An open space in the Flame Alliance's territory was packed with people—Flame Alliance members and veteran students of the Inner Academy alike.
Though this was Flame Alliance territory, the veterans were no fewer than its members.
Some belonged to the Han Gate, Medicine Gate, or Cloud Gang, the three veteran factions targeting the Flame Alliance. Others had simply come to watch the spectacle.
This class of newcomers had won the Fire-Energy Hunting Competition, something unprecedented. They had banded together and formed a faction as soon as they entered the Inner Academy, and now they had drawn out three major factions at once.
They had been in the Inner Academy for less than a month and had already achieved this much. Who knew what they might accomplish if they stayed?
Many veterans wanted to see these extraordinary newcomers before they had even grown into their strength. They were also eager to watch the clash between the new and established factions.
"Where's your leader, Xiao Yan? Did he hit someone and then hide in his shell like a turtle?" Yun Tian asked coldly, his arms folded across his chest.
Lin Yan sneered. "Who's the turtle hiding in his shell? You're the leader of the Cloud Gang, yet it took you this many days to react after your men were beaten?"
Before the Cloud Gang members could curse him out, Bai Cheng cut in angrily. "How could the leader of the Cloud Gang be a turtle hiding in his shell?"
Lin Yan looked puzzled. "Then what is he?"
Bai Cheng grinned. "He's obviously a toad that hibernates. He's only just woken up!"
"Right, right! No wonder he's so slow to react." Lin Yan clapped his hands.
The Flame Alliance members burst into laughter, and even the veterans watching could not help laughing. The