Chapter 8: Registration Turmoil (Part 3)_1

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The black hair still covered the left side of her face as she slowly walked over to Ye Yinzhu, tossing a ruby currency on the table, and said to the teacher in charge of registration, "This is his tuition fee." Ruby currency was rarely circulated in the market and was used only by the great nobles. A single ruby currency was equivalent to one hundred gold coins.

"Haiyang, it's you. You're opposing me again," the young female mage said angrily.

"Lanxi, I'm not opposing you. It's just that I can't stand by and watch you bully our Divine Music Department's new student," Haiyang's voice was as cold as ever. Yet, Ye Yinzhu felt a warm surge in his heart, making her somewhat pale face seem even nobler.

Pointing at Ye Yinzhu, Lanxi said, "Fine, you've passed this time. However, if you're a man, we'll see each other at the arena in the new student competition in three days. Otherwise, you'd better roll out of my way whenever you see me." With that, she paused, her eyes filled with a mocking light, and feigned a sudden realization, "Oh, I forgot, you're from the Divine Music Department, and it seems your department never participates in the new student competition. How could you? You all lack offensive power."

"I'll participate," Ye Yinzhu blurted out almost instinctively, accepting Lanxi's challenge on the spot.

Haiyang frowned slightly and whispered, "Don't be rash..."

"I will participate," Ye Yinzhu repeated firmly, saying determinedly, "Although I don't know what the new student competition is, I accept your challenge." At that moment, he recalled what his grandfather had told him the first time he imparted Zhu Douqi to him—people should not be arrogant, but they must not lack pride. As the heir of the Zhu Sect, one needs to have a backbone as straight as bamboo.

Lanxi huffed, "Alright then! Let's see if you can make it to the arena to face me. I guess you won't last past the first round before you have to lie in bed. Or maybe, you won't even qualify to compete." After saying this, she glanced at Haiyang, who was standing beside Ye Yinzhu, and turned to leave as if unwilling to confront her.

Watching Lanxi's retreating figure, Ye Yinzhu's eyes showed a thoughtful glint. At that moment, he seemed to have grown a bit.

"Are you really going to take part in the new student competition? That's not something us Divine Music Masters should be involved in," Xueling said with some worry.

Ye Yinzhu nodded to Xueling, "Yes, I'm going to participate. Grandfather said that a man should not shy away from any challenge."

Xueling looked at Ye Yinzhu in surprise, something extra flashing in her beautiful eyes, and smiled, "Alright then! Count me in too."

"And me. I'll help you too," a timid voice interjected, belonging to Lanxi, who Ye Yinzhu had only recently met.

Haiyang's voice remained calm and flat, "It seems the new student competition is led by a senior from our own department."

As if suddenly remembering something, Ye Yinzhu hurriedly said, "Thank you, but I can't take your money." He turned to look for the ruby currency on the table, but it had already been collected by the teacher.

Haiyang walked slowly toward the exit, and as she moved, she said, "It's just a loan, and you have to pay it back." She left, but her zither, and her presence, had left a deep impression in Ye Yinzhu's heart.

"Here's your school uniform and dormitory key. Your dorm is in Mixed Area Room 623." The teacher in charge of registration seemed reluctant to even give Ye Yinzhu a second glance as he handed him the items.

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"Mixed Area Room 623? Where's that?" Yin Zhu was a bit lost. Xueling and Lanxi by his side also shook their heads, indicating they didn't know.

"I know, I'll take you there," Feschera offered proactively.

"Thank you so much," Ye Yinzhu's spirits lifted. The unease that had arisen from Roland's appearance was now completely gone. In his view, there were still more good people at the academy.

"See you tomorrow then. Don't be late for class," Xueling cheerfully waved at Yin Zhu. Lanxi, more reserved, simply nodded at him with a smile.

The registration commotion had passed, and the newcomers continued their orderly registration. Feschera patted Yin Zhu's back and said, "Let's go, we'll run. It'll be quicker that way."

The two walked out of the crowd, and Feschera began to run ahead. Although his pace wasn't very fast, his long strides gave him a decent speed.

Yin Zhu kept pace beside him, asking, "Feschera, where is the Mixed Area? Is it far?"

Feschera laughed, "I guess the registration teacher saw that you didn't have much money and arranged for you to be in the Mixed Area. Of course, if you were a female student, you could go straight to the Divine Music Department Dormitory. Too bad, you're the top male student of the Divine Music Department. You can't just mix with the girls, right? The Mixed Area has also become an area for work-study students. It's where some work-study students live. The environment there is a bit worse. Although most students at Milan Magic Martial Academy are nobles, even those without money but with good potential can work part-time while they study."

Ye Yinzhu's eyes lit up, "So, I can do that too."

"Of course, you can, but you have to find a job yourself. By the way, are you really going to participate in the newcomer competition?" Feschera asked.

Yin Zhu nodded earnestly, "Yes! But can you tell me what the newcomer competition is?"

Feschera stumbled nearly falling over, in shock he said, "No way, you don't even know what the newcomer competition is and you dare to accept that little witch Roland's challenge. You truly deserve to be my idol." Although he said this, the look he gave Yin Zhu seemed to suggest he thought he was an idiot.

Yin Zhu scratched his head embarrassingly, "I'm from Acadia, unfamiliar with everything here."

Feschera explained, "Here's how it is. Every year after enrolling new students, the academy holds a newcomer competition to assess the overall quality of the newcomers. Students who rank in the competition are very likely to receive focused training from the academy. And the top three winners even receive prize money."

"That's great," Yin Zhu exclaimed with delight. The thing he was most short of now was money, not to mention paying back Haiyang's One Hundred Gold Coins. And then there were his future living expenses.

Feschera rolled his eyes, "Great? Do you think it's that easy to win a place? The newcomer competition is divided by departments. Each department will send their strongest new team to compete. So, within the department, there's a three-day selection competition first. Then, the best four individuals and one senior from the same department from the previous year join to enter the real newcomer competition. Departments compete against each other through a draw. On our warrior side, there are a total of seventeen departments, and on your mage side, there are nine. Your Divine Music Masters don't even count as a complete department; it's just a small section under the Spiritual Attribute Department. After the round-robin matches, the warrior and mage sides each select two departments with the best performance to advance to the finals. After the knockout round, the final championship is decided. Nearly all the students who enter Milan Magic Martial Arts Academy are the elite, and it's extremely difficult to stand out among so many. In the history of Milan Magic Academy, the Divine Music Department has never even participated in the newcomer competition. The Spiritual Attribute Department is quite popular, having made it to the finals for three consecutive years. That little witch Roland you faced earlier is the granddaughter of the Zi Luolan Family Clan Leader, a genius Wind Attribute Mage, who reached the Intermediate Rank Yellow-rank at just sixteen years old, definitely a standout among the newcomers. As for the Divine Music Department, it's not just about competing, it's even hard to gather five people."