Chapter 205: Wanting to Cry but No Tears

Actually, Ying Wuji wasn't interested in this bet, but he still joined to make Second Senior Sister happy.

"First place, thirty thousand low-grade spirit stones," Ying Wuji said calmly.

Win or lose, it doesn't matter.

The others also placed their bets one after another.

Yao Linglong: "Twelfth place, three thousand low-grade spirit stones."

Lin Xuechen: "Twelfth place, three thousand low-grade spirit stones."

Song Yan: "Fifth place, five thousand low-grade spirit stones."

Cang Li: "How about second place? I'll bet one thousand low-grade spirit stones!"

Xue Jin: "First place, five thousand low-grade spirit stones."

After they placed their bets, Xiao Lingwei smiled and said, "Then let's all enter the spirit pool together."

Yuan Yao was about to step into the spirit pool when Song Yan pulled her back; he softly reminded her, "This spiritual liquid has the effect of washing the meridians and purifying the marrow, so after contacting it, your meridians will feel a stabbing pain—that's normal."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Yao nodded to show she understood.

Afterwards, the disciples almost simultaneously entered the spirit pool.

And in the next instant—

Many young disciples sucked in a breath of cold air, and some even cried out in pain.

As Yuan Yao's legs stepped into the spirit pool, it felt as if countless slender silver needles were fiercely piercing her flesh, then penetrating her meridians, sending a sharp stabbing pain while she also felt a faint warmth spreading through the meridians in her legs.

Her brows furrowed slightly, then she steadily walked into the spirit pool.

The milky-white spiritual liquid gradually rose over her thighs, then her lower abdomen.

The spiritual liquid in the spirit pool is not deep.

"Yao Yao." Xiao Lingwei pulled her, walking toward a certain spot in the spirit pool.

Each step felt like stepping on steel needles, painfully intense.

Many young disciples' faces had already turned pale.

They simply stopped walking, sat cross-legged in the shallower part of the spirit pool, and began cultivating.

Gradually, all forty-five disciples found suitable spots in the vast spirit pool, sat down, and began to immerse themselves in cultivation.

Xiao Lingwei sat not far from Yuan Yao, the spiritual liquid nearly reaching her shoulders; she turned to Yuan Yao and said, "Yao Yao, spiritual liquid is extremely precious in the cultivation world, also called spiritual medicine; it not only contains rich spiritual energy, but can also help cultivators wash the meridians and purify the marrow, strengthen their cultivation foundation, and even enhance their bloodline talent."

"Just follow what the master taught yesterday: circulate your inner breath, temper the spiritual liquid all over your body, then absorb it for your own use."

After hearing this, Yuan Yao nodded seriously.

She also sat cross-legged in the spirit pool, the spiritual liquid already past her shoulders.

Except for her head, the meridians throughout her body transmitted a stabbing pain.

Yuan Yao glanced at all the disciples present and saw they were now rushing into cultivation as if every second counted.

She saw black aura rising from the bodies of Xiao Zhufeng and the others.

This is the "human body waste gas" the master spoke of, which can be likened to the impurities expelled from a human cultivator's body.

Yuan Yao also slowly closed her eyes, began circulating her inner spiritual power, started absorbing the surrounding spiritual liquid; the next moment, the vast spiritual energy in the liquid surged like a rushing river into her body, scouring her meridians and finally gathering in her dantian.

Hum!

Yuan Yao felt pain all over her body, her meridians being forcibly scoured, as if being torn apart and healed, continually widening.

Her dantian within her body was like a huge vortex, incessantly devouring the pure spiritual energy in the spiritual liquid!

Soon, Yuan Yao's forehead beaded with cold sweat.

Meanwhile, the spiritual liquid around her began to roll like boiling water.

Wisps of black aura emanated from her body.

Yuan Yao steadied her mind; she had intended to use the spiritual liquid for gradual cultivation, but at this moment her dantian was like a barrier torn open, needing a large amount of spiritual energy to fill it.

She also noticed a speck of golden light within her dantian gradually growing larger.

Yuan Yao felt a surge of joy.

Perhaps she could break through to the Golden Core Realm here this time!

She endured the intense pain coursing through her body, then began frantically absorbing the spiritual energy in the spiritual liquid!

Hum—

A sound rang out, startling the guards stationed around the spirit pool; they all turned toward the source, seeing that at Yuan Yao's location the spiritual liquid was rolling, its range gradually expanding!

This is…

What's going on?!

Before they could react, several more humming sounds came; they saw that the spiritual liquid around Ying Wuji, Xiao Lingwei, Song Yan, Xue Jin, Xiao Zhufeng, Zhai Qiye, Cang Li, and Ling Huya also began to ripple, the amplitude growing ever larger.

Moreover, the old guide who had been resting with closed eyes opened his cloudy eyes due to the anomaly in the spiritual liquid.

He glanced with astonished disbelief at each of Yuan Yao's and the others' faces, his heart greatly shocked.

They…

He hadn't seen such a sight for a long time.

The last time someone caused the spirit pool to ripple was over a hundred years ago.

He clearly remembered that year three peerless geniuses appeared.

Thousand Mountain Immortal Lord, Thousand Jade Mountain.

Holy Sect Sect Master, Duan Muhan.

Crimson Lotus Immortal Lord, Fan Jie.

At that time, they had just begun to make a name for themselves in the Ninth Province.

The three of them also had the qualifications to cultivate in the Heavenly Treasury Spirit Pool.

They three all stayed in the Heavenly Abode Spirit Pool for a long time, then drained a little less than half of the spirit pool.

Now!

Such peerless geniuses actually number nine!

Aren't they going to drain the entire Heavenly Abode Spirit Pool dry?!

The Guide Elder was excited that the Ninth Province had produced so many peerless geniuses at the same time, yet worried that the entire Heavenly Abode Spirit Pool would be drained dry.

He suddenly stood up, his gaze complex as he stared at them.

The Heavenly Abode Spirit Pool is an important resource of the Ninth Province; once drained, restoring it to its original state would require at least a thousand years.

What is to be done?

The Guide Elder had his hands behind his back, pacing back and forth with worry.

After a quarter of an hour, two young disciples could no longer endure and left the spirit pool.

And when they saw the spiritual fluid around Yuan Yao and the others boiling, they were stunned.

What's wrong with them?

The Guide Elder discovered that Yuan Yao had consumed the most spiritual fluid; in just a short quarter of an hour, the spirit pool's water level dropped by half an inch!

As time passed.

One after another, young disciples broke through and advanced, then emerged from the spirit pool.

Without even taking more than a glance at Yuan Yao and the others, they were ruthlessly expelled by the Guide Elder.

In merely half a day, the number of disciples remaining in the Heavenly Abode Spirit Pool fell below fifteen.

And in that same half day, the spirit pool's water level dropped by a full two inches!

The Guide Elder's face turned green.

He wished he could throw them all out.

After Yao Linglong successfully advanced, she felt that given her physical condition, she could no longer remain, so she rose and left the spirit pool.

She stood by the spirit pool and, puzzled, said: "Eh, what's going on? Why do I feel the spiritual fluid has decreased so much?"

Upon hearing this, the Guide Elder felt heartbroken to the point of being unable to put it into words; he could only force himself to stay calm and say: "You have already obtained the reward; leave this place."

Yao Linglong gave a thoughtful "oh," then left with a smiling squint.

She was twelfth place, she won.