The three teachers of Lan Ba Academy, led by Yin Shu, walked ahead, while Flanders and his companions followed behind in good spirits.
They exited the spire-like building and followed a cobblestone path along the side towards the rear of the academy.
Soon, they entered the forest on the outskirts of the main campus.
Although Lan Ba Academy was not as grand as the Royal Academy, Flanders and the others were satisfied with its size and facilities.
Nodding inwardly at the academy's environment, Master looked at the increasingly dense vegetation and a question arose in his mind: "Doesn't your dean live in the main campus?"
"Our dean prefers tranquility and lives alone in the forest area. Daily affairs are handled by us teachers. Only major matters are reported to the dean."
The academy teacher explained. Master said, "So that's how it is," and didn't say anything more, but for some reason, he felt a sense of unease since stepping onto this land.
As he was thinking, a melodious humming drifted from ahead.
The voice indicated it was a woman.
Upon hearing this sound, Tang Sui looked up, Master's expression changed slightly, and Flanders' eyes flashed with understanding, as if to say, "As expected."
The next second, Master abruptly turned around, intending to retreat the way they came, but Flanders quickly grabbed his shoulder.
Holding him back, Flanders said in a low voice, "Xiao Gang, how long are you going to keep running away? It's been twenty years, can you really bear to hide from her again?"
A look of sorrow and understanding appeared on Master's face, and he looked sharply at Flanders, "Flanders, you knew she was here all along? Lan Ba Academy... Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon, I should have realized it sooner!"
Flanders let go and made a gesture of surrender, "I'm being wronged! It was Sui Sui's lottery selection."
Tang San and the others watched the two unusual men with confusion. Just then, the academy teacher who had led them stopped and cupped his hands towards a black figure obscured by many potted plants ahead, "Dean, these are the Soul Masters who have come to apply for positions in our academy. Six of them have cultivation levels exceeding level sixty. We cannot make the decision ourselves, so we specially request your presence to make a judgment."
"Six of them have surpassed level 60?" The woman, hearing the voice, raised her head, revealing a beautiful and refined face.
Her black hair drew an elegant arc in the air with her movement. When her dark eyes fully reflected the bowed figure, her relaxed and carefree expression froze. Her dark eyes widened, and the ceramic watering can she was holding dropped to the ground in shock.
"Crash!"
The crisp sound of shattering and the clear water flowing onto the ground were like the woman's heart at that moment. After enduring a violent shock, excitement and grievance spread like water, her eyes fixed on that figure. Sudan Novel Network.
Flanders sighed inwardly, seeing a familiar face after a long time, and was about to say something when the woman's figure suddenly disappeared from her spot. Her hair was blown by a sudden gust of wind. In an instant, the woman was standing in front of Master, reaching out, her hand trembling as she grasped Master's wrist, her voice filled with suppressed sobs:
"Xiao Gang..."
She looked at Master, who was avoiding her gaze, her lips moved, and tears welled up uncontrollably. "Xiao Gang, is it really you?"
Master's body remained stiff.
Seeing this, Tang Sui's eyes flickered. She thought of Master and Bibi Dong from the original plot, and the entanglement with Liu Erlong before her.
Perhaps in terms of relationships, her teacher had indeed failed two women, one after the other, and could not be considered a responsible good man.
The former was due to helplessness, while the latter was his own lack of courage, but...
She did not want her teacher to be an irresponsible person, nor did she want him to have regrets in the future.
Matters of the heart should be faced by himself.
The atmosphere became inexplicably stiff. Dai Mubai and the others exchanged glances, and the academy teacher who had guided them stood there helplessly.
Flanders' eyes rolled. He cleared his throat with a half-clenched fist and said, "Sister Er Long, it's been many years, how have you been?"
Liu Erlong recovered from her excitement upon seeing Master. She looked at Flanders, a hint of nostalgia in her expression, "Brother Fu, you're still the same after all these years."
Flanders smiled with relief, "I'm old. Come, let me introduce you. These are all my teachers and students from Shrek Academy. Perhaps it's fate. When we were debating which academy to go to, I had Sui Sui, one of Xiao Gang's direct disciples, Tang Sui, draw straws on the spot, and it turned out she chose your Lan Ba Academy. Isn't that a coincidence?"
Liu Erlong's gaze followed Flanders' as he looked at Tang Sui. She saw the delicate features and the slightly sickly pale complexion of the young girl. Upon hearing that Flanders said she was her beloved's disciple, her gaze softened. Just as she was about to speak, her eyes suddenly fixed on Tang Sui's wrist, the translucent purple crystal jade bracelet.
"I didn't expect him to give you this bracelet," Liu Erlong said with complexity and nostalgia.
The purple crystal jade bracelet was a gift that Xiao Gang wanted to give her after they became engaged. He had gone out to find a good gift behind her back, and she had followed him out of worry, only to see it accidentally.
But fate played its tricks, and this bracelet became a gift that could never be given between them.
Receiving the other's gaze, Tang Sui blinked and immediately understood who the original owner of this bracelet was.
A hint of slyness flashed in her clear blue eyes, and she said crisply, "Hello, Mother-in-law."
As soon as she uttered this title, Master froze completely and looked stiffly at his usually obedient and sensible youngest disciple.
Tang San's eyelids twitched. He pulled his sister closer, embarrassedly nudged this clever little girl, and whispered, "Sui Sui, don't just call out randomly!"
Tang Sui looked back innocently, without making a sound.
Liu Erlong's gaze towards Tang Sui gradually brightened. Flanders, watching Tang Sui, who had started the fire and then retreated, secretly thought she was a cunning little imp. With an unconcerned expression, he changed the subject, "Sister Er Long, are we going to stand outside talking like this all the time? Why don't we go into your house and sit down?"
---Author's Note---
The previous mystery is revealed: the purple crystal bracelet was given by Liu Erlong to Master.