Chapter 34: Jade Chest (One)
"Ancestor, An A5 student!" It wasn't only limited to his discovery. Other people had found out, as well. After all, today's main event wasn't them. They were only extras. The true core of it was the students this year! Especially, the outstanding students!
"Investigate this data!" Behind, there was a woman that was seemingly only forty-somewhat years old. Her phoenix eyes startled: "The reaction strength of the degree to sharpness of spiritual energy and adaptive capability! In addition, immediately investigate the courses Heavens Law's system should have had him study so far!"
"Click Clack Click Clack…" The sound of keyboards converged into a single stream of noise. Everyone's gaze was lively.
"In the past, Luo Sanfeng from Zhaoping City had three As and two Bs. Who is this person? Five As?"
"How high was his branch evaluation?"
"My god… This person is a candidate with the strength to vie over the championship!"
"Hehe, don't forget the one from Tianfeng City. No one else has four As. Besides a slight gap in reactions, he's got the qualifications to contest the championship, too!"
"Isn't Fengyi City's Xu Shushu also four As and a C? His branch evaluation is frighteningly high, as well!"
"The quality of this graduation is high… All of them are good seeds. I don't know who will look favorably upon our Fengyi's Zhang Family."
High above the stage, the cauldron of voices weren't the same. Following Xu Yangyi's emergence, three pairs of eyes were completed fixed on to him.
"So its you!" Lilac sucked in deeply. A gaze of desirous ambition was exhibited in her eyes: "I especially applied for special privileges… Little brother, will you still run off this time?"
"An A5 student…" At her side, Lotus pursed her lips. Her gaze also revealed a wisp of burning ardor: "Even if we Qi Condensation cultivators are worth jack in the eyes of a single Foundation Establishment senior, in regards to students as successors and to the organization, you are already sufficiently outstanding…"
"Excellent… to a degree that the Featherwood Guard branch mentions you by name…"
The two of them retracted their gaze, seamlessly clashing together and withdrew again like mild clouds and gentle winds.
In front of everything in his eyes, Xu Yangyi was without the slightest waver. His body was garbed in camouflage as before, and he still wore his pair of military boots. He seemed to have restrained all of his aura as a killing god, peaceful like an ordinary person, slowly walking towards the arena stage. There were already a couple tens of silhouettes there. They were students of the same realm.
Everyone's gazes converged onto his body. They were today's sun. The focus of all cultivators.
He gently skipped, jumping atop the arena. He was the last. However, he didn't enter the ranks. Rather, he swept his vision past the first row of thirteen faces. It was them...
He had walked right in front of that door, yet he was forcibly pulled back… His initial charge, his first attempt, was all thanks to them. He simply disregarded everyone's gazes and swept his gaze at every single person, his eyes passing over like a knife.
At the corner of the viewing platform, there was a young woman with long hair fluttering in the breeze. She looked at Xu Yangyi somewhat spellbound.
She couldn't be considered an exceptional beauty. Her eyes were not large enough and her skin was not white enough. Her lips were not red enough and her figure was insufficiently ample. However, there was a kind of temperament on her body that made it hard for people to ignore her. It was as if the sight of her could put people to peace.
Donned in a simple T-shirt and a short cowgirl skirt, there wasn't any difference between her and a trendy young girl on the street. Merely, what she wore wasn't to reveal herself. It was nothing but a thought of comfort. She dressed comfortably, and others could also see it was comfortable.
"Don't think it… Little Bell" At her side, a forty-odd-year-old man patted her shoulder and sighed: "Although we are alchemists, the Zhou Family is an old alchemy family of two hundred years of inheritances. However… ever since China was connected to the internet, our business has been wasting away day by day. The Bountiful Treasures Pavilion comprises 90% of alchemist, but right now, there aren't even ten people in our entire family. Even major mortal corporations are unwilling to partner with us. Such an A5 student…"
He took a long sigh and shook his head: "Isn't something our Zhou Family can hold wild expectations towards. I bet the Bountiful Treasures Pavilion, Featherwood Guard, CSIB, and China's cultivation big fish have scooped this person up way before hand…"
"I know." Little Bell's voice was like her namesake, pacifying and leisurely. She said softly: "I… It's just that I'm a fairly keen to people's bearings. I keep on feeling… this person is terrifying…"
"Of course, he is terrifying." The man exclaimed: "He is an A5 student. Our Zhou Family's greatest talent is the initial stage of Qi Condensation. I'm afraid your uncle isn't even his opponent…"
"That's not what I'm saying." Little Bell shook her head, unable to restrain her trembling: "He is truly… terrifying… He's simply just like an oppressing demon…"
Xu Yangyi stood in front of all the rank ones and circled his gaze around, not saying anything. Silently, he walked towards his own position.
A good few pitying looks were sent his way. Yesterday, all of them had come out, yet they hadn't seen him. Everyone knew who it was that failed to failed to break through. It was merely that this pity carried a schadenfreude to it.
The way of becoming strong wasn't limited to only oneself becoming strong. It was in others' weaknesses could one also project their own strength.
"Retard." A pockmarked youth blowing bubble gum popped his bubble and rolled his tongue up to swallow it back into his mouth: "Who you lookin' for to see with an appearance like your mom died?"
"When others fail to break through, are you still not allowed to let others die?" The youth at his side laughed, delighting in the misfortune.
At this moment, the entire arena stage suddenly went quiet. It wasn't that none of them were speaking, but rather as they all talked, their voices faded away. It was like god had "taken away" sound in a twinkling moment.
Just as everyone was chatting, they immediately realized something was amiss, yet they weren't alarmed. On the contrary, all of them shut their mouths, seemingly awaiting something. At this instant, there wasn't a sound that could be heard. It was like calm before the storm, a frightening quietness.
"Swish…" In the next second, a palm-sized little firebird flew out from an unknown place.
It wobbled back and forth. In comparison to the massive arena stage, it was nearly small enough to be ignored. However, to the cultivators exceptionally sensitive to spiritual energy, over ten thousand fervent gazes cast themselves on the body of the little bird.
"Big Sis, this is…" At a corner, a young boy looked towards a woman at his side and asked.
The woman glared fiercely at him, making an expression to shut up. Afterwards, she rigidly fixed her eyes on the little bird. None had discovered that both her hands were clenched tightly. An abnormal flush graced her face, as if she was eagerly awaiting her favorite superstar.
In a split second, the little bird divided from one into two, from two into three, and from three it split into a countless number of birds! In a flash, they spread over the heavens and covered the earth! They formed a maelstrom of firebirds no less than thirty-plus meters in length! It attracted the eyes of the entire audience!
"Boom!" The temperature of the scene suddenly raised. Thousands upon thousands… an endless flight of firebirds dyed everyone's eyes red and ignited their passions. Suddenly, a screech abruptly broke out!
"Foundation Establishment… This is a Foundation Establishment senior! This is a Foundation Establishment senior!"
It was unknown when the silence was broken. Altogether because of the hysteria, excited, increasingly ear-piercing, and wildly joyous shrieks suddenly exploded in the entire arena!
"Foundation Establishment! This can only be the might and skill of Foundation Establishment"
"A Foundation Establishment senior has actually come this year to attend the ceremony?!"
"Heavens… This is the first time these old bones have seen a Foundation Establishment cultivator! Which Foundation Establishment senior is it!"
The rampant chorus of discussion and the excited cries of alarm seemed like a high-rising tide of human voices!
However, everything suddenly went calm in the next second. It was an orderly peace.
Ordinarily, a Foundation Establishment cultivator was hard to catch a glimpse of. Far too many cultivators had died without ever seeing what a Foundation Establishment cultivator looked like. The current feeling in the air was one that a great majority of people didn't even dare to breath in. The only looked forward with great expectation and admiration, locking their eyes on the madly revolving vortex of firebirds.
Xu Yangyi looked forward, as well. Was this the might of Foundation Establishment?
This wasn't the first time he had felt this. In that fleeting moment, Vermillion Snow had made him and the others feel like they were on the edge of death. He was simply powerless to resist. Yet as he felt this for the second time, it was crisp without disorder. The spiritual strength of the vortex of firebirds was enough for him to suffocate on and make his heart skip a beat.
Strong… Too strong! This was a cultivator! One that had arrived at such a stage was a true superhuman!
Strength… He tightly clenched his fist. The recognition of strength had once again took hold of his heart.
"Swoooshh…" The vortex of firebirds spuns with all of their might and transformed into a blazing current three seconds later. Suddenly, they charged towards the grandstand!
A scorching wave of heat made everyone outside the channel feel like their hair had singed. Screaming and screeching, it charged into the centermost seating.
In that area, there were two special seats. The viewing platform was different from the stone bleachers that everyone else sat on, rather it was home to two specialized and beautiful thrones that were approximately two meters high!
The base was crafted from pure gold and the cushioning was made from a demon skin that Xu Yangyi had simply never seen. It seemed similar to a crown made for a king. At the side of the throne, there were ten-odd men dressed in black and wearing sunglasses, standing with their hands lowered.
Swooosh… The vortex of firebirds descended over one of the thrones. Afterwards, a sound like thunder rang out, a tremendous echoing without boundary, a vast, intangible reverberation. It was distant yet nearly in touching distance, close but like it stretched all the way to the heaven's horizon.
"Lord Firecloud."
As the firebirds gradually faded away, a rather plump middle-aged man dressed in an expensive western suit had already pulled himself over to the two thrones.
At this very instant, Lilac, Lotus, and Vulture who were at the front row rose in unison and bowed to the floor without the slightest hesitation!
Firecloud's gaze contained the tides of great vicissitudes, as if he could see through human emotion. It was obvious he appeared to be at most fifty to sixty years of age, yet he gave off a feeling like he was wise beyond his years. At the same time, the surrounding spiritual energy faintly trembled. The fiery wave moments ago had sent the erupting air into unrest.
Stirring the nine heavens above, silence descended, even though it was only an elderly man dressed in a suit. Not one person spoke. There were only the burning gazes of over ten thousand men, women, and children that had reached a feverish pitch.
"Sit." He gently waved his hands and sat down without regard for everyone else. Everyone present glanced at each other, one by one, looking at the worshipping, admiring, and stunned gazes that filled their counterparts' eyes. Nearly everyone pursed their lips as they sat down. Even the faces of some mortals from the clans had become nearly gorged in blood, shivering as they could only continue to kneel.
How was this miraculous power any different from that of an immortal?
However, even if their shivering was fierce, they firmly grit their teeth. Hearing the excited chattering of their teeth, they didn't dare speak a word. They calmly sat down as if a teacher was yelling at them in class.
"Old fellow Shadowslay." At the same time, a voice could be heard from the other throne. Everyone had discovered that there was also a middle-aged man. As for when he had already sat down, it was a mystery to all.
The introductions of both men had been abnormally brief. They spoke loftily like snow and sat as if all matters were nothing but whims.
"That's a fucking cultivator! Behind Xu Yangyi, a student's excited voice whose breathing had went ragged experienced a fair change in tone: "A single word decreed as law beneath the heavens! THIS is a cultivator. This is a motherfuckin' cultivator.
"If I can be like that, it would be worth dying!" The sound of another student cracking their fist was so loud that even Xu Yangyi heard it."
"Over ten thousand people… Several tens of clan representatives… and their mortal entourages. A single word to make them all stand. A single word to make them all sit. The so-called wielding of heaven's authority and the intoxication of beauties at their knees cannot be more than this!"*
In kind, Xu Yangyi was stirred to his core. Similarly, he excited, and in the same vein, he was expectant. However, he had already buried these feelings within his heart. From the corner of his mouth, he only revealed a shred of his blood-thirsty smile.
Soon, it would begin...
The beast in his heart couldn't wait to roar any longer...
* 醒掌天下权，醉卧美人膝 - Chinese idiom. I think I did an okay job doing this translation. This is apparently an idea behind how one should live. Think, a monster in business and a monster in bed. Supposed to be a dichotomy of one's prowess in professional capacity and romantic.