Here Came the Trouble!

A glimmer of tenderness crossed Jiang Yun's eyes. He nodded to Elder Liu, cupped his hands in farewell, and strode outside.

After Jiang Yun left, Elder Liu watched his retreating figure, and his expression abruptly changed. Clutching his chest in pain, he said through chattering teeth, "What a 'formidable' little girl. She really hits hard!" Then he looked toward Jiang Yun with envy in his eyes.

His envy was genuine. Only at his age did one understand how enviable it was to have a childhood sweetheart of extraordinary talent whose eyes held only you. If he had enjoyed Jiang Yun's good fortune, how could he have remained stuck at Dou Wang for all these years?

Jiang Yun: ? (Her eyes hold only me? Isn't it the pills?)

On his way back to the dormitory, Jiang Yun frowned. His terrifying spiritual perception told him that several groups had been following him along the way, and more than a few of their gazes held ill intent.

Looks like someone can't hold back anymore!

After twenty minutes of travel, Jiang Yun finally approached the new students' residential area. As he slowly entered, the deserted roads exuded an air of murderous stillness.

Suddenly, someone came running out of the residential area, panting for breath. Seeing Jiang Yun, he rushed over with anxiety written across his face and warned in a low voice, "Jiang Yun, someone's here to make trouble for you. Hurry and hide somewhere outside!"

"What happened?" Jiang Yun was somewhat surprised to see who it was. This was Song Yun, whom he had defeated during the Inner Academy Selection Tournament-a six-star Da Dou Shi and the former number-one genius of the Outer Academy.

Unfortunately, despite having the strength to contend for first place in the Outer Academy, he had encountered Jiang Yun too early and been eliminated long before the end. He had lost his chance to enter the Library Pavilion, missing a tremendous opportunity for nothing.

Jiang Yun had never expected that, rather than resent him, Song Yun would come to warn him. Few people could have done the same.

"Some senior students heard about what you did and learned that you have a lot of fire energy, so they came to collect a 'new student tribute fee.'"

"Heh-little ability, but plenty of tricks. I have all the fire energy they could want. Let's see whether they have what it takes to claim it!" Having learned what had happened, Jiang Yun remained unconcerned, even giving a faint, cold smile.

"It won't make any difference, but thank you for coming to warn me. I don't like owing favors. This is my thanks."

Turning to Song Yun, Jiang Yun spoke calmly, took out a jade bottle, placed it in his hand, and headed toward the dormitory.

"Jiang Yun... what is this...?" Song Yun reached out to stop Jiang Yun, but as though sensing his intention, Jiang Yun blurred and vanished from before him. Puzzled, Song Yun looked at the jade bottle in his hand, from which wisps of medicinal fragrance drifted.

Curious, he opened the jade bottle. Instantly, a rich, azure pill fragrance slowly rose from it. Like a cloud of mist with a spirit of its own, it eventually formed an azure cloud above Song Yun's head.

Song Yun was slightly horrified at the sight and hurriedly capped the jade bottle. His eyes darted around his surroundings, and only after making sure no one had seen that scene did he relax.

He gently opened the jade bottle again, and the rich pill fragrance washed over him once more, actually speeding up the circulation of his Dou Qi considerably. Looking closely, he saw an azure pill the size of a longan resting quietly at the bottom.

"What kind of pill is this? It actually speeds up my Dou Qi circulation by over thirty percent. A pill useful to a Da Dou Shi has to be at least third tier." Song Yun's voice held shock and uncertainty. "Could Jiang Yun also be a third-tier alchemist?"

" Hiss-"

Song Yun was immediately frightened by his own guess and drew in a sharp breath. He stared at the jade bottle, conflict in his eyes, then gritted his teeth and abruptly ran toward Jiang Yun's dormitory.

By then, Jiang Yun had reached the entrance to his dormitory. A dense crowd had already gathered there, with quite a few familiar faces nearby-the new students from his intake.

Strangely, despite all this noise, Zi Yan was nowhere to be seen. Hadn't he been told she was back?

If Zi Yan were here, these people would probably have been thrown back one by one before they could even approach.

"Boss, Jiang Yun's here!" Someone sharp-eyed spotted Jiang Yun's arrival, sidled up to a burly, bearded man resting with his eyes closed, and spoke softly.

The man opened his eyes and immediately spotted Jiang Yun. His gaze kept roaming over him, as though trying to see what was so special about him that he deserved such lavish praise.

But at the sight of Jiang Yun's "small" frame, disdain appeared in his eyes, and he sneered, "You're Jiang Yun? You don't look like much to me."

"I heard you defeated those two pieces of trash, Sun Hai and Wu Qiu. Boy, the Inner Academy isn't a place for children to play house. Now that you're here, you have to follow its rules."

"I won't make things difficult for you. Hand over a thousand fire energy as your new student tribute fee. From now on, you'll be one of the Snow Wolf Gang, and I, Xue Zhen, will have your back!"

At Xue Zhen's words, the people around him chimed in.

"The boss is right! Jiang Yun, it's your good fortune that our boss thinks highly of you. Hand over the fire energy obediently, and we'll all be family from now on."

"Exactly, exactly. Not just anyone can join the Snow Wolf Gang. Being chosen is your good fortune. Hurry up and thank him."

"Brother Xue is a seven-star Dou Ling, ranked among the top twenty-five on the Strong Ranking. You should be secretly celebrating that he thinks so highly of you!"

"..."

One persuasive voice followed another, as though they genuinely had Jiang Yun's interests at heart. Yet they could not conceal the greed in their eyes.

"Finished?" Jiang Yun watched this "farce" indifferently and spoke at a leisurely pace.

"Hm?"

"What do you mean?"

Jiang Yun's attitude caught Xue Zhen somewhat off guard. Frowning at him, Xue Zhen spoke coldly, his entire body radiating the ferocity of a beast poised to devour someone.

"I mean, leave your Fire Energy Cards and get lost!" Jiang Yun paid no heed whatsoever to his imposing aura, as though discussing something utterly trivial.

"Heh."

"It's been a long time since anyone dared provoke me like this. Jiang Yun, I hope your bones are as hard as your mouth in a moment."

Xue Zhen's face had darkened enough to drip water. With a mocking laugh, he stamped heavily forward. A low rumble sounded as blue-violet Dou Qi surged from his body, rolling around him as thickly as seawater.

A powerful aura spread across the clearing.

"Rushing Thunder Fist!"

With a furious roar from Xue Zhen and a flash of cold light in his eyes, a sharp bolt of lightning rapidly grew in Jiang Yun's vision. Xue Zhen's figure flickered and vanished from his original position.

It was hard to imagine that such a burly man specialized in agility.

A dark gleam flashed in Jiang Yun's eyes. He had already locked firmly onto Xue Zhen's figure; that speed was hardly worth mentioning in his eyes.

Boom-!

"What?"

After the thunderous impact, a startled voice rang out. Everyone looked over, only to find that the expected scene of Jiang Yun being knocked flat with one blow had not occurred. Instead, he had caught Xue Zhen's fist with one hand.

Judging by Jiang Yun's composed expression, he clearly had not used his full strength.

Xue Zhen felt it even more keenly. Staring into Jiang Yun's deep eyes at close range, he felt an inexplicable trace of fear rise within him, and a bead of cold sweat rolled down his forehead.

"What a joke! How could I lose to a brat who still reeks of mother's milk!"

The instant that thought arose, Xue Zhen roared furiously. Lightning blazed fiercely in his eyes, and his free right hand rapidly erupted with intense electrical light. A blue-violet hammer nearly half a zhang long appeared.

A Dou Shi could already form a gauze of Dou Qi, while a Da Dou Shi could manifest Dou Qi Armor. A Dou Ling could condense Dou Qi into objects.

Weapons condensed by a Dou Ling were sometimes sharper than even divine weapons. The blue-violet hammer in Xue Zhen's hand was formed from Dou Qi, and judging by the lightning flashing over it, its offensive power was extraordinary.

Unfortunately, Jiang Yun's gaze did not change in the slightest.

"Not even close!"

Jiang Yun watched the descending hammer with a faint smile, gathered his Dou Qi, and punched out. In an instant, everyone felt the surrounding air turn scorching hot and swallowed with difficulty.

Was this a Da Dou Shi?

Boom-!

A thick pillar of white flame blasted toward Xue Zhen. The gradually distorting space made the flames' tremendous heat unmistakable.

"Thunderburst Flash!"

Looking at the enormous pillar of flame, Xue Zhen's pupils abruptly contracted. His gaze then turned fierce, and the Dou Qi throughout his body surged toward the hammer before he brought it crashing down at Jiang Yun.

At that moment, the towering Xue Zhen held his enormous hammer, which churned and blazed beneath the blue-violet Dou Qi like a deity amidst thunder. His violent aura carried a savage, murderous edge.

Rumble-!

Within the clearing, blue-violet lightning and white flames each occupied half the sky. Where they collided, faint wisps of white mist continually rose.

Powerful Dou Qi clashed on the field, unleashing thunderous explosions of energy. The endlessly spreading energy ripples forced the surrounding spectators to keep retreating.

"This Jiang Yun really is something!" Several figures quietly appeared in a concealed spot in the distance. Among them, a young man in white watched the two combatants and tightened his grip slightly on the armrest. Even he felt the pressure coming from Jiang Yun.

"He does have some ability. Xue Zhen will probably fall flat on his face this time!" Another voice rang out, carrying a hint of schadenfreude.

"Hmph-there's nothing to worry about with a brainless fool like Xue Zhen. Don't forget that other fellow!" A languid voice sounded, its tone full of apprehension when it mentioned that particular person.

"Feng Wuhen, second on the Strong Ranking." The man who had spoken earlier also sounded solemn. Then he turned toward the man in white ahead and asked softly, "Brother Li, how strong is Feng Wuhen now? Has he taken that step?"

The man in white was none other than the current number one on the Strong Ranking, Li Lin, a half-step Dou King.

Those who could stand alongside Li Lin were no ordinary figures either. Any senior Inner Academy student who saw them would have been greatly shocked, for all of them ranked among the Inner Academy's top ten.

Even the weakest among them were nine-star Dou Ling, while the stronger ones were peak Dou Ling who had touched the barrier to Dou Wang.

Li Lin did not answer immediately. After a moment's thought, he said, "He already reached half-step Dou King last year. Back then, I only scraped a victory by one move. If we fought again, I wouldn't be confident of beating him. You know that at our level, we could cross that threshold at any moment."

"Then it looks like our little prodigy is going to run into trouble!" The gloating voice made everyone smile. Watching a good show was what they enjoyed most!

A violent impact exploded. Xue Zhen's body shuddered slightly, and he stumbled backward repeatedly. He now looked rather bedraggled, his body blackened and his hair curled, as though he had been roasted by fire.

"Heh, good. You really do have some ability. No wonder you're so arrogant." Raising a hand to wipe the black "face mask" from his face, Xue Zhen slammed his hammer into the ground with a tremendous crash. After several heavy breaths, he looked at Jiang Yun and sneered.

Jiang Yun's face was somewhat flushed, and his breathing was uneven. Although his cultivation method far surpassed his opponent's, the difference in their Dou Qi was undeniable. A gap still existed when a nine-star Great Dou Master clashed head-on with an eight-star Dou Ling.

Unleashing such a powerful Dou Technique all at once had consumed a large amount of Jiang Yun's Dou Qi, leaving his breathing somewhat unsettled.

"Jiang Yun, I acknowledge your strength. But... the gap in cultivation isn't so easily erased. You don't have much Dou Qi left, do you? Watch me finish you in one move!"

Looking at Jiang Yun, Xue Zhen gave a sinister smile. He could see Jiang Yun's weakness just as clearly. The hammer in his hand suddenly trembled, and the blue-violet lightning over it abruptly flared. As the Dou Qi around the hammer grew denser, Xue Zhen's hair strangely stood on end, giving off flickers of lightning.

"Thunder Dragon Nine Moves!"

Jiang Yun's expression tightened. Any Dou Technique bearing "dragon" in its name was bound to be extraordinary. He had not expected Xue Zhen to possess such a trump card. Soon, however, he relaxed again, for he saw...

The Dou Qi around Xue Zhen churned rapidly until, in the end, it faintly formed a Thunder Flood Dragon condensed entirely from Dou Qi.

There was quite a gulf between a flood dragon and a true dragon. Judging by its aura, this should be a high-level Profound Tier Dou Technique. If it had truly been modeled after a thunder dragon, it could not have been below Earth Rank.

The blue-violet energy Thunder Flood Dragon opened its enormous maw. Set against the blue Dou Qi, its sharp teeth reflected a cold, sinister gleam. Within its huge mouth was a ball composed entirely of lightning energy, leaving no doubt that anyone bitten by it would suffer a fatal wound.

The Thunder Flood Dragon, over a zhang long, charged violently toward Jiang Yun. Through the somewhat translucent Dou Qi flood dragon, Xue Zhen could still be seen hiding behind it.

Jiang Yun drew a deep breath, drawing the fire energy between heaven and earth toward himself.

"Is that... an Earth-Rank Dou Technique?"

This sudden scene stunned the powerful onlookers. Jiang Yun really possessed an Earth-Rank Dou Technique!

"No, it's an Earth Tier Cultivation Method!" Only Li Lin stared intently at Jiang Yun as he spoke in a slightly hoarse voice. At that moment, even he felt a little jealous.

"An Earth Tier Cultivation Method-"

The others could not help raising their voices as they looked at Jiang Yun enviously. Though Earth Tier cultivation methods and Earth-Rank Dou Techniques belonged to the same tier, the former were worth incomparably more than the latter.

An Earth Tier cultivation method could serve someone all the way to Dou Zun; even Dou Zun still cultivated such methods.

That alone showed how precious it was!