Library of Heaven's Path

This chapter is

“He isn’t dead yet?” Zhang Xuan’s eyes lit up. “Where is he then?”

Putting his trust in Zhang Xuan, Elder Xu had taken him to the Poison Hall. If the latter were to die as a result of that, he would surely feel deeply guilty.

“He was captured by King Zhongqing and is currently being held in the underground prison,” Ming Zhen said.

“Underground prison?”

“That’s all I know. It seems like King Zhongqing has spared them in order to have Elder Xu and the others concoct a more formidable poison for him, but I don’t know many details about the matter,” Ming Zhen explained.

“I see.” Zhang Xuan nodded.

Regardless of what King Zhongqing was up to, it was enough for him to know that Elder Xu and the others were still alive.

However, this was not the time to save them yet.

Otherwise, the others would surely use this as an excuse to attack him and pin some kind of crime on him.

After some questioning, Zhang Xuan confirmed that Elder Xu and the others were still fine at the moment, and he heaved a sigh of relief.

“You are currently afflicted with my poison, and only I have the cure for it. You are an intelligent man, so I believe I need not tell you what you should and shouldn’t say.”

“Y-yes!” Ming Zhen nodded hurriedly.

The young man before him was an individual who could even poison Hall Master Ruo’s Darkgold Venom Beetle, and not even Poison Master Bai and Poison Master Hai from the headquarters dared oppose him. His mastery in the Way of Poison could be said to have reached an unfathomable level, a level that Ming Zhen would never be able to achieve.

Since that was the case, the only option left for him was to follow the other party’s orders obediently.

His questions having been answered, Zhang Xuan released the isolation barrier around him with a wave of his hand.

Peng peng peng peng!

As soon as the barrier was released, a series of crashing sounds echoed in his ears.

Raising his gaze, he saw that Vice Pavilion Master Tian was still battling with the Golden Origin Cauldron.

With blazing flames burning within it, it was apparent that the Golden Origin Cauldron was using all its might to attack Vice Pavilion Master Tian. On the other hand, Vice Pavilion Master Tian also did not seem to be faring too well against the Golden Origin Cauldron’s relentless attack. A trail of blood was flowing down the corner of his lips, signifying that he had already suffered considerable internal injuries.

As powerful as Vice Pavilion Master Tian was, the Golden Origin Cauldron was no pushover either. For the time being, it seemed like the fight would still go on for quite some time more before it reached a conclusion.

After noting that the Golden Origin Cauldron was not at a disadvantage against Vice Pavilion Master Tian, Zhang Xuan turned his gaze to King Zhongqing.

At this moment, King Zhongqing’s body was completely covered in blood. There were at least fifty small holes on his body, sliced open by Sun Qiang. His breathing was extremely weak and erratic, and it felt like he might just pass away at any moment.

“You blind fool, how dare you torture me? You must not know whose butler I am,” Sun Qiang bellowed as he brandished the sharp dagger in his hand furiously, venting the grievances he had suffered before.

Zhang Xuan shook his head. “Sun Qiang, calm down. Don’t accidentally kill him in the heat of the moment.”

“Don’t worry, Young Master!” Hearing the order, Sun Qiang nodded before whipping out a bottle of chili and spraying it over King Zhongqing’s wounds.

Seeing that King Zhongqing might really die if Sun Qiang was left to do as he pleased, he was just about to step forward to stop him when Luo Qiqi and Yu Fei-er suddenly walked over with deeply worried looks.

“Zhang shi, it won’t be easy to resolve this situation after blowing it up to this extent!” Yu Fei-er remarked worriedly.

Zhang Xuan had done it to save Sun Qiang, but still, the other party was still the First King of the Qingyuan Empire and the most authoritative vice head of the Master Teacher Pavilion. To pummel them viciously, if news of the matter reached the Master Teacher Pavilion, this could become a huge issue.

At best, only his master teacher license would be revoked.

“It’s no problem. If it were any other master teacher, I would not dare do something like this. However, if it’s this Vice Pavilion Master Tian… then there won’t be a problem at all.” Zhang Xuan shook his head as he mentally calculated the time. After which, he whipped out a jade token and tapped on it lightly, sending a message out.

“There won’t be a problem at all?” The duo was unable to comprehend Zhang Xuan’s words.

Vice Pavilion Master Tian could be considered one of the most esteemed and authoritative individuals in the Qingyuan Empire, so how could there be no problem at all?

“There’s no doubt that King Zhongqing has colluded with the Poison Hall, but not only did this Vice Pavilion Master Tian fail to investigate the matter clearly, he even shifted the blame toward me. There is bound to be something more between them!” Zhang Xuan shook his head.

Previously, he had indeed been a little hesitant to use forceful measures due to Vice Pavilion Master Tian’s appearance. However, when the latter issued an unfair judgement, he recalled the various news he had heard before, and a realization dawned upon him.

“Even if Vice Pavilion Master Tian chose to side with King Zhongqing due to their prior relationship, the latter’s claim isn’t entirely unjustified, so it can’t be considered collusion, can it?” Luo Qiqi frowned.

“Indeed. There isn’t sufficient evidence to conclusively prove that Vice Pavilion Master Tian is colluding with King Zhongqing. There are a few things that you are unaware of, and it isn’t convenient for me to talk about it for the time being. Don’t worry, Wu shi will deal with the situation once he arrives,” Zhang Xuan replied.

On the other hand, seeing how confident Zhang Xuan was about the matter, Luo Qiqi and Yu Fei-er heaved a sigh of relief.

“Young Master, I’m done teaching King Zhongqing a lesson.”

At this moment, Sun Qiang was finally done scattering his chili powder, and he returned with a satisfied look on his face. The previous frustration and indignation he had suffered from the other party’s torture had vanished without a trace.

Zhang Xuan swiftly turned around to look at King Zhongqing, only to see the latter breathing feebly, as if he would breathe his last breath at any moment.

After a moment of hesitation, Zhang Xuan eventually stepped forward and retrieved a gourd of fine wine with a flick of his wrist. He tilted the other party’s neck upwards and forced the gourd of wine into the other party’s mouth.

The black-robed young man from before, Butler Qin, was roughly around the same cultivation realm as him, and Ming Zhen was only slightly stronger than him, so he could still afford to directly infuse his Heaven’s Path zhenqi into their bodies without them noticing.

On the other hand, King Zhongqing was a Primordial Spirit realm pinnacle expert. With the enhanced perception of his Primordial Spirit, it would not be too difficult for him to notice the presence of the Heaven’s Path zhenqi.

The Heaven’s Path zhenqi was one of his greatest secrets, so it was better to be safe than sorry.

Tzzzzzz!

The wine flowed down King Zhongqing’s throat, and it did not take long for the wounds inflicted on the latter by Sun Qiang to vanish without a trace.

While Zhang Xuan’s current cultivation was two realms lower than King Zhongqing, his Heaven’s Path zhenqi was still sufficiently potent to heal the latter’s wounds easily.

“Young Master…” Seeing Zhang Xuan heal King Zhongqing, Sun Qiang could not help but sigh in disappointment.

If only the Young Master had told him that they were going to heal the other party, he would have been far more vicious! He would have made many more decisive cuts and scattered more salt and pepper, and the vengeance would have felt far more fulfilling.

Noting Sun Qiang’s response, Zhang Xuan shook his head and said, “He can’t die now, and there mustn’t be any wounds on him either. Otherwise… things might get troublesome.”

As he spoke, he poured a few more mouthfuls of fine wine down the other party’s throat. This time, however, he chose to hide the Heaven’s Path zhenqi within the other party’s body instead.

After he was done, he turned back to Sun Qiang. “What happened? How did you get captured by King Zhongqing’s men?”

In truth, Zhang Xuan had been rather perplexed about this matter. In the first place, there should have been many people who went by the name ‘Sun Qiang’ in the world. If one were to shout the name on the street, many passers-by would surely turn their heads around and respond.

Yet, of all the possible people, King Zhongqing had chosen to capture him and even deeply believed that he was the one they were looking for.

“This…” Upon hearing those questions, Sun Qiang scratched his head in embarrassment.

Seeing Sun Qiang’s reaction, Zhang Xuan knew that there was more to the matter than there seemed. Frowning, he ordered grimly, “Speak!”

“Yesterday, I went out to search for good food to eat. I walked into a restaurant, and right after I took a seat, I heard a group just beside me talking discreetly, and I thought that I heard my name…”

As Sun Qiang spoke, his face grew redder and redder. “Young Master, you also know that I’m quite a nosey person. When I heard my name, I went up to them to ask them what they were talking about. They said that they were looking for a person going by the name of Sun Qiang who possesses astounding strength and unparalleled talent, an individual truly favored by the heavens. When I heard that, I naturally thought that the person they had described had an uncanny resemblance with me. Thus, I secretly told them that my name is Sun Qiang, and after that… after that… they knocked me out…”

“…” Zhang Xuan was rendered speechless before even hearing the entire explanation. To think that this would be the situation!

He had long known what type of person his butler was, but still, this was truly ridiculous!

Did he really have to leap at every opportunity to pose? Honestly, from whom did he learn this from?

Zhang Xuan shook his head helplessly. Jeez, he sure is a worrisome fellow. If only he was half as low profile as me…

No matter where he went, he would do his best to ensure that he kept a low profile. He would never boast or showcase his capabilities and accomplishments in public, and he would never cause trouble either. If there was a perfect example of a humble man, he would definitely be it.

And yet, his butler just had to go around boasting here and there. He could still afford to talk big in smaller places like Tianxuan Kingdom, but to actually do it in Qingyuan City, which was filled with countless experts… that was no different from courting death!

In a sense, Sun Qiang brought his plight upon himself. Hopefully, he would learn after this incident and not act as recklessly as before.

Knowing his own mistakes, Sun Qiang lowered his head apologetically. “Young Master, I dare not do so in the future…”

His young master always managed to pull off his posing, and motivated by the other party’s successes, Sun Qiang had long wanted to give it a try himself. When he heard the others showering him with praises, he had thought that his time had come, so he had leaped at the opportunity. And yet, he had ended up being pummeled badly.

This sure was stifling!

“When we return, you will go into seclusion,” Zhang Xuan ordered. “If you aren’t able to reach Saint realm within three months, I’ll have you scram.”

“Yes…” Hearing that he had to reach Saint realm within three months, a bitter look surfaced on Sun Qiang’s face.

Ignoring his conceited and boastful butler, Zhang Xuan turned his attention back to the battle above him.

“Young Master, that fellow is simply too powerful; I can’t defeat him alone! Quick, give me some pointers!”

By this point, the Golden Origin Cauldron had fallen into a disadvantageous position. The tide of the battle was completely on Vice Pavilion Master Tian’s side, and anxious, the cauldron quickly turned to Zhang Xuan for help.

Zhang Xuan shook his head and said, “In a battle, using just brute strength won’t work. There’s a mingmen located on the Jianhai acupoint on his waist, give it a try!”

“Alrighty!” Hearing those words, the Golden Origin Cauldron roared excitedly and charged furiously toward Vice Pavilion Master Tian.

“You…” Not expecting the young man below to be able to uncover his flaws so easily, Vice Pavilion Master Tian panicked. He swiftly retreated in fear.

Seeing that Vice Pavilion Master Tian was retreating, Zhang Xuan continued speaking swiftly.

“Due a constriction in his meridians, when he gathers zhenqi before his chest, there’s a moment when the might of his attack will diminish for roughly 0.3 seconds. That is a good opportunity to launch a counterattack against him.”

As soon as the battle began, Zhang Xuan had compiled a book on the other party in the Library of Heaven’s Path, and when he flipped it open, he found that it was filled with flaws. Of them, the greatest flaw lay in the other party’s Primordial Spirit.

In normal circumstances, a Half-Leaving Aperture realm cultivator should have an extraordinarily powerful Primordial Spirit, but the other party’s Primordial Spirit was filled with flaws. This peculiar situation had left Zhang Xuan slightly bewildered.

However, this was not the time to bother with the matter. What was more important was helping the Golden Origin Cauldron win the battle.

Hong long!

With Zhang Xuan’s pointers, Vice Pavilion Master Tian found the tide of the battle swiftly turning against him. In just a few breaths, he had already spurted several mouthfuls of blood, and his expression had turned livid.

At this rate, I’ll surely lose…

The flaws that the other party had pointed out so easily were all fatal weaknesses that could easily cost him his life! In normal circumstances, those flaws should not have been apparent to anyone else. Even true Leaving Aperture realm experts would have struggled to find them.

Yet, Zhang Xuan was able to list them one after another without any errors. This had truly left him deeply frenzied.

This won’t do—I have to kill that fellow. Otherwise, the one who will die is me!

Clenching his jaws furiously, a hint of callousness flashed through his eyes. With a powerful step, Vice Pavilion Master Tian’s body warped into a shadow, bypassing the Golden Origin Cauldron, heading straight for Zhang Xuan

At this moment, Zhang Xuan was in the midst of speaking to the Golden Origin Cauldron. He had not thought that the other party would go for him so abruptly. Before he could even react, the other party’s attack was right before him.

“Teacher!”

“Zhang shi!”

“Young Master!”

Everyone’s face warped in horror.