Qin Li smiled faintly and nodded. "Yes, His Majesty’s offer was too gracious to refuse, so I had little choice. I am actually a very busy man. Sparing even one day a week is already quite a feat."

Although Bu Tong could sense the sharp edge in the young man’s words, he wasn’t angered. It would be more suspicious if a young man who had found success so early didn’t have a bit of a temper.

The Advanced Academy’s classes were divided into A, B, C, and D, ranked in that order. But even for the last-ranked Class D, the students’ caliber was by no means poor. How could any youth hailed as a genius be subpar?

When Bu Tong saw that Qin Li truly had no intention of interfering with the academy’s power structure, he finally relaxed and said coolly, "Alright, let’s do this then. Since His Majesty ennobled you as the Five Elements Marquis, your grasp of the Five Elements Attribute must be exceptional. A High Tier Earth Level Martial Artist at sixteen is a true genius. Therefore, I will create a new course just for you! We’ll call it... the Five Elements course. You will come to the academy once a week and use the largest auditorium as your classroom. Any student who is interested in this subject may attend your lecture, regardless of their grade or level. We’ll schedule it for the first day of every week. What do you think? Are you satisfied with my arrangement?"

Qin Li sneered inwardly. He’d long since noticed that Bu Tong disliked him, his attitude cold and distant. It had softened slightly after hearing Qin Li wouldn’t be a full-time instructor, but he had still dug a massive pit for him. ’The largest auditorium? Is he trying to make a fool of me? If not a single student shows up... won’t I become the biggest laughingstock in the entire school, or even all of Cyan Dragon City?’

’But if you want to see me make a fool of myself... you should really step out into the hallway and take a look at that crowd of adoring students below!’ Qin Li felt a pang of pity for Bu Tong. He wasn’t sure why Vice Principal Bu Tong disliked him, but Qin Li knew he disliked the man in return. ’And my reasons,’ he thought, ’are perfectly justified!’

So, with a broad smile, Qin Li said, "Vice Principal Bu, thank you so much. I won’t disturb you any longer. You must be busy!"

"Take care, Marquis Qin!" Bu Tong saw Qin Li out with a matching smile, calling out the title "Marquis Qin" with a meaningful inflection. As soon as Qin Li’s back disappeared from view, Bu Tong curled his lip and spat on the ground. ’Bullshit young genius!’ he thought. ’What’s so damned special about him? In front of me, you’re still wet behind the ears! Did you really think I was doing you a favor? You think I don’t know how much those geniuses outside worship you? But... oh, Qin Li, you have no idea. The first day of the week is the busiest day at the academy! Although the Advanced Academy emphasizes self-study, the first day is when all the instructors give their theoretical lectures! Let’s just see how many students dare to risk offending the teachers who hold their grades in their hands just to come listen to you!’

A glint of cold disdain flashed in Bu Tong’s eyes. He turned and entered his office, thinking, ’I’d better give the other instructors a little heads-up about this.’

’Qin Li, from this very first day, I’m throwing you into the eye of the storm! I’ll make sure you get no help here, only isolation. Let’s see how long you can last!’

...

The moment Qin Li came downstairs and reached the entrance, the students waiting outside erupted.

"Whoa, the Cyan Dragon Kingdom’s youngest Marquis has come out!"

"Teacher Qin is so handsome!"

"Stop pushing! If you push me again, I swear I’ll punch you! I’m a Tier Two Profound Level!"

"Hmph, talk big to me when you’re an Earth Level Tier Seven. This young master is a Tier Three Profound Level, thank you very much!"

"Teacher Qin is so young! Oh, I love the look in his eyes!"

"..."

Seeing this, Qin Li could only stand on the steps, wave to the crowd below, and say, "Hello, everyone!"

"Hello, Teacher Qin!"

The reply was perfectly synchronized, a thunderous wave of sound that shook the sky.

Anyone who didn’t know the situation might have thought it had been rehearsed. It just went to show how enthusiastic the students were.

Sitting in his office, Bu Tong couldn’t help but pale slightly. The faces of the instructors on the edge of the crowd, who had been sneering at Qin Li just moments before, also changed.

Qin Feng, also lost in the crowd, stared intently into the eyes of the charismatic young man on the steps. After a long moment, he finally let out a long sigh, his entire posture relaxing.

’It’s not him!’

’A person’s appearance can change, no matter how drastically, but their eyes never do! And certain subtle habits are hard to change, too. Things like his posture, or the small gestures he makes when he speaks.’

"Sigh, what has the world come to! What is wrong with these geniuses? Has all that training rotted their brains?" the well-built Teacher Wei said, his face a mask of profound disappointment.

It wasn’t that they had chosen to come along; they simply had to pass this way to get back to their offices. But when they arrived, they found the building’s main entrance completely blocked by the students.

Another male teacher laughed. "Teacher Wei, weren’t you planning on challenging him? When are you going to do it?"

Teacher Wei pursed his lips. "In a moment."

"Alright! We’re all rooting for you to defeat him, Teacher Wei!" a few of the instructors cheered.

Teacher Wei sneered inwardly. ’A bunch of bastards. They just want a good show. But it doesn’t matter. I don’t care! I refuse to believe that with my superior strength as a Tier Eight Earth Level Martial Artist, I can’t defeat a mere Tier Seven!’

’Especially with his complete Five Elements attribute—a jack of all trades and master of none! Even a genius won’t get far if they don’t focus on a single discipline! That day at the Royal training grounds, the Celestial Level Martial Artist simply couldn’t be bothered with you. And as for those wastes of space from the Daqing Gang, I think even less of them. Just a pack of street thugs!’

’What truly capable person would ever mess around with a gang?’ Teacher Wei sneered. ’So, leave it to me, Wei Qiang, to be the one to rip off your hypocritical mask!’

"Fellow students, you flatter me. I am truly unworthy of such praise! In reality, I’m just a young man, same as all of you. There are probably many here older than I am. You are the future pillars of our kingdom, every one of you a true genius! As for me... I’ve just been fortunate. I was blessed with a good constitution, and that’s the only reason I’ve gotten this far. I’m not that much better than any of you. Vice Principal Bu has arranged for me to teach a course on the Five Elements. It will be held on the first day of every week in the academy’s grand auditorium, and I will be there. The Five Elements are, of course, Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth. Any students who cultivate Elemental Combat Skills and have questions can come and find me. There may even be some things I have to learn from you all."

As Qin Li spoke, he suddenly noticed the crowd had fallen silent. The students’ faces looked strange, and most of them seemed bewildered. However, he could see that the eyes of some of the male students, as well as the sneering, instructor-looking men in the distance, were filled with unconcealed glee.

Qin Li’s heart fluttered. He understood at once. ’There must be a catch to holding class on the first day of the week!’

With this in mind, Qin Li smiled and continued, "No matter. I’ll be there for the entire day. I can use the time to do some reading—I hear the Royal Library is right here, so it’s a good chance to enrich my own knowledge. If any of you have other matters to attend to that day, feel free to take care of them. You can come find me whenever you’re free."

Just then, a clear, pleasant female voice cut through the crowd. "Teacher Qin, I will come to seek your guidance every Monday!"

The moment she spoke, the crowd, which had started to murmur, fell silent again. The expressions on many faces, including Teacher Wei’s, instantly soured.

The speaker was someone that no one—not even Vice Principal Bu Tong—dared to offend: Princess Zhao Qianqian!

At the Imperial Advanced Academy, the instructors were supposed to treat all students equally, regardless of their background. Whether you were the scion of Dukes and Ministers or the child of a wealthy noble family, here, you were just an ordinary student.

There was no other way. If the rules were different, students would use their family status to do as they please, and teaching would be impossible. Fortunately, while the vast majority of students here were proud, they were also highly self-disciplined. Insubordination was extremely rare. Even geniuses needed to put in the effort and sweat to succeed.

Everyone knew of countless examples where laziness and prodigality had turned a genius into a good-for-nothing.

That was why even Bu Tong had forgotten that his academy housed one powerful individual whom nobody could afford to provoke: the Emperor’s most beloved Little Princess, Zhao Qianqian!

She had just announced she would be attending Qin Li’s class. What instructor would be foolish enough to stand in her way?

Sure enough, as soon as Zhao Qianqian finished speaking, many others chimed in, "We’ll go listen to Teacher Qin’s class too!"

"Me too!"

"Me too!"

The tense atmosphere instantly became lively again. Qin Li smiled, raising a hand and gesturing for quiet. "How about this," he said. "It seems all of you have very important things to do on the first day of the week. Let’s change the class time to the afternoon. I imagine your schedules will be less tight by then, correct?"

"Yes, we’re free in the afternoon!"

"Teacher Qin is so kind!"

"Teacher Qin is so considerate!"

Qin Li smiled faintly, then casually glanced up. A figure on the third floor vanished in an instant. In truth, Qin Li didn’t even need to look; he knew Bu Tong had come out to observe the situation again. He sneered inwardly. Qin Li stepped onto the carriage exclusive to Marquis Qin’s Mansion and was about to depart when he saw Little Princess Zhao Qianqian push through the crowd and walk toward him. She looked a bit shy, but spoke with great earnestness, "Teacher Qin, I... may I go with you? There are some questions I wanted to ask you!"

BOOM!

The students erupted into another uproar. Many of the girls watched with envy as Zhao Qianqian stepped onto the luxurious carriage, while the eyes of many boys burned with jealousy.

Qin Feng’s expression soured. A gloomy shadow passed over his eyes as he turned and walked away.