Chapter 894: He Is the Princ.i.p.al?
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Ruohuan gongzi carefully a.n.a.lyzed the cultivation of the eight peculiarly-dressed men before remarking, "Those fellows do possess some strength!"
While they had learned that those fellows were enemies, it would have been unwise to rush in recklessly without gaining an understanding of their strength.
It seemed like the eight of them were all Transcendent Mortal 8-dan Ethereal Treading realm experts, and on top of that, they carried an aura of callousness from the battlefield with them, which hinted that they might be veteran fighters who had gone through many battles in their life.
If their deductions were correct, they should be from the military.
After a moment of contemplation, Ruohuan gongzi instructed, "Song Chao, the rest of you should return to the headquarters for now to make preparations, I will find a way to lure them over shortly after!"
"Alright!" Song Chao nodded before leading the others away.
Waiting for a moment longer after the others had disappeared in the distance, Ruohuan gongzi took in a deep breath and walked up to the group of eight with a bright smile on his face.
"Friends, I heard that you were looking for Zhang Xuan?"
"Indeed. You know where he is?"
The group of eight were still troubled over this matter a moment ago, so upon hearing Ruohuan gongzi"s words, their eyes immediately lit up, and they hurriedly turned their gazes over.
"Of course I do! In fact, I am his closest friend in the academy! Why don"t I take you to him?" Ruohuan gongzi offered with an earnest and amicable smile.
"That would be great!"
Seeing that someone was willing to lead the way to their target, the eight of them nearly leaped up from sheer joy.
As expected of the Master Teacher Academy, the students here were indeed friendly and kind!
It was no wonder everyone hoped to enroll here. Just their manners toward strangers in itself was commendable!
"I will be troubling you then…" A young man, seemingly the leader of the group of eight, stepped forward and clasped his fist.
"There is no need to stand on ceremony. As a master teacher, it is my duty to help those in need!" Ruohuan gongzi spoke righteously as he led the way.
Not too long later, the group finally arrived at the headquarters of the Xuanxuan Faction. At this very moment, gathered in the ma.s.sive square at the center of the headquarters were over ten thousand students.
"Why are there so many people here? Where is Zhang Xuan?"
Upon seeing that there were so many master teachers in here, the group of eight couldn"t help but feel their hair standing on ends as an ominous premonition fell on them.
"Ah, I guess you aren"t too familiar with the workings of the Master Teacher Academy. This is the freshman dormitory, and as a student who has only enrolled earlier this year, Zhang Xuan naturally resides here too. The recent batch of freshmen enrolled into the academy is larger than usual, so there are more of us residing here this year. Don"t worry, everyone in there is a master teacher, so they won"t bite!" Ruohuan gongzi said with a welcoming smile as he gestured the group in.
Even though the group of eight felt a little wary at the situation before them, recalling that they were currently in the Master Teacher Academy, they decided to toss aside their worries and enter.
Before long, they were already standing in the middle of the square, amid the huge crowd.
At this point, Ruohuan gongzi abruptly came to a halt and declared loudly, "Alright, everyone. Here are the men who proclaimed that they would teach our faction leader a lesson!
"Give them the beating of their life, make them spill out the name of the mastermind behind them!"
"Alright!"
"To dare cross our faction leader, you must be tired of living!"
…
Before the group of eight could process what was going on, blows were already raining down on them, striking every inch of their bodies.
Fists, feet, metal pipes, bricks, flower pots, chairs… and even sandals!
Pili pala!
Before they had even met Zhang Xuan, they were already pummeled to the point where they were about to forget their own names…
Their eyes gradually turned moist, and before long, they were bawling sorrowfully…
The h.e.l.l! Who was the one who said that master teachers were friendly and kind?
Who was the one who said that the Master Teacher Academy was a safe haven, and it was impossible for anything bad to happen there?
Just who in the world did they provoke for them to deserve such treatment?
…
Ten minutes later, the eight Ethereal Treading realm soldiers were lying flat on the ground, their bodies convulsing uncontrollably as if electricity was running through their veins.
Even though most of the members of the Xuanxuan Faction were freshmen, possessing cultivation at only the Consonant Spirit realm or so, there were simply too many of them! Ten thousand men attacking eight men simultaneously… No matter how powerful the group of eight was, it was impossible for their sixteen hands to fend off against twenty thousand hands simultaneously!
At the current moment, their faces were bruised all over, and there was not a single patch of uninjured skin on them.
Seeing that the group of eight was already on the verge of dying, Ruohuan gongzi had the crowd stop before walking forward to begin his interrogation.
Having suffered a vicious beating, both their minds and bodies were already at their limits. As such, they ended up confessing obediently.
"The ones who ordered us to teach Zhang Xuan a lesson are Liu Quan and Shen Jun from the Four Great Clans. They said that as long as we do this well, they will give us ten high-tier spirit stones…" the young man with a scar on his face said.
He could only be considered an acquaintance of Liu Qian"s from the military, so there was no need for him to hide the secret for him.
"Where are Shen Jun and Liu Quan now?" Ruohuan gongzi continued asking.
"They should be in the Master Teacher Academy now. We agreed to meet at the gazebo by the lake to make the trade once we accomplished our mission," the young man hurriedly replied.
"Un." Ruohuan gongzi nodded before beckoning the crowd. "Go, let"s take a look!"
Thus, the many members of the Xuanxuan Faction began marching together toward the lake located at the center of the Master Teacher Academy.
…
In one of the gazebos by the lake stood Shen Jun and Liu Quan. They had their hands behind their backs as they gazed at the lake glistening under the warm rays of the sun, enjoying the beautiful scenery.
A light breeze blew, bringing forth light ripples on the surface of the lake.
"They should be done teaching Zhang Xuan a lesson by now, right?" Shen Jun asked.
That fellow had put him in a spot during Princess Yu Fei-er"s birthday banquet. He wouldn"t be able to quell the rage in his heart unless he returned the favor to the other party.
"Young Master Shen, we have known each other for a long time; when have I failed before?" Liu Quan chuckled softly. "The men I have gathered this time are acquaintances from the military. They are capable individuals who possess the cultivation of Ethereal Treading realm; subduing that Zhang Xuan will be a walk in the park for them! On top of that, given the shallow ties we have, no one will be able to trace the matter back to us!"
"That would be for the best! It doesn"t matter whether that fellow finds out that it was me or not, the important matter is for Fei-er to never learn of it…" Shen Jun nodded.
"Don"t worry!" Liu Quan patted Shen Jun"s back and rea.s.sured him. However, just as he was about to continue speaking, two master teachers suddenly walked into the gazebo and asked, "Pardon me, may I know if you are Young Master Shen Jun and Young Master Liu Quan?"
"Indeed, we are." Seeing two unfamiliar faces verifying their ident.i.ties, the duo frowned in confusion, unsure of what was going on. Just as they were about to ask what business the other party had with them, the vision before them abruptly blurred. Two specially created gunny sacks had been placed over their heads.
And following which…
Pili pala!
Sharp pain abruptly a.s.saulted every single part of their body. In that instant, the both of them felt as if over ten thousand men were a.s.saulting them simultaneously, trampling on their bodies viciously.
…
After an unknown period of time, the duo finally awoke.
Attempting to get up, a sharp pain immediately a.s.saulted them, leaving them writhing in pain. Only then did they realize that there was not a single part of their bodies that was still intact. Broken bones, bruised face, shattered teeth… Even if their parents were here at this very moment, it was doubtful they would be able to recognize their own children!
They hadn"t done anything since arriving at the Master Teacher Academy, but they suddenly found themselves being pummeled so viciously.
To make things worse, they didn"t even know the culprit behind it…
Who can tell me what is going on?
After a long period of time, the duo spat through clenched jaws, "It must be Zhang Xuan!"
No matter how foolish they were, the only one they had a feud with in the Master Teacher Academy was Zhang Xuan.
They had come here to teach Zhang Xuan a lesson, only to be pummeled themselves… They would never believe it if the latter wasn"t the one pulling the strings behind this incident!
"Young Master Shen, what should we do?" Liu Quan asked.
"What else can we do? Let"s return to our own manors and report the matter to the clan head. We must make sure to teach that fellow a harsh lesson. He shall learn that the members of the Four Great Clans aren"t people a pesky fellow like him can afford to cross…" Shen Jun bellowed furiously.
In their current state, it was impossible for them to attend the inauguration ceremony.
Since that was the case, they could only return to their homes to report this matter to their fathers so as to have them get back at Zhang Xuan for them.
Since you dared to raise your fist against us, let us see if your fist will be tough enough to stand against the prowess of two of the Four Great Clans!
…
The enormous training grounds of the Master Teacher Academy was packed with men. There had to be at least a hundred thousand men gathered in the area.
This was where the inauguration ceremony would be held. The emperors and pavilion masters of the neighboring empires, along with the experts of all kinds of powers, had a.s.sembled there to witness the grand ceremony welcoming the next princ.i.p.al of the Master Teacher Academy.
"It"s about to begin!"
"The new princ.i.p.al must be either School Head Zhao or School Head Lu. Even though they are still lacking slightly compared to the old princ.i.p.al, they are currently the two most capable and respected elders in the academy!"
"Indeed. It"s truly a pity that the old princ.i.p.al went missing, and to date, we still don"t know whether he is dead or alive! However, based on the information leaked out from the academy, it doesn"t look positive!"
"I heard that the succeeding princ.i.p.al was the one who proposed a negotiation with the Cloudmist Ridge. I think that he owes us an explanation for that!"
"You"re right! How could he stoop so low to bow to mere beasts? In any case, I will never approve of this. Let"s make him spill out what shameful terms he had to promise the Cloudmist Ridge in order to make them retreat!"
…
Such discussions could be heard from the crowds beneath. Everyone"s eyes were gathered on the highest pedestal in the center of the square, curious to know who the succeeding princ.i.p.al would be!
Hu!
Amidst the discussions, a few elders abruptly flew across the air.
"Silence!"
The one who spoke was Zhao Bingxu.
Everyone was taken aback.
If Zhao Bingxu had appeared here at this very moment, did it mean that the succeeding princ.i.p.al was… Lu Feng?
Even though they were overwhelmed by curiosity, the crowd still quietened down.
"It has been two years since the old princ.i.p.al went missing, and since then, the Master Teacher Academy has become divided. Even though it is fortunate that nothing severe has come out of it, the Master Teacher Academy cannot continue on in such a state. Thus, three days ago, under Mu s.h.i.+"s leaders.h.i.+p, the Ten Great Master Teachers unanimously decided on our next princ.i.p.al!"
Zhao Bingxu"s powerful voice echoed throughout the entire square, allowing each and every one of the hundred thousand gathered there to hear his words clearly.
"Today, we shall witness the inauguration ceremony of our next princ.i.p.al. I believe that with the capability of our new princ.i.p.al, our Master Teacher Academy will be brought to greater heights! With this, let"s begin the first formality of the inauguration ceremony. First and foremost, let"s welcome our new princ.i.p.al to the stage!"
As Zhao Bingxu"s voice came to a halt, a figure slowly walked through the crowd, heading toward the stage.
Upon seeing this figure, everyone was stunned, especially the students of the Master Teacher Academy. Their eyes were bulging from their sockets, unable to believe what they were seeing?
"What is our faction leader doing?"
"Is he trying to exact vengeance on School Head Lu by messing up the inauguration ceremony?"
"It"s one thing for him to wreak havoc in the Apothecary School and empty it of its students and teachers, that is at least still an internal conflict within the academy, but there are many outsiders watching here today!"
"This is bad. Someone, hurry and stop our faction leader!"
The members of the Xuanxuan Faction were scared out of their wits, and some of faint-hearted ones even nearly blacked out.
They knew that their faction leader was a troublemaker, but this was the inauguration ceremony of the new princ.i.p.al. Countless foreign master teachers, emperors, and influential figures were witnessing the ceremony… To cause trouble at such an important ceremony was no different from seeking death!
If the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters were to learn of this, the consequences were not something that their faction leader could bear!
"Teacher? What is… teacher doing?"
"Teacher…"
Not only were the members of the Xuanxuan Faction aghast, Luo Qiqi, w.a.n.g Ying, Liu Yang, and Zheng Yang were also horror-struck.
No one had informed them that Zhang Xuan was the succeeding princ.i.p.al of the Master Teacher Academy, so they were unaware of the matter. As such, they also thought that their teacher was heading up to the stage in order to cause trouble…
Just as nearly everyone was bewildered, unsure of what was going on, Zhao Bingxu"s voice sounded once more.
"Alright, allow me to formally introduce the next princ.i.p.al of our Master Teacher Academy to everyone… Zhang s.h.i.+!"
"The next princ.i.p.al?"
"Our faction leader is our next princ.i.p.al?"
"This… How can this be possible?"
The entire training grounds fell deathly silent for a brief instant before a huge ruckus swept through the crowd like a wave. Every single person, be it student or teacher, widened their eyes in astonishment, and for that instant, they thought that the world had gone insane.
Zhao Bingxu, Lu Feng, Mo Zhu, Zhong Dingchun, Jiang Qingqin, Wei Ranxue…
If it had been any of them, they would only have been surprised at the very most…
But this fellow…
Can anyone freaking tell me what is going on?