Chapter 403: Teacher And Student (3)
"Talent Fostering Bureau..." Bai Feng smiled, "Director Ji, what's the pay inside the Talent Fostering Bureau?"
"As an intermediate researcher, you can easily get 1,000 merit points per year."
"..."
Bai Feng curled his lips. That was too little. He might be poor, but if he was only going to be paid 1,000 merit points per year, he might as well return to the academy and continue squeezing money out of Liu Hong. But everyone believed that he was already a cripple. Would Liu Hong still be willing to pay him?
He was only asking out of curiosity. He had no interest in joining. With a smile, he said, "Forget it. Thank you for the kind offer, Director Ji. I prefer living the life of a retiree in the academy. Since I'm already a cripple, so be it. My physical body is still at the Skysoar Realm. Even without my characters, I am still a true Skysoar. I am not completely helpless."
Ji Hong did not try to force the issue. After taking another sip of tea, he calmly asked, "I have a question. Since you can split your character technique, can the nodes forming the technique be freely moved around?"
"What?" Bai Feng said, "How is that possible? The nodes are already fixed in place. How can you even move them? It's impossible."
"Are you sure?" Director Ji frowned and said, "Bai Feng, if you can, try to explore this possibility next. This might be the solution for your crippled technique. If you can move the nodes around as well, you will be able to fill the technique with foundational characters even as a Skysoar. In the past, character techniques have always been fixed after reaching the Skysoar Realm. Since you can split your technique..."
Bai Feng explained, "Strictly speaking, it's not a separation of the technique. Rather, it is a reassembly of the technique. I brought the characters with similar properties together to form a new Dragon Slaying Sword. In essence, the technique is still one sword, not multiple swords. Only the different properties of the sword have been shifted about..."
He explained himself. Naturally, he was making things up. Sure, his explanation sounded logical, but that was definitely not the truth.
There was no point in telling the truth right now. He still didn't know Director Ji's true attitude toward the multiple character faction. For now, he should recover and test his theory first and pass on his discovery to his teacher and student in the event that he was successful. As for those outside their faction, they would only come to learn about this when the multiple character faction was ready to make this discovery public."
"Only a shift of properties?"
Ji Hong was disappointed to learn that. Sure, this was still an incredible find, but it was nothing compared to the ability to move the nodes around.
Bai Feng continued lying without a change in expression, "Yeah. It's incredible. With this discovery, the members of our multiple character faction will be able to start shifting the properties of their character techniques and produce multiple weapons. If they become proficient enough with it, they can basically fight like they have multiple character techniques instead of only one."
Hong Tan rolled his eyes and said, "And have their characters destroyed from exertion like you?"
"..."
Bai Feng was speechless. He couldn't even be bothered to argue. He had a specific reason for destroying his characters. Who told his teacher that one had to destroy their characters to do this?
Hong Tan sank into thought for a short while before saying, "Don't worry too much. Back then, I had researched the properties of Divine Characters as well. After you start forming your new characters, I will try to find a way for you to add them into your character technique to replace the characters you lost as long as they share similar properties. Maybe we can still repair your character technique."
Ji Hong looked at Hong Tan in astonishment and asked, "Can the technique still be repaired?"
"We'll have to see. If he can form characters with similar properties, we can give it a try." Hong Tan said, "We can first strip the character out of its properties and try sending a blank character into a node. That way, the repelling force will be much weaker. After giving the character some time to assimilate with the technique, I will return the properties back to it. This is not completely hopeless."
"..."
Ji Hong looked at the two in surprise. He couldn't help but to acknowledge that this pair of teacher and student was truly good at research. Cultural researchers that were actually good at research were already very rare nowadays.
Back during the early days of the path of cultural research, there were a lot more of such individuals around. But as time passed and humanity's knowledge on cultural research increased, fewer and fewer cultural researchers focused on research. That was because most of the things they could discover were already discovered. As a result, the spirit of exploration was lost as most people opted to walk the path of their predecessors.
At that thought, Ji Hong said, "If Bai Feng can really form new characters, it is better if he doesn't form any non-human characters. That is especially true for divine and devil characters."
Bai Feng looked at Ji Hong in astonishment. What? Had this fellow discovered that something was wrong with divine and devil characters as well?
Hong Tan wasn't as surprised. He sighed and said, "So you noticed it as well? That's not surprising, I guess. You're already a Sunmoon. The repelling force has grown stronger, right?"
"Yeah." Ji Hong said, "Yeah. It has grown a lot stronger. I'm afraid the battle 50 years ago had indeed been a conspiracy. Things hadn't always been like this. But now, the divine and devil characters are emanating this powerful repelling force. Because of this repelling force, I nearly failed my breakthrough. Fortunately, during the crucial moment before my breakthrough, I crushed several non-human characters. Only then did I manage to break through."
Blinking his eyes, Bai Feng couldn't help but to ask ,"What are you talking about?"
Hong Tan shook his head, "You won't understand. Whatever, I guess it won't harm you to know more. We have been suspecting that something has been done to all the willpower texts humanity have obtained over the past few decades. The non-human characters formed during the past 50 years, especially the divine and devil characters, will emit a powerful repelling force that greatly increases the difficulty of entering the Sunmoon Realm."
Bai Feng blanked out. Decades? That was wrong! According to his theory, this wasn't something that had only been happening for decades. Rather, this disadvantage of using the divine and devil characters had always existed. But from what they were saying, the repelling force had actually intensified during the past few decades?
"Is this a smokescreen?"
That was Bai Feng's thought. With the trap set 50 years ago, the human race was made to believe that the problem had only started 50 years ago, neglecting the fact that the repelling force had already existed prior to that.
With this ploy, the Sunmoons and Invincibles would not consider the possibility that the characters they had formed before that might also be problematic.
"But...wouldn't this ploy make it even clearer to humanity the disadvantages of using non-human characters? No, wait..."
Bai Feng suddenly realized something. With this ploy, the older generation would fail to step into the Invincible Realm while the newer generation would stop forming divine and devil characters that were stronger than the characters of the other races. That way, they would stop the progress of the older generation and weaken the strength of the newer generation. Was this...a ploy meant to sever humanity's path of cultural research?
"Is this a ploy by the divines and the devils? They have intentionally exposed the fact that there is a ploy against the human race, encouraging all humans to stop using divine and devil characters. That will greatly weaken the strength of humanity's new generation. And the only answer to this is the character technique of the multiple character faction.
"With character techniques, human cultural researchers would still be able to display a powerful combat strength even without the more powerful divine and devil characters. But what a coincidence that the multiple character faction had lost countless experts during that incident. And now, this faction is already on the verge of extinction..."
Suddenly, a new thought appeared in Bai Feng's mind. The suppression of the multiple character faction was not definitely masterminded by the Great Zhou alone. The humans involved might not have done this because of personal grudge alone. The myriad races had probably been working in the shadows to push for the suppression as well.
At that thought, Bai Feng said, "Director Ji, can I ask you a question?"
"Go ahead."
"How many people does the multiple character faction still have?"
"Those at the Skysoar Realm and above?"
"Yeah."
Those below the Skysoar Realm couldn't be considered true multiple character faction members.
Director Ji thought for a bit before answering, "About 500 of them in the entire Human Realm. I don't have the exact number."
"What about 50 years ago?"
"Back then..."
Before Director Ji could answer, Hong Tan said, "Of the 162 cultural research academies in the Human Realm, many of them focused on the path of multiple characters. Excluding those below the Skysoar Realm, we have almost 10,000 members."
Bai Feng's tone turned heavy, "Ten thousand members. We have lost almost all of them."
They had lost a large majority of their members.
Hong Tan nodded, "During the battle back then, too many of our experts had perished. We were weakened too much to rebuild the faction from that. Over the years, some of our members had died from old age, some had been killed at the battlefield, some had been crippled, some had gone crazy, and so on. Thus, our numbers have never stopped dwindling."
Bai Feng frowned, "Is it even possible for so many of them to die over 50 years? These are all experts at the Skysoar Realm and above. Isn't the death rate a tad bit too high?"
Director Ji also frowned, "The Allheaven Battlefield is never a peaceful place. Over the past decades, the various human prefectures had fought over 1,000 battles. And the total death count of warriors is more than 100 times higher than what your faction has suffered. Even when compared against only the cultural researchers, the deaths of your faction members only occupy a small portion of the total number."
"But the rate is too high in proportion to the number of our members."
Yes, 9,500 deaths over a period of 50 years weren't that much. Exactly, that wasn't much. That was basically less than 200 deaths per year. Split among the 36 human prefectures, each prefecture would only suffer around 6 or 7 deaths per year. Was that really a lot? No!
The issue was the rate of it in comparison with their actual numbers. Each year, Great Xia would lose more than 10,000 combatants in the battlefield. And a lot of these dead combatants were cultural researchers. Losing hundreds of cultural researchers per year was perfectly normal. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ noveⅼfire.net
Just the Great Xia Cultural Research Academy alone would supply dozens of new cultural researchers to the military. And with the addition of the other cultural research academies, they had been able to keep replenishing the numbers. As one of the most warlike human prefectures, one could say that Great Xia was actually coping with their casualties very well.
And when one looked at the numbers of casualties as a whole, the losses of the multiple character faction was completely insignificant. But Bai Feng believed that their faction was definitely being deliberately targeted. He couldn't let this slide. He had to start investigating this matter after this. Perhaps he could really discover something.
For example, in what battles had these people perished? Which Invincibles were in charge of the battlefield during those battles? Perhaps he might even be able to deduce the identity of that human traitor from this. Bai Feng stopped talking. He did not dare to say more.
Director Ji looked at Bai Feng with a frown, but he said nothing else. Hong Tan had a pensive look on his face. Yes, the death rate was really too high. Previously, he had not thought too much about it. After all, they had only lost a few cultivators each year per prefecture. He had not suspected anything.
He had only blamed their dwindling numbers on their failure in passing on their teachings. If they had been able to recruit a large number of new members each year, then these deaths would look even more inconspicuous. But with Bai Feng's words, he was also starting to grow suspicious.
Moving on from the topic, Hong Tan asked, "Are you coming back with me or are you staying here to heal up?"
"I'm going back."
Bai Feng replied unhesitatingly. He naturally had to leave. Away from his own people, it was simply too hard to know who was the friend and who was the enemy. He was starting to understand why his teacher and senior brother had been keeping silent about their suspicions.
Even Bai Feng himself was starting to look at everyone around him with suspicion. He couldn't even be sure if this Ji Hong was also an underling of that mysterious Invincible. If he was reacting this way, what if everyone else knew about it? At that point, humanity would no longer be able to trust each other. It was human nature to be mistrustful.
And what if the Invincibles started suspecting each other? That would bring even more troubles. It was no wonder that so many people were turning a blind eye despite having their suspicions. Without solid evidence to capture the culprit, there was really no need to spread the news about this. It would only serve to create chaos among fellow humans.
Hong Tan lifted Bai Feng up and looked at Ji Hong, "Thank you for this, Director Ji."
Ji Hong waved his hand indifferently. Hong Tan did not tarry and left with Bai Feng.
After the two left, Director Ji muttered to himself, "Is the rate too high?"
Yes, it was high. But the actual number of deaths wasn't that high. They had lost over 9,000 members over a period of 50 years. And this included those who had died of old age, died from cultivation deviation, and so on.
When compared with the total number of dead human cultural researchers over the same period of time, the deaths of the multiple character members were too insignificant. And the multiple character faction was only so small due to the loss of their legacy after the battle 50 years ago.
Previously, Director Ji had not even thought about this. Everyone had instinctively believed that with a severed inheritance, it was natural for their numbers to dwindle down. While rapping on his desk, Director Ji sank into thought. He decided to not report it for now. He would perform some investigations himself first.
He might really be able to discover something pursuing this line of investigation.
Chapter 404: Like Teacher, Like Student (1)
Great Xia Cultural Research Academy.
The massive battle the night before had not affected the students in the academy. Most of the researchers and students heard of what happened, but the event really did not have that much effect on them.
Life in the academy continued as usual. The students were still going to their classes and cultivating as usual. Most of the time, the academy would remain calm and peaceful as long as nothing happened with the Top 100 Ranking.
After taking his leave from Xia Huyou and the others, Su Yu started heading toward the Wentan Research Center.
...
He had opened 40 apertures in total.
All his characters were dormant. Or to be precise, they were in the process of digesting the character intent they had absorbed. The destruction of several Eternal characters was akin to the destruction of several grottos. Even a tiny bit of the character intent leaking out of these characters could greatly benefit Su Yu.
Su Yu had also taken this chance to open a decent number of acupoints. The second level of the Time technique required 44 acupoints. Most of the acupoints overlapped with his opened acupoints.
After opening 180 acupoints, Su Yu did not have to open too many acupoints to fulfill the second level's requirements. The night before, he had opened 6 acupoints. Thus, he was only 16 acupoints away from completing his cultivation of the second move, Suppressing Sunmoon.
While thinking about all that, he stepped into the research center. The moment he entered, he noticed something different. The floor...was clean! Had his grandteacher and teacher returned? Or was it someone else?
He had always felt that the academy was a safe place with Wan Tiansheng's presence. Even so, he did not dare to be careless.
"Teacher?"
He tried calling, but he did not dare to take another step forward.
"Come in."
Bai Feng's weak voice rang out. Su Yu heaved a breath of relief and continued stepping forward. In the living area, Bai Feng was resting on the couch. Seated across from him was an old man with a cold expression.
Beside Bai Feng was Chen Yong with a troubled expression. Wu Jia was also there. She wanted to move over when she saw Su Yu, but when she stole a glance at the old man in the room, she decided to not budge. The old man looked at Su Yu, moved his gaze to Wu Jia, before finally looking at Bai Feng.
He abruptly scolded, "Garbage."
There were only five people in their faction. But apart from him, the other three were carrying varying degrees of injuries on them. Bai Feng was the most heavily injured person, followed by Wu Jia, with Su Yu having the lightest injury. He had yet to fully recover from the injuries to both his arms.
Was this even still the unrivaled multiple character faction? This was way too miserable. He hadn't even been away for more than three months. Would the entire multiple character faction be gone if he had remained away for a longer time?
Chen Yong awkwardly said, "Teacher, I"
"You're the biggest piece of trash among them!" Hong Tan scolded, "You're actually on the verge of losing your position as the head manager? Even your student has received such a heavy injury. Are you not ashamed of yourself?"
"..."
Chen Yong could only helplessly shut his mouth.
Hong Tan poured himself a cup of tea and took a sip before suddenly taking a closer look at the teapot. He muttered suspiciously, "This isn't my old teapot!"
Bai Feng looked at the ceiling and pretended like he had heard nothing. That definitely wasn't his fault. Su Yu was also completely silent. That teapot was history. It had been crushed by Old Nie. There was no getting that teapot back.
"Grandteacher."
Su Yu gave his grandteacher a greeting before obediently stood behind Bai Feng. Beside him, Wu Jia gave her fellow sufferer a glance. How pitiful. Their grandteacher had returned. And the first thing he did after returning was scolding them. Hong Tan did not pursue the matter of the teapot. It was no big deal. Maybe the teapot had been taken away to be washed or something.
He gave Su Yu another look and nodded, "Not bad. Ninth-stage Great Strength Realm. Your acupoint opening is fast. And your willpower is near 80 percent already. Not bad at all."
For a new student, this was a decent cultivation level. This new grandstudent was much better than he had expected.
Of course, he didn't know more about Su Yu. He only knew that this kid came from Nanyuan. He had even seen this kid's father on the battlefield before. The father was a simple and honest person. That kid was probably the same type of person. During the previous battle, the kid had gone over despite how dangerous it was. The kid was definitely a loyal person.
It was a pity that the kid was too honest. He was so silly. That place was so dangerous. What was a Mental Tempering Stage kid like him doing there?
"Thank you for the praise, Grandteacher."
Su Yu flashed his trademark honest smile mixed with a bashful expression of someone who was feeling shy after being praised.
Hong Tan nodded, his anger receding somewhat. Looking at Su Yu's arms, he asked, "Who broke your arms?"
"Teacher Xia Yuwen's student..."
"Bastard!" Hong Tan scolded, "It's that bastard again? Is Xia Changqing tired of living? I have only been away for a few months. Has that old fool gone mad? He dares to let his people attack my people?"
Hong Tan started scolding furiously. Su Yu said nothing. Zhou Hao was in an even worse situation. He personally believed that there was no need to tell his grandteacher that.
After a while, Hong Tan started blaming himself, "This is my fault. I have been ignoring them for decades. I had not been bothered competing against them. I wanted to maintain a low profile. We are too small to withstand too much attention anyway. But these people are crossing the line!"
Wu Jia softly said, "So Grandteacher, are we going to keep acting like turtles after this?"
"..."
What the fuck did she just say? Hong Tan glared at her.
"What are you talking about? Your teacher is the turtle here. Do you think your grandteacher is a wimp like that?"
Chen Yong felt aggrieved, but he maintained his silence. Wu Jia declined to comment. In truth, she believed that her grandteacher was quite a wimp.
Hong Tan was finally tired of cursing. He sighed and said, "Even if we want to continue acting like turtles, we can't anymore. My senior brother came back and killed Shan Tianhao. Before this, with all of them away, I could only protect the faction as best as I could. But in the end, the faction has still declined..."
He sounded bleak and tired.
Bai Feng couldn't help but say, "Teacher, our faction is not weak. We have the support of so many Mountainseas. What are we afraid of?"
"..."
Hong Tan shot his student a glare before saying, "Why bring them trouble for no reason? Wu Yuehua and the others aren't even members of the multiple character faction. Even if they can protect us, their feats will only strengthen the prestige of the talisman and pillmaking factions. Meanwhile, the multiple character faction will remain weak."
Bai Feng shrugged and stopped talking.
Chen Yong said, "Teacher, what about Martial Uncle Xia and the others? Did they say anything?"
"We still can't rely on them." Hong Tan sighed, "Your Martial Uncle Liu has never fully recovered. And after killing two Mountainseas, he will probably be sent to the Allheaven Battlefield soon. This is also the case for Bai Feng. You dumb brat. Why did you kill someone for no reason? Just cripple them and be done with it. In your current condition, you won't be able to survive the Vanguard Regiment."
"Allheaven Battlefield?" Su Yu couldn't resist interrupting, "Teacher is going to the Allheaven Battlefield?"
Bai Feng appeared indifferent. "Yeah. I can't say no. These are the rules of the Xia Family. We need to follow their rules. At times, these rules are the best shield we can have. I only need to kill 10 Cloudbreach enemies. I'll just take it slow."
So be it. He really wasn't scared. Sure, the Vanguard Regiment was the army involved in the highest number of battles. But if one could do well there, one would also be able to grow rapidly.
"When are you leaving?"
"Within one month." Bai Feng smiled, "It's fine. Even Zheng Yuming is still here. I'm not in a rush."
"Zheng Yuming?"
Hong Tan had just returned so he was still clueless about the recent events. Bai Feng explained, "Senior Brother did it. He almost got Zheng Yuming killed with his scheme."
"..."
Chen Yong had a helpless look. That really wasn't a scheme!
"It's my martial nephew..."
He pointed at Su Yu instead. He was definitely not taking the blame for this.
Su Yu had an awkward expression as he said, "It wasn't me. I was only comparing notes with his student. But he suddenly decided to make a move on me and Martial Uncle stopped him. That was when the principal injured him and exiled him to the Allheaven Battlefield."
After getting a rough idea about the event, Hong Tan shot a glance at Chen Yong before looking at Su Yu and asking doubtfully, "How did you come into a conflict with his student? You haven't even been in the academy for long, right?"
"He injured Senior Sister!"
Hong Tan frowned. As understanding dawned on him, he sighed, "These days, any random person can pick fights with us. Zheng Yuming was nothing back then. But now, he has actually grown gutsy enough to send his student against my people..."
His emotions were complicated.
He tossed that thought out of his mind and looked at Su Yu before nodding, "Not bad. It is not a bad thing to stand up for your senior sister. But remember that the tallest tree attracts the most wind. Too much attention might only bring you more trouble. This injury of yours is probably the consequence of what you did, right?"
He paused slightly before continuing, "You were taught by my senior brother at Nanyuan?" Read complete versıon only at noveⅼfire.net
"Yeah, Teacher Liu taught me..."
"You're not bad. Looks like my senior brother has been a good teacher..."
Before he could finish, Bai Feng rolled his eyes and said, "Teacher, this has nothing to do with Martial Uncle! I was the one who had taught him! When Su Yu first came, he wasn't even at the Great Strength Realm! Look at him now! And he wasn't even at the Mental Tempering Stage as well! Look at his current willpower cultivation!"
Chapter 405: Like Teacher, Like Student (2)
Bai Feng said, "Teacher, this is a talent discovered by me! Even his first Divine Character came from me!"
"You..." Hong Tan asked in astonishment, "When did that happen?"
"During my previous visit to Nanyuan..."
Hong Tan thought about it and asked, "Half a year ago?"
Yes, Bai Feng went to Nanyuan in April. But...that was only half a year ago!
"Yeah."
Hong Tan suddenly thought of something. He looked at Su Yu before looking at Bai Feng again. An odd look appeared in his eyes as he said, "You're telling me that half a year ago, he wasn't at the Great Strength Realm and the Mental Tempering Stage. He didn't even have a Divine Character..."
"Yeah," Bai Feng said. Abruptly, he thought of something and hurriedly said with alarm, "No, no, I was just kidding. He was already a seventh-stage Great Strength cultivator at the Mental Tempering Stage when he first joined the academy."
"Shut up!"
Hong Tan pulled out a cane out of nowhere and swung it at Bai Feng's head.
"You unfilial disciple! Bastard! I was wondering why you started instigating me to leave after returning from Nanyuan. So you were afraid that I would steal your student? I'll beat you to death!"
"..."
Pa! Pa! Pa!
A series of strikes landed and Bai Feng wailed miserably, "Teacher, that is absolutely not true! I'm an injured person! I'm dying! Why are you hitting me?"
"I should just beat you to death and be done with you."
"Teacher, my prestige is very important as well! You can't beat me up when my student is still here!"
"You're already a cripple. Why do you still need a student? Your student can follow me from now on."
"..."
Beside them, Su Yu had an odd look in his eyes. He looked at Wu Jia and Chen Yong doubtfully.
Wu Jia whispered, "This is how Grandteacher is. Don't mind him. He is actually very nice. He's only...so old that he's starting to act childish."
Hong Tan: "..."
He stopped beating Bai Feng. Instead, he looked at Wu Jia. Who was this stinky lass talking about? Who was she calling old? How old was he? He was not even 70! Was he old? ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novel fire.net
He decided to stop wasting his time dealing with this unfilial student. His expression returned to normal as he nodded at Su Yu again, "Not bad at all. So you have reached this level in less than three months. Very good."
He was only slightly shocked. He had not witnessed Su Yu's growth with his own eyes and hearing about it didn't feel as impactful. He was an expert on the cusp of reaching the Sunmoon Realm. A mere Mental Tempering Stage student was not enough to shock him too much.
He looked at Wu Jia once again. After thinking for a bit, he said, "Willpower injury. From what I can see, you can probably fully recover in a month or two. But this has indeed delayed your cultivation."
He beckoned at Wu Jia. She walked over obediently. Hong Tan placed his palm atop Wu Jia's head. A powerful stream of willpower flowed out of his palm alongside a gentle light that shone on Wu Jia's body.
A short while later, he withdrew his hand and exhaled, "It's not too heavy an injury. You only need to rest for a few days after this. Remember to cultivate hard and try to enter the Skysoar Realm as fast as you can."
After that short treatment, Wu Jia's face was no longer pale. Pleasantly surprised, she said, "Grandteacher, you can actually heal willpower injuries? In that case, I don't have to fear willpower injuries anymore..."
"Shut up!" Chen Yong berated, "What nonsense are you saying? Your grandteacher is not a Sunmoon yet. Using the light of sun and moon to heal you will only delay his own cultivation. What are you waiting for? Thank your grandteacher!"
Wu Jia hurriedly thanked her grandteacher.
Hong Tan waved his hand, not caring about the praise as he sighed, "Our faction is becoming smaller and smaller. It hasn't been easy for us to get two students. Don't end up crippled. That would really be the end of our legacy."
"I passed through Great Zhou on my way back. I heard that the multiple character faction is already history in Great Zhou. It no longer exists there."
Regret filled his tone. In the past, the multiple character faction of Great Zhou was still quite powerful. Great Zhou was a prefecture with more cultural researchers than Great Xia. Thus, there was a decent number of multiple character faction experts there. But over the years, these experts had died one after another. And finally, the last Mountainsea elder there had given up as well.
Hong Tan did not blame that elder for not asking for help. He understood how difficult things had been for the elder to face Zhou Polong in Great Zhou for decades. The multiple character faction in Great Zhou was doing even worse than them. In fact, it was already impressive of that elder to last this long.
Hearing about that, their faces fell.
Bai Feng clenched his teeth, "Sooner or later, I'll teach Zhou Polong a lesson."
"Stop making bold declarations. Focus on recovering first." Hong Tan said, "This time, Shan Tianhao has been killed. And I have also seriously injured Zhou Mingren. The conflict between us will definitely escalate into open hostility.
"All of you need to be careful. Don't leave the academy unless absolutely necessary. My senior brother and the others are either injured or crippled so they won't be able to give us much help. Nevertheless, their mere existence would serve as a form of deterrence to our enemies. Their performance during the battle has bought us some extra time. My senior brother had played the greatest role in that by making a move and attracting even more attention to this conflict. This is actually a good thing for us."
For many years, they had been worried about assassinations from that hidden Invincible. They might have alerted that hidden enemy this time, but that was not necessarily a bad thing. At the very least, that person would have more misgivings before making any other move.
In fact, this was one of the reasons the Xia Family had allowed the conflict to escalate this time. They had been investigating in secret for decades with nothing to show for it. In that case, they might as well create a ruckus and make a big deal out of it.
This way, the enemy would be more wary and no longer dare to keep acting against them. This did not exceed Hong Tan's expectations so he found it acceptable.
Hong Tan looked at Chen Yong and said, "Your junior brother will need to leave soon. I will also need to enter seclusion to focus on my breakthrough into the Sunmoon Realm soon. You will need to hold the fort. But without entering the Mountainsea Realm, you won't be enough to keep our enemies at bay."
Wu Jia softly said, "Grandteacher, Teacher doesn't have the resources to break through. Why don't you rob some resources for my teacher..."
Hong Tan laughed, "So you have learned to protect your teacher? Resources? What resources does he need? He has been a ninth-stage Cloudbreach for so many years. He no longer needs any resources. He—"
"Cough."
Chen Yong interrupted with a cough and said, "Teacher, I'll try to break through as fast as I can."
"You..." Hong Tan laughed, "Fine. Just do what you think is right."
Beside them, Su Yu kept his mouth shut. But he did find those words interesting. So this martial uncle of his was already capable of breakthrough long ago? When Su Yu asked about this previously, his martial uncle had not said too much about it.
Was his martial uncle suppressing the breakthrough to fuse more apertures before advancing?
After giving it some thought, Su Yu said, "Grandteacher, this time, we killed two of their Mountainseas. Grand Martial Uncle Xia Yunji and the others have also showcased the combat strength of Mountainseas. Would the single character faction still dare to make things difficult for us after this? Are they going to keep forcing our hands? Grandteacher, you're also someone on the cusp of becoming a Sunmoon. Are they tired of living?"
Hong Tan smiled, "In terms of combat prowess, we are not weak. But...the single character faction has flourished for so many years. They have numbers on their side. Do you think they will willingly give up on the privileges they currently enjoy?"
"They probably won't dare to use force against us anymore. But in the academy, force is not the answer for everything. They have always been suppressing us while still operating within the boundaries of the academy rules. Zhou Mingren is not an ambitious person. His biggest goal is probably to dominate the Great Xia Cultural Research Academy.
"But he is still someone from the branch family of the Zhou Family. He has definitely received the aid of the Zhou Family to reach his current height. And he needs to repay them. Thus, he won't stop the suppression of us. During the battle, he wanted to use me to push himself into the Sunmoon Realm. Clearly, he has failed. But the main reason for the failure is the repelling force."
If Zhou Mingren hadn't failed, he would have advanced during the battle. If Zhou Mingren was able to turn back time and return to the time before that incident 50 years ago, he would definitely be able to break through after taking all those steps.
In fact, pseudo Sunmoons did not exist back then. The moment one had the ability to breakthrough, one would make a clean advancement. Before reaching that level, one would be stuck in the Mountainsea Realm. One would not be stuck halfway through a breakthrough.
Su Yu said, "So they will continue suppressing us?"
"Definitely." Hong Tan smiled, "We'll play the game with them. Don't learn from your teacher and do something stupid like fighting Xia Yuwen. Just ignore them. What can they do? Xia Yuwen is already a Cloudbreach. Would he really dare to touch you if you ignore him? I'm not dead yet."
Hong Tan was clearly still unhappy with Bai Feng's decision. He had crippled himself with that stupid decision. If Bai Feng had not accepted the challenge, Xia Yuwen wouldn't be able to do anything against him. Not all experts of the multiple character faction were dead. At the very least, Hong Tan was still around.
Bai Feng disagreed, "I'm not scared of him. I've been wanting to fight him for a long time. By the way..."
He paused shortly before saying, "Jia, I have a book upstairs with some of my research results. Its title is Thirty-six Fusion Techniques. Can you get it for me?"
Wu Jia had a doubtful look on her face. Why her? Wasn't her junior brother there? But fine, since her martial uncle had already made the request, she didn't bother arguing. With a nod, she went upstairs.
After Wu Jia left, Bai Feng hurriedly said, "Teacher, check our surroundings. Previously, Wan Tiansheng actually managed to affect Su Yu's willpower while he was inside the research center."
Hong Tan frowned slightly before realization dawned on him. He scanned his surroundings before shaking his head, "It's fine. With me here, that fellow won't dare to eavesdrop on us. That fellow must have reached the Sunmoon Realm long ago. He has only been pretending to be a Mountainsea."
"I knew it!" Realization hit Bai Feng.
Chapter 406: Like Teacher, Like Student (3)
Chen Yong nodded, "I have been guessing the same. He wouldn't have been able to handle Zheng Yuming so easily otherwise. Looks like the principal is no longer trying to hide his cultivation. I wonder what his exact level of cultivation is."
"He is at least a third-stage Sunmoon." Hong Tan said, "I won't even be surprised if he's at the fourth or the fifth stage. Great Xia does not lack Sunmoons. Without being a Sunmoon himself, he wouldn't have been able to keep his position for long."
Su Yu got curious and asked, "Grandteacher, are there a lot of Sunmoons in Great Xia?"
"I guess we have a healthy number of them." Hong Tan smiled, "Hu Dehao, Zhao Rui, Ji Hong, Wan Tiansheng...all of them are Sunmoons. That old fart called Zheng Ping is near that realm as well. The general of the Devil Subduing Army who is currently away at the Allheaven Battlefield is also a Sunmoon. That fatty from the Xia Family, that old lady from the Wu Family...all of them are Sunmoons."
The Great Xia really had a decent number of Sunmoon experts.
After listing out several names, Hong Tan said, "We probably have a few more at the Allheaven Battlefield. All those are the retainers of the Xia Family so I don't know them well. But they are all Sunmoons."
Su Yu nodded. That was not a small number. But it also wasn't that big a number. Great Xia was one of the three strongest human prefectures. But even a prefecture so powerful only had this many Sunmoons.
Hong Tan then looked at Bai Feng and asked, "Do you have something to say?"
"Yeah." Clearly, Bai Feng had intentionally sent Wu Jia away because he had something important to say. He explained, "Senior Brother, I think there is no need for Jia to get involved in this. Knowing too much will only bring her more trouble."
Chen Yong nodded in agreement. Meanwhile, Hong Tan looked at Su Yu before looking at Bai Feng. He smiled. It would seem like this student of his placed a lot of importance on the kid.
Bai Feng wasted no time and said, "You see, I can actually still recover. Of course, I'm still not 100 percent sure..."
He gave a simple explanation about his character technique disassembly method, including his theory about adding foundational characters at the Skysoar Realm and beyond.
Hong Tan had a look of shock as he asked, "Are you sure? Can you really replace your lost characters?"
"I think so. That was why I had decided to test this out on myself."
Beside them, Su Yu also grew somewhat excited as he asked, "Teacher, can we really disassemble the character technique?"
"Yeah." Bai Feng nodded, "You must have ignored the data I left you. There is a simple explanation there. I'll tell you more later. In short, our character techniques can be disassembled. Hadn't I told you this previously?"
Hong Tan's eyes were bright. He said, "In that case, anyone can be a member of the multiple character faction. The multiple character faction can no longer be destroyed. I know what those bastards have been thinking. They have merely been jealous of us. But the moment they found a way to cultivate their own character techniques as well...heh. I guarantee you they will do it without a second thought."
Bai Feng understood what his teacher was trying to say. He asked, "Teacher, you intend to spread this?"
"Of course." Hong Tan said, "The more they hate us in the past, the more awkward they will feel after this. Let's see how they're going to keep suppressing us after this. Kid, the moment this research is made public, the multiple character faction will become the mainstay of humanity's cultural research community."
"But I'm afraid of death."
"Hmm?"
Bai Feng sighed, "I'm afraid of death. Teacher, I did consider spreading this before, but I eventually discovered something else. I believe that the path of the multiple character faction is the true path to the Invincible Realm. Some people are deliberately suppressing us. Those people might be the myriad races. Or they might be the traitors of humanity. In any case, these people are deliberately suppressing us."
Bai Feng sighed, "I'm worried that the moment we start showing signs of growth, the scene from 50 years ago will repeat itself. That wasn't an accident. It was a ploy. Instead of attacking us directly, the myriad races are now damaging our foundations from the shadows. But the moment my research result is spread, all human cultural researchers will turn into multiple character faction cultivators. The countdown to the final battle would start. And that would be a battle for the survival of our race."
"Hmm?"
The look in Hong Tan's eyes changed. The battle for survival.
He frowned, "Are you overthinking this? Battle for the survival of our race? We still have a lot of Invincibles..."
"Teacher, I'm not overthinking." Bai Feng said, "We really shouldn't spread this widely yet. Instead, we should develop silently. I have been wondering. Just what would happen when a human cultural researcher advances into an Invincible cultural researcher? The human race has a lot of Invincibles so what's the big deal with having some Invincible cultural researchers as well? There are a lot of signs showing that this hidden enemy is trying to stop humanity from producing a true Invincible cultural researcher."
Their enemies were the myriad races, the traitors, the divines, and the devils. They did not dare to risk letting the human race produce a true Invincible cultural researcher. As for the warriors, they did not seem to care too much about that path of cultivation.
Hong Tan frowned, "Are you sure our path is the correct path to the Invincible Realm?"
"Yes." Bai Feng confidently said, "If you don't believe me, just wait for now. You can make your decision after I reach the Invincible Realm."
Hong Tan ignored the last part of Bai Feng's statement. He thought for a bit and said, "It is normal that the myriad races are afraid of a human entering the Invincible Realm as a cultural researcher. Just look at your grandteacher. He had been able to kill Invincibles as a Sunmoon. Let me put it this way. A warrior Invincible is able to fight an enemy in the same realm one on one. A cultural researcher Invincible would probably be able to face three Invincibles alone. When facing only one Invincible, victory would be guaranteed."
Chen Yong said, "But Teacher, warriors aren't that weak, right?"
Warriors were no weaklings. In a fight, results would still vary depending on the capabilities of each combatant.
Hong Tan shook his head, "Wrong. Sure, warriors aren't weak. But they are definitely weaker than cultural researchers in the same cultivation level. Of course, this combat strength is only possible for multiple character faction members. If the path of multiple characters is really the path to the Invincible Realm, then our cultural researcher Invincibles would naturally be those from the multiple character faction as well."
He looked at Bai Feng and asked, "And how many warriors do you think are capable of defeating you in the same cultivation level?"
"One..."
Bai Feng had an embarrassed look as he said that.
Hong Tan was also reminded of that person. He smiled, "That is different. He is too talented. Someone like him is one among billions. As for your talent...be more self aware. Just our academy alone has at least 100 individuals more talented than you. You only stand out thanks to the path of multiple characters."
Bai Feng's true talent was not in cultivation even if he was actually quite talented in cultivation as well.
But there were still a decent number of people with Bai Feng's level of talent in the academy. As for that person from the war academy, he was a true freak among freaks. That person had defeated Bai Feng three times. Bai Feng had not been able to get even a single victory out of that person.
Bai Feng turned gloomy. Those words were mean.
Hong Tan said, "In any case, a cultural researcher of the multiple character faction would be absolutely powerful once stepping into the Invincible Realm. One of us is as good as three regular Invincibles. Cultural researchers with useful character abilities will also be very difficult to kill. As for warriors, they all have the same tricks. Regrowing their bodies, crushing space itself, and so on. But cultural researchers are capable of pulling out all sorts of tricks."
"Character clones, domain projection, body duplication, elemental transformation, staying alive as long as the sea of willpower remained, concealment, possession, illusions..."
It almost seemed like cultural researchers were capable of everything.
Bai Feng grumbled, "But one needs to have those characters to have all those abilities. Not everyone will have that many characters."
"You're right. But there is no denying that cultural researchers are much better at staying alive than warriors." Hong Tan said, "What do you mean when you say that the path of multiple characters is the sole path to the Invincible Realm?"
Bai Feng thought for a bit and said, "Racial ability character."
"Hmm?"
Bai Feng gave a simple explanation before saying, "I have yet to prove my theory. Thus, I am going to use Martial Uncle as my first test subject. Martial Uncle Xia Yunji and the others will also be my test subjects."
Bai Feng had a joyful look as he said, "In truth, I have a lot of test subjects. I will test my theory on them first. We can think about our next step after verifying my theory. After all, I need to keep researching if my tests on them end up failing. Also, there's this Su Yu kid..."
He looked at Su Yu and said, "He will also be a test subject. He will focus on forming only human characters."
"You..."
Hong Tan was shocked by what Bai Feng was saying, but he also felt somewhat helpless. This fellow was too rash.
He looked at Su Yu and was faced with a simple and honest face. With a smile, Su Yu said, "I will listen to Teacher. I have no objections."
But inwardly, he was overjoyed. Very good. In the future, he no longer needed to form non-human characters anymore. It was getting tiring pretending that he could actually form one.
Hong Tan's emotions turned complicated upon hearing that. What a good student. What an obedient student!
"Su Yu, you need to think carefully before making this decision. This is only a theory. There is no proof that this is the correct path. You are very talented. If you walk the wrong path, your future will be ruined..."
Hong Tan sighed. In truth, a lot of people from their faction had ruined themselves for the sake of testing some theories. So many geniuses had been ruined this way. Even his senior brother had been ruined this way. Without that experiment, his senior brother would have probably reached the Sunmoon Realm by now. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ n͟o͟v͟e͟l͟f͟i͟r͟e͟.net
Su Yu maintained the honest look on his face as he said, "I'm not afraid, Grandteacher. Since Teacher says that it's fine, I'll listen to him!"
"..."
Bai Feng rolled his eyes. Bullshit! That brat was most certainly hiding something. Wait, it was possible that this little bastard could only form human characters. The brat had claimed that he was in the process of completing a non-human character previously. How long had it been? Where was that character? Where was it? What a big liar!
Bai Feng vowed to one day dissect Su Yu's sea of willpower and take a look at it. Was this kid not ashamed of acting all simple and honest in front of his grandteacher when he could only form human characters in the first place?
After thinking about it, Hong Tan nodded, "We can give this a try. But your senior brother and I can't try this yet. We still need our strength for any unexpected situations that might arise."
"Bai Feng's worry makes sense. Little Yong, Su Yu, forget everything you hear today. Do not let anyone else know about this." He looked at Bai Feng and said, "Use your martial uncle as the test subject first. As for Xia Yunji and the others, don't touch them for now. They are still able to unleash a certain level of combat strength for now so there is no rush. It would be even more troublesome if your tests end up ruining their characters. As for your martial uncle, he is already half a cripple. It is fine to perform your tests on him."
Su Yu resisted the urge to roll his eyes. He finally understood why Bai Feng had the obsession with dissecting others. So this fellow had learned from his own teacher! Were they even listening to themselves? His martial uncle was already half a cripple so they could freely perform tests on him? That sounded like something only a villain would say!
Chapter 407: Conversation of Xia and Liu (1)
After a while, they ended their conversation. Bai Feng's research had reached an even higher level than before, to the point where not even Hong Tan could provide him with much help anymore. Hong Tan's current priority should be his breakthrough into the Sunmoon Realm. He was definitely not the person who should be crushing his characters and cultivating them anew.
When Wu Jia returned, the three moved on from the topic. It wasn't that they didn't trust her. But she was too weak. Knowing too much wouldn't be beneficial for her. As for Su Yu, Bai Feng personally believed that this brat should be given more pressure.
After a short chat between the four of them, Su Yu asked, "Grandteacher, can I pay Teacher Liu a visit?"
"Not for now." Hong Tan said, "Don't make it clear how close you are to him right now. It won't benefit you. Some people are still observing him in secret. Everyone is still very sensitive, especially after what happened during the battle."
"I understand."
Su Yu felt somewhat regretful.
"Teacher, can Teacher Liu really recover?"
"I'll try my best."
Bai Feng did not dare to promise anything. Liu Wenyan had only been able to display the prowess of a Sunmoon after crushing some of his characters. Who knew if he could recover from that? Bai Feng could only try his best.
If Liu Wenyan could really recover from this, he would probably be able to reach the Sunmoon Realm in a short period of time. As for the Invincible Realm, well, that was still quite difficult.
Hong Tan solemnly said, "Su Yu, remember this. The single character faction is not the truly troublesome enemy. If it weren't for the misgivings we have, they would basically be nothing to us. The single-character faction members are not our enemies. They are merely a bunch of fellows blinded by benefits. Our true enemies are hidden in the dark and at the Allheaven Battlefield."
"There is no need to be too ruthless when fighting those new students. Of course, there is no need to hold back if they are trying to harm you."
Bai Feng said, "Don't keep too much resenment in your heart. You can easily do something rash because of your anger. The way you dealt with Chen Qi and Liu He was perfect. Escalate things before sparing them. As for people like Huang Qifeng, you naturally need to deal them a decisive blow to deter all your enemies. In short, kill who you should kill and spare who you should spare."
Su Yu could not help but cast a curious glance at the two. Was he that clear-cut?
"You have such a strong resentment in your heart that it is almost becoming a Divine Character," Hong Tan remarked. "This is not ideal. For me, Zhou Mingren and others like him are our shields. Their purpose is to shield us from the more dangerous adversaries. Although they may believe they have the upper hand, our only goal is self-defense."
"Shield?" Su Yu blanked out.
Hong Tan smiled. "Am I wrong? They have been shielding us for 50 years."
Hong Tan said, "Things have only changed recently. They had never treated us with such hostility in the past. I am not sure if the Zhou Family's changes are to blame for this. Or perhaps they have gone mad from being in power for too long."
Su Yu had a pensive look. That made sense.
He didn't think too much about that. Rather, he began considering whether he should get himself a shield as well. Right. He should definitely get himself one! Perhaps it was time to find some people in the academy capable of suppressing him?
That way, he would no longer be so eye-catching. The public would see that Su Yu had also suffered quite a lot of losses. Sure, he might have profited massively here and there, but it wasn't like he was immune to defeat!
Suddenly, a name appeared in his mind: Liu Hong! Would Liu Hong be interested in suppressing him?
The single character faction would see how miserable his life was. He might be able to gain a lot of benefits from the others, but he was also being badly suppressed by Liu Hong. It wasn't necessarily a good thing for him to take such a forceful stand. Without enough strength, that would only bring him more trouble.
Convinced that he had comprehended the hidden meaning behind the words of his teacher and grandteacher, Su Yu solemnly said, "Thank you for the guidance, Grandteacher and Teacher!"
Guidance?
What guidance have they given him?
Hong Tan was confused. He was only telling the kid to not hold that much resentment, lest it delay his cultivation. Maybe that was what the kid was talking about. Yeah, that made sense.
Bai Feng was the one looking at Su Yu suspiciously. What did the kid get from their words? There definitely wasn't any hidden meaning behind their words!
Rather, they had indeed noticed the deep resentment Su Yu was holding. A majority of the resentment probably originated from the previous battle in the warzone. Even Su Yu himself might not have realized how much resentment he was carrying within himself. In this condition, his mentality could very easily turn extreme. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveI~Fire.net
...
Since Bai Feng still needed to recuperate from his injuries, they did not continue talking for long. After telling them about the Willpower Grotto, Su Yu went upstairs to cultivate, while Chen Yong and Wu Jia returned to the books depository.
With that, the multiple character faction began their rest and recovery.
Heart Cultivating Pavilion.
Wan Tiansheng had returned to normal. The fury on his face could no longer be seen.
...
At the Xia Family, the Martial Dragon Guards were sent everywhere to wipe out any cult stronghold they could find. Meanwhile, Marquis Xia had turned back into a smiling merchant.
Even the single character faction was completely silent. Calm seemed to have returned. It was as though the battle the night before had never happened.
...
Away from the Great Xia Cultural Research Academy.
Eighteenth Secondary School.
Rear mountain.
Liu Wenyan was meeting someone in a small house.
Inside the small room, only two people were present. Liu Wenyan looked frail and old. The man seated opposite him was sturdy and powerful, his very presence emanating a sense of majesty.
In truth, the two were similar in age. Liu Wenyan was only slightly above 70, while the other person was around 70 as well.
The cups of tea in front of them remained untouched. Xia Longwu, the sturdy man, looked at Liu Wenyan and calmly asked, "Are you angry?"
Liu Wenyan smiled and said, "What a stupid question. Is there anything for me to be angry about?"
"I have failed to protect the Liu Family."
Xia Longwu calmly said, "Back then, I arranged a marriage between Huyou and the lass from the Liu Family to create an excuse for the Liu Family to move into Great Xia. But before that plan could be carried out, the entire Liu Family was wiped out."
Liu Wenyan had a look of recollection on his face. He softly said, "You tried your best. That's how my elder brother was. I had reminded him long ago that he shouldn't get involved with me. He should have ignored me and stopped trying to protect me..."
He shook his head and sighed.
"I only feel sorry for the children. As for my elder brother, I already expected him to die fighting."
Xia Longwu said, "I investigated the matter of their deaths. But I can't find anything suspicious. That looked like a perfectly normal battle. But the more normal it looked, the more abnormal it actually was. At that time, the Liu Family's base was attacked multiple times. Everything was too coincidental."
"Back when that grand niece of yours was born, a part of the Liu Family planned to return to the Human Realm. But on their way back, they encountered some enemies..."
Liu Wenyan nodded and sighed. "This character left behind by my teacher is the root of all these calamities. Without the Great Xia King, I would have died as well."
Xia Longwu asked, "Just what is the secret of this character? There is no need for them to go that far for a single Eternal character unless it really is the key to becoming a cultural researcher Invincible. Have you discovered that secret?"
"Nope."
Liu Wenyan smiled and said, "If I had really found it, I would not have stayed this weak. Speaking of, you sure are growing very quickly. You're going to reach the Invincible Realm soon."
"It's only a physical advancement." Xia Longwu calmly said, "With a body advancement, I will still be limited by my lifespan. And my willpower will be too weak. Facing the cultural researcher Invincibles of our enemies, I can still die."
"How about your willpower cultivation?" Liu Wenyan asked.
Very few people remembered this, but Xia Longwu was not a graduate of the Great Xia War Academy. Instead, he graduated from the Great Xia Cultural Research Academy. And his teacher was...Wan Tiansheng! A true cultural researcher!
"My willpower cultivation is stuck at the peak Mountainsea Realm."
"That's too weak."
Xia Longwu did not deny that. He nodded. "Yeah. I can't even bring it into the Sunmoon Realm. There are some issues with our Divine Characters. The Knowledge Seeking Realm should have noticed the same issue as well. But this isn't an easy issue to solve."
To solve it, they had to cripple a group of people. This was a very serious issue. The only thing the Knowledge Seeking Realm could do was take it one step at a time. They also couldn't afford to spread the news for fear of creating too much disturbance among the cultural research community.
"Knowledge Seeking Realm..." Liu Wenyan frowned. "Just what are they trying to do?"
Xia Longwu sank into a short silence before answering, "Basically, their stand is that they can't participate in personal grudges between fellow humans. Also, even if there is really a traitor, the fifth principal is already dead. In terms of value, that person has a much higher value to humanity than your faction."
Liu Wenyan laughed, "True. I already expected this. The dead are of little value. A bunch of cripples are also of little value. But are they not afraid that the same thing would happen to someone else?"
"It is likely that they already have some countermeasures in place." Xia Longwu said, "If that person dares to make more moves, he won't be able to keep hiding. But they definitely won't be willing to perform an open investigation. You are only the bait."
Xia Longwu said, "In truth, they had guessed the same a long time ago. But my grandpa and second uncle insisted on protecting you. Otherwise, they would have used you as bait all those years ago."
"I guessed correctly!" Liu Wenyan nodded. "I already knew this when I was exiled to Nanyuan. I was surprised that I could actually keep my life. Only later did I realize that Great Xia King had probably done something to protect me. Thank Great Xia King for me..."
"Don't worry about it." Xia Longwu said, "Be patient. Wait. Wait until I finish my breakthrough. Sooner or later, we will find this person. I know what those old fossils in the War Shrine and Knowledge Seeking Realm are thinking. They also want to find that person, but they also don't feel as strongly about it as we do. The main issue is the ambiguous attitude of Great Zhou King."
"Great Zhou King..." Liu Wenyan hesitated slightly before asking, "Is he the one?"
"We can't be sure." Xia Longwu shook his head. "Everyone knows his belief. He believes in peaceful coexistence. Instead of fighting the enemies on the battlefield, he has been working toward the defenses of the Human Realm. His ultimate goal is the activation of the suppressive force toward non-human races in the Human Realm."
Xia Longwu sighed, "I do not object to that plan. I also agree that activating the suppressive force is a good thing for us. That would be able to deter a lot of races. But it has been so many years. We have not been able to activate the suppressive force. While working on this plan, we still need to have enough strength to deter all external enemies."
He did not disagree with Great Zhou King's goal.
Activating the Human Realm's suppressive force would turn the Human Realm into something similar to the other realms, where all foreign visitors would be suppressed. That was also a way to end the war. But there was no sign that this was going to happen anytime soon.
This was most likely one of the reasons the Great Zhou King had been largely ignoring the traitor. He wanted to put everything aside and focus on activating the suppressive force before dealing with anything else. He did not want to see people causing chaos while he was working on his plan.
And that was something Xia Longwu and Great Xia King disagreed with. But since Great Zhou King was one of the leaders of the Knowledge Seeking Realm, they naturally had to follow his lead instead of revealing any disunity among their ranks.
Chapter 408: Conversation of Xia and Liu (2)
"Great Zhou King..." Liu Wenyan smiled and said, "...isn't totally wrong. It might not be a good thing if our investigation results in chaos in the Human Realm. If he really manages to activate the suppressive force, I would even clap for him. But...I also can't forget about everything that has happened to my teacher and my family."
"If...one day I find out that he is the culprit, I won't let it slide."
Xia Longwu smiled. "The premise for that is your advancement into the Invincible Realm. Otherwise, you won't be able to do anything apart from talk. Also, about my teacher...I suspect..."
"Go on."
"I suspect that he has discovered something. Or maybe he has reached Invincible Realm. He was the culprit who had caused this entire battle to happen. I noticed what he did."
Xia Longwu, whom the world knew as a brainless barbarian, was displaying an incredibly sharp mind.
"Invincible?" Liu Wenyan exclaimed in astonishment, "Impossible. He also walks the path of multiple characters. He won't be able to advance successfully as well."
"Perhaps its a physical advancement." Xia Longwu sounded unsure. "I don't know the truth either. My teacher has this habit of keeping his thoughts to himself. In any case, I am sure that he is no weaker than a peak Sunmoon."
"He's...trying to find that person as well?"
"I don't know." Xia Longwu paused to think before saying, "I suspect that my teacher has his own plan as well. He is an advocate for building a good relationship with the myriad races. For a period of time, I even suspected that he was the sect master of the First Divine Sect."
"Hmm?" Liu Wenyan's face changed. "Are you sure?"
"No. I only suspected him." Xia Longwu said, "But right now, I am worried about something else. In truth, my teacher is an extreme person. He looks calm, but rules are very important to him. He will be very nice, as long as you follow the rules. The moment you break the rules, he will no longer be a nice person. The assassination of the fifth principal and the fall of the multiple character faction have both broken some rules. And he absolutely hates it when rules are broken. I'm afraid that he will do something crazy...and going as far as to provoke an attack on humanity by the myriad races."
"This..."
Liu Wenyan was shocked. "He...has he gone mad? Even if he is already an Invincible, those people will never spare him for doing something like this."
Xia Longwu sighed, "Exactly. That's why I have suppressed his demands for many years. But I'm afraid I can no longer keep suppressing him. Let me put it this way. I suspect that even the attack of the Divine Skywing Sect and the divine skywing race on Great Xia City and Nanyuan was part of his plan. He was intentionally putting pressure on me to advance while also forcing you to come out of hiding. All this might be part of his plan."
Liu Wenyan frowned. "He has gone mad."
"No, he hasn't. He knows perfectly what he's doing. His sole goal is to force that person to appear. If he can't do that, he will bring calamity upon the human race, forcing humanity to unite."
Liu Wenyan frowned. "Is the situation really so bad?"
Xia Longwu thought about it before nodding, "Yes. The divines, devils, and the other races have been silent. I heard that they are all waiting for that fellow from the first divine race to break through. Some also said that they are waiting for that person from the primeval devil race to break through."
"Breakthrough?" Liu Wenyan asked in astonishment, "Is there really a realm above the Invincible Realm?"
"I don't know. I'm not an Invincible. Not even my grandpa can see the path forward, but he is certain that such a path exists." Xia Longwu sighed, "The current peace is merely the calm before the storm."
"Is the Human Realm even worth that much effort from them?"
"Yes." Xia Longwu nodded, "At the very least, they believe that it is worth it. Prior to the cataclysm, the Human Realm had enjoyed a glorious era. This theory has been proven by the ruins we have discovered in the Human Realm. Back then, the Human Realm was definitely the holy land of the Myriad Realms. That was an incomparably glorious era."
"Thus, a great secret is hidden in the Human Realm." Xia Longwu said, "My grandpa once said that the Human Realm is definitely hiding a secret. This secret might be something big enough to affect the myriad races. It might even be something related to their survival. That is why they will never give up on invading the Human Realm."
"Their survival?" Liu Wenyan frowned, "What manner of a secret is this? It can even affect the survival of the myriad races?"
"I don't know." Xia Longwu smiled, "If I have the answer to that, I would have eliminated the myriad races and unified the Myriad Realms instead. But there is one thing I'm sure about. The Human Realm had once experienced a golden era. People like my grandpa and the other old fossils had merely benefited from what our predecessors left behind. Those ruins were why they had been able to rapidly grow during the crisis. That was how the human race had been able to avoid extinction during that time."
About 300 years ago, before the start of the Anping Calender, a connection between the Human Realm and the Allheaven Battlefield had suddenly formed. That was also a period of time where one human Invincible after another rose to power, founding the various human prefectures that exist today.
That batch of people had grown at an incredible speed. Invincibles were basically appearing one after another.
All those experts had not emerged from thin air. Thɪs chapter is updated by novel⟡fire.net
During that time, the experts of the myriad races had already entered the Human Realm. While warring against the humans, they were also warring against each other for the ancient ruins in the Human Realm. It was also during that time that one human expert after another appeared. Ultimately, the enemies were either killed or chased out of the Human Realm, shifting the battlefield outside the Human Realm.
Liu Wenyan nodded, "True. Those ruins are proof of the past glory of the human race. The multiple character faction's character techniques came from one of these ruins as well. But what a pity that the ruin from back then did not contain the path to the Invincible Realm. Are new ruins still being discovered in the Human Realm?"
"Yes, but these newly found ruins are nothing special. Most of them are only beneficial for physical cultivation. We haven't been able to find any inheritances related to willpower cultivation. Of course, we have still discovered something..."
Xia Longwu's face turned solemn as he said, "From a few ruins, we found that prior to the cataclysm, the human race focused mainly on the cultivation of human characters."
Liu Wenyan nodded, "Bai Feng has discovered the same thing."
"The Knowledge Seeking Realm has probably discovered this as well." Xia Longwu sighed, "That put them in a difficult position. It is impossible for them to make everyone crush their own characters. Also, there is no denying that human characters are weaker. The main issue is the lack of a clear cultivation path. The character technique of the multiple character faction could potentially solve this issue, but not everyone has the talent to form a character technique..."
If both Su Yu and Bai Feng were present, they would be quite astonished to hear all this. So some human experts had actually discovered the issue. They had merely been helpless to do anything about it.
Liu Wenyan frowned, "In that case, they should be spreading the legacy of the multiple character faction instead of suppressing us."
"Some people are definitely pursuing this path in secret."
Xia Longwu was frank, "We are merely unaware of it. In fact, the descendants of some experts are probably walking this path. But they are probably still in the exploration phase. As for the suppression of the multiple character faction, I am unsure if they are planning something else. And Great Zhou King's tacit agreement with the suppression has also affected the actions of some people."
"Great Zhou King..." Liu Wenyan sighed, "I really hope it's not him. Otherwise, this would effect even the Great Zhou. That would be a big headache. He is very strong. Not even Great Xia King is confident he can defeat Great Zhou King."
"He isn't a match." Xia Longwu was honest, "My grandpa is definitely not his match. Great Zhou King is a cultural researcher who entered the Invincible Realm through physical cultivation. In terms of physical cultivation alone, he is not weaker than my grandpa. He has long reached the level where he can regrow his body from a drop of blood. As for his willpower cultivation, it is currently near the level of the fifth principal back then. Perhaps he has even surpassed the fifth principal. Meanwhile, my grandpa is weaker than him in terms of willpower cultivation."
"Great Qin King is probably the only person strong enough to suppress him." Liu Wenyan sighed, "I really hope it isn't him. Otherwise...sigh."
The two sank into silence. That was the most terrifying possibility. A human Invincible who was among the strongest among all the human Invincibles. The betrayal of someone like that would bring about great upheavals among the human race.
Perhaps some other people were also starting to suspect Great Zhou King. But all these people had merely been turning a blind eye. If it was someone else, this matter would be much easier to deal with. If it was Great Zhou King, this would be a massive trouble.
Xia Longwu smiled, "That is the worst-case scenario. Perhaps things won't be that bad. There really isn't any reason for him to do so. Also, his younger brother had also perished back then. His relationship with his younger brother was actually quite good back then."
"Let's stop talking about him."
Liu Wenyan decided to move on from the topic. He was starting to get a headache.
He said, "I won't be able to stay here for long. I'll have to set off to the Allheaven Battlefield soon. I'll need to trouble you to watch over Hong Tan and the others. This junior brother of mine...isn't a cunning person. At times, he can be too rash. As for Principal Wan, I honestly can't do anything about him. I'll let him be."
"Don't worry."
"By the way..." Liu Wenyan suddenly recalled something. He said, "I have a student. He is now Bai Feng's student. Watch over him as well. He has probably stumbled upon his own fortuitous encounter. During his childhood, he would frequently suffer from nightmares. His willpower would start rippling randomly for no reason. You can send some people to investigate Nanyuan. Maybe there is a hidden ruin there."
"Nanyuan?" Xia Longwu was surprised, "There's a ruin in Nanyuan?"
"Maybe." Liu Wenyan smiled, "A ruin can appear anywhere. He must have obtained something from this ruin. If you really manage to find this ruin, remember to take him along for the exploration. According to our rules, he is entitled to get 30 percent of what you find inside the ruin. Don't swallow his share."
Xia Longwu laughed, "I'm not desperate enough to do something like that. Sure, I'll get some people to take a look. If there is really a ruin there, he will get his share. We have been discovering fewer and fewer ruins nowadays. If it is a ruin with a proper inheritance system, the kid might even be able to enter the Sunmoon Realm with the help of the ruin."
Back then, the first batch of discovered ruins had produced a large number of Invincibles.
As for the newly discovered ruins, most were incomparable to those early ruins. Even the best of these newly discovered ruins would at most contain the inheritance until the Sunmoon Realm.
Even so, a Sunmoon was still a top expert.
Even at the Allheaven Battlefield, such an individual was already qualified to become the overlord of a large territory. In fact, the leaders of some of the weaker races weren't even at the Sunmoon Realm. The rapid rise of the human race into a top 10 race was all thanks to these ruins. That was also why the myriad races had always been so eager to attack the Human Realm, including the minor races.
After the conversation ended, Xia Longwu vanished into thin air.
Liu Wenyan sat there silently. A short while later, Wu Yuehua entered the room and asked doubtfully, "Was someone here earlier? My consciousness seemed to have blanked out temporarily."
"Blanked out?" Liu Wenyan smiled, "How is that possible? You're an eighth-stage Mountainsea. Other than an Invincible or a peak Sunmoon, who can hide from you?"
"True." Wu Yuehua agreed. She moved on and said, "Time to take your medicine. She then took out a large pill and grabbed Liu Wenyan to stuff the pill down his throat.
Liu Wenyan had just been talking cheerfully and gracefully with Xia Longwu just a moment ago. But now, desperation was plastered all over his face. No!
"I refuse!"
"Be a good boy. How will you get well without taking your medicine? I put a lot of effort into making this pill for you. Others can only dream of getting this pill from me."
She then pried his mouth open. Either way, he was taking this pill. His opinion did not matter here. Liu Wenyan had a look of despair on his face. He felt like this place was even more dangerous than the Allheaven Battlefield.
And he was right. Immediately after he was fed the pill that was the size of a human head, Hu Ping walked through the door and said, "Time for your meal."
She walked toward him, a pot of disgusting-looking stew in hand. The same look of despair appeared on Liu Wenyan's face again. He decided to go to the Allheaven Battlefield earlier. There was no way he could keep staying at this hellish place.