Chapter 40 – The First Night
Because of the visit by the teacher from the Heavenly Academy, Chen Chang Sheng wasn’t in a good mood but as time went by, his mood gradually got better. It would be a waste of time to have his mind consumed by anger rather than doing productive activities such as reading and xiu xinging.
He didn’t really care about the Ivy Festival. Become famous overnight and give a slap on the face to the people who looked down on him? He was determined to return the favor one day, but Chen Chang Sheng didn’t even reach the Purification stage. Even if he could, he wouldn’t want to do it yet.
To obtain fame and fortune isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The problem is that once he accomplishes this task, his quiet life of xiu xing would be interrupted. It would be impossible for him to put all his time into xiuxing and ignore all the events from the outside like the recent days.
Luo Luo? No matter what Chen Chang Sheng does she would always support him. Although she was a little unhappy about him shopping without her, Chen Chang Sheng would just use a single poscile to maker her happy again, talk less of the serious events. And to become famous through the Ivy Festival……She wouldn’t even think about such a thing regarding her own background.
This was the attitude that Chen Chang Sheng and Lou Lou held toward the Ivy League. They really don’t care about it. It was fine even if they were forgotten by the people. Following the past experience it would be normal for the Tradition Academy to be forgotten. But the difference this year was the existence of Officer Xin.
After the reminder from the bishop, Officer Xin tried to silently realized the purpose of the Pope. Although he has yet to realize anything and didn’t see any change occurring in the capital due to the appearance of the new student of the Tradition Academy, the reminder was enough for him to not forget about that new student.
One day in the early summer, a carriage rode into the Hundred Blossom Street and arrived at the Traditional Academy. It was around sunset and the rose red sky was above the carriage when it rode out of the Tradition Academy. The carriage rode out of the Hundred Blossom Street, followed the streets of the capital, arrived at the Heavenly Academy, and stopped at the stone door.
Luo Luo raised a corner of the curtain in the carriage and glanced at the sidewalk. She looked at the buildings and taverns. Her eyes opened widely and was filled with curiosity. She had been to the Heavenly Academy many times before but she was with her servants and the guards from the royal palace. She always entered from the backdoor of the Heavenly Academy silently. Besides interacting with the professors and the elite students, she never spoke with anyone else in the school. It was her first time entering the front entrance of the Heavenly Academy.
Chen Chang Sheng has been to the Heavenly Academy two times before. The first time he came for its entrance exam and that experience wasn’t great. The second time he came all wet and embarrassed, not exactly a great experience either. He has already lost his respect for this school, but he admit that the environment here are truly beautiful.
The trees are lined up in groups and the brooks curved whichever way it desired. The summer flower blossomed beautifully. Sitting in the carriage watching these pretty sights helped Chen Cheng Sheng clear his mind off of the Ivy Festival, off of all the interaction with strangers, and off of the whole night waste of xiu xing. Thinking that he would encounter Tang Thirty Six soon, his mood got even better.
Officer Xin didn’t know his personality so as he saw him staring silently outside of the window, he thought Chen Chang Sheng felt melancholic and misinterpreted his thoughts. Xin was a little worried and patted on his shoulder and comforted, “You just need to sit there. It’s fine if you don’t present.”
Chen Chang Sheng turned around and nodded to show he understood and thanked him sincerely.
Officer Xin was silent for a moment and said, “Don’t worry too much about the words that teacher said in the Tradition Academy….. I do recommend you two to not enter the field and join the competition. This year’s Ivy Festival is different from previous year’s. You should really be careful.”
Chen Chang Sheng knew he was showing his kindness, “Don’t worry, I have already prepared myself to sit for one night.”
“Yes. One night?!!”
Officer Xin relaxed a little because he knew his kindness wasn’t misinterpreted, but suddenly he found the problem in Chen Chang Sheng’s sentence and asked confusingly, “You don’t know?”
Chen Chang Sheng was confused as well, “Know what?”
Officer Xin looked at Luo Luo who stopped glancing out of the window.
Luo Luo was confused as well, “What should we know?”
“Ivy Festival……is a private event set by the academies. But it is actually the practice test of the Great Trial and its rules are exactly the same as that of the Great Trial. Since the Great Trial spam over the duration of three days, then the Ivy Festival would also last for three nights. You guys really don’t know? Then you probably don’t know that these three nights are not consecutive either?”
Officer Xin stared at the two as if he was looking at monsters, “What are you guys preparing to do coming here?”
Chen Chang SHeng didn’t pay any attention to this question because all of his mind was focusing on the last part of the information. He felt a little irritated. It was not only one night but three nights?!! Then how much time would he be wasting? How many books would he lose the opportunity to read? Is this suitable?
Luo Luo saw Chen Chang Sheng spacing out and said to officer Xin, “Don’t worry, we are prepared. We didn’t even eat our lunch yet. We would definitely eat a lot today.”
Officer Xin was speechless. He didn’t know what type of weird combination these two were. He looked at Chen Chang Sheng and advised again, “Anyhow, be careful tonight. Although I’m not exactly sure, I’ve heard some rumors. There may be some unexpected guests joining the Ivy Festival as well, but it may not happen either.”
Just this moment, the carriage has arrived at the main court of tonight’s Ivy Festival.
Officer Xin said, “I still have some business to take care of, therefore I could only accompany you guys here.”
Chen Chang Sheng and Luo Luo thanked him and got off the carriage. The night has arrived and the previously green forest has now turned into a dark shadow. They were stunned and felt a mysterious pressure from the school oppressing them.
“This way please.” A Heavenly Academy student wearing black uniform was giving them direction with good manner.
At the end of the stone path was a large building. There were several hundred red lamps hanging outside of the building and emitted light all over the surroundings. No wonder it was the most famous school in the entire continent. This building may be ordinary in the Heavenly Academy, but it could hold hundreds and thousands of guests inside.
Looking at the densely designed red lamps, Chen Chang Sheng didn’t feel any better, but instead he felt the pressure becoming more and more realistic.
There were several hundred of young students already sitting around the hardwood tables in the building. These were the people who successfully passed the Semi Trial earlier. They came from places all around the world and not every one of them were citizens of the Zhou Dynasty. All of them weren’t the students of the Six Ivies. The students of the Six Ivies could compete in the Great Trial automatically and have permission to not enter the Semi Trial. It was as if the students of the Six Ivies were naturally superior to these young students. It is not a wonder they were a little nervous as they were sitting in the Heavenly Academy.
There were other large spaces besides these hundreds of tables. Using wooden separators several individual spaces were created. These were for the announcers, noble guests, and the students of the Six Ivies.
Although on the surface the Ivy Festival was created by the capital’s school as a ceremony to welcome the students who passed the semi trial, in fact it was a field created by the Six Ivies to present their power and influence. Every year after the Ivy Festival, there were students who passed the semi trial transferring into the Six Ivies.
Due to this reason, the students of the Six Ivies acted very differently than the students who weren’t part of the Six Ivies. Their expressions weren’t nervous or worry, but rather prideful, cold, and expressionless. Their eyes were judging the students that were the same age as them.
The best spot this year belonged to the Heavenly Academy. The expressions of these young people wearing the dark uniform didn’t express pride intentionally, but for sure they were prideful. In the area next to the Heavenly Academy sat the students of the Starseeker Academy. Their expression were calm like a lake and their gesture were still like a mountain.
Right beside them were three other schools: Academy of Priest, Academy of Li Palace, and Thirteen Divisions of Green Light.
The Heavenly Academy needs no explanation. Its history goes way back in time and it was known as the best school in the continent. The present Pope and the previous Virgin of the southern sect all graduated from the Heavenly Academy. The Tradition didn’t have a center palace or temple, therefore the Pope discuss his business in the Li Palace. For sure the Academy of Li Palace was powerful as well. The Academy of Priest holds all royal ceremonies and educate the priests working in the Tradition. It was no ordinary school.
The Starseeker Academy was the garden of the Zhou Military. It contributed the most in the war between Humans and Demons. Its status was unique.
The Thirteen Divisions of Green Light was also a special place. This school focuses on xiu xinging the Thirteen Scrolls of Green Light and mainly accepted female students. It had a close relationship with the Mountain Virgin in the south and exchanges students constantly. When Xu You Rong first started out xiu xing she was in this school.
These were the world famous Ivy League.
The green ivies growing in front of the Li Palace was the most famous sight in the entire capital. On the stone walls of the previously mentioned schools there were also densely populated green ivies. It was the proof of history. For countless years all of the powerful xiu xingists, besides the ones from the southern sects, had the background of coming from the Ivy League.
The Ivies Academies occupying the best locations in the Ivy League was natural. No matter how one looks at it, this was an obvious thing. People have already used to it and the nervous ordinary students knew this from their seniors and weren’t surprised. But…..there was one detail that was changed in tonight’s Ivy Festival that was different from the previous years’.
Some people have noticed that change.
Besides the best spot occupied by the Ivies, in an unnoticeable corner, another area was separated by the wooden fence.
That area was tiny and contained only one small table.
But that spot was on the same line as the Ivy Academies.
Spot was a very important thing.
This was a tradition.
More and more people were glancing over to that area.
Some people remembered, before been called the “Ivy League”, the Ivy Academies were always been mentioned by the people as:
“The Six Ivies.”
The Six Ivies obviously contained six schools.
Adding all of the schools such as Heavenly Academy and the Starseeker Academy up, there were only five of them.
What was the name of the last one?