Arrival and Someone to Rely On

Emerging from the Space Wormhole, the group rested briefly in Tianya City, then hired flying magical beasts and headed for the ancient academy in the Black-Corner Region.

The Black-Corner Region was chaotic. Even thousands of meters in the air, they could sense it.

Peace Town.

The flying magical beasts landed there. The Jia Nan Academy Mentors handling admissions had seen plenty of arrivals like this, but they hurried out to greet the group all the same.

Even Jia Nan Academy would not lightly offend a faction that was clearly no ordinary power.

Nearly two months of monotonous travel had been torture for the young people, who had yet to develop much patience.

Their minds were still sluggish when they registered with the Mentors.

This was quite normal. The Mentors had seen plenty of cases like this lately, and they were patient with them.

"What? A Fourth-Rank Alchemist!"

Everyone nearby turned toward the voice, even the Vice Dean, who had been speaking with the two Dou Huang experts from the Han Family.

Hu Gan's gaze fell on a boy whose bearing set him apart from the others.

"Looks like the Alchemy Department has a genius joining it this year. Heh."

"Wu Bai really is a genius. He's only fifteen, but he's already a Fourth-Rank Alchemist. I hope you and the academy will look after him, Vice Dean Hu Gan."

"Rest assured. The academy will naturally give a genius like him special attention."

The next moment, another cry of surprise rang out.

"Seventeen years old and a Two-Star Dou Shi!"

"Heh, Han Yue is our elder brother's eldest daughter. Please look after her too, Vice Dean."

"Of course, of course."

Hu Gan nodded slightly, but he was not as surprised as before.

A seventeen-year-old Dou Shi was certainly a young talent. But Jia Nan Academy had no shortage of gifted cultivators.

That boy, on the other hand, was already a Fourth-Rank Alchemist at fifteen. Since coming to Jia Nan Academy, Hu Gan had never met another young Alchemist with such talent.

Before long, the young people had finished registering. The two adults called them together and gave them instructions on all sorts of things.

When they finally got to Wu Bai, however, neither had much to say.

"You're the one we worry about least, so there's no need for us to say much."

"As for these boys, tell them whatever you need. If any of them dare disobey you, they can forget about being part of the Han Family."

"...All right."

Wu Bai did not know what to say.

He did not take their words literally, though. He figured the two Dou Huang experts were asking him, in a roundabout way, to look after the Han Family's younger generation.

A few minutes later, once everyone had gathered, they boarded a Griffin Beast and flew toward Jia Nan City.

Han Yue waved goodbye to her two uncles. Even though she had prepared herself for this, she still felt uneasy.

With the protection of her family's experts suddenly gone, it was hard not to worry, sensible as she was.

Wu Bai noticed the change in her breathing. He turned his head slightly and said softly:

"It'll be all right."

"Mm."

Sensing how calm Wu Bai was, Han Yue edged closer to him. Her unease gradually faded.

Now that she was beyond the protection of her family's experts, Han Yue suddenly realized how safe she felt beside him.

After all, he was a Fourth-Rank Alchemist before he had even reached adulthood. Where could someone like that fail to find a place?

Anywhere but... the Wu Family.

Han Yue pressed her lips together. She realized it was not Wu Bai who was truly fortunate. It was the Han Family.

Once Wu Bai left his original family behind, any other faction would spare no effort to nurture him.

Peace Town was quite a distance from Jia Nan City, and the Griffin Beast was not especially fast. They spent their first night after arriving in the Jia Nan Academy region in the air.

The wind was chilly at that height after dark.

Wu Bai turned his palm upward, and a bright crimson flame bloomed high in the sky.

With his formidable Soul Power, he controlled the Beast Flame perfectly. It warmed everyone on the Griffin Beast's back and drove off the chill without affecting the beast itself.

The others instinctively edged toward the warmth. Even the student guiding the Griffin Beast leaned over a little, wanting to feel warmer.

The sun slowly rose, dispelling the night's cold.

When Han Yue woke, she found herself pressed against Wu Bai. Despite the layers of thick clothing between them, heat rushed to her cheeks.

She stole a glance at Wu Bai, whose eyes were closed, and breathed a sigh of relief.

A few minutes later, Wu Bai put away the flame.

The cool morning breeze roused the others from their meditation.

After leaving the Flight Management Center, the group headed straight for Jia Nan Academy.

The sight of its weathered signboard brought everyone to attention.

Yet none of them hurried forward. Instead, they all looked instinctively toward the same person.

Wu Bai studied the academy's signboard, then turned and exchanged a nod with Han Yue before walking toward the office by the academy gate.

"Come with me. I'll arrange your rooms first. Spending the night on a Griffin Beast can't have been comfortable."

A middle-aged male Mentor, who had already stood watching the new students for some time, greeted them warmly.

As he led them toward the residential area, the male Mentor marveled to himself.

Who is that boy, to have so many people gathered around him?

To help the new students settle in, the instructors had placed everyone who had arrived together in the same part of the residential area.

The newcomers broke into delighted smiles, as if they had won a prize.

The Dormitory Area was not divided by gender. Being surrounded by familiar faces was far more reassuring than being housed among strangers.

The student rooms were not large, each with a bedroom, living room, and bathroom, but they were more than enough for one person.

Wu Bai was quite pleased to have a room to himself, especially one with decent soundproofing.

Then again, that made sense. If they had been packed sixteen to a room, they could forget about cultivating. For one thing, the boys' nightly chats would probably last until dawn.

Wu Bai did not know whether the girls had anything similar, but he imagined they did. Their gatherings would probably involve more complaining.

Knock, knock, knock.

Wu Bai opened the door and let Han Yue in.

"You've finished unpacking already?"

"Mm. I didn't have much to unpack. I keep the important things on me."

Neither of them was particularly talkative. Unable to find a topic, they let the silence in the room grow awkward.

"How about we go for a walk?"

"Do you want to rest first?"

They spoke at the same time. Han Yue paused, then added, "You kept that flame burning to warm us all night. You must be tired."

"No. Keeping a flame going overnight took less out of me than refining Qi Gathering Powder."

"That's good."

With that, Han Yue followed Wu Bai outside.

They had seemed exhausted throughout the journey, but they had spent most of it sitting still. Any fatigue was more mental than physical.

Then something amusing happened. Wu Bai and Han Yue walked ahead, with over a dozen people trailing behind them.

Anyone who saw them might have thought they were on their way to a gang fight. More and more people began following along...