108: study

Qin Yu's words struck the students of the graduate school for a second time.

It turned out that he was genuinely just here to attend the lecture, and not, as they had previously suspected, trying to step on them to show off and attract the attention of a big shot.

His mentor, Professor Mo Yi, was already one of the faces of the Third Academy's Cultivation Department and an absolute big shot. Didn't they notice that after Professor Qin learned Xu Yan's identity, his eyes were filled only with disappointment and regret, and none of the previous fervor remained?

Moreover, while having a big shot mentor backing him, he himself was also a big shot compared to these 'noobs.' They hadn't read the two papers Qin Yu mentioned, but the mere words “Monarch Rank” were enough to prove everything.

Looking at Xu Yan's youthful face, recalling their previous Q&A session, and the paper he had reviewed a few days ago after receiving an invitation to review the Wind Flame Lion King Monarch Form paper, Qin Yu, unwilling to give up, still extended an invitation to Xu Yan:

"Xu Yan, I happen to be conducting an experiment related to the question you just asked over at my Experimental Building. Are you interested in coming over to participate? I can issue you a Temporary Researcher certification, and all benefits and treatment will be maximized. While learning theoretical knowledge, it's always best to practice firsthand.

Also, I still have one spot left for a direct Ph.D. enrollment this year—the kind where you can skip the undergraduate phase and are guaranteed to graduate within three years."

Xu Yan didn't show much reaction to Qin Yu's invitation, but the surrounding students, who were already somewhat broken, had their spirits crushed once more. Having gone through immense hardship to successfully pass the graduate entrance exams, they dared not slack off in their studies and research on a daily basis, and even then, graduation wasn't guaranteed.

However, while the graduate entrance exams and graduation were incredibly difficult for them, for Xu Yan, a big shot had to beg him to accept direct Ph.D. enrollment, and the offer even guaranteed graduation within three years at most.

Since Xu Yan had already become a disciple of Mo Yi, he naturally wouldn't switch to another mentor. Just as he was about to politely decline, an abrupt voice suddenly rang out.

"Little Martial Uncle, I finally found you! Teacher and Grandmaster said they have something they need to discuss with you, and asked you to go back to the Experimental Building to see them."

Xu Yan looked in the direction of the voice and saw a slightly balding man, older than the surrounding students, looking at Xu Yan and Qin Yu on the podium with a face full of “eagerness.”

Xu Yan had some impression of the speaker; this was a doctoral student under his Senior Brother Guo Rui.

However, if Xu Yan remembered correctly, it seemed that shortly after he entered and sat down in the classroom, this person also entered and took a seat in an inconspicuous corner.

Nothing happened for such a long time, but the moment Qin Yu extended an invitation, his mentor and senior brother suddenly had urgent business. Coupled with the person's overly dramatic, yet poorly acted, and somewhat fake look of urgency, Xu Yan easily guessed the trick behind the so-called "urgent business."

However, since the person dared to invoke the names of Mo Yi and Guo Rui, it meant that the underlying reason was legitimate.

He turned his attention back to Qin Yu and gave him a solemn bow.

"My apologies, Professor Qin. My mentor and senior brother need to see me, so I must leave first. Thank you very much for your guidance; I have learned a great deal from you. Regarding your invitation, I will certainly visit if the opportunity arises."

After speaking, he left the classroom under the guidance of his Martial Nephew, who was much older than him, leaving behind the disappointed Qin Yu and the graduate students whose spirits had been shattered by Xu Yan.

After following his Martial Nephew back to the Experimental Building and finding Mo Yi and Guo Rui, it was no surprise to Xu Yan that they had called him back specifically because of Qin Yu's invitation.

As early as when Mo Yi arranged for Xu Yan to attend classes at the graduate school, he had guessed that someone might try to poach him due to his Innate Talent. Therefore, he arranged for people to stake out every classroom in the Cultivation Department where Xu Yan had classes, ready to interrupt immediately if a situation similar to the one between Qin Yu and Xu Yan arose.

After calling Xu Yan back, they directly informed him that due to the results he had achieved recently, and following their application, they decided to make an exception and promote his professional title in the Experimental Building directly from Assistant Researcher to Intermediate Researcher, with corresponding benefits and treatment also increasing.

After handing the Identification Badge to Xu Yan, the two said nothing more and let Xu Yan return to his own tasks.

In the days that followed, Xu Yan's life returned to his peaceful routine of study.

During this period, the paper Xu Yan wrote on the Wind Flame Lion King Monarch Form successfully passed review and was published in the latest issue of the journal *New Advances in Cultivation*.

As expected, Xu Yan's paper caused a widespread sensation.

Originally, the Wind Flame Lion King's strength before the Monarch Rank was close to the second tier, bordering on the first, but its price and low maximum potential made it unpopular among Beast Tamers.

However, Xu Yan's research directly addressed the Wind Flame Lion King's weakness of having too low a maximum potential. It was now strong enough in the early and mid-stages, could break through to the Monarch Rank at its highest, and thanks to Xu Yan's previous research, the Wind Flame Lion King's evolution curve was very smooth.

As soon as the paper was published, the price of the Wind Flame Lion King, which had previously been unpopular in various regions due to its low numbers, low potential, and high price, skyrocketed.

At the same time, without deliberate concealment, Xu Yan's identity as the researcher was once again revealed.

Compared to the previous information that circulated only within the Breeder community and the Third Academy Forum, this time, Xu Yan's name and some of his personal information appeared before the public.

Sixteen years old, First-year freshman at the Third Academy, Marshal Rank Breeder, and the discoverer of the Wind Flame Lion King's New Form and Monarch Form—these keywords immediately dominated trending topics. Countless people outside, harboring various intentions, sought to find Xu Yan.

However, Xu Yan had no interest in this and stayed within the confines of the Third Academy all day, making it impossible for those people to carry out their plans or methods.

The biggest change for Xu Yan was that he received more attention during class, and the teachers and professors lecturing, upon seeing and immediately recognizing him, asked him questions more frequently.

However, none of this bothered Xu Yan. The active questioning from the teachers and professors actually made him happier, as he could learn more through their guidance and discussions.

The result of this was that the teachers and professors, who initially had no negative feelings toward the other students attending the lectures, gradually started to view them unfavorably.

There was no helping it; the gap between teaching Xu Yan and then teaching the others made the professors somewhat uncomfortable.

Although this mindset was quickly noticed and corrected by those experienced teachers and professors, a rumor still spread among the graduate students of the Third Academy: “There's something dirty in the department; approaching carelessly will lead to misfortune.”