The mountain gorge loomed before them.
"The inner academy isn't so easy to enter!" Hu Qian declared, a faint smile playing on his lips as he noticed the puzzled looks of some new students. Turning, he waved his hand, and a blinding beam of energy shot forth. It struck an empty patch of air, rippling like water disturbed by a stone.
Under the students' watchful gazes, the ripples shimmered and flowed, gradually forming a pale silver gate, towering seven or eight zhang—about twenty-five meters—high, materializing out of thin air.
"This is the work of a Dou Zun, using spatial power to seal off a vast area!" Xun Er whispered, her eyes flickering as she leaned close to Xiao Bai's ear, sensing his intrigued expression.
Xiao Bai nodded slightly, marveling inwardly at the Dou Zun's mastery of space. First the spatial lock, now this spatial seal. From the fluctuations, he could sense the immense scope of this sealed space. A spark of yearning ignited in him for such a realm. If a Dou Zun can achieve this, what wonders could a Dou Sheng wield, creating entire realms with a wave of their hand?
Stepping through the silver gate, Xiao Bai felt a brief mental haze before his feet touched solid ground. He blinked in surprise. A short-range spatial teleportation channel? The gate was suspended in midair, yet we've landed on the ground in an instant.
"Didn't expect you two to be on duty this year!" Hu Qian's hearty laugh broke through Xiao Bai's thoughts.
Glancing over, Xiao Bai saw two elders approaching, followed by nearly twenty young men and women, each wearing a badge with a tower emblem on their chests.
"Just our luck, born to toil!" the elders replied, shaking their heads with wry smiles. Their gazes swept over the new students. "How's this year's batch?"
"You five, come here!" Hu Qian beckoned to the top five students. As they approached, he gestured to the elders with a grin. "This is Elder Su, and this is Elder Han. If you need help in the inner academy, seek them out. These are this year's top five—pretty decent, I'd say!"
The two elders exchanged surprised glances. They knew Hu Qian, the outer academy's vice-dean, usually boasted about his students. Why was he so reserved this year?
Their eyes scanned the five, lingering on Xiao Bai. They could sense energy fluctuations from the other four, but this white-haired youth was a blank slate, as if something blocked their probing.
Sharing a look, they saw mutual astonishment. No wonder old Hu's playing it cool this year. This batch is something else!
"Well, look at that! Such pretty girls! The inner academy's beauty rankings are getting two new names this year!" a few young men behind the elders piped up, their eyes lighting up as they whistled and laughed.
"Shut it! One more word, and I'll dock you five days of tower training!" Elder Su snapped, silencing the group instantly.
Turning to the new students, he spoke slowly. "You're freshmen, and I hope you adapt quickly—it'll serve you well. Look at these fools behind me. Last year, they were at the bottom when they arrived. Now, just one year later, any one of them could rank in your top three!"
His gaze paused on Xiao Bai. If not for this unreadable kid, I'd say top one. This year's group didn't seem to match last year's overall strength.
"Enough talk. You've passed the outer academy's trials, but entering the inner academy isn't that simple!"
Elder Su smiled, raising his hand. A handful of black crystal cards appeared, and with a flick, they shot out like guided missiles, hovering before each new student.
Xiao Bai took his card, a strange heat radiating from it. Examining it, he saw a smooth, mirror-like surface with a bold red "5" etched on it.
The inner academy students behind the elders stared at the black cards in the newcomers' hands, their eyes burning with undisguised greed.
Xiao Bai's gaze swept over the group, lingering on a few. His eyes darkened with a knowing glint. If Xiao Yan were here, he'd shudder at that look. He's learned this lesson the hard way too many times.
"Don't worry about what these cards are for now," Elder Su said, pointing at the inner academy students. "Just know this: guard them like your life. You'll understand why once you're in the inner academy. Their eyes should tell you enough!"
He continued, "Your next task is to cross this forest and reach the inner academy at its end. But beware of them. Per inner academy rules, they can attack you freely here. You can fight back, of course!"
"Short of killing, they'll do anything to steal the… Fire Energy from your cards!"
"If you can evade them, defeat them, or avoid capture and reach the inner academy, you'll earn a final reward. The earlier you arrive, the richer the prize!"
Pointing to the lush forest behind him, Elder Su declared, "In the inner academy, we call this the Fire Energy Hunt!"
"Now, I announce the start of this year's Fire Energy Hunt! Students, start running! Good luck!"
As the freshmen's figures vanished into the forest, Elder Su shook his head, hoping this batch wouldn't lose too badly.
"Xiao Bai gege, shall we go?" Xun Er stood gracefully at his side, her bright eyes meeting his with a gentle smile.
"Go? No rush," Xiao Bai said, shaking his head. Noticing Elder Su's puzzled glance at their unmoving group, he called out, "Elder Su, just to clarify: from now on, in this forest space, anyone can act as long as no one dies, correct?"
"Correct!" Elder Su nodded.
Before his words fully landed, a thunderous boom echoed. A black shadow, trailing a long arc of crimson lightning, vanished like it had torn through space itself.
Bang!
A muffled thud followed. Everyone—Hu Qian, the elders, the scattering freshmen, and the inner academy students—turned instinctively toward the sound, stunned.
Several inner academy students lay sprawled a short distance away, battered and bruised. Each had a massive black orb atop their head, their hair standing on end like an explosion. Their pale faces, streaked with faint blood at the corners of their mouths, stared at the white-haired figure in black robes with a mix of shock and fear.
"Weren't you fond of whistling? Come on, give me another!" Xiao Bai approached one who'd been the loudest, his voice low and calm.
"Dou Ling!!" Elder Su gasped, sensing Xiao Bai's cultivation level, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"No ordinary Dou Ling, either!" Elder Han added, equally stunned, nodding in agreement.
The two elders spun toward Hu Qian, who'd claimed this year's batch was merely "decent." He's been hiding a monster!
Hu Qian quickly masked his own shock, stroking his beard with a smug glance at the elders. The inner academy always acts so high and mighty, ignoring our outer academy students. How's that iron plate you just kicked?
Xun Er and Xiao Yi Xian, initially puzzled by Xiao Bai's actions, caught his words and understood. Their eyes sparkled with amused smiles.
"So reliable!" Xu Su murmured, gazing at the black-robed figure, a glint of admiration in her eyes.
"Tu Shan!" Xiao Bai called.
"Here!" Tu Shan snapped to attention, startled out of his daze.
"Collect their Fire Energy cards!"
"Yes!" Tu Shan jogged over, stripping the five inner academy students bare of their cards. He handed five pale blue Fire Energy cards to Xiao Bai.
"Five people, and not even two hundred combined?" Xiao Bai scanned the cards, frowning with mild disdain.
The grounded students spat blood again, inwardly raging. This fiend robs us and calls us poor? If we were rich, why would we bother robbing freshmen for scraps?
Xiao Bai transferred the Fire Energy from the blue cards, then flicked his fingers. Streams of light arced through the air, and the now-zeroed cards landed on the immobile students.
His gaze shifted to the remaining fifteen inner academy students.
"W-what do you want? We didn't whistle!" The closest one, a scrawny youth, swallowed hard, his voice trembling. A freak like this in the Hunt? I wouldn't have come if I'd known!
Xiao Bai's lips curled into a playful smirk. "Forgot already? This is the Fire Energy Hunt. And in a hunt, there are prey… and hunters!"
"Now, I declare you all my prey. Hand over your Fire Energy!"
His clear voice rang out, leaving the inner academy students staring at each other in disbelief. Did we come to the wrong place? This is supposed to be our chance to farm Fire Energy! Did we grab the wrong script?
"You're strong, no doubt, but we're not pushovers!" a burly youth spoke up, his eyes wary but his tone steady. "We've got fifteen people here, the weakest at four-star Da Dou Shi. If we rush you, even a Dou Ling like you won't walk away unscathed. It'll cost you!"
He paused, a confident smile spreading. "Besides, we're not alone in this forest. There's the Black-White Fiend Team out there, led by a Dou Ling. You don't want to burn yourself out fighting us, only to get ambushed, do you? How about we call it even—live and let live?"
"Smart move," Xiao Bai said, his gaze locking onto the youth. "You highlight your strengths, then dangle an outside threat. A less savvy freshman might've fallen for it." His eyes swept over the older students rallying behind the speaker, a strange smile forming. A cold glint flashed in his gaze. "But it's just a petty trick, using me as a stepping stone to win them over. Mutual destruction? You're not worthy. Others in the forest? The Black-White Fiend Team? To me, they're all just prey!"
"And you dare threaten me with my prey?"
The burly youth's confident smile faded, his face darkening.
"Big talk, treating inner academy students like prey! Think being a Dou Ling makes you untouchable? Let me tell you, plenty of Dou Lings in the inner academy can't even make the Strong List!" the youth sneered. "You're cocky, but we're not pushovers!"
Xiao Bai stared, then burst into laughter, clapping mockingly. "Well, well, I've seen it all today! Every word drags the entire inner academy into your bravado. Are you the dean? Do you speak for the whole academy? To think the inner academy produces such shameless types—truly a school for all talents!"
A chorus of stifled chuckles rippled through the crowd.
"You… you…" The burly youth's face flushed red, fists clenched, glaring but speechless.
"Attack!" he roared, charging forward—only to freeze when no one followed. Glancing back, he saw the others' hesitant, evasive looks. "What, you're just going to let him rob your Fire Energy without a fight?"
A white-robed youth sighed, shaking his head. "Fine, let's do this. We came to take Fire Energy, not lose it. If a freshman robs us without resistance, we'll never live it down in the inner academy."
"Interesting," Xiao Bai mused, amused by the oddly tragic scene. They're the ones preying on freshmen, yet I'm the villain now?
As the determined inner academy students rushed forward, Xiao Bai tapped his brow. A surge of immense soul force erupted.
The attackers' faces paled, their pupils contracting. An overwhelming pressure descended, freezing them in place. Their bodies wouldn't budge, their throats felt choked, and even breathing was a struggle.
"Cough… Classmate Xiao Bai, you're not planning to rob us old folks too, are you?" Elder Su and Elder Han exchanged strained glances, their shock tinged with wry humor. The pressure on them, even with their cultivation, was no small matter. Speaking was a chore.
Dou Wangs, and we're struggling against a freshman? When did newbies get this monstrous?
Hu Qian, meanwhile, appeared unfazed, though a closer look revealed twitching veins on his forehead. This brat's soul force is that strong? No wonder he refines pills so effortlessly, outshining even old Huo! And this pressure—what's with it? I'm the vice-dean, and he's not sparing me either?!
As a peak Dou Huang, Hu Qian could shrug off most of the pressure through his soul's harmony with the world, appearing unaffected.
"Of course not! A complete mistake, my apologies. The vice-dean and elders are magnanimous; you won't mind, right?" Xiao Bai retracted his soul force from Hu Qian, Elder Su, and Elder Han, offering a sincere, apologetic smile.
"Believe you, my foot!" the three thought, rolling their eyes in unison. Soul force reflects control. With power like that, you're claiming a 'mistake'?
They saw through him now—this kid, stern and imposing on the surface, had a sly, mischievous streak.
Xiao Bai grinned, unbothered. The opportunity had been too perfect to test them, and as Yao Lao had predicted, Hu Qian's reaction confirmed his suspicions.
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