After a long journey, we finally arrived at the academy—and it's just... incredible. It's unbelievably beautiful, clearly the largest building I've ever seen in my life.
When we arrived, we were greeted by teachers who guided us to the great hall.
Inside, the building was even more impressive. It was very spacious, and portraits of well-known cultivators hung on the walls, like those of Canou Gérard and Lucien Castle.
The great hall was even more stunning. Seeing it from the inside, you understand why it's called the great hall—it could easily hold over seven hundred people.
We sat down, looking at the stage. The teachers told us the principal was going to give a speech.
After a few moments, the principal finally came out from behind the curtain. He was wearing a sort of black and white suit. He looked old—he was sixty-two after all. He was a white man, with short black hair and black eyes. He approached the microphone.
"Hello everyone. First of all, I want to congratulate you on entering the world of cultivation. Starting today and for the next five years, you will study here—learning how to properly use your strength, how to fight against other cultivators. Because, as you know, sometimes cultivators decide to do harm, or even act like gods. People like that must be neutralized," the principal said.
"You can choose who you want to share your dorm with, with a limit of three people. Here, we do not tolerate fighting in the hallways or classrooms. I wish you a good first year—and remember, you are here to learn, not to mess around."
The room burst into applause. Joseph and I didn't clap—we weren't sure if he knew about the attempted murder against me.
After that, we headed to the hall to check our class placements. I was in the same class as Joseph—nothing new there. But I frowned when I saw the name written just below mine: Alice Gérard. Great—the daughter of the man who tried to kill me is in my class. Just thinking about her made a twisted smile form on my face.
Joseph, noticing, said, "I don't know who you're thinking about, but I feel sorry for them."
Instead of calling me a monster, come on—we went to check out the dorms.
We took the elevator to the twenty-fifth floor, which was the dormitory level.
When the elevator doors opened, there were people waiting for us. They had baseball bats, and someone shouted,
"Boss, some newbies just got off the elevator!"
"Bring them with the others," said a voice, presumably the leader.
They grabbed our arms and forced us to follow them. We didn't resist.
They brought us into a large kitchen where several people were already on the ground. They ordered us to kneel.
We obeyed without showing resistance.
A tall boy with black hair and green eyes climbed onto a table, looked at us, and said:
"Here, we make the rules. For anyone who feels brave—if you mess with someone from the Caho clan, you're a dead man. Don't try to be a hero unless you want your teeth broken. Respect your elders here, or you might die. Got it? Then get out of here."
"You act all tough in front of everyone just because you've been here two years? You're still stuck at Rank One. You think I'm going to let someone the same rank as me boss me around? Keep dreaming, loser. If you're a real one, fight us now," said a confident boy standing up.
"That's why I always do this with newcomers. Let me guess—you're a spoiled rich kid. I've only seen your kind act like this. Fine, you want a fight? You got it—right now," said the leader.
He rushed toward the one who had spoken, grabbed his face—he was too fast to react to—and slammed his body to the ground, then began punching him repeatedly for a full minute.
After that, the guy on the ground didn't move. The so-called leader stood up, turned to us—his hands and shirt covered in blood—and said with a smile:
"Remember my name—Kamo Caho, leader of the Caho Clan. I'm a Rank Three cultivator. You better do as I say if you don't want to end up like him. Let's go, guys."
What a first impression—beating someone nearly to death to establish psychological dominance over all the newcomers. And he's Rank Three, with his own clan. It would be great if he joined me—I'm planning to form a team to counter the future cultivators coming here.
"This year is off to a good start," I said with a smile.
Joseph, seeing Tony's smile, immediately stepped away from him.