Firmament Sword

”Sun Tongxue, do you have a problem with what I said?” Lin Chi was nearly crazed at this point, ready to bite the head off of anyone who crossed him.

Sun Donghai’s expression turned cold. He said flatly, ”At True Martial Academy, everyone is equal? I can only laugh at your naivete. And you don’t have to keep using that line to needle Xu Luo. If he actually stooped to your level, I guarantee you wouldn’t even make it out the gates of True Martial Academy!”

Over on the side, Zhao Mo, Wang Ziweng, Leng Ping, and the others all glanced at Sun Donghai, who had suddenly spoken up for Xu Luo. Then, their gazes toward Xu Luo became thoughtful.

Sun Donghai sighed softly and looked at Lin Chi. ”I really don’t want to crush you, but I have to tell you a hard truth. There’s nothing inherently wrong with wanting to pursue the Princess. If the Princess were to fall for you, no one else’s opposition would matter.

The current Emperor is wise and open-minded. If the Princess truly chose you, I doubt even His Majesty would stand in your way.

However, are you aware of the reality? A single bottle of the Princess’s perfume costs more than your family’s living expenses for a year. A single dress she wears would require your family to save every penny for ten years, without eating or drinking—and even ten years might not be enough. A single hairpin she wears is something your ancestors couldn’t afford even after three hundred years of toil...

Student Lin Chi, you only think about how outstanding you are. You think that after winning the Princess’s heart, you’ll have a meteoric rise to power. But have you ever considered... what you would use to support a Princess?

Forget the Princess. You probably couldn’t even afford to support a noble lady from your own hometown!

Xu Luo said your intentions were vile, and you refused to accept it, but that’s the reality. The Princess... is truly not someone a person like you is qualified to covet. So just save it. Did you really think the Princess would fall for someone who just wants to live off a woman and climb the social ladder?

You? You think you can pursue the Princess?

In fact, Lin Chi, you are indeed quite talented. If you had just kept your head down and acted with humility, you might have had a bright future ahead of you.

But you are nowhere near as exceptional... as you think you are!

So, hehe, stop dreaming!

Just as Xu Luo said, you should focus your energy on changing your own fate, on changing your family’s fate, and on giving your parents a better life!”

PFFT!

Lin Chi spat out a mouthful of blood, his body swaying precariously. The look he gave Xu Luo and Sun Donghai was filled with venomous hatred.

”Fine. Fine! You nobles, you’re all in this together, singing the same tune. You look down on me, Lin Chi, is that it? Just you wait! One day, I, Lin Chi... will make you all see me in a new light!”

Sun Donghai just smiled. Suddenly, his body moved. Like a bolt of lightning, he instantly appeared in front of Lin Chi.

Although Lin Chi had been angered to the point of vomiting blood, he was still a powerful Tier Two Sword Master. Yet, to his horror, he found that the aura erupting from his opponent in that instant completely overwhelmed his own!

SLAP!

Sun Donghai raised his hand and viciously slapped Lin Chi across the face. He then spat on the ground and sneered, ”Don’t you ever look at people like that again. This is an academy, so I won’t kill you. But if we were outside, I’d twist your head off for that look alone! Finally, a word of advice: Work hard. I’ll be waiting.”

The moment Sun Donghai moved, Xu Luo’s eyes narrowed slightly. He sensed a powerful aura from Sun Donghai, and a thought stirred in his mind: ’Sun Donghai’s skills are even stronger than I imagined. He really hides his true strength!’

Lin Chi was knocked to the ground by Sun Donghai’s slap, and his exquisitely crafted folding fan was sent flying.

It landed with the four words, ”A Mind Like The Sea,” facing up. The script was bold and vigorous, yet it struck everyone as intensely ironic.

Zhao Mo looked at the fan that had landed in front of him, suddenly smiled, and said faintly, ”’A Mind Like The Sea’? Heh, I think ’Narrow-Minded’ would be more fitting.”

Wang Ziweng grinned and said, ”I think ’Delusional Ambition’ would be even better!”

Xu Luo looked at the top young masters from the Imperial Capital, smiled, and nodded to each of them. Then he took the Seventh Princess’s hand and said, ”Qiqi, let’s go.”

”Mmm.”

They left behind a wake of shattered illusions.

Many of the students who had originally sympathized with Lin Chi now fell silent.

Xu Luo’s words and Sun Donghai’s speech were both harsh, especially Sun Donghai’s, which were downright nasty.

These sheltered students, who had little contact with the outside world, felt that their words were a defilement of love.

But upon serious reflection, who could say that Sun Donghai’s words weren’t reasonable?

And who could say that Xu Luo was wrong to rebuke Lin Chi?

A commoner marrying a princess... that truly only existed in people’s beautiful fantasies. That’s why such stories were so popular.

These naive students were thoroughly shaken and educated today. The things they had never considered to be problems were, in fact, enormous problems!

They used to look down on the children of nobility, thinking they were nothing special besides their good birth. But today, two top-tier nobles, Xu Luo and Sun Donghai, had used ironclad facts to tell them: nobles are nobles! They might not necessarily be more outstanding, but their background was an undeniable fact.

Family status, social standing, being well-matched—these weren’t just empty words.

Just as Sun Donghai had said, forget a poor man marrying a princess. Even if a middle-class family’s son married the daughter of a millionaire, the sheer difference in social standing would be enough to crush that family.

Unless one was determined to be a kept man, such things generally only existed in legends.

The so-called ”grassroots” success story... even if one succeeded, they would have to endure a lifetime of cold stares and ridicule. That was a psychological burden most people could never bear.

Even if that commoner later became a world-renowned figure, the stigma of having clung to the powerful to climb the social ladder would be a stain they could never wash away!

And even though the top young masters of the Imperial Capital each had their own circles, at certain times... they would still stand on the same side!

The ideal is beautiful, but reality is cruel.

Lin Chi’s intentions were naturally not as noble as he had claimed, so after being exposed, it was impossible for him to receive much sympathy.

The students who had been crowding the academy path spontaneously parted to clear a way for Xu Luo and the Seventh Princess.

With complicated expressions, they watched the perfectly matched, harmonious pair—like a golden couple from a story—walk further and further away.

No one noticed an old man perched on a branch of a large, leafy tree nearby. He leaned against the trunk, watching the backs of Xu Luo and the Seventh Princess with a thoughtful expression. He chuckled and muttered, ”Those two little rascals... always making trouble for this old man...”