"Are you sure this info is correct?"
In another city thousands of kilometers away from Taizhou city, a voluptuous and seductive woman was talking to a bald man.
"Yes, your highness!"
"Headmistress! It is Headmistress, not Highness! How many times do I have to tell it to you people before you get it!? If we are in Yeungsei University you shall address me as such!"
"I-I apologize, Headmistress Cha!", the bald man quickly prostrated to quell the so called Headmistress' anger.
"Enough. This intel, is it true?", Headmistress Cha was reviewing a scroll with her eyebrows knit, "Age 5, Golden hair, pitch black eyes, a score of 69 in the strength test with just a flick of his finger, able to withstand enourmous amounts of killing intent from an adult, is a boy but looks as cute as a girl.... some of these are not believable, how credible is your source?"
"It should be true, your Highn- Headmistress Cha! My informant is supposedly close to the boy!", the bald man retained his kneeling pose as he respectfully reported to Headmistress Cha.
Headmistress Cha once again took a serious look at the report before licking her luscious lips.
"Very well, I must confirm this myself, Elder Ji. Prepare the chariot and bring lots of gifts for the boy! If this report is true, then our university must have this boy for ourselves!"
"At once, Headmistress Cha!", the bald man quickly vanished after he bowed.
"If we can mould this boy, we will finally be the number one school in the East!"
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"Grandma Ling! I am home!", Viel excitedly opened the door to his house. But to his disappointment, no one was in the house.
"Grandma? Grandpa?", Viel once again called but still, no one answered. He was about to use one of his skills, Soul Search, in order to find them but he immediately stopped when he heard a cough outside.
Viel immediately ran back towards their backyard.
There, he saw Grandpa Ling kneeling on the ground, with Grandma Ling lying on his lap. There was a basket and a litter of beautiful flowers scattered around them.
"G-Grandpa!? Gran-", Viel stumbled like the child he is and bit his tongue as he ran towards the old couple.
Collecting himself, he once again approached the couple, but this time slowly.
He saw Grandpa Ling carressing Grandma Ling's forehead. Grandma Ling has a very calm and satisfied expression, her eyes- closed.
"G-grandma? Grandpa... what's wrong with Grandma Ling!?", Viel gently holds Grandma Ling's hand.
"Brat... you're finally here... your Grandma Ling.. she...", Grandpa Ling could not find the words as he stuttered his phrases.
"N..no! I-it's too early... M-mr. Voice said...2 weeks..."
"Boy... I.. It will be alr-", Grandpa Ling paused as he covered his face, visibly shaken.
"N..no..", Viel's eyes started to water as he couldn't contain his emotions.
"B-brat..yo- ouch!", before Grandpa Ling can finish his words, he felt something hit his head hard.
"Why are you speaking as if I am dead!?", Grandma Ling quickly sat up as he once again hit Grandpa Ling on the head.
"G-grandma!? I... I thought-"
"BWAHAHAHAHA!", Grandpa Ling suddenly bursted out in laughter as he flailed uncontrollably on the ground.
"W..what's happening!?", Viel was visibly confused as he looked back and forth at the old couple.
"I... I just wanted to get back at you for always scaring me, you brat! Hahaha!"
"G-Grandpa Ling!!!", Viel wiped his tears before he jumped at Grandpa Ling, visibly upset.
"Bwahaha! O-ouch!"
"What am I going to do with you boys?", Grandma Ling chuckled before joining in on the fun. Of course, it wasn't as fun for Grandpa Ling as he was the one being squashed on the bottom.
They remained like this for a while before Grandma Ling asked Viel to ready the dishes.
Grandma Ling stared at Viel's back as he was going inside the house, her expression full of content but also sorrow.
"If only he grew up faster, I...I would have seen him get married. Ohh, what beautiful children he would have", Grandma Ling closed her eyes as he imagined Viel growing up, "Promise me… That you will not follow after me as soon as I am gone."
"Do not worry, my dear. I'll hit the brat if he goes too far."
Grandma Ling nodded with a smile on her face. Both of them know that she isn't getting any better, they were prepared… she was prepared.
"Dear… thank you for loving me all these years.", Grandma Ling stroked Grandpa Ling's beard as she placed her forehead near his face.
"My love will follow you in the next life, and the next… and the next, my dear Chunhua", Grandpa Ling breathed heavily as he embraced Grandma Ling.
They didn't stop hugging each other until they heard Viel calling them, shouting that he finished preparing the dishes.
As they were about to eat, Grandma Ling realized something. Viel wasn't supposed to be home until late afternoon, and yet here he was, having lunch with them.
"Hhmm, Viel. Why are you home so early? Don't tell me you skipped your classes?", Grandma Ling squinted her eyes as she stared at Viel.
"N-no! No such thing! The teacher told us to go home early because there was a… disturbance, he said!", Viel swayed his eyes as he tried to find a way to change the topic.
"Oho, is that so?"
"Y-yes! I-in fact… I made new friends because he told us to go home early! I made sure to befriend girls as well!", Viel nodded as he looked at Grandpa Ling.
"Ooh, is our Viel going to grow up as a little playboy, hm?", Grandma Ling teasingly questioned Viel.
Grandpa Ling suddenly flinched as they touched this certain topic, "Come.. come on, let's eat. The food will get cold.", said Grandpa Ling with beads of sweat forming on his face.
"Y-yes! That is the goal! Grandpa Ling said that I should befriend as many girls as possible so I can have lots of wives. So I won't be like him, who was stuck with only one wife in his whole life!", Viel raised his thumbs towards Grandpa Ling.
"Oho, is that so?", Grandma Ling whispered as she grabbed Grandpa Ling's arm.
"Yes!"
"G-GAAAAAHOO!", Grandpa Ling shouted as he felt Grandma Ling pinched his skin almost to the point of bleeding.
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"Settle down, students!"
Once again, Viel and the other students were in class as Senior Professor Hamburgdole just finished fixing their seating arrangements.
The top 7 students were seated on the front row. Viel, Diao Mei, Violet, Wei Song, and Xiao Pei all occupied the seats along with two others that did well during the exam.
"Pssst, Miss Mei. Want some candy?", Viel once again secretly showed a bag of candies to the girl beside him.
"T-thank you!", Diao Mei blushed as she quickly took the candy and stored it in her purse. "T-this, you can have thi-", Diao Mei was about to hand something to Viel before she saw him also giving a candy to Violet.
Diao Mei once again looked at Violet with fierce eyes before going back to her calm expression as the class started.
"First of all, congratulations for getting into the academy.", Professor Hamburgdole bowed to the students, and in turn, the students also bowed back.
"The road before you will be hard, it will be filled with pain, and sometimes of losing. But do not be disheartened, for we, your teachers, will be there to keep you on the path. The path to strength, and the path towards immortality!"
The students cheered in excitement, imagining what is in store for them in this journey.
"With having said that, let us begin your journey by first filling your head with knowledge and telling us what you know. Can anybody tell me the different progressions of cultivation?"
With Hamburgdole's sudden question, the previous liveliness and cheering quickly died down as the children looked to the side, afraid of being called upon.
Diao Mei raised her hand, "Sir! There are 5 stages of progression! Progressively they are Earthen Core Realm, Soul Realm, Elemental Realm, Mind Transformation Realm, and finally the Ascension Realm. Each stage is separated by 3 parts, Initial, Tempered, and Pinnacle!"
Diao Mei bowed before she sat down again, her expression was calm and dignified. The other students could not help but look in admiration.
"Woohoo!", Viel clapped as he praised the girl beside him. The previously calm girl could not help but slightly blush as she once again grinned at Violet. Violet, who had no idea why Diao Mei is always looking at her with fierce eyes, could not help but start to be irritated.
"Quiet!", Hamburgdole slapped the chalkboard, "Very good, Student Mei. Now that all of you have refreshed your mind. I need all of you to forget it."
The students were perplexed at their teacher's remark.
"What Student Mei just mentioned is our Eastern standard way of measuring one's cultivation. In other words, they are outdated. And only the unlearned and the old use it. Does anybody know why?"
Diao Mei was about to raise her hand, but Violet stood up first and started answering before her.
"Because one's potential can't be measured through labels and simple terms. There have been lots of events where a cultivator in the Earthen Core realm can beat a person 2 levels above him! These are only one of the many reasons why the Eastern Standard is slowly being overwritten by a number of progressive schools like Taizhou academy!"
Violet harrumphed as she glanced at Diao Mei before sitting down. Clearly, this is the start of the rivalry between the two girls. One, in pursuit of love, and the other, probably just pissed off.
"Woo- ugh!", Viel was about to once again cheer before professor Hamburgdole threw a piece of chalk on his head.
"Very good, clearly the girls on the top of the class are better than the boys, hm?", Professor Hamburgdole stared at the boys on the front row as if challenging them, "Does anyone have anything to add?"
"Me! Me!", Viel flailed his hands as he jumped on his seat. Hamburgdole sighed as he tried to search for someone else to call, clearly knowing that this boy was up to no good again. However, as no one else was raising their hands, he could not help but to point at the boy.
"Yes! I have a question!"
"What is it?"
"Is it true that you dyed your hair to make yourself look like a westerner!?", with the sudden question, the whole class suddenly turned silent, most of them trying to stop themselves from laughing.
"T-this… how is this relevant to our class!? And who told you that!?", Hamburgdole's nerves were about to implode.
"Brother Pei Pei told me! He said you wanted to look like a westerner because you were trying to court another western teacher!��
"Y-you… Stand on the hallway! Student Xiao Pei, you will accompany Mr. Viel outside!", Hamburgdole burst in anger as he almost pulled out his hair, but couldn't do so, because he was actually wearing a wig.
"B-but… I didn't even do anything!", and thus, Xiao Pei, who was laying low the whole class, stood on the hallway along with Viel until the next teacher arrived.