Chapter 26

Beitang Qin's face turned pale and then red, increasingly angry but not daring to contradict Beitang Cangjue's words. Recalling the imposing momentum of Zhuang Wudao's angry glare just now, she felt a chill inside.

Beitang Wan'er, on the other hand, was reflecting on the situation before Zhuang Wudao left, frowning slightly: "Uncle's meaning is that he actually intends to take action against me at any moment? He wouldn't dare to kill me, but he's preparing to take me hostage at the slightest provocation?"

"Probably so!" Beitang Cangjue stroked his large chin, smiling: "This young man might have such intentions, but whether he can achieve it in front of this old man is another matter."

Beitang Wan'er's eyes gradually sparkled: "If he intends to take me hostage to survive in a desperate situation, then this person must have some confidence! In that case, in the battle on the ferry just now, he must have held back and not used his full strength?"

If she were to participate in the competition, she would naturally be wary. But since she was directly recommended by the academy, the stronger Zhuang Wudao's strength, the better.

"I can't say how much strength he has hidden, but when he moved just now, his energy was restrained, and he probably only used about half of his strength. Additionally, his skin had a faint golden glow, indicating that he has also cultivated a high-level earth-based physical cultivation technique, and his mastery is remarkable. So this person is cunning and cannot be underestimated!"

The two women in the carriage both gasped in surprise. Beitang Cangjue's eyes flashed with deep thought. "What puzzles me most is that this young man also had a faint sword intent on him just now."

"Sword intent?"

Beitang Wan'er recalled the sword on Zhuang Wudao's back, the blade of which was unknown, but the hilt was already broken.

"Could this person also be skilled in swordsmanship? No, that doesn't make sense. I noticed that his joints are solid and far less flexible than an ordinary person's, indicating that he has a remarkable talent for boxing, but his achievements in swordsmanship would be minimal. Why would such a person learn swordsmanship?"

"That is beyond my knowledge."

Beitang Cangjue shook his head: "However, this young man's strength is indeed considerable, and he might even be on par with you! If not, I wouldn't have allowed you to act so recklessly."

"Thank you, Uncle!"

Beitang Wan'er smiled awkwardly, knowing that even if she were the chosen successor of the clan, she wouldn't have the power to stir up trouble and help Zhuang Wudao compete with the young masters of the major families. With Beitang Cangjue's approval, the situation was entirely different.

Without Beitang Cangjue here today, it would have been impossible to make Zhuang Wudao agree.

Her eyes flashed with curiosity again. What she most wanted to know now was how much more strength Zhuang Wudao had hidden! It was truly intriguing—

***

While Beitang Cangjue and Beitang Wan'er were discussing Zhuang Wudao, Zhuang Wudao, back at the Lichen Academy, was communicating with the sword spirit 'Yun'er' through his mind.

Yun'er's voice directly entered Zhuang Wudao's mind, clear and pleasant like pearls falling on a jade plate, yet with a hint of coldness and pride.

"That Beitang Cangjue, though only at the late Qi Cultivation stage, has keen eyes and specializes in spiritual senses. It's unlikely that you can hide your cultivation of the physical technique from him!"

Zhuang Wudao paused, thinking that even with Yun'er's abilities, she couldn't hide it from Beitang Cangjue. It was expected, given the significant gap between them. If he couldn't see through it, it would be surprising.

"I understand, it's not a problem!"

He never expected to hide his true strength from Beitang Cangjue. What he needed to do was to act as if he was afraid of others knowing that his strength had suddenly increased.

However, this would likely leave an impression of deep calculation and patience in the eyes of the Beitang family.

"Didn't you say you would lose after about seventy moves? Why did you take such a risk to defeat Beitang Wan'er?"

Fortunately, it was the Beitang family, who now needed him and wanted to use him. Beitang Wan'er's temperament wasn't as crazy as it initially seemed. Otherwise, Zhuang Wudao might have lost his life today.

Yun'er's voice remained calm, devoid of any emotion: "Beitang Wan'er's strength is astonishing. I didn't expect her to have cultivated a pseudo-mystic technique before the Qi Cultivation stage. Her pseudo-spiritual aperture had only opened for less than a year, and she had old injuries, making it hard for her to control it. If she had been allowed to use it, the sword master would have been severely injured, if not killed. Yun'er had no choice but to act, please forgive me, sword master."

"Is that really so?"

Zhuang Wudao was half-believing, half-doubting. Even after just a few days, he could tell that the spirit of the Qingyun Sword was extremely proud. She might have been unwilling to lose on purpose, so she acted.

Unlike Zhuang Wudao, who, though competitive, always put his life first. As a child, his only belief was to 'survive' and live a decent life!

However, recalling the situation just now, if Yun'er hadn't intervened in time, the 'Hundred Cuts and Thousand Edges' would have destroyed the entire ferry. He would have had no place to hide or escape.

He snorted and temporarily set aside this issue, thinking of the porcelain bottle still in his hand.

"What do you think of this pill? Can it benefit me?"

If he took this Blood Essence Pill, his blood qi would transform and elevate, and his primordial qi would naturally generate.

"Practitioners focus on cultivating their foundation, and pills are one of the means. Therefore, among the four essentials—Dharma, companions, wealth, and land—wealth ranks third. However, while pills are good, they must be used correctly and adjusted properly; otherwise, they can be harmful. This Blood Essence Pill is indeed excellent, existing before the seventh tribulation, and can significantly enhance the body's blood qi, generating true essence. However—"

Just the word 'however' cooled Zhuang Wudao's enthusiasm.

"This is a fierce and potent medicine! If you fail to break through in one attempt, it will harm your body, and it will be difficult to make progress in the future. Even if you break through with the pill's power, ordinary cultivators will suffer from both blood and qi deficiency, requiring a long time to recover. However, it's different for you, sword master. You have cultivated the Bull Demon Yuanba Body, with blood and qi so abundant that no one at your level can match you. A little loss can be quickly replenished after entering the Qi Cultivation stage. But, sword master, don't you want to cultivate your innate mystic technique? If you don't use this pill, Yun'er can add a few herbs to enhance your constitution. Without the power of the Great Derivation Technique, you can still cultivate the Bull Demon Yuanba Body."

Zhuang Wudao was silent, putting the porcelain bottle back into his sleeve, then sternly said: "Remember to state the key points first in the future!"

After witnessing Beitang Wan'er's 'Hundred Cuts and Thousand Edges,' Zhuang Wudao, though not saying it aloud, deeply admired it. A pseudo-mystic technique had such power; how much more powerful would a true innate mystic technique be?

"By the way, you haven't taught me the Yin-Yang Great Sorrow Scripture—"

Luo Qingyun's voice fell silent. Zhuang Wudao realized he had already reached the front of the academy's main hall.

The training ground was vast, about ten acres, and hundreds of people had gathered there, all dressed in blue, the attire of the Lichen Academy's registered disciples.

The academy's head, Li Xiangnan, sat high on the steps. Beside him was another person, whose cultivation was four levels higher than Li Xiangnan, a cultivator at the sixth level of Qi Cultivation. He had a thin, yellowish face and a few long mustaches, looking enigmatically at the crowd below.

Zhuang Wudao didn't recognize this person but knew he must be the supervisor sent by the Wujing Lichen Dao Hall to oversee the small competition.

The Lichen Academy had 17 branches in Dongwu, all under the jurisdiction of the Wujing Lichen Dao Hall. This also included all the outer disciples, industries, medicinal gardens, and mines of the Lichen Sect in Dongwu.

The small competitions at each branch were held once a season, every three months. The Wujing Dao Hall would send a supervisor to oversee the small competition, and the identity of the supervisor would be kept secret until the last moment, changing every six months. There were also secret monitors to prevent collusion with local officials, ensuring strict rules. Therefore, most supervisors were fair to avoid tarnishing their reputation and being shunned by the sect.

When Zhuang Wudao arrived, hundreds of eyes turned to him, with various expressions—some jealous, some happy, some grinding their teeth, and some sneering.

Zhuang Wudao ignored them all, walking confidently to the steps in front of the main hall and bowing deeply: "Greetings, Headmaster and Supervisor! I was late due to seclusion for cultivation, please forgive me!"

The small competition hadn't officially started, so he wasn't technically late. However, arriving after the headmaster and supervisor was considered disrespectful, so Zhuang Wudao was very polite.

Li Xiangnan had long been dissatisfied with Zhuang Wudao, his eyes filled with coldness. However, knowing that Zhuang Wudao, as the academy's top disciple, represented the face of the Lichen Academy and was a pillar of the academy, he had to suppress his anger and feign kindness: "You were focused on martial arts, what sin is that? Rise, and stand aside! But in the future, you must be more careful. As the top disciple, you should set an example for others."

The supervisor was also initially dissatisfied but, after glancing at Zhuang Wudao, his eyes flashed with surprise and then he also smiled kindly.

"No problem!"

He saw that although Zhuang Wudao was trying to conceal his energy, his bones were sturdy, his muscles evenly developed, his blood qi flourishing, and a faint red dot visible between his eyebrows.

Clearly, he had reached the peak of the Bone Marrow stage, and one step away from the Qi Cultivation stage, where he could be called a fellow cultivator.

At just sixteen years old, his future was bright. Even if he didn't like him, there was no need to offend him. He was experienced and knew this.

Zhuang Wudao bowed again apologetically and then stepped aside. His position was to the left of a few academy instructors, next to Zhuang Tong.

As soon as Zhuang Wudao stood still, Zhuang Tong let out a barely audible sneer: "Pampered and arrogant, how long do you think you can be so smug? After today, there will be no place for you in the Lichen Academy!"

"Words are useless; we'll see the truth in action later."

Zhuang Wudao, hands behind his back, replied calmly, looking at Zhuang Tong with a somewhat sympathetic gaze.

This person probably didn't know about the Lichen Sect's Golden Core cultivators opening their doors to teach. He still hoped to be accepted into the Lichen Sect.

However, this person must have some backing; otherwise, even with the Zhuang family's wealth, it wouldn't be enough to compete with the Gu Yue and Beitang families.

Beitang Wan'er said he seemed to have a patron, but who could it be?

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