At that moment, several auras erupted simultaneously within Cloud Palace Mountain.
Streaks of light pierced through the clouds and arrived outside the gates of Cloud Palace Academy after only a few breaths.
As the dazzling light faded, seven Nirvana Realm powerhouses appeared.
There were both men and women among the seven, but every one of them possessed extraordinary bearing and an imposing presence that inspired awe without anger.
Especially the middle-aged cultivator standing at the center. He wore a cloud-patterned robe and carried a wooden sword on his back. The strength of his aura had even reached the Half-step King Realm!
His pressure spread out, easily enveloping a radius of ten thousand zhang and covering the entire plaza.
"Disciples pay their respects to the Academy Master!"
"Greetings, Tower Masters!"
The disciples all fell to their knees in succession.
Ye Xuan frowned slightly. He had never expected that before he had even entered the academy, the six Tower Masters and the Academy Master would appear.
Although the Academy Master was not the Palace Master, a Half-step King Realm expert was indeed far more powerful than those in the Nirvana Realm!
"Xueyao, I heard that after leaving the academy this time, you actually got married?!"
The white-robed Academy Master raised his sword-like brows slightly, his sharp gaze shooting straight at Ye Xuan.
Though it was only a glance, it faintly carried an incomparably domineering sword force. Against an ordinary Heavenly Gang Realm cultivator, it would be enough to severely damage their sea of consciousness and shatter their sword heart in an instant.
But Ji Xueyao's figure flashed, and she stepped in front of Ye Xuan ahead of time. Although she was only at the Myriad Manifestation Peak, the disturbance in the void completely blocked that sword force.
"Dean Cui, that's right. I got married, and he is my husband!"
Ji Xueyao smiled and nodded.
Upon hearing this, Dean Cui's expression immediately stiffened, as though countless flames of fury were being suppressed in his chest.
"Xueyao, you're truly foolish!"
"This man possesses the Forbidden Body. Although his battle strength can now far exceed that of cultivators in the same realm, his cultivation will forever stop before the Myriad Manifestation Realm. He is absolutely no peerless genius!"
An old white-haired man leaned on his cane and pounded the ground as he roared in a low voice.
"You are the number-one Tower Master of Cloud Palace Academy and represent the academy's reputation. How could you casually marry this man? You are bringing shame upon our academy!"
Another female cultivator with drooping brows also frowned and rebuked her.
"Bringing shame!?"
But Ji Xueyao laughed when she heard that.
What nonsense about the Forbidden Body? It's merely that this Ancient Imprint Spirit Stele isn't qualified to detect my husband Ye Xuan's talent!
"Who I marry and whom I marry has nothing to do with you!"
Although Ji Xueyao's cultivation was inferior to these Tower Masters', there was not the slightest hint of retreat in her tone.
Only then did the academy's students understand. After all that, the black light surrounding Ye Xuan indicated that he possessed the Forbidden Body!
Although he was ferocious in the same realm, he could not advance to the Myriad Manifestation Realm. Wasn't he still a complete cripple?
"Hehe, I don't care about all that, but I want this girl for Yaoguang Tower!"
"If anyone dares to fight me for her, I'll make them regret it!"
At that moment, another beautiful woman in purple robes stepped forward, her gaze landing on Chu Wan'er.
The talent of the Wood Element Dao Body was practically made for Yaoguang Tower.
If such a monstrous genius joined them, Yaoguang Tower would no longer rank last among the Seven Towers.
"Miss, come over here. Yaoguang Tower will pour all its resources into nurturing you!"
But in the face of the beautiful Tower Master's invitation, Chu Wan'er looked toward Ye Xuan.
"Where I go is for my husband to decide."
Husband!?
In an instant, the few Tower Masters and Dean Cui were stunned. They all turned to look at Ye Xuan.
What did she mean!?
The only Dao Body among this batch of new students had also married Ye Xuan?
"Xueyao, you've gone mad! You're even allowing him to take a concubine!"
Dean Cui gritted his teeth, and the wooden sword on his back began to hum and tremble wildly.
Could a mere Forbidden Body possibly compare to a Half-step King Realm expert like him?
The Yaoguang Tower Master also frowned slightly upon hearing this. If the future number-one chief disciple of Yaoguang Tower became someone's concubine, that would sound terrible!
"Hehe, you've misunderstood. I'm the concubine!"
"My husband's concubine!"
But Ji Xueyao directly hooked her arm around Ye Xuan's arm. Not only did she feel no humiliation, she was instead extremely proud.
The only Immortal Physique in all the worlds, the concubine of the current Great Emperor's only son—how many Imperial Daughters wanted that position but could not have it?
"You—you're the concubine?"
Dean Cui's vision went black, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
Countless prodigies within Cloud Palace Academy admired Ji Xueyao, and he had gone out of his way to court her, yet she had always kept everyone at arm's length.
Now she was actually willing to be a concubine?
He could accept losing, but he could not accept being inferior to this Forbidden Body.
"Mad! She's gone mad!"
"Ji Xueyao, you're truly insane! If the Palace Master returns, I'll definitely ask him to punish you!"
The white-haired old man flew into a rage.
"Hahaha, Ji Xueyao, you're truly pitiful. Cold as an iceberg, yet in the end you've planted yourself in cow dung. Tsk, tsk!" The female cultivator with drooping brows folded her arms and sneered.
For the past three years, whenever anyone mentioned Cloud Palace Academy, they thought only of Ji Xueyao. She had long since been unhappy about it.
"Ignorant!"
Ji Xueyao sneered, then pulled Ye Xuan and Chu Wan'er into the academy, heading straight for Tianshu Tower.
She did not care in the slightest what others thought!
After entering the academy, Ye Xuan finally understood why Cloud Palace Academy had become the cultivation holy land yearned for by disciples of the sects across the Four Regions.
The spiritual energy here was so dense that it felt as though he had been immersed in spiritual milk.
Along both sides of the academy's main road stood numerous statues.
Among them, Ye Xuan even saw Xuan Zhou.
"These are the ten strongest direct disciples from the previous generation of the academy," Ji Ziyao explained.
"Hehe, Xuan Zhou actually isn't first?"
But after Ye Xuan glanced over, he discovered that Xuan Zhou ranked only second.
"Although he possesses the Xuan Clan's purest bloodline, he's merely a wastrel with the talent of a Dao Body and nothing more!" Ji Ziyao sneered.
"Then is this Jun Wuji, who ranks first, a disciple of a great clan or a Super Grade Sect?" Ye Xuan asked as he looked at the statue of the top-ranked direct disciple.
"No. Jun Wuji came from a poor household. Three years ago, he climbed the mountain to undergo the spirit aptitude test, awakened a Dao Body, and joined the academy. He has now reached the Late Myriad Manifestations Peak," Ji Xueyao said.
"A poor household, reaching the Myriad Manifestation Realm in three years?"
Ye Xuan was stunned when he heard this. "That is indeed rare."
But Ye Xuan merely glanced at him before withdrawing his gaze. Although such talent was rare, he possessed only a Dao Body, nothing more.
Besides these direct disciples, Ye Xuan also saw statues of the seven Tower Masters, Dean Cui, and two old men.
One of them was the Palace Master of Cloud Palace Academy, Yi Xiaose. The other statue was even positioned above that of the Palace Master. Its name was Mu Tianchen!
Ye Xuan knew this person. He was supposedly Ji Xueyao's master in this Lower Realm.
But outsiders did not know that Mu Tianchen was actually Ji Ziyao's disciple. No matter how high his talent in formations was, how could it surpass Ji Xueyao's?
It was merely somewhat shocking to say aloud.
Before long, the three of them arrived at Tianshu Tower, where a hemp-clad old man was waiting in front of the building.
When he saw the three of them approach, he hurriedly bowed.
"Tower Master."
"Song Wu, this is my husband and Elder Sister Wan'er. From today onward, they may enter and leave the area within Tianshu Tower freely." Ji Xueyao nodded.
"Yes!" Although the old man was stunned upon hearing this, he still nodded repeatedly.
Ye Xuan looked at the old man and discovered that his cultivation was actually at the middle stage of the Nirvana Realm. Such strength was even greater than Region Marquis Qi Chuan's, yet he was merely guarding the gates and grounds for Ji Xueyao!
"By the way, Tower Master, Dean Cui just cut off Tianshu Tower's resources!" Song Wu suddenly said.
"What did you say!?"
Ji Xueyao's expression instantly turned ice-cold.
She then brought Ye Xuan and Chu Wan'er into Tianshu Peak. Sure enough, they discovered that not a single drop of spiritual milk remained in the Spirit Pool.
"Damn it, Cui Shao is audacious indeed!"
"I'm going to find him!"
Ji Xueyao was furious and was about to seek out Dean Cui.
"Xueyao..."
But Ye Xuan pulled Ji Xueyao back.
"What are you going to him for? To give him face?"
"But..." Ji Xueyao's face flushed red. She knew that Ye Xuan and Chu Wan'er both needed a massive amount of resources for cultivation.
But Tianshu Tower could no longer provide them.
"There should be another way to obtain resources, right?" Ye Xuan asked with a smile.
He knew that even after arriving at Cloud Palace Academy, his cultivation would not proceed smoothly.
The strong naturally did not complain about their circumstances.
"There is. Points can be exchanged for entry to the Cloud Palace Heavenly Pool, which is where the academy's spiritual veins converge!"
Ji Xueyao nodded, then continued, "There are also many ways to obtain points, but the fastest are comprehending secret arts at the Enlightenment Platform, challenging the Hundred Refinements Tower, and completing rare missions."
"The Enlightenment Platform?"
Ye Xuan's heart stirred when he heard this. The Falling Stars and Heavenly Authority Sword Art that Xuan Zhou had previously used were academy secret arts. They should have come from the Enlightenment Platform.
"That's right. Husband, you can certainly give it a try. Besides the Fourteen Absolutes and Seven Secrets, there is also the Unique Dao Treasure!"
"Regardless of the level, comprehending any one of them will earn you a massive number of points!"
Ji Xueyao's eyes flickered.
"With my husband's comprehension, there is no secret art he cannot understand!" Chu Wan'er also spoke with faint excitement.
"Hehe, the Unique Dao Treasure? Interesting!"
"Then let's go to the Enlightenment Platform now!"
Ye Xuan narrowed his eyes slightly. Dean Cui wanted to lock away Tianshu Tower's resources. How could he possibly let him have his way?
Before you continue