There were many students at the academy; the Hundred Halls had the highest number. The majority came from smaller sects or nothing at all, but that was only when compared to imperial lineages. Ultimately, they still had some resources and backers.

　　As for Yao Ting, three generations of her ancestors were all mortals. There were other students like her but this was quite rare.

　　Even those who started with nothing at least had cultivators in their family tree; a vagabond cultivator still counted. Thus, so they were at least taught or given pieces of advice beforehand.

　　Alas, those close to Yao Tin such as her parents or the elders in the village were true mortals. They were now people from two separate worlds. Even if Yao Ting had something on her mind such as being bullied, she couldn’t say anything to her family.

　　Therefore, being shown concern by Li Qiye made her feel much better. Even back in their first meeting, he had given her a sense of closeness just like a family member. During her lonely moment, his comforting words made it seem otherwise.

　　“I understand, Teacher.” Yao Ting felt much better and gently nodded: “I only wish to train hard at the academy so I can join Sacred Inst.i.tution later.”

　　Yao Ting spoke from the heart. She came from a small village and though her teacher viewed her highly, she was starting from the bottom up. Plus, her talents weren’t enough for the academy to place her in Sacred Inst.i.tution, so she needed to go to Hundred Halls first then wait for a promotion if her results were outstanding.

　　Just like that, she trained hard without caring about romance. Alas, life wasn’t that simple sometimes.

　　“I see, someone is targeting you.” Li Qiye said: “But don’t you worry, the academy has been standing strong for one era to another. As long as you are really a gold ingot, then you will eventually s.h.i.+ne without rotting away. There are many teachers watching as well. Just become stronger and work hard then joining Sacred Inst.i.tution is only a matter of time. The thing you need to do now is to focus on cultivation alone, nothing else.”

　　As a previous teacher here, he was aware of the situation. People and compet.i.tion went hand-in-hand. So many students from the hall wanted to enter the inst.i.tution, so one could imagine the fierce compet.i.tion among them.

　　Yao Ting was a n.o.body so the other compet.i.tors would try to take her down. It was one thing if she was just an average student. Alas, her talents were quite exceptional so she had a good chance of entering Sacred Inst.i.tution. Because of this, she became a thorn in others’ eyes.

　　“Thank you for your advice, Teacher.” Yao Ting could see the sun after the clouds; her hazy worries dispersed instantly. 

　　Ultimately, the only thing that she could do given her circ.u.mstances was to work harder than her peers due to a lack of backers.

　　Li Qiye’s comment was a calming pill to her mind. If he could guarantee so, then she didn’t need to worry about foul plays from the students coming from the great powers.

　　“I repeat, just focus on cultivation, forget everything else. If someone keeps on pus.h.i.+ng the issue, just let me know.”

　　“Thank you, Teacher.” She replied.

　　Li Qiye chuckled while looking at her. In his mind, he was recalling her ancestors once more. They didn’t wish for their descendants to join the cultivation world but she was here at the academy now. Perhaps this was the working of fate. 

　　He was a reasonable person who knew how to be grateful. Out of consideration for her ancestors, he wanted to lend her a hand and hope that she would soar in the future on this path.

　　“Oh? Isn’t this our Hundred Halls’ good girl?” A girl suddenly spoke with a tinge of mockery in her voice.

　　Five girls came into the restaurant; all were students from the academy. They were around eighteen of age and grew up to be quite pretty. The leader was especially beautiful with a n.o.ble and charming aura. Her gestures were imposing by nature so she clearly came from a powerful place.

　　She walked towards Yao Ting with a sneer on her face. She looked at Yao Ting then at Li Qiye before implying: “What is our good girl sneaking here for? Having a secret date with your lover? You’re sneaking around like this because you don’t want Senior Yan and the others to know, right?”

　　Yao Ting turned red but she restrained herself: “Ye Qiaoxiang, watch your words!”

　　“Watch my words?” The girl smiled and said: “Then why are you sneaking here with him? What else but to do certain things you don’t want others to know.”