Chapter 509: Parting Ways

Dongfang Zisi immediately grew wary, her gaze fixed on the cave’s interior.

If it had been anyone else, she might have thought they were just bluffing.

A moment later, several excited figures slowly walked out of the cave under Dongfang Zisi’s watchful eyes.

"You..."

The excited expressions on the four’s faces instantly froze.

"Hand over the Crystal Stone you found."

Ye Xuan said lightly from the cave entrance.

"What Crystal Stone? We don’t know what you’re talking about." The four of them looked wary.

As soon as the words left their mouths, the four turned to leave.

SWOOSH!

Ye Xuan moved, blocking their path. "Hand over the Crystal Stone and you can go. Otherwise, I’ll take it myself."

"Xuan Ye, don’t push it," the leader of the four said angrily.

If it had been any other new student, the four of them would have attacked without hesitation.

But facing Ye Xuan, who had easily eliminated Chu Jian and Feng Guang in the elimination tournament, the four of them felt uneasy.

"So you don’t plan on handing it over?" Ye Xuan shook his head.

He couldn’t be bothered with small talk. The heavy sword at his waist was suddenly unsheathed.

SWISH!

The terrifying Sword of Autocracy traced a brilliant arc of light through the air, instantly appearing before the leader.

"How audacious!"

"Xuan Ye, do you really think the four of us are afraid of you?"

"Brother Liu, let’s go all out!"

"I refuse to believe the four of us can’t handle you alone."

The four young men were furious. With roars of anger, they all attacked ferociously.

Dongfang Zisi, who was at the side, also quickly drew her weapon to help.

BOOM!

A deafening roar echoed as four hazy sword images flared to life, only to be extinguished in an instant.

PFFT!

Across from him, the four new students all spat blood and stumbled back, their faces pale.

One move!

Their attacks hadn’t even reached Ye Xuan before they were defeated.

"Hand over the Crystal Stone obediently, and you can leave. Otherwise, I don’t mind making you lose your qualification for this assessment."

Ye Xuan sheathed his heavy sword and said with an indifferent expression.

He didn’t want to waste time on them, so he had directly displayed his formidable strength.

Although he was only at the Tier Five Third Layer, his Profound Power, martial skills, and Cultivation Technique were all far superior to these four new students at the Tier Six First Layer.

If he had wanted to, he could have killed them all in an instant.

"This..."

"Impossible."

The four stared blankly, their faces etched with shock and a bitter twist to their lips.

They never imagined they would be defeated so quickly. Before Xuan Ye, they were beaten before they could even make a proper move.

They had witnessed Ye Xuan’s terrifying power during the elimination tournament, but only after clashing with him did they truly understand the gap between them.

"You win." The leader gave a bitter smile, tossed out a Crystal Stone, and departed dejectedly.

"Well..."

Dongfang Zisi, who had just drawn her weapon to help, could only give a helpless smile and put it away.

Ye Xuan nodded, satisfied, as he toyed with the Crystal Stone in his hand.

This square Crystal Stone was exactly the kind Instructor Lu Jun had described. An ancient rune flickered continuously within it.

A glint flashed in Ye Xuan’s eyes as his Divine Sense permeated the Crystal Stone.

’Huh, so this rune can actually block its aura.’

Ye Xuan studied the Crystal Stone closely, his brow furrowing slightly before a smile spread across his face. ’But that’s useless against me.’

He touched his index finger to the Crystal Stone. Instantly, crisscrossing rays of light flared up, shimmering with various colors. The Restriction within it was revealed, creating a dazzling display.

SWOOSH!

Finally, Ye Xuan pulled his hand back.

At his side, Dongfang Zisi was already staring, dumbfounded.

’I’ve grasped the aura of this Crystal Stone, but it’s sealed within a Vajra Crystal. It will still be hard to find them with Soul Sense alone.’

Ye Xuan murmured to himself.

What he had just done was essentially deconstruct the Crystal Stone’s aura so he could use it to slowly track down others.

Unfortunately, Ye Xuan discovered upon observation that the aura emanating from the Crystal Stone was extremely faint. Even with his Soul Sense, he would have to be very close to perceive it.

’Wait, I have an idea.’

Suddenly, Ye Xuan’s eyes lit up, and he held out his hand.

SQUEAK! SQUEAK!

The Little Purple Mink was pulled out by its ear, looking lazy and resentful.

Just a moment ago, the Little Purple Mink had been resting in its Spirit Pet Bag, only to be yanked out by Ye Xuan. How could it not be furious?

But after observing its surroundings, a hint of confusion appeared on the Little Purple Mink’s face as it sized up the area.

’You’re saying this place gives you a very comfortable feeling?’

Ye Xuan sensed this emotion from the Little Purple Mink.

He couldn’t help but fall into thought.

’As the main territory of Demon Beasts, the Endless Mountain Range might truly have something special about it.’

’Perhaps there’s some kind of aura in these mountains that Demon Beasts or Profound Beasts feel drawn to.’

However, he hadn’t pulled the Little Purple Mink out to sense this particular aura.

SQUEAK! SQUEAK!

Ye Xuan brought the Little Purple Mink to the Crystal Stone and had it sense the aura on it.

The Little Purple Mink had a unique method for identifying treasures, able to sense their auras from a great distance.

The Little Purple Mink was reluctant at first, but under Ye Xuan’s combination of threats and bribes, it eventually caved.

Standing on Ye Xuan’s shoulder, the Little Purple Mink sniffed left and right. After a moment, it took on an air of sagely importance and pointed its little paw forward, having clearly discovered something.

’A discovery this fast?’

This stunned Ye Xuan, who remained skeptical.

But he didn’t set off immediately. Instead, he tossed the Crystal Stone back to Dongfang Zisi.

"This Crystal Stone is for you. With it, getting into the inner academy should be no problem. From now on, let’s go our separate ways."

Ye Xuan’s words left Dongfang Zisi speechless. She puffed out her cheeks and said, "What kind of person do you take me for?"

"Of course not." Ye Xuan shook his head. "It’s just that I have other things to do. And if the Profound Mystery Sect really hates me to the bone, I’m sure they won’t let this go."

"Are you saying the Profound Mystery Sect will target you during this assessment?" Dongfang Zisi looked stunned. "That’s impossible, isn’t it? The academy’s inner academy assessment is top secret. The Profound Mystery Sect doesn’t even know the location, so how could they come after you?"

"I have my doubts too, but I have a gut feeling that the Profound Mystery Sect will find a way to get to me. So it’s not a good idea for you to follow me. Not only would you be unable to help, you’d actually slow me down and put yourself in danger."

Dongfang Zisi gave a wry smile. Xuan Ye really didn’t know how to be tactful, bluntly calling her a burden. But deep down, she knew Ye Xuan wasn’t wrong.

Ye Xuan, a man who could even kill Patriarch Qin Feng of the Qin family, definitely had some powerful trump cards. Not to mention, the flying Spiritual Treasure he revealed when Duan Tianlang and the others arrived was enough to give him the power to protect himself against an ordinary Tier Seven Martial King. With her along, she would indeed be a burden.

"Since you put it that way, I’ll do as you say."

In the end, Dongfang Zisi agreed to Ye Xuan’s request, but she firmly refused to take the Crystal Stone he offered.

"Just take it. For me, getting another Crystal Stone isn’t difficult."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Xuan leaped away, leaving Dongfang Zisi behind.

With a faint, wry smile, Dongfang Zisi put away the Crystal Stone and her figure quickly vanished into the forest.

This was a contest of snatching. With a Crystal Stone in her possession, she had already qualified to enter the inner academy. Therefore, all she had to do now was find a place to hide until the assessment was over.

At this very moment, all the students were searching desperately for Crystal Stones throughout the mountain range.

Here lay a deep, icy pool, from which wisps of cold air rose like an ethereal, beautiful mist.

BOOM!

The once-calm pool suddenly began to churn. A faint roar could be heard from the depths. A moment later, streaks of blood spread through the water before it fell silent once more.

Suddenly—

BANG!

A figure shot out of the deep pool, landing gently on the ground beside it.

It was a young man in a pale blue martial robe. His face looked exceptionally gentle, exuding a warm, sunny feeling.

Steam quickly billowed from his body, and his once-drenched robes became completely dry in moments.

"Looks like my luck is pretty good. I found a Crystal Stone so quickly."

The young man held a Crystal Stone in his hand, examining it carefully with a smile on his lips.

"An assessment Crystal Stone."

A voice suddenly cried out in surprise not far from him. Two figures instantly darted over, surrounding him in a pincer formation. Greed shone in both of their eyes.

"Haha, Brother Chen, our luck is just too good! We just happened to be passing by and found a Crystal Stone. Friend, turn around and hand it over," one of them said excitedly.

"Are you talking to me?" The blue-robed youth turned around slowly, casually tossing the Crystal Stone in his hand. He looked completely at ease, showing no sign of tension.

"You..."

When the two new students saw his face, their expressions froze. They didn’t recognize him at all.

"Brother Chen, this guy isn’t one of the thirty new students. Could he be... an old student from the inner academy?"

The two exchanged a look, a chill running down their spines.

"Sorry, we got the wrong person."

"Our apologies for disturbing you."

Not daring to waste another second, the two turned to flee.

"Come as you please, leave as you please? You two seem to be looking down on me a little too much, don’t you think?"

The faint voice drifted out as the blue-robed youth’s figure suddenly blurred. Like a ghostly shadow, he instantly appeared in front of the pair.

’So fast.’

Their scalps tingled with fear. They quickly clasped their fists and said, "Senior Brother, we made a mistake. Please, be the bigger person and don’t hold it against us."

"Rest assured." The blue-robed youth smiled. "I’m a very reasonable person. It’s just that you two have offended me. If I let you leave just like that, it wouldn’t be good for my reputation."