The two geniuses weren’t the only ones who were maddened by Zhang Xuan’s casual and impertinent reaction. Mo Yu’s eyebrows were also twitching and she nearly flew into a rage.
She already felt indignant for having to come over personally to invite this fellow, and yet, the other party still acted like that.
It was as if she meant nothing to him at all!
At the first meeting, others would at least greet her politely with ‘paying respect to Princess Mo Yu’ or ‘my pleasure to meet you’, trying their best to be as gentlemanly as they could be. Yet, the other party immediately came with a ‘what are you doing here’ as soon as he saw her…
Are we close buddies?
If not for my father nagging me, do you think that I’d be here?
I’ve met rude people before, but to think that you would top the list!
Breathing heavily in anger, Mo Yu gritted her teeth.
Upon recalling her father’s instructions, she felt even more dismayed. Even so, knowing the identity of the man before her, she could only suppress her rage.
Her father’s intentions for demanding for her presence couldn’t be any clearer… He wanted the both of them to have some time with one another, and it would be best if there was any spark between them!
After all, this would be greatly beneficial to her.
The fight for the throne was callous. Even though Mo Hongyi’s surname was Mo, he was neither from the main family nor was he a close kin. As a talented individual who was about to become a 2-star master teacher, if he truly set his eyes upon the throne, neither the crown prince nor the other princes would be a match for him.
Mo Yu, as a fellow master teacher, was the only one who could stand against him.
Thus, Emperor Mo Tianxue intended to groom Mo Yu for her to become the empress so as to prevent the royal insignia from falling into the hands of an outsider… And to do so, her husband would play an important role in consolidating her power.
In the entire capital, the two most talented individuals other than Mo Hongyi was Master Teacher Zhang Xuan and Liu laoshi.
Master Teacher Zhang Xuan possessed high standing and powerful cultivation. On top of that, he also had the backing of a powerful teacher. Even if some spark were to be ignited between Mo Yu and him, it would be difficult for Mo Yu to keep him in check.
But Liu laoshi was different.
Mo Tianxue had sent some men to look into his affairs and confirmed that the other party was a true-blue Tianwu Kingdom civilian. Due to the lack of talent, he was unable to take the master teacher examination… At the same time, his cultivation was also only at Tongxuan realm primary stage, which was considerably weak compared to the geniuses in the city.
Normally, this kind of person wouldn’t be able to match up to Mo Yu. But no one could have imagined that he would possess divine medical skill which paved his way into becoming the head of the Physician Guild all of the sudden.
Even though physician wasn’t a combat occupation, very few were willing to step on their toes. After all, no one could ensure that they wouldn’t fall ill.
If some kind of relationship were to really sprout between him and Mo Yu, Mo Yu’s seat on the throne would be further stabilized. At the very least, Mo Hongyi would have to think twice before vying for the top seat.
Thus, Mo Yu held back her displeasure and came here personally to invite Liu laoshi over. She thought that the other party would be flattered and overwhelmed by her presence, but in the end, the other party simply disregarded her.
She was a princess and a master teacher…
What was with this attitude toward her?
Gritting her teeth tightly, she harrumphed.
After bringing up her father, she thought that no matter how arrogant Liu Cheng was, he would at least defer to her father’s standing. Yet, the other party simply frowned, “Your father? Why is he looking for me? I still have something to attend to so I don’t have much time!”
Zhang Xuan wasn’t too bothered with the emperor of the kingdom.
As a potential 2-star master teacher, he had the qualifications to do so as well.
However, when Mo Yu heard those words, she flew into a frenzy.
Even if you are the guild leader of the Physician Guild, your physician rank is still limited by your weak cultivation. Without a concrete rank to augment your standing, your position can only be considered to be an honorary one. What rights do you have to act so arrogantly?
Don’t have much time?
How don’t you just take the time to die…
On the other side, Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan were about to spurt blood as well.
The other party being disrespectful to the princess was already sufficient to leave them speechless. To think that he would go as far as to disregard the emperor…
Aren’t you afraid of incurring Princess Mo Yu’s wrath by doing this? Aren’t you scared that she would kill you with a single slap?
“Father has come here specially to meet you, it wouldn’t look good if you were to turn him down like that!” Gritting her silver teeth, Mo Yu harrumphed.
“Ah… Fine, bring me over!” Zhang Xuan gestured.
He wasn’t intentionally trying to anger this proud princess. Rather, the days with her in the Beast Hall and Red Lotus City had made him feel relatively close to her, and thus, he forgot about his identity as Liu laoshi upon seeing her.
From the looks of it, it seemed like the mask and fake identity that the Master Teacher Pavilion prepared for the examination was truly impressive. After all, even Mo Yu was unable to find anything amiss about him.
“Hmph!”
Flinging her sleeves, Mo Yu led the way.
Seeing the two of them leave, Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan stared at one another in shock.
Wasn’t this fellow just an ordinary teacher? Why would the emperor pay him a visit personally? Also, why would Princess Mo Yu tolerate him despite being at the peak of her anger?
Even Principal Xie didn’t wield such prestige!
“Let’s go over and take a look…”
Unable to hold back their curiosity, the duo hurriedly followed behind them.
…
Parked at the entrance of the academy was a massive carriage. Before Zhang Xuan and the others could reach the carriage, the yellow drape veiling the interiors of the carriage parted, and a middle-aged man carrying a majestic disposition walked down.
His eyes were filled with energy and his aura felt imposing as if a mighty dragon. Even from a distance, Zhang Xuan could already feel a strong pressure from him.
The middle-aged man was a Zongshi realm pinnacle expert, an existence who was just a step away from reaching Half-Zhizun.
“You must be Guild Leader Liu…”
Mo Tianxue walked up to Zhang Xuan with a smile.
As he proceeded forward, he examined the other party carefully.
A moment later, a commendatory gleam flashed across his eyes.
As the emperor of a country, he naturally carried a disposition which exerted immense pressure on others. Even if an expert of the same cultivation realm were to face him, the other party wouldn’t be able to avoid feeling intimidated and anxious.
As expected of the person who solved nineteen questions on the Wall of Dilemma. Despite his young age, the other party was extremely composed. Just his mental fortitude in itself was something incomparable by most.
“May I know the reason behind His Majesty’s visit?” Zhang Xuan asked doubtfully.
“Liu laoshi has solved nineteen questions of the Wall of Dilemma consecutively, thus becoming a legend in the kingdom. I happened to pass by here today, and out of admiration for you, I would like to invite you to the royal palace!”
Mo Tianxue said.
“Royal palace?” Zhang Xuan shook his head. “I appreciate your goodwill but I have some affairs to attend to at the Apothecary Guild today. Thus, I will have to turn down your offer!”
Zhang Xuan still had to look for pills containing spiritual energy at the Apothecary Guild before heading to the residence to impart Zhao Ya the Heaven’s Path Sword Art. He truly didn’t have the time to be visiting the royal palace at the moment.
“He rejected the emperor’s invitation?”
Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan had been following behind Zhang Xuan and Mo Yu stealthily, and as soon as they caught up, they immediately heard those words and shuddered in fear.
Liu laoshi sure was daring!
It was bad enough to be disrespectful to Princess Mo Yu, but to reject the emperor’s invitation to his face…
“Since Guild Leader Liu has something up, I won’t impose on you then. Here is a token of my sincerity, please accept it!”
Despite the other party rejecting his goodwill, Mo Tianxue didn’t fly into a rage. Instead, he simply gestured with a smile, and a eunuch quickly walked forward to present a jade box over.
As the head of the Physician Guild, the other party was worthy to be considered as a fellow peer.
Mo Tianxue waved his hand, and the eunuch opened the jade box. Concentrated spiritual energy immediately gushed out from within, stimulating one’s blood.
A transparent rock of the size of a walnut was placed neatly within the jade box. Reflecting the rays of the sun, it was as brilliant as a diamond.
“Spirit stone?”
“It’s a spirit stone!”
Upon seeing the object, Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan’s body trembled. At the same time, a flame ignited in their eyes.
Spirit stone was an ore mined from regions where spiritual energy was dense, and it was a commodity rarely seen even in Conferred Kingdoms. Every single one of them was incomparably valuable and rare, and it was an unparalleled treasure in boosting a cultivator’s cultivation.
According to the rumors, only higher tiered kingdoms possessed the right to trade spirit stones, but even so, the demand still severely outstripped the supply! Even a 2-star master teacher would find it hard to obtain one… To think that the emperor would give such a valuable object to this Liu laoshi!
This gift was simply too big!
If they were in his place, they would have immediately become so agitated that they might even forget their own names.
They hurriedly turned to look at Liu laoshi… and he still had the same impassive expression on, as though he was unmoved by the other party’s gift.
“No wonder… Just Liu laoshi’s ability to maintain his composure in such a situation itself makes him already worthy of respect!”
Upon seeing this sight, the duo suddenly found themselves in awe of Liu laoshi.
That was a spirit stone! There was no cultivator whose breathing wouldn’t hasten upon seeing it. Just by how Liu laoshi could remain calm before it already made him worthy of the emperor’s respect…
Just as they were lamenting the innate difference among fellow humans, they heard the young teacher ask with a doubtful tone, “What’s this?”
Putong!
The duo’s vision darkened, and they suddenly found themselves on the verge of tears.
To think that they felt deep respect for Liu laoshi when the truth was that… he didn’t even recognize what it was!
They had wasted their respect on him…
“Cough cough!”
The proud Mo Tianxue, who was looking at Zhang Xuan expectantly in hopes of seeing the shock on the other party’s face, choked on his saliva. He was rendered completely speechless by the other party.
Even if you haven’t seen a spirit stone before, you should have at least heard of it!
Despite being so skilled in the Way of Medicine… how could you have never heard of spirit stones before…
Zhang Xuan had read many books in the Master Teacher Pavilion, but he had yet to assimilate the content of these books for his own. As such, he was still lacking in the common knowledge in the world.
The Library of Heaven’s Path was similar to the search engines in his previous life. While one could easily search for answers on it… one had to know what to search for first. Otherwise, it would be useless!
That was to say, even though he could easily access the books in the Library of Heaven’s Path, he didn’t have perfect grasp over the knowledge contained within them yet.
The current situation was as such. A brilliant and extraordinary-looking stone was before him, but there were countless other stones in the world as well. How was he supposed to find this single stone among innumerable others among countless books?
“This is a spirit stone. It contains concentrated spiritual energy within it, allowing to cultivate efficiently…”
Mo Tianxue explained.
“Spirit stone?”
Upon hearing the name, Zhang Xuan immediately submerged his consciousness into the Library of Heaven’s Path and a book instantaneously appeared before him. He quickly browsed through it.
A detailed description on the subject was written within the book: Spirit stones are ores formed from a dense congregation of spiritual energy, and they contain a concentrated volume of spiritual energy within it. The spiritual energy within it could be absorbed by a cultivator to increase the efficiency of his cultivation, thus solving the problem of limited spiritual energy in his environment…
“This…”
Blinking his eyes in astonishment, Zhang Xuan’s face gradually reddened in agitation.
Wasn’t this what he was looking for? With this, he wouldn’t have to head to the Apothecary Guild anymore!
He could just absorb the spiritual energy within the stone to reach Zongshi realm pinnacle!
“Thank you!”
Knowing how valuable this object was, Zhang Xuan hurriedly grabbed the spirit stone and kept it in his storage ring without even waiting for the other party to finish his explanation.
“…”
It was just a moment that he was nonchalant to the spirit stone, but in the next instant, he swiftly snatched it away, as though afraid that someone would take it away from him. Mo Tianxue and Mo Yu immediately flew into a frenzy.
The heck, your attitude is even more fickle than the weather!
Just as they were thinking that the other party was suffering from dissociative personality disorder, they saw the young man placing his hands behind his back and looking into the distance with a deep look, as though an expert who had seen through the vicissitudes of life.
“I won’t take your item for free. How about this, I can conduct a free treatment for you!”
“…” Mo Tianxue and Mo Yu.
“…” Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan.
