When the identification token on Yun Ruoyan’s waist lit up in blue, the students all around her gasped. Blue was essentially the highest rank most students would ever achieve; the only higher rank was violet, one that was rare even among the students of the beastmaster institute and the instructors. 

“Allegedly, blue-rank students don’t have to pay for food and drink when dining in the capital,” a bystander murmured. 

“Oh, there are far more privileges involved! Do you know about the immortal suites in Yuelu Villa? There are rooms specifically designated for blue-rank members of Kongming Academy, an honor that even the royalty of the various kingdoms can’t aspire to!” another student added. “And with a blue-rank identification token, you’ll be treated as an honored guest and VIP wherever you go. Oh, when will I ever advance to blue rank?”

“Don’t dream of it! For people like us, it’s almost an impossibility!”

At first, it was only those from the southern college who let out an exclamation, but it then spread to the northern, western, and central colleges. When Pei Ziao and Rong Yueshan saw the blinding blue light emerging from Yun Ruoyan, they looked at her in shocked disbelief, then embittered resentment.

Both of them were among the more talented of the students from noble families, and they were both very hardworking. Pei Ziao had spent almost his entire holiday cultivating daily under the guidance of his father, and he had managed to reach the peak of seventh-rank. 

He thought that his progress would have been sufficient to catch up to Yun Ruoyan, but he didn’t know that she had already broken through to eighth rank by the end of the expedition in the gigantic forest!

And although Rong Yueshan didn’t work as hard as Pei Ziao did, the second elder thought well of her, and Master Rong was related to her by blood. Both her instructors had spent significant efforts to help her advance, so Rong Yueshan had reached the peak of seventh-rank even before Pei Ziao did.

However, there was a rather significant bottleneck gating the progress between seventh- and eighth-rank, one that wasn’t so easy to overcome. This was well-known among cultivators, and both Rong Yueshan and Pei Ziao knew that Yun Ruoyan had spent a significant amount of time as a seventh-rank blademaster. They thought that she would be stuck for another two or three years, so they would have ample time to catch up.

Unexpectedly, however, she had broken through during the holidays.

“How could this be?! How could she have broken through so quickly?!” Rong Yueshan’s face was filled with consternation.

Pei Ziao didn’t know what to say. Unlike Rong Yueshan, Pei Ziao had known Yun Ruoyan for far longer, and he understood her more thoroughly. Yun Ruoyan’s transformation over the past year was nothing short of extraordinary, so much so that even her rapid breakthrough to eighth-rank paled in comparison.

He thought back to the shy, bullied girl that she had been over a year ago, the girl who would blush if his gaze lingered on her for mere moments. He suddenly felt as though she was a different person entirely, a sudden feeling of vertigo that he’d experienced many times when thinking about her. Yun Ruoyan had brought him so many surprises that he couldn’t count them all on his fingers.

Another feeling became more and more apparent to him: that he might never be able to catch up to her. Rong Yueshan experienced much the same thought, but she quickly found a reason to expel it from her mind: the Slaughtering King Li Mo.

As far as Rong Yueshan was aware, the changes in Yun Ruoyan’s behavior had only happened after she met Li Mo. 

It must be because the Slaughtering King fed her some miraculous pill to make her cultivation grow so rapidly! 

This excuse was more than sufficient to explain her rapid growth; having a cultivation propped up solely by pills and spiritual treasures was nothing to be proud of.

Rong Yueshan decided that she too would start supplementing her cultivation with pills. With the help of her two masters and a large quantity of spiritual pills, she was certain she would be able to catch up with Yun Ruoyan!

“Look, there’s another blue-rank student over there!”

While the crowd was shocked by Yun Ruoyan’s increased rank, one student suddenly pointed toward the central college, and everyone turned in that direction instead.

“It’s Brother Zhuo, Brother Zhuo!” Lin Qingxue was the first to shout out excitedly. Clearly, the student who had advanced to blue-rank was none other than Zhuo Yifeng.

“He… Even that beastkin’s lad already an eighth-rank blademaster?! How can this be?” Pei Ziao was even more shocked than before.

Rong Yueshan felt the same way. If Yun Ruoyan had progressed to eighth-rank under Li Mo’s guidance, she had to have done it with the help of some spiritual pill. But in that case, how would she explain Zhuo Yifeng’s advancement? 

No, no. They had to have found some miraculous spiritual treasure that helped them advance!

Rong Yueshan wasn’t wrong: Yun Ruoyan and Zhuo Yifeng had managed to break through to eighth-rank because they had consumed a heavenly spirit fruit—but it was highly unlikely that she would be lucky enough to obtain the same opportunity.

“Hahaha, my central college’s finally going to have a true blademaster, hahaha!” The sixth elder threw back his head and laughed. He had found out quite a while ago that Zhuo Yifeng had become an eighth-rank blademaster, but he had been keeping the news a secret in order to brag about his student with all the other elders gathered.

The sixth elder stood up excitedly from his seat. “Gathered elders, I’ve finally managed to cultivate a gem from one of the students you’ve overlooked! Even I’m impressed by my own talent!”

The sixth elder was known for being unconventional, and he was particularly thick-skinned. He thought of all sorts of ploys and excuses to help raise the rank of his students, but he now finally had a student who had earned his rank! That was surely deserving of praise, wasn’t it?

“Sixth Elder, you seem to have forgotten something.” The third elder couldn’t bear the sixth elder’s cockiness any longer. “This Zhuo Yifeng wasn’t someone that we discarded, was it? No—he chose to leave the southern college to join the central college of his own accord! His meteoric rise can only be ascribed to his own talents, not yours!”

“Third Elder, that’s a harsh claim! Why did my disciple choose to join the central college? He must have thought favorably of my skills as his master!”

“Oh, I understand what you’re saying.” The third elder suddenly smiled. “You mean that the southern college is worse than the central college, and that you’re better than the first elder, Sixth Elder?”

“I—That’s not what I said!” The sixth elder glared at the third elder. “What do you mean, Third Elder?”

“Alright, that’s enough.” The first elder finally stood up. “That there would be two new students who broke through to eighth-rank in their first term here is worthy of celebration no matter what college they’re in. Cang Song,” he called out. “When the elders’ meeting is over, have Yun Ruoyan and Zhuo Yifeng stay behind. Since they’re eighth-rank blademasters, let them follow me to my secret vaults to pick out a spiritual sword suitable for them.”

After all students were accounted for and their ranks updated, the start-of-term ceremony was over. The Lin sisters had both advanced to seventh-rank, with Lin Qingchen slightly higher as a mid-seventh-rank cultivator, and Lin Qingxue an early seventh-rank cultivator.

Pei Ziao and Rong Yueshan, just like the Lin sisters, had their tokens turn green, while most of the newer students still had red or yellow tokens. After all, it was only the start of the second term, and only the most advanced students would have risen up the ranks so quickly.

After Cang Song announced the end of the ceremony, the students headed back to their respective colleges under the guidance of their respective provosts. Yun Ruoyan, Zhuo Yifeng, Pei Ziao, Rong Yueshan, and about twenty other students followed the provosts and elders to the meeting for those students participating in the expedition to the otherworld.

Yun Ruoyan naturally walked by Li Mo’s side. As they walked to the meeting, she could feel a number of stares focused on her, but she couldn’t see anyone looking at her when she turned her head. She frowned as she turned to Li Mo, but Li Mo’s gaze had landed on the second elder.

Ever since the death of the second elder’s grandson, Guan Tianyu, the second elder had become far more reserved, but his gloomy expression had turned even more downcast.

Li Mo’s gaze was a hint that the person who had been looking at her was the second elder. Although the second elder had failed to pin the blame of Guan Tianyu’s death on Yun Ruoyan, he blamed her for the loss of his bloodline.

Li Mo nodded slightly at Yun Ruoyan, informing her not to worry. She shook her head, communicating that she wasn’t worried at all; the second elder’s distaste wasn’t something she would spend time worrying over. 

Because of the impending expedition to the alternate dimension, it would be far better for her to work hard on becoming strong than to live with a specter of fear hovering over her. Once she was strong enough, she wouldn’t have to worry about anyone.

Li Mo smiled at her carefree manner.

Once they arrived at a conference room in the southern tower, the first elder motioned for everyone to sit. “During the last training expedition, nine of our thirty students died,” the first elder began, his voice solemn.

“First Elder, can you discuss matters with those outworlders and have us send fewer students through this time?” the fifth elder asked, his request quickly mirrored by the other elders.

The first elder shook his head. “The higher realms requested that we send at least thirty students over. Thirty is already the minimum they will accept.”

“In that case, do you mean that we still have to fill the spots of these nine deceased students?” the second elder suddenly exclaimed, his aura filling the room like a sudden bout of frost.

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