Chapter 42

To celebrate her promotion to the president of Xiyang House, Yan Lingqing, in a very good mood, invited Li Luo and Cai Wei for dinner in the evening. Then, Li Luo truly experienced Yan Lingqing's incredible drinking capacity.

What shocked him the most was not only Yan Lingqing's terrifying alcohol tolerance, but also Cai Wei, who could be considered a heroine among women. The two women's bold and unrestrained drinking eventually left Li Luo trembling in fear, like a weak quail.

"Li Luo, as long as you can increase the supply of that secret method source water in the future, I will definitely make all the spiritual water and strange light produced by Xiyang House the strongest in Tian Shu County!" With the help of alcohol, Yan Lingqing's beautiful eyes stared at Li Luo with fiery passion.

"Alright, I will try my best to provide it." Li Luo smiled and agreed. Currently, his Phase Power was only at the Seventh Seal Realm. If he could reach the Phase Master Realm, his Phase Power would undergo a qualitative improvement. At that time, the secret method source water he could provide would be much stronger.

If Xiyang House could dominate the spiritual water and strange light market in Tian Shu County, then the annual profit of Luo Lan Manor in Tian Shu County would greatly increase, which would be beneficial for Li Luo to continue his extravagance.

"To that, let's toast to Xiyang House dominating Tian Shu County."

Cai Wei smiled charmingly. Under the influence of alcohol, her already beautiful oval face became even more alluring and captivating.

The three of them raised their cups and clinked them together with laughter.

After helping Yan Lingqing resolve the internal issues of Xiyang House, Li Luo finally felt much more at ease. In the following days, he reduced his visits to Xiyang House slightly.

Because with the approaching holiday, Li Luo also had to start considering another extremely important matter: the upcoming Academy Examination.

The Academy Examination determined the admission quotas for the Holy玄 Star Academy, the most prestigious academy in the Great Xia Kingdom, which was the holy land aspired by countless young men and women.

In the entire Great Xia, no force dared to claim that they could ignore the strength and qualifications of the Holy玄 Star Academy. Even before the Great Xia Kingdom, there were dynastic changes, but no matter how the dynasties changed, the Holy玄 Star Academy always stood firm, unmoved. This demonstrated its profound foundation and strength.

There were even rumors that within the Holy玄 Star Academy, there were kings.

So, even though Li Luo was the young lord of Luo Lan Manor, compared to the Holy玄 Star Academy, he still fell short. Therefore, for the sake of his future, Li Luo had to enter the Holy玄 Star Academy.

Moreover, he had a promise with Jiang Qing'e.

The Academy Examination would include all the academies in Tian Shu County, and each academy would send their top twenty outstanding students to compete for the admission quotas of the Holy玄 Star Academy.

The number of admission quotas released by the Holy玄 Star Academy each year varied, but according to the unchanging rule, the top ten in the Academy Examination were guaranteed admission. The remaining quotas would be allocated based on the performance of each academy in the examination.

Therefore, Li Luo's goal was to enter the top ten in the examination.

"Entering the top ten won't be easy."

In the Golden House, Li Luo, who had just finished his cultivation, looked thoughtful. Although Nanfeng Academy was the top academy in Tian Shu County, he couldn't underestimate the other academies. While most of the top twenty students from other academies might not be a threat, there would always be a few who possessed true abilities. Combined, their numbers were not insignificant.

Moreover, there was the Dongyuan Academy, which could pose a threat to Nanfeng Academy.

To fight through these formidable opponents and squeeze into the top ten was no easy task.

Currently, Li Luo's strength was at the Seventh Seal Realm, and his "Water Light Phase" should be able to evolve to the Sixth Rank before the examination. However, this didn't necessarily guarantee his success.

Because while he was improving, others were not standing still.

Therefore, this Academy Examination did not allow Li Luo to underestimate it.

Thus, Li Luo carefully examined all his strengths and abilities, and he discovered some of his own shortcomings.

The biggest shortcoming was his lack of powerful offensive means. In his previous battle with Song Yunfeng, although their Phase Power gap was significant, leading to his being restrained, even though he ultimately forced a draw with the enhanced "Water Mirror Technique," this also revealed his lack of offensive means. His attacks were hard to pose any real threat to Song Yunfeng.

However, this problem wasn't unique to Li Luo; it was likely that all those with the Water Phase faced the same issue. The characteristics of the Water Phase meant that it was inferior to Fire Phase, Lightning Phase, and Metal Phase in terms of offensive and destructive power.

Of course, if the battle dragged on, the Water Phase would gradually reveal its advantages, but Li Luo felt that this was too passive. Therefore, he had to find a way to enhance his offensive capabilities.

While other Water Phase users might find this helpless, Li Luo was different. He wasn't just a simple Water Phase user but a very rare "Water Light Phase"!

With this in mind, Li Luo got up, left the Golden House, and went upstairs to the library.

In Nanfeng City, at the Governor's Residence.

In the Great Xia Kingdom, the governor oversees a county, so in terms of status and power, the Governor's Residence is the most prestigious in the county.

"Hehe, Brother Song, I've wanted to invite you to the Governor's Residence for a long time, but I was too busy and couldn't find the time until today."

In the living room of the Governor's Residence, a hearty laugh echoed. The source of the laughter was a middle-aged man with a thin face. Although he was smiling, he exuded an aura of authority.

He was the governor of Tian Shu County, Shi Qing, who was also a Heaven Gang Realm powerhouse.

Sitting in the lower seat was the head of the Song family, Song Shan.

"Governor, you are busy with official duties, unlike us idle people," Song Shan said with a smile.

"Brother Song, you're making fun of me," Shi Qing laughed. He held a teacup and looked at the floating tea leaves, casually saying, "The Song family has been quite active recently. I imagine you've taken a lot from Luo Lan Manor."

Song Shan replied, "Thanks to the Governor's guidance."

"It's a pity for Luo Lan Manor. If those two hadn't gone missing, they might have led the five major manors of the Great Xia Kingdom in the future," Shi Qing said with a faint smile.

"Pity, they were too sharp. Otherwise..."

"Now that Luo Lan Manor is struggling, the Song family must seize this opportunity," he said, looking at Song Shan.

"Thank you for the Governor's advice. The Song family will always remember this favor," Song Shan nodded slowly.

Shi Qing smiled and changed the topic.

Outside the living room, by a lake, Song Yunfeng listened to the faint sounds from inside. He then looked at the lakeside.

There, a young man in white stood, with short hair and a braid hanging down his back. He held fish bait and leisurely fed the fish by the lake.

After a while, he clapped his hands, and a servant respectfully handed him a handkerchief. He casually wiped his hands and then turned to walk towards Song Yunfeng.

As he approached, his face became clear. In terms of appearance, he seemed rather ordinary, with a faint smile on his lips.

However, looking at this seemingly ordinary young man, Song Yunfeng felt a vague sense of danger.

This person was the governor's son, Shi Kong, and also the top student at Dongyuan Academy.

"Yunfeng, my father said that this year's Academy Examination must help Dongyuan Academy regain the title of the top academy in Tian Shu County," Shi Kong said with a smile.

"With your strength, Brother Shi Kong, there's a good chance," Song Yunfeng replied.

"But it's not enough. Your Nanfeng Academy's Lu Qing'er is not an easy opponent. If we face her, she will be a formidable rival," Shi Kong said.

Song Yunfeng nodded in agreement, understanding Lu Qing'er's strength.

"Although I'm not afraid of her, I don't like uncertain factors. So during the Academy Examination, I might need your cooperation," Shi Kong said casually.

Song Yunfeng's face changed, and he said hesitantly, "Brother Shi Kong, are you asking me to betray Nanfeng Academy?"

"Hey, that's too harsh. And do you really consider Nanfeng Academy your own family? It's just a temporary stop in our cultivation. As long as you secure a top ten spot in the examination, you can enter the Holy玄 Star Academy. At that time, will you still care about Nanfeng Academy?" Shi Kong laughed.

"Don't worry, I won't make you do anything too obvious."

He waved his hand and said, "This is also my father's wish. The old dean of Nanfeng Academy has a grudge against my father, often obstructing his promotion. So this year, we must take away the golden plaque of the top academy in Tian Shu County."

Song Yunfeng was silent for a long time before finally nodding with difficulty.

Shi Kong then smiled warmly, gently patting his shoulder. "By the way, I heard that Li Luo has a new phase? He even fought you to a draw?"

Mentioning this, Song Yunfeng's eyes darkened. "He just got lucky. If we meet in the examination, he won't have a chance to draw."

"Is that so?"

Shi Kong thought for a moment and said, "That's a pity. I was looking forward to meeting this young lord in the examination, but now my interest has waned."

"You don't need to trouble yourself, Brother Shi Kong. If there's a chance, I'll take care of him," Song Yunfeng said.

"Alright."

"I haven't seen him many times, but I really dislike him," Shi Kong said with a faint smile.

Hearing the dislike in his words, Song Yunfeng was slightly puzzled.

Seeing this, Shi Kong smiled and spoke casually.

"This is also an old story. My father once wanted to propose to Jiang Qing'e of Luo Lan Manor..."

"Ha, of course, they directly rejected it."

"Seems they wanted to keep her for their own son."

"Pity, I wonder if their useless son can really keep such a beauty."

Song Yunfeng suddenly understood why the Governor's Residence had secretly supported the Song family in swallowing up Luo Lan Manor's assets over the years. It was because of this past event.