Chapter 118: Breakthrough to Minor Extreme Position
A black-clad figure wearing a hooded cloak stepped out from behind the rockery, letting out a hoarse laugh: "The Dean is truly formidable. You deliberately used Zhang Ruochen to lure us out, didn't you?"
The Western Dean replied, "It's a pity I didn't lure all of them out. But capturing a big fish like you is enough—the other small fry are no longer a threat."
Since he had already been recognized, Steward Si no longer hid his identity. He removed the hood from his head, revealing a gaunt, aged face. His deeply sunken eyes carried two sharp glints as he stared intently at the Western Dean.
"Dean, it has been ten years since I last saw you make a move. I wonder what level your cultivation has reached?" Steward Si took two sections of a crimson gun barrel from his robe, activated the inscriptions, and joined them together to form an eight-foot-long Blood-Dripping Spear.
The spear was red as blood.
As he swung it, it was like a waterfall of blood cascading downward.
True Qi resembling flames surged from Steward Si's palm, completely enveloping the long spear.
A scorching heat radiated from the spear's body, causing the temperature in the surrounding air to rise sharply.
Just as everyone expected Steward Si to engage the Western Dean in a life-or-death battle, his gaze suddenly sharpened, locking onto Zhang Ruochen. His left hand struck the tail of the spear.
"Whoosh!"
The eight-foot-long Blood-Dripping Spear shot forward like a flaming arrow released from a bowstring, emitting a piercing sound as it tore through the air. Cracking and popping noises exploded in the atmosphere.
At the same time, Steward Si shifted one step to the right, lifted his foot, and leaped into the air like a massive bird. In an instant, he crossed several dozen meters, vaulted over the wall of the Dragon Martial Hall, and fled into the distance.
He knew he was no match for the Western Dean, so he attacked Zhang Ruochen instead. If the Western Dean went to save Zhang Ruochen, he would have a chance to escape.
Watching the Blood-Dripping Spear fly toward him, Zhang Ruochen quickly retreated.
Just as the flaming spear reached Zhang Ruochen, the Western Dean grabbed its shaft with one hand, swung his arm, and sent it flying back at an even greater speed.
"Boom!"
The Blood-Dripping Spear smashed through the wall of the Dragon Martial Hall, shooting out like a fiery dragon.
A scream came from outside.
The wall of the Dragon Martial Hall was seven meters high and one meter thick, built from bricks and stone. Now, the flaming spear had blasted a hole two meters in diameter through it, leaving the sturdy wall teetering precariously.
Through the hole, they could see Steward Si pierced through by the spear, lying in a pool of blood.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at the Western Dean, thinking to himself, *What formidable martial arts cultivation. With a single casual move, he killed Steward Si without even using his true strength.*
The Western Dean looked at the purplish-black poison mark on Zhang Ruochen's neck and took out a medicine bottle. "You've been poisoned with the Underworld Gate's deadly toxin, 'Yellow Spring Water.' Fortunately, it's only a trace amount and not fatal. This bottle contains a special antidote pill. Take it now."
Zhang Ruochen removed the antidote pill from the bottle and swallowed it. The purplish-black poison mark on his neck gradually faded and soon disappeared completely.
The Western Dean stared at Zhang Ruochen, nodded with satisfaction, and smiled. "I heard from Yue Jingchan that your spiritual power has reached the twenty-ninth level, making you the greatest spiritual power genius in the history of the Martial Market Academy. Haha! Good lad, you've brought great honor to our Western Academy. Next time I visit the inner palace of the Martial Market Academy, I'll make sure to boast about this in front of those old fellows."
After a pause, the Western Dean's expression turned serious. "There's one more thing I must ask you carefully. Do you want to walk the path of a spiritual power saint?"
Zhang Ruochen didn't hesitate. "No, I won't give up martial arts."
The Western Dean stared into Zhang Ruochen's eyes. "Zhang Ruochen, do you realize how extraordinary your talent in spiritual power is? Even in the entire history of the human race in the Kunlun Realm, you might rank among the top ten. With your talent and the full support of the Martial Market Academy, you have at least a fifty percent chance of becoming a spiritual power saint."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Dean, there's no need to persuade me further. I will never abandon martial arts."
The Western Dean said, "Very well! Your talent in martial arts is also exceptional, and your future achievements will certainly be significant. Vice Dean Qinghua has promised to apply for ten drops of Half-Saint True Liquid on your behalf. It should be approved within three days."
"If you have any doubts about martial arts, feel free to come and ask me at any time. There are two months until the quarterly assessment. You must train hard and strive to win first place in the competition among the four academies' new students, bringing glory to our Western Academy."
Zhang Ruochen said, "I will do my best."
The Western Dean looked at Steward Si's corpse, thought for a moment, and said, "Steward Si is dead, but there are likely other Underworld Gate assassins lurking in the Western Academy. Their cultivation levels shouldn't be too high. Duanmu girl, for the next two months, you will be responsible for protecting him. Any problems?"
"Of course not, Master. Rest assured," Duanmu Xingling said with a smile.
The Western Dean nodded, then ordered the bodies of the three Underworld Gate assassins to be removed and hung on a nine-zhang-tall blood wall in the Western Academy.
Whenever Black Market or Moon Worship Demon Cult infiltrators were killed, they were hung on the blood wall for three days as a warning to other hidden agents.
"That's Senior Sister Hualian. I never thought she was an Underworld Gate assassin. She even taught me archery techniques."
"Steward Si spent decades in the Western Academy, and he turned out to be a Black Market villain. Thank goodness the Dean killed him, or who knows how many talented students he might have harmed."
...
The killing of the three assassins caused a huge uproar in the Western Academy. Many students gathered beneath the blood wall to watch the spectacle.
Zi Qian stood among the crowd, staring at the three corpses on the blood wall, feeling an indescribable sorrow. One day, she might be killed and hung on that blood wall too.
Choosing to be an assassin meant being prepared to be killed.
Not just Zi Qian, but two other students in the crowd also showed strange expressions in their eyes before quietly slipping away.
Dragon Martial Hall.
Duanmu Xingling crossed her arms over her chest and laughed. "The Underworld Gate assassins hiding in the Western Academy have suffered a heavy blow. Even Steward Si is dead. I doubt anyone will dare to assassinate you for a while."
Zhang Ruochen looked at the rubble on the ground and the collapsed walls. "The Yellow Character Number One and Mysterious Character Number One buildings are both in ruins. It'll probably take a month to rebuild them. Where will we live now?"
Duanmu Xingling stopped walking, rubbed her chin, and smiled. "Let's go to Sister Chen's place."
"You just had a big fight with her and things got pretty tense. Will she let you stay in Earth Character Number One?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
"Don't worry! Since Sister Chen and I have already fought, her anger should have mostly subsided. Come on, trust me—Sister Chen will definitely take us in," Duanmu Xingling said.
They arrived at Earth Character Number One. The door was wide open, so Duanmu Xingling and Zhang Ruochen walked straight in.
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen stopped.
"Whoosh!"
A sapphire-blue sword flew out from a window, grazing past the tip of Zhang Ruochen's nose.
Huang Yanchen walked out of the house, standing proudly at the top. She stared coldly at Duanmu Xingling and Zhang Ruochen, her expression icy. "What are you doing at Earth Character Number One? If you don't want to die, get out immediately."
Duanmu Xingling chuckled, rushed over, and hugged Huang Yanchen's arm, acting pitifully like she was begging. "Now that Yellow Character Number One and Mysterious Character Number One are both destroyed, where are we supposed to go? Sister Chen, look at how pitiful we are—please take us in! Please! Please!"
Zhang Ruochen stood below, calm and composed. "If Senior Sister Huang is still angry, I'll go stay with Fourth Brother. Farewell!"
"Who said I'm still angry? When have I ever been angry?"
The coldness on Huang Yanchen's face melted away, and she revealed a bright, beautiful smile. "Since you've come to me for help, as your senior sister, how could I not take you in? Come inside!"
Huang Yanchen extended her arm forward, and True Qi surged from her palm, transforming into twisting wind force.
Driven by that wind force, the blue sword that had been embedded in the stone wall beside Zhang Ruochen let out a sharp sound and flew back into her hand.
"Retrieving objects from a distance." Zhang Ruochen narrowed his eyes slightly, gaining a new level of respect for Huang Yanchen.
With her level of control over True Qi, she should soon reach the advanced stage of the Sword Following the Heart realm.
"From now on, Xingling will stay with me on the second floor. You'll live in the main hall downstairs. Without my permission, you are not allowed to set foot on the second floor. Any objections?" Huang Yanchen glared with her beautiful eyes, her eyelashes slightly upturned, staring leisurely at Zhang Ruochen.
The main hall downstairs was very spacious, containing not just a room but also a study, a music room, and a martial arts training hall. Outside the music room was a bathing pool, surrounded by a row of maple trees, creating an elegant atmosphere.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Alright. I'll stay in the training hall from now on and won't disturb the two senior sisters."
With that, Zhang Ruochen took Xiao Hei and walked into the training hall.
The training hall was vast, eight meters long and six meters wide. Except for the entrance, all four walls were made of stone. Moreover, the stone walls were engraved with formation inscriptions to protect them from being pierced by sword Qi.
"Zhang Ruochen, I'm going to the study to read!" After saying that, Xiao Hei whooshed away, leaving the training hall.
For the next three days, Zhang Ruochen practiced the Heavenly Heart Sword Technique in the training hall during the day. At night, he entered the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal, took elixirs, and cultivated his True Qi.
He had a large supply of elixirs, all obtained from the examinees during the first round of the academy exam.
There were elixirs to enhance True Qi, elixirs to increase strength, healing elixirs, antidote elixirs, and elixirs to boost blood Qi. In total, there were over three hundred bottles.
Zhang Ruochen roughly calculated that this many elixirs would be enough to support his cultivation until the Mysterious Extreme Realm Great Perfection.
Three days later, Vice Dean Qinghua delivered ten drops of Half-Saint True Liquid to Earth Character Number One and handed them to Zhang Ruochen.
After receiving the ten drops of Half-Saint True Liquid, Zhang Ruochen couldn't wait to start refining them.
"Xiao Hei, guard for me. If Senior Sister Huang or Senior Sister Duanmu come looking for me, tell them I'm in seclusion cultivating."
Zhang Ruochen gave Xiao Hei his instructions, then entered the inner space of the Time-Space Crystal. He took out the first drop of Half-Saint True Liquid, swallowed it directly, and began refining it.
After spending eight consecutive days inside the Time-Space Crystal, Zhang Ruochen refined two drops of Half-Saint True Liquid and successfully broke through to the Mysterious Extreme Realm Minor Extreme Position.