Xiao Xinran’s face was full of black lines, her fair little foot landing squarely on top of Ji Shiyu’s head.
“I’ve told you before—if you dare come near me again, every time I see you, I’ll beat you up again!”
“Maybe I was sleepwalking, wuwuwu! No… stop, I was wrong, I’m sorry, don’t stop!”
Huangmao let out a series of muffled, bizarre noises.
“Ew!”
Goosebumps prickled all over Xiao Xinran. Her right hook exploded with full force!
Bang!
(￣ε(#￣)
I’ve seen this episode before—someone goes flying, spinning seven hundred and twenty degrees in the air, spiraling straight to the heavens, eyes brimming with hot tears.
Ji Shiyu burst through the door, rolling twice across the courtyard, convulsing non-stop.
Feng Aotian, awakened by the commotion, poked his head out from his golden (bird) hair (nest), glanced once at Lord Ji, then again at the still-fuming girl inside the room.
It’s not my imagination. The Xiao Girl is really brave—born with divine strength~
The strength of a fourth-stage Qi Refinement cultivator’s blood and qi is actually comparable to a Foundation Establishment cultivator who has undergone rebirth, easily breaking through the defenses of a ninth-stage Qi Refinement.
Even if Shiyu hasn’t transformed into the Star Princess, she’s still terrifying enough…
If they were fighting at the same level, and caught off guard like this, Huangmao would be sent packing straight to her next life as a Mystic Maiden.
After just one night, every Outer Sect disciple knew about the two superstar newcomers living in the Heaven-class Courtyard.
Early in the morning, the sound of their raucous fighting echoed out, heard for miles around.
The Outer Sect courtyard was situated on the eastern side of the academy, right next to the Shenhua Pavilion commercial street.
The disciples’ rooms couldn’t compare to the Xiao Family Mansion—simple and a bit crude, but quite clean.
Xiao Xinran had clearly underestimated the difficulties of living independently.
From the moment she woke up and started washing up, she was flustered and clumsy, unused to doing anything without handmaidens to serve her.
She had to learn everything from scratch.
The clumsy Protagonist missed her Fiance more than ever, taking half an hour just to get herself ready, finally donning a pale gray Cloud Robe.
Her messy black hair was hastily tied into a high ponytail. Xiao Xinran hurried out the door—no time to fuss over her appearance.
She absolutely could not be late for the first morning class!
Huangmao, a steamed bun clamped in her mouth, trailed behind at a trot, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed after a deep, sweet sleep.
The protagonist doesn’t have many strengths, but being easy to raise is definitely one—noble birth, yet never picky, eats anything, sleeps anywhere.
Ji Shiyu’s silky blonde hair was divided into twin ponytails, tied with blue ribbons. Humming a little tune, she strutted along, her self-proclaimed Couple Style making Xiao Xinran fume all over again.
That Green Tea Bitch even has one more ponytail than me!?
Following the Outer Sect Instructor’s instructions from the day before, the two of them climbed the Sighing Mountain Path to the summit’s Summon Wind Terrace—a greenstone Dao Arena perched above the clouds.
At morning class time on the first day of the new term, hundreds of Outer Sect Disciples gathered here to cultivate together.
A sea of black-robed Outer Sect Disciples made for an impressive sight, but compared to the top immortal sects, it was still a small number. Even in a bumper year, there were only a few dozen more suitable new disciples.
In this era of declining sword cultivation, other strong sects of the Heavenly Concord Alliance recruited hundreds or even thousands each year.
Tuition alone was enough to cover the sect’s expenses, and their cave estates expanded constantly, making some great sects as large as small countries, each a power unto itself in the Nine Provinces.
Every Shenhua Disciple wore a gray robe, the school uniform embroidered with auspicious clouds—the emblem of the Yun Manor.
Upon promotion to the Inner Sect, they would wear the more vibrant Colorful Cloud Robe and Exclusive Sword Badge like their Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters.
Outer Sect Disciples clustered in small groups here and there, but the pair of beautiful girls walking together stood out sharply.
As soon as they arrived, the crowd began to whisper and point. Yesterday’s entrance exam stars had been Ji Shiyu and Xiao Xinran.
Speaking of which, you can’t leave out Young Cloud Senior Brother.
Everyone thought it was bad enough for him to be sent to Tianxiang Peak and forced to scrape by with his little Martial Aunt, but fate had even worse in store.
Everyone knew the Xiao Family’s eldest daughter—the future personal disciple hand-picked by the Grand Elder, possessor of a Heavenly Spiritual Root.
Any Ling Tian Caves would covet such a talent, but the Shenhua Sect, being close at hand, claimed her first. As for the mysterious, blonde-haired girl, no one had heard of her before.
One was Yun Liu’s ex-fiancee, the other his current rumored girlfriend.
Both fought to stand out, causing a huge stir, and poor Senior Sister Jing got the short end of the stick.
Now these two rivals were sharing a single small courtyard.
The situation was truly dramatic.
Three scoops of gossip in one—regarding the useless guy at the center of it all, no one knew whether to envy him or gloat at his misfortune.
On Summon Wind Terrace, Jing Tan’er was among the crowd. She glanced at Ji and Xiao, listening to the whispers all around, then snorted dismissively.
A bunch of foolish commoners!
On either side of Her Highness, two lackeys—also noble ladies from the Zhusheng Dynasty—glared daggers at Ji Shiyu, the classic Villainess Trio.
“Everyone’s here today, not a single person late. Very good!”
Suddenly, a girl’s gentle call drifted down from above the clouds.
A slender woman in a blue-green Cloud Robe arrived, riding her sword. Her skin was fair, her voice soft. Not exactly beautiful, but the gentle, bookish type.
“It’s Qin Sister! Wonderful!”
“Hello, everyone! Long time no see. I’ll be leading this morning’s class.”
The previously lazy, tired Shenhua Disciples broke into cheers. Among the Outer Sect instructors, the gentle, kind-hearted Senior Sister from Clear Mist Peak was everyone’s favorite.
Qin Yao was mild-tempered and patient, a model among the Clear Mist Peak Senior Sisters.
All the male disciples shouted, “Qin Sister, we love you!”
“Giggle, thank you~ But I’m not interested in little boys.”
“Aww, come on!”
Qin Yao pressed her lips together in a soft smile, sheathed her sword, and sat down sideways in the center of the Dao Arena, legs together.
“Qin Yao? That name sounds familiar…”
Ji Shiyu tilted her head, thinking hard, until Feng Aotian lazily reminded her.
Remember that Demon Cult Disciple in the cave?
The Oily Boy promised to deliver her a letter.
“Ah, right! What a coincidence. I didn’t expect this sister to be so pretty. Could she be a Demon Sect spy?”
Huangmao slapped her palm, imagination running wild.
Yun Liu and Xiao Xinran got into trouble because that dead guy ran off to Sea of Clouds Peaks Forest to see Qin Yao one last time.
Right now, Qin Sister still doesn’t know the bad news.
Just thinking about it made Ji Shiyu angry all over again. Xiao Xinran misunderstood her all because that guy left out the Softbone Incense!
It’s all his fault things turned out this way.
“The Qi Gathering Method is the one we use most often in daily life. Don’t get complacent just because you think you know it—don’t neglect your review. Everyone, open to the first chapter of the Cloud Mansion Nurturing Spirit Chapter: ‘Qi moves with the Heavenly Spirit, returns to the Void Heart Sea.’ This is the method of circulating qi and gathering spirit…”
The day’s work begins in the morning.
The disciples listened intently, each sitting on a cushion around Qin Yao.
The spiritual energy on Sighing Peak was abundant, making cultivation twice as effective with half the effort.
“Oh no, I forgot my book. Let’s share one, okay?”
Ji Shiyu scooted over, asking Xiao Xinran for help.
“Beg me.”
Xiao Xinran’s eyes flashed with disdain, shaking the yellowed book in her hand.
It wasn’t some profound secret manual, but it was better than the basic Qi Refinement primers found outside. It was a required class for Shenhua Sect Outer Sect Disciples, laying the foundation for future mastery of the Sword Canon.