Chapter 56: The Calm After the Storm

  According to the rules of the college, within seven days after the end of the selection competition, the top 50 students will start preparing to enter the inner courtyard. As for Xiao Yan and the other top five students, they can choose a time to enter the college's library within these seven days as a reward. They have the qualification to rely on luck to select some things that belong to them.

  This time, only Baisan was injured and is still lying in the infirmary. According to Lu Muo, it will take at least three to five days for him to recover.

  Xiao Yan also went to visit Bai Shan under the pretext of visiting a patient, his purpose was naturally the strange fire on his body. However, since the hatred between Bai Shan and Xiao Yan was too great, Bai Shan would not mention that a black-robed man who wanted to kill Xiao Yan had given him the child of the strange fire. Both sides were suspicious of each other, but after Lao Yao's investigation, nothing was found, and the two parted ways unhappily, their hatred growing even greater.

  After Xiao Yan and the top five entered the Book Pavilion, a black-robed figure appeared silently in front of Bai Shan, who had just recovered.

  "Kid, it seems you're not as formidable as you claimed. If it weren't for my Flame Emperor, you'd probably have been killed by Xiao Yan already!"

  Ruthless sarcasm stirred up Bai Shan's heart again, which had just calmed down. Not fearing that his opponent could easily kill him, he retorted mercilessly: "Hmph, if your hetero flame can be even more powerful, I would have won long ago! Why don't you go and kill Xiao Yan yourself?"

  I would have killed you long ago, but you didn't even get a chance to appear on stage! Xiao Xing Meng rolled his eyes.

  "Young man, you're too impulsive." The black-robed man shook his head and said, "Since we can't win by confronting Xiao Yan head-on, why not make friends with him instead? At the critical moment, stab him in the back, and lie in wait for an opportunity to strike."

  "Who says I can't beat Xiao Yan! If it wasn't for you making me go kill Xiao Yan, I would have already gotten into the top five of the academy long ago. How could I be ranked tenth or lower like this now?" Bai Shan's eyes were already blinded by anger, and he couldn't even see this small problem clearly.

  "Hmph, if you're going to be like that, then there's no chance of us working together again. You'll be suppressed by Xiao Yan for the rest of your life. Are you willing to accept that?"

  "Perhaps we'll talk again next time, remember, I'm not short of collaborators." After Xue Xing Meng finished speaking, he gradually disappeared into the jungle like a ghostly shadow, leaving behind a faint voice that lingered slowly. Leaving Bai Shan in his original place, whether he would wake up or not depended on his own enlightenment.

  …………

  When Xiao Yan and Xun Er arrived at the deputy dean's study, they saw that the empty space in front of the door was already filled with many people. These people were scattered into several large and small groups, each whispering and laughing to themselves, while among these groups, the circles of Bai Shan, Wu Huan, and Huo Jia were the largest.

  Xiao Yan and the two of them walked straight through the crowd, coming to the front. They exchanged a glance with Bai Shan and his three men, except for Bai Shan, Huo Jia and Wu Hao nodded at him, their attitude was much better than before. It's possible that Xiao Xing Meng's team strength made them suffer losses while also understanding the importance of unity, in the initial entry into the inner courtyard where strong people gathered, if they didn't unite a bit, they would probably have some trouble, although the two were proud and arrogant, but not stupid. Needless to say, it's best not to eat bitter fruit if possible.

  At this time, outside the empty field, there were many other students surrounding it. In the hearts of all the students in the outer court, being able to enter the inner court for cultivation was a kind of glory that made people envious. Countless people had been working hard towards this direction since they entered the academy, so every year when those who passed the selection competition entered the inner court, many people would come to see them off and watch.

  "Hey, Xiao Yan's younger brother, Xun Er's younger sister." Seeing Xiao Yan and Xun Er arrive, Xiao Xing Meng hastily greeted them. After that match, Xiao Yan and Xun Er also entered the top five. So their relationship with Xiao Xing Meng was still good, in their opinion this was just a strategy to fight for ranking. Although Xiao Yan had asked Xiao Xing Meng about close combat before, Xiao Xing Meng only attributed it to two years of fighting experience, Xiao Yan couldn't ask further.

  Xiao Xing Meng also gained a considerable amount of popularity from that match, and his popularity was due to his astonishing high-level Dou Qi collection, earning him the title "Dou Qi Collector". Many people had to curry favor with him.

  Xiao Yan and Xun Er also saw it, smiled and nodded in agreement. At this time, the tightly closed study was finally opened, and Vice President Hu Qian and several elders walked out slowly. As they appeared, the whispers on the scene gradually subsided, and after a moment, there was complete silence.

  His gaze slowly swept over the fifty students, and only after making sure that no one was absent did he nod in satisfaction. Taking a step forward, he said loudly: "Everyone, today is the day you enter the inner courtyard. Here, I'd like to congratulate you on finally reaping the rewards of your long efforts. I believe that once you enter the inner courtyard, you may not be used to the training methods there. However, one thing I am certain of is that you will be able to bring out your full potential to the greatest extent. Hehe, it's not me bragging, but if you stay in the inner courtyard for just a year, you will undergo changes as drastic as being reborn. Some of you may know students from the inner courtyard, after all, they occasionally take breaks and come out of the inner courtyard, so you should be aware of how huge the difference is between those who have been there and those who haven't."

  "The inner courtyard is the core of Canaan Academy, and due to its secrecy, most outer courtyard students, including instructors, do not know its exact location. So, we will send you to a certain place." Huan smiled slightly, looking up at the distant blue sky. There, ten black shadows were flying towards them, and after a moment, the shadows grew larger, revealing ten gigantic lion-eagle beasts.

  Everyone was very curious after boarding, but of course, these were not tempting for Xiao Xing Meng, who had turned the inner courtyard upside down. He fell asleep as soon as he sat on the lion-eagle beast. During the journey, many flying magic beasts swooped in, but they were all deterred by the powerful aura emanating from the bodies of the four Hu Qian and retreated in disarray.

  After passing through the large gate shrouded in illusion, everyone finally arrived at the inner courtyard of Canaan Academy.

  As soon as they arrived at the Academy, Elder Su of the inner courtyard gave each of them a black crystal chip and began the welcoming ceremony for new students: "The Fire Hunt Competition"!