As for leaving for Taiyi Academy right away, Yu Sui had only told Zhongli Que.
Zhongli Que saw the message that evening and hurriedly replied, "Why so sudden?"
"Have you already left?"
"Ahhh, I didn't even get to see you one last time!"
Sitting in the carriage, already outside the imperial capital, Yu Sui scratched her head when she saw the message.
"I'm going to Taiyi Academy to cultivate, not to die."
Zhongli Que replied, "Be careful out there on your own. Taiyi Academy has people from all six countries, and it's a mixed crowd. Quite a few people are hostile toward the Nangong Family, and the academy doesn't seem to care about any of that."
Yu Sui was just about to tell her not to worry when the carriage came to a stop.
The person escorting Yu Sui was Cao Yan, one of Nangong Ming's trusted subordinates and the captain of the Prince's household guards.
Cao Yan's respectful voice came from outside the carriage. "County Princess, the Dragon Car has arrived."
Yu Sui put away the Listening Wind Ruler, lifted the carriage curtain, and looked outside.
Ahead lay the Si River, at the border of Qingyang. It was broad, and they would need to take a ferry to cross.
Green grass lined the bank, dotted with white and purple flowers. Night mist blanketed the river. In the darkness, apart from the torches carried by the accompanying party, glowing insects flitted over the water.
Taiyi Academy had the Cloud Vehicle Dragon, built with the world's finest Mechanism Technique. It had been constructed by the Four Great Mechanical Clans working together, and the Seven Saints of the School of Names had bestowed words upon it, allowing it to fly through the sky without ever falling.
The academy had Dragon Car stops in all six countries. As long as a student had registered with the academy, the Dragon Car would arrive at the designated stop on time to pick them up.
The Cloud Vehicle Dragon was the only way to reach Taiyi Academy.
Yu Sui stepped down from the carriage and looked up at the clouds. A glimmer of gold appeared and disappeared in the distance, drawing nearer.
From afar, the flying dragon looked ethereal, like a long, thin golden thread.
Cao Yan reminded her, "When you arrive at Taiyi, a member of the Nangong Family in the outer city will show you the way. Young Master Gu has been detained by the Legalists this time and needs the Di Su Tiancheng of the School of Names to render a verdict. The Prince has already prepared it."
Yu Sui turned her gaze from the horizon. Cao Yan turned and handed her a long black box.
There was a reason Nangong Ming had sent her to Taiyi Academy. If Gu Gan hadn't been detained, he wouldn't have rushed to send Yu Sui over to help.
After all, his third son, Sheng Fei, who was far away at Taiyi, couldn't care less about Gu Gan's situation. He would be delighted if Gu Gan got into trouble and was thrown out of the academy.
With Sheng Fei so far away, Nangong Ming could only wait until he returned before dealing with him.
Yu Sui had just taken the black box when a deep dragon's roar sounded overhead. The golden dragon lowered itself from the high clouds, the light in its eyes shining through the thick mist and spilling over the ferry landing.
From afar, it looked like a golden thread. Up close, she could see that the "thread" was actually made of sections of body linked together.
Though it was an artificial, lifeless object, it was exquisitely crafted, as if a True Dragon had appeared in the world to roam between heaven and earth.
As the Dragon Car lowered the road that led to the ferry landing, Yu Sui heard gears turning with a clacking sound. Gazing at the enormous form, half concealed in the clouds ahead, she was dazzled once more by the wonders of this world, just as she had been when she first saw the National Academy's Communication Array.
"County Princess," Cao Yan and the others bowed. "Take care on your journey."
Yu Sui waved at them. "Then I'm off."
Holding the long black box, she walked toward the Dragon Car. Someone waited at the entrance, his robes fluttering in the night breeze. As the small figure below drew closer, the man smiled and said, "Please wait. I'm Mo Yun, the driver of the Cloud Vehicle Dragon this time. Please confirm that your identity is correct in the School Roster."
Yu Sui took the School Roster Mo Yun handed her and flipped through several pages before finding her name. She filled in the required information below and handed it back.
After confirming it, Mo Yun stepped aside. "Please."
Yu Sui stood before the dragon's mouth and peered inside. Lights glimmered brightly. She stepped forward, entering this splendid, wondrous world.
*
The Dragon Car began to fly, entering the clouds once more as it set off for the southernmost reaches of the Xuangu Continent.
Mo Yun led Yu Sui toward her room and said gently, "It's a long journey. You can rest in your room tonight. We'll reach the academy at the Chen hour tomorrow. If you'd like a meal, you can ask at the Red Room toward the back, and someone will bring dinner to your room shortly."
Yu Sui looked down at the wooden floorboards. She could feel the Dragon Car flying at a good speed, yet it didn't affect people walking inside at all.
"This is where you'll be resting." Mo Yun stopped in front of a black door.
Black doors lined both sides of the corridor in this section of the Dragon Car, each marked with a number. Yu Sui's room was 806.
"You're the last student. The Dragon Car won't stop again, and will go straight to the academy." Mo Yun opened the door and gestured for Yu Sui to enter, then bowed elegantly. "You'll be notified when we arrive. I won't disturb your rest."
Yu Sui stood at the doorway and looked around the room. It was exquisitely furnished, with a small window, a small bed, a dressing table, and chairs. A vase of flowers sat on the table by the window, holding a blossoming bunch of white flowers whose name she didn't know. It was a cozy, private little world.
So refined.
Yu Sui marveled inwardly as she went to sit by the window and carefully pushed it open.
The wooden window was tightly latched, and she could only push it open a little at a time. After slowly opening half of it, she saw the clouds drifting outside and the golden Dragon Car, hundreds of meters long, rising and falling among them.
She had no idea what place they were flying over. Looking down from above, Yu Sui saw countless lights in the homes below through the clouds: first a bustling capital, then quiet countryside, then mountains dotted with scattered points of light.
At last, all she could see was an endless expanse of sea. The moon rose and sank over the water, but the edge of this world was nowhere in sight.
The Endless Sea to the south was the greatest barrier preventing people from reaching Taiyi Academy. It stretched on without end and was said to be larger than all six countries combined, occupying half the Xuangu Continent.
Fog often shrouded the sea, confounding people's minds. Without precise navigation, it was easy to lose one's way and die at sea.
Even a ship couldn't cross the Endless Sea to reach Taiyi Academy. Thousands upon thousands of arrays, large and small, lay within it, nested one inside another. To this day, no one had managed to sail through the Endless Sea and reach the academy.
The only way to reach the academy was aboard the Cloud Vehicle Dragon.
For the rest of the journey, Yu Sui saw nothing but endless sea. Under the moonlight, it was sometimes a deep blue, sometimes dark and heavy. At times, clouds obscured everything from view.
She rested her chin in one hand, watching for a long while, seemingly lost in thought, until a knock sounded at the door.
The knocking went on and on, not the sort of thing the refined driver Mo Yun would do.
Yu Sui went to open the door and saw a young man and woman standing outside, both about her age. The youth in green had his head drooping as if he hadn't woken up yet, while the girl in a white dress with twin ponytails was brimming with excitement. Her eyes lit up even more when she saw Yu Sui.
"I'm Xue Jiayue, from Taiyuan Country." The girl smiled at Yu Sui, then pointed to the sleepy youth beside her. "This is my cousin, Xue Mushi."
Yu Sui blinked and said nothing.
Xue Jiayue was outgoing. She opened the food box hanging from her arm, took out a stack of small boxes, and handed one to Yu Sui. "This is a welcome gift. We're all new students this year, so let's get to know each other in advance!"
Without waiting to see if Yu Sui wanted it, she put it straight into her hands, then turned and knocked on the door across the hall.
It was obvious the girl was caught up in her excitement.
Yu Sui opened the food box. When she saw the pastries inside, she silently closed it again.
"Anyone there?" Xue Jiayue knocked on the door. After getting no answer for a long while, she had just pressed her ear against it when the person inside opened the door. She nearly fell in, but the figure standing in the doorway stepped aside and made no move to catch her.
"Whoa!" Xue Jiayue grabbed the doorframe to steady herself. "That was close. You..."
She looked up, then froze when she saw the person's outfit.
Yu Sui and Xue Mushi also looked at the person who had come out. Xue Mushi seemed a little less sleepy now, though a hint of confusion had crept into his eyes.
The youth in the doorway wore white, with a jade crown securing her hair and a sword at her waist. One hand rested on the hilt, and her bearing was cold and stern. The corridor's dim yellow light brushed her excessively pale skin. Beneath her dark brows, a pair of sharp, silent eyes swept lightly over Xue Jiayue.
Her features were exceptionally handsome, and her steady, mature air made Xue Jiayue's heart race.
She hurriedly retreated two steps into the corridor. Even her voice softened, though she couldn't hide her cheerfulness. "Young Hero, I'm Xue Jiayue from Taiyuan Country. We're all new students, so let's get to know each other in advance!"
"Here, this is a welcome gift for you." Xue Jiayue held out the small food box.
The youth remained silent.
Yu Sui scratched her cheek, unable to bear watching.
Xue Mushi quietly reminded her, "She's a woman."
"Huh?" Xue Jiayue turned around. "What did you say so softly, cousin?"
"She's not a young hero," Xue Mushi said with difficulty. "She's a woman."
Xue Jiayue stared back in shock.
The "youth" didn't take the food box, only lowered her voice and said, "Li Jinshuang, from Nanjing."
"Oh... Oh!" Xue Jiayue didn't know what to say for a moment and kept nodding. To avoid the awkwardness, she hurried to knock on the door next to Li Jinshuang's.
Just as Li Jinshuang closed her door, the one next to it opened.
The youth who stepped out was tall and thin, dressed rather shabbily compared with the others. He wore only a simple blue robe, as if clothes only needed to cover what they had to.
The youth raised a hand to scratch his hair, and his sleeve slipped down, exposing an arm covered in scars.
"Why are you knocking on people's doors in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?" After scratching his hair, the youth yawned and cast a careless glance at everyone in the corridor with his long, narrow phoenix eyes.
"Welcome gifts." Xue Jiayue smiled broadly. "I'm..."
"I know. You're from Taiyuan Country." The youth took the food box Xue Jiayue offered, then looked at Yu Sui across from him and lifted his chin in a silent question. "And you?"
The other two also looked at Yu Sui.
Yu Sui couldn't keep silent this time and said, "Qingyang, Nangong Sui."
"Oh, the County Princess of the Nangong Family." The youth raised an eyebrow at Yu Sui. "I've heard a lot about you."
But there was something meaningful in his gaze.
"What about you?" Xue Jiayue prompted him. "You asked the others, so you can't just refuse to introduce yourself."
The youth answered lazily, "Wei Ren, from the School of the Farmers."
The three of them were taken aback.
Everyone else had said which country they were from. He had opened with the school he belonged to.
"This stuff..." Wei Ren opened the food box, took a couple bites of pastry, then spat them back into the box. He closed it without a hint of courtesy. "Not even a dog would eat this."
"Hey!" Xue Jiayue realized what he'd said. She nearly got angry, but lowered her raised hand after a couple of seconds. "I didn't make it. It's food from the Dragon Car."
Xue Mushi suddenly said, "Don't move."
Xue Jiayue turned around. "What's wrong?"
"Don't move." Xue Mushi looked troubled. He seemed unwilling to get involved, but felt he had to help.
He stepped forward, lifted the hair at the back of Xue Jiayue's neck, and plucked a tiny red scorpion from the roots of her hair.
"It's a Stone Scorpion from the School of the Farmers. They often use them to steal information." Xue Mushi tossed the little red scorpion to Xue Jiayue and backed away five steps. He was actually very afraid of little things like this.
Xue Jiayue's eyes went wide when she saw it. Furious, she flung the Stone Scorpion at Wei Ren's door. "You're so underhanded!"
Still not satisfied, she wanted to kick the door, but remembered they were aboard the Dragon Car and that Wei Ren had already joined a school. She hadn't even noticed the Stone Scorpion; if he had something else on her, that could be a problem.
Xue Jiayue held back. She stomped on the Stone Scorpion, crushing it, then stormed off down the carriage section.
Yu Sui watched as the Stone Scorpion shattered into pieces across the floor. A moment later, the fragments reassembled on their own, fitting back together into a Stone Scorpion that crawled through the crack beneath the door.
The room was dark, with no lights on. Wei Ren, lying on the bed, held out a hand. The Red Scorpion crawled onto his fingertip, and he put it in his mouth, chewed it up, and swallowed.
Yu Sui closed the door, returned to the window, and stared out at the dark sea, deep in thought.
When Wei Ren mentioned the School of the Farmers, she knew he was aware that the breath soil was with her.
The Xue cousins: the younger sister was lively and good at dealing with people, while the older brother seemed socially awkward. Yet he had a sharp eye, immediately spotting the Stone Scorpion Wei Ren had left on Xue Jiayue.
As for Li Jinshuang, the "young hero" disguised as a man, she was interesting.
Yu Sui tapped her fingers on the table. After a moment, she picked up the Listening Wind Ruler. There were no Communication Arrays in the Endless Sea, and it was impossible to set one up there, so she couldn't send messages out.
She watched the motionless Listening Wind Ruler for a while, then glanced at the black box beside it. Inside was the Di Su Tiancheng, the important item she needed to rescue Gu Gan from the Legalists' Trial Ground.
Yu Sui thought for a moment, opened the food box, and put a piece of mung bean cake in her mouth. A moment later, she spat it all out.
Indeed.
Not even a dog would eat this.
*
Yu Sui didn't sleep all night.
She sat by the window through the night, watching the moon slowly sink, then the sun rise in the east. Orange-gold light broke through the clouds, gradually illuminating the sea and the way ahead.
When enormous islands and cities appeared faintly in the distance, a deep, resonant dragon's roar sounded.
It was no exaggeration to say Taiyi Academy was as vast as a country.
Looking down from the sky, Yu Sui could feel the immense breadth of the land below. As daylight chased after them, the lights still glowing in the city gradually went out one by one.
The outer city was almost entirely made up of merchants.
Some had been born there; others had come from outside to trade with Taiyi Academy. They came from different parts of the six countries, making the place a tangled mix of people. Some were ordinary merchants; others made their living robbing robbers. There were also fugitives from other countries, living quiet lives under assumed names, as well as those who didn't keep out of trouble.
In Taiyi Outer City, the academy didn't interfere in the students' feuds, whether they were personal, between nations, or part of the martial world.
Only within the academy was there a prohibition against killing.
There were twenty-four Saints in the academy at present.
There were tens of thousands of students, with people arriving and leaving every year.
The dragon's roar drew nearer, and the people aboard began to rise, getting ready to disembark. The Dragon Car stopped at the outer city's ferry landing, one of dozens of landing points along the coast.
When Yu Sui opened her door, she happened to see Li Jinshuang coming out of the room across from hers. The two met unexpectedly. Li Jinshuang glanced at her in passing, then looked away and walked toward the exit alone.
Each section of the Dragon Car had a corresponding landing. Yu Sui and the others didn't have to walk far before they reached the exit. Beyond it lay a new world, filled with birdsong and flowers. Flowers and grass covered the towering rock walls, and seabirds called melodiously in the early morning, carrying food and stopping on the Dragon Car's back to watch the new students.
People from the Nangong Family had been waiting for a long time.
"County Princess." Black Beard waved at Yu Sui from the landing. "Over here!"
Black Beard walked toward her, with the grown-up Ji Meng following behind.
Even grown, Ji Meng still looked like a thin monkey. The difference was that his skin was darker than it had been back in Qingyang Imperial Capital. He had been worrying himself sick over Gu Gan's situation, his heart full of anxiety. Yet when he saw Yu Sui coming down from the Dragon Car, Ji Meng couldn't help but stare, briefly forgetting his worries.
How could she have changed so much in just two or three years?
Ji Meng's impression of Yu Sui was still that of a slightly childish, adorable girl. He especially remembered the night he'd climbed over the wall and, on seeing Yu Sui, wondered if he'd made a mistake and wandered into King Nangong's Mansion.
That night had left a deep impression on him.
Yu Sui had been holding a broom beneath a tree. When she saw him land, she was so startled she looked just like a cat, her pupils widening and turning black.
Now, walking beneath the orange-gold morning sun, the young woman had a slender waist and skin as pale as porcelain. The gauzy outer layer of her dress softened its red, but when she walked in the sunlight, the glow brought that vivid color back to life, making it bright and dazzling.
Her clear, limpid eyes seemed to smile on their own, and her dark pupils still made Ji Meng think of a cat.
She had grown taller, and her already delicate, beautiful face had blossomed, becoming even more charming and lively.
A thought inexplicably popped into Ji Meng's head: I was right.
He remembered how, a few months ago, he and Gu Gan had talked about which of the girls they'd known at the National Academy and the girls at Taiyi was the prettiest. He had said Yu Sui.
Gu Gan had said each had her own merits, but the other two had chosen Xun Zhiya of Taiyi.
Now that he'd seen Yu Sui, Ji Meng was certain: I was right.
Black Beard took the box containing the Di Su Tiancheng from Yu Sui and said as they walked, "It's quite a distance from the outer city to the Legalists' Trial Ground. Since you haven't learned the Wind Riding Technique yet, we'll take a carriage there first."
Yu Sui hummed in response. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Ji Meng standing off to the side without moving and greeted him first. "It's been a long time."
Ji Meng came back to himself and hurriedly said, "It has, County Princess."
"You still call me that here?" Yu Sui stopped and looked at him. "I thought they ignored social rank within Taiyi Academy and didn't require honorifics."
Ji Meng awkwardly rubbed his nose. "This is the outer city, not inside the academy yet. Besides, I'm used to calling you that. It's no big deal if I don't change."
"Oh." With help from her attendants, Yu Sui climbed into the carriage. Black Beard and Ji Meng got in too, then explained the current situation to her on the way.
Students streamed down from the Dragon Car one after another. Seeing the vast, majestic world before them, they cried out in astonishment, chattering and clamoring so loudly that they drowned out even the seabirds.
Li Jinshuang walked alone along the shaded path, silent amid the clamor.
Wei Ren found the sunlight dazzling. Rubbing his eyes, he slowly squeezed out of the crowd and aimlessly scanned the people around him. A few companions approached, and he walked alongside them.
Xue Jiayue ran ahead, cheering. Xue Mushi opened his mouth, but eventually decided against it and said nothing. Head drooping, he trudged along at a snail's pace.
"Cousin, why are you walking so slowly? Run!"
Xue Jiayue turned around and grabbed Xue Mushi, dragging and tugging him into a run.
The seabirds on the Dragon Car seemed startled by the newcomers. They gulped down their food and took flight.
Before you continue