"Why is Prince Xue Beng here?"
Meng Shenji's face changed drastically, and in that moment, he could already imagine the uproar that Xue Beng's death would cause.
What made it worse was—
Xue Beng wasn't the only one who died here!
Even though it had been a natural disaster, they couldn't completely shirk responsibility.
Right now, the three Deans had only one urgent question: Why was Xue Beng in this area?
Upon hearing Meng Shenji's words, Ning Rongrong gave a cold snort. "Xue Beng being killed by a meteorite is exactly what he deserved. In fact, I think he got off too easily."
Her words made the expressions of the three Deans subtly shift.
Judging by her tone, it was obvious—Xue Beng must have provoked this little princess.
Thinking back to the prince's notorious arrogance, and then glancing at the girls standing beside Qi Lin, an ominous premonition arose in the Deans' minds.
Xue Beng had shown up here…
Could it have had something to do with Ning Rongrong and the other girls?
If that were the case, then things were about to get much more complicated.
At that moment, Sword Douluo raised an eyebrow at Ning Rongrong's attitude and asked, "Rongrong, did that Xue Beng bully you?"
Ning Rongrong immediately clung to his arm, pouting. "Grandpa Sword, I want to lodge a complaint!"
"Today, my friends and I went to visit Brother Qi Lin. That Xue Beng showed up with a bunch of good-for-nothings and tried to pick a fight. Then he actually ordered his men to kidnap us and take us to his palace!"
"What?!" Sword Douluo's eyes erupted with two piercing beams of cold light. A chilling, murderous sword aura surged skyward, and the sound of swords humming echoed across the entire Heaven Dou Academy.
Even the three Deans stumbled slightly, a single thought crashing through their minds:
Disaster has struck!
"This Xue Beng has some nerve—to even lay his hands on the little princess of my Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan!"
"A son's misdeeds are the fault of the father!"
"I'll be paying a visit to Emperor Xue Ye myself to ask how he's been raising his son!"
"Please calm your anger, Sword Douluo!" Meng Shenji was jolted awake by Sword Douluo's fury and quickly interjected.
"While it's true that Prince Xue Beng was in the wrong, he has already paid the price with his life."
Ning Rongrong snorted again.
"His death has nothing to do with us. It's not like we summoned the meteorite."
"Either way, the Heaven Dou imperial family owes us an explanation."
Qi Lin also smiled faintly at Meng Shenji. "Not just Rongrong—the Heaven Dou royals owe us all an explanation."
"A prince, trying to break a teacher's legs within the academy? If outsiders heard this, they'd think Heaven Dou Academy was some kind of lawless den of criminals."
"If this is the kind of students the Academy raises, then maybe it's time for the Academy to shut down—for the Empire's sake."
The Deans' expressions filled with shame.
"Teacher Qi Lin is absolutely right," one of them said. "From today on, we old men will place much greater emphasis on character and discipline."
"As for Prince Xue Beng, we will report everything truthfully to His Majesty and the Crown Prince. With their wisdom, they will surely provide a just explanation to Teacher Qi Lin."
Qi Lin nodded slightly, satisfied.
Sword Douluo added coldly, "My Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan will also demand a formal explanation from Emperor Xue Ye."
The three Deans could only sigh and dispatch messengers to notify the Crown Prince. As for the emperor, they would need to report in person.
At the same time, Ning Fengzhi and Bone Douluo arrived. When they saw Ning Rongrong unharmed, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as she was safe.
"Father! Grandpa Bone!"
Ning Rongrong ran over to them, overjoyed.
"Rongrong!" Ning Fengzhi smiled warmly and stroked her hair. "Your first time away from home for this long—did you miss your father?"
"I did! I missed you, Grandpa Sword, and Grandpa Bone too!"
Sword Douluo interjected smugly, "She just said she missed me the most."
Bone Douluo's eyes bulged like bronze bells. "Nonsense! How could she miss you the most, old sword freak?"
"Obviously she missed me the most. Right, Rongrong?"
"Old bones, even if the sky falls, she still missed me the most! If you don't believe it, we can settle this with a fight!"
"Hmph, bring it on. Think I'm scared of you?"
Seeing the two elders bickering like overgrown children, Ning Rongrong stepped between them and raised her hands.
"Alright, alright! I missed both Grandpa Sword and Grandpa Bone equally!"
Only then did the two old men snort and stop quarreling.
Meanwhile, Ning Fengzhi approached Qi Lin with a graceful, refined smile.
"You must be Teacher Qi Lin?"
"I've heard much about you. Meeting you today, you truly live up to your reputation."
Facing Rongrong's father, Qi Lin adjusted his normally laid-back demeanor slightly and responded with a smile, "You're too kind, Sect Master Ning."
"These past days, Rongrong has been under your care. You must have worked hard."
"She's been spoiled by us in the clan since she was young—I imagine she's caused you a fair bit of trouble. I must apologize on her behalf."
Rongrong pouted and muttered, "I've been very well-behaved with Brother Qi Lin."
Then she looked at Qi Lin, her eyes twinkling. "Isn't that right, Brother Qi Lin?"
Qi Lin chuckled. "Sect Master Ning, Rongrong's right. She's been diligent in her studies and has caused me no trouble at all."
"I'm glad to hear that," Ning Fengzhi said with a satisfied nod.
After chatting a bit more, Qi Lin glanced around at the increasingly chaotic surroundings and suggested, "This place isn't really ideal for conversation. Shall we go somewhere more comfortable?"
"Good idea."
Qi Lin then led everyone back to his dormitory.
On the way, Ning Fengzhi happened to notice something and commented casually, "Hmm? I noticed that the area around the meteorite's impact was mostly destroyed, but the section where Teacher Qi Lin lives seems barely affected."
It wasn't just Ning Fengzhi who noticed—Sword Douluo and Bone Douluo also picked up on it.
It was just too obvious.
The impact site and its surroundings looked like they'd been run over by a stampede, a complete disaster zone.
Yet the area where Qi Lin resided was practically untouched—aside from a few small cracks in the ground, it was as if nothing had happened.
Hearing Ning Fengzhi's question, Qi Lin smiled. "I'm not sure about the exact reason either. Maybe I just got lucky."
Truth be told, he really didn't know why his area had been spared.
Of course, he wasn't interested in digging into it either.
Because from the moment the meteorite fell—
He already knew the outcome.
And if you already know how it ends, what's the point of worrying about the process?