As You Xu’s good friend, Lu Feng had caused Zhang Xuan a fair bit of trouble back in the Master Teacher Academy.
However, with the revelation of Zhang Xuan’s ‘identity’, the grand appearance of ‘Yang shi’ in the Elder Hall, and his confirmation as the next principal of the Master Teacher Academy, Lu Feng had been punished, and he had disappeared from the academy.
According to School Head Mo, Lu Feng had voluntarily applied to head to the Subterranean Gallery in order to redeem himself, and it was very likely that he would never return.
Back then, it had left Zhang Xuan in deep thought for a long while.
Given how large the Subterranean Gallery was, Zhang Xuan had thought that it was extremely unlikely for him to meet Lu Feng. Who would have thought that he would encounter the other party shortly after entering the Subterranean Gallery and find them cornered?
At this moment, Lu Feng’s complexion looked extremely pale and worn out, and the grandeur and authoritative air that had shrouded him back when he was the head of the Apothecary School had faded completely. His left sleeve, where his left arm should have been, was fluttering in the air, and there were many wounds on his body as well. Even though most of them had already closed up, the wounds were still rather glaring and appalling to look at.
Despite the heavy injuries Lu Feng had sustained, his eyes were sharp and calm, as if the battles with the Otherworldly Demons had brought peace to his mind.
As a result of that, his Half-Spiritual Perception realm cultivation had been further reinforced, putting him on the verge of achieving a breakthrough.
Despite the dangers of the Subterranean Gallery, it had allowed him to see past the trivialities of authority and power, thus broadening his mind.
Putting aside Lu Feng, the other 6-star pinnacle master teachers also harnessed incredibly sharp auras that were on par with the vice school heads of the Master Teacher Academy.
However, their ages were already beyond a thousand, and their bodies emanated an aura of deterioration, indicating that they were nearing the limit of their lifespan.
Occasionally, there would be several master teachers who were nearing the end of their life applying to enter the Subterranean Gallery. Their purpose was simple—they hoped to use whatever they had left in them to slay a few more Otherworldly Demons in hopes that it could prolong the peace that mankind enjoyed.
I must find a way to save them, Zhang Xuan thought grimly.
Had it been before, in face of such overwhelming odds, he would never have put his life on the line to save a group of strangers. However, after all he had been through, he realized how much these master teachers had contributed to mankind. It was due to them putting their lives on the line that the Master Teacher Continent was able to enjoy many millenniums of relative peace.
The master teachers before him were figures worthy of his respect, and he couldn’t bring himself to leave them in the lurch.
Doing it forcefully won’t work. Zhang Xuan frowned.
Against more than two hundred Otherworldly Demons, even if he were to utilize all of the means he had on hand, it would still be impossible for him to save the master teachers. On the contrary, it might even anger the Otherworldly Demons and cause them to fight even more desperately. If that were to happen, he could very well only be hastening their deaths.
As urgent as the situation was, he couldn’t charge in recklessly. He needed to come up with a plan first, a plan that would allow him to eradicate the Otherworldly Demons and save the master teachers.
After a moment of thought, Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist and took out a book. “Vicious, do you have any way to disguise me as an Otherworldly Demon?”
Bypassing the encirclement of more than two hundred Otherworldly Demons discreetly to save the master teachers, such a feat was nigh impossible… unless he was an Otherworldly Demon!
“You want to disguise as one of my tribesmen?”
The heart in the book beat several times before replying. “That’s simple! Master, given that you have cultivated the Quintuple Incandescence Golden Body, you should be able to alter your height and weight at will. As for the killing intent, I can release it in your place. It might be difficult for this disguise to fool the Otherworldly Demon Emperors, but it should be more than sufficient for this group of peons!”
The most difficult aspect when disguising as an Otherworldly Demon was imitating their killing intent. As long as this problem was resolved, the other aspects regarding the outer appearance weren’t a problem at all.
Zhang Xuan had already reached the Fourth Incandescence for the Quintuple Incandescence Golden body, allowing him to alter his muscles and bone structure at will.
“Alright, I will give it a try.”
Hearing that it was feasible, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. Using one of the puppets in his storage ring as a model, he began to warp his muscles and bones amid a series of cracks. In just two breaths, his appearance had already changed altogether.
After which, he took off the clothes of his puppet and wore them. At this moment, he looked completely identical to an Otherworldly Demon in terms of appearance, such that even most master teachers would be unable to tell the difference.
“Master, hide my finger in your hand, and I will exert my killing intent from within your body so that others won’t notice it,” Vicious said after seeing that Zhang Xuan was done with his transformation.
“Un.” Zhang Xuan nodded.
Hu!
A finger emerged from the Book of Heaven’s Path and fell on his hand. It fused into his skin and disappeared within.
Following which, Zhang Xuan felt a unique energy flowing through his body, one that was completely different from a cultivator’s zhenqi.
This energy felt exceedingly violent, as if it would rip apart the world if it could. If one were to come into contact with this energy often, it would induce aggressive tendencies within one, making one crave war and battle.
“This is the source of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe’s killing intent?” Zhang Xuan asked with a frown.
It was no wonder the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe was so belligerent. There was probably no one in the world who would be able to remain themselves after cultivating such zhenqi.
“Un. We call this Zhenqi of Slaughter!” Vicious replied before asking with a doubtful tone, “Master, do you feel any discomfort driving the Zhenqi of Slaughter?”
“Discomfort?” Zhang Xuan tried circulating the Zhenqi of Slaughter through his body, and eventually, he shook his head with an excited glint in his eyes. “None at all. If any, I feel energized!”
“Energized?” Vicious was stunned.
Ordinary cultivators, even ones who had reached Saint realm, were unable to withstand the Zhenqi of Slaughter. Yet, his master was actually able to drive it as he wished without feeling the slightest discomfort… and even feel energized at that.
Wasn’t his body’s ability to adapt a little too powerful?
“It’s good that you don’t feel any discomfort!” Vicious heaved a sigh of relief.
Having pledged his loyalty to Zhang Xuan, he had to ensure the latter’s safety. He was planning to withdraw his zhenqi if the other party felt any discomfort, but since there was no such thing, it should be fine.
Knowing what Vicious was thinking about, Zhang Xuan replied with a nod. “Un.”
Given that his body was even able to harness the might of the Heaven’s Path zhenqi, what could the Zhenqi of Slaughter do?
A thought suddenly emerged in Zhang Xuan’s mind. Wait… since the Heaven’s Path zhenqi has the ability to imitate the attributes of other zhenqi, could it possibly imitate the Zhenqi of Slaughter too?
He had always thought of the killing intent as an aura emanated by the Otherworldly Demons, but if its true form was a type of zhenqi as well, was it possible for him to imitate it?
The Heaven’s Path zhenqi was an omnipotent zhenqi. Possessing no attribute, it was capable of fusing with the zhenqi of any other attribute and emulating its properties.
With such thoughts in mind, he began to warp the properties of the Heaven’s Path zhenqi in his body. His body jolted for an instant as the Heaven’s Path zhenqi began to seethe. A moment later, a powerful killing intent abruptly gushed into the air. It wasn’t as powerful as the one originating from Vicious’ finger, but it was far purer and cleaner.
Just as Zhang Xuan was delighted with his success, he suddenly heard Vicious’ voice in his ear. “Grand Emperor… How is this possible? Master… are you an Otherworldly Demon in disguise?”
“Grand Emperor?” Zhang Xuan was taken aback for a moment before bursting into laughter. “An Otherworldly Demon in disguise? How is that possible?”
It was not like the other party didn’t know that he was a Celestial Master Teacher. How could he possibly be an Otherworldly Demon?
“Otherworldly Demons are ranked in various strata according to their bloodline. The Emperor Stratum has the purest bloodline, followed by the King Stratum, the Marquess Stratum, Noble Stratum, and finally, the Mortal Stratum. Each stratum is further divided into several classes, and the strongest one within the Emperor Stratum is the Grand Emperor Class,” Vicious said. “The zhenqi that Master has just exerted is extremely pure, a trait distinctive of the Grand Emperor Class.”
“Grand Emperor Class?” Zhang Xuan blinked in astonishment.
He had just casually emulated the Zhenqi of Slaughter with his Heaven’s Path zhenqi, but to think that… it would actually be so formidable.
“Yes!” Vicious replied respectfully. At the same time, he couldn’t help but harbor some doubts regarding his master’s identity.
The other party was clearly a Celestial Master Teacher, and yet, putting aside how he didn’t feel the slightest discomfort driving the Zhenqi of Slaughter, his body actually harnessed zhenqi exclusive to the Grand Emperor Class.
Just how many more secrets was his master hiding?
“If I am at the Grand Emperor Class, what about you?” Zhang Xuan asked.
Given the extreme purity of the Heaven’s Path zhenqi, it went without saying that his emulation of the Zhenqi of Slaughter would also be of the highest class. However, judging from Vicious’ astonished tone, could this mean that he wasn’t from the Grand Emperor Class?
Wasn’t he one of the strongest experts from the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe?
Otherwise, how could he have stood his ground against Kong shi?
“I…” With a bitter smile, Vicious was just about to explain himself when he suddenly realized something and hurriedly warned Zhang Xuan telepathically, “Master, we have been discovered!”
“We have been discovered?” Taken aback, Zhang Xuan turned his gaze upwards. What he saw left his eyelids twitching uncontrollably, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
Unbeknownst to him, fifty Otherworldly Demons were floating in the air above him, each of them exerting an extremely powerful aura. They had sealed the surroundings tightly with their Zhenqi of Slaughter, leaving him no opportunity to escape at all.
Hadn’t he concealed his presence well?
How had he been discovered just like that?
To have been encircled before he could initiate his plan to save the master teachers… this sure was a huge failure!
I must have failed to control my strength properly in the moment that I turned my Heaven’s Path zhenqi into Zhenqi of Slaughter, Zhang Xuan thought as his face twitched.
As he had wished, his Heaven’s Path zhenqi had turned into the Zhenqi of Slaughter unique to Otherworldly Demons perfectly. However, he had failed to control his power for a brief moment, resulting in his killing intent bursting into the air.
It was probably that brief moment that had betrayed his presence to the Otherworldly Demons.
Hualala!
Just as Zhang Xuan was at a loss as to what he should do, the Otherworldly Demons in the sky finally got a clear look at Zhang Xuan’s face, and the tense atmosphere in the surroundings alleviated slightly. After which, a Saint realm 2-dan Otherworldly Demon descended from the sky and went up to Zhang Xuan.
“Who are you?” the Saint realm 2-dan Otherworldly Demon asked questioningly.
“Me?” It was only at this moment that Zhang Xuan suddenly recalled that he had already changed his appearance and was wearing the clothes of the Otherworldly Demons.
An overpowering killing intent was emanating from his body, making it clear to anyone that he was an Otherworldly Demon.
The other party must have thought that he was their tribesmen, but owing to his unfamiliar face, the other party still had to confirm his identity.
“I am…” Heaving a sigh of relief, Zhang Xuan prepared himself to make up a name so as to get over this matter. In any case, there were so many Otherworldly Demons about, so it was unlikely for the other party to recognize everyone.
However, at that moment, a thought suddenly came to him.
The next moment, he narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath. Following which, the Zhenqi of Slaughter from Vicious’ finger burst forth.
Hong long!
While the killing intent emanated from his disguised Heaven’s Path zhenqi was pure, it was only at the level of a Half-Saint. On the other hand, the killing intent from Vicious’ finger was overwhelming and relentless, leaving one unable to determine how powerful he was, as if looking at a seemingly endless ocean.
“Th-this…” Feeling that immense strength, the Saint realm 2-dan Otherworldly Demon’s face paled, and his body stiffened.
“I don’t have to say anything more about my identity, right?” Placing his hands behind his back, Zhang Xuan glanced down at the other party impassively.
Zhang Xuan currently held no intelligence on the current state of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe at all. Vicious might know a thing or two, but his intelligence was already outdated by several dozen years. On top of that, his memories were fragmented, so it might not be safe to rely on it.
While he could simply make up a name on the spot, there was a chance that things could go wrong too. For example, what if the name he came up with wasn’t typical or was avoided by the Otherworldly Demons? If so, he would be placed in an extremely difficult position.
Besides, even if he were to successfully come up with a name and join the other party’s group, it was unlikely that the other party would trust him enough to allow him to approach the master teachers. It would still be extremely difficult for him to save them.
Thus, the best way was for him to assume an identity that the other party feared.
Since the Otherworldly Demons were ranked according to the purity of their Zhenqi of Slaughter, he could very well make use of it to instill fear in them.
He was already proficient in it anyway. He had done it so many times that it came naturally to him.
Don’t have to say anything more about your identity?
On the other hand, the Saint realm 2-dan Otherworldly Demon was taken aback.
I have never seen you before, so how am I supposed to know who the hell you are?
