Meeting Grand Elder Su Qian

When Zi Yan crushed the Life-Saving Jade Token, Grand Elder Su Qian had already rushed over. However, the scene seemed different from what he had imagined.

When Grand Elder Su Qian arrived, he saw Ao Qing and Zi Yan staring wide-eyed at each other in silence. He thought Ao Qing was trying to harm Zi Yan.

Thus, the moment he arrived, the Grand Elder suddenly struck the somewhat bewildered Ao Qing with his palm.

Ao Qing had not expected things to turn out this way either.

When the Grand Elder arrived, he had already sensed the fluctuations of a Dou Zong. However, he knew that one of the Two Elders Qian Bai had come to rescue Zi Yan, so he had not paid it much mind.

Yet he had never expected Grand Elder Su Qian to attack him the moment he arrived. Though Ao Qing was caught off guard, instinctively, he still received the Grand Elder's palm strike.

There were no flashy moves. The Grand Elder was sent staggering wildly backward, taking quite a while before he managed to steady himself.

Uh...

Ao Qing was somewhat speechless as well. Fortunately, he had not used too much force and had held back. Otherwise, Su Qian would already have gone to see the King of Hell.

Only then did Zi Yan, standing beside them, finally react. She hurried over to check on Grand Elder Su Qian.

"Hey, old man, are you alright?"

The Grand Elder coughed several times. Seeing Zi Yan's worried expression, his face immediately turned resolute.

"It's nothing serious. Zi Yan, hurry and go! Return to the academy. Don't worry about me—I'll hold this guy off for you."

Zi Yan found the Grand Elder's appearance somewhat comical, but her heart still felt warm.

"You misunderstood, old man. This big brother just saved me. Why did you attack him the moment you arrived?"

Hearing this, Grand Elder Su Qian immediately flushed with embarrassment...

Ao Qing watched the amusing yet heartwarming scene between Zi Yan and Grand Elder Su Qian. He did not interrupt them, instead letting them carry on.

After hearing Zi Yan's explanation of what had happened, Grand Elder Su Qian spoke frankly.

"Your Excellency, I apologize. I attacked you without understanding the situation. Thank you for saving the life of Zi Yan, a student of Jia Nan Academy."

"No need to be polite. Saving Zi Yan is what I, Ao Qing, should do. We are from the same clan, so it is only right."

Ao Qing was not one for pretension and spoke plainly.

"Oh? Your Excellency, did you just say that you and Zi Yan are from the same clan?"

Grand Elder Su Qian was greatly surprised. He had not expected Zi Yan to still have living clansmen. He had always thought she was an orphan.

At that moment, Grand Elder Su Qian suddenly felt somewhat distressed. If the man before him truly came from the same clan as Zi Yan, would he take her away?

And he had just tested him. Although he had not sensed the man's exact aura, he was certainly no match for him. If this man truly wanted to take Zi Yan away, there was nothing he could do to stop him.

"That's right. I can sense the aura of Ancient Void Dragon bloodline within Zi Yan, and it is no ordinary Ancient Void Dragon bloodline—it is the royal bloodline of the Ancient Void Dragons!

"In other words, Zi Yan is not an orphan without a family. She is the dragon princess of our Ancient Void Dragon Clan, lost outside the clan!"

Although Ao Qing sensed the complicated emotions within Grand Elder Su Qian, he still said everything that needed to be said.

"Your Excellency, it is not that I do not believe you, but what you say is indeed rather fantastical. How could Zi Yan possibly be one of the legendary Ancient Void Dragons, and even possess royal bloodline? It is truly unbelievable!"

Ao Qing knew that Grand Elder Su Qian would not easily believe him, so he simply activated his True Dragon Bloodline. Zi Yan's Ancient Void Dragon bloodline was immediately drawn forth, surging out and transforming into the phantom of an Ancient Void Dragon behind her.

As for himself, he transformed into a True Dragon and faced Grand Elder Su Qian directly.

"Does Grand Elder Su Qian believe everything I said now?"

After saying that, he withdrew his True Dragon form, and the phantom behind Zi Yan vanished as well.

At this point, Grand Elder Su Qian believed him eighty percent. He knew the man before him had no need to deceive him. With his strength, he could have simply taken Zi Yan by force and killed him. Yet he had not, had he?

"I, Su Qian, believe all that Your Excellency has said. However, even if Zi Yan truly is the princess of your Ancient Void Dragon Clan, if Zi Yan is unwilling, this old man would rather die than let you do anything to her."

"Elder Su Qian, you overstate it. I will not harm Zi Yan. I do intend to take her with me, but not back to the Ancient Void Dragon Clan's territory. Rather, I want her to stay by my side and cultivate properly for a few years.

"Of course, if Zi Yan is unwilling, I, Ao Qing, will not force her to leave with me. Everything depends on Zi Yan's choice.

"And even if I take Zi Yan away, I will not stop her if she wishes to return to Jia Nan Academy to visit Elder Su Qian whenever she wants.

"However, if Zi Yan follows me, she should receive better guidance and truly grow stronger. Only then will she learn more about her origins."

After speaking, Ao Qing turned his gaze toward Zi Yan to see what she would choose.

Grand Elder Su Qian felt that it would be more appropriate for Zi Yan to leave with Ao Qing. Due to his position, he did not have much time to look after Zi Yan and had to tend to academy affairs most of the time.

Moreover, following Ao Qing would offer her greater security. Though Grand Elder Su Qian was somewhat reluctant, he did not speak out against it.

Zi Yan looked at Ao Qing, then at Grand Elder Su Qian, and finally at the Earth Demon Spider that had been dead for some time. Gritting her teeth, she spoke directly.

"Brother Ao Qing, Zi Yan is willing to go with you. But just as Brother Ao Qing said, whenever Zi Yan wants to return to Jia Nan Academy, Brother Ao Qing cannot stop Zi Yan."

"Don't worry. A gentleman's word is as good as gold. If you wish to come to Jia Nan Academy, you need only let me know."

"Alright, then I agree to leave with Brother Ao Qing."

Hearing Zi Yan agree to leave with him, Ao Qing breathed a sigh of relief. He truly was not at ease leaving Zi Yan at Jia Nan Academy. Just like today, although Grand Elder Su Qian would have arrived in time even without his intervention, Ao Qing did not know whether Zi Yan could still be as fortunate as she had been in the original story because of his arrival.

But if she left with him, his strength as a Two-Star Dou Saint would be enough to ensure Zi Yan's safety on the Northwest Continent, where the Emperor Clans did not emerge.

"Zi Yan, don't be in such a hurry. We are not leaving Jia Nan Academy right away. I still have some matters to take care of here. Once I finish them, we will leave together."

Hearing Ao Qing say that they would not be leaving Jia Nan Academy immediately, Zi Yan felt even happier.

"Brother Ao Qing, can Zi Yan ask you a question?"

Seeing Zi Yan hesitate as if she wanted to speak but held herself back, Ao Qing was more than willing to answer her questions.

"Zi Yan, go ahead."

"Since Brother Ao Qing said that I possess the royal bloodline of the Ancient Void Dragon Clan, you must be very familiar with the Ancient Void Dragon Clan. Do you know whether Zi Yan still has parents? Or any other relatives alive? Why did they abandon Zi Yan?"

Hearing Zi Yan's question, Ao Qing felt somewhat sorry for her as well.

However, there were some things he could not tell Zi Yan yet.

"Zi Yan, within the Ancient Void Dragon Clan, those with royal bloodlines can be counted on one hand. Aside from the few Ancient Void Dragon elders I know of, no one else possesses a royal bloodline.

Among the elders in the Ancient Void Dragon Clan's territory, none have children lost outside. However, Zhu Kun, the Second Elder of our Ancient Void Dragon Clan, has been missing for several thousand years. Perhaps you have some connection to him?

Of course, it is also possible that there are still bearers of the Ancient Void Dragon Clan's royal bloodline in this world whom I do not know about.

But that possibility is very small. Basically impossible."

After hearing Ao Qing's answer, Zi Yan did not know whether she should feel happy or unhappy. She was not yet prepared to accept all of this that had suddenly fallen upon her.

At that moment, Grand Elder Su Qian spoke as well.

"Your Excellency Ao Qing, since you have matters to attend to and are not in a hurry to leave Jia Nan Academy, why not come with me and have a cup of tea at Jia Nan Academy? We can properly fulfill our duties as hosts!"

"I shall follow Elder Su Qian's arrangements. Ao Qing will have to trouble Jia Nan Academy, then."

"What are you saying, Your Excellency Ao Qing? Your presence as a guest at Jia Nan Academy is Jia Nan Academy's good fortune. We could not ask for more!"

After saying that, Ao Qing no longer stood on ceremony with Grand Elder Su Qian. Taking Zi Yan with him, they returned to Jia Nan Academy together.

Please forgive me for my poor writing. Some people previously mentioned that there were long passages copied from the original work. I truly had not considered that everyone might not enjoy reading that. Such content will not appear again in the future—I promise!