"Haha! A Di Class Technique!!"
Amid the howling winds within the room, a voice of sheer delight suddenly rang out, interrupting the slightly awkward atmosphere between Xiao Bai and the two women.
Xiao Yi Xian, her cheeks tinged with a faint blush, quickly stepped out of Xiao Bai's embrace. Seeing Xun Er's playful gaze, her reddened eyes flickered slightly with unease, and she instinctively avoided her gaze.
"Huh? A poison-attributed one?" That previously joyful voice now carried a trace of disappointment.
"Is that the technique?"
Xiao Yi Xian's beautiful eyes flashed with a hint of coldness as she looked at the gray energy sphere in Tu Shan's hands.
Sensing the fierce fluctuations emanating from it—similar to those of the Nine-Layered Fire Phoenix Art from earlier—she immediately realized that this was another Di Class technique. Moreover, it was poison-attributed, which confirmed that it was the very technique Xiao Bai had somehow obtained. Yet now, it had fallen into Tu Shan's hands.
Watching as Tu Shan gripped the glowing orb tightly, preparing to pierce his hand through the energy barrier to extract the technique, Xiao Yi Xian grew anxious. She was just about to rush forward and snatch it back—after all, this was something Xiao Bai had paid a price to obtain. How could she allow someone else to take advantage of it?
But just as she moved, she felt her arm being held back. Turning around, she saw Xiao Bai shaking his head.
Xiao Yi Xian furrowed her brows in confusion.
"Xiao Bai, let go! I'll go retrieve the technique!"
"There's no need. He won't be able to break the energy barrier," Xiao Bai said, not loosening his grip but instead pulling her back. He found her sudden assertiveness amusing.
He didn't mind that Tu Shan had taken hold of it. Or rather, even if they did manage to open the barrier, so what? This was his possession—those two wouldn't be able to take it away.
"Alright, Xiao Yi Xian, don't worry. You should know that breaking an Di Class energy barrier isn't that simple," Xun Er said as she stepped forward, wrapping an arm around Xiao Yi Xian's delicate shoulders, raising an elegant brow with a smile.
Hearing this, Xiao Yi Xian blinked, as if suddenly recalling something. A look of realization flashed in her eyes, followed by a tinge of frustration.
She had been so focused on retrieving what Xiao Bai had worked for that she had momentarily forgotten an important fact.
Under the watchful eyes of the group, the moment Tu Shan's hand reached into the gray energy sphere, an immense repulsive force suddenly burst forth, blasting his hand away.
Immediately after, the gray orb radiated brilliantly, breaking free from his grasp and transforming into a streak of flowing light, shooting away at high speed.
"Damn it!"
Xiao Bai's expression changed, and with a crack of thunder, his figure vanished from where he stood.
Xun Er and Xiao Yi Xian's expressions also shifted, for they realized that the gray energy orb, as if being summoned by something, was heading straight toward the energy barrier on the right wall.
Xiao Bai's sharp eyes locked onto the streaking light, and in a movement that seemed like teleportation, he appeared before the energy barrier. At the last possible moment, he grabbed the gray orb just before it could enter the barrier.
Despite its violent struggles, Xiao Bai's grip remained unshaken.
"Hu..."
He let out a breath, his tense nerves relaxing slightly. That had been close—if he had been even a fraction slower, all his efforts would have been for nothing.
As he pulled the gray orb back into his grasp, his gaze lingered on the glowing barrier in front of him, as if trying to peer through its depths.
Behind the energy barrier, within the hidden chamber, two figures in gray robes silently observed the scene.
"Tsk tsk... This kid is sharp. Not bad at all!"
"Hmph! That brat is up to no good. I don't know what kind of trick he used, but he managed to bypass the restrictions set by the Headmaster and even shattered Number Seven's identification plaque. And that barrier on the shelf—wasn't it protecting the Poison Spirit Heart Sutra? That faint lightning scar on it looks exactly like the marks on Number Seven. It must have been his doing!"
"Forget it. We interfered just now, which technically broke the rules as well. If he can get his hands on it, then it's his own skill. Besides, he didn't cause excessive destruction—he was careful. Judging by his actions, he did all this for that little girl. It's understandable, and technically, he hasn't violated any rules."
"You're not related to that brat, are you?" Bai Lie frowned, giving the person beside him a skeptical glance.
"Then tell me—what rule of the Book Collection Hall did he break?" Qian Mu sighed in exasperation.
After all these years of working together, they both knew each other too well. They had always treated Jia Nan Academy as their home—what connection could they possibly have with an outsider?
"Uh…"
Bai Lie pondered for a moment. There really wasn't a rule in the Book Collection Hall that applied to today's situation. For a brief moment, he was at a loss for words. The rules only stated that no fighting was allowed in the outer room, but there were no specific regulations regarding the room behind the energy barrier. After all, who would have thought that an outer court student from Jia Nan Academy could bypass a restriction set by a Dou Zun expert?
"Think about it—lightning attribute, capable of breaking through the Headmaster's restriction, and that little girl by his side, whom even we can't fully see through," Qian Mu said, glancing at his longtime companion, reminding him, "I'm even starting to suspect that this kid has some connection to the Headmaster."
Hearing this, Bai Lie's eyes widened in shock. He looked at Qian Mu in disbelief, but in the next moment, a look of realization dawned on him. He finally understood why Qian Mu was inclined to protect this boy. Thinking about it carefully, it wasn't impossible—on the contrary, it was highly likely!
"If that's true, then he must know something about the Headmaster!" Bai Lie's cloudy eyes suddenly lit up. The Headmaster had been missing for nearly a century, with not a single piece of news about him. Generations of Jia Nan Academy students had graduated, and almost no one even knew the Headmaster's name, let alone had seen him.
Qian Mu shook his head and said in a hoarse voice, "Whether it's true or not, don't ask. If it's false, asking won't get you anywhere. But if it's true, then the Headmaster must have made arrangements for him. The fact that nothing has been openly said means that it's still not the right time."
"Sigh… I had hoped that the Headmaster would return soon and give us some guidance," Bai Lie sighed helplessly. "The barrier between Dou Zong and Dou Zun has trapped us for too long."
---
In the outer room, Xiao Bai walked up to Xiao Yi Xian and handed her a grayish-white scroll.
"This isn't bad. It suits your current situation quite well," he said. "However, you'll need one more thing to cultivate it properly. We'll talk about that after we leave."
Xiao Yi Xian looked up at him quietly, her gaze soft as water, her eyes shimmering like a starry sky. A gentle smile graced her lips, warm and soothing like a spring breeze.
"Thank you, Xiao Bai."
At that moment, she looked like a celestial maiden who had descended to the mortal world, radiating an almost divine glow. Xiao Bai found himself momentarily entranced.
"Idiot," Xiao Yi Xian said playfully, her heart filled with joy as she watched his mesmerized expression.
Feeling a gaze directed at him from nearby—one that made him somewhat uneasy—Xiao Bai quickly snapped out of his daze. He let out an awkward laugh and blurted, "Haha… The moon is so round tonight!"
The moment the words left his mouth, he wanted to slap himself.
Sure enough, after a soft snort, Xun Er said with a hint of exasperation, "This is the Book Collection Hall. Where would the moon come from?"
"Heh…" Xiao Yi Xian covered her mouth, laughing lightly as she watched the two of them. She knew that Xun Er didn't actually hold anything against her—she simply liked to tease Xiao Bai from time to time. After all, a little jealousy was natural for women, and even she occasionally felt the same way.
As they spoke, the floating light clusters in the room suddenly trembled, then, like swallows returning to their nests, transformed into streaks of light and flew into the energy barriers. In an instant, as the light clusters vanished, the vortex-like energy barriers on the walls gradually shrank into small points before disappearing completely with a faint click.
Immediately after, a vast and overwhelming energy wave swept over the five of them, scanning them for about ten seconds before retreating like a receding tide.
"The time is up. Leave now! Remember—everything that happened here today, as well as all the secrets within the Book Collection Hall, must not be revealed to anyone!"
A hoarse, ancient voice echoed through the entire room.
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