Li Tianying thought about many things in that instant.
For example, Li Yunxian had only been at the Wenwu Academy for a little over a week.
For example, just four days ago, she had confirmed Li Yunxian’s status with Qi Ke, and now the Splitting Spirit from Wenwu Academy was already coming to find her.
How much trouble must this be causing? Could she handle it on her own?
Li Tianying pondered for a long while before cautiously replying.
“What happened to her?” Li Tianying prepared to decide, based on the response, whether to go to Wenwu alone or bring a few others along.
The teacher from Wenwu replied with equal caution.
“Your student misses you.”
The message contained no mention of the Heavenly Ladder.
Since Li Yunxian only started showing greed after reaching the thirtieth level of the Heavenly Ladder, everyone knew just how doting Li Tianying was toward this student.
There was no way they would mention that the Heavenly Ladder wanted to run away with Li Yunxian.
If they had said that and Li Tianying suddenly lost her mind and assumed that since the Heavenly Ladder made a choice, it belonged to Li Yunxian—and decided to take the Heavenly Ladder to Tiantong—that would have been disastrous.
They chose the words that would most swiftly get a doting teacher to rush over.
Li Tianying let out a breath of relief as she read the message, then smiled softly at the news.
Her student was truly the best!
Li Tianying quickly replied, “She’ll arrive next Monday.”
That was just four days away.
Even earlier than the time Li Yunxian had previously mentioned.
Shortly after, Li Tianying saw the reply.
“[Throwing flowers][Fireworks][Heart][Heart]!” No words, but the joy on the other side was perfectly conveyed.
Li Tianying smiled back with several hearts.
Truly good sisters—they were so happy knowing she would arrive early.
Li Tianying deliberately ignored a possibility she didn’t want to think about.
At this moment, Li Yunxian was staring at the sealed entrance of the Heavenly Ladder before her.
It looked like it had been closed for some time.
So this definitely didn’t mean she was banned from the Heavenly Ladder forever, right?
Li Yunxian still hoped she would have another chance to come back and see the people she hadn’t met this time.
“Hey? Classmate, what are you doing here? The Heavenly Ladder was closed three days ago, and there’s no set reopening time yet. Didn’t you see the notice?”
A kindly passing student said to Li Yunxian, who seemed to be staring blankly at the entrance.
Li Yunxian paused for a moment, then confirmed with the student, “Closed three days ago?”
The other nodded and offered a common guess from everyone: “Probably the school took advantage of everyone being in the library and the Heavenly Ladder being quiet to do a major maintenance?”
Li Yunxian:
Three days ago—that should have been the first time she stepped onto the Heavenly Ladder, when it shook violently…
Come to think of it, wasn’t that Heavenly Ladder Spirit awakened by her shaking it like that?
Also, that library seemed somehow connected to her…
Li Yunxian thought for a moment, then decisively chose not to dwell on it.
She did good deeds in the library, and she climbed the Heavenly Ladder properly—she hadn’t done anything wrong!
Li Yunxian calmly returned to her temporary villa.
Only the principal of Wenwu Academy was not so calm.
She had just barely managed to soothe the Heavenly Ladder Spirit, but upon returning to her room, the first thing she needed to handle was the library incident.
Wenwu Principal:
Aren’t there usually just a few specific busy periods at the academy? Why have there been so many unexpected incidents recently?
After reviewing the entire sequence of events at the library:
Why is it always you, Li Yunxian?!
Looking at the reports, Li Yunxian had casually found the Fulu Primer, drawn a light talisman, then turned around to find the Array Primer, and quickly set up a pest-repelling formation.
Wenwu Principal:
She thought back to the reason she first went to the Heavenly Ladder.
When the ladder shook, Li Yunxian was the last to step onto it.
Then when Li Yunxian was about to leave, the Heavenly Ladder Spirit immediately appeared, wanting to leave with her…
The Wenwu Principal checked Li Yunxian’s records and soon saw the incident in Jin City, where Li Yunxian had discovered a void in her room and found a medicinal bathing recipe along with blood bones.
Could 《Scripture of Dominating the Divine Land》 be a documentary? Anything good, Li Yunxian was always the first to discover?
The Wenwu Principal couldn’t help but have this thought flash through her mind.
Yes, she had read those books herself.
They say what kind of principal you have reflects what kind of students you get.
At her cultivation level, she knew how strange fate was—some people were simply born with great luck.
Like her, and like Li Yunxian.
After handling the library matter, the Wenwu Principal went to Li Yunxian’s villa door.
Ding dong—
Li Yunxian heard the doorbell ring.
In truth, she didn’t even need the bell. From the moment the Wenwu Principal appeared outside her door, she sensed it.
The threat aura from the Consolidation stage made it impossible not to sense her.
She instantly grasped the jade token Su Wenjing had given her, just in case.
Having lived in the cultivation world for so long, Li Yunxian was used to preparing for the worst.
After all, the cultivation world wasn’t like here, where the righteous and evil were clearly divided—it was a mixed existence.
Those passing by might be human, or might be ghosts.
But the act of ringing the doorbell unquestionably announced friendly intent.
Li Yunxian rose and opened the door. Seeing the Wenwu Principal, she put on a questioning expression as if playing coy: “Teacher… may I ask what brings you here?”
The Wenwu Principal smiled kindly at Li Yunxian. “I came to apologize. Yesterday afternoon, I sent you off the Heavenly Ladder without notice.”
“Is it convenient to come in?” The principal glanced inside the villa and asked.
Li Yunxian saw that the principal seemed to want to talk, so she stepped aside to make room. “Please come in.”
The two entered. Li Yunxian found some decent-looking tea leaves in her storage artifact and poured tea for the principal before speaking honestly, “I was planning to descend the Heavenly Ladder yesterday afternoon anyway, so you actually helped solve my problem at the time.”
“And besides, the situation then…”
“That was the Heavenly Ladder Spirit, right?”
Li Yunxian, as the student of Array Master Li Tianying, a Consolidation stage master of magical tool crafting, knew some of the innate spirit treasure knowledge and said frankly, “Given the circumstances, your actions were understandable.”
“I can understand.”
Li Yunxian’s words held no trace of resentment, softening the principal’s expression considerably.
Looking at Li Yunxian, she felt she now fully understood why Li Tianying spoiled this student so much.
This rare talent who understood everything, was open-minded, clear-sighted, blessed with gifts and opportunity—but who never assumed the world revolved around her—was incredibly rare.
At least the principal was confident she couldn’t have been like this at Li Yunxian’s age.
If only Li Yunxian’s body could hold up, otherwise…
The principal believed Li Yunxian could definitely surpass her and go even further.
With these thoughts, the principal took a box from her storage artifact and placed it before Li Yunxian. “This is a gift for you.”
Li Yunxian was surprised.
Her divine sense could already detect what was inside the box.
“These are Dragonblood Fruits,” the Wenwu Principal said.
Even to Li Yunxian, these were rare treasures.
They were used for body tempering. Li Yunxian already had several medicinal formulas for improving physique, with Dragonblood Fruit as the main ingredient.
Moreover, their medicinal properties were very mild, meaning they could be eaten directly without refining.
They still had excellent body-tempering effects.
Even cultivators of lower levels could take them without fear of being overwhelmed by the medicine and dying.
The excess medicinal properties could be stored in the cultivator’s body, gradually exerting their effects as the cultivator’s strength and tolerance increased until the medicine was fully consumed.
They were truly celestial-grade fruits.
How rare exactly…
Simply put, they weren’t sold in the 《All Things》 marketplace.
In any world, these weren’t items you could buy no matter how much money you had.
But no matter how rare the Dragonblood Fruits were, they couldn’t compare to the rarity of the Heavenly Ladder, an innate spirit treasure. So the principal didn’t feel too reluctant to give them.
Things were meant to be used.
***
At her cultivation level, Dragonblood Fruits no longer offered much help.
The principal recalled the recent appearance of new cultivators from the star realms.
Those planets had to cultivate more strong individuals.
Then she saw Li Yunxian push the box back toward her.
“No need for compensation. I never intended to accept it.”
Feeling no loss, Li Yunxian refused the tempting gift from her heart.
“The soul of an innate spirit treasure won’t easily accept a master; it just wanted to play with me. Any intelligent being wouldn’t casually pick a master.
“But being playful is also a desire all intelligent beings have.
“So being sent off the Heavenly Ladder—I never felt like I lost anything.”
“I have no intention of taking a child with me.”
She had even resolutely refused Sheng Yu when he wanted her to teach swordsmanship, let alone the Heavenly Ladder Spirit, who was more like a three- or five-year-old in intelligence.
The Wenwu Principal was stunned.
She still remembered when Li Yunxian stepped onto the thirty-first level of the Heavenly Ladder, her suddenly heavy footsteps, and everyone seeing the greed in her.
The principal thought Li Yunxian surely wouldn’t refuse such a gift.
But…
You really can’t judge a person by what you think you know.
The Wenwu Principal smiled, “Just accept it. Accepting it is accepting the agreement, and only then can I be at ease.”
“If the Heavenly Ladder ever suddenly comes looking for you, I can step in and take care of it.”
Li Yunxian spoke her thoughts plainly, and the principal naturally was no less reasonable.
This was indeed an airtight explanation. Hearing it, Li Yunxian felt that if she refused, it would be as if she were preparing to find a chance to kidnap the Heavenly Ladder Spirit, this ‘child’.
Li Yunxian accepted the box and said to the principal, “If the Heavenly Ladder really comes looking for me someday, I’ll notify you immediately.”
The principal smiled and agreed, exchanging contact information with Li Yunxian. But after this, she showed no sign of leaving and instead brought up the other reason she had come.
“You found two scrolls left behind by tribulation-stage cultivators during your trip to the library, and when you ascended the Heavenly Ladder, you earned the Heavenly Ladder Spirit’s favor.”
“Opportunity has come to you. Are you interested in visiting Heaven’s Ruins?”
“I want to find something. Maybe you’ll encounter it,” the Wenwu Principal said.
This was the real reason she had come to see Li Yunxian.
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