Chapter 81: Yun Ranran of Jiuzhou Academy

Huai Yuan and several other mentors and elders who had gathered to watch grew interested. “How so?”
“What do you think of this?” Zitan reached into the air, and a small token appeared in her palm.
Huai Yuan and the others drew in a sharp breath. “The Dean’s Token!”
Zitan seemed indifferent. “It can require me to do one thing. As long as it doesn’t violate the code of the mentor or harm all living beings, anything goes.”
Yun Ranyan’s mind was already making quick calculations; the match below held little suspense, but the Dean’s Token was a treasure indeed.
As everyone eyed it greedily, Zitan tucked the token away. “Go on then, who will you bet on?”
Huai Yuan laughed. “Dean, are you really offering that as the prize? I fear it won’t be enough for all of us!”
“Exactly!” the others chimed in.
Zitan shrugged. “It’s only a few requests. I, Zitan, have promised many things in my time; yours won’t make a difference.”
Huai Yuan’s smile deepened. “Well, don’t say we didn’t warn you, Zitan. You’d best prepare yourself, or your little gold stash will be emptied by this pack of wolves!”
“So, who will you choose?”
“Of course, Jiang Wu! At least Jiang Wu is Xiao’s pride and joy!”
Elder Xiao gave an embarrassed smile. Of the cohort under his guidance, only Jiang Wu had truly brought him honor.
Amid laughter and banter, Yun Ranyan spoke clearly, “I choose Chong Li.”
Huai Yuan was stunned and repeated, “Ranyan, don’t be foolish at a time like this. Zitan is nearly immortal—her promises are worth their weight in gold!”
“Ranyan, child, are you muddled again?”
“Yes, even if the boy used some treasure to conceal his cultivation, a freshman against a senior—surely that’s just wishful thinking!”
Yun Ranyan repeated, clear and resolute, “I choose Chong Li!”
“Ranyan, child—”
“Enough! Is it your bet, or Ranyan’s?” Zitan intervened. “Let’s just watch the match in peace.”
Jiang Wu stood in the ring, utterly dismissive of Chong Li, this so-called ‘new student.’ Out of courtesy, he said, “I’ll give you a hand’s advantage. You make the first move!”
Chong Li seemed uninterested in exchanging words. He summoned his spiritual power and formed a seal so swiftly that the audience could not see his technique. Instantly, a barrier enveloped Jiang Wu’s head.
“What kind of match is this?” the students and mentors below widened their eyes, watching Jiang Wu flail like a headless fly inside the shield, unable to escape.

Elder Xiao was mortified, trying to hide from the other elders’ attention.
Many of the seniors called out to Zitan, claiming foul play, but Zitan only smiled. “Isn’t this a form of competition? Trapping your opponent is a skill. I think this student has great promise.”
For a moment, silence fell over the crowd.
Yun Ranyan noticed the spiritual technique Chong Li used. Normally, he never needed to form seals to channel his power, yet today he bothered to do so. Surely the sun had risen in the west.
Because of his status as the Saint Child, Luo Nanshu did not seek challenge like some others. He had become a spectator early on.
Perhaps others didn’t see Chong Li’s sealing technique, but Luo Nanshu caught it perfectly. The one he had searched for was found so easily, after all.
As Chong Li leapt from the ring, he cast a subtle glance at Yun Ranyan, which Luo Nanshu observed clearly.
“A wager’s a wager; the Dean’s Token belongs to Ranyan now. None of you object, I presume?”
Zitan’s words sounded like a question, but in truth, she gave no room for protest. She tossed the token to Yun Ranyan, waved her sleeve, and left the training ground.
Huai Yuan wore a bitter smile, and Mentor Xiao was even more ashamed. Who could have foreseen his prized pupil being trapped by a freshman, and acting so foolishly?
With Zitan’s departure, most students and seniors finished their sparring. The freshman assembly ended naturally, with everyone dispersing in lively groups, awaiting the next day’s placement.
From the silent training ring came the occasional shout: “Is anyone there? Hey! Let me out!”
“Is anyone there? Let me out!”
...
Huai Yuan’s dorm was near Yun Ranyan’s. “Ranyan, did you see Chong Li’s sealing gesture?”
The more Huai Yuan thought about it, the more uneasy she felt. She remembered Chong Li’s seal gestures as concise, yet now she could not recall them at all. Was her memory failing?
Yun Ranyan paused. “Sealing gesture? Wasn’t it just—”
About to speak, she suddenly remembered Chong Li’s unusual identity, and gave a troubled smile. “Eh, I can’t recall either... how strange...”
Having spent much time together, Huai Yuan trusted Yun Ranyan deeply. “Ah, forget it. I was just curious. Maybe I’ll remember in a few days.”
She returned to her room. After a busy morning, she needed to purify her qi.
Yun Ranyan lingered in her room, thinking Chong Li would return, only to be disappointed.
Chong Li went straight to his dorm. By coincidence, in their two-person room, the other bed belonged to Luo Nanshu.
Luo Nanshu calmly retrieved his luggage from the spatial ring, laying it out on the bed without stirring a speck of dust.

Chong Li raised his eyebrow and unpacked his own things, though his method was much rougher—he used a spiritual technique, and the bedding was automatically arranged as if by an invisible spirit.
In the dormitory, the quilt, pillows, and clothes all floated in the air, moving to their proper places and stacking neatly.
Luo Nanshu twitched at the corner of his mouth. Spiritual techniques could be used this way? “What spiritual technique is that?”
Chong Li dusted his clothes casually. “One I created myself.”
Luo Nanshu’s face was expressionless, then suddenly he burst out laughing. “Brother Chong Li, hello, I’m Luo Nanshu. It seems our minds think alike!”
Chong Li naturally understood what Luo Nanshu meant.
Today, the plaza required everyone to tidy up within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. Only the two of them didn’t go, and both predicted the academy would not check. This proved Luo Nanshu’s intelligence was indeed high.
But such small predictions were easy for Chong Li, since he possessed the ability of prophecy.
“Brother Chong Li, is there a mentor you wish to apprentice under?”
Luo Nanshu appeared gentle and quiet, but was in fact quite talkative. If not for needing to maintain his status, Chong Li would have trapped him in a shield.
“Elder Yun.” To avoid exposure, he would treat Lianbao as an elder for now.
Thinking of calling Lianbao ‘mentor’ in the future, he felt both eager and impatient. Tsk, since when had he become so shameless...?
Luo Nanshu was puzzled. “Is there an Elder Yun at Jiuzhou Academy? Elder Yunshu sacrificed herself to protect the academy, so as for other elders with the surname Yun, I really can’t think of any.”
“Yun Ranyan.”
Luo Nanshu seemed awakened by the memory. “Yun... Ranyan... Could she be the child of Elder Yunshu and Elder Wanqing?!”
Seeing Chong Li’s silence, that was likely the case, though his heart belonged elsewhere. “A pity, Brother Chong Li, when classes are divided, we may not be in the same group. You wish to apprentice under Elder Yun, and I hope to apprentice under Dean Zitan. I wonder if the Dean will accept me...”
“She will.”
Again, a one-word reply. Had he not witnessed Chong Li’s manner with Yun Ranyan, he’d never have guessed the man spoke so tersely.
“Let’s hope so...” Though lacking confidence, seeing Chong Li’s certainty, he decided he’d rather fool himself than doubt.
Chong Li was truly helpless—who was fooling whom? He was already favored by Zitan; why worry unnecessarily?