I Can See Your Combat Power-Chapter 1654 - Ninety-Four: Conclusion_2

"The Dragon Gate can be rebuilt, but opportunities to challenge the Da Lin Commerce Alliance are not so easily found."

Tang Luo sighed, "What a pity, the Alliance didn’t provide the opportunity."

Du Ling didn’t know exactly what Tang Luo found regrettable, he just felt a chill spread throughout his body.

As he left the Principal’s office in a daze and gently closed the door behind him, this Martial Ancestor Level powerhouse couldn’t help but shiver.

...

Dragon Continent Calendar, Year 1792, August 19

News of the Five-turn Dragon Gate’s reopening in Da Lin City spread throughout Longzhou within a day, thanks to the efforts of various Wind Media Organizations in Da Lin City.

Visitors who had originally been waiting in various cities of Lingjiang spontaneously rushed toward Da Lin, and nearby cultivators went mad rushing to Da Lin City.

But no matter if they hurried or not, by the time they arrived, Da Lin City’s East Market was already packed with people, and all of them were scions of prominent families.

Heaven knows how these noble disciples managed to reach their destination from tens of thousands of miles away, as if they had teleported, but the fact remained that for the three days leading up to the reopening of the Five-turn Dragon Gate, only these noble disciples were in line for spirit examination, not a single independent cultivator to be seen.

What was even more astonishing was that during this Dragon Gate reopening, the mysterious and unpredictable Principal did not show his face at all, leaving only two elders of the Du Family to handle the verification and record-keeping, along with an old Taoist who was standing by Dragon Gate, meticulously taking notes.

As before at Unparalleled City, thanks to robust data support, most of the noble disciples who came for spirit examination had uncertain accumulations, with the lowest being of Red Crystal level, and most surpassing Yellow Crystal level.

The quality of the independent cultivators, on the other hand, was much more varied; Blue Crystal was common, Red Crystal rare, and Yellow and Purple Crystals were one in a thousand.

Though they might be lacking in talent and knowledge, independent cultivators were numerous, and even after emptying the entire East Market and mobilizing several arenas that could hold ten thousand people each, there were still not enough spaces for the passionate masses of independent cultivators.

On the other hand, after Unparalleled City was cleared out, under the leadership of Ou Yu, the craftsmen could finally work day and night at full capacity, and with the iron and timber provided by the Liu Clan, several suspension bridges connecting to the Three Peaks of Chixia were completed, and the factories for smelting iron and stone operated nonstop.

As for Tang Luo, he spent these days teaching classes at The Academy, and the first batch of disciples who enrolled in the Soul Casting course at The Academy had already begun trying to condense their souls under guidance.

By early September, more than twenty disciples had condensed their souls and were in the process of stabilizing them.

This made the thousands of followers even more excited. Despite having Feng Shixing as a precedent and the assurance of advanced martial arts courses as a confidence builder.

But the notion that Soul Casting is difficult had long been ingrained in the minds of these independent cultivator disciples, not merely hearsay, as they had witnessed numerous, perhaps even dozens, of failures with their own eyes.

The Soul Casting package course offered by Unparalleled Academy was met with trust on one hand and doubt on the other.

But now, with the exemplary performance of the first batch of students, the newer students no longer had any reservations and practiced with even greater desperation.

The disciples were willing to make an effort, and which instructor wouldn’t be pleased? After all, these students were already cultivators who met the standard for Soul Casting; the only things missing were confidence and a bit of technique.

Now with a strong ambition in place, the progress of Soul Casting was advancing by leaps and bounds.

By the end of October, once it was confirmed that some disciples could proficiently control their souls, Tang Luo began ushering people out.

Grabbing the necks of students who were unwilling to leave The Academy, he dragged them out of their dormitories or practice rooms and dumped them in the great hall. Looking at this group of warriors, the youngest of whom were all over forty years of age, standing in orderly lines with bowed heads, Tang Luo said impatiently: "Once you’ve properly cast your soul and are skilled in its use, hurry up and vacate the dormitories and practice rooms. Remember, there are still many followers in the city waiting to enroll."

The people in the hall felt embarrassed. In fact, they had been eligible to graduate days before but hadn’t reported it, choosing to stay at The Academy instead, all for the chance to hear the Principal lecture a few more classes.

For the independent cultivators who made it to this point, they were extremely prideful in their youth, either standing a head taller in cultivation compared to their peers or possessing matchless combat power at their level.

Back then, they scorned the idea of attending classes or reading secret manuals, believing they were destined to overshadow their generation.

But the path of martial arts they have groped for on their own has a short span of rapid improvement. Once they reach a certain level, they find no more roads ahead. Suddenly looking back, there is no one around who can be called an elder, only juniors who rely on themselves.

It is then that they realize what kind of lonely path they have chosen.

To enter the academy was a reluctant act, and initially, they did not hold much hope; all they thought about was that it shouldn’t cost more than a piece of Spirit Armor. If The Academy could provide some solid theoretical knowledge to fill the gaps in their path, then it would be worth the ticket price.

Yet the Soul Casting course of this one month made these lone wolf cultivators, who have been independent since childhood, discover that the dean was not merely teaching solid knowledge, but rather was an overwhelming ocean of it.

Whether it was martial arts theory or even guidance on martial techniques, as long as it did not affect the progress of their coursework, the dean was willing to teach as long as they dared to ask.

Having such a lighthouse to illuminate any confusion and difficulty is an experience these lone wolves have never had before.

Although it was only a short month of acquaintance, they truly regarded the dean as one of their elders.

So much so that after Soul Casting, they wanted to listen to more teachings, to stay a bit longer, just a little longer, in The Academy.

Now there are over two thousand disciples in The Academy. As long as they kept these little thoughts hidden well enough, they would not be seen through.

But they never expected that the dean would still maintain attention to all disciples under such a busy schedule, which made the students in the hall feel both embarrassed and touched.

"The Academy also knows that you are somewhat reluctant to leave the academy life. But even if you leave, you are forever disciples of Unparalleled Academy. Should you encounter bottlenecks in the future, you can come back to take classes," the dean said.

Tang Luo with his hands clasped behind his back looked at the group of sturdy martial artists showing a youth-like attachment and was moved himself, so he comforted them in this way.

His intent was to say that all gatherings must come to an end and, being cultivators, why act like little maidens.

Unexpectedly, there was a sharp student who seized the moment upon hearing Tang Luo speak; he brightened up and raised his hand saying, "Dean, I want to take classes now."

"Get lost."

Tang Luo pointed and laughingly scolded the disciple who thought he had caught an incredible opportunity: "Don’t try to be clever now. Currently, the department responsible for operations is short on instructors, and we need to devote all efforts to the Soul Casting course. When you truly encounter a bottleneck in the future, come back for classes. For now, return to your own paths and perfect the Profound Level Spirit Arts, ponder thoroughly the combat techniques of Fierce Realm before we talk again."

The student who was called out felt his face darken as he weakly lowered his hand, while other students who were a step slower also sulked in disappointment.

Each returned to their dormitories, packing up their belongings, still remembering the nervousness when they first moved in. Quite a few disciples even secretly wondered if they would be forbidden by The Academy to be used like cattle or horses after successful Soul Casting.

Some even deliberately scouted the terrain and designed escape routes, planning to flee as soon as Soul Casting was complete.

But when it really came time to leave, not only were they not hindered, it was they themselves who were reluctant to go.

Dragging their feet, they looked back at the back mountain and the Crystal Palace over and over again. When they bumped into classmates with their luggage, they exchanged glances before passing by each other.

The hundred disciples who had completed their studies wandered around The Academy for half a day, but eventually, they had to leave this deeply cherished place.

When the afterglow of the setting sun shone on the walls of the Crystal Palace casting a gentle red light, the gates of Unparalleled Academy opened. A hundred disciples who had completed the Soul Casting course spontaneously stood in vertical rows on the platform and knelt down, bowing deeply to the slowly closing crystal doors.

The crisp sound of a hundred heads knocking against the Red Crystal startled the residents of Unparalleled City, who then saw a hundred Academy graduates stand up, release their spirit souls and ascend into the sky.

For the residents of Unparalleled City, this was a spectacular sight, but for the Wind Media and the scouts who remained in the city, the content was terrifying.

As personnel specializing in intelligence work, from the moment the first batch of students entered The Academy on the first day of August, their information was thoroughly investigated.

And among the hundred people now ascending into the sky with their spirit souls, those twenty-plus were distinctly among them, meaning that Unparalleled Academy’s claim that passing the Five-turn Dragon Gate would guarantee soul refinement was true!

From now on, soul refinement was no longer a gamble of luck and fate; such a change will bring about a profound transformation for the entire martial arts world of Xiehe.