Heading to the Book Repository, Han Yue and the Others

Xiao Yan walked up to Ruo Lin, still wearing that cheeky grin. "Instructor Ruo Lin, I didn't let you down, did I?"

"You..." Looking at that infuriating grin, Ruo Lin instinctively opened her mouth to call him a brat, but the words caught in her throat when she remembered that he was now a genuine Dou Wang expert.

The gap in strength between them had grown so vast that she no longer felt comfortable even scolding him.

Ruo Lin's tone grew restrained without her meaning to. "Don't be so reckless next time. A place like the Black-Corner Region is truly dangerous."

Ruo Lin cared about the difference in status that came with strength, but Xiao Yu wasn't about to indulge Xiao Yan.

She stepped forward, raised the long leg she was so proud of, and lightly kicked Xiao Yan in the shin. Her face full of anger, she scolded him, "You rascal, you finally know how to come back!"

Xiao Yan had run off to the Black-Corner Region without a word and stayed away for over a month. Anyone would have worried.

What's more, he was now the Xiao Clan's greatest pillar. If anything happened to him, what would become of the Xiao Clan?

Xiao Yan knew that Xiao Yu's kick came from genuine concern. He didn't dodge, only smiled and scratched his head. "I was busy training, and before I knew it, time had gotten away from me."

There was nothing else worth watching, so Xiao Yan and the others went their separate ways and returned to their residences.

After this battle, Xiao Yan's name had resounded throughout the entire Outer Academy.

A new student who had only enrolled two months ago had already reached the Dou Wang realm.

Such an unbelievable feat would have seemed utterly impossible to anyone who hadn't witnessed it with their own eyes, yet it had truly happened.

After returning to his residence, Xiao Yan didn't go out again. He stayed home refining pills and waited for the Book Repository to open.

During this time, Xue Ni often dropped by. Each time, she said she wanted to improve her relationship with Xiao Yu, but her bright eyes kept drifting toward Xiao Yan.

After Xue Ni left, Ruo Lin came by.

After Ruo Lin left, Hu Gan also came to visit.

As soon as he arrived, Hu Gan took Xiao Yan in hand and gave him a thorough examination.

"Not bad. Your Dou Qi is solid, and your body is even sturdier than this old bag of bones!" After checking him over carefully, Hu Gan visibly relaxed and smiled as he patted Xiao Yan's shoulder.

He had been worried that Xiao Yan might have used some dangerous pill that depleted his potential to force his way through a breakthrough. If that had been the case, this promising talent would have been ruined.

"Deputy Dean, don't worry. When it comes to my own future, I know where to draw the line," Xiao Yan replied with a smile, knowing what Hu Gan was worried about.

Hu Gan nodded, growing more satisfied with Xiao Yan the longer he looked at him.

Strong, talented, good-natured, and well-mannered-he was practically the perfect template for a grandson-in-law.

But the moment Hu Gan thought of his granddaughter's headache-inducing temperament, he couldn't help sighing inwardly.

Before coming, he had planned to introduce the two and see if he could bring them together.

But after seeing what kind of person Xiao Yan was, he quietly abandoned the idea.

His precious granddaughter probably wasn't good enough for Xiao Yan, that soft, sweet little cake.

In all his years, Hu Gan had never before found himself looking down on his beloved granddaughter.

Seeing Hu Gan's conflicted expression, as though he wanted to say something but couldn't, Xiao Yan understood. Smiling, he asked first, "Deputy Dean, is there anything else you'd like to tell me?"

Caught out, Hu Gan smiled awkwardly. He simply laid out his granddaughter Hu Jia's peculiar hobbies and combative nature, telling Xiao Yan everything.

At the end, he asked Xiao Yan to go easy on her, for his sake.

Of course, if Xiao Yan could also help correct her strange hobbies while he was at it, that would be all the better.

Hearing this, Xiao Yan's eyelid twitched.

He knew Hu Jia, of course—the girl from the original story who had designs on Xun'er and tried to snatch her away the moment they met.

Faced with this rival-in-love by nature, Xiao Yan agreed with unusual enthusiasm.

Hu Gan was overjoyed when Xiao Yan agreed. As he left, he even hummed a little tune, in a mood completely different from when he had arrived.

Sure enough, Hu Jia showed up the next day and immediately demanded that Xiao Yan suppress his cultivation and fight her.

The people who had sparred with Hu Jia before had all held back to some extent, wary of her status as the deputy dean's granddaughter. Xiao Yan didn't care about that. He held back just enough to give her a thorough beating.

Who would have thought that the girl wouldn't be scared off at all? On the contrary, she got hooked. For days afterward, she showed up every single day, more punctually than she went to class.

Finally, the day the Book Repository opened arrived.

When Xiao Yan reached the designated place, he found that five people were already waiting there.

Four men and one woman.

Xiao Yan's gaze fell first on the only girl.

It wasn't that he was lecherous; she was simply too striking.

Her silver robe made her skin look like snow, and her features were as lovely as a painting. Most eye-catching of all was her waist-length silver-white hair, which glimmered softly in the morning light.

At the sight of this group, Xiao Yan had already guessed their identities.

At the same time, the five noticed Xiao Yan.

Their faces all showed respect, and they hurried forward to greet him.

A handsome, upright man stepped forward first. His expression calm, he held out a hand to Xiao Yan. "Junior Xiao Yan, I'm Lin Xiuya. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Hearing the name, Xiao Yan understood.

So this year's group had coincided with Lin Xiuya and the others.

He had only enrolled this year, so it was perfectly reasonable for Lin Xiuya to call him junior. It was just a form of address and had nothing to do with their cultivation levels.

"I'm Xiao Yan. It's a pleasure to meet you all," he said with a smile, shaking Lin Xiuya's hand.

Xiao Yan then got to know the other four one by one. As expected, they were Liu Qing, Yan Hao, Lin Yan, and Han Yue.

He had already guessed the identities of the other four with near certainty when he saw Han Yue's distinctive silver hair.

Liu Qing, Yan Hao, and Lin Yan were all straightforward, easygoing people, and they got along well with Xiao Yan.

As the only girl among them, Han Yue was much more reserved.

Seeing how approachable Xiao Yan was, the tense atmosphere among them eased.

"I never thought Junior Xiao Yan would be so easy to get along with. We thought before that..." Yan Hao was blunt and quick-tongued, but before he could finish, Lin Xiuya clapped a hand over his mouth with quick reflexes.

Lin Xiuya's face was full of helplessness. Yan Hao was a real talent when it came to cultivation, but he had absolutely no social skills.

"Junior Xiao Yan, I'm truly sorry. Yan Hao doesn't know when to keep his mouth shut," Lin Xiuya hurriedly apologized with clasped fists.

While waiting earlier, they had discussed whether Xiao Yan was easy to get along with. But that was gossiping behind his back, and it was hardly anything to be proud of.

"It's fine. We're all fellow students," Xiao Yan said with a wave of his hand, smiling without a care.

He wasn't so petty that he'd start a fight just because people had talked about him behind his back.

Besides, he knew what these men were like. Every one of them was worth befriending.

After all, he had known them for a long time in his previous life. At least for now, no one knew them better than he did.