"Hmph! If you want to die, just bring it on!" Feng Zhengxiong shouted angrily, his powerful True Yuan surging forth.
"Stop!"
Just as Yang Qingyun was about to clash with Feng Zhengxiong, suddenly, a loud shouting voice rose. An even more domineering aura filled the air.
From this aggressive aura, it was clear that this was the cultivation of the First Level of the Yuandan Realm!
After a moment, a black shadow flickered swiftly onto the stage, appearing between Yang Qingyun and Feng Zhengxiong in the blink of an eye.
"Instructor Li!" Seeing the newcomer, Feng Zhengxiong was surprised.
"Instructor Li, what brings you here?" Yang Qingyun asked, his anger subsiding significantly.
Instructor Li was none other than Li Feng, one of Tianyan Academy's instructors, in his early thirties, wearing a grey robe.
"Elder Su has sent me to come here and to escort Feng Wuchen to Tianyan Academy. I happened to catch an exciting duel. Family Head Yang, I apologize for the intrusion," Li Feng spoke slowly, his tone mild.
"Hmph!" Yang Qingyun had nothing to say, and let out an extremely unwilling grunt of anger. The Tianyan Academy was not an entity the Yang family could afford to offend.
The Yang family dared not speak, forced to suppress their anger internally.
"Chen Er, quickly go with Instructor Li to the academy. You still need to purge Elder Su of the cold poison," Feng Zhengxiong said to Feng Wuchen, giving him a thumbs-up at the same time.
"Third young master! Third young master!" Cheers resounded from the Feng family.
"Incredible! Feng Wuchen is truly a once-in-a-lifetime genius! His talent is far more terrifying than even Mo Ling'er's! I wonder what Mo Ling'er will feel when she finds out."
"Yang Tian was actually defeated by a single punch from Feng Wuchen. I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes."
"Feng Wuchen's talent is definitely number one in Unmatched City! He's improved by four layers in just one month!"
The crowd from Unmatched City was already in an uproar, with exclamations spreading like a tidal wave.
A Fourth Layer of the Body Refining Realm being able to purge Elder Su of cold poison, something even a Fifth Grade Alchemist could scarcely achieve, and then easily defeated the Sixth Layer Body Refining Realm's Yang Bufan and Yang Xuan within a few days.
Now even Yang Tian, the foremost talent of the Yang family, had been defeated.
From this, it was evident that Feng Wuchen was truly the peerless genius of Unmatched City, beyond all doubt!
If they knew that Feng Wuchen could also purge the fire poison from an alchemist, they might faint from shock.
"Brother Feng, I'll go with you," Ling Xiaoxiao immediately said, wrapping her arm around Feng Wuchen's.
"I'd be quite bored going by myself, let's go," Feng Wuchen didn't object. If it weren't for his promise to Elder Su, he might really not have gone.
Tianyan Academy wasn't far, but it would still delay his cultivation time.
"Chen Er, be extremely careful," Xiao Qingqing admonished, her eyes filled with reluctance. This was Feng Wuchen's first time leaving Unmatched City in sixteen years, and Xiao Qingqing couldn't help but worry.
"Don't worry, Mother, I'll be fine," Feng Wuchen said with a smile.
"A man should venture out and make his mark. Go without worry," Feng Zhengxiong said with a smile, not concerned about Feng Wuchen. Instead, he was worried about those who would provoke Feng Wuchen.
For example, the Yang family. Offending Feng Wuchen hadn't ended well for them; three of the Yang family's younger generation had been crippled by Feng Wuchen. That was the price to pay.
"Feng Wuchen, let's go," Li Feng said with a light smile, looking at Feng Wuchen. Having witnessed the duel between Feng Wuchen and Yang Tian, he finally understood why Elder Su valued Feng Wuchen so much.
Although it was the talent of a Second Grade Martial Soul, Li Feng had also heard about Feng Wuchen and was shocked beyond measure. He had never heard of a Second Grade Martial Soul's talent possessing such a terrifying cultivation speed.
Li Feng put two fingers in his mouth and let out a whistle. On a mountain outside of Unmatched City, a shrill cry suddenly rang out, followed by a glimpse of a massive red bird flying over.
"The academy's Second Order magical beast, the Red-blood Bird!" exclaimed someone from Unmatched City, with pairs of eyes turning towards the sky.
The Red-blood Bird was very large; its back could comfortably seat seven or eight people. It landed steadily in the middle of the air above the arena.
"Let's go," Li Feng said with a smile, being the first to leap onto the Red-blood Bird, followed closely by Feng Wuchen and Ling Xiaoxiao.
The people of Unmatched City were filled with envy. Mo Ling'er and Lin You when they went to Tianyan Academy didn't receive such a privilege.
To soar on the back of the Red-blood Bird was a dream coveted by many, but soaring in the high skies was impossible without reaching the Tianyuan Realm.
With the Red-blood Bird escorting them, it would only take a few hours to get from Unmatched City to Tianyan Academy—a journey normally much longer—with the gigantic Red-blood Bird's astonishing speed.
"Whoosh!"
As the Red-blood Bird's wings stirred, a gust of wind surged, kicking up a cloud of dust. Following a sonic boom, the Red-blood Bird soared into the sky, and within a few breaths, it had disappeared.
Due to the quick speed and high altitude, Feng Wuchen, who was flying high for the first time, became somewhat panicked, and his eyes were barely able to open.
"Feng Wuchen, are you really a Second Grade Martial Soul talent?" Li Feng curiously asked, his gaze fixed on Feng Wuchen.
Upon hearing this, Feng Wuchen said with a smile, "Absolutely true, everyone in Unmatched City knows."
"I don't think so," Li Feng shook his head and said, "I heard that you advanced four layers in just one month. No student in the entire Tianyan Academy can do that, not even the geniuses from the lofty powers on the Mainland may be able to accomplish this."
After a pause, Li Feng continued, "I also watched your duel with Yang Tian. It was very impressive. Your combat experience is quite rich; you use defense as offense, killing the enemy with a single strike. That's not something ordinary people can do. With such talent, no wonder Elder Su values you so much."
"Elder Su values me because I can expel his cold poison," Feng Wuchen said with a light smile.
Feng Wuchen did not give a direct answer, and Li Feng did not pursue the question further. His gaze then shifted to Ling Xiaoxiao, who had quietly stayed by Feng Wuchen's side.
"Who is this young girl? Why hasn't Elder Su mentioned her? So young and already at the Sixth Layer of the Qi Refining Realm. With such a terrifying talent, there must be an extremely formidable lofty power behind her," Li Feng secretly speculated, completely shocked by Ling Xiaoxiao's terrifying talent.
The identity of Ling Xiaoxiao remained a mystery that even Feng Wuchen couldn't figure out.
Time slipped away as they flew, and after six hours, the Red-blood Bird finally brought them to Tianyan Academy.
Tianyan Academy was enormous, its majestic buildings awe-inspiring. The academy was a gathering place for all the talented youths from the entire Flame Empire.
Putting it plainly, Tianyan Academy was itself a great power, strong enough to contend with the Flame Empire.
After disembarking from the Red-blood Bird, Li Feng led Feng Wuchen and Ling Xiaoxiao through the grand gates of the academy.
"Instructor Li!" Students greeted him all around, with puzzled yet envious looks at Feng Wuchen and Ling Xiaoxiao.
"Are they new students? Wow, that girl is so pretty! I must snatch her away!"
"Truly pretty. That guy is so lucky. Why can't I ever meet a beautiful girl?"
"Hasn't the enrollment period already passed a month ago? Why are these two only coming now?"
Within the academy, many students cast puzzled looks their way, and many male students' eyes lingered on Ling Xiaoxiao, practically drooling.
"Big Brother Feng!" As they entered the academy square, Lin You ran over excitedly and said with a big smile, "I've been waiting for you for so long!"
"Lin You! Wow, First Level of the Qi Refining Realm! You've improved quickly!" Feng Wuchen replied with a happy smile upon seeing Lin You rush over.
"Hehe, all thanks to the training at the academy," Lin You said with an awkward smile before turning to look at Ling Xiaoxiao with surprise, "Sixth Layer of the Qi Refining Realm! So...so amazing! Big Brother Feng, who is this?"
Seeing Ling Xiaoxiao's cultivation level, Lin You was so shocked that it looked like his eyeballs might pop out.
"She's Ling Xiaoxiao, my friend," Feng Wuchen introduced.
"Miss Ling Xiaoxiao," taking a deep breath to suppress the shock in his heart, Lin You greeted her politely. Ling Xiaoxiao responded with a light laugh and a nod.
Many students surrounded the square, their eyes all on the trio of Feng Wuchen. Among the crowd was a figure with a cold face staring at Feng Wuchen and Ling Xiaoxiao - it was Mo Ling'er.
Feng Wuchen, with his keen perception, also spotted Mo Ling'er in the crowd. However, he only gave her a cold look without any trace of longing, devoid of the familiar gaze Mo Ling'er used to see.
"Bringing such a beautiful girl, are you showing her off to me? Or are you trying to prove that even if you are a waste, you can still find a beautiful woman? A woman with high talent, too?" Mo Ling'er thought angrily to herself, not understanding why, but feeling inexplicably furious upon seeing Ling Xiaoxiao so close to Feng Wuchen, and no less beautiful than her.
In Mo Ling'er's view, Feng Wuchen's decision to bring Ling Xiaoxiao was solely to provoke her.
"She must be Mo Ling'er. Your lack of appreciation will make you regret. Betraying Big Brother Feng will make you spend your life longing for another glance from him," Ling Xiaoxiao sensed the cold stare on her as well, and when she turned her head and met Mo Ling'er's gaze, she withdrew her look after a brief moment. Whether intentional or not, she affectionately linked arms with Feng Wuchen, as if to show Mo Ling'er.
Witnessing this scene made Mo Ling'er's face turn even colder, sending chills to anyone who saw it.
By Mo Ling'er's side stood a man - the very one who had defeated Feng Wuchen on the stage, the young master from the Huangfu family.
Noticing Mo Ling'er's anger, the young master from the Huangfu family quickly withdrew his gaze from Ling Xiaoxiao and whispered comfortingly, "Ling'er, a waste is a waste. Defeating a few Huangfu family wastes won't change his fate as a waste. That girl by his side is quite pretty, though."
"Hmph! If she's pretty, go snatch her yourself!" Mo Ling'er snorted disdainfully at the young master from the Huangfu family and stormed off, seething.
"Ling'er! Ling'er! Wait for me!" The young master from the Huangfu family pursued her in a panic.
Mo Ling'er, consumed with rage, had images of Feng Wuchen and Ling Xiaoxiao together swirling in her mind; she was unsure if she was jealous or perturbed because both Ling Xiaoxiao's beauty and talent surpassed hers.
The proud and haughty Mo Ling'er, how could she be content to lose to Ling Xiaoxiao?
"Since when did this waste Feng Wuchen know such an outstanding woman? Her cultivation and talent surpass even mine! Who exactly is she?" Mo Ling'er thought angrily to herself, the more she pondered, the more uncomfortable she felt.