Enrollment

The sun was bright, the breeze gentle.

As usual, Lin Qingzhu practiced her swordsmanship in the courtyard.

She had begun cultivating at five, entered the hall at ten, and formed her golden core at thirteen. Now fifteen, she was hailed as Qinglan City's genius second only to Li Yue.

She might even surpass Li Yue's record of reaching Great Completion in the Core Formation Realm at twenty and become a true daughter favored by heaven.

The sword move Lin Qingzhu was performing was the fifth form of the Li Family Sword Style—Treading Snow Without a Trace. Her pale yellow figure was as light as a fledgling swallow, while the Azure Longsword spun in her jade-like hand, weaving bloom after bloom of sword flowers.

Her delicate feet tapped lightly against the ground, and her supple body crossed through the azure sword shadows in midair, outlining a breathtakingly beautiful painting.

Just then, the clamor outside the gate interrupted Lin Qingzhu's cultivation.

"What happened? Why is everyone running toward the Training Ground?"

Watching one Lineage disciple after another hurry past the courtyard gate, Lin Qingzhu grew curious. Such a scene usually appeared only when the family head was lecturing on swordsmanship.

"Did you hear? The Second Young Master got into a fight with Li Bo and the others."

"Really? The Second Young Master has never cultivated. Isn't he just asking to be beaten up?"

The discussions exploded in Lin Qingzhu's ears like thunderclaps.

"How could that be? How could Brother Mu get into a fight with someone?"

For the past two days, Li Mu had remained at the Training Ground, repeatedly practicing the Three Basic Sword Techniques without sleep or rest. When she had visited him before, she had found his nerves stretched to the breaking point.

Lin Qingzhu knew better than anyone how difficult it was to achieve Perfection in the Three Basic Sword Techniques. If one failed to grasp the key and forced the practice, it could even damage one's foundation and affect one's future path of cultivation.

It seemed that, in order to fulfill Li Yue's condition, Brother Mu had already staked everything.

"Brother Mu, nothing must happen to you."

As Lin Qingzhu ran toward the Training Ground with the crowd, her eyes reddened in that instant.

"Eh, Brother Yue, why are you here? Did you come from the Training Ground? I heard Brother Mu got into a fight. Do you know what happened?"

A red figure approached her through the crowd. It was Li Yue. Lin Qingzhu hurriedly grabbed his arm and asked about the situation at the Training Ground.

Li Yue's expression was complicated. After a moment of silence, he patted Lin Qingzhu's shoulder without a word and walked straight away against the flow of people.

"Girl, tell that boy that he wins this time. I won't stop him from joining Qinglan Academy anymore."

Just as Lin Qingzhu was baffled, Li Yue's voice eventually drifted over. Those casual words made the girl's heart blossom with joy.

Lin Qingzhu hurried all the way to the Training Ground, only to find that it had long since cleared out. She quickly turned back toward Li Mu's courtyard.

Overjoyed, she did not even greet Chunxiang, who was dozing at the gate, before pushing the door open and entering.

Thus, an awkward scene unfolded.

A naked figure gleaming white appeared before Lin Qingzhu without the slightest cover. It was Li Mu, who had stripped himself clean and was about to bathe.

"Ah~~~~!" Her cry rang through the entire Li Mansion, startling even the birds from the trees into flight.

Lin Qingzhu covered her face and fled through the door, leaving behind a dumbfounded Li Mu, naked and disheveled in the wind.

After a long while, Li Mu, now fully dressed, finally gathered enough courage to open the door. He first shot a glare at Chunxiang, who was desperately holding back her laughter, then stepped into the courtyard and gave an awkward smile at the still puff-cheeked, red-faced Lin Qingzhu.

"Zhu'er, why didn't you knock? I'd just finished sparring with someone and was covered in smelly sweat, so I wanted to take a bath first. I didn't expect..."

Li Mu did not dare meet the girl's eyes, and even his explanation grew softer and softer.

"Forget it. It's not as if we didn't see each other when we were children. Hmph."

Seeing the young man looking as though he wished he could crawl into a crack in the ground, Lin Qingzhu's anger faded by more than half. She truly had failed to knock, so she could not blame Li Mu.

"Brother Mu, I ran into Brother Yue on the way here. He must have seen what you did at the Training Ground, and he's agreed to let you join Qinglan Academy."

Lin Qingzhu calmed herself and recounted her earlier encounter with Li Yue.

"That's great. Then I'll report to the academy tomorrow."

Li Mu was very satisfied with what he had gained over the past three days. What delighted him even more was finally receiving the initial approval of his genius elder brother.

"Don't rush. Qinglan Academy's Opening Ceremony is in three days. All the students entering this year will register together then. I'll speak with Teacher Mu beforehand. Just go find him when the time comes."

Teacher Mu, whom Lin Qingzhu always mentioned, was named Mu Bai. He had once been a renowned powerhouse in the Cangyun Empire, but his cultivation had fallen due to an accident. He had settled in Qinglan City for the past ten years, after which Li Yubai invited him to teach at the academy.

He had also been Li Yue and Lin Qingzhu's teacher when they studied at the academy, offering them both a great deal of guidance. That was why Lin Qingzhu was especially close to him.

"All right, then sorry for the trouble, Senior Lin."

Li Mu respectfully saluted Lin Qingzhu. Once he enrolled, he would truly become the girl before him's junior.

"Brother Mu, you're teasing Zhu'er again. I'm ignoring you."

How could Lin Qingzhu bear to see Li Mu acting like that? A red glow spread across her cheeks. After reminding him of a few more things, she left Li Mu's courtyard first.

Li Mu stood in the courtyard as the evening glow descended. Watching the girl's retreating figure, red sunset light filtered through the mottled leaves and fell across the young man's face, revealing the loneliness and stubbornness of a soul that had lived two lives.

"In this life, I don't think I'll be alone anymore."

Three days later, Qinglan Academy.

Before the academy's ancient gates, people crowded together in a dense sea. As one of Qinglan City's two largest cultivation academies, Qinglan Academy had always upheld an admissions principle that did not question one's origins. This gave many children from ordinary families a chance to change their destinies through cultivation.

The academy was divided into three classes. The Profound Tier Class was for students with somewhat ordinary talent who were willing to work tirelessly. The Earth Tier Class mostly admitted children from wealthy families, who had some cultivation foundation and came to systematically study all kinds of basic knowledge. Lastly came the Heaven Tier Class. Its students were Qinglan Academy's top strength. Most students entering it possessed the potential to successfully step into the Core Formation Realm and would receive the academy's careful nurturing.

Li Yue and Lin Qingzhu had both graduated from the Heaven Tier Class back then, thereby formally embarking upon the path of cultivation.

Class assignments were not fixed. Throughout the academy's history, many Profound Tier Class students had relied on their own effort and dedication to rise all the way to the Heaven Tier Class, ultimately entering the Core Formation Realm.

Li Mu and Lin Qingzhu were also standing before the academy gates, waiting for them to open. Once they did, they only needed to go straight to the teaching building and find Teacher Mu Bai to complete the procedures.

"Brother Mu, do you really want to begin in the Profound Tier Class? You've practiced the Three Basic Sword Techniques to the third form. If I speak to Teacher Mu, you can absolutely enter the Heaven Tier Class. The academy's teachers and resources will all be directed toward you then."

Lin Qingzhu had originally intended to arrange for Li Mu to study in the Heaven Tier Class, but Li Mu refused. He wanted to start from the beginning and systematically learn the foundations of cultivation. Only by laying the foundation firmly could one build a taller tower—this was something Li Mu had understood in his previous life.

"Wow, that's Senior Lin Qingzhu! She's so beautiful. No wonder she's Qinglan Academy's most beautiful woman in history."

"Really, it's Senior Qingzhu. If I had a senior like her, I'd definitely study even better."

As one of Qinglan Academy's outstanding graduates, Lin Qingzhu ranked near the top in its history in both strength and beauty. Her appearance here naturally drew everyone's attention.

"Eh, isn't the person beside Senior Lin that hooligan Second Young Master from the Li family?"

"Yes, yes, Qinglan City's number one hooligan. I heard he drank flower wine at Twin Phoenix Tower for an entire month without leaving."

"That hooligan must be coveting Senior Lin's beauty, which is why he's standing there trying to get close to her. I really hope someone teaches him a lesson."

Compared to Lin Qingzhu's far-reaching fame, Li Mu's reputation was clearly rather hard to stomach.

"Zhu'er, this is naked jealousy and malicious slander."

Li Mu hurriedly defended himself with righteous indignation to the girl beside him, who was covering her mouth and laughing. Yet it clearly did nothing to stop the other students' increasingly heated discussions.

"Brother, could you please stay farther away from Senior Qingzhu?"

A figure pushed through the crowd and came before Li Mu. The man stood seven feet tall, his sturdy muscles radiating a thick aura of masculinity beneath the sunlight.

"It's Hao Meng. The Li family's Second Young Master is done for. Hao Meng is famously devoted to Senior Lin Qingzhu. He pursued her madly at the academy before, but he's already a current student. Why is he here?"

Everyone present focused their gazes on Li Mu and Hao Meng. Most were there to watch the show. Li Mu had a poor reputation in Qinglan City, yet he was chatting and laughing with the goddess in everyone's hearts. Naturally, this displeased many people present, but they did not dare say so openly because of his status. Now that someone had stepped forward, it could not have been better.

"Brother, go! Win Sister-in-law back!" a little girl shouted.

A red-haired girl could be seen waving her arms in the crowd. She was Hao Meng's younger sister, Hao Xiaomeng.

"Cough, cough. Anyway, you have to stay away from Senior Qingzhu today, or don't blame me for being rude."

Hao Meng had originally come today to bring his younger sister to enroll. In the crowd, he discovered the goddess senior he admired. Yet who would have thought that she would be chatting and laughing with the Li family's Second Young Master, Li Mu, the reputed big boss of Twin Phoenix Tower? Hao Meng's blood surged at once. He decided that the Li family's young master was pestering his senior, then immediately came forward to stop him.

Looking at the big fool before him, Li Mu found it both irritating and amusing. He was just about to say a few polite words and send Hao Meng away.

A long-unheard electronic notification suddenly sounded in his mind.

The simulation system has activated. The mission system is initializing. Initialization complete. Please choose whether to accept the mission.

A girl dressed in a green Western-style dress appeared in his mind, holding out a parchment with the familiar words "Yes" and "No" written on it.

"Isn't this Seliya from Edgar Continent?"

Having grown accustomed to it, Li Mu recognized at a glance that this girl was the NPC from some ancient side-scrolling game.

Beginner mission triggered: Defeat Hao Meng. Mission reward: Unlock storage function, obtain Level 1 storage, a shabby iron vault.

In an instant, the way Li Mu looked at Hao Meng changed. It was as though he were looking at prey awaiting slaughter, and an enigmatic smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.