"Who would have thought the Sage Academy already had a student at the Soul Separation stage?" Guan Feng muttered to himself, unable to hide his surprise.
Yi Yunfei remained calm and indifferent. "Alright, next."
Losing to a Soul Separation expert was perfectly normal. Qiao Wenjian finally accepted his defeat with a clear heart. He had initially thought his loss was an accident, but now he realized it was simply due to his insufficient cultivation.
Similarly, the elder leaders from other schools advised their students: "If you face a Soul Separation expert, admit defeat immediately. There is no other way. The highest cultivation level we brought is only the peak of the Soul Formation stage. We are not on the same level as them. Why bother struggling? Even the students from the Shangmo Academy, despite their love for fighting, know they are no match. Can an egg break a stone? That would be a joke."
Thus, when Yi Yunfei won his ten matches, no one complained.
After his ten matches, Yi Yunfei rested for ten minutes before the next round of draws began.
She walked out looking neat and tidy, and returned looking exactly the same. Her junior brothers and sisters looked at her with dissatisfaction.
Yi Yunfei coughed lightly. "When we return to the Sage Academy, I will treat you all to a meal."
"Senior Brother, this is wrong. Look at you. We were all so worried about you," Cui Changjiu said seriously. "But you didn't need our worry at all. You wasted our concern."
Yi Yunfei felt quite wronged. What kind of logic was this? How did this relate to wasting emotions?
Zhu Yanyi also spoke up from the side. "Senior Brother, you are already at the mid-stage of Soul Separation, yet you hide your cultivation. That is too much. From now on, you must go first against enemies and opponents. Otherwise, you are not caring enough for your junior brothers and sisters."
"Why do I always have to be in front?" Yi Yunfei laughed helplessly.
"Because you are an expert. It is very normal for experts to charge ahead," Zhu Yanyi said with a matter-of-fact expression.
Yi Yunfei was speechless. What could she say? Could she claim she wasn't an expert? No, she couldn't. Since she couldn't deny it, she could only look at Zhu Yanyi helplessly. After a moment, she said, "Alright, I will think about it."
Zhu Yanyi smiled brightly. "Senior Brother, we have confidence in you."
"Confidence in a hired muscle, you mean," Yi Yunfei saw right through her intentions. "Fifteen, you are too bad. I think you have corrupted all the junior brothers and sisters. Before you came, they were so well-behaved. Since you arrived, they have slowly gone bad."
Yi Yunfei acted as if she had truly led a large group astray.
"Nonsense," Zhu Yanyi felt she absolutely could not take the blame for this. "When did I corrupt the seniors and juniors? I have always been humble, haven't I?"
Seeing Zhu Yanyi’s indignant expression, everyone burst into laughter.
The Sage Academy had now produced two experts: one relying on so-called "luck," and the other on true skill. Thus, out of the twenty selected spots, the Sage Academy had already secured two.
Although most spots were still available, the other academies decided to be cautious. They did not want to encounter powerful opponents and face trouble.
Zhu Yanyi scanned the serious expressions of the other academies and whispered to her fellow students, "It is really strange. Look at how fierce they appear. Do you think we should hold back?"
"Holding back a little is acceptable," Jian Feiyan thought carefully. "We must keep some trump cards."
Zhu Yanyi pondered for a moment, then said seriously, "In that case, let us hold back a little. I think we should aim for at least ten spots. After all, the upcoming one-on-one battles might pit us against our own academy members. So, I believe we should maintain the best probability of advancing from twenty to ten."
"What if the remaining ten spots are unevenly distributed among the other four academies?" Gu Jun asked.
"Then we will take twelve spots. That leaves eight, which allows each of the other academies to have exactly two," Zhu Yanyi said naturally, wearing an expression of great consideration.
"Fifteen, your heart is so ruthless," Jian Feiyan sighed.
"Not at all. Am I not kind for not taking seventeen spots?" Zhu Yanyi looked innocent.
The Sage Academy members were at a loss for words regarding Zhu Yanyi’s thick skin. There were only seventeen students in total, and she wanted to occupy seventeen spots. Did she have the shame to say that? However, considering that taking twelve spots was also a challenge, they naturally decided to try.
Ten minutes later, the draw selected the Jingmei Girls' School and the Shangmo Academy.
Students from the Shangmo Academy made no distinction between men and women. Therefore, no matter how a student from the Jingmei Girls' School displayed her unique feminine charm, it could not affect the mindset of the Shangmo Academy student.
Zhu Yanyi had to admit that the Shangmo Academy was not without its merits. At least, because they loved fighting, they did not care about the word "lust."
"Lust is a knife above the head. Being able to resist lust is actually a virtue of the Shangmo Academy," Zhu Yanyi remarked casually.
"Yes," the Medical Elder sighed. "To tell the truth, I had originally lost hope for the Shangmo Academy. But after seeing this match, I feel the Shangmo Academy might still be saved."
"There are no incurable terminal illnesses in the world. For every disease, there is a treatment method. It depends on whether the healer can discover the right approach," Zhu Yanyi said with a smile.
The Medical Elder paused in thought, then had to admit that Zhu Yanyi’s words made sense. Indeed, diseases in this world were not untreatable; it depended on how people dealt with them.
At this moment, the Sage Academy was drawn.
"Since I am just here to fill a spot, I will go this time. Let me enjoy myself a bit, and then I will lose," Niu Wulang knew his own abilities. If he was going to lose, he might as well lose first.
"Fine, go ahead. One or two matches, it doesn't matter," the Medical Elder waved his hand. Since these students had more ideas than him now, he might as well let them handle it themselves.
Niu Wulang nodded happily and walked up. He was honest and simple. Looking at the student from the Shangmo Academy opposite him, he smiled slightly. "I am Niu Wulang from the Sage Academy. I am not very good at fighting. Please do not mind later."
The result of "not being very good" was that he knocked a mage off the arena with a single punch. He then added, "I just have a bit more strength. Anyway, I did not plan to win until the end."
The host, A Guang, nearly fainted. "A bit more strength"? You cannot bully people like that just because you are strong.
She had no choice but to draw another card. This time, it was still the Shangmo Academy.