abcnovels
Chapter 41
Chapter 41
Chapter 41: Rewards from the Academy!
Shortly after Luo Mu left,
a figure slowly appeared.
With his hands crossed inside his sleeves, though his hair was completely white, his eyes still gleamed with vigor.
Had Luo Mu been there, he would have recognized this person immediately.
It was Uncle Gong!
The butler from Cheng Qingman’s estate!
“Eight-tenths blade momentum, and that life-severing blade technique.”
Uncle Gong murmured to himself, gazing in the direction Luo Mu had left.
Even for him, he couldn’t suppress the look of shock in his eyes.
Throughout his life, he had encountered many geniuses and prodigies, but never someone who grew at such a terrifying speed.
To think that after only five days of observing in the King-Slaying Gorge, Luo Mu had elevated his blade momentum from one-tenth to eight-tenths!
If not for the severe damage to some of the other blade marks,
he might have even reached full mastery.
It was truly incredible.
“No wonder Miss sent me to protect him in secret. This boy is indeed worthy of such attention.”
Uncle Gong glanced at the bloodstains that covered the ground.
In truth, the demonic sect members had begun tailing Luo Mu shortly after he left Xunyang City.
But as soon as Uncle Gong revealed a sliver of his aura, they mistook it for a powerful expert cultivating in the gorge and chose not to enter.
Had they seen Luo Mu’s eight-tenths blade momentum,
they wouldn’t have dared to block his path today.
“Even without the eight-tenths blade momentum, just one-tenth would have been enough for this boy to avoid death at the hands of that demonic elder.”
Uncle Gong crouched down and touched the cracks on the ground.
Even though the blade energy had already dissipated,
a lingering deathly aura still filled the area.
“This blade technique seems to be from Chang Le Academy’s Lifeless Blade Manual, but the power is unusual. It’s already reached upper-grade mystic level. With this technique, he can contend with Spirit Sea realm cultivators.”
Uncle Gong couldn’t help but nod in approval.
Still in the True Aperture realm, yet possessing such a profound martial foundation—this was nothing short of extraordinary.
There were many geniuses and monsters in this world,
but only a rare few ever truly grew to their potential.
The fact that Luo Mu survived today, even managing to slay a Spirit Sea realm cultivator,
meant he wasn’t just a short-lived genius.
His potential was boundless, and his future was bright.
“Miss has always had a good eye.”
A faint smile appeared on Uncle Gong’s face.
Half a day later,
Luo Mu finally returned to the academy.
Though his body relaxed slightly, the tension didn’t entirely fade.
Knowing that the Crimson Moon Demonic Sect had their eyes on him,
he couldn’t afford to lose his sense of danger.
This time, they had sent a Spirit Sea realm expert.
Next time, who knew what level of master they would send?
He needed to become stronger, and quickly—not just for the upcoming Academy Grand Ceremony, but to survive.
The Treasure Pavilion,
a place within the academy dedicated to exchanging contribution points for cultivation resources.
Luo Mu made a beeline for it.
Earlier, in the base, he had earned nearly seventy thousand contribution points.
Now, after killing two True Aperture ninth-stage cultivators and one Spirit Sea fourth-stage elder,
he estimated his total would be close to two hundred thousand.
Of course, this was only his rough guess.
He wasn’t sure of the exact amount.
“Hello, I have some materials to exchange for contribution points.”
Luo Mu spoke up.
“Alright,”
the Treasure Pavilion disciple replied with a nod.
Luo Mu reached into his storage ring and pulled out… a pile of severed heads!
The heads filled the entire counter!
The thick, nauseating scent of blood instantly permeated the entire pavilion.
Visibly, the disciple’s expression shifted from calm to shock, then to outright horror.
He even took a step back in fear.
There were other people inside the pavilion as well, and all of them were dumbfounded by the sight.
“My heavens, how could there be so many heads?”
“They look like the heads of demonic sect cultivators!”
“This guy actually killed so many demonic sect members!”
The sounds of gasps filled the air.
Though these demonic cultivators had already been dead for some time, thanks to being stored in Luo Mu’s ring, their fierce, lingering auras still indicated that they had been True Aperture realm cultivators.
“That one is True Aperture first-stage, and this one is third-stage…”
Luo Mu calmly introduced each head to the disciple, treating them like treasures.
The difference in contribution points between stages was significant, and Luo Mu was still in dire need of resources, so he couldn’t afford to waste a single one.
Every bit counted.
“Oh, and this one—killed just today. A demonic elder, Spirit Sea fourth-stage.”
Luo Mu specifically placed the elder’s severed head in front of the disciple.
The head had been split in half, now pieced back together.
Gulp!
The disciple instinctively swallowed hard, struggling to comprehend what he had just heard.
A demonic elder?
Spirit Sea fourth-stage?
Was he serious?!
A Spirit Sea realm expert wasn’t someone a True Aperture fifth-stage could kill!
The disciple instinctively doubted Luo Mu’s claim,
but the lingering demonic aura on the severed head didn’t lie.
“This is indeed a Spirit Sea fourth-stage head.”
A voice suddenly spoke.
The disciple immediately stepped aside and bowed, “Steward!”
A man in white robes approached.
His temples were graying, and his aura was incredibly strong—he was clearly a Spirit Sea realm cultivator.
“A clean, precise blade technique, splitting the head in two. Did you really kill him?”
The steward glanced at Luo Mu.
“Just luck.”
Luo Mu’s expression remained calm, offering no further explanation.
“A Spirit Sea fourth-stage demonic elder’s head is worth one hundred thousand points.”
“In total, you’ve earned two hundred thousand contribution points.”
The steward made no effort to dig deeper into how Luo Mu managed it.
As long as the heads were from demonic sect members, nothing else mattered.
“Two hundred thousand!”
The other cultivators in the pavilion couldn’t hide their envy.
They wished it had been them standing there.
Demonic sect members’ heads were valuable, but taking them wasn’t easy.
Each one was cruel and ruthless. One small mistake, and you’d be the one lying dead.
When would they ever manage to save up two hundred thousand points?
“What’s your name?”
The steward asked casually.
“Luo Mu.”
“Luo Mu?”
The steward’s head snapped up, and he studied Luo Mu more closely.
Luo Mu found the steward’s reaction odd, as if the man had heard of him before.
“So it’s you. That explains everything.”
The steward smiled for the first time. “Is there anything you want to exchange for?”
Luo Mu was confused, but he didn’t dwell on it. He nodded.
“How much for Essence of the Sun?”
“One thousand points per unit.”
Hiss!
It was expensive.
In the academy, martial arts techniques were relatively cheap because of the academy’s benefits, but cultivation resources were sold at full price.
Each unit cost one thousand points.
To fully cultivate Mystical Sun Dominance Art, it would take at least three to four hundred units.
The cost was astronomical.
Fortunately, Luo Mu’s critical hits helped him save on resources, so he didn’t need as many units as others.
“Give me ten units.”
Luo Mu decided after some thought.
As long as his luck didn’t turn sour, ten units should be enough.
“Alright.”
The steward made the deduction. “Anything else?”
“A Primordial Marrow Pill.”
Luo Mu requested.
The Silver-Patterned Grass that Cheng Qingman had given him would only allow him to reach True Aperture eighth-stage, so he needed additional resources to break through to the ninth stage.
The Primordial Marrow Pill was similar to the Aperture Breaking Pill, designed specifically to open more apertures.
However, the Primordial Marrow Pill was far stronger,
and much more expensive—eighty thousand points per pill.
Not something just anyone could afford.
“That’s all for now.”
Luo Mu left himself with two thousand points in case something came up later.
“Understood.”
The steward nodded and left to retrieve the items.
When he returned, he carried three jade boxes.
The first box contained ten units of Essence of the Sun. The second held the Primordial Marrow Pill.
As for the third box…
Luo Mu didn’t recognize it.
Was it a bonus for spending so much?
“This is a reward from the academy for challengers.”
The steward smiled, “A grade-three Spirit Sea Pill!”