Chapter 542

Chapter 542: Elder Hong’s Terror

Seeing the young man walk in, Elder Hong’s mouth twitched.

He had witnessed the tragic experiences of the other elders before him, and it had truly left him frightened.

‘The Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus is a technique that I devoted ten years of my life to create. Even if Pavilion Master Kang were to cultivate it, he could only reach Initiate within an incense’s time. No matter how talented this fellow is, reaching Minor Accomplishment should be an impossibility. There’s nothing I should be worried about…’

Elder Hong calmed himself down by consoling him before pointing to the table in front. “The manual for the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus is there. You have an incense’s time starting from now!”

After which, he immediately lit the incense beside him and smoke slowly drifted within the room.

Zhang Xuan walked up to the table, touched the manual, and an identical copy appeared in the Library of Heaven’s Path.

He flipped through the book with his hands, but his consciousness was inside the Library of Heaven’s Path

“Nine Swords of Red Lotus, created by Elder Hong Qin. It consists of a total of nine movements. Flaws…”

After reading through the content, a bizarre expression appeared on Zhang Xuan’s face.

“So many flaws? And they still dare to call it a profound sword art?”

The sword art before him had actually more than a hundred flaws. With so much flaws, how could they dare to call it a profound sword art… Even trying to get him to learn it… It was truly a wonder where this fellow got his confidence from.

But thinking about it, Zhang Xuan soon realized that he might be underestimating the difficulty of creating a sword art. Most battle techniques had been passed down through innumerable generations and undergone the refinement of many predecessors, thus reducing the number of flaws in it. Given that this sword art had just been created, it was natural for there to be so many flaws.

“Heaven’s Path Sword Art, fuse!”

With a thought, Heaven’s Path Sword Art and the many sword art secret manuals that Zhang Xuan had obtained before flew out and fused together with this book.

Hu!

A new Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus appeared. Zhang Xuan hurriedly flipped through it.

Soon, he shook his head.

He had too few books on Spirit intermediate-tier sword arts. The sword arts he had gathered before were too basic to complement such a profound sword art.

Making an analogy, no matter how good a lump of feces was, it could never match the value of gold. That was an innate difference in their nature. No matter how accurate the concepts contained within these basic sword art manuals were, they were still unable to make up for the qualitative difference with the Spirit intermediate-tier sword art.

“There are still more than thirty flaws…”

After fusing the book, Zhang Xuan was in tears.

Ever since his transmigration, he had never cultivated a cultivation technique or battle technique that had flaws. This had made him a perfectionist when it came to those. Even for the Red Dust Heaven Ascending Steps which had three flaws, he’d had to muster up his courage before cultivating it… Yet, this sword art before him had more than thirty flaws! He really couldn’t bring himself to cultivate it!

It was just like how a person whose taste buds is accustomed to the delicacies of a five-star chef couldn’t possibly get used to roadside stalls.

But… if he didn’t cultivate this technique, he would fail the test.

In a moment, he fell into a dilemma.

…

On the other hand, Elder Hong’s face was gradually turning red, and it seemed as though left to be, he would explode soon!

Even though he didn’t wish to lose the reputation he had accrue in the earlier part of his life to this fellow, he was still determined to remain professional in this test. Thus, he had been secretly assessing the other party ever since he picked up the book.

And the other party’s actions made him tempted to rush forward and tear the other party apart.

He created this Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus by observing the life cycle of a red lotus, and it spent him an entire ten years to master the technique. He was proud to say that this was one of the strongest battle technique available in Myriad Kingdom City, and he knew that it would definitely be passed on from generation to generation for innumerable years to come. Yet, the other party simply flipped through it swiftly as soon as he picked it up. It was clear that the other party didn’t have the intention to study it properly at all.

Not only so, his face alternated between a frown and a conflicted expression. What the heck was that?

You look as though you had met with a huge pile of feces and you are about to puke at any moment…

The heck!

Was the technique that I created so repulsive that you would barf?

Infuriated by the other party’s reaction, Elder Hong was about to blow up.

He had imagined many possibilities-the other party might perhaps reach Consummation within an incense’s time, or perhaps, refuse to cultivate it altogether… But one thing he had never dreamed of was the other party being on the verge of vomiting upon browsing through the manual…

This is a top-notch technique among Spirit intermediate-tier battle techniques, even Pavilion Master Kang and the other elders were filled with praises for it… What are you trying to say by those reaction?

Just as he was seething with rage, the young man before him shut his eyes tightly and clenched his jaws. With an expression reminiscent of a soldier marching to his death, he said, “Forget it, if I have to die, so be it. At most, I’ll just never use this technique after cultivating it!”

“YOU!”

Elder Hong couldn’t hold himself back anymore. He dashed up to the other party and bellowed, “Zhang shi, what do you mean by that?”

On the other hand, Zhang Xuan was just about to cultivate when the elder suddenly rushed up to him and yelled furiously in his face. Bewildered, Zhang Xuan stared at the other party doubtfully and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Does the sword art I created disgust you so much?” Elder Hong immediately questioned the other party.

“Actually, it’s not entirely disgust but that… there was simply too many flaws in them. I don’t really want to cultivate it…” Zhang Xuan shook his head.

“You…” Hearing those words, Elder Hong felt so enraged that he was about to go mad.

If someone were to ask you such a question, no matter how much you hate the other party, in view of the other party’s pride, you should at least deny it or compliment him a little…

But this fellow actually just admitted to it straight!

‘Not entirely disgust’… In other words, my technique does disgust you!

‘Too many flaws’… Too many your head!

Do you know how much effort I put into creating this battle technique? For ten years, I skipped meals and barely rested, all in hopes of creating a mighty technique that would awe the world… Yet, you said that there are too many flaws in my technique…

“May I know what flaws there are in my sword art?”

Harrumphing coldly, Elder Hong suppressed his rage in fear that he might just kill the other party in a moment of rashness.

“You’re seeking my guidance? Fine, I’ll point them out to you then! Look carefully. I don’t have much time, so I’ll only say them once.”

Placing his hands behind his back, Zhang Xuan nodded and strolled around the room slowly, “I’ll first talk about the first movement of your nine swords, Blooming of the Scarlet Lotus! This technique consists of a total of eighty-one transformations, and its might is indeed extraordinary. However… to stab one’s sword out from one’s waist while driving one’s zhenqi through the Huangu and Wangchang acupoints is a move that will inhibit one’s flow of zhenqi in itself, thus severely limiting one’s strength! If, at that moment, I were to use a weapon, say an ordinary stick, to strike your Huihai acupoint, how would you deal with it?”

“Strike my Huihai acupoint?”

Upon hearing those words, the movements involved in the Blooming of the Scarlet Lotus appeared in his mind and he abruptly stiffened.

The blooming of a scarlet lotus was a very beautiful phenomenon.

As though reflecting that, this move was particularly eye-catching. Using this move, one would attack one’s opponent through a violent surge of sword qi. Indubitably, it was a powerful move. However, it had a few fatal flaws, and Huihai acupoint was one of them. Putting aside a wooden stick, if one were to just touch it with one’s finger, the entire sword art would fall apart. One would find himself incapable of exerting any might at all.

Even he had overlooked this flaw, and yet, the other party noticed it just by flipping through it?

“But so what if you know that my Huihai acupoint is my weakness? A sword art prides itself on its speed. By the time you can react, I would have already released five strikes. How do you intend to cope with that?” Elder Hong argued.

There was no cultivation technique or sword art that was without flaws. While it is true that the Blooming of the Scarlet Lotus had a fatal flaw, it would be impossible to exploit it under the barrage of attacks.

“Released five strikes? You’re wrong. What if, at the very start, I were to move forward three steps to strike your Honghai, turn around to strike your Luoqiao, and take three side steps to strike your Fujiang… After striking these three of your acupoints, do you think you could dodge my attack on your Huihai?” Zhang Xuan said nonchalantly.

“If you were to strike my Honghai, I would twist my sword to block it and retreat a step backward. Then, when you stuck my Luoqiao, I would have to quickly withdraw my offense to defend myself, thus causing a sudden stoppage in my flow of zhenqi, making it impossible for me to launch any sword qi. Then, when you stuck my Fujiang, if I were to attempt to dodge it, my Huihai would surely be unguarded… Y-you…”

Elder Hong analyzed the scenario and initially, he didn’t think much of it. However, the more he thought about, the paler his face became, and he started to tremble in shock.

If it were a real battle, if his opponent were to strike at these three points consecutively, his Blooming of the Scarlet Rose would immediately fall apart. Not only would he be unable to hurt the other party, he would even suffer severe damage from the backlash of his zhenqi.

Just by stabbing at three perfectly ordinary locations, his zhenqi would be inhibited and he would suffer severe damage from his own sword art…

This…

“This is only the first move. Your second move, Radiance of the Scarlet Lotus, is filled with innumerable flaws. Against this move, even without a weapon, I can charge straight toward your Zhonggong and strike your Ruohai. You would then be forced to retreat… and the rest would be easy,” Zhang Xuan continued.

After learning of the flaws from the Library of Heaven’s Path, along with Zhang Xuan’s deep knowledge of sword arts, finding a counter for them was quite an easy task.

“I…”

Elder Hong unconsciously took a step back.

The second step, Radiance of the Scarlet Lotus, was a long-ranged attack. It looked powerful, but in truth, it would leave one vulnerable to close-range attacks. As long as an enemy were to charge in at this moment to strike one’s Zhonggong and Ruohai, one’s zhenqi would definitely be jolted, thus countering the sword art!

In the first move, the enemy would at least still have to stab four locations, but for this, two moves were sufficient to render him completely powerless!

How in the world…

Was the sword art he created really that worthless?

“Wait a moment… Under the assault of my sword qi, how could you have the time to possibly get close to me and make so many moves?”

After contemplating over it for a moment, Elder Hong’s eyebrows shot up.

What the other party said was all theory. In a real battle, given how fast his sword art was, how could the other party possibly have the time and opportunity to strike him consecutively?

“No time?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “Take a good look then!”

Zhang Xuan’s body swayed, leaving behind an afterimage on the spot. In the blink of an eye, he had already traveled to the three locations and tapped on them with his fingers consecutively. The three fingers struck the acupoints that he had spoken of accurately.

“This…”

Upon seeing this move, Elder Hong’s body convulsed, and he nearly fell to the floor.

The other party’s speed and offense were flawless. If he had really used the sword art previously and the other party launched such a counter… he would surely be defeated utterly in the blink of an eye.

Unless… he abandoned the technique and dealt with the other party through his absolute might. Otherwise, with just swordsmanship alone, he would be defeated thoroughly, perhaps even suffering grievous wounds in the process.

Cold sweat dripped down his back.

Having created so many battle techniques, this Nine Swords of the Scarlet Lotus was actually the one he prided himself the most on. He thought that this technique would have him unrivaled in the Myriad Kingdom City. He never expected his ten years of hard work… to be so worthless!

“Zhang shi, may I know if… there’s a way to complete this sword art of mine?”

Clasping his fist, Elder Hong bowed deeply-a bow that only a student would make to his teacher.

Chapter 543: Forfeit

While the duo was discussing sword art, everyone outside was panicking.

“Pavilion Master Kang, Zhang shi has already been inside for two hours now. Do you think it is possible that… Elder Hong killed him due to a moment of rage?” Su shi asked anxiously.

It had been two hours since Zhang Xuan entered the chamber, but not only was there no result, there didn’t seem to be any movement within as well. No one knew what was going on inside, and a tense atmosphere seemed to fill the room.

“There’s no need to worry. Even if they were to quarrel, as long as one side makes a move, the number of blows should appear on the screen… Given that no number has appeared yet, it could only mean that they haven’t come to blows yet…” While consoling Su shi, Pavilion Master Kang also frowned in confusion.

Even if Zhang Xuan were to fool about, Elder Hong should possess some self-restraint! After all, how could a person who has already lived for a century possibly lay his hands on a junior in front of so many master teachers?

Besides, as long as one side made a move, a number would surely appear on the screen. Currently, there was no movement whatsoever, as though the duo had fallen into a deep sleep inside the chamber. What was going on?

“Pavilion master, why don’t you… go in to take a look?” Ling shi turned to look at him and asked.

It wasn’t a solution to be waiting out here for them. If the pavilion master were to take a look, they would at least know what was going on inside.

“Alright!” After a moment of hesitation, Pavilion Master Kang thought that it was reasonable and nodded his head. “You all remain here, I’ll go in alone. This way, it’ll be easier for me to deal with anything that occurs!”

Su shi and Ling shi nodded their heads. Pavilion Master Kang took in a deep breath, and just as he was about to push the door open and enter, ‘jiya!’, the door opened, and Zhang Xuan and Elder Hong walked out side by side.

The attire of the both were still tidy and the both of them had a smile on their faces. There didn’t seem to be the slightest hostility between them.

Dumbfounded, everyone stared at one another blankly.

In the end, after an entire two hours, the two of you didn’t fight at all! If you two aren’t going to fight, why don’t you all just come out? Aren’t you two just wasting our time?

Elder Wu, Elder Bai, and Elder Yun also stared at one another in bewilderment.

Given their experience, they felt that even if the both of them didn’t fight, Elder Hong would still be left in an unseemly state. They had never expected the both of them to leave from chamber together with a bright smile on their face.

Did Zhang shi accidentally knock his head on something?

After leaving them in such a tragic state, he actually spared Elder Hong… The trio felt a little doubtful at this situation.

“Elder Hong, this…” Pavilion Master Kang started to ask with a doubtful expression.

“Oh, it’s nothing!”

Elder Hong shook his head. He turned to glance at the young man before him, and even until now, the shock and admiration he felt for the latter hadn’t faded yet.

He thought that deciphering the flaws of two of his moves would be the limit of this fellow, but after a comprehensive discussion did he realize that the other party’s comprehension of cultivation had already reached an unbelievable level. Just a casual pointer from him could induce a qualitative leap in one’s strength. The Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus which he had prided himself on turned out to be full of flaws!

It was a decent technique against ordinary cultivators of his level, but against true experts, it would surely crumble swiftly!

If he were to use this technique to challenge others, he would probably die from the backlash of his own sword art before injuring his opponent.

To die from the backlash of a battle technique he created himself… If word were to spread out, he would become a laughingstock for innumerable years to come. His reputation that he had built up for himself with great difficulty would fall apart immediately.

Knowing this, Elder Hong humbly sought the other party’s guidance for two hours, and under the other party’s pointers, his comprehension of the sword art improved greatly. If he were given some more time, he was confident he could create an even more perfect and powerful ultimate technique.

“Nothing? Then… what is the result of the selection round?”

Seeing that the other party wasn’t willing to speak any further, Pavilion Master Kang could only turn the topic back to the selection round.

“I’ll announce the results now!”

Nodding his head, Elder Hong smiled, “These are the results of all of the candidates after my assessment. Luo Xi and Du Hu, having dealt three blows, are in fifth place; Feng Mosheng and Fu Xiaochen, having dealt five blows, are in third place; Jun Ruohuan, having dealt six blows, is in second place. And in first place is… Zhang shi!”

“Zhang shi is in first place?”

“He’s in first place again? I thought that they didn’t even exchange blows.”

Hearing this conclusion, everyone was taken aback.

The results of Jun Ruohuan and the other candidates were clear to the eye of everyone here. On the other hand, not a single number appeared in the midst of Zhang shi’s test. How did he end up being placed first?

“I can’t accept this!”

Ruohuan gongzi stepped forward. If the other party had shown a result far above his, he would have conceded. But there was clearly no result at all! To declare the other party to be in first place without even competing at all, wasn’t this a breach of fairness?

It was just like he had scored 99 marks in an exam. If his rival had scored 100 marks, he would have conceded defeat. But… the other party didn’t even take the test at all! On what rights should he be placed first?

“You cannot accept it?” Elder Hong frowned.

“That’s right! I managed to comprehend the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus to Initiate mastery and traded six blows with Elder… I would like to ask that given that elder has assessed him as the first place, how far has he reached in the comprehension of Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus? Has he reached Minor Accomplishment?”

At this point, Ruohuan gongzi looked at the young man in the distance and gritted his teeth. “I refuse to believe that you are able to reach Minor Accomplishment in that battle technique within an incense’s time… Unless you fight with me now and defeat me with your sword art!”

“Defeat you?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “Forget it, I don’t have an interest in bullying others!”

“The heck!”

“Isn’t he being too arrogant?”

Hearing those words, the crowd stared at one another.

No matter what, Ruohuan gongzi was a 4-star master teacher, a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan expert. Not to mention, he specialized in swordsmanship as well. Yet, the other party actually said that… he didn’t want to bully him!

As a fellow who specialized in wielding spears, aren’t you afraid that your teeth might fall off from all that bragging?

“You…” Ruohuan gongzi’s face reddened in anger. “If you don’t wish to compete with me, so be it. As long as you declare that you have comprehended the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus to Minor Accomplishment within an incense’s time, I’ll admit defeat immediately!”

Master teachers valued trust and honor a lot. If the other party were to lie in front of such a huge crowd, his reputation would definitely drop to the gutters.

“Minor Accomplishment…”

Zhang Xuan shook his head. “I didn’t even learn a single move from the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus so how could I have possibly reached Minor Accomplishment?”

“You didn’t learn a single move?”

Not only was Ruohuan gongzi stunned, the crowd was also dumbfounded.

Didn’t even learn a single move? Then on what ground was he declared to be in first place on?

Wasn’t this bias a little too extreme and obvious?!

Pavilion Master Kang, Su shi, and the others were completely bewildered as well.

They had known Elder Hong for so many years so they knew very well how upright of a person he was. It was impossible for him to take sides for such a matter. But… since Zhang shi didn’t learn the technique at all, what right did he have to be in first place?

This was a test that affected one’s candidacy for the Master Teacher Tournament! Wasn’t this making the matter too lightly?

“Could it be that.. Elder Hong has accepted Zhang shi as his student? In order to allow the other party to join the tournament, he intentionally went easy on the latter?”

“But Elder Hong isn’t such a person!”

“But if that isn’t the case, why did the both of them remain in the room for more than two hours, and despite the fact that Zhang shi hasn’t even learned a single movement, he was declared first place?”

The crowd fell into an uproar.

Zhang shi and Elder Hong initially didn’t know one another, but everyone saw the smile on their faces as they left the chamber side by side. No one would believe it if they were to claim that there was nothing between them.

Pavilion Master Kang turned to Elder Hong and asked, “Elder Hong, what’s going on?”

All gazes also gathered on Elder Hong, curious to see how he would reply.

“Accept him as my student?”

Hearing everyone’s conjecture, Elder Hong’s lips twitched.

All of your imaginations sure are wild!

Even if I want to accept him as my student… I need to have the capability to back that up first!

Shaking his head, Elder Hong came clean with everyone. “There’s no need for you all to guess any further. I’m the one who wants to acknowledge Zhang shi as my teacher, but he won’t agree to it!”

“Acknowledge Zhang shi… as your teacher? And he didn’t agree to it?”

“Elder Hong, are you pulling our legs?”

Everyone’s mouth was widened large, and a bizarre silence loomed in the hall.

Elder Hong was known to be the number one specialist in terms of battle techniques and cultivation techniques in Myriad Kingdom City. He had created innumerable ultimate techniques that many master teachers cultivate. In fact, it could be said that… at least half of the master teachers at the hall now could be considered as half a student of his.

Yet, such an influential figure actually wished to acknowledge that fellow as his teacher?

If that was the case, then wasn’t a half of the people in this hall that fellow’s grandstudent?

And… what that shocked them more was that… this fellow actually rejected it…

Are you serious?

“Zhang shi possesses outstanding talent, and his comprehension of cultivation has reached an astounding level that one can do nothing but simply look up to. Even though he didn’t learn the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus that I created… his understanding of it is so deep that I can’t even hope to match up to him. I’ve sought his guidance for the past two hours and benefited greatly from his teachings!” Elder Hong replied gravely.

“Sought Zhang shi’s guidance?”

Everyone stared at one another, and for a moment, their brains were unable to process what was going on.

Didn’t you spend ten years creating the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus and even reached Major Accomplishment in it? Yet, toward a fellow who only learned it for an incense’s time, you sought the other party’s guidance… and even benefited greatly from it, wanting to take him as your teacher…

Why does it sound like a huge joke?

Elder Wu, Elder Bai, and the others widened their eyes in shock.

Initially, when they saw the two coming out with smiles, they thought that Zhang Xuan had changed his nature. But from the looks of it now, they were being too naive. It was not that he didn’t do anything, but he had captured Elder Hong’s heart!

At least they were only injured. On the other hand, Elder Hong… If he were to really acknowledge Zhang shi as his teacher, his reputation and standing would vanish in an instant.

“This test assesses your comprehension of cultivation. Within an incense’s time, Ruohuan gongzi managed to trade six blows with me… On the other hand, in the same time period, Zhang shi was able to offer me valuable guidance… Even if he didn’t learn the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus, my judgement of putting him in first place shouldn’t be a problem at all, right?”

Elder Hong stared at Jun Ruohuan coldly.

“This…”

Ruohuan gongzi’s body twitched, and he felt like he would cry at any moment now.

Given Elder Hong’s standing, he wouldn’t stoop down to the level of lying… In other words, there was a very good chance that what the other party was saying was the truth. He was gleeful at having reached Initiate mastery, thinking that he was a great genius. On the other hand, the other party had managed to understand the technique thoroughly and even became a teacher for the creator of the battle technique…

The heck!

Where did this monster pop out from?

Could that monster still be considered as a human like that?

It was no wonder the other party said that he didn’t want to bully him… For him, who he could only withstand six blows from Elder Hong, to go up against someone who could become a teacher for Elder Hong… that would indeed be a terribly one-sided match!

“Since the results are out, let’s proceed on to the next test then!”

Seeing that his student was on the verge of going insane from the mental blows he was suffering, Pavilion Master Kang hurriedly interjected and changed the topic.

“This is the last test for the selection round. It’ll be on pointing out flaws in others’ cultivation process and offering pointers for improvement…”

But halfway through Pavilion Master Kang’s words, a voice suddenly echoed. Turning around, he saw Zhang Xuan looking at him.

“I’ll forfeit this round!”

Chapter 544: Insufficient Supporting Occupations?

“Forfeit?”

Everyone turned to look at Zhang Xuan.

As the person who had managed to take first place in the first four rounds, he was truly the black horse of the selection round. Why did he suddenly forfeit at the last moment?

“You’ve already participated in the first four tests, this is the last one…” Su shi hurriedly advised him anxiously.

“The purpose of this selection round is to pick out two candidates with the best results to participate in the Master Teacher Tournament. Given my previous results, even if I don’t participate in the fifth round, I’ll still be in first place. Since there’s no reason for me to continue on, I might as well forfeit,” Zhang Xuan said impassively. “Besides… there’s not much point in me getting the first place all the time.”

“Not much point in getting the first place all the time?”

“It must be exhilarating to say those words!”

“But what Zhang shi said makes sense. Having taken first place in the previous four rounds, he has 24 points at present. On the other hand, the current second place, Ruohuan gongzi, only has 18 points. After which is Fu Xiaochen with 15 points, Feng Mosheng with 13 points, Luo Xu with 10 and Du Hu with 7. Even if Zhang shi were to forfeit this round and end up in the last place, he would still have 25 points. There is no one who can catch up to him already… So, it shouldn’t be a problem for him to forfeit at this point!”

“To be able to be the overall champion despite skipping the final round… Incredible!”

…

Hearing the explanation, everyone understood his reasoning.

Since his position was already stable, there was indeed no need for him to waste time on the last test.

“This…” Coming to a realization, Pavilion Master Kang traded glances with Su shi and smiled bitterly.

As expected of Zhang shi, he sure was imposing.

Other people had to give their all for every single test whereas this fellow’s victory was already decided in the fourth round.

Men are indeed not born equal.

“Since that’s the case, then so be it!”

Sweeping past the other candidates with his gaze, Pavilion Master Kang saw that they were reluctant to compete with such a monster as well. Thus, he shook his head and continued, “However, Zhang shi, you should remain in the hall for now. After the last test, we’ll explain the details regarding the Master Teacher Tournament to you!”

“Un!” Zhang Xaun nodded his head.

It didn’t take long for the results of the round to emerge. Ruohuan gongzi managed to clinch first place in the last round, thus winning the other slot for the Master Teacher Tournament.

“Alright. Now that the selection round is over, I’ll officially declare that Zhang shi and Jun Ruohuan shall represent the Myriad Kingdom Alliance to participate in the Master Teacher Tournament…”

Since the results were clear, Pavilion Master Kang began declaring the final verdict.

“Pavilion master, hold on for a moment!”

But halfway through his words, Fu Xiaochen stepped forward, “I don’t deny Zhang shi’s capability. However… If my memory doesn’t fail me, the minimum requirement for participating in the Master Teacher Tournament is to be a 3-star master teacher. Given that Zhang shi is only a 2-star master teacher, I fear that he won’t even pass the qualification check if he were to participate in the tournament.

Pavilion Master Kang frowned.

The other party was right. There was indeed a prerequisite for one’s master teacher rank to participate in the Master Teacher Tournament.

And 3-star was the minimum requirement.

If one couldn’t even reach such a level, how could he possibly triumph over the others in the tournament?

Even though Zhang Xuan had displayed an outstanding performance in the selection round, in the end, he was only a 2-star master teacher. He was still a way off from meeting the minimum participation requirement.

“Given how Zhang shi passed all of the tests so easily, it wouldn’t be a problem even if he were to apply for the rank of a 4-star master teacher straight away!” Su shi interjected.

Even Ruohuan gongzi, a 4-star master teacher, wasn’t a match for Zhang shi at all. There should be no difficulty for the latter to apply for a 4-star master teacher rank at all.

“Zhang shi’s capability is indeed on par with 4-star master teachers. Even without undergoing a 4-star master teacher examination, it wouldn’t be a problem for his promotion application to pass straight. However… the requirements to becoming a 4-star master teacher dictates that one has to have at least four 4-star supporting occupations! I’m afraid that… with such a requirement, he isn’t qualified as a 4-star master teacher,” Fu Xiaochen said.

If Zhang shi hadn’t appeared, he and Ruohuan gongzi would definitely have been the candidates for the tournament. Given that his slot was being snatched away from him, he had to at least do something to vie it back.

And the other party’s supporting occupations was a huge flaw he could pick at!

In his view, no matter how skilled Zhang shi was, given his age, there should be a limit to what he was capable of. After all, he couldn’t possibly be skilled in everything!

“That’s true…”

“Supporting occupations also require a long duration of studying to accrue knowledge and advance…”

Everyone fell silent. Even Su shi was unable to say a single word about it.

That was true.

Zhang shi’s talent and capability was clear to everyone’s eyes, there was nothing that could dispute it… But to become a 4-star master teacher was far more difficult than that. Supporting occupations were of vital importance as well.

Even a 3-star master teacher would require three 3-star supporting occupation. Just like with Soul Depth, this was a fundamental requirement.

“Zhang shi’s proficiency regarding painting has definitely reached a minimum of 4-star. It won’t be a problem for me to apply the rank for him at the Painter Guild!”

Elder Yun stepped forward.

Given how the other party was able to easily produce a sixth level painting, his proficiency in painting was definitely higher than him. Applying for the position of a 4-star painter wasn’t a problem at all.

“But that’s only one occupation!” Fu Xiaochen said.

Even if he were to be assessed as a 4-star painter, that would only make one occupation. He was still lacking in two.

By no means was it easy to pick up a supporting occupation, not to mention, they had to reach 3-star for him to qualify for the 3-star master teacher rank.

“Zhang shi, do you have any occupations that have reached a minimum of 3-star?” Pavilion Master Kang asked.

“I…” Zhang Xuan was just about to speak when an apprentice suddenly barged in.

“Pavilion master! Hall Master Han from the Beast Hall requests to enter!”

“Hall Master Han? What is here for?” Pavilion Master Kang was taken aback.

The head of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance Beast Hall, Han Chong, wasn’t really on close terms with him. Why would he suddenly visit the Master Teacher Pavilion?

“Invite him in!” Even though he was doubtful, he chose to invite the other party in for the time being.

Although the Master Teacher Pavilion wielded greater authority than the Beast Hall, the might of the Beast Hall wasn’t to be underestimated. In any case, even if he didn’t intend to maintain friendly relations with the other party, it would still be wise to avoid making such an enemy.

“Yes!” The apprentice departed, and a moment later, two elders entered the room. Turning his head around, Zhang Xuan saw two people entering. One of them was Hall Master Han whom he met at Coax Ridge while the other one was Hall Master Sai from the Appraiser Hall.

“Greetings to Pavilion Master Kang and the elders of Master Teacher Pavilion!”

They were surprised to see that there were so many people in the hall. However, as influential people themselves, they had braved through many storms, so they managed to maintain their grace as they clasped their fists in greeting.

After trading a few pleasantries, Hall Master Kang asked doubtfully, “May I know the reason behind Hall Master Han and Hall Master Sai’s visit?”

“In truth, I’ve come here to look for Zhang shi!” Hall Master Han chuckled. “I heard from Hall Master Sai that he was heading here so I rushed all the way here!”

“Zhang shi?” Pavilion Master Kang blinked in surprise. The others also turned their gazes over.

“Is there a reason why you’re looking for me?” Zhang Xuan was also perplexed by the situation before him.

He had only met the other party once and there wasn’t too deep of a relationship between them. Why would the other party come to find him?

“Oh, it’s actually like that. I’ve reported Zhang shi’s feat of taming the Demon Cinque Beast to the headquarters and they decided to make an exception to promote Zhang shi as a 4-star beast tamer. Thus, I’ve come here to deliver your emblem to you!” Hall Master Han smiled.

Judging by how Zhang shi was able to tame the Demon Cinque Beast with just a single word, his capability in beast taming had already far surpassed him. As such, he informed the headquarters of the matter as soon as he returned.

After receiving the reply earlier today, he immediately rushed over to look for Zhang shi.

Under normal circumstances, beast tamer, as an occupation of the Upper Nine Paths, had strict requirements of one’s cultivation. To reach 4-star, one’s cultivation had to reach Transcendent Mortal 2-dan at minimum. This was truly a rare exception.

“4-star beast tamer?”

“Zhang shi is actually a 4-star beast tamer?”

Hearing Hall Master Han’s words, everyone broke into an uproar.

It was right after someone remarked that Zhang shi was lacking in supporting occupations when the other party had a 4-star beast tamer emblem delivered to him.

Along with the painter occupation, he had two occupations down already.

“Thank you…”

Not expecting the other party to request for a 4-star beast tamer emblem for him, Zhang Xuan nodded his head. Right when he received the emblem, the same apprentice from before rushed in and reported, “Hall master, Guild Leader Zheng and Guild Leader Meng from Honghai City’s Formation Guild and Physician Guild… request to enter!”

“Invite them in!”

Pavilion Master Kang waved his hands.

Soon, the duo appeared in the hall.

Formation master and physician were another two of the most prestigious occupations of the Upper Nine Paths that were inferior in no way to beast tamer. The simultaneous arrival of the two guild leaders had left all of the other master teachers staring at one another in bewilderment.

“May I know why the two of you are here?” Pavilion Master Kang clasped his fist and asked doubtfully.

“I’m here to look for Zhang shi!” Guild Leader Zheng said.

“You’re here to look for Zhang shi as well?” Pavilion Master Kang widened his eyes in shock.

“That’s right!” Guild Leader Zheng chuckled. Turning to Zhang Xuan, he said, “Zhang shi, I’ve only given you a quasi 4-star formation master emblem previously. After you left, I reported this matter to the headquarters and they decided to make an exception to approve you as a 4-star formation master!”

That day, Zhang Xuan had used a sword, saber, and spear to inscribe a grade-5 formation plate. It was only due to his lacking cultivation that he didn’t qualify as a true 4-star formation master. As such, he was given a quasi 4-star formation master emblem instead. After the matter, Guild Leader Zheng reported the matter to the headquarter and just a few days before, he received the reply from the headquarter-they had decided to make an exception to promote Zhang Xuan as an official 4-star formation master.

“A 4-star formation master as well?”

Everyone blinked their eyes in disbelief.

Another occupation now?

But before they could recover from their shock, the elder standing beside Guild Leader Zheng clasped his fist and smiled.

“Zhang shi might not recognize me. I am Guild Leader Meng Qi from the Myriad Kingdom Alliance Physician Guild!”

“My greetings to Guild Leader Meng!” Zhang Xuan nodded.

“Zhang shi challenged Tianwu Kingdom’s Wall of Dilemma and solved the second princess’s Innate Muscle Deficiency affliction. Hall Master Han was also treated by you a while ago… Your mastery in medicine is indeed miraculous. As such, I also made a request to the headquarters and received their approval. Here is your 4-star physician emblem!”

Guild Master Meng chuckled.

Back then, the Myriad Kingdom Alliance had made Zhang Xuan an elder of their guild for having solved the Wall of Dilemma. But it was only today that they finally met the person in question.

He was indeed young and valiant. There was an extraordinary aura shrouding him.

“That makes four occupations…”

Hearing Guild Leader Meng’s words, everyone swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

This was especially so for Fu Xiaochen. He nearly knocked his head on a wall to kill himself.

He had just said that the other party was lacking in supporting occupation when Hall Master Han, Guild Leader Zheng, and Guild Leader Meng walked in personally to deliver his 4-star emblems themselves. Did it need to be so exaggerated?

Even if you wanted to slap my face, surely you don’t have to do it so quickly…

Tears streamed down Fu Xiaochen’s face. If only he’d known that the other party was so capable, he would have kept his mouth shut.

Just as he was about to suffer a mental breakdown from all those blows, Hall Master Sai’s voice sounded, “Upper Nine Paths occupations sure are troublesome. You all still need to go through so much trouble-request from the headquarter and waiting for a reply-before a ranking can be decided. Look at our Appraiser Hall, we gave Zhang shi his 5-star appraiser emblem immediately after he passed the examination, there’s no need to go through so much fuss at all!”

“He’s a 5-star appraiser on top of that?”

Putong!

Fu Xiaochen really collapsed onto the floor this time around.

Chapter 545: Yin-Yang Lake

“Occupations of the Upper Nine Paths are strict on their rankings, and those that they are willing to make an exception for are all, without a doubt, top-notch geniuses. I thought that Zhang shi’s capability as a master teacher was already impressive… but to think that he was equally amazing in other occupations as well!”

“Indeed! Three of the top Upper Nine Paths occupation actually made an exception and promoted him to 4-star… His talent is no longer something that can be summarized with just ‘genius’ anymore!”

“That’s too formidable…”

Everyone in the room was stunned.

If one were to achieve proficiency far beyond ordinary men in an occupation, one could already be considered as a genius. But the person before them, not only was he young, he actually managed to achieve such astounding proficiency in five occupations… Truly, it was a wonder how he studied so much.

The crowd couldn’t help but feel despair when comparing their achievement to the young man before them.

“Since the other occupations have made an exception, why can’t our Master Teacher Pavilion? Zhang shi’s performance should make him more than qualified as a 4-star master teacher!”

Su shi couldn’t help but say.

“Indeed!” Ling shi agreed. “Given that Zhang shi already had more than five 4-star occupations, even though his cultivation is lacking, I believe that he is still more than qualified as a 4-star master teacher!”

Not only must a 4-star master teacher possess four 4-star supporting occupation, more importantly, one had to possess the cultivation of a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan.

Even though Zhang shi’s cultivation was lacking at the moment, given how the other Upper Nine Paths occupations were willing to make an exception to grant him a 4-star emblem, how couldn’t the respected Master Teacher Pavilion do so as well?

“This…” Pavilion Master Kang hesitated.

Indeed! Since the other occupations were willing to go to such extents, why couldn’t the Master Teacher Pavilion do so as well?

After a momentary pause, Pavilion Master Kang said, “Alright, I’ll send a request to the headquarters immediately…”

Before Pavilion Master Kang could finish his words, Zhang Xuan abruptly asked, “Hold on a moment. The reason why you can’t give me a 4-star master teacher emblem straight despite the supporting occupations I have, is it due to my cultivation?”

“Un!” Pavilion Master Kang nodded.

“There’s no need to go through so much trouble for that. I’ll just make a breakthrough on the spot!” Zhang Xuan said.

“Make a breakthrough on the spot? Cough cough…”

Su shi and Ling shi were dumbfounded.

Even if you were at Transcendent Mortal 1-dan Prolonged Longevity realm pinnacle, it shouldn’t be that easy for you to make a breakthrough. After all, to achieve a breakthrough, you have to convert the zhenqi in your body into Origin Energy to harmonize better with the environment.

“Zhang shi, there’s no need to rush. You must be careful when making a breakthrough into Origin Energy realm so as to not affect the quality of your Origin Energy. A higher quality Origin Energy will prove to be beneficial to your future cultivation. It would be best if you can accumulate some more experience first.

Pavilion Master Kang advised. However, before he could finish his words, the young man before him suddenly frowned.

Hong long!

A sound reminiscent of an egg cracking sounded from his body. In an instant, the bottleneck which had restrained him suddenly gave way, and a majestic aura gradually emerged from within.

“Origin Energy realm…”

Pavilion Master Kang’s body trembled as he swallowed his words.

He could clearly feel that the other party had managed to achieve a breakthrough…

Others would need to find a quiet and safe place to condition their state before attempting a breakthrough… Yet, this fellow simply did it right after saying he would do so… Do you need to be so savage?

After successfully making a breakthrough, Zhang Xuan said nonchalantly, “Alright, there’s no need to feel conflicted about it anymore. Since I’m already an Origin Energy realm cultivator, I’ve already met the conditions!”

He was already ready to make a breakthrough to the next realm by the time he was at the soul oracle tomb. Back at Pavilion Master Kang’s room, he had gathered sufficient Transcendent Mortal 2-dan cultivation technique manuals for him to compile the correct Heaven’s Path Divine Art. Under such circumstances, achieving a breakthrough hinged on just a single thought.

“Alright…”

Seeing that the other party achieved a breakthrough so easily without any hiccups, the entire hall fell silent.

Fu Xiaochen trembled violently, unable to utter a single word.

Right after he’d doubted the other party’s supporting occupation, heads of the Upper Nine Paths guilds rushed into the hall to present him his emblem. And after which, when he doubted the other party’s cultivation… the other party immediately achieved a breakthrough for him…

It was truly impossible to speak to someone like that. Otherwise, he would slap your face once every few minutes, and not to mention, it was the type that would leave you tongue-tied and stifled.

When everything else was done, the remaining portion was simple. Not too long later, an emblem representing Zhang Xuan’s identity was presented to him.

The current him was an official 4-star master teacher recognized by the Master Teacher Pavilion.

“Zhang shi and Ruohuan, follow me. I’ll tell you two the details of the Master Teacher Tournament!”

When all was done, Pavilion Master Kang beckoned them over.

Leaving the hall, the trio entered a room.

“I believe you all should more or less know some details regarding the Master Teacher Tournament!” Pavilion Master Kang said.

“Un!” The duo nodded their heads.

“The Master Teacher Tournament is an event supported by the Huanyu Empire Master Teacher Pavilion. The content of the tournament changes each time, and if one were to get into the top ten, not only would one earn middle-tier spirit stones as a reward, one will even be given an opportunity to study at ‘Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy’,” Pavilion Master Kang said.

“Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy?” Jun Ruohuan’s breathing hastened.

“Un!” Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head.

Seeing the agitation on the expression of the other two, Zhang Xuan was perplexed.

“Is that academy famous?”

“Famous?”

Pavilion Master Kang shook his head with a bitter smile. “Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy is established in joint by Hongyuan Empire and the hundred or so Tier 2 Empire Master Teacher Pavilions under them. It’s a cradle for 4-star master teachers, and its purpose is to accept and groom talented master teachers. 6-star master teachers conduct lessons personally there to answer their queries. If only I could study in there, I would have long become a 5-star master teacher already!”

“A place to groom talented master teachers?” Zhang Xuan was astounded.

His alternate identity, Yang Xuan, was mistaken by others as a 6-star master teacher. In truth, he had never seen a master teacher of that tier before.

But even so, he knew how fearsome a person who had reached such level would be.

If one were to receive the guidance from such a person, one’s cultivation and fighting prowess would surely rise by leaps and bounds.

Putting everything aside, Mo Hunsheng who was trapped in the lotus was just a 6-star soul oracle, but he already possessed such incredible means, so one could only imagine the strength of a master teacher at that level.

“Originally, I only hoped for our Master Teacher Pavilion to not rank in the bottom few. However, with Zhang shi on our side this time, I hope that… you can try to vie for the top ten!” Pavilion Master Kang said with a serious expression.

Zhang Xuan’s performance today had awed him. His expectations couldn’t help but rise, and a ray of hope emerged within him… It no longer seemed like a dream for the Myriad Kingdom Alliance to get into the top ten!

If they were to really get into top ten, then as the pavilion master then, his name would go down into history. Perhaps, he might even get the opportunity to be dispatched to the Huanyu Empire Master Teacher Pavilion, thus receiving even better cultivation resources to reach higher realms.

“Top ten?”

Ruohuan gongzi clenched his fists tightly together.

“However, top ten won’t be easy at all. Even though the other powers participating in the Master Teacher Tournament have already arrived in the city, they have done well concealing the identity of their participants. Thus, even I haven’t managed to gather too much information!”

Even so, Pavilion Master Kang knew the immense difficulty in doing so. “Based on the records in the previous tournaments, one’s cultivation will be tested in the tournament as well. It is nearly impossible to get into the top ten without reaching a cultivation of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan intermediate-stage.”

“Transcendent Mortal 4-dan intermediate stage?” Zhang Xuan frowned.

“Indeed. This is why I hope that you can use the next two months to work hard on your cultivation!”

Pavilion Master Kang looked at the duo with glowing eyes. “As such, I’ve decided to bring you two to the Yin-Yang Lake to cultivate tomorrow!”

“Yin-Yang Lake? Teacher, do you mean the Yin-Yang Lake of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain?”

Ruohuan gongzi hurriedly turned to look at his teacher.

“That’s right! Where else can one find the Yin-Yang Lake other than in the Origin Flame Glacier Plain?” Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head.

“But… Isn’t the Origin Flame Glacier Plain on bad terms with our Myriad Kingdom City? Would they really allow us to use your Yin-Yang Lake?” Ruohuan gongzi asked doubtfully.

“There’s no need to worry about that. I’ve already negotiated the matter with their old ancestor, and as long as you can pass their selection test, you will be allowed to cultivate in the Yin-Yang Lake! The Yin-Yang Lake harnesses the two attributes of yin and yang. On one end is bone-piercing chill whereas on the other end is searing heat. One will be able to control the energy in one’s body by cultivating in it. This makes it easier for one to comprehend higher realms, thus hastening one’s rate of cultivation. This is exceptionally useful for those who possess unique constitutions like Pure Yin and Pure Yang Body,” Pavilion Master Kang said.

“Pure Yin and Pure Yang Body…” Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

“Indeed. The Yin-Yang Lake is divided into yin and yang. It has the effect of stimulating and thus, awakening the constitution of those possessing a Pure Yin or Pure Yang Body, inducing a huge rise in their cultivation. However… it is a pity that those who possess these two constitutions are truly rare,” Pavilion Master Kang lamented.

“This…” Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

Pure Yin and Pure Yang Bodies are indeed rare, but… Zhao Ya’s happened to be the former!

Despite only awakening her unique constitution by twenty percent, she already possessed such formidable might. Since this Yin-Yang Lake was useful to her, perhaps he could bring her along to vie for an opportunity for her?

Otherwise, if it came down to it, Zhang Xuan was willing to give up his own slot for the latter as well… Honestly speaking, Zhang Xuan didn’t really think the Yin-Yang Lake would make much of a difference to him. After all, as long as he was able to form the Heaven’s Path Divine Art and had sufficient spirit stones in his possession, cultivation was as simple as eating and drinking to him. Putting aside Transcendent Mortal 4-dan, as long as he had sufficient quantities of the two, reaching Transcendent Mortal 9-dan in a day wasn’t a problem at all!

“However, the Yin-Yang Lake is located at the utmost south of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance. It’s a long distance away, and even riding on a 4-dan pinnacle aerial spirit beast, just the journey there in itself would take almost a dozen days. If we were to factor in the time required for you to cultivate, the entire trip would take at least forty days. As such, if you don’t have any issue, we’ll set off tomorrow morning. After all, we have to make it back here before the Master Teacher Tournament,” Pavilion Master Kang said with a grim expression.

“No problem!” Zhang Xuan and Ruohuan gongzi nodded their heads.

After hearing the mystical effects of the Yin-Yang Lake, Zhang Xuan was actually rather curious to see it for himself. Also, since it was extremely useful to awakening Zhao Ya’s unique constitution, as long as long as he could vie for an opportunity for her to enter the Yin-Yang Lake, her cultivation might soar by leaps and bounds.

“Alright then. The two of you should return for now to make preparations. We’ll meet here tomorrow morning!”

After Pavilion Master Kang was done with the briefing, he dismissed the two.

“Alright!” The duo nodded their heads.

Leaving the room, Zhang Xuan immediately returned back to his residence and called Zhao Ya over.

“Tomorrow, I’ll take you to a place that would be useful in awakening your constitution so prepare yourself!”

After which, Zhang Xuan returned to his room. Given that the trip would take more than a month, the urgent matter at hand for him was to raise his cultivation as soon as possible. For the time being, he should at least try to reach Origin Energy realm pinnacle first!

Thus, activating the Spirit Gathering Formation, he sat down. Flicking his wrist, a middle-tier spirit stone appeared before him.

Chapter 546: Elder Hu

Gu gu gu gu!

Pure zhenqi seeped through Zhang Xuan’s entire body along his meridians, through his acupoints, headed straight toward his dantian. Driving the Transcendent Mortal 2-dan Heaven’s Path Divine Art, Zhang Xuan fell into a tranquil state, and his aura slowly hiked up.

Origin Energy realm primary stage!

Origin Energy realm intermediate stage!

…

If someone else were to see his pace of cultivation, they would immediately fall into a frenzy.

They had spent innumerable years of hard work just to raise their cultivation, but Zhang Xuan seemed to do the same as easily as eating and drinking. The concept of ‘difficult’ and ‘bottleneck’ didn’t seem to apply to him at all.

…

In a luxurious mansion in the Myriad Kingdom City, a young man stood at the entrance of the courtyard, loitering around anxiously.

If Zhang Xuan was here, he would definitely be able to recognize the other party as the wealthy customer who often bought from him, Song Chao.

After loitering to and fro for several times, Song Chao couldn’t help but turn to the guard at the entrance and ask, “When will elder come out of his seclusion?”

“I’ve no idea as well! After meeting with Song shi the previous time, elder immediately went into seclusion. Since then, he hasn’t come out at all!” the guard replied.

“Alright…”

After obtaining the grade-7 Metal Coffin, Song Chao immediately rushed to this courtyard to look for the elder, only to learn that the latter was currently in seclusion. Thus, he could only wait for the latter to return. Who knew that this wait would have taken him several days.

In any case, he did expect the elder to immerse himself in the research of the Soulless Metal Humanoid after obtaining it.

“Forget it, I’ll return for now first!”

Since the other party was in seclusion, it wasn’t good for him to simply barge in. Helpless, he decided to leave for now. However, before he barely took a few steps, ‘jiya!’, the door behind him opened.

“Haha!”

Turning around, Song Chao saw an old man walking out of the room with a bright smile.

He hurried forward and bowed to the latter with clasped fists.

“Paying respects to Elder Hu!”

Stroking his beard, Elder Hu said with a smile, “You came at the right time! The Soulless Metal Humanoid you gave me is indeed not bad. After studying for numerous days, I’ve benefited greatly from it! If I can reach Consonant Spirit realm because of this, I’ll make sure to reward you greatly!”

Transcendent Mortal 5-dan Consonant Spirit realm was a difficult hurdle of the Transcendent Mortal realm due to how intricately it was tied with the study of souls.

He had been trapped in Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle for a very long time already. He had tried many ways to achieve a breakthrough, but all of them turned out to be futile. Thus, when Song Chao delivered a Soulless Metal Humanoid to him just a period ago, he immediately studied it intensely as though it was his only lifeline.

Soulless Metal Humanoids were the personal bodyguards of the ancient soul oracles, and the secret behind souls could be uncovered from them. Even though he was still unable to comprehend how these Soulless Metal Humanoids could be formed, he was able to gain a deeper insight into the concept of souls. This would prove to be greatly beneficial to his future breakthrough into the Consonant Spirit realm.

“Elder, you’re being too courteous. I’m glad that this artifact is useful to you…” Song Chao hurriedly nodded.

“Un!” Hearing the other party’s humble words, Elder Hu nodded his head in satisfaction. “For you to pay me so many visits in the past few days, did something happen?”

Even though he was in seclusion, he still maintained some basic awareness of his surroundings.

Song Chao hurriedly nodded his head. “I met that person who sold me the Soulless Metal Humanoid just a few days ago. This time, he offered me the grade-7 Metal Coffin which is used to store Soulless Metal Humanoids. Thinking that it might be beneficial for elder’s study… I bought it down!”

“Grade-7 Metal Coffin? A coffin used to house Soulless Metal Humanoid? Where is it? Show me!”

Elder Hu’s eyes lit up and his breathing hastened.

As he was unable to achieve a breakthrough for such a long period of time, he chose to turn his attention to the study of souls. After years of research, he had learnt quite a bit about the subject. In his research, he had stumbled by the subject of soul oracles and thus, he understood the significance of this coffin.

If he had obtained these items earlier, he would have enjoyed a much greater improvement in the past few days. Even if he was still unable to reach Consonant Spirit realm, his soul would at least become much stronger than before.

“Yes!”

Flicking his wrist, a massive coffin appeared before them.

It was the coffin that Zhang Xuan sold to him for one middle-tier spirit stone back at the herb garden.

“To think that it’s a grade-7 Metal Coffin in perfect condition…” Seeing the inscriptions on the coffin, Elder Hu’s eyes slowly grew brighter and brighter.

The soul oracles had entrusted blacksmiths to forge these coffins specially for their Soulless Metal Humanoid, and they had the effect of maintaining a Soulless Metal Humanoid in its peak condition for millenniums to come.

“Based on the words of the seller, this coffin was the one used to house the Soulless Metal Humanoid in elder’s hands!” Song Chao continued.

“Oh…”

Elder Hu nodded his head. After assessing the coffin carefully, he raised his head and said, “The person who sold those things to you… Where is he? Did you ask him where he obtained those items from?”

“That… I didn’t!” Song Chao shook his head.

Under the other party’s Impartation of Heaven’s Will, he would lose all basic critical thinking ability. Every single meeting would only end with him forking out spirit stones. Under such circumstances, how was he supposed to ask anything at all?

“You didn’t ask?” Elder Hu frowned.

Recalling the words that the young man said that day, Song Chao hurriedly replied, “Even though I didn’t ask, I know that there are at least three more of such Soulless Metal Humanoids and grade-7 Metal Coffins in his possession. In fact… it seems like he even has the higher tier… Crimson Metal Coffin!”

“Do you mean that ‘shattered by none the lock of Crimson Metal, undisturbed a rest for ten millenniums’… The coffin that even Transcendent Mortal 9-dan experts are unable break open, and is used to store a soul oracle’s physical body?”

Elder Hu’s breathing hastened as his eyes lit up.

A Grade-7 Metal Coffin was only a tool used to store Soulless Metal Humanoid. On the other hand, the Crimson Metal Coffin was something that was used to store the body of the soul oracle himself. Even though they were both coffins, the value of the latter was definitely much greater than the former!

That fellow actually had such good stuff?

“Yes!” Song Chao nodded his head.

“Great! Where is he? Is he selling that Crimson Metal Coffin? What does he want for it?” Elder Hu hurriedly asked.

“That… He intends to sell the Crimson Metal Coffin, just that… I didn’t have sufficient money on me then, so I couldn’t afford it. Putting everything aside, just this grade-7 Metal Coffin is already worth an entire middle-tier spirit stone…” Song Chao said.

“The grade-7 Metal Coffin is the work of a 4-star craftsman, and it has the effect of maintaining the physical condition of a Soulless Metal Humanoid for millenniums to come. Not only is it not expensive, it is in fact rather cheap! Not bad!”

Elder Hu nodded his head.

Given that it was the work of a 4-star craftsman, and considering the precious materials involved and the secret of soul oracles hidden within it, a middle-tier spirit stone was indeed relatively cheap in comparison.

This was an extremely fair price.

Hearing that he made a fair trade, Song Chao heaved a sigh of relief before asking, “So… does Elder Hu intend to buy it?”

“This is a rare opportunity, we have to obtain it. However… you should also know that even though I am an elder, my stipends are limited. Since a grade-7 Metal Coffin is worth a middle-tier spirit stones, nothing needs to be said about the Crimson Metal Coffin. Even I… am unable to fork out such a price!”

Even though Elder Hu was excited, he didn’t allow it to get ahead of himself.

The annual stipends of an elder wasn’t unlimited. The number of middle-tier spirit stones he had at hand was extremely limited.

The elder couldn’t help but ask, “Right, have you tried buying it with Tutelage Jade Tokens?”

“Tutelage Jade Token? The person selling it is a master teacher himself, and his rank… can only be higher than mine. He won’t want the jade tokens…”

Song Chao smiled bitterly.

Back then, when he intended to buy the Rousing From the Drunken Dreams on the auction, the other party refused to sell the work for anything other than spirit stones. After learning that Zhang shi was the seller, he immediately understood the reason.

The other party was a master teacher himself, and chances were that he had an even more formidable teacher above him. While Tutelage Jade Tokens were incomparably valuable to ordinary cultivators, to master teachers like them, their value was negligible.

It was just like how an owner of a gold mine wouldn’t want to trade his possessions just to earn back gold.

“Master teacher?” Elder Hu was taken aback.

If the other party wasn’t a master teacher, there was a variety of means they could use-guiding the other party or accepting the other party as his student. However, given that the other party was a master teacher like them, the things that they could do both on the surface and beneath the surface would become terribly limited.

The Master Teacher Pavilion was an organization to govern and protect master teachers. If they were to be caught doing harm on the other party for greed, their entire sect would suffer the wrath of the headquarters.

After a moment of hesitation, Elder Hu said, “Never mind, where is he now? I’ll talk to him and ask him for the price of the Crimson Metal Coffin. This way, I can make preparations.”

The safest and only viable method available was to buy it. It was fortunate that the other party had the intentions to sell it.

“He’s currently in the guest residence of Myriad Kingdom Alliance’s Alliance Head Residence!” Song Chao said.

While he had been visiting Elder Hu the past few days, he had been keeping a lookout for Zhang Xuan’s whereabouts.

After leaving the herb garden, Zhang Xuan didn’t hide his whereabouts. Given how even Su shi and the others were able to easily hear of the other party’s whereabouts, it wasn’t too difficult for him to do so as well.

“Alright then. Prepare the mounts, we’ll head over!”

Elder Hu nodded his head.

…

Hu!

Zhang Xuan finally came to a stop.

“There isn’t sufficient spiritual energy…”

Zhang Xuan thought that a middle-tier spirit stone should be more than sufficient for him to reach Origin Energy realm pinnacle. But from the looks of it now, he was still underestimating his spiritual energy consumption rate.

Along with the rise in his cultivation, the spiritual energy he needed to make a breakthrough was increasing exponentially. A middle-tier spirit stone only could fuel him up to Origin Energy realm advanced stage. He was still quite a distance away from reaching pinnacle.

“I’ll need at least two more middle-tier spirit stone before reaching pinnacle!”

Making a rough calculation, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

The spirit stone he had obtained from Hall Master Han was used up in the midst of cultivating his soul, and this spirit stone turned out to be insufficient to raise his zhenqi cultivation as well. Where was he supposed to find more middle-tier spirit stones?

He thought that he could be considered wealthy already. In the end, as soon as he started cultivating, he ended up being plagued by the issue of lack of spirit stones once again.

On top of that, the Soulrouse Grass also requires huge amount of energy to bloom as well. Based on Zhang Xuan’s estimations, the energy required was much greater than the amount needed for him to reach Origin Energy realm pinnacle.

“I really have to find some way to earn some money…”

Rubbing his glabella, Zhang Xuan stood up.

Earning money… It was easier said than done. What was he supposed to do about it?

There were only a few middle-tier spirit stones in the Myriad Kingdom Alliance’s Alliance Head Residence, needless to say, other powers with the Myriad Kingdom Alliance wouldn’t have as much.

‘Forget it, I should head to the Yin-Yang Lake first. Based on what Pavilion Master Kang said, the area is rich in spiritual energy, making it extremely apt for one’s cultivation. Perhaps, I might be able to raise my cultivation even without using spirit stones…’ Zhang Xuan thought.

Since it was a precious ground that enhanced one’s rate of cultivation, perhaps he would be able to raise his cultivation even without using spirit stones.

“But before that, I should try to obtain the Transcendent Mortal 3-dan cultivation manual of Heaven’s Path Divine Art first!”

Only with a cultivation technique could he raise his cultivation to higher heights. It would be a tragedy if the conditions there turned to be really beneficial to his cultivation, but he didn’t have the required cultivation technique to raise his cultivation.

“There are many of such cultivation techniques in the Master Teacher Pavilion. As a 4-star master teacher, I have the qualifications to browse through them now!”

In terms of quantity of cultivation technique manuals and battle technique manuals, there was nowhere that could surpass the Master Teacher Pavilion’s library.

In any case, Zhang Xuan was already a 4-star master teacher, so he had the qualifications to browse through all of the books. Since he had time now, he decided to head over to take a look.

Thinking so, he stood up and walked out.

Chapter 547: Ruohuan on the Verge of Crying

Right after Zhang Xuan left, Song Chao and Elder Hu arrived at the residence.

After waiting for several hours, they could only leave regretfully.

Right when the duo was waiting, Zhang Xuan arrived at the Master Teacher Pavilion’s library.

As the center of the entire alliance, Myriad Kingdom City was both an economic powerhouse and a martial arts hub. Secret manuals were something that was never and would never be in short supply here.

Upon entering the library, Zhang Xuan immediately saw rows and rows of bookshelves extending beyond the limit of his sight.

In terms of quantity, even the humongous library he had visited in Honghai City was far from a match with this.

‘With so many books, I won’t be able to duplicate all of them without several days of effort even if I were to go full throttle…’ Zhang Xuan contemplated.

Given that he was heading to the Yin-Yang Lake with Pavilion Master Kang the next day, even if he were to give it his all, it was clearly impractical for him to duplicate everything in his Library of Heaven’s Path within the limited time he had.

‘Forget it, I should just focus on cultivation techniques for now!’

Knowing the impossibility of the matter, he decided to focus on the bookshelves relating to cultivation techniques and battle techniques.

As a 4-star master teacher, he had access to all of the resources in the Master Teacher Pavilion. Soon, he found the area where Transcendent Mortal 3-dan cultivation techniques were placed.

With just a glance, Zhang Xuan could tell there was more than a thousand books here.

‘Flaws!’

Muttering beneath his breath, he placed his finger on the first book and started collecting the books.

‘Compile!’

Soon, a complete Transcendent Mortal 3-dan Heaven’s Path Divine Art appeared before Zhang Xuan’s eyes.

Without sufficient spirit stones, he was still unable to cultivate it at the moment. Thus, he proceeded forward, hoping to find Transcendent Mortal 4-dan cultivation technique manuals.

But after looking around, he couldn’t help but shake his head.

There were indeed Transcendent Mortal 4-dan cultivation technique manuals here, but there were only a hundred books or so. He was still a long way from compiling a complete Heaven’s Path Divine Art.

But considering that the strongest expert in Myriad Kingdom Alliance was only at Transcendent Mortal 4-dan, such books were likely to be carefully hoarded by the various powers in the alliance. As such, it was already rather impressive that the Master Teacher Pavilion had a hundred of such books.

‘Now to see whether there are any books on soul here…’

Even so, Zhang Xuan didn’t wallow in his disappointment. He quickly moved on to look for soul secret manuals.

Having received Mo Hunsheng’s inheritance, Zhang Xuan had learned the cultivation technique of soul oracles. However, as there were flaws in the manuals from Transcendent Mortal 3-dan and onward, he only cultivated his soul until Transcendent Mortal 2-dan.

Since there were all kinds of books here, there just might be some manual on souls that might be useful to him here. If he were to compile it along with his existing knowledge, he just might be able to form higher level Heaven’s Path Soul Art.

The rise in the cultivation of a soul also boosted his strength as well.

Zhang Xuan looked around as he walked between the shelves, and a long period of time later, he finally stopped.

“‘Ways of Strengthening Your Soul’, ‘What You Have to Know About Consonant Spirit Realm’, ‘How to Cultivate Your Soul in Clarifying Turbidity Realm’… These are notes from master teachers of previous generations!”

Zhang Xuan’s hands brushed across the books.

The soul oracle inheritance had been terminated so it was impossible to find their cultivation techniques anywhere. However, many experts had left behind notes regarding the tempering of one’s soul as it was a fundamental condition for reaching Consonant Spirit Realm.

Even though the noted had little to do with soul oracles, they detailed the profound secret of souls. As such, they could be used to fill up the gaps in the soul oracle’s cultivation techniques.

Thus, Zhang Xuan began collecting all of these books, and around eleven hours later, he finally managed to collect several thousand of books on the introduction and tempering of souls.

Having overexerted himself in the process, Zhang Xuan’s body felt heavy and he was on the verge of sleeping already. Even so, his eyes were glowing in excitement.

“Compile!”

After conditioning his state for a moment, he immersed his consciousness into the Library of Heaven’s Path and fused the knowledge in the books along with the inheritance of the soul oracles.

“Hmm? I have the Heaven’s Path Soul Art for both Transcendent Mortal 3-dan and 4-dan…”

After double checking the results, Zhang Xuan’s eyes glowed in agitation.

He was only giving it a try since there was no better method he could think of. In truth, he hadn’t thought it was likely to succeed. Yet, the effects exceeded his expectations. He had managed to complete the Transcendent Mortal 3-dan and 4-dan of Heaven’s Path Soul Art in a single go.

In other words, as long as he had sufficient middle-tier spirit stones, his soul cultivation could easily reach Transcendent Mortal 4-dan!

“Not bad…”

Zhang Xuan’s lips curled up into a smile.

Even though it was a disappointment that he couldn’t compile the perfect Transcendent Mortal 4-dan Heaven’s Path Divine Art, the results weren’t too bad since he’d managed to complete Transcendent Mortal 3-dan and 4-dan of the Heaven’s Path Soul Art.

“To think that a night has already passed…”

Unknowingly, while looking for the cultivation technique manuals, a night had already passed.

Walking out of the library, the sun was already high up in the sky, glaring down at him.

“Zhang shi, you’re finally out. The pavilion master is waiting for you at the backyard…”

An apprentice walked up to inform Zhang Xuan.

“Un!” Zhang Xuan nodded his head before walking over to the backyard. It seemed like Pavilion Master Kang and Ruohuan gongzi had already been waiting for some for him already.

“Alright, let’s head off!”

Seeing Zhang Xuan walking over, Pavilion Master Kang raised his hand and a massive beast slowly landed on the ground.

It was a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle aerial spirit beast. Most probably, it was the private of Pavilion Master Kang or the Master Teacher Pavilion.

“Ah, hold on for a moment. I would like to bring a student along with me…” Zhang Xuan said.

“A student?”

Pavilion Master Kang frowned. “The Origin Flame Glacier Plain isn’t under the jurisdiction of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance. It’s an independent power, and I had to pay a heavy price before I could obtain these two slots for you two…”

If he could bring people to the Origin Flame Glacier Plain freely, he would have surely brought Fu Xiaochen and the others over long ago. There would be no need for him to waste time on a selection beforehand, cutting it so close for the Master Teacher Tournament.

It was due to the limit that he’d had to go through so much trouble.

“Only two slots? It’s impossible to add another person in?” Zhang Xuan frowned.

“That won’t do. In fact, the two slots are not guaranteed-you all have to undergo the tests of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain first. If it was that easy to negotiate with the Origin Flame Glacier Plain, the master teachers of our Master Teacher Pavilion would be much stronger than they are now. At the very least, we wouldn’t be ranking at the bottom in nearly every tournament!”

Pavilion Master Kang smiled bitterly.

“If that’s the case… I’ll pass on my opportunity to my student then,” Zhang Xuan said.

As long as he had sufficient middle-tier spirit stones, it didn’t make a difference to him whether he entered the Yin-Yang Lake or not. Since there were only two slots, he would rather pass the chance on to Zhao Ya. After all, this was a rare opportunity for her to further awaken her unique constitution.

“This won’t do. You’re Myriad Kingdom Alliance’s greatest hope in the Master Teacher Tournament, how can you pass on such an opportunity!”

Upon hearing the decision Zhang Xuan made, Pavilion Master Kang quickly refuted his words.

Are you joking?

I’m still waiting for you to break the records in the Master Teacher Tournament. If you don’t go to the Yin-Yang Lake, wouldn’t the heavy price I paid for this opportunity go to waste?

“My student has to come along!” Zhang Xuan said resolutely. “How about this? If the other party make things difficult for you, I can negotiate with him on your behalf.”

“This…”

Pavilion Master Kang shook his head. “You’re underestimating the men of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain. If it’s that easy to negotiate with them, I would have surely tried to obtain more slots. But actually, they aren’t to be blamed for this. There’s a fundamental limit to the number of the people who can enter the Yin-Yang Lake every time it opens. It isn’t even enough for their own use, let alone, outsiders like us.”

Zhang Xuan nodded in agreement.

Having read many books, he knew that many of such natural blessed lands had a fundamental limit to them. If too many people were to cultivate on such lands, it was very easy for the place to ‘dry up’.

As such, a limit was imposed in view of its long-term sustainability.

“Forget it, you should bring your student along with you for now; I’ll negotiate with them later. We’ll think of another solution if that fails!”

Seeing the resolute attitude of the young man, Pavilion Master Kang rubbed his glabella and said.

“Un, let’s give it try first. Perhaps, we might really be able to get an additional slot!”

Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

While walking there, Zhang Xuan had seen many different things. He had also realized many things that others deemed to be impossible. Even if the men of the Origin Flame Glacier Plains were to be difficult, Zhang Xuan was confident that he could find a flaw in the other party and exploit that to resolve the situation.

“Un!”

Having come to a decision, Zhang Xuan sent an apprentice to call Zhao Ya over. After which, the four of them got onto the back of a spirit beast and flew toward Myriad Kingdom City.

Yesterday, when he returned to the residence, he had entrusted the Demon Cinque Beast with the responsibility of overlooking the safety of the others. Given its immense strength and Zhang Xuan’s identity as a 4-star master teacher, there shouldn’t be anyone so blind as to harm his students.

Not to mention, Zhao Feiwu, the princess of the alliance, was looking after them as well.

Thus, there was no need for Zhang Xuan to worry for the safety of Zheng Yang and the others.

As for the Soulrouse Grass, as it couldn’t be placed in his storage ring, he didn’t bring it along with him. Instead, he had Wang Ying and Sun Qiang take care of it. Given their meticulous personality, it should be in safe hands.

This departure was, in truth, a secret of sorts. Even the other master teachers in the Master Teacher Pavilion didn’t know about this. Otherwise, if news were to leak out and the other powers tried to hinder them, things might turn out to be disastrous.

But of course, the Myriad Kingdom Alliance had always fared badly in the tournament. The other powers probably had their hands busy with tripping over the potential top ten contenders instead.

…

White clouds flitted past them as the spirit beast soared through the skies. The four of them were seated in the room on the back of the spirit beast. At this moment, Pavilion Master Kang was staring at Zhao Ya, and the perplexed expression on his face was gradually deepening.

After a moment, Pavilion Master Kang couldn’t help but exclaim, “Zhang shi, the physical constitution of your student… doesn’t seem to be ordinary!”

As a 4-star pinnacle master teacher, he possessed outstanding eye of discernment. Even though Zhang Xuan had Zhao Ya conceal the true nature of her Pure Yin Body to avoid trouble, it still wasn’t sufficient to escape from Pavilion Master Kang’s sharp eyes.

“Pavilion master sure has an incredible eye of discernment. Zhao Ya possesses the Pure Yin Body. That’s why I wish to bring her along so that she could cultivate at the Yin-Yang Lake,” Zhang Xuan admitted.

“Indeed…”

Pavilion Master Kang’s breathing hastened.

As the head of the Master Teacher Pavilion, he understood how fearsome such a unique constitution was. Cultivators possessing a Pure Yin Body became insanely strong once their unique constitution was unlocked, and from the looks of it, this young lady seemed to have awakened a portion of it already.

It was no wonder Zhang shi insisted on bringing the latter to the Yin-Yang Lake, even offering to give up this opportunity to her. For the future of such a talented student, the sacrifice was indeed worthy.

“The Pure Yin Body is one of the rare Innate Unique Constitutions. Once it awakens entirely, one’s body would become completely flawless. With such a constitution, one’s rate of cultivation would reach an insane speed…”

Pavilion Master Kang recited the unique properties of the Pure Yin Body, and the more he spoke, the brighter his eyes glowed. A moment later, he couldn’t hold it back anymore. Turning around to look at Ruohuan gongzi, he said, “Alright, I’ve decided. Ruohuan, you shall pass your slot on to her!”

“Ah?”

Ruohuan gongzi’s body swayed, and his eyes widened in shock.

Talk all you want… but why did you have to involve me in this?

It wasn’t easy for me to get this slot; do you know how hard I worked? Upon hearing that I was going to the Yin-Yang Lake yesterday, I spent the entire day preparing everything I would need. And yet, due to him bringing along his student, you’re going to deprive me of my slot?

“Teacher…”

Ruohuan gongzi immediately looked at his teacher with a panicked expression.

“Say no more, this matter is decided. Don’t worry, I will definitely make it up to you for this!”

Pavilion Master Kang waved his hands to signify that this matter wasn’t up for debate.

Zhang shi was the Myriad Kingdom Alliance’s greatest hope in the Master Teacher Tournament so he had to raise his cultivation as fast as possible.

Without sufficient strength, he would be at a disadvantage for many of the tests.

On the other hand, his student possessed the Pure Yin Body, so the opportunity at Yin-Yang Lake was incomparably important to her.

After pondering over the matter, the only option was to abandon his own student.

“…” Ruohuan gongzi burst into tears.

Chapter 548: Origin Flame Glacier Plain

Ignoring the crying Ruohuan gongzi, Zhang Xuan asked, “Who are those Origin Flame Glacier Plain men you spoke of?”

It wasn’t that he was without sympathy but that he thought there was definitely a chance at turning the situation around here. Besides, even if they were to end up being stuck with only two slots, Zhang Xuan could simply compensate the other party by providing some pointers to his cultivation.

In any case, Zhang Xuan’s guidance would definitely be much more effective than training in that Yin-Yang Lake.

“Origin Flame Glacier Plain is the name of an extremely powerful influence. Just like the Apothecary Guild and Blacksmith Guild, they wield a sizeable number of spirit veins and blessed lands. As such, even though I am the head of the Master Teacher Pavilion, I dare not offend them easily. Thus, the most I could do was a propose a fair trade with them,” Pavilion Master Kang explained.

“Spirit veins and blessed lands?” Zhang Xuan was astonished.

Just this in itself was sufficient to show that the power was anything but ordinary. After all, given the innumerable formidable powers in the world, how could they possibly allow a small fry hog onto such precious resources?

“Indeed. Every branch of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain has a court chief, and I happen to be acquainted with the current generation of court chief. That was how I managed to obtain the two slots to undergo the trial… Honestly speaking, it’ll rely heavily on your abilities whether you can enter or not later on!” Pavilion Master Kang said.

“Acquainted?”

“Un, she was once injured, and I saved her!”

Stroking his beard, Pavilion Master Kang said, “Do you remember the case study on the person who cultivated the Great Ancient Incursion Art, the one whose chest was wounded by searing sword qi?”

“Oh!”

Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

When he first met Pavilion Master Kang, the latter had once posed a test to him. The test was based on a real-life case study of a severely-wounded cultivator attempting to achieve a breakthrough to Transcendent Mortal realm.

That situation was extremely complex, and given the difficulty in the level of treatment, it was natural that Pavilion Master Kang would win the other party’s gratitude after the matter.

After chatting a while longer, Zhang Xuan gained a deeper understanding of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain.

This power controlled a significant portion of blessed lands all over the world, and one thing that they didn’t lack was resources. As such, wealth meant nothing much to them. Only a master teacher could possibly make them willingly fork out two slots.

After chatting for a while longer, the group started on their cultivation.

Due to a lack of spirit stones, Zhang Xuan didn’t focus on attempting breakthroughs in his cultivation. Instead, he spent his time reinforcing his cultivation and enhancing his maximum zhenqi capacity.

After his cultivation reached Origin Energy realm advanced stage, his strength had increased tremendously once more. His strength of 200,000 ding had increased by twofold to 400,000 ding.

A normal Origin Energy realm primary stage expert would only wield a might of 150,000 ding, intermediate stage 200,000 ding, advanced stage 250,000 ding, and pinnacle 300,000 ding. On the other hand, Yin-Yang realm was divided by a difference of 100,00 ding between each tier-primary stage 500,000 ding, intermediate stage 600,000 ding, advanced stage 700,000 ding, pinnacle 800,000 ding!

Despite being only at Origin Energy realm advanced stage, Zhang Xuan already wielded power much greater than that of an Origin Energy realm pinnacle cultivator.

If he were to complement it with his Transcendent Mortal 2-dan pinnacle soul cultivation, his total might would exceed 700,000 ding. With such strength, he would be able to stand toe-to-toe with even Yin-Yang realm advanced stage cultivators!

But of course, this was all just theory. Strength wasn’t the determining factor of one’s fighting prowess. More important than that was one’s battle instinct and abilities. If it was that easy to challenge those of higher cultivation realms, master teachers would truly be too overpowered.

But even so, a Yin-Yang realm intermediate stage expert should still be a piece of cake.

Along with Zhang Xuan’s rise in strength, his reaction speed and physical prowess had improved significantly. While the change wasn’t as obvious as that when he first stepped into Transcendent Mortal realm, there was still a clear growth in his overall fighting prowess.

“It just happens that I still have some time. I should study Heaven’s Path Sword Art, Heaven’s Path Spear Art, and Heaven’s Path Saber Art once more!”

Reinforcing his cultivation had increased his zhenqi capacity significantly. Pleased with the results, Zhang Xuan decided to turn his attention to battle techniques instead.

The current level of Heaven’s Path Sword Art and Heaven’s Path Movement Art was mainly compiled from the books in Tianxuan Kingdom. Even though he had augmented it several times with more books, the current Heaven’s Path Sword Art was already insufficient to meet his requirements. Thus, he had to reorganize everything and compile even stronger moves.

Along his way here, Zhang Xuan had gathered quite a few battle techniques-not to mention, he even collected all of the battle technique books from the Myriad Kingdom Alliance. As such, all he had to do was to reorganize the books for compilation.

Thus, he first worked on Heaven’s Path Sword Art.

Sword is the emperor of all weapons. There was nearly no cultivator who would be ignorant of swordsmanship. As such, there were innumerable secret manuals on swordsmanship, thus making it convenient to find them.

Not too long later, Zhang Xuan managed to reorganize the entire set of Heaven’s Path Sword Art.

Due to the narrow space on the back of the beast, Zhang Xuan was unable to execute it. Thus, he simply played out the skill in his head. It didn’t take him too long to master the technique.

After that, he turned his attention to saber art, spear art, fist art, leg art, and movement art.

With the enhanced Heaven’s Path battle techniques, Zhang Xuan’s fighting prowess rose tremendously.

If Zhang Xuan could only match up to an Origin Energy realm pinnacle cultivator with just his zhenqi cultivation only previously, at this moment, he could easily match up to a Yin-Yang realm primary stage cultivator.

Factoring in his soul cultivation as well, probably even a Transcendent Mortal 3-dan Yin-Yang realm advanced stage cultivator could be easily destroyed by him.

But of course, his greatest trump card at the moment wasn’t his battle techniques-it was the Eye of Insight and Impartation of Heaven’s Will.

The former allowed him to see through flaws whereas the latter allowed him to beguile the minds of others. With these two trump cards, he could beguile even Pavilion Master Kang easily.

While Zhang Xuan was cultivating, Zhao Ya had been working hard too. After the last few days of hard work, she finally surpassed the bottleneck of Zhizun realm and advanced into the Half-Transcension realm.

In just a short few months, she’d advanced from a Fighter 1-dan to such a realm. This rate of progress was sufficient to leave innumerable people dumbfounded.

Sometime later, while Zhang Xuan was in the midst of cultivating, Pavilion Master Kang announced, “The Yin-Yang Lake is just right ahead!”

Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan calmed his cultivation and stood up.

Through the windows, he saw a towering mountain not too far away. Amidst the peak piled with a thick layer of white snow, a conspicuous dark-green court stood.

“This is the Glacier Plain Court. The Yin-Yang Lake is inside the court!”

Pavilion Master Kang pointed.

Taking a closer look, one could see a plaque on the entrance of the court, and the three words ‘Glacier Plain Court’ was exceptionally eye-catching.

Silent but dignified.

Standing by the window, Pavilion Master Kang stared at the snowing mountain peak not too far away as he said, “Just by looking at the thick layer of snow here, you probably can’t imagine that this place used to be a volcano before the Glacier Plain Court was built. Back then, the searing heat was so unbearable that even a Transcendent Mortal cultivator would suffer grievous burns if he attempted to cross the volcano.”

“Volcano?”

Not only was Zhang Xuan stunned, even Ruohuan gongzi seemed to be bewildered by those words.

This towering mountain was completely cloaked in white snow. Just the sight was enough to leave one shuddering in coldness. How could such a place have been a volcano before that?

“Honestly speaking, when I first heard of this news, I shared your reactions as well!”

Seeing through everyone’s bewilderment, Pavilion Master Kang shook his head. “This is strength of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain! Not only do they possess the strength to claim blessed lands, they are also capable of changing the geomancy of a land to nurture the blessed land. Under their hands, many treacherous environments had turned into a spiritual energy haven that many looked forward to.”

Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but ask, “Could it be that… the men of Origin Flame Glacier Plain could be considered to be of a unique occupation?”

To be capable of turning the unusable into a treasure, converting a feared volcano into a snow mountain; unless it was a unique occupation, Zhang Xuan found it hard to imagine that there was any power capable of such a formidable feat.

“Your way of putting it can’t be said to be wrong, but it isn’t entirely correct either!”

Seeing the confused looks on everyone’s faces, Pavilion Master Kang chuckled. “Whether a certain heritage is considered as a unique occupation or not is decided by the Master Teacher Pavilion. One of the factors the Master Teacher Pavilion uses for making such decision is whether the heritage has a complete system of knowledge and a strict progressive ability ranking system. But there are simply some occupations whose members are unable to be judged under a hierarchical structure, such as herbologists.

“The capability of a herbologist depends heavily on their knowledge. Often, medicinal herbs required very specific knowledge to cultivate them, and it was possible for a highly skilled herbologist to be unable to cultivate a basic medicinal herb. Thus, a progressive ability ranking system couldn’t really work in this case…

“An occupation without a strict progressive ranking system cannot be considered as a unique occupation. While it is true that the men of Origin Flame Glacier Plain possess mysterious means to turn a volcano into a snow mountain, a marsh into a plain, but… they had no true heritage or a specific way of doing so. Rather, their abilities seem to be more closely related to their talent and ability!

“Besides, there are very few members of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain alive in the world. Even in the area of jurisdiction of Myriad Kingdom Alliance or even the entire Huanyu Empire, there is only one of such branch… Given such, how could it possibly be proclaimed as an occupation? But at the same time, they did indeed possess a unique ability, a characteristic that only occupations have. Thus, even the Master Teacher Pavilion was a little troubled and was unable to come to a verdict over this matter.”

Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

An occupation must have a unique heritage that everyone could take on, and it must have a lot of branches across the world.

But the Origin Flame Glacier Plain men were sorely lacking in their number of members, and their heritage was slightly chaotic. Not to mention, their ability relied heavily on their innate talent as well. As such, they had yet to be proclaimed as an occupation.

“To turn a searing volcano into a frigid snow mountain, how did they do it?” Zhao Ya asked curiously.

“I’m not sure about the details, but it is certain that this place was a volcano a thousand years ago. It was said that the men of Origin Flame Glacier Plain traveled here and reshaped this place over the course of a century to turn it into its current state. On top of that, they even created the Yin-Yang Lake where the power of yin and yang amalgamate with one another, creating a paradoxical combination of clarity and turbidity. It is said that any cultivator that has yet to reach Transcendent Mortal 5-dan will benefit greatly from cultivating in it.”

Pavilion Master Kang shook his head. “However, the slots for the Yin-Yang Lake are very limited every year. It is insufficient for even their internal consumption, let alone, to offer it to outsiders. Throughout the years, there were many influential powers who approached them, only to leave in disappointment.”

The ability to reshape the environment was a secret of the Origin Flame Glacier Plain men. Even as a powerful 4-star master teacher, he had no access to such secrets.

“Perhaps, it might be a powerful formation created via the terrain such as the mountain pulse and such!” Ruohuan gongzi interjected.

One common method used to change one’s environment was via formations. Thus, Ruohuan gongzi immediately thought of the use of formation.

“It isn’t a formation. The mountain range extends for several hundred kilometers, how huge of a formation would be required to encompass the area? Not to mention, the spiritual energy required to sustain its activation over so many years?” Pavilion Master Kang said.

Even though formations had the power to alter an environment, its area of effect tended to be limited. While it was theoretically possible to create a formation that extended over several hundred kilometers and modify an entire mountain, it was nearly completely unfeasible to implement it.

Even a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan expert would be unable to accomplish such a task! Perhaps, only the legendary beings surpassing the 9-dans would be capable of doing so.

“Indeed, it’s not a formation!”

Zhang Xuan shook his head too. When Pavilion Master Kang raised the topic earlier, Zhang Xuan used the Eye of Insight to look into the matter as well. There wasn’t the slightest trace of a formation across the entire mountain range, so that definitely wasn’t the case.

Otherwise, given his eye of discernment, it was impossible for him to see through something so basic.

Chuckling, Pavilion Master Kang interjected the conversation and said, “Forget it, let’s not bother about that anymore. Our motive here is to enter the Yin-Yang Lake, not to deduce its origin!

“Later on, when we’re in, do not act on your own whim. Follow my lead. I’ll try to vie for three slots, and even if that fails, we have to try to secure our two slots at the very least!”

“Un!” Everyone nodded.

“Good, let’s descend then!”

Hearing the voice, the aerial spirit beast flapped its wings and began gliding toward the Glacier Plain Court.

Chapter 549: I’ll Give You One Chance

The group of four alighted from the aerial spirit beast as soon as it landed on the solid ground.

Bits of snow were falling from the sky. It was cold, but given that even the weakest of them, Zhao Ya, was at the Half-Transcension realm, the frigid weather didn’t affect them much.

After tidying himself up, Zhang Xuan looked at the Glacier Plain Court before him.

From a distance, he could already sense majesty and grandness from the court. But even so, the true extent of its scale didn’t hit him until he was right before it. From the front, it extended for more than a thousand meters, and it was around fifty to sixty meters high. It seemed as though it was a residence made for giants.

The entrance gate was nearly a dozen meter tall, and it looked extremely heavy.

Walking up, Pavilion Master Kang took in a deep breath and announced, “Kang Gan of Myriad Kingdom City has come as per our agreement. I seek Court Chief Wu’s audience!”

A moment later, ‘jiyaaaa!’, the huge gate opened, and several figures came out. They were all ladies dressed in white robe. The one leading the group walked up and said, “Pavilion Master Kang, our court chief invites you in!”

The white robe of the ladies put against the snowing landscape created quite a beautiful yet desolate sight.

“Thank you!”

Nodding his head, Pavilion Master Kang led the group in.

Zhang Xuan observed the white-robed female disciples while walking into the court. They were young, probably only in their twenties, but their cultivation was astounding. They were all around Transcendent Mortal 3-dan at the minimum.

They could be considered as geniuses to possess such cultivation levels at their age.

The lady who had welcomed Pavilion Master Kang in previously had even reached Transcendent Mortal 3-dan pinnacle.

Walking into the Glacier Plain Court, the first thing Zhang Xuan noticed was that the spiritual energy in the air seemed to have gotten even more lively. It seemed as though it would dive through his pores at any moment, making it much easier to cultivate.

“What lively spiritual energy!”

Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

Even though the concentration of spiritual energy was no different from how it was outside, the spiritual energy was exceptionally lively. Even if one didn’t intentionally attempt to guide the spiritual energy into their body, it would still seep in on their own accord to temper one’s body and nourish one’s cultivation, thus enhancing one’s rate of cultivation.

It was just like a high-pressured hose against a lake of stagnant water. It was clear which one would flow faster through a stream.

The high cultivation of these young ladies proved testimony to that fact. This place was definitely a blessed land for cultivating.

The further they walked in, the greater the liveliness of spiritual energy. It created a compelling urge that motivated one to sit down on the spot to cultivate.

And this wasn’t even the Yin-Yang Lake yet. It was no wonder why Pavilion Master Kang would go through so much effort to bring them here. It was indeed worth the effort.

Other than white-robed ladies, there were red-robed ladies in the court as well. In contrast to the cold disposition of the former, the latter felt fiery as though compressed flames were threatening to burst out at any moment.

Sensing Zhang Xuan’s doubts, Pavilion Master Kang said, “The cultivation technique of the Glacier Plain Court is the purest attribute cultivation technique, and they can be divided into yin and yang!”

Zhang Xuan nodded.

Actually, even without the other’s explanation, he could tell as much via the Eye of Insight.

Harnessing the attribute of flame, the yang cultivation technique granted a searing edge to the zhenqi of the red-robed ladies, thus building a fiery disposition. On the other hand, the white-robed ladies who guided them were austere, and it seemed as though they rejected all that tried to approach them.

A difference in cultivation technique would also cause a difference in one’s disposition.

Pavilion Master Kang continued, “The Yin-Yang Lake is divided into the Yang Lake, Yin Lake, and the Amalgamation Lake. One would have to enter the segment compatible with one’s cultivation technique to benefit from the effects of Yin-Yang Lake.”

Zhang Xuan was surprised upon hearing those words.

When he first heard of Yin-Yang Lake, he thought that it was just the name of a blessed land. But from the looks of it now, it wasn’t as simple as he thought.

After walking around for a bit longer, the lady guiding them around stopped. “The court chief is inside, please proceed in.”

Pavilion Master Kang and group walked in.

It was an extremely vast hall. Unlike the extravagance that Zhang Xuan expected, the ornaments that filled the room were relatively simple. A lady was seated at the topmost center seat, and she was looking down at the group with an impassive expression.

Zhang Xuan assessed the lady before him.

She seemed to be in her thirties, but perhaps due to her beautiful features, time didn’t seem to leave much of a mark on her face. Her black hair complemented perfectly with her white clothes, and she looked as though she had come out from a painting.

But of course, while she was pretty, she was still unable to compare up to Zhao Ya. Thus, after taking a brief look, Zhang Xuan began assessing her cultivation.

Her cultivation seemed to be deeply concealed, making it hard to detect. Even so, Zhang Xuan still felt danger from her. The other party’s soul seemed to exert an immense pressure on his soul, as though the true nature of his soul would be easily seen through.

‘Is this… Consonant Spirit realm?’ Zhang Xuan thought.

Zhang Xuan felt even greater pressure from her than from Alliance Head Zhao, Xue Yiyao, and Pavilion Master Kang. Given that the latter three were all Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle experts, most likely, this court chief had already surpassed that level.

At Transcendent Mortal 5-dan Consonant Spirit realm, one’s soul would be significantly augmented, granting one greater control over the environment.

Such an expert could wield immense might with the slightest of movements, and their fighting prowess was extraordinary.

“Eye of Insight!”

Activating the Eye of Insight, Zhang Xuan took a look at the other party and frowned.

In the midst of his observation, Pavilion Master Kang stepped forward and clasped his fist.

“Court Chief Wu, pleased to meet you once again!”

Knowing that the other party’s cultivation was above his, even Pavilion Master Kang, as a 4-star pinnacle master teacher, didn’t dare to pull his weight. Thus, his attitude was extremely respectful.

“Same here! Are these the ones taking on the Yin-Yang Lake trial?”

Court Chief Wu asked as her gaze fell on the trio standing behind Pavilion Master Kang. Then, a frown appeared on her forehead, “Why are there three of them?”

“It’s like these, these three are the most outstanding youths of my generation. I truly find myself unable to choose among them, so I decided to bring them all along. I hope that court chief can make an exception and allow them all to challenge the trial for an opportunity to enter the Yin-Yang Lake,” Pavilion Master Kang hurriedly explained.

“Pavilion master, you should know the rules of our Yin-Yang Lake. Two slots means two slots, no exceptions can be made!”

Court Chief Wu shook her hands grandly. She felt like a block of ice, as though nothing in the world could change her will.

“This… Alright then!”

Seeing the other party’s determined expression, Pavilion Master Kang knew that it would be futile even if he were to push on. Thus, with a bitter smile, he shook his head and said, “May I know in what form the trial will be presented? I would like to allow my juniors to prepare themselves!”

“The trial is simple, they just have to walk out from my Room of Fire and Ice!” Court Chief Wu said nonchalantly.

“Room of Fire and Ice?” Pavilion Master Kang frowned in confusion.

“The Room of Fire and Ice is a tool our Glacier Plain Court uses to test one’s capability. Similar to the Heart Inquisition Crystal, by dripping a drop of fresh blood on it, one’s mind will be put under the agony of blazing flames and frigid ice. If one can endure the torture and find the exit within two hours, one would be deemed to have passed the test! Otherwise, it would be deemed as a failure, and they will be unqualified to enter the Yin-Yang Lake,” Court Chief Wu explained.

Everyone nodded their head in understanding.

In truth, they didn’t expect for the trial to be a test on their mental fortitude.

Such a test was more related to one’s will rather than one’s cultivation.

After explaining, Court Chief Wu said, “You should hurry up and select the two who are taking the trial!”

“There’s no need for that. Ruohuan, you’ll sit out of this one!” Pavilion Master Kang instructed.

“Yes…”

Ruohuan gongzi’s face couldn’t be any more bitter.

But even though he felt indignant, this was a decision made by his teacher. Thus, he could only nod his head in agreement.

The fundamental principle of a master teacher was to respect one’s teacher. The commands of a teacher mustn’t be disobeyed.

Just as he was depressed at having lost such a good opportunity, Zhang shi’s voice sounded, “Wait a moment!”

After which, he lifted his head to look at the lady in the center and said, “Court Chief Wu, may I know under what conditions can the three of us take on the trial?”

Hearing the interjection, Court Chief Wu frowned in displeasure, “Pavilion Master Kang, is this the junior that you brought here? How can a junior interrupt a conversation between seniors!”

“Zhang shi…”

Not expecting the latter to suddenly speak up, Pavilion Master Kang hurriedly turned to the latter anxiously.

Even though it was a pity that not everyone would gain the opportunity to take on the trial, it was better than nothing. If they were to enrage the other party, it was likely that the opportunity could be taken away from them.

While Pavilion Master Kang held immense prestige in the Myriad Kingdom Alliance, there was only one Glacier Plain Court throughout the entire Huanyu Empire. Before the head of the only Glacier Plain Court, not to mention, a Transcendent Mortal 5-dan expert, his position had indeed become insignificant.

Disregarding Pavilion Master Kang’s anxious gaze, Zhang Xuan continued speaking nonchalantly.

“Age isn’t what that determines one’s position. Just because one is young, that doesn’t mean he must be a junior. Similarly, an old person could have simply wasted his time away… How about this, Court Chief Wu, I’ll grant you an opportunity… I’ll provide you guidance personally in exchange of an additional slot for the trial. What do you think of it?”

“What?”

Pavilion Master Kang and Ruohuan gongzi staggered; they nearly spurted blood.

It was clearly conveyed to them during the journey that they shouldn’t utter anything unnecessary-Court Chief Wu wasn’t an easy person to get along with…

Can’t you see that even the pavilion master himself is treading very carefully around the other party?

To grant the other party an opportunity of your guidance… The heck! Let’s put aside the fact that you’ve only just received your 4-star master teacher emblem, even Pavilion Master Kang, a 4-star pinnacle master teacher, is unqualified for such a matter!

After all, the other party was a true-blue Transcendent Mortal 5-dan expert! Regardless of whether it was her knowledge or experience, she was far superior to the rest of them here. For a fellow like you who have just barely reached Transcendent Mortal 2-dan to speak like that… Aren’t you afraid of being pummeled to death?

“Guide me?”

As expected, after hearing those words, Court Chief Wu’s eyebrows shot up and a powerful aura emanated from her, leaving all existences trembling before her presence, “You wish to guide me? And you call that giving me an opportunity?”

Ignoring the other party’s fiery aura, Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

“Indeed. This opportunity will only come once so I advise you to grasp it firmly!”

Seeing how Zhang shi was getting more and more overboard, Ruohuan gongzi’s lips twitched. He hurriedly sent a telepathic message to Zhao Ya in hopes that she could stop her teacher.

“Zhao Ya, you should mediate the situation…”

He knew that Zhang shi valued this student of his a lot, and perhaps, her words might be effective against him.

“Alright!”

Nodding her head, Zhao Ya stepped forward, “Court Chief Wu, my teacher is right. This is a good opportunity that you shouldn’t miss. Otherwise, you’ll surely regret for life!”

“The heck…”

Ruohuan gongzi nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.

Big sis, by mediation, I meant that you should stop your teacher… Why in the world are you persuading Court Chief Wu instead?

Not to mention, to say that the other party would regret for life…

Isn’t your confidence in your teacher way off the charts?!

For a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan master teacher to speak to a Transcendent Mortal 5-dan expert in such a manner, not to mention, that complete lack of embarrassment when speaking those words…

How in the world are you teacher and disciple be so confident?

“You…”

Court Chief Wu was also about to explode from hearing those words. “Pavilion Master Kang, take your people and leave. Our Glacier Plain Court doesn’t welcome such arrogant people!