Meanwhile, Shangguan Yuxiu and the others returned to their resting place.
The poisoned individuals were all lying on the ground, their bodies having swollen by two sizes. Even their loose-fitting clothes were now stretched taut.
Upon seeing them, Shangguan Yuxiu and the others were startled. Was the venom of the Beast Scale Bee so potent? They had only been gone for two quarters of an hour, and these people had deteriorated so much.
The poisoned individuals looked at Shangguan Yuxiu and the others with anticipation.
Seeing their expectant gazes, Shangguan Yuxiu pursed his lips and recounted Ling Luoyi's words precisely.
After listening, some were enraged, some were astonished, and some hesitated.
A quarter of an hour later, someone raised their hand and said weakly, "I'll trade."
Everyone looked and saw it was the Fourth Princess, Shangguan Yuxuan.
Shangguan Yuxiu was momentarily stunned and asked worriedly, "Yuxuan, have you decided?"
"Yes." Shangguan Yuxuan nodded affirmatively and said, "Third Imperial Brother, I've decided. With my points, I can't possibly reach the top ten. Moreover, I feel like countless ants are crawling within my body, and I can barely endure it. Third Imperial Brother, please let me trade."
With Shangguan Yuxuan's initiative, others also agreed.
"Third Imperial Brother, Fourth Imperial Sister is right. Our points won't get us into the top ten. It's better to trade for the antidote now. We still have over two hours to cultivate here."
The speaker was the Fifth Princess, Shangguan Yuning, who was also very weak.
"The two princesses are correct. Our points are insufficient, so it's better to trade for the antidote."
"That's right, I'll trade."
"I'll trade too."
Shangguan Yuxiu surveyed the group. A total of eighty percent were willing to trade and had already handed their point cards to him.
After they were teleported in, they were given their point cards, which contained all their points from the past two days. Within the secret realm, points could be exchanged or seized. Both exchanged and seized points counted towards their results.
When Shangguan Yuxuan agreed to the trade, those watching from the outside, such as Emperor Long Qing and Elder Qu, showed expressions of admiration.
They could no longer accumulate points, and their current points were insufficient to enter the top ten. Only the top ten in this competition could choose sects or academies; others were judged based on performance, not points.
In other words, the points they held were now useless.
They were poisoned by the Beast Scale Bee and could no longer move, nor could they use their spiritual energy. Without Shangguan Yuxiu's protection, their point cards could easily be snatched by others.
There were still over two hours left until the competition ended, and the spiritual energy within the secret realm was much denser than outside. It was better to exchange their now-useless points for two hours of cultivation time, which could also increase their chances of passing the Ancient Spirit Academy's test.
They had all registered during the Ancient Spirit Academy's disciple recruitment. As long as they passed the test tomorrow, they could enter the Ancient Spirit Academy.
Within the secret realm, Shangguan Yuxiu, carrying their point cards, returned to Ling Luoyi's resting place. Ling Luoyi was still reading a book, while her other hand gestured in the air.
Ling Luoyi caught sight of them with her peripheral vision but was not surprised. Without looking up, she said, "You're here."
Shangguan Yuxiu cupped his fists and bowed, saying, "Miss Ling, we agree to purchase pills from you with our points. We just don't know how many points each pill costs?"
Only then did Ling Luoyi look up and hesitate for a moment before saying, "I won't ask for too much, just eight thousand points per pill. You decide whether you want them."
After speaking, she lowered her head to read again.
Upon hearing Ling Luoyi's price, Shangguan Yuxiu's heart trembled slightly. He checked the points in his hand; fortunately, they were all around eight thousand.
"Miss Ling, I need ten pills, which amounts to eighty thousand points." Shangguan Yuxiu handed ten point cards to Ling Luoyi.
Ling Luoyi took them, deducted eight thousand points from each card, and then took out the porcelain bottle from before, saying, "There are ten pills in total. Do you want to count them?"
Shangguan Yuxiu took the porcelain bottle and the point cards and smiled, "Miss Ling, you jest. I believe Miss Ling is not that kind of person."
"Alright, here are your things. You can leave now."
"I shall take my leave," Shangguan Yuxiu said tactfully.
Seeing him leave, Ling Luoyi resumed reading.
Ling Luoyi had not set up a barrier around her, so half an hour later, someone else approached.
The newcomers were Shangguan Ye, the heir of the Duke of Duan's manor, and his four companions, whom Ling Luoyi had met before.
Shangguan Ting and Shangguan Qing walked together. Shangguan Qing wore a veil, likely because the injuries on her face had not yet healed.
Shangguan Ye was initially surprised to see Ling Luoyi reading, but then he remembered Ling Luoyi had said she did not wish to join a sect or academy, so he understood.
However, Shangguan Lin was unaware of this and asked, "Miss Ling, aren't you going to hunt demonic beasts?"
Ling Luoyi ignored him, not even glancing his way.
Shangguan Ting looked at her, then suddenly stepped forward and asked, "Miss Ling, we met the Third Prince earlier and learned from him that Miss Ling can exchange points for pills. Therefore, Ting'er wishes to exchange for a few pills. Does Miss Ling agree?"
Ling Luoyi listened, then looked up at her and asked, "What kind of pills do you want to exchange for?"
Shangguan Ting had also known when Ling Luoyi was selling pills at the inn, so there was no need for Ling Luoyi to say more. She replied, "I want to exchange for some pills that assist in advancement."
Ling Luoyi casually took out a bottle of pills and said, "Second-grade Spiritual Qi Pills, top quality, five thousand points each. You are currently at the Houtian Seven-star stage. After taking this, you can barely reach the Second-tier Spiritual Disciple stage. However, since I find you agreeable, I'll offer a piece of advice: with your current cultivation, it's best to suppress your advancement once you reach the First-tier Spiritual Disciple stage. Don't be too greedy, or it will be detrimental to your future cultivation."
Shangguan Ting was first delighted upon hearing Ling Luoyi's words, then sobered up. She looked at her point card and said, "Miss Ling, I understand what you're saying. I want to exchange for one pill."
Ling Luoyi deducted five thousand points and then poured one pill for Shangguan Ting.
This scene was clearly observed by those outside, and they were once again shocked.
"A second-grade pill can help one advance three stages! Is this true?"
"Won't we know soon enough? County Princess Rong Ting has already taken it, so she should recover quickly."
All eyes were now focused on Shangguan Ting. They all wanted to know if Ling Luoyi's pills could help someone advance three stages consecutively.
Shangguan Ting took the pill on the spot. Although she had registered, she knew that with her current cultivation, she would not be able to pass the entrance examination for the Ancient Spirit Academy. Therefore, she decided to take this gamble.
The outer court of the Ancient Spirit Academy recruited disciples once a year. Anyone between the ages of fifteen and eighteen, who had reached the Houtian Six-star stage, could register. The registration period was only two days, and the number of applicants was very large, so a unified test would be conducted after the point competition.
If one was noticed during the point competition, they would not need to participate in the test. Thus, many who felt they could not pass the test placed their hopes on the point competition.
After taking the pill, Shangguan Ting felt extremely uncomfortable. A vast amount of spiritual energy suddenly surged within her, causing her immense pain.
Shangguan Ye and the others watched, their hearts filled with worry.
Shangguan Ting finally managed to control the excess spiritual energy and slowly guided it into her dantian.
As Shangguan Ting guided the energy, her cultivation began to soar.
Houtian Eight-star, Houtian Nine-star, until she reached the First-tier Spiritual Disciple stage, at which point it stopped.
Shangguan Ting was obedient. Upon sensing her cultivation level, she dutifully suppressed the remaining spiritual energy.