Chapter 79: Vacation

Southwind Academy held a graduation ceremony today; this year's students have officially concluded their studies. From here on, they will head to other higher-level academies in the Great Xia, continue their cultivation, or change paths to pursue other trades. From this day forward, they will be scattered to the corners of the world, and perhaps there will be no chance to meet again.

After the ceremony concluded, Li Luo, Lu Qinger, Yu Lang, and Zhao Kuo were called separately by the old Dean to his courtyard.

"For this academy grand examination, the four of you have preserved the reputation of Southwind Academy as the number one academy. Truly, I must express my gratitude to you all," the old Dean said, pruning the flowers and plants in the courtyard before turning to look at the four of them with a smile.

Zhao Kuo scratched his head; he actually understood that he hadn't made much of a contribution, merely basking in the light of Li Luo.

Yu Lang, on the other hand, was grinning, looking completely thick-skinned, as if he had truly shed blood and blocked blades for Southwind Academy.

Li Luo smiled and said, "Old Dean, if you only called us here to thank us verbally, then there really wasn't much of a need for that."

The old Dean retorted indignantly, "In the eyes of you little things, am I just a stingy old man, is that it?"

Yu Lang said indignantly, "Dean, you are the person I respect the most. I won't allow you to speak of yourself like that. I suggest you remove the word 'stingy'!"

The old Dean raised the shears in his hand, intending to snip at Yu Lang's lower body, scaring the latter into jumping back two steps with a pale face and a look of terror.

"Hmph."

The old Dean let out a huff and said, "From this moment on, you are considered to have left Southwind Academy. Two months from now, you will head to the Astral Sage College. That is the place you little things dream of, but no matter what heights you reach in the future, you will always be students who walked out of my Southwind Academy."

"However, although your results this time were quite good, do not let that make you arrogant, because once you reach the Astral Sage College, you will realize just how vast the Great Xia is, and just how deep the hidden dragons and crouching tigers within it truly are."

"Of course, if you can be like Jiang Qing, then consider what I said unsaid."

Regarding the old Dean's admonitions, the few present all nodded, because apart from Yu Lang, who was very flighty, the other three were quite steady—especially Li Luo; if not for this grand examination, he would likely still be hiding in the shadows, and no one would know his true depth.

After the old Dean finished his admonitions, he reached into his robes and took out four small crystal bottles. Inside the bottles, a pale yellow pill could be seen, faintly emitting a fragrance.

"This is a Bitter Lotus Pill. When your resonance power reaches the Ten-Seal stage, you can consume and refine it. It can accelerate the condensation of your resonance seed and increase the success rate of the condensation. Consider it an extra reward for your performance in this grand examination."

Upon hearing this, Li Luo and the others were quite pleasantly surprised. Unlike the large quantities of consumables like spirit liquid and light, pills were a bit scarcer and more expensive. The fact that the old Dean brought out four Bitter Lotus Pills showed he was quite generous.

Li Luo and the others had heard of this Bitter Lotus Pill. It was said that it required the sap of a resonance power tree as a medicinal catalyst, so generally, only major academies could refine such items. For beginners at the Ten-Seal stage, the Bitter Lotus Pill was considered the best miraculous medicine.

After all, many people might fail several times when condensing a resonance seed, delaying precious cultivation time, and the Bitter Lotus Pill could reduce the probability of such failure, making it quite precious.

"Old Dean, from now on, whoever dares to tell me, Yu Lang, that you are stingy, I will be the first to get worked up with them!" Yu Lang promised with a solemn expression.

The old Dean glanced at him sideways, but he couldn't be bothered to argue with this rascal who was notorious in Southwind Academy, and he casually tossed the pills to the four of them.

"Go on. Although it's a bit unpleasant, I must admit that the Astral Sage College is the only true top-tier academy. Within the Great Xia, no other academy can compare to it."

"Moreover, only after entering the Astral Sage College will you come into contact with the truth of this world."

"Your futures will still be very brilliant. I look forward to hearing more news about you all from this Southwind Academy."

Listening to the old Dean's faint words, the four of them felt a wave of emotion, and they all bowed to him before turning to leave.

And just as Li Luo was about to walk out, the old Dean looked at his back and suddenly smiled: "Li Luo, good lad, you didn't lose face for your father and mother."

Li Luo's footsteps paused. He looked at the clouds rolling and unfurling above Southwind Academy, and inexplicably felt his nose sting. He had originally thought he no longer cared about the opinions of others, but the old Dean's words made him feel that these past efforts were not in vain.

In fact, he understood that he didn't care about others' opinions; he simply didn't want to become a stain on his father and mother.

Because he loved those two seemingly unreliable parents very much.

They, clearly, were the same.

After concluding his studies at Southwind Academy, Li Luo returned to his usual tight schedule. Just as he had said, he did not relax in the slightest because he had taken first place in the Tianshu Prefecture academy grand examination, because from any angle, this could only be considered a small skirmish.

After the two-month vacation, he would head to the Astral Sage College. Only when he arrived there would he know exactly how many young geniuses the Great Xia possessed.

However, this time, he swore that once he reached the Astral Sage College, he would definitely be even more low-key.

During these two months of vacation, the goal Li Luo set for himself was that he must reach the Ten-Seal stage, and if possible, try to see if he could condense a resonance seed and step into the Resonance Master stage!

In other prefectures, it was said that students at the Ten-Seal stage had already appeared in the grand examinations. If two months of vacation passed, those truly top-tier students would inevitably possess the strength of the first stage of the Resonance Master level, so Li Luo felt he could not relax.

Of course, none of this was the most important thing; the most important thing was that his lifespan was already in its final five-year countdown!

After all, while being low-key was important, clearly, his own little life was more important!

As the vacation time drifted by, about half a month later, Li Luo found that his resonance power had reached the Nine-Seal stage, as expected.

Additionally, in his practice of spirit liquid and light, Li Luo's level was also advancing by leaps and bounds. Now, he was already able to refine second-grade spirit liquid and light, making him a qualified second-grade resonance refiner.

So, overall, Li Luo was quite satisfied with the progress he had made during this half-month of vacation.

However, as his resonance power level gradually approached the Resonance Master stage, Li Luo also began to flip through the "Little Formless Divine Forging Art" left to him by Li Taixuan and Tantai Lan, because he had to consider a very important question: that is, after he reached the Resonance Master stage, what attribute should he refine as his primary, and what as his secondary, for the acquired resonance in his second resonance palace?

(End of chapter)