Chapter 4 – Bai Ze

“Alright, time’s up.”

At the foot of the mountain, a man around fifty years old, dressed in a yellow Taoist robe with long hair and beard, pressed the timer, announcing the end of the Spiritbond Master exam on this year’s day of Awakening Thunder.

By then, Yun Xiguang had already returned to the gathering point at the foot of the mountain. With his arms crossed, he leaned against a tree, his eyes closed to rest. The little spirit bird slept on his shoulder, its head bobbing up and down occasionally, scratching its claws from time to time.

Teacher Ji Xuan, dressed in a yellow robe, swept his gaze around. Seeing all twenty students return on time, each glowing with varying degrees of spirit light, he couldn’t help but laugh. “Congratulations, you’ve all received your spirit beasts through a contract and passed this exam. Now, you can choose your desired internship positions and begin a one-year internship.”

“Go back and rest. Tomorrow morning, the school will hold a graduation ceremony for the Middle Division and issue a Grade C Spiritbond Master certificate to everyone.”

The graduation certificate of the Zhuzhao Academy’s Middle Division was equivalent to a high school diploma from a regular school. Spiritbond Master certificates were divided into five levels: Heaven, Earth, A, B, and C. After graduating from the Middle Division, one would receive a Grade C Spiritbond Master certificate. After completely graduating from the Zhuzhao Academy, one could obtain a Grade B certificate.

As for the Heaven, Earth, and A level certificates, it was up to the students to strive to earn them. The authorities would issue these based on their strength, battle records, and other comprehensive factors after an evaluation.

There were only three Heaven-grade Spiritbond Masters and ten Earth-grade ones in this world, each having accomplished earth-shattering feats. In reality, they were figures written in history books and political texts.

Countless Spiritbond Masters spent their entire lives as mere Grade B.

To become an A-grade Spiritbond Master was already to be among the elite of elites.

Yun Xiguang’s parents were A-grade Spiritbond Masters. His mother had submitted her application for Earth-grade Spiritbond Master before her death, which, after assessment, would have made her the eleventh Earth-grade Spiritbond Master. Unfortunately, everything was destroyed on that night ten years ago.

Yun Xiguang listened quietly to Teacher Ji Xuan’s instructions, secretly clenching his fists. He would receive his Grade C Spiritbond Master certificate tomorrow and begin executing his plan.

The one-year internship after graduating from the Middle Division was crucial. Students who had just become Spiritbond Masters were unfamiliar with their spirit beasts’ temperaments and abilities and needed to slowly develop a rapport.

The school arranged internships in different positions to allow them to establish friendly and equal relationships with their spirit beasts during work and discover their own issues within a year. After the internship ended and they returned to school, the teachers would tailor subsequent study plans based on each person’s individual circumstances.

Yun Xiguang’s purpose for interning wasn’t to master the power of his spirit beast. He wanted to join the Field Operations Group, participate in incidents related to spirit beasts, and find a way to enter the confidential archive room to investigate the case file of the car accident from ten years ago.

After his parents’ deaths, the Field Operations Group had dispatched special agents to investigate the case. Three Earth-grade Spiritbond Masters from the Yun family, the Field Operations Group, and the Zhuzhao Academy had been involved. However, the results of their investigation were not publicly disclosed but classified as a top-secret case and sealed away, leaving Yun Xiguang unable to conduct further investigations.

The Field Operations Group must have uncovered some dangerous inside information, so dangerous that even the Yun family dared not delve deeper. That’s why the case was temporarily shelved, and it was announced to the public that his parents died in a car accident.

If others wouldn’t investigate, he would do it himself.

Thinking about how he could start the first step of his plan tomorrow, Yun Xiguang clenched his fists tightly.

After Ji Xuan finished his instructions and was about to dismiss the group, he heard a malicious voice from the crowd. “Teacher, does anyone qualify to become a Spiritbond Master?”

The speaker was Yun Xinglei.

Ji Xuan glanced at him. “As long as someone forms a contract with a spirit beast, they can. But if their strength doesn’t improve until university graduation, the school won’t issue them a Grade B Spiritbond Master certificate.”

“But there’s someone here who didn’t form a contract with a spirit beast,” Yun Xinglei said, pointing directly at Yun Xiguang.

Yun Xiguang raised his eyebrows slightly, watching him calmly.

Ji Xuan looked at the little spirit bird on Yun Xiguang’s shoulder and also showed an awkward expression. But he still objectively stated, “The potential of juvenile spirit beasts is unknown, and their spirits can be synchronized with the Spiritbond Master’s through nurturing. People who become Spiritbond Masters through this method are few, but they’re not unheard of. Our academy’s president is one such Spiritbond Master.”

Unlike Yun Xiguang’s spirit beast, the spirit beast of the president of the Zhuzhao Spiritbond Academy wasn’t a juvenile when found. However, when the president discovered it, the spirit beast had just survived heavenly fire, severely injured and barely alive. It was taken care of by the president.

During the healing process, the president accidentally got scratched by the pained spirit beast. Their blood blended together, and their auras aligned, meeting the conditions to become a Spiritbond Master.

After recovering, the proud spirit beast, grateful for the president’s life-saving grace, was willing to accompany him until the brief human life came to an end.

However, due to the spirit beast’s special abilities, if it were to connect its soul with a human, the human would become mentally incapacitated due to the inability to withstand the vast amount of information contained within its soul. Therefore, although the president had a complete spirit root, he never connected souls with his spirit beast.

Although they didn’t connect souls, due to the extreme strength of this spirit beast, the president became one of the rare Earth-grade Spiritbond Masters in the world. However, his combat style was somewhat painful, relying on blood every time to borrow the spirit beast’s power.

Spiritbond Masters like the president, who formed blood connections, were a branch of Spiritbond Masters called Blood Pledge Masters. The contracts they formed were also known as blood pledges.

Blood Pledge Masters were rare and not as strong as complete Spiritbond Masters. If the president could have formed a complete spirit connection with his spirit beast, he could have become a Heaven-grade Spiritbond Master.

“That’s different,” Yun Xinglei persisted. “The president’s spirit beast is an ancient divine beast. Even if the contract isn’t complete, it’s something ordinary people can’t match. What’s his spirit beast? It doesn’t even have the ability to protect itself, so how can he be considered a Spiritbond Master?!”

His words caused the students’ gazes to fall on Yun Xiguang’s shoulder, looking at the adorable little spirit bird. While they found it cute, they also nodded inwardly, agreeing with Yun Xinglei’s words.

This little spirit bird would make a good pet, but spirit beasts were equals, fighting side by side with Spiritbond Masters. How could this little spirit bird fight? By livestreaming cuteness?

Despite seeing Yun Xinglei’s hostility, Ji Xuan had to admit that Yun Xinglei’s words weren’t entirely wrong. Indeed, there had never been such a precedent in the Spiritbond World.

Ji Xuan was somewhat at a loss. “Student Yun Xiguang, you…”

Seeing the situation turn bad, Yun Xiguang spoke before Ji Xuan could. “Rules are rules. If it’s not written in the rules, it doesn’t stand.”

Ji Xuan replied, “Student Yun Xinglei, Yun Xiguang has a point. After all, it’s allowed by the rules.”

“The battles of Spiritbond Masters are fraught with danger, and many Spiritbond Masters die from spirit beast incidents every year. Are you going to drag your teammates down with your trash bird?” Yun Xinglei asked.

Ji Xuan turned to Yun Xiguang again. “Student Yun Xiguang, Yun Xinglei also has a point.”

Yun Xiguang responded, “If lacking strength to the point of hindering teammates disqualifies one from becoming a Spiritbond Master, then none of you seated here can become Spiritbond Masters.”

Yun Xiguang was extremely proactive. As soon as he finished speaking, he dashed towards Yun Xinglei in a single bound. In one hand, he concealed heavenly fire, aiming it at Yun Xinglei’s newly found spirit beast, the human-faced owl. The aura of heavenly fire kept the human-faced owl immobile.

Simultaneously, Yun Xiguang’s other hand sliced through the air like a sharp knife, striking Yun Xinglei’s throat, mercilessly hitting the soft cartilage of his throat.

This was a vital spot on a person. Yun Xinglei wasn’t unwilling to dodge, but Yun Xiguang attacked without warning, swift, accurate, and vicious, giving Yun Xinglei no chance to evade.

Under the heavy blow, Yun Xinglei covered his throat and took several steps backward, making choking sounds. His face pale, he couldn’t breathe for a moment and knelt down in pain.

Looking down at him coldly, Yun Xiguang asked, “Who did you just say would be a burden to the team? You or me? You claim to be a Spiritbond Master, where’s your spirit beast? Did it protect you?

“If strength is the standard for determining whether someone can become a Spiritbond Master, then none of you here, except for me, have any qualifications to become Spiritbond Masters.”

Yun Xiguang placed his left hand, hiding the heavenly fire, on the head of the human-faced owl. The human-faced owl wasn’t a particularly powerful spirit beast. It helplessly cooed, seemingly trying to prove to Yun Xiguang that it was just an innocent and peace-loving pigeon.

For a moment, the scene was silent. Everyone was stunned by Yun Xiguang’s actions.

Striking a Spiritbond Master with physical force, who possessed a spirit beast, was an unprecedented event.

Everyone’s gazes fell on Yun Xiguang, their eyes stung by the sharpness he displayed. They felt that this young man was like a sharp blade, dangerous and full of power.

He faced the world with the edge of a blade, receiving the world’s defenses and attacks in return.

Qi Liu helped Yun Xinglei up and said to Yun Xiguang with a dark expression, “Spiritbond Masters compete on the basis of their spirit beasts’ abilities and the level of rapport with their spirit beasts, not your personal martial prowess. We’ve just formed our contracts and haven’t been able to unleash even a fraction of our spirit beasts’ power, of course we’re not your opponents. But what about the future? Are you planning to spend your whole life as a Grade C Spiritbond Master with this useless bird, letting the Spiritbond Master Association support you for the rest of your life?”

“Yes… I… don’t… agree…” Yun Xinglei, whose voice had just started to recover, said with difficulty.

Gradually, some students subtly stood behind Yun Xinglei, opposing Yun Xiguang.

These students usually harbored no ill will towards Yun Xiguang. They simply agreed with Yun Xinglei’s words, believing that Yun Xiguang was difficult to convince.

Only one student, accompanied by a silver snow wolf, initially intended to follow the main group behind Yun Xinglei. However, his newly contracted snow wolf bit his butt, causing him to scream in pain as he was dragged behind Yun Xiguang.

Surprised, Yun Xiguang turned to look at him.

This student, named Wu Ailang, awkwardly smiled at Yun Xiguang while covering his butt.

The twenty students split into two groups, leaving Teacher Ji Xuan standing in the middle, torn.

He looked left and right, seeing the students on both sides sticking to their own arguments. Painfully, he scratched his head.

Suddenly, his head, which was swaying left and right, split into two, each looking in opposite directions.

The opposing students immediately tensed up.

This was the Beast Avatar.

When a Spiritbond Master’s rapport with their spirit beast reached a certain height, the Beast Avatar would appear, showcasing the spirit beast’s form in the guise of a human appearance.

All the students knew that this term’s homeroom teacher, Ji Xuan, had a spirit beast called Pingpeng. It had two heads, each on one end, and their opinions didn’t align, often clashing. Pingpeng had four legs, and each head could only control the pair of legs on the same side. When faced with difficult situations, it would often halt due to argumentation.

It was precisely because of this spirit beast that Ji Xuan’s personality became wishy-washy, sometimes thinking one opinion was right and then another.

But today, Ji Xuan had actually been forced by the students to manifest his Beast Avatar. This meant things had gotten serious.

When Ji Xuan couldn’t make a decision, he would involuntarily activate the “Square Inch Land” skill due to the dispute.

After “Square Inch Land” was activated, everyone would be fixed in place, unable to leave, until the opinions of both sides reached a consensus and convinced Ji Xuan to merge his two heads back into one.

If they failed to do so, they’d remain stuck. Ji Xuan’s ability was extremely strong. Below Earth-grade, Spiritbond Masters trapped by him couldn’t escape unless they convinced Ji Xuan’s two heads to agree.

And in this world, there were only thirteen Earth-grade or higher Spiritbond Masters!

In other words, currently in this world, only thirteen people could avoid Ji Xuan’s “Square Inch Land” move!

Don’t underestimate Ji Xuan’s good-natured character; once pushed too far, he would activate his passive skill, and no one could bear it.

“Ruckus! What’s all the noise!” shouted the left head of Ji Xuan. “Don’t you know that teachers have the hardest time making decisions? Can’t we all sit down and discuss it properly and find a way to convince each other?”

The right head of Ji Xuan said gently, “Everyone, don’t argue or fight. Sit down and communicate properly. There must be a way to reconcile. Your teacher will be with you until the end of time.”

The students didn’t feel gentleness; they only felt that Ji Xuan was terrifying at that moment.

They had experienced being immobilized by Ji Xuan for three days and three nights, standing in one place without water or food, unable to go to the restroom. The memory was a nightmare.

Ji Xuan could truly exhaust them until the end of time!

However, the conflict between Yun Xinglei and Yun Xiguang couldn’t be reconciled. Yun Xinglei, covering his throat, looked at Yun Xiguang with hatred, determined to exhaust him.

Yun Xiguang also couldn’t abandon the opportunity to become a Spiritbond Master.

Both sides remained at a stalemate until the sky brightened, with only five minutes left before the graduation ceremony began.

Exhausted from searching on the mountain all day, the students began to panic, fearing they would miss the graduation ceremony. They began to persuade Yun Xinglei to let it go, somewhat afraid of Yun Xiguang and unwilling to advise him to give up.

However, Yun Xinglei stubbornly refused to budge this time.

Ji Xuan alternated between scolding with one head and gently persuading with the other, driving the students to the brink of mental collapse.

At that moment, a dignified voice came from the sky. “Teacher Ji Xuan, what happened? The school leaders, representatives from various informed departments, representatives from major families, and representatives from past outstanding students are already in the auditorium. Where are the students?”

Ji Xuan’s left head said, “Still arguing? Let’s go back and hold the graduation ceremony first!”

Ji Xuan’s right head countered, “No, the students’ conflict hasn’t been resolved. We can’t hastily hold the graduation ceremony like this.”

The voice in the sky didn’t ask what had happened. It paused for a moment and then said, “I understand.”

A spirit beast descended from the clouds, with a dragon body, tiger head, horns, vermilion hair, and eyes full of wisdom. It looked down at everyone and spoke in human language. “Since you can’t reach an agreement, let me be fair. Before the graduation ceremony, let’s hold a temporary Spirit Beast Martial Arts Conference to showcase each spirit beast’s strength and rapport with their Spiritbond Master. You can participate in teams of two, and the winning team will decide whether Yun Xiguang can become a Spiritbond Master.”

Upon hearing these words, Ji Xuan’s two heads slowly merged into one. He joined his hands in a bow to the spirit beast in the sky, respectfully saying, “With you being fair, I’m relieved, Lord Bai Ze.”

This spirit beast was the president’s blood-bound spirit beast, one of the ancient divine beasts, Bai Ze, a symbol of justice and wisdom that helped the president establish the Zhuzhao Spiritbond Academy.

Ji Xuan returned to normal, and the “Square Inch Land” was lifted.

Bai Ze looked at Yun Xiguang and said, “Yun Xiguang, if you believe in your strength, let your strength determine your fate. How about that?”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Yun Xiguang replied, gazing at Bai Ze.

One of the three Earth-grade experts who investigated his parents’ cause of death ten years ago was the president, and this divine beast Bai Ze was also involved!

Bai Ze looked at Yun Xiguang with wise eyes, shook his head, and was about to advise him to let go of his obsession when his gaze fell on the chick on Yun Xiguang’s shoulder.

Could this be… An image of awe appeared in Bai Ze’s mind.

At that moment, a ray of sunlight shone on Chi Qiong, and he finally woke up.

He opened his eyes, shook his plump body, feeling a little hungry.

He pecked at the spirit servant beside him, Yun Xiguang, and ordered, “I’m hungry.”

Listening to the little spirit bird open its down-covered beak, emitting a hungry “chirp chirp” sound, Bai Ze couldn’t help but shake his head.

Was he mistaken? How could this chick possibly be that great existence?

Perhaps it was just tainted with a trace of that lord’s aura when it went into hibernation ten thousand years ago.