Rain Observatory Platform

Not long after Michelle, Xia Luo also made a move. The Star Energy from his palm extended, guiding a star chip out of the rain screen with a smile on his face.

Hui Baiye frowned, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

From the depths of the rain screen, a pair of world-weary eyes swept over Michelle and Xia Luo, showing a trace of admiration. "Ordinary people value quantity, while experts value quality. To be able to materialize Star Energy in three days, even if one has focused on this aspect of cultivation before, is not easy. They can be considered geniuses. The next step is the realm of myriad changes; those who reach it can be called—prodigies."

Another day passed. Hui Baiye suddenly opened his eyes, thrust a hand into the rain screen, and very domineeringly tore it open, taking out a star chip, his eyes full of arrogance.

Almost at the same time, Lulu also obtained a star chip. She glared at Hui Baiye provocatively.

Hui Baiye's eyebrow twitched, a trace of displeasure in his eyes. On what basis did an ant from the Outerverse dare to face him?

Lulu had never liked the White Night clan. She raised her fist at Hui Baiye.

Hui Baiye's eyes narrowed. "Woman, are you looking to die?"

Lulu sneered. "Just the White Night clan."

Hui Baiye's eyes showed surprise. "Who are you?"

"Lulu Mebis," Lulu said proudly.

Hui Baiye was surprised and said no more. He knew how terrifying the Mebis clan was.

Michelle and the others had obtained four gifts. They did not leave in a hurry but continued to stand in the rain, watching the rain scene. This place was very magical; it could cleanse the soul.

Lu Yin had been continuously refining his Star Energy through the Heavenly Star Art while watching the rain. He imitated the raindrops, attempting to liquefy his Star Energy, but failed. He also thought of turning his Star Energy into mist, but that also failed. Whether liquid or mist, they had already transcended the category of ordinary power. Power was formless; to give it form was a transcendence... Lu Yin suddenly remembered something. What he cultivated was the Heavenly Star Art, the principle of which was to imitate the movement of stars. And where did stars come from? They were formed from Star Energy. That was substance. Lu Yin was annoyed. He was so stupid not to have thought of the stars. What he had been cultivating from the very beginning was materialized Star Energy.

Lu Yin opened his eyes and reached forward with his hand. In his palm, a star tore open the rain screen. He saw the fifth star chip. Just as he was about to grab it, a sharp force suddenly attacked, turning into swords—one, two, three. Three swords formed a triangle and stabbed out from the air.

The star in Lu Yin's palm exploded, clashing with the three swords. The matter happened too suddenly. He had only simulated one star and was fundamentally unable to block the pressure from the three swords. He immediately withdrew his hand. And the last star chip was held in the hand of a man, the man from Myriad Swords Mountain, Zhao Yilong.

Lu Yin looked at Zhao Yilong. Zhao Yilong, however, paid him no mind and just examined the star chip.

"Friend, a sudden attack is not very honorable," Lu Yin said in a cold voice.

Zhao Yilong glanced at him. "You can come and take it."

Lu Yin's eyes turned sharp, and he was about to make a move when a shadow flashed past everyone, landing on a high point far to the north of the bluestone platform.

Everyone looked over.

It was a man, his back to the crowd. Surging Star Energy, materialized, suddenly swept across, shocking everyone. This was—the Limiteer Realm.

The scene was dead silent.

The man with his back to the crowd had a dashing figure, his hair slightly long, fluttering in the rain, giving him the air of an ancient master.

The man slowly turned around. As he turned, he said, "Congratulations, junior broth—" He stopped mid-sentence, his eyes wide, staring blankly at the crowd. "Uh... excuse me, where are the disciples who passed the assessment?"

Ke Ke was a good child and immediately answered, "That's us."

The man was startled and forced a smile. "Little sister, don't joke. How many of you are there? Our academy enrolls at least a thousand."

Zahra looked up. "It's just us. Are you a senior student here?"

The man's face twitched, and he suddenly shouted, "Mentor of the Rain Observatory, was there a mistake? Why are there so few people? Where are the cute junior brothers? The moe junior sisters? Where did they all go?"

"Shut up! Twelve people passed this assessment. That's it," a loud shout came from the rain screen.

The man's face turned bitter. "How can this be? Has our Tenth Academy really fallen to this extent? Only twelve people passed the assessment? How tragic."

Michelle frowned. "Senior, please get to the point."

The man sighed, looking as if he had been dealt a heavy blow. His gaze swept over the crowd, then suddenly fixed on Michelle's face, and he couldn't look away, his eyes shining. In an instant, he appeared in front of her and bowed like a gentleman. "My name is Da Pao. This junior sister, may I ask for your name?"

Michelle was displeased. "Senior, please get to the point."

The raindrops suddenly became heavier, and the entire sky seemed to press down. "Da Pao, if you dare to fool around again, you'll be punished to enter the Sea of Forgotten Sands for a year."

The man was startled and hurriedly retreated to the high point. He coughed a few times, his expression turning solemn. "Greetings, junior brothers and sisters. My name is Da Pao, a student of the Tenth Academy, your senior. Now, I will introduce the Tenth Academy to all of you." He then winked at Michelle and continued, "As everyone knows, the Astral Combat Academy is the top institution in the universe, and our Tenth Academy has a long history and cultural tradition. It is a treasure of cosmic civilization, a sacred place of learning that countless experts and elites dream of..."

"Senior, please stop with the nonsense," Hui Baiye spoke, his tone cold.

Da Pao looked at him with displeasure. "Junior brother, don't interrupt when a senior is speaking. You need to be polite."

Hui Baiye was dismissive.

"Senior, please get to the point," Michelle spoke for the third time, her tone a little impatient.

Da Pao coughed again, a bit embarrassed. "Alright. Our Tenth Academy does not have dedicated mentors to teach you; it's all self-study. There are three famous cultivation holy lands in the universe: the Rain Observatory Platform, the Star-Picking Tower, and the Sea of Forgotten Sands. The Rain Observatory Platform is this place. It rains all year round and hasn't stopped for several years, which is beneficial for your cultivation of Star Energy. As for the other two places, you'll know when you get there..."

After some introduction, Da Pao suddenly thought of something. "A friendly reminder: if you want to leave the Rain Observatory Platform, it's best to use the teleportation device. Otherwise, I can't guarantee how long it will take you to get to the other two places."

"Senior, is the academy very big?" Ke Ke asked obediently, her face full of curiosity.

Da Pao looked at Ke Ke's innocent and cute appearance, his heart melting, and smiled brightly. "Yes, it's very big. The Rain Observatory Platform you're on is not the whole thing, just a corner of it. The entire Rain Observatory Platform is made up of tens of thousands of sky-covering giant trees."

"Tens of thousands? That's not a lot," Ke Ke was puzzled.

Da Pao gave a strange smile. "Not a lot? What if I told you that this platform you're standing on is just the top of one tree, and the countless green trees you see in the distance are actually the branches of one tree? What would you think?"

Everyone was shocked. Ke Ke covered her mouth, looking at the distance in amazement. Those green trees were branches? In other words, what they were seeing was just one tree? How huge was that? One must know, they were cultivators with vast vision, yet they couldn't even see a second tree.

"At your speed, it would take at least a day to fly across the Rain Observatory Platform," Da Pao said, holding up one finger.

Lu Yin was horrified. A day was enough for him to fly from Asia to the westernmost part of Europe on Earth. In other words, the range of the Rain Observatory Platform was equivalent to the Eurasian continent. How could it be so big? And this was just the Rain Observatory Platform. Could the Tenth Academy be as big as Planet Zhenwu? Was that still an academy?

"Our Tenth Academy has many places to pay attention to, which can't be explained in words. I will send the information to you all now. Remember, you cannot contact the outside world within the academy's range; you can only contact each other. Alright, come on, let's all exchange contact information," Da Pao suggested.

Michelle and the others didn't move an inch, completely ignoring him.

The scene was a bit awkward.

Da Pao was speechless. This was completely different from what he had imagined. Where were the cute junior brothers and sisters he was promised? There were none, only one little girl who was somewhat cute. How tragic.

"Senior, where are the mentors?" Shuz asked.

Da Pao had lost his enthusiasm and said listlessly, "Receive the information yourself and look at it yourself."

Lu Yin and the others immediately looked at their personal communicators. Sure enough, a message had been sent. It was about the Tenth Academy.

The information was not much. Besides what Da Pao had just introduced, there was also information about the Treasure Pavilion, the Trial World, and other places.

One piece of information attracted Lu Yin's attention: as long as one obtained the recognition of the Rain Observatory Platform or the Sea of Forgotten Sands, one could become a disciple under the mentors of those two places.

The Tenth Academy was not without mentors. But to be taught by a mentor, one had to gain their recognition. Lu Yin didn't know if the other combat academies were like this; he felt this method was not right.

Michelle frowned as she read through it, then looked up at Da Pao. "This is the teaching method of the Tenth Academy? The other nine academies have dedicated mentors to answer students' questions. Why doesn't the Tenth Academy?"