Library of Heaven’s Path - Chapter 534

Chapter 534: Elder Wu’s Complete Breakdown (1)

That was impossible!

There were only five rounds for the selection, and every single round was of utmost importance. This concerned whether one would obtain the final slot or not. Even if Ruohuan gongzi knew that he would pass the selection round for sure, he couldn’t possibly be content with being in second place.

After all, the ultimate goal was the Master Teacher Tournament. If he couldn’t even be the champion for a selection round, how could he possibly fare well in the tournament?

Amidst perplexed gazes, Ruohuan gongzi walked up to Zhang Xuan with a smile and said, “It’s your turn…”

Only then did everyone realize that it was Zhang shi’s turn.

“To be recommended so strongly by Su shi and Ling shi, he must possess some outstanding capability!”

“Look at his age, how capable can he be? I worry whether that fellow can survive until the end of the melody or not!”

“If he can’t even withstand it until the end, it would indeed be embarrassing!”

“Indeed!”

…

Seeing that it was Zhang shi’s turn, everyone tore their gazes away from Ruohuan gongzi onto the new contender.

In truth, they were rather curious about this mysterious young man.

To come late even for an event as important as the selection round, was he truly that confident or was it just plain arrogance?

Ignoring the glee on Ruohuan gongzi’s face, Zhang Xuan stepped forward and picked up the formation plate.

Even though he was a quasi 4-star formation master, the only blank formation plate he had come into contact with was the grade-5 formation plate which he inscribed into a Spirit Gathering Formation. This was his first time seeing such a low-grade formation plate.

Holding it in his hand, he could clearly feel that the material was much softer than a grade-5 formation plate. Clearly, the quality of the material was at completely different levels.

Walking over to the location where the previous competitors sat down earlier, Zhang Xuan scanned the surroundings for a moment and did a quick mental calculation. Then, scratching his head, he asked sheepishly, “I apologize but can I affix this formation plate on the wall?”

“Affix?”

Elder Wu was taken aback. “As long as it’s convenient for you, feel free!”

The main point of the test was to test one’s resilience under the onslaught of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis. The formation plate was just a means to gauge one’s consciousness. Whether it was affixed onto the wall or within one’s hand, it didn’t make a difference at all.

“Thank you!”

Receiving the other party’s agreement, Zhang Xuan took in a deep breath and flicked his wrist.

Hong long!

The blank formation plate was fixed onto the wall not too far away.

“I’m ready, let’s begin!” Zhang Xuan clapped his hands.

“What is he doing?”

“I’ve no idea. Shouldn’t he hold the formation plate in his hand to inscribe it better? What is he doing by affixing it onto the wall?”

“I don’t know either…”

The crowd didn’t expect Zhang Xuan to throw the formation plate straight at the wall. None of them had ever seen someone inscribing a formation plate like that!

Besides, the wall was three to four meters away from the seat. Could his carving knife even reach the formation plate?

Everyone stared at one another in confusion.

“What in the world… is this fellow thinking?”

Ruohuan gongzi and Fu Xiaochen stared at one another in bewilderment.

Only by holding the formation plate in one’s hand could one control his strength better to carve thin lines of equal depth. To smash the formation plate into the wall… Could this be the other party’s way of declaring his loss?

“Ready?” Elder Wu’s mouth twitched. “You do know that for the sake of fairness, you can only stand there, right?”

The previous five had sat on the same position on the test. If this fellow were to walk to the wall, he would be cast under the doubt of cheating.

“I know!” Zhang Xuan smiled.

“Then… Since your carving knife cannot reach the wall, how do you intend to carve the formation plate?” Elder Wu asked.

Everyone carried the same doubt as well.

A carving knife’s length was only half a chi (16.6cm) long whereas it was a distance of four meters to the wall… No matter how long one’s arm could stretch, one couldn’t possibly cover that distance!

If one’s carving knife couldn’t even reach the formation plate, how could one possibly inscribe anything on it?

Pavilion Master Kang, Elder Su, and Elder Ling stared at one another in doubt as well.

The trio knew that Zhang shi was a man of great capability, so it was unlikely for him to be fooling around… But this sight still left them completely bewildered. They couldn’t fathom what the other party was trying to do at all.

“Oh, I’m not going to use a carving knife. I’m using this instead!”

Flicking his wrist, Zhang Xuan took out a spear.

A grade-5 formation plate needed a Spirit intermediate-tier weapon to carve on it but a grade-3 formation plate had no such requirement.

A Phantom pinnacle weapon would be more than sufficient to leave a mark on it, and this spear happened to be of that level.

The spear was already more than three meters in length. Taking into account the length of Zhang Xuan’s arm as well, he could easily cover the distance to the formation plate.

“Did he just say that… he is using a spear to carve the formation plate?”

“Am I seeing things?”

“The heck, is there something wrong with that fellow’s head?! It is easy to err even with a carving knife, and yet, he wants to use a spear… Can that toy even be used to carve a formation plate?”

“I’ve no idea at all…”

…

Seeing the young man take out a spear, everyone nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.

Using a spear to carve a formation plate? What the heck was going on?

Never in their lives had they stumble across such a ridiculous notion!

Ruohuan gongzi, Fu Xiaochen, and the others found their mouths twitching violently, and their eyes nearly popped to the floor.

Su shi and Ling shi trembled violently and their vision went dark.

They knew that this fellow wasn’t one to follow conventions but this… Wasn’t this too freaking unconventional?

Using a spear to inscribe?

Can you be even more exaggerated than that? I dare you to be even more ridiculous than that!

With a spear in his hands, Zhang Xuan looked like an undefeatable war god. Ignoring the doubtful gazes of the crowd, Zhang Xuan turned to Elder Wu and said, “Let’s begin!”

“Since you insist on it… Alright then!”

Wiping away the sweat on his forehead, Elder Wu nodded in agreement.

Since the other party insisted on it, he had no other choice as well.

Tzing!

Plucking the string of the zither, the Demonic Tune of Psychosis sounded once more.

Zhang Xuan immediately felt a violent aura gushing at him, stimulating his soul, threatening to tear his head apart.

“It’s exactly as I inferred!”

The bizarre energy kept striking at Zhang Xuan’s consciousness, leaving him faint-headed. It was completely different to when he’d listened to it previously. Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but shake his head.

When listening from outside, Zhang Xuan could only hear the music—he couldn’t sense the violent aura at all. On the other hand, from his current location, he felt like a boat in the midst of a storm. No matter how he struggled, he seemed to be unable to avoid his ultimate fate of drowning in the whirlpool.

It was no wonder why Ruohuan gongzi, Feng Mosheng, and the others looked so worn out when they were challenging the test previously. Indeed, no occupation of the Nine Paths was ordinary.

“If we view the world with humility, there’s much that is to be learned!”

Knowing that he might be forced mad if he were to withstand it forcefully, he immediately drove his Soul Depth of 14.1.

Weng!

Vanquishing Facade, Lucid Mind!

Upon reaching this state, one could find order amidst chaos. One’s mind would become clearer, making it much easier to analyze matters.

Driving his Soul Depth, Zhang Xuan immediately felt the violent aura stimulating his soul previously dampening to the point that he could hardly feel it at all.

“This Elder Wu’s Soul Depth is around the same level as me. Even though his Demonic Tune of Psychosis is impressive, it doesn’t have much of a use on me!”

Looking around, he saw that the other party’s melody had yet to stop. Clearly, it wasn’t that the other party was going easy on him but that the other party’s ability was no longer effective on him.

Zhang Xuan’s Soul Depth was on par with a 4-star pinnacle master teacher. He didn’t even lose out much in comparison to Pavilion Master Kang. No matter how formidable Elder Wu was, he could only be equal to him!

Besides, Zhang Xuan was a soul oracle on top of that. The resilience of his soul was far greater than that of ordinary cultivators. It was impossible for a Demonic Tune of Psychosis to subdue him.

“Time to start!”

Knowing that the melody was ineffective on him, Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist, and the spear immediately exuded a radiant white glow and flew at the formation plate affixed on the wall.

Ding!

The collision between the spear and the formation plate created a crisp sound. It wasn’t loud, but as though the chiming of a bell, it resounded in one’s heart.

Affected by the sound, Elder Wu’s zither couldn’t help but fall into a temporary state of chaos. However, it didn’t take long for him to recover, and the melody began flowing smoothly once more.

Ding!

However, the crisp sound echoed once more accurately during a moment of weakness of the melody. Under the influence of the sound, the smooth melody fell into chaos once more.

“Hmm?”

With a grim expression, Elder Wu’s eyebrows shot up.

It might have been a coincidence the first time, but it was impossible for such coincidences to happen twice.

The two strikes of the spear occurred at the instant when the old tune had faded and a new tune was in the midst of being produced. Not only did it break the flow of the music, even Elder Wu’s zhenqi, under the other party’s disturbances, began to flow erratically.

A demonic tunist uses his own zhenqi to convert them into notes to attack another. Interrupting his melody means to interrupt his flow of zhenqi. If this goes on, not only would Elder Wu be unable to finish his melody, he might even be severely wounded due to the disturbance in his zhenqi.

Hu!

With a grim expression, Elder Wu stood up. With his both hands moving quickly about the zither, he drove his zhenqi to the maximum and the melody crescendoed.

Seemingly pressured by the other party’s sudden movements, the clash between the spear and the formation plate also hastened.

Ding ding ding ding!

The crisp sound produced by the spear and the formation plate sounded like a dissonance, but nevertheless, it struck accurately during the weak points of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis.

“Something is wrong!”

Despite exerting his full strength, the other party was still able to strike accurately at his brief windows of weakness. This showed that the other party wasn’t striking randomly but that he intended to pit it out with him!

“Humph! I don’t believe that I can’t even subdue a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle cultivator like you!”

Having been interrupted by the other party consecutively, Elder Wu felt a stifled sensation on his chest. Harrumphing forcefully, Elder Wu drove his zhenqi even harder, and it seemed as though steam was pouring out from his head. In that instant, his might reached a maximum.

Hong long!

Under the violent clash of energy, the table beneath the zither burst apart.

However, expecting such a situation, Elder Wu used his leg to hook the zither up and embraced it with his left hand while playing it with his right. The melody didn’t stop in the midst of this hiccup at all.

Ding ding ding ding!

Similarly, the sounds of collision between the spear and the formation plate didn’t stop either. On the contrary, it grew louder and louder, leaving one feeling immensely pressured.

If the melody Elder Wu’s zither was relentless waves, then the crisp sound Zhang Xuan produced would be a huge tornado that blew away everything in its path! No matter how huge a wave was, it couldn’t possibly fight against something a tornado!

“Damn it!”

With a pale face, Elder Wu’s right hand swiftly moved around the zither, producing a consistent melody. Due to his zhenqi flowing too fast, a sound reminiscent to the rumbling of the thunder could be heard in the hall.

At the same time, he was swiftly moving about using a unique footwork technique.

Ancient Zither Eight Trigram Steps!

Through this unique footwork, he created a formation that complemented with the zither, thus causing the prowess of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis to increase by twofold in an instant.

Chapter 535: Elder Wu’s Complete Breakdown (2)

“What’s going on?”

“What is Elder Wu doing?”

The battle left all of the other master teachers flabbergasted.

What was going on?

Wasn’t Elder Wu still perfectly fine a moment ago?

Why was smoke suddenly gushing out from his head at one moment, the table breaking the next, and now, he’d even started dancing about as though trying to use some formation…

Wasn’t this a test on one’s Soul Depth… Why did he end up leaping about as though this was some kind of dancing competition…

“Has Elder Wu… gone mad?” someone amidst the crowd shouted, causing the hall to fall completely silent.

From the looks of it… it did seem like he had lost his sanity…

“He’s not mad, he’s just executing the Ancient Zither Eight Trigram Steps! Just that… Why did Elder Wu suddenly execute this move?”

A 4-star master teacher amidst the crowd suddenly remarked with a frown.

The elder sitting next to him doubtfully asked, “You know this movement technique?”

“Of course I do! That’s Elder Wu’s strongest offensive technique. It creates a formation that perfectly complements the demonic tune…”

At which, the first elder suddenly paused and said, “Do you all still remember the Calamity of the Seven Swords?”

The second elder nodded his head and replied, “Of course we do! It is the greatest calamity known to Myriad Kingdom City for the past century! Alliance Head Zhao sent innumerable experts out but to no avail. In the end, he could only request the assistance of the Master Teacher Pavilion. Back then, Elder Wu and you were dispatched for the mission!”

The Calamity of the Seven Swords was a serial killing incident that happened in the Myriad Kingdom City back then. Every time the killer struck, he would leave seven holes on the body of the deceased. No matter how powerful the other party was, even if he was a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan expert, without an exception, he would still be killed within seven blows.

After more than a dozen of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan experts were killed consecutively, a huge panic broke out within the alliance. Thus, Alliance Head Zhao led a group of experts to subdue the culprit personally, only to have the other party escape.

Left without a choice, he could only look to the Master Teacher Pavilion for assistance. Back then, Pavilion Master Kang hadn’t taken up the mantle of power yet. The previous pavilion master dispatched Elder Wu and this elder to deal with the culprit. Thus, they gathered several dozens of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan experts to encircle him, and only then did they manage to kill the other party.

That matter caused a huge ruckus back then, and many of the older generation were unwilling to speak of it. Why would this elder suddenly raise the matter?

“The Seven Sword serial killer was extremely strong, he was at least on par with the current Pavilion Master Kang. It was Elder Wu who used the Ancient Zither Eight Trigram Steps to assault the other party’s consciousness, allowing us to gain the upper hand and eventually achieve victory! Otherwise… given our strength, it would have been impossible for us to prevent him from escaping,” the first elder said with a grim expression.

He could still remember the events that transpired that day. If not for Elder Wu utilizing the ability of a demonic tunist to disturb the other party’s consciousness at a crucial moment, not only would they have failed in their mission, they might have even all died under the other party’s onslaught!

After all, the other party wasn’t named as the greatest calamity of the Myriad Kingdom City for the past century for nothing. Just by thinking about the elusive seven swords caused cold sweat to drench his back.

“He used this movement technique against the Seven Swords serial killer? Then…”

The second elder’s face paled. The Seven Swords serial killer was a being comparable to the pavilion master. Even such a person ended up succumbing to the Ancient Zither Eight Trigram Steps complemented with the Demonic Tune of Psychosis… How could that young man possibly withstand this?

If he couldn’t withstand it, wouldn’t he die on the spot?

“What’s wrong with Elder Wu? Why is he using such a move on a junior?”

Upon understanding the graveness of the matter, the second elder’s face turned crimson in fury.

No matter how unconventional and disrespectful that Zhang Xuan was, he was still a junior of theirs. As an elder of the Master Teacher Pavilion, a 4-star pinnacle master teacher, to attempt to kill your junior like that, aren’t you going too far?

“I’ve no idea, but… Why does it seem like he is in a disadvantageous position despite having used this technique?” the first elder said with a bizarre look on his face.

“Disadvantageous position?”

The second elder was taken aback. He hurriedly turned his attention back to the stage, and with a look, his eyes suddenly narrowed.

At this moment, steam wasn’t just puffing from Elder Wu’s head anymore, it was puffing from his entire body, as though he had been thrown into a pot to be cooked.

Even though his footsteps didn’t pause in the slightest, he was spurting blood with every step he made, as if someone was striking his chest with a giant hammer relentlessly.

The heck!

What was happening?

Despite launching a sonic attack that even the Seven Swords serial killer was unable to withstand, he was the one who was spewing blood non-stop… This sight was simply too bizarre!

“It’s that Zhang shi…”

The first elder finally came to a realization, and he spoke with a slightly quivering voice.

“Ah?”

“That Zhang shi is using his spear to strike the formation plate. Even though it sounds erratic, every strike is aimed at the moment of weakness of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis, thus jolting Wu shi’s zhenqi, resulting in his injury,” the first elder said.

“There’s such a thing as well?” The second elder widened his eyes in shock.

As a 4-star master teacher, he had broad knowledge spanning across innumerable subjects. Even so, he had never heard of such a thing before.

“I also find it bizarre but other than this, I can’t think of any other reason!” the first elder said with a deep voice as he analyzed the situation. Even though he was the one saying so, he also found the matter completely inconceivable.

For a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle fellow, with just a spear and a formation plate, to jolt a 4-star demonic tunist to the point that he was spewing blood…

This… can’t be real, right?

…

“Subduing music with music!”

Seeing the sight, Pavilion Master Kang suddenly thought of something and his face paled.

“Subduing music with music?” Su shi and Ling shi hurriedly turned to look at Pavilion Master Kang.

“Un. This is an ability that higher ranked demonic tunist uses against lower ranked demonic tunist. By finding the flaw in the other party’s melody and striking at that exact spot, one can send the other party’s zhenqi into disarray, thus inducing severe injuries!” Pavilion Master Kang said slowly.

“Then… Pavilion master, I beseech you to save Zhang shi! He might very possibly be the one to represent our Master Teacher Pavilion for the Master Teacher Tournament so he mustn’t get injured now…” Su shi pleaded anxiously.

“Save Zhang shi?” Pavilion Master Kang’s face twitched. “The one who needs to be saved is Elder Wu! Furthermore, from the looks of it, it seems like he’ll be reaching his limit soon!”

“Reaching his limit?”

Only then did Su shi and Ling shi realize that Elder Wu was spurting blood with each step he took.

“That… Pavilion master, it’s just a test. There’s no need for them to go to such an extent… I beseech you to stop the duel!” Ling shi said.

“Stop the duel? Subduing music with music is actually equivalent to pitting one’s zhenqi against one’s opponent’s. It is impossible to stop it unless one side falls in defeat! If it could be stopped halfway through, Wu shi would have already done so… Do you think that he would go to the extent of executing the Ancient Zither Eight Trigram Steps, pushing on even when he is jolted to the point that he is on the brink of death?”

Pavilion Master Kang shook his head.

A demonic tune could be considered as an attack on one’s soul, and that was an extremely profound and complicated subject. The worst case of scenario of forcefully interfering in a clash of zhenqi was physical injury. On the other hand, forcefully interfering in a clash of souls could cause permanent damage to one’s head, thus turning one into an idiot!

This was precisely the reason why such a clash couldn’t be stopped unless one falls in defeat!

“Isn’t this a test of Soul Depth? Why did it suddenly turn into… a clash of tunes?”

Su shi and Ling shi’s faces paled.

Wasn’t this a test on one’s Soul Depth? Why did it suddenly turn into such a fight?

Not to mention, it seemed as though neither side was willing to give in until one of them falls in defeat?

They knew that this fellow was a troublemaker, but never in their dreams did they expect that he could cause such a huge ruckus in a test of Soul Depth…

Su shi and Ling shi stared at one another in frenzy.

“I… don’t know either!”

Pavilion Master Kang felt even more dismal.

For the number one expert of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance to be helpless before such a situation, he couldn’t help but feel frustrated.

More importantly… He still had no idea how such a situation occurred!

He couldn’t help but sigh deeply.

…

“What happened?”

“Can that be considered as inscribing on the formation plate?”

While the other master teachers were so astounded that they could faint from shock itself, Ruohuan gongzi, Fu Xiaochen, and the others widened their eyes at the sight before them. They felt as though their heart was threatening to leap out from their throats.

They had tasted the prowess of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis for themselves earlier, and they knew how powerful it was.

Even when Elder Wu was just sitting there calmly, they found themselves unable to withstand it already. Now that he was going to the extent of even executing the Ancient Zither Eight Trigrams Step, how could they possibly withstand this?

But why… was the young man before them completely fine?

A long moment later, Fu Xiaochen thought of a possibility and said, “That fellow must have learned some bizarre music technique that allowed him to curb Elder Wu’s Demonic Tune of Psychosis via knocking on the formation plate!”

Other than this, he couldn’t think of any other plausible explanation.

In his view, that Zhang Xuan fellow must have, by some incredible stroke of luck, learned a music technique that happened to curb Elder Wu’s music, thus putting Elder Wu in a disadvantageous situation.

Ruohuan gongzi harrumphed.

“So what if he can curb Elder Wu’s Demonic Tune of Psychosis? This test is on one’s Soul Depth. What is important is the number and exquisiteness of the strokes! It’s futile no matter how well he strikes the formation plate with his spear!”

The others also realized this and nodded their heads.

Indeed, this test was on their Soul Depth, not their battle prowess. Even if one were to leave Elder Wu spurting blood with any step, if one couldn’t leave behind sufficient strokes on the formation plate, it would be meaningless!

“Don’t worry, I’ve been paying attention and all he has been doing is to stab his spear onto the formation plate randomly… In the end, for the sake of showing off, he forgot his primary goal. That makes him nothing more than a clown!”

Waving his hands grandly, Ruohuan gongzi continued saying.

So what if you are capable of curbing the Demonic Tune of Psychosis?

If a question asks you what one plus one is, and you answer with a complex mathematical theory, no matter how advanced your theory is, you still aren’t answering the question. It’s an erroneous response!

“The Demonic Tune of Psychosis is about to end!”

Suddenly, a voice amidst the crowd sounded. Everyone turned their gazes over.

At this moment, Elder Wu was puking blood as he advanced forward. He was already no less than three meters away from Zhang Xuan, and the sound of the collision between the two grew louder and louder. By this point, both sounds were already intricately mixed together, making it impossible to differentiate the Demonic Tune of Psychosis from the knocking sounds.

But judging from the flow of time, the three minutes duration for the test was about to be up.

“Let’s hope that… Elder Wu will be fine!”

Looking at the massive pool of blood on the floor and the ghastly pale face of Elder Wu, everyone prayed solemnly.

…

Just as everyone had guessed, the test was indeed coming to an end soon.

The Demonic Tune of Psychosis had already reached its conclusion.

“Alright!”

Noticing that, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. He had been busy clashing with the demonic tune via striking at the moments of its flaws, and as such, he hadn’t noticed the peculiarity in his surroundings yet.

Flicking his wrist, he was just about to finish the last note when he turned his head to the side and saw a completely pale face beside him.

“AHH!”

Shocked, Zhang Xuan’s instinctively whipped his spear at the other party.

Chapter 536: First… From the Bottom? [3in1]

This was his first time fighting against a demonic tunist. Even though the other party’s Soul Depth was beneath his, it was equaled out by his low cultivation. Thus, he had no choice but to retaliate with all of his might. As such, he didn’t have any spare energy to pay attention to his surroundings.

As such, Zhang Xuan couldn’t have expected that the ghastly pale face belonged to Elder Wu. He thought that someone was trying to assault him.

Thus, executing the Heaven’s Path Spear Art with all his might, the spear in his hands turned into a bright ray of light and flew toward the other party.

On the opposite side, Elder Wu had just heaved a sigh of relief, and before he could react, he saw a spear whipping straight toward him. His eyes narrowed but it was already too late to dodge. As such, he was struck in the chest and was sent flying out.

Padah!

He was smacked into the wall, forming a “大” character on it.

“What the heck?!”

No one could have expected that there would be such a twist at the end of the test. Their eyes popped out from their sockets, and their faces grew so scarlet that it seemed as though blood would seep out of it if one were to pinch it.

That was Elder Wu, the only demonic tunist in the whole of Myriad Kingdom City, a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle expert who was widely feared by others. Yet, he was struck by a spear and crashed into a wall…

Did it need to be so exaggerated?

“Elder Wu, why did you… suddenly run up to me? I didn’t do this on purpose…”

Hearing the shocked gasps from the crowd, Zhang Xuan finally recognized the other party. With a reddened face, he spoke sheepishly.

Wasn’t this a test of Soul Depth? Why did you suddenly run up to me then? I thought that you were up to no good…

“Cough cough!”

Coughing up two large mouthfuls of blood, Elder Wu finally recovered from his condition and struggled down from the wall.

What the heck was this?

The pavilion master told him that he just had to serve as the examiner for this test. He thought that it would be easy, so he immediately agreed to it. Who knew that this would almost cause his death?

The other party’s strikes on the formation plate were aimed at the weaknesses of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis. If he didn’t retaliate, his soul would surely be severely damaged. Left with no other option, he could only slowly advance to heighten the might of his offense…

In the end, the demonic tune that even the pavilion master feared seem to be completely ineffective on the other party… The other party didn’t even seem to notice the increasing intensity of the tune!

The freaking hell!

To be able to be impervious to a demonic tune… What kind of monster did Su Fan and Ling Yuheng bring here?

The great frustration he was suffering from was making him doubt the purpose of life in itself.

“Forget it, I don’t blame you…”

Even so, he knew that a clash between music could easily spiral out of control. The other party didn’t intend this either. Thus, after recuperating for a short moment, Elder Wu waved his hands nonchalantly.

Even though he felt indignant, as an elder, he couldn’t possibly pick a bone with a 2-star master teacher!

Besides… Given how he was reduced to such a state even when he wasn’t picking a bone, if he were to really try to exact vengeance… It would be hard to tell whether he could return alive!

Since that was the case… He might as well drop the matter.

“Check the formation plate!”

Fetching the formation plate from the wall, he passed it over to the invigilating master teacher.

“Yes!”

Grabbing the formation plate, he began counting the strokes on it and announced, “A total of 431 strokes. Every single stroke is of equal depth and width!”

“431 strokes? Isn’t that result the same as Ruohuan gongzi?”

“That seems to be so… He managed to leave behind so many marks with a spear?”

“I thought that he was just randomly knocking the spear on the formation plate, to think that he managed to inscribe so many strokes. That’s impressive!”

“Since the both of them have the same number of strokes… who will be the second place? Or will it be shared between the two of them?”

…

Hearing the results, the crowd flew into an uproar.

They’d thought that given how Zhang Xuan seemed to be randomly striking on the formation plate without any clear order, the strokes on the formation plate would surely be chaotic and messy, or perhaps, he might not have even left a single stroke behind at all. Yet, never could they have expected that the latter would share the same result as Ruohuan gongzi!”

Since the both of them had the same result… How would the ranking be decided?

Were they going to be placed second together?

“He also… carved 431 strokes?” Not expecting Zhang Xuan to achieve such results, Ruohuan gongzi’s complexion darkened.

With a carving knife in hand, he toiled through so much hardship before he could inscribe so many strokes. On the other hand, the other party was equipped with a spear and his movements were completely erratic, not to mention, he was knocking on the plate to retaliate against Elder Wu. Yet, the other party still achieved a result equivalent to his? Was this for real?

“Looks like we’ve been underestimating him. That fellow isn’t as simple as he looks!”

Ruohuan gongzi’s eyebrows shot up.

When he heard that the other party was only a 2-star master teacher, honestly speaking, he didn’t even view the other party as an opponent. But from the looks of it now, it was the gravest mistake he could make.

To use a spear to inscribe on a formation plate from several meters away… He could never have imagined this to be possible.

In fact, even with seeing it with his own eyes, he still found it incredulous.

“However… Do you think that achieving a draw with me will be that easy?” Ruohuan gongzi’s lips curled up to form a cold sneer.

So what if the other party managed to inscribe the same number of strokes as him? He still had a trump card in hand! A countryside bumpkin like the other party could never hope to match up to him!

“Impressive!”

Feng Mosheng was also awed.

Despite using a carving knife, he only carved one more stroke than the other party. As expected of someone heavily recommended by the elders. Fearsome indeed!

He thought that he was the dark horse for this selection round, but compared to the other party, he felt like he could only be considered as a dark donkey.

…

Amidst the crowd’s discussion, six formation plates were placed side by side on a table. Each of them was filled with inscriptions, reflecting their prior work and accomplishment.

“Pavilion master, please evaluate the formation plates!”

The invigilating master teacher clasped his fist and bowed to Pavilion Master Kang.

“Un!” Nodding his head, Pavilion Master Kang, Elder Su, and a few other elders stepped forward and browsed through the formation plates.

“The calculation before is accurate. Allow me to announce the results for the first round then.”

Scanning through the crowd, Pavilion Master Kang said, “Feng Mosheng, with 432 strokes, is in first place. Jun Ruohuan and Zhang Xuan, with 431 strokes each, are tied in second place. Fu Xiaochen, with 427 strokes, is in fourth place. Luo Xi, with 411 strokes, is in fifth place. Du Hu, with 407 strokes, is in sixth place!”

“I didn’t expect Feng shi to really be in first place!”

“That Zhang shi is formidable as well. Probably no one thought that he could achieve a tie with Ruohuan gongzi!”

“Indeed. I thought that his reputation supersedes his capability, but to think that it would be the opposite instead!”

…

Innumerous discussions broke out below.

Everyone thought that Ruohuan gongzi and Fu Xiaochen would be standing at the top of the candidates. No one expected that two dark horses – Feng Mosheng and Zhang Xuan – would appear all of the sudden.

“Alright, the first round is over. Let’s proceed on to the second round…”

After declaring the results, Pavilion Master Kang was just about to proceed into the next round when a voice interrupted him.

“Pavilion master, I think that there’s a problem with my result!”

Everyone turned to the stage, only to see Ruohuan gongzi stepped forward with a faint smile on his face.

“Oh?” Pavilion Master Kang turned to look at him.

“For the first round, Elder Wu said that we’ll be judged on the progress in our inscription and the exquisiteness of our strokes!” Ruohuan gongzi said. “May I double check if that’s true?”

“I did say those words!” Elder Wu nodded his head.

After resting for a moment, he had already recovered significantly. Just that, his face was still pale, and his spirit seemed to be a little withered.

“That’s exactly what I mean. You all have checked the number of strokes… but you all forgot to check the exquisiteness of it!” Ruohuan gongzi chuckled lightly.

“Exquisiteness of the strokes?”

Everyone was taken aback. Even Pavilion Master Kang couldn’t help but frown.

How in the world do we check that?

Are we supposed to judge by how thin the candidates’ strokes are? But that’s a problem of the carving knife already, one’s Soul Depth had nothing to do with it!

“Simple, I’ve carved more than just marks on the formation plate… Please take a look!”

Walking up to the formation plate, Ruohuan gongzi whipped out his carving knife and added several dozen more strokes.

These strokes were very simple-they were mainly just connecting some of the isolated lines together. However, just by connecting these lines together, the messy strokes on the formation plate changed into something very different.

Weng!

A crisp chirp sounded, and a giant peony suddenly appeared before everyone’s eyes. Shrouded in spiritual energy, it slowly bloomed beautifully.

“It is… a painting!”

“Under that kind of condition, Ruohuan gongzi actually managed to carve a fifth level painting on the formation plate!”

“That explains why he’s so confident despite the number of his strokes being lower than that of Feng shi!”

“A fifth level painting… That’s a work that only a 3-star painter could produce! I’ve long heard that one of Ruohuan gongzi’s supporting occupation is a painter… From the looks of it, that’s indeed the case!”

“Incredible…”

…

Everyone was astonished. Even Pavilion Master Kang didn’t expect this turn of events.

To be able to grant the flower spirit and create a fifth level painting when one’s mind was under the assault of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis… Ruohuan gongzi’s mental fortitude had reached an astonishing level!

It was no wonder why he was so confident!

Carving strokes on the formation plate was extremely elementary. Creating a painting under that condition… that was true capability.

Under normal circumstances, it would already be difficult to create a fifth level painting in three minutes. Not to mention, the other party had done it under the influence of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis… His talent, capability, and mental fortitude were truly frightening.

“Good, good!”

Pavilion Master Kang’s eyes lit up as he nodded his head in satisfaction.

As painter wasn’t one of his supporting occupations, he failed to see through the trick hidden in the formation plate. Even so, he understood the difficulty in creating a fifth level painting under that condition.

Ruohuan gongzi was his direct disciple. Seeing the other party’s outstanding performance had filled him with pride and relief.

“The reason why I have less strokes isn’t because I was unable to inscribe anymore but that… to carve out a painting, I couldn’t leave behind any more strokes than that. I hope that pavilion master can reconsider the judgement!”

Ruohuan gongzi spoke confidently.

“Un!” Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head. His gaze swept across the elders. “What do you all think?”

“Even though he has carved a single stroke less… he has managed to create a painting. Clearly, Ruohuan gongzi’s accomplishment is much greater here!”

“To be able to create a fifth level painting under the influence of the Demonic Tune of Psychosis, his mental fortitude is indeed impressive!”

“I also feel that Ruohuan gongzi should be in first place!”

…

Soon, most elders concurred that Jun Ruohuan should be in the first place.

No one questioned the decision, and even Feng Mosheng expressed his approval of the decision.

Even though he had carved more strokes, it was clear that the other party’s work was much more exquisite than his. Every single stroke the other party made had a purpose, whereas in comparison, his strokes were made randomly just for the purpose of clearing the test.

Seeing that no one had any objections, Pavilion Master Kang announced, “Good. Since no one has any objection, I’ll announce the revised results. Ruohuan is in first place, Feng Mosheng in second, Zhang shi third, Fu Xiaochen fourth, Luo Xi fifth, and Du Hu sixth!”

“Ruohuan gongzi is indeed impressive. As expected of the most popular contender for the champion spot!”

“He managed to get the first place in the first round easily. However, we’ll have to wait to see whether he can maintain his lead!”

…

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

Seeing that he had received the first place, Ruohuan gongzi chuckled delightfully. Turning to Zhang Xuan, his eyebrow shot up and he said, “Zhang shi, it seems like we aren’t tied in the second place anymore!”

You sure caused a huge ruckus just now, but so what? In the end, you still lost to me!

“Ah…”

Not expecting the other party to gloat even after getting the first place, Zhang Xuan shook his head helplessly. He turned his gaze to Pavilion Master Kang and said, “That… as long as one’s strokes are more exquisite, one’s results will be better, right?”

“Yes!” Pavilion Master Kang was taken aback for a moment, but he soon nodded his head.

“That is good!”

Following which, Zhang Xuan turned to his formation plate on the table, and with a darkened expression, he bellowed, “What are you sleeping around for? Hurry up and get to work!”

Weng!

A crisp sound of Spirit Euphoria sounded in the air, and the formation plate which he had just inscribed whirred into action. Spiritual energy was frenziedly drawn from the surroundings, creating a massive vortex.

“Spirit euphoria… This is a… sentient grade-4 Spirit Gathering Formation Plate?”

Elder Wu narrowed his eyes.

As a 4-star formation master, he possessed a deep understanding of formations. As such, he knew how difficult it was to carve a formation plate.

Even with his current strength, carving a grade-4 Spirit Gathering Formation would require at least a week.

Yet, the other party, just by stabbing for three minutes with a spear, managed to inscribe one successfully… And what made it even shocking was that it was a Sentient Formation Plate!

Th-this… was way too shocking!

On top of that, it is common understanding that a grade-3 blank formation plate could only harness a grade-3 formation. Yet, the other party managed to inscribe a grade-4 formation… How deep could his comprehension of formation have reached?

At the very least, Elder Wu knew that he was no match for the other party.

What was even more fearsome was that… the other party did it while facing off with him.

While blood was spurting out of his mouth, the other party was busy making a grade-4 Sentient Formation Plate…

Elder Wu felt so stifled that he could explode at any moment now.

“The inscribing of a formation plate is an extremely complex process. Every single stroke had to be carefully planned, and not a single mistake would be tolerated. To do so with a spear…”

“In comparison, Ruohuan gongzi’s fifth level painting is nothing at all!”

“Indeed, there’s a huge disparity between the two…”

…

Seeing the gathering of spiritual energy, everyone in the room fell silent. Their eyes widened as though they had seen a ghost.

“You…”

On the other hand, Ruohuan gongzi trembled so violently that he was about to go insane.

He thought that he was already formidable to have created a painting. Yet, never in his dreams did he expect this fellow to inscribe a grade-4 formation!

A grade-4 formation was already extremely difficult to inscribe even without the Demonic Tune of Psychosis. Yet, this young fellow did it while leaving Elder Wu spurting blood…

That was too unbelievable!

More importantly… the formation plate was even sentient!

Even though both his painting and the formation possessed spirit, the difference in the significance of the feats was like heaven and earth.

Ruohuan gongzi thought that he would surely be ranked first this time. He didn’t expect to be overthrown in the blink of an eye, and even stomped several times upon…

Tears threatened to stream down his face.

If only he knew earlier, he wouldn’t have acted so smugly and say that he couldn’t be tied with the other party in the second place. In the end… he was the one who ended up being in the second place instead…

This face slap…!

Just as he was feeling stifled, the other party’s voice sounded, “Can my formation be considered as exquisite?”

“Cough cough, it does!”

Pavilion Master Kang’s face reddened.

It was embarrassing how the other party had inscribed a formation and he didn’t even notice it.

More importantly… To have to change his judgement twice in a single round, what kind of monsters were involved in this selection round?

“In the first test, Zhang shi, being in first place, shall be awarded 6 points. Ruohuan, in second place, will be awarded 5 points, so on and so forth…”

Knowing that it would only become more embarrassing if he were to delay any longer, he hurriedly announced the results. Seeing that there was no one objecting to them, he heaved a sigh of relief and continued, “Alright, let’s go on to the second test- the test of cultivation!

“In order to become a master teacher, one’s cultivation realm is of utmost importance. While a master teacher’s strength is mostly derived by their ability to discern and exploit the flaws of their enemies, their own cultivation mustn’t be neglected.

“But of course, one’s cultivation is closely related to the resources they have access to and the guidance of their teachers. As all of you come from different backgrounds, it’s natural that you all will have different cultivation realm. As such, a normal battle will be unfair!”

Everyone nodded their heads.

Taking Ruohuan gongzi for example, he came from the Jun Clan, the dominant clan of the Four Great Clans. On top of that, his teacher was Pavilion Master Kang. From the very start, he was already entitled to the best conditions possible. Not to mention, he was also older than most of the participants present, so it was only natural for him to be stronger than the others.

On the other hand, people like Luo Xi and Du Hu came from backward kingdoms so the resources they had for cultivation couldn’t compare up to the rest. On top of that, they were also younger than the other candidates. It would be unfair to gauge them by having them battle one another.

“Thus, I’ve discussed with the other elders and we decided to have Elder Bai fight you with his cultivation suppressed to your respective levels. The more blows you can withstand in the fight against him, the stronger you will be deemed to be. Not only will this assess your comprehension of your current cultivation realm, it will also test your reflexes and decision-making skills in times of danger. This makes the test even more comprehensive,” Pavilion Master Kang said.

“Fight with Elder Bai, who has suppressed his cultivation?”

“Those who have joined the selection round are of differing cultivation levels. The test would be biased if we have them fight against one another. Fu shi has already reached Transcendent Mortal 3-dan pinnacle whereas Zhang shi is only at Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle. Even without having the two face one another, the result of the battle is clear.”

“Indeed. Having Elder Bai suppress his cultivation, and gauging the respective candidates by the number of blows they can last against the latter will indeed make the test fairer…”

“As a 4-star master teacher, Elder Bai’s comprehension of battle techniques is far superior to them. Even if he were to suppress his cultivation to be of equal level to them, it would be impossible for them to emerge victorious. By gauging the results based on the number of blows the candidates can withstand from Elder Bai, the candidates can avoid getting injured while accurately discerning their level of strength among their peers. That’s a good idea!”

“Un! Other than Pavilion Master Kang, nearly no one is able to defeat Elder Bai. On top of that, he’s impartial. I have no qualms with the rules!”

Hearing the rules of the second round, everyone nodded their heads in agreement.

The six participating master teachers of the selection round had differing cultivation levels, and thus, it would be impossible to have them spar with one another without compromising on fairness. Thus, having an elder suppress his cultivation to face off with them would become the ideal way to test the candidates.

The suppression of cultivation would make the test more impartial as the duo would be of equal cultivation. On the other hand, the number of blows that the candidate could withstand was the best way to gauge the candidate’s strength.

This could be considered as the most impartial method possible already.

Seeing the crowd agree to it, Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head in agreement. Turning to the elder seated not too far away, he said, “I’ll be troubling you then!”

“Don’t worry about it!” The elder stood up and walked up the stage.

Elder Bai, Bai Heng!

“Don’t worry. After suppressing my cultivation, I’ll fight with all my might. I won’t go easy on anyone, so you need not worry about the fairness of the test. How many blows you can withstand will depend on your capability, and I, Bai Heng, swear on my dignity as a master teacher that I won’t side with anyone!”

Walking up, Elder Bai looked at the candidates seriously.

Ruohuan gongzi and Fu Xiaochen hurriedly said, “We have trust in Elder Bai’s impartiality!”

Elder Bai was a reputable elder in the Master Teacher Pavilion. Possessing a cultivation of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle, his true fighting prowess was second only to Pavilion Master Kang. On top of that, he had an upright personality, and he had even used his dignity as a master teacher to guarantee his impartiality on this matter. Since that was the case, it was impossible for him to go easy on anyone.

“Since there are no objections, you all should make preparations that you all deem fit. You’re permitted to use weapons, or if you prefer, bare fists are fine too. In any case, use the battle techniques you are the most adept in to fight with Elder Bai. However… for the sake of fairness and secrecy, the fight will be conducted in a sealed chamber. The number of blows will be reflected by a unique formation on the wall, so it’ll be impossible to falsify the results. Also, the details of the fight will be kept a secret as well, so you need not worry!” Pavilion Master Kang said.

After hearing the arrangements, the other master teachers nodded their heads.

Every master teacher had their own ultimate technique that they didn’t want anyone to know of. If they were to display it before a crowd, there was high possibility that the information might leak out. If so, their trump card would be known by their enemies and thus be rendered useless.

Conducting the test in a sealed chamber could solve this issue.

“I’ll go in and wait for you all!”

Waving his hands casually, Elder Bai walked into a small room by the side of the hall.

“Alright, who wants to go first?”

Seeing that Elder Bai was ready, Pavilion Master Kang turned to look at the six candidates before him.

“I’ll go first!”

Fu Xiaochen stepped forward.

He was a potential contender for the champion seat, but in the first round, he was only in the fourth place. This made him extremely frustrated.

In terms of Soul Depth, he might not be able to compare up to Feng Mosheng and Ruohuan gongzi, but in terms of strength, he was confident that he was second to none!

“Un, be careful!” Pavilion Master Kang nodded in satisfaction.

“Pavilion master, thank you for your advice!”

Fu Xiaochen walked into the room.

Weng!

The moment he stepped into the room, the white wall beside the door immediately glowed and a number appeared.

1!

2!

3!

…

10!

The number changed continuously, and it didn’t take long for it to reach ’10’.

“It has begun!”

“Even though Elder Bai has suppressed his cultivation, to be able to survive ten blows from him, Fu shi is quite incredible!”

“Need that be said? Fu shi is Elder Hai’s student! He has already reached an incredible mastery in the Thousand Seas Punch. Even with Elder Bai’s astounding fighting prowess, it’ll take him at least fifteen blows to defeat Fu shi!”

“Indeed. The Thousand Seas Punch launches blows relentlessly at one’s enemies as though the ceaseless waves of the sea, it is truly a formidable battle technique…”

“I wonder how many blows he can withstand.”

…

Seeing the numbers on the wall, everyone could tell that the fight had already begun, and both sides had already traded ten blows. They couldn’t help but clench their fists out of anxiety.

Elder Bai’s fighting prowess was formidable. Even if he had suppressed his cultivation, surviving ten blows from him was already something one could brag about!

After all, even if an expert suppressed his cultivation to the same level as a rookie, his comprehension of fighting in itself was not something that a rookie could compare up to. How could the rookie possibly achieve victory under such circumstances?

Hu!

Amidst the shock gazes of the crowd, the leaping numbers finally came to a halt.

31!

Following which, the tightly shut doors opened and Fu Xiaochen walked out. Even though his clothes were slightly unkempt, his eyes glowed in excitement.

Only when experiencing it oneself would one understand how powerful Elder Bai was. Even though the latter had already suppressed his cultivation, Fu shi still wasn’t a match at all.

If not for him dumping out all of his trump cards, it would have been difficult for him to even last twenty blows.

With 31 blows, Fu Xiaochen was confident that he could at least get the first two places.

“Impressive!”

Ruohuan gongzi looked at the young man who had just left the chamber and his expression turned grim.

He wasn’t confident that he could survive so many blows from Elder Bai, and this put heavy pressure on him.

“Ruohuan gongzi, let me see how well you fare!”

Fu Xiaochen walked up to Ruohuan gongzi and said with curled up lips.

“Sure!”

Taking in a deep breath, Jun Ruohuan gritted his teeth and walked into the chamber.

Huhuhuhu!

Soon, numbers started to appear on the white wall.

“How many blows do you think Ruohuan gongzi can withstand?”

“I can’t really tell. His fighting prowess is at the same level as Fu shi. Since the latter is able to survive 31 blows, his result should be around that level as well!”

“Let’s just hope so!”

Seeing the number increasing continuously, everyone’s face slowly grew graver.

Jun Ruohuan and Fu Xiaochen, as idols for many of the younger generation, were the two most popular contenders for the champion seat. Everyone was curious to know whose fighting prowess was greater.

“I think Fu Xiaochen should fare better than Jun Ruohuan!” Pavilion Master Kang suddenly said.

“Oh?” Elder Su turned his attention over.

“Xiaochen has a calm disposition which makes him adept in defense. On the other hand, Ruohuan, due to his prideful nature, only becomes more and more aggressive in the face of danger. Such attacks might work on others but against Elder Bai… it will prove to be a fatal flaw instead!” Pavilion Master Kang analyzed.

“You’re right!” Su shi and Ling shi nodded their heads in agreement.

It wasn’t by chance that Jun Ruohuan was known as the head of the Four Gentlemen. It was through his fists that he slowly beat that reputation out for himself.

And it was precisely because of his strength that built onto his pride.

Prideful people tended to be weaker in their defense. Usually, this wouldn’t make much of a difference when facing off with those of similar cultivation realm, but against the experienced Elder Bai, Jun Ruohuan’s flaws would be exploited and amplified many folds.

Hu!

While the duo was speaking, the light on the wall slowly faded, revealing two digits to the crowd

30!

Just as Pavilion Master Kang guessed, Ruohuan gongzi’s result was indeed beneath that of Fu Xiaochen. At thirty blows, he happened to lose to the latter by just a single blow.

“Just a single blow?”

“Do you think that Ruohuan gongzi might have some trump card just like in the first round? Even though he has lost out to Fu shi by a single blow, is it possible that he has won instead?”

“How is that possible! This is a real spar; every blow has to be created by one’s own strength. A blow less means a blow less, there’s no making up for it!”

“That’s true!”

…

Seeing that it was thirty blows, there were some who felt that Ruohuan gongzi might be able to make a turnaround like he did previously. But giving it some thought, it was indeed impossible to do so.

After all, sparring was different from carving a formation plate. Every blow counted, there was no making up for it with anything.

Jiya!

During the discussions, the door to the chamber opened and Ruohuan gongzi walked out with a bitter smile.

He also didn’t expect to lose to Fu Xiaochen by a single blow.

Even so, there was nothing he could do. Even though Elder Bai had suppressed his cultivation, his offense was relentless as though the ceaseless waves. He had given it his all, but thirty blows were already his limit.

Even though he lost, he had no regrets.

“Allow me to go next!”

Upon seeing Ruohuan gongzi exit, Feng Mosheng took in a deep breath and walked into the chamber.

A bright light shone, and numbers appeared on the white wall. Not too long later, Feng Mosheng walked out with a pale face. The number was fixed at 28.

Seeing his result, Fu Xiaochen and Ruohuan gongzi heaved a long sigh of relief. Then, their gazes turned to Zhang Xuan.

After the three of them were done with the examination, the only one most likely to turn the situation around was this fellow.

Even though they didn’t know how the other party’s fighting prowess was, given how he was able to leave Elder Wu in a wretched state through music itself, he was unlikely to be weak.

But what that left them disappointed was that Zhang Xuan didn’t seem to be in a rush to enter the chamber at all. Luo Xi and Du Hu went ahead of him, and what was surprising was that Du Hu, who had fared the worst in the previous round, actually managed to withstand twenty-eight blows as well, thus achieving a result equaling Feng Mosheng.

On the other hand, Luo Xi, due to her physical weakness as a female, only managed to withstand twenty-four blows.

“It’s Zhang shi’s turn…”

“Indeed. I wonder if he can become the dark horse just like how he did in the first round!”

“I find that very unlikely. After all, as a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle, his battle experience is likely to be very lacking. He’ll be at a huge disadvantage facing off with Elder Bai!”

“That’s true…”

…

Seeing Zhang Xuan walk into the chamber, the crowd whispered amongst themselves.

In truth, the method of conducting the test wasn’t as fair as it sounded. It was much easier for a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan expert to subdue a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan cultivator as compared to a Transcendent Mortal 3-dan cultivator even if he were to suppress his cultivation to their respective level. This was due to the difference in their battle experience.

Take for example, while a professor might be able to do a university student’s homework and a grade schooler’s homework, it was clear that a grade schooler’s homework would be much easier for him than a university student’s homework.

Zhang shi’s cultivation was the lowest among all the candidates. It would surely be much easier for Elder Bai to deal with him than the other candidates.

“How many blows do you think he can withstand?”

Pavilion Master Kang turned to look at Su shi.

Su shi hesitated for a moment before saying, “This… I’m not too sure. However, given Elder Bai’s skills, even if he were to suppress his cultivation to Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle, he would still be able to kill a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan intermediate stage cultivator easily. I’m afraid Zhang shi probably won’t be able to last for too long!”

He carried deep trust in Zhang Xuan, but Elder Bai wasn’t someone ordinary either.

His grasp of cultivation and battle techniques had reached an incredibly profound level. Even Su shi would find it hard to match up to the other party, let alone Zhang shi!

“Indeed. Even though Zhang shi had managed to progress three cultivation realms in the past twenty days, his cultivation should still be unstable and his grasp over his strength should be lacking. My guess is that he’ll lose within ten blows!” Pavilion Master Kang analyzed.

Su shi had said previously that Zhang shi had progressed from Zongshi realm twenty days ago to Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle. Achieving breakthroughs so quickly, even if he was a Celestial Master Teacher, it was inevitable for his cultivation to be slightly shaky.

His estimate of ten blows was already a positive one.

“I also think so, but… Zhang shi has never been a person who could be dictated by common logic. It’s hard to tell what will happen next…” Ling shi interjected.

While he agreed with Pavilion Master Kang’s analysis-under normal circumstances, it would be impossible for Zhang shi to withstand even ten blows… he also knew that Zhang shi was a person who often broke expectations. As long as the result wasn’t out, it would be hard to fathom a guess.

“Look, it’s starting!”

They weren’t the only ones who were anxious. Everyone in the hall was looking intently at the white wall beside the door, and soon, a number appeared on it… 1!

“Ah? Why isn’t it increasing anymore?”

After seeing the number ‘1’, everyone thought that it would continue increasing to a point before stopping altogether. But to their astonishment, the number seemed to be printed firmly there, not moving at all.

“Could it be that… the formation is malfunctioning?”

“That’s impossible! The formation was set up my Elder Wu personally. Besides, it was fine when the other candidates were using it. How could it possibly spoil all of a sudden?”

“Then… why is that number not moving at all?”

“Could it be that…”

At that moment, everyone thought of the same possibility and disbelief filled their faces.

“He lost… in a single move?”

Ruohuan gongzi’s eyes lit up, and he clenched his fists tightly together in agitation.

Even the austere Fu Xiaochen showed a rare expression of delight.

The duo had been worried that this black horse would overthrow their records just like he did previously. No one expected him to lose in a single blow.

But that was to be expected. How could a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan lad possibly be able to withstand Elder Bai’s ferocious assault?

They had thought that this fellow might be their greatest obstacle to winning the selection round, but from the looks of it now, they were just overthinking things-the other party wasn’t even a threat at all!

“Isn’t this result too poor… With such strength, he still hopes to participate in the Master Teacher Tournament?”

“Even though strength isn’t the determining criteria, it is still of significant importance. Even Beauty Luo Xi is able to withstand twenty-four blows. To lose in a single blow… Isn’t that way too fast?!”

“Indeed. So what if he has a powerful Soul Depth? Without sufficient strength, he would still be eliminated swiftly in the tournament!”

Upon understanding the situation, everyone began gossiping.

In the first round, this fellow had astonished everyone with his unparalleled talents. Even Elder Wu nearly lost his sanity because of him. So, they thought that even if his result in the second round couldn’t compare up to his first, he would still be able to fare decently. They never thought that… the other party would do so poorly!

Losing in a single blow!

Even a normal cultivator should have been able to withstand at least several blows!

“This…” Pavilion Master Kang, Su shi, and Ling shi stared at one another blankly.

They had deduced that Zhang shi wouldn’t be able to even withstand ten blows, but… to lose in a single blow, what the heck was this?

“Zhang shi sure likes to do the unexpected. I sure didn’t expect this conclusion…”

Su shi flashed a bitter smile as he spoke.

This Zhang Xuan was always doing things that surpassed the imaginations of others. Just taking this as example, they had thought of all kinds of possibility, but one thing they didn’t expect to see was for the latter to lose in a single blow.

“Alright, since the results are out, allow me to announce them!”

Shaking his head, Pavilion Master Kang scanned the surroundings and said, “Fu Xiaochen, with a record of 31 blows, is in the first place. Ruohuan gongzi, withstanding a total of 30 blows, is in the second place. Feng Mosheng and Du Hu, with a total of 28 blows, are tied at third. Luo Xi, with a total of twenty-four blows, is in the fifth place. Last but not least, Zhang shi… withstanding just a total of one blow, is in the…”

In the midst of announcing the results for the second round, ‘jiya!’, the door suddenly opened.

Turning his gaze over, Pavilion Master Kang suddenly saw something that left his eyes widened in shock, and he couldn’t help but exclaim, “What the hell?!”

Chapter 537: Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom

Going back to two minutes ago…

Upon entering the room, Zhang Xuan scanned his surroundings.

The room wasn’t exceptionally big. Upon entering, Zhang Xuan immediately saw a weapon rack. There were swords, sabers, spears, and many different kinds of weapons that a person could imagine of on it.

Elder Bai stood at the very center of the room with an impassive expression. “Take the weapon that you’re the most adept at!”

“Weapon?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “It’ll be hard not to hurt another using a weapon so there’s no need for it!”

The three weapons that he specialized in-sword, spear, and saber-had all reached the level of Weapon Intent. He didn’t think that there was any need to go to such an extent just for a mere test.

“You…”

Elder Bai’s face darkened.

It’s indeed easy to hurt another using weapon, but do you think that you can hurt me?

His eyebrows shot up coldly.

The other party was an arrogant brat.

“Alright. Since you chose this of your own accord, don’t blame me for not going easy on you!”

Not bothered about arguing with the other party, Elder Bai suppressed his cultivation of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle to just 1-dan pinnacle.

“I’ve suppressed my cultivation to your level already. Make your move!”

Elder Bai stretched his arm and beckoned with a cold gaze.

As a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan, he found it humiliating to face a weaker, bare-handed cultivator with a weapon. Thus, he chose to fight with his bare hands as well.

“You should go first…”

Zhang Xuan waved his hands.

“You…” Elder Bai felt so infuriated that his eyelids started leaping.

Is this fellow so confident or is he simply being narcissistic? Given my strength, if I were to make a move first, you won’t even get a chance to retaliate! I’m giving you a chance, you know?

One must know that the previous competitors had come at him with their strongest moves as soon as the battle started. It was only through their relentless barrage of attacks that they barely managed to survive twenty blows from him…

Are you sure you can withstand it if you allow me to go first?

“Alright then!”

Seeing that the other party had no intention of making a move, Elder Bai’s eyebrows shot up. Stepping against the ground, he dashed forward.

Huala!

Afterimages appeared in his place, and in the blink of an eye, he appeared before the young man.

“Fall!”

Seeing that the other party didn’t even try to dodge his offense, Elder Bai harrumphed coldly and sent a powerful palm at him.

Hu!

But to his shock, his palm struck empty air.

At some point, Zhang Xuan had suddenly disappeared from his sight.

“Shit…”

Narrowing his eyes, Elder Bai hurriedly turned around, only to see a sole appearing right before his eyes.

Pah!

Before he could even react, he was already sent flying. Crashing heavily onto the wall, the injury he sustained seemed to be even more severe than the previous victim, Elder Wu.

Elder Bai spewed large mouthfuls a blood, and for a moment, he was completely stunned.

The battle technique he had just executed was known as ‘Shadow Plunder’ and it had reached the level of Spirit intermediate-tier.

It was an extremely formidable move which contained innumerable changes and twists that confused one’s opponent, making it difficult for one’s opponent to differentiate a true attack from a feint.

Elder Bai thought that he would be able to toy with the other party once he executed this move… Yet, never in his wildest dreams did he expect for the other party to actually dodge his attack!

What made him even more faint-headed was that… unlike other conventional battle techniques where the mingmen was located at the crotch, below one’s armpit, or back, the mingmen of Shadow Plunder was at one’s qingming acupoint!

The qingming acupoint was located at one’s glabella, thus making it exceptionally conspicuous and vulnerable. However, at the same time, it was precisely due to the vulnerability of the location that no one could have imagined that the weakness of the technique was right next to their eyes.

This was a secret that even his closest direct disciple and Pavilion Master Kang didn’t know about. Yet, this fellow immediately charged up and struck him on this mingmen…

In an instant, with the strike on his mingmen, the zhenqi throughout his body immediately dissipated. If not for him releasing his suppressed cultivation at the last moment, thus warding off the impact of the blow with his full might as a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle, he might have already died from that blow already!

The heck!

What the hell was going on?

I am a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle expert, and the person I’m fighting with was just a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan pinnacle fellow. Even though I suppressed my cultivation, how could I be sent flying with a single kick, and on top of that, almost losing my life from that impact…

I am here to gauge his strength, but in the end… I failed to even withstand a single blow…

The more he thought about it, the more stifled he felt. The immense frustration he was feeling left his face slightly livid.

Struggling down from the wall, Elder Bai began to alleviate the rampant zhenqi within him from that blow. At that moment, the young man walked up to him and asked, “Elder Bai, are you fine?”

“Humph!”

Elder Bai harrumphed coldly out of embarrassment. However, before he could fully recover, the young man before him lamented under his breath, “The reason why I let you go first is so that you can at least withstand a few more blows. In the end, you didn’t even last the first blow. Aren’t you a little too weak…”

Pu!

A mouthful of fresh blood spilt out.

The heck! Shouldn’t those be my words?

I should be the one assessing your strength! How could I have ended up being subdued in a single kick…

The more he thought about it, the angrier he felt. As such, he bellowed furiously, “Shut up!”

“Shut up? Does Elder Bai want to go another round?” the young man said.

“I…”

Elder Bai immediately went mute. There was a stifled sensation weighing down on his chest, leaving him suffocated. He found himself on the verge of crying.

The other party’s movements were as swift as lightning. He would surely have been able to dodge the kick at his full strength, but with his strength suppressed to the level of a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan…

What left Elder Bai even more frustrated was that, even though he was caught off guard in the previous attack, he knew that it was completely impossible for him to avoid the kick with just the cultivation of a Transcendent Mortal 1-dan!

Harmonized with the environment, this move was exceptionally powerful and swift. On top of that, the other party had found his weakness. Even without considering the other moves that the other party might have in store, just these two factors was more than sufficient to guarantee him a ten out of ten matches loss rate.

Even more so, he was starting to think whether it might even be possible for him to defeat the other party when his cultivation is suppressed to that of a Transcendent Mortal 2-dan!

Didn’t they all say that he’s the easiest to deal with because of his weak cultivation? Like hell that is true…

“Let’s go out!”

Afraid that he might die from anger at the words the other party might say, Elder Bai disregarded his injuries, stood up, and walked out of the door.

Seeing that the other party was so anxious to leave, Zhang Xuan shrugged and followed behind him.

…

Shocked by the sight, Pavilion Master Kang cursed. His voice immediately pulled everyone’s gazes to the door of the chamber, and the sight left their eyes widened and blood threatened to spew from their mouths.

They saw Elder Bai walking out clutching his chest. A trail of blood flowed down the edge of his mouth, and a bright-red shoeprint was imprinted on his face.

“What happened?”

“Elder Bai… is wounded?”

“Wasn’t he in the midst of assessing Zhang Xuan?”

…

Everyone looked at one another in bewilderment.

Elder Bai had gone in to test Zhang Xuan, but why did he seem to be in an even worse state than Elder Wu previously was?

Look at his face, that shoeprint, and his appearance… Aiyo, it would be better to avert one’s gaze from him. Otherwise, one might really be tempted to puke.

“Elder Bai, this…”

Pavilion Master Kang looked at him with a bizarre expression.

“I…” If only there was a hole in the ground now, Elder Bai would surely leap in immediately.

“I’m sorry, Pavilion Master Kang. It’s all my fault. I should have gone easy, just that… I didn’t expect Pavilion Master Bai with his cultivation suppressed would be that weak… As such, I failed to control my strength and accidentally injured him. I apologize for that!” Zhang Xuan said apologetically.

“Weak?”

“Failed to control his strength?”

“Accidentally injured?”

…

The other candidates on the stage stared at one another with widened eyes, as though they had seen a ghost.

Fu Xiaochen and Ruohuan gongzi, who were gleeful a moment ago, stared at each other with trembling bodies. They seemed as if they might faint at any moment now.

They thought that this fellow had been knocked out in a single blow, but their conjecture was only half accurate. Someone was indeed knocked out… but that person was Elder Bai!

Are our eyes playing tricks on us?

That was a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle cultivator, an expert that was second only to Pavilion Master Kang in the Myriad Kingdom Alliance. For him to be kicked in the face…

When they fought with Elder Bai before, they had exerted every last ounce of strength they had, but even so, they only managed to hold on for thirty blows. Yet, this fellow managed to defeat the other party so easily…

They could only feel their vision going dark. They dared not believe this to be real.

“This…”

Pavilion Master Kang, Su shi, and Ling shi had their mouths agape. They hurriedly turned their gazes over the Elder Bai, wanting to know the exact happenings from him. However, after seeing his nod his head helplessly, in an instant, it was as though lightning was rumbling around them. The shock they suffered as so great that it would no longer be surprising if they were to fall dead now.

They had just agreed on that due to Zhang shi’s rapid rise in cultivation, it was impossible for him to survive ten blows from Elder Bai… Only at this moment did they know that it was Elder Bai who was too weak for the other party…

“Alright, now that Zhang shi has completed his test… Allow me to reannounce the results!”

Forced to change his words once more, Pavilion Master Kang’s face flushed, “In first place, Zhang shi. In second place, Fu Xiaochen. In third place, Ruohuan gongzi. In fourth place, Feng Mosheng and Du Hu…”

Once again, obtaining the first place, Zhang Xuan proved to be the dark horse of the selection round once again.

There was no choice but to give him first place! The test was to withstand as many blows from Elder Bai as possible, but he went on ahead to knock the other party out… The difference between him and the other candidates was as great as the difference between heaven and earth. There was no choice but to concede to him!

“Alright, let’s move on to the third test!”

Knowing that this would never come to an end if they were to dawdle on this matter, Pavilion Master Kang glanced at the surroundings and decisively announced.

“We’ve covered Soul Depth and cultivation in the first two tests. Even though these two factors are important, they are only the fundamentals to becoming a master teacher! To become a truly outstanding master teacher, one has to be proficient in the art of knowledge impartation!

“Thus, this shall be what will be assessed in the third round!

“In a usual examination, the examinees would hide their identity, join an academy as a teacher, and take a class for a period of several months to two years. After which, the students of the examinees will be put against one another, and this will serve as an evaluation of the teacher’s ability to impart knowledge… However, there are only two months left to the Master Teacher Tournament, so we don’t have enough time to do so much. Thus… I thought of a much more efficient and effective way to test the candidates’ ability to impart knowledge.

“That is… Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom.” Pavilion Master Kang declared.

“Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom? What is that?”

“I’m not too sure as well. I’ve only heard of Spiritual Wisdom. If I’m not mistaken, it’s an ability that painters would gain upon after reaching 5-star. It’s an ability to infuse wisdom into the characters of the painting, granting them the ability to absorb spiritual energy from the air and sustain themselves for a very long time.”

“Now that you speak of it, I do remember it being so. Such a work is known as a painting of the sixth level!”

“Indeed. Reality Depiction, Spiritual Canvas, Infused Intentions, Breathtaking Verisimilitude, Spirit Creation, Spiritual Wisdom… Only 5-star painters are capable of creating a painting of this level, and unfortunately, there’s no one possessing such ability in the Myriad Kingdom Alliance!”

“Since Spiritual Wisdom is an ability belonging to that of a 5-star painter, what could Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom be? And how can it assess a person’s ability to impart knowledge?”

…

The crowd below discussed with perplexed expressions. None of them were able to understand the concept of Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom.

Even Zhang Xuan frowned as well.

However, there was one exception. Upon hearing the content of the test, Ruohuan gongzi’s face immediately glowed in delight, and he clenched his fists in agitation.

As a 4-star painter, this test was advantageous to him.

Chapter 538: First Up, Zhang Xuan

“Seems like everyone isn’t too sure on what it is about. Since that’s the case, allow me to explain!”

Seeing the doubt in everyone’s eyes, Pavilion Master Kang smiled. “I believe everyone here should be aware of the concept of Spiritual Wisdom. It is the sixth level of a painting, and at this level, the characters within the painting are able to absorb spiritual energy from the surroundings to materialize.

“And the idea of Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom actually is to… conduct a lecture for these painted characters!

“Conduct a lecture for the characters in the painting?”

Hearing the explanation, everyone was stunned.

The concept of ‘Spiritual Wisdom’ was different from intelligence. Even though the characters in the painting had gained sentience, as beings forged of spiritual energy, they had no intelligence. Since they had no intelligence, what was the use of imparting them knowledge? Could they even understand the content of the lesson?

“Since all of us here are master teachers, you all should know that a master teacher’s lecture usually utilizes Impartation of Heaven’s Will. The more one’s theory is recognized by the heavens, the greater the concentration of spiritual energy gathered in the surroundings!” Pavilion Master Kang said.

Everyone nodded their heads.

Impartation of Heaven’s Will did have the ability to gather spiritual energy. It was said that whenever Kong shi conducted a lesson, the amount of spiritual energy that gathered was more than sufficient to create a spirit mountain.

Putting aside Kong shi, even Hong shi Hong Qian, a 5-star primary master teacher of Hongfeng Empire Master Teacher Pavilion who had just conducted a lesson here, was capable of Spirit Gathering Diction. Nourished under the immense concentration of spiritual energy in the area, those participating in the lecture unwittingly experienced a rise in their cultivation.

This was the ability that all master teachers possessed. However, its effectiveness depended on the proficiency of the person.

Hongfeng Empire was a vassal state of Huanyu Empire.

Just like kingdoms, empire could be classified as Conferred, Tier 1, Tier 2, and Unranked.

Huanyu was a Tier 2 Empire whereas Hongfeng was, just like how Tianxuan was an Unranked Kingdom, an Unranked Empire. It was on the same level as Mingxia Empire, Henghai Empire, and Myriad Kingdom Alliance

However, a master teacher of this level would never remain in an Unranked Empire forever. It wouldn’t be long before the regional headquarters summoned him over to an even higher tiered Master Teacher Pavilion to study. In fact, the reason why Hong Qian was dispatched here was because he was heading to Huanyu Empire.

The top-ranking geniuses in the Master Teacher Tournament, on top of earning huge rewards, would be given a chance to study at Huanyu Empire’s Master Teacher Academy.

“Even though painted characters that have gained Spiritual Wisdom can’t live on like ordinary lifeforms, they are able to absorb spiritual energy and sustain themselves for a very long time. As such, they are exceptionally sensitive to the spiritual energy in their surroundings. If the theories one speaks of in their lecture are aligned with the essence of the world, spiritual energy will gather, thus allowing them to sustain for a longer period of time. On the other hand, failure to do so will make them dissipate swiftly! Through this, we can accurately assess a master teacher’s ability to impart knowledge without worrying for any bias,” Pavilion Master Kang explained.

“I see!”

“Such a method would indeed be the fairest…”

Understanding the situation, the crowd nodded their heads in agreement.

As those Spiritual Wisdom beings only recognized spiritual energy, the judgement for the test would be impartial.

After all, human judgement was always unwittingly or wittingly tied with emotions. If a person finds himself liking a certain teacher’s lessons very much, he might be overestimate the effectiveness on the lesson. At the same time, he would tend to underplay the effectiveness of the lessons of other teachers.

Such bias was set into the personality of humans and it couldn’t be changed.

After all, other than Empyrean Kong shi, no matter how formidable a master teacher was, they couldn’t possibly win the trust and admiration of everyone else.

If they were to find students here to assess the teaching capability of the candidates, given that Ruohuan gongzi and Fu Xiaochen, as famous geniuses of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance, had many fans here, it would surely be easier for them to win the students over. This would’ve made the test unfair.

On the other hand, the painting characters didn’t possess such emotions. They wouldn’t be awed by one’s reputation or be charmed by a person’s appearance. Instead, they would only react to the movement of the spiritual energy generated by the lecture. This would ensure the fairness of the test.

“Un!”

Coming to a realization, Zhang Xuan nodded his head as well.

He had learned about Spiritual Wisdom from the painting books he had collected into the Library of Heaven’s Path. Spiritual Wisdom beings only reacted to spiritual energy. Even Impartation of Heaven’s Will couldn’t influence them at all.

The same went for painters as well. Unless one was the painter of the very painting, their ability to influence the actions of Spiritual Wisdom beings was severely limited.

“Since everyone understands the rules, let’s begin the competition then. Elder Yun, I’ll be troubling you this time around!”

Seeing that everyone in the hall had no objections to the matter, Pavilion Master Kang invited Elder Yun up with a smile.

“Don’t worry!”

An elder stood up from the crowd.

“I knew that it would be Elder Yun!”

“Elder Yun, as the only 4-star pinnacle painter of the Master Teacher Pavilion, is the most authoritative on the subject of paintings. Naturally, the test concerning Spiritual Wisdom should be invigilated by him! More importantly… that ‘Painting of Soaring Birds’ is a masterpiece left behind by a 5-star painter. It will be the most appropriate to use it for the examination!”

“That painting is Elder Yun’s most prized possession and he never takes it out. I’ve long heard of it, but I’ve never got the chance to see it before. Looks like my eyes will be in for a feast this time around!”

“Indeed! Sixth level paintings are extremely rare. Most likely, one won’t be able to find a second one throughout the entire Myriad Kingdom Alliance!”

“That might not necessarily be so. I heard that the Appraiser Hall has a work that is on par with this. However, it’ll be difficult to access the items there…”

…

Upon seeing the elder, hushed discussions could be heard among the crowd.

Just like Ruohuan gongzi, Elder Yun’s main supporting occupation was a painter. Furthermore, his rank was significantly higher than the latter, reaching 4-star pinnacle.

At this level, even excluding his identity as a master teacher, he could be considered as a top-notch figure in Myriad Kingdom City.

“At the pavilion master’s request, I shall be conducting this test!”

Ignoring the discussions below, Elder Yun walked up to the candidates, flicked his wrist, and a rolled-up painting appeared in his hands. “This ‘Painting of Soaring Birds’ was a gift my painting teacher bestowed to me.”

Huala!

As he spoke, the painting abruptly unrolled and a flock of birds soared into the air, chirping delightfully as they frolicked about.

These birds were completely lifelike, and unlike the beings created from a Spirit Creation painting, it was impossible to tell a real from fake if they were mingled with one another. After escaping from the painting, they flew in a space three chi around the painting. Only after two minutes had passed did they finally return to the painting.

“The characters in a Spiritual Wisdom painting can absorb spiritual energy from the surroundings to materialize in an area around the painting. However, there’s a time limit to it, and two minutes is the limit! Whoever who is able to keep them materialized for the longest time possible with their lecture will be the winner of this round!”

Elder Yun elaborated on the rules of the test before turning his gaze to the candidates.

“Alright, let’s start the test! Who wants to go first?”

“This…”

The candidates stared at one another.

Even though they had some understanding of painting, they had never come into contact with Spiritual Wisdom paintings before. They had no experience in sustaining the materialization of a Spiritual Wisdom being and they had nothing to refer to as well.

Ruohuan gongzi was about to take a step forward when he abruptly paused. Turning to Zhang Xuan, he smiled.

“Zhang shi, why don’t… you go first? Since you placed first in the earlier two rounds, your ability to impart knowledge must be extraordinary as well. Why don’t you allow us to take a look so that we can learn from you?”

Before the tournament, the opponent which he was the wariest about was Fu Xiaochen. However, this had changed after seeing Zhang Xuan’s outstanding performance in the previous two rounds.

“Me? Alright!” Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

“It can’t be that you wish to go last every time just so that you can make use of the experience of others to better your… What did you say? Alright? You’re willing to go up first?”

Ruohuan gongzi thought that the other party would reject the invitation immediately just like in the first round and thus, he had even prepared a long speech to pressure the other party. However, halfway through his words, he heard the other party’s reply and froze. It felt as though his punch had struck empty space, and this made him so stifled that he felt like spurting blood.

Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom. Most master teachers had never heard of such a bizarre test before. Shouldn’t the other party be thinking of learning from the experience of others before making a move?

Why did he agree to it so readily?

Wasn’t he being too eccentric?!

“Elder Yun, allow me!”

Uninterested by the immense shock Ruohuan gongzi was suffering from, Zhang Xuan stepped forward.

In truth, he had wanted to allow others to go first due to having never seen such a test before. However, given that he had gone last for the previous two tests, he felt embarrassed to continue acting like that.

In any case, since he had made sense of the rules already, there probably wasn’t too much of a difference between going first and going last.

“You?”

Upon seeing Zhang Xuan stepping forward, Elder Yun’s mouth twitched.

He had seen the proceedings of the previous tests. This black horse that came from nowhere destroyed Elder Wu in the first round and nearly killed Elder Bai in the second… If there was one candidate he was the most fearful of, it would definitely be him.

Who knew what kind of mess he would cause this time around.

But even so, he wasn’t in a place to stop the other party from going first. Thus, he nodded his head and said, “As soon as I activate the painting and the birds soar out from it, you can begin your lecture. The content you are allowed to lecture on is not limited. Your ranking will be decided by how much spiritual energy you can gather and how long the birds stay materialized for!”

“Un!”

Zhang Xuan nodded his head.

The rules were simple, there was nothing doubtful about it.

Seeing that the other party had fully comprehended the rules, Elder Yun placed his palm on the painting.

“Alright, let’s begin then!”

Weng!

The birds from before soared out from the painting.

As expected of a Spiritual Wisdom painting. Absorbing spiritual energy from the air, the birds that emerged from the painting were exceptionally eye-catching and there was a bizarre sense of aesthetics to them.

“Since this is a painting, I’ll talk about painting then!”

After a moment of hesitation, Zhang Xuan made up his decision.

As long as the lecture he spoke of was able to pull in spiritual energy from the surroundings, there was no difference to the content he spoke of.

“Painting isn’t just a depiction of reality. More importantly, one has to harness their emotions into their work before an art piece can be granted as soul…”

The reorganized Heaven’s Path Paint Art appeared before him, and he began deciphering it slowly based on his comprehension of it.

In Tianxuan Kingdom, he had duplicated all of the painting books in Master Lu Chen’s study. After which, in the libraries at Tianwu Kingdom, Honghai Kingdom, and various other locations, there were a significant number of books on painting as well.

After organizing and assimilating the knowledge harnessed within those books, most probably, even Elder Yun, a 4-star pinnacle painter, would be far from a match for him in the subject.

If not for that, how could he possibly have induced the Appraiser Hall’s ‘Rousing from Drunken Dreams’ to reach the seventh level just by granting it a name? Even if he was able to see through the painting’s flaws via the Library of Heaven’s Path, without a strong foundation in painting, it would surely be impossible for him to accomplish this feat.

His voice was well-paced, and his explanations for the profound and abstract concepts were shockingly simple. More importantly, they were all directed to the true essence of painting itself. His lecture was well-planned, slowly delving from the surface into the depths, pulling everyone along with his line of thoughts.

If there was one thing to criticize anything about his lecture, it would be that he was only lecturing on the bare fundamentals of painting.

“I didn’t expect for Zhang shi’s comprehension of painting to reach such an astounding level!”

After listening for a moment, Pavilion Master Kang’s face was marked with shock.

He thought that Zhang shi would use Impartation of Heaven’s Will to lecture on topics regarding cultivation. He didn’t expect the latter’s comprehension of painting to be so deep as well.

It seemed like the other party’s deep knowledge didn’t just stop at cultivation techniques and cultivation itself.

As expected of a master teacher who was able to even beguile him, formidable!

“The consumption of spiritual energy by Spiritual Wisdom beings to sustain their materialization is exceedingly high. Even with the ‘Spirit Gathering Diction’ of a 5-star master teacher, the materialization of Spiritual Wisdom beings still can’t be sustained for too long.”

Just as Pavilion Master Kang was immersed in his awe for the young man on the stage, Su shi turned to look at him and asked, “Pavilion Master Kang, in your view, how long do you think Zhang shi can sustain the materialization for?”

Chapter 539: Return My Bird!

Spiritual Wisdom painting had been granted sentience by the painter, allowing them to absorb spiritual energy from the surroundings to emerge from a painting.

As their existences hinged on spiritual energy itself, their spiritual energy requirement was very high, and they were exceptionally sensitive to fluctuations of spiritual energy in the surroundings. Under normal conditions, it would be impossible to sustain their materialization for too long. In fact, even under the Spirit Gathering Diction of a 5-star master teacher, their materialization will only be extended by a slightly longer period of time.

As such, the test wasn’t as easy as it seemed.

In Su shi’s view, even though Zhang Xuan was talented in painting as well, he was only a 3-star painter (as well as from Tianwu Kingdom), and not to mention, the content he spoke of was the bare fundamentals. It would be difficult for him to gather sufficient spiritual energy to sustain the Spiritual Wisdom for too long.

“If he had lectured on cultivation, I think he would have lasted for fifteen minutes or so. After all, even Elder Yun only managed to sustain the materialization for thirteen minutes!” Pavilion Master Kang replied, after a moment of contemplation.

After confirming the content of the test, Elder Yun had tried it out himself. However, despite being a 4-star master teacher, he was only able to sustain the materialization for thirteen minutes.

Given that Zhang Xuan’s comprehension of cultivation was even above his, it shouldn’t be too difficult for him to surpass Elder Yun’s record.

But even so, fifteen minutes was probably the cap.

After all, the more basic the content was, the harder it was to draw in spiritual energy.

“Given that he’s lecturing on painting… Not to mention, the bare fundamentals of it, I think even eight minutes will be a hurdle for him!”

“That’s my evaluation as well!” Su shi nodded.

Even though the two of them weren’t painters, they had still browsed through a fair number of books regarding the topic. It wasn’t hard for them to tell that Zhang Xuan was only touching on the most basic concepts. On top of that, there was no clear movement in the spiritual energy in the surroundings. It would be nigh impossible for him to sustain the materialization for any longer than that.

“With just eight minutes, it’ll be difficult for him to take first place. Ruohuan gongzi, as a 4-star painter and 4-star master teacher, will definitely be able to surpass the ten minutes barrier!”

Ling shi couldn’t help but interject.

The other two nodded their heads in agreement.

Jun Ruohuan, as a painter, was extremely familiar with the concept of Spiritual Wisdom. With this advantage, it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to maintain the materialization for more than ten minutes. With just eight minutes, it would be difficult for Zhang shi to secure even the second place.

“Look, the Spiritual Wisdom is already beginning to sway. It’s already on the verge of dissipating!”

Everyone turned their gazes over. At the current moment, the chirping of the birds above the painting was slowly getting less and less crisp, and their body was swaying ceaselessly, as though a candlelight on the verge of extinguishing.

“But it has only been three minutes! How can his results be this poor?”

“Indeed. Even without conducting a lecture, those Spiritual beings are able to sustain their materialization for two minutes. What is going on?”

Everyone frowned.

Given how Spiritual Wisdom beings can sustain their existence for two minutes even without any external assistance, for the birds to shake at the third minute… This showed that the spiritual energy drawn in by Zhang shi was minimal, perhaps even negligible!

“I’ll be taking first place for sure!”

Ruohuan gongzi’s eyes lit up.

Given how that fellow was unable to sustain the materialization for even five minutes, he would surely finish in sixth place. Even though Ruohuan gongzi’s results were inferior to Zhang Xuan in the first two rounds, with this opportunity, he was confident in making a comeback and obtaining first place overall!

In the end, how could a person who came from a lower tiered kingdom compare to a Conferred Kingdom’s top-notch genius? Master Teacher Tournament was a test on one’s capability in all aspects. One couldn’t hope to achieve a good placing with just overwhelming strength or a powerful Soul Depth only.

“Looks like inviting him to go up first was a good thing… Without any experience, how can he hope to achieve good results?”

Ruohuan gongzi’s lips curled up.

Given how even the master teachers of Myriad Kingdom Alliance had never heard of Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom, what could a countryside bumpkin like the other party know about it?

Perhaps, if he were to get the other party to go up first for the subsequent rounds as well, the other party might fare poorly as well.

The more Ruohuan gongzi thought about it, the more excited he felt. It was to the extent that he nearly burst out laughing.

Fu Xiaochen also heaved a sigh of relief. He was currently in the third place, and if that fellow were to continue clinching the top spot, he would surely be eliminated. Thus, upon seeing this situation, he felt relieved instead.

“It’s a relief that he didn’t cause anything this time around…” Elder Yun wiped the sweat off his forehead.

Given the huge ruckus that fellow caused in the first two round, Elder Yun thought that the other party might do the same in this round, leaving him in an incomparably awkward position… But from the looks of it now, he was worrying needlessly. Painting seemed to be a weakness of the other party…

Just as the burden was lifted off his heart and he was waiting for the Spiritual Wisdom beings to disappear, he suddenly thought of something and froze.

“Something is wrong… If the Spiritual Wisdom beings are about to dissipate, they should do so in less than a few breaths. Since that is a fact, how could they still be materialized at this very moment? On top of that, even though the Spiritual Wisdom beings were swaying violently, it doesn’t seem like they are about to dissipate…”

Under normal circumstances, as soon as the body of a Spiritual Wisdom being starts to sway, it’ll disappear within seconds. If so, how could these Spiritual Energy beings sway for a minute but still remain materialized?

“Wait! Why does it seem like the body of the Spiritual Energy beings are getting more and more substantial instead?”

“Now that you speak of it…”

The others were also starting to realize that something was off.

They had carefully assessed the dissipation of the Spiritual Wisdom beings when Elder Yun opened up the scroll and did a demonstration before the test. Once swaying occurred, the gathered spiritual energy would dissipate swiftly.

Yet, even though the Spiritual Energy beings were swaying so violently that normal birds would have become stark naked by now, the spiritual energy forming them didn’t dissipate. Instead, as Zhang shi continued with his lesson, they seemed to be becoming more and more corporeal…

This was completely defying common sense! Those Spiritual Energy beings should have dissipated by that swaying, and yet, why did it seem like they were being nourished instead…

What was going on?

“Wait, something is wrong…”

A deep frown appeared on Elder Yun’s forehead. Just like that, another few more minutes passed. But even as Zhang Xuan was about to pass the ten minutes mark, the Spiritual Energy beings still hadn’t dissipated. On the contrary, their bodies were becoming more and more corporeal. It was as though an image was slowly coming to life. Suddenly, Elder Yun thought of something and his eyes narrowed.

“Could this be…

“But… impossible!” Elder Yun exclaimed as frenzy covered his entire face.

“What’s wrong with Elder Yun?”

“It can’t be that all the elders who were tested by that lad will be reduced to such a state?”

Seeing the usually composed Elder Yun acting in such a manner, Elder Wu and Elder Bai’s mouths twitched as well.

The both of them had been severely injured while assessing that lad, and now, Elder Yun was acting in a similar manner as well… There seemed to be something really sinister about that lad.

“Elder Yun!” Pavilion Master Kang walked up and patted his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing… Just that, I thought of something unbelievable…” Elder Yun regained his senses from that pat and said.

“Something unbelievable?” Pavilion Master Kang frowned.

“Look…” Elder Yun pointed to the Spiritual Wisdom beings in front of Zhang Xuan. “These Spiritual Wisdom beings have been swaying for quite some time now, and it has been at least ten minutes since it started. However, not only have they not dissipated, they are even getting more and more corporeal…”

Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head in agreement.

Everyone had seen it happening and they thought it was weird as well. Was there really something wrong with it?

“If I’m not wrong, this isn’t dissipation but…”

Elder Yun’s lips trembled in shock, “… Elation of Unearthed Disposition, Enlightened Spirit!”

“Enlightened Spirit? You mean… the seventh level of painting? In a painting of that level, all beings, be it animals or plants, will possess their own sentience as though true living beings. They are capable of soaring beyond the painting and maintain their form for a very long time…”

Pavilion Master Kang was taken aback.

“That’s right!” Elder Yun nodded.

“But that can’t be! To create an Enlightened Spirit painting requires one to be at least a 6-star painter to modify or redraw the painting! To do so via a lecture… How is that even possible?”

Pavilion Master Kang widened his eyes in disbelief.

Painters that had comprehended that level could easily draw birds that could soar through the skies.

Rumor had it that a formidable 6-star painter had once drawn a divine crane on a wall and soared into the skies on its materialized form, leaving behind the legend of ‘Immortal Departing on the Divine Crane’.

There was also another legend depicting a grandmaster painter being caught in a spirit beast stampede. As such, he drew a pinnacle spirit beast whose aura sent all of the spirit beasts fleeing in fright.

All occupations, upon reaching a certain level, would possess unimaginable strength and means.

Just that, this miracle needed one to be at least a 6-star painter to work on a painting on the spot… For a Spiritual Wisdom to become an Enlightened Spirit via a lecture, that was completely unprecedented and unheard of.

“The content that Zhang shi spoke of is extremely compatible with the Spiritual Wisdom beings. Not only did it draw in spiritual energy, it even caused these Spiritual Wisdom beings to start cultivating… If I’m not mistaken, the swaying is actually an attempt to rid themselves of the impure spiritual energy from before, thus turning their energy even more concrete… In other words, Ridding Phantasm to Materialize!” Elder Yun said.

“Ridding Phantasm to Materialize? How… is that possible?” Pavilion Master Kang was so astonished that he nearly fainted on the spot.

Are you serious?

Just by conducting a lecture for the Spiritual Wisdom beings, they actually underwent Ridding Phantasm to Materialize and became Enlightened Spirits… Why did it sound like utter nonsense?

“I also find it hard to believe, but there is no plausible explanation other than this!” Elder Yun said.

Even though he had guessed it, he still found it hard to believe. That was why he lost his composure for a moment.

Suddenly, Pavilion Master Kang thought of a question.

“If that’s true… Usually, the breakthrough is done by modifying the painting. As the Spiritual Wisdom beings are in the painting while undergoing the breakthrough, the painting serves as their home, and thus, they can be summoned back through it. But if the Spiritual Wisdom beings were to achieve a breakthrough via such a lecture… Would they still return to the painting?”

If the Enlightened Spirits were to originate from the painting, even if they were to leave, they would still return to the painting when they needed to rest. However, these Spiritual Wisdom beings were making a breakthrough outside of the painting. Given that they didn’t materialize from the painting, there would be nothing tying them to the painting. If so, would they still return?

If they were to fly away and refuse to return to the painting, how would the results be tabulated? More importantly, how could the test continue under such circumstances?

“Ah? Crap, don’t allow him to continue speaking…”

Elder Yun froze for a moment before hurriedly shouting. However, before he could do any practical action, the birds in the painting suddenly stopped swaying and a harmonized chirp suddenly echoed in the hall.

Jijijiji! Qiuqiuqiuqiu!

Their pleasant call reverberated across the entire hall. It was as if a group of playful birds had visited them, and their presence in itself was an enjoyment.

At the same time, the slightly incorporeal birds from before seemed to have achieved a qualitative evolution. Their feathers became more lifelike, and their claws and peak became more defined. It was as if they had truly come to life this time around.

Hu!

After the chirping, the birds flapped their wings and darted out of the hall, headed for the distance. It didn’t take long before they disappeared from everyone’s sight.

Seeing the departing birds and the empty paper left on the table, Elder Yun froze for a moment before his body began trembling.

That was an unparalleled work that his teacher had left for him. He cherished it so much that his heart ached just by showing it to another. Even his closest of friends had to plead with him for a very long time just for a glance.

He thought that it should be fine taking it out for such an important test, but who knew that… the Spiritual Wisdom beings contained within it would actually all fly away!

What the heck?!

Now that all of the Spiritual Wisdom beings had flown away, what use was this blank piece of paper?

He had just heaved a sigh of relief in having been spared when such a sight occurred… Was this fellow here to compete in the selection round or to wreak havoc?

With a trembling body, he walked up to Zhang Xuan. At this moment, he felt so much rage that he hated the fact he couldn’t tear that imbecile before him into pieces.

“My bird! You, return my bird…”

Chapter 540: I’ll Just Draw Another One For You

My ‘bird’?

Return my ‘bird’?

At that moment, the master teachers in the room hadn’t realized that those birds were leaving for good. As such, they immediately thought of the other meaning of Elder Yun’s words. They immediately turned to gaze at the latter’s crotch and shivered in disgust.

It seemed like… Zhang shi had only conducted a lecture. How in the world does your ‘bird’ come into play in this situation?

Furthermore, wasn’t it still attached?

For a 4-star master teacher to ask another person about his ‘bird’ in public, truly, this was… too shameful!

Many female master teachers blushed in embarrassment upon hearing so… As a painter, Elder Yun possessed a refined disposition so many thought of him as an upright and dashing person. To think that he would be an old pervert instead!

“That’s not right, maybe Elder Yun is referring to the birds that just escaped!”

Slowly, some among the crowd realized it.

“Ah?”

The crowd was taken aback, and that person described his observation.

“After listening to Zhang shi’s lesson, those birds seem to have suddenly become lively. They escaped from the restraints of the painting paper and… flew away!”

“Flew away? This ‘Painting of Soaring Birds’ is centered around the birds, and its greatest value lies in those Spiritual Wisdom birds. If they were to fly away… wouldn’t the painting become totally worthless…”

“Indeed! That’s precisely the reason why Elder Yun went into a frenzy. That is a Spiritual Wisdom painting, it’s worth a huge fortune, you know…”

“For a treasure which he cherished so much to be reduced into a worthless piece of paper… There is no one who can retain their rationality before that!”

…

Hearing the explanation, everyone finally understood what was going on. They stared at one another as their mouth twitched violently.

On the other hand, Elder Wu and Elder Bai stared at one another in relief.

At the very least, they were only injured. All they had to do was to condition themselves for a period of time to make a complete recovery. On the other hand, that painting was Elder Yun’s most prized possession. For it to become worthless in the blink of an eye, it was already a huge fortune that he didn’t lose sight of himself and tear that fellow apart on the spot…

Ruohuan gongzi, who just a moment ago had still been gleeful at being able to take first place this time around, cried tearfully.

“Just by undergoing a lecture, a Spiritual Wisdom being actually advanced to become an Enlightened Spirit and flew away…”

He had made some calculations before and he was confident that he’d be able to get the Spiritual Wisdom being to maintain its materialization for over ten minutes. But this fellow… actually allowed the Spiritual Wisdom being to fly away for good…

What the heck!

Do you need to be so fierce?

If you do it like that, how do you expect for the rest of us to compete with you? If you always do that, you’ll find yourself without friends…

“Cough cough. Elder Yun, calm down…”

Seeing his usually composed old friend getting so agitated that he looked like he could murder someone, Elder Su hurried forward to calm him.

“Calm down? The heck that can I calm down now! That’s a painting that my teacher left to me. I was still planning to study it every day so that I can achieve a breakthrough to become a 5-star painter… Given that this has happened, how in the world can I reach higher ranks now?”

Lowering his head to glance at the white paper on the table, Elder Yun gritted his teeth.

Who said that this was just a test, and it would be extremely simple?

Come out! I promise I won’t hit you…

Just as he was frenzied, the young man opposite him spoke with a slightly doubtful voice, “I hadn’t finished my lecture when you scared those birds away… How are you going to tabulate the timing for me like that?”

Elder Yun wasn’t the only one who was angry. Zhang Xuan was also a little frustrated at the situation.

Wasn’t this old man a little too unreliable?

He was in the midst of imparting the Heaven’s Path Paint Art to help these Spiritual Wisdom beings gather their strength. If he were to succeed, they would be able to fly wherever they pleased and maintain their existence as long as they wanted to. Who knew that… before he was done, this fellow bellowed loudly, scaring all of the birds away.

Now that all of the birds had left, how was his result supposed to be calculated?

How wronged he would be if he were to lose because of this!

After all, he put a lot of effort into this test…

“Tabulate the timing… The Painting of Soaring Birds is already gone, and you’re still telling me about the timing?!”

Elder Yun nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.

Tabulate your head!

You wrecked my treasure, but not only did you not feel the slightest guilt, you are still only thinking about your test… Are you really that gutsy or is there something wrong with your head?

“Cough cough, Zhang shi. You should also tone it down. The value of the Painting of Soaring Birds lay in those birds. Their disappearance also means that the treasure has been rendered worthless. It is natural that Elder Yun… is in a bad mood because of it!”

Stepping forward, Pavilion Master Kang attempted to calm the situation.

“Rendered worthless?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “Since the scroll is still here, one just has to draw the birds back. Is there a need to make such a fuss about it?”

“That’s a painting of the sixth level! Only 5-star painters are capable of producing it… This is the only one that can be found in Myriad Kingdom City, and you speak of drawing them back? That’s easy for you to say!”

Sensing an opportunity, Ruohuan gongzi clasped his fist and stepped forward, “Teacher, since the Painting of Soaring Birds has been destroyed, the rest of us are unable to continue with the examination. Why don’t we change the format of the test then…”

The other party’s lecture had made even the Spiritual Wisdom beings evolve to become Enlightened Spirits. He wouldn’t be able to triumph over the other party for sure if they were to continue with this test. If so, he might as well make use of this opportunity to change the test.

“Un, you’re right… The Painting of Soaring Birds is the only Spiritual Wisdom painting in the entire Myriad Kingdom Alliance. Since it’s ruined now, the rest of you are indeed unable to proceed with the test…”

Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head in agreement.

If only he’d know that this would be the case, he would have never allowed this fellow to take the test first. Now, not only was the painting ruined, the other candidates also lost their chances at taking the test…

The Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom was the best assessment for impartation of knowledge he could think of. This situation was too abrupt, and he couldn’t think of a better idea on the spot.

“If there are no better ideas, why don’t we just find a few students, blindfold them, and vary our voices so that they won’t be able to recognize us. The test should still be relatively fair this way as well…” Ruohuan gongzi suggested.

“There’s no rush for that. Allow me to confer with the other elders first… Ah? What’s going on…”

Nodding his head, Pavilion Master Kang rubbed his glabella, frustrated by the situation before him when he suddenly saw something in his peripheral vision that astounded him.

“Teacher, what’s wrong?”

Seeing his teacher losing his composure, Ruohuan gongzi was taken aback. He immediately traced his teacher’s glance and he failed to catch his breath and faint on the spot.

Unknowingly, the young man whom he had just criticized was standing before the painting. In each of his hands was a brush, and currently, harmoniously chirping birds had reappeared on the previously blank ‘Painting of Soaring Birds’.

“All of the birds have returned?” Pavilion Master Kang asked hoarsely.

“It’s not that they returned… but… Zhang shi just drew them on!” Fu Xiaochen replied with a quivering voice.

“Just drawn them on…” Ruohuan gongzi’s body trembled.

That was a Spiritual Wisdom painting! It was a masterpiece that only 5-star painters were capable of producing… To paint it out so casually, are you for real?

More importantly… even 5-star painters had to contemplate for many months to conceptualize and perfect such a painting. It was a grueling task created with an astounding level of effort… Yet, before he was done speaking, the other party was already done restoring the painting…

Need you be that fast?

Unable to maintain his composure, Ruohuan gongzi asked, “What kind of painting method did he use?”

To finish a painting in just ten breaths or so, what kind of painting method could be that fast?

“Dual Traversing Dragons…” Fu Xiaochen replied in disbelief.

“You mean the technique… that only street side craftsmen use?” Ruohuan gongzi’s vision went dark.

If you had used some profound technique, I would have just conceded…

But to use the Dual Traversing Dragon which street side craftsmen use to mass produce paintings, not to mention… for a sixth level painting… Brother, tell me the truth. You aren’t really a 3-star painter, right? You are actually a 6-star painter in disguise, aren’t you?

It was laughable that he leaped in delight when he heard that the test was Continuity of Spiritual Wisdom. He thought that the other party would surely fail terribly when going first…

If he’d known that the other party was such a formidable painter, he would have never acted so arrogantly!

Keeping the brush and ink back into his storage ring, Zhang Xuan said impassively, “Alright, Elder Yun. I’ve restored your painting for you. It doesn’t seem… too difficult to do so!”

He thought that it was a big deal after hearing Elder Yun screaming and yelling. Wasn’t it just a painting? If the birds were to fly away, he could just paint some more on for the other party. Was there any need to make such a huge fuss?

“This…”

Hurrying forward, Elder Yun lowered his head to examine the painting before him.

After a quick glance, his lips quivered, and he stared at the young man before him as though he was a monster.

This painting was identical to the one he saw before. If not for the fact that the ink wasn’t dry yet, he would have really suspected that everything that had happened before was a hallucination on his part.

With just a glance, the other party was able remember every single detail of the picture perfectly-the arrangement, amount of ink used for each stroke, positioning… and not to mention, even the artistic conception…

How in the world did he do it?

One must know that every painter had their individual experience and style. When copying another’s work, chances were that one would unwittingly incorporate their style into it as well. As such, it was hard for any painting to be completely identical with another. Yet, not only was the painting before him completely identical to its previous version, even the ‘feeling’ it exuded was no different… This was completely inconceivable.

Even a 6-star painter would be incapable of such a feat!

Actually, at Zhang Xuan’s current level, he could only produce a painting of such a level by copying from another. If he were to paint by himself, while he was still capable of producing a Spiritual Wisdom painting, it would be hard for him to reach the level of artistic conception contained within the Painting of Soaring Birds.

After all, even though he had grasped Heaven’s Path Paint Art, it was only at the level around 4-star pinnacle and 5-star primary.

The main reason why he could produce a completely identical painting was because of the Eye of Insight.

The Eye of Insight was capable of peering into minuscule details that one’s physical eyes were incapable of perceiving. Back when Elder Yun took out the painting, Zhang Xuan had examined it properly with the Eye of Insight. As such, restoring it to its ordinary form wasn’t a challenge to him at all.

If he had tried to do it with his own capability instead of copying the previous work, it would truly have been hard for him to reach a painting of such a level.

However, Elder Yun was unaware of all these facts. As such, he was shocked by the other party. He felt so impressed that he could almost kowtow to the other party at this instant.

Pavilion Master Kang walked forward and asked, “How is it?”

Recovering from his shock, Elder Yun swallowed a mouthful and saliva and said, “It’s exactly the same as before. We can continue on with the test…”

“Since Elder Yun said that it was fine, let’s continue on with the test then!”

Heaving a sigh of relief, Pavilion Master Kang turned to look at the crowd.

Given that the Painting of Soaring Birds had been restored, there was no longer any need for him to worry about varying the format of the test anymore.

“…” Ruohuan gongzi was on the verge of tears.

After such a huge ruckus, his efforts turned out to be futile. If only he’d known so in advance, he wouldn’t have wasted his breath…

Frustrated, Ruohuan gongzi mustered his courage and challenged the examination. However, due to his unstable state of mind, he only managed to sustain for eleven minutes before the Spiritual Wisdom being dissipated.

After him, Fu Xiaochen, Feng Mosheng, and the others also stepped forward to challenge the test.

What was surprising was that Luo Xi had managed to sustain for twelve minutes, achieving a result even higher than Ruohuan gongzi.

“Alright, I shall announce the results of the test. Zhang shi, through his lecture, managed to induce the evolution of the Spiritual Wisdom beings into Enlightened Spirits… and as of yet, they haven’t returned. No one should have any qualms about him being ranked first, right?”

After everyone was done taking the test, Pavilion Master Kang began announcing the results and scanned the crowd for any objections.

“Right…”

Everyone’s lips twitched. Given how the other party managed to materialize all of the Spiritual Wisdom beings fully and produced a painting of the sixth level… if he wasn’t in first place, who would dare to proclaim themselves first?

“Good. In second place is Luo Xi, third place Ruohuan, fourth place Fu Xiaochen, fifth place Feng Mosheng, and sixth place Du Hu…”

After announcing the results, Pavilion Master Kang continued, “We’ll be moving on to the fourth examination, comprehension of cultivation!”

Chapter 541: Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus

“Only with a deep understanding of cultivation can a master teacher accurately point out and correct the flaws and errors in his student. Otherwise, if theory is all he knows, he won’t be able to guide his student correctly!

“Thus, the cultivation of a master teacher and his ability to see through a person’s core is of utmost importance as well! As such, I’ve discussed with the other elders and we have decided to not follow the usual conventions for this comprehension of cultivation test. Instead, a new battle technique was designed just for this test. Later on, you will be given an incense’s time (15 minutes) to learn it, and your result will be judged based on how deep your comprehension of the battle technique is!

“Don’t worry. This battle technique is completely new so there’s no need to worry about the test being leaked to any of the candidates beforehand,” Pavilion Master Kang explained.

“There’s no way the topic could have been leaked beforehand! Master teachers value fairness and equality. If an investigation were to be conducted and one is found to be guilty, one will be stripped of his license! How could anyone possibly do it knowing of such consequences?”

“Even if it’s unfair, given that Ruohuan gongzi is the pavilion master’s student, the test should be biased to him… But it seems like he is on the verge of crumbling from the consecutive blows!”

“Indeed! Despite being the head of the Four Gentlemen, look at his current state. He looks like a defeated rooster…”

“Right, Pavilion Master Kang, what battle technique will it be? If it’s too easy, given the talents of the candidates, they will all surely be able to fully comprehend it within an incense’s time. If that happens, how will we evaluate the results?”

Hearing the rules, some of the audience expressed their doubts.

One’s mastery of battle techniques could be divided into five main levels: Novice, Initiate, Minor Accomplishment, Major Accomplishment, and Consummation.

Novice meant that one has barely understood the battle technique and was able to forcibly execute it.

At Initiate level, one was able to harness some might in the technique, but one might still be a little restrained in its control.

At Minor Accomplishment, one’s understanding of the battle technique had already reached a profound level. It could be utilized as an ace up one’s sleeves.

One must know that most fighters had only trained their battle techniques to this point.

Beyond that were Major Accomplishment and Consummation. However, without decades of effort, it was impossible to reach that.

If this battle technique was easy, all of the candidates would definitely be able to reach Minor Accomplishment within an incense’s time. Since everyone would be on the same level, it would be hard to determine who had fared better.

“Minor Accomplishment?”

Knowing everyone’s worry, Pavilion Master Kang chuckled, “If you were to know who designed this battle technique, you wouldn’t be thinking the same anymore!”

“Who designed the battle technique?”

“Could it be… Elder Hong?”

“Elder Hong is the person who has the deepest understanding of battle techniques in the Myriad Kingdom Alliance Master Teacher Pavilion. In the past fifty years, he has created at least thirty battle techniques!”

“Indeed. The Overlapping Illusory Fist and Rippleless Consecutive Palms originated from him!”

“Three of my battle techniques also came from him…”

“Just that… Hasn’t Elder Hong been in seclusion for the last ten years? When did he return?”

“I’ve no idea too. However, if the battle technique really originates from him, putting aside Minor Accomplishment, even achieving Novice within that short period of time will be difficult!”

…

Hearing the pavilion master’s words, the crowd suddenly remembered a legendary figure.

“That’s right. The one who created the battle technique is Elder Hong!”

Pavilion Master Kang chuckled as he uncovered the mystery plaguing everyone’s mind. “For the past ten years, Elder Hong has been in seclusion to develop this technique, and a few days ago, he finally succeeded in refining it! Given the length of time he spent on it, the complexity of it is imaginable. Based on the combined evaluation of me and the other elders, we’ve deemed it to have at least reached the top of Spirit intermediate-tier!”

“A battle technique at the top of Spirit intermediate-tier?”

“Impressive!”

Everyone gasped in shock.

Even a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle expert would find it hard to comprehend a battle technique of this level, let alone the candidates participating in the selection round.

“Alright, I’ve said all that has to be said. Now, allow me to invite Elder Hong up to explain the rules of the test. He will be assessing the candidates personally!”

Pavilion Master Kang smiled. Looking around the crowd, he suddenly froze, “Ah? Elder Hong, hold it for a moment. You… where are you intending to go?”

Tracing Pavilion Master Kang’s gaze, everyone saw an elder who had unknowingly reached the entrance of the hall. He was just a step away from leaving the compound.

“Cough cough. I’m just… walking about!”

Seeing that everyone’s attention was on him, the elder hurriedly stopped and his face turned scarlet.

“The fourth test is about to begin…” Pavilion Master Kang hurried over and pulled him back.

“I…” Elder Hong had a very stifled expression on his face. “Pavilion master, why don’t you… conduct the test instead?”

He had agreed to conducting the test confidently previously, but after seeing the awful state the previous three elders were in, he hesitated.

That lad was truly sinister. Who knew what kind of peculiarity would happen to him if he were to assess him. He didn’t want the reputation he had accrue to collapse because of this single incident.

“How can I? You were the one who developed the battle technique, not to mention, you have already achieved Major Accomplishment in it. Other than you, who else is qualified to assess them?” Pavilion Master Kang said.

This battle technique was developed from Elder Hong, and he had reached Major Accomplishment in it as well. Other than him, no one else was qualified to conduct the test.

At the very least, Pavilion Master Kang didn’t think he was.

“Ah…” Elder Hong hesitated.

“Don’t worry, it’s just an incense’s time. Even the most talented genius will only be able to reach Novice in that period of time. There won’t be any problem, so rest assure!”

Knowing what Elder Hong was worried about, Pavilion Master Kang attempted to console him via telepathy.

Zhang shi was indeed a disquieting. But battle techniques weren’t things that could be mastered in a single breath. He didn’t believe that the other party could reach Major Accomplishment in just an incense’s time, thus surpassing the creator, Elder Hong.

Thus, there was nothing for Elder Hong to worry about.

“Alright then!”

After a further moment of contemplation, Elder Hong felt that Pavilion Master Kang’s words were logical and finally walked up the stage.

“Pavilion Master Kang has briefly introduced the content of the test to you all. I’ll now announce the rules for the test!

“The battle technique that I’ll be imparting is called ‘Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus’. The inspiration behind the technique came from observing the nature of red lotuses. The rules are simple-later on, I’ll impart you the formula for the sword art, and you will be given an incense’s time to study and comprehend it!

“After which, I’ll personally test you on your level of comprehension of the technique. Don’t worry, your cultivation will not affect your comprehension of the technique-it’s determined solely by your talent. As long as you have reached Transcendent Mortal realm, you will be able to learn and execute it.

“During the assessment, you’ll be crossing blows with me. If you wish, we can compete solely on swordsmanship itself. If you can trade three blows with me using the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus, I’ll take it as you have reached Novice mastery. Six swords will be taken as Initiate mastery, and nine swords would mean that you have achieved Small Accomplishment… And if you can trade ten blows with me, you will be considered to have reached Major Accomplishment…”

Elder Hong explained the rules.

In truth, it was a bit similar to the cultivation test in the second round. However, in this test, one could only use the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus. If one of the competitors used any other technique, they would be deemed to have failed.

An incense’s time was roughly fifteen minutes, and in this short period of time, it would be difficult to even finish browsing through the battle technique, let alone, comprehend and utilize it in a real battle.

Compared to the previous three, the difficulty of this test was truly immense.

“To ensure fairness, the examination will be held in another chamber. I’ll head in right now, and you each can enter one by one…”

At which, Elder Hong paused for a moment before continuing, “How about I decide on a sequence for you all to avoid contention. Du Hu will enter first, followed by Luo Xi, Feng Mosheng, Fu Xiaochen, Jun Ruohuan, and finally, Zhang shi!”

Given the peculiarity of Zhang Xuan, it was best to put him last. Otherwise, if the other party were to run in first, what if he were to lose control of the situation and the test was unable to be carried on like before?

“Alright!”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

“Let’s begin then!”

After deciding on the order, Elder Hong took the lead by walking into the room. Du Hu hurriedly followed behind him.

An incense’s time later, light flickered on the wall and a number appeared on it… 3!

To think that Du Hu would be able to comprehend to the level of a Novice in such a short period of time.

As expected of a genius nominated by the other elders, he was indeed extraordinary.

After him was Luo Xi.

Along with Du Hu, she was one of the weaker among the six. Knowing that there was no chance for her to be selected, she didn’t feel any pressure anymore. After an incense’s time, she managed to trade three blows, reaching Novice as well.

After her was Feng Mosheng. As expected of Elder Feng’s student, his comprehension of battle techniques had reached an extremely profound level. Luo Xi and Du Hu, having come from less privileged backgrounds, were no match for him. After an incense’s time, he actually managed to trade five blows with Elder Hong.

That was almost at the level of an Initiate!

Fu Xiaochen did well too, trading five blows as well.

After those four were done, everyone’s eyes gathered on Jun Ruohuan.

He specialized in sword techniques, and not to mention, he was also the most popular contender for this selection round and Pavilion Master Kang’s direct disciple. As such, there were high expectations for his result.

Even though he had suffered consecutive blows in the last three rounds, he was still a full-fledged 4-star master teacher. He had already conditioned his state of mind by the time his turn came, and fortunately, he didn’t let everyone down. An incense’s time later, a massive ‘6’ appeared conspicuously on the screen.

This showed that his comprehension of battle technique was top-notch among his fellow peers.

“To be able to trade six blows with Elder Hong, this means that he has reached a mastery of Initiate within a mere fifteen minutes! If he were given some more time, reaching Minor Accomplishment might not even be a problem for him!”

“He’s indeed a genius!”

“I wonder if Zhang shi can break that record!”

“Zhang shi… In my view, the weapon he is the most proficient in is the spear. Given that the Nine Swords of Scarlet Lotus is a sword art, he might be in a disadvantageous position!”

“That’s true…”

…

Seeing Ruohuan gongzi step out from the room, everyone’s eyes gathered on the black horse of the selection round.

Initially, no one thought well of him. However, after triumphing indisputably over the rest in three consecutive tests, no one dared to look down on his capability.

Even so, they couldn’t help but feel a little doubtful.

After all, from the first test, it could be seen that the other party was skilled in spear arts. Learning a sword art all of a sudden should be rather tough for him.

Amidst the discussion, Zhang Xuan stepped into the room.

Soon, an incense’s time passed.

“Hmm? Why is there no number at all?”

“Indeed! Going by the situation with the others, a number should have appeared by now. Regardless of whether he has reached Novice or Initiate, a result should at least appear?”

“What’s happening?”

The time was up, but not only was the result not reflected, the room was also bizarrely quiet. The master teachers in the hall stared at one another in bewilderment.

Going by the precedents of this fellow, even if he were to subdue Elder Hong in a single blow, the crowd wouldn’t find it too shocking. But… for there to be no results at all, not to mention, no sign of movements in the chamber… What the heck?

Could it be that Elder Hong… had killed that fellow?

Or perhaps… that fellow had killed Elder Hong?

Really, what is going on?