"This year's resources for all-element mages have been taken by the Healing Department!"
The campus director announced the news in front of the entire school.
The new students who had just joined Bo City's best academy all looked at each other.
Hadn't Jiang Yu taken those resources by force?
Someone had wanted to step forward and argue, but the moment he saw Jiang Yu's Demon Artifact, he quietly swallowed his words.
The first person to stir up trouble had already been beaten. Who would dare challenge him now?
And so, the entire academy fell into an unusually peaceful silence.
Beside the campus director stood another elderly man, one whose features were much clearer.
He was the principal. At that moment, he looked at Jiang Yu and said with a smile,
"Looks like Ding Yumo has found herself a companion, too."
The principal and the others couldn't help exchanging glances. "It seems Jiang Yu has quite a few admirers."
Ever since Jiang Yu had taken Ding Yumo's resources, the principal had sensed that something seemed to be brewing between the two.
That wasn't necessarily a bad thing...
As expected,
once all the major clans learned what had happened, they immediately began helping the new students secure resources.
By then, though, the freshmen from Mingzhu Academy had already gathered in the central plaza.
The principal kept smiling at Jiang Yu.
"I wanted to tell you that you were amazing, but I didn't expect you to be so outrageous."
"All right, I'll give you the resources for the four thousand new students at a 20 percent discount."
Jiang Yu listened to the principal's words, feeling a little embarrassed.
After all, he was too poor; his entire net worth didn't even amount to a hundred thousand.
"I was going to let you choose a Demon Artifact, but I took a look at your abilities. You've got a Fire Element for offense, an Ice Element for control, and your ability to escape is probably better than that of most people below the high tier."
"So I had someone add a little extra and picked out a spatial Demon Artifact for you."
"A spatial Demon Artifact!"
Jiang Yu's eyes lit up. He knew the value of a spatial Demon Artifact was far beyond that of an ordinary one.
The principal really was a good person!
Seeing the gratitude in Jiang Yu's eyes, the principal waved his hand.
"You don't have to thank me. Just work hard and grow. I hope you'll be able to contribute to humanity one day."
As he spoke, he took out a bright silver spatial ring and gave it to Jiang Yu.
Jiang Yu slipped it on curiously. In an instant, he sensed a small spatial pocket inside.
It was about five cubic meters in size—huge!
And the spatial pocket even had a separate area for storing things.
Just then, the principal explained,
"I heard your Demon Artifact is of the dragon type. As it happens, I've got a bottle of dragon essence blood that I brought from Mingzhu Academy. You can use it to strengthen your Demon Artifact."
"That kind of thing is extremely rare on the market."
"Most of it is just cultivation resources for the Fire and Ice Elements."
Jiang Yu glanced at his spatial Demon Artifact and spotted a bottle of blood that looked faintly golden.
Before he could ask what it was, the principal took out a bank card.
"There's another three hundred thousand in this card. Oh, and you've got a chance to take a three-step breakthrough in cultivation."
"Three-step breakthroughs are something only the top students at Mingzhu Academy can get. They can cultivate a thousand miles in a single day!"
"Most students at the main campus don't even get the chance to break through one level."
At that, the principal seemed to remember something. He carefully looked Jiang Yu in the eye and said,
"You performed too well in today's freshman competition. Even the old monsters from the Sacred City Magic Association have heard about you."
"They've just changed the rules for the next campus league. This season's competition will be a fierce one."
"In other words, our Mingzhu Academy is bound to face the Sacred City Academy from now on."
When he finished, the principal looked at Jiang Yu. He seemed a little worried the young man wouldn't be able to handle that kind of pressure.
But there was no other way. If you wanted to climb up from the bottom, there would always be people trying to stop you!
And Jiang Yu was the same.
He'd beaten the others and won, so now they were thinking of every possible way to take him down.
"Then I'll beat the crap out of all of them!"
Jiang Yu was delighted by the chance to show off his strength. He spoke with the bold confidence of an invincible champion.
The principal burst into laughter. He really admired Jiang Yu's audacity.
After a brief chat, the two parted ways.
Jiang Yu tucked away his Demon Artifact and headed to the principal's office.
"A spatial Demon Artifact, dragon essence blood..."
"Principal, you really went all out!"
He knew Jiang Yu might become a well-known figure in the future, but compared to that, the Demon Artifact he'd given him was worth far more.
In the end, the principal had truly gone all out for him.
Jiang Yu didn't wait around in the office.
Another refined old man had arrived. Standing beside him was the girl who had left a deep impression on Jiang Yu—Ding Yumo.
Ding Yumo's talent was exceptionally high, but what stood out most was the faint, melancholy aura that clung to her.
It was as if her heart carried the sorrow of an entire building.
Ding Yumo seemed to have been untouched by the ways of the world, like a pure, unblemished flower.
"Hey, Jiang Yu, you're here too. I came to see the principal about something. It's a good thing we ran into each other. You two are about the same age, so you can get to know each other."
The principal cheerfully said goodbye and left Jiang Yu and Ding Yumo behind in the empty space.
Ding Yumo was a little nervous.
Ever since she was little, she'd never been good at talking to people. Her only friend in the social sphere was an outgoing girl named Mu Xing.
But Jiang Yu took the initiative and said,
"Want to take a walk together?"
Ding Yumo froze for a moment, then walked slowly beside him through the Mingzhu Academy campus.
It was autumn. The ginkgo trees along the road were like molten gold, and from time to time, their leaves drifted down.
Jiang Yu and Ding Yumo walked slowly along a quiet path where few people passed by.
Just then, a streak of magic light flashed by.
"Gurgle!"
A little dark dragon immediately flew out and circled its master, Jiang Yu, flapping its wings.
"Here, have some."
Jiang Yu took out a bottle of dragon-blood essence and handed it to Little Tan.
Little Tan gulped it down in one go.
Then it happily rubbed its little wing against Jiang Yu's body.
Only then did it notice the young woman beside its master.
"Is that your summoned creature? It looks so unusual."
Ding Yumo smiled faintly.
But the moment Little Tan saw Ding Yumo, it seemed to sense something.
With a flash of light, it immediately returned to its dimensional space.
That woman was so dangerous!
Little Tan sent its master a warning through their bond.
But Jiang Yu had already realized that Ding Yumo had a dark side.
"By the way, I've got a special ability. I can sense a person's basic personality."
"You're very special to me. Do you want to know why?"
Ding Yumo stopped walking, then tilted her head and looked at Jiang Yu.
Then she sat down on a nearby bench, twirling a strand of hair that had fallen beside her ear, waiting for his answer.
"Oh? Then what's my basic personality like?"
Jiang Yu sat down beside her.
"Anxious. I can sense that deep down, you're carrying a heavy grudge against the world."
Jiang Yu looked at Ding Yumo and took a long time to come back to himself.
A grudge?
That was right. The woes of Bo City, Principal Zhu, He Biao, the Mu family's Mu He, the Mu family's Mo Fan...
He had already changed those tragic fates.
But Jiang Yu kept a calm expression and asked,
"I can sense your inner thoughts, too. Do you want to hear what they are?"
That, at least, genuinely made Ding Yumo curious.
Because she could sense that Jiang Yu's mental strength was powerful. There was no way he could possess the ability to read minds.
"You're..."
Jiang Yu paused, then looked at Ding Yumo and said,
"You seem calm on the surface, but deep down, your mind is in turmoil."
"Your heart is hidden beneath a dense forest."
At that, Ding Yumo froze.
She remembered some unpleasant things from the past.
But how did Jiang Yu know? She hadn't revealed even the slightest hint of any of it...
She suddenly smiled, her eyes rippling like a clear lake.
"Looks like we're the same kind of person."
Ding Yumo glanced up at the sky, where the dimming sunlight had turned dusky.
"It's getting late. I'll head off first. This is how I usually spend my time."
Jiang Yu gave a wry smile.
He watched Ding Yumo's retreating figure and thought to himself,
Her tragic fate won't be repeated...
And once Jiang Yu grew stronger, he would help her remove the dark marks left on her soul!
Before you continue