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Volume 4 Chapter 2: Names Famous in Shenfeng
Shenfeng Institute was famous on the continent. Not only did it possess a long history, but it also continuously produced massive amounts of experts. There were unique experts coming forth from the school almost every generation.
The college had four faculties: the Faculty of Daoism, The Faculty of Magic, the Faculty of Eastern Martial Arts, and the Faculty of Western Martial Arts. Tens of thousands of youth came every year in order to register. In order to take in promising youngsters, the school would open its doors at the beginning of every month for registration. The applicants were the best of the best.
Every single person that was granted entry into Shenfeng Institute was a ranked expert. Once granted entry, every student was treated equally. The only division between people was whether they were accepted or not—there were no divisions between upperclassmen and underclassmen. Ordinarily, students chose their own teacher to cultivate with. At the end of the term, they all took the same exam. If a student’s examination results were continuously lacking, then they would be thoroughly swept out the door.
The strong that were able to effortlessly pass the tests naturally have nothing to say. The students that were slightly lacking had no alternatives but to bitterly cultivate. Because of this, the school was always flourishing with people cultivating.
Naturally, the higher standards were only enforced among the ordinarily accepted students. As for the nobles who paid sky-high prices to enrol, their standards were appropriately lowered. After all, these students were a large source of the college’s income. They also brought with them a ‘celebrity effect’.
For the past two days, the Little Princess had stayed at the inn. Chen Nan had threatened her: if she dared to stir up trouble, then he wouldn’t give her back the five ten thousand bills. The princess angrily grinded her teeth. If she didn’t urgently need to the money for tuition, she would’ve disregarded his words as wind past her ears long ago. During this time, Chen Nan helped her neutralize the painful effects of the God of Imprisonment’s Finger when it flared up.
As for the crisis of the ancient gods, half of the participants were youth. Not all of them were after the god’s hand in order to obtain the treasure. In fact, most of them wanted to register to attend Shenfeng Institute.
Early in the morning on the third day, a stream of people flowed into Shenfeng Institute. It was even greater than a sea of people. The school’s great gate was completely surrounded.
The Little Princess’s beauty was matchless. She was wearing a pale yellow cheongsam. The snow white Xiao Yu resided in her bosom. Her appearance was striking. Her stunning looks attracted the eyes of countless young men—and the jealously of countless young women.
Among the crowd of youth that had come to register to enrol in Shenfeng Institute, there were quite a few that had previously gone to the ruins of the ancient gods’ battle in search of the ancient god’s severed left hand. Many of them already recognized the princess as that girl who flew on the tiger. They all began to talk about it:
“That beautiful girl is the Flying Tiger Thief. She flew on her tiger and teased a ton of practitioners.”
“Heavens! That girl was the one who found the ancient god’s severed left hand bone!”
“Oh. I heard that the guy beside her is her brother. He has a really funny nickname: Degenerate. This brother and sister don’t really resemble each other.”
“That’s a troublesome girl. She almost caused a huge war. I heard Shenfeng Institute’s vice-president also has trouble dealing with her. He even directly addresses her as Little Troublemaker.”
“Little Troublemaker? That has a lot of personality!”
One mouth turned to ten turned to a hundred; before they even officially registered, Chen Nan and the Little Princess became ‘celebrities’. In the end, almost everybody knew of the two ‘brother and sister’.
The more the princess heard, the worse her expression turned. Finally, she burst away from the crowd. With a forced smile, Chen Nan followed her. Soon afterwards, the Tiger King Xiao Yu soared into the sky. Everyone watched eyes-wide and mouths-agape as they flamboyantly flew overhead everyone straight into Shenfeng Institute. Soon, this pair of ‘brother and sister’ became legendary figures amongst all the new students of Shenfeng Institute. There was almost no one that did not know of them.
All the students inside Shenfeng Institute saw the Tiger King descend from the sky. After their initial shock, they all broke out into smiles. Almost everyone already knew what happened two days ago. Everyone had already heard how the girl before their eyes had pulled on the vice-president’s beard—christened by the vice-president—Little Troublemaker.
When they found an empty place, Xiao Yu transformed back into a kitten. The princess picked him up and kept walking.
The vice-president just happened to be walking in front of them. Seeing the two of them, he gave them an obvious blank look. “We haven’t opened the gates yet. How did you guys get in?”
The princess flippantly said, “We obviously flew.”
“Y-you guys forced your way in?”
“I came to register. Chen Nan, pay tuition to that smelly old man.”
The vice-president let out an exasperated sigh. Embarrassed, he said, “I am a dean here. From now on, you cannot talk to me in such a way.”
Annoyed, the princess said, “Smelly old man, do you know what all those new students are saying about me? They’re all calling me a ‘little troublemaker’. It’s all your fault, you smelly old man. If it weren’t for you, why would they talk about me like that? Hmph!”
The vice-president awkwardly stroked his uneven beard. “Who told you to make trouble? Fine, I’ll take you to pay tuition.”
The place to pay tuition was in the third layer of courtyards. The vice-president quietly said a few words to the elderly secretary before quickly leaving. Chen Nan handed over the gold banknotes. The princess took the chance to reach into his pocket, but Chen Nan caught her jade hand.
The old secretary stared at the two of them, baffled. Chen Nan awkwardly smiled. “My sister has always loved to be naughty and troublesome. She loves to fight and argue.”
The princess was about to curse at him, but she suddenly felt a peculiar power flowing into her hand, blocking her acupoint and stopping her from speaking and moving.
The old secretary smiled and asked Chen Nan, “What is your sister’s name? I will record it, and then arrange for her living quarters.”
Chen Nan answered, “Little Troublemaker.”
The secretary said, “It seems like she’s another student of royalty—unwilling to disclose their true name.”
At the moment, the princess’s eyes were almost about to breathe fire at Chen Nan. If she was registered using the name ‘Little Troublemaker’, then that truly would become her identity at school.
After the secretary registered the princess, she said, “In two days, the dormitory management center will ask for living expenses.” She handed Chen Nan a bamboo key. “The courtyard and room number are written on the bamboo. Bring your sister to take a look at her dorm.”
Chen Nan let another flow of energy into the princess’s body, releasing her acupoint. He dragged her forward.
The princess shrieked, “Degenerate, I’m going to kill you!”
“Let’s go. Don’t make a scene and make everyone laugh at you.” Chen Nan dragged her forward.
As they went, the princess was loud and angry. The old secretary shook her head. She sighed, “What a strange pair of siblings.”
The dorms were neat and tidy. But when the princess saw that there were four beds in her room, she immediately screeched, “What the hell?! They want me to live with other people?! No. I have to find that vice-president—that smelly old man—and make him give me a different room.”
Chen Nan said, “It’s not like you didn’t live with me. Aren’t you used to it by now?”
The princess looked like her tail had been stepped on. She was fluttered and stammered, “Don’t mention things from the past. I no longer have anything to do with you. I don’t need you to care about me.”
“Don’t worry, after I hand you over to Shenfeng Institute, you’ll be the City of Crime’s problem. No way will I care about you anymore.” Ever since he saw the old monster, Chen Nan was eager to ditch the Little Princess.
When the two of them returned to the school’s entrance, the great gate had already been opened. All the young men and women coming to register were rushing inside.
The vice-president was standing on a high terrace. “…You are all heroes of the world… The capable will be enrolled by Shenfeng Institute… Now, come with me to the practice arena to participate in an exam.”
There were more than two thousand youngsters that had come to register. They lined up in massive queues as they followed the vice-president inside the school.
Chen Nan and the princess followed the crowd, wanting to see how the school accepted new students.
The massive practice arena was not too crowded even with two thousand people. The vice-president loudly said, “The exam is very simple. You will need to pass three tests. During these three tests, you will be subject to some attacks by experts. Although there are not many examiners, I can guarantee everyone will be tested by the same degree. After these three tests, the people that are able to remain standing can be considered Shenfeng Institute’s newest students.”
Hou!
Hou!
With two roars, a green Monolithic Dragon and a black Monolithic Dragon soared into the sky from deep within campus. It was the two Monolithic Dragons that had appeared when Shenfeng Institute was about to be besieged a few days ago. The young dragon riders on their respective dragon’s back looked identical with their stern expressions. Both of them were carrying large swords that coldly overlooked the students.
“The first test is to withstand the attacks by these two Monolithic Dragon Riders. I will request all participants that are not ranked to leave now, as we would like to avoid unnecessary injuries.”
Seeing the two monsters before them, many had become terrified. Quite a number of them began to leave. In the end, only a thousand participants remained.
The vice-president declared, “If no one else is leaving, then we shall begin.”
Another two hundred participants left. None of the remaining eight hundred participants cowered.
“Alright. Let the test begin!”
The two Monolithic Dragons swooped down and the two dragon riders brandished their swords, slashing out wave after wave of battle qi. Blue and green battle qi crashed towards the ground like waves.
The prospective students in the practice arena used magic or weapons in order to repel the attack with all their strength.
The battle qi crisscrossed and stormed in the air. In the arena, weapons and magical barriers shattered alike. Many were seriously injured, bloodied, and were forced to quit.
The princess hadn’t expected the exam to be so cruel. She secretly rejoiced at her own fortune. Because of her nervousness, she unconsciously clutched tightly on Chen Nan’s arm with her left hand.
“Hey, little demon, what are you doing? Why are you holding onto me? Oh, I know. You’re scared. Haha! That’s hilarious!”
The princess was embarrassed. “Nonsense. I’m not scared. I just think those two smelly identical-looking dragon riders are weird. I just wanted to take a look. Who would want to stand with you?” With that said, she moved a few dozen meters away from Chen Nan.
A light laugh sounded from behind the princess. Dongfang Fenghuang walked over to her and said, “Little beggar, you’re quite interesting. You actually registered as Little Troublemaker—you sure do have a personality.”
Hearing her “Little Troublemaker’ moniker, the princess angrily grinded her teeth. She angrily said, “It was that degenerate that registered my name like that. I hate him to death! I want to kill him! Oh, right. Fenghuang-jiejie, why did I get such a lousy dorm? Four people are supposed to live together? I need to find the dean—that smelly old man—and get him to give me another room.”
Dongfang Fenghuang laughed. “The school has a rule: one dorm room for one semester costs a thousand and two hundred gold coins. It’s split evenly amongst four students. If you want to stay in a room all by yourself, it’ll cost you a thousand and two hundred gold coins every semester.”
The princess cried out, “Heavens! Is Shenfeng Institute that greedy?”
Dongfang Fenghuang said, “Students that are able to cultivate to be ranked are all able to rely on their strength to make money for their student fees. This is a disguised test by the school.”
The princess said, “It seems like plain robbery to me.”
Dongfang Fenghuang laughed. “The president must like you! Finding that god’s bone was an accomplishment. The president decided to exempt you from paying rent for a year. He’s giving you a room for two people. The two of us will be living together then.”
The princess had her suspicions. “Is he worried about me and making you watch over me? Or else why wouldn’t he just let me have a room all to myself?”
Dongfang Fenghuang thought, “Of course it’s so I can watch over you—you’re always making trouble.” But she smiled and said, “All the new students need someone to show them around for some time, helping them get used to living in the school’s environment. The president made an exception just for you. I’m guessing he’s giving you special treatment because he foresaw that you’d go ‘trouble’ him and pull on his beard again.”
The princess giggled. “It wasn’t on purpose. I just accidentally happened to grab onto his beard. I didn’t think I’d rip off that much.”
“Accidentally? How come every time you do something wrong, it’s an accident?”
“Fenghuang-jiejie, why do those two smelly dragon riders look the same? Are they twin brothers?”
“Correct, the two of them are twins. Their cultivation is very profound—they’re our school’s cutting-edge teachers.”
Monolithic Dragon Riders of the fourth rank could be said to be experts among experts. Their cultivation could be described as unfathomably profound. It was only because this was an entrance exam were the two of them not utilizing their full strength. They were only firing off attacks at an extraordinary rate. Battle qi continued to fly every which way. The practice arena was flooded in bright lights.
Although it was like this, in the time it took to drink a cup of tea, several hundred prospects had already withdrawn, many of which were seriously injured.
At the moment, students from Shenfeng Institute stood at the side acting as rescue agents, rushing into the midst of the attacks in order to rescue the injured. Of course, the ladies were the first to be saved. This was the best time for perverts to act friendly.
After fifteen minutes, the first test finally concluded, and the two dragon riders rode their Monolithic Dragons back into the depths of the school. The number of students left standing had been cut in half. Only about four hundred remained who were able to resist the battle qi triple barrage.
“The second test is to withstand the attacks from these three magi.”
With the vice-president’s announcement, three magi floated up into the air. The trio didn’t say anything. They instantly began reading aloud their incantations. Magical elements began to violently coalesce in the air. A vast inferno crashed towards the ground.
In the arena, everyone either dodged the fire or used their own magic, battle qi, or vital qi to resist the flames.
After the inferno, a countless number of glittering blades of wind sliced towards the students, with spears of ice following closely behind them, along with the occasional streak of lightning. The practice arena was full of frantic, frenzied magical attacks.
Many of the prospective students were injured and retreated, one after another. In just a short moment, there were less than two hundred remaining.
After fifteen minutes, the second test concluded with only just over a hundred and twenty people remaining.
“The third test is about to commence. If you feel that you are unable to continue, please leave now. This test will involve attacks from a Daoist.”
Cries of alarm rang through the arena. An old man wearing flowing, long-sleeved clothes swooped down from the sky on a flying sword. The old man’s vigor was outstanding. His hair was white and his countenance was similar to that of a child’s, as if he were a mix of god and immortal.
Everyone was astonished. Daoists are very rarely seen, and a Daoist with such successful cultivation was even rarer. This was an incredible expert of the fifth rank!
Among the youth taking the practice exam, only several of them were Daoists. When they saw this seemingly immortal old man, they all looked surprised.
Chen Nan sighed, “Fifth-ranked Daoists of the Yuanying stage sure are incredible. They can even fly on their swords—everyone is envious of them!”
The vigorous old man landed on a tall stage in the arena. The flying sword beneath his feet flew towards everyone like lightning.
Magic, vital qi, and battle qi surged and raged in the arena. Everyone used everything they had in order to resist the Daoist’s attacks. After all, it was the final test.
After flying around the arena once, the flying sword returned to the old man, who leapt onto it and flew away.
This time, not a single person had fallen but the clothes on almost everyone’s backs were utterly shredded.
The vice-president announced, “Remain if your clothes are still intact. Otherwise, please leave.”
Many of the prospects left, disappointed. In the end, only twenty nine people remained in the arena.
The princess cried out, “Out of two thousand participants, only these twenty nine are qualified?! That’s ridiculous!”
Dongfang Fenghuang said, “Did you think just anyone could attend Shenfeng Institute? Only genuine ranked experts that rely on their own ability can attend.”
“Then how does Shenfeng Institute have thousands of students?”
“A majority of them are the children of nobles and royalty. They pay an extremely high tuition to attend.”
Three of the students who had passed the entrance exam took notice of Chen Nan. The first was tall and handsome youth. It was precisely because it was an acquaintance of Chen Nan—it was the Empire of Baiyue’s Third Prince Ren Jian.
Everyone who had passed the entrance exam were glowing with smiles, but Ren Jian remained dignified and as calm as always.
Chen Nan was distracted the instant they met eyes. Although they had only known each other for a few days, he distinctly knew of his exuberant ambition. This was a man who was unwilling to be beneath anyone. For him to not be at his own nation vying for power and authority was quite strange. Instead, he had come here to cultivate. Something definitely must have happened.
Chen Nan glanced at the nearby princess to see her clenching her fists. He knew Ren Jian would meet some problems soon enough.
The second person that noticed Chen Nan was also an acquaintance—it was their bodyguard Guan Hao! He had succeeded in passing the three tests and was obviously jubilant.
The third person was a blonde girl. The girl’s curves were exquisite and her figure was provoking. She had a full chest, a slender waist, a round bottom… no man could resist fancying her. Her looks may not have been as beautiful as the Little Princess or Fenghuang Dongfang, but her sex appeal, charm, and allure was much greater. This beauty was capable of causing every man to succumb to his most basic desire.
Most of the men’s sights were fixated on her. Some of the men in the crowd were even drooling and smacking their lips. The women looked at her with jealousy and envy.
The vice-president coughed. His cough shattered the bad fantasies all the perverts were dreaming of. “This month, twenty nine applicants have passed the entrance exam. I welcome you to our Shenfeng Institute!”
The princess unhappily cried out, “Stop nagging! There isn’t that much to say!”
Chen Nan walked over to her and said, “Little demon, your nemesis has come. When the time comes, let’s see how you’ll perform.”
The princess grit her teeth. “I definitely won’t let him off. And I won’t let you off either.”
Chen Nan flicked her forehead. “Are you threatening me?”
“Damn degenerate, how could you hit me? Ow… Fenghuang-jiejie, beat him up for me.”
Dongfang Fenghuang pulled the princess who was kneading her forehead behind her. She coldly said, “This is Shenfeng Institute. She’s already a student here. You are not qualified to touch her.”
Chen Nan’s faced Dongfang Fenghuang’s icy stare head on. “I’m teaching my sister a lesson. What’s it to you?”
The princess angrily said, “Shameless! Who is your sister, you degenerate?”
Dongfang Fenghuang said, “Don’t think I don’t know how the two of you are related. Leave now, or don’t blame me for being impolite.”
“You’re a magus. Since you’re standing so close to me, a martial artist, how can you act so audaciously? Heh heh…” Chen Nan shot her a wicked grin.
Dongfang Fenghuang was startled and pulled the princess quickly away with her.
Chen Nan calmly followed them, making Dongfang Fenghuang’s face pale. She furiously said, “You… dare act so rudely at Shenfeng Institute?”
“Act rudely? Of course not! You go your way, I’ll go my way. Neither of us are in each other’s way.”
Dongfang Fenghuang’s face was ice. She never expected Chen Nan to dare mock her here. But she really didn’t dare act too impulsively. In these close quarters, if she wanted to put her magic to good use, she was afraid she didn’t have the time to finish her incantations by the time it took her opponent to catch her.
The princess loved a chaotic world. She loudly shouted, “Degenerate, stop flirting with Fenghuang-jiejie!”
With these words, everyone began to look over at them. Dongfang Fenghuang was embarrassed and infuriated. She ferociously pinched the princess.
The princess exaggeratingly called out, “Ow! Fenghuang-jiejie, why are you pinching me? It’s that degenerate that’s hitting on you, not me…!”
Dongfang Fenghuang covered her mouth. She really wanted to sew it shut. The magnificent genius girl of the Faculty of Magic was being put in such an embarrassing situation. She could feel her cheeks begin to burn a scorching red.
At the moment, all the nearby men were shooting daggers out of their eyes at Chen Nan. In fact, some of them were even beginning to move towards him.
Chen Nan quietly said, “Little demon, don’t forget I’m the only one that can neutralize the God of Imprisonment’s Finger. You better behave.”
He looked around to see a bunch of students and the youth that had just passed the entrance exam crowd around them. He put on a courteous look and said, “Fenghuang-jiejie, I’ll have to find another day to take a stroll with you. I’ll be leaving first. I’ll have to trouble you with taking care of my sister. Sis, don’t miss me too much.”
The boys that had crowded around were all left staring blankly, and Chen Nan didn’t take another moment to leave. He quickly pushed his way through the crowd and left, escaping without a trace.
The flustered voices of two girls could be heard from behind him:
“Degenerate!”
“Shameless pervert!”
Chen Nan didn’t hear those curses as he quickly fled from Shenfeng Institute. He did not know yet, but in a few days’ time, the names ‘Degenerate’ and ‘Little Troublemaker” would become famous in Shenfeng Institute. Nearly every single student would know the pair of ‘brother and sister’. At the same time, Dongfang Fenghuang would curse him and prepare to enact her revenge.
I feel like Chen Nan and the Dongfang girl should get along great over their mutual hatred of that princess