‘Ye Yunfei, you were down there in the water for these three entire days?’
Dean Shangguan asked, feeling relieved to see Ye Yunfei unscathed, but also rather shocked.
It had to be understood that the waters of the Heavenly Dragon Pool contained a terrifying press of energy.
To have stayed below the surface for three days without the slightest harm done…
That was somewhat astounding.
‘That’s right. The spiritual energy was denser further down, so I submerged myself to cultivate,’ Ye Yunfei fabricated an excuse off the cuff.
‘How deep did you go?’ Dean Shangguan inquired.
‘About a few dozen meters, I suppose,’ Ye Yunfei replied.
‘A few dozen meters my foot! It was at least a thousand!’ Xiao Hui, Wen Zi, and Dugu Huan thought to themselves, unable to help their silent disagreement with Ye Yunfei’s claim.
‘It's fortunate your descent did not exceed a hundred meters. Otherwise, it's hard to say whether you would have come back up alive,’ Dean Shangguan remarked.
Just what would his reaction be if he knew Ye Yunfei’s descent had not only exceeded a hundred meters, but had reached the pool floor fifteen thousand meters down, and that he had even removed the energy source of the Heavenly Dragon Pool itself—that Heavenly Jiao skeleton.
From that moment on, one could say that the Heavenly Dragon Pool was no longer the cultivation holy land it had once been.
‘However, don’t ever mess around like this again. The Heavenly Dragon Pool is incredibly perilous; the slightest misstep could cost you your life. I wouldn’t dare venture deep into it myself, let alone you,’ Dean Shangguan warned him.
‘Alright,’ Ye Yunfei answered casually, unconcerned.
Having once been a Heavenly Emperor, why would Ye Yunfei be daunted by the mere skeleton of a heavenly jiao?
‘Alright then. Let us depart.’
Dean Shangguan led the six students away from the valley.
‘Ye Yunfei, Feng Yun'ao, Wen Zi, the three of you stay. The others may return.’
After they exited the valley, Dean Shangguan announced his decision.
Hearing his words, the six students immediately understood what was happening.
Those who secured the top three positions in the New Student Ranking Tournament earned the qualification to become Seed Students.
‘Ye Yunfei, it's because of you that I lost the chance to be a Seed Student!’
At this moment, boundless resentment filled Qin An’s heart.
Originally, with his strength, he had been confident about defeating Wen Zi.
It's just that, during the competition for the top three, Ye Yunfei had gravely injured him with a single punch, robbing him of his ability to continue fighting.
Thus, in the end, Wen Zi squeezed past him into the top three.
‘Ye Yunfei, I swear that one day I will shatter you into ten thousand pieces!’
A vast, inexhaustible killing intent seethed within Qin An’s breast.
However, he understood clearly that at this moment, he was absolutely no match for Ye Yunfei; all he could do was endure and bide his time.
Qin An, Xiao Hui, and Dugu Huan activated their movements and departed straight away.
‘The three of you, by securing the top three positions in the ranking tournament, have earned the right to become Seed Students. Tomorrow, you should relocate to the Seed Student area and select a mountain peak to serve as your personal residence from now on.’
Dean Shangguan announced.
‘Additionally, while becoming a Seed Student is an honor on the surface, it also means accepting many high-difficulty trials and challenges. You must be psychologically prepared for this. Furthermore, the Seed Student system operates on elimination.
‘There are two ways to be eliminated.
‘The first: After becoming a Seed Student, within one year, you must rank within the top thirty of the Hidden Dragon Three Rankings*. If you fail to do so, you will automatically lose your Seed Student status.
‘The second: Two years after you become a Seed Student, any ordinary student of Hudao Academy who is at the same major cultivation realm as you can issue a formal challenge. If you are defeated, your status as a Seed Student is forfeited to the challenger.
‘Therefore, one's status as a Seed Student is not fixed. It is the survival of the fittest. Understood?’
Dean Shangguan's gaze swept across Ye Yunfei and the other two as he explained.
‘Understood,’ Feng Yun'ao and Wen Zi answered.
Ye Yunfei also nodded.
Within Hudao Academy existed the Hidden Dragon Rankings, divided into three separate lists: The Hidden Dragon Heaven Ranking targeted students at the Liquid Yuan Realm. The Hidden Dragon Earth Ranking targeted those at the Foundation Yuan Realm. The Hidden Dragon Yellow Ranking targeted students at the Condensed True Yuan Realm. As new students, Ye Yunfei and the others had already heard about the nature of these rankings.
‘These are your new identity tokens.’
Dean Shangguan waved his hand, sending three tokens flying, each landing before one of the three.
Then, Dean Shangguan’s figure flashed as he soared into the sky and vanished in an instant.
The three of them also departed.
A short while later,
Ye Yunfei returned to his small courtyard in the new student residential area.
Wu Heishan, Xiao Hui, Yuan Dayong, and Dugu Huan were already waiting for him there.
‘Boss, congratulations! From now on, you're a Seed Student!’ Wu Heishan exclaimed loudly as soon as he saw Ye Yunfei.
‘Ye Yunfei, congratulations,’ Xiao Hui also said.
However, Ye Yunfei could sense a touch of disappointment in her tone.
After awakening her True Phoenix Physique, the True Phoenix bloodline had instilled a certain pride and reluctance to be inferior to others within Xiao Hui's heart.
‘Xiao Hui, I will impart to you a cultivation technique called the Phoenix Dance Across the Nine Heavens. This technique is especially suited for someone with a True Phoenix Physique like yours. I believe that by cultivating it, your future achievements will be no lesser than any Seed Student's.’
Ye Yunfei told her.
Phoenix Dance Across the Nine Heavens was one of the high-level techniques stored in Ye Yunfei’s memories. In Ye Yunfei’s mind now, Xiao Hui was like a kindly younger sister from a neighboring family, so he didn’t mind passing on such a high-level technique to her. Ye Yunfei believed the Phoenix Dance Across the Nine Heavens was far superior to any technique possessed by Hudao Academy.
‘Phoenix Dance Across the Nine Heavens?’ Xiao Hui was stunned.
Ye Yunfei took out a jade slip and immediately etched the Phoenix Dance Across the Nine Heavens technique into it, handing it over to Xiao Hui.
Xiao Hui took it and began reading the contents.
Soon, a look of excitement appeared on her lovely face.
‘This technique… it’s so beautiful, so profound! And it truly is perfectly suited for me! I feel as if it was tailor-made just for me!’ Xiao Hui cried out.
‘Ye Yunfei, are you truly giving this technique to me?!’
Xiao Hui raised her head, her beautiful eyes fixed on Ye Yunfei.
‘It’s already in your hands. Why would I be joking?’ Ye Yunfei said with a smile.
‘Ye Yunfei, thank you! I’m going to go cultivate it right now!’
Xiao Hui took the jade slip, turned, and immediately left, returning to her own courtyard to begin cultivation.
‘And you, focus on diligently cultivating the Thousand Severity Saber Art. It is far more powerful than you imagine. Your future achievements will likewise be beyond the reach of any Seed Student within Hudao Academy.’
Ye Yunfei said as he looked towards Dugu Huan.
‘I know. I’ve already begun cultivating the Thousand Severity Saber. This saber art has utterly captivated me; I’m enchanted, unable to extricate myself.’
Dugu Huan replied, his eyes revealing a hint of enthrallment, even a touch of fanaticism.
A faint, intangible sabre intent immediately emanated from his body.
‘Hmm. A born saber-user. You will certainly achieve something noteworthy on the path of the saber!’
Watching this, Ye Yunfei nodded inwardly.
*(Author's Note: Earlier context (Chapter 390) establishes that the ‘Hidden Dragon Three Rankings’ consist of three separate rankings targeting different cultivation levels: the Hidden Dragon Heaven Ranking (for Liquid Yuan Realm), Earth Ranking (for Foundation Yuan Realm), and Yellow Ranking (for Condensed True Yuan Realm) students.)*