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"Sister, your complexion doesn’t look too good..."

At the examination site entrance, Shen Yang, who saw Shen Xue’s pale face, was immediately puzzled. Just yesterday, his cousin was the picture of health, with a rosy glow on her cheeks. How come today she seemed to have come down with a cold or flu?

He himself had felt warm and hearty this morning after slurping down a bowl of meaty worm noodles, feeling energized.

He remembered his cousin had eaten quite a bit of it; the nourishing effects of the meaty worms were quite powerful, and she had also had a bowl of ginger soup this morning.

According to medical reasoning, at this time of day, a person should be at the peak of their spirit, but looking at his cousin’s state. ..

"It’s nothing..." Shen Xue forced a smile, her pallor looking even more unsettling in broad daylight. She hadn’t expected that this time, the puppet would drain so much of her essence blood—it had nearly left her unable to get up in the morning!

That thing... had become more and more sinister.

She planned to use it this one time and then quit.

Her foundation in the Art Calculation wasn’t bad; all that she lacked was meditative ability.

Given the environment here, as long as she could get into the academy, even if her talent for meditation was lesser, she could catch up.

"Cousin, take it easy..." Shen Yang said with some concern. "Especially during the midday break, don’t sleep too deeply. Your current condition is clearly due to deficient qi and blood, and napping too long at noon could result in poor circulation in the afternoon and affect your exam performance."

"Alright, thank you for the reminder, Brother Yang." Shen Xue showed her gratitude.

"All examinees, to the examination hall!"

Hearing the urging voice outside, Shen Xue looked toward Shen Yang, "Do well on the exam. If you can stay in Lyuzhou, then stay. Opportunities like this are rare."

"I got it, cousin. You also..."

After bidding each other goodbye, Shen Xue followed the escorting soldiers to the examination site at the Mystic Academy—a place very spacious and bright, with generous spacing and rooms equipped with Ice Jade for cooling.

This treatment was miles better than what candidates in the Capital City received during their examinations, where, with a bit of bad luck, one could end up drawing a foul spot and faint from the stench right in the examination hall.

But even with such excellent conditions, Shen Xue’s face turned even paler.

Already suffering from a deficiency of qi, the sudden chill from the Ice Jade made her extremities cold, and she felt drowsy all over.

Answering the questions was more strenuous than she had anticipated; the meditation test outside the hall had nearly exhausted her strength.

A young man wearing feathered clothes saw this and slightly furrowed his brows, but he still took the initiative to raise his hand.

"Does this gentleman have an issue?"

Seeing that the exam papers had already been distributed, the gentleman was expected to focus on writing his answers promptly, so what kind of trick was he pulling now?

"This officer..." the young man in feathered clothing began with a warm smile. "The young lady in front seems unwell. She probably can’t withstand the cold from the Ice Jade. I was wondering if the examination hall could provide her with two pieces of Warm Jade?"

"This..." The officer was taken aback, glanced at Shen Xue whose face was extremely pale, and finally nodded. "I’ll apply for it. Just a moment, please."

Shen Xue immediately showed gratitude, turning to say, "Thank you, young master."

The young man in feathered clothing smiled faintly, then spoke in a low voice, "If possible, miss, it’s best to refrain from offering prayers to those evil things. Some items might seem to provide benefits in the short term, but in reality... they can be deadly!"

Shen Xue’s heart skipped a beat upon hearing this. What kind of person was this young man? How had he immediately realized she was involved with something supernatural?

The young man didn’t elaborate, instead focusing on reviewing his own exam paper. After all, it was an examination hall, and minimal communication was the norm. He considered her a person in distress and had merely given a small hint. Whether she heeded the advice was up to her.

The young man was none other than Murong Bingyun. Originally planning to attend the Mystic Academy, he, along with several other young masters, had eventually decided to divide and conquer their tasks. He chose the Earth Academy and happened to sit behind Shen Xue.

He had noticed something off about her condition at first glance.

He had seen her on the first day of the exams when she was full of vitality, especially in a place like Lyuzhou, where the Spiritual Energy was abundant and the food was all nourishing.

At most, people suffered from nosebleeds due to being unable to assimilate such food, but he had never seen anyone become weaker the more they ate.

It was obvious that she had had her essence blood drained, leading to her weakened state.

This phenomenon was something he had seen far too often in the Northern Wasteland Country.

In the Ancient Desolate Country, the infiltration rate of demons was high because the authorities led sacrifices to demon lords, and naturally, the same customs pervaded among the people.

Many citizens, lacking self-control, easily fell prey to the seduction of inexplicable demons, conducting private worship to exchange for extraordinary powers.

After all, for ordinary people, this method of acquiring special abilities simply through worship and sacrifice is too easy and natural, like usurious loans among the common folk!

But such dealings often end up poorly!

Those demons of unknown origin and without scale initially have very low demands, satisfied with just a little of your vital essence to fulfill some of your requests, making the price seem within an acceptable range.

But once you fall into their trap and start to depend on them, that’s when the trouble starts.

Their demands will increase, and the temptations they offer will become greater and greater.

He had seen too many tragedies unfold: some mothers, who initially just wanted to become more beautiful to keep their husbands from straying, eventually became so entrapped that they wouldn’t give up the enviable beauty and ended up sacrificing their husbands’ hearts and livers to those ritual demons!

People... always compromise in the face of such desires until they themselves become what they once dared not imagine!

"Hey, young lady, I’ve brought you Warm Jade and had the kitchen heat up some Cloud Beast liver soup for you, which is very good for nourishing the blood." About a quarter of an hour later, the tall soldier came back, handing over Warm Jade and a bowl of meat soup.

"So young and yet so weak? Do well on your test. In our Lyuzhou, children like you are raised plump and fair-skinned."

Shen Xue was startled, looking at the soldier who kept chattering advice, feeling inexplicably warmed by it, took the meat soup, and gently said, "Thank you."

"Don’t mention it, don’t mention it. Do well on your test; Jiangnan Academy is not easy to get into."

"Hmm..."

"Cough, cough!" The head examiner looked down from the main platform at the incessantly chattering soldier and coughed several times, giving him a displeased stare.

Seeing this, the soldier shyly smiled, "Alright, do well on your test. You too, young man over there!"

"Thank you, Military Master..." Murong Bingyun also lifted his head and smiled.

The atmosphere here was indeed better than any other city he had seen.

In the Central Plains, there’s a saying, "When basic needs are met, one understands honor and disgrace." People can only pursue more when they are free from worries about food and clothing. The general peace among the populace here was rooted in the fact that their lives were quite comfortable.

Unlike in the Ancient Desolate Country where people were wary of each other, passersby were extremely indifferent, and many of the people were inherently cruel and belligerent. Thinking back on it now, wasn’t that due to the environment they were forced into?

If only the Northern Wasteland could be like Jiangnan...

Murong Bingyun shook his head and sighed, focusing his attention back on the examination paper. There would always be a chance; first, he had to get into this academy.

But what he didn’t notice was that in the front row, inside Shen Xue’s backpack, the strange puppet that had been staring at him intently ever since he entered the room!

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"Do you really need to take it so seriously?"

Meanwhile, in Shen Xue’s room, two significant figures had entered. If someone knowledgeable from Lyuzhou saw these two, they would be extremely surprised, for they were both heavyweights.

Shen Qi, who after many members of the Shen Family had entered the spirit administration, had practically become the legitimate face of the family.

And since the Shen Family had cooperated actively in the developments in Jiangnan, subsidizing small-scale merchants willing to trade outside, their reputation and the commendations they had received had improved greatly compared to a few years ago.

The second person was the ruler of Lyuzhou’s Hell: Wei Gongcheng!

The first Hell Ruler from Jiangnan’s forces and currently the only one outside of the Shen Family to hold the position of City God, his status was even high among the noble Shen ghosts, mainly because he had set an excellent example.

Under Wei Gongcheng’s management, order in Lyuzhou’s Hell was exceptionally well-maintained, peaceful, and his fair dealings had led to very little resentment among the spirits.

Many compliments for the Hell administration had come through in dream-messages, leading to an extremely stable yin and yang magnetic field in Lyuzhou.

Even Shen Qi, as proud as he was, held a high regard for Wei Gongcheng.

He would often come to learn from him...

And yet, these two important figures, who were usually swamped with their duties, had together come to Shen Xue’s room on this day.

Clearly, the matter was not simple...