The Sky Screen Reappeared

Seeing the Silver Dragon King lying on the ground and questioning her existence, Di Tian hurried over to help her up.

"My lord, this Grass Dragon King is probably an existence we can't afford to provoke, just like the Akademiya. You should lower your head."

The Silver Dragon King glanced up at Apep again. Though she didn't want to admit it, the facts proved that they weren't even on the same level.

Apep's remark that the Dragon God was laughable hadn't been an insult. She had simply stated a fact.

Apep hadn't taken the Silver Dragon King's offense to heart. She was about to say a few more words when she heard Little Durin's voice.

"I found you! You're the big green dragon!"

Apep turned and saw Little Durin and Scaramouche.

"Hello, big green dragon! I'm Durin. It's nice to meet you."

Apep studied Little Durin. She could sense the Abyssal power within her, and for a fleeting moment, she thought she saw Nibelung.

When Nibelung had returned from beyond the heavens, he had carried the power of the Abyss.

"Little newborn dragon, I'm the Grass Dragon King, Apep."

"Apep. That's a lovely name. Can we play together? Can we be friends?"

Little Durin blinked her big eyes and looked at Apep with an innocent expression.

Faced with Little Durin, Apep found herself at a bit of a loss. She wasn't good with children.

Her gaze turned to the Silver Dragon King, Di Tian, and Zi JI.

"Little dragon, do you want to make friends? They're dragons from another world, so you can get to know them. I still have things to do. Goodbye."

With that, Apep disappeared. More precisely, she merged into the Star Dou Forest. By blending her Dendro power into the forest, she could better understand this otherworldly Douluo Continent.

"The big dragon left, Scaramouche. Does she not like me?"

"No, don't let your imagination run wild. If you want friends, they're your kin, in a way. Go on!"

"Mm, I understand. Thank you, Scaramouche!"

Little Durin landed and introduced herself to the Silver Dragon King, Di Tian, and Zi JI.

After what had happened with Apep, the Silver Dragon King didn't dare act recklessly. Before long, they all realized that Little Durin was just a curious child.

And there was someone who knew how to handle children: Bi Ji. She didn't have any of her own, but her gentle nature made her popular with them.

Seeing that Little Durin was getting along with them, Scaramouche nodded in satisfaction. He returned to the Akademiya's main campus, greeted Alhaitham, then contacted Nahida and told her everything that had happened.

"I understand. Just keep Little Durin company for now. I'll let you know if I need you."

With that, Nahida ended the call.

"Always making decisions on your own. Why does looking after a child have to be my job?"

He complained, but in truth, he kept a close eye on Little Durin the whole time.

In Heaven Dou City, the Akademiya Branch had only admitted a small number of students. After discussing it with Nahida, Ouyang Kong opened a reading room.

It was stocked with basic books. The people of Heaven Dou City would be given time to study before taking an examination, and the best candidates would be admitted to the Akademiya for further study.

Otherwise, the School of Lore, Haravatat, and Haravatat wouldn't even have students to show off. It would look awful.

Cyno, using Nahida's mind-reading ability, had recruited several people of sound character as temporary Discipline Officers.

If they did well, they could become full-fledged Discipline Officers of the Akademiya.

Bone Douluo and Sword Douluo had also wanted to become Discipline Officers, but they were rejected because their intentions weren't pure.

For a Discipline Officer, integrity mattered more than strength. A Discipline Officer was responsible for upholding justice, so corruption within their own ranks was a serious matter.

That was why Nahida had gone out of her way to use her mind-reading ability.

A month passed in the blink of an eye, and the Akademiya Branch in Heaven Dou City was fully up and running.

Collei taught Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, and Xiao Wu, with Lana supervising them. The Akademiya Student Handbook was their main course, along with the basics of Amurta.

Ning Rongrong was in the same boat, studying under Layla. Faruzan would also drop by to offer guidance whenever she had nothing else to do, which made things rough for Ning Rongrong.

Faruzan's standards were much stricter than Layla's.

Kaveh had taken Tai Tan and Tang San as his students. Tang San had also contributed some Hidden Weapon materials. They were indeed useful as reference, but nothing more.

The Akademiya could even build something like Shouki no Kami. That alone said plenty about its technological prowess.

Tang San had only touched the tip of the iceberg when it came to mechanical knowledge. His former sense of superiority had been utterly shattered, and now he studied diligently.

Of course, the Akademiya Student Handbook was also required reading, and Kaveh, as their teacher, made sure to check it closely.

Tang San was young, so he could manage. For an old man like Tai Tan, though, it was pure torment.

Nahida and Ouyang Kong left the Akademiya Branch in Heaven Dou City in Cyno's hands. Then they went to Spirit City to prepare to open a second branch.

At the same time, Ouyang Kong had Alhaitham send people to Star Luo City and told Scaramouche and Little Durin to visit Sea God Island overseas.

It was then that golden light suddenly appeared in the sky, and the Sky Screen returned. Just as promised, it had reappeared after exactly one month.

Everyone turned their eyes to the Sky Screen, eager to see what kind of ranking it would reveal this time.

Amid the crowd's anticipation, words slowly appeared across the screen.

[The Ten Great Powers: Those Who Make the List Will Receive Rewards]

When they saw that the Sky Screen was ranking the ten great powers, many people began to consider what it might mean for them.

"Xue Xing, our Heaven Dou Empire is one of the two great empires on the Douluo Continent. We should make the list, shouldn't we?"

Xue Ye asked Prince Xue Xing.

"Of course, Your Majesty. Congratulations!"

In the Star Luo Empire, the Star Luo Emperor asked the very same question.

Both emperors thought their empires would make the list, but the Sky Screen quickly proved them wrong.

[Honorable Mention: The Two Great Empires]

Xue Ye and the Star Luo Emperor stared at the Sky Screen in disbelief. An honorable mention meant that neither empire even qualified for the top ten.

They found that hard to accept.

Seeing the two empires ranked outside the top ten, Ouyang Kong roughly understood. The Sky Screen's rankings probably focused on high-level combat strength.

Neither empire had a Titled Douluo of its own, so being ranked outside the top ten was reasonable enough.

[Heaven Dou Empire: Decadent nobles, impoverished commoners, a lax army, a fragmented power structure, and a lack of high-level combat strength]

[For nearly twenty years, it failed to notice that Qian Renxue, the young mistress of Spirit Hall, had taken the place of Crown Prince Xue Qinghe. The throne almost slipped from the royal family's hands.]

[As an empire, it has been an utter failure. Take this as a warning.]

Seeing the Sky Screen criticize the Heaven Dou Empire so mercilessly, Xue Ye couldn't catch his breath and promptly fainted.

The Star Luo Emperor burst into laughter, but the smile soon vanished from his face.