...

Every reward chosen by Ancestor Long Yan was a treasure with practical use, and the purpose was self-evident.

"Esteemed Wang Long Yan, please wait a moment."

With the previous achievements, Spirit Artifact Ai Pan had grown immensely respectful towards Wang Long Yan.

She quickly retrieved two treasures from the advanced prize pool, the [Immortal Grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid] and the [Holy Emperor's Protection], and patiently inquired, "What style would you like for your semi-immortal artifact? The mainstream choices are sword, shield, and blade, oh, and there's also a spear~"

"I heard the only immortal artifact is a sword, so let's go with a shield," Wang Long Yan said.

"Please be patient."

Spirit Artifact Ai Pan quickly had a mechanical puppet bring out a semi-immortal shield, and handed it over to Wang Ningxi along with the previous two prizes, as well as the inheritance right to the [Intermediate Lingxu Codex].

"The immortal artifact is stored in the shared treasury, so you'll have to wait a bit longer," Ai Pan explained, fearing Wang Long Yan would become impatient.

In no time, the [Immortal Artifact] stored in the shared treasury was retrieved by the mechanical puppet and handed over to Wang Ningxi.

Everyone had been eagerly awaiting this immortal artifact for a long time, and as soon as it was brought out, they all rushed over to see it.

It's no wonder they were so excited; immortal artifacts are exceedingly rare.

Not to mention a small place like Dagan, even looking at the entire world, there are only a few immortal artifacts in existence, and many people never see one in their lifetime.

It's said that in the Immortal Dynasty, only the lineage of the Immortal Emperor and the Immortal Sovereign possess immortal artifacts, and the exact number is unknown, but they are undoubtedly extremely rare.

This immortal artifact was an immortal sword named [Neiyue Immortal Sword].

It was an exceedingly beautiful sword, with a slender and smooth blade. The silver blade was adorned with intricate, crescent moon-like patterns, and the edge gleamed with a cold light, exuding an aura sharp enough to cut through space.

As the Neiyue Immortal Sword awakened from its slumber, a rich wave of immortal spirit energy emanated from the blade, carrying a majestic and vast pressure that inspired awe.

At the same time, a sharp-eyed silver-haired girl emerged from the sword.

She wore a light silver armor, with a miniature sword identical to the Neiyue Immortal Sword hanging at her waist. Her demeanor was cold and aloof, like clouds high in the sky, unattainable.

"Are you my new master?"

She scrutinized Wang Ningxi with a sharp gaze, her expression critical: "Celestial Realm sixth bloodline? The bloodline is barely passable, the potential is alright, and you're quite handsome, so you barely qualify to wield this immortal sword. However, your cultivation is too low, you need to work harder~"

The Celestial Realm sixth bloodline is already considered a peerless prodigy, but in the eyes of the sword's spirit, it was still barely acceptable, showing just how high the standards of this immortal sword were.

If it were a Dao artifact, having such a master would make it ecstatic.

"Ahem!"

Wang Ningxi cleared his throat and said, "Immortal Sword Sister, I'm not your master."

"Then, who exactly is the master of this immortal sword?" The sword spirit was puzzled.

Wang Ningxi tentatively said, "We haven't decided on the allocation yet, but I'm planning to have Immortal Sword Sister help our people in turns, no, I mean assist in battles."

"What!?" The sword's "delicate body trembled," furious, "How dare you let people use me in turns? A sword can be killed but not humiliated! You wish!"

As an immortal sword, the spirit naturally had its pride and wasn't easy to deal with. Wang Ningxi's words were pushing her to her limits, how could she tolerate it?

Wang Ningxi had anticipated this reaction.

After all, his Seventh Uncle had a semi-immortal sword "Wanwan," which already had quite a temper and wouldn't let others touch it.

If a semi-immortal sword was like this, how much more so an immortal sword?

Having a plan, Wang Ningxi said, "Ahem, Immortal Sword Sister, you might not know, but I'm a perverted trial equipment maker."

"So what?" The sword spirit sneered, "I've seen plenty of trial equipment makers."

"I love melting various treasures and then using all sorts of strange methods to combine them," Wang Ningxi said with a crazed look, "Of course, I'm particularly interested in spirit artifact sisters... I like creating uniquely shaped puppets and then forcing the spirit artifact sisters..."

"Stop!" The sword clearly imagined something unspeakable, trembling with anger, "You're too perverted, I want to go back to the treasury, I'm done!"

"Alas, that's not up to you," Wang Ningxi said with a mischievous grin, "Actually, being used by many people in turns isn't a big deal, you might even find the most suitable master for yourself in the process."

"Your thoughts are too wicked!" The sword vibrated with anger.

"Immortal Sword Sister, I didn't say anything," Wang Ningxi said innocently, "You're the one overthinking it."

"Uh..."

The sword spirit's delicate face showed a hint of embarrassment.

It seemed she was indeed too agitated and overthought it. After all, with her long life and vast experiences, her thoughts were bound to be complex...

"Immortal Sword Sister, you don't have to resist too much," Wang Ningxi said, "Our Wang Clan is full of talents, there are plenty who are better than me, you might be spoiled for choice."

"Tch~ such big talk. Let me see what it's like to be spoiled for choice," the sword spirit said disdainfully, "What kind of genius hasn't Neiyue seen?"

"That's good, please wait a moment," Wang Ningxi said, "I'll arrange the order of appearance."

With that, he first approached Wang Zong'an and bowed, "Great-grandfather, I've learned that there are ten [Intermediate Lingxu Codex] in the advanced prize pool, one of which is the [Greenwood Codex], derived from the [Green Emperor Sacred Diagram] cultivated by the Holy Emperor. You should exchange for the [Greenwood Codex], inheriting it will enhance your bloodline aptitude."

"Additionally, there are one [Top-grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid] and one [Top-grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid Essence Version], which should be enough to barely elevate your bloodline aptitude to peerless grade A."

Barely? Peerless grade A?

Wang Zong'an's mouth twitched.

He smiled and said, "Ningxi, I heard you and Fugui, along with your great-aunt Liyue, have ranked the family talents for cultivation. You can't favor me just because I'm your great-grandfather and elevate me to peerless grade A..."

"No favoritism," Wang Ningxi said innocently, "In our optimal design, your future position in the family is in the third sequence."

Wang Zong'an's smile suddenly froze: "Peerless grade A is only in the third sequence?"

"Not exactly," Wang Ningxi explained, "Peerless grade B is also in the third sequence. Peerless grade C and D are in the fourth sequence."

Wang Zong'an was too shocked to speak.

Princess Huari, who was nestled beside Wang Shouzhe, burst into tears.

Originally, as a True Immortal reincarnation, she could be ranked in the third sequence of the family, but with Wang Ningxi's re-ranking, she fell directly to the fourth sequence!

Her status was completely lost!!!

"Huari, don't cry," Wang Shouzhe lovingly patted her head, "The family won't treat you poorly. Besides, even if you remain peerless grade D for life, the family elders will protect you."

"Ancestor Grandfather, I need to trouble you to protect Great-grandfather. Using the [Top-grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid] is fine, but the essence version will be quite challenging, and he'll need your assistance," Wang Ningxi said to Wang Shouzhe.

"Alright, Zong'an, come with me. It's been a while since we've had some father-son time alone," Wang Shouzhe called to Wang Zong'an and led him away temporarily.

He knew that the bloodline improvement liquid's effects were quite domineering, especially the top-grade bloodline improvement liquid essence version, which wasn't meant for early Purple Mansion Realm use.

Without his life source energy protection, it could easily cause problems.

And this was one of the Wang Clan's greatest advantages.

Wang Shouzhe's life source energy was like a cheat, allowing everyone to use the bloodline improvement liquid beyond their level with his assistance.

This was something even the Immortal Emperor couldn't do.

A few days later, Wang Shouzhe and Wang Zong'an reappeared before everyone.

Although Wang Zong'an's appearance hadn't changed, his demeanor had undergone a qualitative transformation.

Having just inherited the codex, his aura hadn't fully converged, and strands of greenwood profound energy continuously emanated from him. At first glance, he appeared as upright as a pine tree and as steady as an ancient tree, exuding a comforting aura that made people naturally feel close to him.

Clearly, with the inheritance of the codex and the upgrade of his bloodline, his strength had significantly increased, and his spirit had reached a new level, exuding confidence from every pore.

Peerless grade A! And he had inherited the [Greenwood Lingxu Codex].

If he could obtain an Immortal Scripture, his future path to True Immortal was promising. Comparing him to the Little Demon Lord of the Demon Dynasty, the only thing he lacked was cultivation.

However, cultivation, when bloodline aptitude and cultivation methods are met, is merely a matter of time and resources.

"Congratulations, Young Clan Leader Zong'an," Prince An said with both envy and a hint of sourness, bowing.

Back then, he had gone through countless hardships to inherit his family's [Azure Dragon Codex]. Now, Wang Zong'an had effortlessly surpassed him.

With peerless grade A bloodline aptitude and a mid-grade codex, even if he couldn't inherit an Immortal Scripture in the future, as long as the resources were sufficient, he could easily break through to the late Void Realm.

Such a figure was rare even in the Han Yue Immortal Dynasty.

Truly, comparisons can be infuriating~

"Your Highness will surely gain something this time as well," Wang Zong'an replied with a smile, "I've asked Ningxi, and you've been placed in the third sequence."

Uh...

Hearing this, Prince An was even more disheartened.

As the future Emperor of Dagan, he was only in the third sequence in the Wang Clan, and that was with their support and care.

"Neiyue Sister, how is my great-grandfather?" Wang Ningxi introduced to Neiyue.

The immortal sword Neiyue looked Wang Zong'an up and down, finding him pleasing in every aspect—his cultivation method, bloodline, and demeanor were impeccable. If he became a True Immortal in the future, he wouldn't stop at the first level of the True Immortal Realm.

This was far superior to most geniuses, and he should barely make it into the top ten of the Academy Hero List.

"Not bad," Neiyue nodded slightly, a bit proud, "Much better than you, Wang Ningxi."

"Then please play a round with my great-grandfather and help him break into the top ten of the Hero List," Wang Ningxi arranged, then said to the semi-immortal shield, "Uncle Shield, please assist my great-grandfather as well."

"Yo, are you looking down on me? With this immortal sword here, what do you need that broken shield for?" Neiyue said discontentedly, "Forget the tenth, I can help him get into the fifth."

"Just to ensure everything goes smoothly," Wang Ningxi said, "Besides, I only want the tenth, not the fifth."

After some negotiation, Neiyue reluctantly agreed to cooperate with the semi-immortal shield [Shield Mountain] to assist Wang Zong'an.

To ensure Wang Zong'an's performance, Wang Ningxi also gave him a [Holy Emperor's Protection] to control the score in case of loss of control.

The subsequent story had no suspense.

Wang Zong'an confidently began the assessment, scoring 97 in the regular assessment, 96 in the elite assessment, and 81.25 in the Hero List assessment, barely pushing a name called [Ji Yuancang] off the list.

Ji Yuancang was quite unfortunate. Originally ranked ninth, after Ancestor Long Yan broke the first, the top ten shifted down, pushing him to tenth.

But he hadn't been in the tenth position for long before Wang Zong'an pushed him to eleventh, knocking him off the list.

Now, there were two Wang Clan members on the Hero List.

According to the reward rules, Wang Zong'an achieved three accomplishments: passing, scoring 80, and making the top ten, earning three treasures. Besides a fixed semi-immortal artifact reward, he chose [Immortal Grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid] and [Intermediate Lingxu Codex].

Wang Ningxi had already investigated. In the advanced prize pool, there were ten Intermediate Lingxu Codex, twelve Immortal Grade Bloodline Improvement Liquids, and a total of sixty other prizes.

All of these were his targets.

And every step now was already in his calculations.

After Wang Zong'an completed his turn, the next round began.

This time, it was Wang Zongchang's turn.

Wang Zongchang was the second in the Wang Clan's "Zong" generation, and also Wang Lici's younger brother. Although a generation younger than Wang Shouzhe, he was actually older than Wang Shouye and was one of the main forces assisting Wang Shouzhe in the outer regions' development.

Over the years, he had repeatedly made contributions to the Wang Clan's development, accumulating countless merits, and his importance was self-evident.

Additionally, in the advanced prize pool's Intermediate Lingxu Codex, there was a [Xunfeng Codex] that was highly compatible with his Xunfeng bloodline, naturally meant for him to inherit.

Wang Zongchang's assessment process was almost identical to Wang Zong'an's, with the same bloodline upgrade, codex inheritance, and securing the tenth spot on the Hero List.

Even the score was tightly controlled, just 0.25 points higher than Wang Zong'an.

Naturally, Wang Zong'an was pushed off the Hero List.

And Wang Zongchang's chosen rewards were also [Immortal Grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid] and [Intermediate Codex].

After Wang Zongchang, it was Wang Shoulian's turn, followed by Wang Shouyong, and then Wang Luotong...

In a planned sequence, the Wang Clan members took turns, with the tenth spot on the Hero List constantly changing.

However, even with conscious score control, with so many people, there were bound to be times when control wasn't precise.

Sure enough, when it was Wang Luotong's turn, her score was very close to the ninth place, and a slight slip in control resulted in her taking the ninth spot, pushing the original ninth to tenth.

But it wasn't a big issue.

According to Wang Ningxi's plan, the next in line was Ancestor Xiaohan from the Wang Clan's "Xiao" generation.

When he took the stage, he played steadily, precisely knocking the new tenth place off, securing the tenth spot. By now, there were three Wang Clan members on the Hero List.

This series of clever maneuvers and precise farming tactics left everyone dumbfounded.

Spirit Artifact Ai Pan had never seen such operations before and was utterly shocked.

Initially, she was thrilled by the continuous emergence of talented students, even congratulating them with excitement at the end of each assessment. But as time went on, her voice gradually lost its initial enthusiasm and excitement, becoming mechanical and numb.

After the third wave of peerless grade A "students" finished, Wang Ningxi's team began arranging for the future second wave.

The first to go was the family's "Pill King," Wang Shouye.

As the Wang Clan's current top alchemist, Wang Shouye held an extremely important position in the family. Therefore, Wang Ningxi began using the accumulated [Immortal Grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid].

This Immortal Grade Improvement Liquid was a specialty of the Shenwu Royal Dynasty, now a legendary item.

According to Spirit Artifact Ai Pan, even at the peak of the Shenwu Royal Dynasty, the production of this grade of improvement liquid was very low, extremely rare and precious. It was only in the military training academy that a small amount was stored in the advanced prize pool to train future marshals.

And Wang Shouye had another advantage: he possessed the [Mysterious Pill Treasure Tome], so when he secured a mid-grade codex spot, the Wang Clan would have an additional mid-grade codex.

Therefore, under Wang Shouzhe's protection, Wang Shouye first used a bottle of [Top-grade Essence Version], directly elevating his bloodline aptitude to the upper peerless grade B, and then used the [Immortal Grade Improvement Liquid].

However, during the use of the Immortal Grade Improvement Liquid, there was almost a problem.

The effects of the Immortal Grade Improvement Liquid were indeed domineering, originally intended to enhance the bloodline of peerless prodigies in the Divine Realm, allowing those with an eighth-level awakened bloodline to improve slightly. Therefore, it had high requirements for the user's physique and bloodline.

And Wang Shouye, currently only in the early Purple Mansion Realm, with a seventh-level bloodline, clearly didn't meet the usage requirements.

Even with Wang Shouzhe's profound life source energy, it was almost impossible to control the terrifying transformation of Wang Shouye's bloodline. Fortunately, Wang Shouzhe had a backup plan, immediately having Wang Lixian assist, and together they barely suppressed the boiling medicinal power in Shouye's bloodline.

Without Wang Shouzhe and Wang Lixian, a peerless prodigy in the Purple Mansion Realm recklessly using the [Immortal Grade Improvement Liquid] would almost certainly result in an explosive death.

However, high risk comes with high rewards, and the results were evident.

Wang Shouye's bloodline underwent a complete transformation, breaking through the shackles, awakening from the seventh level to the eighth level. The eighth-level bloodline in the Purple Mansion Realm had transcended the realm of peerless prodigies, worshipped by the world as a [Heavenly Son] or [Heavenly Daughter].

Even though the military training academy was an independent small space, the transformation of Wang Shouye's bloodline to a Heavenly Son didn't trigger large-scale celestial phenomena, but when he returned to the examination hall after breaking through, it still caused a sensation.

Because his bloodline had just broken through, his aura couldn't be well-concealed, and the celestial-like demeanor, the unique aura that seemed to resonate with the laws of heaven and earth at all times, couldn't be hidden.

Apart from the well-prepared Wang Shouzhe and a few others, everyone else was stunned.

The immortal sword Neiyue rushed up with a "whoosh," trembling with excitement, "A Heavenly Son, and a Heavenly Son in the Purple Mansion Realm. Hahaha~ I can't believe my luck, finding a Heavenly Son in the Purple Mansion Realm as my master! I've decided, my future master is you."

As an immortal sword, she naturally wanted to follow a more promising master.

"Neiyue Sister, I advise you not to make a hasty decision," Wang Ningxi hurriedly came up to dissuade her, "Let's wait until everyone finishes the exam."

"Hmph!" Neiyue glanced at Wang Ningxi, her sharp eyes filled with disdain, "Compared to my new master, you're just mud. Earlier, I must have been blind to even consider... never mind, never mind, I promised you, I'm not in a hurry."

Wang Ningxi was both amused and helpless.

This Immortal Sword Sister was quite fickle. However, she might not think so soon.

"Seventh Ancestor," Wang Ningxi bowed to Wang Shouye, "You should be clear about your tactical goal, right?"

"Don't worry, I remember it clearly. Break the first, but score just a bit higher than Ancestor Long Yan, too much would cause trouble for the clan members behind," Wang Shouye had fully grasped Wang Ningxi's plan.

"Seventh Ancestor is indeed reliable," Wang Ningxi praised.

"Ningxi, I've been pondering a question," Wang Shouye suddenly looked at him with a strange expression, "In the second wave, you arranged for me to go first. Is it because, in your team's analysis, I'm the weakest in terms of overall strength?"

Wang Ningxi's expression froze, clearly a bit embarrassed, "Uh... Seventh Ancestor, you're a great alchemy master... uh... as long as the results meet expectations... don't mind the details."

Indeed~!

Wang Shouye sighed and stepped onto the examination platform.

Although his Purple Mansion Realm second-level cultivation was just average, with the foundation of a bloodline elevated to the Heavenly Son level, coupled with the immortal sword, semi-immortal shield, and [Holy Emperor's Protection] as trump cards, Wang Shouye naturally swept through the challenges.

In the end, he "struggled" to complete the task.

"Congratulations, 'Provisional General' Wang Shouye, you, you scored 90.5, breaking the previous Hero List first place Wang Long Yan's record of 90.25," Spirit Artifact Ai Pan was excited again.

"Enough with the nonsense," Wang Shouye said weakly, "In the advanced prize pool, besides the semi-immortal artifact forced on me, I choose [Immortal Grade Bloodline Improvement Liquid], [Intermediate Lingxu Codex], and [Panpan's Traveling Boots]."

[Panpan's Traveling Boots] was one of the many secret treasures classified as "etc." in the prize pool introduction.

"In the super prize pool, I choose [Holy Emperor's Wrath]."

Actually, there were many good things in the super prize pool, like high-grade codexes, but the specific reward choices were all planned by Wang Ningxi. Wang Shouye naturally followed his plan.

After all, among the many talents in the Wang Clan, Wang Ningxi was recognized for his quick thinking and high intelligence, and in this regard, Wang Shouye had full confidence in him.

"Wang Shouye, you have a keen eye. Although [Panpan's Traveling Boots] is far from a semi-immortal artifact, it's a very useful secret treasure." As a die-hard fan of Wu Panpan, Spirit Artifact Ai Pan was thrilled when he chose [Panpan's Traveling Boots], immediately ignoring the other rewards and enthusiastically introducing the boots, "Not only can it increase flight speed, but it also allows for short space jumps, making it an essential product for home travel, breaking into enemy lines, escaping, and more."

"This was a treasure donated by Panpan after she advanced to the True Immortal Realm, reminiscing about her academy days. It's said that she once wore it on the battlefield, slaying countless demons and completing numerous 'impossible' missions."

"It's not only practical but also of great commemorative value. I hope you can cherish it and use it well, so as not to disappoint Grand Marshal Wu Panpan's efforts."

...