Staring intently at the little girl, Xiao Nantian is trying very hard to see what's warranted them to be calling her a Goddess but he couldn't find anything, he decided to ask Yu SiFeng about it later.
"Martial Brother SiFeng, you know that outsiders are not allowed into the Academy nor pick a fight, why did you bring them here?". Goddess Xuan asked tilting her head to the side in what Li Meng perceives as childish.
"I'm very sorry for disturbing you, Goddess Xuan, we are just about to leave". Yu SiFeng hurriedly apologized sensing that Li Meng seems to have something to say.
"We will see if you're capable of leaving after causing such a ruckus". Her lips curled upwards in an unmistakable wickedness.
Yu SiFeng's face paled at this statement.
Goddess Xuan stared at the both of them fixedly, moving her gaze from Xiao Nantian to Li Meng, her eyes calculating before her eyes paused on Li Meng obviously and unbridledly checking him out.
She vanished from her spot and is soon seen standing in front of Li Meng who looked unphased, waiting for what she will do next with an unbothered look on his face.
She just stood before him, an invisible current swimming around the both of them. Meanwhile Li Meng sneered inwardly seeing that she has taken them both to a world she created from her spiritual power, but the little girl have no idea who she's dealing with.
Inside the domain she has created, there's a giant flying Phoenix who stared at Li Meng with contempt in it's eyes as if it couldn't believe it's been asked to fight this weak human. It circled the air, the whole atmosphere that of scorching heat, swooped down, it's mouth open as it breathed a torrent of fire that threatens to destroy every living existence. Li Meng just looked at it his countenance calm. As soon as the divine bird came closer the color of his pupils changed to that of an icy blue, emitting frost. His robe swayed and the whole place that seems to be flamey became frosty. He brought his palm forward aiming it towards the divine bird, when it got closer to the bird, he pointed out his index finger coming in contact with the sacred stone on the birds forehead. His eyes closed he observed silently before scoffing.
"The Royal Phoenix huh?".
Outside, everyone else is confused to what's happening. They are not fighting but Goddess Xuan's expression looks grave like she's suffering some kind of torture, the whirlpool of spiritual power around them is becoming more icy than fiery, the coldness is also affecting them.
"They are having a spiritual power battle". Someone among the crowd revealed causing gasps of surprise from the whole crowd. Their Goddess seems to be on the loosing side.
Xiao Nantian didn't look surprised, he already guessed it a while back.
'This Goddess Xuan is wildly arrogant, challenging someone you just met is beyond arrogancy'. He thought his face gloomy, his impression of this Goddess just got worse.
A soft and weak cough brought them all back to reality. Goddess Xuan stood there in shock staring at her bloodied robe, blood still dripping from the corner of her pale lips, not believing that she has just lost. Since she started cultivating this is the first time she has lost. And that too to a nameless cultivator in an area of her expertise, Sorcery.
"Who are you?". She asked different emotions playing across her face before she settled on keeping it neutral, appearing unaffected by her defeat.
"Your highness, don't you think it's too late to be asking that question". This time it is Xiao Nantian who responded coldly, this princess is so prideful.
From the battle before, despite that he can't see it taking place, he could still deduce somethings from it. And also from her bearing, he put two and two together before he came to the conclusion that she's definitely a princess of Donghai, which one he's not sure but he have a feeling she's the youngest one.
Seeing that she won't get an answer she didn't pursue the matter, she needed to nurse her injuries real fast before they become life threatening. She's well aware that the gentleman who she sparred with went easy on her, she might have ended up in a worse state had he not held back and that knowledge made her all the more curious about who this two powerful and mysterious men are.
"They are allowed to leave having passed the test". She waved her hand in dismissal disappearing from sight.
The whole crowd still hasn't recovered from what happened just now. They can't believe that their Goddess lost, an overwhelming defeat.
Before Xiao Nantian or Li Meng could ask about her identity, Yu SiFeng already started filling them in on the ones they missed from their conjecture.
"She's Chen ZhouXuan, the youngest princess of The Imperial Family Chen, of the Donghai prefecture. Thirteen years this year. A genius unlike any other except Younger Brother Meng. At the tender age of two she awakened her Phoenix blood and took charge of the Imperial Family's spiritual beast; The Royal Phoenix at the age of five. When she came to the Academy, some students were unconvinced since she didn't take the entrance examination and has not reached the age of enrollment to the Academy. When she got wind of the news, she stood at the highest point of the Academy and challenged everyone who was not convinced, telling them to assemble at the Academy's entrance in seven days time, where their will be a decisive battle. Whoever won stays to cultivate in the Academy, but if you lose you are going back home, no longer a student of the Academy. And if she looses more than two battles, she will go back to the Imperial City, never to step foot into LanZhou again. When words went around, everyone thought she's being inconceivably arrogant, that there's no doubt she's going back home to her family. Everyone who challenged her on that day, except for one senior, lost. They were all evicted from the Academy. The senior that won against her was her blood senior Brother, the fifth prince of The Imperial Family Chen, Chen ZhouXi. Who's known to be unbelievably strong. So people weren't surprised she couldn't win against him, when she admitted defeat.
She stood so high at the Academy's entrance without a single stain on her sparkling white robe, her hair in a ponytail, her aura pure, face cold to the point of icy.
At that moment, nobody knew who said it first since the whole entrance was crowded with people who came to spectaculate the battle. But among the sea of people someone shouted 'Goddess Xuan'. A year after his Majesty conferred her with the title of Goddess.
After the battle that day, everyone had to accept that she's capable of being a student of LanZhou Academy of Martial Arts and Sorcery, specializing in Sorcery. It was also on that same day she was given a Golden token, she had a bronze one before that.
Since then she hasn't had any epic battles, everyone's afraid to anger her, so nobody dared to challenge her to a battle.
This is also the first time she's actively challenging someone to a battle after the battle at the Academy's entrance. She must have seen Younger Brother Meng as a worthy opponent. She probably didn't challenge Younger Brother Nantian because anyone could see at a glance that he specializes in close quarter combats, she doesn't do well in close quarter combats but she will never let you get close enough. She has been the star of our Academy for years, everyone including myself is undoubtedly shocked at her easy defeat. Brother Meng, I can count on you and Brother Nantian to take care of me in the future, after all we are going to be Martial Brothers, hehe". Yu SiFeng laughed in good spirits.
"What's your feud with that uncultured Lu Yuan". Li Meng said cocking an eyebrow.
They are still in the Academy's premises, so his words soon traveled to Lu Yuan but the latter couldn't do anything about it. Someone who can best their Goddess will naturally toast him, so he can only pretend not to hear the rumors. Besides he studies divination, not martial arts or Sorcery, little spiritual people and no combat skills whatsoever, he only relied on his Martial Brothers from the internal sect of the Academy.
"Well, I didn't really cause him any trouble, his master, the head director of divination, internal disciples and my master are in bad terms, so he tries to make life hard for me". Yu SiFeng explained.
"Do you have any idea why they are in bad terms?". Xiao Nantian asked, thinking it's not so simple.
"Well my master refuses to tell me but from rumors, it's said that my master and the head director of divination, internal disciples are from the same sect, they both also served under the same master, the previous head director of divination. They both fought for the position of head director but my master lost and since then have been leaving in seclusion in the Ming Yard". Yu SiFeng sighed in sentiment thinking that his master is so powerful, there's no way the head director of divination would have won against him but since his master refused to tell him the full story, he let it be.
Xiao Nantian and Li Meng exchanged a meaningful glance, both thinking the exact same thing.
'There's more to the story'.