Upon arriving at Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, Jiu You immediately transformed into a small black sparrow no larger than a palm, perching atop Liu Bai's head and even making a nest with his hair.
Liu Bai could only feel helpless. It was clear that Jiu You was somewhat averse to interacting with strangers.
However, her appearance was so unique that she drew everyone's attention as they walked through the Academy. Many even recognized Liu Bai's identity and jokingly said this was a special quirk he had developed as the Academy's top student.
When they returned to the Willow God Association, Su Ling'er and the others, who had been excitedly welcoming the president, laughed so hard that they nearly fell over upon seeing this.
"What an adorable little bird! Liu Bai brother, is this your spirit companion? Let me see!"
While saying this, the lively Su Ling'er reached out to grab it.
Liu Bai immediately broke into a cold sweat and quickly stopped the little girl.
"Don't fool around. She is my friend and cannot be touched, or she will peck a hole right through your hand!"
Whether to cooperate with Liu Bai or because she was displeased with his words, Jiu You pecked Liu Bai on the head twice as soon as he finished speaking, even pulling out two strands of his hair.
Feeling the pain on his scalp, Liu Bai rolled his eyes and reached up to grab the mischievous Jiu You.
"Ah, stop, stop. I won't peck you anymore, alright…"
Jiu You's tiny legs hopped continuously on his head as she dodged his hands while begging for mercy.
Everyone around was momentarily stunned, then their expressions changed.
A Spiritual beast capable of speaking human words was no simple matter. Perhaps this seemingly insignificant little black sparrow was actually more powerful than them.
"Liu Bai, what is this?" Su Xuan asked, her face serious.
"Oh, she is called Jiu You, my friend. You can call her that too. She does not like to speak, and usually she just stays on my head. You can ignore her."
After the introduction, Liu Bai chatted with Guo Xiong and the others about the recent developments of the Willow God Association.
Thanks to Liu Bai's words, the others lost interest in Jiu You. Only the little girl Su Ling'er still tried to attract her attention, but Jiu You was too lazy to respond.
"By the way, leader, quite a lot has happened at the Academy while you were away, especially with the Heavenly Rankings. There have been significant changes…" Guo Xiong said.
"Oh? Tell me, how are the current Heavenly Rankings?" Liu Bai asked with some interest.
"During this time, some new students joined midway. Their strength is terrifying, some even reaching the Late-phase Heaven Completion Realm. Their arrival disrupted the rankings, and many were pushed down."
"New students?" Liu Bai murmured and nodded, already suspecting the reason.
Sure enough, when Liu Bai walked outside and looked at the massive Heavenly Ranking stone tablet atop the Divine Bird Peak, he saw that the top ten rankings had indeed changed considerably.
Besides his own name still holding the first place, he also saw names like Xia Youran and Xi Qinghai.
They were all Late-phase Heaven Completion Realm cultivators and had pushed Chu Lin and Yue Qing down to the fourteenth and fifteenth positions.
Now, the top fifteen in the Heavenly Rankings were all Heaven Completion Realm cultivators, a phenomenon likely unprecedented in the history of Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy.
"These guys are crazy, shoving all their people into Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy." Liu Bai shook his head.
He understood that these people were not here primarily to cultivate, but to attach themselves to the reputation of Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy.
After all, the Academy now had Earth Sovereign Realm powerhouses and was a dominant local force. These people needed to declare their stance and position.
It was easy to understand why so many factions gathered here at once.
Just like the three great merchant associations, when Xia Tianyan sent his daughter to Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, if the Heaven yuan and Umbra Merchant Associations did not send anyone, would they face pressure from Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy in future competition?
Often, Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy did not need to take action. Simply having Xia Youran under its banner was enough to apply pressure on the other two associations.
Having an Earth Sovereign versus not having one was a completely different concept.
Therefore, when Xia Youran entered the Academy, Dong Yuan and Liu Ying also followed. In the same way, Xi Qinghai from the Western Extreme Palace was sent by his father.
Similarly, Mysterious Yin Mountain and Heavenly Cauldron Divine Sect were clans, and Zhou Xuan and Su Buxiu were their respective talented disciples. They could not let them go, otherwise the top young generation of Northern Heaven Continent might be completely controlled.
Even so, both Mysterious Yin Mountain and Heavenly Cauldron Divine Sect secretly placed several of their children in the Academy.
In short, everyone tried their best to establish ties with Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy.
Since the Academy was academic in nature, the dean did not refuse. Just like admitting transfer students, as long as they were good students or even top-ranking across provinces or cities, any school would welcome them.
Of course, the dean's decision might also have been in preparation for the upcoming Academy Competition.
The original text clearly mentions that due to the Academy's teaching philosophy, each batch of top students at Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy was slightly weaker than the other four major academies.
Even some top academy occasionally ranked ahead of Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy, so many began scheming for the position among the five major academies.
By the time Mu Chen's generation reached the Spiritual Academy Competition, it was Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy's last chance. Without a good result, they would lose their place among the five major academies.
Judging from this, the Academy's current situation was already severe. The addition of these young talents temporarily alleviated the crisis.
However, the next Spiritual Academy Competition was still more than half a year away. It was uncertain whether Liu Bai would even still be at Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy by then.
With his current strength, it was already difficult to gain experience in the Academy or on Northern Heaven Continent as before, so Liu Bai was beginning to look for new training grounds.
Fortunately, he now had a bodyguard and had some prospects for a new training location. Liu Bai needed to prepare to change maps.
This, of course, required one person's assistance.
"Are you looking for Lord Northern Sea Dragon?"
The dean looked at the peculiarly styled youth before him, a strange expression on his face.
Liu Bai smiled awkwardly, blaming Jiu You for making him look like a comic figure.
"Yes, I have some matters I need Lord Northern Sea Dragon's help with."
The dean nodded and then extended his spiritual intent into the distance.
Soon, Liu Bai felt the space beside him twist, and a bald old man leaning on a cane emerged from the spatial rift.
"Liu kid, I heard you want my help… huh?"
As Northern Sea Dragon appeared and was about to ask Liu Bai the purpose of his visit, his gaze suddenly landed on the small black sparrow perched atop Liu Bai's head in a "bird nest." He immediately stopped speaking, his eyes locking on Jiu You.
"Nine Netherworld Sparrow after evolution, and with such a strong Phoenix bloodline. Little one, how are you here?"
Northern Sea Dragon naturally knew of the Nine Nether Sparrow clan, and seeing the intensity of her bloodline aura, he could tell her status within the clan was not low. Yet, how did she appear here, and why was she entangled with this human boy, Liu Bai?
Facing an Earth Sovereign level top-tier divine beast, Jiu You dared not act willfully. She quickly responded obediently: "I had an accident during my tribulation. Liu Bai helped me once, so now I stay by his side to protect him for a while."
Northern Sea Dragon revealed a meaningful smile. He knew this little Sparrow had not told the whole story. Since she and Liu Bai both carried each other's aura, there was only one possibility: these two had linked their bloodlines.
A divine beast with such strong bloodline potential willingly linking with a human boy indicated there were hidden matters at play.
Thinking further, Northern Sea Dragon recalled that when Liu Bai had left before, he had specifically exchanged a drop of his own blood essence at the Spiritual Value Hall.
Now the situation became clear. It seemed the cunning Liu Bai had used that single drop of essence to manipulate matters inside.
Whether through fair exchange or subtle deception, linking the bloodline of Nine Netherworld Sparrow with Liu Bai would inevitably bring trouble in the future.
If Liu Bai grew strong enough to bear the consequences, it would be fine. If not, this little guy might pay a significant price.
As an outsider, Northern Sea Dragon could not interfere. Moreover, the Nine Nether Sparrow clan was a major divine beast clan, not something he could provoke alone. Regarding Liu Bai's actions, he could only remain silent.
At most, he could give a warning, but doing more could invite trouble. Northern Sea Dragon was not one to risk himself for others.
"Liu Bai, I heard from Dean that you want my help. What is it that you wish me to do?" Northern Sea Dragon stopped talking to Jiu You and addressed Liu Bai directly.
Liu Bai, of course, did not know how much Northern Sea Dragon had deduced in an instant. Yet in truth, Liu Bai understood the situation clearly.
In the original story, Mu Chen was initially looked down upon and even pressured by the Nine Nether clan. While Liu Bai did not have powerful backers like Mu Chen, his advantage lay in his external system.
If the Nine Nether clan came looking for Jiu You in the original story's timeline, Liu Bai could grow strong enough to earn their respect.
It seemed in the original story, the Nine Nether clan noticed anomalies with Jiu You's fate token, prompting them to come. Now that Liu Bai had preemptively linked bloodlines with Jiu You, perhaps the timing of their attention would also advance.
With this thought, Liu Bai felt a sense of urgency.
After hearing Northern Sea Dragon's question, Liu Bai did not hesitate and said: "I heard from senior that the Five Elements Divine Light Technique I practice now originates from the Five Elements Divine Sect. Could you tell me the location of the Five Elements Divine Sect? I wish to see if I can obtain follow-up techniques or a suitable Sovereign Celestial Body."
Northern Sea Dragon nodded: "Ah, so it is about this. Since you have already surpassed the Human-Body Disaster, with your abnormal cultivation speed, it is indeed necessary to consider a sovereign celestial body ahead of time."
"Here is what I will do. I will contact an old friend of mine and see if I can arrange an introduction for you. With him watching over you, it should provide some assistance."
"Thank you very much, senior," Liu Bai said promptly.
Although Northern Sea Dragon had previously promised similar help, now that he was willing to personally arrange a connection, it was even better.
According to Northern Sea Dragon, his old friend was a Grand Elder of the Fire God Sect, one of the five subordinate sects under the Five Elements Divine Sect. His true form was also a divine beast, a rare Red Sun Golden Crow, an upper-level divine beast comparable to neither Nine Nether Sparrow nor Northern Sea Dragon.
This information had been awaited for nearly a month. If Northern Sea Dragon had not previously told Liu Bai that his friend had come to Northern Heaven Continent to meet him personally, Liu Bai might have wondered if the elder disdained him.
During this month, Liu Bai was not idle. Although he could not leave Northern Heaven Spiritual Academy while waiting for news, he visited the Refining Art Institute, Spiritual Array Institute, and Pill Refining Institute, learning much from several elders.
Particularly, Elder Chi Huo, as his teacher, upon hearing Liu Bai might leave the Academy for another continent, generously shared all the valuable materials in his possession without reservation.
Elder Chi Huo proved to be an exceptional teacher, almost treating Liu Bai as a successor, teaching him all the refining techniques and spiritual artifact blueprints he had studied over the years.
Liu Bai did not disappoint Elder Chi Huo. He mastered all the blueprints and secret techniques, only needing to gather materials to actually produce them.
Of course, to refine high-grade or even supreme-grade spiritual artifact, Liu Bai would need to further advance his Divine Refining Method.
Additionally, Elder Sikong from the Spiritual Array Institute gave Liu Bai a Rank Five Array Diagram, and Elder Kong Qing from the Pill Refining Institute gave him a pill refinement guide.
Liu Bai was equally grateful.
After all, they were not his teachers. Their generosity stemmed solely from recognizing his talent and having a love for cultivating talent. Liu Bai, therefore, did not act ungratefully as some would, resentful despite receiving favors.
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