That purple scale was the size of a nail and glowed faintly. Upon closer look, there was an engraved pattern that protruded out slightly—it was Ling Xiao Academy’s totem!

And this scale was left behind by Ling Xiao Academy’s first director!

Different from the other directors after him, this director didn’t leave his name behind. He only left this purple scale to signify his status.

In actual fact, even though Ling Xiao Academy was the top academy in the God Residence Realm with a famous reputation, nobody knew the name of the first director. Back when he journeyed through the mainland, he had used many names, and nobody knew which were real and which were fake.

After creating Ling Xiao Academy, everyone only addressed him as ‘director.’

Tens of thousands of years had passed, and everything had changed. Legends and rumors of that person had mostly been drowned out in the passing years, and nobody brought him up again.

Only the appointed directors of Ling Xiao Academy had the right to know this person’s real name. Even though Elder Bo Yan was helping to take care of everything in the academy, he still had no power and right to see the name behind this purple scale.

He stared at it for a while before he averted his gaze and glanced at the last name on the page.

This person is still gone without a trace… Elder Bo Yan couldn’t help but sigh internally. “Director, you must come back quickly…”

Knock knock! 

Knocks were suddenly heard, interrupting Elder Bo Yan’s thoughts.

“Bo Yan, we’re in trouble!” This was Elder Wen Xi’s voice with rare anxiety and nervousness.

Elder Bo Yan’s heart sank slightly. He closed the book, put it away carefully, and turned around to open the door.

“What’s the matter?” Once he opened the door, he met Elder Wen Xi’s gaze filled with worry. I have never seen Wen Xi reveal such an expression. 

Elder Wen Xi swallowed a mouthful of saliva with much difficulty. “They’re here!”

“They?”

“The top-tier aristocratic families that went to the Flood-Desert Northern Region previously!” Elder Wen Xi spoke very quickly. “They said that… they have some things to clarify with Chu Yue, and they asked us to hand him over!”

“Ridiculous!” Elder Bo Yan’s blood boiled. “This entire incident was planned meticulously by someone. They can’t find out who the mastermind is, so they came to cause trouble for Chu Yue?!”

This is really illogical! 

“Bo Yan…” Elder Wen Xi took a deep breath in. “You also know that every single one of their families has people who died in the nine gullies. Chu Yue was the only one who went in and had clearly benefited from it. T-they feel that Chu Yue should give an explanation for this…”

Strictly speaking, Jiang Zhiyuan had gone in as well. However, she was chased out by Chu Yue not long later.

Back then, quite a few people had seen this clearly. Right after that… Chu Yue had somehow sealed the barrier, stopping others from entering.

These were all facts that couldn’t be changed. In that case, it didn’t seem baseless for them to push all of this to Chu Yue.

If not, they wouldn’t work together and storm Ling Xiao Academy.

Elder Bo Yan furrowed his brows tightly. I haven’t seen this incident personally, but I did hear Elder Hua Feng mention it. Back then, I already faintly felt that it was inappropriate. Now… trouble has really come! 

“I’ll meet them personally!”

…

Fangzhou City.

Compared to the bustling streets, it was empty and quiet now. Only the place where Ling Xiao Academy’s barrier connected was dark.

Everyone in the city had heard the news and carefully went back to hide. They were terrified that they would be implicated.

There were only a few dozen people standing here, but the factions they represented were all the top-tier aristocratic families and clans in the God Residence Realm!

With a random stomp of their feet, the entire God Residence Realm would shake!

Ordinary people naturally wanted to avoid this, but they had suspicions in their hearts. I wonder what happened that caused these people to make an alliance and confront Ling Xiao Academy? This is the first time this has happened in hundreds of years! 

…

The crowd stood at the side, and all of them were quiet.

The atmosphere was suppressive, and the air was stiff. It was suffocating.

Not far away on the other side, the few elders in charge of the barrier had dark expressions.

The two parties were in a stalemate and would explode with a touch!

When Elder Bo Yan rushed over, this was the scene he saw. Although his blood was boiling, he had to calm himself down first.

He took a deep breath in and was about to walk out of the barrier.

“Bo Yan…” Elder Wen Xi called him rather hesitantly. The incoming people aren’t friendly, and it would be dangerous for us to go out abruptly. 

Elder Bo Yan gave the few of them a reassuring gaze. These people only want to use their authority to force us to hand Chu Yue over. They don’t really want to go against Ling Xiao Academy completely. I currently represent the entire academy. They won’t dare to do anything against me casually. 

After comforting them, Elder Bo Yan stepped out of the barrier.

He stood in front of the barrier and cupped his fists toward the crowd. Then, he smiled and said, “Everyone, you’ve come a long way to get here. Why didn’t you tell us in advance? It won’t be good if we can’t host you properly.”

As he spoke, he silently scanned these people’s faces. Mm, they are mostly familiar appearances. Quite a few of them even have personal grudges. Today, they actually all stand on the same side so that we can hand Chu Yue over. How ridiculous.

“Elder Bo Yan, we’re all old acquaintances, so let’s lay our cards on the table!” A middle-aged man spoke. “I believe you already know why we’re here. Whether you want to hand the person over is up to you!”

Elder Bo Yan laughed, but there was no smiling intent in his eyes. “Since this is so, I won’t have to say any more nonsense. However, there has to be a reason if you want our Ling Xiao Academy to hand the person over, right?”

“Reason? Elder Bo Yan, you should know this reason, right? Do you dare to say that Chu Yue has nothing to do with the Flood-Desert Northern Region incident?” A slightly younger man spoke out loud. His face had a few hints of anger. “So many people died, and only Chu Yue has benefited greatly. Also, he clearly has something to do with the gully… You should just ask him to come out and speak to us clearly!”

Elder Bo Yan’s brows undetectably furrowed as he glanced at that young man. Many parties have collaborated, and their capabilities are formidable. This has even caused them to think too highly of themselves. 

“Chu Yue is my Ling Xiao Academy’s student. If he really has done something wrong, we will let this go. But if someone wants to smear his name and bully him… We definitely won’t agree!”

Elder Bo Yan’s tone wasn’t high, but every word was determined. There was a strong aura in his words!

The crowd immediately fell silent.

Elder Bo Yan then stroked his beard and slowly said, “Besides, you came at the wrong time. He has just been locked up in Fengmin Mountain. I’m afraid… he won’t be able to come out in a short period of time.”