The next morning, Ji Xueyao served tea to Chu Wan'er.
It was not only because of their respective statuses.
She had also learned only the night before that Ye Xuan had been angry because the Hell Array she had set up inside the Hundred Refinements Tower had nearly gravely injured Chu Wan'er.
There was also the fact that Chu Wan'er had driven Ye Xuan into her own room on their wedding night.
She knew Chu Wan'er was trying to show her goodwill, and she also felt guilty about the Hell Array.
That array had been set up for Ye Xuan. Given Chu Wan'er's condition at the time, entering it truly would have been a narrow escape from death.
After drinking the tea, Chu Wan'er helped Ji Xueyao to her feet.
Seeing the two women chatting and laughing so harmoniously, Ye Xuan felt completely at ease.
If they had really started competing for his favor like in those harem dramas, he would have had a massive headache.
Afterward, the three of them went to bid farewell to Su Ziyun.
There was nothing left to challenge in the Barren Continent, and Ji Xueyao had to return as well.
Cloud Palace Academy had a much broader platform.
Although Ye Xuan's talent had already begun to recover, the resources he needed were no longer something the Barren Continent could provide.
Su Ziyun was reluctant to part with Wan'er, but she had known for a long time that this day would come.
Mo Feng and Bai Mu also arrived early to see Ye Xuan off.
"Ye Xuan, you came out of our Tianxuan City. Three months from now is the Great Gan Peak Competition!"
"The Artificer and Pill Dao competitions are part of it too. When the time comes, you must represent the Heavenly Profound Pill Society and the Artificer Guild!"
Bai Mu held Ye Xuan's hand, his tone almost pleading.
"The Great Gan Peak Competition? Are the rewards generous?" Ye Xuan raised a brow.
"Of course they're generous!" Mo Feng nodded repeatedly.
"All right. I'll participate!"
Upon hearing this, Ye Xuan smiled and agreed.
Actually, even without the two of them saying anything, he would not have missed it.
What surprised Ye Xuan was that Nangong Fei and Lin Churan came over hand in hand. They were going to the Central Region as well?
After Nangong Fei explained, Ye Xuan learned that the children of the four regional city lords had always possessed the qualifications to cultivate at the academy and did not need to undergo any selection process. As for Lin Churan, she had made a huge sum of spirit stones in Tianxuan City.
She planned to go to the Central Region with Nangong Fei and open a trading firm.
The Central Region was prosperous, and Lin Churan's ambitions were no small matter either.
Thus, Ye Xuan asked no further questions. After bidding farewell to everyone, he led them out of Tianxuan City and headed straight for Cloud Palace Academy.
Cloud Palace Academy was in the Central Region. Although it was far away, Ji Ziyao could mobilize every array along the route as the master of Tianshu Tower. Thus, in just a day and a half, they arrived at Cloud Palace Academy.
Since Lin Churan could not enter the academy, Nangong Fei could only take her to settle in Cloud City nearby while looking for a suitable storefront.
Ye Xuan and Chu Wan'er followed Ji Xueyao to the academy's mountain gate.
What surprised the three of them was that the area outside the academy's gate was packed with people.
When Ji Xueyao descended from the sky, the young cultivators let out earth-shaking wails.
"Master Ji, how could you be so foolish!"
"The sky of Cloud Palace Academy has collapsed!"
Xuan Zhou had returned to the academy an hour earlier and spread the news that Ji Xueyao had gotten married throughout the entire academy.
Now, this was the result.
The legendary beauty of Cloud Palace Academy had left the academy for the first time—and gotten married!?
Fine, she had married. But she had not married royalty or someone from the Xuan Clan. Instead, she had married a sect Holy Son from the Northern Region of the Barren Continent!?
So what if that Holy Son had been the champion of all three Dao disciplines?
In the Central Region, at the academy, what did that amount to!?
They could not accept that their goddess had married, and they could even less accept that she had married a good-for-nothing!
"Why are you crying? Hold it back!"
"How annoying!"
Ji Xueyao's pretty face was as cold as frost. She turned back to look at Ye Xuan, clearly feeling awkward as well.
"It doesn't matter."
Ye Xuan did not really care.
With Ji Xueyao's appearance and talent, coupled with her status in the academy, causing such a commotion was only natural.
Besides, watching this, he actually found it quite satisfying!
However, Ye Xuan also noticed that besides the disciples dressed in academy robes, there were some young people of various backgrounds standing to the side in the square outside the academy gate.
There were both men and women, and the looks they directed at him contained nothing but puzzlement.
"Those are the new students who entered the academy to cultivate in the same batch as your husband."
Seeing Ye Xuan's confusion, Chu Wan'er hurriedly explained.
"Besides the Barren Continent, are there other new students entering the academy this time?" Ye Xuan frowned. He had not known about this before.
"There are. These new students are all from Super Grade Sects or clans of the Central Region!"
From Ji Xueyao, Ye Xuan finally learned that among the three regions and one domain of the Great Gan Dynasty, the Central Region was the largest and the heartland of the dynasty's prosperity. It was home to countless clans. Besides the five great clans—the Xuan, Ling, Cui, Xie, and Wang Clans—there were also many powerful clans and major sects.
These major sects were far stronger than the first-grade sects of the three regions. Every three years, they would send their strongest disciples to enter the academy.
"It's just that quite a few more juniors have come up this time."
Ji Ziyao frowned slightly, but still led Ye Xuan and Chu Wan'er to the center of the square.
With a wave of her hand, an ancient stone stele slowly rose amid a rumble.
The stone stele was crystal-clear, and complex, ancient runes surged across its surface.
This was the academy's unique Ancient Resonance Spirit Stele. It could test a cultivator's physique and talent, and its effects were far more accurate than the testing methods of the Barren Continent.
All new students entering the academy had to be tested again with the spirit stele.
The method of controlling the Ancient Resonance Spirit Stele lay with Tianshu Tower.
Thus, since Ji Xueyao had returned, she could only take charge of this new student assessment.
"Come up one at a time for testing. Those with Quasi-Dao Body or Dao Body talent can become direct disciples. The rest will be ordinary disciples!"
Ji Ziyao stood before the spirit stele, having regained her usual coldness and sternness. The entire square fell completely silent at that moment.
The young people from the Central Region stepped forward one after another and pressed their palms against the spirit stele.
Glimmer after glimmer lit up across the stone stele, but almost all of them were blue, representing Spirit Physiques.
Even when some of the blue was deeper, they were still only high-grade Spirit Physiques, extremely common within the academy.
Buzz!
But soon, a pale violet radiance suddenly shot into the sky from the stone stele.
The imprint of an ancient zither appeared and disappeared within the violet light.
"Pale violet—a Quasi-Dao Body!?"
"He's Zhuo Jing, the Holy Son of the Heavenly Sound Sect!"
"He ranked ninth in the Central Region Sect Tournament. As expected of a Quasi-Saint Body talent!"
"He'll become the top direct disciple of Tianshu Tower's class this year!"
Amid the crowd's cries of surprise, the youth in blue robes called Zhuo Jing turned around with a zither on his back, his expression indifferent.
Ye Xuan glanced at him, feeling somewhat surprised as well. Quasi-Dao Bodies with talent in the way of music were indeed rare.
Buzz!
Right after him, the Ancient Resonance Spirit Stele, which had just fallen silent, suddenly burst with spirit light again!
Another pale violet radiance condensed above the stone stele into a blazing totem!
"Another Quasi-Dao Body!"
"It's Ling Yan of the Central Region's Ling Clan, one of the Ling Family's Five Tigers of the younger generation!"
"Although he's the youngest tiger ranked last, this talent truly isn't weak!"
Amid the crowd's cries, a youth clad in fiery-red battle armor swept his gaze arrogantly across the entire square, a battle halberd in his hand.
"Master Ji, I'm the top talent among this year's new students, aren't I?"
Ling Yan then turned to Ji Xueyao and asked, brimming with confidence.
"First?"
Ji Xueyao gave an undisguised cold laugh and shook her head. "You're not worthy."
"Who could be stronger than me?"
Ling Yan was stunned.
He was a pure-blooded prodigy of one of the Central Region's five great clans. He had come to Cloud Palace Academy merely to gild his reputation, and he still could not rank first!?
"Elder Sister Wan'er!"
Ji Xueyao looked toward Chu Wan'er. The latter nodded, then stepped forward with graceful lotus steps.
The instant her delicate hand pressed against the spirit stele, violet light blossomed like rosy clouds, illuminating the eight directions!
"Hiss—a true violet color?"
"A Dao Body? This is genuine Dao Body talent?"
"Previously, there were only three people in the entire Heavenly Palace Academy who possessed Dao Bodies!"
"Chu Wan'er—she came from the Barren Continent?"
For a moment, the crowd erupted in cries of surprise as they stared at the ancient tree totem that had condensed on the stone stele.
A Dao Body! Even in Cloud Palace Academy, such a talent was as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns!
Ling Yan was utterly dumbfounded. He had never imagined that he would be surpassed by a sect disciple from the Barren Continent!
Zhuo Jing also frowned slightly as he looked at Chu Wan'er's peerlessly beautiful face, a strange light flickering in his eyes.
This woman would make an excellent match!
"Dear husband?"
But just as everyone was reeling in shock, Chu Wan'er stepped back from the spirit stele and looked toward Ye Xuan.
She knew that her current talent could not compare to even a fraction of Ye Xuan's.
Dear husband!?
Everyone froze. What was going on!?
The next moment, jealousy blazed in all their hearts!
Why him!?
Ji Xueyao and Chu Wan'er were both so astonishingly talented and peerlessly beautiful, yet they had both married him!?
"Hmph, I want to see what kind of talent you, Ye Xuan, possess!"
"Only a King Body above the Dao Body can be worthy of Master Ji and Junior Sister Wan'er!"
"A King Body? What is he supposed to be?"
Zhuo Jing and the others also turned their gazes toward Ye Xuan.
They had never expected that Chu Wan'er was already married!?
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Amid the jealous and questioning gazes of the crowd, Ye Xuan also arrived before the spirit stele.
He raised his large hand and pressed it against the stele. Within his dantian, thunder suddenly roared.
He had not planned to conceal anything. He did not know what level his talent had reached now.
Buzz!
At that moment, the spirit stele seemed to have been stimulated by some sort of energy. It began to tremble violently, even causing the entire Cloud Palace mountain gate to rumble.
The crowd was astonished and noticed that the runes on the spirit stele were racing wildly.
Could Ye Xuan truly be a King Body!?
Whoosh!
But in the next moment, a streak of jet-black lightning suddenly shot into the sky from within the spirit stele, piercing straight through the clouds!
"Black light?"
"What level of talent is that?"
Everyone looked at one another in bewilderment. They had never seen a stele radiance of such a color before!?
"Forbidden Body!"
"Xueyao, marrying this man was truly the height of folly!"
Just then, a dignified and powerful voice suddenly rang out from the depths of Cloud Palace Mountain.
"A Forbidden Body?"
Ye Xuan lowered his palm, equally bewildered.
How had he become forbidden?
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