Forging Immortality through the Dao Seed

"The third stage begins!"

A grand voice echoed through heaven and earth.

Surprisingly, the voice contained a trace of excitement!

The entire audience fell silent instantly, with countless eyes pouring onto the ten stages in a tide-like wave.

The outskirts.

The people seated on the ten stone tables in the front row all lifted their heads. The intense fluctuation of spiritual power was squeezing and colliding with each other, creating sporadic sparks of electricity and fire.

Finally, it started!

Without hesitation, Zhang Jing took a step forward.

In that moment.

The actions of sixteen people waiting for a long time surprisingly matched. Their expressions were either profound, excited, or expectant. Fear and restlessness were conspicuously absent.

The air turned silent, leaving behind the heavy sound of footsteps.

As he approached the performance stages step by step.

Zhang Jing gradually felt a surge of excitement.

Yet at that moment.

Two chilling wind sounds rose, and then Zhang Jing seemed to have seen two shadows whizzing past before him.

Those were-

He halted his steps and looked towards the direction of the sound.

At this time, a man and a woman were already standing on either side of the first performing stage, their bodies flickering with spiritual light.

"Chen Xiandao, Shen Qingqing."

Zhang Jing muttered these two familiar yet strange names, his gaze almost solidifying on these two people.

The other thirteen people also chose to stand still. They wanted to see how strong these two individuals truly were.

Senior Brother Liu in the sky, seeing this scenario, remained silent without giving a warning and watched quietly.

Boom-

As if they had fought beforehand.

The two people on the stage didn't utter a word, and directly attacked each other.

In a flash, Chen Xiandao was wrapped in red Dao patterns, carrying a mighty force that shimmered with incandescent spiritual light, closed the gap to Shen Qingqing.

However, Shen Qingqing quickly formed a magic seal in response.

A streak of light flashed past, and the opponent already vanished from the original spot.

The next moment, a strange green wind started blowing on the performing stage. This green wind condensed into a blade at extreme speeds. It swept towards Chen Xiandao with unparalleled speed.

The two were locked in an intense back-and-forth battle.

Their movements gradually became more frightening.

Eventually.

After a stifled grunt, Chen Xiandao, with an untroubled face, left the first performing stage. He walked directly to the center of the second stage, sat cross-legged, and closed his eyes as if he was alone in the world.

It seemed as if he was sure that no one dared to challenge him.

As expected, no one did.

When the curtain of battle descended on the first performing stage, the rest of the individuals proceeded to move towards other stages. Some fitfully began their ascents.

However-

The third stage remained empty.

At this moment, a faint smile appeared on Zhang Jing's face, and he slowly rose his back straight.

He looked towards the third performing stage.

Zhang Jing hadn't forgotten that apart from securing a place in the top ten this time and earning Tao Merits, he also wanted to see if he could join the small task squad ranking in the top ten.

What were those people looking at? What was Dao Institute looking at?

Of course, they were observing the performances in the assessments.

With that thought in mind,

Zhang Jing directly took large strides towards the vacant third performing stage.

Since no one else dared to do it, he, Zhang, wouldn't mind volunteering.

The sound of footsteps resonated.

With Zhang Jing's movement, others blink in surprise. Whether they were competing on stages or spectating, everyone simultaneouly shared a similar thought:

Who is this person?

Below the stage.

Ji Bochang, watching Zhang Jing's movements, couldn't help but rub his eyes.

He seemed to be confirming whether the Brother Zhang today was the same Brother Zhang he knew before?

In no time.

Zhang Jing stood at the center of the performing stage, silently waiting.

He was being watched from all sides, and the surprised and suspicious eyes seemed to drown him.

Zhang Jing clearly understood why.

Although the third performing stage was ranked third, due to the presence of two Grade-A monsters, it actually represented the first of the many Grade-B talents.

No one approached it previously because everyone was eying this spot, and no one desired to upset the balance.

Not far away.

Five pairs of eyes were fixed on Zhang Jing.

A woman emerged from the group of five, her face full of confidence. She slowly ascended the third performing stage and stood opposite to Zhang Jing.

Zhang Jing lifted his head.

Seeing the woman opposite smiling at him with a cool and elegant attitude, and saying:

"I am Xu Wan."

"I am Zhang Jing."

Zhang Jing responded with a smile.

"Having the courage to be the first one here, Brother Zhang is astonishingly brave. However, I am not sure about your capabilities. My magical sword is extremely sharp, so please be careful, Brother Zhang."

As she spoke-

An exquisite magical sword suddenly materialized in the woman's hand. The sword edge produced a solid and cold aura that made one shiver just by looking.

A dazzling light flashed.

The magical sword disappeared from the woman's hand and reappeared right in front of Zhang Jing, the sharp aura of it almost piercing his throat.

Zhang Jing's eyes hardened, and he opened his illusionary heart-eye.

The trajectory of the flying sword was instantly captured by him.

Whoosh-

With a surge of spiritual power in his Dantian, a large amount channeled into the Water Cloud Shield.

The Water Cloud Shield flashed momentarily, appearing right in front of the magical sword.

Ting!

The woman's flying sword was blocked by the Water Cloud Shield.

However, the dark spiritual light on the shield almost shattered under the horrific power of the sword.

Having failed in her attack-

The woman manipulated the flying sword to constantly loop around Zhang Jing like a swimming fish, constantly seeking an opportunity.

The ebb and flow of the sharp radiance made every hair on Zhang Jing's body stand on end.

"Qi Practice Second Layer! What a sharp flying sword,"

Zhang Jing exclaimed in admiration.