Chapter Twenty-Four: The Taiyi Azure Wood Art

The southern part of the Holy Palace is largely composed of man-made natural landscapes, breathtakingly beautiful.

Hyuuga Mion could not help but push the car window open just a crack. A refreshing, crisp breeze, rich with the fragrance of grass, trees, and earth, instantly flooded the cabin. Taking a deep breath, it felt as though her very lungs were being cleansed by this pure air.

On both sides of the road stood towering ancient trees, twenty to thirty meters high, their lush, dense canopies forming a natural canopy that fractured the pouring sunlight into countless tiny pillars of light. These beams pierced through the gaps in the foliage, creating a clearly visible Tyndall effect, casting themselves diagonally across the smooth road or spilling softly onto the leaf-strewn forest floor. In the distance, the melodious and crisp chirping of birds rose and fell, occasionally interspersed with the long, resonant howls of unknown beasts echoing through the mountains.

It was truly beautiful beyond compare. Hyuuga Mion stared blankly out the window, feeling that no matter where she looked, every angle was a picture worthy of a stunning wallpaper.

The bus traveled a considerable distance within the palace grounds before finally arriving at its destination: Kunlun Academy. The driver brought the vehicle to a steady stop, turned around, and said in a clear, resonant voice, "We have arrived at our destination. Please disembark in an orderly fashion."

Hyuuga Mion did not rush to stand up, politely letting the few classmates beside her go first. Her gaze drifted through the window to the outside. At the top of several dozen wide stone steps stood a ten-meter-tall stele. The entire structure was a warm, jade-like cyan, engraved with four imposing, gilded characters: Kunlun Academy!

The young boys and girls, as if on a pilgrimage, were ascending the stone steps in an orderly queue.

"Come on, let's get off too!" Jenny gently patted her on the shoulder.

Hyuuga Mion nodded and followed the crowd off the bus. Though there were many people, a solemn silence prevailed. Only those responsible for maintaining order on either side of the steps, holding megaphones, reminded them in crisp voices: "Watch your step, keep in formation, and move forward in an orderly manner."

Hyuuga Mion mused that even the most restless and unruly person would be subdued by the stillness permeating the air, causing them to shed all frivolity. As for causing trouble? That was absolutely impossible.

She stepped to the top of the stone steps, and her view suddenly opened up. A vast, massive plaza, large enough to accommodate tens of thousands of people, stretched out before her. At the far end stood a magnificent nine-story teaching building, constructed entirely of white jade-like stone, exuding a warm luster in the sunlight, looking grand and imposing, like a celestial palace from mythology.

"It really looks like a place for princes and princesses to study," Hyuuga Mion couldn't help but whisper to Jenny beside her.

However, Jenny’s gaze was fixed like a magnet on the front of the plaza. She murmured with regret, "Ah, we should have pushed harder to get to the front earlier."

Hyuuga Mion followed her gaze and realized that a platform, about two meters high, had been erected in front of the main entrance of the teaching building. A podium was placed upon it—that was surely where the Saint was about to appear. A wave of intense regret flooded Hyuuga Mion’s heart. Why had she been so modest on the bus? She should have done as Jenny said and fought to squeeze to the front.

If she had, she would be standing at the very spot closest to the Saint right now. As it was, she and Jenny were separated from the sacred platform by a wall of eight rows of people. Meanwhile, those in the front row were a mere three or four meters away from the podium.

"Ah, I’m so jealous of the people in the front!" Jenny clenched her fists in frustration.

Hyuuga Mion could only suppress the disappointment in her heart and comfort her softly, "Compared to those who can only watch the Saint’s visage through television broadcasts, it is already a tremendous honor for us to witness the Saint in person."

"That may be true, but... sigh." Jenny sighed and instinctively looked back. Seeing the endless, dense crowd behind them, her mood instantly balanced out a little. At least they weren't among the ones standing at the very back, watching from afar.

...

Time passed quietly until nine o'clock sharp. Over ten thousand new students were arranged in a massive, neat square formation in the plaza. Gao Jinzhong, the Superintendent of the Imperial Study, stood at the side of the platform, checked his watch, and then picked up a megaphone, announcing in a loud, penetrating voice: "The Saint has arrived. Silence!"

The moment his voice fell, Hyuuga Mion felt as if her vision blurred for an instant. When she looked again, three figures had appeared out of thin air on the previously empty platform.

Her gaze instantly ignored the stunningly beautiful women on the left and right, locking firmly onto the figure in the center, clad in vermillion dragon robes. Nine coiled dragons, embroidered with gold thread, wound across the vermillion fabric, refracting a dazzling light under the bright sun that one dared not look at directly. That heroic and extraordinary face wore a smile as warm as the spring sun; there was none of the expected imperial majesty, and the aura felt approachable.

Hyuuga Mion couldn't help but fantasize: what if the Saint wasn't some distant figure, but a young, handsome big brother who lived next door? He would greet her every morning, occasionally ruffle her hair, call her a clumsy little fool, slip her snacks, and even help her with one-on-one tutoring... As she thought about it, a silly, infatuated smile appeared on her face.

"Congratulations on your admission to Kunlun Academy." Bai Yuqing’s deep, magnetic voice echoed clearly over the vast plaza through the microphone. "I imagine you are all curious about what the mysterious method for extending life at Kunlun Academy is."

He turned slightly to the side, yielding some space. "For this, I shall leave it to your mentor, Nangong Lin, to reveal it to you all."

Nangong Lin, dressed in a simple yet elegant long dress, her hands gracefully folded over her abdomen, took light, lotus-like steps to the front of the platform. Her voice carried the gentle tone of a well-read scholar. "Greetings, everyone. I am Nangong Lin, the teacher who will lead you onto the path of cultivation in the future. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. For now, please try to meditate and guide the Qi into your bodies."

"???"

The students below looked at each other, their faces filled with confusion. Guide Qi into the body? Meditate? How did this sound like a plot from a novel?

Hyuuga Mion also awoke from her fantasies and couldn't help but want to lean over to ask Jenny. Just then, Nangong Lin’s right index finger moved slightly. A brilliant silver light suddenly ignited at her fingertip, only to explode in the next instant.

Thousands of silver streams of light, as fine as hair yet containing profound information, seemed to possess a life of their own as they shot precisely toward the brow of every student below. Hyuuga Mion felt a slight chill at her brow, as if touched by a drop of icy dew.

Immediately following, a vast amount of information surged clearly into her mind. *The Taiyi Azure Wood Scripture*, a foundational technique on how to draw the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the body and refine it for one's own use. Its meridian pathways, Dantian location, meditative posture, hand seals, and incantations... every detail became incredibly clear. The greatest characteristic of this technique was its impartiality and balance, with strong universality, making it suitable for almost all beginners regardless of aptitude.

Nangong Lin’s gentle voice sounded again, seemingly carrying a magical power that soothed the heart. "Now, you should understand. Everyone, sit down."

Hyuuga Mion sat cross-legged almost instinctively, her hands quickly and accurately forming the starting seal of the *Taiyi Azure Wood Scripture*. In an instant, her mood became unprecedentedly calm and ethereal. She emptied her mind of distracting thoughts while her spirit remained highly focused, sensing the invisible "Qi" in the space around her.

"Saint!!!"

A roar filled with frantic fighting intent suddenly exploded. Ito Momoko could no longer suppress the boiling murderous intent and longing in her heart, and she jerked her right hand upward.

*Hum!*

Countless sharp, ice-crystal spears shimmering with ghostly blue cold light condensed out of thin air, hovering densely in the sky, their tips pointed directly at the platform. The next instant, all the ice spears surged toward Bai Yuqing like arrows released from a bow, accompanied by ear-piercing, shrill whistles.

Eerily, despite such a massive commotion, not one of the ten thousand students below, who were struggling to sense spiritual energy and entering a meditative state, noticed a thing; they remained immersed in their own worlds.

Just as the ice spears were about to touch the platform, Nangong Lin’s hands, which were resting on her abdomen, gently flipped over. Her left hand covered her right, and she squeezed them slightly. An indescribable spatial fluctuation instantly enveloped the sky full of incoming ice spears, as well as Lars—who hadn't yet moved—and Lucia on the platform.

Light and shadow twisted. In the final instant before her figure completely vanished into the spatial ripples, Ito Momoko’s pupils clearly reflected the Saint standing on the platform. He hadn't even moved; he had merely swept his gaze casually in her direction.

That look was calm and waveless, extremely indifferent, as if a god from the nine heavens were looking down at an ant struggling in the dust, devoid of the slightest emotion.

"Saint," Ito Momoko, along with her ice spears, Lars, and Lucia, vanished without a trace in an instant.

Bai Yuqing turned his gaze to the students in the plaza and said to Nangong Lin beside him, "Tell me, how many of them do you think will successfully guide Qi into their bodies today?"

"It’s their first attempt; it won't be that fast." Nangong Lin’s voice remained gentle, like a breeze brushing through the forest. "If you’re bored waiting, why not watch the show over there?"

"Let's watch, then." Bai Yuqing nodded with interest.

Nangong Lin waved her hand, and a massive light screen silently unfolded in the air around them. On the screen, the scenes featuring Ito Momoko, Lucia, and their surroundings were clearly reflected.