Good, Good, Good

Beside him, the Chief Instructors of the ten major schools were all smiling, chatting with each other, their words filled with expectations for their strongest disciples.

"My son has a clear sword mind. If he could obtain a fragment of the Primordial Era Sword Intent, the bottleneck of the Immortal Realm could probably be loosened on the spot!" The Chief Instructor of the Heavenly Sword School was beaming.

"Haha, Old Li, you're overthinking it. The Origin Ancient Realm is so vast, and opportunities are as numerous as the stars in the sky. It's not something you can just find whenever you want."

Contrary to his usual behavior, Old Freak Wang of the Ancient Martial Arts School also joined in the joke. He glanced at Lin Xuanqing of the Life School and said loudly.

"If you ask me, once that little monster Chen Fan comes out, we should all invite him to give a lecture at our respective schools. That kid's philosophy is quite interesting!"

Upon hearing this, everyone laughed good-naturedly.

The Betting Agreement made a year ago has long since vanished with Chen Fan's astonishing performance in the competition.

In their eyes now, Chen Fan is no longer a genius of a particular school of thought, but a future treasure of the entire Human Race's Martial Dao.

Lin Xuanqing felt pleased to hear the flattery, but he waved his hand dismissively, feigning modesty.

"Not at all, my little apprentice is unruly and needs more guidance and discipline."

Amidst this joyful and harmonious atmosphere...

Buzz!

The Origin Ancient Realm ahead suddenly experienced a violent fluctuation without warning.

The next moment, swish!

Nine figures were simultaneously teleported out in a disheveled state, staggering a few steps before barely managing to regain their footing.

It was those nine Star River Level Students besides Chen Fan.

The laughter stopped abruptly.

The expressions on all the mentors' faces froze for a moment, filled with doubt.

"What happened?" The Vice Dean frowned slightly and asked first, "It's only been less than three days, how come you've all come out?"

As is customary, the Origin Ancient Realm has a one-month deadline; who would be willing to leave early until the very last moment?

However, all that answered him was deathly silence.

The nine most outstanding Prodigies of the Star River Martial Academy were all pale as paper, their eyes empty and lifeless, like puppets whose souls had been taken away, ignoring the questions from their instructors.

His appearance didn't seem like he had obtained a great opportunity; rather, it looked like... his Dao Heart had been crushed by something.

An eerie atmosphere instantly enveloped the entire room.

Lin Xuanqing's heart tightened suddenly, and an ominous premonition surged into his mind. He took a step forward and instantly arrived in front of his eldest disciple, Wen Yuan, asking in a low voice.

"Wen Yuan, what exactly happened inside? Where is Chen Fan?"

Wen Yuan's lips moved a few times, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, all his words turned into a bitter smile that was even uglier than crying, and he couldn't utter a single word.

What could he say?

You mean the sacred place you all consider sacred was eaten by my junior Junior Fellow Apprentice?

Just as the mentors were becoming increasingly uneasy and were preparing to use their Divine Thought to forcibly probe their disciples' Sea of Consciousness...

The gate lit up again.

A slender figure slowly walked out.

It was Chen Fan.

His aura was completely restrained, returning to its original simplicity; with black hair and black eyes, he looked like a boy next door.

On that handsome face was a satisfied smile, and a hint of curiosity about the strange atmosphere outside.

Almost the instant Chen Fan appeared, the Vice Dean's expression changed drastically.

He could no longer restrain himself, and his boundless Divine Thoughts instantly passed through the portal and surged into the Origin Ancient Realm!

In an instant.

The smile on the Vice Dean's face froze completely.

Those deep, Star Sea eyes widened at a visible speed, eventually turning into utter astonishment and horror.

Beside him, the nine powerful figures, including Old Freak Wang, also sensed something was wrong and probed in with their Divine Thought.

The next second.

The ten Chief Instructor stood at the pinnacle of power at the Star River Martial Academy were frozen in place, as if under a spell.

Those faces, which had been beaming with expectant smiles, now displayed expressions that were absolutely priceless.

Shock, bewilderment, disbelief...

In the end, everything vanished into nothingness.

The images fed back by their Divine Thought completely overturned their understanding.

That once sacred Martial Dao land, where the Origin Power was as abundant as the sea and countless Law Fragments shone like stars...

At this moment, it is completely empty.

The source energy was as thin as a wasteland in the mortal world, and the Law Fragments had disappeared without a trace, leaving only barren mountains and rivers, silent in a deathly stillness.

It was as if locusts had swept through, scraping away even a layer of the ground.

"Originating from... the Origin Ancient Realm..."

The Chief Instructor's Adam's apple bobbed, his lips trembled, and he murmured incoherently.

"Is it empty?"

Boom!

These two words, like a thunderclap, exploded in everyone's minds.

The entire hall fell silent.

You could hear a pin drop.

Eleven of the world's top experts, along with nine distraught Prodigies, and twenty pairs of eyes, all focused on the only youth in the arena who remained calm.

Chen Fan felt a little uncomfortable under this display of force. He blinked, his clear eyes filled with confusion.

What... happened?

Could it be that my breakthrough was too loud and disturbed my Senior Fellow Apprentice?

He scratched his head, meeting the murderous gazes of all the elders, and with a mixture of genuine apology and confusion, tentatively asked in a low voice:

"Dear teachers, did I... accidentally absorb a little too much while I was inside?"

That sincere question, tinged with a hint of innocence, was like a boulder thrown into a still, lifeless lake.

The air froze.

The ten Chief Instructors, along with the powerful Vice Dean, froze, their faces displaying a variety of expressions.

They wanted to get angry, but found themselves turning red and almost spitting blood as they faced that clean and clear face.

Is this what they call absorbing a bit too much?

Is that what you call absorption?

You're taking the whole pot!

You dug up our Star River Martial Academy's ancestral graves and even used the bricks to build your own pigsty!

In this atmosphere that had frozen to the point of absurdity, a sudden burst of laughter broke the deathly silence.

"Ha ha..."

The Vice Dean first chuckled softly, then his laughter grew louder and louder, his shoulders shook violently, and finally he couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Haha! Good! Good! Great!"

His laughter was loud and cheerful, filled with endless surprise and relief, as if a knot in his heart that had been accumulating for a thousand years had been untied in a single day. He pointed at Chen Fan, laughing so hard that tears were almost streaming down his face, and said "good" three times in a row, which made the Void vibrate.

This sudden turn of events left all the Chief Instructor completely bewildered.

Are you crazy?

Has the Vice Dean gone mad with anger?

However, the Vice Dean's next words struck everyone present like a thunderbolt.

He stopped laughing and stared intently at Chen Fan. His gaze was no longer one of scrutiny, but rather as if he were looking at a priceless treasure never seen before, and his tone was filled with unprecedented emotion.

"No wonder the White Emperor personally selected him and predicted him to be the future Qilin Prodigy of the Human Federation! Well done! Well done, Chen Fan!"