Chapter 518: Elder Elder Ling Yu

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

In the Holy Grail space, at a circular plaza built of white jade stone.

The plaza was a hive of noise on all sides; every student participating in the Holy Grail War had gathered here. These students would certainly count as elites in their own academies, yet here they could only serve as spectators, for the protagonists of the upcoming mixed-grade competition were not them.

On the white jade plaza, squads kept walking in one after another, and each time a squad appeared, it would draw cheers and applause from the surroundings.

"Looks like this is a teleportation formation."

Li Luo looked at the faintly glowing patterns on the white jade floor beneath his feet. The patterns were extremely intricate, yet followed a certain order. Standing here, he could sense a thin stream of energy flowing within the stone slabs underfoot.

Beside him, Jiang Jiang Qinge and the Eldest Princess gave slight nods.

The two women standing together were undoubtedly the most eye-catching sight in the plaza. After all, Jiang Jiang Qinge's fame had spread far and wide these past few days—the invincible one of the Three Star Academy. Every move she made drew attention, and beyond her strength, her looks and bearing were likewise matchless.

The Eldest Princess was also a woman of heavenly grace, her bearing noble and elegant. With the two of them together now, it was no wonder countless gazes kept stealing glances their way.

"Jiang Jiang Qinge from Sacred Mystic Star Academy isn't on the same team as that Palace Gong Shenjun?"

"Yeah, seems a little strange. After all, Palace Gong Shenjun is the strongest person in Sacred Mystic Star Academy, right? If the two of them teamed up, no one could keep them in check."

"You're underestimating the Eldest Princess of Great Xia. She might be a notch below Palace Gong Shenjun in strength, but the gap is limited. Now that she has Jiang Jiang Qinge's help, it's like adding wings to a tiger."

"And that Li Luo is on this team too... Heh, one squad gathering two of the strongest students—impressive."

"Li Luo is, after all, only a One Star Academy student. Not denying his talent and strength, but the mixed-grade competition's special squad configuration means he has to be compared against some Two Star Academy students. That way, his advantage is weakened quite a bit. After all, no matter how strong he is, can he really compare to Senior Ao Bai of North Sea Sacred Academy?"

"If you ask me, looking at all the squads in this mixed-grade competition, the strongest overall might still be Sacred Bright King Academy. I heard Lan Lan, Lu Lu Jinci, and Jing Jing Taixu are all on one team. Strictly speaking, only Lan Lan among them earned the strongest title, but that was the strongest of the Four Star Academy, and the weight that carries is something the other three Academy grades can't match."

"That's true..."

"......"

Li Luo heard those whispered discussions clearly. His gaze drifted to a spot not far from the plaza, where three figures stood—one of them extremely familiar: Jing Jing Taixu.

At that moment, he was chatting and laughing with his two teammates beside him.

Those two were his mixed-grade competition teammates: Lan Lan and Lu Lu Jinci.

As if sensing the gaze upon him, Jing Jing Taixu turned his head. His eyes met Li Luo's, and the smile on his face immediately faded. He snorted softly and looked away.

Lu Lu Jinci noticed the change, glanced over as well, then said helplessly, "I must have been buttered up by lard to have followed you and provoked them."

"You losing to Li Luo is still fine, not too embarrassing. But me? Even teaming up with someone, I still got nailed to the ground by Jiang Jiang Qinge."

He was thoroughly frustrated. He hadn't actually done anything—the idea was Jing Jing Taixu's. He'd just followed along to see Jiang Jiang Qinge, and then in the Academy grade competition he'd been beaten into a pig's head, utterly wretched.

Jing Jing Taixu gave an awkward laugh and quickly changed the subject. "Senior Lan Lan, if there's a chance in the mixed-grade competition, you've got to help us get our face back."

Lan Lan laughed, his eyes narrowing to slits. "Junior Jing, you already dragged Lu Lu Jinci into a pit, and now you're planning to drag me in too?"

"It won't come to that. You're the strongest of the Four Star Academy, a dignified Tian Zhu Jing expert. Even though Jiang Jiang Qinge is a Suan Shi Jiu Pin Bright Phase cultivator, she's still only at Earth Sha General Stage strength—there's still a big gap between you and her," Jing Jing Taixu said with a smile.

Lan Lan laughed and shook his head, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Li Luo only glanced at Jing Jing Taixu, then shifted most of his attention to that Lan Lan. From the latter, he could sense an immense aura of danger and pressure.

"This Lan Lan is indeed remarkable. Upper Seven Grade Water Phase, yet he can overpower numerous elites who possess Upper Eight Grade phases. You can see his ability and temperament are both extraordinary." Noticing Li Luo's gaze, Jiang Jiang Qinge spoke up slowly.

"Affinity Rank does bring some advantages in cultivation, but it's not absolute. This Lan Lan's mental fortitude far exceeds what others imagine. After all, being able to cultivate the 'Bright King Scripture' under the pressure of a King-level expert—that's not something an ordinary person could do." The Eldest Princess's pretty face also carried a Solemn and wary expression.

Li Luo nodded. To be honest, he himself had never truly faced a King-level expert head-on. The Dean Pang he'd seen before wasn't his true body, but even so, what he'd witnessed then was like a towering mountain supporting the heavens, and that crushing pressure made even the void itself keen in lament.

That Lan Lan could cultivate the Bright King Scripture under such harsh conditions spoke volumes.

Li Luo sighed inwardly. His gaze continued sweeping the plaza, taking in squad after squad of elites, and among them he spotted some familiar figures—Sun Sun Dasheng, Lu Ming... That wasn't strange. Although the two were also only One Star Academy students, when it came down to it, the vast majority of Two Star Academy students couldn't compare to them, so it was only reasonable they could participate in the mixed-grade competition.

Suddenly, Li Luo's sweeping gaze came to a halt.

His eyes fell on a figure—a youth in white robes, his features as sharply chiseled as a sculpture, a folding fan in hand, giving off the air of a refined young gentleman. He too drew quite a bit of attention in the plaza.

Li Luo had read his intel.

The strongest title holder of the Two Star Academy, North Sea Sacred Academy—Senior Ao Bai.

Although this person had not yet fully broken through to the Earth Sha General Stage, his own Sha Palace had already begun to condense, so he was also called the Void General Stage. In terms of strength, he already surpassed people like Senior Zhu Zhu Xuan of the same Two Star Academy by a wide margin.

"Truly a gathering of masters."

Li Luo sighed. This was his first time seeing so many peers of the same generation gathered in one place. The young people on this plaza now could, overall, be considered the cream of the younger generation of Outer Shenzhou in the Eastern Domain.

Just as Li Luo was sighing, a bell chime suddenly rang out across the plaza. On the high platform above the plaza, one figure after another appeared. These figures all emanated unfathomable phase power fluctuations—they were the leaders sent by the various academies for this occasion.

Vice Dean Suxin was among them.

However, what Li Luo paid more attention to was the figure at the very front.

It was an elder wearing the robes of the Academy Alliance. The elder had a head of white hair, yet his brows were a vivid crimson, like two burning flames, giving off an air of majestic authority without anger. He himself did not emit any overly shocking phase power, but for some reason, when Li Luo's gaze fell on him, a strange sensation of heat rose unbidden within him.

And clearly he wasn't the only one who felt it—he could see many students wearing odd expressions, some even wiping sweat from their foreheads.

"That one, I hear, is the elder sent by the Academy Alliance to preside over the Holy Grail War this time. His name is Elder Elder Ling Yu." The Eldest Princess seemed to know some information and now spoke softly to Li Luo and Jiang Jiang Qinge.

Li Luo looked him over curiously. So this was a high-ranking figure from that transcendent power, the Academy Alliance?

Under the curious gazes of the many students, the crimson-browed elder stepped forward. He seemed to be a man of few smiles. As his gaze swept across, the clamor on the plaza gradually fell silent, and only then did his aged, low voice ring out.

"Students of Outer Shenzhou in the Eastern Domain, first of all, congratulations on reaching this step. Those of you able to participate in the mixed-grade competition can be considered the outstanding among the younger generation of Outer Shenzhou in the Eastern Domain. You represent the efforts of the many academies over these years."

"This mixed-grade competition is slightly different from previous ones. The specific reason, you should already know."

"You will be heading to the Black Wind Empire... no, that country has already been destroyed. There may be no Black Wind Empire from now on. That region is now overrun with Other Beings, and your mission is to purify the Red Sand Prefecture of the Black Wind Empire. The pollution level of this prefecture is on the lighter side within the Black Wind Empire, making it just right for your training."

"Additionally, regarding this mission to Red Sand Prefecture, I must remind you—you may need to be careful of more than just the Other Beings."

Hearing this, all the students were somewhat stunned, a look of confusion flashing through their eyes. More than just the Other Beings?

Elder Elder Ling Yu raised his eyelids, and his flat voice rang out.

"Because we suspect that the Dark Cave suppressed by Black Wind Sacred Academy was perhaps... deliberately destroyed by someone, thereby triggering this calamity."

At these words, the plaza instantly fell deathly silent. Every student's eyes went wide, and the next moment, a chill rose from the soles of their feet and shot straight to the crown of their heads.

The seal of the Dark Cave was deliberately destroyed by someone?

They couldn't imagine what kind of madman or power could possibly do such a crazy thing.