Ms. Diviner: The Prodigal Daughter's Return

Chapter 1103: Chapter 1103: Once Again Amazed by Mu Hanyan’s Brilliance

The higher the strength of a cultivator, the more important the opportunity becomes. Without a suitable opportunity, being stuck at a bottleneck for ten to twenty years, or even a lifetime without breakthrough, is commonplace. Yet, what exactly is an opportunity, and where does it come from? Very few can clearly articulate it, usually attributing it to luck.

Mu Hanyan used to think the same way, but now, she has changed her mind. In her view, what people call an opportunity is likely insight into the laws of heaven and earth. The cultivation path inherently defies heaven, and the higher one’s cultivation, the more it’s rejected by the laws of heaven and earth, making it harder to perceive these laws. This is why the higher one’s cultivation, the harder it is to find an opportunity.

Swordsmanship, after all, is just one of the myriad laws. Being proficient in this single law can boost one’s strength, but as strength increases, the limits imposed by heaven and earth grow greater, and perceiving the laws to find an opportunity becomes increasingly difficult.

Learning other exotic techniques and perceiving the laws of heaven and earth from other magical skills might unexpectedly lead to pleasant surprises.

”That’s exactly right. Lord Gong explained it the same way back then, but our aptitude was mediocre, and we could never understand the depth within it,” Tan Yu said, looking at Mu Hanyan with a surprised expression. Mu Hanyan’s explanation turned out to be identical to Gong Hongru’s, making Tan Yu admire Mu Hanyan even more.

No wonder Lord Gong chose her and brought her into his fold. Putting aside talent and strength, just in terms of vision and insight, Mu Hanyan was miles ahead of those so-called geniuses who only focused on ceaseless practice.

”In that case, we should also learn some other exotic techniques,” Jiang Yuzhe said. His trust in Mu Hanyan became increasingly blind, without the slightest doubt, pondering as he spoke.

”You have no choice but to learn them.” Tan Yu said.

”Why?” Not just Jiang Yuzhe, but others also looked at Tan Yu, puzzled.

”Because if you don’t learn those exotic techniques, it’s very difficult to enter the Phantom Dragon Hall,” Tan Yu replied.

”Phantom Dragon Hall? What’s that?” Jiang Yuzhe asked immediately.

”Phantom Dragon Hall is the trial place of Long Yan Academy. The cultivation resources that academy disciples need daily are rarely distributed by the academy; most have to be obtained through trials in the Phantom Dragon Hall.

According to academy rules, assessments are held every half month, including swordsmanship, medical alchemy, alchemy, array barrier, seal breaking, sword forging, beast mastery, and so on. Passing one assessment allows you to obtain a token, and only by acquiring three trial tokens can you enter the Phantom Dragon Hall.

The trial entrances of Phantom Dragon Hall total eight, and different token combinations allow access to different entrances, each with its unique cultivation resources.

If everyone just cultivates swordsmanship alone, no one can enter the Phantom Dragon Hall. Even if a few choose to learn other exotic techniques and trade amongst themselves, it’s still insufficient, so most cultivators, besides specializing in swordsmanship, will choose at least one exotic technique to cultivate and then trade amongst each other.” Tan Yu explained in detail.

Mu Hanyan wasn’t aware of the intricacies of the trials in the Phantom Dragon Hall, but upon further reflection, she understood. If she’s not mistaken, this should be Long Yan Academy’s strategy to encourage students to cultivate other exotic techniques for better insight into the laws of heaven and earth as their cultivation level increases.

As for why they’re not directly told about the benefits of cultivating other exotic techniques, the reason is simple. One: they’re afraid that the students will aim too high and spoil their mindset. Two: because most academy disciples have cultivated swordsmanship from childhood, even if they know the benefits of exotic technique cultivation, they might not be willing to split their focus. Hence, they simply use the trials of Phantom Dragon Hall to push them.

No wonder Long Yan Academy is the leader among Anyun’s Four Great Academies. It has produced countless cultivation geniuses from ancient times to the present, revered as a holy place by numerous cultivators, for good reason.

”Since others are cultivating two types, why don’t I just focus on swordsmanship and trade with others?” Jiang Yuzhe contemplated schemingly.

”Idiot, doing it that way will earn you only two trial leader tokens per month, while others could earn four. Over time, others will have far more opportunities to go to the trial tower than you. Do you think that’s worth it?” Zirong scoffed.

”True enough.” Jiang Yuzhe was used to being shot down by Zirong frequently and took it in stride, contemplating while rubbing his chin.

Since it’s the only trial place at Long Yan Academy, both the trials in the Phantom Dragon Hall itself and the cultivation resources within it must be extraordinary. A single chance to participate in the trial is probably more beneficial than a month’s hard cultivation.

Even if some time and effort are wasted practicing an exotic technique, it’s all gain rather than loss. Moreover, Mu Hanyan mentioned that cultivating other magical skills greatly benefits the search for opportunities in the future.

This calculation Jiang Yuzhe certainly understands, albeit sometimes habitually a half-step slow.

”Lord, aside from swordsmanship, what do you plan to learn?” Huayue asked Mu Hanyan.

”Sword forging,” Mu Hanyan considered for a moment and replied.

While her seal breaking technique found frequent success during the last visit to Flying Peak, it was unreliable. Conversely, the sword forging was refined through her own hard work, and she had quite a bit of insight, even if the appearance was somewhat unattractive.

Unfortunately, there’s no Star Divination Technique to learn, which is actually Mu Hanyan’s forte.

”Then I’ll practice the sealing and breaking seal technique,” Huayue said, evidently choosing the seal breaking technique for the sake of the Demon-breaking Spear.

”I’ll learn the Formation and Barrier Technique,” Jiang Yuzhe said. His Shadow Shifting barrier was his own creation, so it suited him well to learn this.

”You’ve picked all the fields I’m interested in, so I’ll learn Beast Mastery.” Zirong said somewhat reluctantly.

They seem to have a good understanding among themselves, each choosing one discipline, which makes exchanging trial tokens more convenient.

”Then I’ll choose Medical Alchemy.” Tang Bufan nearly had no choice left.

”What will you study?” Finally, everyone turned their gaze towards Ling Baobao.

”A genius like me will naturally learn everything.” Ling Baobao said smugly.

”Tch...” Mu Hanyan and the others simultaneously uttered, clearly unimpressed by Ling Baobao’s words.

”Haha, the laws of heaven and earth in the Holy Court Continent are completely different from where I used to live. Whatever I learn is hollow, so I might as well learn a bit of everything, treating it as comprehending the laws of heaven and earth.” Ling Baobao, this time, didn’t insist on saving face, scratching his head awkwardly.

”Then, I’ll first take Young Master Mu to the War Dragon Branch.” Tan Yu said.

The three branches at Long Yan Academy each have their own exotic technique specialties, and sword forging is precisely the specialty of the War Dragon Branch.

”If we have time, let’s visit the Beast Soul Hall first.” Mu Hanyan suggested.