The Legend of Futian - Chapter 29: The Guqin Spirit

Even after Ye Futian departed with Hua Fengliu, the people of Qingzhou Academy were still unable to calm down.

It was going to be difficult to forget the image of a determined Ye Futian. Ye Futian and Yu Sheng did not say much about being treated unfairly during the Fall Quarter Examinations, nor did they say anything when the academy decided to punish Ye Futian. Despite receiving unfair treatment from the academy, it was the two of them who still stepped in to protect the honor of Qingzhou Academy. However, they were resolute in their decision to leave after gaining the attention of the most influential people at the academy.

Finally, the relationship between Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian was clear and the hatred that everyone felt for Ye Futian in the past disappeared. Everyone used to think that Ye Futian was unworthy of a goddess like Hua Jieyu, but now, he was the only person of the outer sect disciples that was worthy of standing by her side.

Naturally, this only made the hate Murong Qiu felt for Ye Futian grow stronger.

Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong of the Earth Elemental Pavilion was badly hurt, but only one of his colleagues went over to help him up. The others just left, obviously unhappy with him. As a result of his actions, Qingzhou Academy might lose three of their most gifted students. If the three of them made a name for themselves, would Qingzhou Academy be able to tell the world that they made any contributions to their success?

....

Ye Futian returned to his master's residence, where he had left just a little while ago. It felt weird to be here again.

"Ye Futian," called out Hua Fengliu as he took his seat.

"Master," replied Ye Futian. He was still trying to figure out his Master's true identity.

"This was most likely the doing of Shi Zhong alone, as he harbors bad intentions. I will have Qingzhou Academy deal with him. Qingzhou Academy has contributed so much to the city of Qingzhou; there's no need to harbor vengeance against them for the doings of one person," Hua Fengliu reasoned.

"Yes, Master. I understand," nodded Ye Futian.

"I am confused as to why you're so adamant about leaving the academy. If you choose to stay, then it would only be a matter of time before one of the Pavilion Lords set their sights on you. You would be highly valued," Hua Fengliu asked puzzled.

"I know the other Pavilion Lords are different from Shi Zhong, but still, none of them prevented his actions toward me even though they knew what he did was wrong. It's obvious that they were not willing to make an enemy of Shi Zhong for a mere outer sect disciple like myself. One might say that it was because I was not worth fighting for back then, but even after today's battle, they were still unwilling to help Yu Sheng and me. I can't tolerate this, so naturally I made the decision to leave the academy. Besides, now that Shi Zhong has a bone to pick with me, staying will only make things harder for myself. Should I have to fight against a Pavilion Lord while in the Awakening Plane?" explained Ye Futian.

Ye Futian continued, a bit confused himself, "As for being valued by the Pavilion Lords, none of them can surpass you. Under Master's guidance, would I even need them?"

"This..." Yu Sheng listened from behind Ye Futian. He was impressed. With this level of brown-nosing, no wonder Ye Futian was able to turn his master into his father-in-law.

Hua Jieyu looked at Ye Futian with disdain. At the same time, she could see that her father was nodding in agreement with Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu looked very satisfied at his response and replied, "You have a very good point."

Yu Sheng widened his eyes. Hua Fengliu was definitely not the modest type.

"Master, the outside world is too dangerous. A small issue is enough to warrant a request to rid me of my powers. I think I should just stay here by your side and cultivate from now on," Ye Futian saw an opportunity and took it.

"No!" Hua Jieyu opened her mouth before her father could say anything. What did he mean the outside world was too dangerous? Did he plan on just staying indoors for the rest of his life?

"Father, you said that cultivation isn't simply about putting work into training and practice; you must also have actual battle experience. If I have to regularly go to Mount Tianyao for battle training, then he should definitely have to as well. Since his gift is so great, he needs to go out and gain actual experience to aid his cultivation," said Hua Jieyu.

"Master, what she said is correct. So, from now on, besides cultivating here, I should go out regularly with Hua Jieyu. Under her care, Master shouldn't have to worry about me," said Ye Futian.

"You...," Hua Jieyu was completely speechless. She felt wronged as she looked toward her father. "Father, are you really not worried he might do something to me?"

"Of course I'm not worried! You've been cultivating longer than he has and you have more experience. Would he even be able to bully you?" asked Hua Fengliu jokingly.

"But," Hua Jieyu had more to say but was cut off by Ye Futian. "Thank you, Master!"

"Am I the third wheel?" Yu Sheng asked quietly. He scratched his head in confusion. Ye Futian looked back at him and thought that Yu Sheng was getting smarter and more observant by the day.

Hua Fengliu smiled at Yu Sheng and said, "Yu Sheng, you're a natural warrior and need to continuously refine your skills through battle. I will give you a spell scroll for defense later. You should also pick out some books on battle tactics and some spell books for cultivation from my library. Then, head to Mount Tianyao to train. You should keep challenging higher level demons to help yourself improve."

"Okay," nodded Yu Sheng. It seemed like he really was the extra wheel.

"Master, what about me?" asked Ye Futian with anticipation. He had already learned to inscribe spell scrolls and could not wait to see what Hua Fengliu had in store for him next.

"Since you're cultivating in martial and divination arts, you'll need to break through the planes for both at the same time. You've got tons to do," said Hua Fengliu. Ye Futian nodded and headed towards the study. Hua Fengliu had a large collection of books in his library, including books from all categories. It was a smaller version of Qingzhou Academy's library.

"Awakening level Thunder Elemental Sorcery, Thunder Lash, and Fire Elemental Sorcery, the Burning of Silence," Ye Futian picked these two spellbooks to study. As he continued to study the spells, night fell.

The snow was still falling and a crescent moon hung in the night sky.

The sound of a string instrument resonated throughout the residence. It was a guqin. The song was peaceful and brought serenity.

Ye Futian was drawn in by the sound of the guqin. He left the library and walked toward the main residence. There, he saw Hua Fengliu plucking away at the strings of the guqin. Basking in the moonlight, he looked so graceful.

Freedom Meditation kicked in by itself. Ye Futian could almost see the music notes floating through the air like tiny fairies.

His eyes closed, Ye Futian sat down in the snow and emptied his mind. He could feel the moonlight washing down on him, the cool light cleansing his body. The music flowed into his body, into his Life Palace. There, the World Tree began to rustle. Each leaf danced as the music notes wafted. The notes floated around, and eventually formed a picture. It was a guqin.

The guqin continued to play. Ye Futian entered a state of oblivion. Only the music continued to enter his mind, relaxing his entire being. His worries were all tossed into the back of his mind.

The song ended. Ye Futian still had his eyes closed. In his Life Palace, a third type of Life Spirit appeared in addition to the Natal Spirit and the World Tree Spirit. It was the Guqin Spirit.

Ye Futian was shocked. He knew that even by using the Freedom Meditation, Life Spirits could only be created in very special conditions. However, all it had taken for him to create the Guqin Spirit was one piece by Hua Fengliu.

Ye Futian opened his eyes slowly and asked Hua Fengliu, "Master, what piece was that?"

"Purification of the Night Moon," replied Hua Fengliu.

"I felt something change within me after listening to Master play. My ability to perceive energy has strengthened. I want to learn to play the guqin," said Ye Futian with great determination. Energy determined the level of a sorcerer, so if pieces played on the guqin could help improve that, then it would definitely aid in cultivation.

"Okay," said Hua Fengliu with a smile. Hua Jieyu watched everything unfold off to the side. She looked at her father and knew that he purposely played the guqin to test Ye Futian. Hua Fengliu wanted to pass down this skill to Ye Futian.

"Let's start by learning some basic pieces. Hua Jieyu, bring the sheet music. You will teach Ye Futian," ordered Hua Fengliu.

"Me?" Hua Jieyu blinked in disbelief and looked at her father in distress. Ye Futian felt touched, Master was too good to him.

"Be a good girl," Hua Fengliu tried to persuade Hua Jieyu. She glared at her father and left to get the sheet music.

Moments later, the moonlight was shining down on Hua Jieyu as she sat elegantly in front of the guqin. She unwillingly explained something to Ye Futian.

"Hey Fox, how do I play this note?" Ye Futian pointed at the music score and accidentally touched Hua Jieyu's hand.

Hua Jieyu immediately turned to look at him. In response, he said, "Sorry. It was an accident. I can't see clearly since it's dark out here."

"How many accidents have you had already?" Hua Jieyu asked with a smile on her face. Her hand touched Ye Futian's waist. Her fingers grabbed hold of him and she began to pinch down hard. He gasped and looked at the beauty in front of him. At least he could enjoy the view while in pain.

Ye Futian learned quickly, acquiring all the basic knowledge. He then began to play sheet music. Slowly, his skills matured, until he was able to play smoothly.

It got deeper into the night. Hua Fengliu had already gone to bed but Hua Jieyu was still by Ye Futian's side, teaching him the ropes.

At that moment, Ye Futian had his hands on the instrument and a bright aura emitted from him. When his fingers plucked at the strings, the music flowed and sent shivers down Hua Jieyu's spine.

She watched as Ye Futian kept his eyes closed. His Guqin Spirit harmonized with the guqin, giving life to every note that resulted from a stroke of his fingers.

Under the moonlight, his handsome face looked peaceful. His hands were like magic; they had the ability to get the listener moving with their every stroke. Hua Jieyu became more and more relaxed, her eyes closing as well. She was immersed in the music, and eventually fell asleep sitting in the snow.

"A prodigy," remarked Hua Fengliu, who was listening from his bedroom. He was very pleased. He too closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep with the music.

Ye Futian was spellbound by the music, unable to pull himself out of the state. He continued to play throughout the night, but felt no fatigue. On the contrary, he felt clear-minded.

The next morning, he opened his eyes and felt a change within himself. Using the Freedom Meditation to perceive the Spiritual Qi of the Heavens and the Earth, he knew that he had broken into the eighth plane of Awakening for sorcerers. He could not help but smile.

Ye Futian looked ahead and saw Hua Jieyu laying in the snow, her body covered in a layer of white snow. The jacket laid out on top of her was now drenched. He walked up to her and carefully removed the jacket. At that moment, Hua Jieyu opened her eyes and looked up at Ye Futian. He smiled at her and retracted his hand. "The jacket's wet, I didn't want you to get sick so I took it off for you," he explained.

"Really? You didn't have any other intentions?" she asked with a faint smile.

"Am I that type of person?" Ye Futian saw her smile and took a step back.

"What do you think?" laughed Hua Jieyu.

Suddenly, they heard something. It was the door to Yu Sheng's room. He stepped out and saw Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian. He then gave them a strange look.

"I'm going to leave now. Please feel free to continue whatever you guys were doing," Yu Sheng said as he took giant steps to bring himself away from the two. They were flirting in front of him so early in the morning. How inconsiderate! How was he supposed to feel about this?

The Legend of Futian - Chapter 30: The Guqin Devil and The Art Saint

Ye Futian was living in the guest room at Hua Fengliu's house. His days consisted of playing the guqin, practicing his inscribing, and enjoying the company of a beautiful girl. With this comfortable life, time flew and the new year was fast approaching.

One day, a giant monster flew into Guqingzhou Academy, a huge black condor. Even though the guards of the academy had tried to stop her, she flapped her wings so vigorously that the wind prevented anyone from approaching her.

There were several people mounted on the condor. The leaders of this group were an old man and a young man.

"That way." The older man pointed toward the academy. The huge black condor flew as directed, and on the way, the Director of the Hall of Earth Element, Shi Zhong, showed up, trying to stop this monster. "Stop, right now!"

However, the condor just ignored the warning, and so did the people on top of her. The wind from her wings was so intense that the fierce power knocked Shi Zhong yards away in a second. The people on her back didn't seem to be affected by his interruption.

The condor was heading to Hua Fengliu's house. The gentleman in white came out of his house and walked to the black condor without making much noise.

"Hua Fengliu," the old man started speaking with a sneer. "It's been three years since our deal. Where is Ms. Hua Jieyu?"

"It has not been three years yet. You promised me that you would not interfere with her," Hua Fengliu responded coldly.

"The new year is coming in a few days, so it has, in fact, practically been three years. She's too talented to waste so much time with you. This is just enough for our deal," The old man said.

"Time is time, I insist it has not been three years yet." Hua Fengliu did not give in.

"Mr. Hua, the Guqin Devil, I am Zhou Mu" the young man who bowed slightly to Hua Fengliu and greeted him. It was just general courtesy. In reality, the smile on his face showed that he was too young to be genuinely humble and had a faint sense of disdain.

Hua Fengliu glanced at him and asked, "Who are you?"

"My master, the Art Saint, has been feeling somewhat guilty over the years since he destroyed your natal spirit. He sent me here to see if you were doing well," Zhou Mu smiled as he spoke. Hua Fengliu's eyes soon turned sharply to this young man, but he was not going to attribute this humiliation to Zhou Mu. He turned to the older man and asked, "Why did you bring his disciple to my home?"

"I did not bring him here. The Art Saint actually sent him. Zhou Mu, sixteen years old, a Glory Plane invoker," the old man told Hua Fengliu.

Suddenly, Hua Fengliu understood what the Art Saint was trying to do. He started laughing so hard that his hair flew around him, then he said, "He lost to me in the past, and he wants his disciple to win in the present? Is that correct?"

"My master destroyed your natal spirit and banned you from entering the City of Donghai forever. How did he lose?" Zhou Mu rejected.

"A win or loss is not judged by you, young man Hua Fengliu said with a smile. "Just go back, I do not have time for this."

"Then I will come back for Hua Jieyu after the new year. If you try to stop me at that time, my family will not make it easy for you," the old man sneered, and suddenly the black condor swayed upwards and flew away. Hua Fengliu looked at the shrinking image of that black spot and laughed, "You already lost in the past, and now you're putting your hope onto your disciple? That's not going to work,"

　　...

In the guest room, Ye Futian had finished a song. He opened his eyes, but the feelings from that song were not gone. Mr. Hua had not taught him any songs other than the Purification of the Night Moon. Ye Futian's activities these days were just cultivation and music practice. In fact, his Plane of Martial Arts had reached Metamorph, the eighth plane. His Plane of Sorcery had broken through two planes directly, and now he was in the ninth Plane of Awakening, the Unmaker. Ye Futian understood that the Purification of the Night Moon played an essential role in this fast improvement.

At this time, Hua Jieyu was inscribing. Ye Futian went to her side and asked her gently, "Fox, do you want me to keep playing?"

"No." Hua Jieyu did not even look at him.

"Then I guess it's time for us to have a couple's talk." Ye Futian kept teasing her. Hua Jieyu put down the pen and started smiling at Ye Futian. However, the Spiritual Qi around her gathered, almost like she was going to attack. Ye Futian stepped away and said, "Gentlemen fight with words rather than actions."

"I am a gentlewoman, thank you." Hua Jieyu condensed the power into a wind-element spell and sent it toward Ye Futian.

"Don't kill your boyfriend!" Ye Futian ran away quickly. Hua Jieyu was already a mage in the Glory Plane. There was no chance he could take that damage.

Hua Fengliu came in from outside and saw the scene. "Jieyu, stop it."

Hua Jieyu stopped according to his demand. She glared at Ye Futian and complained, "Dad, this guy keeps picking on me every day."

Hua Fengliu ignored the complaint and asked them to come with him. "Just follow me." Ye Futian understood that there was something serious going on for Mr. Hua, and he stopped his joking attitude at once. Hua Jieyu and Ye Futian followed Mr. Hua to a room. Hua Fengliu led them to his own book collection room.

There were shelves in his book collection room and a chamber that was concealed in the wall behind them. Ye Futian was surprised when Mr. Hua opened the chamber and took out something that seemed to be very important.

There were some books in the hidden chamber. Hua Fengliu took them out and handed them to Ye Futian. "Futian, they are all yours now."

Ye Futian knew that these books were the true treasures. He took the books and read the names on them: Dragon Roar in the Mountain, The Fiend's Carnival, The Dance in Flamboyant Feathers… These books were actually guqin music sheets.

"Professor, these are all music spells, am I right?" Ye Futian asked.

"Okay, so you do know what they are. I used to be good at this specific kind of spell and, in fact, when I was young, people gave me the title of the Guqin Devil because my natal spirit was a guqin. Someone destroyed my natal spirit and totally prevented me from making any progress on my cultivation since then. Now, it's your turn to take over," Hua Fengliu said and sighed. Ye Futian was surprised. He had already known that the professor was a Mandate Sorcerer, but he never knew that his natal spirit had been destroyed.

"Don't ask me why, or try to avenge me. I just hope you cultivate hard enough to not to waste all the talents you have been granted." Hua Fengliu looked him in the eye and kept talking, "This city is too small for you in the long term. Next year I believe you will reach the Glory Plane. Do you want to sail through the East Sea and go inland?"

"My godfather asked me to leave here after I turn eighteen, but I still need to consult with my father and my godfather about this," Ye Futian responded.

"The new year is coming soon. You should get home. I'll tell Yu Sheng to go home when he gets back," Hua Fengliu told him.

Ye Futian nodded a little reluctantly. He looked at Hua Jieyu and said, "Fox, take care of your father after I'm gone."

Hua Jieyu, however, felt angry. In fact, during the whole time this boy was living at their house she had done all the household work. Now he was just telling her to "take care"?

"Oh my, you're finally leaving." Hua Jieyu seemed excited.

"Hey, what's with the attitude?" Ye Futian felt heart-broken.

"What do you think?" Hua Jieyu laughed at him.

"I'm leaving now," Ye Futian told her.

"Okay." Hua Jieyu smiled.

Ye Futian walked to the door and looked back at her. "Seriously, I'm leaving."

"Just go." She was still smiling.

Ye Futian sighed and waved to Mr. Hua. "See you next year, Professor."

Then he left for home.

After he left, the room became quiet suddenly.

Hua Fengliu shook his head with a wry smile and said, "He made this place so lively, and now that he's gone, this silence almost feels unfamiliar."

"You're too into this boy, dad," Hua Jieyu joked to her dad.

"Then what about you?" Hua Fengliu smiled at his daughter.

"Me?" Hua Jieyu blinked her eyes and said, "I'm happy that he left."

"The three years is up. Someone already came here from the City of Donghai to inform me. Actually, you might also have to leave after the new year." Hua Fengliu turned his eyes to the snow outside. He felt lost.

Hua Jieyu was shocked. She was reluctant to leave her father. She looked at the lonely figure of her father and said, "I don't want to leave. I want to stay here with you, dad."

"Silly girl, your mom is also missing you. Your family is not going to let you stay with me anymore. I am happy to have enjoyed your company over these three years." He patted his daughter on the head and kept speaking gently, "You may never see Ye Futian again. Moments ago may have actually been the final farewell for you guys, and you were just making fun of him."

Hua Jieyu was tremendously shocked. Several minutes ago the boy had left, and they were joking with each other. Now, it was their farewell?

"Jieyu, tell me, do you like this boy?" Hua Fengliu suddenly asked her.

"What are you talking about, dad?" Hua Jieyu was surprised again. She looked at her father, and it seemed that she was shy about answering this question, "That's just impossible."

"Really?" Hua Fengliu smiled at his daughter, "You're turning sixteen this year. You do have the right to decide your future, including whom to be with. You have not experienced much, so you don't understand that there are things and people in this world that once you miss, you miss them forever. I do like that boy. He's smart and talented. It seems to me that he's not going to waste his talents. More importantly, he looks like a playboy, but he is truly devoted to love. I'm pretty sure he is the same as I was at his age. Make your own decisions. Don't miss someone you really love forever. Think about my words these days. Remember, life is short. Do not have any regrets."

Hua Jieyu was dumbfounded by what her father had just said. She hadn't realized that she might miss someone forever!

"The boy has been spending so much of his time with you, and you just take it for granted. But if you disappear from each others' lives, another beautiful girl will appear in his. You are not a couple yet, so do not just think that you are the only one for him in this world." Hua Fengliu smiled and left his daughter alone. Hua Jieyu started to think about this seriously for the first time. The feeling was intense, but the concept of love seemed to be pretty faint and unfamiliar to her.

She always felt annoyed when Ye Futian was around in the house. However, when he was suddenly gone, she actually felt as if something was lost and even needed time to adapt. Her father had told her that she could miss someone forever, and thinking about this indeed gave her a sense of fear. Fear of the thought that she had just lost something precious.

The Legend of Futian - Chapter 28: Bad Temper

The snowflakes still flew around Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu.

No one had anticipated that Hua Jieyu would stand up for Ye Futian this time, not to mention the fact that she had protected Ye Futian by directly threatening a director in the academy.

So many hearts broke. Were they already dating?

However, their viewpoints had changed slightly. They didn't feel pity for Hua Jieyu. In fact, they understood that Ye Futian was the only boy qualified enough to become her partner.

Subconsciously, their views about Ye Futian had transformed entirely after the fight. He now symbolized dedication and talent in their minds.

Even Yang Xiu and Ling Xiao, who used to look down upon Ye Futian, had changed. The one they once ridiculed was the only one able to defeat a Mandate Sorcerer, challenge the rules of the academy and utterly reject the idea of becoming the disciple of a Hall Director. He had never taken them seriously before.

Feng Qingxue was also staring at Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu. It looked like she had tears welling up. She thought maybe the Goddess of this academy was the only one that deserved a boy as great as Ye Futian. She had used to believe she was out of his league, but now, she knew that it was the other way around.

Shi Zhong had not expected to see Hua Jieyu stand up for Ye Futian. She had even threatened him for this boy's sake. He couldn't help swearing to himself. Undoubtedly, love among young people was so consuming that even a girl as wise as Hua Jieyu could get lost in her feelings.

"Hua Jieyu, this is none of your business. Step away," Shi Zhong spoke gently to her. He knew how powerful this girl was and how influential her family was, so he didn't dare act harshly to her, even after being obviously threatened.

"You don't get my point, do you?" She was still smiling in such a beautiful manner that it totally contradicted her cold tone of voice. She was utterly humiliating Shi Zhong in public.

Shi Zhong became even more upset and stopped trying to hide it. No matter how remarkable this girl was, he was still a director at the academy, and he was the elder in this conversation. How frustrating it was to be threatened twice by a young girl, in front of the students no less.

"Listen, this should be taken care of by the academy. Even your father wouldn't interfere," Shi Zhong's tone turned rigid.

Hua Jieyu looked him in the eye and kept talking. "So you're telling me that you'll never regret the decision you just made, right?"

"Of course," Shi Zhong responded. "Ye Futian betrayed this academy with all the powerful talents he gained there. If he ever attended Heiyan Academy and turned his back on us, the damage could be tremendous. His abilities must be taken to prevent this treachery."

Hua Jieyu was laughing at Shi Zhong's statement. She did not even try to hide her contempt. Was he being serious?

"I gave you a chance to redeem yourself, but it's gone," Hua Jieyu mumbled as if talking to herself. The moment she stopped, the snowflakes surrounding them turned into a frenzy. The wind blew harder in the area, and everyone was feeling frostbitten. A general sense of threat was impending. Even though people had tried to attribute this to the snow, they believed it was actually anger from the beautiful girl.

"Whose power are you going to strip?"

A cold voice sounded on the far side of the space. There was a path between the rows of trees, already white due to the massive snowfall, and someone was walking down the road toward them.

The man was wearing a white fur coat and had long black hair that casually covered his shoulders.

He was middle-aged and truly handsome, like a melancholy scholar. He was walking slowly, but his pace was magically attracting the attention of all the bystanders.

In fact, he was walking faster than his pace seemed to allow. In a short while, he was approaching the crowd, and people had the chance to look clearly at his face.

"This gentleman is unparalleled by the rest of the world." People were amazed by this incredibly handsome man. Both his appearance and temperament were just perfect. People believed that when he was young, he must have been a real lady's man.

"Mr. Hua," the big chiefs of the academy, even the directors, greeted him. Shi Zhong, however, looked upset at the fact that he had arrived.

The students of Qingzhou Academy were shocked to suddenly see someone that was called "Mr." by all the big chiefs, even the directors. Who was he?

"Father?" Hua Jieyu greeted. The students finally realized why Hua Jieyu had such superior power at this academy, even strong enough for her to confront a director. It was no wonder anymore, when even the directors had to greet her father respectfully.

Plus, his face definitely explained where Hua Jieyu's beauty had come from.

Hua Fengliu nodded, then turned to look at Shi Zhong, "Answer me, now."

"Mr. Hua, excuse me for the misunderstanding. I would never dare to strip the abilities of your daughter. I did not mean any harm to Ms. Hua." Shi Zhong said politely.

"I know." Hua Fengliu understood that Shi Zhong didn't have the guts to threaten his daughter. He turned back and looked at Ye Futian. "Then he is your target, right?"

Shi Zhong nodded and pointed to Ye Futian. "Mr. Hua, this boy is a student of Qingzhou Academy. He was committing treachery by trying to quit the academy and join our enemy. To prevent further treachery, his abilities and talents must be removed. Jieyu was trying to stop me for a reason I do not understand."

"Is he telling the truth?" Hua Fengliu asked the boy.

"Professor, how could this be true?" Ye Futian shook his head with a wry smile. He knew that Mr. Hua should have been informed of what really happened.

"Professor?" Shi Zhong was shocked by this form of address. His face suddenly became pale.

He could not believe that Ye Futian had been a disciple of Hua Fengliu and that Hua Fengliu had come here not to stand up for his daughter, but for this boy.

Shi Zhong now felt cold, his back dripping with sweat. He felt the temperature around his body drop. Even with his Plane, he felt true coldness.

"My disciple just fought for the honor of Qingzhou Academy, but now you're trying to deprive him of all his power?" Hua Fengliu sounded peaceful, but everyone realized that he was concealing his anger. He stepped forward a bit toward Shi Zhong. People noticed that Shi Zhong was actually trembling.

Hua Fengliu gave his ultimatum."Looks like you have been the Director of the Hall of Earth Element long enough."

His beautiful eyes suddenly turned white and glowed. Horrifying lights shot out of his eyes. His hair flew around his shoulder from the storm wind he had caused. The storm took a moment to form, then suddenly rushed toward Shi Zhong.

Shi Zhong had no choice but to defend himself. He summoned the earth-element Spiritual Qi of the universe to form a wall to protect against Hua Fengliu's attack.

However, it didn't work at all. The wall was shattered in a moment, and Hua Fengliu reached his hand out toward Shi Zhong. The wind around his body formed an invisible hand that clamped around his neck and lifted his body into the air.

"Mr. Hua, forgive me. I did not know he was your disciple!" Shi Zhong was yelling for mercy, but his voice was hoarse from his throat being clamped.

"Now you know." Hua Fengliu became frenzied. The white lights from his eyes were horrifying. He smashed Shi Zhong's body to the ground so hard that a fissure appeared.

The big chiefs could not do anything but watch as Shi Zhong was being smashed to the ground and lifted into the air repeatedly. Two sounds were resonating around the space—the sound of Shi Zhong hitting the ground and his screams. People could only feel pity for Shi Zhong, because even as a director, he shouldn't have pissed off someone as powerful as Mr. Hua.

After a while, the torture finally stopped. The earth wasn't shaking anymore. Hua Fengliu put his hand down, and his eyes became peaceful again. He explained to those who were still shocked by what had happened, "Sorry, I have bad temper."

Ye Futian's eyes widened, and he couldn't stop looking at Mr. Hua. He had never imagined that a gentleman like his professor could be as violent as this. However, he believed it was cool for a real man to switch between being calm and collected to as violent as Mr. Hua was.

Other directors of Qingzhou Academy could only smile wryly. Leng Qingfeng started speaking, "Mr. Hua, I feel so sorry for our mistakes. We will definitely make compensation to Ye Futian for our errors in the future."

"Future? There is no future. This academy does not deserve him," Mr. Hua sounded peaceful again. Leng Qingfeng stopped talking because he understood that as long as Mr. Hua had already accepted Ye Futian, it would be unnecessary for Ye Futian to become an official student at the academy. But in this case, there was also no way Ye Futian would betray this academy.

They just wondered when Ye Futian had become his disciple.

Soon, Leng Qingfeng was reminded of a past occurrence. Before the Fall Quarter Exam, there was a dragon wandering in Mount Tianyao. They heard that a daredevil boy had gone deep into the mountain and was attacked by the dragon. Later the boy was taken away by Hua Fengliu. People were focused on dealing with the dragon since it was so late at night, and didn't pay attention to who was attacked. When they finally tried to find the boy, he was already gone.

It had been months, and people had forgotten about this. Now they finally realized that Ye Futian was the boy who was attacked by the dragon.

"Let's go," Hua Fengliu said.

"Okay," Ye Futian nodded, then Hua Jieyu, Yu Sheng and him left with Hua Fengliu.

"That was just awesome, Professor. What was that? A spell or a martial arts technique? Why have I never seen that before?" Ye Futian kept asking.

"You will know, in the future." Hua Fengliu smiled at him.

Ye Futian could not stop his curiosity. He looked at Hua Jieyu and asked her, "Fox, mind telling me?"

Hua Jieyu smiled back at him, "Sorry, no comment."

"Phew…" Ye Futian sighed and mumbled, "I thought you were in love with me when you stood up for me. Am I wrong?"

The smile on her face was suddenly gone. She gave Ye Futian a malevolent look then ran to her father.

However, Yu Sheng was looking at Ye Futian with admiration. This guy had just flirted with the daughter of his professor. He believed the professor would become Ye Futian's father-in-law someday in the future.

The Legend of Futian - Chapter 27: We’re in This Together

He had actually rejected their offer!

Countless people had their eyes on Ye Futian. Just a while ago, Yu Sheng and Ye Futian defeated the people of Heiyan Academy and saved the honor of Qingzhou Academy. In combination with his astonishing gift, everyone knew that the ban was as good as gone. These two young men were definitely going to be well-favored by the higher-ups of Qingzhou Academy.

The reality was exactly as had been expected. Many of the school leaders extended a welcoming hand to the two, and it seemed as if this whole fiasco was coming to an end. They would have never expected such an ending. Everyone had obviously underestimated Ye Futian's stubbornness and pride.

If he were still the Ye Futian of the past, no one would have cared about him; now he was now a genius prodigy, He was able to inscribe top-notch spell scrolls in the blink of the eye and defeat a same-plane Mandate Sorcerer. He had every right to be prideful. Everyone fell into a deep silence, even the authoritative figures of Qingzhou Academy.

At Qingzhou Academy, outer sect disciples received guidance and basic knowledge on cultivation from instructors, however, they had to put in a lot of work themselves for cultivation. Even at the library, they were only allowed on the ground floor. They did not have the privilege to make use of many other resources at the academy. The battle also now involved the honor of the entire academy, so when Ye Futian had said that this victory was a sign of gratitude for being able to cultivate at the academy for the past three years, no one could blame him for anything.

From the looks of it, Ye Futian and Yu Sheng stepped up to battle together not only for Hua Jieyu, but they had everything thought out in advance.

At the thought of this, none of the authorities had a thing to say. Ye Futian had studied at the academy for three years and not a single person was able to see his immense potential.

"In the Fall Quarter Examinations, Yu Sheng should have been ranked first and you third. This will be written down in the academy's records," Leng Qingfeng said to Ye Futian. In the crowd, Murong Qiu's expression darkened immediately. This was so embarrassing. Two months ago, it had been announced that Murong Qiu ranked first in the Fall Exams; now the academy was going to break tradition and alter its records by taking him off the ranks. This was sure to cause a huge ruckus. If the news got out, how was he going to look to the world? He would be a giant laughing stock.

There was not a word from any of the other students. They could not help but look over at Murong Qiu. It was true; he had had no right to be ranked first. When Heiyan Academy attacked, he had not even had the courage to step up and fight. Yu Sheng, on the other hand, had been able to do everything Murong Qiu could not.

"I object," Shi Zhong spoke up, he was not pleased. He stared at Ye Futian and said, "The results have already been announced, how can we change them so easily? Even though Ye Futian's performance today was impressive, we cannot ignore the fact that he used his victory in today's battle as a bargaining chip and threatened the academy. What's the use of having a student like this, even if he is immensely gifted?"

"Threatening the academy?" Ye Futian stared at Shi Zhong. It looked like it was Earth Elemental Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong who put Murong Qiu in the first rank position. It was most likely his idea to place the ban on Ye Futian as well.

As for Cabinet Master Leng Qingfeng of the House of the Swordsmen, he had always been friendly to Ye Futian. He probably had nothing to do with any of this.

Looking at Shi Zhong, Ye Futian could not hold in his smile, "I'm just an outer sect disciple, what ability do I have to threaten Qingzhou Academy? On the contrary, I would like to ask Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong, what have I done to offend you?"

"What do you mean?" asked Shi Zhong.

"During the Fall Quarter Examinations, Yu Sheng obviously had the upper hand in terms of both gifts and capabilities. Today's battle was proof of that. When you gave first place to Murong Qiu, I was being reasonable to object your decision. Even if you thought I was purposely going up against you, I was already punished when you removed me from the ranks and banned me from class. I cannot understand why removing the ban on me is the only thing you are willing to offer after all the work Yu Sheng and I put in today to protect the academy. Does the honor of Qingzhou Academy mean that little to you?"

Ye Futian looked at Shi Zhong and continued, "Or should I ask what exactly have I done for you to dislike me so much and what about Murong Qiu is so great that you had to give him first place? You even placed a ban on me under his influence, is that not true?"

"How presumptuous!" shouted Shi Zhong. His eyes shot daggers at Ye Futian, "Utter nonsense! Is this the attitude you use when speaking with your elders? Even if we groom you into the best of the best, a treacherous student like you will only bring disaster in the future."

Treacherous. Everyone could obviously tell that there was something deeper going on behind the results of the Fall Exams. Every word Shi Zhong said was an attempt to get Ye Futian expelled.

Besides, just like Ye Futian had said, Shi Zhong's ban on Ye Futian was influenced by Murong Qiu. Thinking about what might have been going on behind the scenes gave the students of Qingzhou Academy shivers.

"Shi Zhong, that's enough," said the Pavilion Lord of the Thunder Elemental Pavilion. The seven Pavilion Lords of the School of Divination Arts were all acquainted with each other. There were some unspoken rules between them, and a blind eye was turned as long as it did not interfere with the interest of Qingzhou Academy.

However, none of them expected the two young men, who were unfairly judged during the Fall Exams, to be this talented, as well as stubborn and prideful.

"Ye Futian, in today's battle you did a really big favor for the academy, so the academy will not mistreat you. There will surely be Pavilion Lords interested in accepting you two as official disciples. You guys will be able to focus on cultivations and in the future, the two of you will definitely make a name for yourselves and achieve great things. You shouldn't be too stubborn regarding other things," Pavilion Lord Li Jiang of the Wind Elemental Pavilion tried to persuade Ye Futian.

Hearing these words, Ye Futian began to laugh at himself. It looked like he was still too young and too confident in himself. No matter how exceptional his gifts were or how much work he put in to protect the academy, it did not change anything. All it had done was help him gain the attention of a couple authoritative figures and speed up the process for him to become an official disciple.

But was this really enough?

Pavilion Lord Li Jiang wanted Ye Futian to stop being so stubborn. It was obvious that he wanted Ye Futian to stop while he was ahead. Li Jiang most likely shared Shi Zhong's opinion that Ye Futian was simply trying to threaten the academy. He was not really going to drop out of the academy. After all, Qingzhou Academy was the holy land for cultivators in the city of Qingzhou.

Should Ye Futian really just forget about the events of the Fall Quarter Examinations? Was there really going to be no explanation for his punishment and the ban on him?

As for the secrets behind the exam results, it seemed to be forbidden to expose. Maybe he was just too young, too naïve.

But there was one advantage of being young—you had the right to be stubborn.

At the thought of this, Ye Futian smiled and lightly bowed to the academy elders. Everyone watched him. What was the meaning behind his actions?

"I will remember everything Qingzhou Academy has taught me in these past three years. I will take my leave now," Ye Futian said with a smile. "Yu Sheng!" he shouted after.

Beside him, Yu Sheng hummed in response. His eyes stared coldly at the elders, evidently unhappy.

"Let's go," said Ye Futian as he turned to leave, stepping into the white snow. Yu Sheng stopped his staring and followed closely behind Ye Futian.

In that instant, their backs looked lonely but their footsteps determined. From this, it was possible to feel the pride they had.

They were really leaving!

The elders were all dumbfounded. They did not expect Ye Futian to take this so seriously.

The House Master of the Battle House, the Cabinet Master of the House of the Swordsmen, and multiple Pavilion Lords stared coldly at Shi Zhong. The looks on their faces said it all. This caused Shi Zhong's expression to darken and he called out reluctantly, "Wait."

Ye Futian's steps halted and he turned around to look at the person speaking to him. "Is there anything else you need from me, Pavilion Master Shi Zhong?"

"What kind of place do you think Qingzhou Academy is, coming and going as you please," said Shi Zhong. Ye Futian squinted his eyes in confusion and asked, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

"You're rebellious by nature and hold a grudge against Qingzhou Academy. Now that you're leaving the academy, do you plan to join Heiyan Academy to get revenge on Qingzhou Academy?" Shi Zhong asked.

The temperature dropped at his words. Everyone could feel the iciness in his voice. Was Shi Zhong trying to give Ye Futian the death sentence by saying this?

Heiyan Academy and Qingzhou Academy were rivals; therefore, as soon as Shi Zhong instilled the thought in everyone's heads that Ye Futian and Yu Sheng could betray Qingzhou Academy, what awaited them was not a pretty ending.

"Pavilion Lord Shi Zhong, Ye Futian had already rejected Heiyan Academy's offer, it's impossible that he would go join them," Qin Yi said with worry. Ye Futian's performance today really surprised her, but his stubbornness left her speechless. However, she felt that she must speak up against Shi Zhong right now.

"Of course, he wouldn't accept the offer in front of all of us but how about when he steps outside?" asked Shi Zhong. Beside him, Leng Qingfeng observed him. Shi Zhong was trying to force Ye Futian into a dead end. Even if Ye Futian had no such thoughts, the consequences of Shi Zhong's words had already been placed into action.

"What do you want?" asked Yu Sheng. The rage he felt radiated off of him.

"Rid yourself of all the powers you gained in the past three years," Shi Zhong said. It was dead silent once again.

Everyone was stupefied; no one was able to make a sound. It was a long while before soft steps could be heard. A perfect silhouette appeared like a goddess descending from heaven. It was Hua Jieyu.

She stopped beside Ye Futian and took a look at him. This made Ye Futian lose his train of thought. She really was a fox.

Hua Jieyu then shifted her gaze toward Shi Zhong and smiled lightly, "I think it would be best if you took back the words you just said."

Her voice was so soft and peaceful; it was almost able to put everyone under her spell. Was she threatening the Pavilion Lord of the Earth Elemental Pavilion?

A while ago, it was Ye Futian who had stepped up to protect her. Now, it was her turn to protect him. Many people in the audience were envious and jealous of Ye Futian right now.

In the snow, Ye Futian and Hua Jieyu stood side by side. The holy Qingzhou Academy did not seem so impressive anymore.

Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 57: Storage Ring

“You won’t get away that easily!”

This fellow had Zhang Xuan surrounded, and demanded him to kneel down and compensate him. Naturally, Zhang Xuan couldn’t possibly let him off the hook so easily. Zhang Xuan did a quick job out of the several Fighter 5-dan Dingli realm pinnacle ‘supports’ and after turning his body around, he headed straight for the ‘Master Mo Yang’ ahead of him.

With the significant breakthrough in the strength of his physical body, Zhang Xuan’s body movement was reminiscent of a frog. Every single time the base of his foot came into contact with the ground, he would fly 10 meters forward. Despite not possessing any footwork techniques, his speed was already swift like a roc.

“The heck!”

The frantically escaping ‘Master Mo Yang’ turned his head, just to see the other party flitting towards him with large strides, his movements similar to that of the immortals. The overwhelming shock caused him to forget to breathe for a split moment, almost making himself tumble over.

He thought that Zhang Xuan was a lamb that he could easily squeeze to death, so he fervently hunted him down to wash away the shame from the incident earlier this day. Yet, never did he expect that he would run into a lion’s den.

If only he knew that Zhang Xuan was that formidable, he would have never come looking for him.

Judging from how young that fellow was, even if he started training inside his mother’s womb, it was still illogical for his strength to rise that quickly…

‘Master Mo Yang’ felt endless regret, to the point that even the thought of suicide popped up in his head.

If only his mouth wasn’t that inauspicious for him to pick out that fellow out of the entire crowd when he was scamming others in the treasure speculation hall, the other party would not have exposed his deeds and he could have walked out of the hall pompously under the gazes of respect from the crowd, despite scamming their money. Even after his ploy was exposed, he could have just escaped the capital, and nothing would have happened. Yet, he just had to decide on exacting vengeance. Now, not only did he fail to exact vengeance, on the contrary, he became the one who was being chased like a weakling. What the heck is this…

[Truly, if one doesn’t dedicate one's soul to committing suicide, one wouldn’t die. Ah, my heart…]

Despite being just nineteen, Zhang Xuan had cultivated the Heaven’s Path Divine Art and Heaven’s Path Golden Body. His body had been nourished by zhenqi and cleared of all impurities, his bones tempered and forged anew, causing him to look younger than his real age. At one look, he looked barely seventeen or eighteen.

At such an age, an average person would only be at Fighter 1-dan or 2-dan. Yet, the moment they all made a move, it was clear to see that not even with all of them combined could they match up with Zhang Xuan. Thus, it would actually be more bizarre if he didn’t choose to escape.

“Stop!”

While complaining in his mind, he felt a stifling sensation in his chest. Following which, a flat voice sounded from his back.

Peng!

Before he could turn around to counterattack, he felt a sharp pain at the center of his spinal cord. He stumbled forward and with his face in contact with the ground, he flew forward, creating a deep gorge on the ground in his track.

“My face…” ‘Master Mo Yang’ was on the verge of tears.

Without taking a look, it was clear that his face was already ruined.

Kacha!

As though not sparing the moment for him to wallow in self-pity, a foot stepped on his head.

“You should have thought of the possibility of such an outcome when you came for my life…”

Zhang Xuan stepped on the head of the other party with an impassive expression.

He had only been an ordinary librarian in his previous life. However, ever since becoming a part of this world, he had comprehended the logic of might reigning supreme here.

If his strength turned out to be inadequate today, he might have possibly died already.

“Don’t kill me. Lord, as long as you do not kill me, I am willing to hand over my years of savings to you…”

Clearly feeling the other party’s ability to crush his head by exerting force through the foot that’s on his head, ‘Master Mo Yang’ trembled uncontrollably.

Comparing money with life, it was clear that the latter was much more valuable.

“Oh? Show it to me then. I’ll see if it is sufficient to buy your life!”

Zhang Xuan replied blandly.

“Yes, yes!”

Hearing the other party’s words, ‘Master Mo Yang’ hurriedly took off his ring with trembling fingers and presented it to Zhang Xuan. “Everything is inside. I beseech lord… to take a look!”

“Inside?” Zhang Xuan frowned.

What could be fitted into a ring?

However, as an ‘expert’, he couldn’t be posing such an inquiry to the other party. His mind jolted and a book appeared.

“Low-tier Storage Ring. Possesses three meters square of space within. Flaws: Inferior method of creation…”

The book described the details of the ring thoroughly.

“Storage ring? To think that a giant fraudster like him would possess such a good item. Looks like I’ve made a huge earning this time!”

When browsing through the books in the academy’s Compendium Pavilion, he became aware of the existence of the ‘mountain in a seed’ mystical treasure. Initially, he thought that it was a treasure that was far from his reach, to think that this fellow possessed it!

Even though it was a low-tier storage ring, it should be worth at least 500000 gold coins.

Even the elders of the academy might not be able to afford such a luxury.

He couldn’t help but feel surprised by a fraudster possessing such an item.

However, after giving this matter some thoughts, he came to a realization. Without this item, how could he bring away the money he earned? If he were to carry the stack of money around, it would just be a matter of time before he got discovered, caught and executed.

Looks like this fellow had spent much of his fortune just to buy this.

As Zhang Xuan expected, a face of heartache appeared on the face of the other party as he passed the object over.

Recalling the details of storage rings in the book he had read regarding it previously, he dripped a drop of fresh blood on it.

Weng!

With a jolt of his mind, a three-meter-square space appeared in his vision. It was filled with gold coins, numbering up to a hundred thousand.

His character might be subpar, but he did have quite a bit of saving.

“Lord, since you have accepted the item, I beg you to spare my life…” Seeing the young man, ‘Master Mo Yang’ hurriedly said.

“Spare your life? It is not impossible for me to do that. If you hand over the banknotes that you have secretly hidden on your body, sparing you is just a small matter!” Zhang Xuan looked at him with a bright smile.

“You… You…”

With narrowed eyes, ‘Master Mo Yang’ looked as though he had met a ghost as disbelief shrouded his features.

A cunning rabbit had three burrows. As an experienced scammer, he had already prepared a course of action in case he got captured. Thus, when he was running away, he secretly moved to his body the banknotes he had accumulated throughout the years. This was also the reason why he generously offered his storage ring over. The goal of it was to numb the other party so that he wouldn’t conduct a body search on him.

As long as he was able to get away safely, even if he lost the storage ring and the wealth stored within it, with such banknotes in his possession, he would be able to live without worries as a wealthy man and start anew!

He thought that his actions were extremely covert. He couldn’t have imagined that this young-looking man had seen through his actions from the start.

He… How did he know?

Even if he was powerful, it was impossible for him to see through his clothes and notice the banknotes hidden within!

Huala!

Couldn’t be bothered to argue with the other party, with a claw, Zhang Xuan ripped apart his clothes, and in accordance with his expectations, ten banknotes exposed themselves between the tattered clothes. Each of them was worth 100,000, and they added up to a massive sum of 1,000,000!

“Looks like I have made a huge profit this time…”

Delighted to see the enormous amount of money, Zhang Xuan’s eyes radiated light.

“I have given you all my money, so you can let me go now…”

Seeing how the other party was aware even of his hidden stash, ‘Master Mo Yang’ became disconsolate, his previous haughty aura gone without a trace as cries threatened to escape from his throat.

“Hehe. Yang Mo, an apprentice appraiser. A scammer in Liuzhu Kingdom who made his name as an appraiser, notorious for his frauds to earn wealth and the favor of women. Skilled in Voice of Allurement, which beguiles the mind of others through words, making it easier to convince them…”

Zhang Xuan’s foot remained firmly on his head as he revealed the information compiled on this ‘master’ from the library with a smiling face.

“You… You… How did you know? Who the hell are you?!”

‘Master Mo Yang’s’ eyes narrowed as his whole body trembled intensely, fear reflected on his face.

Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 56: Surrounded (2)

“So, it seems that he isn’t weak. No wonder he is so arrogant!”

Seeing ‘Number Four‘ being sent flying by a single palm, Master Mo Yang froze for a moment before his expression turned even more savage. Waving his hands grandly, as though he was in control of the entire situation, he said, “However, your luck ends here!”

After which, he turned to look at the artifact dealer by the side and said, “End it fast. We still have matters to attend to!”

“Un!”

The artifact dealer nodded his head and advances forward.

Boom!

Before he even struck, he already emanated an aura from his body. It was similar to the mountains and the oceans, immeasurable. If one were to close their eyes, they could clearly feel ten acupoints in the other party’s body absorbing and exuding spiritual energy, each of them bright as though they were the stars.

“Pixue realm expert?”

Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

At Fighter 6-dan Pixue realm, one could start opening up the acupoints within their body to absorb the spiritual energy from the world and refine it for their own usage. At this level of cultivation, regardless of whether it was reaction speed or strength, they would be enhanced significantly. In Hongtian Academy, this was the level of strength an elder possessed!

It was beyond his expectations that a scammer possessed such strength.

“Are you afraid? If so, kneel down, apologize and compensate our losses! Otherwise, death awaits you!”

Noticing Zhang Xuan’s astonishment, he thought that he was apprehensive of his strength. Thus, with a long cry, he stepped forward, reminiscent of a god who governed over life and death.

“Kneel down? Apologize? Compensate your losses?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “I am not that free to be apologizing and giving compensation to a scammer. If you all have such an interest, you all could kneel down to me instead and compensate my losses from your assault today. This way, I can consider letting you all off the hook!”

“What did you say?”

“Is this fellow mad?”

Master Mo Yang and the artifact owner started to suspect whether this fellow was insane.

[Our people far outnumber you. Furthermore, we have Pixue realm experts on our side. Yet, you expect us to kneel down to a lonesome young man like you?

What are you trying to act cool for?

Besides, compensate your losses for the assault? You have losses my ass! The head of our Number Four is still lodged into the ground. If we are speaking about losses, ours are significantly greater, okay?]

“Stop spouting nonsense with him, just kill him!”

Master Mo Yang gestured.

“Un!” The artifact owner nodded his head. Exerting force on the soles of his feet, he charged towards Zhang Xuan with his fingers wide open in the shape of a palm.

Huhu!

Before he could get close, the rustling of the wind could be heard, as though an eagle trying to prey on a rabbit. It gave others an oppressing sensation, a massive pressure that they were seemingly unable to withstand.

“It is Number Two‘s battle technique, 【Soaring Eagle】!”

“This battle technique can be considered to be superior even among those in the mortal intermediate tier. Isn’t it a little too excessive to be using it to deal with a young lad?”

“Hehe, it isn’t excessive. This lad is able to smack away Number Four with a single palm strike of his. This shows that he is pretty capable as well. However, his luck has come to an end, now that he is facing Number Two‘s Soaring Eagle!”

…

Seeing the artifact dealer executing such an incredible technique, the crowd nodded their heads in approval.

Soaring Eagle was in the forefront even among the mortal intermediate tier battle techniques. The moment it was executed, one would emit a majestic aura, reminiscent of an eagle hunting down a rabbit, leaving his opponent with the impression of mountains and oceans, as well as a feeling of helplessness before such overwhelming might.

Even if their leader ‘Master Mo Yang’ were to encounter it, he would have to retreat temporarily so as to avoid facing it head on.

“Soaring Eagle?”

The moment the other party executed his battle technique, a manual appeared in Zhang Xuan’s head and written on it were the flaws and the history of this artifact dealer.

Scanning through it with his consciousness, Zhang Xuan imprinted this information into his mind and suddenly, a bizarre expression appeared on his face.

Hu!

Due to the lack of time, he couldn’t thoroughly ponder over it. The battle technique executed by the artifact dealer was already right before him.

A battle technique allowed one to unleash their strength better, thus bringing them to greater heights.

As a Pixue realm expert who had opened ten acupoints, the artifact dealer wasn’t weak at all. Complemented with the mortal intermediate-tier battle technique, he carried with him a very powerful and oppressive aura.

“Die…”

A savage smile appearing on his face was similar to the radiance of a flower. However, before this flower could finish blooming, his eyes narrowed and a ghastly cry sounded, “Ah…”

A tragic howl echoed across the night sky, as though a stone grinder had crushed the ears of a dog.

“What happened?”

At the very start, ‘Master Mo Yang’ and the rest thought that Zhang Xuan would be crushed in an instant by the strength of Number Four. However, they didn’t expect that the latter would end up so tragically. Recalling the defeat of Number Four, they swiftly turned their heads to take a look and the sight before them caused their face to twitch, almost passing out on the spot.

The young man before them totally ignored the magnificence of the artifact dealer and sent a kick upwards toward his dignity as a man. Kacha, the sound of egg breaking apart caused everyone’s face to twitch uncontrollably.

Sou!

The next moment, the artifact dealer was sent flying as though he was a rubber ball, crashing into a wall not too far away, forming a 大 word. Initially, it should have been a 太 word, but from the looks of it, there probably wasn’t a chance for it anymore.

“Incredible!”

Seeing how he was able to easily kick away the Pixue realm artifact dealer who was in the midst of executing his battle technique, Zhang Xuan nodded his head in approval.

Even though his physical body was significantly stronger than the other party, the other party was skilled in fighting techniques and also possessed great speed. If Zhang Xuan fought normally, he would’ve had to resort to several means to cripple him, and even so, it would have taken several blows to do it. However, with the Library of Heaven’s Path, he was able to clearly see through the flaws of the other party. As such, subduing him became an easy task. With a single kick… the bird flew away and the egg shattered. Even if he was a Pixue realm expert, he wasn’t too far off from death from that kick.

“Something is amiss about this lad. Let’s attack him together!”

Seeing Zhang Xuan smacked Number Four into the ground and kicked Number Two to the point that he no longer possessed his lower companion, no matter how foolish ‘Master Mo Yang’ could be, he clearly understood that the lad before him wasn’t simple, and his previous contemptuous gaze hardened.

Hualala!

Upon hearing the orders, even though the remaining few were sweating profusely and a numbing sensation pervaded their crotches, they dared not disobey the orders and stepped forward to encircle Zhang Xuan.

“Go!”

With a bellow, the remaining few immediately charged forward. All kinds of powerful attacks fell relentlessly onto Zhang Xuan.

Their zhenqi gushed through their meridians and the might of their attacks generated powerful shockwaves.

Just like the previous Number Four, the rest of them were all Fighter 5-dan Dingli realm experts.

Despite the fact that they outnumbered Zhang Xuan, due to his ability to see through the flaws of others and his Pixue realm pinnacle level fighting prowess, they did not pose a threat to him at all.

“Something is not right. Why are there only these few attacks?”

Parrying all of the attacks that came flying towards him, a thought suddenly flashed through Zhang Xuan’s mind, causing him to pause for a moment.

The artifact dealer, who was only the number two in their midst, possessed the strength of Pixue realm. Logically speaking, the fake ‘Master Mo Yang’ should be significantly stronger than him. However, why was he not attacking with the rest of the lot?

If he were to attack, perhaps Zhang Xuan might have a difficult time coping with the attacks…

Just as he was bewildered over the bizarre situation, he noticed a figure who had already retreated ten meters away. In the midst of his escape, he shouted, “You all kill him, I’ll be back soon…”

“Ah?”

Hearing these words, the attacking crowd staggered.

There was no need to guess the situation. It was clear to see that their boss… upon sensing that the situation had gone awry, had abandoned them and fled…

“Shameless!”

Zhang Xuan shouted in surprising harmony with the rest of the ‘supports’.

Just a moment ago, he was still bellowing so righteously. Yet, at the next moment, he turned around to flee, leaving his subordinates in a lurch. No wonder he was able to escape the pursuit of Liuzhu Kingdom, he is simply way too shameless to be caught that easily!

Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 55: Surrounded (1)

Chatting for a moment longer, Zhang Xuan was questioned on where he obtained the Hongjin Pearl Fruit from. He casually replied that he got it from the market, causing Master Lu Chen and the rest to exclaim at his fortune.

“Right, brother Zhang Xuan, are you a local or…” Lu Chen asked.

“I am a teacher at Hongtian Academy!” Zhang Xuan replied.

“No wonder you possess such strength and a deep understanding towards painting!” Master Lu Chen praised him. He turned around to Huang Yu and Bai Xun, who were sitting by the side, and said, “Painting can mold a person’s personality and train their character. Don’t let fighting and killing occupy your mind all day long! Since brother Zhang Xuan is a teacher of the academy, go and visit him to learn from him whenever the both of you are free. I will consider giving the person who learns a thing or two from him a pass and give them what they want!”

“Yes!”

Huang Yu replied with a bitter expression whereas Bai Xun’s eyes were glittering with excitement.

Through their crossing of blows, he understood that Zhang Xuan’s current ability far surpassed him. To be able to learn from such an expert was definitely much more interesting than simply just learning boring painting!

At the very least, he felt more relaxed learning from him than Master Lu Chen.

“My apologies for the sudden intrusion today. It is getting a little late, so master, I will be bidding you farewell. I will visit you another day!”

After accomplishing what he came for, Zhang Xuan decided to take his leave and clasped his hands together towards Lu Chen.

“This time, you came here to look for Fighter 6-dan cultivation techniques, but it is a pity that I don’t have many of them here. I will speak to Shen Zhui about this matter a few days later to bring you to the kingdom’s Book Collection Vault to browse through them! It just happens that he seems to be out hunting these few days, so he isn’t in the capital at the moment!” Master Lu Chen said.

“You have my utmost gratitude, master!” Hearing these words, Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up.

It was impossible to find more than a few Fighter 6-dan cultivation technique manuals at any ordinary location. However, in the kingdom’s Book Collection Vault, the location that was reputed to have the most complete collection of books in Tianxuan Kingdom, he was surely able to find many of them!

If he was able to enter the vault to browse through the Fighter 6-dan cultivation techniques, he might be able to form Heaven’s Path Divine Art and break through successfully!

“You’re too courteous…”

Lu Chen nodded his head with a smile…

Leaving the master’s residence, Zhang Xuan headed towards the academy.

The sun had already set when he was still having dinner with Shen Bi Ru. At this moment, the moon hung high up in the sky, illuminating the ground with a cold silver glow. Going by the clock of his previous life, it should be around twelve already!

Despite the time, he didn’t feel fatigued in the least. Instead, his eyes were glowing in exhilaration.

The trip to the master’s residence was truly worth it!

Compiling the Heaven’s Path Golden Body has propelled the strengthening of his physical body, causing his prowess to soar. With his current cultivation, even if he were to meet with a Pixue realm pinnacle expert, he would be able to easily subdue them!

Besides, he also found a dozen books or so on Fighter 6-dan cultivation techniques. Even if it was insufficient for him to compile a complete version of Heaven’s Path Divine Art, it should still be beneficial to his training.

“My physical body has already reached 90 ding of strength. If I were to find higher tier physical body enhancement techniques, will I grow even stronger?”

There might be many different secret manuals on training one’s physical body in Master Lu Chen’s study, but they were the simplest and most basic cultivation methods. If such books could possess such effects after being compiled by the Library of Heaven’s Path, didn’t this mean that if he were to assemble together a set of more profound physical body cultivation manuals, the book compiled would be even more incredible?

If this was true, his physical body would probably play a significant part in his battle prowess in the future!

Just as he was immersing himself in his delight, his ears suddenly quivered.

The growth in strength of his physical body had also caused his hearing and vision to sharpen. He suddenly realized that someone was stalking him!

His footsteps swayed and he came to a stop. “Those friends who are following behind me, come out!”

“Hehe, I didn’t expect that you would be so wary!”

“What is the use of being wary! Lad, you made us lose money, don’t even dream about escaping from us today…”

Hualala!

As his voice trailed off, a few human silhouettes dashed out from the darkness and surrounded him. Every one of them looked at Zhang Xuan coldly, as though staring at a corpse.

“It’s you all?”

Zhang Xuan recognized them.

He recognizesd two of those in the group as Master Mo Yang, who was exposed in the market earlier today by him, and the artifact dealer who was working with him.

The remaining few should be the ‘supports’ who were hidden within the crowd.

At this moment, ‘Master Mo Yang’s’ face was swollen red and the skin around his eyes was bruised black. A few parts of his clothes were torn off and he no longer possessed the serene and enlightened disposition and appearance from before. In fact, if one were to claim that he was a beggar on the street, people would believe him.

Looks like after being exposed, those ‘victims’ didn’t let him off the hook so easily.

But that’s to be expected as well. After all, which of those who were able to engage in the expensive sport of treasure speculation didn’t come from extraordinary families?

After realizing that they were scammed, they could already be considered to be kind for not killing him on the spot.

The artifact dealer didn’t seem to be in a much better state than him. His two eyes were bruised black and two sausage-like swells hung by his mouth, causing his speech to be indistinct.

Glaring at Zhang Xuan, the resentment and anger in their gazes were clear to see.

This was a ploy that they spent a fortune to set up, only for it to be wrecked by this young man here. Not mentioning how they had to spit out the meat that was already in their mouths, they even almost got beaten to death. Thus, it was understandable that they would feel intense resentment against him.

“You little bastard, you sure ran away fast back then. Let’s see where you can run off to now!”

A maniacal gleam flashed across the eyes of the artifact dealer.

“You all want to kill me?”

Noticing the aura of the surroundings growing eerily cold, Zhang Xuan frowned.

“If you have to blame, blame it for your big mouth for saying things that shouldn’t be said. In your next life, remember to keep your mouth in check!”

Master Mo Yang sneered savagely as he clenched his fists, causing jiya jiya sounds to echo in the surroundings.

The reason why their fraud failed was due to this fellow. It took them awhile before they managed to find him, so naturally, they wouldn’t allow him to escape easily!

“I’m sorry, but I don’t wish to die for now, and neither do I wish to keep my mouth in check!” Zhang Xuan said.

“You don’t wish to die?” Ruthlessness flickered across in the eyes of Master Mo Yang. “This isn’t up to you. Brothers, kill him, slice him apart and feed him to the dogs!”

“Roger!”

With a cold snort, one of the ‘support’ stepped forward, and lifting his arms up, he sent a palm down towards Zhang Xuan.

The moment he made his move, his cultivation realm was made apparent. Fighter 5-dan pinnacle!

No wonder he could still escape to Tianxuan Kingdom to conduct fraud even after being outlawed by Liuzhu Kingdom. He did indeed possess some capabilities.

If it was yesterday night, even if Zhang Xuan was able to emerge victorious against this fellow, he would have to utilize the strength of the Library of Heaven’s Path to exploit his weakness. However, with an overwhelming progress in the strength of his physical body, possessing nearly a hundred ding of strength now, Dingli pinnacle meant nothing to him now.

Chuckling softly, he sent a slap towards his attacker.

“You’re courting death!”

“Number Four’s nickname is Metal Palms. His hands are capable of splitting rocks. Back then, in Liuzhu Kingdom, a Pixue realm primary stage was killed by a single palm of his. Yet, this fellow dares to exchange blows with him without any preparation? The ignorant sure are fearless!”

“To think that we were done in by such a fellow, what misfortune!”

…

Seeing that fellow going against Number Four without dodging at all, Master Mo Yang and the rest sneered.

[This ‘support’ may not seem unexceptional, but his strength isn’t for show. His palms are capable of even striking through metal, what does a young man who isn’t even twenty mean before that? To face it head on, what else can he be doing other than courting death?]

Just when they thought that Zhang Xuan would be crippled by the blow, they saw the one whom they called ‘Number Four’ Metal Palms being as weak as a slab of tofu. Unable to withstand Zhang Xuan’s blow, his bones shattered and his ribcage sank in as he was blasted away by the force of the blow. His head stabbed onto the ground first, causing him to look like a bulb of wild onion.