As Black White Gatekeepers!

In the Jia Nan Academy, in the Inner Courtyard, in Xiao Xun'er's private little courtyard.

Xiao Xun'er had just finished her cultivation lesson for the day and got up to make herself some tea at the stone table.

"Elder Ling, let's have a drink together."

Ling Ying emerged from the shadows:

"Thank you for the tea, Miss!"

Xiao Xun'er: "Although we are master and servant, Xun'er still regards Elder Ling as an elder, so there is no need for such formality."

Ling Ying: "Miss, rules are rules."

"Yes, rules are rules. Otherwise, I would have gone to the Jia Ma Empire with my junior back then."

Xiao Xun'er with some resentment, "Junior brother obtained the Extraterrestrial Ghoul Lightning and his strength has greatly increased. His journey to the Jia Ma Empire must be full of excitement. Unlike me, all I do every day is cultivate."

Ling Ying: "Miss."

"Elder Ling."

Xiao Xun'er looked at Ling Ying, and the grievance in her eyes made Ling Ying silently lower his head.

Xiao Xun'er has never been free.

Perhaps now that she's free, she doesn't know what to do.

Finally, he had Yang Shan by his side, someone he could take with him to see the wonders of the world, but because of the "rules," Ling Ying wanted to say something, but he suddenly looked up at the sky.

Xiao Xun'er was already so excited that she stood up.

Ling Ying said helplessly, "Miss, there's no need to get so agitated."

Xiao Xun'er nodded:

"Elder Ling, you should hide it first."

"Well"

Ling Ying said nothing more and silently disappeared.

A moment later, Scarlet Wings fell from the sky into the courtyard.

Yang Shan looked at Xiao Xun'er and smiled casually, "Senior!"

"Junior, you're back!"

Xiao Xun'er had intended to hide her joy, but she didn't expect that as soon as she opened her mouth, she would give herself away.

Xiao Xun'er waved to Yang Shan:

"Come over and have some tea."

Alright!

Yang Shan didn't stand on ceremony at all, and after sitting down, he downed a cup of tea in one gulp. "Excellent tea!"

Xiao Xun'er said helplessly, "That's not how you drink tea. You have to sip it little by little and savor its flavor."

Yang Shan: "Does it necessarily have to be done according to the rules? Isn't it more important to be comfortable? I'm just quenching my thirst with tea."

Hearing this, Ling Ying, who was hiding in the shadows, instinctively covered her forehead.

"This kid is such a smooth talker! Every word he says sounds like he's trying to entice my young lady to go out and have fun!"

Xiao Xun'er imitated Yang Shan, finishing the tea in her cup in one gulp, her expression calm.

Yang Shan: "How is it?"

Xiao Xun'er: "Bitter."

Yang Shan: "It's supposed to be bitter. How can tea not be bitter if you drink it like this?"

Xiao Xun'er: "Then why did you drink it all in one gulp?"

Yang Shan: "It quenches thirst. Drinking it only makes you feel bitter for a moment, but as for thirst, you don't know how long you'll be thirsty."

Xiao Xun'er looked at Yang Shan with great interest:

"Junior, I've discovered something."

Yang Shan: "What is it?"

Xiao Xun'er: "You often say things that seem illogical at first glance, but upon closer inspection, they make a lot of sense."

Yang Shan pretended to be smug:

"Oh, so I'm actually a great scholar?"

Xiao Xun'er was amused by Yang Shan:

"Junior, you're still as shameless as ever."

Yang Shan's few simple words brought a genuine smile to Xiao Xun'er's face that was more frequent than it had been in the past month.

Ling Ying then went with Yang Shan: "Alright, let Miss enjoy her last days happily."

Yang Shan took out a Accompanying Amethyst Source and a piece of Amethyst Spirit Crystal from his Storage Ring:

"Senior, this is for you!"

Xiao Xun'er: "What is this?"

Yang Shan gave a brief explanation.

Xiao Xun'er: "Junior brother, this is too precious, I can't accept it."

Yang Shan: "This time when I went to the Jia Ma Empire, I was very grateful to my senior for helping me get the Extraterrestrial Ghoul Lightning. Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to get these things, so you get a share of the spoils."

Xiao Xun'er suddenly realized. "No wonder you didn't say it was a gift."

Yang Shan: "Spoils of war are spoils of war, and gifts are gifts."

Xiao Xun'er: "Is there a gift?"

Yang Shan: "I have definitely prepared a gift, but I won't give it to you now."

Xiao Xun'er: "Not now?"

Yang Shan: "Give it to us when the time is right."

Xiao Xun'er feigned anger. "Junior, you're really good at keeping me in suspense now. Fine, let's see what you can give me. If I'm not satisfied..."

Xiao Xun'er thought for a while before continuing, "If I'm not satisfied, I'll get angry."

Yang Shan: Uh

Xiao Xun'er is indeed Xiao Xun'er; even her threatening words sound so harmless.

As the two were talking, there was a knock on the courtyard door:

"Xun'er Sister Xun'er! Xun'er Sister Xun'er!"

Xiao Xun'er: "It's Senior Han Yue."

Yang Shan: "I'll go open the door."

As the door opened, Han Yue, a black goddess dressed in silver with silver hair, came into view.

What a nice view!

Nice legs!

No wonder there are more and more screenshots of Xiao Xun'er on the forum, but Han Yue is still extremely popular among players.

Although Han Yue has far fewer scenes in the original novel compared to the main female supporting characters.

But Han Yue's outfit is a huge plus! "Junior Yang Shan, long time no see!"

Han Yue seemed unsurprised by Yang Shan's appearance. "You really are anything but low-key. You flew over Canaan City and caused quite a commotion. After the Great Elder received the news, he figured that you would definitely visit Xun'er Sister Xun'er first when you came to the Inner Courtyard, so he specially sent me to find the two of you."

Yang Shan: "The Great Elder is looking for us?"

Xiao Xun'er also stood up:

"Does the Great Elder have something he/she needs us to do?"

The Inner Courtyard is still under the ban on entry but not exit, Xiao Xun'er is currently looking for an excuse to go out for a stroll!

Han Yue: "I don't know either, just come with us first."

After some time apart, Han Yue has already cultivated to the Nine Star Dou Ling, which is quite fast.

Unfortunately, compared to the growth rate of Top Player, Han Yue is still far behind.

However, many NPCs have their own special encounters, so Han Yue's potential will not stop there.

Xiao Xun'er: "Since it's the Great Elder's order, let's set off immediately."

The Great Elder usually lives on the hillside behind the Burning Sky Refining Tower.

When Yang Shan and the others arrived, they discovered that Xiao Aotian and Hu Jia were also there.

Xiao Aotian was also taken aback when he saw Yang Shan Xiao Xun'er.

But Xiao Aotian kept his expression under control, only sending a message to his friend. "Damn! What time is it?"

Yang Shan immediately replied, "Soon."

Xiao Aotian: "I don't believe it! I don't believe it!"

If the occasion hadn't been inappropriate, Yang Shan estimated that Xiao Aotian would have definitely attacked his business partner!

Great Elder Su Qian of the Inner Courtyard stood with his hands behind his back, a kind smile on his face:

"To make a long story short, a new batch of students from the Outer Courtyard will be participating in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition in a day. I've assigned the five of you to be the Black White Gatekeepers. What do you think?"

Han Yue whispered, "Great Elder, why did you choose us?"

Su Qian: "If we assign all the senior students from the Inner Courtyard, it would be too unfair to the new students. Among the new students in the Inner Courtyard, these four are the strongest. Han Yue, you are considered a senior student, but you have never participated in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition. This time, you will be the captain and lead these four to do a good job of overseeing them!"

Han Yue: "Great Elder, that's not what I meant."

Su Qian: "Oh? What does that mean?"

Han Yue: "It's one thing for junior brother Aotian, but Xun'er sister Xun'er and junior brother Yang Shan... back then, even Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing couldn't stop them."

Xiao Aotian was completely numb.

What do you mean by "It's one thing if it's just junior brother Aotian"? "Am I really that bad in Han Yue's eyes?"

It's not that Xiao Aotian is incompetent; he recently reached the Dou Wang level, greatly increasing his strength.

But Yang Shan is number one in the entire server, and Xiao Xun'er has cheat codes!

Each one was more outrageous than the last! Therefore, compared to them, Xiao Aotian's brilliance was naturally overshadowed.

Hu Jia: "Three Dou Wang, Senior Sister Han Yue is Nine Star Dou Ling, and I am Eight Star Dou Ling. Are we, as students from the Outer Courtyard, worth such a luxurious combination to deal with?"

Su Qian smiled knowingly:

"Don't underestimate the Outer Courtyard. You all came from the Outer Courtyard. Talented people emerge in every generation. Of course, the most important thing is that there are a lot of Outer Courtyard students participating in this Fire Energy Hunting Competition!"

Hu Jia: "Very many? How many?"

Su Qian held up three fingers.

Hu Jia was startled. "Three thousand? That much?"

Su Qian: "Thirty thousand!"

Hu Jia: "."

Yang Shan also received a system notification at the opportune moment: [Ding! Player, please note that Su Qian has issued you a task: you need to participate in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition as a "Member of the Black White Gatekeepers".]

[Note: There are no NPCs among the Outer Courtyard students in this Fire Energy Hunting Competition. After you kill a player in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition, the opponent will be forced to retain 10% of their maximum health and will not suffer any death penalty, but Fire Energy Points will be deducted. Due to the large number of participants from the Outer Courtyard this time, your kill rewards will be changed.]

[When you kill Outer Courtyard player, you will receive 0.2 Fire Energy Points, and your teammates will each receive 0.1 Fire Energy Points. Your kills will be calculated as normal experience points for killing NPCs of the same level.]

If you have Fire Energy Points!

Experience points! Yang Shan immediately replied:

"Alright, Great Elder, I'm willing to participate."

Since Yang Shan agreed, Xiao Xun'er naturally agreed as well, "I'll go too."

Xiao Aotian was naturally not to be outdone; this was a great opportunity to get to know Xiao Xun'er! Seeing that the three Dou Wang had all agreed, how could Han Yue and Hu Jia not go?

Opportunities like this, where you can make a Fire Energy Points, are rare! Yang Shan had previously taken on many missions from the Enforcement Team in the Black-Corner Region, and apart from exchanging the recipe for the Body Tempering Pill, he had not spent any money.

Therefore, he already had a considerable amount of Fire Energy Points saved up.

However, Yang Shan did not use the Fire Energy Points to exchange for anything.

He just kept it!

In the Inner Courtyard's Secret Treasure Vault, everything is clearly priced.

The better the product, the more Fire Energy Points it requires.

Yang Shan was thinking of saving up more so that he could exchange it for a top-tier item that was "not normally produced" in the current version!

This Fire Energy Hunting Competition might be the opportunity for Yang Shan to exchange for items! A day passed in the blink of an eye.

Early in the morning, the Outer Courtyard of the Jia Nan Academy was already bustling with activity.

In the original story, the total number of students at the Jia Nan Academy probably didn't even reach 30,000.

After all, Jia Nan Academy has very high admission requirements.

But if there are players, that's a different story.

Moreover, Tian Yao Company did not reduce the number of NPC students at all, even though there were too many players wanting to enter Jia Nan Academy.

It even greatly increased the number of NPCs! If there weren't so many NPCs, how would you take care of the regular players? You can't expect one female NPC to build relationships with a dozen male players at the same time, can you?

Wouldn't everyone become a player? The Outer Courtyard is truly overcrowded right now.

Players arrived in several waves, and each wave was larger than the last.

The number of players in the Outer Courtyard of the Jia Nan Academy is now approaching one million! Fortunately, Tian Yao Company had the foresight to set up "Secret Realm Spaces" in the Outer Courtyard and assigned them numbers.

Once players enter the Outer Courtyard, they can freely choose to enter any numbered secret realm space.

All the buildings within the secret realm remain unchanged; only the NPCs will be different.

Today, thousands of Gryphon flew in from the sky! Gryphon are flying magical beasts kept by the Jia Nan Academy. They are large in size, can carry a large number of people, fly smoothly, and are quite fast.

If players are interested, they can even try to get one for themselves through various tasks.

Players were standing on the backs of thousands of Gryphon.

Thirty thousand people! They are the players from the Outer Courtyard who will participate in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition this year!

As the Gryphon took flight, the handsome and beautiful NPC students on the ground waved towards the sky.

"Keep it up!"

"Keep it up, Ma Shaji! You'll definitely make it into the Inner Courtyard!"

"Qian Jiao! Wait for me in the Inner Courtyard! I will definitely catch up with you! I will become a man worthy of standing by your side!"

"Lian Ge! I believe that one day you will come to marry me riding on auspicious seven-colored clouds."

The cheers from these NPCs clearly indicate that four years have passed since the game's launch.

Indeed, quite a few players have already formed relationships beyond friendship with NPCs! This is one of the key methods Tian Yao Company uses to keep players playing until the server shuts down!

On the back of a Gryphon, Su Yitang yawned boredly:

"Sigh, finally I'm going to enter the Inner Courtyard! I can cling to the boss's leg again! Mmm, I'm so happy!"

Back when Yang Shan participated in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition, he was still a Dou Ling.

Now, Su Yitang is participating in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition, and she has already become Dou Wang.

Of course, as the average level of players continues to increase, the entry requirements for the Inner Courtyard of the Jia Nan Academy are also gradually rising.

Even so, Su Yitang is definitely an "exception"! Dou Wang, she can sit on equal footing with the elders in the Inner Courtyard! There aren't many Dou Wang in the top ten of the Inner Courtyard's Strong Ranking! Arriving outside the Inner Courtyard, at the edge of the vast forest, the Gryphon landed one after another.

Impatient, Su Yitang immediately activated her Dou Qi Transformation Wings and rushed towards the Inner Courtyard! While other players might be thinking about how to escape the pursuit of the senior students in this competition, Su Yitang was thinking about how to get more Fire Energy Points from the senior students!

After all, this thing can be exchanged for good items in the Inner Courtyard! In this Fire Energy Hunting Competition, players don't need to worry about killing the senior students in the Inner Courtyard.

Because of the special rules for these NPCs in this competition, once their health reaches zero, they will be forcibly restored to 10% of their maximum health.

What we want is for the players to attack without any scruples! To fight! Yang Shan had already communicated with Su Yitang in advance, suggesting that Su Yitang not go to the Inner Courtyard gate too quickly, but instead try to cause trouble for some senior students.

The cyan Dou Qi Light Wings behind Su Yitang were too conspicuous.

The attention of tens of thousands of players was immediately drawn to it.

"Holy crap! Dou Wang?"

"Damn, where did this Dou Wang come from? Is he an NPC?"

"Are you stupid?! Top Player are all aiming for the Dou Wang level right now, and the price of Ascension Spirit Pill on the Auction House is practically skyrocketing. This is clearly a Dou Wang player who passed the Heart Demon Trial!"

"That figure is clearly a woman! Are there any female players among the Top Player?"

"I remember now! Recently, it seems there's been a rumor on the forum that a female player has become Dou Wang, her name is Su Yitang!"

"Yes, yes, yes! It was a girl from the Hidden Thorn Guild who leaked the information. Although she didn't post any pictures out of respect for privacy, this is the only female player at the Dou Wang level that has been exposed on the forum so far!"

"It's most likely Su Yitang! I just don't know if she's pretty, hehe!"

The players are having a heated discussion.

Suddenly, on another Gryphon, a player dressed in a blood-red robe activated a pair of blood-red wings and flew away into the distance.

"Damn it, it's another Dou Wang!"

"Where did this big shot come from?"

"A long red robe... Could it be Yang One-Blade?"

"What a load of rubbish! Yang One-Blade Yang One-Blade is the king of the Inner Courtyard. He even beat Liu Qing to a pulp. What kind of Fire Energy Hunting Competition is he participating in?"

"But those Dou Qi Light Wings look just like it! Scarlet!"

"It's different! They both look like blood-red, but Yang One-Blade mainly cultivates lightning attribute. His wings are glowing and there are red electric currents! These blood-red wings have no light at all, which looks eerie."

"Let me down! Let me down! Damn it, if we're too late, all the senior students will be robbed!"

"Are you fucking drunk? You think Fire Energy Points from a senior student?"

"Is that not enough? I'm an Eight Star Dou Ling!"

"Damn! Boss!"

"Giegie, can you help your little sister out? She has a cute little voice!"

Have you ever seen a little girl who looks like a tank?

Meanwhile, at the main gate of the Inner Courtyard, the curious Inner Courtyard students had already gathered together.

Yang Shan somehow acquired a large pile of fences and distributed them to his four teammates.

Han Yue said helplessly, "Junior Yang Shan, there's no such rule in the competition."

Yang Shan: "I didn't say that this was a rule of the academy. It's just our rule. They can choose not to follow it, but I certainly won't tell them."

Xiao Xun'er didn't know why, but she felt happy doing ordinary things like setting up the fence.

The main problem is that Yang Shan's thought process is truly outrageous!

Look at this fence, two vertical rows, when erected, it looks just like the path drawn up to lead to the Inner Courtyard gate.

But Yang Shan, that scoundrel, put up a huge signboard on each side of the road intersection.

The first line of text on the plaque is particularly eye-catching. "To enter the inner gate, one must pass through here!" The following text explains that the new students participating in this Fire Energy Hunting Competition must walk along this path to the entrance of the Inner Courtyard to be considered successful!

Of course, this success does not refer to entering the Inner Courtyard, but rather to winning the Fire Energy Hunting Competition, which will earn additional rewards.

Whether or not a student can enter the Inner Courtyard is determined by the elders who are watching from the shadows, based on their performance.

Xiao Xun'er thought Yang Shan was a true genius!

If there are no rules, then make your own! You'll definitely be able to completely outmaneuver the freshmen from the Outer Courtyard.

Xiao Aotian was also helping to set up the fence, but as he did so, he kept moving closer to Xiao Xun'er.

"Xun'er."

Before Xiao Aotian could finish speaking, Xiao Xun'er had already quickly come to Yang Shan's side, smiling, "Junior, is the reason you arranged things like this just to create another obstacle for the freshmen?"

No, that's not it.

Yang Shan answered very sincerely:

"I'm just too lazy to go into the forest to look for them. They'll come eventually anyway, so I'll just block the road here."

Han Yue couldn't help but say:

"I really didn't expect that junior Yang Shan would go to such lengths just to slack off! With 30,000 freshmen, are you really not afraid of getting into trouble?"

"No, there are 30,000 new students, but only 300 senior students are participating in the Fire Energy Hunting Competition. Although the senior students are stronger, the forest area is too vast. It's simply unrealistic to stop 30,000 new students. So how many new students pass through the gate is something Great Elder Su Qian and the others need to worry about."

Yang Shan said confidently, "Great Elder Su Qian sent us to establish our authority as the Black White Gatekeepers, not to wipe out all the new students."

Hidden in the shadows, Great Elder Su Qian, who had overheard Yang Shan's shameless words, almost couldn't resist showing himself to let this troublesome student experience the wrath of Dou Zong powerhouse.

But he was stopped by Hu Qian, the dean of the Outer Courtyard, who was almost laughing himself to death:

"Hey, Su Qian, why are you getting so worked up about the student? What did Yang Shan say that wasn't reasonable?"

Great Elder Su Qian shook his head repeatedly. "If only I had sent Lin Xiuya and Liu Qing, they would have been much more reliable."

Hu Qian: "You're talking as if those two can beat Yang Shan now. I can't even tell what level Yang Shan is at now!"

Great Elder Su Qian: "Don't even mention you, I can only see a little bit, but it must be at least Three-Star Dou Wang."

Hu Qian: "Good heavens! This kid's potential is truly terrifying. I'm afraid those two weren't as strong as him when they were young."

"That's right. Alas, I wonder if the Thousand-Hundred Two Elders will ever have the chance to take that step."

After setting up the fence, Yang Shan took out a table and chairs from his Storage Ring and waved to his teammates:

"Don't just stand there like an idiot. Those freshmen probably won't arrive for a while. Since you're just killing time, come over and have something to eat and drink!"

After saying that, Yang Shan waved his hand, and delicious food and fruit appeared on the table.

Han Yue's eyes lit up. "Junior Brother Yang Shan really knows how to manage his money."

[Ding! Player, please note that Han Yue has developed a strong interest in you. Your favorability has increased by 2 points. Current favorability: 5 points.]

Yang Shan had previously had contact with Han Yue because of Xiao Xun'er, and gained 3 points of favorability.

Yang Shan did not take the initiative to interact this time, but Han Yue's favorability increased by 2 points!

However, it was inconvenient for Yang Shan to engage in any overt "interactions" with Han Yue in the presence of Xiao Xun'er.

"Black stockings goddesses are nice, but none of them smell as good as my senior!"

Yang Shan was very good at distinguishing between primary and secondary matters! So after Xiao Xun'er sat down, Yang Shan peeled a grape with practiced ease. "Senior, ah!"

Xiao Xun'er trembled uncontrollably.

This was a "special gesture" between Yang Shan and her! She was calm and composed.

But behind them was the Inner Courtyard gate, where thousands of senior students were watching them!

"How can this junior be so bold?"

But Xiao Xun'er hesitated for only a second.

Just one second.

Then, to the astonishment of the men, she leaned her face closer.

He opened his mouth slightly and ate the grape.

There was even a comment:

"Mmm, just as sweet as before."

As for the others, let them think what they want!

Why should Xiao Xun'er care about the opinions of outsiders?

Xiao Xun'er didn't care, but some people cared a lot! For example, Lin Xiuya, standing inside the gate, turned green with rage! "Yang Shan!"

Seeing that Lin Xiuya was about to draw his sword, his friend Yan Hao quickly pulled him back. "Old Lin! No, jealousy can make a person unrecognizable, Old Lin!"

Lin Xiuya wasn't the only one whose appearance had been completely changed!

Xiao Xun'er seemed to have only Yang Shan in her eyes, with no other thoughts on her mind.

Sitting right across from him, Xiao Aotian gritted his teeth and witnessed the whole thing!

His heart felt like it was being pierced by a thousand needles!

It keeps stabbing me! The pain is so intense I can't breathe!

"Damn it, Yang Shan, you deserve to die! You really deserve to die!"