Looking up from below, the entire mountain range was shrouded in immortal mist. The vegetation on the mountains was lush and dripping with vitality, spirit birds soared high, and occasionally, one could catch a glimpse of upturned eaves peeking through—truly the grandeur of an immortal’s abode, vastly different from the cities of the mortal world.

Nanxia had set up a short pavilion every five li and a long pavilion every ten li. In the long pavilion at the foot of the mountain, two young men in sky-blue robes sat facing each other, with a giant immortal crane perched beside the pavilion. Upon seeing the approaching carriage, one of them stepped out and cupped his hands from afar: “Travelers ahead, are you heading to the Academy?”

Samuel Thompson replied, “Indeed.”

Evan Carter got down from the carriage, and one of the young men asked, “Is it just one person going to the Academy, or both of you?”

Samuel Thompson said, “Just one.”

The young man in the pavilion, courteous and polite, said, “Please come here to sign your name.”

Samuel Thompson stepped forward. The young man handed him a register. He first turned to Minzhou, then to Ning’an Prefecture, found the Immortal Dao Institute, then located Evan Carter’s name, made a check mark, and handed the register back, saying, “All done.”

—This man might not know many characters, but he was spot-on in finding these few.

Before Evan Carter could say or do anything, everything had already been handled by Samuel Thompson. He felt as if he’d been tacitly regarded as disabled—weak, pitiful, and helpless.

The young man took back the register and said, “Ascending to the Academy, mortals must stop here. Daoist-friend Carter, come with me.”

Evan Carter looked at Samuel Thompson and said, “I’m going.”

Samuel Thompson took the bundle from the carriage and smiled, “Take care of yourself, brother. I’ll come keep you company next year.”

Evan Carter smiled a bit awkwardly, “Alright.”

The great immortal crane let out a long cry. The young man said, “Rise,” and Evan Carter was gently lifted by a soft current of energy, rising into the air and landing on the crane’s back. Moments later, the young man also floated onto the crane.

The immortal crane flapped its wings and took off. Samuel Thompson waved to Evan Carter from the ground.

Evan Carter kept looking at him and waved back.

In his previous life, after his master left, he never had friends or family again. He never expected that, living again, he would suddenly have two brothers and an aunt who cared for him so much. He felt a bit at a loss, but the gratitude in his heart was real, and he was reluctant to part.

—Such care and kindness, who knows when he’ll be able to repay it.

The immortal crane flew straight into the swirling immortal mist, and Evan Carter collected his emotions and looked upward.

Although he had nearly reached the Great Ascension stage in his previous life, he had never met any cultivators besides his master, let alone seen such a grand academy. He was a bit curious about what this systematic cultivation was like.

The immortal crane flew higher and higher. As a spirit-powered bird, it was incredibly fast. In less than two quarters of an hour, they reached the mountaintop, then circled down—within a radius of dozens of li, the immortal palaces were magnificent, jade forests dazzling, streams and waterfalls flowing, all exceedingly beautiful.

The immortal crane approached the mountain gate.

On the gate were four large characters: “Drunk at Shangling.”

Several groups of people stood beneath the gate, each holding a banner—the kind that fortune-telling charlatans often carry, with “XX Divine Calculation” written on them.

A few people in gray robes sat scattered on the steps, some daydreaming, some reading. Their banner read “Confucian Dao Institute.”

On the grass beside the steps, people lay sprawled all over, their banner stuck in the ground, reading “Immortal Dao Institute.”

And among those sprawled figures, a patch of red stood out at a glance.

Evan Carter: “......”

He actually saw someone he knew.

Several girls from Phoenix Manor were gathered around a glass divan, fanning themselves.

On the glass divan sat the young lady Grace Cooper.

September in Shu was still quite hot. The girls all wore thin gauze dresses, with arms and shoulders half-exposed. Only the young lady still wore a wide-sleeved palace gown, covered from head to toe, while Kevin Cooper was feeding her chilled grapes.

Brian Cooper, noticing the commotion above, looked up and said, “The crane is here.”

Someone immediately called out, “Which institute? Junior brother or junior sister?”

The young man who brought Evan Carter on the crane replied, “Junior brother from the Immortal Dao Institute!”

The people from the Confucian Dao and Arts Institutes all sighed in disappointment.

Even the Immortal Dao Institute seemed a bit disappointed—perhaps because the newcomer wasn’t a junior sister.

When the immortal crane landed, Kevin Cooper was the first to burst out laughing.

“Young lady,” she said, “look who’s here.”

Grace Cooper lifted her eyelids, glanced at Evan Carter, and curled her lips, “What a coincidence.”

As soon as she spoke, the previously dejected members of the Immortal Dao Institute, who had been lying or sitting on the grass in all sorts of unseemly postures, suddenly stood up and bowed in greeting.

“So it’s an acquaintance of Senior Sister Cooper!”

“Our apologies!”

“Junior brother is truly a fine-looking young man!”

Evan Carter tilted his head: “?”

Where is your immortal bearing?

Chapter 12: Mutual Disdain

Immortal bearing?

None at all.

Judging by their behavior, it seemed that if Jason Cooper were to hand over her fan, they would immediately take it and start fanning, sending cool breezes to Young Lady Cooper.

As for this Grace Cooper, she was indeed rather peculiar.