High-level martial arts: Long spear with black flames to suppress demons.

Hearing this, everyone couldn't help but feel a sense of感慨 (gan3kai3, a complex emotion encompassing both admiration and sympathy). In a place like Shanghai, teeming with monsters, the survival pressure on ordinary cultivators was indeed astonishing.

"Senior, what was the average skill level of the previous graduates?"

While munching on sweet and sour pork ribs, Baiyin asked curiously.

"The meeting you had the day before yesterday was just a small internal meeting of the Night Town Division, so you don't have a good understanding of the entire emerging development in Shanghai."

Pei Shuyi recalled the data she had seen before and said, "Let me give you a sneak peek. Including your Zhenye Division, plus the people sent in by various sects and aristocratic families, there are about 20,000 new cultivators in Shanghai this year."

"Of these 20,000 people, about 1,000 to 1,500 can reach the third realm by the age of eighteen. These are the backbone of the new students."

"After four years of university, with the accumulation of various resources and the trials of life and death, by the time we graduate, this group will probably produce about five hundred fifth-realm masters."

Pei Shuyi paused, her tone becoming somewhat reverent: "As for the sixth realm... that can't be achieved simply by piling up resources; it requires extremely high comprehension and good fortune. Out of 20,000 people in a year, there might not be more than a few who reach the sixth realm, and most of them have to hone their skills to the limit at the fifth realm before choosing to break through. Therefore, most geniuses stay at this level for a long time."

Upon hearing this, the group involuntarily nodded.

Four years, countless resources poured into training, from the third realm to the fifth realm—this is what is called a top genius.

Thinking about this...

The four people who were eating in the private room stopped almost simultaneously.

Ji Lin stopped waving his folding fan.

Baiyin is not going to gnaw on the ribs anymore.

Li Xiwan and Pei Shuyi also put down their water glasses.

Four pairs of eyes turned to Shen Chang'an, who was holding a piece of roasted pork and about to put it in his mouth.

While others aim to reach the fifth realm after four years of graduation, he starts at the fifth realm.

Sensing the sudden silence, Shen Chang'an's hand, which was holding braised pork, froze in mid-air.

He blinked, looking puzzled, and chewed the rice in his mouth twice:

"No, you guys aren't eating... why are you all staring at me?"

Upon hearing Shen Chang'an's mutterings, everyone coughed twice and tacitly averted their gazes.

Bai Yin swallowed the pork rib in her mouth, her curiosity piqued again. She turned to Pei Shuyi and asked, "Senior Pei, since you've been in Shanghai for so long, have you ever witnessed a real battle between the top geniuses of those academies?"

Pei Shuyi nodded and put down her teacup: "I've seen it. The school holds an internal selection competition every year, followed by a city-level league, and finally a national competition, which is the National Youth Championship. Tickets for that level of competition are very hard to get. I once asked a friend to get two inner field tickets and went to see a few games live."

"How does it feel? Just how ridiculously powerful are those guys?"

Baiyin opened her eyes wide and pressed for an answer.

Pei Shuyi's expression turned serious as she recalled, "They are very strong, existing in a completely different dimension. Those who can reach the top of the city league each year, or even make it into the national competition, are basically the core scions of the major top families. Their talent, the high-level spells they master, and even the magical treasures they possess far surpass those of ordinary cultivators."

At this point, Pei Shuyi pushed up her glasses, glancing intentionally or unintentionally at Shen Chang'an, and lowered her voice: "Besides these conventional methods, what truly makes those aristocratic families so fearsome is their family secret techniques. For example, Zhao Jin, who fought with Junior Brother Shen before, has some terrifying secret techniques passed down from the Zhao family of Shanghai."

Shen Chang'an raised an eyebrow, showing interest: "A secret technique?"

"right."

"I once witnessed a genius from the Zhao family use it in a competition. But back then on the stage, when that person swung his sword, it seemed as if he could slice everything tangible in front of him in two!"

Pei Shuyi took a deep breath and continued, "That single slash ended the battle instantly. I remember it clearly; his opponent was also a genuine fifth-realm expert, but in the face of that blade of light, he didn't even have the slightest power to resist. His protective spells and defensive artifacts were sliced ​​through like paper; it was a complete and utter one-sided crushing defeat."

Upon hearing this, Ji Lin, Bai Yin, and Li Xiwan all looked horrified.

Both being at the fifth realm, how could one instantly kill the other with a single strike? Not even giving them a chance to fight back? Does such an unreasonable trump card exist in this world?

"This is just a competition within Shanghai."

Pei Shuyi gave a bitter smile.

"I haven't seen any of those prodigies from the capital or other hidden sects in the national competitions that go up to that level."

"Therefore, many geniuses who come from small towns are arrogant when they first arrive in Shanghai, but once they witness a battle of this level, they will feel a deep sense of powerlessness. On the path of cultivation, the further you go, the greater the gap becomes in resources, secret techniques, and foundation, to the point of despair."

A brief silence fell over the private room.

Bai Yin silently put down the half-eaten pork rib in her hand, muttering with a look of utter despair, "This is too outrageous... I still want to go back to Qingzhou and be my mountain king. This godforsaken place is too dangerous..."

......

After finishing their meal and saying goodbye to Pei Shuyi, Shen Chang'an and the other three strolled back towards their dormitory.

Recalling the conversation at the dinner table, Shen Chang'an turned to look at Ji Lin, who was fanning himself with a folding fan, and casually asked, "Hey, Young Master Ji, your Ji family is a local power in Cangjiang Province, do you have any family secret techniques?"

Ji Lin paused in his hand, holding his folding fan, and shook his head with a wry smile: "How would I know? This kind of top secret is probably only known to the head of the family and a few core elders. If you really want to know, you'll probably have to ask my sister. But knowing my sister's temper, she most likely won't tell you."

"No way, aren't you one of the future heirs of the Ji family?"

Baiyin curiously came closer.

"They didn't even tell you about this kind of thing?"

"Inheritance my foot!"

Ji Lin rolled her eyes and complained irritably.

"Do you have some misunderstanding about the reproductive capacity of aristocratic families? I have so many brothers and sisters, plus half-siblings, that I can't even count them on two hands! And that doesn't even include all the cousins ​​and other relatives from the collateral branches. All in all, there are definitely thirty or forty people in my generation."

"Besides, my grandfather is still alive and well, and he's probably good enough to live another ten years or so. In any case, at least for the next few decades, the position of family head won't be something our generation has to worry about. Even the power struggles of my parents' generation haven't ended yet, so why should someone like me, who just loafs around all day, be thinking about some ancestral secret techniques?"

After listening to Ji Lin's grievances, Shen Chang'an and the other two exchanged glances and couldn't help but mutter to themselves.

"The waters run deep in big families; there are indeed many things going on."

"Alright, let's stop talking about such a boring topic."

Shen Chang'an changed the subject and nudged Ji Lin with his shoulder.

"You're quick on the uptake, aren't you? It's only been two days since the semester started, and you haven't even had many classes yet. How did you manage to pinpoint a high-quality, single second-year graduate student like Senior Pei?"

"You just don't understand."

Ji Lin smiled smugly, took out his phone from his pocket, and opened an app.

"As a mature college student, the first thing to do is to learn how to take advantage of information gaps."