The Spiritual Art Chamber was where the Northern Spiritual Academy stored its Spiritual Arts. It was divided into two floors: Heaven and Earth. Earth Branch disciples could only browse Spiritual Arts on the Earth Floor. If they wanted to enter the Heaven Floor, their only option was to wait until they promoted to the Heaven Branch.
The Spiritual Art that Mu Chen wanted to look at was indeed kept on the Heaven Floor. Half a year ago, Instructor Mo had brought him to visit the Heaven Floor once, and he had discovered that particular Spiritual Art was highly suitable for him. However, because he lacked the qualifications to borrow and study it at the time, he could only let it go.
Now that he met the requirements, his first thought was naturally of that offensive Spiritual Art.
As Mu Chen and Tang Qian'er headed to the Spiritual Art Chamber, Tan Qingshan chose to stay behind to train further. This youth was quiet and stubborn. He had been an outstanding figure back in the Earth Branch, but now that he had just entered the Heaven Branch, he found himself at the very bottom. The massive gap only fueled his determination to increase his strength.
The spacious Spiritual Art Chamber already had quite a few Northern Spiritual Academy disciples browsing inside. Not everyone was the young master of a territory like Mu Chen or Liu Yang, so the majority of them came to the Spiritual Art Chamber to study. Of course, compared to Mu Chen's family background, the Spiritual Arts they could learn and cultivate were slightly inferior.
However, this did not mean that the collection stored in the Northern Spiritual Academy was inferior to those of the Territory Lords. In fact, it was quite the opposite. From what Mu Chen knew, the true high-level Spiritual Arts in the academy's treasury were superior, not inferior, to what his father possessed. It was just that those high-grade Spiritual Arts were not easily accessible to ordinary disciples.
The Earth Floor was bustling with activity. As soon as Mu Chen and Tang Qian'er walked in, they attracted a lot of attention. His battle during the Academy Competition had naturally made Mu Chen a rising star in the minds of the Earth Branch disciples.
"Brother Mu!"
The West Branch disciples remained relatively calm upon seeing him, their eyes merely showing a hint of curiosity and wariness. On the other hand, the East Branch disciples were as excited as if they had seen their idol. Quite a few boys greeted him enthusiastically, while several pretty girls browsing the Spiritual Arts stole glances at the handsome and powerful youth, their faces quietly flushing red.
Mu Chen smiled and nodded in response to the East Branch disciples. He did not linger, quickly passing through the Earth Floor with Tang Qian'er to enter the Heaven Floor of the Spiritual Art Chamber.
Once the two of them left, the Earth Floor buzzed with even more excitement, with hushed whispers circulating among the crowd.
"Brother Mu really promoted to the Heaven Branch. Look, he just went up to the Heaven Floor of the Spiritual Art Chamber."
"Haha, Brother Mu defeated Liu Yang in the Academy Competition. Entering the Heaven Branch is a walk in the park for him."
"There are quite a few formidable characters in the Heaven Branch, though. I heard that Luo Tong wanted to cause trouble for Brother Mu today. That guy is already at the Late Stage of the Spiritual Movement Stage."
"Luo Tong? He's just a bully who relies on his father's influence to show off. How can he even compare to our Brother Mu? Besides, that guy doesn't even have the qualifications to enter the Five Great Academies anymore."
"Exactly. Right now, the only one who can truly compete with Liu Mubai is probably Brother Mu. Haha, I think the competition for the Five Great Academies' entry slots is going to be incredibly exciting."
...
"I didn't expect you to still be so popular in the Earth Branch!"
Having entered the Heaven Floor, Tang Qian'er glanced downstairs and giggled at him.
Mu Chen smiled but said nothing more, looking around the Heaven Floor. It was not as spacious as the Earth Floor, and there were far fewer people, with only a few figures occasionally walking past.
"What kind of Spiritual Art are you looking for? I imagine that with the standards of the Mu Territory's young master, those Common Grade Spiritual Arts would hardly catch your discerning eye, would they?"
Tang Qian'er giggled teasingly.
"But as for Spiritual Tier Spiritual Arts, there are currently only six of them on the Heaven Floor, and all of them are low-grade Spiritual Tier. Which one are you eyeing? Besides, if you want to look at a Spiritual Tier Spiritual Art, you need to get Instructor Mo's permission beforehand."
"It seems you know this place like the back of your hand, but the Spiritual Art I want isn't the troublesome one you're thinking of."
Mu Chen smiled mysteriously, then immediately headed toward the western side of the Heaven Floor.
Tang Qian'er followed him in confusion. That area didn't store high-level Spiritual Arts, only a few Common Tier ones. Although there were some powerful ones among them, with Mu Chen's background, the Mu Territory surely had no shortage of Common Tier Spiritual Arts.
Mu Chen walked through the Spiritual Art Hall and only stopped when he reached the westernmost end. In front of him was a square stone cabinet, with several jade slips arranged on its shelves, emitting a faint glow.
"These are just some ordinary Common Tier Spiritual Arts. You aren't looking for one of these, are you?"
Tang Qian'er reached out and picked up a few jade slips, her willow-like eyebrows arching as she asked curiously.
Mu Chen smiled. He slid his hand past the stone surface, reaching into a dark corner of the cabinet. When he withdrew his hand, a dark red jade slip was pinched between his fingers.
"This is...?"
Seeing this, Tang Qian'er was briefly stunned. When she clearly saw the color of the jade slip, her expression turned serious. In the Spiritual Art Hall, Spiritual Arts of this color were considered quite dangerous.
The so-called danger meant that practicing this Spiritual Art carried significant risk, and could even cause severe harm to the practitioner.
"Let me see."
Tang Qian'er reached out and snatched the dark red jade slip from Mu Chen's hand. Sweeping her eyes over it, she saw characters on the jade slip that seemed to radiate a cold aura.
High-grade Common Tier, Senluo Death Seal.
"The Senluo Death Seal?"
Tang Qian'er's smiling face finally changed. Her beautiful eyes widened as she glared at Mu Chen and said,
"What do you think you're doing? You actually dare to practice this Spiritual Art?"
She naturally knew the reputation of the Senluo Death Seal. Although it was only a High-grade Common Tier Spiritual Art, it held a notorious reputation within the Northern Spiritual Academy. This was not because of how terrifyingly powerful it was, but because two highly talented disciples who had previously attempted to practice it ended up with ruptured meridians, nearly becoming crippled. Since then, no one had dared to spare this Spiritual Art a second glance.
"I've researched it before. It's actually very powerful, but practicing it requires a specific condition: one must possess overbearing Spiritual Energy. Those two failed because their own Spiritual Energy hadn't reached that level of dominance."
Mu Chen explained.
He was currently practicing the Great Pagoda Art, and his dark Spiritual Energy was absolutely incomparable to ordinary Spiritual Energy. Its overbearing nature should be a perfect fit for the Senluo Death Seal.
"No way!"
Tang Qian'er's face turned solemn, and she rolled her eyes as she snapped,
"Besides, you don't even have the clearance to view this Spiritual Art."
There were rules for viewing Spiritual Arts in the Spiritual Art Hall. If it was an ordinary Common Tier Spiritual Art, any disciple could view it. Spiritual Tier Spiritual Arts required the permission of an instructor.
Although the Senluo Death Seal was only a High-grade Common Tier Spiritual Art, it was classified as a dangerous one. To view this kind of Spiritual Art, one had to be a disciple of the Heaven Branch with at least half a year of standing. Mu Chen had only just been promoted, so he naturally did not meet the requirements.
Mu Chen's dark eyes flashed with a flattering smile as he teased Tang Qian'er,
"That's why I brought you along. Help me get this Spiritual Art out."
Tang Qian'er couldn't help but glare at Mu Chen. Gnashing her teeth, she turned her head away.
"You want me to help you? No way!"
"Sister Qian'er, please help me."
Mu Chen leaned forward slightly, his handsome face drawing close to the angry girl, his warm breath brushing against her smooth skin.
Tang Qian'er was startled by his sudden closeness and hastily took a step back. Her face flushed red like the evening sunset, and she muttered in embarrassed annoyance:
"You rogue!"
Mu Chen shrugged, his dark eyes looking at Tang Qian'er coaxingly.
"I really want to try cultivating this Spiritual Art. Trust me, nothing will happen, alright?"
Tang Qian'er bit her lip, looking torn and hesitant. After all, this Spiritual Art had a fearsome reputation. If Mu Chen ended up like those two seniors, she really couldn't imagine how terrifying the consequences would be...
"Oh? Mu Chen, you're here?"
While Tang Qian'er was still hesitating, a soft, delicate voice suddenly sounded from behind them. Mu Chen and Tang Qian'er looked over to see a girl in a red dress, gorgeous and radiant, standing there with a smile. It was Hong Ling.
Mu Chen was also startled to see Hong Ling. It seemed this was the first time since he entered the Northern Spiritual Academy that she had actively approached him to say hello. Although they had been quite close in the past, they had grown apart and clashed more often later on, and now they were practically strangers.
"Hello, Senior Sister Hong Ling."
Mu Chen also greeted her with a smile. The title "Senior Sister Hong Ling" caused the smile on Hong Ling's face to fade slightly. Addressing her this way meant Mu Chen was no longer close to her, showing only polite distance.
Hong Ling's beautiful, tender eyes flickered. Glancing at the dark red jade slip tightly gripped in Tang Qian'er's hand, she seemed to understand the situation and smiled:
"What's this? Do you want to borrow this dangerous Spiritual Art? Do you need my help?"
Mu Chen glanced at Tang Qian'er. The two girls had never seen eye to eye, and sure enough, Tang Qian'er coldly turned her face away. He then smiled and said:
"Thank you for your kindness, Senior Sister, but Sister Qian'er has already agreed to help me."
Hong Ling nodded. Looking at the youth's gentle smile, his handsome face, and his tall stature, she felt a trace of bewilderment in her heart. The ordinary boy from back then, who had failed to catch her attention in any way, had unconsciously become so outstanding.
"Well then, I won't disturb you any longer."
Hong Ling smiled at Mu Chen, turned, and walked away without lingering. Her graceful, charming figure drew the envious gazes of the few people browsing the Spiritual Arts, who then turned to look at Mu Chen with jealousy. What a lucky guy; the two most beautiful flowers of the Northern Spiritual Academy were both by his side.
"When did I agree to help you?"
Seeing that Hong Ling had walked far away, Tang Qian'er finally turned back, let out a soft snort, and spoke.
"Then I'll go find Senior Sister Hong Ling..."
Mu Chen put on a helpless expression.
"You dare?"
Tang Qian'er hastily cried out, but seeing the teasing look on Mu Chen's face, she blushed and let out a soft, embarrassed laugh, gritting her teeth in mock resentment:
"Fine, I'll help you, but you must promise me that if anything goes wrong, you will stop cultivating immediately!"
Mu Chen nodded with a beaming smile.
"And one more thing..."
Tang Qian'er swept her large, beautiful eyes over Mu Chen, a sweet and playful smile blooming on her face.
"During the Northern Spiritual Field training in half a month, you must join my team."