After walking through the passage for about half an hour, a glimmer of light finally appeared at the end of the tunnel. Seeing the light, the few people in the passage quickened their steps. A moment later, they finally reached the end of the passage and stepped out.
Dazzling sunlight poured down from the sky, causing Jiang Yun and the others to instinctively squint their eyes. After a while, they slowly opened them, looking at the scene before them with expressions of astonishment.
Before Jiang Yun and the others it was clearly a valley groove. The steep mountain walls extended upwards, reaching the very end of their vision. Within the three steep cliffs, there was a vast open space. At this moment, a massive, ancient, and majestic pavilion, somewhat astonishing in its size, stood upon it.
Their gaze slowly swept over the colossal ancient pavilion, finally resting on an extremely old plaque outside the pavilion. On it, three characters, somewhat blurred and indistinct from the erosion of time, were faintly visible.
Treasure Pavilion!
This was the true core of Jia Nan Academy. The Treasure Pavilion in the Outer Court only contained basic knowledge and low-rank Combat Skills, while the Treasure Pavilion before them was one of the major foundations for Jia Nan Academy's standing in the Black-Corner Region.
About half a meter in front of Hu Gan, if one looked carefully, extremely faint wrinkles could be seen.
These wrinkles were hidden in space and were very difficult to detect. Following the faint wrinkles, one would surprisingly find that this area of spatial wrinkles almost formed a wall, protecting the entire Treasure Pavilion behind it!
As expected of the mysterious Treasure Pavilion within Jia Nan Academy's Outer Court.
Hu Gan led the five people slowly towards the Treasure Pavilion. Just as they were about to enter within twenty meters of it, he suddenly stopped and cupped his fists towards the Treasure Pavilion, saying, "The top five of this year's Inner Court selection competition have been chosen. According to the rules, I have brought them here. I ask Elder Qian and Elder Bai to open the door!"
Hu Gan's words, carried by Dou Qi, echoed continuously throughout the small valley, lingering for a long time.
Suddenly, Jiang Yun and Zi Yan's eyes moved, staring intently at the main entrance of the Treasure Pavilion.
The next second, two gray-robed figures, sitting cross-legged on the ground, abruptly appeared there.
The two figures seemed as if they had been there all along. This bizarre scene made the few people's scalps tingle.
These two were the foundation of Jia Nan Academy, The Two Elders Qian Bai, peak Dou Zong.
"Xiao Yun, these two old men are so powerful!" Zi Yan, no longer smiling playfully, leaned close to Jiang Yun's ear and whispered seriously.
Jiang Yun did not reply to Zi Yan, but instead looked towards the main entrance. There, the two men's gazes had already fallen upon Zi Yan and Jiang Yun, revealing curiosity and scrutiny.
Somewhat curious as to why Jiang Yun didn't respond, Zi Yan followed Jiang Yun's gaze and immediately noticed The Two Elders Qian Bai's eyes. She awkwardly stuck out her tongue and quietly hid behind Jiang Yun.
At this moment, The Two Elders Qian Bai also retracted their gazes and looked at Hu Gan expressionlessly, saying, "You've arrived!"
Hearing The Two Elders Qian Bai's question, Hu Gan breathed a slight sigh of relief and smiled, "These are the top five from this year's Inner Court selection competition. Please, Elders, unlock the spatial lock."
"These students are good!"
The Two Elders Qian Bai praised them, a barely perceptible joy in their tone.
Before Hu Gan could recover from his shock, The Two Elders Qian Bai slowly extended two withered hands from their sleeves, then slowly formed hand seals, finger by finger and seal by seal. As they formed their hand seals, Jiang Yun and the others could clearly feel two extremely powerful and invisible fluctuations emanating from their palms like waves, like waves.
Jiang Yun knew that was the power of space!
The invisible fluctuations gradually spread, finally coming into contact with the spatial wrinkles. As the two met, the space in front of Jiang Yun and the others immediately rippled like a mirror made of water. A moment later, the ripples stopped, and a door-like shape was slowly torn open by an invisible large hand.
"Let's go." Seeing this spatial door, Hu Gan waved his hand and then led the way in. Jiang Yun and the others followed closely behind him.
Stepping out of the invisible door, Jiang Yun found that his vision became much brighter than before, and the pavilion in front of him became clearer. Evidently, they had truly entered the spatial lock.
After everyone had stepped inside the spatial lock, Hu Gan first respectfully bowed to The Two Elders Qian Bai, then said, "Thank you, Elders!"
"Hmm!" The two academy guardians did not move their bodies in the slightest; only a hoarse reply came.
Aside from their initial surprise at seeing Jiang Yun and Zi Yan, it seemed nothing else could capture their attention, like two unchanging sculptures silently guarding the academy's last line of defense.
Seeing that The Two Elders Qian Bai had no intention of engaging with the crowd, Hu Gan didn't bother to press the matter. He turned to Jiang Yun and the other four, saying, "Now you may enter the Scripture Pavilion yourselves. However, everything inside has an energy layer. If your hand can pass through the energy layer without hindrance, then you can take the item inside."
"Of course, no matter how much you can pick up, you can only take one item out of the Treasure Pavilion. Never be greedy, or in the end, you will only come away empty-handed."
"If you cannot penetrate the energy layer, then give up. With your strength, you cannot break them. Every year, people enter the Treasure Pavilion, but those who return empty-handed are not few. Therefore, everything depends on fate. Do not force things you cannot obtain."
Hearing Hu Gan's words, Jiang Yun's eyes flickered slightly.
Can't break it? Not necessarily!
Hu Gan quickly finished explaining the rules of the Treasure Pavilion, then raised his hand and pointed to the Treasure Pavilion, signaling Jiang Yun and the others to go in by themselves.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun and the others nodded, then slowly lifted their legs and walked towards the Treasure Pavilion.
In the quiet valley, only faint rustling footsteps could be heard. Jiang Yun walked at the forefront, and the few people crossed the grassy area in front of the pavilion, finally stepping onto the bluestone steps, worn and pitted by time.
After ascending the bluestone steps, they arrived at the main entrance of the Scripture Pavilion. Everyone looked at the plaque above the door, which read 'Scripture Pavilion'.
Jiang Yun looked at the plaque above. The plaque appeared slightly dilapidated, but it carried a soul-stirring power, making everyone's hearts feel a touch of desolation.
Jiang Yun's heart trembled. Only the Dean of Jia Nan Academy, Mang Tianchi, could possess such strength to write characters that, after so many years, still retained such power!
"Go in! The door will only be open for one hour. After one hour, regardless of whether you have obtained what you need, you must come out!" At this moment, one of the gray-robed figures, whether Elder Qian or Elder Bai, said.
At the same time, he waved his sleeve, stirring an invisible fluctuation, and the main door of the Scripture Pavilion slowly opened.
Glancing at the somewhat surprised four people, Jiang Yun took Zi Yan's hand and was the first to step inside.
Spatial seal? A mere trifle! He had 'bathed' in spatial storms since he was a child, so this level was child's play!
Watching Jiang Yun enter, Ling Feng and the other two immediately reacted. The academy only gave them an hour. If they were too late, they might not get anything.
Immediately, each of them used their movement Combat Skills, rushing towards the Treasure Pavilion, quickly surpassing the slowly walking Jiang Yun and Zi Yan.
"Xiao Yun, shouldn't we hurry? Otherwise, all the good stuff will be taken!"
Zi Yan looked at the departing backs of the three, then looked at Jiang Yun, who was holding her hand as if they weren't on a treasure hunt but on a vacation, somewhat puzzled.
"No rush. Vice Dean Hu Gan just said that the treasures inside are protected by seals. Think about it, this is the academy's treasure vault! Most of the academy's good things are here, so it's not hard to guess how strong these seals are."
"And for you, Zi Yan, when it comes to seals, what's the difference between having them and not having them?"
Jiang Yun explained to Zi Yan. This was only one aspect; another was that they indeed did not lack Combat Skills or cultivation techniques.
Needless to say, Jiang Yun, as a clan with Saint-Rank Heavenly Sovereigns, had no shortage of Heavenly Sovereigns within. Even though he was young when he arrived on the Dou Qi Continent, he still didn't lack these things.
As a royal bloodline of the Ancient Void Dragon, Zi Yan's inherited bloodline was enough to sustain her for a lifetime. Some people might look like rogue cultivators, but the waters run deep!
Listening to Jiang Yun's explanation, Zi Yan's eyes immediately lit up. She proudly patted her delicate little body and said, "Leave it to me, Xiao Yun. Just tell me what you like, and I'll get it for you."
Jiang Yun smiled and agreed, shaking his head with amusement as he watched Zi Yan, who looked like she was about to go shopping for supplies.
In less than three minutes, Jiang Yun and Zi Yan finally arrived at an area enveloped in a pale yellow glow.
This was an extremely spacious large room. On the walls around the room, there were about ten energy shields. At this moment, these energy shields were slowly pulsating with light, illuminating the room as if it were daytime.
At this moment, Ling Feng and the other two, who had arrived earlier, were looking around in confusion. Seeing Jiang Yun approach, Su Quan, the only female present, said, "We've searched everywhere, but we haven't seen the treasures the Dean mentioned!"
"The Vice Dean said the treasures are covered with an energy shield. Does that mean we have to go inside these?" Liu Zhicun mused, pointing at the large energy shields around them and sharing his guess with the four.
Jiang Yun raised an eyebrow, a faint smile playing on his lips as he meaningfully said, "Here they come!"
"Hmm?"
The three looked at Jiang Yun in confusion, only Zi Yan looked up at the sky with great interest.
The next moment, a faint sound of breaking air rang out, and the three immediately perked up, staring intently at mid-air.
"Something's coming!"
Although the sound was faint, everyone present was at least a Dou Grandmaster. After noticing it, the three slightly composed themselves and heard the sound.
Before long, a light green orb of light shot out from one of the energy shields. Ling Feng and the other two's faces lit up. Before any of them could react, a purple figure leaped up first, and in a single bound, snatched the orb of light.
Her small hand smoothly passed through the orb of light, as if the seal on it didn't exist. The next second, Zi Yan pulled out a scroll from within.
"Profound Rank Mid-grade Combat Skill, Azurewood Thorn!"
"Tch—, useless stuff!" Zi Yan pouted unhappily, seemingly blaming her luck. With a flick of her small hand, the Profound Rank Combat Skill, which would be quite valuable outside, was tossed back.
The flying scroll once again transformed into an orb of light and flew back into an energy orb.
Su Quan and the other two opened their mouths several times but said nothing. To them, a Profound Rank Mid-grade Combat Skill was already very good. If they had obtained it, this trip to the Treasure Pavilion would have been a complete success.
Unfortunately, they weren't close with Zi Yan or Jiang Yun, so they couldn't bring themselves to ask.
With the appearance of the first orb of light, it seemed to trigger a switch. Orb after orb of light continuously flew out from the dozen or so energy shields around them.
The other three, already burning with excitement after seeing Zi Yan obtain a Profound Rank Combat Skill from the first orb, now rushed excitedly to intercept the orbs of light.
Jiang Yun did not blindly grab the orbs of light. Instead, he released his soul perception to its maximum, staring at all the flying orbs, hoping to find the one with the most profound aura.
As time passed minute by minute, Jiang Yun sensed a ball of light filled with a scorching aura flying out from an energy shield behind him. He immediately turned and jumped to grab the orb of light.
Although he felt a slight resistance from this orb of light, he tightened his five fingers and once again grasped a scroll.
"Blazing Sun Ninefold Art, Earth Rank Low-grade Cultivation Technique!" Jiang Yun looked at the Earth Rank cultivation technique in his hand. He didn't throw it away; instead, he held onto it as a backup reward.
He secretly noted the strength of the Earth Rank cultivation technique. In his soul perception, any orb of light below this strength was excluded. The next moment, Jiang Yun's figure moved, darting out like a cannonball. He extended his palm, and when he landed, he saw three orbs of light emanating powerful auras in his palm.
"The main ingredient for the sixth-grade medicinal pill, Azure Nether Longevity Pill, the Myriad Longevity Vine, an Earth-rank Dou Technique, and a sixth-tier demon core."
Jiang Yun's gaze penetrated the orbs of light, seeing the items inside. They were all rare and good things. After a brief thought, Jiang Yun kept the Myriad Longevity Vine. This item was good for either refining pills or for Zi Yan to consume.
"Xiao Yun, look what I found!" At this moment, Zi Yan's excited voice came. She was holding a jade-like fruit in her hand, happily raising it to Jiang Yun's eyes.
"Heavenly Jade Fruit, a good item!" Jiang Yun recognized the fruit at a glance as a good medicinal ingredient.
If consumed directly, this item could increase one's Dou Qi strength by about one star. If used to refine a medicinal pill, it could be used to refine a sixth-grade medicinal pill, a precious pill that could directly enhance the strength of a Dou Wang (Battle King) expert.
Such an item was almost astronomically priced in the outside world and extremely difficult to find. He hadn't expected Zi Yan to stumble upon it.
"Hehe, Xiao Yun, you have to help me. I'm almost at the peak of fifth-tier. Help me refine it into a pill!" Upon learning of the medicinal ingredient's effects, Zi Yan's eyes immediately lit up. She ingratiatingly pulled Jiang Yun's hand.
At this moment, she had only one thought in her mind: she was going to grow up. She was finally going to get rid of this appearance!
It couldn't be that she would still look like this after breaking through to sixth-tier, could it? She hadn't finished digesting the medicinal power of the Transformation Grass, had she? She hadn't reached maturity yet, had she?
No way? No way?
Whose Level Six Magical Beast isn't mature yet?!