.

Li Luo faced the many regretful gazes, brushed off the wood chips from his body, and sat down nearby. He knew what everyone was thinking.

Empty phase...

This simply indicated a bleak future.

But... Li Luo slightly pursed his lips and involuntarily touched his lower abdomen. Except for himself, no one knew that his special condition was not just the so-called empty phase.

In this world, cultivators initially have only one phase palace. If they reach the Noble Rank, they will have a second phase palace, and at the Duke Rank, they will have a third... However, reaching the Noble Rank is rare in the entire Great Xia Kingdom, and the Duke Rank is even rarer.

Of course, this is not absolute. It is said that those with exceptional talent might have a very low probability of developing a second phase palace before reaching the Noble Rank, but this probability is extremely rare.

And Li Luo's other special condition was... although he was still at the initial Ten Seals level, he did not have one phase palace... but three, unheard of!

Yes, this is a level that only the peak of Duke Rank cultivators can achieve, but it appeared in Li Luo's body.

What made it even more dramatic was that all three phase palaces were empty!

So, if one empty phase means no future, then what about three empty phases? Does that mean a future or no future?

Li Luo sighed, his expression somewhat melancholic.

As Li Luo was lost in thought, Zhao Kuo sat down next to him and asked in a low voice, "Have you solved your empty phase problem yet?"

Li Luo just shook his head.

Seeing this, Zhao Kuo also sighed helplessly. He knew he was asking a pointless question, as phases are innate and there has never been a case of filling them in later.

Li Luo's problem was clearly a huge challenge.

As they spoke, Xu Shan Yue walked into the field, encouraged Li Luo a few times, and then addressed the many students, "Everyone, next month is the most important exam period. Your future in higher academies depends on this exam, so everyone should work hard in their cultivation."

The students all looked solemn, as they had been studying for years, and the exam next month was their goal. If they could enter a higher academy, their future achievements would greatly improve.

After speaking, Xu Shan Yue announced the end of the class.

Li Luo and Zhao Kuo walked out of the training ground together.

"I need to practice my phase techniques more. You really hit me hard today. If your phase power were a bit stronger, I would have been beaten up," Zhao Kuo sighed wistfully as he waved goodbye to Li Luo.

Li Luo smiled, knowing that Zhao Kuo was trying to avoid affecting his mood due to the match.

But, over time, he had gotten used to it.

Li Luo withdrew his gaze and followed the path through the woods, heading out of the academy.

Along the way, he encountered many students, both male and female, who all looked at him. After all, even without his handsome appearance, Li Luo was known in the academy for his unique legend.

Li Luo remained calm about these gazes, continuing along the path until he paused at the academy's entrance.

Ahead, a large crowd gathered, noisy and lively.

The place they surrounded was a green stone wall, the honor wall of Nansheng Academy, which recorded all the outstanding individuals who had graduated from the academy.

The honor wall had been seen countless times by the students of Nansheng Academy, and one would think they would be tired of it, but it was still the most lively place every day.

Li Luo pursed his lips, knowing the reason. Most people were there for her.

Li Luo's gaze fell on a spot on the honor wall, where a crystal stone emitted a glow, forming a slender and lifelike figure.

It was a girl, wearing the uniform of Nansheng Academy, a simple white top with a deep blue short cape that fluttered in the wind, and a black skirt that revealed a pair of long, slender legs, white and dazzling.

She had delicate features, a straight nose, long and thick eyelashes, and skin as white as snow. Each of these features was admirable, but what left the deepest impression was her eyes.

Her eyes were golden, radiating a purity that was hard to describe. If one looked at them for too long, they might even feel a bit of pressure.

Her expression was somewhat cold, and she looked forward, one hand on her slender waist, the other holding a heavy sword. In that moment, a sense of cool and fierce strength enveloped her.

This was a girl whose appearance and demeanor made hearts race.

Behind her figure, her name was engraved on the wall.

Jiang Qing'e, the shining star of Nansheng Academy, possessing a Ninth Rank Light Phase. Her talent amazed countless people in the Great Xia Kingdom.

In just two years, before the major exam, she was directly recruited by the Holy Profound Star Academy, becoming the first person in the Tian Shu Prefecture in a hundred years to receive such an honor.

She had become a legend at Nansheng Academy, and countless students looked up to her. Now, she was well-known throughout the Great Xia Kingdom.

Li Luo gazed at Jiang Qing'e's figure, then noticed some gazes from the surrounding students, both male and female, filled with envy, admiration, and a hint of strangeness.

Li Luo remained indifferent to these gazes, understanding their source.

Because of Jiang Qing'e.

This girl, revered as a goddess by both male and female students at Nansheng Academy, was not only a disciple of his parents from a young age but also... engaged to him.

To put it bluntly, Jiang Qing'e was his fiancée.

(Thank you all for your support, whether you are new or returning readers. I hope "Wan Xiang Zhi Wang" can accompany you again in the future.

Haha, writing this new book, I feel a sense of being a father when writing about Li Luo, maybe because I am a father now?

I hope you all enjoy the new book; it is my greatest honor.)