Chapter 256: Chapter 256: Awakening the Crystal’s Soul

"It seems all the nations came well-prepared for this Floating Light Assembly."

President Zhu Tianlan of the Celestial Gold Kingdom stared down at the contestants, his expression grim.

The Celestial Gold Kingdom had always been the leader of the Thirteen Nations Alliance, and he himself was known as the number one Soul Refiner in the alliance. In past Floating Light Assemblies, his Celestial Gold Kingdom had always been unrivaled. This year’s assembly, however, had completely exceeded his expectations.

He couldn’t exactly say that his Celestial Gold Kingdom had gotten weaker. After all, their own Xia Qixi had broken through to the Third Grade before the age of twenty-five, making her even more outstanding than he had been at her age. And yet, even with such talent, she had only managed to place fourth in the first round. This was a result he never would have imagined before the competition began.

At the same time, his attention frequently drifted to Luan Hong and the others.

Zhu Tianlan knew exactly what the Thirteen Nations Alliance was like. A genius like Xia Qixi was the kind you saw once in a century.

It wasn’t impossible for two such geniuses to appear, but the probability was extremely low.

But in this Floating Light Assembly, four or five genius Soul Refiners, none weaker than Xia Qixi, had appeared all at once. This immediately made Zhu Tianlan feel that something was wrong.

Luan Hong and Zhou Liang, in particular, had appeared so unexpectedly it was almost unbelievable.

’There must be something unknown going on here.’

The first round of the assessment came to an end, leaving some joyous and others in despair.

The dramatic twists and turns on the stage had left the countless spectators dumbfounded.

There was a short, half-hour break between the first and second rounds. The three hundred contestants who passed settled down in their respective rest areas.

Seeing Ye Xuan, He Xuting and the others had varied expressions, none of them knowing what to say. Some were secretly disdainful, believing Ye Xuan had only lasted this long in the last round by getting lucky and guessing the Array correctly.

Regardless, with Ye Xuan on its side, the Liuyun Kingdom was currently the biggest winner of the Floating Light Assembly.

"Ye Xuan, I never would have thought... In just over two years, you’ve actually grown this much. I’m starting to wonder if you’re even the same Ye Xuan I used to know."

Yun Aoxue looked at Ye Xuan with a strange expression, her heart filled with a thousand emotions.

She had watched him grow, step by step, so her shock was naturally greater than anyone else’s.

She herself was a genius, but compared to Ye Xuan, she felt like a novice meeting a master.

"But no matter what, I hope you can win a good rank for our Liuyun Kingdom and secure more resources for us," Yun Aoxue said earnestly.

Ye Xuan chuckled. "Teacher Yun Aoxue, aren’t you a contestant too? Why are you pinning all your hopes on me? That doesn’t seem like you."

Yun Aoxue rolled her eyes. "You think I don’t want to? But I know my own limits. I might not even make it into the top ten. You, on the other hand... I believe you can definitely place in the top three."

Yun Aoxue also wanted to achieve a better ranking in the competition, but she was well aware that having started two or three years later than the other contestants, the top ten was already her ultimate goal. She didn’t even dare to dream of a higher rank.

"That might not be the case." Suddenly, Ye Xuan transmitted a segment of a Soul Skill into Yun Aoxue’s mind.

"This is..." Yun Aoxue’s mouth fell open in astonishment.

"These are some insights I just gained in the Soul Power Storm. The true purpose of that Soul Power Storm Array isn’t to test a Soul Refiner’s Soul Power strength, but to condense it. You held on in the storm for so long that your Soul Power has already begun to transform. Combine that with this incantation, and you might get a pleasant surprise."

After speaking, Ye Xuan sat down cross-legged to the side without waiting for Yun Aoxue to reply.

Yun Aoxue watched him sit down, a brilliant light flashing in her beautiful eyes. She wanted to ask something several times, but ultimately remained silent. She hurried to a spot in the rest area not far from Ye Xuan and began to condense her Soul Power according to the incantation and Heart Method he had given her.

The moment she began, she was shocked. She had just been forced to retreat, coughing up blood, under the assault of the Soul Power Storm, and her Soul Power had become somewhat dissipated. But now, with the help of the incantation from Ye Xuan, her Soul Power was condensing again at an astonishing rate. In just a few moments, it returned to its pre-competition state. Not only that, but its density continued to increase.

This discovery left Yun Aoxue ecstatic and utterly shaken.

’If I had possessed such condensed Soul Power just now, I definitely would have lasted much longer on the stage. Getting into the top ten would have been a piece of cake!’

Seeing Teacher Yun Aoxue completely immersed in her cultivation, Ye Xuan smiled faintly, closed his eyes, and focused his mind.

Time passed, and soon half an hour was up. After the short rest, the second round of the Floating Light Assembly was about to begin.

The three hundred contestants who had survived the first round of eliminations all ascended the stage.

"This second round will test your ability to activate Soul Crystals."

"In front of each contestant are forty-nine Soul Crystals of different attributes and types. Their grade is, without exception, First Grade. Within the time it takes for one stick of incense to burn, you must use your own methods to activate the Soul Power aura within the Soul Crystals. The more you activate, the higher your score. For the same number of activated crystals, the shorter the time taken, the higher the score."

"Just like the first round, first place will receive two hundred points, with the score decreasing for subsequent ranks. In addition, any contestant who can activate all forty-nine Soul Crystals within the time limit will receive a bonus of fifty points."

"This second round will also eliminate one hundred people. In other words, the one hundred contestants who complete the fewest activations will be eliminated directly and lose their chance to participate in the third round."

"Now, bring out the props."

A large group of Martial Artists came up from below the stage. They placed a square table in front of each contestant and, on each table, arranged thumb-sized Soul Crystals.

These Soul Crystals were iridescent and had varying auras, clearly taken from many different Profound Beasts. With nearly fifty Soul Crystals before each of the three hundred contestants, that was a total of fifteen thousand crystals. Although they were all only First Grade, the sight of them all together, emitting their various Soul Power auras, was still a breathtaking spectacle for the Soul Refiners present.

Ye Xuan glanced at the Soul Crystals in front of the other contestants and nodded slightly.

’Although the Thirteen Nations Alliance is a remote region, this assembly is quite well-organized. The Soul Crystals in front of all three hundred contestants are nearly identical, making it difficult to find any advantage. This makes the competition much fairer.’

The so-called "Soul Crystal activation" was actually quite simple.

After a Profound Beast is killed, the Soul Crystal within its body gradually enters a dormant state. If a Soul Refiner wants to absorb the Soul Power from the crystal or use it to enhance someone’s martial soul, the first step is to activate the crystal and revitalize the dormant Soul Power inside.

This was a technique that every Soul Refiner had to master.

However, Soul Crystals of different attributes had varying degrees of dormant Soul Power, and the methods to rouse them were also different. This was a true test of a Soul Refiner’s fundamental skills.

The challenge of this second round was to see how many Soul Crystals a contestant could activate within the allotted time.

The more they activated, the stronger they were considered.

Furthermore, since they were all First Grade Soul Crystals, the gap between First Grade and Second Grade Soul Refiners would not be as wide in this round.

If the first round was a test of a contestant’s Soul Power strength and grade, where it was difficult for lower-graded contestants to make a comeback, then the second round was a test of their proficiency in the fundamentals of Soul Refining. It was a test of each contestant’s true foundation. As long as their fundamentals were solid, a Soul Refiner at the Peak of First Grade wouldn’t necessarily perform worse than a Second Grade Soul Refiner.

"Alright! In this second round, I’m definitely going to stage a major comeback!"

Many Soul Refiners rubbed their hands together, full of confidence.

On the stage, the contestants from each nation stood at their designated positions.

Suddenly, Ye Xuan sensed a faint, hostile aura. He turned his head and saw the white-robed youth, Luan Hong, staring at him with a chilling gaze, a clear look of provocation in his eyes.

He was clearly unwilling to accept his loss to Ye Xuan in the first round and wanted to reclaim his honor in this second round—to take back the first place that he believed belonged to him.

Ye Xuan merely glanced at him before looking away, offering no response.

He wasn’t participating in the Floating Light Assembly to fight for any rank, but simply to explore the Floating Light Secret Realm. He was also helping the Liuyun Kingdom increase its national strength as a side benefit. As for anything else, he couldn’t be bothered.

Ye Xuan’s attitude of complete disregard instantly enraged Luan Hong. A trace of killing intent, sinister and cold, flashed in the depths of his eyes.

Ye Xuan sensed his killing intent but continued to ignore him.

The other party’s origins were a mystery, and Ye Xuan didn’t want to get involved, nor could he be bothered. But if the guy insisted on pestering him and looking for trouble, Ye Xuan wouldn’t mind teaching him a harsh lesson and showing him that he, Ye Xuan, was not someone to be trifled with.

Their silent confrontation lasted only an instant. With the host’s announcement, the second round of the assessment began immediately.

BZZZZZ...

All across the stage, streams of Soul Power, some strong, some weak, shot into the air. In each contestant’s small, personal space, dense auras of Soul Power descended upon the Soul Crystals before them, beginning to analyze their structure and activate the Soul Power within.

At the front of the stage, a stick of incense was lit, and it began to burn down slowly.

Every Soul Refiner knew how to activate a Soul Crystal, but activating forty-nine of them within the short time it took for an incense stick to burn was no easy task. What’s more, these forty-nine crystals had random, differing attributes, meaning each activation would consume a great deal of the contestants’ energy.

SWOOSH!

The instant the competition began, a Soul Crystal on Luan Hong’s table pulsed with a faint red glow.

"So fast! Luan Hong already activated a Soul Crystal!"