Seeing that Elder Qu understood her words, Ling Luoyi smiled, nodded at him, and left.
Elder Qu watched Ling Luoyi's retreating figure, his heart filled with shock. He was, after all, an elder of the Ancient Spirit Academy. Even if it was just the outer court of a middle-tier country, he knew more than outsiders.
The Ancient Spirit Academy was divided into an outer court and an inner court. The inner court was located in the Sky Profound Domain, the very center of the Ancient Spirit Continent, which was the area with the most concentrated spiritual energy. The headquarters of all major powers on the Ancient Spirit Continent were located there.
Among them, the Ancient Spirit Academy ranked first.
The Ancient Spirit Continent was divided into the Sky Profound Domain, Inner Perimeter, Middle Perimeter, Outer Perimeter, and Edge based on spiritual energy concentration. The countries were also distributed according to their tiers, with the Heavenly Martial Kingdom situated on the Edge.
There was a rule on the Ancient Spirit Continent: those of a higher tier could go to a lower tier, but those of a lower tier could not enter a higher tier without permission.
The Ancient Spirit Academy had only one inner court, which accepted only the most exceptional geniuses. However, it had branch campuses in the capital cities of countries in the Inner, Middle, and Outer Perimeters, selecting talented disciples. Disciples from branch campuses who reached a certain level of strength could then proceed to the inner court. This was the only way for disciples from the Middle and Outer Perimeters to enter the Sky Profound Domain.
The Sky Profound Domain was not only a symbol of strength but also the best representation of status and identity.
Disciples from the Edge could only compete for spots within their affiliated countries, which led to the genius selection.
The top ten could enter the capital of the Dragon Clear Kingdom. However, there were over thirty lower-tier countries affiliated with the Dragon Clear Kingdom, and each country would select ten people, totaling over three hundred. The Dragon Clear Kingdom, however, only offered three spots, and the Heavenly Martial Kingdom's strength didn't even rank in the top ten. Therefore, the Heavenly Martial Kingdom was merely going through the motions.
Even so, the Heavenly Martial Emperor could not afford not to send anyone.
The Ancient Spirit Academy had only become the top force five years ago, reportedly due to the mysterious young disciple of the Ancient Spirit Academy's Dean, Wen Zonglin.
However, this young disciple had never shown herself, and it seemed even Dean Wen's friends had never met her.
It was thought that the matter of the young disciple was over, but a year ago, Dean Wen announced before the major powers that his young disciple would assume the position of the next dean. This caused quite a stir, which had not subsided to this day.
Thinking of this, Elder Qu glanced at Ling Luoyi's retreating figure again.
It seemed that this person was very likely the rumored young disciple, and thus the next dean.
If that were the case, just how terrifying must her strength be!
Seeing Ling Luoyi return, Ling Huayu asked, "Lu'er, have you handled everything?"
"Yes. Grandpa, Elder Qu just asked if the five disciples from the Ling family this year have been chosen. We are to wait outside the North City Gate on the twenty-third of this month at the end of the Si Hour to travel to the Dragon Clear Kingdom together."
"I've already decided on the candidates. Do you want to see them?"
"No need, Grandpa. Your decision is fine."
"Lu'er, I didn't give you a spot. Will you mind?" Ling Huayu, fearing she might be angry, quickly explained, "I thought with your strength, you should be able to enter the Ancient Spirit Academy, so..."
"Grandpa, you don't need to explain this to me, I understand." Sensing something, Ling Luoyi said, "Grandpa, you all go back first. Zhuxue and I still have some things to do."
Ling Huayu was momentarily stunned but didn't ask what she needed to do. He said, "Alright, Lu'er, be careful."
"I know, Grandpa. I won't be returning tonight. I'll be here for the competition tomorrow."
"Good."
Ling Luoyi watched them get into the carriage and leave. She then said to Zhuxue, "Zhuxue, go to Mingyue Tower and ask the manager if we can stay there for the night."
It was currently the period of the genius selection, and all the inns were fully booked. Zhuxue knew this and replied, "Yes."
Zhuxue obediently left. Ling Luoyi listened to the sounds from the shadows, her lips curling into a smile, and walked towards a less crowded area.
Hearing the people in the shadows following her, Ling Luoyi confidently strolled through the market and found an empty alley, turning into it as if nothing was amiss.
When the last person from the shadows entered the alley, Guan Yue activated a barrier to prevent them from being discovered.
Ling Luoyi stopped, waiting for the people in the shadows to appear.
Before long, the people in the shadows couldn't hold back and revealed themselves. Seeing their master appear, the others also emerged.
Ling Luoyi looked at them. Apart from the leading elder, the others were all dressed in black with masked faces, their eyes calm and unwavering. They were clearly death warriors.
The leading elder had white hair, wrinkled skin, and was extremely old, like a candle in the wind. This reminded Ling Luoyi of Mei Ran and Tu Bai, whom she had just met; they were equally aged. However, those two were because their life force had been stolen, while this one was truly nearing the end of his lifespan.
Ling Luoyi looked at him and asked, feigning ignorance, "Elder, what business do you have following me all this way?"
"Stop playing dumb!" the old man shouted sternly. "Ling Luoyi, this time next year will be your death anniversary. Die!"
The old man rushed forward rapidly, striking at Ling Luoyi's chest with a palm.
Ling Luoyi dodged to the side and said, "Elder, I don't recall offending you in any way. Why are you making such a deadly attack?"
"Ling Luoyi, no matter how you stall, no one will come to save you. Regardless, you must die today!"
Ling Luoyi's emotions remained unchanged. She said, "Elder, even if I must die, I should die with understanding, shouldn't I?"
The old man stopped his movement and said, "Since you wish to die with understanding, I shall grant you that! Do you still remember the last item at the Ling family's auction?"
"The last item?" Ling Luoyi pondered for a moment and said, "Elder, are you referring to that Azure Nether Longevity Pill? I recall that the pill was eventually bought by the head of the Wei family for nine hundred and eighty thousand yellow crystal coins. What does it have to do with you?"
"I am the Wei family's Old Ancestor! Do you think it has nothing to do with me?!"
"Ah~" Ling Luoyi exclaimed with feigned realization. "So you ate that pill. But what does that have to do with you wanting to kill me? Could it be that the pill I gave you was fake?"
"How dare you still speak of it!" Mentioning this matter made the Wei family's Old Ancestor extremely angry. That pill had cost Wei Wensong almost all of the Wei family's wealth. Therefore, the Wei family had no money to buy pills this time, which resulted in only Chu Hong being among the top ten. Chu Ying and Chu Tian's injuries had not yet healed, and the rest of the Wei family were living frugally.
"Why shouldn't I dare to speak of it?" As if she had thought of something, Ling Luoyi suddenly asked, "Is it because you, the Wei family's Old Ancestor, were dissatisfied with the medicinal effect, and that's why you want to kill me? But I remember that before the bidding, I had already said that the medicinal effect had been severely lost due to improper preservation. Did the Wei family head not think carefully before bidding? Then you can't blame me, can you? Or was my guarantee wrong?"
The Wei family's Old Ancestor glared at Ling Luoyi furiously, unable to come up with a rebuttal.
Ling Luoyi had indeed said this before the bidding, so those who wished to bid should have thought it through. Ling Luoyi's guarantee was also not wrong; his lifespan had indeed increased, but only by six months, which was exactly the shortest time she had guaranteed.
Seeing his expression, Ling Luoyi said, "It seems my guarantee was not wrong, so you, the Wei family's Old Ancestor, are just venting your anger."
Hearing her words, the Wei family's Old Ancestor finally remembered his original purpose.
Damn it! He had been so enraged that he forgot his original objective.
The Wei family's Old Ancestor no longer wished to speak with Ling Luoyi and ordered, "All of you, attack! Do not let her live!"
"Yes!" The death warriors responded and charged forward in unison.