Everyone ascended, but I didn't get on board

Chapter 86: Selection of the Heavenly Ranking
After the Heavenly Ranking was released, Qiu Ci clearly felt that the atmosphere of the entire academy had changed. The students seemed to be doing everything normal, but he could sense the tension. Even many senior teachers changed their original lecture arrangements, and people in each department began to retreat one after another.

Qiu Ci vaguely felt that the release of the Heavenly Ranking was a big event, but Master Chai had disappeared since that day, and she couldn't find anyone even if she wanted to ask about him. Fortunately, she had a know-it-all by her side.

"The Heavenly Ranking has been released. It looks like the Continental College Competition is about to begin." Zhen Yi looked at her curiously and said, "Sister Xiao Ci, are you going to participate in this competition too?"

"College competition?" Qiu Ci was stunned for a moment, "What is that?"

"Eh! Sister Xiaoci, don't you know?" Zhen Yi was a little surprised, then explained, "It's a competition among all the academies in Lanru Continent, but the participants are all disciples of the academy or direct disciples of the Master, just to compete for the ranking on the Heavenly Ranking."

"Heavenly Ranking?" Is the Heavenly Ranking really a ranking? "How much do you know about the Heavenly Ranking? Tell me about it."

"I also heard this from other students these past few days." Zhen Yi looked like he didn't know anything, and continued to explain, "The so-called Heavenly Ranking is actually also called the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking. It records the ranking of the strongest geniuses in Lanru Continent over the past hundred years. As long as anyone on the list has not fallen, they can become a powerful person. I heard that many of the Heavenly Ranking's geniuses in the past have ascended to become immortals."

"So the Heavenly Ranking is a ranking of future combat power?" Qiu Ci was a little surprised and continued to ask, "Then what about the All-Continental College Competition? Since the Heavenly Ranking will be ranked, isn't holding a competition redundant?"

"You're wrong." Zhen Yi chuckled and continued, "The Continental College Competition is only a prerequisite for being on the Heavenly Ranking. Only cultivators who place in the top 100 of the competition have the opportunity to enter the Blue Academy, obtain inheritance, and then be on the Heavenly Pride Ranking."

"Blue Academy?!" Qiu Ci's eyes lit up. "You mean, those who make it to the Heavenly Ranking can enter the Blue Academy?"

"Only those who enter the Blue Academy have the chance to be on the Heavenly Ranking." Zhen Yi corrected him. "The Heavenly Ranking is the Blue Academy's ranking of those who take the inheritance assessment. Although the Blue Academy has always been within the Twin Star Academy, it only opens once every two hundred years. Only when it opens will the Blue Academy open. Otherwise, no one can enter the Blue Academy."

Qiu Ci instantly thought of his soul that was almost destroyed. So was it because Lanyuan had not yet opened before?

"Sister Xiaoci, you know that the Blue Academy has the most comprehensive martial arts inheritance in the entire continent, and even in the entire Central Plains," Zhen Yi said with a longing look on his face. "It's rumored that anyone who enters the Blue Academy and passes the assessment will have the opportunity to obtain the inheritance. However, the Blue Academy only lasts for three months each time. After three months, no matter what the results are, the ancestor will close the Blue Academy. So who exactly can enter the Blue Academy has become a difficult problem."

"So...that's why there's the All-Land College Competition?" she asked.

"That's right." Zhen Yi continued to nod. "Although it's called the Continental Academy Competition, it's not just the cultivators of the academy who can participate. Any cultivator with a bone age of less than 100 can participate. Those who place in the top 100 will qualify for the Blue Academy. There have been examples of independent cultivators qualifying in previous years, but such cases are extremely rare. Most of those who break into the top 100 are direct disciples of the five major academies."

"I see." No wonder Chai Duo disappeared since that day. He was probably preparing for the competition.

"I heard that the Heavenly Ranking appeared quite unexpectedly this time, a full three years earlier than expected. Not only us at Twin Star, but all the other academies are probably going crazy with scrambling." Zhen Yi sighed, "It's a pity we were born a few decades later, otherwise we would have had a chance to compete."

"Born early?" Qiu Ci was stunned for a moment. Chai Duo seemed to have said the same thing.

"Yes, it's three years early!" Zhen Yi continued, "I heard that the Heavenly Rankings have always been released on time and have never missed a beat. In previous years, the academy competitions would have ended long before the Heavenly Rankings appeared, and all that was needed was to take the Heavenly Ranking assessment. But now there are only three months left. If we want to select the candidates for admission, we also have to take the Blue Academy assessment. Obviously, there isn't enough time. And I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing that the ancestor has awakened early this time."

"Ancestor?" Who is this?
"Sister Xiao Ci, you must have never heard of the ancestor!" Zhen Yi's eyes lit up, and he said mysteriously, "He is the founder of our Shuangyuan Academy. It can be said that the inheritance of the current academy comes from the ancestor. Moreover, he is the guardian of the Blue Academy. Only when he wakes up will the Blue Academy open."

"Awakened? Does he sleep often?" Qiu Ci asked curiously. "Yes." Zhen Yi nodded. "It's rumored that the ancestor is an immortal who could have ascended to heaven long ago, but because of his duty as a guardian, he has been stuck in the Blue Courtyard. No one knows how powerful he is. It's rumored that the ancestor existed a long, long time ago, but he was asleep most of the time, only awakening once every two hundred years."

"So both the Blue Academy and the Heavenly Ranking were created by this old ancestor?" she asked.

"That's not the case." Zhen Yi shook his head. "Although the ancestor founded our Twin Star Academy, he only said that he was the guardian of the academy. The Blue Academy has existed for even longer than that. No one knows who founded it."

"I see..." Why did she feel more and more that this Blue Courtyard was the base? After all, it was so obvious, and it even had the word "Blue" in it. No one would believe that it had no connection with Blue Star.

Whether it was the Heavenly Ranking or the College Competition, Qiu Ci felt that she needed to give it a try. At least there was a chance for her to enter the Blue Academy. She didn't know whether the academy would allow her to participate. If not, she could participate as a casual cultivator.

Qiu Ci silently made up her mind, but she didn't expect that just the next day, Master Chai, who had disappeared for a long time, would appear before her again. With an excited look on his face, he pulled her up and walked out, "Master Chu, come quickly! Come with me to see the dean."

"Ah?" Qiu Ci was dragged to the main hall with a confused look on his face.

After entering, she saw that the hall was already full of people, many of whom were familiar teachers from various pavilions. There were also several pavilion masters and deans standing in front. When they saw her appear, everyone in the hall turned around and looked at her, with excitement in their eyes, which made Qiu Ci feel a little numb.

What's going on? Is this?

"Little friend Chu is here!" Quan Shuo was the first to greet him, "Come here quickly, you're the only one missing."

"Master Quan." Qiu Ci immediately clasped his fists and saluted everyone one by one, "Greetings to the Dean, all the Pavilion Masters, and the Elders."

"Here they are." The dean nodded, as if he was in a hurry to discuss something. He glanced at the teachers in the hall and said in a deep voice, "Are all the people from each department here?"

"Headmaster, almost everyone is here," Chai Duo responded, "Only Junior Brother Yin Mo from the Formation Pavilion is missing."

"Where are the others?" the dean asked in surprise.

Chai Duo thought of something, the corner of his mouth twitched, and he said with a stiff face, "Junior Brother Yin had a sparring match with the masters of various pavilions two days ago. Now his injuries have not healed yet and he is still lying down. He should be well in two days."

"..." The dean was stunned for a moment, as if he thought of something, and glanced at the people in front of him.

All the teachers who met his gaze turned their heads away and began to look up at the sky, the ground, and study the structure of the corners of his clothes.

Well, they were just having an ordinary sparring match and accidentally used a little too much force. It was definitely not a deliberate revenge on someone for deflecting trouble during the competition.