Dean Mang Tianchi

"Tsk, after all these years, we finally have a student who is decent enough."

An aged voice, tinged with disappointment, rang out, and the phantom of an old man in a black robe appeared before Xiao Yuan.

Looking at the mysterious old man before him, Xiao Yuan took a step back, his face full of vigilance.

He discovered that he was no longer in the room with the energy shield, but had arrived in a boundless Thunder Sea.

"What are you doing, kid? You didn't even say hello when you saw me?"

The old man's face darkened when he saw that Xiao Yuan had actually taken a step back. He leaned closer and said, blowing his beard and glaring at Xiao Yuan.

"Uh, who are you?"

Xiao Yuan genuinely didn't recognize the old man in front of him, but guessing he was probably a senior, he still respectfully performed a junior's bow and asked.

"Damn it, are you kidding me? You were able to obtain the cultivation technique I left behind, so you should naturally be a student of the Jia Nan Academy. How come you don't even recognize your own dean?"

The old man trembled with anger upon hearing this, and questioned him with disbelief on his face.

"Uh, I really don't recognize you, and there's no portrait of you in the academy either!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuan scratched his head somewhat awkwardly, but his heart skipped a beat.

He had only thought that the cultivation technique was of a high grade and was of the lightning attribute, which might be helpful for cultivating the Three Thousand Lightning Movement, so he made a move to get it. He never expected that it was a treasure left behind by the Dean!

"Damn it, I'll have Su Qian plaster my portrait all over the entire academy! You just wait and see, I am Mang Tianchi, the dean of the Jia Nan Academy. If you don't recognize me when you see me again, I'll throw you into the lightning pit and have you struck by lightning!"

Upon hearing this, Mang Tianchi cursed and swore, then glanced at Xiao Yuan and nodded imperceptibly, clearly quite satisfied with Xiao Yuan.

"Yin Yang Dual Flames, Dou Ling," Mang Tianchi said, then suddenly frowned and added, "Your aura is so strange, fluctuating between the levels of Four-Star Dou Grandmaster and Three-Star Dou Ling. Not bad age, only eighteen. Dou Qi... Damn, you're clearly an Ice Attribute cultivator, why are you using my technique?"

After a brief conversation, the dean of the Jia Nan Academy's pretentious manner plummeted. His tone of voice was more like that of a bandit from the mountains than a dean.

"Because it's good."

Seeing that Mang Tianchi wasn't putting on airs, Xiao Yuan also became a bit more unrestrained and shrugged.

"Fine, how about I switch you to a Earth Rank Low Level Ice Attribute cultivation technique? My technique isn't suitable for you; it would be a waste."

Upon hearing this, Mang Tianchi asked with a speechless expression.

"No way! I got this through my own abilities, why should I exchange it for something else? Your cultivation technique seems to be of the Earth Rank Advanced, right? How about you give me a Earth Rank Advanced Ice Attribute cultivation technique and Dou Technique, Dean? I'll put your technique back immediately!"

Xiao Yuan wasn't going to let himself be taken advantage of, and immediately started extorting money from him.

"No, why don't you just rob it? Where am I supposed to get you Earth Rank Advanced Ice Attribute cultivation technique? Oh, I remember now, there's a Demon Flame Valley in the Black-Corner Region. The Valley Master, Earth Demon Old Ghost, should have an Earth-rank Ice Attribute cultivation technique. Why don't you go ask him for it?"

Mang Tianchi glared and said angrily, but then changed his tone and said with a mocking expression.

What is his strength?

Xiao Yuan pretended not to know how powerful the Earth Demon Old Ghost was and asked curiously.

"He's probably only around a Dou Zong five, six, seven, or eight, right? I don't know. His talent isn't that great, so I guess his improvement over the years has been limited."

Mang Tianchi said uncertainly upon hearing this.

"Dean, are you trying to kill the students?"

Xiao Yuan covered his face and sighed helplessly.

"Hey, alright, alright, I'm not messing with you anymore. The academy only has Earth Rank Low Level cultivation techniques and mid-level Earth-rank Dou Technique with Ice Attribute, and I've already decided to give them to you. This Demon Thunder Mirror is indeed not suitable for you to cultivate. You should switch to Ice Attribute one. It's a pity to waste such a good seedling like you."

Mang Tianchi smiled upon seeing this, then waved his hand and casually produced two white scrolls covered in frost in his hand.

"Dean, I can actually practice this technique!"

As Xiao Yuan spoke, he flicked the scroll in his hand, and a bolt of lightning was drawn into his body, falling into the Azure Wood Qi Gathering Palaces under Xiao Yuan's control.

Boom! With the arrival of the lightning arc, Xiao Yuan used it as a guide to begin converting his Dou Qi. A moment later, under Mang Tianchi's curious gaze, a blue lightning arc danced at Xiao Yuan's fingertip.

Holy crap!

Upon seeing this, Mang Tianchi exclaimed in surprise. However, the next moment, when he saw the lightning arcs spreading from his fingertips to his entire body and condensing into a set of lightning-attribute Douqi Armor, a look of shock appeared in his eyes.

How is that possible!

This kid actually possesses Lightning Attribute Dou Qi? No wonder he was able to obtain the Demon Thunder Mirror!

Xiao Yuan gazed at the illusory image of Mang Tianchi, a smile playing on his lips.

He wasn't worried that Mang Tianchi would covet his dual-attribute Dou Qi physique; given Mang Tianchi's cultivation level and status, it was impossible for him to do so.

However, Mang Tianchi's reaction next made Xiao Yuan want to laugh.

Realizing his lapse in composure, Mang Tianchi straightened his face and said sternly:

"Well, actually, it was just a test for you earlier. I could tell from the beginning that you had Lightning Attribute Dou Qi, otherwise it would have been impossible to obtain the Demon Thunder Mirror and activate the mark I left in it at the same time. This technique is quite profound, and it also has matching Dou Technique. It is considered the most precious set of Dou Technique and techniques in the Jia Nan Academy."

You've got my martial arts manual, so you'd better practice it diligently. Don't let me down. Alright, go now!

After saying that, Mang Tianchi waved his hand, and a black lightning bolt entered Xiao Yuan's brow, forming a lightning mark. At the same time, the scenery around Xiao Yuan began to gradually fade away.

Boom! Amidst the silver lightning storm, black arcs of lightning flickered, emitting a terrifying aura of destruction. Wu Hao and Hu Jia, who were quite a distance away, both felt that their lives could not be effectively protected. Although Xiao Yuan had shocked them quite a bit earlier, they still couldn't help but worry about Xiao Yuan's safety at this moment.

However, not long after, the storm, which had been raging, gradually weakened, as if its fuel had been removed.

Soon, at the center of the thunderstorm, an inverted vortex gradually took shape, and an ice coffin full of cracks appeared before everyone.

Click!

The ice coffin made a crisp cracking sound, and then fell to the ground, turning into a pile of ice shards.

Xiao Yuan, his eyes flashing with lightning, held a silver scroll with black lightning arc patterns in his hand, lost in thought.

"Xiao Yuan!"

Xiao Yu was the first to rush over and immediately began to check if Xiao Yuan was injured.

"Don't worry, I'm fine."

Xiao Yuan snapped out of his daze, tossed the scroll in his hand into his Storage Ring, and smiled reassuringly.

"Elder brother."

Xiao Yan and Xun'er also came over, their faces full of concern.

"Let's go, we've got the stuff."

Xiao Yuan nodded, a satisfied look on his face, and pulled Xiao Yu outside.

Xiao Yan and Xun'er followed closely behind. Although Hu Jia and Wu Hao did not know exactly what Xiao Yuan had obtained, they could tell that the item was probably of a high grade.

As the six people left, the vortex-like energy shields surrounding the enormous room began to slowly shrink. After a moment, the energy shields turned into a tiny dot and completely dissipated with a soft cracking sound. At this moment, the entire enormous room became empty. No one would have guessed that this place was once filled with countless treasures that would have caused a sensation in the outside world.

"Crunch."

The tightly closed ancient door was suddenly and gently pulled open, and warm sunlight poured in through the crack, casting a long streak of light in the dark passageway, all the way to the end of the light.

The gate opened, Xiao Yuan and his six companions walked out one after another. Standing on the steps, looking at the lush greenery in the valley, they couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. The atmosphere in the Library Pavilion was just too oppressive.

"This Library Pavilion occupies such a vast area that the large room we entered was probably just a corner of it. This place is truly mysterious in every aspect."

As he stepped out of the gate, Xiao Yuan's eyes subtly swept over the two Gray-robed Man on either side of him, who seemed to be in deep meditation, and he muttered to himself.

Upon hearing the door open, a Gray-robed Man suddenly moved his sleeve slightly. Immediately, Xiao Yuan and the others sensed a vast and boundless invisible energy scanning over them. The strength of that energy filled them with horror.

The invisible energy seemed to serve only a scanning function, and thus lasted for only about ten seconds before receding like a tide until it completely dissipated.

"Time's up, everyone go. Remember, you must not reveal a single thing about what happened here today, including any information from inside the Library Pavilion, to anyone."

A hoarse, aged voice slowly echoed at the gate.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuan and the others quickly lowered their heads.

"Hehe, so everyone's out?" Hu Qian, who had been standing in front of the pavilion, chuckled as he recognized the six people. "None of you came back empty-handed, right?"

Xiao Yuan and the other six nodded.

"That's good. Regardless of whether what we get is to our liking, at least we've gained something." Seeing this, Hu Qian smiled, bowed slightly to the two Gray-robed Man who looked like old monks by the gate, and said, "Since these little fellows have come out, I won't disturb you two elders' arduous cultivation any longer. Farewell."

The two Gray-robed Man still did not react to Hu Qian's words, but Hu Qian did not mind. He waved to Xiao Yuan and the others and said, "Come with me."

Upon hearing Hu Qian's voice, Xiao Yuan and his group of six bowed to the two Gray-robed Man who were sitting cross-legged on the ground, motionless like wooden stakes. They then slowly backed down the blue stone steps and turned to stand beside Hu Qian.

Hu Qian glanced at the six people, and after confirming that none of them were injured, he clasped his hands in a fist salute to the two Gray-robed Man again, then turned and walked towards the invisible door frame that had been torn open by the invisible hand.

"Stay close to me and don't touch those spatial folds, or even I won't be able to save you." Just as they were about to pass through the invisible doorway, Hu Qian turned his head to remind them, then kept his upper body still, took a step, and stepped out of the doorway. Afterwards, Xiao Yuan and the others followed cautiously, not daring to make the slightest move.

After safely passing through the invisible door frame, a wave of energy slowly rose up. Xiao Yuan looked back and saw that the torn invisible door frame had begun to slowly disappear. A moment later, an extremely solid spatial fold wall reappeared, protecting the Library Pavilion behind it.

His gaze skipped over the barely perceptible folds in space and swept toward the entrance of the Library Pavilion. Xiao Yuan's face froze slightly as he saw two Gray-robed Man simultaneously casting admiring glances at him.

Is it because of the dean?

Xiao Yuan seemed to be deep in thought, then bowed slightly to the two of them again, before turning around and quickly following Hu Qian and the others, before disappearing back into the Mountain Cave they had come from.

As Xiao Yuan left, the two Gray-robed Man also mysteriously disappeared from the spot, but their voices echoed throughout the world.

"This kid actually won the dean's favor. It seems we overlooked something!"

"Heh, this is the first time in all these years that old guy has taken the initiative to send us a message, right? He's been living a leisurely life, being a hands-off manager for so many years!"

"Who told him to be the dean! Even if the two of us joined forces, we probably wouldn't be a match for him."

"Alright, let's just pass the message on to Su Qian and let him have a headache!"

Hehehe!

Hehehe!

In the spacious study, Hu Qian watched the study walls slowly closing before turning to Xiao Yuan and the other six standing in the room and smiling, "Alright, you've received your rewards. This afternoon you'll be entering the Inner Academy. You'll have your share of hardships then. Hopefully, you've had enough rest these past few days."

Looking at Hu Qian's smiling face, Xiao Yuan pursed his lips helplessly. He had been running around these past few days!

"By the way, let me remind you again, if you newcomers want to avoid being bullied by the senior students when you first enter the Inner Academy, unless your fists are harder than theirs, of course, the students who can enter the Inner Academy are basically the best of the former Outer Academy students. Their cultivation talents are not weak. Coupled with the unique training and cultivation methods of the Inner Academy, it will probably be quite difficult for you newcomers to catch up with their progress." Hu Qian's gaze swept over the six people and said, "So, I advise you to try your best to put aside your differences and cooperate with each other, otherwise, the consequences will not be very pleasant."

"Do you think we'd get crippled and killed by those guys?" Hu Jia rolled her eyes. The others, besides Xiao Yu, were also somewhat skeptical. Who among them, who wasn't skilled enough to be among the top five in the Selection Competition? "It's unlikely, after all, this is an academy, not a battlefield. But the feeling of being trampled on by someone's strength isn't very pleasant, is it? Aren't you all arrogant?"

Hu Qian shook his head and said with a smile.

"Thank you for the reminder, Vice Dean. We will be careful." Xiao Yuan nodded slightly, bowed to Hu Qian, and then left with his three family members. Hu Jia and the other two also slowly withdrew.

"These little guys don't know the pain until they hit a wall. Once you enter the Inner Academy, you'll know how tough it is to survive there. There's never a shortage of geniuses there."

Watching the group leave, Hu Qian sat in his chair, tapping his fingers slowly on the table, and said leisurely.

Meanwhile, in a very distant place, an endless expanse of lightning formed a huge pool of thunder, within which an old man was muttering to himself.

"He almost lost all face. That kid, I'll have to teach him a lesson when I see him again. He has no respect for the dean at all! Luckily, I reacted quickly. Dual-attribute Dou Qi... I feel like I've seen him somewhere before? Where was it again?"

Thunder rumbled, and the old man's voice was gradually drowned out. In the afternoon, when Xiao Yuan and his group of six arrived at Vice Dean Hu Qian's study again, they found that the open space in front of the door was already filled with many people. These people were scattered into many groups of different sizes, chatting and laughing in hushed tones. Among these groups, Wu Hao and Hu Jia's circle was the largest.

But when they saw Xiao Yuan and the other three approaching together, their laughter and chatter ceased instantly, and they all looked at Xiao Yuan with awe.

One person swept through the entire Selection Competition, defeating more than ten people in a row, including Hu Jia and Wu Hao, without showing any signs of being disheveled. Such terrifying strength undoubtedly earned everyone's respect.

Xiao Yuan and his three companions walked straight through the crowd to the front of the open space. They exchanged glances with Hu Jia and Wu Hao, and nodded slightly as a greeting.

Seeing this, the two men stopped pretending and nodded at him, their attitude noticeably better. Clearly, they were about to enter the Inner Academy, and what Hu Qian had said wasn't entirely without effect on them. In the Inner Academy, a place teeming with powerful individuals, if they didn't unite, they might really suffer. Although the two men were arrogant, they weren't stupid. It was best to avoid unnecessary suffering if possible.

Outside the open space, many other students had gathered. In the hearts of all the students in the Outer Academy, being able to enter the Inner Academy for cultivation was an extremely enviable honor. Countless people had been striving towards this goal since they entered the academy. Therefore, every year when the students who passed the Selection Competition entered the Inner Academy, many people would come to see them off and watch.

A dozen minutes after Xiao Yuan and his companions arrived, the tightly closed study was finally opened. Vice Dean Hu Qian and several elders walked out slowly, and upon seeing their appearance, the whispers in the open space gradually quieted down, and after a moment, there was no sound at all.

After Hu Qian's passionate speech, many students were full of anticipation for their future life in the Inner Academy.

"The Inner Academy is the core of the Jia Nan Academy. Due to its secrecy, most students in the Outer Academy, including their instructors, do not know its exact location. Therefore, we will take you to a certain place."

Hu Qian smiled and looked up at the distant blue sky, where ten dark figures were flying towards him. After a moment, the figures gradually grew larger and were revealed to be ten enormous Gryphon.

Ten Gryphon swept across the academy, casting huge shadows, and finally stopped above where Xiao Yuan and the others were. With a flap of their wings, a gale surged, making some of the students below lose their footing.

Hu Qian waved to the Gryphon in the sky, and then shadows loomed over the ground. Finally, amidst the howling wind, the ten Gryphon stopped not far from the open space. When everyone looked around, they discovered that there were two people riding each of the Gryphon on their backs.

"Alright, time's up. Everyone, go up in groups of five." Seeing the Gryphon descend, Hu Qian pointed and laughed.

Upon hearing Hu Qian's words, the students in the open space immediately turned around and swarmed into the open space. Like fleas, with a rustling sound, these impatient guys climbed onto the Gryphon's broad back. However, as soon as their feet touched the back, the Gryphon's slightly slippery feathers caused them to suffer. Some who were not on their feet slipped and tumbled down, their bodies hitting the stone slabs with a series of thuds.

"Haha, kids, don't be reckless. The Gryphon has a seat on it. Don't even think about standing on its back. That's a skill only Da Dou Shi can have." Hu Qian laughed loudly, then turned to Xiao Yuan and the others, saying, "Top five, the six of you are in the same team, go up."

Hearing this, Xiao Yuan was not surprised. He pulled Xiao Yu and jumped onto the Gryphon. His feet stood firmly on the smooth feathers, like an iron tower, without moving an inch. Seeing his steady movements, the students who had fallen off the Gryphon earlier couldn't help but admire him. Having tried to force their way onto the Gryphon, they knew very well how difficult it was to stand on those damned feathers.

Immediately afterwards, Xiao Yan and Xun'er, as well as Hu Jia and Wu Hao, all jumped up as well.

Hu Qian and the elders beside him glanced around the open space. When they saw that everyone had boarded the Gryphon, they exchanged glances and nodded slightly. Hu Qian waved his hand, and the three elders moved and flashed into the air. With a shake of their shoulders, four pairs of dazzling Dou Qi Wings extended from their backs. With a slight flutter of the wings, they hovered motionless amidst the envious gazes of many on the open space.

The ability to condense Douqi Wings and fly freely has always been a dream in the hearts of many cultivators.

"We will personally escort you along the way." Looking down at the open space below, Hu Qian smiled and waved his hand. The person riding the Gryphon below let out a sharp whistle, and the Gryphon's wings suddenly flapped, and its huge body, along with the shadow it left on the ground that grew smaller and smaller, slowly rose into the air.

"Yu'er, Xun'er, Xiao Yuan, Xiao Yan, good luck! If you perform well in the Inner Academy, you'll get a holiday!" As the Gryphon took off, a familiar voice suddenly came from below. Xiao Yuan and the others looked down and saw that it was Mentor Ruo Lin. Beside her, Xiao Ning, Xiao Mei, and Qing Ning were also looking up at the group of Gryphon that were gradually rising into the sky. When they saw Xiao Yuan and the others looking at them, they smiled and waved.

As the Gryphon's wings flapped rapidly, the figures below grew smaller and smaller until they were almost like ants. From this high vantage point overlooking the entire Jia Nan Academy, it could see almost every part of it.

Above the azure sky, ten enormous Gryphon flapped their wings and flew over the seemingly endless Back Mountain of the academy. Outside the Gryphon, Hu Qian and three elders formed a four-corner formation, surrounding the entire Gryphon formation. Powerful Dou Qi emanated from their bodies, and no matter how fierce the wind raged, it could not move them in the slightest.

Dou Huang expert!

Watching this scene, a glint of desire flashed in Xiao Yuan's eyes. The power that Medusa had injected into his body was now almost insufficient to support him in regaining the power of Dou Emperor after several uses and the passage of time.

Relying on others' strength is not satisfying enough; only when the power is in your own hands can you feel at ease.