"Ah?"

Gong Cheng's expression was very serious: "The Spiritual Qi in your body is extremely precious, very useful, and can provide great protection for our Human Race warriors.

But right now, that's not possible. You're still too weak, and you'd only be a burden to the team."

Du Yu: "..."

As he grumbled to himself, Du Yu suddenly recalled the Demon Taming Treasure·Demon Fire, and hurriedly asked, "Instructor Gong, today I just briefly explored the first two levels. If I keep going deeper underground, will the Cold Qi always avoid me?"

Gong Cheng shook his head: "Once the concentration of Cold Qi in the surroundings is high enough, it won't matter if they avoid you or not—it's everywhere. As long as you refill Demon Breath, some Cold Qi is bound to enter your body. It's very dangerous."

Du Yu felt a little worried: "There's still too little Spiritual Qi in my body. If I keep cultivating in this environment, I don't know when I'll be able to break through. I'm a bit afraid it'll get extinguished by the Cold Qi."

Gong Cheng suddenly suggested: "The Shadow Gu Tower is an extremely rare opportunity. Didn't you consider trying again?"

Du Yu said softly, "Master Qing asked me to reach Demon Tamer Journeyman·Peak Stage before I qualify to explore again."

Gong Cheng reached out toward the Little Fire Fox: "You have an exceptionally powerful Demon Pet. Maybe your requirements can be relaxed a bit... hmm?"

"Ying~" Xiaoyan dodged Gong Cheng's hand. Hiding behind Du Yu, her tail naturally curled around Du Yu's shoulder.

Just like that, a few threads of golden fur at the tip of her tail also caught Gong Cheng's eye.

Gong Cheng looked puzzled and examined it closely: "Your Heterochromatic Little Fire Fox, its tail seems to be turning gold."

"Really?" Du Yu was useless at everything but top-notch at playing dumb.

He scooped up Xiaoyan, pinched her big tail, and carefully checked the tip of her tail.

The fiery-red fur was already stunningly beautiful, and the tip was accented with mysterious strands of dark gold, so lovely it was unreal...

Gong Cheng frowned deeply, and for a moment, many possibilities crossed his mind.

For example, as a Heterochromatic Little Fire Fox, any changes it goes through can't be predicted by normal logic. Or maybe it's because of the Spiritual Qi in Du Yu's body?

"Instructor Gong?"

"Mm." Gong Cheng snapped back to himself, and a hint of expectation rose in his heart. "You know, the vast majority of Demon Beasts in today's world are no longer in their original form from when their species first emerged.

Over thousands of years, as the Demon Taming World kept evolving, Demon Beast Races have changed time and again—including size, color, even shape..."

His words had barely finished when a knocking came from the main hall entrance.

Gong Cheng paused, then called out: "Take good care of your Little Fire Fox... Come in!"

Following the sound, several contestants entered at the door, Li Mengnan among them. Dressed in a black cloak, she stood out from the other students.

Upon seeing Du Yu, her beautiful eyes filled with joy. She jogged over to him, showing no sign of being injured.

Before she even reached him, Li Mengnan stretched her arms out toward Du Yu, startling him.

This... is the affection meter maxing out so fast?

Sure, we're big brother and second brother, but hugging in broad daylight to celebrate? Not quite right...

While Du Yu hesitated, Hu Xiaoyan on his shoulder already leapt out with a soft whimper: "Ying!"

Du Yu: "..."

Among the group entering the hall, Du Yu also spotted a familiar figure—the girl who'd pinned him against the wall... um, the one he'd brawled with—Lin Shiwei.

Gong Cheng said sternly: "Find a seat."

The 8 or 9 contestants didn't understand but still obeyed Gong Cheng, finding seats nearby.

Gong Cheng got straight to the point: "On behalf of Demon Spirit Academy, I'm here to inform you—your one-year probation period is officially over. You'll be entering early this September."

"Oh?" Li Mengnan was delighted, sitting down next to Du Yu with Xiaoyan in her arms.

She was already at Demon Tamer Journeyman·Initial Stage, with a full ten months of probation remaining. Meeting admission requirements was no problem, but early admission?

This means she could start enjoying the school's allocated resources ahead of time, no longer roaming as a lone wolf needing to hire her own support team.

Gong Cheng's gaze swept over Du Yu and Li Mengnan in the front row, then turned to the huddled group at the back: "Even though you all failed your mission, your performance in this event was outstanding. The school's making an exception to accept you."

Some students' faces lit up, but Du Yu wasn't impressed by this explanation.

He suspected the school had spotted the talent potential of the "Paper Crane Disciples" and wanted to grab them early, at the very least ensuring the best of the Ancient Pine Tower's Paper Crane Disciples went to them first.

Come next September, this batch of Paper Crane Disciples would be much stronger, and might not even choose the Academy—they could go elsewhere.

Leaving aside the fact that other Demon Spirit Academies might try to poach them, in the diverse Demon Taming industry, as long as you're a capable Demon Tamer, you can make a Good Days for yourself anywhere.

Gong Cheng changed tack, saying: "But you should know you'll be enrolling together with last year's outside students.

They've been assessed for a whole year—many are at Demon Tamer·Peak Stage, or have raised their Demon Pets to Peak of Earth Level.

Which means, you students admitted on exception will have to compete with them for the school's teaching resources.

What's more, in future activities, more Paper Crane Disciples like you will be admitted on exception. So your competitors won't just be stronger than ever, there'll also be more of them than in any previous year."

Seeing the students' smiles freeze, Gong Cheng actually smiled himself: "You have half a month left to prepare. If you want to join a better class and enjoy better teaching resources, you'd better make good use of these next two weeks."

Striking a blow to his students seemed to be one of Gong Cheng's hobbies. Only once their smiles were gone did he nod in satisfaction: "People from the Book House and the Culture Bureau will be here soon—they want to meet you. Wait here... Du Yu!"

Du Yu: "Here!"

"Li Mengnan."

Li Mengnan: "Eh?"

Gong Cheng, for once, gave Li Mengnan a kind look, smiling at the pair: "You're the winners—think about what reward you want, and tell the Book House people later."

With that, Gong Cheng turned and left.

For a moment, Du Yu and Li Mengnan stared at each other.

The rules for the competition prizes were clear: rings, Demon Soldiers, and Demon Pets.

If you competed solo and won, all the rewards were yours. But if you teamed up, then... there's the problem of how to split the loot.

Li Mengnan hugged Xiaoyan, squeezing her paw pads: "You choose first. I'm the big brother, I should let the little brother have his pick."

Du Yu: "..."

"Hehe." Li Mengnan chuckled softly at the distressed look on Du Yu's face. "You were the powerhouse, your contribution was the greatest, naturally you pick first."

Hearing that, Du Yu didn't hold back: "Then I want the Demon Soldier."

Li Mengnan: "Ah?"

Among the three options—ring, Demon Soldier, Demon Pet—the Demon Soldier was usually the least popular choice.

Du Yu explained, "I already have enough Demon Pets. Master Qing also pointed out that we shouldn't add more Demon Pets to the team for now."

"I see." Li Mengnan nodded lightly, thought about her own situation, then Du Yu's, and said, "Then I'll take the Demon Pet. You can have the ring."

Du Yu felt a warmth in his heart, quietly saying, "Thank you."

"What are you thanking me for? I'm never coming back to this dump again; a ring would be useless to me. If you come back here someday, you can buy Xiaoyan something tasty."

As she spoke, Li Mengnan lifted Xiaoyan to her face, nuzzling her nose affectionately. "It's only fair to split by contribution! Xiaoyan did the most—she blasted whole groups away, sent enemies off the field in stacks, didn't she?"

"Ying!" Xiaoyan stuck out her pink little tongue and licked the girl's fair cheek.

"Hehe~" Li Mengnan's pretty face beamed with pride. "The three of us really are strong!"

...

Third update: 12, 17, 20.

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