Chapter 962: Second Group from the Combat Master Hall Arrives!
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Hu!
A book materialized in the Library of Heaven’s Path.
The seal had been whirring in action all along to fend off the killing intent from the otherworldly battlefield, so the Library of Heaven’s Path was able to peer into its flaws easily.
Flipping open the book, the knowledge contained within swiftly flowed into Zhang Xuan’s mind.
The seal had been created by an expert known as Qiu Wu. Possessing an extremely deep understanding of space, Qiu Wu had designed the seal to sever the space between the two worlds, making it impossible for anyone to breach. Even a 9-star master teacher would find it extremely difficult to destroy the seal.
This was also the reason it had been able to fend off the Otherworldly Demons for so many years.
But nothing could last forever. Even a seal as formidable as that would be worn out over tens of thousands of years. On top of that, the Otherworldly Demons had been striking it relentlessly over the years, whittling it down bit by bit. As a result, there were several weakened areas on the seal.
Even so, not just anyone would be able to cross these areas easily. To order to pass, one would have to pay an extremely heavy price.
With the knowledge Zhang Xuan possessed, however, he was unable to tell what that price was.
There is only one way to stop the Otherworldly Demons from coming over and resolve the threat once and for allrepairing the weakened areas and make them whole again.
After studying the content of the book, Zhang Xuan lowered his head in deep thought.
Through the Library of Heaven’s Path, he knew that even if he had killed the Otherworldly Demons who had bypassed the barrier for the time being, the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe would still be able to send more of their kind in by paying the price.
There would be no end to this.
The only way to resolve the problem for good was to repair the weakened areas.
If it had been anyone else, they would have been helpless, even if they knew the root of the problem.
However, Zhang Xuan was different. The flaws of the seal were reflected clearly in the Library of Heaven’s Path. As long as he worked backward from the flaws, he could easily deduce the method to repairing the seal. However... the amount of zhenqi required for this operation would be immense.
Even as a Nascent Saint pinnacle expert who had cultivated the Saint Ascension Decipher, the rich zhenqi he harnessed within his body was insufficient to repair the seal within a short period of time.
Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before making his decision. Forget it. Since Mu shi and the others have made this request of me, I should resolve it once and for all before heading up. This is for the welfare of mankind, too.
After staying at Hongyuan Empire for four months, he had already come to bear deep feelings for it. On top of that, this was the home of the countless members of his Xuanxuan Faction. If he were to leave and the Otherworldly Demons were to breach the seal once again, it would be hard to say if they would be lucky to have this situation resolved so simply as it had been this time around.
Since he was already there, he ought to make sure that he weeded out the problem at its root.
Time to begin!
Having made up his mind, Zhang Xuan quickly leaped into action. He walked up to the seal and lightly placed his palm on an area where a flaw of the seal was located.
Hu!
In the next moment, with an abrupt jolt, his body entered the seal.
This...
Looking at his surroundings, Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up in excitement.
This seal was an extremely skillful manipulation of space. This was also the reason it was able to sever the connection between the Master Teacher Continent and the otherworldly battlefield.
Intending to only repair the flaws, Zhang Xuan hadn’t thought that he would get to peer into the internal structure of the entire seal from within.
The structure of the seal was built in a manner that was aligned with the laws of space, reinforcing and stabilizing it further.
It bears a striking resemblance to the Saint Ascension Decipher.
Studying the internal structure with his Eye of Insight for a moment, Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but clench his fists in excitement.
To his astonishment, the layout of the seal, when studied carefully, bore an uncanny resemblance to the Saint Ascension Decipher, which he was cultivating at the moment, to the point where it could be said to be nearly identical. However, the structure in the seal was a little more complex, and this enhanced complexity allowed the deciphers to be tied together in an even more compact manner.
A thought emerged in Zhang Xuan’s mind. If I cultivate the Saint Ascension Decipher according to this format, will it become stronger?
There was no apparent flaw in his Saint Ascension Decipher, but it wasn’t as grand and profound as the structure he was seeing before his eyes. If he were to alter his Saint Ascension Decipher according to this, would it become even stronger?
I should give it a try!
Zhang Xuan began to make some calculations to determine the feasibility of the matter, and after confirming that there was no problem with it, he began to multitask. He used his zhenqi to further reinforce the weakened portions of the seal, while at the same time, sitting quietly on the floor to cultivate.
Under the discerning glint of the Eye of Insight, the intricacies of the seal’s internal structure appeared clearly before Zhang Xuan’s eyes. Slowly, he turned his attention to his dantian and began rearranging the deciphers that he had constructed before. He didn’t make any progress in his cultivation, but his Origin Core did become significantly more stable and stronger.
While Zhang Xuan was cultivating in the Subterranean Gallery without any regard for time, the crowd that was guarding outside the Mausoleum of Principals was becoming more and more anxious by the moment.
"It has already been three days, why isn’t Principal Zhang out yet?" School Head Mo asked as he paced around the area anxiously.
"Could it be that something has happened inside?" Zhao Bingxu asked.
School Head Mo hesitated for a moment before saying, "The Mausoleum of Principals is the ground where the preceding principals of our academy rest. Considering that Principal Zhang has gained the recognition of all our preceding principals, there shouldn’t be a problem."
But despite the words he spoke, he still couldn’t help but feel worried and unnerved within.
He had checked through the records, and it was said that the preceding principals would usually only spend a day in the Mausoleum of Principals. For their principal to spend three days inside... could something have gone wrong?
"Cough cough, I am not worried that something will happen to our principal, but that... he might cause something in the Mausoleum of Principals that might cause the many predecessors... to be unable to rest in peace!" Zhao Bingxu replied with the corners of his mouth twitching.
"Ah..." School Head Mo fell into a daze.
Their current principal was a formidable young man, and he would have been perfect if not for his tendency to... be reckless at times. If their principal were to cause a devastating ruckus in the Mausoleum of Principals, how would they answer the many predecessors before them?
School Head Mo rubbed his glabella as he said with uncertainty, "We can’t interfere in what Principal Zhang does... In any case, he is the man who has received the approval of the wills of the preceding principals, so... he shouldn’t mess around there."
There was nothing they could do about the situation at the moment, especially since they couldn’t enter the Mausoleum of Principals in the first place. Even if they knew that something bad could very well happen, the most they could do at the moment was pray for the best.
At this moment, Zhao Bingxu suddenly recalled something and asked, "Oh right, the men from the Combat Master Hall should have arrived by now, right?"
"Combat Master Zhuo did say that the combat masters that will be assessing Zheng Yang and the others would be arriving in three days’ time back then, and it should be about time now. Let’s head over to take a look!"
"Un."
Thus, the two school heads took one final hesitant glance at the Mausoleum of Principals before heading off to the Elder Hall.
It was one thing if their principal wasn’t around to welcome the arrival of the representatives of the Combat Master Hall, but if even they weren’t around either, it would be a huge breach of etiquette on the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy’s part.
Outside the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, an aerial saint beast descended from the sky, and around a dozen cultivators began walking into the academy. They were dressed not in the robes of a master teacher or a combat master but ordinary clothes.
"Liao shi, I heard that Zhuo shi and the others came over to conduct the selection, but they ended up being utterly defeated by Hongyuan’s candidates. May I know if that is true?" a Chrysalis realm combat master walking in the middle of the group asked.
"Un, that is indeed the news that we have received. It seems like Hongyuan’s candidates this year are exceptionally powerful. There is even one candidate who Combat Master Zhuo was unable to stand against when his cultivation was equal to the other’s! This is why he requested that we rush here to assess the candidate," the middle-aged man at the forefront of the group replied with a nod.
That middle-aged man looked like he was in his mid-forties, and he exuded a vague but unfathomable aura, reminiscent of a majestic dragon lying dormant in wait. Just like Combat Master Zhuo, he was a Saint realm 2-dan expert as well.
But while the two possessed equal cultivation, the middle-aged man commanded an aura that felt far more powerful and fearsome than Combat Master Zhuo.
Thousand Men Commander of the Combat Master Hall, Liao Song!
The Chrysalis realm combat master harrumphed in disbelief. "I have checked the history of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, and it has always been at the very bottom of the Four Great Master Teacher Academies. There were hardly any talents among them that met the requirement of the Combat Master Hall, so how could their candidates suddenly grow so strong as to defeat our combat masters? Something feels amiss about the situation."
Another young man nodded in agreement. "I also think that there is something weird about the situation."
Of the combat masters behind Liao Song, three of them were at the Ethereal Treading realm, three of them were at the Chrysalis realm, three of them were at Half-Saint, and three of them were at Nascent- Saint; altogether, there were twelve of them.
Each of these men were extremely strong. Their presence in itself carried a sharp edge that few would dare approach.
It felt like each of them would be equal to Combat Master Zhuo were they to fight at the same cultivation realm.
These young men were all Hundred Men Commanders of the Combat Master Hall!
The Combat Master Hall ranked its members not by their cultivation but by their ability to display strength beyond their current cultivation.
Zhuo Qingfeng might have reached Spiritual Perception realm, but he was still only a Hundred Men Commander, possessing equal standing to these young men and a rank lower than Liao Song.
"I also find that hard to believe. Our combat masters are all top-notch geniuses sieved out from countless cultivators, and yet, all one hundred candidates chosen by an academy actually managed to clear the harsh selection? This is something unprecedented in the history of the Combat Master Hall! The reason I came here today is to verify this matter as well!" Liao Song said with a deep frown on his forehead.
Honestly speaking, he also found it hard to believe the news that Combat Master Zhuo had sent to him.
The Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy was a weak institution that only had a candidate or two clearing each Master Teacher Selection. Yet, for a hundred people over the five grades to all clear the selection in this year... This notion in itself was inconceivable!
The others nodded in agreement.
While they were speaking, the group entered the academy. Raising their gazes, they saw innumerable students walking about with a spirited look in their eyes.
"Ruohuan, I am still a little unsure about the maneuver that Principal Zhang lectured us on. Can you explain it to me?"
On the training grounds alongside the pavement, a few students were gathered together in a group, seemingly conversing about their insights and learning from one another.
"It’s simple... Watch closely!"
The young man named Ruohuan chuckled softly before raising his palm and abruptly striking forward.
Huala!
A series of sonic booms resounded deafeningly in the air as a gush of hot air currents blasted into the surroundings. Under the immense pressure of the air currents, the bluestone pavement beneath the feet of the student began to crack.
"What a powerful palm strike!"
The combat masters couldn’t help but stop and narrow their eyes in astonishment.
The palm strike seemed simple, but it took incredible skill in order to bring forth its strength to such an extent. They would have struggled to execute a palm strike of this caliber back when they were at the young man’s cultivation realm.
"Could this be the fellow who intends to participate in the selection?" one of the young men amid the combat masters asked.
Even though the fellow on the stage was only at the Cosmos Bridge realm, the prowess he had exerted in that previous blow was definitely on par with a Hundred Men Commander. Most likely, he was the genius whom Combat Master Zhuo had spoken about.
"That seems very likely. Liao shi, I hope to challenge him to a duel!" one of the combat masters said.
After a moment of hesitation, Liao Song nodded and instructed, "Alright. However, make sure to go easy on him. If the other party is not the person in question and you end up severely injuring him, it will cause a great deal of trouble if Hongyuan report this matter to the headquarters."
Every single combat master was a top-notch combat genius, and naturally, ordinary master teachers were no match for them at all. If they were to go too far and injure the other party, the headquarters could punish them for abusing their strength.
"Don’t worry, I will be careful!" The young man smiled before leaped onto the training ground not too far away.
"This friend over here, my name is Zhou Ye. I saw your palm strike earlier, and I am impressed by its might. If it isn’t too much, I would like to have a spar with you. Of course, I will suppress my cultivation to Cosmos Bridge realm for the spar," the young man, Ye Zhou, said with a smile.