Chapter 16: The Blonde Youth

After Ma Hongjun left, Gu Yi took out the Willow Leaf Flying Knife again.

"This kind of sharp weapon, if hidden in the dark, could indeed be quite frightening with its sudden attacks," Gu Yi remarked as he looked at the Willow Leaf Flying Knife in his hand, feeling a bit sentimental. The path of martial arts encompasses all things, and the path of hidden weapons is also included. However, Gu Yi didn't want to go down that path. Those who practice cunning martial arts tend to become cunning themselves. Gu Yi didn't want to become that kind of person.

The reason for crafting the Willow Leaf Flying Knife was not to become a master of hidden weapons or to harm others with concealed arrows. It was to condense the will of martial arts. No matter how advanced a martial artist's realm is, they cannot escape a well-aimed Flying Knife. The legend, even the myth, of the Willow Leaf Flying Knife lies not in the flying knife itself but in the belief, the will it represents.

Flying knives are not important, martial arts realms are not important; people are the most important. With a knife in hand, no one dares to underestimate its sharpness. Another reason for doing this was for the subsequent transformation of Tang San. Hidden weapons are just a side road.

Since that day, Ma Hongjun trembled with fear every time he saw Gu Yi, and this situation lasted for months. Flender no longer asked Gu Yi to pass on his techniques to Ma Hongjun.

Following Gu Yi's advice, Ma Hongjun's chose the Crimson Firebird with a little Phoenix bloodline for his first spirit ring.

However, this time it was a bit different from the original story. Because Ma Hongjun practiced the Pure Yuan Gong Art and the Tiger Leopard Thunder Sound method, he directly surpassed the master's limit of spirit rings. But it didn't surpass too much; it was only a little over five hundred years. However, his spirit skills didn't change much; it was still the Phoenix Fire Wire, but with a higher temperature and extremely strong adhesion.

Oscar finally broke through to level 20 at the age of nine, relying on the Tiger Leopard Thunder Sound he had practiced with Gu Yi's help over the years. Although he didn't achieve the astonishing second thousand year spirit ring, he wasn't far off. His spirit skills were still the same as in the original story. Even so, Oscar was much stronger than in the original story. At least his physical strength was more than twice then that of an ordinary auxiliary spirit master.

A few months after Oscar broke through, Gu Yi also successfully reached the Spirit Elder realm. This time, he didn't let Flender help him hunt spirit beasts but went to the Star Dou Great Forest on his own. Having been in this world for so long, Gu Yi hadn't gone far except when Flender took him hunting in the Star Dou Great Forest. The farthest place he had been to was Soutou City.

As a main city, the people here lived quite well. No one knew what Gu Yi had experienced during this outing, but when he returned, a strong killing intent emanated from him, and his unique scholarly aura couldn't conceal it. Especially Flender and Zhao Wuji, who had experienced countless life-and-death battles when they were young, keenly sensed the bloodthirstiness emanating from Gu Yi.

It wasn't from spirit beasts; it was from... humans! After that, Gu Yi became even more silent, immersed in cultivation.

Time came to Gu Yi's twelfth year.

A tall, blond youth surprised everyone; what was even more astonishing was that his pupils were different from ordinary people's—naturally dual-pupiled, with blue-green eyes on the left and orange-red eyes on the right. He wore black trousers and a white tailcoat. These were not the most important; despite his youthful appearance, he embraced a beautiful girl , occasionally sniffing her hair and even kissing her cheek. There was nothing wrong with this; it was personal business. The key was that this blond youth was doing these things at the entrance of the academy, and he was here to register.

"Old man, I'm signing up," the blond youth tossed a bag of gold soul coins into the registration box in a carefree manner. Li Yusong furrowed his brows slightly, but then seemed to think of something. His brows relaxed, and he pinched the young man's arm. "The age is appropriate. Summon your martial spirit; let me see." However, the blond youth didn't immediately showcase his martial spirit. Instead, he lowered his head and said to the woman in his arms, "Watch closely. What's coming next... will be quite handsome."

"Yeah, go for it, Dai Shao. This time, I'll see your White Tiger," the beautiful woman said as she left the youth's side, a hint of infatuation flashing in her eyes. Don't be fooled by this young master's age; his physical facilities are quite good, and more importantly, he has financial capability. The blond youth summoned his martial spirit, and a white tiger phantom appeared behind him. His muscles suddenly swelled, his golden hair instantly turned black and white with white as the main color, and his dual pupils turned into a deep blue color. Two yellow spirit rings floated constantly around him, evidently reaching the level of a Spirit Grandmaster. Instantly transforming from a playboy to a muscular man, he also exuded a bit of the king of beasts' dominance.

"How about that, handsome right?" the blond youth turned to the woman and said, and at the same time, the aura of dominance emanating from him, derived from his martial spirit, transformed into an aristocratic demeanor.

"So handsome! These muscles all over your body, Dai Shao is truly extraordinary," the beautiful woman truly didn't expect such a huge change in the youth after summoning his martial spirit. She sincerely leaned in, feeling his powerful muscles. If it weren't for the different setting, they would probably have started something big. The blond youth was very satisfied with this feeling. It was a sense of liberation he had never experienced before, free from any pressure and not needing to care about others' opinions.

"Hurry up and go in; this is just the first test," Li Yusong couldn't stand it anymore. He was already quite old, yet he still had to go through all this, which was really infuriating. It even made his martial spirit a bit uncontrollable. The blond youth, hugging the beautiful woman, wanted to walk inside.

"She can't go in; it's the rule," Li Yusong stopped the blond youth from entering. If the dean found out that he had let a woman of ill repute into the academy, he would be in big trouble. The blond youth was stunned for a moment, his expression changed, but he didn't argue. He let go of the woman and said to her, "You go back to the hotel and wait for me. After it's over, I'll come find you. It's customary to reciprocate after seeing my White Tiger martial spirit." The blond youth said mischievously into her ear.

The blond youth who went in smoothly reached the fourth level. Achieving level 28 at just twelve years old made him a top-tier genius. The blond youth at the fourth level looked at the middle-aged man sleeping on the chair. The place was very spacious, suitable for combat.

"Oh, this year there's actually someone who can come here," Zhao Wuji woke up and looked at the blond youth standing not far away, somewhat surprised. It had been so many years, and the academy hadn't recruited any students.

"Kid, your task is to endure for half an incense stick's time without being defeated by me. Success means you're a student of our academy," the blond youth was confident and shouted, "Dai Mubai, martial spirit: White Tiger, 28th rank Battle Spirit Master, please advise."

"Zhao Wuji, 7..."

Before he could have finish his introduction, a refined voice had interrupted him.

(End of Chapter)