Mo Qi suddenly stopped smiling.
The words were like asking and answering oneself, the answer contained within the question.
So, he was actually so fortunate that someone was quietly paying for him from behind.
Mo Qi's gaze towards Xing Mian was silently filled with much respect.
Xing Mian, however, suddenly said with a grave expression, "I just divined a hexagram for you; your journey is fraught with danger."
Mo Qi was startled again, "You can also divine?"
Xing Mian shot him a look, "We actually have divination classes. If you don't learn, who can you blame?" Changing the subject abruptly, "That's not the point, is it? That's not what you should be concerned about, right?"
"Life and death are predetermined, wealth and honor are bestowed by heaven," Mo Qi said indifferently.
"Very spirited," Xing Mian remarked, "but many things cannot be accomplished with just a burst of passion."
Mo Qi said humbly, "I am enlightened."
"I have only one piece of advice for you: think more when facing problems, and run if you must," Xing Mian said.
Mo Qi was stunned. How sensible!
"It's a pity, if you had focused on your position in the academy, it would have been yours sooner or later. But I can see your heart is not in it," Xing Mian said, looking at Mo Qi with a hint of regret.
Mo Qi immediately replied, "Keep it for me. Perhaps one day, when I change my mind, I might be willing to take your place?"
"You're overthinking it," Xing Mian smiled. "What in this world is prepared solely for you?"
"That's true," Mo Qi chuckled. "I was overthinking it."
Ignoring him, Xing Mian continued, "Many people see the Heaven Tier Academy as a stepping stone to Heaven Tier. What are your thoughts on that?"
Mo Qi pondered for a moment, "I think it's great. At least it shows that our Heaven Tier Academy is useful. For cultivation, many people have already laid a solid foundation within their sects. Moreover, sects have abundant cultivation resources, offering everything one could need. In such a situation, what attraction does the academy hold? Beautiful female cultivators? Sects have those too."
Xing Mian fell into thought, and Mo Qi took his leave.
Xiao Yin then guided Mo Qi to his new residence.
A teacher's residence was truly imposing, occupying an entire building with a small garden.
Mo Qi briefly reviewed the lesson plans provided by Xiao Yin, feeling he was ready to teach. He walked to the window and opened it to get some fresh air.
His gaze fell upon the scene outside the window, where three men were surrounding a beautiful young woman, their words and actions exceedingly lewd.
Mo Qi looked closely and realized the beautiful young woman was none other than Xue Ying.
Xue Ying had also enrolled in the Heaven Tier Academy!
He silently offered her his blessings, while simultaneously engaging in internal grumbling.
With such a captivating appearance, why would she even go out!
Going out easily causes chaos!
Just as Mo Qi was preparing to leap from the window, he saw Xue Ying suddenly unleash the Immortal Binding Rope. The rope slithered like a spirit snake towards them.
The three men attempted to flee.
The Immortal Binding Rope instantly extended, growing dozens of feet long, encircling the three men and then suddenly constricting, binding them tightly.
The three struggled with all their might, but to no avail.
Xue Ying was still a bit nervous, saying, "You, will you behave? If you don't, I won't let you go."
The three men were frightened at first, then seeing her appear so frail and helpless even after trapping them, they immediately became emboldened again.
"Hahaha, if you don't let us go, what do you plan to do? Hahaha..."
"I, I..." Xue Ying truly didn't know what to do.
If she didn't release them, would she lose her Immortal Binding Rope?
If she released them, seeing their arrogant demeanor, they would surely harass her again.
The three became even more brazen, "I think you should just let us go and have some fun with us, wouldn't that be better?"
Upon hearing this, Xue Ying found it unbearable and decided to abandon the Immortal Binding Rope altogether, turning to leave.
Just then, a voice pierced through the air, "How about I entertain you gentlemen?"
Following the sound, Xue Ying's fair face bloomed into a smile like a flower, and tears welled up in her eyes, "Shopkeeper Mo!"
Mo Qi smiled at Xue Ying, then walked directly to the three men tied together, crouching down, "How would you like me to entertain you?"
Among the three men, one was more senior and had witnessed Mo Qi single-handedly confront the Yuwen and Nangong families, and punish countless street ruffians. His formidable reputation had earned him the title of "God of Slaughter" among the past generations of Heaven Tier Academy students.
"You, you are the God of Slaughter Mo Qi?" the man stammered, his mouth fumbling.
"Ah? When did I get such a name?" Mo Qi asked, somewhat bewildered.
The other two, though they hadn't seen him, had naturally heard his legends and were trembling like sieves.
"We were wrong, we'll never dare again," the three pleaded with tears in their voices.
"Listen, if you want to live, it's very simple. I'll write a note saying 'I am a ruffian, I was wrong,' stick it on you, and then you run a lap around the academy. How about that?" Mo Qi said calmly.
"Good, good, no problem," the three nodded repeatedly.
Mo Qi took out paper and brush from his storage bag and wrote the words, preparing three copies and sticking them onto the three men.
Xue Ying retracted the Immortal Binding Rope, and the three men ran off into the distance.
Mo Qi said, "I'll be waiting for you here. If you don't come back after running a lap, you know the consequences."
The three left meekly.
Xue Ying stared at Mo Qi, her eyes sparkling.
"When did you arrive?" Mo Qi asked, turning to Xue Ying after the three men had run off.
"I just enrolled this year. Fortunately, I got to see you. I heard before that you had an accident... Fortunately, I've been carrying a life spirit stone, and I knew you would surely be alive and well," Xue Ying said softly.
"You must have worried."
"No, I feel it's my blessing to have someone to worry about like this. I feel very—happy." The word "happy" was spoken so quickly that Mo Qi didn't quite catch it, but he deeply felt the tender affection in her words.
In the past, oh so long ago, he wished all women in the world would favor him alone.
But after experiencing many desperate situations, he suddenly realized that one person's shoulders could not bear the weight of the world!
The more people he interacted with, the more intimacy he shared, the more people he would inevitably let down!
How could he avoid letting them down?
At some point, he began to feel lost.
"Is your father doing well?" Mo Qi asked, breaking the silence after a moment of contemplation.
"He's doing quite well."
"And Xie Yucai? Is he doing well?"
"I haven't seen him in a long time either."
"Come to my room for a while later," Mo Qi said after a moment of thought.
"Okay."
A short while later, the three men returned as promised. Mo Qi admonished them to reform, start anew, study hard, and strive for excellence. The three men made assurances and grand pronouncements, after which Mo Qi let them go.
Mo Qi then took Xue Ying to his residence.
The moment Xue Ying stepped into the room, she was stunned, "How can you live in such a spacious house alone? How do you have this kind of privilege?"
"It's not exactly a privilege. I am now a teacher at the Heaven Tier Academy."
Upon hearing this, Xue Ying was utterly shocked, "Te-teacher? What class do you teach?"
"Sun Chasing Star Plucking Art!"
Xue Ying was so astonished her jaw nearly dropped, "I'm going to attend that class tomorrow."
"Student Xue, you must listen carefully tomorrow, otherwise, the teacher will have to resort to the cane!" Mo Qi said with a smile.
Xue Ying blushed, lowering her head, "Could you bring yourself to do it?"
Mo Qi looked at her, as delicate as a flower and tender as a sprout, feeling somewhat intoxicated. He quickly averted his gaze.
Then, Xue Ying walked around the room and emerged, stammering that the house was large but a bit desolate.
Mo Qi didn't think too deeply about what she meant and made some small talk before escorting her back to her dormitory.
The person who shared her dormitory was not present that day, so Mo Qi went in to sit for a while before leaving.
The next day, in the Sun Chasing Star Plucking Art class, as usual, the streets were empty, and the lecture hall was packed.
As Mo Qi stepped onto the podium, a wave of boos immediately erupted.
It was simply because his youthful face was too distracting.
Xue Ying watched from below with nervousness, her palms sweating. She wanted to help but was powerless.
Some students shouted, "What is this? Is the Heaven Tier Academy out of people? You can't just find anyone to teach if you're short-handed!"
"What's going on? Is Teacher Mo sick? If Teacher Mo is sick, shouldn't the class be canceled? Why are they being so perfunctory?"
"If you're going to be perfunctory, you could have let me teach. Why find someone like this?"
Mo Qi scanned the crowd below and said, "I stand up here, and you sit down there. There's a reason for that." His voice was not loud but clearly reached everyone's ears.
Several of the loudest hecklers had their eardrums burst, bleeding from their ears.
Many were stunned into silence, but a portion of them shouted even louder, "Birdman, what kind of technique are you using? Are you trying to suppress us with techniques?"
Mo Qi's eyes blazed like torches as he looked at the people below, saying, "I'm not trying to suppress you. I'm telling you, if you lack ability, focus on listening. If you have ability, then speak to others!"
The Soul Suppressing Technique had been quietly unleashed, like an invisible clamp, fiercely pinching the hearts of those individuals. For an instant, their movements ceased, making them feel as if death had descended. Even though the touch was fleeting, an endless shadow still loomed.
Everyone was terrified, falling silent as if struck by fear.
Silence reigned.
Then, Mo Qi began his lecture.
He, too, emulated Mo Yi Gu, transmitting his voice directly into everyone's ears. At this point, everyone realized that this teacher indeed had some skills.
Xue Ying let out a sigh of relief, a proud smile gracing her face.
At this moment, a girl sitting beside her leaned over and whispered in her ear, "This is my husband." Then, she became so embarrassed that she couldn't control herself and buried her face in the desk.
Her name was Murong Yanran, and she shared a dormitory with Xue Ying.
Xue Ying was surprised. Had girls become so infatuated nowadays?
Whatever, if she wanted to be infatuated, that was her business.
If she wanted to have a spring dream, that was also her business.
The class was delivered with great flair and passion.
Many who had attended once even felt he lectured better than Mo Yi Gu. Mo Yi Gu merely read from the lesson plans, reciting incantations for spells and theories for concepts.