Empyrean Sun Academy!
Founded by one of the Guardians of the Era of Disaster!
Back when Earth first faced the calamity of beasts and monsters, nine hidden experts who had ruled the world in the shadows even before Qi Awakening slaughtered beasts with a wave of their hands.
Gods!
They were able to strike beasts from miles away!
Humanity had only stabilized because of these nine experts.
After the Era of Disaster passed, the nine experts were officially known as the Guardians.
But the Guardians were all old.
While proclaimed as gods, they were ultimately restrained by their mortal lifespan.
Each Guardian was said to be over two hundred years old.
To ensure the survival of future generations, the Nine Guardians founded an academy, each with their main Martial Art as the foundation.
Several decades had passed, and the Nine Academies continued to protect the world from the horrors of every decade.
Standing before a huge statue, Xia Feng's eyes flickered. Streams of students passed by him; some were admiring the statue, while others pointed toward Xia Feng and whispered.
Young Master of the Xia Family.
Coupled with his extraordinary looks and the temperament provided by his identity as a Dao Lord, he would attract attention wherever he went.
"Ah, Young Master Xia, what brings you here?" a frivolous voice sounded suddenly.
"I don't see Miss Xia anywhere...?" The voice continued, laced with subtle mockery.
Someone who pursued his own cousin was obviously looked down upon.
Xia Feng was infamous for this very reason.
Xia Feng turned around and saw a group of three approaching him. The leader was a young boy with shoulder-length black hair and a decent face.
He had two lackeys accompanying him.
Xia Feng went through his memories and got an answer.
The young frivolous boy was Lu Wen from the Lu Family. The Lu Family was another prestigious family, just a notch below the Xia Family.
This Lu Wen often mocked and made trouble for Xia Feng because of his jealousy, for being able to stay close to Xia Mingrou, and because the Xia Family was stronger than the Lu Family.
It was a knot in the heart of the young kid.
As such, whenever he found Xia Feng, he would make trouble for him despite Xia Feng being in the 5th Martial Stage!
Because he was in the 7th Martial Stage!
One of the top five students of the First Years of Empyrean Sun Academy!
Even the original Xia Feng had to purse his lips because the Empyrean Sun Academy was not a place where the families could interfere much.
As such, one had to take care of themselves. The only reason the commoners feared the prestigious families like Xia and Lu was because of their fear of what would happen after they graduated from the academy.
Lu Wen felt gratified seeing the silence of Xia Feng.
He felt as if he had finally subdued this mad dog. He walked over to Xia Feng and forcefully patted his shoulder with disdain in his eyes.
Then he leaned over and whispered, "Remember this, Xia Mingrou is mine. Keep your dirty paws to yourself and learn your place. If I catch you acting up again..." His voice was laced with a threat.
After saying this, he turned around and walked away with glee in his heart. He had never seen Xia Feng so obedient!
But as he was walking away with his lackeys, a subtle whisper entered his ears, and the voice was soft and weak, "Foolish mortals."
...
In the library of the Empyrean Sun Academy.
The atmosphere here was peaceful.
Sunlight streamed through the towering stained glass windows, casting vibrant hues of red, blue, and gold across the polished marble floors. The air was rich with the scent of aged parchment and the faint fragrance of old wood.
Bookshelves lined the walls, stretching as far as the eye could see. They stood like sentinels, holding the knowledge of centuries in their countless volumes.
The shelves were made of rich, dark wood, polished to a lustrous sheen, and embellished with delicate carvings of intricate patterns and symbols.
Ladders glided along tracks, their wheels rolling noiselessly as if guided by unseen hands.
As the students perused the shelves, their hushed whispers and gentle rustling of pages exuded a serene atmosphere.
The library's ceiling soared high above, adorned with exquisite murals depicting scenes of knowledge and discovery.
Painted figures of philosophers, scientists, and artists seemed to come to life.
Yet, amidst this glorious scene, an even more captivating scene unfolded. A young girl was reading a few books happily.
She had long black hair and an exquisite face. Her body had just the right curves, and the Black-Red Empyrean Sun Robes perfectly hugged them.
As Xia Mingrou was enjoying her book, a friend of hers came running in hastily. She received several glares from those around her and felt a bit embarrassed.
"What's wrong? Why are you panicking?" Xia Mingrou went straight to the point.
Jia Qin wiped the sweat off her forehead and hurriedly leaned in toward Xia Mingrou.
"It's about Xia Feng! He... He m-murdered Lu Wen and his friends!" Just as she finished speaking, Xia Mingrou froze in place.
"What did you say?"
...
Xia Mingrou rushed toward the main hall with a grim expression.
Glancing around, she noticed almost everyone was running toward the Main Hall as well.
This made her eliminate the possibility of Jia Qin pranking her.
'How could he do such a thing?' Even now, she didn't believe it was true. She had to see it with her own eyes.
'Even if he did kill them... Lu Wen is in the 7th Martial Stage, and even the two people he hung out with were at the 3rd Stage.'
It didn't take her long to reach the Main Hall, and a huge crowd had already surrounded the Statue of the Founder.
She could tell Xia Feng was in the middle of the crowd.
Using her strength, she pushed forward and navigated through the sea of people.
It didn't take her long to reach the center, and the scene in front of her stunned her.
A young man with long hair and pristine facial structures was silently gazing at the Statue of the Founder.
But the reason for the deadly silence was that behind the young man were three people lying on the ground.
Their eyes were open and full of shock. A few students were circling around the students on the ground, and hushed whispers reverberated across the hall.
"He's dead... Even his friends are dead!"
"Did Xia Feng really kill them? Weren't you here the entire time; can you tell us what happened?"
"I don't know, Lu Wen whispered something to Xia Feng before walking away, but just as he was leaving, he suddenly fell down."
"What?"
Xia Mingrou felt a shiver go down her spine as she heard the conversation around her. With panic-filled eyes, she ran toward Xia Feng, and just as she was about to call him out, three men appeared out of thin air.
'Oh no!'
"The disciple committee is here; Xia Feng's dead."
"He should've known the consequences of killing fellow students."
"Will they expel him?"
"Expel? They might even cripple him."
The students were animated. They loved gossip, and a student killing fellow students was a very rare occurrence.
The Discipline Committee was in charge of investigating all rule breakers and punishing them.
The three men that appeared were around their middle forties and had gentle expressions, but their appearance had caused all the students to be oppressed by a heavy aura.
The one in the lead took a step forward and crouched down to inspect the bodies. The other two took two steps toward Xia Feng, as if not wanting to allow him to escape.
The man lowered his hand and gently placed it on Lu Wen's chest; his eyes shone with a subtle light.
A few seconds later, he removed his hand with a puzzled expression. He lifted his hand slightly and placed it back down again.
This time, it took longer.
"First Elder?" one of the two men called out, evidently confused. By now, they should've taken Xia Feng into custody and decided his punishment.
Why was the First Elder taking so long? Both exchanged a glance with each other before moving toward the First Elder.
They weren't worried that Xia Feng would escape; their earlier actions were just formalities.
How could a mere Martial Entry Stage Junior escape from them?
"First Elder! What's taking you so long?" the Second Elder called out again, and this time the First Elder turned around with a weird expression on his face.
A touch of hesitation was shown on his face as he parted his lips, "I can't seem to find out why or how they died..."
"... What?"