Xu Feng was greatly disappointed.
The mysterious sound that had echoed was not from the Kandela ruins, but from a faction named the Phoenix Fire Academy.
And this faction was actually preparing to recruit students from outside?
This was as absurd as a sow climbing a tree.
Not to mention powerhouses like Xu Feng, who had clawed their way up from nothing, even naive young masters and ladies from major factions didn't believe a single word of the Phoenix Fire Academy's propaganda.
However, since he was here...
He had already pushed aside the noble's second daughter, rekindled his confidence, and spent a large sum of peculiar crystals on a Cloud Whale airship ticket. He couldn't just go back like this, could he?
Wouldn't that be a wasted trip?
Many powerhouses left in disappointment, while some hesitated at the entrance to the academy, apprehensive about stepping inside.
The remaining few were like Xu Feng, unwilling to leave without achieving something; or representatives of major factions, preparing to investigate.
There were fewer people.
But given that the Phoenix Fire Academy had appeared so abruptly and had no prior fame, this was understandable.
"When will this promotion task ever reach its quota?"
Gou Pingan glanced at the panel and sighed silently.
Because of the task, he had gone all out to show off, all for the sake of attracting more people to visit. More visitors would spread the name of the Phoenix Fire Academy faster and attract more quality students.
Gou Pingan was still unaccustomed to this kind of task, where he was the center of attention, standing in the spotlight.
"Fortunately, I disguised myself beforehand. Once the task is done, I'll remove the makeup and no longer attract attention."
"Clever me~"
He cleared his throat, swept his gaze across the crowd before him, and maintained a profound smile. "Esteemed guests, please follow me inside for a look."
With that, he turned and disappeared into the radiant light.
Before the magnificent palace,
Several well-known Six-Sense powerhouses exchanged glances and then ascended the steps, walking towards the enormous portal.
Whoosh—
A warm, bright light washed over them.
Xu Feng couldn't help but narrow his eyes, countless thoughts flashing through his mind: theories of disappointment, conspiracy, and confusion. But when he opened his eyes, the chaotic thoughts vanished, leaving only one in his heart—
"Holy shit!"
Before him lay a vast, expansive white jade plaza. At the far end of the plaza, hundreds of meters tall white stone pillars supported a majestic and grand mountain gate. The humans who had entered the plaza appeared as minuscule as ants.
Beyond the massive gate, a white jade staircase wound its way upwards, leading to a towering mountain peak shrouded in clouds and mist.
Faintly visible, palaces and pavilions stood atop various peaks, and powerhouses streaked through the sky like celestial beings.
Beyond the main peak, several smaller, towering mountains were half-hidden in the clouds and mist. Waterfalls cascaded down, heavenly ladders hung precariously, and exotic birds and beasts danced in the air...
And below the vast plaza they stood on, rolled thick white clouds and mist.
It was as if they had arrived in the heavens, an immortal mountain hidden amidst the clouds.
Shocking, and still incredibly shocking!
Xu Feng considered himself well-traveled, having journeyed through many places in the Yunhui Great Domain, but he truly... had never witnessed such a breathtaking sight.
Even the Kandela ruins he had seen paled in comparison.
Moreover, it was clearly a secret realm, a secret realm of extremely high caliber.
"Phoenix Fire Academy... Why had he never heard of this faction before?"
Countless people asked themselves this question.
The eyes of the representatives from powerful factions grew even more serious, their peripheral vision constantly scanning their surroundings. For a powerful faction that had suddenly appeared near the Yunhui Great Domain, they needed to understand it thoroughly.
Was it a competitor, or was there potential for cooperation?
Suppressing their myriad questions, the visitors stepped onto the white jade stairs and proceeded towards the main peak of the academy.
Gou Pingan led the way, explaining:
"Our Phoenix Fire Academy's main peak has six main areas: namely, the 'Mission Hall,' 'Training Zone,' 'Residential Area,' 'Legacy Zone,' 'Exchange Point,' and 'Library.'"
"This main peak is the primary activity area for the vast majority of students."
The main peak was immense.
If one didn't harness their stream of light to fly at full speed, it could take half a day to walk from the mountain gate to the Mission Hall. However, the people present were not ordinary mortals; even the least among them possessed a non-human level physique. With this in mind, Gou Pingan slightly increased his pace.
His task was to promote the academy, so he didn't lead the crowd to the 'Mission Hall,' 'Exchange Point,' and 'Training Zone' where students frequented. Instead, he headed towards the Legacy Zone, which was very deserted, as if no one cared to go there.
The Legacy Zone was located on the eastern side of the main peak, occupying a vast area with numerous altars scattered throughout.
These altars were 'Legacy Sites' that had been slightly modified and divided.
"This one is the legacy for the ability 'Lightning Strike'."
"This spot inherits the ability 'Blade Slash.' This is a technique that can be attached to weapons, greatly enhancing their lethality and armor-piercing effect. It also pairs well with other abilities... Among ordinary students, it's known as one of the 'Big Three'."
"If you have the chance to enter the academy, learning Blade Slash won't be a loss."
The visitors didn't understand what the 'Big Three' referred to, but they understood one fact.
It seemed that... any student of the Phoenix Fire Academy was qualified to use this Legacy Site? So generous?
"Of course, it's not just this Legacy Site; most of the surrounding ones are also accessible to the majority of students."
Gou Pingan walked forward and pointed to a spot.
"This is the high-level legacy 'Resist Fire Ring'."
"This is also a high-level legacy called 'Giant Form,' and further in..."
He pointed to a peak shrouded in clouds and mist, separated by a mountain stream. "There lies the epic-level ability legacy, but it's usually only accessible to core students or instructors."
This was reasonable.
An epic-level legacy! Only the Central Sacred Court had epic-level Legacy Sites.
Wait, doesn't that mean that Legacy Sites below epic level are accessible to students? This was too unreasonable!
'Could it be that these Legacy Sites were all casually fabricated by this myth?'
Xu Feng muttered.
After all, in his impression, Legacy Sites were not so 'petite'; they were either vast valleys or built atop high mountains to harness the power of lightning... but there was nothing like that here.
Gou Pingan had anticipated such doubts.
He said, "Now, let's select a few lucky individuals through a draw."
...
...
Xu Feng walked under the bright sunlight, his expression still somewhat dazed.
He was one of the lucky ones chosen by lottery and had stepped onto the legacy altar inscribed with the 'Blade Slash' ability. Half a day later, he had learned this special ability called 'Blade Slash.'
"This ability is formidable!"
"As long as I practice Blade Slash more proficiently and develop more ways to use it... my combat power can be significantly improved!"
He hadn't seen any improvement in his combat power for several years.
And now...
Amidst his daze, the dormant flames in his chest began to burn brightly again, and his eyes held a spark.
Many people were gathered around Xu Feng.
To be precise, they were looking at Xu Feng's palm, a palm emanating a red glow.
Xu Feng was a well-known titled Six-Sense powerhouse in Flowing Port, with a distinguished record. Those who knew him knew he didn't possess this skill.
Unlike abilities related to lightning, fire, or water, an ability that attached a crimson glow to a weapon was quite rare.
These Legacy Sites of the Phoenix Fire Academy seemed to be real!
And they could use and learn them by paying a small price, provided they were a student of the Phoenix Fire Academy.
"The Phoenix Fire Academy is too generous, too altruistic!"
This was the high-EQ way of putting it.
Low-EQ: Is the Phoenix Fire Academy perhaps foolish?
With such clear temptations, many visitors immediately expressed their willingness to enroll in the academy and become a part of the Phoenix Fire Academy faction.
However, recruitment was a two-way street.
The Phoenix Fire Academy sought quality over quantity and naturally didn't accept just anyone. But since this was the first public recruitment drive, they needed to establish their reputation, so the academy adopted a compromise strategy.
They granted these individuals the status of 'Provisional Students.'
Provisional students could pay to use some Legacy Sites and training grounds, and could audit the professors' public lectures for free. If a provisional student performed well, they could be officially admitted after three months. If their performance was unsatisfactory, then... they would have to leave the way they came.
The assessment for provisional students to become official members was rigorous and multifaceted.
But in the eyes of many visitors, they wished they could be 'sent back' by the academy.
This way, they could get their hands on various legacies for free without being tied to the mysterious faction of 'Phoenix Fire Academy.'
Indeed, the Phoenix Fire Academy was probably foolish.
"Time is tight. To learn more abilities, we need to hurry and execute the academy's assigned tasks."
"Let's go, our target is the Mission Hall."
Dozens to hundreds of provisional students rushed towards the mountainside, wearing smiles that suggested they were getting a great deal.
...
You might be getting a great deal, but I definitely won't lose out.
The establishment of the Phoenix Fire Academy was to rapidly expand the organization, cultivate more myths at the fastest pace possible, and connect powerful factions to ultimately enhance the overall combat strength of human forces to deal with the impending disaster of the evil gods.
However,
Fang You had not forgotten his roots on Blue Star, as a Phoenix Fire warrior who had sworn to defend human glory and forever ignite the flame of legacy. He certainly couldn't divert the resources of the Phoenix Fire headquarters to supply this cultivation academy.
Apart from the significant funds spent on the academy's early construction, in his plan, the Phoenix Fire Academy was fully capable of being self-sufficient.
What he referred to as the Phoenix Fire Academy were 'external personnel' like provisional students and official students, who were affiliated with the academy but had not yet obtained official Phoenix Fire status.
These individuals were not part of the core organization, so they couldn't be privy to too many secrets; nor were they bound by a contract, making it impossible for them to undertake tasks that earned destiny points.
But...
The academy had prepared ample job positions for them.
Within the academy, workspaces such as plantations, spirit beast gardens, forging workshops, and pharmaceutical workshops had been established. Provisional students could choose suitable jobs based on their abilities and work hard to earn academic credits.
They were all powerhouses from the mortal world; even lifting bricks, they could outdo countless low-level awakened individuals. Some among them were professionals, skilled in forging peculiar weapons or making potions, which could greatly fill the gap of mid-to-high-level personnel in these fields.
The tasks related to the production of peculiar weapons, props, and potion refinement within the academy indeed constituted the largest proportion.
Even if they didn't understand these professions or didn't want to do manual labor, provisional students had another way to earn academic credits—uploading confidential information.
Whether it was technical data, resource coordinates, historical secrets, or anything else, it could be submitted in the Mission Hall.
Based on the value of the submitted information, provisional students could earn a certain amount of academic credits.
These were tasks that could be completed without leaving the premises. There were also many external tasks, including maintaining the security of the academy's external entrances, investigating resource points, mining, and transporting resource ores, among others.
The latter was closely related to the Phoenix Fire Academy's ability to relocate at any time.
Fang You had allowed the academy to descend upon the 'Luofeng Great Domain' not only to avoid suspicion from the local factions of the Yunhui Great Domain and attract unnecessary trouble, but also for the resources of the Luofeng Great Domain.
Compared to the Yunhui Great Domain, which had already been extensively explored, the Luofeng Great Domain had more unclaimed resources.
The Phoenix Fire officially used a 'treasure radar' to explore and delineate coordinate ranges.
Subsequently, provisional personnel could be used as laborers, or rather, put to good use. In short, everyone had a bright future.
Even those provisional students who were eventually sent back could serve as propaganda cases for the academy, returning to the Yunhui Great Domain to shine.
"There will be no loss. According to Little Huan's estimations, if the scale of provisional students is large enough, they could even make a significant profit... Of course, this is unlikely."
He wasn't here to make money.
He was here for talent.
"The academy's finances are monitored by Little Huan, so there's no need to worry too much. The real attention should be paid to the conversion of provisional students."
It must be quality over quantity!
He had already set up 'Eyes of Scrutiny' within the academy, and a professional inspection team was constantly observing the students' progress, diligence, learning ability, and, most importantly, personal character.
In addition to these teaching assistants and instructors, there was also an assessment consultant who observed them twenty-four hours a day.
She was...
Miss Ruo, who was working for free at the Phoenix Fire Academy!
"Don't misunderstand. I'm only here to observe the current state of humanity and screen outstanding talents, just like in my previous job," the trial officer said.
...
The emergence of the Phoenix Fire Academy caused some ripples initially due to the 'mysterious sound,' but it quickly subsided, becoming mere conversation fodder in tea houses and taverns.
Upon learning that it was a faction rather than an unclaimed ruin, the top factions of the Yunhui Great Domain quickly lost interest, maintaining only a degree of vigilance.
The Cloud Whale airships from Flowing Port no longer traveled to the Luofeng Great Domain.
It was said that the Cloud Whale flight scheduled to depart for the Luofeng Great Domain on the fourth day had suffered a large number of ticket cancellations less than an hour before takeoff, and the Cloud Whale Chamber of Commerce ultimately chose to suspend the service.
Far away in the Yunhui Great Domain, people were chattering about the news they had heard secondhand.
Outside the Phoenix Fire Academy, scouts from many factions roamed, as well as idle powerhouses who hesitated, neither daring to enter the academy nor willing to leave.
They speculated about the situation inside the academy, wondering if 'Phoenix Fire' was truly altruistic or harbored ulterior motives.
Inside the academy, however, everything was peaceful.
Amidst the peace, hidden undercurrents churned – a fierce competition called involution.
As the first rays of dawn broke,
In the outermost dormitory area, provisional students sat bolt upright on their hard beds, examining their palms and murmuring to themselves.
"I've grown stronger again."
"In just a few days."
"This academy is not just about the miraculous Legacy Sites... No, the Legacy Sites are merely a negligible part of it."
Training grounds that provided significant exercise effects;
Dormitories that allowed weary muscles to recover in a short time;
Cultivation buildings with magical powers;
Mythical instructors who personally taught classes;
And these were merely the benefits provisional students could enjoy. If they could officially join, or even be promoted to core students, not only would they be able to use more cultivation buildings, but the currently not-so-expensive 'building tickets' would also be discounted.
They could even enjoy the extraordinary treatment reserved for core personnel!
Many people's mindsets gradually shifted. It seemed, perhaps, maybe, it wasn't so bad to stay at the Phoenix Fire Academy.
The academy offered too much!
The scales in the hearts of lone powerhouses had completely tipped. Only those from major factions were still wavering.
Time had passed for half a month.
On this day, the first provisional student to be sent back appeared.
(End of this chapter)