In the office, Ye Qiong looked at Tribbie and said:
"Teacher Tribbie, an extremely important student will be registering tomorrow."
"What kind of student?"
Ye Qiong took out a piece of paper and handed it to Tribbie.
"This is her application. Her name is Cerydra. She's the princess of the Balak Kingdom and its sole heir."
Tribbie took the paper and glanced over it, her deep-blue eyes shifting slightly.
"Royal blood?"
Ye Qiong shook his head.
"She's adopted, but her position is extremely secure."
Tribbie fell silent for a moment, then nodded.
"Then I'll go to Bala City myself tomorrow to bring her here."
"You're willing to make the trip?"
Tribbie smiled faintly.
"Having a princess join our academy will greatly benefit its future development."
"And I'd like to take in a few more children, too."
Hearing this, Ye Qiong smiled in understanding and nodded.
"Good. You have a teleportation gate, so you can bring her here first thing tomorrow morning."
After helping Cerydra enroll without a hitch,
Ye Qiong returned to the office and let out a soft breath.
He leaned back in his chair and opened Cerydra's profile in the system interface.
[Name: Cerydra (Caesar)]
[Age: Twelve]
[Level: Thirty-three]
[Martial Soul: Scales of Justice (though she manifested it as chess pieces and a board, which she used to fight)]
[Academy Position: Student]
[Identity: Princess and sole heir of the Balak Kingdom.]
Ye Qiong looked at the information and the familiar face on the screen, and a flood of memories suddenly stirred in his mind.
Cerydra—the empress of Amphoreus Okhema in his previous life,
the ruler who sat at a chessboard and wagered an entire city.
She had never feared controversy, nor had she ever acted for the sake of praise.
She made decisions like she played chess, with victory as her sole criterion.
As long as she could achieve her goal, she was willing to pay any price,
even to put herself on the gallows.
Ye Qiong still remembered that scene from the game.
Cornered with no way out, she chose to have Hysilens kill her with her own hands.
When that "tearjerker" scene appeared on the screen,
he sat in front of his computer, silent for a full five minutes.
And throughout those five minutes, his feelings were especially complicated.
She could have thought of another way.
But in the end, she still chose the most direct and cruel path.
Because it gave her the highest chance of success...
"Burnice, you really have done enough to fill a book of crimes."
"But in this life, I won't let you take that path again."
He hoped he could get Hysilens soon.
Then perhaps the two star-crossed lovers could find a happier ending here.
With that thought, Ye Qiong finally opened his own profile for the first time, after the system had unlocked all its basic functions. He'd never bothered to look at it before.
[Host: Ye Qiong.]
[Age: Sixteen.]
[Academy Position: Principal.]
[Martial Soul: Trailblazer Bat.]
[Level: Seventy-four.]
[Soul Ring Configuration: Yellow (700), Purple (2,000), Purple (5,000), Black (10,000), Black (40,000), Black (70,000), Red (100,000).]
[Soul Skills...]
"The information's pretty comprehensive. I didn't expect my Martial Soul to actually be called the Trailblazer Bat."
Simple and straightforward.
Then Ye Qiong suddenly noticed a red dot beneath his profile in the system interface!
Curious, he tapped the red dot.
The next second, another pop-up appeared.
"Amphoreus Academy's records?"
Ye Qiong looked at the words on the pop-up, momentarily taken aback, then reached out and tapped it.
Sure enough, the pop-up changed, revealing a whole new set of information.
[Academy Name: Amphoreus.]
[Academy Address: Suotuo City.]
[Academy Facility Level: One.]
[Academy Accreditation: City-level.]
[Academy Funds: Three million Gold Soul Coins.]
[Academy Instructors: Two (Tribbie, Ye Qiong).]
[Academy Students: Seven (five ordinary students, two Chrysos Heirs).]
After reading through the information, Ye Qiong wore a bewildered look.
He understood the academy's facility level, but what on earth was its accreditation?
"System, what does this accreditation mean?"
[Academy accreditation is the system's assessment of an academy's influence on the Douluo Continent.]
[In ascending order of influence, the levels are: village, town, city, district, province, kingdom, empire, continent, planet, and universe.]
[Amphoreus Academy currently has some influence in Suotuo City, so its accreditation is city-level.]
After hearing the system's explanation, Ye Qiong raised an eyebrow.
So that was it. But why did the influence rankings go all the way up to the universe?
"System, what does academy accreditation do?"
[The higher the academy's accreditation, the more generous the system's rewards.]
"More generous? How so?"
[Once the host's academy reaches city-level, Stellar Jades are added to its rewards. After a task is completed, the system will automatically add extra Stellar Jades to the base reward. The higher the academy's accreditation, the more Stellar Jades will be added.]
"How many extra can I get at city-level?"
[Ten percent of the base Stellar Jades.]
After reading the system's explanation, Ye Qiong rubbed his chin and opened his quest interface.
[Improve the cultivation aptitude of five students who are not Chrysos Heirs. Each student earns a reward of 2,000 Stellar Jades. Complete all five to receive one special card.]
"So if I improve the aptitude of Wang Sheng and the other four, I'll get a total of 11,000 Stellar Jades?"
Ye Qiong's face immediately lit up with excitement.
This was wonderful news for him.
"Improve their aptitude, huh? I'll go make preparations right now."
Inside the office,
Ye Qiong took a map from his system inventory and spread it across the desk.
Tribbie stood opposite him, her gaze resting on the map.
"Principal, you called me here because..."
Ye Qiong ran a finger across the map and stopped at a particular spot.
"Here."
Tribbie leaned closer and followed his finger with her eyes.
"Sunset Forest?"
"That's right. Sunset Forest lies west of Heaven Dou City."
"But what does that have to do with our academy?"
Ye Qiong withdrew his hand and leaned back in his chair.
"As far as I know, there's a secret realm in Sunset Forest called the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well."
Tribbie blinked, waiting for him to continue.
"That place is very unusual. Extreme cold and heat exist side by side, giving rise to countless rare treasures found nowhere else."
"And some of those treasures can improve their aptitude."
Tribbie's eyes lit up.
Wang Sheng and the other four had wildly different talents. Wang Sheng was only level twenty-one at fourteen.
No matter how diligently she taught them, without outside help, their potential would ultimately be limited.
"Principal! This information is so important. With the help of heavenly treasures, I'm confident I can help them shine at the upcoming Spirit Master Tournament!"
Excitement appeared on Tribbie's face.
She really had been worrying lately about the aptitude of Wang Sheng and the other children.
"But, Principal, if that place is a secret realm, it probably won't be safe, will it?"
Ye Qiong smiled openly.
"That's why I'm going to..."