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In the Hall of Offerings,
Qian Daoliu received a confidential letter sent from the Tiandou Empire.
As he read through the letter, the smile on his face gradually froze, replaced by a look of solemnity.
"Big Brother, what has you so troubled?" The second elder asked, drawing the attention of the other elders.
Qian Daoliu spread out the letter. "This is a letter sent back by Xue Er. Second Brother, take a look at it."
The six elders took turns reading the letter, their faces unconsciously turning serious as they finished.
"Speak up—what are your thoughts?"
Third Elder Qingluan Douluo replied, "First Elder, we only understood the true purpose of the Seven Treasures Mall after reading the detailed contents of this letter."
"I must say, this concept is extremely advanced—it could very well rewrite the commercial landscape of the continent in the future."
The content of the letter was no lie.
Ning Fengzhi had first spread false information, causing many merchant guilds in the city to stockpile goods en masse.
Once the Seven Treasures Mall was unveiled, he then repurchased these goods at low prices. It was a simple transfer of assets from one hand to another, but it made him an enormous profit.
It had to be said that, before the purpose of the Seven Treasures Mall was known, this open strategy was nearly impossible to counter.
Qian Daoliu sighed. "There must be a wise advisor behind Ning Fengzhi. The Seven Treasures Glazed Sect excels at picking up bargains and reselling goods—the handling of goods is likely Ning Fengzhi's doing. But the person who came up with the idea for the Seven Treasures Mall is definitely someone else."
"Third Brother, after you go to Tiandou City, stay there. Investigate this wise advisor while also ensuring Xue Er's safety. I fear this person might see through Xue Er's identity."
---
With the Seven Treasures Mall now operational, Ning Tianchen's burden lightened considerably.
Watching as the teaching buildings of the Seven Treasures Academy rose one after another, he knew it was time to start recruiting members for their team.
Ning Tianchen immediately wrote a letter and sent a disciple to personally deliver it to the Yu-Die sisters.
Back in the day, his training partner Chen Huayu, who had returned to the sect, was now back in the fold.
Chen Huayu was around the same age as him and, like Zhu Zhuqing, currently had soul power at Level 28.
Thus, Ning Tianchen brought him into the team.
When the Yu-Die sisters arrived, they would have a complete team of seven people.
This team would represent the Seven Treasures Academy in the upcoming Soul Master Competition. Ning Fengzhi intended to use the competition to make the academy famous.
To emphasize its importance, he assigned Ke Jie, the principal, to personally lead the team.
The large training ground of the Seven Treasures Academy was already completed, and Ning Tianchen and the others were waiting there.
Not long after, Ke Jie approached them.
"Greetings, geniuses of the sect. From now on, I will be your instructor, guiding your cultivation and training."
After a brief introduction, Ke Jie quickly got to the point.
The Seven Treasures Academy had multiple simulated training grounds. Ke Jie arranged for everyone to train their soul power in the simulated training grounds in the morning and practice team coordination and combat skills on the large training ground in the afternoon.
Originally, he hadn't planned to increase the frequency of spirit duels. If a student got injured, they might miss several days of classes.
However, under Ning Tianchen's insistence, he agreed to have them participate in spirit duels every night.
Over the past few months, Ning Tianchen had intermittently participated in the Grand Spirit Arena. Due to his string of consecutive victories, his spirit duel badge had been upgraded to a silver-level badge.
Victories in one-on-one duels didn't give many points, so he still had a long way to go before reaching the gold-level badge.
"Boss, I can't keep up with daily spirit duels," Chen Huayu complained with a distressed expression.
Ning Tianchen glanced at him and retorted, "Zhuqing is a girl, and her soul power level is similar to yours. Since joining the sect, she's been participating in spirit duels every day without complaint. What's a big man like you whining about?"
Though reluctant, Chen Huayu didn't dare defy Ning Tianchen's wishes.
After all, during the special training camp, Ning Tianchen hadn't hesitated to knock him down repeatedly.
Ke Jie chuckled. "Everyone, relax. The academy isn't established yet, so there's no need to be so tense."
"In the coming months, I'll be quite busy. For now, Teacher Sun will oversee your training. If you have any questions about cultivation, feel free to come to me anytime."
Ning Fengzhi had given Ke Jie a heavy workload, so it was normal that he couldn't spare much time.
Besides, the Soul Master Competition was still far off—it wasn't necessary to start intensive training so early.
"Who is Teacher Sun?" Ning Tianchen noticed a middle-aged man dressed in fine robes approaching them.
"Former teacher Sun Buyu of the Tiantou Royal Academy. Teacher Sun has over twenty years of teaching experience and was recruited by the sect at great cost."
Ning Tianchen recalled that in the original timeline, it was this very Sun Buyu who had led the Shrek group into the Tiandou Royal Academy.
---
A few days later, in Silvis City.
After receiving Ning Tianchen's letter, Yu-Die immediately sought out her father, Zhang Erhe.
"He's inviting you to join the Seven Treasures Academy?"
Yudie was puzzled. "Father, I've never heard of the Seven Treasures Academy. Does it have anything to do with the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect? Is it a new academy they've established?"
Zhang Erhe had been keeping an eye on the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect and knew a bit about the Seven Treasures Academy.
"This is our opportunity. By connecting with the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect, I have a high chance of advancing to Soul Emperor rank. No matter what, we must respond to Ning Tianchen's call."
To improve his strength, even if it meant paying some price, he was willing to do so.
Moreover, Ning Tianchen's talent was undeniable—he had the potential to become one of the peak powers on the continent. Aligning with him early on was a wise move.
---
That evening, as usual, they went to the Grand Spirit Arena.
"Big Brother, I'm just two points away from advancing to a bronze-level spirit duel badge. Can you help me win a two-on-two duel?" Chen Huayu scratched his head sheepishly.
"There's no such thing as a 100% win rate in spirit duels. Even if I help you, there's still a chance of failure. Besides, your strength isn't weak—you should fight on your own." Ning Tianchen shot him a glance.
The Tiandou Grand Spirit Arena was full of hidden experts. Just yesterday, Ning Tianchen had nearly lost in a one-on-one duel.
"I'll team up with you," Zhu Zhuqing offered.
She hadn't participated in a two-on-two duel for a long time and was itching to try again.
Their soul power levels were similar, so forming a two-on-two team was a good idea.
Though both Chen Huayu and Ma Hongjun were on the heavier side, Chen Huayu was completely different from the latter. He always felt inexplicably shy around girls.
"What's a big man like you being shy for? Since Zhuqing offered, just team up with her."
With that, Ning Tianchen handed his spirit duel badge to the attendant to register for a one-on-one duel.
Upon checking the number of consecutive victories on the badge, the attendant was shocked. "Sir, you've achieved over forty consecutive wins!"
"Is there a problem?" Ning Tianchen asked.
The attendant explained, "Sir, if you're matched against opponents of the same level, the waiting time will be longer. Would you prefer to wait or choose to challenge higher-level opponents?"
Challenging higher-level opponents disregarded badge levels, which wasn't a bad idea.
After some thought, Ning Tianchen decided to attempt a cross-level challenge.
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