Emperor Xue Ye personally presided over the ceremony and bestowed titles upon Qin Qi and the other seven.
"From this day onward, you are barons recognized by the Empire, members of the nobility."
"However, I hope you will not become arrogant and complacent because of your current achievements. You must continue striving and working hard."
After Emperor Xue Ye finished presenting the rewards, he looked around at those present and exchanged a few ceremonial pleasantries.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. We will certainly continue to work hard."
Qin Qi and the others also offered a few polite remarks. They were about to leave when Qin Qi was stopped just as he prepared to move.
"Child, your name is Qin Qi, correct?"
"I have a question I would like to ask you. Don't be nervous; it's nothing important."
Emperor Xue Ye stopped Qin Qi, a kindly smile on his face as he spoke.
"Please ask. I'll certainly answer properly."
Qin Qi thought Xue Beng's old man was such a pain. Couldn't he just wrap up the ceremony already? He was starving.
Though he was already growing annoyed inside, he still replied politely on the surface.
"Mm."
Emperor Xue Ye nodded. "When you faced Skywater Academy, things had clearly become so dangerous. Why didn't you surrender?"
"Was it because you had enough confidence in your own strength and believed you would definitely win?"
Emperor Xue Ye looked at Qin Qi. He truly was curious about what had supported Qin Qi through that battle.
"This... actually, I wasn't confident at the time. I was merely giving it everything I had."
"You saw the situation then, Your Majesty. My teammates fell one after another."
"In the end, I was the only one left. Logically speaking, I should have avoided their edge."
Qin Qi sighed, then