Although the group was numerous, the freshmen on the Tiannan University field outnumbered them greatly, numbering two to three thousand students across more than a dozen departments. When they flooded the edge of the field, while it did draw the attention of the freshmen present, everyone simply assumed the older students were there to watch the proceedings and thought nothing more of it.

Cao Yi and the others, positioned at the very front, anxiously scanned the dense black mass of freshmen on the field for any sign of Li Yundong. As they watched, Liu Yuehong suddenly pointed toward a striking, distinguished young man standing among the row of figures on the main stage at the front of the field and exclaimed, "Quick, look! Isn't that the Sect Master?"

Cao Yi and the others followed her gaze, immediately overjoyed. The little fox spirits were about to cry out loudly, but Cao Yi, sensing impending disaster, quickly restrained them, giving them a sharp look and commanding, "No shouting! Let's figure out the situation first!"

The little foxes nodded in unison, saying, "Sixth Martial Uncle is right!"

At this moment, Vice Mayor Luo on the stage had finished his speech, and it was now the principal's turn. After the principal concluded, it was time for the representatives of the new and old students to speak.

Li Yundong stood on the stage, eyes closed, savoring the moment, when he felt someone poke him beside him. He opened his eyes to see Feng Na winking mischievously at him, asking, "Hey, nervous or not?"

Li Yundong couldn't help but let out a wry chuckle. He had handled sieges from major sects before; what was this small gathering compared to that? It was practically a joke.

Li Yundong smiled and replied, "What's there to be nervous about?"

Feng Na subtly gestured with her chin toward Yan Hua a short distance away and murmured softly, "Someone seems quite tense, though?"

Li Yundong looked over and indeed saw Yan Hua's thighs trembling involuntarily. He was digging his fingers hard into his own thigh, his eyes fixed straight ahead, muttering something under his breath.

Li Yundong couldn't help but shake his head and sigh to Feng Na, "Why is this guy acting like he's possessed?"

Feng Na pursed her lips and smiled, "Isn't it all the pressure you put on him?"

Li Yundong scoffed, "That’s because he’s too competitive; he has to vie for superiority in everything!"

Feng Na whispered, "Hey, I heard Vice Mayor Luo came specifically to inspect the school because of him. This guy has quite a lot of clout, so being a little nervous is understandable."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Vice Mayor Luo walked up to Yan Hua, patted his shoulder, and said kindly, "Xiao Yan, don't be nervous. This is a small scene for you! A top scholar shouldn't lose his nerve!"

Provoked by Vice Mayor Luo, Yan Hua immediately shot back, "What do I have to be afraid of? Uncle Luo, you think too little of me!" With that, his legs stopped shaking, his eyes focused, and he looked toward Li Yundong with a sharp, combative glare, full of defiance.

Feng Na covered her mouth and laughed, "This fellow still hasn't let go of his desire to get the better of you, has he!"

Li Yundong rolled his eyes at Feng Na, "Isn't this all because you were stirring up trouble? If you hadn't insisted I come give the speech, none of this would have happened, right?"

Feng Na laughed, "How could that work? If you, the representative of the upperclassmen, didn't speak, anyone else would be booed off the stage!"

Li Yundong lowered his voice, "Listen, I'm telling you, this is the last time. I absolutely won't agree again next time!"

Feng Na looked genuinely disappointed and exclaimed, "What? Aren't you going to break your fans' hearts?"

Li Yundong laughed and scolded her, "Stop with the drama!"

They were chatting and laughing when suddenly the principal finished his speech, and Yan Hua strode onto the stage with his chest puffed out, launching into his address in a loud voice.

Li Yundong and Feng Na noticed Yan Hua held no papers, clearly giving an impromptu speech from memory. Feng Na chuckled, "Oh dear, he really pulled ahead of the pack now. I wondered what he was muttering about earlier; he was just memorizing his speech."

Li Yundong observed Yan Hua speaking with a modulated, rising and falling tone, utterly without a single stutter, confirming he was a natural orator. He couldn't help but smile, "This guy seems to still be operating in the same state as when he ran for Student Union President. His speech sounds like he's running for Student Union President."

At this point, it wasn't just Li Yundong who noticed something was amiss; even Cao Yi and the others gathered outside the field sensed the oddity.

Liu Yuehong watched Yan Hua deliver his passionate, soaring speech, full of an air of "Who else but me among the heroes of this world?" She couldn't help but frown and ask, "Junior Sister, what is he talking about? I’m finding it rather confusing."

Cao Yi was also frowning deeply, shaking her head. "I don't know."

However, one of the little fox spirits nearby spoke up casually, "Oh, it's simple! This is clearly the major sects holding an election for the Alliance Leader of the Cultivation World! You saw the two old men before him speak, and now this one is up. Who knows who’s next!"

She rambled on with this self-assured nonsense, and the other fox spirits, equally unexposed to mundane affairs and only familiar with the world of cultivation, nodded in agreement: "That makes sense!"

As the chorus of voices seemed to confirm the falsehood, Cao Yi began to waver, muttering, "Could it really be like that?"

Zhuang Yating suddenly remarked, "Hey, doesn't this person look a lot like Yan Fang?"

At her prompt, the others focused their gaze and were startled, exclaiming in unison, "He really does look alike!"

Cao Yi was profoundly shocked. She mused, "Could it truly be a contest for the Alliance Leader of the Cultivation World? But the leader isn't decided by combat, it's decided by verbal sparring! Why haven't people from the other sects shown up?"

Zhuang Yating let out a cold snort, "These righteous path folks are the most insidious. Who knows what poison they’re brewing? No, we must help the Sect Master!"

The other fox spirits immediately asked, "How can we help?"

Zhuang Yating replied, "Our magical power is limited, so we can't help in a fight, but we can make a lot of noise and cause a ruckus to stop this person from speaking!"

The other fox spirits, both young and old, roared with laughter, "Great, that's a wonderful idea!"

But as soon as their laughter faded, Yan Hua had already finished speaking. He bowed cleanly, stepped down, so efficiently that these mischievous fox spirits didn't even get a chance to act.

The fox spirits were instantly dumbfounded, staring blankly at each other. "Oh no, he’s done. What do we do now?"

Yan Hua's speech was indeed brilliant. Anyone with ears and judgment had to secretly admire him, offering genuine applause; the young man was truly eloquent, speaking fluently and without hesitation, instantly earning thunderous applause from the field.

As he stepped down, Vice Mayor Luo patted his shoulder with satisfaction, "Not bad, you didn't bring shame upon your grandfather!"

Yan Hua lifted his head proudly, "Thank you for the compliment, Uncle Luo!" Then, he glanced pointedly at Li Yundong and challenged him, "It’s your turn to go up, Li Yundong!"

He stressed the last three words heavily, enunciating each one. Vice Mayor Luo sensed the hostility emanating from Yan Hua and looked toward Li Yundong, instantly recalling the young man who had made fun of the foreign guests at the last Tiannan University exchange meeting. He smiled without real warmth and said, "It's you, do well!"

Li Yundong offered him a composed smile and walked onto the stage. He hadn't taken Yan Hua's provocation seriously and certainly wasn't planning to compete with him for status, so he didn't plan on speaking extemporaneously; he intended to stick to his prepared script.

Liu Yuehong, Cao Yi, and Zhuang Yating, the three elder foxes, began whispering urgently as Li Yundong reached the stage: "Oh dear, the Sect Master is up there! What do we do?"

"We failed to help last time; we absolutely cannot miss this opportunity!"

"Right, but how do we help?"

Cao Yi pondered for a moment and said, "Last time during the combat, the Sect Master fought against all challengers, and we cheered him on from the sidelines. I think it should be the same this time—we should all cheer for the Sect Master!"

The fox spirits nodded eagerly, "Yes, that's what we'll do!"

Saying that, they were about to shout when they stopped, their mouths opening and closing again. They all turned back to Cao Yi, "Martial Uncle, what should we shout? How should we shout?"

Cao Yi thought for a moment, "I think mortals like to shout 'Jiayou' (Go for it)?"

She said this slightly too loudly, and a female student nearby immediately commented, "What era is this? Still shouting that?"

Cao Yi asked in confusion, "Then what should we shout?"

This female student, already feeling self-conscious due to the dazzling beauty of Cao Yi and her companions, and finding their conversation nonsensical, couldn't help but roll her eyes and sneer, "These days, the trend is to shout 'Jia-le-ge-you' [a slightly drawn-out, informal version of 'Jiayou']! You country bumpkins!"

The other little fox spirits were displeased, "Who are you calling a country bumpkin!"

Cao Yi stopped them and replied nonchalantly, "Thank you for the advice."

The female student snorted and turned away, silently cursing them in her mind: A bunch of seductive vixens!

However, she didn't realize that her insult was, ironically, quite accurate. After agreeing on a unified strategy, Cao Yi and the fox spirits prepared to yell together.

Li Yundong had just begun speaking on the stage: "Respected leaders, teachers, and students, good day. Today..."

He hadn't finished his sentence when a loud cheer erupted from the field: "Li Yundong, Jia-le-ge-you!"

This shout was piercingly clear and utterly sudden, causing every single person on the field to snap their gaze toward Cao Yi and her group. Silence descended instantly, absolute and complete!

Li Yundong, on stage, recognized the voice and followed the sound with his eyes. What he saw made even his profound cultivation and firm composure momentarily falter; he nearly tumbled off the stage!

The young and old fox spirits of the Fox Zen Sect were dancing and waving their arms wildly by the edge of the field, shouting loudly at him. Li Yundong stood there slack-jawed, eyes wide, utterly speechless.

The freshmen on the field and the onlookers standing nearby, witnessing Li Yundong’s ghost-like expression and the exuberant cheering of the fox spirits, burst into loud laughter.

Some curious onlookers even started shouting along with the fox spirits: "Li Yundong, Jia-le-ge-you!"

Once they started, others joined in the taunting. Li Yundong was already immensely popular at Tiannan University, and now, over two thousand freshmen were laughing and joining the chorus, shouting so loudly it shook the clouds: "Li Yundong, Jia-le-ge-you!"

In that instant, Li Yundong felt utterly driven mad. He felt as if the sky itself had darkened around him!

Before, having one Su Chan causing chaos and trouble beside him was already enough; now, the entire Fox Zen Sect had shown up—was this the end of the world?