Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
With poison in their hands, they knocked out the tens of thousands of people in the royal palace, rendering them powerless. While it was to save Liu Yang, and Chu Tianxing also deserved it… the problem was that the news was simply too shocking!
If those men had set forth with the intention not to save but to kill, who would have been able to stand against them?
If news spread, there would be unease among the populace. Everyone would start fearing for their lives. The emperors of the other Conferred Empires would also live in fear and apprehension, afraid that those men would come after them one day as well.
This was also why Song Xuan had sentenced them to death without much hesitation, and even Yao Mantian did not think that there was a mistake in Song Xuan’s call.
With his Soul Depth of 25.1, Zhang Xuan was able to see through their thoughts and considerations, and he knew that without a suitable reason, there was no way he could free Sun Qiang and the other poison masters from their execution.
Thus, he first gave Elder Xu and the others a formal identity before pinning a heinous crime on Chu Tianxing’s head.
This way, he would be able to claim that the actions of Sun Qiang and the other poison masters were not reckless but a planned operation by the Combat Master Hall and Master Teacher Pavilion to save the populace of Qingyuan City.
This way, even if the other Conferred Empires learned of this matter, they would at least view those men as under the control of the Combat Master Hall and Master Teacher Pavilion, so they would not have to worry about a bunch of madmen coming after their lives.
In other words, it was to alleviate the fears of the officials, nobles, and populace so that they would be able to accept this justified assassination. As long as the populace was appeased, Yao shi and the Master Teacher Pavilion would have no qualms with sparing Sun Qiang and the others.
Elder Xu was only taken aback for a moment before realizing all of this. He turned to look at Zhang Xuan once more with deep admiration in his eyes.
To be able to grasp the thoughts of Song shi, Yao shi, the Master Teacher Pavilion, and the populace and find the most suitable reason to appease all of them simultaneously… that was no easy feat at all!
Zhang Xuan’s ability to think on his spot was truly frightening!
Elder Xu alternated his glances at Zhang Xuan and Sun Qiang, and he could not help but mutter beneath his breath, “Why do I feel like that man is our true benefactor instead?”
The benefactor who had saved them had also displayed an exceptional ability to remain composed and think on the spot, coming up with the most rational solution to deal with the problem at hand. This was completely different from that fatty whom they had been locked up with for the past few days!
That fatty Sun Qiang seemed to know nothing but how to eat and sleep. There was really nothing praiseworthy about him at all!
Perplexed, Elder Xu was just about to test Sun Qiang when that fat ‘benefactor’ he was thinking about suddenly stepped forward.
“Yao shi, I am Sun Qiang, one of the men who was to be executed under Song shi’s orders!”
Sun Qiang placed his hands behind his back and lifted his head proudly. With a voice that sounded loudly across the entire square, he spoke.
“I was reluctant to speak too much of this matter for fear that it would cause unease and pandemonium in Qingyuan City, but since our Young Master has already said so much, I’ll admit to it. The reason Young Master Liu Yang and I set out to kill Chu Tianxing was due to our uncovering of his depraved ploy to nab the souls of the cultivators in Qingyuan City and nourish himself! I know that we are weak and insignificant, but if our insignificant lives could be traded for the lives of the entire city, we would still do it without any hesitation!”
After saying those words, Sun Qiang walked up to the crowd with a straightened back, assuming the look of an unsung hero who, despite being misunderstood by many, would still stand up valiantly for the sake of mankind.
“I see…”
“They were all willing to sacrifice themselves to save us… It’s laughable how we actually thought of them as rebels!”
“I never would have thought that Chu Tianxing would actually kill all of us to nourish himself. This is unforgivable!”
“If not for this matter, I never would have known how noble Sun Qiang and those poison masters—ah no, it should be combat masters—are so noble. We have really wronged them.”
…
Hearing Zhang Xuan’s explanation and witnessing Sun Qiang’s selflessness, choosing to sacrifice himself rather than let the entire city fall into chaos, the crowd could not help but feel deeply moved.
The master teachers of the Master Teacher Pavilion also revealed faces of embarrassment.
Despite being master teachers themselves, they really came nowhere close to those noble men standing before them.
“This…” Elder Xu’s lips twitched uncontrollably.
Setting out to kill Chu Tianxing was due to our uncovering of his depraved ploy?
His death was clearly an accident, alright? More important… you even whipped out a knife, wanting to castrate the other party…
Rather than the other party, you are the one who looks more like a villain!
More importantly… in the time of your captivity, you were either eating of sleeping. I have never seen the valiance and selflessness you spoke of in the time I have spent with you…
Then again… this does seem to resemble our benefactor’s way of doing things!
Elder Xu rubbed his glabella in frustration, unable to discern the truth.
He had suspected that Zhang Xuan was their true benefactor, but after hearing Sun Qiang’s words, which sounded like they could have come from their benefactor as well, he was confused once again.
On the other hand, upon seeing Sun Qiang rush out and behave in such a manner, Zhang Xuan could not help but shake his head. That fellow only knows how to pose!
Zhang Xuan sighed. If only he was half as humble as I am…
No matter what he did, he always strove to avoid trouble and the spotlight wherever possible. On the other hand, his butler seemed to crave to stand under every single spotlight he could find.
Really, from whom did he learn that bad habit from!
However, Sun Qiang’s interjection there was also good in a way.
As long as they could generate sufficient buzz over this issue, the conflict would be resolved by itself. Even if Yao shi found several anomalies with the story, in face of the will of the populace, she would have no choice but to agree to it as well.
Most importantly of all, the betrayal of the emperor of a Conferred Empire was a huge blow to the Master Teacher Pavilion’s credibility. If they went along with Zhang Xuan’s story, that would make it appear that the Master Teacher Pavilion had been on top of things from the start to the end, making preparations in advance to deal with Chu Tianxing. This way, not only would the reputation of the Master Teacher Pavilion not be impaired, it would even be brought to greater heights!
Under such circumstances, as long as one was no fool, it was clear whom one should stand with.
As expected, Yao shi soon nodded and exclaimed gravely, “I didn’t think that Chu Tianxing would be such a depraved individual! Since the truth has been unraveled, I will report this matter to the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters and have them reward you handsomely for your contribution to mankind, as well as to make up for the injustice you have suffered!”
“Yao shi!” Hearing Yao shi’s judgement, Song shi’s face paled. “I think that there’s still some suspicious details concerning the story that requires further investigation…”
If Yao shi made such a ruling, it would effectively mean that he had dealt with this matter incompetently, ordering for the execution of meritorious subjects. Just that crime was sufficient to signal his doom!
“Enough!” Yao shi flung her sleeves lividly. “Don’t you think that you have embarrassed yourself enough today? As a quasi 8-star master teacher, instead of investigating the matter properly, you recklessly passed judgement upon others, nearly resulting in the deaths of meritorious subjects. The Master Teacher Pavilion trusted you enough to grant you great authority and power, but you have really been a huge disappointment on this occasion!”
“I…” Song shi’s body shook in despair.
Yao shi waved her hand impassively. “There’s no need to say anymore! I’ll report this matter as it is to the headquarters, so return to the Qianchong Empire and await for the verdict from the headquarters!”
Song shi’s face turned ghastly pale as he staggered backward weakly. Then, he suddenly halted. Slowly, he raised his head to glare at Zhang Xuan with the utmost hostility, “You! It’s all your fault!”
If not for that young man, things would not have developed in such a manner.
If he had settled this matter properly, the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters would surely have rewarded him handsomely for his efforts. With the reward, he would have been able to take the final step forward in his cultivation and overcome his bottleneck, successfully making a breakthrough to Saint 6-dan Grand Dominion realm.
But it was a pity that it was all impossible now!
More importantly, all of this had happened in public, and his manhood had been crippled as well.
No words could begin to describe the sheer hatred he felt for Zhang Xuan at this moment.
Flicking his wrist, he took out his master teacher emblem and dripped a droplet of blood on it.
“Zhang Xuan, you ordered the master teachers to make a move on me and humiliated me. On top of that, you even had your cauldron to cripple me. I, Song Xuan, as a 7-star master teacher, hereby request the Master Teacher Pavilion headquarters allow me to challenge Zhang Xuan to a Master Teacher Confrontation! Zhang Xuan, do you dare accept my challenge?”
Following which, a brilliant light burst forth from the emblem, surging toward the sky.
“Song Xuan, how dare you!” Not expecting Song shi to make this move at such a moment, Yao shi’s face turned livid.
Whenever there was an irreconcilable conflict between two master teachers, they could choose to resolve it through a Master Teacher Confrontation. In order to initiate a Master Teacher Confrontation, a master teacher would first have to express their intention to the headquarters first, and the headquarters would gauge whether it was appropriate to allow both parties to face one another.
This was the most effective way for two master teachers to resolve the conflict between them. Once both sides accepted the Master Teacher Confrontation, not even an 8-star master teacher like Yao shi would be able to intervene in the matter anymore.
“Why would I not dare to? I agree,” Zhang Xuan replied impassively.
He had forcefully snatched Sun Qiang and the poison masters back from Song shi’s hands, cornered him verbally to the point that he puked blood, and even crippled his manhood. All of this was done before a huge crowd at that. He would have been surprised if Song shi could take all that lying.
“Zhang shi!” Yao shi anxiously tried to talk Zhang Xuan out of it, but it was too late. Zhang Xuan’s agreement had already reached the headquarters.
Boom!
On the Master Teacher Tower not too far away, a surge of light burst forth, forming two massive words in the sky. ‘Permission granted!’
While Song Xuan was a quasi 8-star master teacher, he was still officially classified as a 7-star master teacher. On the other hand, Zhang Xuan was an outstanding genius who had successfully crashed the Master Teacher Pavilion. Thus, the headquarters deemed it appropriate to have the both of them faced one another.
“It’s good that you have agreed!” Seeing Zhang Xuan agree to the Master Teacher Confrontation without any hesitation, Song Xuan was slightly taken aback. Gritting his teeth, he said, “Since I was the one who proposed the Master Teacher Confrontation, I’ll allow you to choose the type of duel!”
Since he was the one who had proposed the Master Teacher Confrontation, it would only be fair to have the other party decide on the type of duel.
“I can decide the type of duel? Very well then.” Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before replying, “I choose Impartation of Heaven’s Will!”
Zhang Xuan’s Soul Depth had already reached the level comparable to an 8-star master teacher, and he also possessed an innate advantage as a Celestial Master Teacher. Putting aside a quasi 8-star master teacher like Song shi, it was doubtful whether even real 8-star master teachers would be able to withstand his Impartation of Heaven’s Will or not!
Since the other party was the one proposing the Master Teacher Confrontation, there was no need for him hesitate. Just crush the other party and get it over and done with.
“Impartation of Heaven’s Will?” Song shi’s eyebrows shot up.
He had heard news about how Zhang Xuan had managed to make all the master teachers of the Qingyuan Empire Master Teacher Pavilion willingly acknowledge him as their teacher in the midst of his pavilion crashing. Just from that alone, it could be seen that the other party’s Soul Depth was certainly not beneath his.
If it was a duel of Impartation of Heaven’s Will, there was really a good chance that he would be utterly crushed.
Even so, Song shi did not think that victory was completely impossible. After all, he was a Leaving Aperture realm pinnacle cultivator who had been through four lightning tribulations whereas the other party was just an Embryonic Soul realm pinnacle cultivator. As long as he set the rules of the duel properly, he would still have a considerable chance at victory.
“Alright then, I’ll agree to it. However, I get to decide on the rules of the duel!”
There were many ways to conduct a duel of Impartation of Heaven’s Will. For the sake of fairness, it would be more reasonable for one side to decide on the type of duel and the other to decide on the rules of the duel.
“Of course.” Zhang Xuan waved his hand nonchalantly.
Regardless of what the rules of the duel were, as long as the type of duel was Impartation of Heaven’s Will, he had nothing to fear.
“Good!” Song Xuan replied.
After which, he turned to Yao shi and clasped his fist. “Yao shi, may I borrow your Brush of Heavenly Impartation?”
“Brush of Heavenly Impartation?”
Yao shi was taken aback for a moment before her face darkened. “It can’t be that you intend to challenge the most difficult duel of the Impartation of Heaven’s Will… Heavenly Impartation of Mentor’s Calligraphy?”
