Everyone else looked at Xiao Tian with reverence. He had completely defeated the three strongest competitors and their entire team, and this terrifying strength had deeply convinced them.
Many other people from the Outer Academy were watching as well. Entering the Inner Academy was a dream for everyone there. Among the onlookers, Instructor Ruo Lin was also present, accompanied by Xiao Ning and Xiao Mei.
The study door slowly opened from the inside, and Hu Gan walked out. He quickly scanned the surroundings and launched into a long, stirring speech.
Hearing his words, most of the students showed excited expressions. Although the excitement wasn't quite at the level of "Do you know how much a loaf of bread costs?", it was still fairly significant.
"The location of the Inner Academy is extremely confidential. Even most of the instructors don't know it. Therefore, a special person will lead you in this time."
As soon as Hu Gan finished speaking, ten enormous dark figures flew in from the distance, finally stopping above Xiao Tian and the others.
"Five people per group. You can choose which Gryphon to board yourselves."
Once Hu Gan finished, several impatient students immediately jumped onto a Gryphon's back. Due to their insufficient strength, they slipped off the smooth feathers and then sheepishly settled into the fixed seats on the Gryphon's back.
Without at least Great Dou Master strength, one couldn't stand steadily on a Gryphon's back.
Xiao Tian and his three companions directly chose a Gryphon. Except for Xiao Yu, who was a little shaky at first, Xiao Tian and the other two stood firmly on it.
With the Mysterious Spirit Pill and Three-Pattern Azure Spirit Pill given by Xiao Tian, along with her changed cultivation technique, Xiao Yu had broken through from a five-star Dou Master to a one-star Great Dou Master in just two days.
Hu Jia jumped straight onto the Gryphon where Xiao Tian was. Xiao Tian and the others merely glanced at her and paid her no further attention.
Under Hu Gan's instructions, the Gryphon pilots began guiding the beasts to slowly ascend.
Hu Gan and three Dou Huang-level Elders summoned their Dou Qi wings and took flight, guarding the four corners of the Gryphon group.
Xiao Tian wrapped his arms around Xun'er from behind and used his Dou Qi to form a protective shield, blocking the wind generated by their flight.
"The Inner Academy isn't even within the main academy itself. It's truly mysterious." Xiao Yan watched the Gryphons fly towards the back mountain, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
"The Inner Academy has always been mysterious. Even most Inner Academy disciples can't find their way without a Gryphon leading them." Hu Jia nodded from the side.
Afterwards, Xiao Yan tried to subtly extract some information from Hu Jia, but he got nothing. Hu Jia didn't know much about the Inner Academy either. Her grandfather never told her anything.
"Xiao Tian, aren't you curious about the Inner Academy at all?" Hu Jia asked, watching Xiao Tian and Xun'er stick to each other like glue. Her teeth itched with envy, and she spoke in a low voice.
Inwardly, she cursed without pause. *What a dog of a man, flaunting his affection whenever he gets the chance—and with the Xun'er I've always dreamed of, no less.*
"Not curious. We'll know once we're inside. The Vice Dean already said fists are the truth. If a path is blocked, use your fists to open it."
Xiao Tian was already clear about the situation in the Inner Academy. With his strength, he wasn't worried about any problems.
Xiao Yan heard Xiao Tian's confident words and inwardly noted that this Fire Energy Hunting Competition would be a good chance to get rich. At least for a while, he wouldn't have to painstakingly earn Fire Energy on his own.
The Gryphons flew over a vast primeval forest. Many Magical Beasts rushed out to intercept them, but all became fallen souls beneath the hands of Hu Gan and the three Elders. These were all low-tier Magical Beasts. Only Tier 5 Magical Beasts possessed human-level intelligence.
After an hour of flight, they arrived at a mountain gorge where the Gryphons landed. Under Hu Gan's instructions, Xiao Tian and the others all jumped off.
Amidst the bewildered gazes of the crowd, Hu Gan unleashed a burst of Dou Qi energy towards the space before them.
The Dou Qi struck the air, and ripples like water waves spread. A silver gate, seven or eight zhang high, shimmered into view.
"Follow me. Inside is the Inner Academy."
The silver gate slowly opened. Hu Gan waved his hand and walked through. The students eagerly followed.
After crossing the gate, the scene didn't change much—except that two old men and about ten young people now stood before them.
They all wore badges shaped like spires. Xiao Tian glanced at the two old men and presumed they were Elder Su and Elder Qing.
After Hu Gan introduced them, Xiao Tian thought to himself: *Indeed.* That meant the Fire Energy Hunting Competition was about to begin.
After Hu Gan and the two Elders exchanged pleasantries, Elder Su stepped forward and loudly addressed the students. "All students, congratulations on passing the selection competition and successfully entering the Inner Academy."
"Do you see the people behind me? They are the ones who passed last year's selection. Their rankings were only mid-to-low back then, but after cultivating in the Inner Academy for just one year, they now possess such strength."
Hearing this, most of the new students below showed fervent expressions. For cultivators, a rapid increase in strength was an immense temptation, and the aura of the young people standing before them was undeniably powerful.
Seeing their emotions stirred, Elder Su smiled meaningfully and continued. "Although you have passed the Inner Academy selection, it's not over yet."
Elder Su waved his hand, and fifty black rays of light shot out, stopping in front of Xiao Tian and the others.
Xiao Tian reached out and took the dark crystal card before him. On it was a transparent mirror with a large red number written on it: "Five."
"Perhaps you're curious about what this crystal card is, but due to time constraints, explaining it is too troublesome."
"You only need to know one thing now: the number on this crystal card is very important to you. Guard it as if it were your life."
After seeing the new students put away their crystal cards, Elder Su pointed to the forest behind him. "Your current task is to cross this forest and reach the end."
"During this time, the group behind me—apart from killing—will use every means to obstruct you and snatch your crystal cards. The number inside your card is an immense temptation for them."
"We call this the Fire Energy Hunting Competition. The number in your hands is called Fire Energy. There are also rewards for reaching the end. The sooner you arrive, the more generous the rewards."
"Now, I announce, the competition begins! Dear new students, start your great escape!"
---
In the dense forest, seven people stood under a tree.
As the view zoomed in, it was precisely Xiao Tian's group of four plus the former three strongest of the Outer Academy.
Before gathering here, they had already witnessed a team of new students having their Fire Energy snatched by the older students.
They were here now to discuss what to do next.
"This hunting competition is actually a contest between new and old students—or rather, a trial specially arranged by the Inner Academy to curb the arrogance of new students and temper them."
"From Elder Su's words and the greed in the older students' eyes, we can infer that this thing called Fire Energy is extremely important in the Inner Academy. It's a rare cultivation resource."
The other six all nodded at Xiao Tian's words, even Bai Shan, who still harboured hostility towards him.
"Then we can guess that these older students might have even more Fire Energy on them," Xiao Tian continued, his voice carrying a hint of temptation.
Xiao Tian naturally knew that these older students had a lot of Fire Energy, and some had even bought their way into this competition with Fire Energy.
"Brother Tian, are you saying we should snatch theirs instead?" Xiao Yan's eyes lit up, and he licked his lips. This was just like his time in the Black-Corner Region—except he couldn't kill anyone here.
"No."