Chapter 254: Imperial Official and the Chosen One! Quota Secured! (16,000)

On the third day of entering the second stage, Zhao Xing continued his push.

Since he was alone, passing the twenty-sixth city was not as fast as before; it took him two hours.

In the twenty-seventh city, the number of dragon-kin continued to increase, and their strength was fully elevated to the Fourth Rank. Every single one was Fourth Rank, possessing various innate secret techniques. Clearing this stage solo was truly not easy.

Zhao Xing had to use his Myriad Law Clones to reduce the strain on his true self, using the clones to distract the dragon-beasts. He passed through at the Yin hour of the fourth day.

For the twenty-seventh, twenty-eighth, and twenty-ninth cities, he also relied on his Myriad Law Clones to divert attention and successfully cleared them.

Including the time spent clearing stages, traveling, and resting, it was now the first quarter of the noon hour on the fifth day.

Zhao Xing finally arrived before the thirtieth city.

He scanned the crowd in front.

There were about one hundred and twenty people.

With the Myriad Law Clones attracting attention, allowing his true self to pass, his speed was relatively fast.

"Huh? Why are Lei Ling, Leng Yue, and Xuan Feng still here?" Zhao Xing's gaze landed on a ridge outside the city.

The top three experts were actually still here.

"Stuck? That shouldn't be."

In Zhao Xing's view, the top three powerhouses should have been able to clear the stage within five days, or perhaps even earlier.

Why were they all injured?

Was the thirtieth city that difficult?

Zhao Xing turned his gaze toward the city.

"Three thousand Azure Dragon Soldiers, all Fifth Rank? If they form a Blood Qi Battle Array, that is indeed terrifying."

"It depends on the strength of the commander. If the commander is Fourth Rank, then even Third Rankers might not... Wait, Long Xiao?"

As Zhao Xing scanned the people on the city wall, he immediately spotted a familiar figure.

The man carrying a large golden sword, wearing Azure Dragon armor, a Cloud-Top helmet, and golden boots, was none other than Long Xiao!

"Why is he the one guarding the stage? He isn't a member of the Water Tribe."

"Oh, he is Bai Mingchuan's son-in-law; that makes sense."

With Long Xiao's talent, he must have progressed rapidly over these past few years.

If he was leading three thousand Azure Dragon Soldiers to guard the city, then it made sense why these people were stuck.

"You're here! Brother, you finally arrived!"

Long Xiao locked his gaze on Zhao Xing's figure, a hint of a smile appearing.

His previous thought had been: if my brother hasn't passed, none of you will!

Long Xiao knew how much Zhao Xing wanted to obtain the quota for the Ancient Dragon Court.

Naturally, he had to help his brother fulfill this wish.

Sensing Long Xiao's gaze, Zhao Xing also looked up.

The two did not use sound transmission; they simply stared at each other.

However, Zhao Xing read the micro-expressions of the other.

He did not hesitate and immediately charged toward the city wall.

Seeing this, Xuan Feng spoke up: "Brother, do not attempt to clear this alone. It is easy to get injured. Better to wait until more people arrive and clear it together!"

At this moment, Xuan Feng was acting as the 'leader.'

Previously, he had already stopped many people.

Those who could reach here by the fifth day were all experts; only by gathering together could they hope to clear the stage.

Zhao Xing turned a deaf ear.

Seeing him ignore the advice, Lei Ling, standing nearby, snorted: "Another one seeking death."

"Let him go. We don't need that many people anyway," Leng Yue added.

Not far away, Gabri and Fei She watched with schadenfreude.

Because the strength of the commander guarding this stage was simply too strong.

Previously, someone had even been beaten into serious injury and eliminated.

Both of them had had kills stolen by Zhao Xing, so naturally, they were happy to see him act impulsively.

"Bang!"

Zhao Xing charged onto the city wall and collided with Long Xiao.

"Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom!"

Thunder, sword Qi, and Mist-Hiding spells stirred the surrounding Five Elements energy; no one could see the battle scene anymore.

Boom-crack—

Rumble~~

The earth shook, and thunder roared.

Those who didn't know better would have thought two peerless experts were locked in a great battle.

In reality, both were all thunder and no rain, using the fight as an opportunity to chat.

"Long Xiao, how did you become the garrison here?"

"Hehe, didn't expect that, did you?" Long Xiao slashed out a sword, which Zhao Xing swatted away casually.

"Are those people outside blocked by you?"

"Correct! Bai Mingchuan asked me to guard here; my mission is to block those attempting to clear the stage."

"I will let you pass. Since you are clearing it in under five days, you can obtain 5 million points. I will continue to block the others," Long Xiao said.

"No, if you dare to let me pass so blatantly, you'll be thrown into prison when you return," Zhao Xing said. "You cannot just let me pass like that."

"What do you suggest? Is there anything I can do to help you?" Long Xiao asked.

"You have already done enough. I am now with the first echelon," Zhao Xing said. "Just perform as usual from here on out; treat me the same as the others."

"Fine, I understand."

"What are the rules for your guard duty?"

"For every extra day that passes, the Azure Dragon Army is reduced by 100 people. After five days, it reduces by 300 every other day, until finally, only I am left guarding."

"I see."

"How is Aotian?"

"Doing great, don't worry."

"Alright, then I know what to do."

Long Xiao slapped Zhao Xing, sending him flying, and the Mist-Hiding spell broke.

"Pfft~" Zhao Xing forced himself to spit blood, pretending to be seriously injured, and fell outside the city.

"Hahahaha!" Gabri laughed loudly. "Truly overestimating yourself. You, a mere Fifth Rank, want to clear this stage solo?"

"What a pity, why didn't he kill you?" Fei She also mocked.

"A fool indeed," Lei Ling sneered from the side.

Zhao Xing ignored them and found a place to rest.

However, these mocking words were heard clearly by Long Xiao.

He locked his gaze on Lei Ling, Gabri, and Fei She, silently memorizing their auras.

…………

Time reached the evening of the fifth day.

At this time, there were already one hundred and seventy-eight people outside the thirtieth stage.

After witnessing the strength of the guards, no one acted rashly; instead, they began to contact other experts to huddle together for warmth.

Among them, Xuan Feng, Lei Ling, and Leng Yue, the three Fourth Rank Perfection experts, organized the most people.

Of the two hundred-plus people outside the city, they quickly contacted eighty percent of them, agreeing to charge the stage before the Zi hour tonight.

Because the fifth day was a critical node; if they charged through before the fifth day, they would get 5 million points. A day later, and it would be much less.

"Zhao Xing, come with us later." The speaker was Yao Sifang, the fourth strongest in the team sent by the Princess's Prefecture.

As for the top three, none were serious beast tamers.

Two martial artists and one warlock had contracted battle beasts, but they never cared for them, leaving training to others.

Just like Zhao Xing, they were using the title of beast tamer to fish for a quota.

Those who did this were basically wealthy, as they had to consider costs, and crossing realms meant paying more energy and money. They needed to consider if the quota was worth it.

Cultivating proper beast tamers cost much less because that was their actual profession.

"Fine," Zhao Xing nodded.

"Then stay by my side," Yao Sifang smiled. "Together, our chances of clearing it are higher."

Time reached the Xu hour of the fifth day.

At the very front, Lei Ling, Xuan Feng, and Leng Yue each had many people and battle beasts standing behind them.

First quarter of the Xu hour.

"Moo!!"

A purple divine ox roared at the sky.

Lei Ling sat on the divine ox and pointed: "Kill!"

"Charge!"

Xuan Feng sat on a wind dragon and quickly soared into the air, a powerful current carrying the might of heaven and earth, heading straight for the city wall.

In an instant, over one hundred and fifty beast tamers and five hundred battle beasts responded.

The first collective charge officially began.

"Move!" Yao Sifang shouted; he was the one commanding the Princess's Prefecture people.

"Meow~" The lynx transformed instantly, blue and purple secret patterns appearing on its body, echoing the spell patterns on Zhao Xing.

It then turned into a stream of light, circling Zhao Xing and becoming a set of lynx battle armor.

"Boom-crack~"

Zhao Xing, with the Cangni and the Spirit Illusion Goat, turned into a bolt of lightning and charged east of the city south gate.

…………

"Kill!"

Long Xiao roared, and the Seventh-Level Battle Array activated instantly.

A red light surged from each of the three thousand Azure Dragon Soldiers, shooting into the sky and condensing into a divine sword, surrounded by six red clouds.

The Azure Dragon Army formations below, six in total, had cloud energy stretching five thousand meters and reaching a thousand meters high. The barrier formed by condensed blood Qi seemed to reinforce and heighten the city wall, forming a city of blood Qi!

"Boom, boom, boom, boom~"

Thousands of spell and martial technique streams bombarded the blood Qi city wall formed by the Azure Dragon Army.

Countless lights bloomed on the wall, and the heaven and earth origin energy became chaotic to the extreme.

"Moo!"

The purple divine ox under Lei Ling roared; it possessed the bloodline of the ancient divine beast Kui Ox.

With this roar, the right formation of the blood Qi city wall trembled, and many Fifth Rank soldiers showed expressions of pain.

The wind dragon Xuan Feng rode spat out a cyan dragon breath, blowing the five hundred people in the right formation back a step.

The Purple Moon Fox on Leng Yue's shoulder flashed its eyes, soul power eroding the leader of the right formation, 'Bai Yang,' through the void.

"Pfft~"

Led by the three experts, Bai Yang took the brunt of it, immediately spitting out blood, his face pale.

"He is indeed the weak point, charge!"

Lei Ling roared.

They hadn't spent these days outside the city in vain; they had been observing the three thousand Azure Dragon Soldiers.

The Azure Dragon Army had six formations in total, and the right-side Bai Yang formation was weaker in overall strength, its use of the blood Qi battle array not as good as the other five commanders.

"Ang~"

Just then, a clear dragon roar sounded.

Long Xiao's figure instantly appeared at the front of the right formation, and he opened his mouth wide.

The blood Qi dragon above his head dived down, dispersing onto each of the five hundred Azure Dragon Soldiers.

Leng Yue's illusion broke instantly.

All injuries were restored immediately!

At the same time, a dragon head phantom appeared above each of the five hundred Azure Dragon Soldiers, opening its bloody maw.

"Ang!!"

The dragon soul roared!

The five-hundred-man formation simultaneously launched a high-level sonic technique.

The tangible sonic waves condensed into a ring, heading straight for the divine ox under Lei Ling.

Lei Ling felt a splitting headache, and the divine ox under his command was blocked.

"Retreat!" Xuan Feng shouted, realizing this surprise attack wouldn't work.

The commander's reaction was too fast, and the quality of the Azure Dragon Army was too high.

Facing a sudden night raid, they had actually held their ground.

Once they held their ground, the other five blood Qi battle arrays would surround them.

"Zheng!"

The golden sword on Long Xiao's back split into seven, turning into seven streams of light, heading straight for Lei Ling's team.

"What?" Lei Ling was startled.

Because all seven swords were coming for him!

"Heaven Origin Integration!"

The Heaven Origin Divine Ox turned into a purple light and dissipated, covering Lei Ling's entire body.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft!"

Five golden swords caught up to Lei Ling, piercing through his waist, abdomen, arms, and thighs, pinning him directly to the ground.

"Hum~"

The integration had just finished and was now undone; Lei Ling stood to the side in terror, five golden swords shaking on the back of his Heaven Origin Divine Ox.

The other two swords instantly caught up to Gabri and Fei She.

"Pure Yang Golden Body!" Gabri roared, his entire body turning golden.

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

Long Xiao's golden sword stabbed three times in succession, actually producing the sound of metal clashing.

"Huh? So hard?" Long Xiao looked at Gabri; this man reminded him of Xia Jing.

Gabri's defense was top-tier among Fourth Ranks, but in this state, his speed was greatly reduced, and he could only take a beating.

"I don't believe your whole body is hard," Long Xiao sneered, the golden sword's attacks accelerating instantly, each strike aimed at Gabri's crotch.

"Clang!"

It looked like only one strike, but in reality, over a thousand strikes were made in a short time.

"Grass!" Gabri felt a chill in his crotch and, ignoring his dignity, curled his body into a ball and rolled on the ground.

As soon as he rolled, a blue light lit up nearby.

It was Fei She, who had been sent away by Long Xiao's golden sword and eliminated.

"Swish~"

Long Xiao stopped looking at those who fled, as they had left his attack zone.

As long as they were a thousand meters from the city wall, he would not pursue.

He quickly left Bai Yang's formation and headed toward the left side of the city wall.

Here, another team was attacking fiercely, launching their assault at the same time as the Lei Ling, Leng Yue, and Xuan Feng team on the right.

This team consisted of forty-two people and one hundred and fifty battle beasts, organized by Yao Sifang.

As the lead beast tamer for Princess Youruo's prefecture, Yao Sifang had a high reputation and ranking from the previous stage.

As soon as Long Xiao saw Zhao Xing in the team, he slowed down, and the Seven-Star Divine Sword returned more slowly.

"Forty-two people in total; letting half pass shouldn't be too much," Long Xiao thought.

Letting Zhao Xing pass alone would be too conspicuous.

Letting them pass together was no problem.

"Shoo, shoo, shoo, shoo, shoo, shoo, shoo~"

The golden sword hadn't arrived, but Long Xiao used his fingers as a sword, forty-two sword Qi streams heading straight for the charging team.

"His Divine Firmament Sword Art is completely different from ten years ago." Zhao Xing looked at the blooming sword Qi and the high-spirited Long Xiao, feeling a bit dazed.

Because this scene was eighty percent similar to the Divine Firmament Marquis he had seen in his previous life.

The remaining twenty percent was different because the Long Xiao of this life had not suffered the pain of his brothers dying tragically or the destruction of the Divine Might Army.

On the contrary, he was currently in high spirits, the mood of his sword Qi filled with a confidence that said, "Who else but me?"

With no sword in hand, he could still block a hundred Fourth Rankers!

"Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang!"

"Boom, boom!"

"Pfft!"

The Divine Firmament sword Qi entered the crowd, hitting everyone, including Zhao Xing.

Because the sword Qi disappeared without a trace the moment it left his hand, just as Zhao Xing had seen at the Extreme Night Sea, completely merging into heaven and earth and appearing behind him instantly.

Invisible, undetectable, traceless, impossible to intercept; one could only take it head-on.

"Clang!"

The sword Qi pierced Zhao Xing's chest and dissipated instantly.

Of the forty-two sword Qi streams, this one was the weakest.

Zhao Xing felt helpless; this was too blatant a case of letting him pass.

Even the strongest martial artist from the Princess's side had been pushed back several meters.

"Meow!!" A cat's cry appeared in his mind.

The lynx felt the familiar sword Qi and was puzzled: why did Long Xiao hit it?

"Meow!!!" The cat head on the helmet let out a howl, filled with confusion and grievance.

Hearing the lynx's cry, Long Xiao's face showed apology. Did he hurt Aotian?

In that moment of distraction, Yao Sifang and the others seized the opportunity to leap over the blood Qi city wall and break through the encirclement of the Azure Dragon Army's left formation.

A total of twenty people broke through one after another and left.

Zhao Xing happened to be the twentieth.

Seeing this, Long Xiao reached out, and the Seven-Star Divine Sword returned, while the blood Qi dragon soared down to repair the injuries of the five hundred Azure Dragon Soldiers, and the battle array closed in again.

The remaining people were all blown away.

With this, the first siege was declared a failure.

Only 20 people had charged through the thirtieth city and entered the third stage.

After clearing the stage, Zhao Xing checked the Earth Mirror ranking.

Because he passed within five days, he obtained 5 million points in the second stage, leaping to twentieth place!

"We actually made it?" Yao Sifang looked behind him in disbelief.

"We made it." Chen Feng, the strongest martial artist in the team, nodded. "It was all a blur."

"There is a gap even among sword cultivators," the second-ranked martial artist 'Wu Yue' sighed.

He appeared to be a driver, but in reality, he was a sword cultivator.

Being a sword cultivator, Wu Yue understood perfectly what it meant for a peerless genius-level sword cultivator to lead two thousand five hundred Azure Dragon Soldiers to form a Seventh-Level Battle Array.

In a stage with restricted space, even Third Rankers might not be able to charge through!

"To pass on the first day, someone would have to organize everyone from the start," Yao Sifang pondered. "And they would need to help each other, forming extremely strong cohesion."

"The possibility is slim," Chen Feng shook his head.

Yao Sifang counted the number of people and was surprised to find that Zhao Xing had also made it.

This was the only Fifth Ranker to make it through.

However, he was also confused and just assumed Zhao Xing was lucky.

Zhao Xing muttered to himself: "What Dragon Protection; it's clearly Long Xiao Protection."

Based on the current situation, Long Xiao could hold them off for at least another five days.

Because after five days, he would still have fifteen hundred people available, and his defensive strength would still be considered strong.

Of course, after five days, the situation would change.

Because the number of people attempting to clear the stage was increasing, while Long Xiao's Azure Dragon Army was constantly decreasing.

"Let's go, clear the third stage," Yao Sifang said.

"Let's go."

…………

"Someone has reached the third stage." Outside the Canghai Cave Heaven, on the Golden Dragon warship, Grand Master of the Imperial Stud Ji Shuchang, Minister of Agriculture Wang Tianzhi, and Bai Yunwu watched the Earth Mirror.

"Only twenty people passed within five days; the Azure Dragon Army is indeed worthy of its reputation."

"Commander Long Xiao is actually able to train a Seventh-Level Battle Array, his sword art nimble and elegant, forming his own school; he has the bearing of a Sword Immortal. General Bai, you have trained him well."

Long Xiao and Bai Feng (Bai Ling'er was her nickname) had gotten engaged last year. The engagement was not done with great fanfare, mainly because the defense issues in the East Sea made everyone nervous, and Bai Yunwu had kept it low-key.

If he had held a grand ceremony and invited guests, probably eighty percent of the experts in the East Sea would have come to watch. If someone had used this to cause trouble, a good thing would have turned into a bad thing.

After all, Long Xiao had been transferred to the East Sea only after insulting the Prince of Liang!

So they only got engaged and had not yet held the formal wedding.

Hearing their praise, Bai Yunwu felt satisfied but remained humble: "The Minister of Agriculture and the Grand Master of the Imperial Stud are too kind."

"Although Long Xiao is my granddaughter's fiancé, he is young and vigorous, prone to offending people; he still needs to undergo tempering before he can shoulder heavy responsibilities."

Was Bai Yunwu being humble? Not at all.

By mentioning Long Xiao's shortcomings as "young and vigorous, prone to offending people," he was clearly throwing shade at the Prince of Liang, Ji Mingxian.

Saying he needed tempering to shoulder heavy responsibilities was just saying that as long as the Prince of Liang was alive, it was hard for Long Xiao to become a high-ranking official.

In any case, to the ears of Wang Tianzhi and Ji Shuchang, that was exactly what it meant.

They couldn't respond to that; the Prince of Liang was the commander of the barbarian pacification appointed by the Emperor of Jing. To speak ill of the Prince of Liang before losing the Emperor's favor was to negate the Emperor of Jing.

So Ji Shuchang changed the subject, self-deprecatingly:

"Speaking of which, of the twenty people who passed, only eight are proper beast tamers."

"As the Grand Master of the Imperial Stud, I am truly ashamed."

Wang Tianzhi laughed: "Why should Minister Ji be like this? Isn't it like this every time?"

"Minister Wang is naturally not worried; the top twenty who passed all have a Fifth Rank Agricultural Official."

"Zhao Xing is an exception," Wang Tianzhi said lightly. "He cannot be counted as an ordinary Fifth Ranker. Furthermore, he had a bit of luck in passing this stage. Long Xiao's defensive focus was on the right, not the left."

"They will reach the third stage soon," Bai Yunwu said, stroking his chin. "Do the two ministers know who the imperial official sent by the court is this time?"

The Island of the Chosen is a stage of luck!

Without enough luck, entering the Ancient Dragon Court might result in gaining nothing.

Serving as an official in a dynasty of luck, one cannot lack luck.

So this stage was purely to filter out those with insufficient luck.

Even if their strength was a bit weak, it didn't matter, but if their luck was strong, entering the Ancient Dragon Court might bring back great discoveries and treasures for the court.

Of course, if they performed strongly in the first two stages but weakly in the third, problems could also be discovered.

This quota competition had rewards; if someone was strong in strength but relatively weak in luck, they would be compensated.

Since it involved luck, the setup of the third stage was naturally led by an imperial official.

Bai Yunwu had not participated at all; moreover, he didn't even know how many people were involved in the arrangements.

Imperial officials were mysterious existences in the Great Zhou, and associating too closely with them was taboo, so he still didn't know who the leading official was.

Of course, now that people were already clearing the stage, asking wouldn't hurt.

Ji Shuchang thought for a moment and said: "The official responsible for setting up the Island of the Chosen is the King of Heaven's Evolution."

………

The third stage, the Island of the Chosen, was a huge maze.

"The maze cannot be broken by brute force."

"There are no rules to follow."

"Passing depends entirely on luck."

"Points are calculated by time; the shorter the time, the higher the points."

Upon ascending to the third heaven, Zhao Xing and the others heard an ethereal voice ringing in their ears.

Before them was a huge maze shrouded in mist, the palace walls reaching a thousand meters high, with no end in sight left, right, up, or down.

"All entrances to the maze are identical."

"The exits are different. If you exit from the Martial Gate, it means that when you enter the Ancient Dragon Court in the future, your harvest will be focused on martial arts realms or martial arts secret techniques. When exploring the Ancient Dragon Court, you should choose the best relevant secret realm."

"By the same logic, the maze exits include the Wealth Gate, the Military Gate, the Secret Technique Gate, the Spell Gate..."

Yao Sifang, Chen Feng, Zhao Xing, and the other twenty people listened quietly.

The theory of luck was not unfamiliar to them, but it was limited to extending life or improving realms; they had only heard of the rest and knew little about it.

This was the first time they had heard of such a detailed division of luck.

"This is the foundation of the Great Zhou," Zhao Xing said, looking up at the maze.

In his eyes, the entire maze shimmered with golden light, with a phantom of a golden dragon of luck coiled around it—that was an Imperial Edict!

Beneath the golden dragon, several phantoms existed; clearly, the court's 【Imperial Officials】 were using the luck of the nation to perform deductions.

This maze was equivalent to a large-scale deduction of the future.

A deduction of what? A deduction of the contestants.

To see the direction in which they were most likely to achieve results when they entered the Ancient Dragon Court in the future.

There were probably nearly ten thousand contestants left at this stage, basically all Fourth Rankers.

To perform large-scale deductions on so many people, and to deduce the situation ten years later, only a dynasty of luck like the Great Zhou had the confidence to do so.

A single sect, without the support of a national-level force, could not do this.

"Let's begin," Yao Sifang took a deep breath and was the first to walk into the maze.

"Go." Chen Feng's figure flickered, and he also disappeared into the maze.

After everyone had entered, Zhao Xing still stood outside, motionless.

He vaguely felt that the figures beneath the coiled golden dragon were somewhat familiar; this was a sense of familiarity brought by the Causality Soul.

The King of Heaven's Evolution was also watching Zhao Xing.

"Zhao Xing, why don't you go in?"

"Reporting to the King of Heaven's Evolution, this official has a question." Zhao Xing heard the voice of the King of Heaven's Evolution himself and immediately understood.

When capturing the Dragon Whale at the Extreme Night Sea, the King of Rahu, the King of Lingde, and the King of Heaven's Evolution had come in person; he had met him once then.

"What question?" The King of Heaven's Evolution was also surprised; he didn't expect Zhao Xing to recognize his voice, as over a decade had passed.

"May I ask the King of Heaven's Evolution, can I use my Myriad Law Clones to clear the stage?" Zhao Xing asked.

The King of Heaven's Evolution hadn't really thought about this question. Ordinary mechanical puppets, because they lacked a life soul, were useless even if they went in; they wouldn't get any deduction results.

But the Myriad Law Clones were different; they were led by a life soul.

The King of Heaven's Evolution waved the compass in his palm and then calculated with his fingers: "Yes, if you enter with your Myriad Law Clones, you can get more accurate results."

"However, the point calculation for this stage will only count the time your true self exits."

"Thank you, King of Heaven's Evolution, for the clarification." Zhao Xing bowed.

He then cast the Pure Origin Projection, releasing all forty-three remaining clones.

At the same time, Zhao Xing used the plants planted in the Pure Origin soil to create fifty-seven Myriad Law Straw Men on the spot.

In this way, including his true self, 101 Zhao Xings appeared before the maze.

The King of Heaven's Evolution watched this scene and nodded slightly.

Zhao Xing was no longer what he used to be.

The Myriad Law Straw Men had been cultivated to the high-level perfection stage, capable of controlling a hundred clones.

He had given birth to Pure Origin soil, and the scale of the projection was not small.

"Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish, swish~"

One hundred clones and the true self walked into the maze, while the three battle beasts followed the true self.

Walking into the maze, the surrounding walls flickered with seven-colored brilliance, sometimes becoming transparent, with some strange images flashing by inside.

Zhao Xing's shadow could vaguely be reflected, but this shadow was doing different things.

"The deduction has begun; the time node is the future trend after entering the Ancient Dragon Court."

"However, there are countless possibilities for the future; the current deduction results are not stable enough."

"If they are relatively stable, it means the probability of occurrence is high," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

He walked leisurely, neither fast nor slow.

Compared to clearing the stage quickly, seeing the future was clearly more important.

In reality, one couldn't go fast inside the maze because the maze was moving and had no rules; one could only rely on luck.

Walking fast or slow was the same.

After a while.

The images appearing on the walls stayed for a second and became clear.

Even if it was only for a second, the content of the images contained a lot of information.

Zhao Xing was thoughtful.

He didn't walk fast, but he rarely hit a dead end.

Whenever he walked to what seemed like a dead end, the wall would suddenly crack, and a new fork would appear.

Even if he hit a real dead end, turning a corner would allow him to find a new path to continue.

About an hour later, the images became more lasting and stable, and the amount of information obtained exploded.

Mainly because Zhao Xing had a hundred clones; the information he received was a hundred times that of others.

The burden on his life soul increased, and Zhao Xing walked even slower.

However, he quickly adjusted his strategy.

He turned a blind eye to those dazzling futures.

Instead, he focused on those gray and gloomy images.

Especially the 'maze dead ends'!

Zhao Xing placed extra importance on 'dead ends.'

Because the maze of the Island of the Chosen was not an ordinary maze; a dead end meant a future of some 'danger.'

Every time Zhao Xing encountered one, he would stop and observe, waiting for the deduction image to emerge before leaving.

The 100 clones followed the same strategy.

He wasn't afraid of not getting benefits, because the luck of the Yan-Five was already very high; the baseline couldn't be too bad.

Walking along the way, the walls Zhao Xing saw were mostly dazzling.

In the images, he could often see himself smiling happily.

The surroundings were also shimmering with golden light, clearly indicating great gains.

What he feared was that kind of life-and-death crisis!

However, he didn't encounter many gray walls or dead ends.

Every time he did, Zhao Xing would carefully memorize them.

By doing this, the pressure on the King of Heaven's Evolution was not small.

Hum~

The compass rotation speeded up, and the golden dragon of luck on the Imperial Edict spat out a thick golden light, landing on the maze below.

As time passed, the number of times the golden dragon spat out energy increased.

"This kid, deducing for him alone is more tiring than deducing for the other nineteen people."

The King of Heaven's Evolution presided over the maze array, which also required consuming energy.

He was surprised to find that ninety percent of the deduction computing power was taken up by Zhao Xing!

"However, helping him deduce is also the most effective."

What is the purpose of deducing the future? To obtain information about the future.

Since one has obtained foresight, one will certainly change.

For example, if one sees oneself suddenly dying after passing through a certain place.

Then when passing through that place, one will be more cautious, or simply bypass it.

At the same time, the original great danger will be reduced, or even cease to exist.

This is the purpose of deduction.

However, it is not so simple to change.

Because known information cannot be so detailed, especially when deducing the Ancient Dragon Court ten years later.

It is also possible to see that dangerous place, bypass it, and end up causing worse consequences.

The effect of deduction varies from person to person.

Zhao Xing's effect from this opportunity to peek into the future of entering the ancient land was simply surprisingly good.

Because he had been there many times in his previous life and was very familiar with the things inside; now, with the help of the court's deduction to peek into the future, he could naturally achieve twice the result with half the effort!

"His fortune is truly not shallow; he has walked nearly half the maze, and eighty percent are great auspicious things."

"Judging from the number of times he has divined his luck, the magnitude of his future exploration will also exceed that of others."

If others get a treasure in the Ancient Dragon Court, it might take them ten days or half a month.

But Zhao Xing takes the treasure in one day and still has time to find more treasures.

On the King of Heaven's Evolution's compass, great auspicious, medium auspicious, kept flashing; as for small auspicious, it never disappeared, continuing all the time.

"According to ancient calculations, this kid's current luck should be Yan-Five."

"However, what is being calculated now is the future; with this performance, he is like a chosen one. When he enters the Ancient Dragon Court, it will definitely be more than Yan-Five!"

The King of Heaven's Evolution was more and more surprised the more he calculated.

Because as time passed, small auspicious was turning into medium auspicious, medium auspicious was turning into great auspicious, and the number of great auspicious was exploding!

This meant that this deduction had a beneficial impact on Zhao Xing's future!

The dead ends he observed were likely truly serving as a warning in the future.

The helpful effect of this maze seemed to be maximized in Zhao Xing.

…………

Time reached three hours later.

Zhao Xing's first clone walked out of the Military Gate.

However, as mentioned before, points only count for the true self, so it still depended on the time the true self exited.

Four hours later, more and more clones came out, already exceeding fifty.

Military Gate, Wealth Gate, Martial Gate, Secret Technique Gate, Great Luck Gate... Zhao Xing's figure appeared at almost every gate!

Six hours later.

Zhao Xing's true self encountered a huge dead end.

On the King of Heaven's Evolution's compass, a great danger was also displayed.

"Huh?" The King of Heaven's Evolution was curious. "I wonder what he saw?"

The King of Heaven's Evolution himself could not see the images Zhao Xing saw.

In the setup of the Island of the Chosen, only the person themselves knew the specific future images; the King of Heaven's Evolution could only check for auspiciousness and danger, and which gate the person exited from.

After the event, they would archive it and give relevant suggestions, recommending that those who obtained the quota go to relevant secret realms.

The reason for this setup was, first, privacy issues; imperial officials also had their own regulations and could not casually peek into others' futures.

Second, the burden was too heavy. The method of fate was originally going against heaven. When Liang Ruohai calculated heavenly secrets, involving the secrets of the Cave Heaven, he could have lived for hundreds of years, but after that time, he died in less than ten years.

Even with the assistance of adjutants, treasures, and arrays, this deduction involved ten thousand people and the Ancient Dragon Court. If he had to look at the countless specific future images of every person, the burden would be too great, and the price too high.

"It took so long to see the fifth great danger; this is normal," the King of Heaven's Evolution thought to himself.

The Ancient Dragon Court was inherently dangerous; Zhao Xing had always been auspicious, which was very abnormal. Encountering a few signs of great danger was normal.

In front of the huge dead end inside the maze.

Zhao Xing's gaze became deep and gray.

The sky was black, the sea was black, and only a crystal palace in the sea was shining brightly.

Nine phantoms were swimming around; Zhao Xing saw hundreds of broken versions of himself floating among them.

A cat head over ten meters long, covered in scales, floated nearby, lightning flashing on its head.

"Over nine hundred Myriad Law Clones, and the lynx seems to have evolved a third transformation, yet I still died clearing this?"

"What about the Cangni Dog and the Spirit Illusion Goat? Did they leave no bones?"

He approached the dead end step by step, and then saw a small door in the bottom left corner.

The entire wall was a depressing black, and only this half-meter-high small door was green.

Zhao Xing thought for a moment and crawled through.

The view before him suddenly opened up.

He had come out.

Zhao Xing looked back.

He saw that on that small green door, there was one character: Heaven.

His true self had exited from the Heaven Gate.

Heaven was the heaven of stepping into heaven in one step.

It symbolized the gate with the strongest luck.

"He really exited from the Heaven Gate. I wonder how many people in the four seas can exit from the Heaven Gate; at least the East Sea already has one," the King of Heaven's Evolution thought to himself.

"Withdraw!"

Zhao Xing withdrew all his Myriad Law Clones into his body.

He then sat on the ground and quietly digested.

He organized all the images he saw and sealed them into his memory palace.

Only then did he stand up.

When he stood up, he found himself in a palace, and the King of Heaven's Evolution was right in front of him.

"This official greets the King of Heaven's Evolution." Zhao Xing stood up unhurriedly.

"Zhao Xing, you took nine hours to clear the stage. Your passing time is within one day, so logically you should obtain 10 million points in the first tier."

The rules of the Island of the Chosen, like Dragon Protection, were based on the time taken to clear the stage for points.

Zhao Xing had a hundred clones and had actively taken some time to look at the future, but he still exited very quickly, in less than a day.

But hearing the King of Heaven's Evolution say this, it seemed there was another way of saying it.

"However, you walked out from the Heaven Gate."

"In this stage, you fully comply with the special regulations of the Heavenly Secret Pavilion this time!"

"Regardless of your performance in the next two stages, you will obtain a quota to enter."

"In addition, I will change your points to 1 million, and the announced data will be 'cleared on the ninth day'."

"This is to avoid you being targeted later."

Zhao Xing listened quietly.

Did this mean that even if his surface performance didn't put him in the top 500, he would still obtain a quota?

"The Heavenly Secret Pavilion will send you in through a special channel before the Ancient Dragon Court opens."

"As for the specifics, after this is over, someone will come to pick you up and take you into the Military World; you will know then," the King of Heaven's Evolution said.

"Yes." Zhao Xing didn't ask more. The King of Heaven's Evolution had already made it clear enough; if he hadn't said it, it was naturally something he couldn't tell him now.

"In addition, no one will know about everything here. You will stay here with me until the ninth day before going out."

"For your next two stages, I will also ask the 'Duke of Wei' to take action and cast the Forget-Sorrow Spell, making others forget your true clearing experience."

"Your true clearing results will be archived as top secret."

"Do not reveal it yourself."

"Yes, this official understands." Zhao Xing nodded; this was the treatment of a 'Chosen One.'

Zhao Xing was definitely not the only one with Yan-Five luck; there were certainly those with higher luck than him this time.

But what was being calculated now was the situation ten years later when the Ancient Dragon Court opened.

From the perspective of the King of Heaven's Evolution, Zhao Xing's luck was getting higher and higher.

Especially in the Ancient Dragon Court, the number of times he encountered great auspiciousness was also surprisingly high! In the data recorded by the Heavenly Secret Pavilion, many high-rank futures might not have this performance.

Zhao Xing obtaining secret special treatment was fully deserved.

"You rest here now; I will let you out on the ninth day."

"Yes." Zhao Xing sat cross-legged in the palace and contemplated the three great secret classics, doing nothing else and thinking of nothing else.

…………

Time reached the eighth day.

"Bastard! Bastard! Why are you only targeting me!" The second stage, Dragon Protection, the last city.

Lei Ling questioned Long Xiao in exasperation.

Gabri was covered in wounds, unable to even speak.

According to the rules, after the fifth day, the number of Azure Dragon Soldiers decreased by three hundred every day.

At this time, only Long Xiao and one hundred Azure Dragon Soldiers remained on the city wall.

But Lei Ling and Gabri had been blocked by Long Xiao for a full eight days!

Including the previous five days, this was already thirteen days!

Over fifteen hundred people had already passed in front, yet he was still stuck here.

In the first stage, Lei Ling was ranked first, but now he was far behind. Could he not be angry?

He seriously suspected that Long Xiao was targeting him!

"You are strong; if I don't target you, who do I target?" Long Xiao hummed.

"Then why don't you target Xuan Feng and Leng Yue? Their strength isn't weak either!" Lei Ling couldn't figure it out.

Long Xiao couldn't be bothered with him. Who told you to mock my brother earlier?

Not eliminating you directly is already me, Master Long, showing restraint!

If you can't figure it out, think about it slowly.

Long Xiao turned his back directly, facing Lei Ling with his butt.

Anyway, Lei Ling's strength was good; blocking him was perfectly fine.

…………

On the ninth day, Zhao Xing was released by the King of Heaven's Evolution and began to set foot on the fourth stage.

At this time, his ranking had dropped to four hundred and fiftieth.

Zhao Xing didn't know if this was the ranking tampered with by the King of Heaven's Evolution or his real ranking, but in any case, he had already obtained the quota.

Going through the last two stages now was just for show.

Because many people outside had already seen his performance in the first two stages.

Sudden elimination in the third stage 'Island of the Chosen'? That would be too strange.

Curiosity would lead people to investigate.

Therefore, Zhao Xing's current ranking and clearing experience would be given a separate 'data' for people to see.

As for the ranking rewards, although they were generous, the King of Heaven's Evolution had said he would give him special treatment, so it certainly wouldn't be worse than the surface ranking rewards.

"The fourth stage, True Dragon Royal City."

"It is an illusion test."

"There are nine illusion palaces in total, each one screening those with weak minds." Zhao Xing looked at the palaces emitting different lights in front of him.

"The Ancient Dragon Court has many forces; if one's mind is not firm, one might be bewitched by sect experts."

"In terms of clearing the stage, the life souls of the ancient True Dragon clan are very powerful."

"Illusion stages that are relatively simple for the Dragon clan are quite difficult for the Human clan."

"I wonder how far I can go."

…………

True Dragon Royal City, nine palaces, the difficulty of each palace increasing.

It lasted for a month; after one month, points were calculated based on the number of palaces cleared.

One month later.

Zhao Xing was bounced out of the seventh palace.

There was a trace of confusion in his eyes, but he quickly recovered his clarity.

Along with him, several hundred people were bounced out.

Some were still immersed in the aftermath of the illusion when they flew out.

Some were crying and holding their heads, constantly shouting the names of their deceased relatives.

Some were babbling crazy things like "the world is about to be destroyed."

Others had stripped off all their clothes and were messing around with the pillars nearby.

What a large-scale social death scene.

"Grass, get lost!" Zhao Xing kicked the guy in heat next to him, full of disgust.

The guy who was kicked seemed not to see Zhao Xing at all and went straight to hug others.

The next moment, a voice came from the sky.

"Wake up!"

The mysterious ritualist took action again, restoring everyone's sanity.

Many people showed expressions of shame.

"This should be the Duke of Wei," Zhao Xing thought to himself. "Who would have thought that the Island of the Chosen stage would be personally managed by a King and a Duke."

As for the point ranking, Zhao Xing no longer paid attention.

He came to the last two stages purely to check for gaps.

"I cleared the sixth illusion palace and was stuck at the seventh."

"My life soul is only at the Fourth Rank mid-stage; if it could be improved, I should be able to clear the seventh within a month," Zhao Xing thought.

Like the seventh illusion palace, he had clearly seen through it, but lacked the hard strength to break the situation quickly.

"Even so, my ranking has gone up a lot, already at three hundred and eighth," Zhao Xing thought. "I don't know if this is true or false."

He didn't know the situation of others, but he had seen people come out of the ninth palace.

In any case, the Earth Mirror was also controlled by the court; forging it was just a matter of a word, wasn't it?

What the final ranking was depended entirely on what ranking the Heavenly Secret Pavilion wanted him to pass the entire stage with.

In any case, he was now entering the final stage 【Dragon Language Decree】 at three hundred and eighth place.

…………

Time reached the twenty-fourth day after Zhao Xing passed the second stage 【Dragon Protection】.

The thirtieth city of Dragon Protection.

"I f-f-your whole f-family..."

Lei Ling lay on the ground, listless.

There were few people left around him.

As for the thirtieth Dragon City, only Long Xiao had been left guarding the city for a long time.

Including the five days before Zhao Xing passed, Lei Ling had now been here for twenty-nine days.

He was about to face the one-month limit.

Lei Ling had been stuck here for twenty-nine days.

Thousands of people weaker than him had passed, yet he was the one being tortured by Long Xiao.

He complained, shouting to the heavens about the unfairness.

But no one paid attention to him.

Within the rules, Long Xiao was allowed to block whoever he wanted.

Even if Long Xiao had gone a bit too far, complaints after the fact were useless because these five hundred quotas were contributed by Bai Yunwu!

Go complain?

Who is that below, complaining about my granddaughter's fiancé?

"Brother Lei, stop cursing; the more you curse, the less likely you are to pass," his friend beside him couldn't bear to watch.

Lei Ling's mentality had exploded; actually targeting the guard commander with curses, weren't you just asking for trouble?

Could he still let you have an easy time?

"Hoo~ hoo~" Lei Ling was tired of cursing and silently got up to recover his injuries.

Tomorrow was the last day; if he didn't pass, he would be eliminated.

Five hundred quotas were relatively easier to get; if he didn't pass this time, he would have to go to the round-robin battles later and fight more people for the remaining quotas, which would probably be even harder.

…………

The fifth stage, Dragon Language Decree.

Zhao Xing faced the language test of the ancient Dragon clan.

"In the era of spiritual energy, many experts of the Dragon Court established the Dao, changing the rules of heaven and earth, making the Dragon clan's language both a language and a spell, like a mantra, possessing the great power of heaven and earth."

"Even now, it is still effective, but the power has become much weaker."

"Different languages and ancient texts also represent status; for example, Dragon clan golden texts are exclusive to the Royal Court. The level of the Dragon Language Decree also determines one's status in the Dragon clan."

"There are over two hundred types in total; this stage is truly difficult."

Zhao Xing looked; this stage was his weak point.

The assessment time was only seven days.

Yet he had to complete the test of over two hundred types of Dragon Language.

Other contestants were people who had been studying hard for decades.

Zhao Xing hadn't studied for long and had only learned some fur.

The preparation time was different.

Secondly, the Dragon Language Decree was a completely new spell system, somewhat similar to the ritualist's True Word Law.

Finally, it involved the difficulty of the Dragon Language Decree itself.

"Over two hundred types, seventy-two of which are high-level Dragon Language spells. At least a Fifth Rank body is needed to emit Dragon Language."

After Zhao Xing broke through to the Fifth Rank, there were too many things to do; he simply didn't have time to study intently.

Facing this stage, his scoring ability was weak.

Because he had only generally cultivated the Myriad Beast True Word Law and had not specialized in high-level Dragon Language spells.

He hadn't expected this fifth stage, which appeared randomly, to be this one.

"I still have ten years to prepare; falling behind in this stage is fine," Zhao Xing thought. "Checking for gaps, it's good to discover my own flaws."

Seven days later, Zhao Xing came out of the Dragon Language Decree stage and waited for everyone's test to end.

During this period, his ranking slowly slid.

Finally, it reached four hundred and twenty-fifth and stopped moving.

"The King of Heaven's Evolution is operating behind the scenes," Zhao Xing smiled slightly when he saw this.

The number of people coming to the final stage was still increasing.

But his ranking was no longer dropping, clearly locked.

"Four hundred and twenty-fifth, just within the top five hundred quota, and not the last twenty or thirty to attract attention."

Zhao Xing sat cross-legged in the corner, waiting for the final assessment to end.

…………

He didn't know how long it had been, but Zhao Xing suddenly felt a repulsive force.

The Canghai Token on his body emitted a faint light, shrouding him and his battle beasts.

"It's ending." Zhao Xing understood he was about to leave the Canghai Cave Heaven.

…………

Outside the Canghai Cave Heaven, on the Genchuan Fubo ship.

"It's over? What is Zhao Xing's ranking?" Meng Kun asked.

"Four hundred and twenty-fifth," Gu Zhangqing said.

"Why did it drop so much?"

"He was only slightly ahead when he came out of the third stage, started falling behind the first echelon in the fourth stage, and performed relatively poorly in the fifth stage," Gu Zhangqing said. "Being able to stabilize at four hundred and twenty-fifth is all because of the advantage accumulated in the second stage."

"Doesn't matter, we don't look at his other skills anyway," Meng Kun said. "Dragon Language Decree, he is so young; it's normal that he couldn't learn it."

"True," Gu Zhangqing nodded. Zhao Xing was only Fifth Rank and so young; being in the top five hundred was a miracle!

Besides, their Earth-Profit faction didn't look at these; they valued Zhao Xing's talent in the Earth-Profit faction.

"Prepare, and come with me to find him," Meng Kun said.

"Good." Gu Zhangqing nodded.

…………

On the Fengxi Cloud Ship.

"Zhao Xing's performance in the last two stages has become average," Heng Yuan frowned. "Especially the illusion palace, which tests mind and will; he only passed four palaces."

"Passing the fourth palace is also quite good," Sima Yunhai said. "How old is he? He hasn't experienced much tempering in the world; passing the fourth illusion palace is already very good."

"Indeed," Heng Yuan nodded.

Sima Yunhai had now been persuaded by Geng Shouchang and agreed to recommend Zhao Xing to the Profound Heaven Academy.

Geng Shouchang only used one sentence to persuade him: "Brother, don't you want to return the favor in kind?"

Sima Yunhai heard this and immediately agreed.

So now, he was the most active one.

If he could pull Zhao Xing to the Profound Heaven Academy, Sima Yunhai would definitely take the field himself to teach and grab the title of Zhao Xing's teacher!

Only then could he vent his anger!

"No time to lose, Brother Geng, Brother Heng, you two set off quickly to see that Zhao Xing." Sima Yunhai couldn't show his face, but he was afraid of being seen through by Zhao Xing, so only Heng Yuan and Geng Shouchang could go.

…………

"Long Xiao, where is Long Xiao?!"

"I'll beat this little bastard to death; is this something a human does?"

"Dad, Long Xiao isn't here, what happened again?" Bai Feng asked.

"Ling'er, you don't know."

"Someone just cursed Long Xiao a few times, and this kid kept Lei Ling stuck in the second stage for a whole month!"

"Pfft~" Bai Feng couldn't help but laugh. "Well done!"

"Huh? You're still helping him?" Bai Mingchuan was even angrier.

"Dad, that Lei Ling cursed his whole family; didn't that include you, me, and Grandpa?"

"He did nothing wrong by doing this. Daughter just likes his protective personality; how can you blame him for this?"

Bai Mingchuan was told this by his daughter and felt it made some sense, but he still said: "A great man should have a broad mind; doing this, how can Dad let him do big things."

Bai Feng didn't speak; she knew her father was just being contrary. Long Xiao wasn't usually like this; there must be a reason this time.

Now Bai Mingchuan was purely arguing because she was defending him.

She didn't argue anymore: "Dad's lesson is right."

"Hmph, if you see him, tell him to quickly do what he was told and go see Zhao Xing."

"If it's too late, it will be too late."

…………

Where Zhao Xing went in, he came out in the same place.

Liu Wanliang had already been waiting outside with people for a long time.

When Zhao Xing came out, he was greeted by cheers.

"Congratulations, Marquis Yuanrang!"

"Chenan, well done!"

"Zhao Xing, amazing!"

The Princess's Prefecture team, regardless of whether they were familiar with Zhao Xing before, were now 'their own people.'

Zhao Xing's strength had earned their respect, and this pile of Fourth Rankers were all congratulating him.

Of course, there were two congratulations that were gritted-teeth types.

"Marquis Yuanrang, congratulations!" Lin Ziyue looked at Zhao Xing, her teeth itching with hatred.

She still remembered the scene when Zhao Xing eliminated her; that bolt of lightning was probably unforgettable for a lifetime.

"You two are too kind, no need to thank me," Zhao Xing said.

Wang Zhaozhao and Lin Ziyue: "..."

Liu Wanliang laughed: "Chenan, congratulations, get on the ship; the Princess is waiting for you."

"Yes."

…………

"Senior Brother, I knew you would definitely get the quota." As soon as he got on the ship, Ji Zixuan looked at Zhao Xing with admiration.

"Where is Mistress?" Zhao Xing asked.

"Waiting inside."

"You help me look at them first."

Zhao Xing handed the lynx, Cangni, and the Spirit Illusion Goat to Ji Zixuan and then entered the Yonghua Palace.

"Mistress! This disciple has returned." Zhao Xing bowed respectfully.

"Chenan, you did well," Princess Youruo smiled. "I didn't expect that when you said you wanted to fight for a quota, you would really get one for the Ancient Dragon Court."

"It's all thanks to Mistress's cultivation; without Mistress, I would never have obtained this honor."

"Alright, you don't have to coax me," Princess Youruo laughed. "What does it have to do with me? Besides giving you some money, I did nothing. People in my own prefecture didn't spend less than you, and some of them were eliminated."

"You entered the top five hundred this time; according to court practice, both you and your battle beasts will be rewarded."

"Prefect Fan and Supervisor Wang of Chongming Prefecture have both come to ask me whether you, a proper Fifth Rank, will stay in your original position or have other ideas."

To enter the top five hundred, one must at least be promoted by one rank and receive a baptism of luck.

In addition, battle pets also receive rewards and must also receive a baptism of luck.

As the owner, Zhao Xing benefits and must receive a baptism of luck again.

Afterward, there are also monetary rewards as an incentive; this resource is earmarked for specific purposes and can only be spent on cultivation and pet cultivation, not for personal enjoyment or other purposes.

Of course, what Zhao Xing is considering now is mainly the issue of his official position.

However, Princess Youruo then said: "You can consider the Chongming Prefecture side later."

"Because you now have three more choices."

Zhao Xing was stunned: "I don't know what Mistress is talking about?"

Princess Youruo said: "Heng Yuan and Geng Shouchang of the Profound Heaven Academy, and Gu Zhangqing and Meng Kun of the Kunyuan Academy, have taken a fancy to your talent."

"They want to recruit you and take advantage of this promotion opportunity to transfer you away."

"In addition, Bai Mingchuan of the Azure Dragon Army also intends to recruit you into the army and has offered a position of proper Fourth Rank Upper."

"You should understand the situation of the Water Tribe chieftains; Bai Mingchuan can really let you jump five levels."

"What?" Zhao Xing was stunned. "How can this be?"

He had never had any contact with the Profound Heaven Academy or the Kunyuan Academy, and the same went for Bai Mingchuan.

How could they want to recruit him just like that?

"Because of your performance in this competition," Princess Youruo said.

Zhao Xing pondered slightly and immediately understood; the big shots of these two schools must have seen his battle scenes and thus developed the intention to recruit him.

"I want to ask for Mistress and Teacher's opinion before making plans," Zhao Xing said.

"Your Teacher and I have no opinion," Princess Youruo smiled. "Go wherever you want. As long as you don't give up cultivating the Myriad Law Straw Men, your Teacher doesn't care where you are."

Zhao Xing nodded: "In that case, allow this disciple to consider it."

"Hmm, let's return to Bixian County first; they will come to find you then."

"Yes, student takes his leave."

In the vast East Sea, beneath a sea surface.

Three mountain peaks stand in the sea, and between these mountains, a crystal palace is hidden.

There is a statue in the palace, and when the quota competition ends.

This statue also comes to life.

The Blood Spirit Venerable walks down from the divine platform and scans the other statues in the crystal palace.

The furnace is burning under the statues, and some flames are already relatively weak.

"Pitter-patter~" The Blood Spirit Venerable lights a few blood-red incense candles and burns some paper money that has been piously chanted by believers into the incense burner.

The flames become vigorous again.

Before long, the furnace under one of the Taoist statues spits out a letter.

"I am truly a hard-working life; you are all sleeping, and I am the only one busy, when will it be my turn to sleep?"

The Blood Spirit Venerable sighed and took out the letter.

On it is the freshly baked list, five hundred people in total, standardizing origins, strength, detailed official positions, and identity backgrounds.

"The five hundred quotas selected by the Great Zhou have determined the five hundred middle-rank realms in the East Sea that will enter the Ancient Dragon Court."

"Huh? Zhao Xing? Why is this name so familiar?" The Blood Spirit Venerable frowned.

"Is he a disciple of Liu Wanfa? Is he that kid from Nanyang County? No, this sense of familiarity is more than that..."

The Blood Spirit Venerable felt he had ignored something.

But he didn't know where to say it.

The more this was the case, the more he felt this person was mysterious.

"He was exiled to the East Sea, but in just ten years, he has grown to this point."

"The Myriad Law Clones have been practiced to such a profound realm, Heaven-Time Law, Earth-Profit Law, all are high-level perfection."

"Why didn't the Prince of Liang's party take action?"

"Oh, they did."

"General Golden Throat went once; so he died at his hands."

The Blood Spirit Venerable traced the various deeds of the past ten years.

He calculated with his fingers, but found Zhao Xing's future hazy and unclear.

"Bang!" He broke three fingers.

"This feeling is very similar to when I calculated the Ten Suns Cave Heaven last time," the Blood Spirit Venerable thought.

He picked up his fingers and chewed them in his mouth; before long, new fingers appeared at the broken ends.

"Could it be that the ant that appeared on the chessboard was him?" The Blood Spirit Venerable thought of this possibility and became interested.

"Impossible, what realm was he at then? Even now, he couldn't disturb this plot..."

"Forget it, he has to be eliminated anyway..."

"Let's list him as the seventh on the must-kill list."

The Blood Spirit Venerable wrote and drew on the list.

After everything was done, he threw the list into the furnace with a sad face: "Sigh, my life is bitter, even this kind of thing has to be arranged by me."

"Seniors, uncles, when will you wake up?"

Pfft~ The flames burned, swallowing the letter; no one responded to the Blood Spirit Venerable.

The Blood Spirit Venerable shook his head, jumped back onto the divine platform, and turned into a statue.

…………

The building ship returned to Chongming Prefecture, and Zhao Xing was let down because he had to wait for rewards here.

When he went, it was April; when he returned, it was already the beginning of autumn in the 30th year of Jingxin.

However, as soon as he arrived in Chongming Prefecture, he felt a palpitation, as if someone was plotting against him.

"Huh?" Zhao Xing clutched his chest and frowned.