Chapter 28 Question 3: The Mystery of the Dean of the Immortal Academy
With the tribulation approaching, Xu Xing had no way to fly back to the Immortal Academy with the help of the Roc, but she couldn't just wait there either. Otherwise, if the tribulation lightning leaked a little electricity here, it would really be a disaster for her.
Xu Xing had never been to this dense forest before. She led the roc around twice, hoping to encounter some fellow disciples.
After passing through the dense forest, Xu Xing found a very shallow stream in front of her. She was about to walk along the stream to get away from the thunderclouds when she suddenly felt a stirring in her heart. She opened her skill panel and found that it was indeed the sound of the Treasure Compass.
The pointer pointed towards the woods across the stream.
The Treasure Compass has been relatively quiet these past few years, since it can't point to the treasures in other people's storage bags.
It did react during several Five Elements Trials, allowing Xu Xing to obtain a few high-grade spiritual herbs, but that was all. After all, the places where treasures are located are mostly difficult to access, and if one encounters a high-level demonic beast, one could easily become its meal.
But this is the Jade Cloud Sect, which has been very strict in managing demonic beasts in recent years. If there really is a treasure here, we might actually be able to get our hands on it.
Leaving the roc by the stream, Xu Xing looked up at the sky. Thunderclouds were still gathering, and she could vaguely hear rumbling thunder. After hesitating for a moment, she quickly walked in the direction the pointer indicated.
Just this once!
They were very close, and soon Xu Xing heard two mournful cries of deer, as if they were weeping and lamenting.
"Wind Spirit Deer?"
Somewhere in the forest, the intertwined branches of trees formed a cage, and inside, a deer with dull fur, filthy fur, and a broken antler was the Wind Spirit Deer he had met once before. In its wretched state, if Xu Xing didn't possess beast-taming skills, he probably wouldn't have recognized it as the once noble fifth-tier spirit beast.
Xu Xing still remembered that before the Xuan Shuo Trial began, Dean Zhai appeared riding a Wind Spirit Deer. At that time, it was riding on auspicious clouds and surrounded by seven-colored light, and it was very agile. However, after hearing that the Wind Spirit Deer's temperament had changed drastically and that it had devoured its master and attacked others repeatedly, Dean Zhai stopped showing itself with it.
Unexpectedly, four years later, the spirit deer had changed into this appearance.
Xu Xing tried to communicate with it using animal taming techniques, but the cage seemed to be engraved with an array, and she couldn't sense what the Wind Spirit Deer was thinking, so she had to give up.
After walking around the area and confirming that the treasure-hunting compass was pointing to this place, Xu Xing was puzzled as to why it was pointing to the Wind Spirit Deer. The Jade Cloud Sect had many demonic beasts and spirit beasts, and she had seen quite a few, but the compass had never pointed to a spirit beast that already had an owner.
However, since the Wind Spirit Deer is here, this place should not be far from Dean Zhai's cave dwelling...
"what are you doing here?"
A slightly hoarse female voice came from behind. Xu Xing turned around and saw that it was Zhai Yuzhi, the dean of the Immortal Dao Academy.
Zhai Yuzhi's face was somewhat pale, and Xu Xing, with his sharp eyes, noticed an inconspicuous small bloodstain on her collar.
Was the dean injured?
The Wind Spirit Deer, which had been lying on the ground, became restless for some reason. It stood up, its four hooves constantly pawing the ground, and circled back and forth in the cage.
"Greetings, Dean."
Xu Xing bowed and said, "When I was riding the Roc just now, I encountered a lightning tribulation. The Roc was startled and fell, bringing me down with it."
"So you fell down with that roc by the stream..."
A faint smile appeared on Zhai Yuzhi's face. She touched the tree trunk with one hand, and the spiritual light in her palm seeped into the tree. The already cramped wooden cage shrank even further, leaving the Wind Spirit Deer with no room to even turn around.
The protruding branches pierced straight into the spirit deer's body, causing blood to flow again from the already wounded deer.
"Dean, this is..."
Hearing the deer's mournful cry, Xu Xing looked away with a pang of pity. Dean Zhai was its owner; how could he bear to treat it like this?
"Don't go near it. It's become increasingly agitated lately and won't even obey my commands. I have no choice but to keep it here to prevent it from hurting anyone."
"but……"
Zhai Yuzhi looked at the Wind Spirit Deer with a hint of regret, "It violated the contract by devouring its master, and now it won't live much longer."
The contract between a cultivator and a spirit beast is witnessed by the Heavenly Dao. If a spirit beast devours its master, the cultivator will suffer the backlash of the contract and be tormented by the destruction of his heart and soul.
The Wind Spirit Deer was kind by nature, but its temperament suddenly changed drastically, and no one knew what it had encountered.
Xu Xing's heart skipped a beat when he thought of the treasure-hunting compass; the treasure-hunting compass wouldn't automatically point to a spirit beast that already had an owner...
She revealed that when she looked through the gaps in the branches at the Wind Spirit Deer, the deer, which was forced to stand upright due to being wrapped in branches, had a sorrowful look in its eyes, with what seemed like tears glistening in them.
The backlash from the contract doesn't only apply to spirit beasts.
"The tribulation is approaching, Xu Xing. Your cultivation is not strong enough. You should stay in my residence for now."
Zhai Yuzhi spoke softly, her gaze towards Xu Xing filled with concern.
In recent years, the teaching of disciples at the Immortal Academy has been different from that of previous years. Everyone knows that it was Zhai Yuzhi who made this possible. The disciples who have benefited from this are very grateful to this gentle and kind academy director.
So, this busy dean actually knew such a lowly disciple as her?
Xu Xing lowered his eyes and said in a low voice, "Thank you, Dean, but I have to rush to Senior Feng Ling's place and dare not disturb you."
Feng Ling?
The daughter of the Dharma Protector Elder Feng Xinghuai.
Zhai Yuzhi looked into Xu Xing's golden eyes, her gaze deep and unfathomable, and slowly said, "In that case, you may go."
After bowing respectfully, Xu Xing left Zhai Yuzhi's sight and walked faster and faster until she almost ran to find the roc by the stream.
"Hang in there, the tribulation hasn't started yet, it won't strike us!"
Xu Xing kept comforting the Silver-Winged Roc, which was trembling under the lightning tribulation, and fed it several Beast Spirit Pills. Finally, the Roc flapped its wings and flew back to Wen Lu's cave.
Xu Xing lowered her body and looked down. Her expression was grim. If her guess was true, then things were in serious trouble.
"How dare some foolish disciples take to the skies?"
The roc flew in mid-air, and the countless disciples who had been drawn out by the lightning tribulation also noticed the girl on its back.
Wen Lu is not the master of a peak. Her cave dwelling is on Chuyun Peak, and other cultivators who work together in the Scripture Repository also live nearby. At this time, a lot of people have gathered on the viewing platform not far from Chuyun Peak.
The cultivators who were originally in seclusion on Ruxu Peak were also awakened by the commotion of the tribulation and left their original places. The tribulation was so powerful that they dared not get too close, but they still wanted to witness firsthand how extraordinary the legendary Nine Heavens Thunder was.
"How many years has it been since we've seen the Heavenly Thunder of the Nine Heavens? Have you found out which cultivator it was?"
"Reporting to the Venerable Master, it is an outer disciple, the sword cultivator Shen Du."
“Chen Du? I’ve heard of him. Isn’t he at the Golden Core stage? Even if he’s about to form his Nascent Soul, he shouldn’t be attracting heavenly lightning from the Nine Heavens.”
"Lord... Shen Du is a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and this tribulation is to form his core..."
"Core Formation?!"
"A Core Formation tribulation lightning strike was actually Heavenly Lightning from the Nine Heavens! I really don't know whether to say he has extremely bad luck or exceptional talent..."
"Unfortunately, a Core Formation cultivator is certainly no match for the Heavenly Thunder of the Nine Heavens, and I'm afraid he will perish here."
Similar conversations took place throughout the Jade Cloud Sect. Upon learning the identity of the cultivator who was about to undergo the tribulation, some were relieved while others felt regret.
Over the years, Shen Du's treatment in the outer sect has been obvious to all, and everyone avoids him like the plague. If he successfully forms his core, given the momentum of the Nine Heavens Thunder, he will definitely attract the attention of the inner sect immortals. They are glad that Shen Du is likely to fail the tribulation, and at that time, they will naturally have one less opponent.
However, such a young disciple who has cultivated to his current position entirely on his own is also the future hope of the sect. It would be a real pity if he were to perish.
Zuo Qiuxu and a few others who were familiar with Shen Du were completely worried about him.
"Senior Brother Xiang, if only I had given the defensive magic weapon to Senior Brother Chen, it might have helped him hold out longer..."
Zuo Qiuxu was filled with worry. Before Shen Du went into seclusion, he had wanted to give him a few protective magic items, but Shen Du resolutely refused to accept them. Helpless, he had to give up. Now that he thought about it, he should have been more resolute back then!
No one knew Shen Du's resources better than Zuo Qiuxu. He had nothing to defend himself with; all he had acquired over the years was the Xuan Yue Sword. How could he withstand such heavenly lightning?
Xiang Yuquan remained silent, glancing quietly at Feng Ling. His master, who usually flew into a rage at the mention of "Chen Du," now seemed somewhat bewildered and hadn't noticed what Zuo Qiuxu had said.
"Who's flying this way at this time?"
A sharp-eyed cultivator on Chuyun Peak spotted a small black dot rapidly approaching.
"Xu Xu! It's Xu Xu!"
Wen Yao tugged at her mother's sleeve and rushed to catch Xu Xing. "Xu Xu, how could you be so brave?! Flying through the air at this time, aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning?"
As soon as Xu Xing landed, the roc was even more frightened than she was, and it scurried to the back of the crowd, wanting to get as far away from the heavenly thunder as possible.
"I'm fine. Let's not talk about this now. I need to find Senior Feng and Senior Wen."
Seeing Feng Ling's lost in thought, Wen Lu sighed softly, "You've also wavered in your heart, haven't you? Those who have suffered the Heavenly Thunder of the Nine Heavens are all extraordinary individuals with unwavering Dao hearts. Since he has had this encounter, it's likely that Senior Brother Feng wasn't..."
Upon hearing the words "Senior Brother Feng," Feng Ling's eyes darkened, and he regained his calm and indifferent demeanor. "It's too early to talk about this now. How do you know he can survive the tribulation? If the heavenly lightning strikes him and shatters his soul, it further proves that he was the cause of my brother's death back then."
Knowing that Feng Zhun's death had always been a knot in Feng Ling's heart, Wen Lu secretly shook her head, not daring to offer any more advice. Right now, she could only hope that Shen Du would successfully complete his tribulation and form his core. Otherwise, even if he died from the most difficult of the tribulations—the Nine Heavens Thunder—he would still be unable to shake off his ominous reputation.
People would only think that he was destined to be cursed and abandoned by heaven.
"Xu Xing? Why are you back?"
Wen Lu frowned as she looked at the two girls running towards her.
Xu Xing only gave a hurried greeting before looking at Feng Ling anxiously and saying, "Senior Feng, I have something urgent..."
Feng Ling glanced down slightly, guessing that Xu Xing was worried that Shen Du would fail his tribulation and had come to seek peace.
If she had yielded earlier, it would have been fine, but seeing the tribulation approaching, her change of heart now only made Feng Ling think that she had a bad temperament, and he couldn't help but feel a little displeased.
"If you are concerned about the matter of Shen Du, you need not say more. The truth will come after he has overcome his tribulation."
Submerged? Or undergoing tribulation?
Xu Xing exclaimed in surprise, "It's Senior Brother Chen Du undergoing his tribulation?!"
Feng Ling's expression stiffened slightly. "You didn't know?"
Xu Xing quickly shook her head. She was already lucky she hadn't fallen and broken into pieces, how would she know who was undergoing tribulation? But she couldn't help with this tribulation, she could only pray that her senior brother Shen would get through it safely, there were more important things to do right now!
"Senior Feng, Senior Wen, I have something else to report. There are too many people around here, so would you two be willing to return to your cave first and hear me out?"
Seeing Xu Xing's anxious expression, Wen Lu also sensed something was wrong. Xu Xing was not one to speak without reason; if she said she had something important to discuss, then something truly important must have happened.
Wen Lu pulled Feng Ling to return to the cave first. Wen Yao subconsciously wanted to follow, but Xu Xing paused and said apologetically, "A Yao, I can go by myself."
This matter is of great importance, and it could be dangerous if more people knew about it. She didn't want to involve Wen Yao as well.
"Xu Xu is here? Is she alright?"
While Zhao Linglan was using the lightning tribulation to comprehend the Dao, Wang Lianhua, worried about Xu Xing, ran over to ask Wen Yao for advice.
With a frown, Wen Yao forced a smile, her mind filled with doubt. "Aunt Lian, she's alright, she'll be here soon. Let's observe the tribulation first."
Upon arriving at the cave dwelling, Xu Xing asked the two seniors to simultaneously set up a soundproof array before speaking in a low voice: "I suspect that Dean Zhai Yuzhi's identity is unusual; she may not be the original dean..."
Boom—
Several more claps of thunder sounded. Outside the cave, everyone was anticipating the birth of a powerful figure or the fall of a genius, but inside the cave, the atmosphere froze.
"you mean……"
"Possession?!"
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Author's Note: Thank you to catle, baibaibai, and chenchen for the nutrient solution! [heart emoji]
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