The night passed without incident.
The next morning, Yang Yunhai and Zhu Zhuqing rose early. After breakfast, they made their way together to the city gate's carriage station.
Upon arrival, they rented a carriage that took them straight toward Heaven Dou Royal Academy.
The distance was only about twenty kilometers, not too far. Within half an hour, they had arrived.
Stepping down from the carriage, Yang Yunhai looked up. Ahead, lush green mountains rose high into the clouds, their bases reflected in a glittering lake, thin mist coiling around. Since it was already the third month of the year, the climate was pleasant, flowers had bloomed across the thick foliage, making the scene vibrant with color and strikingly beautiful.
"This environment really is nice," Yang Yunhai said first.
"It is," Zhu Zhuqing nodded slightly.
"It's getting late. Let's head up the mountain." Yang Yunhai tilted his chin forward and strode up toward the stone steps.
Because they had stayed in a cheaper, more remote hotel, the trip to the carriage station earlier had taken some time. Adding the time for packing, breakfast, and the half-hour ride out of the city, Yang Yunhai calculated that it should be not yet ten in the morning by his former world's clock.
Their footsteps sounded steadily as the two climbed, admiring the mountain forest scenery along the way.
After a quarter of an hour without meeting a single soul, Yang Yunhai began to wonder, 'Has Qian Renxue already arrived?'
Unlike the original story where Tang San was stopped by Xue Beng, here there were no such interruptions, nor had they seen other students. To Yang Yunhai, this could only mean someone important had come to the academy. And who else could that be but the empire's Crown Prince, "Xue Qinghe"? Certainly a figure important enough, and one Xue Beng would avoid.
With this thought, he continued upward.
Another quarter of an hour later, they finally reached the main campus of Heaven Dou Royal Academy halfway up the mountain.
The first thing in view was the academy's elaborately decorated gate, its carved lattice design allowing glimpses of the buildings beyond. Mostly white accented with gold, the architecture exuded noble elegance. To either side stretched five-meter-tall outer walls of pale yellow, their tops covered with glazed tiles that glittered under sunlight, dazzling to behold.
"Truly extravagant," Yang Yunhai couldn't help but mutter.
He glanced at a small pavilion by the gate. "Zhuqing, let's go." He stepped forward as he spoke.
At the gatehouse, the guard who had been sitting lazily inside now stood, looking over their faces and clothing before stepping out from the side door.
"You two young ladies, here to find someone?" he asked with a grin.
Neither wore academy uniforms, so they didn't seem like students. Enrollment had ended days ago, so they couldn't be here to apply. That left visiting someone as the only possibility in his mind.
"We're here to enroll," Yang Yunhai said politely.
The guard's smile froze. His expression shifted to puzzlement. "You two came from outside? Enrollment ended long ago. You're too late."
"I know," Yang Yunhai nodded. "But there are always exceptions." He reached into his collar and pulled out his soul master proof from his soul tool.
Smiling, he held it up before the guard. "I wonder, does this count as an exception?"
"Age… Martial Soul: Blue Silver Grass… soul power rank 31!?" The guard's face twisted. Surprise and disbelief came first, quickly replaced with calm, and even a hint of disdain.
So what if he cultivated fast? Blue Silver Grass was universally recognized as trash, useless!
Yang Yunhai didn't get angry. He simply smiled faintly and flicked his hand toward the nearby woods.
In an instant, Blue Silver Grass appeared. Vines shot forward at great speed, latching onto the trunk of a tree thick enough to need an adult's arms to encircle.
The vines coiled, tightened, barbs grinding. Slash, slash. Marks gouged deep.
A few moments later, under the guard's horrified stare, the massive tree was cleanly cut in half.
"Of course, you don't have to go report this," Yang Yunhai said lightly as he withdrew his Martial Soul.
"But if, in the coming Continental Soul Master Tournament, I show up on another academy's team and perform well—when your board of education learns of today, especially the Crown Prince who oversees this academy—"
He smiled. "Tell me, what do you think will happen to you then?"
The guard's face turned pale at once. He spun and bowed. "Please wait here. I'll report immediately."
Without another word, he turned and sprinted at full speed back into the academy.
Not long after, in the Education Committee's office, a knock sounded at the door.
"Come in," said Meng Shenji, who had been reporting to Crown Prince Xue Qinghe about enrollment results. His brow creased as he spoke.
The door creaked open. The guard entered, drenched in sweat, and bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Education Committee member, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
'It seems the boy really is sharp.' Qian Renxue, in the guise of Xue Qinghe, kept her gentle expression, only giving a faint nod.
She hadn't waited at the gate. Appearing here was deliberate. She wanted to test Yang Yunhai.
If he couldn't even handle a gate guard, how could he possibly deal with the academy's three committee members, or even more complex situations in the future? If he failed here, better to send him off to Spirit City instead.
From Snake Lance Douluo's report last night, what she valued most in Yang Yunhai was his courage, his cultivation talent, and his gift for theoretical research. But as for wisdom in handling people, the information so far hadn't been convincing.
Now, however, things looked better.
"Why so flustered? Did something happen outside?" Meng Shenji asked.
The guard gathered his thoughts and reported, "Two people came to enroll. One of them, a boy, is very young but already rank 31. His Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, but the vines it produced were extraordinary, covered with barbed thorns, extremely sharp. Such a large tree—" he gestured with his arms, "—was cut through with just a single pull."
The three committee members rose to their feet at once, about to question further when Qian Renxue's voice came calmly.
"It seems our Royal Academy has attracted a genius this year. Perhaps two of them."
She stood slowly. "Such talents are worth going to greet in person. Gentlemen, will you accompany me?"
"Of course. Someone like that, I too would like to see," Meng Shenji said with a smile.
"Your Highness, please," the three committee members said courteously, stepping aside.
(End of Chapter)
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