Star Martial Era: The Way of Star Light Cultivation-Chapter 603 - 249: Gift

There were only three days left before the active strike and the Lougong Battle.

More precisely, there were two and a half days.

The National Taoist Institute acted swiftly and soon determined the candidates.

Unsurprisingly, Xu Jin was naturally included.

Moreover, thanks to Xu Jin’s relationship with the State Preceptor, Xu Jin learned more details.

The active strike and the Lougong Battle were merged into one, considering fairness, and in light of the Nine-Star Tide, it was also essential for all parties to maintain ample combat power.

The present world had made an extremely clear stipulation regarding the number of participants in the battle.

Each party could send a maximum of nine squads, with each combat squad having up to five members.

Thus, the competition would be about the comprehensive strength of each party.

There was a limit of one squad for Fifth Tier, three squads for Fourth Tier, and five squads for Third Tier.

Regarding Sixth Tier squads, which involve attacking and cleaning up the Sixth-Order Star Domain, the Galaxy Marshal Mansion strongly wished for squads from the present world, as the pressure from the Sixth-Order Star Domain during the Nine-Star Tide was immense.

However, the present world’s parties were unwilling.

The gap between Sixth and Seventh Tiers was too large, cleaning the Sixth-Order Star Domain meant that the strongest individuals the present world could send were at Sixth Tier Peak, but within the Sixth-Order Star Domain, although few, there were several Seventh Tier experts, which made heavy casualties likely.

If they sent those capable of breaking through to the Seventh Tier from the Sixth Tier Peak, the odds of winning would significantly increase, but they couldn’t return.

Thus, in the active strike battle, Sixth Tier experts would not be sent.

What surprised Xu Jin the most was that besides the limit on the number of participants for this active strike battle, there were no other restrictions.

Apart from the restrictions on the number of participants and the seven-day time limit, there were no other rules.

If you could kill the enemy, or if you were skilled enough to sneak a high-tier emblem in, that was your skill, and it wouldn’t matter.

Recognition was only based on combat achievements, with rankings determined by points.

Even if your Third Tier squad ventured into a Fourth-tier Star Domain, it was allowed, provided you didn’t fear casualties.

Or you had the skill to allow your Third Tier squad to massacre in a Second-tier Star Domain.

In a word, apart from the number of participants, time, and points rules, there were no restrictions.

After the State Preceptor briefed Xu Jin about the details, he let Xu Jin consider for himself.

He asked Xu Jin to submit a list of team members within a day, and then to familiarize himself with the team members quickly.

Naturally, Xu Jin was the team leader.

So, how to form a team?

Whom to invite as team members?

While Xu Jin was considering these questions, other members of the National Taoist Institute participating in the battle were also summoned in batches to the Pill Dawn Palace by the State Preceptor.

Originally, disciples of the Fourth Rank Fifth and Sixth Levels designated for the Lougong Battle had been decided during the All Halls Competition.

But now, everyone was reselected.

Although the Fourth Rank Fifth and Sixth Level disciples were powerful, their cultivation levels were slightly lacking.

Moreover, the revised requirements for the Lougong Battle required very high combat power.

Therefore, the National Taoist Institute utilized many Fourth Tier Peak disciples.

However, top disciples from various Academic Halls like Yang Miaozhen, Fang Ying, Ye Anshi, Li Jingyang, and Huang Zhen still participated in part.

Even though their cultivation levels were only at Fourth Tier Peak of Star Condensation or Fifth Level, their combat power was still stronger than those ordinary Fourth Tier Peak of Star Condensation disciples.

That is the genius.

What truly troubled Cheng Yuxiao was the selection of Fifth Tier participants.

Although there were only five positions, this was the most difficult.

It was not only necessary to consider strength but also personality, temperament, partial stances, and even factions.

When one’s cultivation reached the Fifth Tier, the people also aged, and their desires became more complex.

Moreover, the Fifth-tier team was crucial.

Because killing Fifth or Sixth-tier Alien Species earned very high points.

Even killing three to five more could significantly change the rankings and boost points.

Especially the choice of the team leader was extremely difficult.

However, the candidates were all among the Twelve Vice Academicians, but eventually, Cheng Yuxiao gave the Fifth-tier team leader to Vice Supervisor Dong Zhao of the Inspection Institute.

Dong Zhao, with Fifth Tier Peak cultivation, had long possessed the power to challenge higher-tiers.

Led by Dong Zhao, Cheng Yuxiao was confident that the points earned by the Fifth-tier team would be comparable to those of the other three parties.

Cheng Yuxiao was actually more worried about the Fourth-tier teams.

Although Fourth-tier had Wang Rusong, the leader of the autumn exam two years ago, and Fang Ying, last year’s autumn exam leader, compared to the three major Star Halls, they generally had no advantage. On the contrary, they were slightly inferior to the other three parties.

Not to mention anything else, as far as Cheng Yuxiao knew, in the Fourth-tier Martial Arts Secret Realm of Star-picking Tower, only Wang Rusong barely made it into the top ten. The others, mostly ranked within a hundred.

That was the gap.

Thus, the real scoring capability lay with the Third-tier teams.

From this perspective, Cheng Yuxiao had high hopes for Xu Jin.

Once all the participants were determined, following the traditional rules of the National Taoist Institute, those fighting for the nation were entitled to special treatment.

They could choose an upgrade for one Star Pattern.

But they could only upgrade a Star Pattern by one large rank, which is three small tiers, limited to below Seventh Tier.

This was also considered a temporary enhancement of the participating disciples’ strength.

Moreover, with only two and a half days left, the time was extremely urgent, and it might not be possible to fully enhance and engrave the upgraded Star Pattern.

However, all disciples were delighted.

Some upgraded their Third-tier Star Pattern to Fourth-tier, but more upgraded their Fourth-tier Star Pattern to Fifth-tier.

Under normal circumstances, upgrading a Third-tier Star Pattern directly to Fourth-tier would require at least one Great Merit, and upgrading a Fourth-tier Star Pattern by one small tier would also require a Great Merit.