This caused Zhao Tianxiang to pause for a moment. "You mean to say, among your students, someone else has also reached the cultivation level of thirty?"
Zhao Wuji smiled and nodded, and Zhao Tianxiang's heart sank. She looked at Tang Sui and the others again, her gaze immediately changing.
These children looked no older than fifteen or sixteen. She had initially thought that a Soul Elder with three thousand-year soul rings would be the most outstanding among this group of young boys and girls, but she hadn't expected that, besides this child, someone else had already reached level thirty!
Doesn't that mean that at least two people in this group are more talented than her granddaughter?
Thinking this, the last trace of warmth on Zhao Tianxiang's face vanished. Her expression darkened as she looked at Dai Mu Bai, whom she sensed had the cultivation of a Soul Elder.
Suddenly being stared at, Dai Mu Bai felt...
He slightly raised his chin, calmly adjusted his collar, and pretended not to notice Zhao Tianxiang's gaze.
Zhao Wuji glanced at Oscar, who was acting as a background prop and pretending to be invisible, and shouted, "Oscar, what are you hiding for? Come here!"
The named Oscar was instantly subjected to the scrutiny of others.
He stiffened, and under Meng Yiran's suddenly widened eyes, he approached, giving a sheepish smile. "Teacher Zhao, is there something?"
Zhao Wuji ignored Oscar and simply bowed politely to Zhao Tianxiang. "Elder Sister Zhao, this is the student of mine who has just reached the cultivation level of thirty. Oscar, haven't you reported your situation to the senior yet!"
Oscar scratched his head and, being tactful, took the initiative to say, "Greetings, senior. My name is Oscar, I've just reached level 30, and my spirit is of the food type."
What?!
Another one at level thirty?!
And he's a support-type Soul Master!
Disbelief flickered across Zhao Tianxiang's face. She looked at Oscar, who was shyly scratching the back of his head and chuckling, feeling an unbearable lump in her throat.
Zhao Wuji, who had witnessed Zhao Tianxiang's shifting expressions, felt a secret delight, and the smile on his face became even more radiant. "Elder Sister Zhao, do you find my student presentable?"
Zhao Tianxiang took a deep, controlled breath, suppressing the turmoil in her heart, and forced a polite smile. "Of course. Disciples of the Immovable Bright King are naturally outstanding." But she hadn't expected there to be so many outstanding ones!
Not only that, but Zhao Tianxiang also pondered deeply about the background of the students brought out by Zhao Wuji.
How could they all be so exceptional!
"Grandmother, then I!" Meng Yiran, realizing belatedly that she was destined to miss out on the Phoenix Tail Crowned Serpent, immediately showed a look of anxiety on her face.
Zhao Tianxiang looked at her granddaughter's incredulous and anxious expression, her own gaze becoming obscure. She reached out and stroked her granddaughter's head. "Yiran, it is we who have no destiny with it. Grandmother will find another spirit beast for you."
As Zhao Tianxiang said this, the stone that had been hanging over Zhao Wuji and the others' hearts finally fell.
Meng Yiran glanced at the lying Phoenix Tail Crowned Serpent, bit her lip unwillingly, and endured her frustration before nodding in agreement.
Watching the shadows of the old and young woman gradually disappear into the forest, Zhao Wuji's polite smile vanished. He turned with a stern face and glared fiercely at Tang Sui. "Tang Sui! When did you come to the Star Dou Great Forest by yourself?!"
Tang Sui looked at Zhao Wuji innocently and repeated what she had told Tang San earlier. "Teacher Zhao, I haven't been here. It was the night before we departed from the academy, when I went to the back mountain to cultivate my soul power that I encountered the Phoenix Tail Crowned Serpent."
"At that time, it seemed to be migrating and bumped right into me. We exchanged a few blows, and it, feeling wary, fled quickly. My support soul skills don't have speed amplification, and it was still nighttime. How could I possibly catch up to a thousand-year spirit beast with incredible speed?"
Her words left Zhao Wuji speechless, wanting to lash out but unable to. Yet, Tang Sui's words were perfectly reasonable, and he couldn't find fault with them.
Thus, Zhao Wuji could only turn his attention to Oscar, saying impatiently, "Oscar, what are you still standing there for! Hurry up and finish off this snake. Do you want more people to come and snatch it away?"
Oscar!
He nimbly drew his dagger and, this time without any hesitation, swiftly raised his hand and brought it down.
—Author's Notes—
Phoenix Tail Crowned Serpent: ...Underestimated me? Dammit, let me go, let me run again! See if I can escape this time!
Can't take it anymore, Mo Li is going to sleep.
See you tomorrow!