Shen Fei

If Chen Linjian had coveted the treasures and continued exploring deeper into the maze, their situation would have been extremely dangerous.

Fortunately, Chen Linjian was decisive.

The group returned to the stone fortress. When Hu Yan Lanruo saw Nie Li come back, she was overjoyed, tears pattering down her cheeks.

"Nie Li, you're back! That's wonderful!" Hu Yan Lanruo threw herself at him and hugged him tightly, her ample chest pressed hard against his.

"Thank you for risking your life to save me. Otherwise, I might have ended up in the Green Arm Giant Ape's stomach!" Hu Yan Lanruo's cheeks flushed as she gazed at Nie Li with tender affection.

"You're squeezing the life out of me! Let go!"

Nie Li slapped a hand to his forehead. Hu Yan Lanruo was far too fanciful. He had risked his life to cover the others' retreat so Ye Ziyun could escape safely—not for her!

Seeing Nie Li's troubled expression, Ye Ziyun couldn't help smiling. Even with a great beauty like Hu Yan Lanruo throwing herself at him, Nie Li still wasn't interested. He really must have had his head caught in a door. But watching Hu Yan Lanruo cling so tightly to Nie Li made Ye Ziyun feel a little sour inside, and she gave a quiet snort.

"People from the Dark Guild!" one of Chen Linjian's men gasped, his voice full of alarm.

Chen Linjian looked toward the forest outside the stone fortress. Several black-robed figures had appeared in their line of sight. His expression changed slightly, and he said in a low voice, "Follow me. This way!"

Chen Linjian led everyone into the forest behind the stone fortress.

"Be careful. Don't leave a single trace!"

With the Dark Guild threatening them, the group raced onward, swiftly darting through the forest. They knew all too well how terrible it would be if those Dark Guild members caught them.

Nie Li glanced behind them, deep in thought. Though they had only exchanged a brief look, he had already memorized the leader's aura. The leader had surely seen his face, too. Even after returning to the City of Brilliance, he would have to be extremely careful. If he was recognized, he could very well become a target.

Besides the Sacred Family, the Dark Guild was another constant threat to the City of Brilliance. Nie Li felt a powerful sense of urgency. He had to grow stronger quickly, or when danger came, he might not even have the strength to protect himself.

With the Shadow Spirit Lamp in hand, he needed to hurry and reach Silver Rank. Once he fused with the Shadow Spirit Lamp, he would have the means to protect his life in a short time!

Reaching Silver Rank might be difficult for ordinary people, but it wasn't especially hard for Nie Li.

The Dark Guild members failed to catch them before Nie Li and the others returned to the City of Brilliance. Only then did everyone finally let out the breath they had been holding.

The news of Chen Linjian and the others' return quickly spread throughout the City of Brilliance. Even more astonishing were the treasures they had brought back; many of them were extraordinary. A grand auction was held, and many of Chen Linjian's finds fetched astronomical prices.

The entire City of Brilliance was buzzing with excitement. Many people began forming groups to head to the Ancient Orchid City Ruins, hoping to find something for themselves.

But none of this had anything to do with Nie Li. He had obtained the Shadow Spirit Lamp he had long dreamed of, and had unexpectedly acquired a fragment of the Book of the Temporal Demonic Spirit as well. The rewards from this trip had far exceeded his expectations.

At the same time, one piece of news sent Nie Li into deep thought. Apparently, before Chen Linjian and the others returned to the City of Brilliance, Shen Yue had already come back—and he hadn't been accompanied by anyone else!

That was far too strange!

With Shen Yue's strength alone, there was no way he could have crossed so many dangerous regions and made it back to the City of Brilliance!

Thinking of the Dark Guild members they had encountered in the Ancient Orchid City Ruins, Nie Li's heart tightened. A possibility suddenly occurred to him: perhaps the Sacred Family and the Dark Guild had some secret dealings. He should have thought of this long ago!

Everything the Sacred Family had done in his previous life, their betrayal of the City of Brilliance, showed that they had long since stopped considering the city's protection their responsibility. They might already have joined forces with the Dark Guild.

In his previous life, Nie Li hadn't known much about the Dark Guild. It was said they had established a base inside the Sacred Ancestor Mountain Range, in a place that was extraordinarily secret and secure!

Perhaps the Sacred Family had abandoned the City of Brilliance in his previous life to join the Dark Guild. Where else could they have gone?

Damn it! Why had he only thought of this now?

Nie Li clenched his fists, the veins standing out on his arms. From that day onward, he had watched helplessly as his clansmen died beneath the claws of demon beasts, followed the refugees from the City of Brilliance into the Endless Desert, and watched Ye Ziyun die before his eyes. He had drifted across the Sacred Spirit Continent like a rootless weed.

A fierce glint flashed through Nie Li's eyes. Whether it was the Sacred Family or the Dark Guild, both had to be destroyed!

In the Sacred Spirit Academy library.

After returning, Nie Li once again devoted himself to cultivation alongside Du Ze, Lu Piao, and the others.

After he returned, Nie Li's cultivation advanced by leaps and bounds every day. The fragment of the Book of the Temporal Demonic Spirit continued to take effect, constantly stirring his Soul Sea.

As his Soul Sea churned, his Soul Power steadily grew stronger.

Three days later, after using quite a lot of Purple Mist Grass and pills, Nie Li's cultivation finally broke through to Bronze 2-star.

If he could reach Bronze 3-star by the test two months later and stand out, then Nie Li and the others would earn the attention of the academy's leaders and be cultivated as geniuses. Both the dean of Sacred Spirit Academy and the leaders of the City of Brilliance valued martial arts prodigies greatly. Once Nie Li was recognized as one, even the Sacred Family wouldn't dare lay a hand on him lightly!

There was still plenty of time before the test two months later. Nie Li had time to spare!

Besides Nie Li, Du Ze, Lu Piao, and the others were also making rapid progress.

By now, Shen Yue, who was in the same class, no longer even registered in Nie Li's eyes. As time went on, Shen Yue would realize that the gap between him and Nie Li was growing ever wider, until it became an insurmountable chasm.

Just then, a piece of news swept through the campus like wildfire.

"Did you hear? Miss Hu Yan Lanruo goes to Nie Li's junior martial artist class every day!"

"Did you hear? Miss Hu Yan Lanruo announced in public that she was going to pursue Nie Li, then got into an argument with Xiao Ninger and nearly fought her."

"Did you hear? Miss Hu Yan Lanruo and Miss Xiao Ninger fought over a man! Apparently, he's a student in the junior martial artist class!"

The rumors grew more and more outrageous, and no one knew which version was true.

The whole Sacred Spirit Academy was abuzz with gossip. After all, it was rare for two girls to fight over one boy. And the most remarkable thing was that both Hu Yan Lanruo and Xiao Ninger were among the academy's most beautiful girls. It would have been one thing if such outstanding girls had fallen for a student in the genius class. But the boy they both liked was a student in the junior martial artist class. It was enough to leave everyone shaking their heads in wonder.

Nie Li had indeed been making quite a splash lately. First he had made the Sacred Family lose face, then provoked an instructor. Next came the rumor that the Sacred Family wanted him dead, followed by the ambiguous rumors involving two great beauties. He had practically become the academy's most talked-about figure.

Hu Yan Lanruo had gone to the Sacred Spirit Academy library several times to find Nie Li, but he had managed to avoid her every time. Rumor had it that from then on, Hu Yan Lanruo waited for him at the school gate every day after class, determined to see him.

"Nie Li, you climb over the wall to get in and out of the academy every day. If the school's discipline team catches you, you'll be in for it!" Lu Piao said with a grin.

Nie Li pulled a long face. "If I leave through the front gate, I'll run into that crazy woman. What a pain!"

"Nie Li, come clean. How did you get Miss Hu Yan Lanruo interested in you?" Lu Piao was practically green with envy. A great beauty like Hu Yan Lanruo was pursuing Nie Li, and yet he couldn't care less. Lu Piao didn't know what to say. If it were him, he wouldn't even wait for Hu Yan Lanruo to make the first move—he'd throw himself at her. Never mind her beauty; just thinking about that pair of heavy mounds on her chest and how satisfying it would be to give them a feel... If Nie Li hadn't told them he liked Ye Ziyun, they would almost have thought he liked men!

"How did I get her interested? This woman is completely unreasonable!" Nie Li said with a helpless laugh.

"Can't be helped. Looks like we'll have to climb the wall with you every day from now on!" Du Ze shrugged and smiled faintly. He wasn't interested in gossiping about this sort of thing. He only wanted to focus on cultivation and change his family's fate. Nie Li had given him that chance, and he would follow Nie Li for the rest of his life!

Just then, several people wearing badges shouted from a distance, "Hey! Which class are you from? What are you doing? Stop right there!"

Nie Li and the others exchanged glances. With a flurry of whooshes, six figures scrambled over the Sacred Spirit Academy wall and raced away.

In Sacred Spirit Academy's genius class, several students had gathered together.

"Haha, Shen Fei, I heard your fiancée nearly got into a fight with Hu Yan Lanruo over a man. Is that true?" A tall, imposing boy of sixteen or seventeen walked over, teasing him with a laugh.

The genius class at Sacred Spirit Academy was divided into several factions, and relations between them were far from harmonious. The boy was Ye Hong, Ye Ziyun's cousin. He held considerable influence in the genius class, and a group of people followed him. He and Shen Fei were usually at odds.

Hearing Ye Hong's words, Shen Fei clenched his fists so tightly that his fingernails nearly drew blood from his palms. He didn't know what the truth was, but regardless, Shen Fei was the one who looked most humiliated with the whole Sacred Spirit Academy spreading the rumor!

"My younger sister told me that the girl doesn't like you. So why force her? Let her go free. Otherwise, one day she might put a nice, bright-green hat on your head!" Ye Hong said with a smile. As Ye Ziyun's cousin, he had heard a little about Xiao Ninger. Under Ye Ziyun's influence, he was constantly at odds with Shen Fei in class.

Shen Fei was frustrated that Ye Hong was always looking for trouble with him, but there was nothing he could do. Ye Hong's status overshadowed him completely, so even when he was angry, he tried to avoid a direct confrontation.

But on this matter, Shen Fei could no longer hold back. He let out an angry snort and said, "The woman I, Shen Fei, want is mine for the taking. If I can't have her, then no one else can either!"