Chapter 52

Slapping both cheeks, Qiu Shanlin was left speechless. If not for Sun Yan holding his wrist, he would have already collapsed on the ground.

The onlookers were stunned. Such an outcome was truly shocking and made many people收敛起轻视之心 (restrain their contempt).

These new students came from various regions and were all highly regarded martial arts geniuses in their schools, proud and arrogant, looking down on everyone else. Yet, they never expected that a random new student at the registration desk would make Qiu Shanlin, a genius from the Qiu family, hit a brick wall and be beaten into a pig's head. Who knew if there were more such people among the other new students.

Sun Yan held Qiu Shanlin's wrist as if he were holding a dead dog. He looked down at this martial arts family genius and did not continue to attack.

"Thinking of cutting in line during registration, such impolite behavior, I wonder how your parents educated you," Sun Yan said slowly.

"In the future, we will all be classmates at Imperial Wind Academy. Among classmates, mutual love and assistance are fundamental. Since your parents are not around, I will fulfill my duty as a classmate and teach you what basic manners are," Sun Yan said in a condescending tone.

"To avoid delaying other students' registration time, I won't educate you further. I hope you, Qiu classmate, will remember today's lesson. Bitter medicine is good for the health, and honest advice is hard to hear!" Sun Yan then said sincerely.

"Go and wait in line at the back." Sun Yan shook his right hand and threw Qiu Shanlin away.

This throw perfectly demonstrated the law of universal gravitation! Qiu Shanlin soared into the air, drawing a beautiful parabola in mid-air, and landed precisely at the end of the line. His pig-like head hit the ground first, his powerless arms hanging limp, his knees half-kneeling, and his buttocks high up, forming a standard dog-eating-dirt posture.

Qiu Shanlin flipped over and sat up, glaring at Sun Yan with eyes full of hatred, wishing he could tear this young man to pieces.

Sun Yan ignored Qiu Shanlin's gaze. He suddenly held Feng Lingxue and Shui Lianqing's small hands, and the two girls cooperated, leaning on Sun Yan.

"Also, Qiu classmate. For the next four years, having me by these two beauties' side is enough. You should first learn basic manners."

"Ni... Ni..."

Qiu Shanlin pointed at Sun Yan, his body trembling. He wanted to retaliate with the most venomous words, but his face was swollen, and several of his teeth were broken, making it hard for him to speak clearly.

"Find... Death!"

Finally, Qiu Shanlin managed to say two complete words. He stood up, his eyes bloodshot, and a heavy, mountain-like aura erupted from his body as he approached step by step.

Many people's faces changed, and they quickly stepped back, knowing that Qiu Shanlin was enraged and might be ready to fight to the death.

"Private fighting before even entering the academy, do you think Imperial Wind Academy is what kind of place?"

Suddenly, the young man in sunglasses appeared in front of Qiu Shanlin, arms crossed, blocking his path.

Qiu Shanlin's eyes blazed with fury, his tone icy cold, and he spat out one word: "Get lost!" He took another step forward, ready to kill anyone who stood in his way.

The corner of the sunglasses youth's mouth curled into a mocking smile. "Hmph!"

His right foot, wearing slippers, stepped forward, and a wave of energy spread through the ground. Everyone present felt a jolt in their hearts, as if struck by a thunderbolt, and they all involuntarily stepped back several steps.

Qiu Shanlin, as if pressed by a massive boulder, fell to the ground with a thud. No matter how he struggled, he could not move an inch.

"Earthquake Locking Technique!"

"That's right, inner energy flowing through the twelve meridians, communicating with heaven and earth through yuan energy, this is the mark of a seventh-level martial artist."

"This person looks no more than 20 years old, yet he is a seventh-level martial artist or higher? Is he not a teacher but a student of Imperial Wind Academy? How is that possible!"

...

A group of new students looked at each other in shock. At this moment, they deeply felt the terrifying power of Imperial Wind Academy. The thousand-year-old academy founded by the Great Martial Ancestor Wu Qiaoyan indeed had unfathomable depth, with many hidden dragons and tigers. Any random person who walked out was a seventh-level or higher advanced martial artist.

The young man in sunglasses maintained his stance, arms still crossed, looking down at Qiu Shanlin on the ground. He said slowly, "I saw everything just now. You were the one who cut in line, you were the one who started the fight, and you were the one who was not skilled enough. Now you want to fight to the death? Before even entering the academy, you want to be expelled? You don't know your place."

Qiu Shanlin's body trembled, and he came to his senses, lying on the ground without another word.

"I know you new students are all top geniuses in your respective schools, always thinking you are the best. But this is Imperial Wind Academy. There are many students stronger than you, and many with better backgrounds. From the moment you step into the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain, put away your ridiculous pride and confidence and behave yourself.

"As your senior, this is my golden advice. Understand?"

The young man in sunglasses shouted, and no one dared to contradict him. Seeing his strength, everyone was wary and listened humbly.

"Good that you understand." The young man in sunglasses nodded in satisfaction. He turned to Sun Yan and said calmly, "This new student, although you were acting in self-defense, you also bear significant responsibility for beating up a classmate."

Sun Yan quickly bowed his head, showing respect. "Senior, you are right. I was enraged and acted too impulsively, hitting too hard. I request that you treat Qiu classmate; otherwise, I will feel very uneasy."

Hearing this, Feng Lingxue, Shui Lianqing, Chen Wang, and Chang Cheng's expressions were quite amusing. Their lips twitched, trying hard not to laugh. Would Sun Yan really feel uneasy? That would be like the sun rising in the west.

The young man in sunglasses looked at Sun Yan and praised, "Very good, having such awareness is excellent. As a student of Imperial Wind Academy, you should be like this. Since that's the case, I won't hold you responsible."

Sun Yan agreed repeatedly, subtly flattering the senior.

The young man in sunglasses, though seemingly unmoved, his trembling fingers showed he was quite pleased. He waved his hand, signaling the guards to take Qiu Shanlin away for emergency treatment.

Sun Yan did not take this matter to heart but felt a bit curious, muttering, "This Qiu Shanlin, though a second-level martial artist, his yuan energy is unstable, and his combat techniques seem superficial. Such a person probably doesn't meet the standards to enter Imperial Wind Academy."

Feng Lingxue smiled slightly and said softly, "In this world, there are always people who pass off as something they are not."

Sun Yan nodded in agreement.

The queue for registration continued smoothly after the incident.

A short while later, Sun Yan quickly reached the front of the line.

Behind the wooden table, the middle-aged man smiled at Sun Yan, took the admission notice, and scanned it with a long metal instrument. With a click, a metal disk popped out of the instrument.

At the same time, Sun Yan felt a slight pain on the back of his left hand, as if bitten by an ant, and a row of glowing numbers appeared, then disappeared.

The row of numbers was 27034567.

The middle-aged man looked up and smiled. "Classmate, this is your student number. Also, according to the number on the metal disk, go to the corresponding vehicle to wait."

So fast!

Sun Yan was amazed. While waiting in line, he only saw the middle-aged man holding the long metal instrument and scanning the admission notice, not noticing the action, which was too fast for the naked eye to catch.

Even the staff of Imperial Wind Academy had such strength. He could only imagine how terrifying the lecturers and mentors must be.

Sun Yan nodded and quickly walked over, then looked at the metal disk in his hand.

The disk was beautifully crafted, made of rare black iron, with the words "Ten Thousand Streams Converge" engraved on one side, and the number 7777 on the other.

This meant Sun Yan would enter the 7777th path of the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain.

"The 7777th path? This year, there are over 50,000 new martial arts students, so each path has about 5 new students. The question is, does the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain really have ten thousand entrances?"

Sun Yan muttered to himself, still skeptical about the terrain of the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain. Though nature often creates astonishing wonders, a mountain with ten thousand exits but only one entrance seemed unbelievable. If it were artificially created, it would make sense, but Chen Wang insisted that the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain was naturally formed, which was hard to believe.

"Hey, Yan, which path are you assigned to?" a voice asked.

Looking up, Sun Yan saw Chen Wang and the others approaching, each holding a metal disk and comparing the path numbers.

Sun Yan smiled and handed over his metal disk.

Chen Wang frowned upon seeing it. "The 7777th path? I thought we would be assigned to the same path since we were in the same line."

Chang Cheng rolled his eyes. "Random assignment, the closer you are in line, the less likely you are to be assigned together. You're usually so smart, Chen Wang, what's wrong with you now?"

Among the five, Chen Wang was assigned to the 3472nd path, Chang Cheng to the 5784th path, Feng Lingxue and Shui Lianqing were lucky, both assigned to the 6896th path.

Sun Yan felt a bit disappointed. If all five were on the same path, they could support each other, and the time to pass the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain would be significantly reduced. With so many geniuses among the new students, no one could guarantee they would be among the top 20 to climb the mountain.

However, Feng Lingxue and Shui Lianqing being on the same path reassured Sun Yan. Among the five, Shui Lianqing was the weakest, and with Feng Lingxue by her side, she would be safe.

Seeing Sun Yan look over, Feng Lingxue's eyes twinkled. "I won't hold it against you now, but after we pass the Ten Thousand Dao Mountain, be careful. It's not easy to take advantage of a beauty."

Shui Lianqing also pouted her lips, glaring at him with a hint of anger.

Sun Yan finally came to his senses, remembering how he had taken the opportunity to hold the two beauties' hands. He broke out in a cold sweat, swearing he had not done it on purpose.

Bidding farewell to Feng Lingxue and the others, Sun Yan walked toward the assembly point.

At the foot of the mountain, Sun Yan quickly found the 7777th assembly point. Unlike the shabby registration area, the assembly point was grand and impressive.