Urban Super Medical Sage
Chapter 510 - 504: Qiu Qing (4 Updates)

"I called you here because I want to take you to participate in a competition!" Chu Hongding said solemnly, "A very important competition!"

"Please, Dean, continue..."

"This competition is jointly organized by the Four Great Academies and can be considered a fairly high-profile talent contest within the Xuanfeng Dynasty!" Chu Hongding continued, "However, there’s a prerequisite for the contestants: they must be below the Heavenly Fate Realm!"

"Why is that?" Su Chen didn’t quite understand.

"Because the competitors who obtain a ranking will have the opportunity to explore the ruins of an ancient True God!" Chu Hongding said with a smile, "And to explore the ruins of this ancient True God, only Martial Cultivators below the Heavenly Fate Realm can go; those above will be repelled by the ruins."

Su Chen’s eyes suddenly lit up!!!

Ancient True God.

He was very interested in the ancient times.

He absolutely couldn’t miss it.

"Furthermore, a year from now will be the decennial grand competition between the Four Great Academies!" Chu Hongding added, his voice taking on a gravitas, "This competition is a warm-up for next year’s grand academy contest."

"What do you mean?" Su Chen didn’t quite understand.

"The Great Academy Contest is a duel between the four strongest academies from the Four Great State Domains of the Xuanfeng Dynasty, with Holy Spirit Academy representing Scarlet Prefecture as the strongest there."

"The Great Academy Contest is very important, as it affects the next decade’s status, the Martial Cultivation Resources allocated to Scarlet Prefecture, and which Demon Beast Mountain Scarlet Prefecture must guard among other things. The decennial Great Academy Contest virtually determines the fate of the Four Great State Domains for the next ten years!"

Chu Hongding said solemnly:

"During the Great Academy Contest, there will be no restrictions any longer; any student from the Four Great Academies can participate. It’s incredibly brutal."

"This competition is called the Qiuqing Martial Exchange, with the title ’Qiuqing’ derived from the name of the Qiuqing True God."

"Qiuqing True God was a True God-level powerhouse from ancient times, and his ruins are extremely valuable."

"Although the Qiuqing Martial Exchange limits participants to below the Heavenly Fate Realm, you can bet the Four Great Academies will give it their all. It’s a lead-up to next year’s Great Academy Contest and is therefore of great importance."

"In the Qiuqing Martial Exchange, if Scarlet Prefecture secures a good ranking, firstly, it can boost the morale of Holy Spirit Academy. Secondly, we can obtain the right to draw lots for next year’s Great Academy Contest. Thirdly, we can secure additional spots to enter the Qiuqing True God’s ruins. The more students we send in, the greater the chances are that the Academy will benefit from treasures and other gains, thus building momentum for next year’s Great Academy Contest."

...

"Dean, I understand," Su Chen nodded, signaling he had grasped the information quite well.

"Originally, if you hadn’t appeared, the Qiuqing Martial Exchange would have had nothing to do with our Hidden Dragon Institute. Among Holy Spirit Academy’s Four Great Institutes, the Hidden Dragon Institute is the weakest and in the starting stage. Take Chen Xiu, previously Hidden Dragon Institute’s top genius – if he were compared to the talents at Dragon Court, the difference would be considerable. The talents at Dragon Court are usually at the Eighth or Ninth Layer of the Divine Power Realm. To meet the Exchange’s condition of being below the Heavenly Fate Realm, clearly the strongest would be at the Ninth Layer of Divine Power Realm or at the Half-Step Heavenly Fate Realm. You are an exception..."

As he spoke, Chu Hongding smiled and said, "There’s one more month until the Qiuqing Martial Exchange begins. During this month, practice your cultivation well."

Su Chen nodded earnestly.

"Today is the 2nd, and on the 1st of next month, come find me here. Before participating in the Qiuqing Martial Exchange, I need to take you to Dragon Court. This time, the Holy Spirit Academy side is fully managed by the Dragon Court. If you want to secure a spot representing Holy Spirit Academy, you’ll need to grab one through sheer strength."

"No problem!" Su Chen smiled and then his smile deepened a bit, "Dean, what’s in it for me?"

"If you win, you can gain fame and have the chance to explore the Qiuqing True God’s ruins, isn’t that benefit enough?" Chu Hongding replied with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.

"Not enough!" Su Chen shook his head, "If I achieve good results, as the Dean of Hidden Dragon Institute, you’re the one who benefits the most. Also, you’ll be able to hold your head up high at Dragon Court. Perhaps you’ll even be able to negotiate better conditions for Hidden Dragon Institute."

"You’re a slippery one!" Chu Hongding shook his head; indeed, Su Chen was telling the truth, "What do you want?"

"A movement technique! A Divine-level Body Technique martial art!" Su Chen said, clearly articulating his demand. His "Cloud Shadow Step" had reached Great Achievement, and it was no longer sufficient, especially considering the level of enemies he would face next, who definitely wouldn’t be below the Eighth Layer of Divine Power Realm. Therefore, "Cloud Shadow Step," being of a lower rank, was somewhat insufficient.

"Divine Level? A movement technique?" Chu Hongding’s mouth twitched, "Do you know what you’re asking for?"

Body Technique martial arts were not very common to begin with; when compared to Fist Techniques, Swordsmanship, Sword Techniques, and so on, they were quite rare.

And Divine-level movement techniques were even scarcer.

The best movement technique in Hidden Dragon Institute’s Martial Arts Pavilion was of Earth Grade High Quality, they didn’t even have a Heaven Level, let alone Divine Level.

"Dean, if you can’t even sort out a Divine-level movement technique, it would be quite embarrassing, given that you’re a Court Head!"

"Alright! I agree!" Chu Hongding stared deeply at Su Chen, "However, there’s a condition: you must secure a ranking and an entry spot to explore the Qiuqing True God’s ruins."

"Of course!" Su Chen smiled like a sly fox, not the least bit worried about Chu Hongding going back on his word – at Chu Hongding’s level, reneging was certainly off the table.

Then, Su Chen added, "By the way, Dean, I spared Zhao Fulong’s life, and you, you transmitted a message to me before, promising me a reward. Otherwise, I would have killed him!"

"You!" Chu Hongding felt somewhat frustrated, then raised his hand and presented Su Chen with a martial skill.

"Heart Extinguishing Sword?" Su Chen glanced at the name of the martial skill, a surprise filling his heart.

He had been wanting the "Heart Extinguishing Sword."

For Chen Xiu, the "Heart Extinguishing Sword" was a waste, but for his own practice, it would be different.

But.

The "Heart Extinguishing Sword" appeared to be a skill that any student from Hidden Dragon Institute could cultivate, didn’t it? What kind of reward was this?

Seemingly perceiving what Su Chen was thinking, Chu Hongding huffed, "You’re getting quite the deal. The ’Heart Extinguishing Sword’ isn’t just an Earth Grade High Quality technique; the complete ’Heart Extinguishing Sword’ is indeed Divine Level!"

"Impossible..." Su Chen was somewhat taken aback, Divine Level, was this some kind of joke?

"The ’Heart Extinguishing Sword’ is one of Holy Spirit Academy’s Treasures of the Academy, and the only Divine-level martial skill the Academy possesses, what did you think? The ’Heart Extinguishing Sword’ has nine moves! The Martial Arts Pavilion at Hidden Dragon Institute only has three of them, which is why it’s Earth Grade High Quality. The ’Heart Extinguishing Sword’ I’m giving you, however, has six moves!"