Chapter 1483 Blossoming of an Old Tree
Two days passed, and Ling Han along with the other new disciples all set off for the Ancient Academy under the lead of an Eternal River Tier elite.
This was only a competition among new disciples, so they naturally wouldn’t be led by a Saint. After all, would a Saint have so much spare time?
The so-called Ancient Academy was, in fact, the genuine Star Sand Martial Arts Academy. This was an academy that was personally created by the Star Sand Saint, and it was also here where he had taught his first cohort of disciples. Afterward, his disciples had gradually founded the nine large branch campuses. As such, the Ancient Academy had become a holy land that would only open for grand ceremonies.
An example of such an event was the competition between the new disciples. This was an extremely significant event, and thus it was to be held in the Ancient Academy. In any case, this could also inspire the disciples to greater aspirations and competitiveness. After all, who didn’t want to perform well and be able to meet the Star Sand Saint?
It was evident that most of them were destined to become stepping stones. Casting one’s gaze over the eighth campus, only Ling Han and Empress Luan Xing had broken through to the Eternal River Tier. This also signified that the others already had no chance.
After all, was everyone as powerful as Ling Han and Empress Luan Xing? Could they all achieve victory as the underdog?
Of course, there were also some who were filled with ambition. They possessed Eternal River Tier God Tools or perhaps even Pseudo-Saint Tools. With such a Pseudo-Saint Tool in hand, they still had a sliver of chance to achieve victory and become the king of the new disciples.
This competition didn’t have any rule forbidding the use of God Tools or any other tools that exceeded one’s own cultivation level. After all, in the outside world, would there be any rule forbidding their opponents from using God Tools that exceeded their cultivation level?
Because they had set off early, the Eternal River Tier elites of the eighth campus hadn’t had a chance to prevent Ling Han from leaving, even though they had learned of him coming out of seclusion. They were extremely disappointed, and they had no choice but to await his return.
Anyhow, the competition between the new disciples would only run for a dozen days or so. Taking into account the time needed to travel to and from the Ancient Academy, Ling Han would return to the eighth campus in around a month or so.
The nine campuses were all built around the Ancient Academy, and they were like a ring of stars guarding a radiant moon. Moreover, the distance between each campus and the Ancient Academy was also very similar—around 10 days of travel by foot.
They were led by Wei Zhen, a teacher of the eighth campus. He was an elite at the peak stage of the consummate level of the Eternal River Tier, and thus he would be invincible as long as he didn’t come across a Genesis Tier Saint. Hence, he was naturally unafraid of being attacked by any vicious Demonic Beasts along the way.
10 days passed, and the 100 new disciples of the eight campus arrived at the Ancient Academy.
From the outside, the Ancient Academy appeared even smaller than the eighth campus. In reality, it was indeed smaller than the eighth campus. At that time, the Star Sand Saint hadn’t taken many disciples, only taking a dozen or so each time. Thus, there was naturally no need for the Ancient Academy to be very large.
However, the Ancient Academy definitely couldn’t be regarded as small—it was still at least as large as a city. Its main gates were wide open, and there were no soldiers standing guard.
This was the holy land of the Star Sand Martial Arts Academy, after all, so who would dare to wantonly enter and cause trouble?
The Ancient Academy wasn’t deserted, as a few disciples would receive special permission to come here on a pilgrimage each year. The Star Sand Saint would also show himself occasionally, casually providing some guidance to these lucky disciples. However, just how transcendent were Great Saints? The words that they uttered were like the sounds of Dao. Thus, even with some casual guidance, the disciples would still see huge and explosive improvements in their cultivation.
It was because of this that everyone yearned to come to the Ancient Academy. However, there were far too few spots, and they would only be able to stay for a year or perhaps even shorter. Moreover, there was no guarantee that they would definitely meet the Star Sand Saint.
Ling Han and the others entered the Ancient Academy. There was naturally someone to greet them and organize their stay.
After settling in, the new disciples naturally started to wander about. If they were incredibly fortunate and managed to come across the Star Sand Saint, it was entirely possible that they would attain enlightenment and see a huge improvement in their cultivation, thereby allowing them to stand out from their fellow disciples.
Meanwhile, Ling Han started to look for the Rain Emperor and the others. However, most of the campuses hadn’t arrived yet, and thus he was only able to find the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden and Ding Ping. The two of them had naturally walked out of the trauma caused by their “initiation” at the hands of the senior disciples already. However, they still couldn’t help but feel extremely indignant when discussing this matter.
“We’ll exact revenge in the future!” Ling Han said to the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden in consolation. As for Ding Ping, Ling Han naturally ignored him. After all, since when would a master console their disciple? If Ding Ping weren’t resilient enough, would he still have the right to be his disciple?
Ding Ping was naturally left speechless.
Right now, they had all transitioned to practicing the cultivation technique that Ling Han had given them. This cultivation technique could take them all the way to the peak stage of the Genesis Tier. However, after reaching the Genesis Tier, this cultivation technique could only act as a guide. The main stimulus for their advance would still be their own comprehension.
However, the advantage of high-level cultivation techniques was still extremely evident, especially for cultivators under the Genesis Tier. Only a year had passed, yet the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden and Ding Ping had both seen huge improvements. After all, the martial arts academy also provided them with a generous amount of resources. In fact, it could be said that it was an extravagant amount of resources.
Ling Han and the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden were extremely delighted to see each other again, and thus Ding Ping and Jiuyao were naturally shooed aside by them. The two of them acted all lovey-dovey as they expressed their love for each other. Of course, it was inevitable that they would also make love with each other. Only after satisfying their desires did they hold hands and start to stroll around the Ancient Academy.
“Go! Go! Go!” The shouts of a child traveled over as two people appeared before them. One of them was a young man, and he was currently crawling along the ground on all fours. Meanwhile, a little boy of around four or five years old was riding on his back and shouting in excitement.
Ling Han was astonished. The young man was at the Heavenly Body Tier, while the little boy was only at the Shattering Void Tier! It was most likely because the little boy’s bloodline was powerful that he possessed such a cultivation level at such a young age. In fact, he had probably been born with this cultivation level. In any case, this little boy was far too spoiled! The Heavenly Body Tier elite was willing to get down on all fours and pretend to be a horse, so the little boy was most certainly his own child.
This was their own family matter, so Ling Han naturally wouldn’t poke his nose in. He held onto the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden’s hand and was just about to walk away. However, the little boy suddenly pointed over, and shouted, “I want to ride that big sister!”
If this weren’t a little boy, Ling Han would have definitely slapped them silly already. However, this was a child’s babble, so he naturally wouldn’t pay much heed. He pretended that he hadn’t heard.
“You’re not allowed to leave!” the little boy shouted wilfully. He forcefully dug his heel into the “horse’s” ribs, urging it to dash forward and block the path of Ling Han and the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden.
Ling Han frowned upon seeing this. It was normal for children to be playful and mischievous. However, this little boy was taking things too far. Was his father not going to stop him?
However, the young man who was playing horse suddenly crawled up and lifted the little boy into his arms. He then dashed before Ling Han, and said, “You heard Young Master Yun’s request, didn’t you? Now hurry up and do as he said!”
‘Huh? This young man isn’t that little boy’s father?
‘Young Master Yun?
‘Even a Heavenly Body Tier cultivator is referring to him as young master, so this little boy definitely possesses a powerful background, right?’
Ling Han’s expression darkened, and he said, “It’s your right to act like a horse or cow and lick the boots of others. However, if you continue to annoy me, don’t blame me for becoming angry!”
“I want to ride a horse! I want to ride a horse!” the little boy wailed. He was as wilful as could be.
“Yes, yes, yes, Young Master, just wait for a little moment longer.” The young man comforted the little boy before turning back around to face Ling Han and the Heavenly Phoenix Divine Maiden. There was a haughty look on his face—this was an expression of indescribable superiority.
“Do you know who Young Master Yun is?”
Ling Han shook his head, and replied, “I genuinely don’t know.” However, he knew that this little boy definitely possessed an astonishing background. Otherwise, how could a Heavenly Body Tier cultivator be willing to bend his back and play horse?
“Young Master Yun…” The young man purposefully paused to add to the suspense before finally saying, “Young Master Yun is the son and only child of the Star Sand Saint!”
Pu!
Ling Han instantly choked and spluttered upon hearing this. He then broke into a fit of coughing. He was genuinely shocked. He wasn’t shocked by the little boy’s identity, but rather by the fact that his father was the Star Sand Saint. After all, just how old was the Star Sand Saint? Yet, he had actually become parent to such a young child?
The Star Sand Saint was truly old but still vigorous. This was the blossoming of an old tree! The old man had not only married a young woman, but he had even had a child with her!