Chapter 328: The Holy Maiden of the Ten Heaven Court! Sakura Rin!

Seeing this ruined continent meant they were not far from Hokkaido.

Just over three hours later, a modern port glittering with lights appeared before them.

"We're finally here! Throughout this journey, I kept worrying some eighth-rank beast king would show up—thankfully, no more fear now."

"Tell me about it. Lucky we had good fortune."

Traveling across the sea depends entirely on luck.

As the port neared, the psychics on deck relaxed, chatting and laughing with each other.

But Lin Hui and Lu Heng remained somewhat gloomy.

During the nearly twelve-hour voyage, beast-like creatures such as the Flying Sea Swordfish appeared more than three or four times.

Yet each time, Xu Jingming killed them all—leaving not a single one for the two of them.

Lu Heng, by comparison, felt a bit better.

After all, he was an enhancement-type psychic; his attack range was naturally shorter than fire or lightning types.

Even if Xu Jingming hadn't acted, he couldn't have killed many.

But Lin Hui was different—he'd been robbed of kills by a psychic one rank lower than himself.

He couldn't help but feel deeply aggrieved.

Yet as a member of the Thunder Martial Arts Academy's Elite Training Camp, he still had some grace.

"Brother, your lightning psychic ability is impressive. Mind if we get acquainted? I'm Lin Hui from the Thunder Martial Arts Academy's Elite Training Camp."

Lin Hui stepped before Xu Jingming, smiling warmly.

"Su Chen." Xu Jingming gave a slight nod.

"Su Chen? Great name! Are you from the Su family of Anhui Province?"

"No. A lone psychic." Xu Jingming replied.

The Su family of Anhui Province was a ninth-rank Martial Saint clan renowned throughout Great Xia.

Vice Principal Ling Shuang's forged identity for him deliberately avoided any connection to them.

"Oh?" Lin Hui was surprised.

A lone psychic meant one who had joined no faction whatsoever.

Such psychics were already rare in Great Xia.

Especially one whose attack range seemed to possess an unusually exceptional talent.

"Lone psychics have it hard, Brother Su. You might consider Teacher Qin's suggestion."

"After returning home, try joining our training camp's selection trials. With a major faction behind you, everything becomes easier."

Lin Hui couldn't help but offer well-intentioned advice.

"Thank you for the warning, but I have no such plans for now." Xu Jingming replied briefly.

Lin Hui paused slightly, realizing Xu Jingming had no intention of continuing the conversation.

I overestimated my own importance.

He scoffed inwardly and didn't linger to embarrass himself further:

"In that case, I won't disturb you any longer."

With a smile, he turned and walked back toward the martial arts academy group.

Nearby, the rest of the Thunder Martial Arts Academy members, who had witnessed the entire exchange, were quietly displeased.

"What's his attitude? Everyone says our training camp is arrogant, but he's even more arrogant!"

"Yeah, it's just a selection trial—he acts like we're forcing him into something."

"True. He's just got a longer range. Who knows if he'll even pass the real entrance exam?"

"......"

Seeing them grow increasingly excessive, Lin Hui frowned:

"Lone psychics are naturally reclusive. Don't say so much."

"Lin Ge, you're just too easygoing."

"True..."

Since Lin Hui himself had no complaints, the others of the Thunder Martial Arts Academy said nothing more...

"Under your full escort, the Whale Whale has safely arrived at the port."

"Here is an anonymous Sakura Bank card with sixty million Sakura yen—equivalent to three million Great Xia yuan. The password is six zeros."

"Now, wish you all a pleasant stay in Sakura Country..."

The Whale Whale soon docked at the Hokkaido port.

Every psychic on deck, including Xu Jingming, received a Sakura Bank card.

Of course,

those who had retreated into the cabin beforehand received nothing.

"Hokkaido! Finally here!" Xu Jingming tucked the card into his space ring.

Standing on deck, he gazed at the city ahead.

It was nine at night; the sky was pitch black, yet the city blazed with light.

The area near the port was especially bustling.

In the distance, he could even spot many distinctly Sakura-style buildings and shops.

"The entrance to Civilization Site No. 9 is in Asahikawa City, Hokkaido—still quite a distance from the port."

"Need to get there by train quickly..."

After briefly admiring the scenery, Xu Jingming retracted his gaze and stepped off the ship.

Although Sakura Country's territory was now only half its former size, the remaining half had been expertly developed.

All supporting infrastructure was well-built.

The Asahikawa City Xu Jingming needed to reach had a 24-hour high-speed train service from this port city.

Thus, just two hours later, he arrived in Asahikawa City, hundreds of kilometers away.

He checked into the hotel Vice Principal Ling Shuang had already reserved for him.

After a quick inspection of the room and confirming everything was fine, he went downstairs.

This was his first time abroad; not exploring the surroundings and experiencing foreign culture would be unthinkable.

"Good evening, sir."

"Have a pleasant night, sir."

To guard against emergencies, Xu Jingming had not removed his S-class battle suit.

Thus, from leaving his hotel room to exiting the hotel, staff bowed at ninety degrees in respectful greeting.

Even on the sidewalk outside, passersby clearly showed him deference.

Oncoming pedestrians dared not meet his eyes; upon encountering him, they would bow slightly and step aside.

As if afraid of displeasing him...

"Sakura Country's class consciousness seems stronger than I imagined," Xu Jingming thought silently.

The trauma of a century ago left an indelible scar on Sakura Country.

Ordinary citizens revered psychics with extraordinary respect.

If in Great Xia, psychics were merely above ordinary people,

then in Sakura Country, they were practically watered-down Celestial Dragons!

Even moderately excessive killings required no excuse.

"This society is good for psychics—but cruel beyond measure for ordinary people."

He sighed inwardly and continued walking down the street.

He had no destination—just wandered aimlessly, observing.

Suddenly, a building caught his attention.

It was a thirty-story cylindrical tower.

Around it, armed soldiers and psychic squads patrolled constantly.

But what drew Xu Jingming's special attention was not the tower's height or its tight security.

It was the massive carvings etched across its entire exterior wall—depictions resembling Sakura Country's gods.

Under the lights, they glowed with dazzling brilliance, dreamlike and ethereal.

"That's the main building of Sakura Country's Ten Heaven Court. They love this architectural style,"

Eva whispered beside him. "Sakura Country's dojos are essentially equivalent to our martial arts academies."

"I've seen it online before," Xu Jingming nodded slightly.

Unlike Great Xia, where Thunder Martial Arts Academy and Furious Bear Martial Arts Academy competed, Sakura Country had only the Ten Heaven Court.

Nearly half of Sakura Country's strongest psychics came from this dojo.

It was no exaggeration to say it held the entire nation in its grasp.

"Vrrrrm~~~"

Suddenly, a low engine roar echoed.

A luxury convoy approached from afar and halted at the entrance of the Ten Heaven Court tower.

Instantly, the surrounding soldiers and psychic squads dispersed.

Under the protection of several bodyguards clad in black suits and radiating thick aura, a young woman stepped out from the lead sports car.

The woman wore a black-and-red cropped top and a pure black pleated miniskirt, accentuating her firm, full bust and long, rounded legs.

Her smooth black hair fell neatly over her shoulders, with the rest cascading down her back.

Bodyguards blocked her face, but just her figure alone was enough to draw the gaze of many men.

Her attire reminded Xu Jingming of the high school girls in uniforms he had seen aboard the high-speed train earlier.

But unlike those high school girls, this woman radiated an aura terrifyingly strong.

She felt at least fifth-rank!

"Is she a student of Tianyu Daochang? How could she be this strong?" Xu Jingming thought in surprise.

The woman looked young, no more than twenty-three or twenty-four.

If all Tianyu Daochang students were this strong, how could Sakura Country have fallen into vassalage?

"She's not just any Tianyu Daochang student—her name is Sakura Rin."

She is a Class-S psychic awakened seven years ago in Sakura Country, possessing the unique Class-S summoning ability "Shikigami Awakening."

At fifth-rank lower tier, she is the leading figure among the younger generation of Tianyu Daochang.

Internally, Tianyu Daochang calls her… the Holy Maiden."

Eva's crisp voice echoed in his ear.