After chatting casually for a moment, silence gradually returned to the room. As Zhang Xuan raised his wine cup, he activated his Eye of Insight and scanned the room discreetly.
A moment later, a slightly perplexed expression flickered momentarily across his face.
Other than the Spirit Gathering Formation, there was no other formation or mechanism that he could see through his Eye of Insight.
Didn’t Hu Yaoyao intend to deal with him?
Why hadn’t she prepared anything then?
Did she really think that she could subdue him without any preparation?
Just as Zhang Xuan was in deep thought, Luo Qiqi suddenly called out. “Teacher, look over there!”
Turning his sights to the direction her finger was pointing toward, Zhang Xuan saw a two-meter tall weapon rack with a slightly yellowish shield hanging on it. There were slight traces of patina1, which hinted at the long history behind it.
“It is probably just a decorative artifact,” Zhang Xuan replied
Judging from the design of the weapon, it was probably smithed as an ornament. It wasn’t uncommon for large clans to hang such items in their main hall in a display of power.
“I have read many books regarding Elder Wu Yangzi, and according to the records, he smithed a total of 124 weapons in his life, and 17 of them are shields. One of them, the ‘Blazing Moon Copper Shield’, has a bizarre fiery moon design, and it resembles that of this shield,” Luo Qiqi said with a frown.
“Blazing Moon Copper Shield?” Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan began examining the shield more carefully.
Even though it was quite a distance away from them, with their keen eyes, they could still easily see the fiery moon reminiscent of the sun inscribed onto it. Unlike ordinary shields, it also had an irregular hexagonal shape. On the whole, the shield seemed exceedingly queer.
Realizing the significance of Luo Qiqi’s words, Zhang Xuan asked agitatedly, “You mean that… this is a shield smithed by Elder Wu Yangzi?”
“Yes!” Luo Qiqi stood up and walked toward the corner of the main hall and began examining the shield carefully.
The more she studied the shield, the grimmer her expression became.
Still in his seat, Zhang Xuan turned his gaze to the shield as well. While the shield was ancient, it had an extremely complex workmanship that, based on Zhang Xuan’s comprehension of smithing, bore a striking resemblance to that of the Zither Forging Technique.
Eye of Insight!
Lines of insight rippled in Zhang Xuan’s eyes as the information regarding the shield appeared before him.
This was indeed left behind by Elder Wu Yangzi… Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
He’d thought that it was only an imitation, but the evidence was pointing to it being authentic.
“It is said that Elder Wu Yangzi smithed the Blazing Sun Copper Shield in remembrance of his late wife, so he never put this artifact up on sale before. Many thought that it had disappeared along with him, but to think that it would actually be here,” Luo Qiqi exclaimed in shock.
Clenching her fists tightly, she continued, “It seems Senior Yaoyao really does know where the old residence is. There is a high chance that she might have unearthed it from there!”
Zhang Xuan also shared the same thoughts as Luo Qiqi.
Since this shield had never been put on sale before, there was a high chance that it had been hidden in Wu Yangzi’s old residence, and Hu Yaoyao had managed to find it by some stroke of luck.
After examining the shield, Luo Qiqi was just about to return to her seat when she abruptly froze again.
“There’s also a sword here!”
On the wall not too far away from them hung a sword in its scabbard. A weapon rack had hindered her view of it from her seat, so Luo Qiqi hadn’t noticed it previously. It was only after walking up to the shield that she managed to get a clear view of the sword.
Just like the shield, the sword hilt and scabbard also carried traces of age on it. With just a single glance, one could tell that it was an ancient artifact. Walking up to the sword to assess it, Luo Qiqi’s frown deepened.
Eventually, she took it down from the wall.
Luo Qiqi wasn’t the type to take the possession of another easily. For her to take the initiative to step forward to take down the sword, it could only mean that she had noticed something peculiar about it. Knowing this, Zhang Xuan asked, “What? Was this sword smithed by Wu Yangzi as well?”
“Yes. If I’m not mistaken, this should be the ‘Blazing Moon Blade’ that Elder Wu Yangzi left for his daughter. This sword has also never been sold on the market before. If there is a fiery sun inscription on the blade, that would mean that my deduction is correct,” Luo Qiqi explained as she placed her hands on the scabbard and the hilt and pulled.
Huala!
A chilling glint flashed from the body of the sword, sending a shiver down the spines of those in its vicinity.
“A good sword that is!” Zhang Xuan exclaimed.
Even though this sword wasn’t on par with his Glacier Rain Sword, it was still an incredible creation that had managed to reach Spirit pinnacle.
“There’s indeed a fiery sun!” With her eyes fixated on the sword, delight surfaced on Luo Qiqi’s face.
But before her delight could bloom into a smile, a light buzz sounded from the sword.
Weng!
The sword trembled violently, as if the spirit within it was protesting in fury.
“This is bad!” Hearing that sound, Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes. He hurriedly stood up and rushed up to her, but despite his swift reaction, he was still a step too late.
As if sapped of her strength, Luo Qiqi’s figure abruptly staggered and fell weakly to the side.
Zhang Xuan immediately caught Luo Qiqi’s falling figure and placed his forefinger and middle finger on her wrist to feel her pulse. A moment later, he heaved a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness there isn’t anything wrong with her. It seems she has only lost her consciousness…
Fearing that Hu Yaoyao would suddenly spring something on them, Zhang Xuan had chosen to remain in his seat and wait patiently for whatever was to come and deal with them. He’d thought that the other party would resort to using formations and mechanisms against him, but who could have known that she would spike the sword instead?
Knowing that Luo Qiqi was fine, Zhang Xuan tapped on a few points of the sword first before grabbing the Blazing Moon Sword to examine it.
There is no poison on it. It seems Luo Qiqi was indeed attacked by the spirit within the sword instead. Still, to think that this sword would have the ability to jolt one’s soul!
Most formidable artifacts would possess some kind of unique ability. Take the Bronze Gong that Zhang Xuan had seen in the Spirit Emporium previously for example, it had the ability to destroy one’s soul.
With a strike of the gong, one’s physical body and soul would suffer immense damage.
From the looks of it, the Blazing Moon Blade did possess the ability to jolt one’s soul. It was out of a moment of carelessness while touching it that Luo Qiqi was attacked by the spirit within, resulting in her loss of consciousness.
Realizing what was going on, Zhang Xuan gently placed Luo Qiqi down on the table by the side before harrumphing coldly.
“Come out!”
While artifacts did possess offensive capability of their own, their fighting prowess was severely limited without someone driving them. It was just like how he’d managed to tame almost all of the treasures of the Spirit Emporium, but he was still unable to rival Wei Changfeng.
Even though the Blazing Moon Blade had reached Spirit pinnacle, making it difficult for even a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan expert to tame the spirit within, it was still impossible for it to render Luo Qiqi unconscious so easily.
Without a doubt, Hu Yaoyao had tampered with the weapon.
The other party knew that they were anxious to seek out Wu Yangzi’s old residence, so she intentionally placed the shield there in order to draw their attention to it first. After confirming that the shield was safe, and due to the shock from the discovery of another product of Wu Yangzi’s hands, their guards would be down when they approached the sword, thus allowing it to successfully knock them out.
Hu Yaoyao’s intended target was probably Zhang Xuan, but Luo Qiqi had ended up falling for it instead.
Given that such a trap had been prepared for them, the other party must have been hiding in the surroundings, observing them quietly from the shadows.
There was a brief moment of silence before a soft chuckle echoed in the room.
“No wonder you were able to deal a heavy blow to nearly all of the student factions, you are indeed a smart person!”
The door opened, and Hu Yaoyao’s slender figure stepped into the room. She was dressed in a burgundy dress which emphasized her curvaceous figure beautifully.
It seemed she had devoted more effort to dressing up for this occasion. She looked much more charming and seductive than the previous day.
“For a Grade-5 student to pick on a freshman, don’t you think that this will reflect badly on your reputation?” Zhang Xuan glanced at her figure impassively.
“My reputation? I invited you to my night banquet out of goodwill, but in my moment of absence, you took my sword without permission. Don’t you think that the one whose reputation will be reflected badly is you?” Hu Yaoyao stepped forward leisurely and chuckled.
A slight and refreshing fragrance drifted from her body, tingling one’s senses.
It was no wonder her faction was known as the Bewitching Devil Faction. As if a mischievous fox spirit, her gestures and movements carried a kind of seductive charm and pulled at one’s heartstrings.
It wasn’t too difficult to imagine that there would be an army of master teachers in the academy who would be willing to throw themselves into flames without batting an eyelid for her.
But while this kind of deadly charm might be effective on others, Zhang Xuan remained completely unfazed by it. Shaking his head, he gazed at Hu Yaoyao nonchalantly, as if merely looking at yet another human being.
“It is out of curiosity that we stepped forward to admire the artifacts you have put on public display; why should that reflect badly on us? On the other hand, despite inviting us over, you chose to hide and observe us from the shadows. I don’t think that it can be any more apparent who is the one who is up to no good.
“But since we won’t be able to come to a consensus on the matter, let’s not waste our breath and get straight to the business at hand. Where is Elder Wu Yangzi’s old residence?”
“Hmm?” Hu Yaoyao was slightly taken aback.
On top of being a 6-star terpsichore, Hu Yaoyao was a 6-star demonic tunist as well. At her current level of expertise, she was already capable of utilizing her voice as a medium to unleash her prowess as a demonic tunist.
Right from the start, she had been using a terpsichorean art and a demonic tunist art simultaneously to bewitch Zhang Xuan. Under such an assault, even a Transcendent Mortal 9-dan expert would find it difficult to retain their rationality!
Given that the other party was only a Cosmos Bridge realm cultivator, even if he wasn’t bewitched by her, his soul should have at least been rendered feeble by the attack. How could he possibly remain completely unfazed and even rationally question her back?
“Regarding the matter of the old residence, I will speak as long as you agree to my conditions!” Despite Hu Yaoyao’s doubt, she didn’t allow it to appear on her face.
With a seductive smile that scratched at one’s soul, she said, “Join my Bewitching Devil Faction and obey my commands obediently, and not only will I tell you the location of Elder Wu Yangzi’s old residence, I will even lead you there myself!”
“Obey your commands obediently?” Zhang Xuan glanced at her somewhat mockingly. “Aren’t you already trying?”
“To be able to tame several hundred spirit beasts in a breath and win School Head Mo and School Head Zhao’s favor, there is no doubt that Zhang shi possesses an exceptionally powerful soul. Even if I were to use all of my means, it is questionable they will be effective on you… It won’t be feasible for me to make you submit through my terpsichorean arts, I admit at least this much.”
At this point, Hu Yaoyao’s crimson lips curled up playfully. “But… what about Luo Qiqi?”
“Qiqi? What do you mean?” Zhang Xuan frowned upon hearing those words.
“Luo Qiqi has been attacked by the spirit of the Blazing Moon Blade. If you don’t treat her soon, it’s very possible that the damage to her foundation might become permanent, making it nigh impossible for her to make any progress in the future,” Hu Yaoyao replied with a taunting smile.
Damage to her foundation? Permanent? Zhang Xuan was taken aback.
A jolt on one’s soul could only render one unconscious at most. Damaging one’s foundation and rendering it nigh impossible for one to make any progress… Where in the world did she find the confidence to spout such bullshit?
Zhang Xuan was perplexed for a moment before it suddenly dawned on him.
The other party must have thought that he was lacking in the study of souls, and on top of that, his worry for Luo Qiqi could have sent his mind into disarray, making it impossible for him to think rationally. She thought that, by exaggerating things, she could force Zhang Xuan to submit to her terms.
On the off chance that Zhang Xuan refused, she could have prepared a Record Crystal somewhere in advance to take down this scene. When Luo Qiqi finally roused from her sleep, she would show it to her and sow discord between them. With such a precedent between them, there would be a permanent rift between their relationship as a teacher and a student.
This was indeed checkmate. Zhang Xuan would have been trapped no matter what he chose.
To save Luo Qiqi, he would have to agree to her conditions. Disagree, and he would potentially lose Luo Qiqi’s trust forever.
Regardless of the choice, she would be the final victor!
As expected of the leader of the Bewitching Devil Faction, she was indeed a fearsome adversary!
4/20 If we get first this week, there will be three additional chapters next week!
