The Academy Master said, "The Thousand-Year Ancient Demon flew in from beyond the heavens a thousand years ago and was suppressed by the Demon Palace. It was an eternal calamity from the start, not something ordinary people could subdue. In my early years, I visited the Demon Palace in the Fire Demon Mountain Range, but ultimately stopped outside and did not enter. I had expected the Thousand-Year Ancient Demon to escape from the Demon Palace; it merely happened somewhat earlier than I predicted."
Ning Xiaochuan said, "Not even you can subdue it, Academy Master?"
"To speak selfishly, I can suppress him, but I cannot kill him. If I spend the rest of my life suppressing him, I will have no energy left to cultivate martial arts. In thirty years, my life force will be exhausted. Tell me, should I spend the last thirty years of my life suppressing the ancient demon, or seek a higher realm of martial arts?" the Academy Master said.
Ning Xiaochuan understood the Academy Master well. "As long as one is human, one will have selfish motives. Besides, this does not count as selfishness on your part. You merely wish to go farther down the path of martial arts and pursue its ultimate realm. In truth, you have already done enough for the Yulan Empire. You have presided over the Heavenly Emperor Academy for two hundred years. The Yulan Empire's strength has increased more than tenfold, martial arts have flourished, nobles and marquises have emerged in droves, and its army has become even more awe-inspiring beneath heaven, making the heroes bow their heads and ten thousand nations come to pay tribute. It can be called a golden age in the history of the Yulan Empire."
"You could have pursued the ultimate realm of martial arts a