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Before dawn, Ye Lan awoke. Without lingering in bed, he left the inn and headed directly for the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy.
The academy was not located within Heaven Dou City but twenty kilometers outside of it.
After leaving the inn, he casually hailed a carriage and rode toward the academy.
Before long, the carriage arrived.
As soon as he stepped out, Ye Lan was struck by the magnificent scenery.
The eastern sky was beginning to show the first light of day, with a sea of crimson clouds illuminating half the heavens. The morning glow cascaded over the mountain peaks, sharply outlining their rugged contours. It was as if the mountains were clad in red armor, making them appear even more majestic and imposing.
From a distant valley, a veil of mist rose slowly, adding a touch of mystique to the towering range. The forest buzzed with the lively chirping of countless birds.
Breathing in the crisp, fresh air, Ye Lan sighed in appreciation. It was no wonder the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy was built here; the natural beauty far surpassed anything in the city.
After admiring the view for a moment, he began to ascend the mountain.
The peaks here soared over a thousand meters high, and the academy was built on the mountainside of the largest one, nestled against the slope and overlooking water. In just a short while, before he had even broken a sweat, Ye Lan reached the halfway point. His current physical fitness was simply monstrous; if it had been Ning Rongrong, she would have been gasping for breath by now.
As he neared the halfway mark, the steep mountain path began to level out, and the pointed roofs of a castle-like complex gradually came into view.
The academy's style was like a modern, youthful version of Hogwarts, with a blue-and-white color scheme.
Ye Lan was dressed in casual black clothes, his golden hair shimmering in the morning sun—a truly eye-catching sight.
However, he had barely begun to admire this Douluo Continent version of Hogwarts when he was surrounded by a group of people.
The leader was a young man with long, dark-red hair, a long face, and narrow eyes that held an expression of pure arrogance.
This red-haired youth was Xue Beng. Just yesterday, his father, the Emperor, had inexplicably grounded him. For at least a month, he was forbidden from leaving the academy. A whole month stuck here meant no trips to Heaven Dou City for fun.
Most of the students at Heaven Dou Imperial Academy were nobles, and their parents were all acquainted. As for the students from lower-ranking noble families, Xue Beng had either grown bored of bullying them or had already tormented them into submission. For him, staying at the academy was like being in prison. Only in Heaven Dou City could he find a variety of new people to entertain himself.
He had asked his uncle yesterday and finally learned the truth. It turned out the Crown Prince, Xue Qinghe, had sought an urgent audience with the Emperor the night before. Afterward, the Emperor had punished him severely. Fortunately, he greatly resembled his father and was thus a favored son. With few royal children remaining, his punishment was only a month of confinement. If he hadn't been favored, his very title as the Fourth Prince might have been stripped away.
Utterly infuriated, Xue Beng decided to round up his cronies and find someone to bully to let off some steam. He could never understand these nobles he tormented. Although their status was lower, they were still nobles of the Heaven Dou Empire. Why did they train so hard? No matter how strong they became, they were still there for him to bully whenever he pleased.
The academy's simulated training grounds were outside the main campus, and low-status nobles could usually only train at night, as the daytime slots were reserved for others. Normally, at this hour, he'd be in bed snuggling with a few girls. It was only his burning resentment for Xue Qinghe that drove him to gather his group at the academy gates so early. Thinking of the "pets" in his bed, a wicked fire stirred within him. He had originally planned to find some guys to beat up, but now he thought, why not find a few pretty girls for him and his brothers to play with?
Just as Xue Beng was lost in his depraved fantasy, he saw a youth with shimmering golden hair approaching from the distance. The youth's temperament was strikingly similar to that of the Crown Prince, Xue Qinghe. What infuriated Xue Beng even more was that not only did this person have his older brother's air, but his face was also countless times more handsome than his own. The sight of that face filled him with an overwhelming urge to stomp it into the mud.
Xue Beng was selective about his victims. Judging by the youth's casual attire, he clearly wasn't from a major noble family. Heirs of old noble houses were meticulous about etiquette; he himself had been forced to learn it from a young age. Every detail, from dress to demeanor, was governed by strict rules. It was only in recent years that he had become lazy and shed those formalities. After all, he was the Fourth Prince—those other nobles couldn't compare.
Once Xue Beng confirmed his target was someone he could afford to provoke, he led his lackeys to block Ye Lan's path.
Ye Lan stared at the aggressive-looking students surrounding him, utterly baffled. He knew he was handsome, but handsome enough to be ambushed right at the gate?
Before he could speak, the red-haired leader barked, "Stop! What are you doing here?"
"???" Ye Lan shrugged indifferently. "I'm here to enroll, obviously."
Xue Beng, already simmering with rage, exploded at Ye Lan's casual and relaxed posture. His anger ignited instantly.
"You?" he sneered. "The enrollment period is long over! Even if you're a count's son, you're too late! With that whore's face of yours, you're probably just trying to sneak in to seduce some rich old woman to keep you, right?!"
Boom!
The red-haired youth vanished from his spot. His body crashed backward into several of his followers before tumbling across the white stone ground.
Ye Lan calmly pointed a finger at his own head. Is this guy brain-damaged?
He was completely bewildered. Were all the noble students at Heaven Dou Academy this unhinged? He hadn't done a single thing, yet this guy had unleashed a torrent of insults. Ye Lan had no patience for these so-called nobles. So what if they were Heaven Dou nobility? Could they be more powerful than Xue Qinghe? If it came down to it, they could all just summon their backers and see who came out on top.
Xue Beng rolled for more than twenty meters across the marble pavement before finally coming to a stop. A few of his closest cronies rushed to help him up.
One side of Xue Beng's face was hideously swollen. He had lost three of his upper front teeth, and blood was pouring from his nose, staining his white-and-gold uniform crimson.
"Boss?! Is that you?" a dark-skinned lackey stammered in disbelief. In their circle, Xue Beng was considered quite handsome. Now, half his face was swollen like a pig's head.
"Ged lofft!" Xue Beng slurred, spitting blood. "I'm nod… I'm your boff!"
"Damn it! All of you, get him! He's just a Soul Grandmaster!"
Seeing the Soul Grandmaster badge on Ye Lan's chest, Xue Beng felt a surge of confidence that he could get his revenge right here and now. All of his lackeys were at least Tianzhi-level; Tianwei-level students weren't even qualified to be his dogs.
The Heaven Dou Imperial Academy divided students into three tiers: Tianwei-level for Soul Grandmasters between ranks 20-24; Tianzhis-level for Soul Grandmasters between ranks 25-29; and Heaven Dou-level for Soul Elders at rank 30 and above.
Although only one or two of his lackeys were Heaven Dou-level, the rest were all Tianzhi-level at a minimum. Xue Beng refused to believe anyone could fight ten people at once. He'd never even heard of a one-on-seven fight, let alone one-on-ten.
Feeling the fiery sting on his cheek, Xue Beng rubbed his swollen face and began to fantasize about beating Ye Lan's face into an identical pulp. Who did this guy think he was dealing with? Today, he would make sure this nobody left utterly broken and humiliated.
(End of Chapter)