"A prince is protecting other princes?" Lin Xiao asked in bewildered tone. He couldn't believe what he was seeing at all.

"The princes who are not powerful enough or not have the qualification to ascend the throne will try to latch onto the thigh of other princes. The people around the two princes are either the other princes or the noble families who are powerful and talented."

Lin Xiao was speechless. This was the first time he ever knew that the princes were also very complicated. But thinking about the fact that there were over 100 princes in total… it didn't sound that strange anymore.

Not everyone could fight for the throne and those geniuses in the royal family would also want to live. To be able to survive, they could only latch onto the thigh of the one they believed to be the next Emperor.

"Very well."

Prince Lin Kai noticed that the guards were looking in their direction. He had no intention to create a scene there, so he walked to the gate and passed it swiftly. The people behind him also followed him and thus several people had passed all at once.

Prince Lin Hong sneered and waved his hand. "Lin Su, we're going."

"Yes, Your Highness."

They walked pass the gate easily too, making the people dumbfounded. There were many of them who had been trying to pass the gate yet they were all failed. However, the people who followed the princes were able to pass so easily.

The differences between geniuses and ordinary people were shown very clearly in this instance.

"They make it look so easy."

"True."

Lin Xiao continued to watch while walking in slow pace towards the gate. His eyes narrowed when he saw familiar figure from a distance: Luo Lan.

Luo Lan still looked the same as before. His hair was messy yet there was a mischievous grin on his face as he walked to the gate. The power he exuded seemed to increase after not meeting for a few months.

'Well, he's not a genius for nothing.'

Swish!

Luo Lan passed through the gate easily followed with some other people. There were not many of them whom Lin Xiao knew as he was not really a sociable person. However, he could see that many of them were unable to pass.

The guards unkindly shoved them away when they were unwilling to leave and wanted to try again. From the way it looked like, the guards were simply telling them that there was no second chance.

After more than half had disappeared, Lin Xiao noticed that both Bai Xin and Xu Qin also passed the gate. While Bai Xin spared no effort, Xu Qin almost fell as she passed through the gate but still succeeded. From the way it looked like, she was not that bad in terms of strength.

"The woman you disliked is getting stronger, Brother."

"She's the one who hated me. I don't really care for her," Lin Xiao replied with a shrug. He never paid any attention to Xu Qin even in the past. No matter how much Xu Qin used to hate him, he didn't care in the slightest bit.

Besides, that woman's father tried to kill him. If he ended up liking Xu Qin afterwards, he would definitely question his own consciousness. Would he kill the parents of the woman he liked?

That was insane.

"Let's go."

"Alright."

The four of them stepped forward and passed the gate. There were already a lot of people who passed the gate, so their action didn't really cause any ripples. Hundreds of people had passed, so if they feel envy for every single one of them… they should stop practicing martial arts.

The moment Lin Xiao passed the gate, he noticed that he had entered a completely different place. It was no longer inside the forest but rather a large hall. In front of him, there was a stair that seemed to be heading to a faraway place that couldn't be seen from this place.

A guard was standing in front of the stair, preventing them from even getting close to the stair.

"Everyone from Sun Dragon Academy are already at Golden Core Stage," Wenren Yu murmured, feeling a bit astonished. There were so many of them who were at Golden Core Stage to the point that he felt it was so amazing.

"For Sun Dragon Academy, Golden Core Stage is nothing." Sui Wenyan smiled bitterly. She had heard about the academy from her teachers back then and put it as her goal. To be honest, she was planning to apply last year, but with the ruckus that was caused by the destruction of Taiyi Sect, she had been putting her plan on hold to this year.

And this was also the last chance she had.

She would never allow herself to fail.

"Really?"

"If you want to formally graduate from Sun Dragon Academy, you need to reach the second stage of Golden Core Stage," Sui Wenyan replied with a faint smile.

Lin Xiao felt his mind blanked. "Isn't the third stage the highest stage?"

"Yes. Each stage will be categorized as early, middle, late, and peak. You can only advance to the next stage after you reach the peak. Sun Dragon Academy will never let ordinary Golden Core Stage to graduate. If you couldn't reach the second Stage of Golden Core Stage before the age of 30, you'll be kicked out of the academy and listed as the student who fails."

30 years of age.

While it might sound long, it was very short for cultivators. When they reached Foundation Establishment Stage, their lifespan would increase to be more than 100 years. When they reached Golden Core Stage, they could live up to 200 years or more depending on their stages.

With such long lifespan, 30 years was truly not much.

While Lin Xiao was pondering, he noticed a familiar figure from the side and his lips twitched. Time to run from that chatterbox.