Chapter 229: Persuasion

Whoosh!

The fiery red whip, like a flaming python, surged with scorching Origin Qi fluctuations as it lashed directly down at Zhou Yuan.

Zhou Yuan hastily dodged. The whip grazed past him, slamming hard onto the ground and tearing a long crack in the surface.

Zhou Yuan gasped, "That was too ruthless." If it had hit his face, a bloody mark would have been inevitable.

Gu Hongyi flicked her delicate hand, and the long whip coiled back, wrapping around her fair wrist. She cast a cold glance at Zhou Yuan with her beautiful eyes and said, "Zhou Yuan, do you really think I can't deal with you?"

Seeing Gu Hongyi genuinely angry, Zhou Yuan quickly shook his head, offering a wry smile. "Don't be so fiery... I'm not toying with you. Follow me, and I truly can help you achieve minor mastery of the Void Transformation Art within ten days."

Gu Hongyi's graceful eyebrows shot up as she sneered, "Arrogant! How long have you been studying the Void Transformation Art? Have you even found an essence point yet? Although Zhu Yue's character isn't great, do you know how many essence points he's opened for his Void Transformation Art?"

"Forty-one!"

"How can you compare to him?"

Zhou Yuan shook his head and replied, "After cultivating for so long, he's only opened forty-one essence points. Zhu Yue's talent is indeed mediocre; no wonder he's still just a Black Belt disciple."

"What arrogance!" Gu Hongyi was furious at Zhou Yuan's attitude. He was clearly far inferior to others, yet he stubbornly refused to admit anyone was better than him.

She had initially been quite interested in the talent Zhou Yuan displayed, but now she felt extremely disappointed. No matter how good one's talent, if they can't acknowledge their own shortcomings, they won't go far in cultivation.

So, she couldn't be bothered to stay any longer and was about to turn and leave.

Seeing this, Zhou Yuan immediately said, "If I told you I've already opened thirty-one essence points, you probably wouldn't believe it... How about this, try hitting me with a punch?"

"Thirty-one essence points?" Gu Hongyi gritted her silver teeth. "It's only been five days, and you've opened thirty-one essence points? Are you insulting my intelligence?!"

Zhou Yuan pursed his lips. If not for the Origin Jade, he wouldn't bother with more words. He immediately stretched out his hand and bent his fingers, saying, "Stop dithering; you'll know if you just try."

Gu Hongyi was so annoyed she laughed. She probably had never heard anyone describe her that way before.

"Fine, today I'll show you the cost of mocking me!" Gu Hongyi clenched her delicate hand, and a formidable surge of Origin Qi suddenly burst forth from within her, fiery red and scorching, like a wave of flames.

Zhou Yuan's eyes narrowed slightly. Gu Hongyi's strength was truly impressive; she was likely among the top cultivators even within the third Heaven of the Genesis Realm. If they were to truly fight, even he would find her a bit troublesome to deal with.

Gu Hongyi launched herself forward with a push of her foot, her figure shooting towards him. A torrent of Origin Qi gathered on her delicate palm, and she unleashed a straightforward punch. The air beneath her fist cracked, as if causing a sonic boom. Gu Hongyi appeared to be a beautiful, delicate girl, but her attack was remarkably simple and brutal. That seemingly small fist, if it were aimed at a disciple of the Genesis Realm's Second Heaven, would probably make them kneel on the spot.

However, Zhou Yuan remained unmoving. He watched the whistling punch approach, then suddenly took a step forward, extended his palm, and with Origin Qi surging, directly met Gu Hongyi's punch head-on. A dull thud echoed, accompanied by a gust of wind, and the loose stones around them were shattered.

However, the moment their fist and palm collided, Gu Hongyi's pretty face suddenly changed. She realized that as her fierce power surged through her fist towards Zhou Yuan, a significant portion of that force was inexplicably dissipated into thin air. It felt as if most of the power in her punch had simply vanished into the air.

Gu Hongyi's beautiful eyes focused on Zhou Yuan's palm, and then her heart trembled. She saw that his palm seemed to have become somewhat indistinct, with a faint translucence.

"How is that possible?!" Gu Hongyi couldn't help but exclaim aloud. She knew this phenomenon all too well; it was clearly a sign that the Void Transformation Art was close to minor mastery. Only by achieving this could one's body part become ethereal, and any attack hitting that part would have much of its power dissipated. This was the marvel of the Void Transformation Art. Once cultivated, any attack landing on the body would have a significant portion of its power neutralized by striking the etherealized part.

The fact that Zhou Yuan could etherealize his palm indicated that his mastery of the Void Transformation Art already far surpassed hers. Gu Hongyi, with her ten essence points, was currently incapable of achieving this.

Zhou Yuan slowly retracted his hand, and his palm quickly returned to normal. He let out a satisfied chuckle. The Void Transformation Art was indeed profound; mastering this technique significantly increased his safety. It was said that upon achieving the first stage of the Void Transformation Art, one could briefly etherealize a part of their body to neutralize sudden attacks. This was undoubtedly a life-saving technique. At the second stage, one could etherealize their entire body, like mist. When moving at that point, it would be as if mist drifted, incredibly swift and lightning-fast. As for the third stage, it was even more formidable. The body would become completely ethereal, able to merge with the world, effectively rendering one invisible to a certain extent, and also capable of blocking many perceptions...

All in all, the Void Transformation Art was practically a miraculous technique that combined self-preservation, escape, and stealth. This was why Zhou Yuan had chosen it without hesitation when he first saw it.

"You..." Gu Hongyi stared blankly at Zhou Yuan, momentarily speechless. The scene before her was too shocking. She simply couldn't believe that Zhou Yuan had cultivated the Void Transformation Art to the verge of minor mastery in just five days.

"You really have opened thirty-one essence points?"

Zhou Yuan smiled. "You should believe your own eyes, shouldn't you?"

"How did you do it?!" Gu Hongyi stammered.

Zhou Yuan chuckled faintly. "Perhaps my perception is simply better... So, what do you think? Interested? Within ten days, I should be able to guarantee you master the first stage of the Void Transformation Art." As for the second stage, he couldn't guarantee it too strongly, because he already felt that the further along he went with these essence points, the harder they were to perceive. Even with his Sacred Vein of Breaking Obstacles, it would still take time.

Gu Hongyi's beautiful eyes intensely scrutinized Zhou Yuan. She had genuinely thought he was talking nonsense, but she never imagined this fellow was so capable, cultivating the Void Transformation Art at such an astonishing speed without any guidance.

"Here are fifty Origin Jade." Gu Hongyi was also a decisive person. Since she had witnessed it with her own eyes, she didn't procrastinate. With a flick of her delicate hand, she threw a cloth pouch towards Zhou Yuan, and the crisp sound of Origin Jade clinking within could be heard.

"Generous." Zhou Yuan gave a thumbs-up. She was indeed a wealthy woman, paying the full amount without a second thought. He had only expected her to pay half upfront. "But how did you get so much Origin Jade?" Zhou Yuan asked curiously. He hadn't seen Gu Hongyi undertake any missions, yet she seemed quite well-off.

"Why do you care so much?" Gu Hongyi gave him a sidelong glance.

Zhou Yuan nodded in understanding. So, she had connections after all.

"Zhou Yuan, let me tell you, my money isn't that easy to earn. If I haven't mastered the first stage of the Void Transformation Art after ten days..." Gu Hongyi looked at Zhou Yuan, warning, "I won't let you off the hook."

"Don't worry, it's good value for money, honest dealings," Zhou Yuan quickly assured her. This was his first client; he had to ensure her satisfaction no matter what.

"When do we start cultivating?"

"Our time is precious, so of course we start now. Come with me." Zhou Yuan waved his hand, tossing the Origin Jade, and headed down the mountain.

Gu Hongyi looked at his retreating back, then at the lecture halls on the back mountain, hesitated for a moment, then finally gritted her teeth and strode quickly to follow him.

"Zhou Yuan, if you dare to trick me, you're dead!"

***

Back mountain, lecture hall.

Zhu Yue watched the various outer mountain disciples arriving one after another, then suddenly frowned, because he didn't see Gu Hongyi.

At this moment, Zhu Feng suddenly rushed in, looking very distressed.

"What's wrong?" Zhu Yue asked with a frown.

The other disciples also looked over.

Zhu Feng hesitated, then said with some disbelief, "Just now, Gu Hongyi sent word that she won't be coming."

"Won't be coming?" Zhu Yue was startled, his expression becoming displeased. "Wasn't she learning well? Is she not studying the Void Transformation Art anymore?" Gu Hongyi had a strong background and was beautiful, so Zhu Yue had some intentions towards her. He was currently dreaming of getting the moon by being near the water tower, hoping to win her over while teaching her Origin techniques. Now that Gu Hongyi suddenly wasn't coming, it completely disrupted his plans.

"She... she's still learning, but... she went to learn the Void Transformation Art from that Zhou Yuan," Zhu Feng said, bracing himself.

The lecture hall immediately fell silent. The many disciples exchanged glances, then burst into an uproar.

"Zhou Yuan?"

"Gu Hongyi is learning the Void Transformation Art from Zhou Yuan?!"

"What is she doing?"

Zhu Yue was also dumbfounded, then his face turned ashen. He truly couldn't understand what was wrong with Gu Hongyi. Had she lost her mind? To go and learn an Origin technique from an outer mountain disciple?! What kind of spell had that Zhou Yuan cast on her?! And most importantly, if this got out, where would he, Zhu Yue, put his face?!

Zhu Yue gritted his teeth, finally unable to contain his explosive emotions. He violently kicked a nearby table, shattering it, and roared in a twisted whisper, "Zhou Yuan, you're practically asking for death!"