The Missing Fourth Place

Walking slowly along the tree-lined paths between the academies, Xiao Yan squinted slightly, not paying much attention to the strange gazes coming from around him. Ever since he won the championship in the Selection Tournament two days ago, these gazes had been following Xiao Yan.

There was no way around it; from the semifinals onwards, he relied on his girlfriends' surrenders and his rumored girlfriends' withdrawals to become the champion. And coincidentally, they were all the most beautiful girls in the Jia Nan Academy, so doing this was bound to bring him a lot of attention.

Although most of that attention was not very friendly.

After all, being pursued by three of the most beautiful girls in the academy, and even losing in the last three rounds of the crucial Inner Academy Selection Tournament just to help Xiao Yan sit on the champion's throne, such treatment would make even the female students envious, let alone the male students!

Boyfriends and girlfriends aren't that important; what's most important is being among the top five to get into the academy 'Library Pavilion!

Xiao Yan was initially a little uncomfortable with this, but he quickly began to enjoy it.

I, Xiao Yan, choose my friends based on my own abilities. Why should I feel guilty?

If they really fought, Xiao Yan would win!

According to the academy's rules, within seven days after the Selection Tournament, the top fifty students must begin preparing to enter the Inner Academy. The top five, including Xiao Yan, can choose a time within these seven days to enter the academy's Library Pavilion. As a reward, they are qualified to rely on luck to choose something that belongs to them.

Xiao Yan was also very interested in the mysterious Library Pavilion that even Xun'er couldn't forget. However, according to the rules, only the top five people could enter at the same time. The fourth person somehow offended Yun Li and was beaten up badly. He hasn't woken up yet.

Five days later, when Xiao Yan was summoned to the pavilion where Instructor Xi Wei lived, he saw Instructor Xi Wei, Xun'er, Xiao Yi Xian, and Han Yue all there. In front of them stood a middle-aged man dressed in the robes of an academy instructor.

"This is?"

Walking into the living room with a smile, Xiao Yan turned his gaze to Xun'er and asked with a smile.

"Brother Xiao Yan, this is Instructor Kulu." Xun'er greeted him with a smile, taking Xiao Yan's coat from him and saying softly, "The Vice Dean means that this afternoon is the time for us to enter the Library Pavilion."

Xiao Yan paused slightly, startled, then nodded with a smile. He'd finally arrived. He'd been looking forward to this so-called mysterious Library Pavilion for a long time; now, he hoped it wouldn't disappoint him.

In the spacious and bright room, bookshelves were crisscrossed and filled with all kinds of antique books, giving it a particularly scholarly atmosphere. At this moment, in the center of the room, a beautiful figure in a black dress was leaning against a bookshelf.

Behind the table in front of her, Hu Gan slowly flipping through the documents in his hands. The entire room was in a state of silence.

After a silence that lasted for nearly ten minutes, Vice Dean Hu Gan finally looked up from his book and said calmly, "As expected of the Soul Clan, they actually killed someone right here at the Jia Nan Academy."

"Anyway, he wasn't a student of your Jia Nan Academy. That person seems to have some connection with the Soul Hall, so killing him is fine."

Hun Li Li smiled faintly upon hearing this, but her eyes were filled with icy coldness!

"Creak."

The crisp sound of the door opening was followed by a quiet voice entering the room, "Vice Dean, Xiao Yan, Xiao Xun Er, and Xiao Yi Xian have arrived."

"Please let them in." Closing the book in his hands, Hu Gan stared at Hun Li Li and said, "If it's a matter within your clan, the academy won't interfere. But if you lay a hand on an ordinary student, then I'll have no choice but to expel you from the Jia Nan Academy."

Upon hearing this, Hun Li Li pursed her lips, and although she didn't agree or disagree in her heart, she nodded on the surface.

Shortly after Hu Gan finished speaking, three figures slowly entered through the doorway. Their gazes swept around the spacious room before finally settling on Hu Gan behind the table. The three stepped forward and bowed in greeting.

"Hehe, the three of you have finally arrived."

Smiling at the two of them, Hu Gan's gaze lingered on Xiao Yan's face for a moment longer before he shook his head helplessly.

This kid has turned the Jia Nan Academy's Inner Academy Selection Tournament into a joke. It seems we'll have to change the competition format starting next year.

Otherwise, if another situation of admitting defeat occurs, Jia Nan Academy will lose face completely!

"Since you're all here, I won't waste any more time. You should know why I called you here." Standing up from his chair, Hu Gan smiled and said, "You are the top five in this year's Selection Tournament. According to the rules, you are qualified to try your luck in the Library Pavilion."

As he spoke, Hu Gan went to the wall behind him and casually clapped his hands a few times. A deep rumbling sound rang out, and then a dark passage appeared in front of Xiao Yan and the other three.

"Come with me."

Waving to the four, Hu Gan took the lead and entered the dark passage. Hun Li Li, who was full of curiosity, followed without hesitation. Seeing this, Xiao Yan hesitated for a moment before pulling Xun'er and Xiao Yi Xian, one in each hand, and carefully entered the dark passage.

After entering the passage, Xiao Yan discovered that the walls were inlaid with large luminous pearls, whose faint light made the passage somewhat dim, but this light was enough for Xiao Yan and the others.

The atmosphere in the passage was quiet, with only the soft rustling of footsteps. After walking for about half an hour, a glimmer of light finally appeared at the end of the passage. Upon seeing the light, the people in the passage quickened their pace considerably. A moment later, they finally reached the end of the passage and stepped out.

The blinding sunlight streamed down from the sky, causing Xiao Yan and the others to instinctively close their eyes. However, Xiao Yan quickly recovered, and Cobalt Blue Flame appeared in his eyes. The blinding light was filtered out, and the scene before him came into view.

Before Xiao Yan and the others was a valley recess, with steep cliffs extending upwards until they reached the horizon. Between the three cliffs, there was a very spacious open space, where a massive, imposing, and ancient-looking pavilion stood.

His gaze slowly swept over the massive, ancient pavilion, finally settling on an extremely old plaque outside the pavilion, on which three characters, somewhat blurred by the erosion of time, were faintly visible.

Library Pavilion!

Hu Gan led the four of them slowly toward the Library Pavilion. When they were about twenty meters away, he suddenly stopped, clasped his hands in a fist salute toward the Library Pavilion, and said, "The top five in this year's Inner Academy Selection Tournament have been determined. According to the rules, I have brought them here. Please open the door, elders!"

Hu Gan's words, carried by his Dou Qi, lingered in the small valley, never dissipating.

Shortly after Hu Gan finished speaking, Xiao Yan's pupils, which had been fixed on the Library Pavilion, suddenly contracted. His gaze shifted sharply, finally settling on the two gray-robed figures sitting cross-legged at the entrance. When he entered earlier, he had clearly seen that there wasn't a single person there!

The Qian and Bai Elders, huh? At this point, they were already stuck at the Peak Dou Zong...

Hu Gan's voice slowly faded into the valley, while the two gray-robed figures remained completely still, as if they hadn't heard a thing.

Seeing that there was no response to his words, Hu Gan remained silent, keeping his fists clasped and waiting quietly.

Behind Hu Gan, Xiao Yan and the others exchanged glances upon seeing this scene. Even the unruly Hun Li Li wisely kept quiet. If these two old geezers were to deal with her, she would have no choice but to ask her biological father for help.

After a nearly ten-minute silence in the valley, the robes of the two gray-robed figures sitting cross-legged at the pavilion's entrance trembled slightly. Then, two pairs of eyes, as calm and still as those of old monks, rose from beneath their robes, their gazes sweeping lightly over Hu Gan and the others, before finally settling on Xiao Yan. Their gray robes trembled slightly, and a soft, hoarse gasp of surprise escaped their lips.

"Heavenly Flames?"

The faint sound echoed slowly in the silent valley, clearly reaching the ears of Xiao Yan and the others.

"May I ask your name, young friend?"

A man in a gray robe stared at Xiao Yan, his hoarse voice revealing a sense of vicissitude accumulated over the years.

Hearing that the gray-robed man had first abandoned the Hu Gan and asked Xiao Yan a question, the others in the valley were all taken aback, and then turned to look at Xiao Yan with strange eyes.

Xiao Yan was also taken aback by the gray-robed man's question, and then quickly clasped his hands in a respectful manner and said, "This junior, Xiao Yan, greets the two elders."

"Strange, I can't tell what kind of Heavenly Flames it is..."

An aged voice lingered in Xiao Yan's ears.

"To be able to control Heavenly Flames at such a young age is truly a gift..." The gray-robed man on the left sighed softly, his voice tinged with admiration. Then he turned his gaze to Hu Gan and said in a hoarse voice, "The top five this year are much better than the last year, so why are there only four?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan also turned his gaze to Hu Gan.

He was wondering the same thing; where did the fourth brother go?

"The fourth-ranked student has been expelled for suspected cheating, so there are only four of us left. We'd appreciate it if you two could unlock the Space Lock."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yan and the other two looked completely bewildered.

Huh? Fired?

However, the Qian and Bai Elders were not concerned about this matter. Upon hearing this, they simply nodded indifferently to indicate that they understood. Then, they slowly extended two pairs of withered hands from their sleeves and began to slowly form hand seals, one finger at a time. As their hand seals changed, Xiao Yan and the others could clearly feel two extremely powerful and invisible waves emanating from their palms like waves.

The invisible fluctuations gradually spread, finally coming into contact with the spatial folds. Upon contact, the space in front of Xiao Yan and the others became like a mirror made of water, constantly rippling. After a moment, the ripples stopped, and a door-shaped structure was slowly torn open by an invisible hand.