Only when Xiao Ning'er saw Ye Ziyun warn Nie Li and take that fatal blow for him on the sky screen did she finally understand why Nie Li had said he liked Ye Ziyun the moment he arrived.
Memories of a past life, a lover from a past life-they had allowed him to reunite with her in this life.
Xiao Ning'er felt a pang of bitterness, but no matter what, she would not give up.
Nie Li felt deeply uncomfortable under everyone's stares. Just as he was about to take the others to find Vice Dean Ye Sheng, Vice Dean Ye Sheng arrived with a large group of the institute's senior staff.
After all, the help Nie Li could offer after living his life over again was immense.
Shen Xiu stared at the sky screen. That commoner Nie Li had actually been reborn?
So what? She refused to believe that even someone reborn could raise his soul force from five to a hundred in two months!
That would take a genius.
And Nie Li clearly was not one.
Shen Yue was even more indignant, especially after seeing Ye Ziyun take the blow for Nie Li.
The Heavenly Marks Family.
Nie Ming said, "Little Li..."
His son had been reborn, and he had no idea what to say.
His son was now far away at the Holy Orchid Institute, so all he could do was hope he would come home for the break in two months.
On the sky screen.
Before Nie Li could collect himself, Lu Piao, beside him, gave him a shake and teased him that there were no pretty girls here.
Unexpectedly, Nie Li laughed and threw an arm around his neck. "Glory City, I'm back!"
Lu Piao nearly suffocated in his grip.
Their laughter and antics successfully drew the attention of everyone in the classroom.
After fooling around for a while, Nie Li turned his gaze toward Ye Ziyun, who sat in the front row.
Under his gaze, Ye Ziyun immediately turned back around, feeling that he really was a strange person.
Meanwhile, scenes from their flight in his past life replayed in Nie Li's mind.
"Still, I have to thank the Book of Time and Space Spirit for letting us meet again."
Crack!
The students' jaws nearly hit the floor. W-w-what had they just seen?
That exceptionally mysterious, exceptionally beautiful Ye Ziyun, whose background was so extraordinary, had actually been that close to Nie Li in his past life?
They had even been close enough to share a tent!
Inside the City Lord's Mansion, Ye Zong's eyes widened.
H-h-his Zi Yun had... had...???
Ye Xiu instinctively stroked his beard. If Glory City really had fallen, then Ye Ziyun would no longer have been the esteemed young lady of the City Lord's Mansion, but a refugee fleeing disaster.
Her being with Nie Li... was mostly understandable, then.
The city lord could probably understand it too, but that did not mean he would accept it.
The Holy Orchid Institute.
Ye Ziyun's pretty face flushed crimson. Still only a thirteen-year-old girl, her mind simply froze at the sight of those scenes.
Ye Sheng had brought Ye Ziyun along as well. Given her status, how could he dare leave her there alone?
Du Ze, Lu Piao, and the others began exchanging shifty glances. Especially after Xiao Ning'er came looking for them, they keenly sensed that there might be some juicy gossip to feast on.
Ye Ziyun was naturally delighted to see Xiao Ning'er come over.
As the city lord's daughter, she held an exalted position, but that very status left her with far too few friends. Xiao Ning'er had originally been one of them, but after the Winged Dragon Family and the Sacred Family arranged a childhood betrothal, Xiao Ning'er had stopped associating with her.
Watching Ye Ziyun hold her hand, Xiao Ning'er lowered her eyes.
Meanwhile, the video above continued.
Shen Xiu showed everyone her demon spirit, the Flame Fox.
The students whispered among themselves again. Not only was this teacher a powerful silver-rank Demon Spirit Master, she also came from the Sacred Family, one of Glory City's three foremost families.
Shen Xiu's nephew Shen Yue, who was also in the classroom, looked very pleased with himself. Who did not enjoy hearing praise?
Shen Xiu explained that the Flame Fox was a gold-rank demon spirit, while she was currently at silver rank, so she could cultivate up to gold rank at most. Of course, once she reached that limit, she could replace her demon spirit with a higher-ranking one, but without sufficient means, that was simply impossible.
Below the screen, Shen Yue snorted. In his eyes, this beginner class had so many commoners that replacing demon spirits was out of the question. Whether they even had the money to buy a demon spirit and become a Demon Spirit Master was another matter entirely.
Shen Yue laughed mockingly, while the Nie Li and Lu Piao on the screen both scoffed.
Shen Xiu paid no heed to the fact that she was in class and bluntly declared that she truly could not understand why nobles and commoners were made to study together. Surrounded by heaven's favored children, these people would lose sight of their proper place.
Du Ze could not help clenching his fists.
Shen Xiu continued her mockery. Hoping to fly up onto a branch and become a phoenix was nothing but a daydream.
That made Du Ze grit his teeth even harder. He had always hoped to become a Demon Spirit Master through his own efforts and ease his family's burden.
Nie Li likewise clenched his fists, his expression turning fierce. Nobles? Commoners? The Sacred Family was the first to flee back then!
The moment those words appeared, Glory City below erupted.
Shen Yue was shocked and furious. "Impossible! Our Sacred Family is one of the three foremost families! How could we flee without a fight when the Beast Tide came?"
Shen Xiu angrily denounced it as a lie, insisting that this commoner was slandering them.
But the students standing nearby had already begun edging away.
Shen Ming, the Sacred Family's executive elder, immediately realized how serious the situation had become. He hurriedly sent his subordinates to visit the City Lord's Mansion and communicate with the other major families, barely restraining the urge to curse the sky screen and the Nie Li on it.
With a mere opening of that brat's mouth, their Sacred Family might find it hard to get by in Glory City.
Everyone with Nie Li began questioning him.
Nie Li wanted to say something, but after considering it, he decided not to. Whatever appeared up there could speak for him anyway.
He folded his arms across his chest, tapping a finger as he considered what to do next.
He did not know what this thing was. It seemed to be showing his past, but he had no idea whether it would show the future.
I'll keep watching for now. It looks like I need to establish contact with the City Lord's Mansion.
As luck would have it, isn't Zi Yun right beside me?
I can speak to her, go to the City Lord's Mansion, and meet that father-in-law I've never met before, so we can touch base.
For now, though, let's see what else that sky screen shows.
On the sky screen, Nie Li raised his hand and pointed out that the legendary Demon Spirit Master Ye Mo had also been a commoner in his youth.
Shen Xiu rebuked Nie Li for addressing the legendary Demon Spirit Master Ye Mo so directly by name.
But Nie Li was not afraid of her in the slightest. He immediately countered by asking whether Lord Ye Mo had not already proved that a person's birth could not determine their future.
Shen Xiu walked up the steps and retorted that Lord Ye Mo was a heaven-gifted genius. In several hundred years, only one Ye Mo had reached the pinnacle. What grounds did Nie Li, a mere commoner, have to compare himself to Lord Ye Mo?
Shen Xiu extended a hand, and a scroll specifically recording each student's information flew from the rack below into her grasp.
One look made her even more scornful. Although the Heavenly Marks Family had declined, for a noble to have a soul force of only five truly did warrant the name of good-for-nothing.
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