Chen Nan's mind was in turmoil. He had previously made various conjectures about the Deathly Abyss, but they all seemed to be some distance from the truth. But now, the Nameless God and Demon had given him immense hope. If possible, he desperately wanted to speak directly with the Nameless God and Demon!
He decided to explain everything about the Death Zone to the vice dean. At present, his strength alone was far from enough, and he needed to rely on the power of the Divine Wind Academy to explore the Death Zone.
The next day, the weather suddenly turned cloudy, and a torrential downpour began, forcing the youth powerhouse competition between the four academies to be postponed once again.
On this rainy day, three peerless masters from Shenfeng Academy came to visit. Chen Nan invited them into the house and led Xiao Chenxi to greet them one by one.
Yesterday afternoon, while Chen Nan was healing his injuries, Xiao Chenxi had already become familiar with the elderly people in the neighborhood. Now, upon seeing the three peerless masters, she showed no shyness at all. She first sweetly greeted the three elderly people, and then hugged the sleeve of the cultivator among them, pleading, "Grandpa, where's your little sword? I want it to carry me through the air..."
The old man affectionately picked her up and said with a smile, "Okay, Grandpa will make you fly in a little while."
After the group sat down, the old man indeed fulfilled Xiao Chenxi's wish. He suddenly produced a misty, luminous object from somewhere, gently lifted Xiao Chenxi up, and flew into the air, then carried her around the room.
"Hehe, this is so much fun..." Little Dawn wasn't scared at all and laughed happily in the air.
Chen Nanyun used his eyesight to discover that it was an object similar to a shield. He knew that every cultivator who had achieved mastery possessed several powerful magical treasures, and he guessed that this was one of the old man's treasures. He never expected that the old man would take it out and let Xiao Chenxi play with it like this.
While the cultivator and Xiao Chenxi were playing, the old man with a cane and a face full of wrinkles said to Chen Nan, "Let me introduce myself. The three of us are all retired teachers from Shenfeng Academy, but we have all retired and are now living in seclusion here to cultivate. I am Lei Lie, a Holy Dragon Knight, but to my shame, I have never had my own Holy Dragon..."
It turned out that Lei Lie was the old dragon knight who had lured the little dragon back, as the vice dean had mentioned. Although he had managed to bring the little dragon to the Divine Wind Academy, he couldn't control it, which left him feeling somewhat helpless. However, since learning that the little dragon might be the dragon king from the first generation of Holy Dragon Knights a thousand years ago, the old man felt incredibly proud.
Through the old man's introduction, Chen Nan understood the identities of the three. The imposing old man with golden beard and blond hair who had remained silent was a retired teacher from the Western Martial Arts Department named Ovi, whose cultivation had reached the Transcendent Realm. The cultivator playing with Xiao Chenxi was a retired teacher from the Eastern Cultivation Department named Yin Feng, whose cultivation was unfathomable.
Chen Nan understood that these three old men wouldn't visit without a reason; they were most likely there for the divine dragon sealed within Xiao Chenxi's body. Seeing that the old dragon knight seemed to want to talk to him away from Xiao Chenxi, he got up and invited the old man into the inner room, with Ovi following closely behind.
After entering the room, Lei Lie got straight to the point, saying, "I'll be frank and not beat around the bush. The three of us want to take Chenxi as our nominal disciple."
Chen Nan's mouth dropped open in astonishment. What kind of status did these three old men have? Their grand-disciples' beards were probably already white with age, yet they wanted to take Xiao Chenxi as their disciple. But then he understood. The three old men must be doing this because of the Divine Dragon.
Ovi seemed to see through his thoughts and said, "On the one hand, we noticed that this little girl's physique is extraordinary, almost like a 'fairy-like body,' which truly shocked the three of us, and we have indeed taken a liking to her. On the other hand, because of the Divine Dragon, it may slumber for a few years, or perhaps for decades. We don't want Xiao Chenxi to encounter any danger, and we hope that she can cultivate a peerless level of power so that she will not fear any powerful enemies in the future and can roam this world with ease."
Chen Nan nodded. Just as he had expected, the main reason the three elders wanted to take Xiao Chenxi as their disciple was because of the Divine Dragon. The Divine Wind Academy was by no means lacking in exceptionally talented individuals. Given the cultivation and status of the three elders, if they wanted to take on disciples, there would definitely be a large number of people vying for the opportunity.
"Thank you for your kindness, seniors. I am truly happy for Chenxi. It is my blessing to have your favor, but..."
"But what? You might as well just say it."
"That's right. I had wanted to teach Chenxi some martial arts before, but this little girl doesn't seem to like entering the field of cultivation at all. She seems to be very resistant to it, so I have never forced her."
Ovi nodded, exchanged a glance with Lei Lie, and said, "It's clear you dote on this little girl and don't want her to suffer any hardship. If we have a way to get her interested in cultivation, would you be willing to let her become our disciple?"
Chen Nan nodded without hesitation and said, "Of course I'm willing. I've said before that it's Chenxi's blessing to be able to study under the three seniors."
He had already made up his mind. In the early years, the three great masters would inevitably be busy laying the foundation for the little girl, and it would be impossible for them to systematically teach her cultivation techniques. After Xiao Chenxi entered the path, Chen Nan planned to teach her the profound and unpredictable family secret art. The cultivation of the three peerless masters was world-shaking, but Chen Nan believed that their cultivation techniques might not be as good as his family secret art. With the three peerless masters laying a solid foundation for her, when she formally entered the field of cultivation and learned secret arts in the future, she would surely achieve twice the result with half the effort, and her future achievements would be limitless.
When Aowei and Lei Lie saw that Chen Nan had agreed, they were very happy. Lei Lie smiled and said, "Don't worry, the three of us will definitely lay a solid foundation for her. We have many friends in the cultivation world, and we will definitely get her the best cultivation techniques in the world. We will definitely cultivate her into a person who can stand out in the world."
Chen Nan bowed deeply to the two to express his gratitude. After he sat down, Lei Lie, with a serious expression, said, "Now can you tell us the true identity of this little girl? What is her background?"
Chen Nan was taken aback, not expecting them to ask such a question.
Ovi said, "From the moment we saw that little girl, we realized she was extraordinary. Then, the divine dragon sealed itself within her body, which shocked us even more. Later, after observing her secretly, we discovered that her physique was indeed extraordinary. Her small body could not be called a celestial body. If she weren't so young and didn't have any cultivation, we would really think she was a little immortal."
Chen Nan's face showed shock. He hadn't expected that the three old men would discover Xiao Chenxi's secret through the Divine Dragon incident. After considering it carefully, he turned over and knelt down, kowtowing three times to the two old men.
The two elderly people quickly helped him up. Lei Lie asked, "What are you doing?"
Chen Nan said with a serious expression, "Please grant me a request, senior: what I said to you today must not be told to anyone except Senior Yin Feng."
The two elderly people looked at each other and then nodded solemnly.
Chen Nan had been restless these past few days. Relying on his innate, mysterious intuition, he sensed that a major event was about to happen to him—a completely instinctive feeling. This premonition made him very uneasy, and he wanted to take this opportunity to entrust Xiao Chenxi to the three peerless masters.
The three masters dote on Xiao Chenxi now, and if something were to happen to her in the near future, he believes they would take good care of her. He needs to tell them some things about Xiao Chenxi now, because if she lives with them in the future, they will definitely discover her secret of being detached from worldly affairs. It's better to tell them now.
"Senior's insight is truly remarkable; Chenxi seems to be no ordinary person."
"What do you mean?" The two elderly people were moved.
Chen Nan said with a serious expression, "What I am about to say is absolutely true. I found Chenxi in the Kunlun Mountains. She... she was born from a rare flower..."
Chen Nan omitted the ancient immortal ruins—Hundred Flowers Valley, skipped the encounter with demons outside the valley, and didn't mention Yu Xin's various affairs. He only recounted the extraordinary phenomena of heaven and earth when Chen Xi was born.
"You mean the little girl was born from a celestial flower blooming from the divine jade, and that she could speak and run immediately after birth?"
The two elderly people were shocked upon hearing this and remained silent for a long time. After a long while, they looked at each other and Ovi asked, "What do you think?"
Lei Lie said with a solemn expression, "The little girl is definitely not a jade demon in human form. She has an ethereal aura, just like the legendary immortals who were reborn by borrowing another's body."
Ovi nodded thoughtfully.
"What?!" Chen Nan exclaimed in shock.