Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

“Expert?”

Upon hearing Jiang Shaoyang, everyone became excited as they, one by one, turned their heads; gazing with glittering eyes.

“Where is he, where’s the expert?”

They were not to blame for forgetting themselves, as geniuses in Deep Sea University’s Refining Department were as numerous as stray dogs. It was a place where terrifying prodigies could be found everywhere. Even so, Jiang Shaoyang, having entered the university for just one year, had already been publicly recognized as a super genius by all the geniuses and monstrous prodigies. He was the top prodigy.

Let alone finding his rival among the freshmen, even among the senior grads, the students who were of a higher level than him could be counted on one’s fingers.

It couldn’t be helped. Who asked him to be the nephew of Supernova Jiang Sheng. From childhood, he grew up in Jiang Sheng’s refining room. How could he not learn anything if the toys he played with were magical equipment components?

If even Jiang Shaoyang believed someone to be an expert, then he must truly be an expert.

Everyone’s gaze wandered, but all they could find were a group of Star Nebula University’s students nearby and an extremely ordinary teenager gorging on a plate of dumplings.

His greedy appearance was almost like a country bumpkin who only knew how to use his muscles.

Everyone couldn’t help but stare blankly, “Where’s the expert?”

The refiners’ community was filled with hidden dragons and crouching tigers. Of course, they wouldn’t dare to say there weren’t any expert refiners other than those from Deep Sea University.

However, many of these experts had been involved in refining for a few decades and in their middle-age after having trained laboriously.

When they looked around, all they could see were their peers who were almost the same age as them.

Among these people, there was actually an expert hidden who could go on par with Jiang Shaoyang?

That was simply inconceivable!

Everyone focused their gazes further ahead.

Jiang Shaoyang didn’t stop and continued to move as he lazily said, “Let’s go, you will know after a while. Today’s exam is gonna be extremely interesting.”

“Wow!”

Everyone woke up from their stupor and continued to follow Jiang Shaoyang.

“Shaoyang, you’re right indeed. Today’s exam is indeed going to be interesting. Apart from you, there is another figure whom everyone in the refining community knows and is taking the exam here.”

The senior grad from just a moment ago said with enthusiasm, “It’s Li Yao from Grand Desolate War Institution, the biggest clown who is known for challenging us. Wait a minute, I will search the net to find his 3D pictures. I wanna see how big his mouth is, to think that he dared to speak such big words!”

There was no change in Jiang Shaoyang’s expression. He calmly said, “Gao Yuanlong, do you know why I, being a freshman and having studied at the university for less than a year, could knock senior grads like you out?”

Gao Yuanlong was surprised for a moment, he could not understand why Jiang Shaoyang threw him such a question.

However, they were already accustomed to Jiang Shaoyang’s way of speaking which was no different than Jiang Sheng’s. They reined their temper and asked, “Why?”

Slowly, Jiang Shaoyang extended two of his slender fingers. Waving his first finger, “99% is because I am a genius and you’re all ordinary people with mediocre aptitudes.”

Gao Yuanlong was almost choked to death on his own saliva. In the blink of an eye, his face turned very red from choking.

Everyone knew Jiang Shaoyang didn’t know how to speak politely, but this was still too much!

What ordinary people with mediocre aptitudes?

In his hometown, Gao Yuanlong was a one in a million genius, who was like the feathers of a phoenix and horns of a unicorn!

Yet Jiang Shaoyang looked at him blankly, the look in his eyes was of calm as if he was saying, “I just stated one of the most basic facts. Why are you even getting angry, didn’t you already know?”

Gao Yuanlong ground his teeth to the point that they even started to ache. Eventually, he helplessly said, “Okay, what about the remaining 1%?”

Jiang Shaoyang waved his second finger, “1% is because I devote every moment of my life to the world of refining unlike you ordinary people who obviously have such mediocre aptitudes yet waste so much of time listening to a joke.”

Gao Yuanlong was rendered speechless. Everyone glanced at each other. From the bottom of everyone’s heart, everyone had an urge to strangle Jiang Shaoyang to death.

In the depths of the metallic dome, was a control room full of holograms that were displaying the scenes from various parts of the metallic dome. Stood in the control room were three highly reputed, veteran refiners. Each of them had the emblems of refiners’ association on their chests. They were all none other than the three examiners who were in charge of the No.19 examination hall.

On the left, stood a stunning middle-aged beauty. She was dressed in the same deep blue uniform as Jiang Shaoyang. However, compared to the uniforms of the students, hers was more beautiful, refined, and luxurious. A faint spiritual energy was lingering around it, bringing a sliver of immortal-like grace.

Only a “professor” level teacher of Deep Sea University held the qualifications to wear such uniform.

She was Professor Zhu Yueqin of Deep Sea University’s Refining Department. This year, she was already seventy-nine years old, yet she appeared to be in her forties or fifties.

“Professor Zhu, is that long-haired teenager the nephew of Supernova Jiang Sheng, Jiang Shaoyang? I have heard that his aptitude is just as Jiang Sheng’s, when Jiang Sheng was of his age. At such a young age, he is already on par with ‘Novem Stellae’ and also won the nickname, the ‘Tenth Star’. Geniuses keep on emerging from the Deep Sea University one after another, you are truly worthy of being called the holy land of refiners!”

Stood in the middle was a slightly fat but smart looking, middle-aged man, what’s more, was that the number of fingers in his hands were surprisingly six. As he spoke, his tone carried a bit of jealousy.

This man was Dong Liuqi, he was born with twelve fingers which made him unsuited to train using normal refining techniques.

However, he was quite gifted as well as had a firm and indomitable temperament. After painstakingly training for a couple of decades, he actually created a set of refining techniques for twelve fingers that was second to none and became a top refining expert in one of ten strongest sects in the federation, the Thousand Sun Sect.

Owing to the fact that in his teens he still had not yet successfully developed a refining technique for twelve fingers, Dong Liuqi wasn’t admitted to Deep Sea University and graduated from Star Nebula University’s Refining Department.

Having seen his alma mater, Star Nebula University, being completely suppressed, whether it was in terms of the number of examinees or in the imposing aura emanating from the examinees of Deep Sea University, Dong Liuqi’s voice inevitably had a hint of jealousy mixed in it.

Dong Liuqi turned to the square-faced military man on his right side and said with a smile, “Director Yan, I noticed there was an interesting kid called Li Yao recommended by the Grand Desolate War Institution on the list of examinees, isn’t he the kid who is known for challenging the Deep Sea University? Now that he and Jiang Shaoyang are in the same examination hall, they can also be considered as competing on the same stage, we will have to pay attention to them later.”

Even before “Director Yan” could speak a word, Zhu Yueqing couldn’t help but coldly scoff and interrupted, “He is just an ignorant, hot-headed kid, who is shooting off his mouth, nothing more nothing less. Elder Dong, you can’t be serious?”

“I beg to differ, I feel that he is quite courageous, the young should be just like this, they should have guts to speak and fight!” calmly said the military man, he took a step forwards while looking at Zhu Yueqin.

He was Yan Tianhe, a refiner in the army and also the head of the armament center at military base 8734.

These three examiners represented three different forces.

Professor Zhu Yueqin was from Deep Sea University and there was on behalf of the academies.

Elder Dong Liuqi was from Thousand Sun Sect and there was on behalf of the various major sects.

Needless to say anything about Yan Tianhe, the stars on his shoulders showed that he was a colonel; he was clearly representing the military.

The three examiners were going to invigilate together, mutually checking so as to ensure the fairness of the exam.

In regard to Li Yao’s attitude, the opinion of the three had subtle differences.

Zue Yueqin treated Li Yao completely like a crazy kid who didn’t know how high the heavens were and how deep the earth was—an idiot clown and it was beneath her to even pay attention to him.

Dong Liuqi was different, in the refiners’ community, the Deep Sea University had been in a dominant position for a very long time, and refiners like him who didn’t belong to Deep Sea University had been faintly discriminated in the refiners’ circle, after a long passage of time, they couldn’t help but accumulate tons of resentment in their heart.

Li Yao was presumptuous to challenge, but it could be said that he had spoken their minds. As the saying goes, the spectators aren’t afraid of making things big. Dong Liuqi eagerly wished for Li Yao to show spectacular results and render these proud and arrogant teachers and students of Deep Sea University speechless.

However, the possibility of that happening was next to nothing.

As for Yang Tianhe, his thoughts were even more different.

Who was Li Yao? Federation Class 1 Disabled Soldier!

What was the army? It was the organization that best concealed their own mistakes.

Even if anyone in the army was guilty of crimes, he or she would be punished accordingly only in military court.

And Li Yao was just impulsive for a moment, the blood had rushed to his head and said a few words of rhetoric only.

In the eyes of many soldiers, it was nothing, simply nothing. Some even appreciated this little guy.

Meanwhile, the army had been most dissatisfied with the dominant situation of Deep Sea University.

Although both sides are cooperating very closely, a lot R&D and manufacture of armed forces magical equipment fell on the lap of Deep Sea University…

But as far as the army was concerned, they did not wish for the majority of abilities and secrets to be in the hands of the civilians.

Therefore, they had always hoped that the Refining Department of Federation’s First Military College could challenge the Deep Sea University’s Refining Department.

However, even after challenging them for over a century, they had not been successful.

As for a blabbermouth and ignorant kid like Li Yao, it was even further from his reach.

But it couldn’t prevent Yan Tianhe, as an elder brother in the army, from having a slight appreciation for this younger brother.

Noticing the two had the intention of standing up together, Zhu Yueqin didn’t continue to struggle anymore. Reading the time on the upper right of the hologram, she changed the topic, “There are twenty minutes left, let’s inform the examinees to enter the hall!”

“Alright!”

Dong Liuqi and Yan Tianhe didn’t truly believe that Li Yao had the qualifications to compete with Jiang Shaoyang. Seeing Deep Sea University maintain its position for so many years, they were just a bit jealous and were just trying to make up an issue, nothing more nothing less.

Noticing it was time already, they immediately reined in their emotions and returned to the matter at hand.

A melodious female voice echoed in every corner of the lobby, “Examinees, there are only twenty minutes left for the exam, please head to the examination hall and take the seat according to the number displayed on your crystal processor. Please remain silent. It is necessary that you don’t bring any non-permissible items in the admission hall. The list of non-permissible items includes…”

“Whoosh!”

The restrictive barriers at the center of the lobby were dispelled and thousands of dome-like cabins emerged from the ground; translucent golden numbers floated above the cabins.

“Tap-tap-tap!”

Thousands of examinees rushed into the examination hall.

Swallowing his last dumpling, Li Yao wiped his hands and searched for his cabin.

Once he was inside, the semicircular crystal cover on the front of the cabin gradually closed tight, isolating the voices from the outside.

The crystal processor for taking the exam launched a hologram before a lot of information, like a cascading waterfall, dropped from above. These were the rules for taking the exam. At the bottom, there was also a small countdown.

“Beep! Beep! Beep!”

Soon, the countdown hit zero.

The first round of the Refiners’ Registration Examination officially began!