"Fang Yuan didn't come to class today. Look guys, his seat is empty."
"He's so bold! Today's lesson is taught by the academy elder, yet he dared to not show up."
"This is bad, the elder's expression is ugly, it seems that Fang Yuan is in trouble. Hehehe."
In the academy, the youngsters discussed softly. A few glanced towards Fang Yuan's empty seat, as well as the academy elder's darkening expression. Ever since he started the extortion, Fang Yuan stood against everyone in the class. Seeing him in trouble, all the students were excited for what was to come.
The academy elder's expression was stiff as he explained the crux of nurturing the aperture while secretly staring at Fang Yuan's seat.
He laughed coldly in his heart, "Fang Yuan, oh Fang Yuan. I was still worried about not being able to catch your weak point yesterday, and here you give it to me today. You are after all a fifteen year old teenager, I have overestimated you."
His ugly expression was mostly fake. His motive was to use this opportunity to find trouble with Fang Yuan and punish him, eliminating his increasing dominance in class. Undeniably, as time passed, Fang Yuan's dominating presence was getting stronger, causing the other students to be barely catching their breaths.
A one-sided dominance was not what the academy elder wanted to see. He wanted to see the entire class shining.
"Men!" The academy elder raised a finger and knocked lightly on the table.
"Elder, your subjects are here." The two guards standing outside at the door entered.
The academy elder snorted in public, "This Fang Yuan is getting out of hand, being so lazy and skipping classes right under my nose. Go to the hostel and bring him here for me."
"Yes, elder." The guards went on their way. Seeing the guards disappear outside the door, the academy burst into discussion noises.
Numerous students joined in the conversation.
"Fang Yuan is in deep shit now," someone said with his eyes shining brightly.
"Hehe, we have a show to watch later." Another laughed in pleasure towards Fang Yuan's misery.
"Big brother, you are too arrogant. This is challenging the elder's authority. No matter what punishment it is, you had it coming." Gu Yue Fang Zheng looked at the empty seat, sighing internally.
Bam, bam, bam!
The academy elder with a strict expression, slammed the desk thrice, "Silence, no talking in class!"
His aura at this moment was like a volcano about to erupt, causing fear in others.
Immediately, the academy fell into pin-drop silence. The students fearfully shut up, quickly getting into position. Except, although their expression was so, their thoughts were already deep into this matter.
The class continued, the youngsters not concentrating at all.
A few students by the window looked out constantly.
As time passed, after a while, footsteps could be heard at the door. Instantly the students' ears twitched, tens of eyes showing bright expressions.
"Arriving…" The academy elder heard the footsteps too and narrowed his eyes as a result.
He had already thought of how to deal with Fang Yuan. He'll punish him to stand outside for three hours.
Although the punishment was not heavy, it was enough for him to be humiliated.
Throughout lessons, students entering and leaving would see Fang Yuan standing there.
This way, it would ruin Fang Yuan's image of invincibility. When the students realize that Fang Yuan was nothing special, the impact he has on them would be greatly reduced. This would result in them gaining courage and stir their competitive spirit.
The great part was, since Fang Yuan's punishment came from the academy, this would improve the academy's reputation.
Only with reverence will they obey.
Thus, while the method is simple, it has deep intentions underneath.
The footsteps got closer, and finally someone stood outside the door.
Knock, knock, knock.
Knocking sounds could be heard.
"Hehe, I will open it!" The student near the door volunteered and enthusiastically went to open the door.
The academy quietened down, numerous eyes staring at the door.
Crack.
The door was easily opened by the student, exposing a gap.
Sunlight infiltrated from the gap. The student opening the door suddenly froze, shuddering suddenly.
"AHH!!!" He was stunned for a second before suddenly screaming, subconsciously taking a large step backwards. His body knocked onto the desk and he instantly lost his balance, falling with the table onto the ground.
The boy's face was pale, his expression horrified, limbs trembling and unable to exert strength. Lying on the floor, he frantically tried to get up, but fell back down again and again.
"What's wrong?!" In a moment everyone was astonished, all of them frowning deeply.
Numerous gazes curiously looked towards the door.
The door was slowly pushed opened by the person outside.
The academy elder stopped his lecture out of reflex.
What everyone saw first, was a hand on the door.
A teenager's left hand.
A left hand with dripping blood.
A bloody hand!
Seeing this bloody hand, many of the female students covered their mouths and screamed in terror.
The door slowly opened fully.
The brightness of the sunlight pricked everyone's eyes, causing them to squint. With the bright sunlight as his background, a dark shadow attached to a thin teenager appeared before everyone.
He didn't know why, but the academy elder felt a strong feeling of unease in his heart.
"It's Fang Yuan!" Someone screamed out loudly.
Everyone who had gotten used to the sunlight could clearly see who the person was.
What met their eyes was Fang Yuan, bathed in blood, standing outside the door as if he had gone through an intense battle.
His left hand slowly retracted, his right hand grabbing onto some hair, dragging along a person. The person's left arm was entirely detached from the base. He was lying there motionless, evidently unconscious. Blood on his left shoulder gushed out.
"It's one of the guards who went to look for Fang Yuan!" Someone recognised the person's identity.
"What exactly happened?" Someone was going berserk.
"He murdered again, this time he killed the guards!" Someone pointed at Fang Yuan, screaming in horror, getting louder and louder, as if it would purge the terror and fear in his heart.
At once, the academy was rowdy.
Many students forgot the rules at this time, and stood up from their seats. They looked towards Fang Yuan with fear, shock, and nervous expressions.
In their imaginations, Fang Yuan would be dragged here by the guards left and right.
But the truth was —— Fang Yuan bathed in blood, his expression cool like a devil approaching. The two guards, one missing while the other lying motionless, blood oozing from his body quickly forming a puddle.
A thick scent of blood permeated the academy.
The academy elder was stunned, he did not anticipate such a scene!
After his shock, came intense rage.
The two guards were merely external martial artists. So what if they died? The academy elder did not really care.
But the crucial point was their identity. They were the academy's guards, representing the academy's prestige. Representing the academy elder's face.
This Fang Yuan was simply too bold. Not only did he kill Gao Wan, now he even went and murdered the academy's guards!
No, this isn't just being bold. He was practically provoking, challenging the clan academy's prestige.
The academy elder flew into a rage, pointing at Fang Yuan, screaming, "Fang Yuan! What is this? You have to give me an explanation, a good reason to spare you. If not, with the crime of murdering the guards, you will be thrown in jail, awaiting the clan verdict!"
The students all shuddered.
Even the windows trembled, the entire academy reverbing with the academy elder's screams.
Only Fang Yuan was calm-looking, his eyes dyed a deep miasma, behaving like usual, unable to see any change in his emotions.
After looking around, Fang Yuan let go of his right arm, and with a plop, the guard's head fell into the puddle of blood, splashing onto Fang Yuan's pants.
He cupped his fists towards the academy elder, his calm voice echoing throughout the silent academy, "Academy Elder, I truly have something to report."
"Speak." The academy elder spoke with both arms behind his back, arching his head as he looked at Fang Yuan, his expression ice cold.
Laughing coldly in his heart, he thought, "Fang Yuan, you're making more and more mistakes, increasing the severity. I'll see how you're going to explain yourself!"
Inside the academy, everyone's attention was on Fang Yuan.
Their expressions showed shock, fear, mockery and callousness.
Fang Yuan paid no attention to these people. He looked at the academy elder with a stern expression, with his finger pointing towards the fainted guard.
"Reporting to elder, these two guards had impure motives, devious intentions! They broke into my room when I was at the crucial moment of breaking through into the middle stage. As everyone knows, a Gu Master cultivating cannot be interrupted. Especially so when one is trying to break through into higher realms. A moment of distraction would not only cause the breakthrough to fail, but their aperture would also get damaged. Thankfully my luck was good, because at the moment where they barged in, I had already stepped into the middle stage."
"However!" Before the masses had reacted, Fang Yuan continued, "These two did not admit their mistakes earlier. To my surprise, they boasted shamelessly about wanting to get rough with me, even scolding our clan's ancestors, lying that the act of disturbing my cultivation was the esteemed elder's decision. Your student did not believe so, and resisted furiously. These two had strong martial arts, and I had to fight for life before finally defeating these two people."
"But seeing as they were the academy guards, your student did not kill them immediately. I merely cut off one of his arms, and the leg of the other person. Although there was quite some blood loss, they are still alive. That is my report for this matter, please uphold justice for me, esteemed elder!" Having said so, he cupped his fists towards the academy elder.
His tone was urgent, saying a ton of information, and leaving no room for others to interrupt.
After he had finished, the surrounding people slowly started to react.
"What did Fang Yuan say earlier, I did not catch it."
"I think he said he advanced to the middle stage!"
"How is that possible, he is just a C grade trash, to think that he actually advanced to the middle stage first."
"He definitely lied, he is afraid of the academy's punishment, thus he lied!"
The students discussed loudly.
When compared to Fang Yuan's advancement to the middle stage, the two guards' lives no longer mattered.
They were not Gu Yue clan members, who cares if they're dead or alive?
"You said you advanced to Rank one middle stage?" The academy elder's voice was ice cold, his expression unforgiving. "Fang Yuan, this is not a laughing matter. If you admit your wrongdoing now, I can still take into account that this is your first mistake and deal with you leniently. If you want to continue lying and attempting to cover up your mistakes, then I can tell you now, lies are easily seen through."
Fang Yuan did not explain himself further, he laughed lightly and said to the academy elder, "Please inspect, elder."
Even without his words, the academy elder had already moved forward.
He placed his hand on Fang Yuan's abdomen, placing a trace of his spirit into it. Immediately he saw the inside of Fang Yuan's aperture.
Within the aperture, there was no Gu.
The Spring Autumn Cicada had already hidden itself. A Rank six Gu is way superior than a Rank three academy elder, so if it wanted to hide, it would not be found easily.
As for the Liquor worm, Fang Yuan had placed it into the dormitory's wine reserves, and did not bring it along.
The academy elder with his eyes shut, could see a green copper primeval sea, calm as still water.
Drops of primeval essence inside were all emerald green colours of middle stage primeval essence.
Seeing the aperture walls, the white coloured aperture walls were glowing with reflected light as if they were all made of water. Gushes of water flow rapidly moved along the wall.
Water wall!
"He really advanced to the middle stage, how is this possible?!" The academy elder shouted in his heart, a sign of shock under his calm expression. But he tried to hide it to the best of his ability, his face still expressionless.
A moment later, after he had digested this fact, he drew back his hand, speaking in a solemn voice, "It is indeed middle stage."
The students had been holding their breaths, awaiting the results.
The academy elder's verdict caused a huge commotion in the academy.
The students were full of bewilderment and shock, each of their faces showing immense disbelief.
Fang Yuan was only a C grade, but yet he was the first to breakthrough into the middle stage, this was against common sense!
For a Gu Master's cultivation and breaking through realms, the most important aspect should be talent. How is this possible, a C grade was the first to advance? How would this make those A grade, B grades feel!
"This!" Gu Yue Fang Zheng's face was pale. He was still confident last night, but now that reality sat in front of him, he was unable to accept such a fact and fell to the ground.
Gu Yue Mo Bei clenched his fists, and Gu Yue Chi Chen hatefully gritted his teeth.
The academy elder could not be easily fooled, so how did Fang Yuan manage to do it?
At once, all the youngsters stared at Fang Yuan, having one question in their hearts —— with that C grade talent, how did he advance?
The academy elder's heart was similarly full of doubt.
Under such great empuzzlement, he ignored the idea of suppressing Fang Yuan and asked directly, "Fang Yuan, I hope you can explain this, how did you manage to advance to middle stage."
Fang Yuan laughed silently, "Heaven rewards the hard-working, and as a result of student's persistent training, I managed to advance smoothly."
"Lies!"
"Tsk, if heaven rewarded the hard-working, I'd be first long ago!"
"Diligently studying and training? Some time ago, I still saw him strolling around the shop district."
The students were evidently not satisfied with such an answer.
"Is that so?" The academy elder replied neutrally, his gaze staring at Fang Yuan, emitting pressure.
Fang Yuan's expression was candid, making eye contact with the elder without fear.
His body was bathed in blood, his linen shirt messy, as if he had gone through an intense battle.
A pair of black abyss-like eyes, showing a kind of peacefulness, indifference, and even hiding a hint of amusement.
Seeing such a gaze, the academy elder's heart wavered.
"This Fang Yuan, he is not afraid, not fearful, not threatened, and not shocked, how can he be interrogated by me right here? With his C grade talent, being the first to advance to middle stage, there has to be a secret. But since he does not want to say it, as the academy elder, I cannot forcefully interrogate him. It seems I can only investigate this privately."
Thinking of this, the academy elder retracted his gaze and his cold expression became milder.
Fang Yuan however did not let the matter go, "Your student is frightened, esteemed elder. How are you going to deal with these two guards? They have lost a lot of blood, if they are not treated soon, they might die."
"Frightened? You?" The academy elder retorted in his mind. His brows frowned deeply.
At this point, as the person in charge of the academy, he had to step forward and settle this.
"But how should I resolve this?" The academy elder could not help but feel troubled.
He silently began to think.
Fang Yuan took all of the academy elder's change in expressions into consideration. He laughed internally; the academy elder must be really troubled now.
These two guards, they were merely outsiders, their lives cheap as grass. In normal times, no one would care if they died.
But now the situation was different, they were sent out by the academy elder. If they really died, the academy elder would lose his reputation!
Thus, the guards could not die, the academy elder is going to save them.
The part that truly troubles the academy elder is Fang Yuan's verdict.
In his original plan, Fang Yuan first played truant, and then killed the guards. This could be said to be defying his teachers, being arrogant and self-centered. According to the clan rules, he'd be thrown into the clan jail, reflecting upon his mistakes inside.
But when adding in the matter of Fang Yuan's advancement to middle stage, these wrongdoings became very different.
Fang Yuan played truant and killed the guards because he was cultivating. This was reasonable.
The crucial part was, he was successful in advancing to the middle stage, and became the first in this class. This allowed him to be on the side of reason.
Just what did Fang Yuan rely on to advance to middle stage, this secret would be discussed later.
Winners win all, losers lose all, the world only cares about result. No one would reprimand such an outstanding junior.
The academy elder could not execute any punishments on him.
What is the academy for? It is to nurture outstanding Gu Masters, and inject fresh blood into the clan.
Now that we have such an aspiring young man, you as the academy elder still wants to find trouble with him? That would be neglecting your role!
Just like a student who got good results, as a teacher he should be encouraging and praising him, instead of punishing and criticizing. A teacher who punishes and scolds a student for his good results is not one that would ever be recognised.
Perhaps the other elders would secretly cause problems for Fang Yuan because they fear Fang Yuan's future prospects, or because of grudges and past grievances. But him alone, the esteemed academy elder, cannot do such a thing!
Because he is in charge of the academy, he has to be impartial, at least on the surface.
These are the rules!
"Do I just let him go like this? It was not easy finding a weakness of his." The academy elder was indignant. He knew in his heart that all the youngsters in the academy were merely spectators of this matter.
They can only look at the matter as entertainment, but are unable to see the crucial point in this, they are unable to experience the excitement in this battle!
The truth is, this is the one time where he as the academy elder, was battling against Fang Yuan the student.
First he grabbed hold of the rules, and was bent on punishing Fang Yuan, removing his strong image in front of the other students.
Next, Fang Yuan retaliated! His actions may seem rash, but it hit the matter on the point, and with the excuse of advancing to the middle stage, he got back his argument.
As for those two unlucky guards, they were merely sacrificial pawns who were implicated by the two's battle of wits.
"This Fang Yuan, he is too cunning! If he had really killed the two guards, I can still retaliate against him with this reason. Although his talent is lackluster, with such a meticulous and experienced method, it is hard to believe that he is just a fifteen year old. The worst part is, I cannot retaliate. No wonder back in those days, the clan had rumors about his early awakened intelligence!" The academy elder suddenly realised, he had lost.
His loss was due to his status, he was the elder in charge of the academy.
This was both his strength and weakness.
One's strength is also one's weakness.
Fang Yuan had understood this logic long ago!
The academy elder was both helpless and frustrated.
He had asked Fang Yuan to explain, and in actuality Fang Yuan's explanation was full of loopholes and easily exposable.
These guards were chosen by the academy elder himself, they would not be so rash and retarded to scold the Gu Yue ancestors.
Fang Yuan's words were on purpose, it was blatant accusation, framing and laying a trap in front of the other party!
The academy elder was clear of this, but he knew that he could not pursue the matter.
This was a trap.
Once he looked into it, the truth would be revealed, and how would he handle this matter?
If he did not punish Fang Yuan, the two guards would be pitifully framed, and as the academy elder, if he does not handle things impartially, how can anyone trust him?
If he punished Fang Yuan, that would be suppressing and displaying jealousy of the talented! To suppress a junior of the clan for two servants who were not part of the clan, this matter would trigger the unhappiness of the clansmen.
Thus, the best way to resolve this was to pretend to not see anything, and treat these two guards as discarded pieces. Admitting that they had performed a huge mistake, as well as praising Fang Yuan.
This way, the clansmen would be satisfied, and the deceived guards, without additional information, would think of this as being impartial.
If he handled the matter like this, it would give the academy elder the largest benefit.
Logic told the academy elder that this is the way to handle it. But emotionally, he could not take it lying down.
This Fang Yuan was too devious!
The academy elder not only failed to suppress Fang Yuan, but he himself became the stepping stone for Fang Yuan, getting humiliated in public!
Fang Yuan did not show the slightest respect for him and dared to oppose him like this in public, causing this esteemed academy elder to suffer such humiliation and frustration.
The point was, in future if these two guards felt indignant and wanted to reveal the truth, as the academy elder, if he wanted to maintain his image and position, he would have to be the first to step up and suppress them.
But this was all caused by Fang Yuan!
What sort of feeling is this?
For example, it would be like Fang Yuan pooping on the academy elder's face, but the elder himself still has to praise him and at the same time, clean his butt for him. If anyone wanted to point out that there was poop on his face, he has to be the first to shut that person up.
This feeling of grievance, it was almost unbearable for the academy elder.
There was a growing urge in his heart to give Fang Yuan a few tight slaps!
But finally, the academy elder stretched out his arm and patted Fang Yuan's shoulder.
"Good lad." The academy elder's face was dim like stillwater, forcing the words out of his mouth.
"It is all thanks to the academy's nurturing," Fang Yuan replied plainly.
The corner of the academy elder's eye twitched.
Everything was going according to Fang Yuan's calculations.
Thereafter, the academy elder ordered the healing Gu Master to save the two guards.
The guards were saved, but they had suffered heavy injuries and were almost crippled, ending up getting fired from the academy by the elder.
Fang Yuan did not receive any punishments, on the contrary he received compliments thoroughly.
This result caused much fear in the other youngsters.
But this issue was far from over. As time flowed, the commotion spread to the rest of the clan.
Fang Yuan being the first to advance to the middle stage with his C grade talent became the after-meal gossip of the entire clan.
After meals and tea breaks, everyone was discussing this matter.
Subsequent to the initial peculiarity, everyone started to guess the secret behind Fang Yuan's quick advancement.
"Actually, with a C grade talent, surpassing A grade and B grade to advance first into middle stage is not something that strange."
"True, there are many methods in this world that can achieve such a thing."
"Take the Relic Gu for example. Once this Gu is used, the aperture walls would be enhanced and it will assist the cultivation to rise by a small realm, being the easiest method of breaking through."
…
At once, the crowd's discussion evolved into all sorts of possible answers and methods.
As for theories about Liquor worms and external sources of primeval essence, these ideas were also naturally brought up by by many people.
If Fang Yuan revealed the existence of the Liquor worm at the start, there would not have been such a commotion. But because he hid it, this resulted in the curiosity of many people being raised.
Although it appeared peaceful, Gu Yue village had an undercurrent brewing.
Numerous eyes were watching the academy elder, all waiting for his explanation.
As the academy elder, if he did not know how a student that he had taught himself had advanced, that would be negligence of his role.
Thus, the academy elder had to give an explanation.
Days passed by.
The second youngster to breakthrough the initial stage and advance to middle stage appeared.
It was Gu Yue Mo Bei.
Soon after, with just a three hour difference, Gu Yue Fang Zheng advanced too.
He was after all, dragged down by the lack of primeval stones. Of course, there was also the reason of him being traumatised by Fang Yuan.
The third was Gu Yue Chi Chen.
Even if he had Gu Yue Chi Lian's infused primeval essence, the method's effectiveness was not very high and could only be performed once every three days, adding to the fact that it was very risky. But with his C grade talent, getting third position was already a success.
On the fifth day, the academy elder once again handed out subsidies.
"Gu Yue Fang Yuan." He stood at the front, calling out Fang Yuan's name first.
Fang Yuan stood up and walked towards him with a plain expression.
The youngsters' attention was on him as he moved, revealing all sorts of envy, jealousy, inspection, and hatred, not one was the same.
"Today, the elder is not only handing out resources, he is also appointing the chairman and vice chairman positions!"
"As expected, the first to be called up was Fang Yuan."
"He is the first to advance, the title of chairman belongs to him."
"It is hard to imagine that this would be the result. Before this, I thought it would be Fang Zheng who would come first."
"He was the first to advance to middle stage, it is so peculiar, there has to be a huge secret, but he refuses to tell us!"
"Hehe, if it was me I wouldn't tell anyone either. Keep quiet and prosper."
As the students conversed, Fang Yuan arrived in front of the academy elder.
"Gu Yue Fang Yuan, you are the first Gu Master to reach Rank one middle stage in this class, so this is your reward." Saying so, he handed him a white and blue money bag.
Fang Yuan received the money bag and opened it in public, peeking inside.
"Be rest assured, there's a total of thirty primeval stones inside, the academy would not shortchange you." The academy elder smiled.
Frankly speaking, he would never have expected that the first youngster to advance to middle stage would be Fang Yuan.
However, Fang Yuan did not listen to the academy elder. He rarely trusted others, and only believed in himself. He checked carefully and found that it was indeed thirty primeval stones, not one less. He then placed the money bag into his bosom pocket.
The academy elder upon seeing this action, thought that his finances were tight, and could not help but smile even more brightly.
"I guessed so, he is after all a C grade talent. Rushing to the middle stage, his primeval stone expenditure had to be huge. He has no funding from anyone as well, thus he has to be tight on primeval stones. As long as he has a need for primeval stones, we'll not be afraid of him leaving the control of the clan. Once he enters the clan's system, he would not be able to keep that secret, so even if we can't investigate it, one day, he will tell us." Towards this, the academy elder was full of confidence.
The truth is, after that day, he had sent people to investigate Fang Yuan in secret. Almost everyday there would be progress in the search.
But evidently, those people had not found out that Fang Yuan has a few hundred primeval stones in his possession, and was actually rather rich.
The academy elder continued and said, "Fang Yuan, you are the first to step into Rank one middle stage, and according to the academy rules, you not only will receive thirty primeval stones as reward, but you will also gain priority in choosing your second Gu soon after. Right now, I shall appoint you as class chairman!"
"Fang Yuan was appointed as chairman after all!" Upon hearing this, a few students sighed.
"Damn it." Gu Yue Mo Bei gritted his teeth, feeling indignant.
"Hmph!" Gu Yue Chi Chen crossed his limbs, staring at the scene coldly.
The one that was affected the most was Fang Yuan's brother, Gu Yue Fang Zheng.
His face was pale, and his expression looked uncertain, a dark cloud looming over his head. "Ordinary students, upon seeing the chairman and vice chairmen, have to bow and pay respects. With my results, I will definitely be a vice chairman. But from now on when I see big brother, I'll have to pay my respects to him."
"Hold on."
But at this moment, Fang Yuan spoke.
He smiled faintly to the academy elder and said slowly, "Esteemed elder, your student here is not gifted and does not have high wisdom, hence being unable to properly take on the role of chairman. This role, should be given to talented people."
"What? You mean you do not want to be chairman? As the chairman, you'll get ten primeval stones every time. Are you sure you want to reject it?" The academy elder frowned deeply as he spoke. For the last tens of years of teaching, he had not seen anyone reject this position!
Actually he had already given much thought about this matter, and letting Fang Yuan be class chairman had its merits.
Once he was the chairman, he would be inside the clan system. Fang Yuan will have to carry out his duties at the same time while enjoying his treatment.
No matter what the chairman's role was, the least he had to do was to stop extorting his classmates.
This was definitely not something a class chairman can do.
This is like before, even though the academy elder was humiliated by Fang Yuan, he still had to praise him for his excellent cultivation results.
As someone bound by the system, he would not be able to do as he pleases when handling matters, and many times he'd be left with no choice.
Of course, this was not because the academy elder was displeased with Fang Yuan extorting so many primeval stones every time.
He was thinking for the entire board of students. Once Fang Yuan becomes chairman and stops extorting, this would allow the other teenagers to have a breather under Fang Yuan's pressure.
Next, with some push of a hand, it would result in a multiway competition among the families. As long as he can nurture the clan's hopeful seeds – Fang Zheng, Mo Bei and Chi Chen, what is the cost of sacrificing a small role of a chairman?
And yet, although he had a good plan, the truth was very different from what he expected.
Fang Yuan rejected it!
He actually rejected it!!
Although this position is small, it is the first representation of honor among these hot-blooded youngsters.
Besides honor, as the chairman, they get ten primeval stones as resources each time!
This temptation, no youngster has ever resisted it before.
But Fang Yuan actually rejected.
Fang Yuan looked at the stunned elder, and asked him back, "Did the academy rules state that the first has to be chairman? The position of chairman, is it irrefusable?"
The academy elder replied with a cold expression, "Of course there are no such heartless rules."
Fang Yuan laughed, "Thank you elder for your understanding."
Saying so, he cupped his fists and walked back to his seat.
The students who saw this scene with their own eyes all flew into a commotion.
At once, the academy was lively!
"Fang Yuan actually rejected it? Are you kidding me?!"
"Is he sick in the head?"
"Not sure why he's acting crazy, but hehe, he's gonna regret this later."
…
"Fang Yuan gave up on being chairman, this means I am the chairman?!" Happiness came too quickly, and the second place Mo Bei could not react in time.
Chi Chen showed a look of disbelief, he was unable to comprehend that someone actually gave up the spot of chairman, he has to be beyond stupid!
"Big brother…" Fang Zheng stared with huge eyes as he looked at Fang Yuan disappointedly.
According to his results, Fang Zheng was assured to be vice chairman.
But when Fang Yuan gave up the position, Fang Zheng felt that this position no longer had any meaning.
The academy elder's face was dark this time, really really dark.
The last time when Fang Yuan skipped class, although he looked angry, it was just an act for the others to see.
But this time, he was in a bad mood, worse than before.
Fang Yuan gave up the position of chairman. This means he is rejecting the clan system. The elder had governed the academy for tens of years, but this was the first time he saw such a student, rejecting this huge temptation!
He wanted to invite Fang Yuan into the trap, but since he wouldn't enter, the academy elder was helpless.
…
The giving out of subsidies ended.
Mo Bei claimed the position of chairman with his result of being second. Fang Zheng and Chi Chen each became vice chairman.
The class chairman was given ten primeval stones. The vice chairmen got five.
A few students who were not from well-to-do families were so envious that they almost drooled when seeing the three students' primeval stones.
The wheel of red fire, the sun slowly sank down on the west side of the mountain range.
Its light was not eye-piercing, but it was a sort of bright and gentle ray.
The west sky was dyed a shade of blushful red, the sunset glow continuously spreading out. It was just like an imperial concubine who had just been rewarded, happily crowding around the emperor, wanting to sleep together with him. (1)
Qing Mao Mountain was engulfed entirely in a sea of rose red colour. Each of the tall-pillared buildings and houses were also draped over with a layer of golden yarn.
The surrounding forest planted around the academy seemed like it was wiped with a faint stratum of oil. The wind blew slowly, and as the students walked out of the classroom with their bosoms carrying the primeval stones that were just passed out, they were in a relaxed and calm state of mind.
"I really don't know what Fang Yuan is thinking, to actually give up on the role of class chairman!"
"Heh heh heh, his brain is fried. I bet he thinks of killing people all day, let's not concern ourselves with this kind of crazy guy."
"Come to think of it, that day when he burst into the academy I was really freaked out. It was just so terrifying, I had a nightmare on the day itself after I went home."
The students were in groups of twos and threes as they walked.
"Good day class chairman."
"Mmm."
"Greetings class chairman."
"Mhmm."
Gu Yue Mo Bei swaggered around as he walked, and wherever he went the students would bow and greet him without exception.
His face was unable to stifle the expressions of excitement and infatuation.
This was the fascination of authority itself.
Even if it was just a tiny bit of difference in status, it could also make a person even more confident in his own self worth.
Right now as the dying sun looked as red as blood, Mo Bei watched it while his heart sang, "How is it that I have never realised before, this sunset's rosiness sure is adorable…"
"Hmph, going head over heels just because of becoming a chairman, as if it's so amazing." Gu Yue Chi Cheng purposely walked behind, since he just didn't want to greet Gu Yue Mo Bei at all.
"I really have no idea what Fang Yuan is thinking about, to think he actually let go of the position of chairman. However it's also a good thing, or else me as the third, how could I have been able to obtain the role of vice chairman?" Gu Yue Chi Cheng was confused in his heart, but he also felt happiness and relief.
"Good day vice chairman." At this moment a normal student walked past him and immediately bowed to greet him.
"Heh heh, good day to you too." Gu Yue Chi Cheng instantly nodded, his face full of smiles.
Once the student was gone, Chi Cheng naturally thought, "The taste of vice chairman is rather pleasant. I'm sure the feeling of being the class chairman is even better. If only I was not the vice chairman, but the chairman himself, how good that would be!"
The Chi Cheng who had just been rejoicing earlier was now already filled with insatiable greed, starting to amass expectations for the role of class chairman.
Under the system of the clan, each rank that was higher than the last was just like a carrot getting bigger than the previous one, deeply enticing him.
"Although I am only a C grade talent, but I believe that everything will get better and better." Gu Yue Chi Cheng was full of hope for his future.
However right now, the other vice chairman Gu Yue Fang Zheng was feeling very much terrible in his heart, his face expression also quite unsightly.
"Big brother, you!" He looked wide-eyed with disbelief at the academy's gate entrance, where a lone figure stood.
"Old rules as usual, every person one piece of primeval stone." Fang Yuan stood while hugging his arms, his tone dull.
Fang Zheng's mouth opened and closed a few times, then after some moments of effort he finally said, "Big brother, but I am the vice chairman now!"
"That's true." Fang Yuan was expressionless as he nodded, giving Fang Zheng an indifferent look, "The vice chairman receives an allowance of five pieces each time. So you should give up three pieces instead."
Fang Zheng was flabbergasted, and for a moment he was unable to say a word.
A group of teenagers were crowding around Gu Yue Mo Bei as they walked over.
When they saw Fang Yuan blocking the school gate entrance, Gu Yue Mo Bei flew into a rage, his finger pointing towards Fang Yuan. "Fang Yuan! You sure have the guts to actually still dare hold us back?! Right now I am the chairman, and as a normal student when you see me, you should first bow and greet me!"
What answered him next was Fang Yuan's fist.
Gu Yue Mo Bei was caught unexpected. After being hit by the fist, he could not refrain from retreating a few big steps backwards, his face full of disbelief. "You hit me, you actually dared to hit me? I am but the chairman!"
What answered him again was still Fang Yuan's fists.
Bang, bang, bang.
After a few rounds of exchanging offensive and defensive blows, Gu Yue Mo Bei was knocked down to the floor by Fang Yuan, and he fell unconscious.
The surrounding youths were all wide-eyed as they watched, all of them unsure of how to react for a moment.
This was totally different from their imaginations!
The guards at the gate entrance had also been watching everything that happened under their eyelids. They could not help but whisper among themselves.
"Fang Yuan just knocked down the new class chairman, what do we do?"
"Salad dressing!" (2)
"What do you mean?"
"It means just watch them, then call some other guys and tidy up the place."
"But…"
"Hey hey, you want to provoke a person like Fang Yuan? I hope you remember what happened to Wang Da and Wu Er!"
The questioning guard immediately quivered and stopped saying anymore.
The two guards at the huge gate entrance stood perfectly straight and upright. To let an incident happen right beside them, it was as if they were deaf and blind, unable to hear or see anything.
After Fang Yuan sorted out Gu Yue Mo Bei, he also dealt with Fang Zheng and Chi Cheng.
It was then that the other teenagers realised that nothing had changed. Fang Yuan was still the same old Fang Yuan, and the extortion would still continue as always.
"Each of you hand over one piece of primeval stone, vice chairmen three pieces, class chairman eight pieces." Fang Yuan announced the new rules.
The youths could only sigh and obediently fish out their primeval stones.
When they walked out of the school gates, suddenly someone slapped his head and exclaimed loudly, "I've thought of it, no wonder Fang Yuan did not want the position of class chairman. He wanted to continue extorting us!"
"That's right. Everytime he does it he would get about fifty-nine piece of primeval stones, and right now it's gone up to about sixty-eight pieces. If he was the class chairman, he'd only get ten pieces." Quite a few of them were enlightened.
"He's too treacherous, too cunning, too savage!" Some of them were slapping their thighs, full of hatred and resentment.
"Sigh, this way it means that there's nothing extraordinary about the position of class and vice chairman. They'll also be extorted and be left with two pieces, just like the rest of us."
It was unknown who just spoke, but when the youngsters heard it, they all could not help but turn silent.
Bang!
The academy elder slapped the table fiercely, feeling extremely furious.
"This Fang Yuan is just too absurd, what is he trying to do? To go as far as to continue extorting, taking eight pieces from the class chairman and three pieces from the vice chairman. With this, what is the difference of being a class and vice chairman in comparison with the other normal students?!" The academy elder tried his best to suppress his voice, but his tone was filled with fury.
When Fang Yuan rejected the position of class chairman, it meant rejecting his own integration into the clan's system. In strict terms, this was a sort of betrayal towards the clan itself. This was enough to make the academy elder very angry.
Immediately after that Fang Yuan had gone to extort his fellow classmates. His handreach was getting further, and this had already gone beyond the academy elder's bottom line. After the extortion this time, the influence of class chairman and vice chairman would be completely weakened.
Over time, the normal students would lose their respect and interest for these two positions.
While Fang Yuan's actions this time seemed small, the meaning behind it was rather heavy.
It was pretty much using oneself's own strength to challenge the clan's system!
This was something the academy elder totally did not wish to see. He was raising the clan's fresh new hopes, not the clan's traitors. Yet despite knowing Fang Yuan had gone and challenge his baseline, he knew that he was unable to do anything to handle the matter.
If he really did, the first one who would not let him go would be the clan head. The second and third person to have opinions against him would be Gu Yue Chi Lian and Gu Yue Mo Chen.
The clan head put in all his hopes onto Gu Yue Fang Zheng, for Fang Zheng was the only A grade talent in three years. The clan leader needed a tenacious and independant genius, not a fragile and delicate flower who was cared for.
At the same time for Chi Lian and Mo Chen, they also had placed their hopes onto their own respective grandsons, hoping that their grandchildren would grow in the midst of setbacks and frustrations.
If the academy elder acted and replaced the students in punishing Fang yuan, once word got out then there would be the sayings of "Mo and Chi family's future successors could not beat Fang Yuan and could only let the elders help them out."
How unpleasant that would be.
This would inevitably be a huge blow towards the fame and honor of the Mo and Chi family.
Of course the academy elder was not afraid of a small little Fang Yuan, but he was instead worried that his intervention would attract pressure from the three sides – the clan head, Mo and Chi bloodline. They pretty much made up of almost the entire Gu Yue high authorities. As a lowly elder, how could he possibly endure?
"The root of this matter still goes back to Fang Yuan's secret. What in the world did he rely on to break through to the middle stage?" The academy elder restrained the fire in his heart and shot his gaze at the three investigation reports on his table.
The first report showed extensive info about Fang Yuan's family background.
Fang Yuan was born into a good family; there was nothing strange about his identity and his life experience was perfectly clean and spotless. Both his parents had passed away and he was taken in by his uncle and aunt. However they did not get along, and ever since he attended the academy Fang Yuan had always stayed in the academy hostel.
The second report was about Fang Yuan's life records.
He had showed early intelligence during junior age, and was seen optimistically by the clansmen, predicted to be a possible A grade talent. Yet after the Awakening Ceremony, he was tested to be a C grade, greatly disappointing the clan.
The third report was on Fang Yuan's recent trail.
His everyday life patterns were very simple, and he had a rigid schedule. During the day he would always be attending lessons in the academy, and in the night he would always sleep in the dormitories. He was extremely hardworking in his cultivation, and would always enter a Gu Master's cultivation every night, nurturing his aperture. There were times he would go out to the village's only inn to have better meals and buy wine to drink.
He had a special affection towards wine, and loved to drink the green bamboo wine. Under his hostel bed, he kept tens of pots of green bamboo wine.
The academy elder looked carefully again at the three reports, his heart forming a deeper impression of Fang Yuan again.
"Both his parents died early, and he was unable to get along with his uncle and aunt… No wonder this brat Fang Yuan does not have a sense of belonging towards the clan. He was personally crowned as a genius among all by the clansmen, yet they also personally plucked him out of the sky and threw him down to the earth… No wonder he is so wild and unruly, and so peculiarly cold and detached. His life is so simple and he is assiduous towards cultivation. This is him holding back his breath, unwilling to concede, he wants to prove his ability to the clan! Thus that is why when I suppressed him, he retaliated so fiercely…"
Once the academy elder carefully thought until this point, he could not help but heave a sigh.
The more he learnt about Fang Yuan, the more he understood Fang Yuan.
Of course, understanding does not mean forgiving. Fang Yuan went against him, offending his dignity, rejecting to be class chairman, and even extorting his classmates. These were things he could not tolerate.
Shaking the information in his hands, the academy elder frowned again. "Although these reports are detailed, they have nothing to do with Fang Yuan's advancement secret. It has already been a few days, these people are atrocious!"
Boom, boom, boom.
At this time, knocking sounds were heard on the door.
"Come inside," the academy elder said.
The door opened.
It was the clan head, Gu Yue Bo's personal guard. "The clan leader has orders, esteemed elder, please hurry to the main family pavilion, there is a matter to discuss."
"Oh, what's the matter?" The academy elder stood up from his seat, he had felt the severity of the issue from the guard's tone and expression.
"The Rank four Gu Master Sir Jia Fu has come back, his brother Jia Jin Sheng has gone missing!" The guard answered.
"Hiss…" The academy elder instantly drew a mouthful of cold air.
The moon, round like a wheel, was faintly discernable among the floating clouds.
The academy elder hurriedly walked on the road, his face barely visible under the flickering moonlight.
It was hard to survive in this world, and Gu Masters going missing was a common thing. With his extensive life experience, the academy elder knew that under normal circumstances, these sort of sudden disappearances often spelled death.
Anyone can die, but Jia Jin Sheng cannot! Especially not dying in the Gu Yue Village.
His identity was special, his father being the Jia family head, his brother being the Rank four Gu Master Jia Fu.
A Rank four Gu Master has yellow gold primeval essence, and they have absurd fighting power. Within the Gu Yue clan, only the clan leader is Rank four and can match up to him, while the other clan elders were all Rank three.
The Jia family head was at an even higher cultivation level. He was a Rank five, and under his lead the Jia family rose to prosperity, becoming a large sized clan and possessing the resources of an entire mountain, with a large number of clansmen. Compared to them, Gu Yue clan was just a middle sized one.
If the two clans fought, Gu Yue village would definitely have the disadvantage.
The most crucial part was, if this matter was spread, the Gu Yue clan's reputation would be tarnished. Many merchants are vigilant in choosing their routes. Without the interaction with merchants, the Gu Yue clan's surplus local resources would not have an avenue to sell, and the external resources they required would not be purchasable. As time passes, they would definitely weaken.
"This matter is severe, if we do not handle it well, it would be a disaster!" The academy elder worriedly rushed towards the clan head's pavilion.
Once he stepped into the conference hall in the clan head's pavilion, the academy elder felt the solemn and serious atmosphere.
The main seat was occupied by the current clan leader Gu Yue Bo. The fat and short Jia Fu brought along five to six followers with him and stood at the center of the hall, adopting an accusative stance.
Under the bright light of the lamp, the solemn faces of the elders who were standing at side of their chairs were evident.
Jia Fu was a Rank four Gu Master, and since he was not sitting, these Rank three clan elders naturally did not dare to sit.
This was the deterrent force of a Rank four Gu Master.
It was also a form of respect for power.
"Greetings…." The clan elders were about to pay their respects, but they were stopped by the clan leader Gu Yue Bo's hands.
Gu Yue Bo who had grizzled white hair was using his finger to rub his temple, a look of distress on his face, "I'm not going to say more about the matter, the clan academy is always under your supervision. Let me ask you, where is Gu Yue Fang Yuan?"
The academy elder was shocked. Internally he thought, how does this have to do with that brat Fang Yuan?
He answered politely, "At this timing, he should be cultivating in the academy hostel."
The clan leader sighed, "Brother Jia is very suspicious now, he thinks that his brother Jia Jin Sheng's disappearance has something to do with Fang Yuan. I order you to go and bring him here immediately."
The academy elder shuddered in his heart. "Yes!"
He understood the severity of this issue, and hurriedly paid his respects before he turned around and left.
"Brother Jia, that Fang Yuan will be brought here immediately, have a seat." Gu Yue Bo pointed at a seat near him and said to Jia Fu.
Jia Fu laughed bitterly, cupping his fists at Gu Yue Bo. "I apologise to Brother Gu Yue! I was really anxious then, it has already been days since I've seen my brother, I fear for the worst. I really cannot afford to wait."
There are some things that, only after losing them can they be understood.
Jia Fu only realised it in these few days, the reason why his father paired him up with the burden Jia Jin Sheng for the caravan.
It was to test his nature. Seeing if he could, while suppressing his brother, remember their kinship, and at the same time take care of this little brother.
If Jia Jin Sheng was dead now, how would his father view him?
When he realized this point, he immediately held investigations in the caravan, and quickly set his target on the Gu Yue village.
He rushed back without a single break.
Now that he was standing, reluctant to sit, it was to create the impression that he was determined to get the culprit. This was both emitting pressure on the Gu Yue clan as well as giving his father a form of assurance when he return to the Jia family.
"Reporting to clan leader sir, Fang Yuan has been brought here." Quickly, the academy elder brought Fang Yuan to the hall.
"Gu Yue Fang Yuan pays his respects to clan elder, Sir Jia Fu, and the various clan elders," Fang Yuan said with an expressionless face.
"It's him?" Jia Fu coldly observed Fang Yuan, at the same time, asked a female Gu Master.
This female Gu Master was the one who Fang Yuan bought the purple gold rock from at the gambling den.
"Yes, it's him! There is no mistake," The female Gu Master stared at Fang Yuan, saying confidently.
Jia Fu nodded. Immediately his gaze was like two steel blades, slashing at Fang Yuan. But he did not interrogate openly, for this was the Gu Yue village, thus he had to give the Gu Yue clan leader some respect.
Thus he looked towards the Gu Yue clan leader.
The Gu Yue clan leader had a serious expression. He knew that Jia Fu purposely conversed with the female Gu Master loudly; it was not only to confirm Fang Yuan's identity, but also to assert his motive.
He was implying to the Gu Yue clan head that he had the evidence in his hands, "I have sufficient confidence, so you better not overly defend your own clansman."
This caused some displeasure in the Gu Yue clan leader's heart, thinking, "You Jia Fu lost your brother, it was your mistake to begin with. Now you come here to our Gu Yue village with an accusative stance, do you think my Gu Yue clan can be easily bullied? My Gu Yue clan is impartial and works around based on logic, but don't be mistaken that this is a weakness!'
Thinking of this, he did not interrogate Fang Yuan immediately, but fiercely said to the female Gu Master, "Did you see clearly? I'm not afraid to tell you this, but Fang Yuan has a twin brother who looks extremely identical to him, are you really sure it's him?"
The female Gu Master was just a Rank one, and under Gu Yue Bo's pressure, she instantly showed a hesitant and nervous expression.
Jia Fu frowned and took a step forward, blocking her from Gu Yue Bo's sight. Cupping his fists, he said, "Brother Gu Yue, I've always respected the Gu Yue clan. Especially the Gu Yue clan's first and fourth clan leader, these two were Rank five powerhouses. One built the clan from scratch, where he went through tough times and created the Gu Yue family's hundred year foundation. Another was a benevolent hero, for to protect his clan he sacrificed himself, and is worth respecting. Brother Gu Yue, as the clan leader, I believe you will act impartial, please interrogate this Fang Yuan."
Hearing that his tone had softened, Gu Yue Bo nodded, but his heart had already decided.
If this Fang Yuan was the culprit, then he would hand him over. After all he was just a C grade, there is no loss in losing him. As long as it is able to settle this dispute.
If Fang Zheng was the one who did it, Fang Yuan also has to take the blame. Fang Zheng is an A grade genius, the only one in three years. The clan higher-ups still expect to nurture him greatly to go against that Bai Ning Bing from the Bai clan village.
"Fang Yuan, don't be nervous." Gu Yue clan leader smiled benevolently, using a gentle tone towards Fang Yuan, "Let me ask you, do you know any information about that Jia Jin Sheng?"
"Who is Jia Jin Sheng?" Fang Yuan looked up and said calmly.
"He's lying!" The female Gu Master from the gambling den shrieked right as Fang Yuan finished his question.
The people in the discussion hall, upon hearing this shrieking, frowned and all looked towards her.
The female Gu Master pointed at Fang Yuan, showing an agitated expression, "It's him, it's him! At our gambling den, he bought six purple gold rocks, and the fifth was a mudskin toad. Young master Jia saw it and tried to use five hundred primeval stones to purchase it. This left a huge impression on me, even if a year or two passes I will not forget. Not only me, but the other Gu Masters at the gambling den saw it too."
"Is that so…" The Gu Yue clan leader's smiled disappeared, showing a stiff expression and dragging his question towards Fang Yuan.
Fang Yuan only nodded now, showing a hint of nervousness, and pretended to suddenly realize, "Oh it's him. Alright, if he's Jia Jin Sheng, then I do know him. But after the gambling den incident, I did not see him ever again."
"He's lying again!" This time, it was not the female Gu Master, but a male Gu Master who called out in public.
Fang Yuan looked towards him, and as if he had recognised him, showed an expression of shock, but quickly tried to hide it.
His expression changes were reflected in everyone's eyes.
Everyone started to ponder.
"Esteemed sirs, I am an employee at the wine shop." The male Gu Master first cupped his fists to everyone, and then vigorously pointed at Fang Yuan, "That night, I saw clearly at the wine shop, he was sitting with young master Jia Jin Sheng, and the two secretly conversed for a long time!"
Once he said so, the hall erupted into a clammer of soft discussions.
The academy elder used a cold gaze and looked at Fang Yuan.
The Gu Yue clan master moved backwards slightly, slowly leaning on the large chair.
"How can that be!" Fang Yuan showed an obviously frantic expression, hurriedly saying, "The wine shop had so many people, how can you recognise me just like that? You might be mistaken yourself!"
"Haha, I am definitely not wrong." The male Gu Master smiled, his gaze staring at Fang Yuan, at this moment he felt extremely confident.
"Not to mention it was young master Jia Jin Sheng who coming to our wine shop, we have to take care of him carefully. Even if it was not him, I would still have had recognised you, as you had given me a strong impression!"
Saying so, he raised his eyebrows, saying smugly, "Do you still remember? That day you came to our shop, wanting a cup of monkey wine. But you only drank a mouthful. After that you released the Liquor worm and fed the remaining monkey wine to it. I saw the Liquor worm and was very agitated, wanting to purchase it from you but you refused to sell it and walked away immediately!"
"Good, exactly what I wanted to hear." Fang Yuan laughed coldly in his heart, but showed an expression of shock on his face, subconsciously taking a step backwards.
"Liquor worm!" The eyes of the academy elder behind Fang Yuan shone.
But quickly he frowned again, and could not help but ask, "Fang Yuan, where did you get that Liquor worm?"
Fang Yuan clenched his fists, gritting his teeth, but refusing to answer.
The surrounding clan elders flew into a rage, starting to scowl.
"Fang Yuan, do you know the trouble you've caused!"
"Talk, exactly what happened?"
"Tell us of what you know, own up. This Liquor worm, is it Jia Jin Sheng's?"
"How can it be his? The Liquor worm is obviously obtained by myself! I opened it!" Fang Yuan raised his head suddenly, his expression worked up, as if he could not stand such a slander, and shouted loudly with an indignant emotion.