Zi Yan's gaze towards Xu Ran became exceptionally somber.
It was only at this moment that she began to take Xu Ran seriously.
Although she appeared still a little girl, with the mind of one as well, she was certainly not foolish.
Those Magical Beasts with powerful bloodlines had their intelligence developed to the pinnacle of human capacity, and were perhaps even smarter.
Calmly, Zi Yan naturally came to understand a few things.
If Xu Ran were truly an ordinary person, Elder Su Qian wouldn't have sent her to find him. Moreover, Su Qian was always righteous within the academy, and would certainly not really encourage her to steal Xu Ran's Elixirs.
Thus, Xu Ran's identity had to be very special, which was why Su Qian had her go to find Xu Ran.
Furthermore, the strength that Xu Ran had just revealed meant that if he formally challenged her, she would have to give up her position as number one on the Inner Court power ranking. Although Xu Ran was not yet a member of the Inner Court, he must be staying in the outer court for some special reasons. With Xu Ran's strength, he was completely qualified to enter the Inner Court, and didn't even need to wait for the annual competition. The strength demonstrated by Xu Ran was enough for the academy to make an exception and let him enter the Inner Court directly.
Zi Yan, who traditionally only cared about "eating" and showed little interest in anything else, was for the first time curious about someone.
"What a strange guy."
Zi Yan was always solitary and mysterious within the academy, but she felt Xu Ran was even more mysterious than she was.
She could use space power, an ability that wasn't supposed to be available at her "Cultivation Level," because of her special body. But why could Xu Ran do it, too?
"You, that... do you really know or not?" Zi Yan stood there barefoot, looking a bit embarrassed. She seldom asked others for help.
"Of course I know. I, Xu Ran, am versed in the stars above and the earth below; there's nothing in this world I don't know about," Xu Ran said with his arms folded across his chest, proudly looking at the little girl in front of him.
"Tch, I don't believe it. Even the Elders don't know, what could you know? Besides, we've only just met, you don't even know about my situation," Zi Yan pouted.
"Then let me give you a hint. You are not human," Xu Ran said with a smile.
Zi Yan was a Taixu Ancient Dragon, naturally she wasn't human.
"You, you, you..."
"You're the one who's not human! Why are you insulting people?" Zi Yan stammered, involuntarily stepping back, wearing a look on her face as if she'd seen a ghost.
"Was that an insult? You know very well in your heart."
"By the way, why are you stammering? That's certainly not Miss Zi Yan's style," Xu Ran said with a smile, closing in step by step. Seeing Zi Yan's panic-stricken eyes, he felt a bit guilty about picking on the little girl.
So, this... this... this...
Is it necessary?
Why make it appear as if he were an unparalleled beast? He was a good person.
But don't judge Zi Yan by her youthful appearance, because in reality...
Once Zi Yan broke through to Douhuang, she could control her body to grow larger.
But if he were to train her a bit and help Zi Yan's royal bloodline to fully mature, Zi Yan would no longer look like such a youngster; however, Xu Ran did not plan to do this in the short term.
In this way, she also looked quite charming.
"I don't know what you mean."
Zi Yan tilted her face away from Xu Ran, feeling somewhat guilty.
Her previous brazen and bold demeanor had completely withdrawn.
If Xu Ran truly saw through her Magical Beast identity, then she would really be in trouble. At least from then on, she would be at Xu Ran's mercy.
Otherwise, if Xu Ran spread word of her identity, she would spend her days in fear and anxiety. The Demon Core of a Magical Beast was considered a treasure to humans and also an important material in Alchemy.
Ever since Transforming, no one had ever seen through her identity, which is why she dared to wander recklessly in the human world.
Most importantly, she knew that her bloodline was considered top-notch throughout the Magical Beast world. Her talent in space power was, in fact, a gift from her bloodline.
And if this were to be leaked, she would be in danger.
"Rest assured, I won't tell anyone, do I look like the kind of person who can't keep his mouth shut? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Yes. You don't seem like a good person," Zi Yan blinked and then nodded.
"I'm still not a good person? You snuck into my room and ate so many precious Elixirs, and I haven't even punished you yet. Doesn't that make me a good person?" Xu Ran said, curling his lip.
"You mean you're not planning to hold me accountable for eating your Elixirs? I thought as much; those few pills weren't worth much money, you couldn't possibly be that stingy," Zi Yan patted her chest and revealed a contented smile.
Since Xu Ran was not planning to tell anyone else, she had nothing to worry about.
"What else do you know? Keep talking. Just now was a lucky guess. But in the academy, such speculations are not unavailable. It's just that they lack concrete evidence," Zi Yan said with a smile, looking at Xu Ran.
Her special talents did not seem to be the result of practicing Dou Techniques or Cultivation Techniques. Therefore, several Dou Zong Experts from Canaan Academy naturally guessed to that extent, but they weren't sure.
But Xu Ran's confident tone made her anxious.
It was as if Xu Ran saw right through her.
"I also know that ever since you had a memory, you've lived in the deep mountains, getting beaten and chased around by other powerful Magical Beasts. Ah, that must've been a sad experience."
"You, you, you, that's not true! How could I, Zi Yan, have had such an experience? You can't just make things up!" Zi Yan's face flushed red. Zi Yan was a Taixu Ancient Dragon, so even if those Magical Beasts didn't know her identity, they could smell the powerful bloodline aura emanating from her. It was fortunate that even a juvenile Taixu Ancient Dragon possessed space abilities; otherwise, Zi Yan would have long become a meal for other Magical Beasts.
With Xu Ran pointing out her shortcomings, she stomped her feet in shame and indignation, wishing she could punch a big hole through Xu Ran with her little fists.
Was Xu Ran monitoring her? How did he even know all this?
"Hmph. And then what? I don't believe you know everything. You're just guessing blindly. No, what you just said is wrong—I, Zi Yan, have always been the overlord, and no Magical Beast dared to provoke me," said Zi Yan, hands on her hips and her delicate snowy neck held high.
"And then? Then you stumbled upon a stalk of Human-shaping Grass. After Transforming, you were brought back to Canaan Academy by Elder Su Qian. But because your "Cultivation Level" was too low, after taking the Human-shaping Grass, you couldn't shift back to your beast form. Only when you reach rank 6, which is Douhuang's "Cultivation Level," can you freely shift between human and beast form. That's also why you've been stealing various Elixirs and ingredients containing powerful energy," Xu Ran said slowly, recounting the events from the time Zi Yan became sentient until now.