Am I my daughter?

“Recommended by the Lord of the Pavilion, I see?” The old dean examined the letter, then looked at Shangguan Xue. “You and the Lord of the Pavilion…”

“Sorry, Dean,” Shangguan Xue smiled innocently. “It’s a secret.”

‘Would you believe me if I said I was their ex-girlfriend?’ Shangguan Xue mused inwardly.

“I understand,” the old dean said, letting out a breath, having clearly imagined something significant. “Shangguan Xue, from today forward, you are a disciple of the Grand Spirit Academy.” He produced a token and handed it over.

“Thank you,” Shangguan Xue replied, accepting the token that signified her status as a Grand Spirit Academy disciple, before taking her leave.

****

Once she had departed, someone emerged from beside the old dean:

“Dean, if her relationship with the Lord of the Pavilion is so close, why wouldn’t the Lord of the Pavilion teach her personally?”

“The Lord of the Pavilion was a disciple of the Grand Spirit Academy in their younger years,” the old dean sighed. “We can only assume the Lord of the Pavilion wishes for her to follow in their footsteps.”

“Her identity…”

“Have you not noticed her slight resemblance to that esteemed personage?” the old dean mused.

“That esteemed personage? Indeed, she bears a resemblance to the Martial Saint…” The person fell silent mid-sentence, staring at the dean dumbfounded.

“Yes, that’s precisely what I thought,” the old man said with a wry smile. “The Lord of the Pavilion and the Martial Saint once shared a romantic entanglement.”

“So, should we… dismiss Taiming?”

“Taiming didn’t actually strike her,” the dean snorted. “Just tell him to behave himself. I can grant him some leniency, but if that young lady were to report him to the Lord of the Pavilion…”

“Understood.”

****

Shangguan Xue remained unaware of the conversation unfolding at the dean’s office, yet she could largely surmise their thoughts regarding her identity.

‘They must suspect I’m Qingmei’s daughter… ha, perhaps even Qingmei and the Martial Saint’s daughter.’

‘I am my own daughter… I can no longer track which generation I belong to.’

‘Speaking of which, I wonder which cultivator invented the method where two individuals contribute a bit of essence blood and soul to produce offspring.’

‘That’s how Ziyan came into being; she has two mothers, you see.’

Arriving in the classroom, Shangguan Xue grinned, then quickly shifted her attention to the class schedule.

The Grand Spirit Academy adopted a class-based teaching system, where all disciples admitted each year constituted a single class.

The schedule for Shangguan Xue’s class indicated two lessons daily, encompassing cultivation guidance, as well as literacy, composition, arithmetic, and general knowledge of nature.

During non-class hours, disciples were free to cultivate on their own within the academy grounds.

The academy boasted facilities such as Spirit Gathering Platforms to accelerate cultivation, a library, and combat arenas, all accessible with a disciple’s token.

“The arrangement of this schedule… is quite reasonable,” Shangguan Xue nodded thoughtfully. “Too bad there are no weekends.”

Having committed the schedule to memory, she settled into a seat in the second row, by the wall, awaiting the arrival of others.

Soon after, she spotted Hao Jin, who was temporarily known as Luo Jin. He was clad in bulky clothes, still harboring a desire to draw attention, yet appeared much more restrained.

“You!”

His eyes immediately landed on Shangguan Xue, and instantly, anger flared within him, spurring him to throw a punch.

‘Though he hasn’t mastered a Spirit Art yet, his innate spiritual energy has reached the Body Tempering Realm, so he thinks he can just show off his might?’

‘Ha! I, for one, painstakingly cultivated to this stage using Martial Arts!’

Shangguan Xue felt a slight urge to laugh.

Spirit Arts determined the utilization rate of spiritual energy. Her Martial Art, having been modified to her specific needs, boasted a hundred percent utilization rate; Luo Jin, for now, possessed no Spirit Art, achieving at most twenty percent.

Although Luo Jin possessed a greater quantity of spiritual energy than Shangguan Xue, he could utilize less than half of hers.

Consequently, Shangguan Xue gripped Luo Jin’s fist with her right hand and slapped him across the face with her left.

“Slap!”

Dizzy and disoriented from her slap, Luo Jin was instantly stunned; he had never received such a beating in two lifetimes.

‘Consider this a bit of interest for your killing me…’ Shangguan Xue sneered inwardly.

“Hey, how can you hit someone?” a girl spoke up from the side.

‘Shamelessly defending the Child of Destiny… could she be that Nightmare?’

Casually flinging Luo Jin aside, Shangguan Xue regarded the girl warily. She considered whether to retrieve her Overlord Blade, restore her full strength, and slay the opponent.

‘Forget it. What if she’s merely smitten with the Child of Destiny… that scoundrel does look decent enough.’

Ultimately, Shangguan Xue decided against it, unwilling to indiscriminately kill the innocent.

“Classmate,” the girl said, moving to support Luo Jin. “Are you alright?”

Though dizzy and his face stung fiercely, the moment Luo Jin saw it was a girl, he immediately put on an act. “I’m fine!”

‘How old was this brat before he transmigrated? He seems neither like an adult nor a youth…’ Shangguan Xue, who had cast a sidelong glance at them, muttered inwardly.

This minor interlude failed to draw much attention. Shangguan Xue, however, was rather disappointed—Luo Jin, after taking a slap, merely found a seat and sat down.

‘Coward… or perhaps a wise man knows when to retreat?’

‘Pah, a good-for-nothing.’

Muttering to herself inwardly, Shangguan Xue seized the opportunity to secretly cultivate.

Before long, the classroom was nearly full. For a considerable time afterward, no new disciples entered.

‘These must be all for this year…’ Shangguan Xue murmured.

At that moment, an instructor entered the classroom, every movement exuding an aura of authority.

Any disciple whose gaze met her icy blue eyes voluntarily quieted down.

Only when the entire classroom fell into pin-drop silence did she speak.

“I am your instructor for the next three years, primarily guiding you in cultivation. Now, those disciples who have not yet cultivated a Spirit Art, follow me.”

Over fifty people in the classroom gradually rose, following her to select their Spirit Arts, Luo Jin among them.

‘Oh, a dozen or so people have already cultivated Spirit Arts.’

Counting the remaining individuals, Shangguan Xue couldn’t help but feel a pang of emotion. It was then that she noticed the girl who had helped Luo Jin had stayed behind.

‘A Nightmare’s plan is to mimic others’ appearances and cultivated Spirit Arts… she’s quite suspicious.’

‘However, in this era, the Nightmare race’s destiny is severed; a single Nightmare cannot cause much trouble—unless a Child of Destiny assists her.’

‘Therefore, the priority remains to eliminate Hao Jin’s destiny.’

Touching her forehead, Shangguan Xue activated her spiritual sense, manifesting an invisible external avatar to follow the group selecting Spirit Arts.

Meanwhile, she herself consumed a Calming Pill and began cultivating within the classroom.