221-230
Chapter 221 - Yu Qiuyan
Shi Lan and Yao Wu spent the afternoon chatting over tea while watching Li Lian train. Eventually, the topic of Da Long was brought up.
"So, he goes by the name Long Wang now. Do you think that's his real name?" Shi Lan asked.
"Maybe, but if you ask me, the name Da Long suited him better," Yao Wu replied.
"Hm? What do you mean by that?" Shi Lan asked, but only a second later she gasped because realized what Yao Wu was implying. "Did you see it? How big was it?"
Yao Wu exaggerated the length, making the Matriarch's eyes widen the more she spread her hands apart. However, despite trying to exaggerate his size, she actually wasn't too far off from the real thing.
"That big?" Shi Lan asked in shock. "Then... did the two of you really-"
"No, definitely not. How could you even think that I would do something like that," Yao Wu immediately replied.
"Surely, you were tempted."
"I wasn't," Yao Wu instantly replied, but Shi Lan gave her a look as if she wasn't convinced. "I said I wasn't," Yao Wu said again, a bit annoyed.
"Whatever you say," Shi Lan smiled playfully before taking a sip of her tea.
Since she was in her 50s, Shi Lan always joked about finding Yao Wu a husband, but what Shi Lan didn't know was that Yao Wu admired Shi Lan way too much to even consider it yet. They had been close friends for the longest time, so it was hard for Yao Wu to imagine leaving her side. Shi Lan, on the other hand, was almost 60, so she was nearly at the age to start looking for a husband.
[ Non-cultivators generally give birth in their 20s-40s, cultivators usually give birth in their 40s-60s, and strong cultivators in their 60s-80s. Xiao Fang could be considered to be birthed early considering how strong his parents were, but since nothing was known about his mother, Yu An, he was considered to be an illegitimate bastard child of Xiao Jianhong ]
Yao Wu continued talking about Xiao Fang, telling Shi Lan all the things she learned about him over the past week. She told her about his new guild, the few girls she assumed he slept with, and even his score on the Trial Pod test. Even though he didn't put his name on the board, Yao Wu still had access to all the records.
"9th place, are you sure?"
"I am. I also couldn't believe it myself, but it's true," Yao Wu replied.
Shi Lan began to think.
"Could he be hiding his real age?" Yao Wu suggested.
"That shouldn't be the case, but even if he was, we wouldn't be able to verify it without exposing the fact that we've been stalking him."
Yao Wu was a bit disturbed by her choice of words. 'Monitoring' would've been a better word than 'stalking', but she didn't bother correcting her. Although it was true that she was keeping track of Xiao Fang's activities, it wasn't like she was always physically there watching him. She had many other responsibilities in the sect and to her own direct disciple, Xun Wei.
"Could he have come from the Royal Court?" Yao Wu gave another suggestion.
"No, if they sent another member of the Yu family here, I would've been informed."
Thinking about the Yu family, Shi Lan was reminded of the Royal Court disciple they currently had secretly studying in the sect (First mentioned in Chapter 97). It was at that moment that she had an idea.
"Speaking about the Yu family, Long Wang should be assigned to a mentor soon, right?"
Yao Wu's eyes widened when she realized what Shi Lan was thinking.
"Shi Lan, You can't."
"Why not?" Shi Lan asked.
"You said you were going to assign Zhao Pan and Bai Fan to Yu Qiuyan's team."
"Yes, but as you know, mentors are assigned three disciples each."
"But... they wouldn't be compatible," Yao Wu made a last desperate attempt to change the Matriarch's mind.
Shi Lan laughed elegantly. She assumed Yao Wu was worried that Xiao Fang would try to seduce Zhao Pan. What she didn't know was that Yao Wu was actually more concerned about what Zhao Pan would do to him if he did. She was like a mother to Zhao Pan, so she knew everything about her, especially how she felt about the men in the sect.
"I'm sorry, Yao Wu. But he's the best chance we have to keep Yu Qiuyan in the sect," Shi Lan replied.
Hearing her explanation, Yao Wu understood why she was doing it.
Yu Qiuyan came from the Royal Court. So ever since she joined the Black Paradise sect, the Royal Court had been sending them plenty of cultivation resources and raw materials. The longer Yu Qiuyan stayed in the sect the more the Black Paradise sect benefited from it. Unfortunately, Yu Qiuyan had already made it to the Core Court and became a mentor all in 3 years. If they did nothing, it was likely that she would leave the sect in the following year. She was the best thing that happened to the Black Paradise sect for nearly a decade, so the Matriarch was desperate to make her stay, even if it meant assigning Xiao Fang to her team to seduce her. The longer Xiao Fang could make her want to stay, the better.
"Long Wang could've come from another Major Sect, you know," Yao Wu suddenly said.
Shi Lan had already considered it, but since the Black Paradise sect was last on the country's Major Sect tier list, they were lenient towards other Patriarchs' children joining the guild. If they could leave a good impression on that disciple, they might even have an ally in the future. As long as Xiao Fang didn't come from the Divine Sword sect or Chaos sect, Shi Lan didn't think she had anything to worry about.
It was unlikely that Xiao Fang would come from the Divine Sword or Chaos sect because both sects practiced body cultivation methods. It wouldn't explain how Xiao Fang was able to reach the top 10 on the trail pod test after only a year of spirit cultivating. The Matriarch explained her thoughts to Yao Wu then she agreed.
"Perhaps we'll get a clue if he participates in the upcoming event. That reminds me, have any of the other major sects replied to our invitation yet?" Shi Lan asked.
"Not yet, but I expect that we'll receive word from them soon."
...
While the Matriarch and Yao Wu were talking, Li Lian had been eavesdropping on their conversation, especially when the topic of her fiancé was brought up. She didn't know why they were so interested in Xiao Fang, but it was making her feel a bit worried.
'I hope he's going to be alright,' Li Lian thought.
.
.
.
.
.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hello again, readers. I'm finally back! Thank so much for waiting all this time. I made a few changes and spent that past 2 weeks coming up with a pretty exciting story line, hope you enjoy :)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Changes:
" Changed Xie Li's age from 19 years old to 18 years old, making her only 1 year younger than Xiao Fang
" Changed the man named Yu Hai (only briefly mentioned once in the story - in chapter 97) to a young woman named Yu Qiuyan
" 4 Major Family sects in this province:
1.) Li
2.) Gao
3.) Song
4.) Yao (Changed Zhao into Yao)
" The silk ribbon dual cultivation appointment with Pan Xiu scheduled for tomorrow is now changed to next week. (Chapter 219)
" Divisional Class placements (Chapter 219)
- Yan Mei, 4th Division
- Pan Xiu, 4th Division
- Song Wen, 4th Division
- Shao Yu, 4th Division
Chapter 222 - Ambitious Eyes
For Xiao Fang's first class, the Teacher went over 2 different techniques. The 1st was a movement technique called [ 100 Step Clone Maneuver ], while the 2nd one was a support technique called [ Clone Vessel ]. Even though they were both simple techniques, Xiao Fang had never seen them before, so he paid close attention to the lecture.
Since the Divine Realm Teacher was performing both techniques herself, Xiao Fang knew he could gain even more insight if he used his visual technique.
[ Spirit Perception ]
Just like before, his surroundings changed. Every inanimate object became black, but outlined in grey, while the body of every person was white with the Qi inside of them being as clear as day. His blindfold didn't obstruct his vision at all, the only thing it did was conceal the fact that his eye colour changed from violet to blue.
Seeing the external movement of the Teacher was one thing, but seeing her internal Qi flow gave Xiao Fang an even deeper understanding of the techniques she was using. The more he watched, the more he understood, but after a while he began to experience a minor backlash.
Despite the pain he was feeling behind his eyes, he continued to use the visual technique till the end of the class. By the time the class was over, Xiao Fang had almost completely comprehended both techniques, but his eyes hurt so much he felt like could barely open them. Xiao Fang quickly ate a healing-regeneration pill and let his eyes rest.
'It seems I still haven't mastered it,' Xiao Fang thought.
There was no other way he could train his visual technique besides repeatedly using it. Lucky for him, he didn't need his eyes as much as the average person did, so he was confident he could master the technique fairly quickly.
.
Name: [ 100 Step Clone Maneuver ]
Type: Movement
Realm: Core realm
.
1st level: 10 Step Clone Maneuver
> Prerequisites: Spirit Foundation realm
> A tricky maneuver with 2 clones to confuse an opponent.
.
2nd level: 50 Step Clone Maneuver
> Prerequisites: Spirit Refinement realm
> A tricky maneuver with 3-4 clones to confuse an opponent.
.
3rd level: 100 Step Clone Maneuver
> Prerequisites: Spirit Core realm
> A tricky maneuver with 5-6 clones to confuse an opponent.
.
.
.
Name: [ Clone Vessel ]
Type: Support
Realm: N/A
> The ability to adopt all of your clone's senses, and experience the world through its eyes.
> To use this technique one must be in a meditative state. Mastery of this skill would allow the cultivator to simultaneously use the [ Clone Vessel ] technique without having to go into a meditative state.
.
.
.
Once the class was over, the disciples bowed to the teacher and thanked her for the lesson before going out to their smaller divisional class. However, when Xiao Fang arrived outside of the 5th divisional classroom, he found that his fellow 5th division classmates were all standing outside in a line, and waiting to go in.
Xiao Fang walked to the back of the line then asked the person in front of him what was going on. Since he was the only guy in the entire Phoenix-Class, the woman immediately recognized him.
"Ah, we're just waiting to get our monthly allowance. We get them at the start of every month," she explained.
Xiao Fang was a bit surprised to hear that because he thought he already received his monthly allowance after passing the inner court exam.
'... I'll need to be a little more careful this time around,' he thought as he looked into his nearly empty spatial pouch.
After closing his spatial pouch, he noticed that the girl in front of him was still staring at him with an innocently curious gaze.
"What's your name?" Xiao Fang asked.
"I'm Gao Nian. You're Long Wang, right?"
"Mn, that's right."
'Her surname is Gao, huh,' Xiao Fang thought.
After meeting Gao Chen, Li Lian's previous deceased fiancé, he assumed that the Gao family were all deceitful and vile people. However, the girl standing in front of him didn't match that description at all. He didn't think she could even hurt a fly. However, there was a chance that she could be from a different Gao family, since it wasn't uncommon for people from different provinces to share the same surnames.
He noticed the guild nameplate around her waist which read 'White Jade' and made a mental note of it.
"Um... I was wondering, are you really blind or are you just pretending to be?" Gao Nian asked.
Xiao Fang thought for a second then replied, "I'm not blind, but I'm not pretending to be either."
Gao Nian was a bit confused by his words, so she was going to ask a follow up question. However, she stopped herself when she saw the woman approaching from behind him. Of course, Xiao Fang could sense her too, but she didn't seem to be sneaking up on him in a threatening way, so he didn't think much of it.
"Ch-Chen Li," Gao Nian suddenly said, attracting the gaze of the other disciples in the line.
'Chen Li? Where have I heard that name before?' Xiao Fang thought.
It only took Xiao Fang a second to remember. Back when he just passed the Inner Court Exam, an Inner Court disciple obstructed his path, telling him that someone named Chen Li wanted to see him. He scared the messenger off, but not before telling her to tell Chen Li to come herself if she wanted to speak to him.
Xiao Fang had no reason to speak to Chen Li so he didn't turn around. However, there were others who were eager to get on her good side.
"Chen Li. I'm Lai Yun. If there's anything you need, I-"
Chen Li gave the girl a mean look, which instantly made her stop talking. Chen Li looked back at Xiao Fang then spoke in a soft tone,
"Long Wang, do you know who I am?"
Xiao Fang partially turned around before replying.
"No, I don't think I do."
"My name is Chen Li. I'm a part of the upper management running the White Jade Guild. Perhaps you've heard of us."
"Upper management, huh. Why would someone like you want to talk to someone like me?"
Xiao Fang asked the question many of the girls around him were thinking. Even Bai Fan and Zhao Pan, who were both farther down the line, were curious.
"I came here to give you an invitation. If you are interested, we would like you to join our guild."
The girls that heard it gasped. Xiao Fang was practically living their fantasies. Chen Li herself came all the way here to recruit him; how special would one have to be to warrant that much respect from someone in the White Jade guild's upper management.
Xiao Fang didn't immediately reply.
Chen Li was a fairly intimidating looking girl, but he could tell that she was making an effort to be respectable.
'Is she just trying to maintain a good public image or does she really want me to join her guild?' he thought.
However, Xiao Fang knew it had to be the former since the contract the White Jade guild offered him was nothing more than a slave contract. But still, it didn't make sense why she would come here to ask him.
Whether she was being genuine or not didn't matter to Xiao Fang, since he started his own guild, there was no way he was going to leave it for hers.
"I regret to inform you that I am already in a guild, so I must respectfully decline your invitation," Xiao Fang said while tapping his guild nameplate.
The girls around him almost couldn't believe what they were hearing. Was there really someone so foolish to pass up on the opportunity to join one of the most prestigious guilds in the inner court? And Chen Li even came all this way to personally invite him herself.
...
"Just who does he think he is?"
"Did he really just choose a no-name guild over the White Jade guild?"
"He wouldn't know what's good for him if it slapped him on the face."
"Unbelievable. There are no doors to hell, but he still managed to barge right in."
"That boy must be stupid as well as blind."
...
The words spoken by the girls around him became progressively harsher as the reality of the situation began to set it. However, Xiao Fang paid no mind to them, the only thing he was disturbed about was Chen Li's reaction.
Xiao Fang had been paying attention to how Chen Li might react to his rejection, but she hardly reacted at all. It was almost as if she was expecting him to turn it down. If her goal was to simply turn the other girls against him, then he didn't think he had anything to worry about, but those were ambitious eyes staring at him, he could feel it before she even said a single word.
'What is she planning...'
Chapter 223 - Lai Yun's Request
After Chen Li left, Xiao Fang's fellow classmates gave him the death stares before returning back to their spot in the line.
Xiao Fang sighed, 'Why is it so difficult to leave a good first impression these days...'
.
.
.
After Xiao Fang received a spatial pouch containing his monthly allowance, he took it inside and sat on a seat near the back of the class before opening it. What he saw inside put a light smile on his face.
Sitting closer to the front of the class was Bai Fan. When she saw Xiao Fang come in, she assumed he'd be upset after everything that happened outside. She was tempted to go comfort him, but she hesitated because she didn't know what to say. After a few seconds, she eventually convinced herself to go talk to him. She thought if there was ever an opportunity to get closer to Xiao Fang, it was now.
While Xiao Fang was happily admiring all of the merit points in his spatial pouch, he noticed Bai Fan sitting down right beside him.
"Bai Fan... Long time no see."
"Hello again, Da Long," she smiled at him.
Xiao Fang knew who she was because the last time they spoke, they ended up having sex in the middle of an empty classroom. He didn't really remember much about her besides the fact that she was an extremely popular disciple in the outer court and that she had a strong backer in the sect. Xiao Fang usually tried to avoid sleeping with the daughters of elders because he didn't want to get into too much trouble. However, he made an exception that one time because he wanted to seduce Jiang Mei.
He didn't realize it before, but the more they talked the more chemistry they seemed to have. She wasn't nearly as cold and detached as she appeared to be. She actually had a fairly heartwarming smile.
Bai Fan was also a bit surprised by how easy it was to speak to him. Before they knew it, they felt as if they were the only two people in the room. However, their conversation was cut short when a beautiful middle-aged woman standing at the front of the class began to speak.
"Quiet down everyone. I have a few things I want to say before we start today's class."
Xiao Fang recognized the woman almost immediately.
"Elder Su, will you be our divisional teacher this year?" one girl asked excitedly.
"Yup. That means you're all stuck with me for the rest of the year," Su Lingxi said with a friendly smile.
Despite how she made it sound, many of the girls in the Phoenix-Class knew that Su Lingxi was the best assistant teacher out of the 5, that was the reason why almost everyone became excited by her words.
"Now then, let's see~" Su Lingxi said as her eyes scanned the room.
"From what I can see, there seems to be a lot of familiar faces here today, but I also see a few new ones too. For those of you who are new to this class, I congratulate you. Many say that the first year in the Phoenix-Class is always the worst, but I'll do my best to make sure that you all have a wonderful experience."
Xiao Fang wasn't a fan of classrooms or lectures in general, but considering that Su Lingxi was his teacher, he didn't feel too bad about it.
"First off, did you all get a chance to look through your monthly allowances yet? If the number is off, please report it to me at the end of the class," Su Lingxi said.
Xiao Fang had already looked into his spatial pouch, so he didn't bother to look at it again. The spatial pouch he got contained 40,000 merit points and 15 high-grade spirit pills. When he combined it with what he had left over, he had a total of 42,000 merit points, and 33 high grade spirit pills. If he included the allowance Xiao Hei was going to get today, he would have a total of 72,000 merit points, and 36 high-grade spirit pills.
'I'm fucking loaded, hahaha. It seems the sect really treats their Phoenix-Class disciples like kings and queens. I wonder what I should spend it on first,' Xiao Fang thought.
...
Su Lingxi spent the next few minutes explaining a few new things to the new disciples in her class. Firstly, the Head Teacher only gave lectures once a week, so for the rest of the week, it was mandatory for disciples to attend her daily Divisional classes to practice what they learned from that lecture. However, Su Lingxi said that she wanted everyone to have a good night's rest before every lecture, so she was going to give them the last day of every week off.
The disciples were ecstatic. None of the other Divisional Assistant-Teachers would give them days off, it was only Su Lingxi.
Xiao Fang enjoyed Su Lingxi as a person, and he knew he was going to enjoy her even more as a teacher, but he didn't want to remain in the Phoenix-Class forever. He began to wonder if he could stay in her class all year and climb up to the Dragon-Class at the end of the year, so that he could participate in the Core Court exam when the time came.
Once Su Lingxi had said everything she wanted to say, she finally asked, "If you have any questions, please ask them now."
Xiao Fang thought about it for a second, then finally raised his hand.
"Yes, Long Wang," Su Lingxi said in a friendly tone.
Trying to be careful with his words, he asked, "Do you know if it's possible to go up by more than 1 division at a time?"
The moment Xiao Fang asked his question, the other disciples glared at him with scornful and loathsome eyes. Ever since he declined the White Jade guild invitation, it seemed as if no one wanted to even hear him utter a single word.
"Long Wang, something like that has never happened before, at least not in the Phoenix-Class," Su Lingxi tried to say politely.
As soon as Su Lingxi replied, another middle-aged woman suddenly stood up from her chair and pointed at Xiao Fang before saying,
"Hey, young man, aren't you getting too ahead of yourself? Right now, your only concern should be how you plan to stay in the Phoenix Class after the year ends. I'd be surprised if you don't instantly get demoted straight into the Ant-Class, hahaha."
A few other girls laughed as well, but no one seemed to be taking him seriously. Even Bai Fan believed he was being a bit too ambitious.
"So, are you saying it is possible?" Xiao Fang asked Su Lingxi again, acting as if he didn't even hear the other girl's words.
"Hey aren't you listening?!" the rude girl spoke up again, "Don't tell me that you're deaf as well as blind."
"Lai Yun, please don't be rude in my class," Su Lingxi tried to stop her from insulting Xiao Fang.
"Elder, please excuse my poor behavior, but I can't sit still when my favourite teacher is being insulted by an arrogant and despicable cripple like him."
Her words finally made Xiao Fang frown.
"What good are eyes or ears when the last thing I want to do is see or hear you. If only I could cripple my nose too, so that I wouldn't have to smell you as well," Xiao Fang said.
Xiao Fang felt as if it was out of character for him to be speaking with such a vulgar tongue, he wasn't the type of person to say such things. Usually, whenever a situation like this came up, the only way he knew how to resolve it was with his sword.
Luckily, Su Lingxi didn't seem to mind it. She was just feeling bad that he was getting called names on his first day of class.
Although Xiao Fang's words were brief, Lai Yun was still incapable of hiding her anger.
"Elder, please allow me to fight against Long Wang," Lai Yun requested in a single breath.
[ For the purpose of training, every divisional classroom had a large training area connected to it. However, from time to time, this training area would also be used to squash beefs between disciples through supervised fights. ]
The girls in the class all seemed to be siding with Lai Yun, but Su Lingxi didn't want to agree to the fight. Xiao Fang was new to the Phoenix-Class so she didn't think he could stand a chance against her. However, before she could reject Lai Yun's proposal, Xiao Fang suddenly stood up.
"Good, good! Let's settle this with a fight then. Don't think because you're a girl that I'll spare you."
"Long Wang, what are you-" Bai Fan whispered, but before she could finish what she was saying, Xiao Fang spoke again.
"Big sis, please allow me to teach that smelly girl a lesson. Otherwise, I won't be able to focus for the rest of the class," Xiao Fang also requested Su Lingxi to supervise their fight.
Although his words made Lai Yun's eye twitch, she was actually happy to hear him also request for a fight.
Su Lingxi didn't know what Xiao Fang was thinking, but since he also wanted to fight, she knew it was going to happen whether she supervised it or not. If they could squash their beef here under her supervision, at least then she would be able to stop it before he got hurt too badly.
As reluctant as she was to agree to it, she also didn't want the other girls to think that she showed favouritism towards any one disciple.
"Very well. Follow me."
Chapter 224 - No Excuses
"Very well. Follow me."
.
.
.
Since Lai Yun and Xiao Fang were preparing to fight, Su Lingxi made the other disciples move all of the tools and practice dummies off to the side. Once they were done, Su Lingxi told them all to wait in the classroom.
"Aww, can we watch, please~. We almost never get to see fights like these," the disciples begged.
"Elder Su, I wouldn't mind it if they stayed. Although, I would understand if Long Wang would prefer to not be embarrassed in front of so many people," Lai Yun mocked.
It was obvious what Lai Yun was trying to do, but Su Lingxi was still worried that Xiao Fang would fall for it.
"Let them stay. I also have no problem if they watched our fight," Xiao Fang said.
Su Lingxi sighed.
"Alright, all of you can stay, but if anyone interferes in their fight, they will be punished severely."
"Thank you, Teacher!" the girls said happily.
Bai Fan was worried about Xiao Fang, not because she was scared that he'd get hurt, but more so that he'd get humiliated by Lai Fan.
Zhao Pan was also there too, but unlike Bai Fan, she didn't really care about Xiao Fang's wellbeing. To her, this fight was simply an opportunity for her to see what he was capable of. Since she was still planned to force herself onto him someday, she wanted to know what his strengths and weaknesses were.
.
.
.
Xiao Fang and Lai Yun stood about 50 meters apart from each other. Xiao Fang seemed relatively calm, but Lai Yun seemed to be struggling to contain her excitement. She believed if she could beat Xiao Fang in front of everyone, Chen Li might look upon her more favorably and invite her into the White Jade guild.
The disciples watching were talking amongst themselves as they waited for the fight to begin, but the moment they saw Su Lingxi holding up a black feather, they immediately quieted down.
"The fight will begin the moment this feather touches the ground. Do you understand?" Su Lingxi said.
Xiao Fang and Lai Yun both nodded.
Su Lingxi placed the feather onto her palm, then gave it a light blow. The feather flew off of her hand, and floated towards Xiao Fang and Lai Yun.
The room was completely silent as they watched the feather slowly descend. It was probably the quietest it had ever been since they walked into the room.
When the feather was only a few inches off the ground, Lai Yun smirked and clenched her fists in anticipation. The moment the feather touched the ground, the crowd erupted with cheers.
...
"Lai Yun! Lai Yun! Lai Yun!"
"Lai Yun, make him eat dirt!"
"Get him, Lai Yun! No mercy!"
...
'These girls must really hate my guts...' Xiao Fang thought with a bitter smile.
Just as he finished that thought, he noticed Lai Yun coming at him with a fierce kick, but he easily dodged it with a simple turn.
Boom!
The ground shook violently from the force of her attack.
'She's in the lower stages of the Solid Body realm. Not bad for a spirit cultivator her age,' he thought.
As soon as she touched the ground she jumped towards him again, and again, each time getting faster and faster. However, no matter how fast she went, Xiao Fang was always just a fraction of a second faster than her.
...
Su Lingxi already knew Xiao Fang was strong, but she didn't think he was this strong.
'It seems that I've underestimated him. Lai Yun still hasn't used her spirit power yet, if he can beat her before she does, he might have a chance at winning,' Su Lingxi thought optimistically.
Bai Fan, on the other hand, was less optimistic. She also didn't know how strong he was exactly, but judging by the way he was just narrowly dodging each attack, it seemed like he was struggling. The girls cheering around her were all thinking the same, the only difference was that they all wanted him to lose.
Zhao Pan sat all alone as she watched the fight. Just for being a Body Cultivator, the other girls avoid her like the plague. She had been getting this kind of treatment all week so she didn't expect anything different. As for the fight, she didn't have any thoughts of it yet, but that slowly changed as the fight progressed.
Just from his movements, Zhao Pan could tell that Xiao Fang had mastered a pretty decent movement technique. He was able to quickly switch from being heavy footed to light footed in an instant, so that made him extremely nimble and difficult to hit. Still, she wasn't particularly impressed because she knew she could've easily dodged Lai Yun's attacks as well.
...
'Damn it! Why is it so hard to hit him?' Lai Yun thought angrily.
"Lai Yun, he's getting tired. Keep going!"
"Come on, Lai Yun! Stop toying with him and hit him already!" The girls shouted.
...
Lai Yun finally stopped trying to use basic attacks against him and tried to hit him with one of her body cultivation techniques. Sensing that she was finally going to use a body cultivation technique on him, Xiao Fang stopped moving and waited for her to come. Lai Yun didn't know why he stopped, but there was no time to think about it since she had already thrown her punch.
The punch missed, but then her body quickly spun in the air before landing a powerful kick.
Pa!~
Xiao Fang blocked the attack, but he was still pushed back by it.
'What a strong attack,' Xiao Fang thought.
Even though his body cultivation was an entire realm above hers, he had to admit that attack hurt quite a bit.
...
"Nice hit!"
"Get him!"
"Do it again!" The girls cheered.
...
However, Lai Yun immediately jumped back after executing her technique. What no one seemed to understand was the amount of force she put into that attack. Despite hitting him so hard, she somehow sustained more damage than he did.
It didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on, so when she finally did, she began to frown even more deeply.
"All this time..." she said under her breath.
Her voice was too quiet for anyone to hear, but Xiao Fang still heard it.
'It seems she figured it out,' he thought.
Lai Yun didn't know why he was hiding his true body cultivation, nor did she care, all she knew was that she couldn't keep going easy on him. In the next moment, Lai Yun's body exploded with Spirit Qi, then 2 [ Illusory Clones ] appeared next to her.
Even though he couldn't see it, Xiao Fang could still feel the volumes of Qi around her dramatically rising.
Xiao Fang knew he could've easily won the fight by now. The only reason why he didn't was because he didn't want Lai Yun, or anyone else, making any excuses for her losing the fight. He wanted her to go all out, so that everyone could see her lose despite doing everything she could to win. That meant waiting for her to use her illusory techniques.
The other disciples began to cheer even louder when they saw her bring out her 2 illusory clones. Although they wished that she had landed a few more punches and kicks before she did, they were still happy to see that the real fight was about to begin.
Chapter 225 - Illusory Silver Whip
Lai Yun didn't immediately make a move. She continually released her spirit Qi, exposing her current Spirit Cultivation realm.
"5th stage of the Spirit Core realm. It seems she recently made another breakthrough," one girl said.
Lai Yun continued to release her Qi until there was an abundant amount of it surrounding herself and her clones.
In the next moment, her brows began to wrinkle as her concentration deepened, then all the Qi she released began to quickly gather into her right hand.
Xiao Fang knew that she was preparing something, but he didn't know what.
Since he was blind growing up, he naturally developed the sense to detect Qi all around him, even if it was faint. However, it wasn't very useful in battle, because he could only vaguely guess the general location of the Qi when it was near him.
Unless he used his [ Spirit Perception ] technique, it would be difficult to properly fight against her. However, he knew that his eyes were still recovering after using it for so long during the lecture. So, he decided against it for now.
Lai Yun's spirit Qi was finally beginning to take shape.
For the girls who weren't new to the Phoenix-Class, they immediately recognized what it was.
"Illusory Silver Whip!" A few of the girls said in astonishment.
.
Technique name: Illusory Whip of a 1000 Transformations
Type: Weapon
Realm: Divine Realm
.
1st level: Illusory Whip
> Prerequisites: Spirit Foundation realm
> A whip that can create multiple images of itself before it strikes a target.
.
2nd level: Illusory Silver Whip
> Spirit Refinement realm
.
3rd level: Illusory Golden Whip
> Spirit Core realm
.
4th level: Illusory Imperial Whip
> Profound Realm
.
5th level: Illusory Whip of a 1000 Transformations
> Divine Realm
.
Although the Black Paradise sect had many spirit weapon techniques, the [ Illusory Whip of a 1000 Transformations ] was the only one that was a Divine Spirit realm technique.
...
"Lai Yun is amazing. She should have no problem making it into the 4th Division this year."
"Isn't that just overkill? Why is she using such a strong weapon technique against him?"
"Don't you remember how arrogantly he was acting earlier? I bet she wants to teach him a lesson. How else would he know how vast the gap is between Heaven and Earth?"
The other girls all seemed to agree with the one commentating over the fight.
...
Xiao Fang could hear the girls talking so he learned a bit about the technique Lai Yun was using. Still, he didn't think he needed to worry.
However, even though his cultivation was higher than hers, he couldn't use any of his secret Cultivation Methods or Spirit Attribute against her. Furthermore, since she was using the [ Illusory Body ] Method, he knew that her overall battle power would increase by another realm. Thinking about it like this made Xiao Fang realize that it wasn't going to be as easy as he thought.
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, Lai Yun and her clones began to move.
Since Xiao Fang was wearing a blindfold, he could only sense her real body coming at him, what he could only vaguely detect was that she and her clones were holding a spirit weapon.
When he was only 25 meters away from her, she used her whip. Sensing the motion of her arm, it wasn't difficult to predict the trajectory of the attack, so he ran towards her at a moderate speed then comfortably jumped over the horizontal strike as if it were a hurdle. However, before he could touch the ground, the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly rose up; It was his Swordsman's instincts.
There was no way to know the motion of her clone's arms so it was impossible for him to know where it was coming from. Without even a fraction of a second to think about it, he almost instinctively used his visual technique.
[ Spirit Perception ]
!!!
Suddenly, Xiao Fang felt a sharp pain in his eyes. The backlash was so strong, he didn't even attempt to dodge the incoming whip.
In the next moment he felt a whip wrapping around his body before being thrown across the room.
Boom!!!
Xiao Fang was pulled and sent flying across the room, only stopping when he viciously collided against the wall.
His head was still ringing from the backlash, so it took him a while to even realize what was happening. He eventually found himself at the center of a crater high up in the wall with the whip still tied tightly around his body.
The whip wasn't strong enough to keep him restrained, but before he could break out of it, a flurry of whip strikes came his way.
Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa! Pa!...
Each strike hurt Xiao Fang quite a bit as it pushed him deeper into the wall till nobody could see him. Finally, she used the whip that was still tightly wrapped around him to pull him out of the hole and throw him to the ground.
"Eat shit!" She yelled as she tried to pull him out, but then she noticed that her whip was broken.
In the moment of confusion, Xiao Fang used a [ Solid Clone ].
Before she could turn around to look back up at the hole in the wall, she saw him standing on the ground just under it.
"No way," one girl in the crowd said in disbelief.
When the others eventually saw Xiao Fang too, they also shared her disbelief. He was completely fine, and there wasn't even a scratch on him.
...
"How is that possible!?"
"I don't understand. Didn't he get hit? How could there not even be a speck of dust on him?"
Su Lingxi couldn't even answer that herself, but then she realized something was a bit too strange.
'Could it be a clone?' She thought. 'That would mean...'
Su Lingxi couldn't see him, but she also couldn't tell how deep the hole went.
Bai Fan knew he was strong, but she also didn't believe it was possible to escape such a violent barrage of whips unscathed.
Zhao Pan simply frowned. That attack was definitely something she didn't think she could avoid or endure. So, the only thought running through her mind was, 'How?'
...
Meanwhile, Xiao Fang's real body was still up there in that hole, and he was pretty badly hurt. He wiped the blood from the corner of his lips then rubbed his 2 fingers together.
'If my Li Lian heard that a disciple here was able to make me bleed, I wonder if she would believe it,' he smirked at the thought.
He didn't know why he was thinking about Li Lian at a time like this, but now that he was, he began to wonder how she was doing, and if she was able to make any breakthroughs since the last time he saw her.
Xiao Fang eventually took out a healing-regeneration pill from his spatial ring then ate it as he walked to the edge of the hole while under [ Stealth ]. He then lifted his blindfold up, then looked down at his classmates in all their colours.
'There's quite a few gems amongst them. It's a shame that they hate my guts. Well, for now anyway...'
He sat down then noticed Bai Fan within the crowd. He couldn't see it before, but looking at her face now, he could tell that she had put on a bit of makeup. She was already a very beautiful woman, arguably even more so than Xun Wei, but seeing her the way she was now made her comparable to Li Lian.
'Bai Fan, Daughter of Supreme Elder Bai. Pursuing someone like her would be daring, even for me,' he thought.
What Xiao Fang didn't know was that Supreme Elder Bai was known to have a bit of an anger problem as well.
As attractive as Bai Fan was, Xiao Fang eventually looked away. He had fun stretching his arms and legs after such a long lecture, but he knew this fight had gone on for long enough.
'It's about time I end this.'
Chapter 226 - Undisputed Victory
'It's about time I end this.'
.
.
.
Watching from the hole in the wall, Xiao Fang had taken his blindfold off so he could see Lai Yun and her clones below.
Meanwhile on the battlefield, Xiao Fang's [ Solid Clone ] stood with clean robes and it didn't have a scratch on him. Everyone present stared at Xiao Fang in disbelief.
"No way," Lai Yun thought out loud.
Lai Yun had used everything she had into that attack, so she especially couldn't believe what she was seeing.
'It must've been a clone. Yes, that has to be it,' Lai Yun eventually convinced herself.
However, the more she thought about it, the less she believed it to be true.
...
"Are you done?" asked Xiao Fang apathetically.
Lai Yun frowned.
If it wasn't clear before, it certainly was now, Xiao Fang didn't put her in his eyes at all. But who was Xiao Fang? Not only was he in the outer court last year, he was also a body cultivator and a man as well. These were the 2 things most of the girls in the inner court looked down upon. She didn't care if he had a higher body cultivation than her, getting defeated by a person like him was absolutely unacceptable.
Since she didn't reply, Xiao Fang assumed that she had lost the will to fight. However, before he could make a move, he saw her do something strange.
"Is she giving up?" one girl commented.
Lai Yun's [ Illusory Silver Whip ] began to fade, then her 2 [ Illusory Clones ] returned to her side. Suddenly, the room became silent.
Many of the girls watching assumed that she had given up, but Xiao Fang thought otherwise.
Lai Yun closed her eyes, changed her breathing, and relaxed her muscles. When she opened her eyes again, Xiao Fang was surprised to see that she was neither angry nor helpless. For the first time in the fight, she almost seemed stoic.
Although she was unarmed, she still stood her ground, and carried herself in a way that made her seem in control.
Seeing her act this way, made Xiao Fang have a second opinion of her.
'Perhaps if she wasn't trying to provoke me to get on the White Jade guild's good side, then things might've turned out differently between us,' Xiao Fang thought.
Whether they were friend or foe, enemy or ally, Xiao Fang respected them all the same if they were the type of person to keep fighting even when victory seemed out of reach. Xiao Fang had seen plenty of cowards kowtowing and begging for forgiveness in this sort of situation, but Lai Yun was no coward.
In the next moment, Xiao Fang's [ Solid Clone ] dashed towards her. At the same time, she created 2 more [ Illusory Clones ] then sent them running into 4 different directions. If there was one thing Lai Yun learned about him, it was that Xiao Fang always knew where her real body was, and never went after any of her [ Illusory Clones ].
'Come,' she thought as she waited for him to get closer.
Once Xiao Fang was only 10 meters away, she suddenly turned around and jumped high up into the air.
'Now!' She thought.
Her clones finally turned around then began to unleash an endless barrage of powerful spirit attacks on him.
As soon as the girls realized what Lai Yun was doing, they all became a bit more optimistic. Xiao Fang's [ Solid Clone ] was being targeted from 4 different angles, there was nowhere to run.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The attacks from the Illusory Clones created formless clouds of dust all around him. Xiao Fang tried to make his clone dodge the first few, but as the dust got thicker, it became more and more difficult for his real body to see through it. He eventually decided to make his [ Solid Clone ] go after Lai Yun in the air.
Lai Yun was nearly at the apex of her jump when she saw Xiao Fang emerge from the cloud of dust, and he was headed straight for her.
"There!" one girl said as she pointed in the air. The other girls all looked up and saw Xiao Fang going for Lai Yun.
"It's over," Xiao Fang said.
Instead of seeing the fear of getting hit in her eyes, he saw a smirk instead. Suddenly, he saw something wrapping around Lai Yun's waist.
'A whip?' he thought.
Xiao Fang's [ Solid Clone ] just narrowly missed her in the air as she was being pulled away by the clone pulling the spirit whip.
"You're right, it is over!" she grinned menacingly as she was being pulled back down to the ground.
...
"It worked!"
"He fell for the trap!"
"Go, Lai Yun!!" the girls shouted for her to finish him.
...
Since it was impossible for his [ Solid Clone ] to dodge while it was in the air, no one thought he could escape what was coming.
'How could he fall for such an obvious trap,' Zhao Pan thought.
Bai Fan thought that Xiao Fang was really trapped, so she looked at Su Lingxi to see if she was going to stop Lai Yun before Xiao Fang really got hurt. However, Su Lingxi stood with her arms crossed as if she wasn't going to do anything.
Su Lingxi didn't have any particular reaction to it because she was still suspicious of something. His robes were too clean. Even if he were to muscle through Lai Yun's Silver Whip attack from before, his robes should've been at least a little dirty after exiting the hole. If she had to guess, she suspected that his real body was still up in that wall, and he was using this time to recover his strength.
As soon as Xiao Fang reached the apex of his jump, Lai Yun and her clones all unleashed all the spirit power they had in their bodies. At the same time, the girls watching from the side abruptly jumped out of their seats as if they were watching the epic conclusion to an amazing fight.
In a matter of seconds, they all watched as Xiao Fang's [ Solid Clone ] got obliterated in the air and tore him to pieces. For a second, some even believed that the attack accidently killed him, but when they saw his body slowly turning back into Qi they realized what it was.
Time slowed as she watched the clone fall lifelessly to the ground.
'Impossible,' Lai Yun thought with wide eyes.
Suddenly, the clone's head slowly turned to her as its body was fading. Then, she unexpectedly heard a voice.
{"Your trap was not bad... but..."} Xiao Fang said through a spirit transmission.
'That voice...' she thought as she stared more intently at his falling clone.
{"There's one thing you should never put inside a trap..."}
Suddenly, Xiao Fang soundlessly appeared behind her as he came out of [ Stealth ]. At the same time, Lai Yun felt his chilling presence, then heard him say a single word.
"Me."
Purely reacting out of instinct, she tried to jump away, but it was too late.
'I can't escape!' She thought in fear.
Seeing him winding his arm back, she assumed that he was going to use a powerful martial body cultivation technique. However, contrary to what she believed, Xiao Fang didn't use any body Qi at all. Using only the palm of his hand, he delivers a striking blow to her gut, sending her flying across the room.
Boom!!!
As soon as she crashed, everyone stopped looking at the falling clone then saw Lai Yun lying unconscious against the wall. Standing not too far away from her body was Xiao Fang.
Xiao Fang won, but not only that, it seemed like he had hardly broken a sweat. Seeing how things turned out, if someone were to now say that he merely won by luck, others would assume that it was rather their brain or vision that was lacking. Lai Yun was utterly defeated, this was Xiao Fang's undisputed victory.
How Xiao Fang beat her was a mystery, so the other girls assumed that he had used a powerful technique to knock her out in one blow. If he were to tell them the truth, he didn't think anyone would believe him.
...
While Su Lingxi and Bai Fan were relieved, Zhao Pan felt something else.
'He won...' Zhao Pan thought in disbelief.
She always assumed that he was just a philandering playboy, so it never occurred to her that he could be this strong.
If Zhao Pan were to face Lai Yun, she felt like she could hold her ground in a hand to hand combat, but if Lai Yun were to use her spirit Qi against her then Zhao Pan wouldn't even last a minute. Since Xiao Fang was able to defeat Lai Yun, Zhao Pan didn't think she could stand a chance against him .
'What am I supposed to do now?'
The more she thought about it, the less likely it seemed that she'd be able to force him to take her virginity.
'I need to find another way.'
Chapter 227 - Li Lian's Plan
In the core court of the Black Paradise sect, there was a special training place where Core Court disciples would go to practice their [ Illusory Clone ] technique.
There, Xun Wei was alone and cross-legged in the center of the room. Across from her were two illusory clones and it seemed as if she was trying to make a third. However, every time she got close it would just break apart and disappear.
She had lost count how many times she had failed, but she never gave up because the reward for success was just too great to pass up.
.
.
.
"Xun Wei, it looks like you could use a training partner," someone suddenly said.
When Xun Wei opened her eyes, she saw a stunningly beautiful girl wearing bright red robes, sexy thin red lips, a gorgeous pearl necklace, and 2 diamond earrings. Her eyes were as green as emerald, and her hair was as red as the setting sun. Even without her makeup on, she would still be the most beautiful girl in any room she walked in. She was Xun Wei's good friend Li Lian.
"Did you miss me?" Li Lian said with a warm smile on her face.
"Li Lian, it's you. Where have you been?"
"The Matriarch allowed me to go back home to visit my family. I only returned a few days ago."
Xun Wei looked up and down Li Lian's body then became surprised by what she was wearing.
"You look... different," Xun Wei said.
"You think I look too girly, don't you."
"Expensive, was the word I was thinking of."
Li Lian sighed.
"The Matriarch enjoys dressing me up like a doll rather than training me. I had to practically beg her to teach me a technique."
"You learned a technique? What's it called?" Xiao Hei asked.
"[ Clone Reanimation ]."
Xun Wei never heard of the technique, so Li Lian gave her a quick demonstration.
"Wow! How long did it take you to learn it?"
"A little more than a week," she rubbed her nose wittingly. "How about you? Has Elder Yao Wu taught you anything yet?"
"A bit, but nothing similar to the technique you just showed me. Elder Yao Wu has only been going over the basics with me, but I already learned a lot of it from Xiao Fang," Xun Wei said.
Hearing Xiao Fang's name made Li Lian react in a peculiar way.
"Speaking about Xiao Fang, have you gone to see him yet?" Li Lian asked.
Xun Wei shook her head, "No, I haven't."
"Why not?"
"I was told Core Court disciples weren't allowed into the Inner Court. However, Elder Yao Wu told me that she'd give me permission if I could make a 3rd [ Illusory Clone ]."
"3rd? Have you already reached the 1st stage of the [ Illusory Body ] Spirit Refinement realm?" Li Lian asked.
"No, not yet. Why do you ask?"
Li Lian suddenly created 2 [ Illusory Clones ].
"I only recently learned how to make a 2nd [ Illusory Clone ]. I was going to start practicing to make a 3rd, but then I was told that it would be extremely difficult to do that before reaching the [ Illusory Body ] Spirit Refinement realm."
Xun Wei was quiet for a moment then shook her head helplessly.
"I should've known it wasn't going to be easy," Xun Wei sighed before sitting back down.
Li Lian was confused by her reaction then asked,
"You're going to keep trying?"
"I don't really have a choice if I want to see Xiao Fang again. Trying to reach the Refinement realm could take months. I'm confident that I could make a 3rd [ Illusory Clone ] in half that time."
"What if there was another way," Li Lian said.
Xun Wei opened her eyes again then looked up at Li Lian.
"What other way?"
"Let's sneak into the Inner Court, and find him together."
Xun Wei's eyes widened when she heard those words. Although she thought about sneaking out before, she never really considered it.
"What if we get caught?" Xun Wei whispered.
"Whatever the punishment is, don't you think it would be worth it?" Li Lian said mischievously.
Unlike Xun Wei, Li Lian had never been the kind of girl to think about the consequences of her actions, so Xun Wei would typically be the one to reject such a proposal. However, in this specific case, Xun Wei really wanted to see Xiao Fang too.
"How do you plan on getting out without being seen?" Xun Wei asked.
"I made a few friends that showed me a way," Li Lian smiled since Xun Wei seemed to be on board. "I also learned that Xiao Fang is a guild master now, and he goes by the name: Long Wang."
"Long Wang, huh. I wonder how he came up with that one," Xun Wei joked.
The two girls laughed.
"So, I'll come by tomorrow morning, then we can go together."
"Ah... this week isn't good for me. How about we go next week?"
"Why next week?" Li Lian frowned.
"Elder Yao Wu wants me to start going on missions next week. If we go when she thinks I'm on a mission, she won't be suspicious of my absences," Xun Wei explained.
Li Lian thought about it for a second then ended up liking the idea. Even though she wanted to see Xiao Fang as soon as possible, waiting another week wasn't going to be a big deal.
"Alright, let's do it your way," Li Lian said.
Xun Wei inwardly sighed in relief.
Although Xun Wei also wanted to see Xiao Fang sooner rather than later, she wanted to learn a good technique first, like Li Lian's new technique, before seeing him.
Since she was a Dual Cultivator like him, she knew that comprehension of certain techniques could be shared through a dual cultivation session. If she were to learn a strong technique before dual cultivating with him, at least then she wouldn't be going back to him empty handed.
There was one technique Elder Yao Wu wanted to teach her, but she's been putting it off because she wanted to learn how to make a 3rd [ Illusory Clone ].
'That technique would do,' Xun Wei thought.
One week wasn't a lot of time to learn a difficult technique, but she needed to try.
Chapter 228 - [ Clone Vessel ]
In Su Lingxi's divisional classroom, Xiao Fang, Zhao Pan, and Bai Fan were put into a group and separated from the rest of the class. Su Lingxi made the excuse that she wanted to teach them separately because they were new to the inner court. However, the truth was, she just wanted to get the other girls away from Xiao Fang.
Since he defeated Lai Yun, his classmates' attitude towards him completely changed.
...
"Brother Long Wang, I never doubted you."
"Brother Long Wang, you're so cool. We should study together."
"Big brother Long Wang, I made it this morning. Have a taste."
...
The same girls who were wishing he were dead, were now trying to get into his bed.
'Girls are scary,' he thought as he smiled bitterly from their compliments.
"Long Wang, Bai Fan, Zhao Pan, please return to the classroom and wait for me there. I'll be with you shortly," Su Lingxi said.
The 3 of them cupped their hands together then left. Once inside, they took a seat on the front row then waited patiently for Su Lingxi to come.
After a while, Bai Yun began to inspect Xiao Fang's body for some injuries, but since his robes completely covered his body, she couldn't tell if he was even hurt at all. The only thing she could see was that Xiao Fang didn't seem tired at all.
"Are you hurt anywhere?" Bai Fan finally asked.
Xiao Fang was a bit lost in thought when he heard her question, so it took him a second to reply.
"Mn, just a bit. That Lai Yun was a tough opponent," he replied calmly.
Despite his words, he acted as if he had just come back from a relaxing swim. Seeing that she wasn't convinced, Xiao Fang suddenly had an idea.
"Ahhh, w-what are you doing?" Bai Fan quickly covered her eyes.
"Didn't you ask me if I was hurt?" he said as he was taking off the upper half of his clothes.
"T-That's not what I meant, I just wanted to know if you were okay."
"Then, does that mean you aren't curious?" Xiao Fang teased.
"Since when did I say I was curious?" She acted angry.
"How would you know if I'm alright unless you see it for yourself? As they say in the Black Paradise sect, 'Believe only half the things you see but nothing you hear'," Xiao Fang quoted a line from the [ Illusory Body ] Method book.
Zhao Pan, who was sitting next to Bai Fan with crossed arms, had no problem looking at Xiao Fang's upper body. She was actually just curious to see what injuries he sustained during the fight to get a more accurate gauge at what his body cultivation realm might be. However, when she saw his body, there wasn't even a scratch on him.
Zhao Pan eventually looked away because she assumed he was just faking being hurt to tease Bai Fan. Although she was half-right, Xiao Fang really believed that he was injured. What he didn't realize was just how strong his passive self-healing abilities were because of his Lightning Spirit Attribute. That, along with the healing-regeneration pill he consumed earlier, reduced the time it took his body to recover back to perfect health.
"You're still not looking?" Xiao Fang asked.
"I'm definitely not gonna look."
"Alright, I'm putting my clothes back on."
"..."
"..."
"Are you done yet?"
"Yeah, you can open your eyes now."
"I don't believe you."
"Alright give me your hand, I'll prove it to you."
Xiao Fang guided her hand to his body, but the moment she felt his strong warm body she immediately took her hand back.
"Ahh! You liar," she complained unconvincingly.
"Hahaha. Alright, I'm definitely fully dressed now."
"I don't believe you!"
"Oh? Zhao Pan, can you tell her that I'm fully dressed."
"He's not," Zhao Pan said uncaringly.
"Hmph, you really are a despicable person, Long Wang," Bai Fan complained again.
Xiao Fang smirked mischievously, "That's right, I'm despicable, the most despicable man you'll ever met. Do you hate me?"
"Ah, well... I don't hate you," she spoke softly.
Xiao Fang smiled handsomely.
Zhao Pan harrumphed inwardly as she watched them acting cute together. She had never seen Bai Fan acting this way even once in the outer court, so she almost couldn't believe what she was seeing.
'What is Bai Fan being so dramatic about? Didn't she have sex with him in an empty classroom before?' Zhao Pan thought annoyingly.
Truth was, Zhao Pan, just like everybody else, didn't really believe that rumor to be true. Bai Fan had a reputation for being cold and untouchable, so for people to say that she had slept with him in a public place was especially difficult for anyone to believe. However, seeing the way she was acting with him now made Zhao Pan finally believe that rumor to be true.
Suddenly, Xiao Fang and Bai Fan stopped messing around when they heard a familiar voice coming from a few meters in front of them. Standing at the front of the class was Su Lingxi.
"Long Wang, you can't just take your robes off in public. This is an all girl sect, at least it used to be. If the others find you like this, they might think you're a pervert," Su Lingxi scolded him.
Even though she meant what she said, she was happy to get a bit of eye candy from him. Xiao Fang didn't really understand these rules since it was common for guys in the Divine Sword sect to go topless; actually, it was a part of their dress code. Still, he did as Su Lingxi said and put his robes back on.
"Zhao Pan, Bai Fan, have you started practicing the [ Illusory Body ] Method yet?" Su Lingxi asked.
Bai Fan and Zhao Pan released a bit of their aura to show that they had cultivated it to the 1st stage of the Spirit Foundation realm.
"Impressive. Now, show me your [ Illusory Clones ]."
Bai Fan and Zhao Pan didn't move.
"Have neither of you learned it yet?"
"Not yet," Bai Fan replied. "It took me all week just to get to the 1st stage with the Cultivation Method."
"I also haven't been able to learn it," Zhao Pan said.
"I see. Well, that's alright. It's good enough that you were able to reach the 1st stage in only a week. For today's class, I want you both to practice the [ Illusory Clone ] technique. If there is a flaw in your practicing method, I'll be here to guide you."
"Teacher, is it really alright for you to be spending all your time here with us?" Bai Fan asked.
"Mn, don't worry, I am merely a clone. My real body is still in the Training room with the other girls," Su Lingxi replied
Zhao Pan and Bai Fan were both noticeably shocked, but Xiao Fang didn't react at all.
Su Lingxi finally turned to him then asked,
"What about you? From what I've been told, you should be able to make 2 clones, right?"
Illusory Qi quickly flowed out of Xiao Fang's body to create 2 flawless [ Illusory Clones ]. Su Lingxi was impressed. She wasn't impressed by how perfect they looked, she was more impressed by how quickly he was able to make them. If she had blinked, she might've missed the whole thing, and not been able to tell which was the original from the fakes.
"In that case, you can join the rest of the class and practice the [ 100 Step Clone Maneuver ] and [ Clone Vessel ] techniques with the rest of them."
"Would it be alright if I stay here with Bai Fan and Zhao Pan to train?" Xiao Fang asked.
"That's fine, stay and practice for as long as you like. However, there isn't enough space for you to practice the [ 100 Step Clone Maneuver ] technique here, so just stick to the [ Clone Vessel ] technique for now."
Xiao Fang nodded once in agreement.
.
.
.
Under Su Lingxi's guidance, Xiao Fang crossed his legs, slipped into a meditative state, then attempted to create a link with his clone. What he eventually learned from Su Lingxi was that he should try to think of it as separating his consciousness from his original body, then letting it take host in his clone.
Since he learned a lot from the General Lecture using his [ Spirit Perception ] technique, and dual cultivated with others who have already mastered it, what would've taken him several days or weeks to learn only took him a few hours. Eventually, Xiao Fang was able to share all of his clone's senses with hardly any effort at all. However, trying to do the same thing with his [ Solid Clone ] proved to be a little more difficult.
With a [ Solid Clone ], he also able to share the sense of touch. This was a sense that was virtually impossible to share with an [ Illusory Clone ] since it couldn't touch anything without destroying itself.
By the end of class. Xiao Fang was able to use the [ Clone Vessel ] technique with his [ Solid Clone ], but he could only use it on one clone at a time, and he would be completely disconnected from his original body while using it. He also couldn't use the technique for longer than a minute, but he knew he could increase that time with a little more practice.
.
.
.
"Elder Su, am I doing it?" Bai Fan asked.
"Yes, that's good. Remember that feeling and try to keep it up for as long as you can," Su Lingxi said.
Zhao Pan stood a few meters away as she was practicing the same technique. However, unlike Bai Fan, Zhao Pan seemed to be having a much easier time with it.
"You both did well, today. When you get home today, I want you to keep practicing this technique. Remember, the sooner you can learn how to make an [ Illusory Clone ], the sooner you'd be able to join the rest of the class," Su Lingxi said.
"Understood," they both replied.
"Elder Su, would it be alright if I leave early? I heard clubs will be holding tryouts today," Xiao Fang asked.
"What club are you going to join?" Bai Fan asked.
"I'm thinking about joining the Inscriptions Club," he replied.
Bai Fan's mother had been trying to persuade her into joining the Inscription club for some time now. She wasn't too excited about the idea before, but since Xiao Fang was going, she found herself opening up to the idea.
"Elder Su, could I leave early as well? I would also like to join the inscription club," Bai Fan requested.
"Go ahead. Class is almost over anyway, so you better hurry if you want to get there before everyone else does," Su Lingxi replied.
The 2 of them slightly bowed to Su Lingxi in thanks, then began heading to the door. But then, Xiao Fang stopped and turned around.
"Zhao Pan, aren't you coming?" Xiao Fang asked.
"I don't have any interest in joining the Inscription club," she replied.
"Then we can find a different club we we both like," Xiao Fang said.
After thinking about for a second, she eventually agreed to join them. Zhao Pan also bowed and thanked Su Lingxi for today's lesson then quickly headed out to the Club Center with Xiao Fang and Bai Fan.
Chapter 229 - Clubs
When Xiao Fang, Bai Fan, and Zhao Pan arrived at the Club Recruitment Center, they were each given a brochure detailing all the clubs that were on each floor. Since Xiao Fang was blindfolded, he put his brochure away and followed Bai Fan and Zhao Pan.
"Looks like we're early," Bai Fan said.
"Classes should be over now, so it won't be long till this place gets packed. Let's finish this quickly before the others arrive," Zhao Pan suggested.
"There's plenty to see here. If you focus half your mind on the destination, you will miss out on half of the journey," Xiao Fang said.
"What?" Zhao Pan looked at him weird.
Xiao Fang chose not to explain since he knew if did it would only confuse her even more. Instead, he remained silent in hopes that she may someday try to find comprehension in those words all on her own.
Truthfully, Xiao Fang had somewhat butchered the words, but it was still put together well enough to be understood. Perhaps if his grandfather, Xiao Kong, were here, he'd be able to make Zhao Pan understand it with even fewer words than his own.
Xiao Fang didn't like his grandfather very much, in fact, he hated him for the things he's done. However, if there was one thing he couldn't deny, it was that Xiao Kong was the wisest man he knew. However, being wise didn't always mean they were right. It only meant that he hadn't found anyone wise enough to prove him wrong.
.
.
.
The three of them went upstairs till they found a room with a sign above its doors reading 'Inscription Club'.
Once they entered the room they saw 2 girls sitting behind a table with a large stack of papers on it. The moment they walked in they attracted the gaze of the two recruiters, and the moment the girls saw who they were they suddenly smiled.
The middle-aged woman sitting behind the table welcomed them with a smile because she noticed the Phoenix embroidered on all 3 of their robes. The younger looking recruiter was smiling because she recognized one of the 3 people that walked in.
The middle-aged woman was the first to speak, "Welcome, young disciples. Are you interested in joining the Inscription Club?"
"Yes, we are," Bai Fan answered.
"I haven't decided anything yet," said Zhao Pan after her.
The middle-aged woman stood up because she felt like she was being rude to be sitting in their presence.
"Well then, I can give you a quick rundown of what you can expect from the Inscription Club, then you can decide whether you want to apply or not."
The middle-aged woman then began to explain the various uses inscriptions could have, trying to make it seem more interesting than it really was. She explained so much about it that even Xiao Fang learned a few things from her explanation. Eventually, she said something that really piqued his interests, so he tried to ask more about it.
"You said that you could even tame a tiered beast. What level inscriptionist would I need to be to do something like that?" Xiao Fang asked.
The woman who seemed to be ignoring his presence until now nearly frowned when she heard him speak, but considering his status as a Phoenix-Class disciple, she knew she definitely couldn't upset him.
"That would depend on the tiered beast, but even a beginner level inscriptionist could do that if it was weak enough," she explained.
"What if it were a cannibal abnormal beast," Xiao Fang asked again.
This time, the recruiter couldn't help but feel annoyed. She was convinced that Xiao Fang was messing with her by asking such a ridiculous question.
"Why are you so curious about inscriptions? Do you really think a blind man, like yourself, could get accepted into this club?" The recruiter finally snapped.
Even though the words were meant for Xiao Fang, Bai Fan and Zhao Pan couldn't help but feel angry because of them.
Although Zhao Pan had been getting treated poorly by others ever since she made it into the inner court, she couldn't help but feel like Xiao Fang was getting it even worse than her.
Zhao Pan looked at Xiao Fang from the corner of her eyes to see how he was taking it, but since he was wearing his blindfold, it was difficult to tell how he was feeling.
Suddenly, the 2nd recruiter that had been quiet all this time finally began to speak. However, her words were neither kind, nor was it directed at them.
"Ru Ji, shut your mouth this instant!"
"Th-This... but this man-"
"I said shut up, or did you not hear me the first time!?" She stared at Ru Ji angrily.
The younger girl finally stood up from her chair.
"Young man, what's your name?"
"My name is Long Wang," he replied.
"Long Wang, for my senior apprentice's poor behavior, I would like to give you this," she said while handing him a special golden token. "If you are still interested in joining our club, please pass your Qi through it and you'll official become a member of this club.
Both Zhao Pan and Bai Fan couldn't believe what they were hearing. Even if the other recruiter was being rude to him, that still didn't mean he should be allowed to join the guild without doing any sort of talent assessment test.
The moment Ru Ji realized what she was doing, her eyes widened in disbelief.
"Young miss, you can't-" Ru Ji said, but before she could finish her words, the young recruiter looked back at her with a terrifying look, reminding her not to say another word.
Zhao Pan was actually a bit annoyed by this. Just a second ago she was convinced that Xiao Fang was having it even harder than she was in the inner court, but it turned out that he was the most privileged bastard she had ever seen.
"Would it be alright if my friends got a token as well?" Xiao Fang suddenly asked.
The young girl seemed a bit reluctant to do as he requested because she only wanted to do him a favor.
"Sure," she finally agreed to it.
Ru Ji could only silently watch with a bleeding heart as her fellow apprentice gave out spots to their club for free and without having to participate in their trials.
Bai Fan didn't understand what was going on, but she still went along with it, and graciously accepted the golden identity token from the young girl. However, when it was Zhao Pan's turn, she refused to take it.
"I must refuse. I have no interest in joining this club," Zhao Pan said.
Even though it was true that she didn't find the club all that interesting, the real reason why she didn't accept the fast-pass invitation to the prestigious club was because she didn't want to owe Xiao Fang any favors.
"Come by the club tomorrow and I'll give you a proper tour of the place. All the clubs in this building will be open after class and will close 4 hours later. You may come and go whenever you like, but all the equipment owned by this club must remain inside," the young recruiter explained.
"I understand," Xiao Fang replied simply.
"Does that mean... you'll come by tomorrow?" she asked in a softer tone.
Xiao Fang finally smiled charmingly then said, "I'll see you tomorrow, Xue Li."
When Xue Li heard her name being said, she couldn't stop herself from smiling.
"See you tomorrow, Long Wang."
Xiao Fang nodded, then left with Zhao Pan and Bai Fan.
Despite how they acted at first, it eventually became clear to everyone that they were more than strangers. This became evident the moment Xiao Fang said her name without her even telling them what it was.
Ru Ji suddenly began to experience a sickening feeling in her stomach as regret began to kick in. If she had only known that he had a relationship with Xue Li, she definitely wouldn't have acted the way she did.
Chapter 230 - Swordsmen Club
Around the time they exited the Inscription Club room, they began to notice a few more disciples coming in.
"Where to next?" Bai Fan asked.
"Zhao Pan. Has any of the clubs listed on the brochure piqued your interest?" Xiao Fang asked.
The only reason why she came was because Xiao Fang said that they could join a guild together. She still wanted to get close to Xiao Fang, but she wasn't the type of girl to act cute around him like most girls did. This was the only way she knew how to do it.
Zhao Pan sighed, then began to look through the brochure one more time. She didn't want to do something useless like pottery or knitting, but she also didn't want to do any spirit cultivating like making cultivation pills and inscriptions. After eliminating all of those options, she was left with a few clubs to pick from.
"How about this one," she said.
Bai Fan walked over to see what she was pointing at.
"Sure, it's just down the hall."
Xiao Fang didn't know what club they were talking about, but he still followed along.
They walked down the hall, passing a few excited disciples along the way. The place was starting to get a little more crowded, but Zhao Pan didn't seem to care about that anymore.
When they arrived at the next club, Xiao Fang suddenly frowned when he heard what was happening inside.
"A Swordsmen Club?" Xiao Fang asked.
"It looks like they're giving away prizes. Let's go take a look," Bai Fan said.
Bai Fan walked in first, then Zhao Pan followed her in.
"Aren't you coming?" Zhao Pan asked Xiao Fang.
"... sure."
Xiao Fang realized that he was acting strange, so he stopped being so hesitant and followed them in.
It turned out that they really were giving away prizes, but only to those who passed their test.
Since it was a swordsmen club, one might expect it to be full of body cultivators. However, to Xiao Fang's and Zhao Pan's surprise, most of the girls here were all spirit cultivators.
"Hello, young miss. Would you like to take our strength test? If you score high enough, you might even win 1000 merit points."
"Yes, I'm ready!" the girl said.
She didn't seem to be very strong, but she was still very optimistic.
The host for the test took the girl up to the platform then handed her a sword. Suddenly 5 columns of bamboo sticks began to rise up from the ground until they were nearly 1.5 meters tall.
Xiao Fang recognized the bamboo sticks almost immediately because they were the same ones he used to play with as a child.
Despite how they looked, these bamboo sticks were much larger and thicker than the average bamboo stick. The thing that made it especially good for training was that it was harder to break than ordinary bamboo sticks because of the exorbitant amount of natural qi contained in them. Despite all this, these bamboo sticks were usually only used by first year Divine Sword sect disciples to train them how to use a sword. The last time Xiao Fang used one himself was when he was only 6 years old, so it brought back old memories.
'This can't be right. Why are there only 5 sticks?' He thought.
The reason Xiao Fang was confused by this was because anyone in the Body Refinement realm could've easily broken those sticks with their bare hands. Using a sword was just overkill.
...
Test Rewards:
Cut 1 Stick = Pass Test to Join Club
Cut 2 Sticks = 100 merit points
Cut 3 Sticks = 500 merit points
Cut 4 Sticks = 1000 merit points
Cut 5 Sticks = Phoenix Jade Hairpin
...
Xiao Fang couldn't figure it out. No matter how he saw it, the test was just too easy; anyone should've been able to do it. Xiao Fang decided to listen closely to the girl on the stage attempting the challenge.
Her stance was pathetic, her grip was horrendous, and she was winding back her sword as if it were a baseball bat.
'This is hard to watch...' he thought.
Still, he didn't think the outcome would change since the girl seemed to be in the Body Refinement realm. If Xiao Fang could do it as a child, how hard could it be?
Finally, the girl swung the sword and hit the sticks as hard as she could.
Dung!~
The moment she hit the 1st bamboo stick, the sword instantly ejected out of her hands.
Xiao Fang stood there in confusion as he tried to figure out what just happened. Once he finally did, he nearly blurted out laughing.
He had completely forgotten the main reason why these bamboo sticks were used as training tools for the new disciples of the Divine Sword sect. These sticks had a special property in them that punished those who didn't use a proper form. If the sword didn't cleanly cut through the sticks, it would inflict a backlash on the sword wielder's hands.
The girl that dropped the sword was experiencing the full effect of that backlash because her form was worse than anything he had ever seen.
He couldn't stop thinking about it so it was starting to make his eyes water from holding in his laughter. If any real swordsmen were to see what he just witnessed they might even start pissing themselves about now. Xiao Fang eventually used a high-level breathing techniques just to compose himself.
...
"There has to be a trick to it, don't you think?" Zhao Pan asked as she was looking at the 5 bamboo sticks on the platform.
"Hey, Long Wang, Zhao Pan, come here. If you don't line up now, you'll have to wait longer for your turn," Bai Fan said.
Zhao Pan went and lined up with Bai Fan, but Xiao Fang stayed behind.
"Long Wang, come try it with us. It'll be fun," Bai Fan said to him.
Xiao Fang thought it would be unwise for him to participate in a challenge like this, but he didn't think it would matter if he intentionally failed the test. After another thought, he eventually decided to join them in the line.