Xia Feng City, the royal capital of the Xia Feng Kingdom in the northwestern region of the Tian Du Continent, bore a title that matched the kingdom's name.
This was the former capital of a bygone dynasty, once prosperous and renowned throughout the world. Later, it was conquered by the Xia Feng Kingdom, which replaced it and made it the new kingdom's royal capital.
After more than a thousand years of evolution and development, this capital, which had endured the ravages of war, had once again become a flourishing royal city. Even within the vast and expansive northwestern region, it was one of the quite famous capitals.
The permanent residents of the royal capital numbered in the millions. Located on the edge of the Lan Cang River—a famous, continent-spanning great river in the northwestern region—it was a transportation hub with convenient waterways and thriving commerce.
The royal capital had gates on all four sides, with flat, broad avenues formed by the convergence of numerous smaller roads leading straight into the city. Carriages and horses streamed like water, creating a scene of bustling prosperity that fully displayed the vibrant vitality of this capital.
"So this is the royal capital of the Xia Feng Kingdom? It's indeed no different from the memories of this life..."
On the flat avenue leading to the eastern gate, Ye Chen, who had been traveling for two days, was slowly riding a six-hoofed steed toward the royal capital.
Gazing from dozens of miles away at the massive royal capital situated on the vast land, it covered an extensive area. Its dark city walls, built from black rock, appeared towering and majestic, reaching a height of a hundred meters.
From a distance, it looked like a terrifying black beast crouching on the earth, lying dormant. Once awakened, it would display astonishing power and prestige.
It was no wonder it could become the capital of a kingdom. Not to mention its scale, just this intangible oppressive aura was enough to awe people and deter any rash actions.
This was the imposing presence of a royal capital, giving a feeling of being indestructible and immovable. The capitals of every great dynasty and kingdom were basically like this, possessing sufficient presence to deter invasion, overwhelming others with their aura from the outset.
Ye Chen's senses were sharp; he could feel numerous powerful auras within the royal capital, hidden and dormant. These were true experts. One could describe this capital as a place where crouching tigers and hidden dragons abode.
Walking along the avenue into the city, the streets were filled with prosperity. Cultivators came and went, and ordinary mortals also lingered about.
Along the streets of the royal capital, luxurious restaurants had been built to entertain and host cultivators from various places. Gambling dens, auction houses, and the like were all present, presenting a scene of vibrant vitality.
As Ye Chen made his way, revisiting the royal capital after two years, it remained as bustling and lively as in his memories, seemingly unaffected by the recent demonic beast disturbances. Countless pedestrians and a continuous stream of carriages and horses created a bustling, crowded scene.
However, he did not linger for long. Finding a restaurant for a meal and settling in briefly, his first priority was to head to the Xia Feng Academy.
The Xia Feng Academy was located in the southeastern part of the royal capital. Even in this land-scarce capital, the academy's area was still quite vast, occupying a full seventh of the entire royal capital, spanning over a hundred miles.
Even part of the academy extended outside the city walls, built against the mountains, making its actual area much larger than one might imagine.
Luxurious, tall buildings stood in great numbers, one after another, fully displaying the academy's wealth and influence. Just the main gate alone was five zhang tall, intricately carved and resplendent.
The four gatekeepers were all Houtian Eighth Layer experts. Such individuals would be considered significant figures in ordinary towns, but at the Xia Feng Academy, they were merely gate guards. This gave a sense of the academy's power.
Arriving before the academy and seeing the Xia Feng Academy, memories from this life continuously surfaced, giving him considerable understanding and stirring some emotion. Turning his head, he saw many young people lingering about, their gazes toward the Xia Feng Academy filled with longing and fervor.
The Xia Feng Academy, though far less famous and world-renowned than the Tian Du Academy—the cultivation holy land located at the continent's center—was, as the higher cultivation academy within the Xia Feng Kingdom, strongly supported by the kingdom. It was also the cultivation holy land for the entire Xia Feng Kingdom, coveted by countless people.
Once one obtained the qualification to enter and cultivate there, there were considerable benefits in every aspect. Even if one did not become a generation's top expert, after graduating, they would be sought after by various factions.
This point was beyond doubt.
Unfortunately, for these young people, compared to hope, their gazes toward the Xia Feng Academy held more of a dim, disappointed quality.
Because the Xia Feng Academy was not a place just anyone could enter. Only by passing the academy's strict enrollment trials did one have the qualification to enter; otherwise, entry was not permitted.
Clearly, these lingering young people were the type who could not pass the enrollment trials.
Ye Chen smiled slightly, then stepped forward to enter. Just then, however, the gatekeepers on both sides reached out to block him, their expressions serious as they said, "Please present your student token."
"Student token?" Ye Chen was slightly taken aback, not expecting that even entering the main gate of the Xia Feng Academy required a student token.
Seeing his dazed expression, the gatekeepers on both sides immediately darkened their faces and barked, "Since you are not an academy student, please leave immediately. Do not block the academy gate and affect other students' entry and exit."
Ye Chen rubbed his nose, looking rather speechless. Old Yan laughed heartily; it was quite rare to see Ye Chen at a disadvantage.
"Oh ho ho, could it be someone else trying to sneak into our Xia Feng Academy?" At that moment, an unpleasant voice rang out. Following the sound of footsteps, turning to look, it was several young noble masters dressed in splendid attire passing by. Seeing Ye Chen blocked by the gatekeepers, they let out a series of contemptuous, disdainful laughs, completely treating him like a country bumpkin.
Ye Chen's sword-like brows slightly furrowed, but he did not speak. Having lived two lives, his temperament was steady. There was no need to argue with such insignificant people; it was better to just treat it as the barking of dogs.
Although these young noble masters faced Ye Chen with disdainful arrogance, when looking at the gatekeepers, they straightforwardly took out their student tokens—black iron tokens. The front bore the emblem of the Xia Feng Academy, while the back had the character for "Yellow."
The Xia Feng Academy was divided into four major colleges, clearly distinguished as the Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow tiers. Similarly, student tokens were also categorized into four types.
The Heaven-tier Academy used gold tokens, the Earth-tier College used silver tokens, the Mystic-tier Academy used bronze tokens, and the Yellow-tier Academy used black iron tokens.
The black iron tokens in these people's hands were tokens for the Yellow-tier Academy.
Although they were only Yellow-tier tokens, the moment they were produced, the young people around the academy cast envious glances, especially those lingering here, whose gazes even carried a fervent heat.
Among the Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow four major colleges, even though the Yellow-tier Academy was at the very bottom sequence, what kind of place was the Xia Feng Academy? It was the gathering place for all the elite young generation of the entire Xia Feng Kingdom. Among the hundreds of thousands of young people nationwide, only these few had the qualification to enter the Xia Feng Academy. Even just being able to enter the Yellow-tier Academy represented their status.
Therefore, they had the right to be proud before those who couldn't even enter the Xia Feng Academy.
Feeling the envious, jealous gazes falling upon them, the several young noble masters quite enjoyed such treatment. Intangibly, it could boost their vanity and give them great satisfaction.
This feeling was something money could not bring; only strength could obtain it.
"See? This is the token only true Xia Feng Academy students possess. Not just anyone can have one," the young noble master who had first spoken to Ye Chen with disdain sneered. He wore a set of white, ornate robes inlaid with gold patterns, appearing of noble birth, his expression quite arrogant. He anticipated that Ye Chen, whom he regarded as a lowly person, would cast envious, jealous glances his way.
To their disappointment, however, Ye Chen's expression remained utterly indifferent from start to finish, as if the identity of a Xia Feng Academy student was no different to him than cabbage sold on the street. This left them feeling disappointed and also somewhat insulted, their faces involuntarily darkening.
The young master in white waved the black iron token in front of Ye Chen and snorted coldly, "Kid, can't you see what this token is? This is the real token of a Xia Feng Academy disciple. A country bumpkin who doesn't understand anything shouldn't randomly barge into an important place like the Xia Feng Academy. It's not somewhere you can just casually enter."
Facing the young master in white's almost showy waving of the token, Ye Chen still just gave it a casual glance, utterly dismissive. He didn't want to bother with these childish fellows who, in his eyes, were just little kids. He walked straight toward the gatekeeper station.
Ye Chen's actions further angered the group, wounding their pride. They abruptly stepped forward, blocking Ye Chen's path, not letting him advance further.
Ye Chen stopped, his sword-like brows furrowing with a hint of displeasure. "Move aside."
"Move aside? Move aside for what?" The young master in white sneered incessantly, blocking Ye Chen and preventing his advance. "Kid, didn't this young master warn you just now? The Xia Feng Academy isn't a place a lowly person like you can just casually enter. Be sensible and scram away quickly. Don't be an eyesore and don't sully the academy, understand?"
"Right, Young Master Wu is absolutely correct."
"This guy doesn't know where he came from, how can he have no sense of rules at all? Doesn't he know a sacred place like the Xia Feng Academy isn't somewhere country bumpkins like him can just casually enter? If he really entered, wouldn't that pollute the academy?"
Beside Young Master Wu, several other similarly splendidly dressed young masters echoed Young Master Wu's words, presenting a united front against the outsider, disparaging Ye Chen.
Ye Chen's brows furrowed deeper. "I'll only say this one last time. Move aside."
"Move aside? Move aside for what?" Young Master Wu suddenly burst into laughter, even more contemptuous, looking at Ye Chen with arrogance and disdain. "What are you saying? Why can't I hear it? Kid, didn't this young master tell you? This is the Xia Feng Academy, not a place a country bumpkin like you can just step into. If there's a next time, this young master will bring people to beat—"
*Thud!*
Before Young Master Wu could finish his sentence, a fist smashed into his face. Instantly, his entire person was sent flying over ten meters away. His nose was crushed, five or six teeth flew out, blood flowed freely, and he rolled on the ground howling in pain.
"Told you to move aside but you stubbornly wouldn't. Really need me to hit you before you're willing to scram. I've seen shameless people, but never seen someone as shameless as you. Truly despicable!" Ye Chen said coldly, stunning everyone present.