Chapter 1144 - News on Sun Qiang
It was just a moment ago that she said that it was ridiculous for one to obtain an emblem without any examination when her teacher delivered an emblem straight to the other party in the very next moment… If only there was a hole in the ground at this moment, she would burrow into it without any hesitation.
Too embarrassing! It was too embarrassing!
In the first place, it was rare for a male to learn terpsichorean arts, but not only was the young man before her a terpsichore, his emblems were even given straight to him by the Terpsichore Guild. Was this for real?
“Teacher, do the headquarters have a procedure to give out emblems straight? Why haven’t I heard of it?” Unable to stand it any longer, Fairy Ziyan asked.
“The headquarters grant special care to those who have made great contribution to the terpsichore occupation, and this includes certain privileges in the promotion of ranks as well. Previously, Zhang shi has altered the Dance of the Rippling Cloud Robe, granting it prowess on par with a grade-7 terpsichorean art. With such contribution, putting aside a mere 7-star emblem, as long as Zhang shi wills for it, he can easily qualify as an elder of our branch!” Wei Ranqin replied.
“Altered the Dance of the Rippling Cloud Robe? He’s the one who altered that terpsichorean art?” Fairy Ziyan’s body trembled as disbelief sank into her eyes.
She had long heard of that someone had managed to improve the Dance of the Rippling Cloud Robe, and she was astonished by the significant rise in its prowess when she cultivated the altered version.
Not only was it far stronger than before, the soul energy required for its execution was also reduced by at least two-thirds. With this, the technique had become far more practical in battle than before. At the very least, terpsichores wouldn’t find themselves completely drained and powerless after executing this single technique.
It was in view of the astonishing prowess of the altered Dance of the Rippling Cloud Robe that nearly all 6-star terpsichores and above in their guild had cultivated this terpsichorean art. She had thought that the person behind the alteration would at least be an 8-star terpsichore at the very minimum. Who could have thought that the person would actually be a twenty-year-old young man?
More importantly, she had even mocked the other party just a moment ago…
“Un. Not only did Zhang shi alter the Dance of the Rippling Cloud Robe, he also has a unique insight into the essence of terpsichorean arts. Your Senior Aunt Ranxue has reported all of these in detail to the Terpsichore Guild, and it’s in view of those that the headquarter made a special exception and distributed the 7-star emblem to him straight.” Guild Leader Wei Ranqin explained.
Even though she had learned of the matter from her junior through the conversations that they had a while ago, she still couldn’t help but find the entire matter inconceivable, especially after seeing how young Zhang Xuan was in person.
It was one thing for him to have such a deep understanding of terpsichore despite his young age, but more than that, he had also shown outstanding accomplishments in the other occupations as well… Even she couldn’t help but feel deep admiration for the other party.
“This…” Fairy Ziyan’s face turned completely scarlet from embarrassment. Biting her lips, she stepped forward and bowed apologetically, “Zhang shi, I apologize for my previous rudeness. I hope that you can forgive my ignorance.”
“It’s fine, I won’t take it to heart, so you don’t have to worry about it.” Zhang Xuan waved his hands and smiled. “If you still feel bad about the matter, it’ll do as long as you help my brother over here resolve the issues with his soul during the Exclusive Dance with him later on.”
With his current state of mind, the views of others couldn’t faze him anymore. Honestly, it didn’t really matter to him whether Fairy Ziyan apologized or not.
“Thank you.” Seeing that the other party didn’t blame him for this matter, Fairy Ziyan bowed gratefully. After which, she turned her gaze towards Chu gongzi to ask the latter what kind of flaws his soul had, only to see the latter staring at Zhang Xuan with an astonished look on his face.
“Y-you… You know about the injuries of my soul?”
He hadn’t told anyone about the injuries of his soul for fear that his enemies would use it against him. As such, not even his father was aware of the matter. All along, he had been hiding it under the cover as a profligate individual, and yet, a person whom he had just met an hour ago pointed it out so easily, as if it was nothing at all…
“While your soul may seem compact, there are still some portions which aren’t fusing well with the rest of your soul. If I’m not mistaken, it’s probably the result from being assaulted by an enemy while you were in the midst of a breakthrough to the Embryonic Soul realm!” Zhang Xuan said with a smile.
With the increment in the prowess of his Eye of Insight, even if Zhang Xuan didn’t use the Library of Heaven’s Path, he could still easily see what was wrong with the latter.
The other party’s soul had been damaged due to being assaulted by an enemy during a crucial stage in a breakthrough, but fortunately, the injuries he had sustained didn’t seem to be too severe. Furthermore, it seemed like he had been visiting the Spring Pavilion regularly to nourish his soul through terpsichorean arts, and he was just a little short form making a complete recovery.
As long as Fairy Ziyan were to earnestly help him resolve his issue, he should be able to make a full recovery very soon after watching a few more terpsichorean arts.
Thus, while the process might be a little slower then, there was actually no need for Zhang Xuan to make a move.
Even though Chu gongzi had only buddied up to him thinking that he was a fellow ‘comrade’ treading down the same path, ultimately, it was still thanks to the other party that he was able to enter the Spring Pavilion and meet Guild Leader Wei Ranqin so easily.
Naturally, it would only be right for him to return the favor, especially since it was only a trivial matter.
“I…” Chu gongzi’s face turned scarlet. He couldn’t find any words to speak at this moment.
It was true that his injuries were caused from being assaulted by an enemy in the midst of his breakthrough to Embryonic Soul realm.
However, as this matter concerned a very huge secret, he dared not speak of it to another soul.
Yet, the young man before him was able to see through him so easily, even accurately determining the cause of his injury… The other party’s eye of discernment was truly, in every sense of the word, astounding!
He had thought that the other party was only a lecherous fellow, but who could have thought that he would actually be a hidden expert!
“Guild Leader Wei, is it fine if I browse through the 7-star terpsichore books in your library?” Having dealt with the matter over here, Zhang Xuan turned to Wei Ranqin and clasped his fist.
“As a 7-star terpsichore, you are definitely qualified to browse through our 7-star terpsichore books. This way please!” Wei Ranqin nodded before leading the way forward.
Following behind her, it didn’t take long for them to arrive in a vast room.
“All of the books of our Terpsichore Guild is in there. As long as you have the required emblem on hand, you will be able to enter and leave the premises freely.” Wei Ranqin said as she gestured forward.
“Un. I’ll be troubling Guild Leader Wei to take care of my three friends over here then. This young lady over here is Hu Yaoyao, and she’s the prodigious disciple of School Head Wei!” Zhang Xuan nodded as he gestured to the three ladies behind him.
“Junior Ranxue’s disciple?” Guild Leader Wei was surprised as she turned her gaze over to Hu Yaoyao.
“Yaoyao pays respect to Senior Aunt!” Hu Yaoyao quickly stepped forward and bowed politely.
“Un. Not bad, not bad…” With a look, Guild Leader Wei couldn’t help but nod in approval.
On top of their innate talent, terpsichores rely heavily on their external appearances as well.
The more beautiful a terpsichore was, the more likely she would be able to bring forth greater prowess from terpsichorean arts. Regardless of whether it was her figure or her appearance, it was apparent that Hu Yaoyao’s looks were far above that of Fairy Ziyan. As long as she had a good teacher to guide her along, she would be bound to achieve great things in the future.
Guild Leader Wei nodded in satisfaction. Seeing this, Zhang Xuan decided to speak no longer, and taking out his emblem, he entered the library.
The library was extremely vast. Countless books were stacked compactly in neatly-positioned shelves, which seemed to extend all the way to the horizon.
Without bothering himself with the 1-star to 6-star books, Zhang Xuan headed straight towards the section with 7-star terpsichore books and began scanning through them with his gaze.
Hualala!
Countless books materialized in the Library of Heaven’s Path.
After undergoing the fourth acknowledgement of Celestial Master Teacher, while the Library of Heaven’s Path didn’t undergo any changes, Zhang Xuan’s ability to process things did rise significantly. As such, the rate at which he could collect books was also raised considerably.
It took him less than an hour to collect all of the 7-star terpsichore books into the Library of Heaven’s Path.
“Compile!” With a thought, Zhang Xuan gathered all of the books together and formed the 7-star Heaven’s Path Terpsichorean Art.
Another hour later, he exhaled deeply, and a brilliant gleam shone from his eyes.
Having the grasped the 7-star Heaven’s Path Terpsichorean Art, his mastery as a terpsichore had risen to the level of a 7-star pinnacle terpsichore. Due to the overwhelming prowess of the Heaven’s Path Terpsichorean Art, his skills could be said to be comparable to most 8-star primary terpsichores.
But of course, that was only in terms of knowledge and mastery. With his current Saint 2-dan pinnacle cultivation, if he were to meet a real 8-star terpsichore, he would do well to flee as fast as he could.
As long as his cultivation hadn’t met the mark, he wouldn’t be able to display the full prowess of his terpsichorean arts.
“Alright, another supporting occupation cleared. Two more left to go, and I’ll be able to be promoted to 7-star master teacher!” Standing up and stretching his back, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
“Perhaps I should try the Appraiser Hall and the Painter Guild. The examinations of those two occupations are slightly simpler.” Zhang Xuan thought with a smile.
The Beast Tamer Guild was a considerable distance away, and considering that it was an Upper Nine Paths occupation, its examination was likely to be more rigid and rigorous, thus more time-consuming as well. Since that was the case, it would be better for him to drop by the Appraiser Hall and the Painter Guild to take a look.
Walking out of the library, Zhang Xuan saw that Guild Leader Wei and the others were still standing around the area. Thus, he walked up to them and said, “I have truly imposed on Guild Leader Wei this time around. I still have matters to attend to, so I’m afraid that I’ll have to take my leave first.”
“Guild Leader Wei, we’ll be taking our leave too.” Seeing that Zhang Xuan was about to leave, Luo Qiqi and Yu Fei-er clasped their fists as well.
“Un.” Guild Leader Wei nodded. “I’ll keep Yaoyao here with me for the time being. There are some things which I would like to ask her.”
Zhang Xuan took a look at Hu Yaoyao to seek her opinion on the matter, and only after seeing the latter nod did he reply, “Alright.”
“Zhang shi, are we returning back to the Combat Master Hall?” Leaving the Terpsichore Guild, Yu Fei-er turned to Zhang Xuan and asked.
“I’m intending to drop by the Appraiser Hall. If you have things to attend to, feel free to leave.” Zhang Xuan said.
“I-It’s fine, I’ll head there with you!” Yu Fei-er replied swiftly.
“Same here too…” Luo Qiqi nodded.
Seeing that the duo was determined to continue tagging along with him, Zhang Xuan decided to say no more. After determining the direction of the Appraiser Hall based on the description Hall Master Xing provided him, he was just about to head over when a young man dressed in black suddenly approached him.
“May I ask if you are Zhang Xuan, Zhang shi?” the young man clasped his fist and asked.
“I am.” Zhang Xuan replied with a frown.
He hardly knew anyone in Qingyuan Empire, so why would anyone seek him?
“Our Old Master wants to meet you.” the young man said.
“Your Old Master wants to meet me?” Zhang Xuan was perplexed. “Who is your Old Master?”
“You will know once you meet him.” the young man replied nonchalantly.
“Pardon me, I’m not free.” Zhang Xuan waved his hand and turned the other party down.
He was currently busy at the moment, so why should he waste his time on someone who wasn’t even willing to report his own name?
“Hehe, our Old Master said that Zhang shi will dare not turn down his invitation.” A peculiar smile appeared on the young man’s face, seemingly suggesting that he might have already anticipated such an outcome.
“Oh? I dare not turn down his invitation?” Zhang Xuan scoffed in displeasure.
It was one thing for the other party to not report his name despite requesting to meet with him, but to utter such conceited words on top of that… It was apparent from this that the other party couldn’t possibly be an upright individual!
“Zhang shi, why don’t you take a look at this before making your decision?”
The young man flicked his wrist and passed an item over.
Perplexed, Zhang Xuan took a look at it.
It was the tattered fabric of a robe.
With just one look, Zhang Xuan narrowed his eyes menacingly, “You kidnapped Sun Qiang?”
He was certain that the fabric had come from Sun Qiang’s clothes.
He hadn’t paid any heed to Sun Qiang’s disappearance, thinking that the latter was out feasting, drinking, and saving damsels in distress, enjoying his life to the fullest… He didn’t think that the latter would actually be captured by someone else!
More importantly, it was apparent that the other party knew who he was, but despite so, the other party still chose to resort to such a brazen and arrogant course of action.
“We are currently hosting Butler Sun in our manor as a guest. Our Old Master has entrusted me to bring Zhang shi over at all cost, or else what that would be sent over next might not just be a simple piece of fabric anymore but…” Seeing that Zhang shi recognized the object, the young man smiled gleefully. However, before he could finish his words, a sharp pain assaulted his abdomen, causing his face to distort hideously.
Peng!
Zhang Xuan’s powerful kick had left the young man’s organs jolting under the powerful impact. If the slightest bit more force were to be exerted, the other party’s organs might just end up being shattered on the spot.
Padah!
The young man flew several dozen meters across the street before skidding to a halt. Clutching his abdomen, his entire body was scrunched together like a shrimp from the excruciating pain.