Qin Yi glared fiercely at Ye Futian. Seeing the smile on his face, she couldn't help but recall three years ago, when he was just twelve years old. During the talent assessment, facing many important figures from the academy, his clean face had worn a natural and proud smile, completely different from the nervousness and anxiety of the other youths.

The results of that assessment were astonishing: heaven-grade perception of spiritual energy, and a natural talent for martial arts cultivation.

Now, three years had passed. Apart from his perception talent, which remained, his cultivation level had not progressed at all. He was lazy, idle, and rarely seen in lectures. Yet, his eyes were the same as they had been three years ago.

"What if you don't succeed?" Qin Yi asked.

"Then whatever you want, Qin Yi," Ye Futian replied.

"I hope you won't ruin Yu Sheng's future," Qin Yi said, glancing at the resolute young man sitting at the back.

Yu Sheng, with his heaven-grade perception of metal attributes and his eighth-level awakening, the Hundred Transformations stage, was even stronger than Qin Yi, who was at the seventh-level awakening, the Profound Mystery stage. His future should not be hindered.

"Alright," Ye Futian nodded. But was that even possible?

Qin Yi walked back to the lectern, her beautiful eyes scanning the room. "There's one month left until the autumn exams. I hope you all make the most of your time. By next year's spring exams, another group of outer disciples will officially enter the academy. Ling Xiao, you've already reached the sixth-level awakening, the Peerless stage. Feng Qingxue, you've been stuck at the fifth-level awakening, the Divine Strength stage, for a while now. I hope you can both advance further by next year's spring exams."

The first stage of cultivation was called Awakening, also known as the Nine Levels of Awakening: Qi Gathering, Body Refining, Meridian Opening; Iron Bones, Divine Strength, Peerless; Profound Mystery, Hundred Transformations, and Unity.

If one could undergo seven awakenings before the age of eighteen and reach the Profound Mystery stage, they could officially become a disciple of Qingzhou Academy, as long as their performance in the spring exams wasn't too poor.

"Don't worry, Qin Yi," Ling Xiao nodded in agreement. Feng Qingxue clenched her fists, feeling closer to her goal.

"Dismissed," Qin Yi said softly, then walked out of the classroom. Many young men's eyes followed her graceful figure. Once Qin Yi's figure disappeared, many turned their fierce gazes toward Ye Futian. This scoundrel had dared to disrespect their goddess.

"Ye Futian," a clear, cold voice called out, drawing everyone's attention. The voice belonged to the girl who had reminded Ye Futian earlier, Feng Qingxue.

At fifteen, Feng Qingxue had already blossomed into a beautiful young woman. Her eyes were particularly striking, her features delicate, and her entire being radiated youthful energy, giving off a pure and lovely vibe. When she stood up, her long, slender legs and elegant curves were immediately noticeable.

"How could you do that?" Feng Qingxue asked, her eyes filled with anger as she glared at Ye Futian.

Ye Futian looked at the girl's inexplicable anger, raised an eyebrow, and then smiled. "Are you jealous?"

Feng Qingxue was momentarily stunned, then looked at him with exasperation. "What are you going to tell Uncle Ye?"

"Tell my father?" Ye Futian blinked, then remembered his father's comment about Feng Qingxue having good childbearing hips. His gaze involuntarily drifted to her curvaceous figure, and his expression turned peculiar.

"What are you thinking about all day? We're still young. We can think about having kids later," Ye Futian said earnestly. As soon as these words left his mouth, the room fell silent once more. Many of the young men felt their anger boiling over.

This scoundrel! How could he be so shameless? Just moments ago, he had publicly disrespected Qin Yi, and now he was saying such inappropriate things to the pure and innocent Feng Qingxue.

Did he have no shame?

Feng Qingxue was stunned, then remembered an off-color joke Uncle Ye had once made to her father. Her face instantly turned red. Was this shameless guy deliberately twisting her words?

"What I meant was, how are you going to explain to Uncle Ye if you get expelled from the academy after the autumn exams?" Feng Qingxue said, her chest heaving. What was going on in this guy's head?

Clearly, she didn't believe that Ye Futian, who was only at the first level of awakening, could pass the upcoming autumn exams.

"Impossible," Ye Futian shook his head lightly, looking at the girl.

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"Three years, stuck at the first level of awakening, yet still acting as if nothing's wrong, laughing and joking as usual. I also want to ask, Ye Futian, do you even know how to write the words 'shame' and 'honor'?" A cold voice suddenly rang out. Many turned to look at the young man sitting behind Feng Qingxue—Ling Xiao.

At the sixth level of awakening, the Peerless stage, and following the wind-element mage path, Ling Xiao was undoubtedly one of the most talented outer disciples of Qingzhou Academy at the age of fifteen. He had a chance to officially enter the academy in next year's spring exams.

Ling Xiao didn't even look at Ye Futian as he spoke. His gaze was fixed on Feng Qingxue as he continued, "The lowest of the low, yet daring to speak so casually to a shining genius like you. Where does his courage and confidence come from? It reminds me of the saying, 'The ignorant are fearless.'"

Ling Xiao voiced what many had wanted to say but didn't dare. They all looked at Ye Futian with scorn. This guy, when it came to shamelessness, was truly unmatched.

Yu Sheng had somehow appeared beside Ye Futian. When he stood there, his presence alone exuded a powerful aura, causing many of the mocking gazes to shrink back.

"Yu Sheng," Feng Qingxue called softly.

"Yeah," Yu Sheng nodded casually, but his eyes were fixed on Ling Xiao, radiating intense pressure.

"The ignorant are fearless?" Ye Futian wasn't angered by Ling Xiao's mockery. Over the past three years, he had experienced this many times. Some people liked to step on others to prove their own superiority, especially in front of beautiful girls.

"Do you think you know a lot?" Ye Futian asked indifferently.

"When it comes to cultivation, what I know is naturally beyond your understanding," Ling Xiao replied calmly. A first-level awakening trash who rarely showed up to lectures—how could he not be ignorant?

"How can a warrior defeat a fire and metal dual-element mage?" Ye Futian suddenly asked. Ling Xiao was stunned, then sneered, "Are you showing off your stupidity? Not to mention a dual-element mage, even a single-element mage of either fire or metal would be nearly invincible in a one-on-one fight, as long as they're not stupid enough to let the warrior get close."

Mages could use spells, giving them an advantage in solo combat over warriors. This was undeniable, and the warrior's chances of winning were extremely low.

"Idiot, if the warrior's level is higher, of course they can win," Ye Futian mocked. Ling Xiao was stunned, his face darkening. The others in the room also looked at Ye Futian. Wasn't this question just shameless?

"When you bring up battles between different professions, it's assumed to be under the premise of equal levels. What's the point of such a cheap trick?" Ling Xiao sneered.

"Equal levels, huh? What if the warrior is a body cultivator and has trained in movement techniques?" Ye Futian asked again. Many in the classroom were stunned, beginning to think. Body cultivators had strong explosive power, and if they also trained in movement techniques, they could close the distance to a mage quickly.

"You mentioned a fire and metal dual-element mage. With fire spells enveloping their body and the strong defense and attack power of metal, even at close range, they wouldn't be weaker than a body cultivator," Ling Xiao retorted coldly.

"What if the body cultivator also trained in a combat skill like Ninefold Shatter, combining it with their explosive power? Do you think metal's defense would hold up?" Ye Futian asked with a hint of disdain. "As for the mage's attacks, you should know they'd be meaningless."

Ling Xiao's expression grew more serious. Indeed, a body cultivator trained in movement techniques could avoid direct spell attacks. In theory, Ye Futian was right.

"This is all just theoretical. It has no practical significance," Ling Xiao naturally couldn't admit defeat.

"Exactly, how could a mage lose to a warrior?" someone chimed in.

"Parroting others, yet claiming to be knowledgeable and mocking others for being ignorant. Let me ask you a simpler question: Are there differences in how people cultivate at the first level of awakening, the Qi Gathering stage?" Ye Futian asked again.

"Martial cultivators perceive spiritual energy to gather Qi, while mages are more sensitive to single-attribute spiritual energy, making their Qi purer and more potent. Thus, they gather Qi based on their elemental affinity. If both are martial cultivators, there's no difference. But for mages, depending on their element, there are differences in the Qi Gathering stage," Ling Xiao explained, considering various factors.

"Idiot," Ye Futian glanced at Ling Xiao with disdain, then turned to leave.

"What do you mean?" Ling Xiao frowned, watching Ye Futian's retreating back. "Can't argue anymore, so you pretend to win and leave? How laughable."

"This guy really knows how to put on an act," someone mocked.

But as they spoke, a dazzling light suddenly appeared around Ye Futian's body. It was a flow of Qi, circulating around him like a radiant screen. The mocking gazes behind him froze, their expressions turning incredibly vivid.

Ye Futian was at the Qi Gathering stage. He was using reality to show everyone that his Qi Gathering stage was different.

Ling Xiao's expression darkened. Qi flowing around his body, radiating light—was this really the first level of awakening, the Qi Gathering stage?

Yu Sheng followed Ye Futian, and soon their figures disappeared outside the door. After they left, the classroom erupted in chatter.

"That scoundrel's Qi Gathering stage is actually different from others."

"So what? He's been stuck at the Qi Gathering stage for three years. Of course, it's a bit different. If we were as useless as him, we could do the same."

"Exactly, three years at the Qi Gathering stage. Where does he get the confidence to act so arrogant?"

"How dare he say such things to Qin Yi and Feng Qingxue? Despicable, this scum."

"Ling Xiao, don't take it to heart. No matter how pretty his theories are, if he faced you in person, you could crush him with a finger," someone said loudly to Ling Xiao, and many others agreed.

Ling Xiao pondered for a moment, then smiled brightly. That's right, why bother with such a lowly existence?

"Qingxue, that guy has no self-respect. I know you've been close since childhood, but you should keep some distance from him," Feng Qingxue's friend, Murong Qing, advised. She had always disliked Ye Futian. With such a low cultivation level, how could he still act so smug?

"That guy is really too much," Feng Qingxue said, somewhat annoyed.

"Qingxue," Murong Qing saw that Feng Qingxue wasn't taking it seriously and said earnestly, "You need to wake up. You're on the verge of becoming an official disciple of the academy. You should be thinking about your future. His behavior could affect your reputation, yet you don't seem to care. What will others think? Is someone like that really worth it?"

Feng Qingxue's beautiful eyes narrowed. She hadn't thought about it that way.

"It's time to grow up. Keep your distance from him, or better yet, cut ties with him," Murong Qing continued to advise.