Chapter 800

Chapter 800: Zheng Yang Lectures! ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

At this moment, he saw that his clone’s soul had also left his body, and it was currently absorbing the spiritual energy in the lake frenziedly.

With all the absorption he had done, his soul had doubled in size, reaching around twenty meters tall and nearly filling the entire cavern.

Most of the remaining spirit essence had been absorbed by that fellow before him.

Even though his clone’s soul cultivation was still at Perfect Harmonization realm, the sheer size and power surrounding the soul felt reminiscent of a deity, as if it wielded boundless power in its hands.

After breaking the twenty-meter bottleneck, the soul seemed to have undergone some kind of mysterious metamorphosis yet again. It became considerably more resilient, and the strength it wielded seemed to have grown far more fearsome as well.

Against such a huge soul, even Lu Chong’s soul, which he had seen in the latter’s consciousness back then, paled in comparison.

Zhang Xuan had barely used a hundredth of the spirit essence to raise his zhenqi cultivation and soul cultivation to Perfect Harmonization realm pinnacle, but that fellow actually sapped the entire lake dry… Just the thought of it left him so frenzied that he could tear his hair out.

Even though it was indeed true that he had no way of taking away the remaining Earth Vein Spirit Essence, he still couldn’t help but feel his heart bleed upon seeing that huge lake being reduced to nothing.

Hu!

Hearing Zhang Xuan’s roar, his clone’s soul immediately slipped back into his body, and an incredible aura burst from its body, leaving Zhang Xuan’s eyebrows twitching uncontrollably.

Zhang Xuan wasn’t a match for it before, and he was even less so now.

Despite coming from the same origin, his clone’s soul had been nourished by the Nine Hearts Lotus, granting it strength far greater than the main body.

For the main body to be inferior to the clone… How humiliating!

Nevertheless, considering that they shared the same consciousness, they could be considered as one entity. His clone’s growth was also good news for him.

“You should return to the storage ring for now!”

Knowing that it was impossible to make his clone spit out the spirit essence that it had absorbed, Zhang Xuan could only sigh helplessly and have his clone return to the storage ring.

He, on the other hand, leaped out of the lake and began assessing himself internally.

Having reached Perfect Harmonization realm pinnacle, the current strength that he could draw from his zhenqi cultivation was 14,000,000 ding, which was comparable to an Ethereal Treading realm primary stage expert.

Additionally, the maximum power he could draw from his soul cultivation had also reached 11,000,000 ding. Adding in the 8,000,000 ding from his physical body, his overall maximum strength currently stood at 33,000,000 ding, which was nearly on par with a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan Chrysalis realm pinnacle expert.

(Chrysalis realm pinnacle—34,000,000 ding)

With this kind of strength, he could definitely be ranked amongst the top of the student populace. Nonetheless, it was still far from matching up to the saint beasts camping outside.

I should leave now!

With his work done, Zhang Xuan immediately drew out his soul and placed his physical body in the storage ring. Holding it himself, he carefully sneaked out of the cavern.

“Wait a moment, why does it feel like the spiritual energy concentration inside has fallen?”

“Let’s take a look!”

But before he could reach the cavern entrance, he suddenly heard the bellows of the saint beasts outside.

In that split moment, Zhang Xuan swiftly hid the storage ring behind a boulder before lying motionlessly with his soul pressed against the wall.

Hu!

Right after he did that, two saint beasts abruptly appeared at the entrance of the cavern and rushed in at a speed so fast that it nearly stirred up a hurricane.

It was due to the Earth Vein Spirit Essence that the cavern was unbelievably rich in spiritual energy. However, along with its depletion, the concentration of spiritual energy in the area began falling at a perceptible rate. No matter how slow the saint beasts were, it was impossible for them to not notice it.

Now is my chance, I should quickly leave!

Knowing that the saint beasts would comb through every nook and cranny once they noticed that the lake of spirit essence had been completely depleted, Zhang Xuan dared not waste a single moment. He quickly picked up his storage ring and darted out of the cavern.

“AHHHHHH!!! SOMEONE STOLE THE SPIRIT ESSENCE!”

“Damn it, who was the one who did it!”

Right after Zhang Xuan left the cavern, he heard a deafening roar from within. Not daring to waste even a split second, he immediately dived into the waterfall.

In the next instant, a pressure so great that it felt as if even the earth would be reduced to dust burst out from the cavern, enveloping the area.

“Someone has sneaked into our Cloudmist Ridge. All beasts, listen to my command. Comb through the entire mountain and eliminate any suspicious people you see!”

Hong long!

Countless spirit beasts and saint beasts roared resoundingly in response, shaking the entire mountain.

Looks like I won’t be able to escape for the time being…

With all of the spirit beasts and saint beasts of the Cloudmist Ridge combing the area to search for him, it would be difficult for Zhang Xuan to escape even in his state as a soul. Thus, he decided to advance under the concealment of the river for the time being.

However, a short moment later, a dozen spirit beasts suddenly dived in to search the river.

It was truly fortunate that Zhang Xuan was currently in his soul state. With his storage ring hidden amidst the gravel of the seabed, there was nothing that could betray his presence to those spirit beasts. As such, after scouring the seabed for a moment, they were still unable to find anything at all, so they could only back out.

After swimming for an unknown period of time, Zhang Xuan finally reached the end of the river. By the time his soul finally left the river, the sky was already dark.

Zhang Xuan scanned his surroundings, and there were still quite a number of spirit beasts around. However, it would be nigh impossible for any beast beneath Saint realm to notice his presence.

Even so, Zhang Xuan still decided to proceed carefully. Sometimes, the sensitivity of a spirit beast to its surroundings far surpassed what humans could even imagine. It would truly be unfortunate if he were to be caught and encircled at this point.

Thus, he slowly proceeded down the mountain, stopping from time to time whenever he felt that a spirit beast’s attention was focused nearby. As a result, it was already dawn by the time he reached the foot of the mountain.

Finally, when he was a safe distance away from the Cloudmist Ridge, he found a discreet location and took out his physical body. After returning his soul to his physical body, he summoned the Great Violetwing Beast and swiftly returned to the academy.

He might have failed to save Wei Changfeng, but he was determined to save his daughter!

So far, it had been an entire day since he had left the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy.

…

While Zhang Xuan was preoccupied with his business at the Cloudmist Ridge, a huge commotion had broken out in the Master Teacher Academy.

Sun Qiang had rushed to Zhang Xuan’s Elite Sector residence in order to report the matter of someone being interested in learning battle techniques from Zheng Yang and the others to him, but of course, the latter was nowhere to be found.

At the same time, Zheng Yang and the others had also entered the headquarters of the True Helios Faction, following behind Xue Zhenyang.

In a vast courtyard…

“Gather everyone!” Xue Zhenyang issued a command as soon as he returned.

Not long later, everyone in the True Helios Faction was standing before him.

As expected of one of the top few factions in the academy. The entire True Helios Faction consisted of more than two thousand people, and its members spanned from Grade-1 to Grade-4.

Seeing that all of the members were gathered there, Xue Zhenyang’s gaze scanned through the crowd before he began speaking. “The reason I have gathered you all here today is to announce to you all that I have found an expert to impart the essence of battle techniques to the faction members!”

“An expert?”

“Hasn’t the faction leader been the one who has been giving us lessons on battle techniques? Did he manage to find someone more formidable than he is?”

Everyone looked at one another doubtfully.

All along, other than the teachers they were under, the one who had been guiding them in their battle techniques had been Xue Zhenyang.

Xue Zhenyang was one of the greatest talents in the Martial Arts School, so they had benefited greatly from his teachings as well. In truth, this was also the very reason most of them had chosen to join the True Helios Faction.

Yet, he had gathered all of them to tell them that there was another expert who would be guiding them on their battle techniques… Was he for real?

“Allow me to introduce you to my new spearmanship teacher, Zheng Yang. The lecture today will be conducted by him. He possesses transcendental skills in spear arts, so I believe that you will benefit greatly from his lecture!” Xue Zhenyang introduced with a wave of his hand.

“Zheng Yang?”

“Spearmanship teacher?”

“But this fellow seems to be only sixteen or seventeen years old!”

“A lad as young as him is going to explain spearmanship to us?”

Seeing a young man walk up to the podium, the crowd was completely dumbfounded.

They were the cream of the crop amongst master teachers, the geniuses of the geniuses. Yet, to have a teenage child lecture them… Wasn’t this taking them too lightly?

“Today, what I will be talking to you about is the fundamentals of spearmanship…”

Standing before such a huge crowd, Zheng Yang couldn’t help but feel a little anxious. However, as he began speaking about spearmanship, the confidence and pride in his heart dispelled the doubts in his mind, and his words gradually grew smoother and more fluent.

“It’s possible to interpret spearmanship in such a manner?”

“Formidable! Just by listening to his lecture, I feel like my understanding of spearmanship has been brought up several notches!”

“The concepts that he’s teaching are profound, but he is able to bring them across directly through simple words. On top of that, the concepts that he’s explained are applicable not only to the spear but other weapons as well!”

“His lecture has deepened my understanding of swordsmanship as well…”

…

The crowd initially had their reservations about having a teenage child lecture them, and they were prepared to see the other party make a fool out of himself. However, just by listening for a moment, they were completely awed.

As young as the person before them might be, the concepts that he spoke of were a direct interpretation of the crux of spearmanship. It was very likely that even the elders in the academy might not have as deep an understanding of spearmanship as he did.

It was no wonder the faction leader went all out to invite him there and gathered all of them together to listen to his lecture. He was indeed more than qualified for this.

…

“What did you say? Xue Zhenyang invited a spearmanship expert from the streets to conduct a lecture for his members?”

In the Ashen Moon Faction, Long Cangyue stared at the reporting student with eyes filled with disbelief.

“Yes! The person he invited has an extremely deep understanding of spearmanship. Two hours into the lecture, almost half of the spear practitioners of the True Helios Faction had already achieved a breakthrough!” the reporting student replied.

“Almost half of them made a breakthrough?” Long Cangyue was shocked.

Making an advancement in one’s mastery of a weapon was far more difficult than making an advancement in one’s cultivation. The latter could be achieved through diligence and good resources, but the former was highly dependent on one’s aptitude. It was easy to learn theories, but comprehending the core of the concept was another different matter.

Yet, to make half of the spear practitioners achieve a breakthrough in just two hours…

Just how did that fellow do it?

Where in the world did Xue Zhenyang find such a monstrous figure?

“If this matter is true, the True Helios Faction will only grow stronger and stronger… I will have to look for Dong Xin to discuss this matter!”

Realizing the significance of this matter, Long Cangyue immediately made his way to Dong Xin’s residence anxiously.

…

“Preposterous!”

In the school head’s office, the head of the Martial Arts School, Xu Changqing, flung his sleeves furiously after hearing a teacher’s report.

Xue Zhenyang was his direct disciple. He could condone him causing trouble from time to time, but to invite a teenage child over to the Martial Arts School to lecture their students… Wasn’t that making a mockery out of their school?

If word were to spread, how could their Martial Arts School hold its head high before the other schools?

“I’ll go and take a look!”

Harrumphing coldly, Xu Changqing left his room and walked swiftly to the True Helios Faction’s headquarters.

Before long, he had arrived before the courtyard.

There are so many people here? Xu Changqing’s eyebrows shot up in astonishment at the sight before him.

The courtyard, from the podium to the very entrance, was completely packed with people. There was literally a sea of people before him!

Even though the True Helios Faction was a student organization, Xu Changqing still knew a thing or two about it. Based on what he knew, the True Helios Faction should only have had two thousand people or so.

But the crowd before him… no matter how he looked at it, there should at least be five thousand people here!

Five thousand people had gathered there to listen to the lecture of a teenage child?

Ridiculous! This was utterly ridiculous!

Just as Xu Changqing was about to step into the courtyard, a plump man holding a basket in his hand abruptly stepped over and blocked his way. “It will cost you two hundred middle-tier spirit stones to enter.”

“I have to pay to enter?” Hearing those words, Xu Changqing’s face turned livid.

It was already bad enough that Xue Zhenyang found a person of doubtful background to conduct a lecture in the Martial Arts School, but to think that he would have to pay two hundred middle-tier spirit stones to enter… This was even costlier than the lecture of normal 6-star master teachers!

Furthermore, the more students there were in a lecture, the cheaper it should have been.

There were nearly five thousand people in there, and yet they were still charging two hundred spirit stones per person… Didn’t that mean that they would earn a million middle-tier spirit stones in just a single lecture?

Please, not even a 7-star master teacher charged others in such a manner!

“Why? You can’t afford it? Why even bother coming here when you can’t even afford it? No wonder you still can’t graduate despite being so old!”

Seeing that the old man before him was trying to barge in without paying, the plump man harrumphed in disdain. “So, you’re broke!”

Chapter 801: Xu Changqing’s Shock ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

“You…” Hearing those words and seeing the other party’s disdainful gaze, Xu Changqing’s face turned livid in fury.

Even though the Martial Arts School was ranked sixth in the academy, standing behind the Physician School, it was still a huge power in Hongyuan City. On top of that, within the Ten Great Master Teachers, in terms of one-to-one combat, even if he wasn’t ranked first, he was at least in the top three!

Yet, the other party didn’t recognize him and even asked him for money?

And that wasn’t the worst yet! The other party actually said that he was broke?

Broke your head!

How could someone dare to come to the Martial Arts School without even knowing who the school head is? Where did this freak come from?

Reining his anger back in, Xu Changqing said, “I am just here to take a look, not to listen to the lecture!”

As the head of the Martial Arts School, he must maintain a bearing worthy of such. He couldn’t possibly fight with the other party over a mere insult.

“Take a look?” The plump man assessed him doubtfully.

Xu Changqing nodded as he stroked his beard, bringing out the disposition of an enlightened expert.

He had already made it so obvious. The other party couldn’t possibly not recognize him after this.

“Alright then!”

The plump man seemed to have realized something, and he put the basket on the floor and said, “You may enter!”

“Thank you.” Seeing that the other party had finally realized his true identity, Xu Changqing nodded in satisfaction and raised his leg to walk through the door. However, before he could step into the courtyard, he suddenly heard the quiet mutterings of the plump man.

“What the heck, why is he putting up such a front? If he has no money, he should just say so! Taking a look… he sure has some cheek to say such shameless words. Who doesn’t know that he’s going in to learn? Is there anyone more brazen than him? To think that a person like him could become a master teacher as well… The standard sure has dropped!”

The plump man’s disdain for Xu Changqing couldn’t be any more obvious from his words and tone.

“You…” Xu Changqing staggered, and he nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.

He was the head of the Martial Arts School, one of the Ten Great Master Teachers! To be told that he was shameless to his face… Burning fury welled up within him, and he felt as if he was going to go insane.

He had never met anyone as infuriating as the plump man before.

Didn’t you see the disposition of an expert that I displayed up just now? Shouldn’t my identity be obvious after that?

“Fine! I’ll pay!” Knowing that he would only be angered to death for arguing with such a fellow, and it would only drag down his reputation if he were to really squabble with him, Xu Changqing gritted his teeth and threw a spirit stone into the basket.

The spirit stone that just fell into the basket had a brilliant glow, and the overwhelming concentration of spiritual energy in it induced a disturbance in the spiritual energy in the surroundings.

“A high-tier spirit stone?” The plump man’s eyes lit up.

He had thought that the other party was just another broke geezer trying to sneak into the lecture, but who could have known that he would whip out a high-tier spirit stone in the next instant… In the end, not only was that fellow not broke, he was even a wealthy man!

“I can go in now, right?” Xu Changqing harrumphed in displeasure.

“Wait, let me get your change. A high-tier spirit stone is worth around 10,000 middle-tier spirit stones, and the cost of the lesson is 200 middle-tier spirit stones. So, I’ll return… 9,800 middle-tier spirit stones to you!” the plump man said as his hands fumbled through the basket to take out spirit stones to return the change to the other party.

“There’s no need for it!” Xu Changqing waved his hands haughtily.

A high-tier spirit stone might be an invaluable treasure in the eyes of others, but as one of the Ten Great Master Teachers, a Saint realm 1-dan pinnacle expert, it was nothing much to him.

“Great! It just so happens that I don’t have the money to give the change to you too!” the plump man said with glowing eyes.

“…” Once again, Xu Changqing felt a stifled feeling in his chest.

What the heck was this…

How could a man be so shameless!

Why did Xue Zhenyang bring such a fellow here? Wasn’t this a clear disgrace to the Martial Arts School?

The more he thought about it, the more furious Xu Changqing felt. Suppressing his urge to slap the plump man to death, he entered the backyard. However, before he could get far, the plump man behind him shouted, “Look, the slightly aged student ahead has generously given us a tip of 9,800 middle-tier spirit stones. You should all learn from his example!”

Xu Changqing’s eyebrows twitched uncontrollably, and he nearly lost his sanity in that very instant.

Tip?

Learn from my example?

He was only intending to sneak here to see what was going on and teach Xue Zhenyang a harsh lesson. But somehow, he ended up becoming yet another student coming here to listen to the lecture, and he even paid an additional tip for it…

The heck!

He wouldn’t be able to cleanse his reputation now even if he were to jump into the Hongyuan Lake!

And as he had expected, the next moment, the students in the area turned their gazes to him.

“It’s School Head Xu…”

“Not only did School Head Xu come, he even paid the school fee and gave such a huge tip to them?”

“Impressive! It looks like he acknowledges the formidable prowess of Zheng laoshi, Liu laoshi, and Wang laoshi as well!”

“Indeed…”

…

Seeing that even their school head had attended the lecture and paid a generous tip for it, a huge commotion broke out amidst the crowd.

Two of the students of the Martial Arts School rushed up to him and invited him to the front. “School head, you are here as well! The front seats are better, so why don’t you come over here?”

Xu Changqing’s body swayed weakly, and his vision darkened.

Front seats are better…

I am here to cause trouble, not to listen to the lecture!

“Indeed, school head. Our faction leader is currently waiting for you there, so why don’t we head there together?” another student added.

“Faction leader? Fine, let’s see what in the world is he up to!”

Xu Changqing felt so stifled that he could vomit blood.

However, it would only be more embarrassing if he were to remain there as a spectacle for the other students. Thus, he decided to find his wretched disciple and teach him a lesson instead.

Squeezing through the crowd, they soon arrived at the front row before the podium.

“Teacher, you are here!” Upon seeing Xu Changqing, Xue Zhenyang immediately bowed respectfully.

“Just what in the world are you up to?” On the other hand, as soon as Xu Changqing caught sight of Xue Zhenyang, all of the fury that had been bubbling within him came bursting forth.

Instead of answering his teacher’s question, Xue Zhenyang pointed to the podium and said, “Teacher, calm down. Try listening to the lecture first…”

“Listen to the lecture?” As angry as Xu Changqing was, seeing at the entranced looks of the students in the area, he still decided to suppress his rage and turned his attention to the stage.

The one who was currently lecturing was a young lady only sixteen or seventeen years old. She had a beautiful face which was on par with even the school belles such as Hu Yaoyao and Dong Xin.

“… In essence, leg arts can be defined as the movement of one’s legs and feet. As we know, walking and running can also be considered leg and foot movements as well. If we can regard these casual movements as a means to cultivate our leg arts as well, we will surely be able to further refine our mastery of leg arts…”

“Most of leg arts that we cultivate is focused on technique. Take for example the Whirlwind Kick, Hanyang Kick, and Raging Adamantium Kick… There are simply far too many leg arts that I can list that can be classified under this category. However, this is a gross misinterpretation of the essence of leg arts. The core function of a leg is to move, so naturally, in order to bring out the true strength of a leg art, we should not focus merely on the technique of the kick but…”

The young lady spoke clearly and fluently, showing no hint of nervousness or her usual shyness at all.

Xu Changqing initially thought nothing of it, but the more he listened, the more shocked he became. Eventually, his face started to twitch in agitation.

One could recognize a true expert the moment they made a move.

As the head of the Martial Arts School, as well as a 6-star pinnacle master teacher, he possessed deep insight into the comprehension of battle techniques. Even though the other party only spoke about the basics of leg arts, her words precisely hit the nail on the head, guiding him directly to the core of leg arts.

In fact, her understanding on some aspects was even deeper than his!

It could be said that even if Xu Changqing were to take her place, he would be unable to do as well as her!

Is this… really just the foundation of leg arts? There are actually so many variations to the basics of leg art? After hearing for a moment longer, Xu Changqing couldn’t help but frown.

Unconventional had become the new convention of martial arts. It was important to make one’s battle techniques complex or unorthodox in order to catch one’s opponent’s off guard.

On the other hand, the young lady was speaking of the orthodox martial arts, leaving out all of the unorthodox variations and maneuvers that most cultivators would incorporate into their movements.

But for some reason, despite the simplicity of the moves she was explaining, it felt as if that was the best way to draw out the maximum prowess out of a leg art.

“… However, one issue with any leg art is the difficulty to put one’s full strength into a kick. Thus, I will be imparting a basic leg art to you that will allow you to gather the full strength of your body into your legs, allowing you to display the full might of your cultivation toward your opponent…” the young lady on the podium explained.

“Most martial arts require one leg to support the body and another one to strike the opponent. Naturally, this results in one’s strength being divided between the two legs, thus reducing the strength of one’s kick significantly. However, if one could put exert one’s full prowess into a kick…” As the notion struck Xu Changqing, his eyes lit up in excitement

He immediately pricked up his ears and listened intently. A moment later, he slapped his thigh and exclaimed, “Indeed! If one were to execute a leg art in such a manner, that would solve the issue perfectly! This enhances the might and the speed of the kick, making it far deadlier than before!

“As simple as the technique is, it embodies the essence of leg arts. This is a perfect demonstration of how all battle techniques are built upon foundations…”

Musing over the content of the young lady’s words, Xu Changqing’s heart leaped in excitement.

While the content lectured by the other party might not be as profound as his, it was a perfect interpretation of the basics of leg arts. Even he would benefit greatly if he were to cultivate according to what the other party had said. At the same time, it also gave him a deep insight into the way to further his mastery of battle techniques.

“Teacher, what’s wrong?” Xue Zhenyang asked with a slight smile, seeing his teacher’s expression.

When he invited Zheng laoshi, Senior Aunt Wang, and Senior Uncle Liu over, he knew that his teacher would surely be enraged at his actions. Nevertheless, he still chose to do so because he had deep trust in their capabilities.

And he was right. In just a short moment, his teacher was also entranced by the lecture.

Honestly speaking, even though the three of them weren’t master teachers, their understanding of battle techniques far exceeded any master teacher he had met before. If they were to cultivate according to the methods they had proposed, they would be able to build an impeccable foundation for their battle techniques, and that would in turn allow them to advance their mastery of battle techniques swiftly.

It was as if they were parting aside the clouds and showing them a whole new world above for them to reach for. How could anyone possibly not be taken in by that?

“Impressive!” Xu Changqing nodded. “I never expected that there would be a person who could have such a thorough and deep interpretation of the basics of battle techniques… To be able to listen to such a lecture for just two hundred middle-tier spirit stones, this is definitely a huge bargain!”

To master teachers like them, middle-tier spirit stones weren’t anything much. Most seniors in the academy would have hundreds in their storage rings.

It was more than worthwhile to pay this small sum to listen to such an exciting lesson.

Through this lecture, many students would gain a refreshing insight into battle techniques, and the rise of the Martial Arts School wouldn’t be too far away!

“Indeed!” Xue Zhenyang nodded in agreement.

If he wasn’t deeply impressed by Zheng Yang’s understanding of spearmanship, how could he, a top genius of the Master Teacher Academy, possibly be willing to take a person who was several decades younger than him as his teacher?

At that moment, Xu Changqing suddenly asked, “Zhenyang, what is the background of the young lady on the podium?”

“I’m not too sure about the details either. I happened to meet them while I was walking through the streets of Hongyuan City yesterday… Why? Is Teacher interested in taking her in as your direct disciple?” Xue Zhenyang asked.

“Taking her in as my direct disciple?” Xu Changqing sighed deeply and shook his head. “With her deep understanding of battle techniques, how am I qualified to be her teacher? What I intend to do is to invite her to become the Martial Art School’s…

“… guest elder!”

Chapter 802: I’m Not Selling It Anymore! ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

“Guest elder?” Xue Zhenyang widened his eyes in shock.

Even though guest elders might not wield as much authority as other elders in the academy, they had a higher standing than them.

This was because they were formidable figures outside who had been invited to join the academy in order to boost its prestige and reputation.

For example, the emperor of Hongyuan Empire also held the position of a guest elder in the academy. Occasionally, he would visit the academy to conduct a lesson or two for the students, imparting his comprehension of cultivation to them.

For a seventeen-year-old young lady to become a guest elder of the academy… Wasn’t that a little too exaggerated?

“That’s right. She is more than qualified for it!” Xu Changqing nodded seriously.

It wasn’t on a whim that he had made this decision. He had already considered the various complications before saying it.

The other party was able to distill profound concepts into simple and direct explanations, provoking the listeners to think deeper into them.

If such figures could become the guest elders of the Martial Arts School, they would definitely be able to attract more and more students to join them, enhancing the prowess and influence of the school.

In time, it could overtake the Physician School, Beast Tamer School, and perhaps even the Apothecary School to become the number school of the Master Teacher Academy!

The crux of a master teacher lay in clarifying doubts and imparting knowledge. In view of that, very few of them paid little regard to furthering their understanding of battle techniques. On top of that, advancing one’s mastery of battle techniques took great effort, and it was highly dependent on aptitude as well. What made things even worse was that it wasn’t a supporting occupation, making it a non-crucial aspect in raising one’s master teacher rank…

As a result, despite being an impressive school that raised the fighting prowess of its students, there were very few who opted to join it, putting it in the bottom half of the ten schools, ranking above only the less popular supporting occupations such as the Celestial Designer School, Painter School, Demonic Tunist School, and Terpsichore School.

This was truly a disheartening sight.

All along, Xu Changqing had been dreaming of making the Martial Arts School bigger, and with an opportunity standing right before him, he would have to be a fool to not grasp it!

“Alright. I think it would still be best for Teacher to bring this issue up with them personally, so I will invite them to Teacher’s room once Senior Wang’s lecture ends,” Xue Zhenyang said.

As he was the one who had invited Zheng laoshi, Senior Aunt Wang, and Senior Uncle Liu here, if the three of them could become guest elders of the school, it would reflect well on him as well.

With such backing in the academy, his standing would rise as a result as well. By then, wouldn’t it just be a walk in the park for him to teach a freshman a lesson?

“Okay.” Xu Changqing nodded before leaving the courtyard and walking to a room not too far away.

Sometime later, the door to the room opened, and Xue Zhenyang walked in with Wang Ying, Zheng Yang, and Liu Yang behind him.

“Zheng laoshi, Senior Aunt Wang, Senior Uncle Liu, this is my teacher, the head of the Martial Arts School, School Head Xu!

“Teacher, this is Zheng Yang laoshi. I am currently studying spearmanship from him. This is Senior Aunt Wang Ying, you saw her on the podium just now. And this is Senior Uncle Liu Yang!” Xue Zhenyang hurriedly introduced them to one another.

“School head?” Zheng Yang and the others glanced at one another with widened eyes.

When they heard that someone was interested in meeting them, they were still wondering who it would be. They had never expected that it would be the head of the Martial Arts School.

“There’s no need to be alarmed. The reason I have invited you here is to offer you the positions of guest elders at our Martial Arts School,” Xu Changqing said with a kind smile.

“Guest elders?” Zheng Yang and the others were taken aback by those words.

They were still students learning under Zhang laoshi themselves, and yet in the blink of an eye, they were going to become guest elders of the great Master Teacher Academy? Were they dreaming?

Wasn’t this honor far too great for them?

“Yes!” Xu Changqing nodded. “May I know if you are willing to accept the offer?”

“Of course we are!” Zheng Yang and the others immediately nodded their heads in excitement.

“That’s good. I’ll make the application right now, and I should be able to give you your identity tokens by today afternoon at the latest!” Seeing that he had their approval, Xu Changqing nodded in satisfaction.

After chatting for a moment longer, Xu Changqing took his leave.

Soon, only Zheng Yang, Wang Ying, and Liu Yang were left in the room.

The trio glanced at one another with a dazed look in their eyes, seemingly still unable to believe what had just happened.

A moment later, Wang Ying couldn’t help but ask, “This… We became elders of the academy, but Zhang laoshi is still a student here… How are we going to report this matter to him?”

“This…” Zheng Yang and Liu Yang also scratched their heads in distress.

They had been so overwhelmed by excitement upon hearing the invitation that they accepted it immediately without considering the implications.

It was only after calming down that they realized the absurdity of the situation. For them to become elders of the academy when their teacher, Zhang Xuan, was still a student himself… No matter how one looked at it, the matter just seemed ridiculous.

“This… Why don’t we hide it from him for the time being? We will just take each day as it comes…” Zheng Yang proposed after a moment of silence.

Escape is always the easiest solution in times of dilemma. Without any hesitation, Wang Ying and Liu Yang nodded. “Let’s do that!”

It wasn’t that they really wanted to hide it from Zhang Xuan, but… how were they supposed to bring up such a matter with him?

…

“What did you say? School Head Xu promoted those youngsters whom Xue Zhenyang brought over as guest elders?” Hearing the report, Dong Xin and Long Cangyue nearly fainted.

They had thought that School Head Xu would surely teach Xue Zhenyang a lesson, but who could have known that… he would actually make those youngsters into guest elders of the Martial Arts School!

How was that possible?

Was it a joke?

“It’s true! Not only that, I heard that School Head Xu went into seclusion as soon as he returned from the True Helios Faction, only appearing later in the night… According to the rumors, he gained new insight into battle techniques, and in a spar with Vice School Head Chen, he managed to defeat the latter in a single strike…” the student continued.

“Defeated Vice School Head Chen in a single strike?”

“Even though Vice School Head Chen’s strength wasn’t on par with School Head Xu, there wasn’t a large disparity between their fighting prowess. In the previous spars, it would take them several dozens of blows before the victor would emerge. Yet, a single blow…” Dong Xin’s eyes were filled in incredulity. “Are those youngsters whom Xue Zhenyang invited over really that formidable?”

“I’m not too sure, but I heard that everyone who attended the lecture has achieved a breakthrough of some kind, and the overall strength of the True Helios Faction has been raised significantly!” the student replied.

“I see…”

Long Cangyue and Dong Xin tightly clenched their fists. “It seems like we will have to be careful of the True Helios Faction!”

A similar scene was occurring in the other student factions across the academy as well, and even the teachers were alarmed by the matter.

For three youngsters who weren’t even twenty to become guest elders of the academy, this was unprecedented in the history of the Master Teacher Academy.

In an instant, the matter became a hot topic within the academy, and many freshmen also learned of the matter as well.

However, while most people in the academy learned about the new young guest elders in the Martial Arts School, very few knew the names of the guest elders or their background.

…

While a huge ruckus had broken out due to the three new guest elders, Zhang Xuan had also finally returned back to the academy.

The deadline which Vice School Head You set was two days. I should still be able to make it in time!

As soon as Zhang Xuan entered the academy, he didn’t return to his residence in the Elite Sector but headed straight to the Tower of Physicians.

Even though Wei Ruyan’s condition had stabilized after he had nourished her soul, the stable condition wouldn’t last for too long. Treatment still had to be conducted as soon as possible or else her life would be at risk once again.

Zhang Xuan had already made a promise to the deceased Wei Changfeng… Regardless of what happened, he was determined to obtain the Ten-leafed Flower.

Soon, Zhang Xuan reached the Tower of Physicians. He headed straight for Vice School Head’s residence and knocked on the door.

It was Sun Yuan who opened the door.

“You…” Upon seeing Zhang Xuan, Sun Yuan was astonished.

He knew very well how dangerous the Cloudmist Ridge was. How could he possibly still be fine after heading to such a place?

“I am here to meet Vice School Head You!” Zhang Xuan said.

Considering that Vice School Head You intentionally ordered Wei Changfeng to pick the Cloudmist Flower despite knowing the dangers there, it was obvious that he had intended to pick on him.

As furious as Zhang Xuan was, for Wei Ruyan’s sake, he decided to rein in his fury for the time being.

The Ten-leafed Flower was a rare saint herb that had the ability to heal one’s soul. In the entire Hongyuan City, it was likely that Vice School Head You would be the only one who possessed it.

Wei Changfeng had already given up his life for it, Zhang Xuan couldn’t let his perseverance and sacrifice go in vain.

Recovering from his daze after a moment, Sun Yuan invited nodded and gestured for Zhang Xuan to enter. “Please enter…”

Soon, he met Vice School Head You in his main hall.

“Vice School Head You, here is a Cloudmist Flower. As promised, I have brought it to you within two days!” Without even bothering with pleasantries, Zhang Xuan immediately flicked his wrist and took out a jade box containing the flower which Wei Changfeng had procured at the cost of his life.

“You obtained it?” Vice School Head was taken aback. He took he jade box over and opened it.

A mysterious mist rose from the jade box, and the flower within exuded a refreshing fragrance that left one’s cells moaning in comfort.

Even without undergoing processing, the Cloudmist Flower was still an incredible plant with therapeutic effects.

“This is indeed the Cloudmist Flower!” Vice School Head You nodded.

“Since you have confirmed it, may I trade it for the Ten-leafed Flower now?” Zhang Xuan asked.

“I would have loved to do so, but that won’t do!” Vice School You shook his head. “What I want is a living Cloudmist Flower which I can cultivate, but the one you have procured for me is already dead. You didn’t fulfill my request, so how can I trade it for the Ten-leafed Flower? If you really want it, bring me a living Cloudmist Flower!”

“A living Cloudmist Flower?” Zhang Xuan’s face darkened.

The other party didn’t say anything of that sort when they made the deal two days ago!

Yet, at this instant, he was using this kind of excuse to reject it. It was clear that he had no intention of giving the Ten-leafed Flower to them in the first place!

“Fine, if a living Cloudmist Flower is what you want, a living Cloudmist Flower is what you will get…” Even though Zhang Xuan was furious, he knew that it would do him no good to fall out with You Xu right now.

He would have to hold himself back until he obtained the Ten-leafed Flower from the other party.

Thus, he took the jade box back from Vice School Head You’s hands and infused a surge of his Heaven’s Path zhenqi into the Cloudmist Flower.

At the same time, he secretly took out a droplet of Earth Vein Spirit Essence and dripped it on its stalk.

Even though it had been a day since the Cloudmist Flower had been harvested, it still managed to retain its freshness as it was stored in the jade box.

As long as Zhang Xuan could nourish it with his Heaven’s Path zhenqi and Earth Vein Spirit Essence, it should be possible for him to revive it.

As expected, under the nurturing of his zhenqi and the Earth Vein Spirit Essence, the slightly withered Ten-leafed Flower began to recover, and it started to exude an incredible fragrance.

“The Cloudmist Flower came back to life?” Sun Yuan was stunned.

Even Vice School Head You was dumbstruck by the scene before him as well.

In the very first place, he had no intentions of selling the Ten-leafed Flower at all. He only brought up the Cloudmist Flower as an excuse to deal with Wei Changfeng and Zhang Xuan.

He had thought that he would be able to force Zhang Xuan to back off by insisting that the Cloudmist Flower had to be alive, but in the blink of an eye, that fellow actually succeeded in doing so!

“Alright. Now that the Cloudmist Flower is alive, you should be able to trade the Ten-leafed Flower for it now, right?” Heaving a sigh of relief, Zhang Xuan passed the jade box back to Vice School Head You.

“Not bad. Since the Cloudmist Flower is alive, I can trade it for the Ten-leafed Flower. However… my Ten-leafed Flower isn’t mature yet, so I can’t give it to you right now!”

Vice School Head You shook his head and said, “From the current look of it, it’ll take around ten years for the Ten-leafed Flower to mature. So, I’m afraid that you will have to come back in ten years…”

“Ten years?”

Zhang Xuan’s eyes narrowed in fury. “At the very start, you said that you would trade the Ten-leafed Flower for a Cloudmist Flower as long as we brought one over within two days. When I brought one over, you suddenly insisted that it had to be alive. Now that I have revived it, you started saying that I’ll have to wait ten years for it. What if you were to come up with some other excuse after ten years?”

“Are you doubting my integrity? Humph! Someone like you who has no respect for your elders wants to buy my Ten-leafed Flower?”

Vice School Head You’s face darkened as he flung his sleeves. “Leave! I won’t be selling my Ten-leafed Flower anymore!”

Chapter 803: A Hundred Thousand Academic Credits? ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

“You won’t be selling your Ten-leafed Flower?” Hearing the other party’s words, Zhang Xuan’s face turned livid.

If not for this fellow, Wei Changfeng wouldn’t have died!

And despite all that had happened, he still refused to sell his Ten-leafed Flower?

Indeed! When a master teacher acted shameless, they could be even more fearsome than the saint beasts of Cloudmist Ridge!

“That’s right!” Vice School Head You waved his hands impatiently. “I don’t have the habit of selling immature herbs. Leave!”

Knowing that Wei Ruyan’s life was at stake, Zhang Xuan forcefully suppressed the rage bubbling within him and said, “In other words, the reason you are unwilling to sell the Ten-leafed Flower to me is because it isn’t mature yet. So, if it matures, you will sell it to me?”

“That’s right!” Vice School Head You nodded. “The medicinal properties of a herb will only be drawn out upon maturity, so as a physician, how can I sell an immature herb to another? I am not intentionally picking on you. As a master teacher, you should understand the logic behind this as well!”

“I see. Since you insist that you won’t sell an immature plant, I shall make it mature this very instant then!”

Glancing at the other party coldly, Zhang Xuan walked to the Ten-leafed Flower in the herb garden, dabbed a few droplets of the Earth Vein Spirit Essence on it, and infused his Heaven’s Path zhenqi into it afterward.

Even though the Earth Vein Spirit Essence could speed up the growth of the Ten-leafed Flower as well, it would still take a day before it matured. By pairing it with his Heaven’s Path zhenqi, Zhang Xuan could further speed up the maturing process.

Indeed. With the Heaven’s Path zhenqi and Earth Vein Spirit Essence infused to the Ten-leafed Flower, the saint herb began growing at a visible pace. Within ten minutes, ten beautiful flowers had bloomed on the ten leaves of the herb, and an invigorating fragrance drifted around it.

“This…” Sun Yuan widened his eyes in shock.

As a saint herb, the Ten-leafed Flower would ordinarily require at least ten years of cultivation before it could bloom. Yet, the other party succeeded in just ten minutes… Just how did he do it?

“Vice School Head You, since the Ten-leafed Flower has matured, you should be able to sell it now, right?” Zhang Xuan stood up and said.

At that instant, Vice School Head You’s face was already completely livid.

When he said that the other party had to trade his Ten-leafed Flower for a Cloudmist Flower, the other party succeeded in bringing a Cloudmist Flower. When he said that the Cloudmist Flower had to be alive, the other party revived it. When he said that he couldn’t sell it as the Ten-leafed Flower hadn’t matured yet, the other party matured it on the spot… Was the other party actually there to slap his face?

Seeing the other party’s grave expression, Zhang Xuan asked impassively, “What? Now that the Ten-leafed Flower has matured, is Vice School You thinking of another reason to reject me?”

“Humph! I brought this Ten-leafed Flower up painstakingly. If I insist on not selling it, will you snatch it from me?” Vice School You’s eyebrows shot up.

“How could I dare to snatch the possession of a vice school head?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. With a sharp glint in his eyes, he stared at Vice School Head You Xu intently and said, “I will ask you one last time. Are you certain that you won’t sell the Ten-leafed Flower to me?”

“That’s right! I would rather my Ten-leafed Flower rot in the herb garden than sell it to someone as disrespectful and unruly as you!” Vice School Head You harrumphed.

“Very well!”

Zhang Xuan turned around decisively and left the residence.

“He left just like that?”

Vice School Head You had thought that the other party would cause a ruckus over this issue, but he simply left without saying a word. Taking this entire scene into sight, Sun Yuan couldn’t help but say, “Teacher, it’s just a Ten-leafed Flower. Since he has already gone that far, why don’t you just sell it to him? There is really no need to make things so awkward…”

“Audacious! Are you trying to preach to me?” Vice School Head You Xu frowned in displeasure.

“I dare not!” Sun Yuan clasped his fist. “I heard that that fellow has caused quite a bit of trouble in the academy. I fear that… if we offend him, it might bring trouble upon us as well!”

“What a joke! I, You Xu, a Saint realm expert and the vice head of the Physician School, should fear him? After all the things I have gone through, do you think that I would fear a mere student?” Vice School Head You sneered coldly.

“But…” Sun Yuan was still worried.

There had to be something special about that fellow for him to win the favor of Pavilion Master Mo, School Head Mo, School Head Zhao, and School Head Ran. If his teacher were to offend him, wouldn’t that mean falling out with the three school heads and the head of the Master Teacher Pavilion as well?

Vice School Head You harrumphed coldly. “No buts. If you’re truly worried, why don’t you follow that fellow then? If he dares to defame and spread malicious rumors about me before School Head Mo and the others, capture him immediately. I shall have him punished severely for slandering a higher ranked master teacher!”

“This…” Sun Yuan was a little hesitant.

“What are you waiting for? It is a huge sin for a lower ranked master teacher to comment blindly on the actions of a higher ranked master teacher. Since he’s a lower ranked master teacher, he should act like one! If he really dares to defame me before others, he’s simply courting death!” Vice School Head You waved his hands impatiently.

“Yes, Teacher!” Since his teacher had already said so, there was nothing else Sun Yuan could do. Nodding, Sun Yuan backed out of the residence.

It was indeed a crime for a lower ranked master teacher to gossip about the actions of a higher ranked master teacher without any concrete evidence. This was a rule in order to maintain order in the Master Teacher Pavilion. Considering that Zhang Xuan was only a 4-star master teacher whereas his teacher was a 6-star pinnacle master teacher, Zhang Xuan could indeed be taken away if he dared to defame his teacher.

After leaving the residence, Sun Yuan looked around and found the back silhouette of Zhang shi a short distance away. Discreetly, he followed behind the other party.

Even though he didn’t approve of his teacher’s way of dealing with this matter, he dared not defy his teacher’s orders.

Will he find School Head Mo first or School Head Zhao? Sun Yuan thought as he followed Zhang Xuan from a distance away.

He had heard quite a few rumors regarding Zhang Xuan over the past few days. School Head Zhao, School Head Mo, and School Head Wei all gave him preferential treatment. If Zhang Xuan intended to deal with his teacher, it was likely that he would seek one of them to back him.

However, given the esteemed standing of those three and the fact that they weren’t from the school, the most that they would do was serve as mediators for this conflict. In order to maintain harmony in the academy, it was unlikely that they would do anything to his teacher.

I think it is more likely for him to find School Head Zhao. After all, the Blacksmith School is the second largest school in the academy, so School Head Zhao is in a better position to exert pressure on my teacher… Sun Yuan deduced.

To his surprise, however, he suddenly saw the young man walking straight through the entrance of the Tower of Physicians.

Hmm? Why is he going to the Tower of Physicians? Sun Yuan blinked blankly in astonishment.

Shouldn’t the young man be running to the other schools to complain to the school heads and have them stand up for him? Why did he head to the Tower of Physicians instead?

I should follow him to take a look! Sun Yuan hurriedly followed him.

There was a huge crowd travelling into and out of the Tower of Physicians. Shortly after Zhang Xuan walked in, he disappeared amidst the sea of people. Sun Yuan searched the surroundings for some time but to no avail. Left with no choice, he headed right to the front reception.

It was a young lady who was manning the reception. Upon seeing Sun Yuan, she clasped her fist and bowed. “Sun laoshi…”

It was the same lady who had led Zhang Xuan to Vice School Head You’s residence that day.

“Hello. Have you seen Zhang Xuan around here?” Sun Yuan asked.

“Zhang Xuan?” The receptionist was slightly taken aback by the question.

“It’s the young man whom you brought to meet Vice School Head You that day!” Sun Yuan frowned.

“H-he… is Zhang Xuan?” The receptionist covered her mouth in shock, and her eyes twinkled with excitement, as if having seen her idol.

Over the past few days, there was probably not a single person in the academy who hadn’t heard of the name ‘Zhang Xuan’.

Seeing the excited look on the other party’s face, Sun Yuan was rendered speechless. He coughed loudly to regain the other party’s attention before asking, “Cough! So, did you see him?”

What the heck is wrong with this?

As a senior, do you really need to be admire a freshman like that?

Even if you do, the least you can do is not to express it so clearly in public!

“I did. He took an application form from me, saying that he intends to challenge the Wall of Dilemma to earn some Academic Credits!” the receptionist replied.

“He intends to earn some Academic Credits at the Wall of Dilemma?” Sun Yuan was stunned for a moment before shaking his head with a sigh.

The Wall of Dilemma was also known as the Wall of Incurable Illnesses, and it could be found in every Physician Guild.

Usually, difficult illnesses encountered which no existing physicians in a certain guild were able to treat would be listed on the wall so as to encourage the later generations to muse over the problem and solve it with their own capability. However, it was not without reason that these illnesses were known as ‘incurable’.

The success rate of the challengers was extremely slim, and only a handful of physicians in history had succeeded in resolving even one illness on the Wall of Dilemma.

In a sense, this was similar to the Blacksmith School’s Passageway of Records. There might be many people challenging it each year, but how many of them succeeded in beating the existing record?

“That’s right!” the receptionist replied.

I thought that he would head straight to the Blacksmith School to look up School Head Zhao. Who would have thought that he would challenge the Wall of Dilemma instead… What is he up to?

Just as Sun Yuan was plagued with doubts, a buzz so loud that it caused even the ground to tremor echoed throughout the Tower of Physicians.

“What is going on?”

As the center of the Physician School, the Tower of Physicians was built with the most resilient materials. Unless something major had happened, a building this stable couldn’t possibly shake.

“Hurry up, let’s go and take a look. The Wall of Dilemma has collapsed!”

“The Wall of Dilemma collapsed? But isn’t it just a communication tool with the Physician Guild headquarters? How did it collapse?”

“I heard that someone has just challenged the Wall of Dilemma, and within ten minutes, he managed to solve all of the illnesses listed on it. Due to the sheer speed he solved the problems at, the Wall of Dilemma was unable to catch up and eventually collapsed…”

“Unable to catch up?”

“Indeed! Information transfer over long distance is a very energy-consuming process. The Wall of Dilemma uses high-tier spirit stones in order to process the information written on our side and transfer it over to the headquarter. Yet, I heard that the current challenger solved several hundred illnesses written on the wall within ten minutes… Every single one of the illnesses written on the Wall of Dilemma is complex and requires a thorough treatment method. As a result, the sheer amount of information the Wall of Dilemma had to process resulted in a burden exceeding its limit, thus eventually causing its collapse…”

…

Just as Sun Yuan was perplexed by the situation before him, he heard discussions ahead of him, and the crowd abruptly began rushing toward the Wall of Dilemma to watch the commotion.

He solved the problems so quickly that the Wall of Dilemma was unable to handle it and collapsed? Sun Yuan widened his eyes, unable to believe what he had just heard.

Was that even possible?

He had attempted the problems on the Wall of Dilemma before, and every single one of them was exceedingly difficult. Even if his teacher was here today, he would find it hard to solve even a single problem without pondering over it for several days. How could there exist a person who could solve all of the questions within ten minutes?

Could that person be… Zhang Xuan?

Suddenly, Sun Yuan recalled the words of the receptionist and subconsciously turned his gaze over, only to see the latter with widened eyes.

“Is there anyone else who challenged the Wall of Dilemma today?” Sun Yuan hurriedly asked.

“No. He’s the only one…” the receptionist replied with a dazed look in her eyes, as if she couldn’t believe what had just happened either.

“Is it really him?” Sun Yuan muttered under his breath as he felt his heart turning cold in apprehension. Unable to hold himself back, he instructed, “Take me over to have a look!”

Thus, the duo rushed over to the Wall of Dilemma, only to see the huge room being reduced to shambles, and smoke was currently puffing out of it.

A middle-aged man climbed out from the ruins with a face caked with dust.

Sun Yuan hurriedly walked up to ask, “Hu shi, what happened?”

Hu shi was also a Vice School Head You Xu’s student, as well as his junior. He was in charge of looking after the Wall of Dilemma.

“It’s Zhang Xuan. He came here and solved all of the problems on the Wall of Dilemma… Due to accumulating too many Academic Credits, the system exceeded its limit, resulting in the entire room’s collapse!” Hu shi explained with quivering lips.

“Accumulated too many Academic Credits?” Sun Yuan was taken aback.

“Indeed. It’s not like you don’t know the situation with the Wall of Dilemma. In order to encourage students to challenge it, it’s set in a manner such that the more questions one solves in a given period of time, the more Academic Credits one will be awarded. If a person solved a question in two hours, they would earn one Academic Credits. If a person solved two questions, they would earn two Academic Credits for the second question, thus earning a total of three Academic Credits. Going by this pattern, a person who solves three questions will earn six Academic Credits, so on and so forth…” Hu shi explained.

Sun Yuan nodded.

There was indeed such a rule for the Wall of Dilemma.

The faster one solved the problems, the more Academic Credits one would earn. This system was implemented to challenge the analytical ability of students. After all, it was common for a physician to be overloaded with patients, so it was imperative for physicians to be able to formulate a treatment method using minimal time as well so that they could treat more patients.

“That Zhang Xuan managed to solve more than five hundred questions within five minutes… As a result, the Academic Credits he earned were far more than the number the entire Physician School possessed at the moment. On top of that, the system was also overclocked, thus resulting in the current state of affairs…” Hu shi explained.

“He earned more Academic Credits than the entire Physician School possesses?” Hearing those words, Sun Yuan felt his vision turning dark, and he nearly fainted on the spot.

“Are you saying that… he actually earned more than 100,000 Academic Credits?”

Chapter 804: Sun Yuan’s Mental Breakdown ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

As Academic Credits were the currency of the academy, their distribution had to be regulated to avoid inflation. Thus, every ten years, the ten schools would be given a set number of Academic Credits to distribute to the students.

The amount was determined by many factors, such as the total number of students in the school, the number of occupation promotions in recent years, the accomplishments of its students…

As the fifth largest school in the academy, judging from recent history, it would usually be given at least a hundred thousand Academic Credits to distribute for the following ten years.

As students spent their Academic Credits on using the services of the Physician School, such as accessing the library or purchasing valuable herbs in the school, the Physician School would earn back the Academic Credits, forming a mini economy in itself.

Given that Zhang Xuan could cause the Wall of Dilemma to be unable to process the distribution of Academic Credits, resulting in a severe error that caused its collapse… That could only mean to say that the Academic Credits he had earned exceeded a hundred thousand!

That was the entire budget the Physician School had to live off for the next ten years!

And yet, it was gone in an instant…

If there aren’t enough Academic Credits for the teachers to distribute to the students as rewards for the missions and tasks… Darn it, the Physician School is in deep trouble… Realizing the implications of Zhang Xuan’s actions, Sun Yuan’s mouth twitched violently, and he nearly burst into tears.

His teacher, You Xu, happened to be in charge of regulating the distribution of Academic Credits in the Physician School. For ten years’ worth of Academic Credits to be earned by a single individual… This meant that they had no more Academic Credits to award to the other students!

Earning Academic Credits was no easy task. Students had to undergo laborious tasks or life-threatening missions just to earn a couple of them. If they were to realize that they would be awarded nothing at the end of their efforts…

At this moment, Sun Yuan could already see the huge pandemonium that would arise due to the displeased students!

Furthermore, the distribution of the Academic Credits was a major affair concerning the development of the students. If the Physician School was unable to compensate its students properly for their efforts, that would be flouting of the rules of the academy as well. As the vice school head in charge of its regulation, his teacher would surely be severely punished!

Sun Yuan had thought that the fellow would rush to the Blacksmith School to complain to School Head Zhao, but who knew that just by challenging a Wall of Dilemma, he had already managed to corner his teacher!

Without a doubt, students would start withdrawing from the Physician School due to this matter, and its overall prowess would fall rapidly. Perhaps, by the end of this decade, they might very well be the last place among the ten schools.

And for allowing such an incident to happen under his watch, his teacher would indubitably be stripped of his responsibilities.

“Indeed!” Having realized this much as well, Hu shi also had a bitter smile on his face.

“Right, where is Zhang Xuan? Why isn’t he here?”

At this moment, Sun Yuan suddenly realized that the culprit of this mess had disappeared, so he couldn’t help but ask.

“Zhang Xuan? After clearing the Wall of Dilemma, he headed straight for the Malady Platform…” Hu shi said.

Realizing that it was possible that Zhang Xuan wasn’t quite done yet, Sun Yuan’s body trembled in apprehension at what that could potentially happen next. Fearfully, he asked, “Malady Platform? What is he going to do there?”

“The Malady Platform has a unique mechanism that allows physicians to experience illnesses themselves so that they could better understand its symptoms, and they can also treat themselves so as to verify the effectiveness of their proposed treatment method… If he is heading there, I guess he should be trying to assess his current proficiency in the Way of Medicine,” Hu shi replied.

The Malady Platform allowed a physician to put themselves in the shoes of the patients to better understand what they would be going through, thus building compassion within them for those who were suffering. At the same time, through verifying their treatment methods here, they could avoid mistreating their patients.

“Since he was able to overcome even the Wall of Dilemma, does he really need to verify his proficiency in the Way of Medicine?” Sun Yuan rolled his eyes.

The Wall of Dilemma was already the most difficult test in the entire Physician School. Given that Zhang Xuan was able to solve over five hundred illnesses within five minutes, would he still need to verify his proficiency in the Way of Medicine at the Malady Platform?

“This… Crap!” At this moment, Hu shi also realized what was going on.

Just as he was about to rush over with Sun Yuan, a loud rumbling suddenly echoed from afar, and smoke could be seen rising in the distance. It seemed something else had collapsed too.

Sun Yuan mouth twitched uncontrollably. “That’s where the Malady Platform is! Let’s hurry over to take a look…”

With Hu shi and a few others, they hurriedly rushed to the Malady Platform, and the sight before them upon reaching it left them staggering weakly.

At this moment, the massive building housing the Malady Platform was reduced to ruins, and a middle-aged man was looking at the rubble with a dazed look.

“Zhou shi, what happened?” Sun Yuan hurried forward to ask.

Zhou shi was also a direct disciple of Vice School Head You Xu, Sun Yuan’s disciple. He was in charge of maintaining the Malady Platform.

“A student said that he wanted to verify a new treatment method he had, so I allowed him to enter after paying the required Academic Credits. Who knew that… within three minutes of his entry, this happened…” Zhou shi’s face was pale, and his lips was quivering in agitation.

Knowing that this wasn’t the time to be concerned about the collapse of the Malady Platform, Sun Yuan asked anxiously, “What is the freshman called… and where is he now?”

“I believe his name is Zhang Xuan, and from the direction in which he was heading… I think he’s going to the ‘Ancestor Forest’!” Zhou shi replied.

“Ancestor Forest?” Sun Yuan was taken aback. “The Ancestor Forest is a place where the will of the predecessors lingers alongside their tombstones. Engraved on their tombs are the most outstanding feats they achieved in their lives and how they had achieved them. It serves as an inspiration to the later generation to learn from their example and their wisdom. Why would Zhang Xuan head there…”

If the Wall of Dilemma and Malady Platform were premises to verify one’s expertise as a physician and earn Academic Credits, the Ancestor Forest would be a place to admire and worship the predecessors.

All renowned physicians of the Master Teacher Academy would have a tombstone erected for them there. The illnesses which they had discovered a cure for, along with the cure itself, would be inscribed on their tombstones alongside their name so that the later generations could admire their work…

It was nothing more than a platform to motivate the current students, and there was not a single Academic Credit that could be earned there. Why would Zhang Xuan head there?

“I think we should still go over to take a look,” Hu shi said.

“Yes!” Sun Yuan nodded in agreement.

Even though they couldn’t see how Zhang Xuan could break anything in the Ancestor Forest—the Ancestor Forest had absolutely nothing to do with tests or Academic Credits—there was simply something extraordinary about him that it would be unwise to gauge him via common sense. It was still best for them to take a look themselves.

As such, they rushed off to the Ancestor Forest, but as usual, before they could reach their destination, the ground shook intensely, and the sound of countless tombstones shattering sounded.

The violent shaking caused even cracks to appear on the ground, and even the resilient Tower of Physicians was shaking violently.

“What happened?” Rushing into the Ancestor Forest, they realized that the entire area had been reduced to rubble. Sun Yuan and the others felt as if they were going insane.

This was a place to honor the glorious deeds of their predecessors! How could it be destroyed as well?

Did Zhang Xuan… destroy them with his own hands?

The reason the Wall of Dilemma and Malady Platform collapsed was due to Zhang Xuan’s overwhelming capability exceeding the limits of the mechanism, resulting in its own collapse. Considering that the destruction occurred due to the limitations of the Physician School’s facilities, it would be unreasonable to lay blame on him. After all, he hadn’t flouted any rules at all; all he did was challenge that which should be challenged.

But for the Ancestor Forest… there was no examination involved here, so there shouldn’t be any mechanism for him to overwhelm. Could he have created the ruins here with his own hands?

To intentionally destroy the property of the Physician School, not to mention disrespecting the predecessors and their heritage, that was a grave sin that could have Zhang Xuan sent straight to the Tribunal of Master Teachers to be judged!

“This… How could this be?”

At this instant, a middle-aged man with a ghastly pale face walked over with a stupefied expression on his face. It was as if he had just suffered a blow so great that he was losing his mind.

“Ye shi…” Sun Yuan shouted.

Ye shi was also his junior, and he was in charge of maintaining the Ancestor Forest.

As the Tower of Physicians was under Vice School Head You’s jurisdiction, the facilities in the area were mainly taken care of by his students.

Seeing that Sun shi, Hu shi, and the others were standing before him, Ye shi finally snapped out from his daze. Gesturing to the rubble behind him, he exclaimed with a defeated look, “Wrong! To think that they are all wrong!”

“Ye shi, what happened? Did someone destroy the Ancestor Forest using brute force?” Sun Yuan asked.

“Brute force?” Ye shi shook his head and sighed deeply. “Take a look yourself…”

Without explaining, Ye shi took out a Record Crystal and tossed it over to Sun Yuan and the others.

Catching it, Sun Yuan hurriedly infused his zhenqi into the Record Crystal to activate it.

With a flash of light, a completely unharmed Ancestor Forest suddenly appeared before their eyes. Following which, a young man walked into the scene.

Who else could the young man be if not Zhang Xuan!

Zhang Xuan swiftly walked up to the first tombstone.

The tombstone contained the writings of the first head of the Physician School. Inscribed on the tombstone were the contributions he had made to humanity in his lifetime, the most significant one being formulating a cure for the Demonhound Affliction.

The Demonhound Affliction was a bizarre disease that was rampant in that period of time. Those who were bitten by a hound-type beast would begin shedding their skin and growing fur within three months. A few days after the transformation began, they would lose their rationality and turn into monsters that would bite anyone they saw. Those who were bitten by the infected would be inflicted with the Demonhound Affliction as well.

What made things worse was that the disease was so potent that not even Saint realm experts could suppress the symptoms.

Due to its nature, the disease spread swiftly, causing great calamity to the human race. The first head of the Physician School, through half a year of tireless research, finally managed to formulate a vaccine against the Demonhound Affliction.

However, the vaccine was only effective for prevention; it couldn’t save those who had already been transformed. In order to suppress the plague, the academy had to dispatch countless experts to slay those who had been infected and cremate their corpses, resulting in a huge death toll.

Even though the first head of the Physician School failed to save those who had already been infected, he played a major role in suppressing the plague, saving many innocent lives through doing so. He was honored for his contribution in that calamity, and his story was passed down from generation to generation.

Just as Sun Yuan and the others were perplexed by what Zhang Xuan was going to do, they saw the latter glance at the tombstone briefly before speaking.

“The Demonhound Affliction is a disease caused by the virus present in the blood of hound-type beasts. It can be easily cured by taking two qian 1 of Sunflower Hemp, four qian of Crimson Frond, half a liang of Violetdawn Stalk, and a pinch of a hound-type beast’s heart flesh! A disease that can be cured so easily, and yet you had all of the afflicted killed and cremated. On top of that, the vaccine you came up with is at least dozens of times more expensive than mine as well. I really don’t understand how you can feel proud of your achievements and have a tomb erected here. Are you that intent on having the later generations learn of your shameful failure?”

Kacha!

Hearing those words, the will contained within the tombstone realized that there was indeed a far better medicine to the one he had formulated back then, and he had wronged those who were killed in the plague. The tombstone began to shake violently before abruptly bursting into smithereens.

Without sparing the first tombstone a second glance, Zhang Xuan walked on to the second tombstone, and just like before, he took a glance and spoke a few words, and the will contained within felt ashamed of its deeds too and broke apart.

The same scene occurred again and again as he walked down the path.

From the moment he glanced at the tombstone to the moment he spoke, there was only an interval of two breaths. But despite that, each time he spoke, a tombstone would surely burst apart.

In other words… the prescription that he had proposed was even more advanced, effective, and easier to concoct than the ones the predecessors had come up with!

“In a battle in the Way of Medicine against the predecessors, he was able to display such overwhelming knowledge that left the latter ashamed of themselves, to the point that they would willingly erase all traces of themselves…”

The mouths of Sun Yuan, Hu shi, and the others twitched at the sight before them.

They finally understood why Ye shi would look so defeated!

Guarding the Ancestor Forest, he had been studying their wisdom day after day, and he was filled with awe and respect for them. But a man suddenly walked in and said that everything was wrong, and he even won the acknowledgement of the predecessors at that… It was extremely fortunate that his mind didn’t break immediately!

Wall of Dilemma, Malady Platform, and the Ancestor Forest… Three of the most important facilities of the Tower of Physicians have been destroyed. Just what kind of monster did Teacher offend?

Taking another glance at the ruins of previously majestic lands, Sun Yuan shook his head and sighed deeply.

To point out the mistakes in the predecessors’ deeds and induce the erasure of the flawed solutions on the tombstone, preventing them from misleading future generations, not only did Zhang Xuan not err, he had even contributed greatly to the Physician Guild!

If the Physician Guild were to learn of this matter, they would surely reward him handsomely for it…

But still, to be able to come up with even more brilliant solutions to difficult diseases that took the predecessors months or even years to formulate… Just how did that fellow do it?

“Wait, where is Zhang Xuan?”

After a moment of shock, Sun Yuan suddenly realized that he still hadn’t found Zhang Xuan, and he quickly looked around to find him.

“Sun laoshi, bad news! Zhang shi has headed to the higher floors of the Tower of Physicians. He intends to take the physician examination…”

All of a sudden, a student running toward them shouted frantically. However, before he could finish his words, the ground shook yet again.

Following which, the massive tower in the distance abruptly collapsed, and countless rock fragments rained down on the earth.

“The Tower of Physicians… is gone as well!” Sun Yuan cried.

Chapter 805: Life-and-Death Physician Duel ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

The Tower of Physicians consisted of seven floors in total.

The first floor was mainly used for miscellaneous matters, such as patient diagnosis, the Wall of Dilemma, sales of medicinal herbs, and such.

From the second floor onward were the mechanisms for the 1-star to 6-star physician examination.

Just like the Ocean of Weapons, mechanisms and formations were incorporated into the Tower of Physicians to create a simulation for the examinees. As such, not only would they have to possess deep understanding of the Way of Medicine, they must be experienced in treating patients as well.

Treating an illness was unlike smithing or pill forging. A single illness could easily have thousands of different methods to cure it. One had to assess the patient’s constitution and overall condition before choosing the most suitable one.

As such, the examination in the Tower of Physicians couldn’t be as routine as the one in the Ocean of Weapons. Thus, the wills of countless predecessors had been left within the Tower of Physicians to assess the proficiency of the examinees.

The wills of the predecessors wouldn’t have much trouble conducting examinations for others, but when it came to Zhang Xuan…

Zhang Xuan was able to even criticize the ‘correct answers’ left behind by the predecessors in the Ancestor Forest to such a degree that they seemed completely worthless… If he were to come up with far better solutions than those of the predecessors in the Tower of Physicians, they would surely feel ashamed of their own ignorance and think that they were unworthy of assess the work of others…

Thus… just like what happened in the Ancestor Forest, the Tower of Physicians ended up collapsing as well!

It had been millenniums since the Physician School first came into existence, and yet, the crystallization of countless predecessors’ wisdom over all those years couldn’t even compare with that fellow…

It was no wonder School Head Mo, School Head Zhao, and even the reserved School Head Wei would regard with him respect and give him their personal tokens… That fellow was a complete monster!

Sun Yuan and the others hurriedly drove their zhenqi to form a barrier to protect themselves from the flying rubble thrown out from the collapsing building.

At this point, Sun Yuan and his juniors were feeling their hearts bleed within.

Vice School Head You was in charge of the affairs concerning the Tower of Physicians. For Zhang Xuan to have destroyed the entire place while abiding by the rules… this meant that all responsibility for the damage would have to be shouldered by their teacher alone!

Wasn’t it just a mere Ten-leafed Flower…

To think that single darned flower would cause the doom of the Physician School!

This wasn’t just a matter of the destruction of facilities and the reparation cost, but the reputation of the Physician School as well!

For a freshman to literally destroy the four most prided assets of the Physician School with his knowledge, and on top of that, not a single one lasted more than ten minutes…

Furthermore, all of the Academic Credits had been swiped by him, leaving the Physician School currently deep in debt with the pending payments for the missions and tasks undertaken by students… Without a doubt, it wouldn’t be long before the students began abandoning the Physician School, and by the next year, it would fall to the very bottom in the rankings, beneath even the Terpsichore School!

Just what the heck was this!

No, I must inform Teacher of the matter immediately! Just as Sun Yuan was feeling deep desolation within, he suddenly recalled his teacher.

When he left, his teacher was still gleeful about teaching a freshman a lesson, not realizing the calamity he had just brought upon the Physician School.

Thus, he immediately rushed from the ruins to Vice School Head You’s small residence.

Stepping through the doors, he saw Vice School Head You watering the plants leisurely, oblivious to the mess that had happened outside.

In order to retain a dense concentration of spiritual energy within the herb garden, a formidable formation had been set up in the courtyard. But while spiritual energy was unable to escape, sound was unable to enter as well.

Despite the huge commotion outside, isolated from the rest of the world, the herb garden remained unaffected.

Seeing that it was Sun Yuan, You Xu raised his gaze and glanced at him. “You are back. How is it? Did you capture that fellow?”

Sun Yuan’s lips twitched. “I didn’t…”

“You didn’t? Did he not go to School Head Zhao or the others to complain? You know the rules as well, defaming a higher ranked master teacher warrants the death penalty,” You Xu sneered coldly.

“He didn’t find the other school heads to complain. Instead, he went to the Tower of Physicians…” Seeing that his teacher was still immersed in his world, Sun Yuan wasn’t too sure how he could break the news to him.

“He went to the Tower of Physicians? For what?” You Xu was perplexed.

Not knowing where to start, Sun Yuan said, “Teacher, I think it might be better if you head outside to see for yourself…”

“See for myself?” You Xu was growing more and more intrigued by the baffling words his student was spouting. Nevertheless, seeing the grim expression on his student’s face, he nodded and left his residence.

As soon as he stepped out of the door, a sight of ruins appeared before his eyes. The towering Tower of Physicians from before was nowhere to be seen.

“This rubble… is the Tower of Physician? What happened? Was there an enemy attack?” The huge contrast between what he expected to see and what he saw left You Xu on the verge of insanity.

That was the Tower of Physicians, the trademark building of the Physician School! For it to collapse all of a sudden… Who was the culprit?

Could it be the Otherworldly Demons?

“No, it is…”

But just as Sun Yuan was about to speak, a resounding voice echoed throughout the entire Physician School. “I, Zhang Xuan, request the physician headquarters’ permission for a ‘Life-and-Death Physician Dual’ against 6-star physician, Vice School Head You Xu. I beseech your approval!”

Hong long!

The next moment, a physician emblem flew into the air, and with a brilliant flash of light, a massive word appeared in the sky—Permitted!

Life-and-Death Physician Duel? Sun Yuan’s vision darkened.

Life-and-Death Physician Duel was a platform for physicians to resolve irreconcilable grudges between them through a duel, somewhat similar to how the Master Teacher Confrontation worked.

As long as the headquarters gave its permission, both parties would be able to decide on a type of duel to resolve their grudges.

So, the reason he took the 6-star physician examination is for this! Realization suddenly struck Sun Yuan.

Typically speaking, the headquarters would only approve of Life-and-Death Physician Duel between physicians of similar rank. Thus, Zhang Xuan decided to get his 6-star physician emblem first.

However, entering the higher levels of the Tower of Physicians to take the physician examination required Academic Credits, which Zhang Xuan lacked as a freshman… That was why he went for the Wall of Dilemma first!

In other words… Zhang Xuan was intending to challenge his teacher in a battle of their medicinal knowledge and force him to his death!

This duel was indeed the most straightforward and official way to destroy another physician in public!

It was no wonder that fellow specially asked his teacher one last time before leaving. It seemed like he was indeed giving his teacher one last chance. However… it was a pity that his teacher thought little of the other party’s threat, thinking that it was impossible for a mere student to do anything to him…

But now, not only did the other party destroy the Tower of Physicians, he was even challenging his teacher to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel… What should they do now?

“Life-and-Death Duel? How conceited can you get! But that works fine by me too, I have been wanting to teach you a lesson as well! Since you are the one who came at me, don’t blame me for getting nasty!”

Vice School Head You hadn’t expected a freshman to dare challenge him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel, and his face immediately darkened upon hearing those words. Flicking his wrist, he took out his physician emblem. Following which, he bit his finger and dripped a droplet of blood on the emblem.

Hula!

With a glimmer of light, the emblem flew into an air, and an authoritative voice boomed, “I, You Xu, agree to the duel!”

“Teacher…” Not expecting his teacher to accept the duel without any hesitation, Sun Yuan’s body shook weakly.

Too overwhelmed with shock, he hadn’t had time to explain to his teacher the various unbelievable feats that Zhang Xuan had accomplished before his teacher suddenly accepted the duel in his moment of delay.

This was truly a disaster!

Just like the Master Teacher Confrontation, the Life-and-Death Physician Duel was overlooked by the headquarters. Once accepted, any party that backed out would be severely punished. Some had been stripped of their physician licenses due to this matter, and there were even a few who were killed outright!

If it had been before, he would have surely thought that the freshman who dared to challenge his teacher was a fool seeking death… But after all he had seen, his instincts were telling him that even if his teacher went up against that fellow for ten thousand rounds, it was unlikely that he would win even a single round!

Or to put it in other words… his teacher stood no chance at all!

Nevertheless, as Vice School Head You’s student, it was still his duty to warn him of the matter so that he could be prepared. “Teacher, you shouldn’t have agreed to the duel. That Zhang Xuan isn’t as simple as he looks…”

“What’s wrong?”

Seeing how little faith his student had in him, You Xu’s face darkened, and he harrumphed coldly. “He’s just an insignificant fellow, there’s nothing to fear. I shall make him learn the price of daring to stand against me! You should return to the residence first and heat up some fine wine for me. I should be done by the time it’s warmed up…”

Then, ignoring Sun Yuan, he leaped into the sky, in the direction his emblem had flown to.

In his view, no matter how talented Zhang Xuan might be, he was only a twenty-year-old brat. On the other hand, he had been immersed in the study of the Way of Medicine his entire life. To challenge him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel, what else could that be other than committing suicide?

“Heat up some fine wine? Teacher…” Sun Yuan nearly burst into tears.

Indeed, there is someone who will be destroyed in a few moments, but… that will be you and not Zhang Xuan!

Sun Yuan hurriedly shouted for his teacher, only to realize that the latter was too far to hear him.

“No, I have to inform him of this matter before it’s too late…” Sun Yuan said determinedly.

If his teacher were to let his guard down in the duel on top of everything else, there truly would be no hope at victory whatsoever. Thus, Sun Yuan swiftly pursued his teacher.

…

In the head of the Apothecary School Lu Feng’s residence, School Head Mo clasped his fist and asked, “School Head Lu, do you have any news regarding Senior Byzantium Helios Beast?”

In response to the question, Lu Feng shook his head.

Lu Feng was a tall old man with a black beard. Despite being the head of the Apothecary School, the number one school in Hongyuan Academy, he was dressed in exceptionally simple clothing, giving others the impression that he was an ordinary old man.

“I have tried following all of the clues we have, and I have paid a personal visit to Leiyuan Peak as well. However, I am still unable to find anything significant yet,” Lu Feng said worriedly.

As soon as he had learnt that the Byzantium Helios Beast had been captured by the Otherworldly Demons, he had immediately begun his investigation. However, despite seven days’ effort, he was still unable to find anything at all. At this point, he was starting to feel a little anxious inside.

The longer it took them to find the Byzantium Helios Beast’s whereabouts, the slimmer the chances that he would be alive.

Were they going to lose the old principal’s tamed beast too, shortly after losing the old principal?

“I haven’t been able to find anything either. I had the students of the Beast Tamer School ride their aerial beasts to search the surroundings, but there was no sign of the Otherworldly Demons or Senior Byzantium Helios at all. It’s as if they’ve disappeared into thin air!” School Head Mo shook his head and sighed deeply.

He felt extremely helpless and frustrated by this issue.

It was by his invitation that Senior Byzantium Helios went to the Leiyuan Peak to invigilate the students’ exam. But who could have known that he would disappear in the midst of the examination?

If it wasn’t for him, Senior Byzantium Helios would have never gone missing… As such, School Head Mo had always blamed himself for this matter.

“Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore… The best we can do now is wish Senior Byzantium Helios good luck!” Lu Feng shook his head before turning to School Head Mo once again and asked, “I heard that you are very interested in the freshman named Zhang Xuan from the newest batch, and you intend to take him in as your direct disciple?”

“There’s indeed such a matter, but… I fear that I don’t have the fortune to do so!” School Head Mo replied with a bitter smile.

“You don’t have the fortune to do so?” Lu Feng was slightly perplexed. “Just what kind of talent does that fellow have to make an old withered tree like you blossom?”

“His affairs are truly incredible. You will understand once you hear his story…”

Stroking his beard, School Head Mo was just about to tell the latter Zhang shi’s formidable deeds when the ground suddenly shook intensely. In the next moment, a deafening rumbling sounded in the distance.

Following which, they saw the towering Tower of Physicians, which stood at the very center of the Physician School, collapse abruptly.

“What happened?” Narrowing his eyes, Lu Feng hurriedly rushed out of his residence and headed right for the Physician School. However, before he could get far, he heard an impassive voice echoing resoundingly in the surroundings.

“I, Zhang Xuan, request the physician headquarters for a ‘Life-and-Death Physician Dual’ against 6-star physician, Vice School Head You Xu. I beseech for your approval!”

Chapter 806: Movements from All Fronts ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

“Zhang Xuan? Life-and-Death Physician Duel?”

Lu Feng and School Head Mo glanced at one another, and their eyes slowly widened in shock.

It was just a moment ago that they had begun talking about the other party when such a situation occurred… Just what in the world just had happened?

Wasn’t that fellow a skilled beast tamer and a blacksmith?

When did he become a physician as well? Not to mention, he was going to challenge You Xu?

“Something big is going to happen. Let’s head over to take a look!” Anxious, School Head Mo hurriedly left with Lu Feng, headed in the direction of the tower of Physicians.

…

“What did you say? Zhang Xuan… is going to challenge Vice School Head You to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel? Is he insane?” Long Cangyue widened his eyes in shock, unable to believe what he had just heard.

“Isn’t that fellow a blacksmith and a terpsichore? When did he become a physician too?” Dong Xin was also astonished by the news.

“Challenging Vice School Head You, a Saint realm expert…” Long Cangyue’s lips quivered in fear at that thought.

As powerful as his Ashen Moon Faction was in the academy, that was only relative to those small confrontations amongst the student populace. Yet, that fellow actually went head-to-head with a vice school head of the academy, challenging him to a Life-and-Death Duel…

Was he tired of living?

“It was just yesterday that the True Helios Faction caused a huge uproar in the academy, and this fellow managed to top that… Let’s go over to take a look!” Dong Xin said with a bitter smile.

They had thought that it was insane for the True Helios Faction to bring in three youngsters to lecture them, but that fellow had to be completely out of his mind to go head-to-head against a vice school head…

Was he trying to start a revolution?!

“Yes!” Not daring to waste a single second, the duo rushed out of the residence.

…

“Teacher… challenged Vice School Head You Xu? What happened?”

In Zhang Xuan’s residence in the Elite Sector, Luo Qiqi was still pacing around the room, worried for her teacher’s safety after he went to the Cloudmist Ridge, when she suddenly received the news from Hu Yaoyao, and her body trembled in shock.

That was sheer arrogance!

The opponent was a vice school head and a 6-star pinnacle physician… To challenge such an opponent to a Life-and-Death Duel given his current strength…

Wasn’t that just madness?

“No, I must stop him…” Unable to remain seated, Luo Qiqi leaped up and rushed for the Physician School.

…

The light fragrance of flowers drifted in a tranquil and vast courtyard in the Master Teacher Academy.

A beautiful figure stood amidst a field of flowers with her hands behind her back. That image felt so peaceful that it seemed as if it could have been a painting.

Her silky, black hair fell on her snowy robe as if long streaks of ink, and the vibrant colors of the flowers in the surroundings seemed to complement her disposition, creating an inexplicably bewitching sight.

“He is challenging the 6-star pinnacle physician, You Xu?”

The figure turned around, revealing her alluring face.

It was the young lady who had captured Zhang Xuan’s heart, Luo Ruoxin.

Back then, after learning that Zhang Xuan was fine, she had returned back to her residence, and the two of them hadn’t met each other since. Who would have thought that the next time she heard of his name would be when he challenged a vice school head to a duel?

“He sure is gutsy…” Luo Ruoxin’s lips curled up into a faint smile.

Even though she hadn’t spent much time with Zhang Xuan, she did know that he had a daring side to him.

Back then, with just a cultivation of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan, he stepped into an encirclement of Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts to save her. Such a feat in itself took extraordinary courage.

“For him to go to the extent of challenging You Xu to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel, it seems the latter must have committed some kind of intolerable crime…”

Based on her impression of Zhang Xuan so far, he didn’t seem like a person who would get angry over minor matters. For him to go to this extent, it seemed that You Xu must have done something deplorable.

“I should go and take a look, too!” With a slight smile, she stepped forward lightly, and in a blink of an eye, she had already disappeared from the courtyard.

…

In the True Helios Faction, Zheng Yang and the others were currently sitting at a table filled with sumptuous dishes, enjoying the highest of privileges.

“Uncle Qiang, Teacher has challenged a vice school head to a duel…”

But despite the delicacies before her, Wang Ying was so worried that she couldn’t find the appetite to eat.

“It’s just a duel, no worries. Don’t you have confidence in your teacher’s prowess? That vice school head will be utterly destroyed by the time we are done with this feast, so you can rest assured!” Sun Qiang said as he stuffed another large piece of spirit beast meat into his mouth.

“But…”

“There are no buts, eat. Nothing can possibly happen to your teacher…” Sun Qiang waved his hands casually. “Besides, there’s nothing you can do even if you head there too. Do you know anything about the Way of Medicine at all?”

“This…”

A bitter look appeared on Zheng Yang and the others’ faces.

Unable to share their teacher’s burden, they couldn’t help but feel helpless at that instant.

“Enough, there’s no need to feel conflicted over this matter. Just eat your food! Your teacher might look docile usually, but once he makes the move, there’s never been a single occasion where he has not succeeded before. If you’re still worried, we’ll head there once we are done eating!” Sun Qiang said while stuffing himself with more food.

You must be joking! If it is a matter which even the young master is unable to resolve, there is nothing we will be able to do there either.

Not to mention… is it even possible for there to be something which the young master and the old master are unable to resolve in this world?

“Alright then…” Seeing how calm Sun Qiang was, and recalling the various incredible deeds that their teachers had done, Zheng Yang and the others slowly lifted their chopsticks and began to dig in.

…

“Hahaha, he’s truly courting death! Vice School Head You’s mastery in the Way of Medicine is beneath only that of School Head Zhong Dingchun, making him one of the top physicians of Hongyuan Empire. To challenge him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel… he must be tired of living!”

“Seems like there will be a good show ahead!”

“That freshman has allowed fame to get to his head; he has started to forget his place. To dare to provoke even the vice school head, just how arrogant can a person get…”

…

As Zhang Xuan’s resounding voice reached the corners of the Master Teacher Academy, a huge uproar followed.

Some were shocked, some were agitated, but most were waiting to watch him make a fool of himself.

Establishing the Xuanxuan Faction amidst the oppression of the other student factions, causing a huge commotion in the Blacksmith School, winning the favor of three school heads… Zhang Xuan had been in the spotlight ever since he had entered the academy. While there were some who admired his capability, there were naturally also a few who were unsatisfied with him.

There were many seniors who were waiting for him to fall off his high horse.

Thus, upon hearing that he had challenged the vice school head of the Physician School, they immediately rushed over to watch him lose the competition.

…

On a platform not too far away from the ruins of what used to be the Tower of Physicians, Zhang Xuan stood proudly with a cold gleam in his eyes.

It was not without a reason that he caused such a huge commotion with his challenge. His motive was simple—deterrence!

He simply didn’t have the time or effort to deal with everyone who came his way.

Each occupation had its own way to resolve conflicts amongst its members. The Life-and-Death Physician Duel was the official way for physicians to deal with irreconcilable grudges amongst themselves.

It was one thing for You Xu to refuse to sell the Ten-leafed Flower, but he had intentionally misled Wei Changfeng to cause his death. There was no way Zhang Xuan could forgive him!

Given Zhang Xuan’s previous rank, the Physician Guild would never acknowledge his request for a Life-and-Death Physician Duel with You Xu. Understanding that much, he could only obtain a 6-star emblem first.

Just as Sun Yuan had deduced, the reason he went to challenge the Wall of Dilemma was to earn the Academic Credits.

Despite possessing the favor of three of the school heads, Zhang Xuan didn’t have a single Academic Credit on him. Naturally, he wasn’t able to enter the Tower of Physicians.

“Zhang shi, how did you end up challenging Vice School Head You to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel?”

At that moment, a figure suddenly appeared right in front of Zhang Xuan. It was the head of the Blacksmith School, Zhao Bingxu.

He had rushed over as soon as he received the news, so he arrived even earlier than School Head Mo.

“What happened? Do you need me to mediate in the conflict between you two? It’s not that I don’t trust you, but Vice School Head You’s proficiency in the Way of Medicine is astounding. If not for his advanced age, he would have surely become one of the Ten Great Master Teachers instead of Zhong Dingchun in the previous selection!”

Zhao Bingxu quickly sent a telepathic message to Zhang Xuan, hoping that he would rescind his reckless decision.

He truly admired Zhang Xuan’s capability, and he was unwilling to see anything happen to such a talented genius.

It was not without reason that it was called the Life-and-Death Physician Duel. Just the slightest carelessness could potentially result in one’s death!

Knowing that the other party was saying those words out of concern, Zhang Xuan replied respectfully, “I am grateful for your goodwill, but I know what I am doing. Allow me to resolve this matter myself.”

So what if You Xu is a vice school head? So what if he is a talented physician?

I will still crush him to a pulp!

“Alright then… However, you must be extremely careful! Vice School Head You once went to an ancient domain together with the old principal and a few others, but he ended up being the only one who managed to return alive, whereas the others went missing, and he was extremely self-reproachful about that.

“Perhaps it was due to the heavy blow of the matter, but his temper has become extremely eccentric since then. I fear that he might attempt to kill you in the duel… If you find yourself in danger, it’d be best for you to admit defeat straight. Don’t worry, Mo Zhu and I will step forward to help you mediate the matter,” Zhao Bingxu advised Zhang Xuan through zhenqi telepathy.

Back then, when the old principal discovered an ancient domain, he had taken a team with him to explore the grounds. However, all of them had gone missing in the expedition, and You Xu was the only one who had returned alive.

After that incident, his temperament abruptly changed. He began isolating himself in his residence, choosing to avoid contact with everyone else as much as he could.

Despite being the head of the Blacksmith School, Zhao Bingxu had no confidence that his words would hold any sway over You Xu.

“Un!” Zhang Xuan nodded.

After saying what he had to say, Zhao Bingxu heaved a sigh of relief and leaped down the platform.

This was a duel conducted with the approval of the Physician Guild headquarters. Not even he, as a 6-star pinnacle master teacher and one of the Ten Great Master Teachers, could reverse that decision.

Hu hu hu!

Soon, School Head Mo, School Head Zhong, and the others arrived as well.

“What happened for Zhang shi to become so angry as to recklessly challenge You Xu to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel?” Wei Ranxue asked anxiously.

“I am not too sure about the details either, but my men are currently looking into it!” Zhao Bingxu replied.

“Looking into it?”

“One of my students happen to be a close friend of You Xu’s direct disciple. He should be reporting back soon,” Zhao Bingxu replied with a nod.

The Master Teacher Academy might be big, but as the school heads, they still had some connections throughout the academy. It shouldn’t be too difficult for them to look into a matter.

“Teacher!”

A short moment later, a middle-aged man suddenly ran up to the group.

“Un. What have you found out?” Zhao Bingxu asked.

“According to my friend, it seems that Zhang shi, together with Wei Changfeng of the Spirit Emporium, paid a visit to Vice School Head You, hoping to purchase a Ten-leafed Flower from him to save a person. However, Vice School Head You demanded a Cloudmist Flower as payment,” the middle-aged man said.

“Cloudmist Flower? He was trying to make them scale the Cloudmist Ridge?” Upon hearing those words, a frown appeared on School Head Mo’s forehead, and his face darkened.

“Un! So, this morning, Zhang shi brought back a Cloudmist Flower, but Vice School Head You adamantly refused to make the trade… Infuriated, Zhang shi went to take the 6-star physician examination and challenged him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel!”

The middle-aged man swiftly revealed the news that he had heard.

Considering how huge this matter had become, it would be impossible for them to cover up the matter anymore. Thus, Sun Yuan didn’t bother hiding anything from the middle-aged man.

“To refuse to make the trade after they obtained the Cloudmist Flower, You Xu is intentionally making things hard for them!” Zhao Bingxu frowned deeply in disapproval.

“Indeed. There are many Saint realm beasts in the Cloudmist Ridge, such that even I wouldn’t dare to enter too deep myself. They must have paid a heavy price in order to procure the Cloudmist Flower! And yet, You Xu still refused to make the trade. It’s no wonder Zhang shi flew into a rage! Even if I was in his place, I doubt that I would have been able to hold back my temper either!” School Head Mo exclaimed furiously.

Master teachers must honor their words! If we can’t even keep a promise we have made, what right do we have to preach to others?

Breaking one’s promise was one of the greatest taboos that a master teacher could make.

“But regardless of whether You Xu has done it intentionally or not, it is still too reckless of Zhang shi to challenge him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel… Can he win against him?” Wei Ranxue frowned in worry.

Chapter 807: You Xu’s Eyes Reddened ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

“This…” School Head Mo and School Head Zhao fell silent.

They had seen the young man’s talent in beast taming and smithing, but in the Way of Medicine…

One must know that treating a patient was an extremely complex study. Due to differences in constitution and cultivation technique, each patient’s condition was unique. Even if two people were suffering from the same ailment, the medicine that was effective on one might not necessarily be effective on the other.

In order to make the correct judgements for a treatment, knowledge was not enough. One needed vast amounts of experience as well.

As such, most physicians chose to roam the world and even frequent battlefields. Only by expanding their horizon and encountering more patients would they make progress in the Way of Medicine.

As such, the older a physician was, the more likely they would be skilled.

Even if Zhang shi possessed superb talent, he was only twenty this year. Could he really be a match for the experienced You Xu who had lived for nearly a thousand years?

“I think so… I asked him, and he seems really confident,” Zhao Bingxu replied.

Despite his positive words, his tone carried slight traces of hesitation.

So far, he had only seen the other party’s aptitude in smithing. As for treating a patient… never before. Without anything to work with, it would be hard for him to make an accurate deduction.

“Please be assured, Zhang shi will surely emerge victorious!” Seeing the conflicted and worried expressions of the trio, the middle-aged man who had just reported the matter to them spoke up.

“Zhang shi will surely emerge victorious?” The four school heads turned to look at the middle-aged man doubtfully.

Zhang Xuan was going to face one of the top physicians of Hongyuan Empire, how could that fellow be so confident of the outcome?

“It seems like you are still unaware,” the middle-aged man said.

“You should have heard of the Three Great Trials of the Physician School, right?”

“The Three Great Trials? Do you mean the Malady Platform, Wall of Dilemma, and Tower of Physicians?” School Head Mo replied.

Those three infrastructures formed the basis of the Physician School, so even the other school heads had heard of them as well.

“Zhang shi… In the first ten minutes, he tore down the Wall of Dilemma. In the next five minutes, he left the Malady Platform crumbling. While strolling through the Ancestor Forest to return to the Tower of Physicians, he induced the shattering of all the tombstones erected there… After which, in less than ten minutes, he managed to clear the 4-star to 6-star physician examinations, leaving the wills of the predecessors in the Tower of Physicians feeling defeated, thus resulting in the collapse of the Tower of Physicians as well,” the middle-aged man said with a bitter smile on his face.

“The current state that the Physician School is in was caused singlehandedly by him… How could a person who possesses such astounding medical skills possibly lose?”

“T-this…” School Head Zhao and the others widened their eyes in shock.

When they arrived at the Physician School, they had also been perplexed to see the mess it was in. To think that the culprit behind this would be that fellow as well!

Tearing down the Wall of Dilemma, crumbling the Malady Platform, destroying the Ancestor Forest, and demolishing the Tower of Physicians… Just how formidable must one’s medical skills be to be able to achieve all of these feats?

Unbelievable!

Standing beside School Head Mo, the head of the Physician School, Zhong Dingchun, who had remained silent all this while, staggered weakly upon hearing those words, and muttered in disbelief, “All of this happened… just because You Xu was unwilling to sell a medicinal herb to Zhang shi?”

The middle-aged man nodded. “From the current news we have, that seems to be the case!”

“You Xu, screw your grandmother…” Zhong Dingchun nearly spurted a mouthful of blood out of sheer frustration.

Freaking hell! Do you think that it was easy for the Physician School to come this far? Yet, you caused such a mess just by offending a single person. How do you expect me to face the preceding heads of the Physician School?

With this, I will become the most disgraceful school head in the entire history of the Master Teacher Academy…

During my administration, a student actually managed to cause such devastating damage to the Physician School, and through legitimate means at that… The heck, just what have I done so wrong to deserve this?

I was doing nothing in my residence when this came out of nowhere. You Xu, are you sure you aren’t a spy sent by others to do me in?

Zhong Dingchun gnashed his teeth furiously. “After this, I will make sure to strip him of his position as the vice head and make him grind himself to dust reconstructing the Tower of Physicians… No, that won’t quell my anger. I will make him clean every single toilet in the Physician School…”

The other vice school heads helped their own school by bringing in top-notch talents and maintaining order, but this fellow… not only did he break his promise, he even set such a talent thoroughly against the Physician School…

What will others think of the Physician School when they learn of it?

Just why in the world did I appoint this darned thing as the vice head of the Physician School…

“My condolences!”

Seeing the frenzied state that School Head Zhong was in, School Head Mo and the others shook their heads and sighed deeply.

Of all people You Xu could have offended, he just had to pick on the most monstrous student the Master Teacher Academy had ever had since its inception.

It was fortunate that the other party had only torn down the Tower of Physicians before challenging You Xu to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel. If he had headed to the other facilities as well… this day might just have been the final day of the Physician School!

At this point, Wei Ranxue couldn’t help but heave a long sigh of relief. Thank god that the examination for our Terpsichore School is much easier… Otherwise, who knows what could have happened to our Terpsichore School!

While attempting to take the blacksmith examination, Zhang Xuan had destroyed half of the Blacksmith Guild along with the entire Passageway of Corridors. It was even worse for his physician examination—the Physician School lost its Wall of Dilemma, Malady Platform, Ancestor Forest, and Tower of Physicians, and it seemed that a vice school head was still waiting to get onto that list…

It was truly fortunate that she had made the wise call to apply for the 6-star terpsichore emblem for Zhang Xuan directly. Otherwise, her small Terpsichore School couldn’t possibly have survived the Zhang Xuan Ordeal.

Hearing those words, School Head Mo’s eyebrows immediately began twitching. “Then… should I apply for a 6-star beast tamer emblem for him, too? What if he suddenly thinks of taking the examination in a few days’ time?”

“…” The middle-aged man.

“…” The other three school heads.

…

Meanwhile, amidst a huge gust of wind, Vice School Head You Xu landed on the platform.

Placing his hands behind his back, he gazed at Zhang Xuan menacingly with narrowed eyes. Carrying a domineering aura as if the entire world was in his grasp, he sneered coldly, “With your measly capabilities, you dare challenge me? I won’t bully you. I will let you choose what kind of duel we shall have!”

A duel between physicians could be mainly classified into two categories—quantity and quality!

In a duel of quantity, the physicians would be gauged based on the number of patients they could treat to a satisfactory degree within a set period of time, conventionally two hours. On the other hand, in a duel of quality, the physicians would be tasked to come up with a prescription for the same patient, and they would be judged on how easy it was to concoct the prescription, its price, and the effectiveness of it.

“As expected of Vice School Head You, he sure is magnanimous!”

“Of course! As a 6-star pinnacle physician, it’s a piece of cake for him to deal with a freshman…”

“You’re my idol, Vice School Head You!”

Under normal circumstances, the challenged person in a Life-and-Death Physician Duel would have the right to select the format of the duel, and yet, Vice School Head You decisively gave away this advantage to Zhang Xuan. His magnanimous actions immediately won him the applause and admiration of many amidst the crowd.

Did you see that?

That is the magnanimity that a master teacher should have!

For a freshman who has barely learned peanuts about the Way of Medicine to be so arrogant as to challenge a veteran such as Vice School Head You… Even if he’s given you the advantage of choosing, can you win?

“There is no doubt; that fellow Zhang Xuan will surely lose. Just because he has achieved that little bit here and there, he forgot his own place. Today, Vice School Head You will beat him back to where he belongs!”

“I heard that he established a new student faction called the Xuanxuan Faction or something a few days ago. Those freshmen sure are brazen to attempt to overthrow the long-established hierarchy right after their enrollment. As their ringleader, he must be punished sternly as a warning to others…”

Upon hearing that Zhang Xuan was so brazen as to challenge a vice head of the Physician School, many of the seniors couldn’t help but gloat gleefully.

This is the Master Teacher Academy, not whatever rundown village you come from. Instead of lying low obediently, you chose to go around causing trouble. Now, you shall suffer the consequences of your actions!

Hearing the discussions below, You Xu felt surge of confidence, and he mocked Zhang Xuan coldly. “Why? You are the one who challenged me. Are you scared speechless now that I am standing before you?”

Seeing You Xu’s majestic disposition, another round of cheers broke out beneath the stage.

In stark contrast to the delighted cheers of the crowd was Sun Yuan, who was on the verge of bursting into tears after rushing over to the platform as fast as he could and seeing what he saw.

His teacher was currently overloaded with confidence, but if his teacher had seen what he had seen just a moment ago, he wouldn’t be acting in such a manner…

Not daring to waste a single moment, Sun Yuan hurriedly sent a telepathic message over.

“Teacher, I have a matter that I must inform you of right now!”

“Right now? Can’t you see that I’m busy?” You Xu’s eyebrows shot up in displeasure.

His student, Sun Yuan, might be a talented physician, but wasn’t he way too lacking in his sense of timing? Couldn’t Sun Yuan see that he was busy over here?

“This matter is really urgent, so I can’t put it off. Otherwise, I fear that teacher might be disadvantaged in the duel!” Despite seeing his teacher’s livid expression, Sun Yuan knew how important this matter was, so he pushed on.

“Disadvantaged?” You Xu frowned.

“Yes. Zhang shi, just a few moments ago, managed to clear the 6-star physician examination!” Fearing that his teacher would lose his patience, he hurriedly got straight to the point.

“He cleared the 6-star physician examination despite his lacking cultivation as a freshman? It seems like he does possess some true capability…” You Xu was stunned for an instant before nodding slightly.

It was no wonder the other party had won the favor of School Head Zhao and the others. He was indeed a talented individual.

But, so what?

The other party was a freshman who had only recently cleared the 6-star physician examination. On the other hand, he was a veteran who had immersed himself in the Way of Medicine of nearly a thousand years. Did he need to fear an inexperienced brat?

“Not only so, he went to the Wall of Dilemma… and singlehandedly, he solved all of the problems on it!” Sun Yuan continued.

“Wall of Dilemma? Is that even within the means of a new 6-star physician? Let me guess, he went back without even solving a single problem, right…”

You Xu was in the middle of his sentence when the meaning of Sun Yuan’s words suddenly struck him, and he froze. “What did you just say? H-h-h-h-he solved all of the problems on it?”

“Yes, and that’s not all…” Sun Yuan swiftly went through what he had encountered previously.

“The Malady Platform collapsed?

“The tombstones in the Ancestor Forest shattered out of sheer embarrassment?”

“While clearing the 6-star physician examination, he left the lingering will of the predecessors ashamed of their ignorance, thus inducing the collapse of the Tower of Physicians?”

“So, he is the culprit of the mess I see before me…”

Every single matter that Sun Yuan spoke about was like a bolt of lightning striking You Xu. In that instant, he felt as if someone had thrown him down an abyss that was thousands and thousands of zhang 1 deep, and it was just a matter of time before he went splat.

Putting everything aside, he couldn’t even solve a single question on the Wall of Dilemma. Yet, the other party actually solved more than five hundred of them in a single breath…

Was that even humanly possible?

I am facing such a monster in a Life-and-Death Physician Duel?

You must be pulling my leg, right?

You Xu had thought that the other party was just a mere chick which he could squash with one hand tied behind his back. Yet, he realized that his judgement had failed him, and the other party was actually a majestic dragon of the heavens, an existence who could destroy his world with a breath!

“That’s right… I fear that the odds are against Teacher in this duel!” Sun Yuan said worriedly.

You Xu’s body swayed weakly, and it looked as if he would collapse at any moment.

How in the world is this ‘the odds are against me’? More like I don’t even have a single odd in my favor at all!

If he were to really compete with the other party, it would definitely be his head that rolled.

If only he’d known that this would happen, he would have never agreed to it.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier…” You Xu couldn’t help but berate in fury.

If only Sun Yuan had told him this earlier… What was the point of telling him this now that he had agreed to the duel? His acceptance had already reached the Physician Guild headquarters; it was too late to back out now.

“Didn’t Teacher tell me to warm up some fine wine to wait for your return,” Sun Yuan replied indignantly.

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to speak, but you didn’t give you a chance to do so!

You Xu’s mouth twitched. “Warm up some fine wine…”

As the memories regarding everything that had happened earlier flashed through his mind, You Xu couldn’t help but feel extremely stifled inside.

I only refused to sell you a Ten-leafed Flower, did you need to leave the Physician Guild in such a state?

To challenge me on a Life-and-Death Physician Duel on top of everything else…

Even if I win this duel by some chance, I will still be skinned alive by the school head!

Just what the heck is this!

Looks like I have reaped what I have sowed. As bitter as the fruit may be, I have no choice but to swallow it…

In that instant, You Xu felt his eyes reddening.

Chapter 808: Content of the Duel ##

 

But as stifled as he was, as an old monster who had lived for nearly a thousand years, he swiftly recovered and began thinking of a solution to his current plight.

Since he was able to clear the Wall of Dilemma, it is unlikely that he would stumble on difficult illnesses!

Since he was able to overcome the Malady Platform, it means that he has a deep understanding of the newest illnesses!

Since he was able to make the predecessors’ wills voluntarily destroy their own tombstones out of shame, it means that his understanding of the Way of Medicine has reached an incredible level…

…

The more You Xu pondered the matter, the more awful his complexion became.

No matter how he looked at the matter, he couldn’t see himself winning at all.

Unless… Suddenly, a thought struck You Xi’s mind, and a vicious glint flashed in the depths of his eyes.

Alright, it’s decided then!

Just as he made his decision, Zhang Xuan suddenly raised his gaze and said, “Since Vice School Head You is so generous as to offer me the opportunity to decide on the format of the duel, I will graciously take you up on the offer. The duel format I propose is…”

“Hold it right there!” a voice abruptly interjected.

Without regard for all of the words he had said before, You Xu raised his hand and said, “Since you are the one who challenged me, naturally, I should be the one deciding the format of the duel!”

I would have to be a fool to allow you to decide the duel format!

“Is this the magnanimity that you all spoke about?” Zhang Xuan muttered with a wry smile.

Upon hearing those words, the students who had still been cheering in support for You Xu a moment ago abruptly fell silent. They felt a stinging pain on their cheeks, as if they had been sharply slapped on their faces.

Just a moment after they praised the other party for his magnanimity, the other party reneged on his words.

As a 6-star master teacher, can’t you at least have a sense of shame and honor your words?

“Fine, speak then!” Zhang Xuan replied coldly.

It mattered not to him what the other party chose. There was only one thing he was here for, and that was to avenge Wei Changfeng! He would achieve this regardless of whatever stood in his path.

“Good. As physicians, in order to save the lives of our patients, we have to be skilled in all aspects.”

Vice School Head You gazed at Zhang Xuan with a sharp glint in his eyes as he continued, “Naturally, this includes curing poison as well. This is an essential skill that all physicians must learn. The duel format I propose is very simple. Do you dare to participate in a Duel of Poison Curing with me?”

“Duel of Poison Curing?” Zhang Xuan raised his eyebrows.

Even though it wasn’t as varied as the master teachers’, a duel between physicians could come in many forms as well, and poison curing happened to be one of them.

Poison masters and physicians were nemeses of one another. If one wanted to progress further as a physician and earn the respect of others, one had to be skilled in the Art of Poison Curing. Otherwise, it would truly be shameful if a high-ranking member of the Physician Guild were to succumb to a secret attack by the poison masters.

Throughout history, there were simply far too many cases of physicians being poisoned to death.

“That’s right. Not only must a physician be good at treating illnesses, he must also be capable of curing poison as well. Without comprehensive knowledge in all aspects of medicine, one cannot be considered a full-fledged physician!

“So, do you dare to take me on in a Duel of Poison Curing?” You Xu asked with a smirk on his face.

“Preposterous! That damned fellow!”

School Head Zhong Dingchun was already incensed when he saw You Xu suddenly reneging on his words. However, upon seeing the latter proposing a Duel of Poison Curing, he couldn’t hold himself back any longer and cursed furiously.

“What’s wrong?” School Head Mo asked.

“Poison curing is an extremely dangerous duel format. The lives of those involved will be put at risk!” Zhong Dingchun said.

“Put at risk? What do you mean by that?” School Head Zhao and the others were perplexed.

They had heard of the Duel of Poison Curing before, but as it was a less common form of dueling among physicians, they weren’t too sure about the rules.

“In order to test a cure for a poison, we will need someone who is afflicted with the poison. In other words… a person must be afflicted with the poison to carry out this duel!” Zhong Dingchun said.

“A person must be afflicted with the poison?”

Since it was a duel, it was natural that an extremely potent poison would be used. It would still be fine if the physicians managed to cure the poison, but what if they were to fail?

Wouldn’t the person afflicted end up being poisoned to death?

“Indeed. This duel is simply far too dangerous, so most physicians tend to avoid it. Yet, of all things, that fellow chose this one…” Zhong Dingchun gritted his teeth.

Curing poison was no joking matter.

Just wrong move could cause the poison to mutate, rendering the existing antidotes useless. A life could easily be lost due to it!

“Wait! I understand that someone has to be afflicted with the poison in order to assess the physician’s poison curing skills accurately, but surely there’s no need to use a human as a test subject here? It should be possible to use Pill Sample Beasts instead. After all, physicians carry the noble mission of treating the ill and supporting the wounded. How could they take a life so lightly?”

There were spirit beasts with similar constitutions to a human, so there should be no need to use a human for the duel.

“It’s not like that…” Zhong Dingchun was just about to explain when Zhang Xuan’s voice suddenly echoed through the surroundings.

“Sure, a Duel of Poison Curing it shall be then. What are the rules?”

“It’s simple!” Upon seeing Zhang Xuan agree to the duel, You Xu heaved a sigh of relief. With a smirk, he said, “We will each take out a poison for the other to consume, and whoever succeeds in curing the poison within a given period of time will be deemed to be victorious!”

“We will be testing the poison with our bodies?” Zhang Xuan frowned.

“That’s right. I have already told you the rules, so what do you say about it? Do you dare take up the challenge? If you don’t… it will be considered your loss for this duel!” You Xu harrumphed coldly.

“They will each consume the poison of the other? If they fail to cure it, won’t they die on the spot?”

“Indeed! Aren’t the rules of this duel a little way too frightening?”

“Even though it’s called the Life-and-Death Physician Duel, it’s just a metaphor. To think that they would really end up pitting their lives against one another in this duel…”

Upon hearing the rules, a huge commotion broke out amidst the crowd.

Even Wei Ranxue, School Head Zhao, and the others were stunned.

It was no wonder Zhong Dingchun was so furious upon hearing the name of the duel! Who would have thought that it was so vicious?

It would still be fine if they could cure it, but if they couldn’t?

One must know that there were many kinds of mystical poisons in the world, and there were even some that could cause instantaneous death!

Just as everyone thought that Zhang Xuan would never agree to a duel with such ridiculous rules, the latter suddenly announced, “Fine, I agree to it!”

School Head Mo’s face paled, and he hurriedly exclaimed, “You can’t agree to it! That’s too dangerous…”

He had heard about Yang shi’s existence from Mo Gaoyuan. If Zhang shi were to be poisoned to death, there was no one in the Master Teacher Academy who could withstand Yang shi’s wrath. The Master Teacher Academy could very well become a relic of the past due to this!

“Damn it, how can he be so shameless? He’s a Saint realm expert, a different level of existence from Zhang shi. Even if Zhang shi has some formidable poison on him, it’s unlikely to work against him!” Wei Ranxue’s face also reddened in fury.

Naturally, the prowess of a poison was also correlated with a cultivator’s cultivation realm. This was just like how a drop of water could drown an ant but was completely ineffective against an elephant.

As a higher level of existence, Saint realm experts could survive lethal doses of poison that would cause a Chrysalis realm expert to die many times over.

Considering the fundamental difference between their strength, Zhang Xuan was already at an overwhelming disadvantage before the duel had even started!

In the first place, it couldn’t be said that the rules of the duel were fair to both sides!

Infuriated, Zhao Bingxu turned to School Head Zhong with a livid expression on his face. “Zhong Dingchun, is this the character of a vice head of your Physician School?”

You Xu reneging on his promise was a dishonorable and shameful action for a master teacher to make, but ultimately, the medicinal herb was still his. It was his freedom of choice to choose whether he wanted to sell it or not, and there was no way anyone could force him into it.

But at this very moment, You Xu was exploiting his inherent advantages as a Saint realm expert to challenge the other party to a Duel of Poison Curing, which would put their lives at stake. This was a clear attempt to corner the other party and kill him!

This reflected a fatal flaw in You Xu’s character.

School Head Zhao didn’t have much contact with You Xu, so he didn’t know him well as a person. However, to go to the extent of having a student of the academy killed despite being a vice school head, was that person really a master teacher?

While there were master teachers who were selfish and lacked compassion, even they wouldn’t do something as disgraceful and vicious as this!

“I…” Zhong Dingchun’s face turned crimson in embarrassment upon hearing those words.

While You Xu didn’t infringe on the rules of the Life-and-Death Physician duel, his actions lacked the righteousness and magnanimity a master teacher should have.

There was nothing to say about his actions but shameful, utterly shameful.

“You need not blame School Head Zhong. I have had some interactions with You Xu before, and he wasn’t like that before. Perhaps it is due to his age encroaching on him and his fear of death growing, he becomes more willing to abandon his dignity and honor for his life.” School Head Mo sighed.

It is often only when death approaches that one’s desire to live kicks in. This desire to live gnaws at one, prompting one to do anything as long as one can push death further away from them.

School Head Mo continued, “The fear of death is never an easy hurdle to overcome. There are some who are able to uphold their morals and values even in the face of death, preserving their honor and dignity. But ultimately, most men are only mortals. They succumb to fear, clinging desperately to every additional day they can get. After all, honor and dignity mean nothing to a dead man.

“But as a master teacher and a vice school head of the Physician School, he isn’t just anyone. In order to extend his longevity, he goes around hunting down spirit beasts to procure their blood. It is only because we are colleagues and the misfortune he encountered in that expedition with the old principal that I had turned a blind eye to his actions. And yet, he still doesn’t know repentance!”

“Hunting down spirit beast?” This was the first Zhong Dingchun was hearing of this, so he couldn’t help but turn to School Head Mo with a questioning gaze.

Those who trod on the Way of Medicine should possessed a deference for life in their soul. While it was impossible to expect them to save everyone that they met, they should never allow a life to slip away easily, and this included the lives of spirit beasts as well.

Yet, to go around hunting spirit beasts just to sustain his life… Was this truly the doing of a physician?

“Indeed. I learned of this coincidentally a few days ago while looking into the whereabouts of Senior Byzantium Helios. It’s said that within the past year, just counting the number of Half-Saint realm beasts, You Xu has already killed more than twenty of them!” School Head Mo harrumphed.

“More than twenty? What is he killing so many Half-Saint beasts for?” School Head Zhong was astonished.

You Xu had done all of this discreetly behind his back, so despite being the head of the Physician School, Zhong Dingchun was completely unaware of this.

School Head Mo shook his head. “Regarding that, I am not too sure either.”

He had also been bewildered when he first heard the news, but considering that You Xu hadn’t done anything that would infringe on the interests of the Master Teacher Academy, he didn’t have a good reason to investigate the matter either.

“Even on the Hongyuan Mountain Range, Half-Saint beasts can be considered a great power. You Xu might be a Saint 1-dan expert, but it wouldn’t be easy for him to hunt them either. To kill over twenty of them in a single year…” Zhong Dingchun could hardly believe his ears.

Half-Saint realm beasts were able to stand their ground even against Saint realm cultivators. Even if they were no match for You Xu, they could have still fled easily.

How could so many of them be hunted in a single year?

Besides, it was not like there were Half-Saint beasts lying all over the Hongyuan Mountain Range. It might not be too difficult to find a single one, but finding twenty of them… Difficult!

“I am not too sure about it, but it seems like You Xu has some ties with the Cloudmist Ridge too. Regardless, I have verified the news regarding the twenty Half-Saint beasts, so there is no mistake about it. If you still harbor some doubts, you can question You Xu after the duel!” School Head Mo said.

“Un!” With many doubts still lingering in his head, Zhong Dingchun nodded slowly.

Most of the saint beasts in the Hongyuan Mountain Range resided in the Cloudmist Ridge. If the Cloudmist Ridge was involved in this matter as well, then there was a good chance that it was true.

“Put that aside for now. As the head of the Physician School, can’t you stop the duel?” Seeing that the duo was still in the mood to discuss other matters, Wei Ranxue snapped at them.

The urgent matter at hand was to deal with the duel between You Xu and Zhang Xuan. Otherwise, a life might be lost just like that.

“The Life-and-Death Physician Duel is conducted with the approval of the Physician Guild. Once it has started, it can no longer be stopped. If we were to interfere in it, we would just end up complicating things…” Zhong Dingchun shook his head.

It was not that he was unwilling to interfere in the matter but that he couldn’t!

The Life-and-Death Physician Duel was conducted with the approval of the Physician Guild headquarters, and attempting to interfere in it would mean challenging the authority of the entire Physician Guild. Even as one of the Ten Great Master Teachers, he didn’t have the power to go against the Physician Guild.

This was the rules, and it mustn’t be broken.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have allowed You Xu to still stand proudly on the stage.

He would have already rushed forward to give him a good pummeling!

Chapter 809: Cheers, Feel Free ##

 

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

Hearing Zhong Dingchun’s words, Wei Ranxue questioned heatedly, “What can we do then? Are we to watch as they kill one another?”

She was still intending to study terpsichorean arts from Zhang Xuan. If something were to happen to him, who would she learn from?

“Calm down. It’s impossible to interfere in the Life-and-Death Physician Duel, but if we see either of them in mortal danger, we can advise that they give up. As long as they admit defeat, I believe that given our standing, they shouldn’t go so far as to kill the other party despite our mediation!” Zhao Bingxu said.

After a moment of hesitation, Wei Ranxue was unable to come up with a better solution either, so she could only nod in agreement. “… I guess this is all we can do for now!”

While the few of them were communicating telepathically amongst themselves using their Saint Intent, a huge commotion had broken out amidst the crowd as well.

Those who were standing around the platform were nearly all physicians, and upon hearing that it would be a Duel of Poison Curing, they glanced at one another with astounded expressions on their faces.

This was no longer a means to resolve their conflict; it was a battle to the death!

In this duel, it was highly likely that one of them would lose their life.

For a student to actually go so far against a vice school head… Just what was he up to?

“Teacher…” Luo Qiqi, who had arrived just a moment ago, heard the news, and her face immediately paled in fright.

“A Duel of Poison Curing?” Standing beside her, Hu Yaoyao’s eyebrows also shot up. It was difficult to tell what she was thinking, but her fists were tightly clenched by her sides.

“Take out your poison, we will swap with one another. The time limit is an hour, and whoever succeeds in curing the poison first wins. If either of us dies… he can only blame himself for being indolent in his studies!” You Xu roared with laughter.

Based on the other party’s accomplishments, it was unlikely that he would be a match for him in a battle in the Way of Medicine. However, in the field of poison curing… there was not a person in the Master Teacher Academy who was a match for him!

“Fine by me!” Zhang Xuan replied with a cold smile.

“Let’s begin then!” You Xu flicked his wrist and took out a murky-green jade bottle. “This is my poison!”

With a flick of his finger, the bottle flew in Zhang Xuan’s direction.

Zhang Xuan raised his hands and caught it casually.

Even without opening the bottle, he could feel an astounding power rippling within it, threatening to burst forth at any moment.

Intrigued, Zhang Xuan activated his Eye of Insight and assessed it.

In an instant, he saw a black aura shrouding the bottle. Even if a Saint realm 1-dan expert were to consume it, their physiological structure would likely be destroyed in an instant, resulting in immediate death.

Uncorking the lid slightly, a pungent smell immediately surged from the bottle. Even the smell itself carried a poison that could result in the immediate death of an ordinary human.

“What… kind of poison is that?” Beneath the stage, Zhong Dingchun’s face warped in astonishment.

As the head of the Physician School, a 6-star pinnacle physician, he could sense the fearsome aura within the jade bottle. Even if it was him who came into contact with it, the chances were that he wouldn’t walk out from the encounter alive.

“This poison is extremely formidable?” School Head Mo asked worriedly.

“Formidable? Putting aside an hour, I don’t think that I would be able to find a cure to it even if you were to give me a day!” Zhong Dingchun shook his head grimly.

“Even you are unable to find a cure to it? Then…” School Head Mo widened his eyes in shock.

After a moment of hesitation, Zhong Dingchun replied, “We can only have faith in Zhang shi’s capability… His proficiency in the Way of Medicine is far above mine, so it might be that he is able to achieve what I can’t!”

After learning of Zhang Xuan’s astounding deeds, Zhong Dingchun knew that the other party’s medical skills were way above his, so it would be hard for him to make a judgement at the moment. Since that was the case, he decided to wait and see first.

“It seems you are prepared.”

Corking the bottle, Zhang Xuan turned his gaze back to You Xu.

It was no wonder the other party proposed a Duel of Poison Curing. The poison he had at hand was indeed fearsome.

“This is a poison that I obtained coincidentally, and it is effective even against Saint realm experts. Where is your poison?” You Xu sneered coldly in response.

“My poison?” Zhang Xuan frowned.

Even though he was a poison master, he had never concocted a poison before, needless to say, one that would be capable of killing a Saint realm expert.

There wasn’t any poison he could take out from his storage ring at that very instant.

“What? You don’t have any? Going by the rules, that would mean a loss on your part…” You Xu said coldly.

The rules of the duel had been stated clearly, both parties had to offer a poison of their own to the other party. If Zhang Xuan was unable to take anything out, it would mean an automatic victory for You Xu.

It was not without reason that You Xu had chosen this format of duel. He didn’t think that there was anyone in Hongyuan Empire who was capable of taking out a poison more potent than the one in his jade bottle.

“Of course I do, hold on for a moment!” Waving his hands casually, Zhang Xuan fell into a short moment of contemplation before turning his sights to School Head Mo.

“School Head Mo, by any chance, do you have some ‘Spirit Solution of Vigor’?

“Spirit Solution of Vigor?”

School Head Mo was stunned for a moment before a peculiar expression slowly crept across his face. “Do you mean… the urine of saint beasts?”

“Indeed. If you do have some, can you give some to me?” Zhang Xuan asked.

The Spirit Solution of Vigor was the academic terminology for the urine of saint beasts, and it was commonly used amongst physicians so as to make it sound less dirty.

While the Spirit Solution of Vigor was only normal excretion for saint beasts, it was an object of fear for low-tier spirit beasts.

Beasts usually used their urine to demarcate their sphere of influence, and saint beasts were no exception to the rule.

As such, most beast tamers tended to carry some with them so as to deter the assault of spirit beasts.

You want some? School Head Mo frowned in confusion. He glanced at Zhong Dingchun, hoping that he might have some clue what Zhang Xuan was up to, but the latter looked equally perplexed as well.

The other party has taken out such a formidable poison, and instead of finding a poison to go against him, you are asking for the urine of saint beasts instead?

Even though the Spirit Solution of Vigor is effective at keeping spirit beasts at bay, surely you aren’t thinking that it’ll work on Saint realm cultivators too?

“Of course!” But despite School Head Mo’s bewilderment, he felt that Zhang shi wouldn’t be asking him for it without any reason. Thus, flicking his wrist, he took out a chi 1 long gourd and threw it to the platform.

Catching the gourd, Zhang Xuan swirled it slightly, and an astringent odor immediately diffused from it. Satisfied, Zhang Xuan nodded and turned to You Xu. “Alright, this is my poison!”

“…”

In that instant, You Xu’s face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot, and he nearly choked to death.

The heck!

I took out a lethal poison, and yet you presented me with a gourd of beast urine… What do you mean by that?

To call it your poison on top of that… Do I look blind to you?!

Everyone here saw with their own eyes that School Head Mo just passed it to you, and you haven’t even uncapped it yet… The hell is this a poison!

You are just intentionally trying to humiliate me, aren’t you?

Zhang Xuan, screw your grandmother…

Even if you want to humiliate me, you shouldn’t have done this. This is cheating!

Not only was You Xu frenzied, the crowd who was watching the show from below also abruptly fell deathly silent upon seeing that scene. Their eyes bulged from their sockets, as if they had seen a ghost.

This is a Duel of Poison Curing, a duel that can very well determine one’s life and death.

The poison that Vice School Head You took out carries a frightening aura, and just the smell makes one feel as if death is encroaching upon oneself. It is one thing for you not to take out a poison to match him, but… a gourd of urine?

More importantly… if you had taken it out discreetly, we wouldn’t have thought much of it. But you asked School Head Mo for it in public and passed it to Vice School Head You Xu right after you received it …

Could you have been any less discreet than that?

On the other hand, Zhong Dingchun also widened his eyes, and he nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.

As a 6-star pinnacle physician, he naturally knew that the urine of saint beasts carried no poison whatsoever.

School Head Zhong turned to School Head Mo and asked, “School Head Mo, could it be that… there is something special about your Spirit Solution of Vigor?”

“There isn’t. I just procured it from my saint beast not too long ago…” School Head Mo was also a little dazed by the abrupt twist of events before him. He couldn’t comprehend what the young man on the stage was up to.

“What’s wrong? I have already prepared my poison. If you dare not drink it, it’ll be your loss…” Zhang Xuan said as he continued holding the gourd up to You Xu, who was still reluctant to take it.

“You…” You Xu’s breathing hastened, and in that instant, he was truly tempted to rush forward and crush the neck of the young man standing before him.

He had thought that this would be an easy duel for him. No matter how potent the other party’s poison was, there was no way the other party would win. Yet, who could have known that the fellow wouldn’t play by the rules, presenting him with a gourd of urine instead… If he were to drink it, even if he won this duel, he would never be able to hold his head high before anyone anymore!

Drinking urine to achieve a victory… Screw that!

But if he didn’t drink it, that would mean that he was backing out from the duel, and going by the rules of the Life-and-Death Physician Duel, Zhang Xuan would be able to do anything to him…

He was a 6-star pinnacle master teacher, the vice head of the Physician School… How did he end up getting cornered like that?

Seeing the other party’s agitated breathing and hateful gaze, Zhang Xuan sneered coldly. “Stop wasting time. If you aren’t going to drink it, just surrender. You are the one who decided on the content of the duel, not me!”

In truth, he hadn’t intended to humiliate You Xu either.

He had no poison on him, and so far, the only books he had read on poison were those from the Red Lotus Ridge Poison Hall. As such, his current proficiency as a poison master was still only at 2-star. With his current capability, it was impossible for him to concoct a poison capable of killing a Saint realm expert.

Besides, even if he could, he didn’t have the ingredients on him to do so at this very instant!

Without any poison formula or medicinal ingredients for him to work with, how in the world was he going to concoct a poison?

Left with no choice, Zhang Xuan could only bank on his Heaven’s Path zhenqi.

After learning the Heaven’s Path Poison Art, he was able to turn his zhenqi into either a medicine or a lethal poison at a whim.

If he wanted to win against You Xu in the Duel of Poison Curing, he would have to use this.

However, it would be difficult to hide the Heaven’s Path zhenqi from You Xu, a Saint realm expert, and considering the unbelievable purity of it, the revelation of its existence could potentially bring Zhang Xuan great trouble. Thus, he had to use something with an overpowering odor to conceal it.

While strong alcohol did work against Luo Qiqi and the others, it was doubtful whether it would be effective on a Saint realm expert or not.

On the other hand, the Spirit Solution of Vigor carried an astringent odor. On top of that, drinking such a thing in public, the other party would surely try to gulp it down as fast as he could so as to get it over with as soon as possible. With that, the Heaven’s Path zhenqi would be able to swiftly fuse together with the other party’s own zhenqi before he could detect anything.

Once this was done, putting aside a 6-star physician, even if a 9-star physician was there that day, they would be helpless before this situation.

The Heaven’s Path zhenqi was not a lethal poison but incredibly pure zhenqi. As such, unlike typical poison, the body wouldn’t inhibit its movements at all, allowing it to easily seep into the vitals of a cultivator. Even if the cultivator were to notice its existence, it would be impossible for them to expel it from their body.

In the truest sense, it could be considered an incurable disease.

“This is a Duel of Poison Curing, and yet, you offered me a gourd of saint beast urine instead. This is an infringement of the rules!” You Xu gnashed his teeth together in savagery.

“As a physician, you should know that saint beast urine is a type of medicinal ingredient as well, otherwise it wouldn’t be known as the Spirit Solution of Vigor among physicians either. It is used to treat ‘Berserk Syndrome’, ‘Ice-Fire Zhenqi Clots’, ‘Beast Scabs’, and several hundred different types of illnesses.

“Since it’s a medicinal ingredient, naturally it can be used as a poison as well. Your poison is concocted out of many medicinal ingredients, so why can’t mine be the same? Since I am willing to consume yours, you shouldn’t have any problem with mine as well. If you refuse to drink it, I will have to ask you to just admit defeat!” Zhang Xuan waved his hands casually.

Despite the astringent odor of the Spirit Solution of Vigor which left one on the verge of fainting with just a sniff, it did possess medicinal properties as well.

And anything that possessed medicinal properties could be utilized as poison. This was common knowledge among physicians.

Since the Spirit Solution of Vigor could be classified as a poison as well, this wasn’t an infringement of the rules.

Seeing that there was no way around it, You Xu gritted his teeth furiously and spat, “You want me to admit defeat? Dream on! Fine, I will drink it. However, we shall start at the same time!”

“Start at the same time? There is no need for that!”

Without any hesitation, Zhang Xuan poured the poison in the jade bottle into his mouth before turning his gaze back to You Xu with an inviting gesture.

“Cheers, feel free!”