Chapter 107 - 104: The Spirit Master Banquet Begins

Amid Lao Liu’s gossip and the crowd’s murmurs, the Eldest Prince, Chu Yiming, and their entourage walked toward the innermost seats of the Hongyan Building’s courtyard.

On the way, Xian Ling’Er happily approached Chu He, who was already seated. "Chu He!"

Chu Yiming also looked at Chu He.

Chu He, however, kept a straight face. Without so much as a glance at Chu Yiming or even Xian Ling’Er, he coldly spat out two words: "Perform well."

"Don’t worry, Chu He. Among the First-Grade Spirit Masters, no one will be my match," Xian Ling’Er said with absolute confidence.

"Ling’Er!" Chu Yiming called out in annoyance.

"Chu He, I believe you will be the Master Kui today." After saying this, Xian Ling’Er ran over to Chu Yiming.

Chu Yiming scoffed coldly. Wearing a grim expression, he walked over to his seat.

The crowd took note of the strained relationship between Chu He and his father, but no one dared to gossip about it.

Soon, the Eldest Prince and his group also took their seats.

"Serve the banquet!" the Eldest Prince ordered the moment he sat down.

At his command, a large number of maids emerged from all directions, carrying trays of exquisite delicacies to the tables.

The Spirit Master Banquet had officially begun!

Everyone’s eyes fell on the Eldest Prince. Mo Qianqian’s gaze was also fixed on him.

"Welcome, everyone, to the Spirit Master Banquet." The Eldest Prince spoke in a calm, steady, and clear voice. "As we all know, elixirs are the primary resource for enhancing a Cultivator’s strength.

"And a Spirit Master plays an immense role in bridging the gap between an Alchemy Master and a Cultivator.

"Whether the Cultivators of a region are truly strong ultimately depends on its Spirit Masters.

"The strength and abilities of a Spirit Master deserve the respect of every Cultivator..."

The Eldest Prince delivered a lengthy opening speech. Naturally, everything he said was true. It was a conventional address, albeit with a slight touch of emotional appeal. The crowd listened while they ate, not finding it tedious in the least.

Finally, the Eldest Prince concluded, "In short, the Great Xia Dynasty is vast enough to accommodate every faction present here today!"

Although these words resonated with many, they didn’t dare fully agree in their hearts. After all, human nature was too greedy. Every faction present harbored its own hidden agenda.

"Now, I announce the formal commencement of the Spirit Master Banquet. Moving forward, the Royal Family’s Chief Spirit Master, Master Chu, will host the proceedings," the Eldest Prince declared loudly.

"Everyone, the Spirit Master Banquet is an opportunity for the Spirit Masters of the Great Xia Dynasty to showcase their talents," Chu Yiming began. "A Spirit Master’s abilities encompass enhancing elixirs, healing injuries, upgrading weapons, and engaging in combat.

"However, upgrading weapons is a feat only those of the Third Grade and above can achieve, as it requires infusing spiritual nature over a prolonged period. Therefore, it will not be included in today’s competition.

"The competition will be divided into three rounds. The first round will test the quantity of elixirs one can enhance within a set time.

"The second round will test healing speed.

"The third round will test combat prowess."

Chu Yiming continued, "In the end, a panel of seven—myself, Master Qiu Fengliang, the Royal Family, the three great families, and the Tai Xuan Academy—will serve as judges. Based on a comprehensive evaluation of elixir quantity, healing speed, combat strength, and age, we will select the Master Kui, the Ya Kui, and the Ji Kui.

"The Master Kui, sponsored by the Royal Family and the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion, will be rewarded with five Third-Grade Superior Elixirs—Tongyou Pills!"

The moment these words were spoken, the crowd erupted into an uproar.

There were only two Third-Grade Spirit Masters in the entire Great Xia Dynasty. Coupled with the scarcity of Third-Grade Alchemy Masters and the extreme difficulty in sourcing the necessary medicinal ingredients, Third-Grade Elixirs were exceedingly rare.

As a result, the market price of a single Third-Grade Upper-Level Tongyou Pill had reached eight million taels—an exponential markup compared to second-grade elixirs. Moreover, they were so highly sought after that they were practically priceless, with no willing sellers in the market.

Anyone who possessed a Third-Grade Superior Elixir would never sell it on the open market. After all, a single Third-Grade Superior Elixir was enough to help a high-level Cultivator in the Tongyou Realm break through to the next level of cultivation!

To think that the Master Kui of the Spirit Master Banquet would be directly rewarded with five of them!

Everyone present was absolutely flabbergasted. Once again, they were witnessing the "inhuman wealth" of Spirit Masters!

And this was just the direct reward. The greater prize for claiming the title of Master Kui lay in the various factions eagerly courting them, willing to pay any price to win them over.

"The Ya Kui will receive two Third-Grade Upper-Level Tongyou Pills.

"The Ji Kui will receive one Third-Grade Upper-Level Tongyou Pill," Chu Yiming concluded.

Although these were fewer than the Master Kui’s reward, even a single pill was a monumental prize.

"To save time, the first two rounds for the First-Grade Spirit Masters and Second-Grade Spirit Masters will be held simultaneously. Will the participating Spirit Masters please enter the arena?"

As soon as Chu Yiming’s voice faded, Xian Ling’Er was the first to dash toward the battle stage in the center of the courtyard. Chu He, Ye Xiao, Bai Xiu, and several others rose to their feet. The atmosphere instantly became lively.

On the Asura Conglomerate’s side, Mo Qianqian and Gu Jin stood up.

"Great Treasure Master, Treasure Master, good luck!" Pei Hong encouraged them. Shi Muyao also pumped her fist to show her support.

"We will do our best!" Mo Qianqian said indifferently, before leading Gu Jin toward the battle stage ahead.

Mo Qianqian walked over to the side designated for Second-Grade Spirit Masters, while Gu Jin headed to the First-Grade Spirit Master side.

In total, thirty people gathered in the arena. On the First-Grade Spirit Master side, there were twenty. Though twenty seemed like a small number, it was actually quite substantial given the extreme rarity of Spirit Masters. Gathering twenty of them had already exceeded everyone’s expectations.

The vast majority of these twenty participants were middle-aged or elderly. There were only two First-Grade Spirit Masters between the ages of twenty and thirty: Luo Wushuang and another young man. Under the age of twenty, there was only one: Xian Ling’Er.

On the Second-Grade Spirit Master side, there were a mere ten participants. Aside from Mo Qianqian, who was disguised as a middle-aged man, only three were under the age of thirty: Chu He, Ye Xiao, and Bai Xiu. The rest were all over thirty, four of whom were elderly.

Of course, there were also elderly First- and Second-Grade Spirit Masters present who chose not to participate. They knew that unless there was a colossal gap in skill, their advanced age would severely penalize their overall evaluation. It was better not to take the stage at all.

Soon, thirty maids carried empty trays into the arena. Then, two more maids, each carrying a tray of elixirs, presented them to Chu Yiming and Qiu Fengliang for inspection. Afterward, they entered the arena to let the Spirit Masters randomly verify the elixirs.

Following the inspection, the elixirs were distributed onto the empty trays held by the other maids. The First-Grade Spirit Masters received First-Grade Junior Elixirs, while the Second-Grade Spirit Masters received Second-Grade Junior Elixirs.

The Spirit Masters were even allowed to choose which maid’s tray to take. This completely eliminated any possibility of tampering with the elixirs.

"Asura, let’s see how many elixirs you can enhance in this first round!" Bai Xiu, standing next to Mo Qianqian, said coldly.

Ye Xiao stepped up to Mo Qianqian’s other side. The two were clearly trying to pressure Mo Qianqian.

"Asura, let’s see if all those extra years you have on us went straight to the dogs," Ye Xiao taunted deliberately.

"Don’t worry, my years didn’t go to you," Mo Qianqian replied calmly.

"You..." Ye Xiao bristled with anger.

"For the first round, you have only two hours. Now, let the competition officially begin!" Chu Yiming’s voice rang out at that moment.

As soon as he spoke, an attendant off to the side lit a stick of incense to keep time.