Right at this moment, a voice suddenly sounded from behind her. "Hello there, which faculty are you from?"
The woman's brows furrowed slightly as she turned around, and she was greeted by the sight of a tall and broad young man with a pair of bright and piercing eyes. There were dense soul power fluctuations emanating from his body, and as he caught sight of the woman's stunning features, his heart rate began to climb.
He tried to adopt a nonchalant demeanor as he said, "You've been standing beside this pond for quite a while now, and I was getting rather worried. Let me introduce myself; I'm a freshman, but I was in seclusion prior to enrollment, so I was a little late and could only enroll directly into the fourth year."
The education here was split up into six year levels, and the fact that he had managed to enroll directly into the fourth year was an indirect brag in itself. Of course, he had earned himself the right to brag.
The woman's expression eased slightly, and she said, "Sorry, I'm waiting for someone."
"Oh? I don't think I've seen you here before." The young man didn't seem to have heard the rejection in her voice, and his smile grew even brighter.
"I'm sorry, I have a lot on my mind." The woman turned back to face the pond in a graceful manner as she spoke.
"Maybe you just need someone to listen to what's on your mind. How about I take you out for a drink?" the young man proposed as he strode over to her side.
The woman's expression finally darkened in response to his insistence. "Can you please just give me some peace and quiet?"
She was suddenly struck by the urge to laugh as she said this. Five years ago, she would've most likely thrown this annoying man into the pond.
However, she was no longer the impish and impulsive little girl she once was. Whatever she did, she had to consider the reputation of her family and couldn't just act as she pleased. Thinking back, those days were far more enjoyable than the present!
The young man shrugged in response. "Alright, then."
He wasn't some brazen criminal; no matter how attracted he was to the woman before him, he wasn't going to do anything out of line.
Just as he was preparing to leave, he suddenly noticed that a hint of a smile had appeared in the woman's eyes. He then immediately thought back to the instructions of his sly uncle, who had told him that a woman would gradually warm to a pursuer over time, and that there was always a chance as long as he didn't give up.
"Why are you smiling? Do you find me funny?" he asked in a curious manner.
The woman turned to him, and replied, "I was just thinking that if you were buzzing around like an annoying fly beside me five years ago, you'd already be in this pond, but I have no choice but to act like a refined gentlewoman now."
The young man stared at her in a gobsmacked manner. The words that were coming out of her mouth and her outward appearance were completely incongruent with one another.
"I don't believe that; you're not that type of person," the young man said in a confident manner. He was sure that a woman whom he had deemed to be a goddess at first sight wouldn't be capable of doing something like this.
Just as he was affirming his conviction to himself, something suddenly tightened around his neck, and before he had a chance to react, he was hurled up into the air.
The world spun around him, and he couldn't help but let loose a cry of surprise. He was completely unable to control his own body as he flew through the air in an arc before plummeting toward the distance. He tried to circulate his soul power to right himself, but found himself completely unable to do so; it was as if his entire body had been sealed.
He reflexively closed his eyes and curled up into a ball, but right at this moment, a burst of force supported him from down below. His body spun through the air, and before he knew it, his feet had already landed on the ground. He reflexively recoiled as he opened his eyes, only to be greeted by the sight of flat solid ground, and as he stood up straight in a flabbergasted manner, his soul power also began to circulate freely within his body.
He looked down at his own feet in a perplexed manner, then looked down at his own body and laid a hand onto his own neck, but it was as if nothing had ever happened.
However, when he inspected his surroundings, a stunned look appeared on his face. He was still standing in front of the Heavenly Spring Pond, but he was now on the other side, situated right in front of the academy building.
He turned to the other side of the massive pond to find that the woman was still there, but there was now another person standing beside her. This man was extremely tall and broad, and he was as imposing as a mountain.
The young man gulped nervously at the sight of this man.
Prior to coming to this academy, he had never felt true fear, but after coming here and meeting this man, he was taught the lesson that fear was a necessary emotion for survival.
This man was the learning coordinator of the academy, and he was responsible for overseeing the students' studies and cultivation. Ever since he had become the learning coordinator, the students in the academy had clearly become a lot more disciplined.
He was most likely going to be the next principal; this was something that almost everyone in the academy had accepted.
As the young man was appraising him, the man also turned toward him, and their eyes met. His eyes were calm and completely devoid of any threat or menace, but even though they were separated by the diameter of the entire pond, the young man still had chills running down his spine.
Just who was that woman?
Looking at the woman before him, Long Yue heaved an internal sigh. She was the first woman who had found her way into his heart, and everyone had once hoped that they would be together. However, fate was never something that could be swayed by human will.
In the end, he had found the woman that was right for him, and she also had someone that she loved. Unfortunately, the man of her dreams didn't seem to know exactly how lucky he was.
"You look even more muscular than before, Brother Long Yue," the woman praised as she squeezed his musclebound bicep.
The learning coordinator was extremely strict and stern in the face of students, but an embarrassed blush appeared on his face as he reflexively took a step backward before looking around. "Yun'er, you can't do something so unbecoming of your status."
The woman smiled, and said, "I really want to cast aside my status; I enjoy being the old me much more. What about you? Isn't it the same for you?"
Long Yue faltered slightly upon hearing this before asking with furrowed brows, "What happened?"
The woman replied, "He's back."
"You mean him?" A serious look immediately appeared in Long Yue's eyes upon hearing this.
"That's right, he didn't die." The smile on her face crumbled as she spoke, and tears flowed uncontrollably from her eyes.
When she had heard the news of the Shrek Academy bombing, she had had a mental breakdown. No matter how disappointed she had been in Tang Wulin's rejection, she had never forgotten him. It was very hard to fall in love with someone, but forgetting someone after falling in love with them was even harder.
In particular, the notion that the man of her dreams could potentially no longer be in this world drove daggers into her heart and tormented her every day.
As a princess, she was already of the age where she should be finding a spouse, but she couldn't allow herself to do so. The adoration from her father gave her much more freedom, and under the protection of her brothers and father, she wasn't forced into an arranged marriage like many princesses of the past were.
Even so, her heart had still been filled with pain. She spent most of her time cultivating in her room as only when cultivating could she temporarily forget him.
However, never did she think that he would suddenly arrive on the Star Luo Continent under these circumstances. She just so happened to be in the Tang Sect, preparing to exchange for a Tang Sect hidden weapon technique, when she saw a car drive into the headquarters, and received a welcome of the highest caliber.