Inner Court Rank Divisions

Hearing Zhou Sichen's words, the smile on Dugu Xianmeng's face seemed to freeze for an instant.

"Legends aren't necessarily all true. Anyway, I don't believe it," Dugu Xianmeng snorted.

The two continued chatting back and forth. Zhou Sichen also learned of his elder sister's current standing in the academy, as well as the close relationship between this Poison Witch before him and his elder sister.

Before they knew it, the two arrived before several villas. These villas were closest to the Golden Tree, and their location could be called the best.

Dugu Xianmeng pointed at the villas. "These are the three villas closest to the Golden Tree. The one in the middle belongs to Senior Sister, the one on the left belongs to Flame Maniac Ma Xiaotao, and the one on the right belongs to Big Sister."

Hearing her introduction, Zhou Sichen could not help raising a brow. He was going to be neighbors with those two...

Dugu Xianmeng said to Zhou Sichen, "Big Sister isn't at the academy right now. She probably won't be back for another month or two. Go on by yourself first. I'll come find you tomorrow and show you around the Inner Court."

Zhou Sichen nodded. After bidding Dugu Xianmeng farewell, he headed straight for his elder sister's villa.

The two of them had lived in the same courtyard since childhood. Living in the same villa now was nothing. Zhou Sichen could not have wanted it more!

It would even save the academy quite a bit. A win-win situation, wasn't it?

Even if no one lived in the villa, someone came to clean it every day, so they did not need to worry about it at all.

Zhou Sichen pushed open the door, and a familiar fragrance greeted him. The villa's courtyard was filled with sunflowers.

These sunflowers were quite special. They had been specially cultivated and could serve as a mimicry cultivation ground, benefiting the cultivation of light-attributed soul masters.

They also gave off a unique fragrance that left one feeling refreshed and at ease.

Before his elder sister came to Shrek Academy, the courtyard at home had been full of sunflowers. They were still there even now! Every time she returned home at the end of a term, she would stay there for a while.

Upon entering the courtyard, Zhou Sichen was greatly surprised to find that its layout was almost identical to their home. When he entered the villa, the interior arrangement was nearly unchanged as well.

Just as he would at home, Zhou Sichen went straight to where his room should be and opened the door. To his surprise, even the furnishings inside were almost exactly the same.

Zhou Sichen was deeply moved. Although they had spent little time together over the past few years, his elder sister had always kept him in her heart!

His frantic efforts toward the goal of marrying Ye Guyi had not been in vain!

That Soul Tool he had used to cross Sea God Island was the meeting gift Zhou Sichen had prepared for Ye Guyi!

Unfortunately, his elder sister was not at the academy and had not had the chance to write to him yet. She must have been called away on an urgent mission, right?

Far from home, he had not expected that coming to Shrek Academy would make him feel as though he had returned home.

Zhou Sichen casually went to the kitchen and made something to eat, then carefully walked through the entire villa. Sure enough, every corner carried the feeling of home.

That night, for the first time in a long while, Zhou Sichen did not cultivate. Instead, he lay on the bed Ye Guyi had personally made for him back then and peacefully fell asleep.

In his dreams, Zhou Sichen seemed to return to the time he had first met his elder sister. Back then, she had nearly been ambushed by Hellfire. Thinking about it now, perhaps it had been fated?

The next day, Zhou Sichen woke early. Having gone so long without sleeping, he felt as though he had been reborn.

He usually replaced sleep with cultivation. Resting properly once in a while truly felt different.

Glancing at the rising sun outside, Zhou Sichen stretched. After washing up, he went downstairs and did some morning training in the courtyard.

Not long after, Dugu Xianmeng's voice came from outside. "Zhou Sichen, are you awake?"

"I'm here, Senior," Zhou Sichen answered, stepping forward to open the courtyard gate.

Seeing Zhou Sichen in a training outfit, his clean and refreshing ponytail tied up, Dugu Xianmeng could not help raising a brow. As expected of Big Sister's younger brother. That face, that temperament... No, I have to win him over before Big Sister returns...

Although Dugu Xianmeng was seen by others as a fearsome Poison Witch, she was not truly dark or withdrawn by nature. It was simply because of her martial soul that no one dared approach her.

However, over the past few years, she had come to experience the joy of friendship, because Big Sister had been willing to get close to her and was not afraid of her deadly poison.

With someone to guide her, her heart had naturally become far less burdened than when she was young. Now that she had met Big Sister's younger brother, she naturally took the initiative to grow closer to him.

Most importantly, Zhou Sichen was not afraid of her poison either. Extreme Ice's suppression of her deadly poison was absolute, and their earlier battle had been sufficient proof.

It was precisely because of this that Dugu Xianmeng dared take the initiative to approach Zhou Sichen. Otherwise, she would not have entertained such a foolish fantasy...

"Let's go, Senior," Zhou Sichen said as he looked at the dazed Dugu Xianmeng, feeling more and more that his impression of her as a dark, mature beauty yesterday had been mistaken.

Dugu Xianmeng came back to her senses. "Let's go. I'll take you to breakfast first."

Zhou Sichen nodded and silently followed by her side.

Dugu Xianmeng explained, "We in the Inner Court basically don't need to spend much. The Cafeteria is free, but whether you get to eat what you want depends on your strength."

Zhou Sichen was somewhat intrigued. "What do you mean by that?"

"Although there aren't many Inner Court Disciples, and most of them go out to carry out missions, there are still around forty or fifty who remain at the academy at any given time. The food prepared by the Cafeteria is generally made from the finest Soul Beast essences or other premium ingredients."

"But aside from throwing everything into one pot, food can also be prepared according to the concentration of its nutritional essence."

"The Inner Court holds Soul Arena battles regularly. You'll receive a Soul Arena Points Card and a Soul Arena Badge later as well. After participating in Soul Arena battles, there will be clear rank divisions, and the food we eat is likewise divided into ranks."

As she spoke, Dugu Xianmeng looked at Zhou Sichen. "Do you understand now?"

Zhou Sichen nodded slightly. "I see. Then wouldn't those of us who have just entered the Inner Court only be able to eat the lowest-grade food?"

Dugu Xianmeng smiled slightly. "Students who have just entered the Inner Court can freely choose the rank of food they want for their first month. But after that month, it will be distributed strictly according to the ranking system."

"The Inner Court is a place where geniuses gather. Even if some people were true geniuses in the Outer Court, after entering the Inner Court, their first month of privilege may be the best month of eating they ever have."

"Of course, if you have enough money, you can also pay the regular price to buy food that your rank would not normally allow you to eat."

Hearing this, Zhou Sichen gradually gained some understanding of the Inner Court's ranking system.

If the Outer Court was a cradle for learning theory and broadening one's various skills, then the Inner Court was a place that truly cultivated the strong.

Only one principle was honored here: the strong were respected!

Before long, the two arrived at the Cafeteria. The Inner Court only had two cafeterias in total, one for students and one for teachers and Shrek Academy's elders.

Teachers could normally eat at the students' Cafeteria, but students could not enter the teachers' Cafeteria, except for a few special cases.

According to Dugu Xianmeng, only four people could currently eat at the teachers' Cafeteria.

The number one person in the Inner Court, Senior Sister Zhang Lexuan.

Flame Maniac Ma Xiaotao, who was expected to catch up to Senior Sister.

Then there was the newly risen Big Sister, Angel Goddess Ye Guyi.

And finally, a little brother with a supposedly special identity, who had not been in the Inner Court for the past few years.

Hearing his elder sister's nickname, Zhou Sichen thought it sounded rather nice. His elder sister had never told him about it. Was she embarrassed?

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There will be another chapter tonight. I lost a game to some readers yesterday and promised them one.