The poisonous gas released by the Bodhi Tree would have been extremely tricky to resolve for any other cultivator, but to Wei Ruyan, it was no different from tonic. As she absorbed all of it into her body, an excited gleam flickered across her beady eyes.
“You can raise your cultivation through the black smoke too?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
Wei Ruyan nodded.
“As expected of the Innate Poison Body,” Zhang Xuan remarked in awe.
This unique constitution sure was powerful.
If others were afflicted with that poison, they would die within moments. Yet, Wei Ruyan was actually able to make use of this deadly material to raise her cultivation. Even Zhang Xuan could not help but envy that overpowered ability of hers!
It did not take long for Wei Ruyan to finish assimilating the energy within the black smoke. She quickly retrieved a jade container from her storage ring and placed the Bodhi Fruit inside. Once that was done, she moved on to the next Bodhi Fruit and repeated the process.
The same black smoke poured forth and shrouded Wei Ruyan. This time around, however, it seemed to be significantly denser than before. Under its onslaught, the young lady shuddered a little, and her face turned pale.
“What’s wrong?” Zhang Xuan asked with a frown.
“The poisonous gas is too powerful. There’s only so much that I’m able to absorb,” Wei Ruyan replied frankly.
Even as one who possessed the Innate Poison Body, the amount of poison that she could take in and assimilate at once was limited. If she attempted to take in too much poison, she risked overloading her body with power.
The poisonous gas released by the second Bodhi Fruit was far greater than the first fruit, and this was something that she had not expected.
It took a long while before she finally managed to curb the rampaging poisonous gas within her body, and she heaved a sigh of relief. Then, she turned her sights to the third Bodhi Fruit.
Tzzzzzz!
This time, the black smoke released by the Bodhi Tree was even greater than before. Forced to assimilate so much poisonous gas at once, Wei Ruyan’s body began shuddering uncontrollably, and her face gradually turned paler and paler. Just as she was about to reach her limits, she felt someone placing his palm against her back.
Following which, her teacher said, “Use the black smoke to push for a breakthrough!”
“Yes, Teacher!”
Knowing that her teacher was intending to help her raise her cultivation, Wei Ruyan quickly focused her concentration on channeling the poisonous gas toward overcoming her bottleneck.
The poisonous gas emanated by the Bodhi Tree was lethal, but it was an exceptionally powerful catalyst to temper one’s state of mind. Zhang Xuan used his Heaven’s Path zhenqi to help clear the various blockages within Wei Ruyan’s body so that she could circulate her zhenqi easier.
With every Bodhi Fruit that Wei Ruyan picked, the poisonous gas emanated by the Bodhi Tree would grow significantly stronger. By the time she came to the sixth fruit, the poisonous gas emanated was so powerful that it seemed as if it would corrode even the surrounding space.
Zhang Xuan meticulously facilitated Wei Ruyan’s flow of energy in order to ensure smoothness in driving her zhenqi.
Geji! Geji! Geji!
Some time later, sounds echoed from Wei Ruyan’s meridians. It was a sign that showed that she had successfully cleared the bottlenecks in her way. Her aura surged, and before long, her cultivation had already reached Sempiternal realm consummation, just like Zhao Ya.
After reinforcing the overwhelming power coursing through her body, Wei Ruyan clasped her fist and bowed in agitation.
“Thank you, Teacher!”
If not for her teacher’s help, she would have wasted a good half of the poisonous gas there. If things had gone wrong, she might have sustained heavy injures because her body was unable to withstand the stress imposed on it.
With her Sempiternal realm consummation cultivation and her overpowered Innate Poison Body, it was unlikely that she would find anyone who was a match for her beneath Ancient Sage.
The heartened Zhang Xuan nodded in approval. Then, his face visibly turned cold as he turned his gaze toward the nine youths battling with Luo Qiqi.
If not for the fact that he was around, Wei Ruyan would have sustained irreparable damage from the growing intensity of poisonous gas emanated from the Bodhi Tree. This kind of harm was not something that a mere Bodhi Fruit could compensate for!
These fellows expected Wei Ruyan to harvest the fruits for them, but they did not take any preventive measures in order to protect her. It was apparent that they saw her as no more than a tool that they could dispose of after squeezing her dry!
Peng peng peng!
At that moment, the battle between Luo Qiqi and the nine youths from the Hundred Schools of Philosophers finally came to an end. The fighting prowess exerted by Luo Qiqi with the Dimension Silencer was simply too powerful. Even with the eight of them collaborating with one another, they did not stand a chance. Their faces were pale from the injuries that they had sustained in the battle, and their complexions looked incredibly awful.
The fact that they had been chosen to enter the Subordinate Hall to seek the Bodhi Fruit meant that their standing in the Hundred Schools of Philosopher was considerably high.
They had grown up basking in the respect of those around them, but they had ended up being so viciously pummeled during such an important mission. This was not something that their pride could accept.
“Zhang Xuan and Wei Ruyan, those fruits are of the utmost importance to the Hundred Schools of Philosophers. I hope that you can hand them over…” the young man who seemed to be the de facto leader of the group said through gritted teeth.
However, in response to the request from the young man, Zhang Xuan simply waved his hand and said, “Break their limbs and throw them out!”
Whether they did it intentionally or not, he could not accept the fact that they had placed his precious student in such a dangerous position. They had to suffer the consequences of their actions.
“Sure thing!” The Golden Origin Cauldron leaped out and charged toward the nine young men.
Soon enough, their limbs were all fractured by the Golden Origin Cauldron before they were tossed pathetically out of the Hall of Lull.
None of them would have feared the Golden Origin Cauldron at their peak, but after Luo Qiqi’s attacks, they no longer wielded the strength to retaliate.
“Teacher, I’ll leave these Bodhi Fruits for you to decide what to do with them!” Wei Ruyan said as she passed the fruits over.
“Un!” Zhang Xuan took the Bodhi Fruits and placed all of them but one into his storage ring. He passed the Bodhi Fruit over to Wei Ruyan and said, “You’re the one who collected so many Bodhi Fruits, so you should hold onto one. However, don’t rush into using it. I have a formula here that can raise your Soul Depth. I want you to cultivate under the Bodhi Tree and raise your Soul Depth to 29.9 first. Once you’re done, you can use the Bodhi Fruit and push for a breakthrough to Ancient Sage!”
“Yes!” Wei Ruyan nodded.
With a tap of his finger, Zhang Xuan imparted the secret art to temper one’s state of mind over to Wei Ruyan.
“Zhao Ya, this one is for you!”
Zhang Xuan took out another Bodhi Fruit and passed it to Zhao Ya together with the secret art.
Due to their unique constitutions, they were able to advance their zhenqi cultivation swiftly. However, this had also led to the cultivation of their minds severely lagging behind. This would be a good opportunity for them to cover the gap.
“Qiqi, this one is for you…”
After sorting his two students out, Zhang Xuan took out another Bodhi Fruit and passed it over to Luo Qiqi.
Luo Qiqi had arrived in the Hall of Lull earlier than them. Even if he did not come, with her fighting prowess alone, she was bound to have been able to obtain one for herself.
“Thank you!” Luo Qiqi took the fruit, but her eyes remained firmly upon Zhang Xuan. There was a conflicted look in her eyes as she said, “Zhang shi…”
Seemingly knowing what she was going to say, Zhang Xuan waved his hand and said, “I have taught you pill forging before, which affirmed our relationship as teacher and student. It’s impossible to dictate one’s feelings, but propriety is not something that can simply be disregarded. It’s impossible for us to come to be! In the first place, the engagement between us was a huge misunderstanding… I believe that you are aware that there’s someone whom I love as well, so… I’m sorry.”
Since it was impossible for him to give her happiness, it would be better for him to break it off decisively.
Dragging it out would only cause more harm to the other party. He did not want the other party to spend her life pursuing something futile.
“I…” Luo Qiqi’s face collapsed as her body trembled in agitation.
She knew that the odds were against her favor, and she knew that it would be nigh impossible to achieve what she desired. Nevertheless, she had not thought that she would be rejected so bluntly.
By the side, Zhao Ya’s face also darkened upon hearing those words.
As the saying went, ‘A day as my teacher, a father I’ll respect for life’!
A student was not allowed to have any other relationships with their teacher, or else it would be considered a breach of propriety. Such a thing was frowned upon in the Master Teacher Continent.
She wanted to pursue her happiness, too, but she knew that her attempts to do so would only sully her teacher’s reputation. This was a dilemma that had left her deeply conflicted.
Noting the depressed look on Luo Qiqi and Zhao Ya’s faces, Zhang Xuan sighed deeply internally as he smiled. “Alright! For the time being, you should focus on raising your cultivation. You are still young, and there is much more to life that you haven’t seen or experienced yet. One day, you’ll find someone far more suitable for you than me!”
If there were any alternatives, he would not have wanted to hurt the two of them. However, if he failed to maintain a firm attitude toward this matter, he would only give them false hope, and there was nothing more painful than pursuing something that would never come to be.
Knowing that they needed some time to themselves in order to calm down, Zhang Xuan waved his hand and said, “I’ll leave you all here to cultivate. Try your best to raise your Soul Depth as quickly as possible. Meanwhile, I’ll go look for Yuan Tao…”
Just as he was about to leave, a voice suddenly appeared in his mind. “Master, I can dig up this tree for you. Do you want to take it away with you?
“You are able to dig this tree up?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
“Heh, I am the crux of an entire dimension, you know! Of course I am able to dig up a mere tree!” the koi fish replied proudly.
It might be a little hard for others to relate to the idea of ‘why can’t a student get together with his teacher’. This is actually one of the beliefs of Confucianism.
Confucianism allocates specific roles to everyone in society, and these roles are intended to be strictly adhered to. For example, the parents are responsible for educating and bringing up their children well, imparting to them the correct values in life. All citizens must remain loyal to the emperor, and betrayal is viewed with utmost abhorrence. Similarly, the roles between a student and teacher are expected to be strictly adhered to, and attempts to cross the line are viewed negatively.
For those who might have read Return of the Condor Heroes, a famous wuxia work, you might have noted how others frowned upon Yang Guo when he got together with Xiaolongnü. The same applies here as well.
