Tang Wulin was slightly taken aback and said helplessly, "Oh… then let's wait for Teacher Xu to come back and talk about it."
Beside him, Xie Xie teased, "I say, Wulin, are you really clueless or just pretending? Since it's a world of two people, they'll definitely be gone for quite a while!"
Xu Xiaoyan chimed in, "Exactly, even if they're back, can you bear to break them apart?"
Ye Xinglan seriously remarked, "Everyone's on vacation now. If it's not something extremely important, let's not bother Teacher Xu."
Xu Lizhi blinked his eyes and said, "I agree with Sister Xinglan. Wulin, you can't do such an unkind thing!"
Tang Wulin's face darkened, "I just complained a little. Why are you all making me out to be so unreasonable?"
Just as everyone was discussing, Turbid World walked towards them, surprised, "Little ones, why are you still at the academy? Aren't you going home for a visit?"
Upon hearing this, everyone respectfully replied, "Turbid World Elder."
Then, Xu Xiaoyan spoke again, "Turbid World Elder, we were planning to leave today, but we didn't see Gu Yue when we woke up this morning! So we decided to stay at the academy and wait for her."
Turbid World stroked his beard and said, "I see. It seems that a presence disappeared from Shrek Academy at dawn, and it must have been Gu Yue!"
Tang Wulin seemed to notice something and asked, "Turbid World Elder, there must be other reasons you're looking for us, right?"
Leaving at dawn, it seems that Gu Yue has something very important!
Turbid World gently rubbed his head, "Yes, I almost forgot. You should all know about the Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event, right?"
Ye Xinglan frowned and said, "Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event? I remember it's an event dedicated to pairing inner court students as companions!"
Xu Lizhi agreed, "Yeah, Sister Xinglan and I saw it once with our own eyes! But… we soon ended up in the Outer Court!"
Xie Xie gasped, "Wow… is there really such an event? How come I never knew about it!"
Inner court students even get assigned companions; this treatment is truly exceptional!
Wu Siduo replied abruptly, "This is an event held in the inner court, so it's normal for outer courtyard students not to know!"
Tang Wulin countered, "Turbid World Elder, could it be that this year's Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event is going to be canceled?"
It's no wonder, there are only a dozen people in the inner court, not only few in number but with uneven gender distribution. Holding the Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event would be incredibly difficult!
Xie Xie heard this and said anxiously, "Hopefully not! We're going to become inner court students next semester. If it's canceled now, wouldn't we be wasting a chance!"
If the Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event happens, he could openly pursue Yuanen Yehui!
If it fails, so be it. But what if he succeeds?
Sharing the same thought was Xu Lizhi standing behind Ye Xinglan…
If possible, he also wanted to muster the courage to express his love for Ye Xinglan at the event!
Turbid World chuckled, "You all need not worry, this year's Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event is confirmed, although it will be different from previous years!"
Xie Xie asked eagerly, "Different? Please, Turbid World Elder, explain!"
Turbid World's eyes twinkled as he slowly said, "This year's event will allow students above third grade to participate, while those below can watch!"
This year's Sea God's Pavilion matchmaking event will surely be surprisingly lively!
...
As his words fell, Xu Xiaoyan scolded, "That can't be, Gu Yue is our companion!"
Ye Xinglan nodded, "Yes, without Gu Yue back safely, even lying in bed won't let me sleep. We might as well go to the Blacksmith Association together to find her!"
Xu Lizhi hesitated, "But Shrek Academy prohibits going out at night. If found, the consequences are quite severe!"
Xie Xie pursed his lips, "At worst, we'll get scolded a bit. Relax, we've sneaked out before!"
Upon hearing this, Wu Siduo gave him a cold glance, "Really?"
Xie Xie coughed awkwardly, "Ahem… of course, just got taken to President Cai's office for a lecture!"
Seeing the situation, Tang Wulin took a deep breath, "Everyone… alright, let's head to the Blacksmith Association together! But to avoid detection, let's leave quietly through the back door!"
Thus, the group headed to the back door, sneakily planning to climb over the wall and leave…
Yet, before they could act, a cold voice suddenly sounded…
"Where do you little ones plan to go this late? Don't you know the academy rules?"
The person turned out to be the Outer Court President, Cai Yue'er!
She sensed soul power fluctuation and rushed over…
Everyone was startled and said in unison, "Cai… Cai President."
Getting caught by her, that's really the worst outcome!
Cai Yue'er glanced at them, asking emotionlessly, "Tell me, what are you planning to do, leaving Shrek Academy in the middle of the night? If you can't give a reasonable explanation, the result will be serious!"
Tang Wulin's forehead dripped cold sweat, "President Cai, we… we just didn't see Gu Yue back yet, so we wanted to try finding her at the Blacksmith Association!"
Upon hearing this, Cai Yue'er's beautiful eyes shimmered, "You mean Gu Yue? She did come back, but… it was to ask for leave, saying she would be gone for a while."
Upon hearing this, Tang Wulin excitedly asked, "What? President Cai, did Gu Yue say where she was going?"
The others also stared closely at Cai Yue'er, waiting for her answer…
Cai Yue'er replied softly, "Sadly, she didn't say where she was headed!"
Seeing this response, disappointment spread across the faces of Tang Wulin and the others…
Seeing this scene, Cai Yue'er felt sympathy and gently reminded, "Alright, I've told you about Gu Yue's situation, everyone go back to your dormitories!"
Seems like Gu Yue's departure hit these youngsters hard; I'll turn a blind eye to them leaving the academy…
Tang Wulin and the others regained themselves and bowed slightly, "Yes, President Cai, we'll be leaving now."
Though not punished, Gu Yue's departure carried a heavy emotional blow!
...
The far northern lands!
A Rock Dragon, several hundred meters in size, scanned around with its scarlet eyes. After ensuring there was no abnormality, it coiled its massive body and gently closed its eyes, falling into slumber…
Not far away, Yue Zhengyu exclaimed joyfully,
"Ye Hui, now's the chance to act; that Rock Dragon is asleep! Most likely exhausted from fighting other soul beasts this morning!"
Yuanen Yehui nodded but with caution, "Yes! But with its eyes tightly shut like that, we can't deal it a heavy blow!"