Chapter 131: Matters of This Place

After Li Xi slowly left the classroom, everyone inside wore a uniform smile of relief, as if a weight had been lifted from their hearts. Once the teacher was gone, the students who were well-acquainted began to chatter away, no longer needing to concern themselves with propriety.

As Ye Junze and his group gathered, Yun Tianhan stretched his arms back and said with a relaxed air, "The classes for this week are finally over. I can finally get some good rest when I get back today."

Hearing this, the others couldn't help but smile, nodding in agreement.

Li Ling laughed and remarked, "In my opinion, I’m afraid you’re going to sleep through the entire weekend."

At these words, Yun Tianhan became instantly agitated. He glared at Li Ling and retorted, "What are you talking about! Am I that kind of person?"

Seeing the look on his face, Li Ling thought he was genuinely offended and was about to offer an explanation when he noticed Yun Tianhan’s playful, grinning expression.

"Yes, I am," Yun Tianhan said. "I didn't think you’d be able to see through me that easily, Li Ling. You’ve got quite the talent."

Li Ling waved his hand, flashed a middle finger at him, and grumbled, "Get lost."

Yun Tianhan merely shook his head, completely unfazed. Ye Junze and the others couldn't help but laugh at their bickering. It was clear that their smiles were genuine; after a busy week of classes, they all felt a profound sense of relaxation.

Once the banter died down, Li Ling proposed, "Alright, let's not just hang around here. Everyone else is mostly gone, so let's head back too."

Ye Junze and the others had no objections and nodded. Yun Tianhan was even more eager, adding, "Let's go. Once I get back today, I’m going to have a long sleep. Unless the sky falls, nothing is going to wake me up."

The group chuckled. Ye Junze teased, "Don't worry, if the sky really does fall, you’ll be the first one to wake up."

Yun Tianhan didn't mind and replied, "Look at you, telling the hard truth again."

With more laughter, the group left the classroom and headed out of the teaching building. As they walked through the Department of Taoist Arts, the teasing and playful chatter continued.

Suddenly, Li Ling, who was walking in front, seemed to recall something. He stopped and asked the others, "By the way, do you know that we have an Academy Grand Competition coming up in a while?"

Ye Junze nodded, "I've heard people mention it before, but I don't know the specifics."

Meanwhile, Yun Tianhan, Fan Yan, and Lu Renjia looked completely bewildered, as if they had no idea what the two were discussing.

Seeing their confusion, Li Ling explained, "I only heard about it recently from some friends. They say there will be a selection process across the entire academy. First, there will be competitions within each department to select the strongest students, who will then go on to compete against the top students from other departments selected in the same way."

With Li Ling’s explanation, the others nodded in realization.

Lu Renjia mused, "But in that case, since everyone is at different cultivation levels, surely they wouldn't make someone at the Qi Refining stage fight someone at the Foundation Establishment stage, right?"

Li Ling smiled and waved his hand. "Of course not. The matches are divided by cultivation level: Qi Refining against Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment against Foundation Establishment, and so on up to the Golden Core stage."

Lu Renjia nodded, satisfied. "That makes sense."

Ye Junze wasn't surprised by this; it was logical. An academy-wide competition wouldn't be fair if it didn't match opponents of similar strength. That was clearly the main purpose of the design.

Yun Tianhan, however, had other thoughts. He asked, "If it's such a big event, are there any rewards?"

Li Ling looked at him with surprise, then answered, "Of course there are. Not only will the final winners of the Academy Grand Competition receive prizes, but the winners of the departmental rounds will also be rewarded. The prizes are quite generous."

The group nodded, and Yun Tianhan’s eyes lit up with tangible excitement at the mention of the rewards.

"None of this is a secret," Li Ling added. "You can find all the details on the Yingze forum if you pay attention."

The group acknowledged this. For Ye Junze, rewards were standard for any competition. Whether he won or not wasn't the most important thing, but he would certainly do his best if the opportunity arose.

Soon, they reached a fork in the path and began to say their goodbyes.

"I’ll head off here," Li Ling said. "I have other things to attend to."

Fan Yan agreed, "That works. Our paths diverge here anyway. See you later."

"See you," Ye Junze said, waving.

"See you next week."
"See you, have a great weekend."
"Goodbye, I'm heading off!"

After the farewells, Li Ling, Fan Yan, and Lu Renjia went their separate ways, leaving only Ye Junze and Yun Tianhan.

"Let's head back too, it's getting late," Ye Junze said. Yun Tianhan agreed, and the two walked slowly toward the Qian Building.

The conversation along the way was mostly driven by Yun Tianhan, who kept discussing the competition. He even pulled out his phone to browse the Yingze forum, sharing posts with Ye Junze.

When they finally reached the Qian Building, they parted ways. Back in his room, Ye Junze felt the familiar pang of hunger. "Forget it, I'll eat first and worry about everything else later," he muttered.

He ordered his meal and headed to the bathroom to freshen up. While showering, he reflected on the events of the past week.

"I can't believe a week has already passed. I thought it would take much longer to adapt to this school. But I guess my capacity for acceptance is quite high. Then again, perhaps it's not so strange. After all, the past two years have been full of bizarre experiences that most people might never encounter in a lifetime. And the people here—the teachers, the seniors, Wang Dongdong, Li Ling, Yun Tianhan—everyone has been so kind. Perhaps that’s why I’ve adapted so quickly."

He realized that despite their different personalities, everyone he had met was genuinely kind and willing to help. It was this atmosphere that gave him a sense of belonging in this still-unfamiliar place.

He shook off these thoughts, telling himself, "I need to work even harder in the days to come."

After dressing, he found his meal waiting on the table. He smiled, thinking, "And perhaps I should add that the food here is delicious every single day."

Since it was the weekend, he took his time, savoring the meal as the minutes ticked by.