Fantasy, starting with a treasure bowl

"Brother Wang, may I ask what constitutes meeting the trigger criteria for the Transformation Stone, the Spirit Bone Pillar, and the Immortal Fate Stele simultaneously?"

As soon as Wang Wu finished speaking, a young martial artist at the fourth level of the Qi Condensation Realm stepped forward, then slightly bowed, seemingly still a little puzzled.

Like Yun Haoxuan and Lu Feng, this young martial artist also passed the Hell Universe Diagram test and successfully advanced to the next round of preliminary trials.

However, compared to the tens of thousands of applicants at the beginning, there are far fewer martial artists who have advanced to the preliminary test, with less than three thousand people, and most of them are at least at the Qi Condensation Realm.

"It's very simple."

Faced with the young martial artist's question, Wang Wu didn't keep him in suspense and immediately grinned, "The trigger criteria for the Transformation Stone are simply that the martial artist's Yuan Power cultivation reaches the Condensation Realm and they are under thirty years old. There is no upper limit."

"The Spirit Bone Pillar is slightly different. This pillar is inlaid with five 'spirit bones,' which can test a martial artist's innate talent. As long as two 'spirit bones' react successfully, the user is considered qualified, and there is no upper limit."

"As for the final Immortal Destiny Stele, that's even simpler."

"By simply infusing a wisp of Yuan Power into the Immortal Fate Stele, one can conjure 'Five-Colored Radiance' out of thin air. The 'Five-Colored Radiance' also represents a martial artist's cultivation talent, ranging from low to high: white, green, blue, purple, and gold. Ultimately, reaching green or higher is considered passing!"

Wang Wu explained slowly and deliberately, clearly already very familiar with this, and obviously had done a lot of odd jobs like "recruiting new students" in his daily life.

"Three treasures, used to test a martial artist's strength, innate talent, and physical constitution, respectively?"

"Hmm, this enrollment method is indeed both reasonable and efficient, and there's no need to worry about anyone faking their qualifications or trying to get by. It truly lives up to its reputation as the renowned Falling Star Academy of the Eastern Xuan Region's Yuanfeng Realm..."

Standing to the side of the crowd, looking at the Transformation Stone, Spirit Bone Pillar, and Immortal Fate Stele standing side by side in front of Wang Wu, Lu Feng also nodded secretly. At this moment, his desire to be admitted to Falling Star Academy was even stronger.

After all, Falling Star Academy only recruits new students once every three years, and the assessment process is extremely rigorous, which is enough to show its high "value"!

In addition, Lu Feng has made quite a few enemies over the years, from the former Qingtianzhai bandits to the current Wusheng Demonic Sect. It can be said that he has "enemies as numerous as clouds and enemies everywhere."

Therefore, having Falling Star Academy as a backer right now would definitely be more beneficial than harmful to Lu Feng, bringing him many advantages!

"Unlike the Hell Universe Diagram test, the order of the second round of preliminary tests is not important; only the final result matters. You may begin."

At this moment, Wang Wu's voice came slowly again.

"I'll go first!"

The next moment, a short, pockmarked young man suddenly emerged from the crowd.

His eyes were firm, his fists were clenched, and he strode to the Transformation Stone. He seemed to be full of confidence in this first test, and even his walk gave people a feeling of vigor and power.

"Hey, isn't that Lai Gouzi from Lai Family Village next to Falling Star Town? What's he doing here joining in the fun...?"

"Brother, from what you're saying, you know this person?"

"Of course! I'd recognize him even if he were ashes! That guy still owes me fifty taels of silver from playing dice! But I never expected that Lai Gouzi would actually become a martial artist, what a rare thing..."

When the pockmarked young man volunteered first, several voices of doubt came from a corner of the crowd. One of the middle-aged men looked surprised, as if he recognized the young man's background.

Swish!

Ignoring the skeptical voices coming from the corner of the crowd, Lai Gouzi lightly extended his right palm and then slammed it into the center of the Transformation Stone.

hum!

As a ray of pure white light appeared out of thin air, a line of clear characters slowly emerged in the center of the Transformation Stone, and was seen by everyone present.

"Lai Gouzi, first level of the Qi Condensation Realm, age thirty-one!"

"Failed!"

Before Lai Gouzi could react, Wang Wu shook his head and then gestured for him to leave.

"Brother Wang! Please, please give me another chance and be lenient!"

"Besides, I'm only 31 years old this year (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning), I've just turned 30, so I'm not over the age limit...!"

Faced with Wang Wu's order to leave, Lai Gouzi looked miserable and pleaded in a low voice.

After all, getting into Falling Star Academy is not only the dream of many young martial artists in the four kingdoms of Lingnan, but also the dream of most martial artists in the Yuanfeng Realm of the Eastern Xuan Region. It is understandable that Lai Gouzi is unwilling to leave now.

"Failure is failure, no need for further explanation. If you insist on causing trouble, you will bear the consequences!"

However, Wang Wu remained indifferent to Lai Gouzi's pleas, showing no mercy whatsoever.

After all, the other party was not only over the age limit, but also had very average Yuan power cultivation.

In Wang Wu's view, even if he were to be lenient and allow Lai Gouzi to participate in the subsequent tests of the Spirit Bone Pillar and Immortal Fate Stele, he would most likely not find anything of interest, and it would just be a waste of time.

"Senior Brother Wang has already spoken, why aren't you leaving yet? Do you intend to cause trouble here?"

Another young student chimed in, his words carrying a threatening undertone.

"No, no, no, I wouldn't dare! I'll leave right away...!"

Seeing this, Lai Gouzi broke out in a cold sweat and immediately bent down and retreated.

After all, with his limited strength and abilities, how could he dare to cause trouble on the territory of Falling Star Academy, unless he had a death wish!

"How pathetic it is to overestimate one's abilities."

On the other side of the crowd, a graceful woman in green stood tall and elegant, but her fair face was expressionless and cold as frost, like a noble lotus flower in a pond, making people dare to admire her from afar but not to touch her.

As for the surrounding martial artists, they also tacitly retreated, creating a space between themselves, seemingly quite wary of the woman in green's strength and not daring to approach her.

"Young Miss, please forgive my boldness, but with the patriarch's connections and abilities, he could easily guarantee your admission to Falling Star Academy. Why would you refuse his help and choose to participate in the assessment with these rogue martial artists? Isn't that a waste of time...?"

Behind them, an elderly man in black robes with a missing left arm slowly stepped forward. He then spoke in a low voice to the woman in green before him, his tone full of humility, showing no airs of an elder, clearly indicating that he followed her lead.

"Mr. Song, Xiaoxiang naturally understands your thoughts."

Faced with the old man's question, Lu Xiaoxiang merely shook her head slightly, her tone still icy, "However, I don't want everything to be related to that man. Even without the Lu family's connections, I can still rely on my own abilities to get into Falling Star Academy and become even stronger!"

"Young Miss, actually, the Master only meant well back then. So many years have passed, yet you still haven't forgiven him..."

"Old Song!"

Before the old man in black robes could finish speaking, Lu Xiaoxiang interrupted him in a deep voice, then said meaningfully, "Before leaving the Lu family, I already told you not to mention that man's name in front of me again. Have you forgotten?"

"This old servant wouldn't dare! It was an oversight on my part, young lady, please forgive me!"

Seeing Lu Xiaoxiang's gloomy face, as if she was about to explode in anger, the old man in black robes immediately felt a chill in his heart and quickly admitted his mistake in a low voice, not daring to say another word.

After all, the other party was no ordinary woman, but Lu Xiaoxiang, the eldest daughter of the Lu family, a seventh-rank noble family in the current Southern Yue Kingdom!

In addition, as a loyal servant of the Lu family patriarch, the old man in black robes also knew Lu Xiaoxiang, the eldest daughter of the Lu family, very well. Once she made up her mind, not even nine oxen could pull her back, let alone him, who was just a servant.

...

Central Square, in front of the Transformation Stone

The preliminary assessment was still underway, and the next person to take the stage was a muscular young man with a dark complexion and a youthful appearance.

However, the strong young man's attire was slightly different from that of the other martial artists around him.

He was adorned with feathers on his head, wore bone rings in his ears, and had a long animal skin blouse wrapped around his waist. His skin was bronze-colored, clearly indicating that he was not from the four kingdoms of Lingnan, nor was he a native martial artist from the Yuanfeng Realm of the Eastern Xuan Region, but rather came from the Southern Barbarian Lands.

"My parents and sister are all waiting for me at home. I must pass the exam and become a freshman at Falling Star Academy. I absolutely cannot let them down!"

Wu Yunran rubbed his nose, then slowly walked towards the Transformation Stone opposite him, his dark face full of determination.

"Huh, is this kid a barbarian?"

"Interesting. When did these barbarians from the southern tribes start coming to Falling Star Academy to join the fun...?"

"Although the admission requirements for Falling Star Academy are very lenient, even barbarians have a chance to participate, this southern barbarian boy is truly fearless, daring to set foot in the Yuanfeng Realm of the Eastern Xuan Region all by himself. He really has no fear of death...!"

"Heh, maybe this southern barbarian brat's tribe was wiped out long ago, and now he's homeless, so he had no choice but to try his luck in the Yuanfeng Realm of the Eastern Xuan Region..."

As Wu Yunran slowly walked towards the Transformation Stone, the surrounding crowd began to murmur, mostly mocking and ridiculing, with some even giving hostile and provocative glances.

After all, the Southern Barbarian Lands were not only isolated from the world, but also extremely xenophobic. Most of the interactions between the Southern Barbarian tribes and outside martial artists were filled with fighting and conflict, with very little peace.

Therefore, it is quite normal for the martial artists from the Eastern Xuan Region present to be hostile towards Wu Yunran, who came from the Southern Barbarian Lands.