Lightning rained down, striking anyone in its path, causing instant explosions upon impact.

Lei Linger had undergone a complete transformation after the tribulation. After absorbing an unimaginable amount of lightning essence, she now possessed the power to instantly kill nine star Heavenly Doyens.

Moreover, these idiots were far weaker than the ones in front of the gate to the ninth heaven. They were utterly defenseless against the onslaught of lightning, unable to even fight back before being killed.

Hence, the battle ended before it even had a chance to start, with millions of experts wiped out in an instant. While Luo Bing and the others were left dumbfounded by the swift outcome, the Dragonblood warriors remained unfazed as they were accustomed to this kind of scene. Even though they were exhausted, they knew they could crush these weaklings without breaking a sweat.

“Let’s return to the academy,” declared Long Chen.

Although he feared no one right now, he knew that the Dragonblood Legion was exhausted and needed some rest.

“All my formation discs have been used up. I’m sorry, but we’ll need to use a flying boat,” said Xia Chen.

His formation discs had been depleted during the confrontation with Wu Hun, dealing a significant blow to him and also their transportation options.

Fortunately, they were back in the Darklight Heaven. Xia Chen checked their location and found that they were nowhere near the passageway to the ninth heaven, so it was no wonder no one was here to welcome them.

After calculating everything and everyone was on the boat, Xia Chen flew the flying boat straight to the High Firmament Academy. Less than an hour after their departure, countless experts with powerful auras gathered at their departure point. These Eternal experts and Saints had received a call from their disciples and immediately rushed over.

Their disciples thought of joining forces to eliminate the academy’s disciples, so they immediately called out to the strongest experts of their sects, wanting to wipe out the weak academy’s disciples before the High Firmament Academy’s experts could arrive.

Their main worry was the Dragonblood Legion. However, seeing the Dragonblood Legion so battered, they couldn’t help but immediately attack, thinking that their power was enough to crush them all. But instead, they lost their lives there.

When these senior experts arrived, they saw a devastated land with arcs of lightning still flashing across it. It was like a heavenly tribulation had just occurred here.

As they surveyed the area, they didn’t see any of their people, only shattered remnants of their weapons strewn across the ground. There were no corpses around here, not even a single fallen warrior. Seeing this scene, bewilderment and dread gripped their hearts.

…

At the High Firmament Academy, Bai Shishi and the others were surprised to see that the Dean, Bai Zhantang, Bai Shishi’s mother, and Bai Xiaole’s mother were not here to welcome them back. Only the assistant dean stood here to welcome them.

In front of the gates to the nine heavens, their lives had been hanging by a thread, and they had both thought that they would never see their parents again. Hence, both Bai Shishi and Bai Xiaole couldn’t conceal their disappointment when they couldn’t see their family.

It felt like it had been an entire lifetime since they last saw their father and mothers. No matter how strong a person was, after narrowly escaping death, they all longed to be with the people closest to them.

Seeing Bai Shishi’s eyes redden, Long Chen couldn’t help but softly console her. He also patted Bai Xiaole’s shoulder, keeping him staunch.

“There must be a reason why they’re not here. Don’t panic.”

In truth, Bai Shishi and Bai Xiaole were like large children compared to the Dragonblood warriors, who had experienced a lot of battles throughout the years.

After arriving, the Dragonblood warriors immediately went into seclusion to recover. As for Long Chen, he accompanied Bai Shishi, Yu Qingxuan, and Bai Xiaole for a day, chatting about what had occurred within the passageway to the ninth heaven. After they had calmed down, Long Chen had them go into seclusion.

Long Chen sensed that the High Firmament Academy was not in its usual state. The atmosphere was off, and he didn’t see some familiar faces here.

However, Long Chen wasn’t too worried. From Luo Bing and the others, he learned that they had also encountered many dangers, but fortunately, they remembered Long Chen’s words and didn’t do any large-scale treasure hunting.

The areas where treasures were most concentrated naturally attracted countless experts. It was like the saying “The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind[1].” Everyone wanted to be the oriole, but until the very end, no one knew who it would be.

Even if they did end up being the oriole, they still needed to pay the price to get the treasure. As Luo Bing and the others didn’t have the requisite power for that, if they did find a treasure and were tempted by greed, that would be dangerous.

Thus, the moment they encountered a fight for a treasure, they immediately hid as far as they could. Even then, they still had multiple clashes with powerful experts and managed to survive.

It went without saying that the worlds inside the passageway to the ninth heaven were incredibly dangerous. In fact, they attributed their survival to mostly luck.

While Luo Bing and the others hadn’t fought others for treasures, they still had some gains. Some of them had found Saint weapons, precious medicines, or even some bone books. Everyone was extremely excited, showing off their gains to Long Chen.

When they took out all the treasures that they had obtained from the passageway, even Long Chen was amazed by their gains. Some of them weren’t that strong but still had excellent luck.

“Senior apprentice-brother Long Chen, please, help yourself to anything you find useful!” implored one disciple of the academy. He had gained many treasures and selflessly offered them all, demonstrating unwavering loyalty to Long Chen.

“Me too! Senior apprentice-brother Long Chen, take whatever you want. It’s fine even if you take them all!” The other disciples started to chime in as well.

This was also true for the disciples of the Battle God Palace and the Starry River Sect, who were resting in the High Firmament Academy.

However, Long Chen couldn’t accept their offerings. After all, he hadn’t gone through all the treasures in his hands, but he knew he was overflowing with wealth.

Despite Long Chen’s reluctance, everyone adamantly insisted, feeling as though he was underestimating their sincerity. Feeling helpless, Long Chen simply picked out a few medicinal ingredients that he didn’t have and rejected everything else.

“There are many treasures here that you temporarily can’t use. For example, the bone books need to be translated, the Saint weapons need to have their item-spirits awakened, and the ores need to be smelted. I think it’s best if you leave them to the academy, having the seniors of the academy help you deal with these treasures. That way, they will quickly become useful to you. If you are unable to use them yourself, you can trade with the academy for what you need. Based on what I know, the academy’s treasure stores definitely have things that you can use. I swear on the name of the academy that you won’t lose out in this trade,” suggested Long Chen.

When they heard Long Chen’s suggestion, their eyes lit up with hope. In truth, they had many things that they didn’t know the name of, and they couldn’t fathom how to use these things. It would be great if the academy could appraise these things for them. If these things turned out to be useful, they could keep them, while they could trade away what they didn’t need for something useful.

Everyone immediately went to the academy’s Treasure Appraisal Pavilion, forming a line that stretched for miles. What was typically the most idle department now buzzed with activity.

Seeing the inefficiency of this process, Long Chen had the academy ask the Huayun Trading Company for aid. This solution relieved the Treasure Appraisal Pavilion, and they immediately sent someone to the Huayun Trading Company.

Like always, the Huayun Trading Company’s efficiency was amazing. In less than two hours, dozens of appraisal masters arrived at the academy. However, seeing the long line, with every person having dozens of items that needed appraisal, they requested more reinforcements from their headquarters.

While the appraisers were busy, Long Chen hesitated for a bit and chose not to cut the line. He also had treasures of unclear origins that needed appraisal, and the Dragonblood warriors had many such treasures on them as well. It just made sense to wait until they came out of seclusion before appraising their treasures together. Preparing to go into seclusion himself to consolidate his realm, Long Chen was struck by a sudden idea on his way to his residence. Without hesitation, he redirected his steps toward the plaza.

“Sweeping elder.”

Long Chen immediately spotted the old man who was sweeping the ground with his head lowered.

1. The Mantis stalks the Cicada, unaware of the Oriole behind (螳螂捕蝉，黄雀在后 tángláng bǔ chán, huángquè zài hòu) Meaning: to pursue a narrow gain while neglecting a greater danger ☜