Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique

"Jade Transformation Crystal!!"

That’s right. This golden Rule Crystal was none other than the core material for forging Spiritual Treasure Soldiers—a Jade Transformation Crystal!

"It’s actually a Jade Transformation Crystal! Can such a treasure really come from an Original Stone?"

In the audience, countless citizens of the Empire rose to their feet to gaze at what was, for them, a legendary forging material. It wasn’t that the Fenglan Empire had no Spiritual Treasure Soldiers—weapons imbued with a Life Aura. The Fenglan Empire ranked in the upper-middle tier among all empires and possessed at least a handful of them. Their astonishment, however, stemmed from the fact that they had only ever seen the finished products; not a single one had ever seen an actual Jade Transformation Crystal.

Now, watching the golden crystal tremble in Mu Chen’s tight grip, everyone was somewhat stunned. Emperor Fenglan, Shi Feng, strode down quickly, his eyes fixed on the Jade Transformation Crystal as he murmured, "A Jade Transformation Crystal... It really is a Jade Transformation Crystal! This is incredible..."

Ma Bi’s expression was now incredibly dark. ’Did my Pupil Technique fail? Or was Mu Chen just betting it all on his luck at the very end? But from what he said earlier, it seemed like he knew all along that a Jade Transformation Crystal was hidden inside. How is that possible?’

Ma Bi wasn’t the only one baffled. Even Lin Xiao stood there, dumbfounded, not even noticing when Shi Feng walked down from his seat. By the time he did, the Jade Transformation Crystal in Mu Chen’s hand had already stopped trembling. Turning around, Mu Chen placed the Jade Transformation Crystal on the long table, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Since you’ve all called out its name, I see no need for further explanation. A Jade Transformation Crystal... its estimated value on this entire continent is... priceless!"

"Priceless... Priceless... Priceless..."

The word "priceless" echoed in the mind of everyone present. Was there any suspense left in this final match? None! The winner was beyond doubt. Who could it be but Mu Chen?

When Lin Xiao came to his senses, he noticed Shi Feng was already there. He held his tongue, quietly waiting for the Emperor to finish admiring the Jade Transformation Crystal. A moment later, Shi Feng, face glowing with excitement, said, "Good lad! How rare, how truly rare! To be able to see through an Original Stone that doesn’t contain a Spirit Crystal at such a young age... With such qualifications and skill... Elder Lin Xiao, he’s already surpassed a Fifth Grade Spirit Selector, hasn’t he?"

Lin Xiao quickly chimed in, "Of course. Not only that, but his skill in Spirit Selection has already surpassed this old man’s. The younger generation is truly formidable. It seems it’s time for this old man to retire!"

"Haha... Elder Lin Xiao, what are you saying? Don’t forget, you are the only Honorary Elder in the Imperial Spirit Selection Guild. The Guild still relies on you." With that, Shi Feng suddenly announced loudly, "Since the value of what both contestants have produced has been displayed, the outcome is without suspense. I declare the winner of this Spirit Selection Conference... Mu Chen!"

With that cheer, Shi Feng suddenly grabbed Mu Chen’s arm and raised it high, allowing all the Empire’s citizens and dignitaries in the plaza to get a clear look at him. This was this year’s champion of the Spirit Selection Conference! A mere fifteen-year-old Third Grade Spirit Selector!

"Mu Chen!!"

"Mu Chen!!"

"Mu Chen!!"

"..."

"He won! Little Brother Mu Chen won! Stone City won! We’re the champions!!" For a moment, Xu Fei, sitting in the stands, was overcome with emotion, tears streaming down his face. His reddened eyes were filled with gratitude as he looked at Mu Chen, repeatedly waving his powerful arms.

Indeed, for ten years. Ten years of oppression and the future of his hometown had rested on his shoulders alone. Even a man of iron sheds tears. Although Xu Fei was powerful, both as a Martial Artist and a Spirit Selector, he couldn’t maintain his usual composure in the face of this sudden release of pressure and unprecedented joy.

In the distance, a tall, thin figure watched Xu Fei waving his hands and murmured, "Brother Xu, it’s been ten years. You can finally stop living such a hard life." After speaking, the man turned his gaze to Mu Chen, his eyes narrowing into slits. ’I knew it the night he registered. This kid is definitely not some Third Grade Spirit Selector. It seems I still underestimated his strength.’ This person was none other than the registrant from that day, Da Wei.

The sky-shattering cheers instantly lifted the plaza’s subdued atmosphere to a fever pitch. How many years had it been? How many years had passed without such a thrilling and spectacular competition? On the high platform, the blue-haired youth in white, carrying a black case, had created a miracle of his own!

"Haha, I just realized that I, the Emperor, ran down here and guest-starred as the host. I’m not stealing your job, am I, Elder Lin Xiao?" Overjoyed, the usually stern Shi Feng couldn’t help but make a joke, which made Lin Xiao smile wryly.

"Ahem..." Shi Feng coughed dryly and smiled in embarrassment. "It seems I lost my composure just now. I’ll leave the rest to you. After this Spirit Selection Conference, the entire Empire will celebrate for three days!"

With that said, Shi Feng strode quickly back to his seat. Lin Xiao took a step forward, arriving beside the composed Mu Chen and the dark-faced Ma Bi. His eyes were filled with excitement, for he, too, had just experienced a huge emotional rollercoaster. He hadn’t wanted Ma Bi to win from the start, but when he saw Mu Chen get only a single Original Stone, he had silently cursed fate for being cruel. Who would have thought that fate was indeed cruel, but not to him—to Ma Bi.

Looking at the silent, sullen Ma Bi, Lin Xiao smiled slightly. ’It seems fate is still on the Spirit Selection Guild’s side.’ "The final match is over. I believe everyone heard the additional stakes you both mentioned. I will now act as a witness. Mu Chen may propose one condition to Ma Bi, so long as it does not violate morals, exceed his capabilities, or threaten his life!"

"A condition!"

"A condition!"

"A condition!"

No matter the world, there’s never a shortage of spectators who love to egg things on, and the Fenglan Empire was no exception. Faced with the pressure from the crowd, Ma Bi acted surprisingly nonchalant. He simply glared fiercely at Mu Chen and said, "Hmph. Go on. I’d like to see what kind of condition you have in mind."

Below, Ma Gedan’s face was also ashen. He looked at Xu Fei, who was gloating at him from the side, and wished he could leap up and stab him tens of thousands of times, oblivious to the fact that he himself had treated Xu Fei this way every time before.

Mu Chen pondered for a moment before saying calmly, "Since you were the one who asked for the additional stakes, you should be willing to accept your loss without complaint. How about this? I won’t make an excessive demand. I hear you’ve won first place in the Spirit Selection Conference three times in a row. With so many years of experience, I imagine you must have a lot of Attribute Spirit Crystals."

Ma Bi’s heart skipped a beat. ’Here it comes,’ he thought.

Mu Chen smiled. "My demand isn’t much. One thousand Fire Attribute Spirit Crystals. What do you say? Don’t tell me you haven’t even collected a thousand common Attribute Spirit Crystals over all these years."

Hearing Mu Chen’s demand, Ma Bi inwardly cursed him for being an idiot. ’A thousand common Fire Attribute Spirit Crystals? Forget a thousand; I could produce ten thousand. And not just common ones—my whole family could gather Rare Attribute Spirit Crystals. If I had won, my demand would have been far from this simple. I would have demanded that Mu Chen stay away from Wan Xian’Er! That definitely wouldn’t have violated any of the three rules. And even if I couldn’t demand it directly, with the Ma Family’s power, wouldn’t I be able to use some underhanded means to get my hands on Wan Xian’Er? In the Fenglan Empire, the power of my Ma Family is definitely not to be underestimated...’

"Fine! It’s just a thousand Fire Attribute Spirit Crystals, right? I accept your condition!" Having thought this through, Ma Bi’s expression improved slightly. He directly tossed a ring in front of Mu Chen. "I happen to have a habit of carrying Attribute Spirit Crystals with me. This ring contains over a thousand Fire Attribute Spirit Crystals."

Mu Chen caught the ring and, with a natural, practiced motion, placed it inside his robes. Seeing the fluid movement, Ma Bi thought to himself, ’Looks like this kid has done this sort of thing plenty of times.’

In truth, it wasn’t that Mu Chen didn’t want to demand more. He simply knew it was always wise to not burn his bridges. He and Ma Bi had no real, substantial conflict. In his eyes, the other party was just an arrogant, domineering scion. Mu Chen usually paid no mind to such people. If it weren’t for that strange white Pupil Technique, he wouldn’t have even given him a second glance.

With the matter of the stakes settled, the next event was the competition for the other contestants to determine the top ten rankings. The format of the competition didn’t change much, so the final rankings for the remaining spots were decided quickly.

Of course, this wasn’t the main focus. After all, the rewards for fourth through tenth place weren’t anything substantial. The third-place winner, however, made Mu Chen’s eyes light up. That’s right, it was that fat guy. Only when Elder Lin Xiao made the final announcement did Mu Chen realize that this fatty was Zhu Sai, the person he had cut in front of during registration.

"The Spirit Selection Conference has officially ended! Now for the most exciting moment—the award ceremony! Let’s welcome the top three winners of the Spirit Selection Conference: Mu Chen, Ma Bi, and Zhu Sai, to the stage!" Lin Xiao’s face was beaming. If one were to ask what the most exciting moment was, it was never the beginning, but always the end.

"Third place, Zhu Sai, come up to receive your award! One box containing a full set of Attribute Spirit Crystals!"

Hearing this, Zhu Sai strode forward. His eyes filled with joy as he looked at the Crystal Box made of Spirit Crystals. Mu Chen knew this was a simple, kind, and easily satisfied person.

"Second place, Ma Bi! Come to the stage to receive your award! A full set of Attribute Spirit Crystals and the position of an Elder of the Imperial Spirit Selection Guild!"

Ma Bi strode onto the high platform, his mind preoccupied with how to intercept Mu Chen and his group later. He absentmindedly accepted the award. Lin Xiao didn’t say much to him either. ’From now on,’ he thought, ’things won’t be so easy for him in the Spirit Selection Guild. I’ll have to keep a close eye on Ma Bi. This man is definitely not a good person.’

"First place! The rising star of this Spirit Selection Conference, Master Mu Chen!!"

Master Mu Chen! This title was an absolute symbol of honor. Those who could be called "Master" were all Spirit Selection Masters of the Sixth Grade or higher. For Lin Xiao to address Mu Chen this way meant that Mu Chen was absolutely capable of holding such a title!