This Is the Hall of Wisdom

She Long, Qian Renxue's bodyguard, immediately grew wary. The Sky Screen's revelations had shattered Qian Renxue's composure. If her identity was exposed, he would have to give everything he had to protect her.

But a green light suddenly appeared, instantly soothing Qian Renxue's troubled mind. The others also gradually calmed down.

"Why has everyone gathered here? Has the site for the branch been decided?"

Following the voice, everyone looked over and saw Ouyang Kong and Nahida approaching with Kaveh.

Kaveh surveyed the buildings of Blue Tyrant Academy and frowned slightly. Clearly, their architecture did not meet his aesthetic standards.

"Lesser Lord Kusanali, Grand Sage, and Kaveh, you've arrived."

Tighnari spoke up. Sethos, Collei, Dori, and Nefer all bowed to Nahida and Ouyang Kong to show their respect.

At Tighnari's form of address, Ning Fengzhi, Qian Renxue, Sword Douluo, and the others were all taken aback.

They truly couldn't connect the words "divine being" with this adorable little girl.

But when Nahida looked their way, they felt as if she could see right through them.

Ouyang Kong merely glanced at Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, and Qian Renxue. He showed no intention of speaking to them first.

"Tighnari, is this where you chose to establish the branch?"

"Grand Sage..."

Tighnari looked a little awkward.

"We chose this location, but we haven't settled who owns the land yet."

Ouyang Kong didn't blame Tighnari. They were short on time, and finding a suitable site at all was already good enough.

"Nahida, what do you think of this place?"

"It's quite nice. Since it's only a branch, it doesn't need to be very large."

"The size doesn't matter. Nahida, let's show the faithful a little of our divine power."

Nahida understood what Ouyang Kong meant. Together, they headed toward the lakeside.

Kaveh, Tighnari, Sethos, Collei, Dori, and Nefer, all affiliated with the Akademiya, hurried after them.

Only then did Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, Qian Renxue, and the people from Shrek Academy react. A beat behind, they followed.

From the moment Ouyang Kong and Nahida appeared, they had exuded a calming presence that forcefully quelled everyone's emotions.

"Uncle Jian, is that... really a god?"

Ning Fengzhi asked Sword Douluo in a low voice. Sword Douluo shook his head.

He didn't know either, but he could clearly feel that she had seen right through him.

Though Nahida hadn't actively invoked her authority, as the God of Wisdom, she could see through many things at a glance.

Meanwhile, the Sky Screen continued updating. The background had changed to a gloomy black and crimson, its color like dried blood, sending a chill down everyone's spine.

Perhaps the others didn't recognize it, but Tang Hao knew all too well: the scene shown on the Sky Screen was Slaughter City.

Then Bibi Dong appeared on the Sky Screen again, though by now her demeanor had undergone a complete transformation.

Cruelty, bloodlust, madness—none of these words were enough to describe Bibi Dong as she was now.

In Hell Slaughter Arena in Slaughter City, Bibi Dong was a frenzied butcher. She didn't merely kill her opponents; she tortured them to death.

She was venting upon them the humiliation she had suffered at Qian Xunji's hands.

The Sky Screen didn't censor a thing. It showed the horror of Hell Slaughter Arena to everyone across the Douluo Continent.

Although the Sky Screen's rapid cuts made the scenes flash by quickly, that did nothing to diminish the display of Bibi Dong's madness.

As Bibi Dong watched her frenzied self on the Sky Screen, her grip on her scepter tightened until her knuckles turned white. She had tried with all her might to forget that time in Slaughter City, but the Sky Screen had made her remember it all too clearly.

Now she was certain: this Sky Screen was targeting her.

The final scene showed Bibi Dong emerging from Hell Road. That was when the Rakshasa God's inheritance had found her.

At Blue Tyrant Academy, Nefer rolled a chess piece between her fingers as she watched the Sky Screen and thought, That place shown on the Sky Screen is worth investigating.

By then, Ouyang Kong and Nahida had reached the lakeside. Ouyang Kong nodded to her.

Nahida understood and clasped her hands before her.

"This is the Hall of Wisdom!"

In an instant, the Sanctuary of Surasthana unfolded, spreading across all of Heaven Dou City. At the same time, a soothing force arose, calming the restless hearts stirred by the terrifying scenes shown on the Sky Screen.

In Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, Xue Ye was also astonished. With no idea what had happened, he immediately ordered people to investigate.

But that was only the beginning. A seed by the lakeside began to sprout. Bathed in Dendro elemental power, it grew at a fantastic speed, quickly rising from a sapling into a tree.

And it didn't stop there. The tree kept growing taller and larger.

At last, as Ning Fengzhi, Qian Renxue, Yu Xiaogang, and the others stared in stunned disbelief, the tiny seed had become a towering tree visible from every corner of Heaven Dou City.

There was more than enough room to build an Akademiya Branch atop this towering tree.

"So this is the power of a god? Before divine power, so-called Titled Douluo are no different from ants."

Sword Douluo had clearly drawn the wrong conclusion. The gap between gods could be unimaginably vast.

Among the gods of the Douluo Continent, you could count on one hand those who could match the average power of a god in Teyvat—and even that might be an overestimate.

Although Nahida was one of the Seven Archons least suited to battle, the gods of the Douluo Continent still couldn't hold a candle to her.

The people of Heaven Dou City had watched the towering tree grow with their own eyes. Many turned toward it and bowed in worship.

That was exactly what Ouyang Kong had wanted. Nahida had taken her first step toward gathering faith.

"Kaveh, I'm putting you fully in charge of designing the branch's buildings."

"Nefer, Dori, you'll take care of securing the construction funds. You have my permission to call upon some of the main Akademiya's resources and personnel."

"Really? How much can we call upon? Let me work out how much it'll take to build a branch..."

"Don't bother. I'll have Alhaitham audit the accounts. If you can get more resources out of him, that's your skill."

Dori immediately deflated. As far as she was concerned, someone as excessively rational as Alhaitham was the hardest person to deal with.

"I only need a little information. Sometimes information is worth more than supplies. Don't you agree, Sect Master Ning?"

At that, Ning Fengzhi seemed to make up his mind. He stepped forward and bowed.

"Lesser Lord Kusanali, Grand Sage, Miss Nefer, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect can cover all the construction costs for the Akademiya Branch. In the future, if the Akademiya needs to build more branches, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect will continue to provide funding.

"I ask for only one thing: that our sect's inherited Martial Soul, the Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda, break through its limits and become the legendary Nine Treasure Glazed Pagoda."