I Really Am A Villain
Ch. 59 - Celestial Tiger Academy

The night passed uneventfully.

After resolving the incident at the Hu residence, Xu Zimo and his group prepared to leave.

Hu Yingying ultimately could not be saved. Steward Hu was forced to accept this painful truth.

He told Xu Zimo that perhaps this was retribution for the blood-stained fortune he’d amassed over the first half of his life. That Heaven had sent this as punishment.

He had decided to dissolve the Hu estate, donate all of his wealth to help the poor, and find a peaceful village somewhere to live out the rest of his days in seclusion.

The three of them rode their Soaring Sand Horses toward the True Martial Sacred Ground. As Xu Zimo looked back at the small town standing quietly on the vast land, he felt their journey had been quite fulfilling.

By dusk, they arrived at a city called Clear Wind City.

As night gradually fell, they decided to rest here for the night and continue their journey the next day.

Once inside the city, they found the streets bustling with life, crowded with teenagers around fifteen or sixteen years old.

They found an inn and stepped inside.

“Will you be dining or staying the night?” the innkeeper asked.

“Both,” said Little Gui, taking out a few spirit crystals.

“Dining’s fine, but I’m afraid all the rooms are booked,” the innkeeper said apologetically.

“Business is that good?” Little Gui muttered.

“You must be new to Clear Wind City,” the innkeeper chuckled. “You see, tomorrow is the Celestial Tiger Academy’s entrance exam, so young people from all the surrounding cities have come here. I’d wager there’s not a single inn left in town with a spare room.”

“Celestial Tiger Academy?” Xu Zimo smiled faintly. He remembered this academy had something rather interesting inside.

It was of no use to him, but for Lin Ruhu, it could be a huge opportunity.

“Let’s eat first,” Xu Zimo said to the innkeeper. “Bring us the best dishes you have.”

The three sat down at an empty table.

Little Gui looked at Xu Zimo curiously. “Senior Brother, I’ve heard the Celestial Tiger Academy has some serious backing. Is that true?”

“Pretty much,” Xu Zimo replied. “It’s a branch of the Heavenly Dao Academy.”

The Heavenly Dao Academy was considered the greatest academy on the Primordial Heartlands, with a history so ancient it could no longer be traced.

Legend had it that the academy was founded even before the Imperial Era, in the Primordial Era.

It had educated many legendary figures throughout the ages, including Grand Emperor Heng Yu and Grand Emperor Mu, who both studied there in their youth.

The main campus of Heavenly Dao Academy was located in the Middle Continent, but they had also established four branch campuses, one on each of the four major continents:

Every year, these four branches held a grand competition, and the top students were sent directly to the Middle Continent’s main academy to study.

“Tomorrow, we’ll drop by Celestial Tiger Academy,” Xu Zimo said as he ate.

“So we’re not returning to the sect yet?” Lin Ruhu asked.

“It won’t take long, probably just a day,” Xu Zimo replied.

“Where are we sleeping tonight, then?” Little Gui asked.

“With fists this big, you think we won’t find a place?” Xu Zimo said with a smirk.

“I got it,” Little Gui grinned, putting down his chopsticks and walking over to the next table.

There, a teenage boy and a middle-aged man in blue robes were eating. They appeared to be father and son, likely in town for the Celestial Tiger Academy exam.

“Do you two have a room here?” Little Gui asked.

“Yes,” the man replied, confused. “We arrived early and reserved one in advance.”

“Oh, that’s great,” Little Gui nodded. Then his face turned fierce.

“You were too loud just now while eating, disturbed my meal. So, what are you going to do about it?”

“But we didn’t even say anything,” the man replied in shock.

“I said you were loud, so you were loud. Are you calling me a liar?” Little Gui sneered.

“Brother…” the man said cautiously.

Before he could finish, Little Gui slammed his palm onto the table, shattering it into pieces.

He glared at the man. “You think you can address me by name? You’re lucky I’m in a good mood today. If it were any other day, you’d already be headless.

Hand over your two rooms, and I’ll pretend this never happened.”

“You’re bullying us!” the teenage boy drew his sword angrily. “You’re just trying to steal our rooms because you arrived late!”

“Zhe’er, stop talking!” the man scolded harshly, then turned to Little Gui with a forced smile.

“He’s young and doesn’t understand. Don’t take offense. Since we disturbed you, we’ll give you our two rooms.”

He took his reluctant son and left the inn.

“He’s got potential,” Xu Zimo said as he watched them go. “Knows when to bend instead of break.”

Though the man was only at the Spirit Meridian Realm, he clearly understood how to read the situation, when to resist and when to yield.

After dinner, the three returned to their rooms.

There were two rooms, one for Xu Zimo, and the other for Lin Ruhu and Little Gui.

The stars glittered across the deep black sky.

It was getting late. The streets, once bustling, had begun to quiet down.

Walking outside, the young man still looked indignant.

“Father, why didn’t we argue back? Why give them our rooms? We didn’t do anything wrong.”

The middle-aged man placed his hands on his son’s shoulders and said seriously:

“Son, weakness is a sin. Tomorrow, when you enter Celestial Tiger Academy, you must pass the test. Train hard. Remember this feeling of helplessness. Someday, you must become a man above all others.”

“I understand,” the boy nodded. In that moment, the seed of strength was planted in his young heart.

The sleeping city slowly awakened with the first ray of sunlight at dawn.

Outside their inn window, twenty meters down, the main street grew lively once again as more and more people filled it, ready for the academy’s entrance day.