C350 A Pleasant Surprise!(1)

In the topmost chamber of the Ranking Tower, Woo Zhengyang stood for a long moment. Since his change in character, indecision was rare for him. However, this choice was too significant, and he had to think it through carefully.

Ultimately, Woo Zhengyang chose the technique. Even though he knew there might be issues with the reward, he had no other option. Body tempering techniques were exceedingly scarce in the world today, and Woo Zhengyang was already on that path. Due to the nature of the Ice Crystal Fire Body, he had to forge ahead without hesitation.

Pressing the jade plate into the slot on the technique portal, Woo Zhengyang's mind was swiftly drawn into a peculiar space. Two options appeared before him: Body Tempering Technique and Qi Refining Technique.

Without hesitation, Woo Zhengyang chose the Body Tempering Technique.

As his mind returned to the present, a book with a dusty yellow cover flew out from the portal and hovered before him. Reaching out, Woo Zhengyang took hold of it and read the title: "Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique."

Seeing the name, Woo Zhengyang felt a sense of foreboding. A force of a thousand pounds was akin to the strength of a tiger, while ten thousand pounds equated to the power of an elephant. The tiger's strength corresponded to the Martial Master Stage, and the elephant's strength aligned with the Shape Gathering Stage.

The first three stages of the Body Tempering Technique were: Condensing Blood and Flesh, Transforming Skin and Muscle, and Connecting the Inner Body. In this context, the Five Elements represented the five vital organs, all part of the Inner Stage.

"The Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique," just by the name, it sounds like a cultivation method for the Inner Stage.

Woo Zhengyang, unwilling to give up, opened "The Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique" to take a closer look. In the end, he could only shake his head with a wry smile and let out a slight sigh. Indeed, this was a body tempering technique for the Inner Stage.

Body tempering techniques become increasingly rare as one progresses. An Inner Stage technique is definitely more valuable than a Skin Stage one. However, without mastering the Skin Stage techniques first, advancing to the Inner Stage is impossible, rendering even the most precious techniques useless.

Despite this, Woo Zhengyang wasn't too disappointed. He had anticipated this outcome and believed he would eventually find a Skin Stage body tempering technique. Once he advanced to the Inner Stage, he wouldn't need to worry about body tempering techniques anymore.

With this thought, Woo Zhengyang felt at ease. He placed "The Dragon Elephant Five Elements Technique" back into his Hidden Heaven Bag and was about to leave when he realized he didn't know how to exit. There were no visible doors around.

"The jade plate is already out of my hand. Do I need to take it down and throw it again?" he wondered.

Thinking this, Woo Zhengyang took the jade plate from the door.

"Huh?"

As he held the jade plate, Woo Zhengyang noticed something was off. He had already chosen a technique, yet the points on the jade plate hadn't decreased—they still read one hundred sixty-three.

"What's going on?" Woo Zhengyang was puzzled, but a hint of delight flashed in his mind. "Could it be that due to the passage of time, a loophole has appeared, allowing me to choose again?"

No matter what, this was definitely a surprise. Woo Zhengyang placed the jade plate back into the groove of the diagram's portal.

As soon as the jade plate settled into the groove, a message flashed in Woo Zhengyang's mind: "Ranking reward has been claimed. This selection will deduct one hundred points. Proceed with selection?"

Upon receiving this message, Woo Zhengyang suddenly understood.

The technique he had just received was the reward for ranking first, and this time it was about redeeming points. Since the rewards from ancient times were claimed within the Ranking Tower, it made sense that the top reward would be the same.

Not knowing the rules had caused Woo Zhengyang trouble many times before. But this time, ignorance brought him a pleasant surprise instead of a problem.

This time, choosing the diagram didn't give Woo Zhengyang any options. Once the jade plate was in the groove, a jade slip flew directly to him.

He reached out and caught the jade slip, glancing at it to see the bold characters "Xuan Yuan Diagram."

Before he could study it further, he felt a force pulling him, signaling that he was about to be sent out of the Heavenly Martial Realm.

Not wanting to reveal his newfound wealth, Woo Zhengyang quickly stashed the jade slip away. The force intensified, and with a flash of white light, Woo Zhengyang found himself standing at the entrance of the Heavenly Martial Realm.

Before I could make out what was in front of me, a strong scent of blood hit me. When I opened my eyes, I saw the ground was still wet with blood, undoubtedly from those who met a grim fate in the Heavenly Martial Realm.

"You finally made it out, kid! Well done, well done! You've really brought honor to our Profound Heaven Sect. Wow... 163 points! That can get you sixteen top-tier Yellow Rank techniques or martial skills! And don't forget the first-place prize—a premium spirit pill to help you reach the Shape Gathering Stage! Even if you don't need it, who would turn down a freebie?"

An excited voice chimed in from the side, and there was no mistaking it—it had to be Nie Fengyu. No one else in the inner city of Heavenly Martial could sound like that.

"Sect Master!" Woo Zhengyang greeted with a respectful bow.