Jia Nan Academy.
The maple trees lining both sides of the shaded avenue were blazing red. When a breeze brushed past, several red leaves spun down and drifted onto the blue-stone-paved road, rustling softly underfoot.
Light sifted down through the gaps in the branches and leaves, casting mottled shadows over the ground. The air was filled with the fresh scent unique to grass and trees.
Many young men and women were moving through the woods in small groups, dressed in Jia Nan Academy's signature academy uniforms, their faces brimming with the vigor and vitality of their age.
These young students knew nothing of the earth-shaking battle that had taken place not long ago.
They did not know that, just a short while earlier, a war powerful enough to rewrite the course of history across the entire Dou Qi Continent had already come to an end within the Soul Realm.
That peak showdown between Half-Emperors was far too distant from them, so distant it seemed to have happened in another world. Because of that, they felt not the slightest panic or unease.
On the contrary, these days, the whole of Jia Nan Academy was immersed in a strange excitement and fervor.
No matter where one went or whom one met, every conversation inevitably circled back to the scenes from the day Lin Ming appeared.
"Have you heard? When Senior Lin Ming came back that day, all the experts in the academy went to welcome him!"
"A distant cousin of mine was on duty in the Outer Academy. He saw Senior Lin Ming descend from the sky, treading on empty air, five-colored light swirling around him like a god come down to earth! He said that, at that moment, he even forgot to breathe!"
"Senior Lin Ming came out of our Jia