Han Sen wanted to sit by himself, but he didn’t seem to have that option. People were everywhere on the sixth floor.
Fortunately, Yu Jing did not mention anything about them killing xenogeneics together. He quietly asked, “Brother Han, will you participate in Sky Palace’s exam?”
“What exam?” Han Sen asked. This wasn’t high school, so what exam could there be?
“The exam is annual. There are no penalties to failing, but if you do well, the elders and the leaders might take notice of you. If you reach the top three, you also earn a prize. If you receive a good score, the elder might take you as a student, even though you are an outsider. But of course, you are already Knife Queen’s student, but the top three rewards are still great.”
“What are the rewards?” Han Sen asked.
“Treasure is granted to the top three. If you are number one, you will also have permission to enter the Holy House. There, you may select a geno art. Such a thing would be of great benefit,” Yu Jing said.
Han Sen, hearing that, was quickly disinterested. He still had his own geno arts to practice with. Even if the Sky Palace geno arts were powerful, he doubted he’d find the time to learn one of them.
Yu Jing noticed Han Sen was not interested, and so he looked around and whispered to Han Sen, “Brother Han, if you have time, I would like to talk to you about the exam. Alone. Perhaps we can co-operate there.”
Han Sen looked at Yu Jing, and Yu Jing performed a gesture to be quiet. Han Sen realized that Yu Jing must be asking him to cheat in some way. Of course, no one else could hear that.
And then Yu Jing spoke to Han Sen again. This time, he did not want to discuss the exam. White Jade Jing opened and Jade Air came out of the Jade Wall. When it did, everyone focused on refining it.
Han Sen used Jadeskin to absorb the Jade Air. They both possessed the same jade word, so perhaps they might have some compatibility.
When Han Sen used Jadeskin, the Jade Air moved quickly throughout his body. Jadeskin absorbed the air quickly, much faster than The Story of Genes.
“D*mn! They really are connected!” Han Sen thought.
Han Sen changed to the Dongxuan Sutra, then the Blood-Pulse Sutra, and he noticed that they refined the Jade Air much more slowly than The Story of Genes did. And they were far inferior to Jadeskin.
“It looks like I need to practice Jadeskin first.” Han Sen stopped wasting time and focused on practicing with Jadeskin.
He wanted to evolve with that, first and foremost.
Jade Air was everywhere, but it wasn’t dense enough. Han Sen’s absorption speed was fast, but Jadeskin’s evolution was not going great. He realized that the Galaxy Sand had been far superior.
Before the second Jade Air erupted, Han Sen went up to the seventh floor. His Jadeskin was compatible with the Jade Air, so he knew he could survive on the seventh floor with it.
But when he reached the seventh floor, he did not see Thousand Feather Crane or Yun Sushang. Not even First Day was there.
There was a young, lonely guy there on the seventh floor, though. A jade sword rested on his knees.
The man did not look at Han Sen. He just sat where he was, eyes closed, uncaring for the world around him. Han Sen was not a fan of talking, either, so he found a corner to sit in and waited for the second wave.
The Jade Air on the seventh floor was far purer than the Jade Air on the sixth floor. It was better for his Jadeskin.
No others had come to the seventh floor, so the environment satisfied Han Sen a great deal. It was far better than the over-crowded sixth floor. He thought to himself, “If I had known I could survive it, I would have come here the first time it erupted.”
Han Sen waited for the second eruption, and when it came, he cast Jadeskin and absorbed the Jade Air.
The Jade Air on the seventh floor was far denser than the lower floors. Han Sen felt the Jade Air flow inside him, and it helped refine his Jadeskin and infuse it with his bones. It made Han Sen feel like jade himself.
There were some amazing feelings going on in Han Sen’s skeleton. Rather than giving him the chills, the scary Jade Air actually made him feel hot. It felt like he was inside an oven, and his bones were being baked.
Han Sen knew that this was just an illusion, though. And that was because the Jade Air did not suppress him. It made him feel more alive.
Han Sen practiced Jadeskin, and not long after, his Jadeskin began to feel strange. It became purer.
This was exactly what Han Sen had hoped for. Without thinking, Han Sen cast Jadeskin.
But on the seventh floor, an odd image appeared on the smooth Jade Wall. The sun and the moon appeared in the image, and white bones as well. Sword air cut through them.
It was like a god appearing in the sky.
Buildings rose up, like steps into the sky.
Between the clouds was a mysterious city. It was very well hidden, and you could not see much.
All those images appeared across the Jade Walls, and they made the Jade Air purer.
The arrogant young Sky man opened his eyes. His eyes shone as he looked upon the Jade Wall. He looked shocked.
The Jade Wall’s image started to change, and the city there grew closer. There was a king obeying the city.
He took a step, then knelt. Ten steps, then he prostrated himself. It was like a believer, walking to a holy place.
When the arrogant young man saw that the Jade Wall was showing the city, and the city was revealed from behind the clouds, his face changed.
“Five cities?” The arrogant young man’s eyes looked bright. He stared at the five cities the wall displayed.
Many kings bowed before the cities, but none dared to step in. It was not clear what happened after that, though. The kings that were nearest to the city were dying, and they soon disappeared.
The gates of the five mysterious cities remained closed. It was like they had been closed since ancient times.
