Chapter 17: Someone Assassinated

What’s wrong with parents asking questions? You’re just a low-level teacher; it’s normal not to know the answers! To put on an act, he specifically ran over to look at fifth-tier cultivation techniques. If that’s not hypocrisy and vanity, what is?

“Tomorrow I’ll go to the dean. This kind of impetuous fellow must be expelled!” Mo Lao scoffed inwardly, having made up his mind. Someone so vain and unwilling to cultivate properly would only corrupt the academy’s atmosphere if he stayed!

Zhang Xuan was unaware that these two encounters had already placed him on the expulsion list. Even if he knew, he would surely be dumbfounded. Those were just his excuses! In reality, his cultivation had reached that level! He couldn't very well have reached that level of cultivation without any techniques to practice, could he?

Soon, he found the last row of cultivation techniques. Among the teachers, the most renowned and strongest were only at Martial Artist 5-dan. Once someone reached Martial Artist 6-dan, Aperture Opening Realm, they would automatically become an academy elder. This was merely the teachers’ archive; there were no records of 6-dan cultivation techniques. Therefore, the 5-dan techniques were placed in the last row.

“The books for the fifth tier are noticeably fewer than those for the fourth!” While both were cultivation manuals, the fourth tier had a dense collection of two to three thousand books, whereas the fifth tier had at most about a thousand, nearly half as many. It made sense when he thought about it. Most things follow a progression where the higher the level, the scarcer they become. Although the academy had a long history, there were certainly far fewer people who reached Martial Artist 5-dan than those who reached 4-dan. Naturally, the cultivation techniques and notes left behind were also fewer. Shaking his head, Zhang Xuan dismissed these thoughts, casually picked out a book, and began to flip through it.

About half an hour later, he had finished flipping through all the thousand-plus cultivation manuals on the last bookshelf. The Library of Heaven’s Path had also formed corresponding books for each. Having gotten what he wanted, Zhang Xuan smiled faintly, bid farewell to Mo Lao, and headed towards his residence. Seeing him haphazardly flipping and glancing without even pausing, Mo Lao couldn’t help but curse him inwardly once more.

Back at his residence, Zhang Xuan employed his usual method, searching in his mind for all the correct sentences and paragraphs from the thousands of books. Indeed, before long, the Library once again generated a book. This time, it wasn't nameless but bore the four large characters: Heaven’s Path Divine Art.

He continued cultivating. Martial Artist 5-dan, Dingli (Cauldron Strength) Realm, was actually a continuation of the Skin and Bone Realm. Its purpose was simple: to allow cultivators to refine their True Qi to a more proficient state. Each level of the Dingli Realm represented a different level of strength, essentially reflecting the degree of coordination between True Qi and muscles. The better the coordination, the greater the power exerted.

Upon seeing the description of the Dingli Realm in the Heaven’s Path Divine Art, Zhang Xuan focused his mind, carefully controlling the clear, water-like True Qi within his dantian, allowing it to slowly circulate through his body, perfectly integrating with his body's rhythm. The Heaven’s Path Divine Art truly lived up to its name as a cultivation technique formed by synthesizing thousands of manuals. Its cultivation speed was extremely fast. Following its methods, his True Qi and muscles operated and integrated rapidly. The coordination between his physical strength and True Qi also rose steadily.

Dingli Realm, Initial Stage!Dingli Realm, Middle Stage!Dingli Realm, Late Stage!Dingli Realm, Peak!Boom!

Two hours later, his body trembled once more. Zhang Xuan opened his eyes again, filled with disbelief: “This... I’ve reached Martial Artist 5-dan peak?” He had thought reaching Martial Artist 5-dan would require a long time of cultivation. He never dreamed that using the Heaven’s Path Divine Art, he would also reach the peak in just two hours. Cultivation was as hard as ascending to heaven for his predecessor, but for Zhang Xuan, who cultivated the Heaven’s Path Divine Art, it was as simple as eating and drinking. In just half a night, he had cultivated from Martial Artist 3-dan, True Qi Realm, to the peak of 5-dan... This was truly too exaggerated!

Furthermore, if he hadn't lacked knowledge of the 6-dan cultivation method, and didn't know which acupuncture points to open, he would probably have already successfully broken through and become a Martial Artist 6-dan, Aperture Opening Realm expert! Martial Artist 6-dan, Aperture Opening Realm, involved opening all the acupuncture points in the body. For each point opened, True Qi would thicken by a fraction, and strength would increase by a fraction. Legend said there were 108 acupuncture points in the human body, but only 72 could be opened. Moreover, there was a specific order in which these points had to be opened. Each person's physique was different, requiring a different sequence to achieve the best results. If one couldn't find the method, they might only be able to open thirty or forty points in their entire life and be unable to progress further. This was like clearing silt from a river channel. Clearing from upstream downstream could thoroughly clean it, but clearing from the middle outwards would not only fail to clean it but might also block the river, preventing further flow! Opening acupuncture points followed this very principle. If the best sequence wasn't found, and other points became blocked, they could never be opened again in one's lifetime. Therefore, without a cultivation technique, Zhang Xuan dared not cultivate rashly. However, there was no need to rush. Breaking through two major realms in one night was already astonishing. For him, he was already very satisfied.

“Unless absolutely necessary, it’s best not to reveal my cultivation!” As a transmigrator, he had read many books and watched many TV shows in his previous life, understanding the principle that 'having a treasure invites trouble'. He was originally the worst teacher in the academy. If others discovered that he had gained Martial Artist 5-dan peak strength overnight, wouldn't they all come looking for him? Therefore, it was best not to tell anyone about reaching the peak of the Dingli Realm; the more secretive, the better.

“Let’s test how much strength I have now!” Having made his decision, Zhang Xuan once again went before the strength-testing stone tablet. Others at the initial stage of the Dingli Realm only had one ‘ding’ of strength, while he had five. Now that he had reached the peak, he wondered how strong he would be.

Thump! The strength-testing stone tablet flickered with light, and a line of text appeared.8 dings!

“8 dings of strength? That’s almost comparable to an Aperture Opening Realm expert who has opened four acupuncture points!” Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up. A typical Dingli Realm peak cultivator had four dings of strength. After reaching the Aperture Opening Realm, each opened acupuncture point added one ding of strength. He had eight dings of strength while still at the peak of the Dingli Realm, already equivalent to an expert who had opened four acupuncture points. “As expected of the Heaven’s Path Divine Art, it’s formidable!”

With a sigh of admiration, Zhang Xuan was overjoyed. After cultivating for so long, he was about to find something to eat and then sleep when his ears suddenly twitched. “Why would someone come here at this hour?” He frowned. With his cultivation increased, his hearing and vision had greatly improved. He clearly heard someone hiding nearby, watching his dormitory intensely. “Judging by the area he’s focusing on, it’s my room. He probably hasn't discovered I'm here!” At this moment, Zhang Xuan was not in his room but stood behind the strength-testing stone tablet, some distance from the courtyard. After testing his strength, he had kept his breathing suppressed, and the other party hadn't noticed him. “Let’s see who’s looking for trouble with me!” He hadn't expected someone to come after him right after he finished cultivating. Zhang Xuan's suspicion grew considerably. Searching his predecessor’s memories, despite how pathetic he was, no one had ever snuck over in the middle of the night to deal with him!

“No matter who it is, I can't let him recognize me!” Just as he was about to go confront the person, an idea suddenly struck him. Everyone in the academy knew he was a Martial Artist 3-dan True Qi Realm good-for-nothing. If he suddenly appeared now, at the peak of 5-dan, wouldn't it scare people to death? Moreover, once the news spread, there would certainly be many people wanting to study him. Therefore, no matter who the other party was, he couldn't let them recognize him. Thinking of this, and recalling various films he had watched in his previous life, he casually tore a piece of cloth from the corner of his clothes and tied it over his face.

Whoosh! Having made preparations, Zhang Xuan lightly tapped his foot, and under the cover of night, slowly moved towards the other person. Although his cultivation had just advanced and he hadn't learned any lightness martial arts, he had cultivated the Heaven’s Path Divine Art, giving him extremely strong control over his body and a deep familiarity with his surroundings. He approached to within ten meters of the other person's back, and the latter still hadn't noticed him. At such a close distance, he could see clearly: the other person was wearing a night suit and had their face covered, making it impossible to tell who it was.

“Brat, blame yourself for being so audacious as to dare lay a hand on our young mistress!” Hiding behind a large tree, watching the hidden figure ahead, he faintly heard the other party's murmur.

“This voice sounds familiar…” He frowned. Zhang Xuan was certain he had heard this voice before, but he couldn't quite remember where.

Whoosh! Just as he was about to recall whether it was from his predecessor's memories or his own after transmigrating, he saw the figure's body sway. The person slowly walked towards his dormitory, and with a flick of their wrist, a cold glint appeared as a sharp dagger materialized in their palm.