Chapter 26: Library Pavilion

In the spacious, bright room, bookshelves crossed and extended in all directions, filled with various ancient books on the shelves, giving off a particularly strong scent of literature.

At this moment, in the center of the room, Xiao Li and the others stood quietly; behind the desk in front of them, an old man with completely white hair and beard slowly flipped through the documents in his hand, and the whole room was filled with a quiet atmosphere.

After the quiet atmosphere lasted for about ten minutes, Vice Dean Hu Qian finally moved his gaze away from the documents.

"You are all the most outstanding students of this batch; I am very pleased."

Hu Qian's smile became even more evident; to receive someone like Xiao Li, a heaven‑gifted talent, in this batch is simply like a pie falling from the sky.

After closing the book in his hand, Hu Qian said with a smile, then turned his gaze to Xiao Li and the others: "When you later enter the inner court, you will inevitably have to strive together, so do not stiffen your relations; each year's newcomers to the inner court, if they do not band together, will not have a good outcome."

"Moreover, in the inner court, strength is supreme; whoever has the hardest fist can obtain the best cultivation conditions, and there, none of your backgrounds matter, not even mine!"

Hu Qian's words had a hidden meaning as he turned his gaze toward Xiao Li.

Xiao Li slightly nodded, indicating that he understood.

Li Hao laughed on his own: "We are all heavenly talents among our peers; we would barely have time to befriend such people, let alone oppose them."

Hu Qian nodded, "That's good; come with me, I'll take you to obtain cultivation techniques and combat skills."

Saying that, Hu Qian walked to the wall behind him, casually patted it a few times, a low rumbling sound echoed, and immediately a dark passage appeared before Xiao Li and the five of them.

After entering the passage, Xiao Li discovered that the walls were inlaid with large luminous pearls one after another; their faint light illuminated the passage, making it somewhat hazy, but this amount of light was already sufficient for Xiao Li and the others.

After walking in the passage for about half an hour, a glimmer of light finally appeared at the passage's end; seeing the light, the several people inside quickened their pace, and after a moment they reached the end and stepped out.

Blinding sunlight poured down from the horizon, causing Xiao Li and the others to instinctively narrow their eyes; after a while, they slowly opened them, gazing at the scene before them, and were somewhat surprised.

Although they had read about this scene in books, seeing it with their own eyes gave a different feeling.

At this moment, before Xiao Li and the others was clearly a valley depression; the steep cliff walls rose continuously upward to the limit of sight, and among the three sheer cliffs there happened to be an extremely spacious open space, on which stood a massive, heavy ancient‑style building so large it was astonishing.

Their gazes slowly swept over the massive ancient‑style building and finally came to rest on an extremely old‑looking plaque outside the building.

"Library Pavilion!"

The ancient characters, though weathered by time, still made Xiao Li and the others feel shaken by the antiquated atmosphere they conveyed; truly deserving of being the mysterious Library Pavilion of the outer court of Ji Nan Academy, this plaque alone stamped its identity.

Coming from Wutan City, where the strongest was merely a Great Fighter, to Ji Nan Academy, the greatest difference Xiao Li could feel was manifested here.

A single plaque fully displays the capital of the continent's number one academy!

If Xiao Li remembers correctly, the mysterious dean of Ji Nan Academy seems to be a Half‑Saint of the Lei tribe, leaving the Gama Empire far behind by countless streets.

Hu Qian led the five people walking slowly toward the Library Pavilion; when they were about to reach twenty meters away, he suddenly stopped, clasped his fists toward the Pavilion, and said: "The top five of this year's inner court selection have been born; according to the rules, I have brought them here, and I ask the elders to open the door!"

Hu Qian's words, carried by Dou Qi, lingered back and forth in the small valley, refusing to dissipate for a long time.

Not long after Hu Qian's words fell, Xiao Li's pupils, fixed on the Library Pavilion, suddenly contracted; his gaze darted and finally settled on two gray‑robed figures sitting cross‑legged on the ground at the doorway—when he had first entered, he had clearly seen that there was not even a shadow of a person here!

Even though he had been prepared and had been paying attention all along, he still could not detect the slightest trace.

But now, those two gray‑robed people were as if they had originally been sitting there; this eerie scene made Xiao Li's heart tighten.

Bai Lao shifted his gaze to the five young people; upon seeing Xiao Li, he slightly raised the corner of his eye and said, "Fifteen years old in bone age—a fine seedling."

Qian Lao gave a barely perceptible nod, a hint of regret in his eyes, and said, "If I were not currently devoting all my effort to breaking through to the Fighting Venerable realm, I would hardly be able to resist taking him as my disciple."

After speaking, the two fell silent, merely slowly extending two withered hands from their sleeves; then, with one finger and one seal, they slowly formed hand signs, and as their hand signs moved, Xiao Li could clearly feel two extremely vast invisible undulations radiating from their palms like waves, like waves.

"Let's go." Seeing this spatial gate, Hu Qian waved his hand, then stepped in first; afterward, Xiao Li and the others, after hesitating a moment, cautiously entered this intangible doorframe.

The undulations of space swept over the surface of his body; Xiao Li's heart stirred slightly—spatial power, truly a wonderful experience.

Qian Lao opened his eyes and said, "What a freak; to feel spatial power with the strength of a Great Fighter."

Bai Lao looked at his old friend, waiting for what came next; he knew his old friend now had a different idea.

Indeed, Qian Lao paused, then spoke, "Bai Lie."

Qian Lao solemnly called out Bai Lie's name; Bai Lao probably already understood what Qian Lao wanted to say.

Qian Lao said, "Such a genius cultivating alone—who knows how many detours he would take; even with our guidance back then we were still like this, and I do not want to see a youth more talented than us stuck at this hurdle."

Bai Lao remained silent: "We are old, but Heijiao Yu remains chaotic—for example, the Earth Demon Old Ghost and the Eagle Mountain Old Man are still alive in the world."

Qian Lao nodded, "So I want to nurture a young person to shoulder the great responsibility."

The two fell silent again; they already had the answer in their hearts.

Ji Nan Academy needs a new leading figure.

Qian Lao's gaze seemed to penetrate countless layers of space, seeing that little fellow who had walked away.

"But we should still wait a bit; acting too hastily would not befit our status."

Although that was said, once the notion rose in their hearts, it could no longer be suppressed.

The two figures vanished, arriving at a corner where others could not perceive them.

"You say, is it better to give him cultivation techniques or combat skills?"

(End of chapter)