The next morning, when Xiao Yun arrived outside Vice Dean Hu Qian's study, he found the open space in front of the building already crowded. Clusters of students stood together, chatting in low voices. There were seven or eight groups in total, each sticking with their own circle. The largest, unsurprisingly, was centered around Fang Wen and the three others.
The moment Xiao Yun appeared, the once lively square quieted considerably. Nearly every pair of eyes turned his way. Though he wasn't tall or physically imposing, the awe in their gazes was unmistakable. After all, during the recent selection trials, Xiao Yun had personally smacked nearly all of them off the stage with his long spear. That kind of experience left a lasting impression.
Xiao Yun paid no mind to their stares. Without a word, he walked calmly through the crowd and stopped at the front of the square. Closing his eyes, he stood silently, waiting.
At the edges of the square, a crowd of outer court students had gathered to watch. Some were here to see their friends off, but most had come for one reason: to witness the chosen few ascend to the legendary Inner Court. For any outer court student, entering the Inner Court was the pinnacle of honor. Even if they weren't qualified yet, watching others succeed sparked motivation in their own hearts. Someday, they hoped, they'd be the ones being watched.
After waiting for over ten minutes, the tightly closed doors of the study finally creaked open. Vice Dean Hu Qian stepped out, followed by several elder instructors. At their appearance, the noisy square fell silent—first gradually, then completely. The entire area was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.
Hu Qian swept his gaze over the fifty students assembled before him. Seeing that no one was missing, he nodded with satisfaction and took a step forward, raising his voice:
"Students, today marks your entry into the Inner Court. Congratulations! Your hard work has finally paid off."
He paused for a moment before continuing, "I won't lie—adapting to the training in the Inner Court may be difficult at first. But one thing I can promise you… is that it will push your potential to the absolute limit! I'm not just talking big. After a year in the Inner Court, you'll barely recognize your former selves."
His words stirred a ripple of excitement through the crowd. Some nodded in agreement, clearly the ones who had friends in the Inner Court and had seen the transformation with their own eyes.
Hu Qian smiled knowingly. "You've probably heard stories. Some of you may have even met Inner Court students on their rare breaks. So you know how drastic the change can be. The difference between someone who's just entered the Inner Court and someone who's spent a year there... is like night and day."
The excitement among the students grew palpable. Most were practically glowing with anticipation. What Hu Qian said was exactly what they longed for—strength, transformation, and recognition. The Inner Court represented all of that and more.
They were ready. No matter how harsh the training might be, they would grit their teeth and endure it.
To even stand here meant they'd already beaten the odds—every one of them had earned this moment through sweat and talent. None of them were naïve enough to think power came easy.
Hu Qian continued, his tone becoming more formal, "The Inner Court is the heart of Jia Nan Academy. Due to its sensitive nature, most outer court students and even instructors don't know its exact location. Therefore, we will be transporting you to a designated site."
He raised his head and looked toward the sky. In the distance, ten black dots were flying toward them.
As they approached, the black shapes grew larger, soon revealing themselves to be enormous gryphons—part lion, part eagle, and all majestic.
The gryphons cast wide shadows as they flew over the academy, eventually circling down to hover above the square. Their powerful wings stirred up fierce gusts of wind, causing some of the weaker students nearby to stagger.
Hu Qian raised a hand toward the beasts. The gryphons responded by descending in a sweeping arc and landed not far from the square. Each massive creature had two riders already mounted on its back, handling reins and preparing for the flight.
"Alright," Hu Qian announced. "Time to go. Line up in groups of five according to your academy ranking and board the gryphons."
The moment the words left his mouth, the students could no longer contain themselves. With whooshes and flashes of movement, they dashed toward the gryphons, leaping skillfully onto their backs and settling into the sturdy saddles.
Once everyone was mounted, Hu Qian and the elders looked around one last time. Confirming all fifty students were accounted for, they exchanged glances and nodded.
Then—whoosh!
In a blur of motion, Hu Qian and the three elders rose into the air, shimmering wings of Dou Qi unfurling from their backs. With just a gentle flap, they floated effortlessly above the square, suspended like lords of the sky. The students below watched in awe.
Every cultivator dreamed of this moment—the freedom of flight, unchained and unbound.
"I'll be escorting you personally, along with the elders," Hu Qian said with a smile, hovering above them like a general leading his troops.
At that signal, the gryphon riders blew sharp whistles.
Fwooosh!
The gryphons beat their massive wings, rising into the air with a thunderous gust. One by one, they soared skyward, forming a majestic procession heading toward the academy's sprawling, misty mountain range behind them.
Hu Qian and the elders formed a protective diamond formation around the fleet. Powerful Dou Qi swirled visibly around them, creating an impenetrable aura that shrugged off the fierce mountain winds.
Below them stretched an endless sea of ancient forest, home to countless magical beasts.
From time to time, the trees below rustled violently as aggressive monsters burst from the underbrush, roaring at the sky. Some even attempted to leap into the air, or fly up themselves, trying to attack the passing gryphons.
But the moment they came within a hundred meters, Hu Qian and the others would unleash a wave of terrifying pressure—so intense that the charging beasts faltered, whimpered, and fled with their tails between their legs.
However, as they ventured deeper into the range, the attacks grew more serious.
After about half an hour of flight, the gryphon convoy entered the truly wild parts of the mountains—areas infested with powerful and territorial magical beasts. Some of these monsters were so fearsome, they ignored the oppressive aura and charged forward with suicidal recklessness.
And then… the elders struck.
With just a flick of the wrist, torrents of Dou Qi energy lashed out like lightning bolts. Each time, the students would hear a deep boom—then look down to see enormous beasts exploding into chunks of meat and splashes of blood mid-air.
Xiao Yun and the others sat atop their gryphons, slack-jawed. The magical beasts attacking them were, by all appearances, third-rank—easily strong enough to give any of them a deadly fight.
But before those monsters could even roar twice, they were turned into meat confetti by the vice dean and elders.
Blood mist followed the convoy like a gruesome tail as Hu Qian and his fellow Dou Emperor experts carved a path through the sky with unstoppable force.
The Inner Court, they realized, wasn't just a place of training—it was a whole different world.
And they were now on their way in.