"Yan Jiaojiao?"
"Are you really Yan Jiaojiao?"
The people from Ge Nan Academy were no less shocked than those from Sheng Bei Academy.
They had initially thought Yan Jiaojiao was trapped inside and would not be able to get out. They had been anxious, planning to rescue her as soon as possible, but unexpectedly, Yan Jiaojiao was so formidable that she emerged from within herself.
"How did you get out? Where are those magical beasts?"
The beast tide had looked terrifying at the time. How did Yan Jiaojiao manage to escape unharmed?
Yan Jiaojiao knew how to play the part of the puppet master, so she said directly, "I didn't make it to the teleportation array in time. I figured I was going to die either way, so I decided to just go for it and charge in. Guess what happened later? I actually broke through while fighting! Those magical beasts seemed to have found other food and ran off."
After speaking, Yan Jiaojiao touched her nose, her expression conveying, "I can't believe I had such good luck, can you believe it?" She continued, "And then I came out."
Everyone: "..."
Although Yan Jiaojiao's explanation seemed to have no flaws.
Yet, when they thought about it, for some reason, they felt like something was amiss everywhere.
"You mean the magical beasts let you go? How is that possible?" The people from Sheng Bei Academy were the first to disbelieve.
After all, they were the ones with connections to the demon race, and they had obtained the demon silk from them. They refused to believe that the magical beasts would simply leave.
Even if the magical beasts found Yan Jiaojiao terrifying, it had been a massive beast tide at the time. How could they just leave whenever they pleased?
At the very least, shouldn't they have fought with Yan Jiaojiao first?
But looking at Yan Jiaojiao, she didn't even have a drop of blood on her... Were those magical beasts that weak? Or was Yan Jiaojiao truly that powerful?
No, they would never believe it.
However, the elders had already approached. Compared to the disbelieving people from Sheng Bei Academy who knew the inside story, the elders were filled with astonishment.
They knew that the disciples of Ge Nan Academy would face a difficult journey this time, but the elders did not truly believe that Yan Jiaojiao could turn the tide.
Unexpectedly, a miracle had indeed occurred.
Although the elders were able to accept the decline of the former number one academy and were even willing to add fuel to the fire, this was based on the premise that the academy was truly "dying" without any genius disciples.
Now, it was evident that this academy still had vitality, and the elders naturally knew which way to lean.
In reality, these were just people who observed the situation and acted accordingly.
Because they, like everyone else, had believed that Ge Nan Academy would never recover, they had turned a blind eye to the bullying of Ge Nan Academy and had no intention of getting involved.
But now, seeing that Ge Nan Academy had produced such a person, they could no longer remain calm.
To not latch onto a strong contender was foolish!
Yan Jiaojiao was clearly destined for a bright future. If not now, then when would be the right time to build a good relationship with her?
"Yan Jiaojiao, how did you open the entrance to the Wang Liang Secret Realm? This place is fortified with a magic array."
"That's right, right, I'm curious about that too. This is an ancient formation. You actually know how to decipher it?"
The reason these elders were so excited, besides the desire to secure a strong ally first, was also because the formation had been deciphered by Yan Jiaojiao.
This formation was something even they couldn't decipher.
In fact, during the major competitions, they would first set up an illusion. All disciples who entered were actually teleported in, rather than going through the actual entrance.
They had studied the formation at the entrance for several years without achieving anything. To think that such a young junior like Yan Jiaojiao had actually opened it. How could they not be surprised?
Based on this alone, they had already determined that Yan Jiaojiao was an incredibly valuable asset.
Some people spent their entire lives hoping to see an ancient formation once, let alone decipher it.
Yan Jiaojiao was indeed a remarkable woman!
Yan Jiaojiao suddenly became the object of everyone's desire to curry favor. They all gathered around her, their presence so imposing that onlookers would think a powerful immortal had emerged.
The people from Ge Nan Academy were instead pushed to the side.
Wei Cong Ling was timid. Although she really wanted to squeeze in again, she remembered her low cultivation and feared she wouldn't be able to push past others, thus embarrassing Yan Jiaojiao. She could only purse her lips and shrink back.
Wen Jin Shu, however, was not as good-tempered.
She who had been a cold little goddess before had now completely transformed into a fan girl of Yan Jiaojiao.
She used all her strength to push the others away, frowning and shouting, "Get out of the way, get out of the way! What do you want to do to our academy's Yan Jiaojiao? Have you forgotten we are disciples of Ge Nan Academy? And have you forgotten that the积分结算 (point settlement) is still ongoing?"
"Don't you all want to know who will win first place in the academy competition?"
Wen Jin Shu originally thought that saying this would make others back off, but to her surprise, after she spoke, everyone responded in unison, "We don't want to know!"
Wen Jin Shu: "..."
Had these people gone mad?
Although Wen Jin Shu's efforts did not make others retreat from Yan Jiaojiao's side, Yan Jiaojiao saw the state of the Ge Nan Academy disciples. She smiled and directly unleashed her spiritual power. The surging spiritual energy, like waves, moved gently yet with an irresistible force, pushing away those who were blocking Wen Jin Shu and the others.
"Excuse me, I still have things to say to my academy's disciples. Moreover, I care very much about the result of this competition. Please proceed with the settlement. For you, this is just an ordinary academy competition, but for us, it is an unforgettable event. Our future lies in this point settlement. Please be accommodating."
If it were in the past, Yan Jiaojiao would never have been able to say such things.
However, after experiencing one event after another, Yan Jiaojiao had come to understand that simply crushing others was not enough when interacting with them.
Just like before, as an ancestor, she felt she had done nothing wrong to anyone. Yet, when she was slandered, those inferior to her all turned against her and imprisoned her.
If she hadn't inquired later, Yan Jiaojiao feared she would never have known that her overwhelming strength had always made others envious and jealous.
Those people respected her, but they were also angered by her.
They even resented her.
They hated her so much that they wished she would die.
Yan Jiaojiao did eventually die, fulfilling their wishes. But Yan Jiaojiao had a new beginning.
Although she still disdained trying to get along with those who targeted them, there were actually many innocent people here.
If she tried to build good relationships, perhaps they would be useful in the future.
The current Ge Nan Academy was like her now – no longer the number one academy on the Wu Jiang Continent, no longer the ancestor of years past.
It was time to lower her stance.
"Alright, alright, then we'll proceed with the settlement first."