The Nether Palace was technically part of the Guanxuan Academy, but it had very few people.

Ye Guan slowly made his way to the entrance of the Nether Palace. When he arrived, a little girl suddenly ran out from inside and blocked him. With a childlike voice, she asked, "Who are you?"

Ye Guan looked at the little girl. She was about six or seven years old. Wearing a colorful dress with a long braided ponytail, she looked very cute.

Ye Guan smiled and asked, "Who are you?"

The little girl blinked. "I'm Little Fishy! You?"

"Ye Guan."

Little Fishy shook her head. "Never heard of you!"

Ye Guan suddenly pulled out a sugar-coated fruit skewer and handed it to her. "Here, this is a great treat called a Dao Hawthorn Fruit—"

"You're lying!"

Little Fishy glared at Ye Guan. "This is clearly a sugar-coated hawthorn! Dao Hawthorn Fruit. Do you think I'm easy to fool because I'm little? Let me tell you, my IQ is two hundred fifty!"

Ye Guan was momentarily stunned. "You know what this is?"

Little Fishy pouted. "Who doesn't know about sugar-coated hawthorns?"

Ye Guan's curiosity was piqued.

Little Fishy suddenly became cautious. "Are you here to see Sister Ji Xuan?"

"How did you know?" Ye Guan was astonished.

Little Fishy snorted. "Sister Ji Xuan is so beautiful. If I were a boy, I'd chase after her too."

Ye Guan laughed out loud. "Can you take me to see her?"

Little Fishy decisively shook her head. "No, no way. Sister Ji Xuan is mine! You better leave!"

Ye Guan couldn't help but laugh at the little rascal. He took out a glowing crystal and handed it to her. "Here, this is for you."

The crystal piqued Little Fishy's curiosity. She liked it, but she still shook her head firmly. "No, Sister Ji Xuan is mine, but if you give me this thing, I can notify her for you. However, I can't guarantee that she'll want to see you!"

Ye Guan smiled. "Deal."

Little Fishy grinned. "Wait here."

With that, she grabbed the crystal and ran away.

Watching Little Fishy disappear into the entrance, Ye Guan chuckled to himself, wondering where Ji Xuan had found such a cute little girl.

Soon, Little Fishy came running back. She stopped in front of Ye Guan and shook her head. "Sister Ji Xuan doesn't want to see you."

"What if I insist on going in?" asked Ye Guan with a smile.

The little girl blinked and replied, "Then I'll have no choice but to tearfully take your storage ring."

She even glanced at the ring on Ye Guan's finger.

"

Hahaha.

" Ye Guan laughed heartily. "You little rascal, are you trying to rob me?"

Little Fishy replied seriously, "You don't seem like a bad person, so you should leave. Even though you're handsome, Sister Ji Xuan won't like you. A man should focus on his career first. Once you have enough money and have become successful, many girls will like you. Without money or a career, even your parents won't care about you." Ȑ

Ye Guan couldn't help but laugh. "You sure know a lot for a little girl!"

"Little Fishy!" someone shouted from inside the hall.

A silver-haired woman appeared with a dagger in hand.

Ji Xuan!

Ye Guan's smile faded as he reminisced about the days they had spent together.

Ji Xuan was stunned upon seeing him. "Academy Master Ye?"

Academy Master Ye?

Ye Guan trembled slightly. It seemed that Qin Feng was right; she had no memories of the time they had spent together.

Ji Xuan walked up to Little Fishy and ruffled her hair. Then, she looked at Ye Guan and smiled. "Hello, Academy Master Ye."

Ye Guan forced a smile. "Hello, Miss Ji Xuan."

"Can I help you?" asked Ji Xuan.

Ye Guan shook his head. "No, I just came to visit."

"Oh," Ji Xuan responded and said nothing more.

Ye Guan smiled. "Miss Ji Xuan, won't you invite me in to sit?"

Ji Xuan hesitated for a moment and then said, "Academy Master Ye, please."

Ye Guan walked into the Nether Palace.

Little Fishy tugged at Ji Xuan's hand and asked, "Sister Ji Xuan, is he really the Academy Master?"

Ji Xuan nodded. "Yes."

Little Fishy stuck out her tongue. "He won't expel me, will he?"

Ye Guan suddenly turned around and looked at Little Fishy. Then, he said sternly, "I'll think about it."

Little Fishy's face immediately became gloomy.

Ji Xuan glanced at Ye Guan and smiled softly without saying anything.

Once inside the hall, Ye Guan saw ten statues of women.

Ye Guan bowed respectfully to the ten statues.

Ji Xuan asked, "Academy Master Ye, do you know my teachers?"

"Yes, not only do I know these seniors, but I also know you, Miss Ji Xuan." Ye Guan nodded.

Ji Xuan was slightly taken aback. "You know me?"

Ye Guan nodded and smiled. "Yes."

Ji Xuan's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Why don't I have any impression of you, Academy Master Ye?"

Ye Guan looked at her but didn't speak.

Ji Xuan stared at him. "Do you need something from me?"

"No," Ye Guan replied. Then, he opened his palm, and a storage ring slowly floated toward Ji Xuan.

Ji Xuan looked at it, puzzled. "What is this?"

Ye Guan smiled. "Senior Sky Maiden told me to give it to you."

Sky Maiden?

Ji Xuan looked at one of the statues in the distance, stunned. "My master?"

Ye Guan nodded. "Yes."

Ji Xuan glanced at him but didn't take the ring.

"Miss Ji Xuan, farewell for now." Ye Guan turned around to leave.

Just as he stepped out of the hall, Ji Xuan called out. "Academy Master Ye."

Ye Guan turned around.

Ji Xuan was looking at him. "Did we really know each other?"

Ye Guan nodded. "Yes."

"Were we friends?"

Ye Guan thought for a moment and then said, "It was a bit deeper than that."

Ji Xuan was stunned.

Ye Guan smiled. "Miss Ji Xuan, I'll visit you again when I have the time."

With that, he turned around and left.

Inside the hall, Ji Xuan was silent for a while before she finally put the storage ring away. Unbeknownst to her, a wisp of sword light quietly flickered within the storage ring.

Ji Xuan watched as Ye Guan disappeared into the distant starry sky. For some reason, she could not look away.

Little Fishy suddenly exclaimed, "Sister Ji Xuan, you're crying!"

Ji Xuan withdrew her gaze and ruffled Little Fishy's hair.

"The wind is strong today, so some dust got into my eyes."

***

After leaving the Nether Palace, Ye Guan slowly moved forward through a starry expanse.

"You've pretty much handled everything at home. What's the plan now?" asked Little Pagoda. He was still curious about Ye Guan's earlier talk about how he was going to go against the Dao.

Ye Guan smiled but didn't say anything.

Little Pagoda grumbled, "You little brat, you're keeping secrets from your Master Pagoda now?"

Ye Guan laughed. "Master Pagoda, this time, I've decided to take the initiative."

"Indeed."

Just as Ye Guan was about to speak, a lady appeared beside him—she was Nalan Jia.

Ye Guan hurried over and grabbed her hand with a smile. "Why are you here?"

Nalan Jia softly asked, "Are you leaving?"

Ye Guan nodded. "Soon."

The Devourer Civilization's retaliation was nigh, but he had no plans of sitting and waiting for it. He was going to respond in a different way; he had enough of being the underdog.

Nalan Jia nodded slightly, looking sad. She didn't speak, but her hands gently caressed her belly.

Ye Guan bent down and pressed his ear against her belly. After a moment, he laughed. "This little one is kicking up a fuss."

Nalan Jia smiled warmly.

"When this little one is born, we'll let Master Pagoda take care of them!"

"What?!" Little Pagoda immediately panicked. "Don't even think about it, you brat! You're the last person that I'm going to raise from your family. I'm going to retire and enjoy life after all this."

Ye Guan replied seriously, "I can't trust anyone else. I can only feel at ease if Master Pagoda takes care of them."

Little Pagoda grumbled, "Stop the nonsense."

"

Pfft!

" Ye Guan laughed heartily.

Nalan Jia also smiled and shook her head. Then, she held Ye Guan's hand, and her gaze became filled with affection.

Ye Guan wasn't in a hurry to leave. This was a rare opportunity, so he decided to spend some quality time with Nalan Jia.

Nalan Jia handed over the academy's matters to Li Banzhi and the other members of the Committee so she could accompany Ye Guan on leisurely strolls.

The two even secretly returned to Ancient Desolate City, reuniting briefly with their families.

Ye Guan visited the Sword Clan and met some old friends. Like his father, he also left behind a sword intent at the sect—not for showing off, but for research purposes.

Time passed quickly, and a month went by in the blink of an eye.

The geniuses and prodigies all over the many worlds and civilizations gathered outside the Guanxuan Guard Hall. They were all here for the Guanxuan Guard examinations, but they had already been eliminated.

They were here to see who had somehow succeeded.

Soon, people emerged from the distant teleportation array, and cheers erupted from the crowd.

"We did it! Someone from my Wang Family got into the Guanxuan Guards!"

The Wang Family members were so happy that they cried tears of joy. In the past, they couldn't even dare to dream of becoming a part of the Guanxuan Guards. Even if they had the strength, without connections, there was no way a slot would go to their family.

However, one of their members actually made it into the Guanxuan Guards!

They were just an Outer Guard, but it was nothing short of life-changing.

Soon, more people emerged, and more groups burst into cheers.

Those nearby clapped and congratulated them.

Just then, a man appeared on the teleportation array. He was Fang Yu. The Fang Clan members erupted into wild cheers upon seeing him.

Fang Tang rushed up and hugged Fang Yu tightly. "Brother Yu, you did it! You did it!

Haha!

"

Fang Yu was thrilled as well. He had made it into the Guanxuan Guards without anyone's help!

"Brother Fang Yu, congratulations!" A voice echoed nearby.

Fang Yu was slightly taken aback, and he turned to see someone familiar.

Ye Guan!

Fang Tang and the others were stunned to see Ye Guan.

Fang Yu was also excited. He hadn't expected Ye Guan to come here, so he hurried over and hugged him tightly. "Brother Ye, why are you here?"

Ye Guan smiled. "I came to see you!"

Looking around at the onlookers, Ye Guan said, "Brother Fang Yu, I'm going first. Until we meet again!"

With that, he turned around and disappeared into thin air.

Fang Yu was left dumbfounded. The next moment, he whipped around and grabbed the stupefied Fang Tang by the collar, shouting, "To hell with your ancestors! I told you I wasn't bragging!"

Fang Tang. "..."

Fang Tang's ancestors. "..."