âLi Muyangâââ Yang Xiaohu again and again banged on the door, raising his voice as he spoke to him: âI know youâre in there, I have important things to talk to you. If you donât open the door, Iâll come in by myself.â
After a while, there was still no response.
Yang Xiaohu thought for a moment, before he raised his hand, and with a swish of his sleeve, the door gently swung open. The doors swung outward from the middle automatically.
Most of the students able to enter Starry Sky Academy were not weak, but their courtyards were built from ordinary stones and woods. If the occupants themselves does not set up some kind of prohibition spell in their courtyard to avoid others forcefully intruding or their secret techniques leaked, the courtyard itself and the small door can hardly block anyone of the Academy, let alone Yang Xiaohu, a teacher of Starry Sky. People at chancellors mansions are officials above the third rank; Starry Sky Academyâs cleaners also know and cultivate a little bit of martial technique.
In order to prove his âguiltless heartâ, Li Muyang did not set up any prohibition in his own little courtyard.
Of course, it was because he didnât know how to do so..
Unexpectedly, his lair was so easily broken through.
âIâm coming in. Iâm really coming in.â As Yang Xiaohu shouted, he had already opened the wooden door. âYou invited me in, donât say I my violated studentâs privacyâââ
In order to show that heâs honest and honourable, Yang Xiaohu did not close the door. Instead, he casually strolled into the courtyard.
He went into the courtyard, where no one was in sight. Only a few leaves floating in the air and the spotless lapis lazuli stone floor, which seemed as though it has just been swept, welcomed him.
âLi Muyang is very neat and tidy, the courtyard he lives at is much cleaner than that of other boysâââ
Yang Xiaohu walked straight into the inner room. No one was in the living room, only a steaming cup of hot water on the table.
Yang Xiaohu tested the temperature of the cup. âHeâs still at homeâââ
Seeing the bedroom door was open, he walked in and found a huge wooden tub in the bedroom. This was the tub that Starry Sky Academy prepared for every student to bathe in. Of course, students were also allowed to use the outside pool.
The broken edges of the wooden tub was new and fresh, chunks of broken edges of wood scattered on the floor and sounds of gurgling sounded from inside the tub with bubbles accompanied by foam coming to the surface.
âLi Muyangâââ Yang Xiaohu pulled his lips back into a smile, saying: âLi Muyang, donât hide, teacher has no time to play hide and seek with you. Come out, I have something important to discuss with youâââ
Gurgleââ
There was no movement in the house except the loud gurgling and bubbling sounds.
âBratâââ âèå°åâââ
Yang Xiaohu became angry, rolling up his sleeve and plunging his hand deep into the tub of water.
He fumbled around the wooden tub, till his face adopted a pondering and puzzled look.
âStrangeâââ Yang Xiaohu pulled his arm out of the tub, watching the water stain vanish on his hand. âThere seems to be a dangerous presence. Li Muyang, this kid, could something have happened to him?â
Yang Xiaohu searched the room and then returned to the courtyard.
His gaze swept back and forth over the courtyard before he dashed over to the edge of the cliff.
Far away in the distance, was boundless Nujiang.
The red water was monstrous, huge waves lifting to the sky, and for thousand and ten thousands years, rushing toward a distant unknown home.
Yang Xiaohu was enjoying the magnificent scene of the endless surging of Nujiang, when he shook his head, saying: âStrange, Chu Xun clearly said Li Muyang is in the courtyard, where could he have gone in that short time? Iâll ask again.â
Yang Xiaohu turned around, hastily went to investigate Li Muyangâs whereabouts.
Broken Mountain stands tall over everything, rugged like a blade and tall enough to pierce the tops of clouds.
Its steep cliffs, high peaks and overhanging rocks, make it difficult even for apes and monkey to climb, and birds to cross.
Under the boulder where Yang Xiaohu just stood, a humanoid monster was climbing up.
Its eyes blood red, like the water of Nujiang.
Its huge claws deeply dug into a boulder, as though it was as easy as cutting tofu.
He held his breath, listening attentively and waiting for the sound of footsteps to leaveââââââ
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âShinian, why do we have to leave through the schoolâs back gate?â
âThatâs right. The back entrance is so secluded, a boar might attack us?â
âSome days ago I heard there were wolvesââIâm so scaredâââ
âShhhh.â Li Shinian put her index finger to her lips, saying snappily: âI said Iâll go by myself, you insisted to follow me. Now that I brought you here, you say youâre afraid. You can leave from the front gate then, Iâll leave from the back gate myself. You guys are afraid of wolves, but Iâm not afraid of wolves. Iâm only afraid of perverted wolves.â
âBig sister Shinian, thatâs not what we meant.â Xiao Huan cried. âWe just like to be with you, we feel very safe with you and you will protect us.â
âYes. Shinian is kind-hearted and loyal to friendsâânot like some of the girls in our school, whose eyes are on their head, like she is the most beautiful in the world, and looks down on everyone.â
âExactly, big sister Shinian is one million times more beautiful than them. But our big sister Shinian likes to keep a low-profile, and not leave from the front gate when thereâs a lot of people, to avoid those smelly men pointing and talking about herââ
âShinian, donât get angry. We said weâre going with you, then we will go with you. If you leave through the front gate, weâll be with you to enjoy the glory. If you leave through the back gate, we will keep a low-profile with you. Wherever you go, weâll follow.â
âYes, me too.â Xiao Huan said, clenching her fist.
Without any other choices, Li Shinian said to her friends: âFine, since you decided to leave from the back gate with me, then donât talk nonsenseââIâll walk in front, Iâll protect you guys.â
âThank you big sister Shinian. The few girls looked at each other and started to giggle.
Under the leadership of Li Shinian, a group of girls dressed in grey school uniforms cautiously but nimbly advanced toward the back gate of Imperial View High School.
As they neared the back gate, Li Shinian peered out the door, her eyes furtively surveying the surroundings and a wide smile curled her lips. âBig Sister Shinian, itâs so remote here, how can we go back?â
âGo back.â With a wave of her hand, Li Shinian said heroically.
The back gate was secluded, not bustling with rich students, and without the gathering of carriages, picking up and dropping off students.
Besides these young girls, it was empty and quiet as far as the eye could see. Only a distant green hill and a seemingly bumpy dirt road.
âLi Shinianâââ A familiar voice called out.
Everyone looked up. At the top of a golden phoenix tree, sat a handsome young man smiling at them.
The young man, whiter than snow, with a jade pendant hanging at his waist and fanning himself with a steel fractured fan, was obviously a young master of a rich family.
Swooshâ
The young man leaped down from the golden phoenix tree, his body descended right in front of Li Shinian.
He looked pleasantly surprised as he exclaimed: âItâs really a coincidence, I did not expect to see little sister Shinian hereâââ
Li Shinian almost went crazy. She grabbed the young man by the collar and roared: âYan Xiangma, why are you haunting me like a ghost?â
âThatâs not right.â Yan Xiangma closed his folding fan, admired Li Shinianâs beautiful face at close-range and brazenly said: âYou and my last encounter was at the front gate of Imperial View High School, but this time we ran into each other at the back gate of Imperial View HighââHow could you say Iâm haunting you? Fate, this is pure fate.â
âDo you think Iâm an idiot?â Li Shinian loosened her grip on Yan Xiangmaâs collar. âThis is coincidence? You hiding up a tree is called a coincidence. Were you getting ready to go to heaven?â
âOh, you donât understand?â Yan Xiangma opened his folding fan with a loud âpakâ, gently rocking it back and forth to his face like a charming young master: âDeep in my heart, Iâm a sentimental man. When I was admiring the scenery at the school gate, I suddenly thought that if I climbed up onto a tree maybe I would see a different landscape above than on the ground? So I climbed up to a tree. Hey, then guess know what?â
âWhat?â Xiao Huanâs eyes gleamed with intense curiosity. She was a child who liked brainteasers.
Li Shinian gave her a stern, hard look, telling her that she better not engage in conversation with this asshole. Otherwise he would never stop rambling.
âIt is indeed different.â Yan Xiangmaâs voice rose with excitement. âWhat was that phrase? Stand tall and see far. When I stand on the ground, I could only see the foothills of the mountain and a vague outline. But when I stand on a tree, not only did I see the foot of the mountain, but the hills of the hillsââBecause of this, I was inspired to compose a poem.â
âCome, come, Iâll read it to you. So what itâs a gold phoenix tree? Itâs too early for flowers to bloom. When ascend the great peak, other mountains appear so small. What do you think? What do you think? I just climbed a tree, but wrote such a wonderful poem. What do you think, isnât my harvest great today?â
âThis poem was not written by you.â Li Shinian wanted to pick up a stone from the ground and throw it at Yan Xiangmaâs face. Who would be so shameless?
This is clearly a masterpiece of the Starry Sky strong person Du Ruofu? In the Divine Continent, as long as you have ears, you would have heard of the original version of this poem, how could he have the nerve to say that he wrote this poem?
âAt least two phrases were written by meââSo what itâs a golden phoenix tree? Itâs too early for flowers to bloom. With these two sentences, together with the âsage of poetryâ, I can illuminate the future generations, right?â
âHeâs so lowly.â Xiao Huan exhaled heavily, gazing intently at Yan Xiangma.
âLowly but extremely charming.â Another girl, with her hands clasped to her heart, stared at Yan Xiangma, her eyes sparkling like stars.
ââââ