In the guest lounge, Vice School Head Zhou and Vice School Head Wei were conversing with one another via zhenqi telepathy.
"Do you think that he will try to escape?"
While the duo wasn't too sure what was going on either, the fact that the school head had had Zhang Xuan's manor surveilled for the past few days meant that he was going to make his move on Zhang Xuan.
"If he refuses to come with us or attempts to escape, we will just have to act as the school head commands and eliminate him!" Vice School Head Wei replied grimly.
"But if we really do so, there is no way School Head Mo, School Head Zhao, and the others will let this matter rest easily…" Vice School Head Zhou said worriedly.
When they first heard the order, they were nearly scared out of their wits.
Considering the prestige that Zhang Xuan wielded among the student populace, as well as his relationship with the various school heads, if he were to be killed… the Apothecary School would fall into deep trouble!
"I am also worried, but there is no way around it. This is a direct command from the school head; we can't disobey it. Don't worry, he must have his own reasons for giving such a command," Vice School Head Wei replied.
Lu Feng wasn't a reckless person, so he must have understood the implications of the order, too. There had to be a good reason for him to make such a command despite that. As subordinates, they would just have to do as they were told.
"You are right; there is no point thinking about it too much. We should just do as we were told…" Vice School Head Zhou nodded.
At that moment, a young man suddenly appeared by the doorway.
Stepping into the room, Zhang Xuan clasped his fist and greeted them. "Vice School Head Zhou, Vice School Head Wei!"
He had met Zhou Qing during the academy's student recruitment period; he was the elder who had helped Luo Ruoxin tidy up the podium for her public lecture.
Vice School Head Zhou stood up and said, "Zhang shi! We are here to invite you to the academy so as to discuss a matter…"
Seeing that Zhang Xuan had not opted to flee, the duo subconsciously heaved a sigh of relief.
"Can you tell me what the matter is regarding?" Zhang Xuan asked.
"I am not too sure about the details either. However, this matter seems to be of grave importance, so I will have to ask Zhang shi to not turn us down," Vice School Head Zhou said with a bitter smile.
Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment before nodding. "I see. Alright then, lead the way!"
With all the preparations Lu Feng had made, surveilling his manor and calling forth the Golden Origin Cauldron, there was no way he was going to let Zhang Xuan escape easily. Since it was impossible to avoid it, there was no point in delaying the inevitable.
"Yes, this way please!" Seeing how Zhang Xuan agreed to it readily, Vice School Head Zhou hurriedly gestured forward, as if fearing that the other party would change his mind.
Zhang Xuan's manor wasn't too far away from the Master Teacher Academy.
Under the lead of the two vice school heads, it didn't take too long before they arrived at the Elder Hall.
Pushing the door open, Zhang Xuan walked in.
The first thing he noticed upon stepping into the Elder Hall was the ancient aura that permeated the room.
The Elder Hall had been around ever since the establishment of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, and it had been several millenniums since then. The design and the architecture of the room formed a stark contrast with the rest of the Master Teacher Academy, leaving one feeling as if one had stepped into the past.
Gazing around the room, Zhang Xuan saw the Ten Great Master Teachers and Pavilion Master Mo seated around, and a massive cauldron stood at the center of the room.
Hmm? Mu shi?
Suddenly, Zhang Xuan caught sight of a familiar figure. It was the man who had acknowledged him as his grandteacher, Mu Yuan!
Why would that fellow be in the academy as well?
But despite Zhang Xuan's surprise, he didn't allow his etiquette to fall short. He clasped his fist and greeted School Head Mo and the others, but upon reaching Lu Feng, he placed his hands behind his back and said, "Junior, what are you waiting for? Aren't you going to pay your respects to me?"
Since Lu Feng was trying to do him in, there was no need to show any courtesy to him.
"You…" Hearing those words, Lu Feng nearly choked on his anger.
Was that fellow really that brave, or was it plain naivety?
It was such a solemn setting; did he really not feel the slightest bit of fear?
Lu Feng narrowed his eyes and flicked his wrist. 'Jiya!', the door closed, and a formation seemed to have started operating within the room, leaving the air slightly heavy.
With the doors closed, Lu Feng glared at Zhang Xuan with killing intent reflected in his eyes. "Zhang Xuan, your identity has already been exposed. If you plead guilty, we might still consider sparing you. Otherwise… not only will you be killed, those who are related to you will be implicated as well!"
Zhang Xuan frowned, seemingly confused by what Lu Feng had said. "My identity has been exposed?"
"Still feigning ignorance? Dong Xin, tell him!" Lu Feng sneered coldly as he gestured Dong Xin forward.
"Yes!" Dong Xin nodded. "Zhang Xuan, I saw with my own eyes how you used a formation to confine Senior Byzantium Helios, and after the latter broke out, you had twenty of your Otherworldly Demon subordinates pummel him…"
"You saw with your own eyes?" Zhang Xuan was momentarily stunned.
Ten days ago, when he was teaching the Byzantium Helios Beast a lesson, the latter managed to escape due to the formation being too weak… Could that lady have been hiding in his manor at that time?
It seemed the formations that King Huai had prepared for the manor weren't reliable after all. He would have to work on them when he returned later on. Otherwise, if others could enter and leave his manor as they pleased, it could pose as a potential source of trouble.
"That's right. I swear on my name as a master teacher that I saw you command your subordinates to assault Senior Byzantium Helios. From start to end, you said a total of three sentences, the first one being, 'Trying to escape? Vicious, take it down!', followed by 'The rest of you, get him! Pummel him to death!', and finally, when Senior Byzantium Helios passed out, you said, 'It fainted again…'. Is there any mistake with what I said?" Dong Xin asked.
She would never forget what she had seen that day. The viciousness that the young man before her had shown had been imprinted deep in her mind.
"You do have a good memory…" Seeing how the other party was able to recount what happened that day perfectly, Zhang Xuan scratched his head awkwardly.
Unaware of the Byzantium Helios Beast's true identity then, he had thought that it was a crony of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Naturally, he wouldn't show any mercy to it.
"He is admitting to it?"
Realizing that Zhang Xuan wasn't denying the matter, everyone was flabbergasted. If he had truly commanded Otherworldly Demons to pummel Senior Byzantium Helios…
Was he really from the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe then?
Unable to believe what he had just heard, School Head Mo stood up and asked in agitation, "Zhang shi, did you really assault Senior Byzantium Helios?"
He was the first one to notice that Senior Byzantium Helios had gone missing, kidnapped by more than a dozen Otherworldly Demons as deduced from the traces left behind. The Master Teacher Academy had devoted its manpower to searching for it for half a month now, but there were no signs of him anywhere.
He had contemplated many possibilities, but never could he have imagined that Zhang Xuan would be the culprit!
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"I… did order my men to pummel it before," Zhang Xuan confessed.
"It's good that you have admitted to it!"
Seeing that Zhang Xuan had confessed to the matter, Lu Feng was taken aback for a moment, not expecting everything to go so smoothly, before a sharp glint flashed across his eyes. He hurriedly turned around and said righteously, "Mu shi and Senior Golden Origin Cauldron, Zhang Xuan has already admitted to his identity as an Otherworldly Demon. I ask of you to have him killed so that no other human will be harmed by him!"
With a deep frown, Mu shi turned to Zhang Xuan and questioned authoritatively, "Zhang Xuan, what else do you have to say for yourself?"
If Zhang Xuan truly turned out to be an Otherworldly Demon, then regardless of the other party's close ties with Luo shi, he would have to fulfill his responsibilities as a master teacher and eliminate the other party.
Seeing Lu Feng eagerly pinning such a huge crime on him, Zhang Xuan rolled his eyes. "Wait a moment. When did I admit to being an Otherworldly Demon?"
"Why? Are you going to start denying the matter now? Justice will eventually fall on all evildoers; you won't be getting out of this no matter how well you argue your case. Since you have already admitted to assaulting Senior Byzantium Helios, what else can you be if not an Otherworldly Demon?" Lu Feng sneered.
"I did order my men to pummel the Byzantium Helios Beast before, but how does that prove that I am an Otherworldly Demon?" Zhang Xuan shook his head.
"There is no one in this academy who doesn't know that Senior Byzantium Helios is the tamed beast of the old principal. Assaulting him is equivalent to insulting our entire Master Teacher Academy, insulting us master teachers…" Lu Feng bellowed authoritatively.
"Insulting the Master Teacher Academy and master teachers? Your imagination sure is wild…" Zhang Xuan shrugged helplessly. "If that is really what you think, there is nothing that I can say… I can only have the Byzantium Helios Beast explain the matter to you then!"
Saying those words, Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist, and the football-like Myriad Anthive Nest appeared in the room. The nest jolted for an instant, and the massive figure of the Byzantium Helios Beast abruptly emerged from it.
"It is Senior Byzantium Helios!"
"Senior Byzantium Helios isn't injured at all?"
Upon seeing the Byzantium Helios Beast appearing before their eyes, everyone was stunned for an instant before doubts began filling their minds.
Not only was Senior Byzantium Helios not weakened from his 'injuries' as they had thought he would be, he was even overflowing with vitality and power. In fact… it seemed like he was even stronger than before!
Wasn't he pummeled to the state of near death?
What was going on?
Gazes swiftly turned to Dong Xin, waiting for her to explain the matter.
Feeling the intent gazes on her, Dong Xin's face paled. She could hardly believe what she was seeing as well.
She had personally witnessed the saint beast writhing on the floor in pain and passing out… But not only was Senior Byzantium Helios completely fine, he had even grown stronger!
More importantly… when she first met the latter, he had been trying to escape from Zhang Xuan! Yet, at this very moment, he was standing motionlessly, seemingly devoid of any hostility for Zhang Xuan!
She wasn't the only one who went pale at this situation. Lu Feng also felt an ominous premonition when he saw Senior Byzantium Helios appearing before him, and his entire body stiffened. Just as he was about to speak, the young man before him beat him to it.
"Byzantium Lad, Junior Lu Feng over here claims that I am an Otherworldly Demon because I had my men pummel you. Explain this matter to everyone for me!"
"Byzantium Lad?"
Hearing how Zhang Xuan addressed Senior Byzantium Helios, the crowd nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.
School Head Mo's eyes swam around the place in frenzy.
Everyone in the room respectfully addresses him as 'senior', but you actually cut all formalities and even called him a 'lad'… Aren't you afraid of him killing you with a slap?
He was a beast tamer, so he understood just how proud Senior Byzantium Helios was.
Even he had to treat the other party with the utmost respect, not daring to even speak loudly.
To address Senior Byzantium Helios in such a disrespectful manner… Aren't you pushing it too far?
But before they could recover from their shock, the esteemed Senior Byzantium Helios clasped his fist and bowed right before their eyes. "Yes, master!"
"Master?"
"Senior Byzantium Helios… is addressing Zhang shi as his master?"
Lu Feng felt the world before him turning dark, and the other nine master teachers also swayed weakly, feeling as if their perception of the world had been completely shattered.
Who was Byzantium Helios Beast?
The tamed beast of the old principal, possessing a standing even higher than the Ten Great Master Teachers of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, second to only the Golden Origin Cauldron. With such standing, it was inevitable that his pride would be so large that it could reach the clouds.
"Master is a Cele… a master teacher recognized by the Master Teacher Pavilion, so how could he be an Otherworldly Demon? That is utter nonsense! The reason he had someone beat me up was to help me achieve a breakthrough in my cultivation!"
Paying no heed to everyone's shock, the Byzantium Helios Beast drove its cultivation, and an overwhelmingly powerful aura gushed out from its body.
Hong long!
Under that immense pressure, everyone's souls jolted in astonishment.
The Byzantium Helios Beast had been thinking about how it should address this matter for a while now.
If he were to say that it was pummeled due to a misunderstanding, he could very well shatter his image as an esteemed elder of the Master Teacher Academy. If that was going to be the case, he might as well claim that the other party was helping him achieve a breakthrough.
In any case, he did manage to achieve a breakthrough to Saint 2-dan.
"Saint 2-dan… Spiritual Perception realm!"
"Senior Byzantium Helios managed to achieve a breakthrough…"
Everyone was stunned once more.
It was extremely hard for natural-born saint beasts like the Byzantium Helios Beast to achieve a breakthrough in their cultivation. This was the reason why, despite the years it had spent with the old principal, it had remained trapped at Saint 1-dan pinnacle, unable to overcome its bottleneck.
Yet, in just half a month of absence, it had managed to take the final step forward and reached Saint 2-dan…
It was just a moment ago that they had thought that Zhang Xuan was an Otherworldly Demon because he had assaulted Senior Byzantium Helios. But just shortly after that, Senior Byzantium Helios had personally stepped forward and revealed that Zhang Xuan was his master and even displayed his newfound strength.
This turnaround was so swift that they could hardly keep up.