Chapter 358: Second Promised Duel (2)
Chapter 358: Second Promised Duel (2)
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric
Hearing those words, Zhao Ya and the others glanced at one another and hesitated.
Even though they hadn't spent much time with Zhang shi, they knew that he disliked trouble.
If he were to know that they had caused a huge ruckus at Tianwu Academy, even almost turning against one of the teachers here, he would surely be displeased.
But how could they quell the anger in their hearts if they were to leave just like this?
"Mo shi, since you are a master teacher, please give your judgement on this matter. In this duel, if not for Liu laoshi interfering, Mu Xueqing would have surely lost. It is one thing for them not to fulfill their end of their bargain, but how could they actually claim that it is a draw..."
Zheng Yang complained angrily.
"Alright. Regardless of the situation, Liu laoshi is still a teacher, so spare him some pride. As for Zhang shi, I'll explain this matter to him so that he won't blame you for this!"
Hearing the other party's furious complaints, Mo Yu was afraid that it would be even harder to resolve the matter if left to be. Thus, she hurriedly sent a telepathic message to them.
"We'll be depending on Mo shi then!"
Zheng Yang wasn't willing to give up yet, but Zhao Ya interrupted him.
"Un!" Mo Yu nodded.
Turning to Zhang Xuan, Zhao Ya spoke, "Liu laoshi, the only reason why I’m addressing you as a teacher is out of respect for Tianwu Academy. Since you claimed that it's a draw today, so be it! However... Mu Xueqing, I challenge you to another duel three days later. Do you dare to accept it?"
"Why wouldn't I dare to!" Mu Xueqing gritted her teeth.
"Good. I hope that Liu laoshi won't interfere in the duel three days later. I also hope that you can fulfill the end of your bargain if you lose!"
Flinging her sleeves, Zhao Ya turned to Mo Yu and clasped her fist. "Mo shi, I'll be taking my leave!"
After which, she shot Zhang Xuan a cold glare before leading the group out.
"Ah..."
Not only did Zhang Xuan's interference fail to settle their conflict, he even inadvertently encouraged a third duel between them... On top of that, he even ended up being hated by his own students. Rubbing his glabella, bitterness appeared on Zhang Xuan's face.
What in the world was this?
I didn't even do anything!
"Why didn't you warn me beforehand..." Dismayed, Zhang Xuan turned to Mo Yu.
"I..." Mo Yu's face flushed.
It was just a conflict between students, so she didn't think much of it. She never expected it to blow up like this and create such an awkward atmosphere...
Stumped, she hurriedly rummaged through her mind for an excuse and replied, "Actually, this isn’t as bad as it seems. With a short-term target in their mind, they will cultivate diligently. Look... Zhao Ya and Mu Xueqing improved immensely over the past three days..."
She intended for these words to just dissipate the awkward situation, but it caused Zhang Xuan to freeze momentarily instead.
She was right. With this rivalry between them two, they would be motivated to give their all in their training, thus inducing rapid progress in the both of them.
Even though the sword art and the saber art Zhang Xuan had imparted them was a simplified version tailored for them, still, it should have taken them a minimum of ten days to master those techniques and comprehend Sword Intent and Saber Intent respectively. Yet, they succeeded in just a short span of two days... This reflected how diligent they were in their training.
More importantly... Through this experience, Mu Xueqing's Trust Level in him would increase rapidly.
"Alright, let's see how it goes then... Make sure you don't accidentally reveal my identity to Zhao Ya and the others!"
Eventually, Zhang Xuan decided to simply think on the bright side.
What was done was done, and no amount of complaint could reverse time. After all, he couldn't possibly go around declaring that Liu Cheng was Zhang Xuan, and that Mu Xueqing and Zhao Ya were actually under the same teacher?
If he were to do so, he would immediately fail his 2-star master teacher examination.
"Teacher, I'm sorry..."
Mu Xueqing walked up and apologized remorsefully.
Zhang Xuan shook his head. Just as he was about to console the other party, an elder pushed through the crowd and yelled, "Which elder displayed the Saber Intent just a moment ago? Please accept me as your student! I am Bai Xin, and my comprehension of saber has already reached an extremely high level. I definitely will not bring shame to your name..."
"..." Zhang Xuan and Mu Xueqing.
"..." Mo Yu.
"..." The crowd.
...
"Damn it! Damn it!"
On the way back to the residence, the faces of Zheng Yang and the others were so livid that a dark aura seemed to be glooming around them.
Recalling the vile words that Liu laoshi spoke, the fury in them blazed up once more.
"Zhao Ya, why did you stop me? Honestly, if not for you, I would have surely applied for the Teacher Dueling Platform!"
Zheng Yang harrumphed.
"Teacher Dueling Platform? That Liu laoshi managed to neutralize my offense with just a single finger. To be capable of such a feat, his eye of discernment and grasp over timing might not even be beneath that of Zhang shi. Even if he were to suppress his cultivation, we wouldn't be a match for him!"
Zhao Ya shook his head.
"So what if we aren't a match for him? It’s clear that he’s stepping over us! The results are so clear and yet, he still dared to announce the result of the duel as a draw. How could he side with his student so blatantly? It's my first time seeing such a shameless teacher! Even if I can't win against him, I must at least teach him a lesson!" Zheng Yang gritted his teeth furiously.
"Zheng Yang is right. Even if we can't match up to him, we should at least make things difficult for him!"
Yuan Tao fanned the flames from the side.
"Enough. This Liu laoshi might be shameless, but he indeed possesses true capability. If not for my physical constitution and the sword art grandteacher imparted, I would surely have been the one to lose the duel. The urgent matter at hand is not to insult him but find a way to raise my cultivation instead. If we were to lose the duel three days from now, we'll be the ones that are humiliated!"
Zhao Ya interjected between the furious bellows of the duo.
"That's right..." The group nodded in agreement.
Given the previous situation, it was necessary for them to issue another duel. If they simply allowed such provocation to go unchallenged, Zhang shi's reputation might be sullied.
However, to be able to induce growth comparable to Zhao Ya in the past three days, they had to admit that Liu laoshi indeed possessed fearsome capability.
Given that Zhang shi wasn't in the city presently, they were at a huge disadvantage. If Zhao Ya were to lose, nothing they said would matter.
"Since Zhang shi isn't around, we can only plead with grandteacher to help us... The rest of you must also cultivate diligently in the next few days. If the other party loses and refuses to admit defeat once more, we'll challenge Liu laoshi to the Teacher Dueling Platform and show him that Zhang shi's honor isn't something that he could simply trample on!"
Flinging her hands valiantly, Zhao Ya's eyes gleamed with determination. If the circumstances are right, Zhao Ya won’t hesitate to cause trouble. Just the fact that she was the very first one to step forward upon hearing someone say that Zhang shi was inferior to Liu laoshi was a testimony to that.
She could forgive the other party for acting shamelessly this once, but if he were to continue on with such an attitude, he shouldn't blame her for getting nasty on him!
They were willing to beat up Lu Xun laoshi in Tianxuan Kingdom, and they didn't mind doing it once more for that Liu laoshi!
"Good, I've been waiting for these words of yours..." Zheng Yang nodded before turning to Wang Ying, Yuan Tao, and the others. "How is it? If that Liu laoshi continues to act so shamelessly, are you guys willing to blow things up?"
"Do you think that I'll be scared? What Liu laoshi, screw him!" Yuan Tao bellowed.
"I won't back down so easily the next time!" Liu Yang nodded.
"Count me in!" Determination gleamed in Wang Ying's eyes.
"Alright, it's a promise then..."
After discussing the matter, they felt their mood lighten. Walking toward the residence, they suddenly saw two figures standing at the entrance.
"May I trouble you to two to report to report to Physician Bai that an acquaintance from Red Lotus City is here to pay his respects?" A person who seemed to be a butler said to the guard standing at the entrance of the residence.
"Yes!" Upon hearing that they were Physician Bai's acquaintances, the guard hesitated for a moment before heading inside. Soon, he came out with Physician Bai behind him.
"Physician Bai, we meet once more!"
Upon seeing Bai Chan, the duo was elated. Bai Chan, on the other hand, was confused. "You two are..."
"Hm?" Seeing that the other party didn't recognize them, the duo was perplexed. The butler-like person stood forward and asked, "Physician Bai, I am Butler Lu! This is my old master, the Great Herb King. Did you forget about us?"
The two were Red Lotus City's Great Herb King and Butler Lu.
After the incident in the Poison Hall, the Great Herb King found himself being highly respected as the friend of the envoy's 'senior granduncle'. Naturally, no one dared to feed him the Contract Gu once more.
Other people might not know the true identity of the envoy's 'senior granduncle', but the Great Herb King knew that he was Tianwu Royal City's Physician Bai Chan.
He happened to have some business in the capital, so he brought Butler Lu to pay the other party a visit so as to touch up on their relationship.
As a celebrity in the capital and someone who had managed to leap onboard Master Teacher Zhang Xuan's ship, it wasn't too difficult to trace Bai Chan's whereabouts. It didn’t take them too long to come to this residence.
Just that... Why didn't the other party recognize them?
"The Great Herb King?"
Bai Chan shuddered.
The only reason why he was respected in the capital was because Zhang shi had treated the Great Herb King while disguising as him. He could have never imagined that a person of such esteemed standing would actually pay him a visit.
"Great Herb King, the one who saved you wasn't me. It was... Zhang shi. The matter went like this..."
Without hiding anything, Bai Chan explained the entire matter.
"So it's Zhang shi who saved me... May I know where he is now? Is it convenient for me to pay him a visit?" Upon hearing the situation, the Great Herb King and Butler Lu were stunned. However, they received swiftly.
This matter wasn’t too difficult for them to accept. After all, the Great Herb King had personally witnessed Zhang Xuan's ability to alter his appearance. It wasn't inconceivable for him to have disguised as someone else back then.
"Zhang shi is currently in the midst of taking the 2-star master teacher examination, so he isn't in the residence at the moment..."
Halfway through his words, Bai Chan suddenly noticed Zhao Ya and the others walking over, and hurriedly introduced them. "These are Zhang shi’s students. If you have any words you wish to relay to Zhang shi, feel free to tell them!"
"Zhang shi's students?" The Great Herb King and Butler Lu hurriedly clasped their fists respectfully.
Zhang shi was the envoy's senior granduncle, and just that standing in itself was sufficient to crush them. While his students were still young, the duo didn't dare to disrespect them.
"The Great Herb King?"
Upon hearing the introduction, Zhao Ya and the others were astonished. "The Red Lotus City's Great Herb King?"
On their way to Tianwu Kingdom, Liu shi had explained the various power within Tianwu Kingdom, and as such, they had an brief idea of the Great Herb King's standing and influence.
To think that even such a person would act so respectfully to their teacher as well.
"Our teacher is currently out at the moment, and he'll only return five to six days later. May I know what the Great Herb King has for our teacher? We can relay your message to him in your stead once he returns!"
Zhao Ya said.
"Oh, it's nothing much. We just happen to be passing by Tianwu Royal City so we thought of dropping by to pay our respects to him!"
Upon hearing that Zhang Xuan wasn't around, the Great Herb King was slightly disappointed. "Since Zhang shi isn't around, we'll be taking our leave then!"
"Wait a moment..."
Yuan Tao hurried forward and looked at them with a curious expression. "I heard that... you've an extremely close relationship with the Poison Hall. May I know if you have any poison on you?"
"This..." Not expecting the other party to ask such a straightforward question, the Great Herb King chuckled awkwardly. "I do have some!"
"Then, do you have any poison that will cause a Tongxuan realm expert to suffer without causing any permanent damage? I would like to buy some..."
Yuan Tao's eyes lit up.
"A poison that will cause a Tongxuan realm expert to suffer without causing any permanent damage?"
The Great Herb King didn't know what the other party wanted such a poison for, but considering the fact that the other party was the student of Zhang shi, he nodded. "I do have such poison... If you want it, I can give them to you! However, you must be careful with it. This poison is extremely potent. Even a Zongshi realm expert will suffer greatly if he were to accidentally ingest it!"
With a flick of his hands, a jade bottle appeared in his hands.