At this moment, Du Ze, Lu Piao, and others had all gathered around.
"Shen Yue, you're too despicable, seven people ganging up on Nie Li!" Du Ze said furiously.
Seeing Nie Li unharmed, he finally relaxed.
Nie Li was putting on an act of being miserable, but in reality, he wasn't hurt at all.
From a distance, the onlooking students also pointed fingers at Shen Yue.
"I didn't do anything to him!" Shen Yue retorted gloomily, feeling completely overwhelmed as everyone scolded him mercilessly.
Nie Li exchanged a glance with Lu Piao, who immediately understood.
"How can Nie Li not be hurt after being punched and kicked by so many of you? How about we give you a taste of it?" Lu Piao shouted condescendingly.
"Shen Yue, do you dare swear you didn't order your cronies to attack Nie Li? Even if you deny it, many students in the academy heard it!"
"I did say that, but I didn't really..."
Shen Yue hurriedly tried to defend himself.
Xiao Ning'er and Ye Ziyun looked at Shen Yue with disgust.
Wanting to kill someone within the academy was far too detestable! In Ye Ziyun's eyes, Shen Yue's image had utterly shattered.
Though Shen Yue had indeed told his minions to beat Nie Li to death, he only said it in anger.
He wouldn't dare commit murder in the academy, knowing that not even the Divine Sacred Family could protect him if he did!
But those harsh words took on a different meaning to the others who heard them.
"Vice Dean Ye Sheng is here!"
"Nie Li, this time I'll let it go, but you better watch out!" Shen Yue spat, quickly leading his men away in retreat.
"Nie Li, are you alright?" Xiao Ning'er asked with concern, clutching Nie Li's arm anxiously.
"I got a little hurt, but it's nothing serious. Luckily you all came in time."
Nie Li smiled, looking at Xiao Ning'er and then at Ye Ziyun.
Since practicing her new cultivation technique, Xiao Ning'er's complexion and skin had become even better than before, radiating a difficult-to-describe charm.
Ye Ziyun, too, seemed even more beautiful, gracefully standing there.
The two beautiful girls side by side were dazzling and captivating.
Seeing how concerned Xiao Ning'er was for Nie Li, Ye Ziyun couldn't quite describe how she was feeling.
"It's good that you're alright," Ye Ziyun smiled awkwardly.
Witnessing this scene, many of the boys watching felt restless.
They wished they were the ones standing between the two goddesses, despite the beating.
For the first time, the girls noticed that Nie Li was rather handsome, giving him several more looks and finding him increasingly appealing.
No wonder both goddess Ning'er and goddess Ziyun favored him.
Some boys, however, found Nie Li increasingly hateful.
Stealing one goddess was bad enough, but two? Why didn't Shen Yue just beat him to death earlier? Seeing the two beautiful girls sparring over him, any sympathy they felt for Nie Li vanished.
Beside the lovely Ye Ziyun, Xiao Ning'er felt a strong sense of crisis.
She knew Nie Li liked Ye Ziyun, but she couldn't suppress her feelings for him.
Nie Li was the first and only boy to enter her heart; she thought she was the only one who saw his outstanding qualities.
She hoped to gradually draw his attention away from Ye Ziyun, but unexpectedly, Nie Li and Ye Ziyun seemed quite familiar already.
"Nie Li, let me help you to the classroom. I brought you breakfast," Xiao Ning'er said softly, supporting Nie Li with both hands, her bosom pressing against his arm.
Feeling the softness, Nie Li felt a bit troubled and awkwardly glanced at Ye Ziyun.
"Ziyun, I..."
"Since it's all settled, I should leave too," Ye Ziyun said, as if she hadn't heard, turning to leave.
She couldn't quite understand her feelings; she wasn't yet at the point of liking Nie Li, but seeing Xiao Ning'er so close to him made her uncomfortable.
It's none of my business, Ye Ziyun muttered, letting Nie Li and Xiao Ning'er do as they pleased.
Nearby, Du Ze and Lu Piao gave Nie Li a thumbs-up with teasing smiles.
Nie Li truly had a way with things, managing to connect with the class's two goddesses in such a short time.
Though Ye Ziyun hadn't done much, her concern during the attack was genuine.
From a distance, Shen Fei watched as Xiao Ning'er helped Nie Li away, his expression dark.
"Daring to oppose my Divine Sacred Family and cozy up to my woman, you're really asking for it!" Shen Fei's fists clenched tightly.
As Shen Yue's brother, already at Silver level, he didn't take Nie Li seriously.
With Nie Li's recent actions, he had firmly positioned himself against the Divine Sacred Family.
Back in class, although Xiao Ning'er didn't want to accept it, Nie Li returned the dozens of thousands of demon spirit coins she had lent him.
For him, tens of thousands of demon spirit coins were no longer worth much.
Violet Orchid Grass remained in high demand, its price steady at over two hundred demon spirit coins per pound.
Within three years, Glory City would still need it, allowing him to sell it bit by bit.
Nie Li had become a topic of great interest in the academy.
His opposition to the Divine Sacred Family and ambiguous relationships with Xiao Ning'er and Ye Ziyun attracted much attention.
Many female students secretly left love letters on his desk, expressing their admiration.
Some of the girls were vaguely familiar to Nie Li, and a few were quite pretty.
In his past life, Nie Li had been unnoticed and ignored, his presence minimal in the academy.
Unexpectedly, in this lifetime, he found himself so popular.
But he dealt with the letters promptly.
Having been reborn, his heart held only Ye Ziyun; none of these girls could compare to her.
After all, he and Ye Ziyun had once shared life and death.
As for Xiao Ning'er, he was happy to count her as a good friend.
As he continued to cultivate the Heavenly Dao Divine Technique, Nie Li's soul force rapidly improved.
In two months, it should bring about a remarkable transformation.
Nearly every night, he took a Soul Gathering Pill or Soul Nourishing Pill and bathed in the essence of Violet Orchid Grass, fully nurturing his soul force.
Aside from cultivating his soul force, Nie Li also trained his body, enhancing its strength.
Cultivating soul force helped strengthen the body, but physical strength required its own training.
Upon reaching Silver level, demon spirit masters could host demon spirits in their soul realm— a stronger body could host more powerful spirits.
A weak body could be overwhelmed by the spirit's power.
Many demon spirit masters only started body training after reaching Silver level and acquiring a spirit.
By then, however, it was often too late.
Nie Li was determined to lay a solid foundation from the start, running, climbing, and carrying weights daily.
In the blink of an eye, two days passed.
Nie Li's soul force had risen to 76, and he would likely advance to Bronze One-Star like Du Ze and Lu Piao in a few days.
On the third morning, in the library, Chen Linjian and others were already waiting.
Besides Chen Linjian, Ye Ziyun and Shen Yue were present as well.
Chen Linjian came from the Sacred Nether Family, Ye Ziyun from the Snow Wind Family, and Shen Yue from the Divine Sacred Family.
They had known each other since childhood, so it wasn't surprising they were venturing to the Ancient Orchid City Ruins together.
"You came too?" Ye Ziyun asked, surprised to see Nie Li.
This endeavor was organized by Chen Linjian.
When did Nie Li become acquainted with him? She realized she might have underestimated Nie Li.
"Yes," Nie Li acknowledged with a smile.
Seeing Nie Li, Shen Yue's face grew darker.
He had wanted to explain things to Ye Ziyun, but she coldly refused to listen, keeping a distance of more than five or six meters from him.
This left him quite frustrated.
Everything was Nie Li's fault; without him, Ye Ziyun wouldn't treat him so coldly!
Shen Yue blamed Nie Li for all his misfortunes.
"Since you insist on seeking death, you have no one to blame but yourself!" Shen Yue thought vengefully.
He whispered to a crony who glanced at Nie Li before quietly slipping away.
He realized that their Bronze level couldn't handle Nie Li, so he planned to summon family experts for help.
Nie Li noticed all of Shen Yue's actions and chuckled coldly inside.
Chen Linjian's gaze fell on Nie Li, and with a faint smile, he announced, "Alright, everyone's here. We should depart!"
This group setting out to the Ancient Orchid City Ruins consisted of Chen Linjian's twenty-eight people, Shen Yue's seven, plus Nie Li and Ye Ziyun.
Nie Li hadn't mentioned the trip to Du Ze, Lu Piao, and the others, preferring they train safely in the library due to the potential dangers at the ruins.
He might not be able to protect them.
With a party of thirty-seven, they packed essentials like food, tents, and hunting crossbows, then set off.
Their venture was secretive and low-key, officially claiming to head to Gloomy Mountain Gorge for training.
This is the end of the chapter.