The five Deans sat upright in the great hall, and behind each one stood an individual whose aura was by no means weak.
Of course, at this moment, Liu Bai was like a dazzling beacon within the crowd. His youthful and handsome face was simply too eye catching, impossible to overlook.
"Dean Taicang, I've heard that the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy has been developing rapidly during this period, its strength rising tremendously. At first, I didn't quite believe it, but now that I see this exceptionally young elder by your side, I must admit I'm rather surprised."
The Dean Tianshen, seated at the center, turned his head to glance at Liu Bai, then spoke with a faint, cordial smile.
The matter regarding the Northern Sea Dragon breaking through was naturally impossible to hide from the eyes of the other four Academies. However, compared to the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, whose foundation was the weakest, the other four Spiritual Academies all possessed significant backing. Thus, a mere Earth Sovereign realm guardian beast was not enough to make them wary.
Dean Taicang also smiled slightly and replied calmly, "Dean Tianshen misunderstands. Liu Bai is not an elder of our Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy but a student. Enrollment season is approaching, and due to certain reasons, Elder Zhutian must remain stationed on the Northern Heaven Continent. Therefore, I brought Liu Bai along to broaden his horizons."
Liu Bai laughed inwardly. At this moment, Dean Taicang's behavior was almost identical to a parent from his previous life whose child had ranked first in the grade, unable to resist mentioning it everywhere they went.
Since that was the case, he did not mind cooperating.
"Liu Bai greets all Deans."
Upon hearing that Liu Bai was merely a student, Wu Tianwang, Tiansong, and the Tang Qiu—who initially intended to watch a show—looked over with expressions of astonishment.
The grudge between the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy and the Saint Spiritual Academy had long roots. When competing for the final position among the Five Great Academies, the Saint Spiritual Academy originally planned to support a peak Spiritual Academy to claim that spot.
This would have allowed the Saint Spiritual Academy to gain additional support and further stabilize its seat as head of the Academies.
But unexpectedly, the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy emerged and seized the final spot, ruining the Saint Spiritual Academy's plans and forming the grudge between them.
Every time the Deans of the Five Great Academies gathered, the Dean Tianshen would always target Dean Taicang. The other three Academies would usually watch from the sidelines unless something threatened their own interests or Dean Tianshen sought hidden benefits. Only then would they "stand together" and suppress the Saint Spiritual Academy.
This was also why the Saint Spiritual Academy always claimed the title of Head of the Five Academies but never truly held the authority to match it.
"I didn't expect Dean Taicang to secretly hide such a powerful student. Why didn't this young man participate in the previous Spiritual Academy Tournament?"
Tian Song of the Azure Heaven Spiritual Academy looked at Liu Bai with mild curiosity.
Liu Bai smiled gently and replied neither humble nor arrogant, "At that time, I was not in the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, so I happened to miss the opening of the tournament."
Tian Song raised an eyebrow, nodded slightly, and said nothing more.
But everyone present had already noticed it: Liu Bai must have been away from the Northern Heaven Continent during that period. Otherwise, the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy would never allow such an event to be missed.
"The Battle for the King title is a major event on the Spiritual Road. If anything unexpected happens, it would be a loss to all Five Academies. Dean Taicang, your casual attitude—does it not seem somewhat careless?"
Tian Sheng showed no interest in whether Liu Bai participated in the tournament; instead, he directly questioned Liu Bai's strength.
Dean Taicang's expression remained calm, unaffected by the questioning. "In the assessment, what unexpected event is there? Even if something unexpected occurs, it is still part of the assessment."
"Dean Taicang, that statement is inappropriate. The Spiritual Road concerns the core interests of all Five Academies and must be treated with utmost seriousness." Tian Sheng continued, "From what I see, Liu Bai has not even shattered his Qi Sea. At most, he is a half step Sovereign, far too weak."
The Saint Spiritual Academy always regarded itself as the head of the Five Academies, and Tian Sheng spoke with that same overbearing manner.
Obviously, he wanted to test Liu Bai's strength but didn't want the reputation of bullying the young. Thus, he attempted to provoke Liu Bai into stepping forward—if Liu Bai suffered afterward, it would be his own doing.
Liu Bai glanced at the person behind the Tian Sheng : a black robed old man whose aura was chillingly cold, even stronger than Elder Zhutian. He was clearly a 2nd grade Sovereign.
A 2nd Grade Sovereign must possess a Sovereign Celestial Body.
If Liu Bai had already opened a complete Sovereign Sea, he might have been interested in exchanging blows. But now… after three moves, he would be at a clear disadvantage. He had no interest in self torture.
Seeing that Liu Bai did not take the bait, Tian Sheng said no more, but he gave the black robed old man beside him a casual look.
"Young friend, your talent is extraordinary. Since Dean Taicang brought you to such an important event, your strength must surely be impressive. Why not spar with me? Let this old man witness the brilliance of the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy's peerless genius."
The black robed old man spoke with a smile.
"Do not worry, we shall exchange only three moves. How does that sound?"
Liu Bai laughed coldly in his heart, though he appeared troubled on the surface.
"Senior is a Sovereign. How could I withstand three moves from you? Would that not be bullying?"
The black robed elder noticed Liu Bai's reluctance and reassured him, "Do not worry. As an elder of the Saint Spiritual Academy, I am a teacher. Naturally, I would never bully the young. Why not let me receive three of your moves instead? How is that?"
Dean Tian Sheng merely wanted to test Liu Bai's strength, so the black robed elder did not necessarily need to fight seriously—he simply needed Liu Bai to show his hand.
But he had no idea this was exactly what Liu Bai was waiting for.
Liu Bai had no fear of exposing his strength; neither did Dean Taicang. With Liu Bai's cultivation speed, he would certainly not participate in the next Spiritual Academy Tournament. By then, even if these Deans personally acted, they might not match him—what fun would that be?
So whether his strength was revealed or not made little difference.
On the contrary, dealing a blow to the arrogance of the Saint Spiritual Academy would allow the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy to vent some of its frustrations.
Yes, just that.
Even if Liu Bai performed extremely well, none of the people here would spread this matter—they would not help the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy gain fame.
The other three Deans disliked the Saint Spiritual Academy, but they would never help another Academy gain advantage.
"Very well. Then I shall trouble Senior…"
Liu Bai put on an unwilling expression, though inside he was delighted.
A perfect target had presented himself. If he didn't properly test out his techniques, wouldn't that be disrespectful?
"First move."
With Liu Bai's voice, a golden bolt of lightning shot forth. By the time the black robed elder reacted, it was already in front of him.
Liu Bai understood he could not start with his strongest trump cards, so the first move was simply his favorite Metal Tribulation Lightning.
Since his Five Elemental Divine Lightning had evolved into a Great Divine Art, this was his first time unleashing it fully. Though it was only the metal lightning among the five, its power was clearly extraordinary.
Indeed, the black robed elder's face instantly darkened.
He had anticipated Liu Bai had strength, but that youthful face was too deceiving. Even with preparation, he did not believe Liu Bai's methods would be impressive.
He did not expect this first move to break his defenses so thoroughly.
"Divine Art?"
He squeezed out the words through clenched teeth. In the next instant, a terrifying spiritual energy storm erupted from his body. Pitch black spiritual power surged outward, and the temperature of the world plummeted.
It was clear his spiritual power contained an extremely frigid attribute.
This meant that his spiritual energy was fused with a certain powerful cold attribute. It also confirmed that Liu Bai's earlier decision was correct. If he had recklessly faced this elder head on, then even with his Undying Flame, he would still be completely suppressed in terms of spiritual energy.
This was an absolute difference created by their levels. It was extremely difficult to make up for it with external forces.
After all, the gap between a Sovereign and a half step Sovereign was like a heavenly chasm. It would not be an exaggeration to say they were lifeforms from two entirely different worlds.
If Liu Bai could break through to a First Grade Sovereign, even without condensing a Sovereign Celestial Body, he would have enough confidence to defeat this black robed elder. But right now, he would probably struggle to withstand even a single strike.
This made Liu Bai even more eager for a breakthrough.
Although Metal Tribulation Lightning was the most forceful existence among the Five Elemental Divine Lightning, when it rushed toward the black robed elder's pitch black spiritual storm, it managed to invade only about three feet before dissipating.
Even so, the black robed elder was still shocked into a cold sweat.
Just a little more, and that golden lightning would have broken through his defense. Even though the final flash of the lightning might not have injured him, it would certainly have been embarrassing.
This moment instantly made the elder put away all of his contempt. He immediately entered a fully guarded state.
Liu Bai's lips curved into a faint smile.
That was exactly what he wanted. Only when the opponent was fully alert would he have no excuse after suffering a loss. Otherwise, this old fellow might spout nonsense like I was careless I did not dodge, or Young people do not follow martial virtue, sneaking up on an old man who has lived for hundreds of years.
Under such circumstances, Liu Bai began preparing his second move.
"Hm?"
The black robed elder suddenly had a bad premonition. He sensed a strange aura rising from Liu Bai.
Soon, his suspicion was confirmed.
Countless black spiritual seals flew out from Liu Bai's body and instantly enveloped the surrounding area within a hundred meters.
"A spiritual array?"
The black robed elder's expression changed dramatically. He had not expected that this young man was not only far stronger than most of his generation and capable of wielding powerful Divine Arts, but was also a spiritual array master.
This scene shocked the other Deans as well, including Tian Sheng.
"Judging from the fluctuations, this does not seem to be an ordinary spiritual array."
The elegant Dean Tang Qiu of the Myriad Phoenix Spiritual Academy widened her beautiful eyes slightly, glanced at Dean Taicang, and softly said, "I did not expect this young man to be even more outstanding than we imagined. Congratulations, Dean Taicang. For the Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy to have such an exceptional student is truly fortunate."
Dean Tian Song and Dean Wu Tianwang also voiced their praise without the slightest concealment. Their tones even carried a hint of envy.
There was no helping it. As Deans of top tier Spiritual Academies, who would not want such a heaven defying youth to be one of their students? This was the kind of talent who could make their Academy's name echo through the ages.
The Dean Tian Sheng, however, remained silent. Although his expression appeared unchanged, a closer look would reveal the deep displeasure flickering within his eyes.
Liu Bai paid no attention to any of this. All of his focus was placed upon the great array. In fact, the black robed elder even felt as if he was hallucinating for a moment, because Liu Bai seemed to have grown a third eye.
"That is…"
Realization struck the black robed elder, and his heart trembled.
With a furious roar, vast spiritual energy blasted into the sky, blotting out the sun. Boundless pitch black spiritual power gathered crazily around him, forming a dark river of spiritual energy. From within this river, a giant shadow roughly a thousand meters tall stepped out.
"Nether Spring Celestial Body?"
Dean Taicang furrowed his brows. His stern face revealed a rare trace of gravity.
Although the Nether Spring Celestial Body was only a very ordinary Celestial Body that could not even enter the Sovereign Celestial Body Ranking, it was still a genuine Sovereign level power. A Sovereign who activated his Celestial Body was completely different from one who did not.
To activate the Celestial Body meant that the black robed elder was truly going all out.
A Second Grade Sovereign elder being forced to use his full strength against a young student from another Academy was certainly humiliating.
Dean Taicang did not mock Dean Tian Sheng for it. He simply gave him a faint look.
Yet as a figure of such high status, even that was enough to make Tian Sheng anger rise. Especially with the other three Deans silently watching, this made the Saint Spiritual Academy lose considerable face.
At this moment, Liu Bai slowly raised both hands. In front of his chest, his fingers intertwined, forming an extremely complex seal.
"Activate."
As his faint voice rang out, the sky above them suddenly trembled violently.
Black light poured out from the void, quickly drawing intricate patterns. These lines connected with one another, and within moments, three enormous black lotuses took shape.
Countless rays of light radiated from the three dark lotuses, interweaving to form an intricate and dizzying grand formation.
An unsettling and terrifying fluctuation rippled from the array.
The three black lotuses hovered like ancient demonic beasts lurking in endless darkness, quietly exuding a chilling aura.
"Demonic Lotus Spirit Slaughtering Array, Three Lotus Formation."
.....
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