Chapter 74: Yu Longqing’s Shock
Zhang Xuan skimd through the few hundred books, and within just a dozen breaths, he had recorded all of them into his Library of Heaven's Path. As countless pieces of knowledge about horses flowed into his mind, he analyzed the information.
"Although these books didn’t mark out every ridian within a fine horse, they detailed dozens of them clearly enough. This should significantly improve Dao Li's ability to absorb Source Energy," Zhang Xuan thought, satisfied with the outco.
After leaving the stables, Zhang Xuan didn’t bother to explore further and returned directly to the academy. His goals for the day—buying feed and finding books on horse anatomy—had both been achieved. Moreover, he had earned plenty of Source Coins and even gained a guest elder position. With everything settled, there was no need to stir up more trouble for now.
Back at the small courtyard, Zhang Xuan ensured that Dao Li had eaten its fill, then carefully explained the structure of its ridians. He even developed a tailored cultivation technique with the help of Heaven’s Path Nature for the horse, which he wrote down, instructing Dao Li to practice it. Once that was done, Zhang Xuan returned to his room.
Although he had reached the late stage of the Energy Storing Realm (Source Pool Level 3), he still had a long way to go to reach its peak. Moreover, his injuries had yet to fully heal, so it was ti to focus on both recovery and advancent.
As he cultivated, pure Source Energy continuously flowed into his body, filling his Source Pool, expanding his ridians, and slowly increasing his strength...
...
anwhile, in a student dormitory not too far from Zhang Xuan’s location, a shadow appeared quietly by the window.
Knock, knock, knock!
A light tapping sounded on the window.
"Who’s there?" a crisp voice called from inside—it was Yu Xiaoyu.
"It’s your father," the figure replied.
The door opened, and City Lord Yu Longqing entered, smiling at his daughter. "I’ve kept you waiting! Take out the Qingguang Beast blood, and I’ll help you ignite your furnace now. Don’t worry, with here, the worst you’ll get is a top-grade furnace, nothing inferior to Mo Yanxue’s."
To his surprise, Yu Xiaoyu’s face flushed with embarrassnt. "Dad, there’s no need. Teacher Zhang already helped ignite the furnace."
Yu Longqing was taken aback. "Didn’t I instruct Adviser Liao to have you hide the Qingguang Beast blood and use the Luozhi Bird blood instead?"
Yu Xiaoyu produced a small bottle and placed it in front of her father with a wry smile. "I didn’t use the Qingguang Beast blood at all. Teacher Zhang used the Luozhi Bird blood to ignite my furnace."
Yu Longqing opened the bottle and examined it closely. Sure enough, the Qingguang Beast blood was untouched. His vision darkened. "This is bad..."
Luozhi Bird blood was one of the worst ignition materials—using it shouldn’t have been successful. The fact that it worked ant... he might have inadvertently hard his daughter.
His fingers trembled, and his voice quavered, "You... you didn’t end up with a low-grade furnace, did you? Let see how much Source Energy it can absorb in a day—10 streams? 15 streams? Or... 20?"
A low-grade furnace absorbed Source Energy slowly, which ant Yu Xiaoyu would need to work much harder and rely on more resources like pills and treasures to progress.
"None of those! Let show you..." Yu Xiaoyu said, not wasting ti on further explanation. She sat down cross-legged, and imdiately, the surrounding Source Energy flowed into her body rapidly.
"One stream, two streams, three streams... This is like the Flowing Stream..." Yu Longqing’s eyes widened in shock. "A top-grade peak furnace that can absorb 200 streams of Source Energy per day?"
"Yes!" Yu Xiaoyu nodded. She still couldn’t believe it herself. "Teacher Zhang used the Luozhi Bird blood to ignite a top-grade peak furnace for ."
Yu Longqing was completely baffled. "How is that even possible? Tell everything!"
Yu Xiaoyu recounted the entire day’s events, including the bet and the involvent of the low-talented student, Hong Yi.
"No matter how strong or weak soone’s talent is, to ignite a top-grade peak furnace using Luozhi Bird and Hanbei Turtle blood... Teacher Zhang’s abilities seem even greater than I imagined!" Yu Longqing clenched his fists, feeling both excited and regretful. If he hadn’t tried to be clever by suggesting the Luozhi Bird blood, but had instead provided the Qingguang Beast blood, what level of furnace might have been ignited? Imperial grade? Or even... Emperor grade?
What a wasted opportunity!
"Dad, did you know about Teacher Zhang’s abilities and that’s why you insisted I study under him?" Yu Xiaoyu asked, her suspicion growing.
"I..." Yu Longqing was at a loss for words.
‘Know? If I had known, I wouldn’t have given you the Luozhi Bird blood…’
However, he couldn’t admit that, so he sighed. "You don’t need to know the reasons. Just make sure you respect Teacher Zhang and follow his guidance closely. If you do, you’ll reap countless benefits in the future."
"Yes, Dad," Yu Xiaoyu agreed, noting the seriousness in her father’s voice.
Worried she might press further, Yu Longqing changed the subject. "You ntioned that Teacher Zhang will be teaching you the Accumulation technique tomorrow?"
"Yes," Yu Xiaoyu confird.
Yu Longqing thought for a mont. "Accumulation is the process of absorbing Source Energy to build up strength, an essential step for all Source Warriors. I assu he’ll teach you the academy’s standard thod, the Returning Energy Accumulation Technique. It’s not a bad thod, but the City Lord’s Mansion has the Five Directions Accumulation Technique, which is the best in White Roc City. It’s far superior to anything else available."
"So, tomorrow, no matter what Teacher Zhang teaches—whether it’s simple or difficult—just say you understand and that you’ve already mastered it. Then, co ho in the evening, and I’ll teach you the Five Directions Accumulation Technique. The next day, when you demonstrate your progress, Teacher Zhang will surely be impressed."
"Alright!" Yu Xiaoyu agreed, though she wasn’t entirely sure of her father’s intentions. Still, given how seriously he spoke, she decided to follow his plan.
"Actually, I’ll drop by the class tomorrow as well," Yu Longqing continued. "I want to see if I can find any flaws or gaps in his teaching. If I do, I’ll explain them to you in the evening. Then, you can bring them up to Teacher Zhang the next day, as if you’ve figured them out on your own."
Yu Xiaoyu frowned. "But tomorrow’s class isn’t a public one. Teacher Zhang might not let you in."
Yu Longqing smiled confidently. "If I can’t get in, I’ll listen from outside. One way or another, I’ll find out what he’s teaching. And if all else fails, you can take notes and show them to later!"
"Alright," Yu Xiaoyu agreed, though she remained a bit puzzled by her father’s eagerness.
While Yu Longqing and Yu Xiaoyu were making their plans, another student, Liu Mingyue, was also cultivating in her dormitory. Sitting cross-legged on her bed, she continuously absorbed Source Energy, feeling the pure power flowing through her ridians like a rushing river, gradually filling her empty Source Pool.
"Even though Teacher Zhang used Hanbei Turtle blood to ignite my furnace, it doesn’t seem any different from a furnace ignited by a Lingyun Beast!" Liu Mingyue thought, her eyes filled with confusion as she recalled the events of the day. "Could it be that Teacher Zhang isn’t the useless man I thought he was? No, that’s impossible! He was just a servant yesterday, with no cultivation at all, and we even made a bet..."
Rembering their bet at the school gate, Liu Mingyue’s anger flared. Not only had she been humiliated, but she had also lost her precious fine horse to him!
She touched her face, where the marks from the horse’s hooves had disappeared, though her skin was still red and swollen. "Dao Li, you ungrateful traitor..."
Her frustration grew as she thought about the horse, which her father, Liu Tianzheng, had painstakingly acquired from White Roc Stables at great expense. The horse, which had seen battle, cost three tis as much as Mo Yanxue’s prized steed—over 300,000 Source Coins! And now, it was gone...
"If Dad finds out that the fine horse he worked so hard to get was taken by a re auxiliary teacher, he’ll be furious..." The more Liu Mingyue thought about it, the more upset she beca.
"Since that’s the case, I’ll tell Dad that the teacher forcibly took Dao Li from . That way, he’ll cause trouble for Zhang Xuan, and maybe I’ll even get a better teacher out of it... Yes, that’s what I’ll do!"
Feeling vindicated by her plan, Liu Mingyue wasted no ti calling in her groom and instructing him on what to say.
After he left, Liu Mingyue still felt unsatisfied and ca up with another idea.
"Knowing my father’s temper, he’ll definitely cause a scene when he cos to the academy. If things are going to escalate anyway, why not ss with that teacher a little more as payback?"
"What’s the most frustrating thing for a teacher? It’s when their students don’t understand or learn anything, no matter how hard they try to teach! So, no matter what Zhang Xuan says tomorrow, I’ll pretend not to understand, as if I can’t learn a thing... That’ll drive him crazy!"
"Hehe! I’m so clever. That’s exactly what I’ll do!" Liu Mingyue grinned, already imagining Zhang Xuan’s face contorted with anger and frustration.
...
anwhile, at the Liu family estate—one of the three great families of White Roc City—the patriarch’s quarters were brightly lit.
"What did you say? Mingyue was taken as a student by a auxiliary teacher?" Liu Tianzheng, the Liu family patriarch, slamd his hand on the table, his eyes blazing with fury.
As Liu Mingyue’s father, he doted on his daughter and would do anything for her. But now, not only had Lu Mingrong refused to take her as a student, but he had allowed a re auxiliary teacher to do so instead... Was this an insult to the Liu family?
"That’s right. Lady Mingyue has been crying every day and every night, hoping that you will stand up for her!" Wang Yuxing, who had co to deliver the news, embellished the story. "Moreover... it looks like she was beaten. When I saw her today, her face was red and swollen, with traces of blood..."
Chen Hao had instructed Wang Yuxing to make things sound as dire as possible, so he exaggerated the situation. Although it was true that Liu Mingyue’s face had been swollen earlier, the cause was a mark that vaguely resembled a circular imprint, though its origin was unclear.
"He dared to lay a hand on my daughter?" Liu Tianzheng’s anger flared. Just as he was about to ask for more details, the steward hurried in.
"Patriarch, Lady Mingyue’s groom requests an audience!"
"Didn’t he accompany Mingyue to the academy? Let him in!" Liu Tianzheng ordered.
The groom soon entered the room, imdiately kneeling on the floor, and relayed Liu Mingyue’s instructions in detail. "Patriarch, Lady Mingyue was bullied, and her horse, Dao Li, was taken away by soone..."
"You’re saying that a auxiliary teacher not only forced Mingyue to beco his student but also demanded Dao Li as a tribute?" If he had been skeptical of Wang Yuxing’s account, Liu Tianzheng now had no doubts. His daughter had sent soone to report the situation, confirming his worst fears.
Enraged, Liu Tianzheng’s face turned green. "A lowly auxiliary teacher, who only got into the academy through connections, dares to act so arrogantly! Tell Mingyue that I will personally go to White Rock Academy tomorrow. I’ll flip his desk over and show him that using my family to boost his reputation is nothing but a pipe dream!"
When it ca to his daughter, Liu Tianzheng wouldn’t tolerate any insults or harm. If anyone mistreated his beloved child, they would face the full wrath of the Liu family.
"Understood!" The groom and Wang Yuxing nodded eagerly, their eyes gleaming with anticipation. With Liu Tianzheng this furious, they knew Zhang Xuan was in serious trouble.
...
After a night of cultivation, Zhang Xuan had fully connected all his ridians and finally reached the peak of the Energy Storing Realm. He could break through to the next level at any mont.
"It seems I need to find a cultivation technique for the Body Tempering Realm (Source Pool Level 4)... Techniques are easy to find, but the Heaven’s Fate Source Energy isn’t..." Zhang Xuan frowned.
As a teacher at the academy, he had free access to the library, where he had already co across techniques for the Body Tempering Realm, as well as the ridian Unclogging Realm and the Organs Easing Realm. However, just reading these books wasn’t enough.
Without sufficient Heaven’s Fate Source Energy, he couldn’t record them into the Library of Heaven's Path, which ant he couldn’t generate a flawless Heaven’s Path cultivation technique. Without that, he couldn’t advance.
"I’ll have to find an opportunity today to ask Dean Lu if the Source Pool assessnt is still happening. Maybe I can borrow so energy... Just borrow, I swear I won’t actually enter!" Zhang Xuan thought to himself.
Stepping out of his room, Zhang Xuan was washing up when there was a knock at the door.
A mont later, Hong Yi, the student he had taken on yesterday, entered the courtyard. "Teacher Zhang, I’ve finished cleaning the classroom. Is there anything else you need to do? There’s still ti before class, so I can help with whatever you need."
As a student who barely had the chance to beco an apprentice, Hong Yi cherished this opportunity. Although Zhang Xuan was only a auxiliary teacher, the fact that he had helped Hong Yi ignite a top-grade furnace showed that his abilities were exceptional.
Grateful and respectful, Hong Yi had arrived early to clean the classroom. Now, he was eager to clean Zhang Xuan’s courtyard as well.
"I’ve already taken care of things here, so there’s no need to worry," Zhang Xuan replied, pleased with Hong Yi’s attitude. He went back to his tasks.
"Understood!" Hong Yi let out a relieved sigh and sat down on a stone bench in the courtyard. As he did, he noticed a large horse holding a mop in its mouth, diligently scrubbing the floor. The courtyard was spotless.
When the horse saw Hong Yi looking, it grinned, baring its teeth in a friendly manner.
"???" Hong Yi was stunned.
Is this what you ant by 'taking care of things,' Teacher Zhang? You’re having the horse mop the floor?
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