85: Chapter 85 Congratulations, host, on successfully escaping the ruins alive.
"Hmph! What outsiders? In my view, it's clearly you humans playing tricks!"
A cold, piercing voice rang out abruptly.
In the void, those foreign race Guardians who had been watching coldly from the sidelines finally lost their patience and revealed themselves one after another.
Leading them was the same Golden God Clan Guardian with the unsightly expression from before.
His gaze was like a torch as he stared fixedly at Jiang Baihe, his tone filled with suspicion and hostility.
"The geniuses of our various races have suffered heavy losses; even Prince Jinjiao's fate is unknown! Meanwhile, on your human side, although some were robbed, at least most of them came out in one piece!"
"Dean Jiang, if you cannot give us a reasonable explanation, I'm afraid this matter won't be settled so easily!"
The other Guardians chimed in as well, their powerful auras faintly linking together to press down toward the human side.
Clearly, they intended to use this as a pretext to pressure the Great Xia Martial Academy, perhaps even hoping to extract some benefits from it.
"Presumptuous!"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Baihe's face instantly darkened.
Boom!
A terrifying pressure belonging to a peak Martial Emperor erupted from his body without reservation!
It was like an immemorial divine mountain descending from the heavens, ruthlessly suppressing those foreign race Guardians!
Crack! Crack!
The surrounding void actually let out sounds of cracking under the strain of this overwhelming pressure!
The foreign race Guardians, who had been aggressive just moments ago, saw their faces turn as pale as paper. Their bodies trembled uncontrollably as if they were bearing a weight of thousands of tons!
"This is the Great Xia Martial Academy of my human race! It is not a place where you can run wild!"
Jiang Baihe's gaze was icy, and his tone was grim.
"Are you blind? Did you not see that the geniuses of my human race—including the Transcendent Academy's rank one, Yu Wangji, rank two, Zhao Tieshan, and even the Spirit Clan's little princess Ling Wanhe—all fell victim to that 'Xing Dao Trio'?"
"If it were our human race playing tricks, why would we be so ruthless toward our own people?"
"There are many suspicious points in this matter! Perhaps, as Ling Wanhe said, there are other hidden entrances in these ruins that were exploited by some ill-intentioned individuals!"
At this point, he paused. His tone softened slightly, but it remained filled with unquestionable authority.
"However, please rest assured. Since this happened on the territory of my Great Xia Martial Academy, I, Jiang Baihe, will naturally investigate it to the end! I will give everyone a satisfactory explanation!"
"But if anyone tries to use this opportunity to stir up trouble or sow discord..."
"Hmph! Then do not blame the sword in my hand for being merciless!"
Deterred by the terrifying might of a Martial Emperor, the foreign race Guardians were silenced like cicadas in winter, not daring to utter another word.
Although they were powerhouses within their respective races, they were still not enough to contend with a Martial Emperor like Jiang Baihe, who truly stood at the peak of the starry sky.
They could only resentfully restrain their auras and retreat to the side.
After intimidating the crowd, Jiang Baihe withdrew his aura, though his heart was actually filled with confusion.
As the Dean of the Great Xia Martial Academy, he naturally knew the situation of these ruins like the back of his hand.
He knew very well that besides the entrance above the Yan River, there were absolutely no other hidden passages!
The so-called 'outsiders' were complete nonsense!
Therefore, there was only one truth—
That so-called 'Xing Dao Trio' was definitely composed of 'moles' hidden among this batch of students!
But...
He knew the backgrounds of these students better than anyone.
Aside from those few top geniuses, who else possessed such terrifying strength to sweep through the entire ruins, even rubbing existences of Yu Wangji and Zhao Tieshan's level into the dirt?
Even Yu Wangji himself couldn't have achieved that!
This was simply unscientific!
Just as he was completely bewildered.
From the corner of his eye, he suddenly spotted Ning Yuan at the back of the crowd, sneakily winking and making faces at Jiang Mingyue.
That cheeky expression, that sense of delight at 'having done something bad without being caught'...
Jiang Baihe's heart gave a sudden leap!
An extremely absurd, yet seemingly only logical thought irrepressibly popped into his mind.
"No... it couldn't be, right?"
"Could it be... this brat?"
He remembered Ning Yuan asking him for a 'breath-concealing' secret room, recalled that Heaven Swallowing Beast that had evolved for no apparent reason, and then connected it to this kid's usual habit of not playing by the rules...
The more he thought about it, the more he felt it was possible!
"This... this is too outrageous, isn't it?!"
If it really was him...
Then just what level had this kid's strength reached?
One person, one dog, plus that equally mysterious Jiang Yueming... they took down all the geniuses of the Transcendent Academy in one go?
This was way too demoralizing!
Jiang Baihe shook his head violently, trying to cast this terrifying conjecture out of his mind.
"Forget it, forget it. Now is not the time to think about this."
"If it's true... then I have to keep this matter tightly under wraps! I absolutely cannot let those foreign races find out!"
This was a super precious treasure!
If he were exposed, the trouble would be immense!
He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the shock and suspicion in his heart, and regained his image as the profound and unfathomable Dean.
At this moment.
The massive azure vortex began to shrink slowly, finally disappearing completely above the Yan River.
This also meant that this ruin exploration had officially ended.
Those students who failed to emerge—whether they died inside or were lost in the turbulence of time and space—would never have the chance to return.
Cruel, but such was the reality of the cultivation world.
Jiang Baihe shook his head helplessly and waved his hand.
"Let's go! Everyone board the ship! We'll talk once we're back at the academy!"
Regardless, although there was a 'small episode' this time, overall, the students' gains were still enormous.
Especially those top geniuses who, although robbed, had managed to keep a portion of their opportunities; as long as they were given time to digest what they had gained, their future achievements would still be limitless.
With various complex emotions, everyone boarded the xiawu voidship once again.
Ning Yuan found a corner to sit down and let out a long sigh of relief.
Finally... he had managed to get through this without any major mishaps.
Although the process of this trip to the ruins was full of ups and downs, the result was successful.
Not only had his cultivation advanced greatly, stepping into the unprecedented Invincible Earth Grade, but he had also made a fortune, and even Wang Zai had eaten until he was a big fatty.
Simply perfect!
Just then.
The long-awaited, familiar system notification sound finally rang in his mind.
【Ding!】
【Congratulations to the Host! Relying on extraordinary wisdom and luck (mainly luck), you have successfully survived the peril-filled Ancient Dragon Clan Ruins!】