There were seven people in total. Leading them was an elderly man who was a powerful Saint King. Although his aura had somewhat restrained, he still couldn't hide his vast pressure.
As fellow Saint Kings, his aura was several times stronger than that of the Saint King who spoke to Long Chen.
Behind the old man were six young men—four men and two women. Their faces bore traces of travel, seeming a bit tired, but their expressions were arrogant as they looked around.
The group of seven was dressed in white robes and flowing robes, drawing a lot of attention. The elder speaking with Long Chen looked even more shocked as he shouted out their backgrounds.
"That's me. May I ask what advice you have?"
When Long Chen saw this group arrive, his heart trembled. Even without the old man, he sensed a familiar aura from the bloodline fluctuations and roughly guessed their origin.
"Are you Long Chen?"
When Long Chen admitted his identity, the six young men and women were instantly incredulous. They sized him up from head to toe. The two women's eyes lit up when they saw him, but a look of defiance appeared on the faces of the four men.
"The ten of us risked our lives crossing the Sea of Shattered Stars, three of us perished, all just to see him?" A man's face showed disdain and anger.
"Did I send you here?" If you don't want to stay, then get lost! Being targeted, Long Chen immediately felt annoyed and refused to indulge him.
Since the return of the Dragon Bone Evil Moon, Long Chen's personality has gradually returned to his true self—defiant against heaven, earth, and air, specializing in all kinds of dissatisfaction.
"You..."
"Shut up!"
At this moment, the old man stopped the man, turned to Long Chen, and smiled:
"Let me introduce myself. This friend is right. We come from the Tianhuang World of Emperor Heaven. The entire Tianhuang World, seven hundred thirty-six provinces, are all under the jurisdiction of our Long family.
I'm not talented, but I was appointed as an outer sect steward, responsible for coordinating external affairs. To put it bluntly, it was just running errands and passing messages, but in reality, it was a tough job. The
old man's tone was calm and humble, but the content was not low. He introduced the family's strength and claimed to be an errand boy, and combined with his Saint King power, he gave off an impression of high status yet modest, reserved, and approachable.
This old man was quite skilled. Long Chen nodded and said, "We are all guests from afar. If you don't mind, please have a chat in the courtyard." "
Sorry to bother you!"
The old man was modest and followed Long Chen toward the academy gate.
"Did a battle just happen here?" Lingxiao Academy is said to be the oldest academy in the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths. I really can't understand how these thieves would come from, daring to offend the academy's divine might. The old man pretended to glance around, a bit surprised.
Pretending, really good at pretending, as if you just noticed yes. This old man was too embarrassed to ask directly, so he made subtle hints that made people feel embarrassed not to answer.
Long Chen didn't really like people who beat around the bush, but he had to admit, this old man was skilled at questioning and never made anyone uncomfortable.
"I'm not very sure either. I heard it's from some force called Tianfu." Long Chen said.
"Tianfu"
The old man's expression changed, and the six young men and women cried out in shock, their eyes filled with disbelief.
"Have they admitted to being the Death Hunter clan?" The old man asked.
"Not really. They can become invisible, just my guess." Long Chen didn't want to say much more about this matter.
"Tch, so you were just guessing!" A young man sneered.
"Xiuyang, watch your attitude!" The old man shouted.
After scolding the man named Xiuyang, the old man turned to Long Chen with a forced smile and said, "I'm truly sorry. This child has never left the Tianhuang World in his whole life, never seen much of the world."
He's usually pampered, has limited experience, and doesn't have much to achieve. Don't take him seriously! "
Damn, old guy playing this game with me, huh?" Long Chen laughed, a bit sinister. At first, this old man seemed decent, but now he's playing dirty tricks with me.
His words set up a trap for Long Chen. If Long Chen held a grudge against him, he'd be seen as useless. He mentioned "experience." As the dean, Long Chen was a kid. With just one sentence, Long Chen was elevated to a high level, so Long Chen's hand couldn't reach that guy named Xiuyang.
Alright, just wait. Play this trick with Master Long. If you don't use some tricks, I don't think you know your Master Long is both literary and martial.
"What are you saying? How could I possibly hold a grudge against a child? You're underestimating me!" Long Chen smiled faintly.
Hearing Long Chen say this, the old man smiled slightly, as if he were an old fox who had succeeded in a scheme. The man named Xiuyang was displeased, but after receiving a glare from the old man, he fell silent.
Long Chen led everyone into a side hall of a pavilion. Seeing that Long Chen was receiving them not in the main hall but in a side hall, the old man's eyes showed a hint of displeasure, but he was shrewd and said nothing.
At that moment, a female disciple came up. Long Chen instructed, "Go brew a few good cups of tea, wait a moment... Long Chen seemed
to remember something and whispered something in the female disciple's ear. The disciple was stunned for a moment, a strange expression appearing on her face, but she still nodded.
"Dean Long Chen, young and promising, known as the youngest branch dean in the history of Lingxiao Academy. I wonder if the academy has a rule? Branch deans can't receive guests in the main hall?" Finally, the old man couldn't help but speak.
That was a bit of a low-level remark. Long Chen chuckled, knowing this guy was upset, and in the end, he couldn't help but make a move.
"No, no, no, although I am the branch director, the director isn't here, so everything here is up to me.
You are looking for me for personal matters, but the main hall is where I work. I want to ask, are you looking for me, or for Lingxiao Academy?" Long Chen retorted.
"This... Of course, it's to Dean Long Chen. Ahem, you're right. Private matters really can't be handled publicly. Dean Long Chen keeps his work and private matters separate, which is admirable. The old man cleared his throat and gave an awkward smile.
You little rascal, playing this trick with me, playing with you isn't the goal. I can ruin you. Don't be fooled by your age—playing this game is my ancestor.
At that moment, the female disciple had already returned. On the tray she held in her jade-like hands were seven exquisite teacups and a strange bottle.
The female disciple distributed the tea to everyone and handed the strange bottle to Xiu Yang. Xiu Yang was stunned, opened the bottle, sniffed again, and his expression changed:
"What is this?"
The female disciple replied, "It's milk!" "
Why is it that everyone else has tea, but mine is milk?" Xiuyang said angrily.
"What kind of tea is a child drinking?" Be good and drink your milk. The female disciple said disdainfully.
"You're asking for death!"
Xiuyang was furious. Even a female disciple dared to humiliate him like this, picking up a bottle and smashing it at the disciple's face.
"Smack"
—the female disciple struck even faster, slapping him across the face and knocking him to the ground.