Chapter 1430: I Want to Change Clothes

"Master Zhang!" the Heavenly Diviner Saint Son greeted, cupping his fist upon Zhang Xuan's arrival.

"How is Elder Feng doing?" Zhang Xuan returned the gesture. He felt quite guilty about what had happened at their guild: he had torn down their building and all their treasures, and then even struck them with lightning.

"He's in seclusion!" the Heavenly Diviner Saint Son replied. "He seems a bit dispirited, though I'm not sure why..."

Zhang Xuan felt a slight pang of awkwardness. Elder Feng had originally been full of vigor and eager to take him on as a student, so to see him in such a state made Zhang Xuan feel truly embarrassed.

"I know Elder Feng wanted to take you as his disciple, but as the guardian of the Master Teacher Tower, I won't go easy on you!" The Saint Son nodded.

"You're too kind..." Zhang Xuan chuckled softly. He hadn't yet reached the eight-star level in professions like poison master or soul oracle, so he couldn't display those skills. Although he hadn't studied much about Heavenly Diviners, he figured passing the assessment wouldn't be too difficult.

"Let's begin then. The assessment is simple: you and I will simultaneously divine the same event. If your result matches mine, you pass!" The Saint Son explained the rules. Heavenly Diviners specialize in deduction. Although each individual's abilities may vary, there is only one true path if the deduction is correct.

"Alright!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

"I predict that you will not pass the Master Teacher Tower assessment today!" the Saint Son said with a slight smile.

"Cannot pass?" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows furrowed. This was a paradox, a deliberately set trap. Matching his prediction meant admitting failure in the Master Teacher Tower. Claiming success would contradict him, and this was only the third level. First, it would be impossible to prove. Second, even if he passed the remaining six levels, this one wouldn't be acknowledged, meaning he still wouldn't have passed the overall assessment! That was truly ruthless. As expected of the Heavenly Diviner Saint Son; his opening move left one speechless.

"Exactly. If you admit you cannot pass right now, I will let you pass this level..." the Heavenly Diviner Saint Son chuckled. When this person visited their guild, it collapsed into ruins, and Elder Feng became dispirited. Although he wasn't sure if it was related to Zhang Xuan, as the Heavenly Diviner Saint Son, he still felt he needed to make things difficult for him. Otherwise, where would the dignity of the most mysterious profession among the Upper Nine Paths lie?

"Could we perhaps switch to a different assessment? This one... I'm afraid I cannot answer," Zhang Xuan said, shaking his head.

"I only have this one!" The Saint Son waved his hand. The other party possessed the Empyrean Void Physique, making it impossible to deduce results about him due to its interference; even fighting him would yield inaccurate predictions. Since he couldn't figure anything out, he might as well play a cunning trick. Watching how Zhang Xuan reacted would also serve as a lesson.

"Only one? Alright then..." Seeing that the other party was deliberately making things difficult, aiming to prevent him from passing, Zhang Xuan helplessly shook his head. With a thought, he communicated.

*CRACK!*

Before the Saint Son could react, his entire body stiffened. A bolt of lightning struck his head, followed by a series of electric currents that fiercely battered him. In the blink of an eye, he was lying on the ground, foaming at the mouth and convulsing uncontrollably.

"What's wrong with you?" With a look of alarm, Zhang Xuan seemed a little scared: "Have you also revealed too many heavenly secrets and suffered a backlash?"

"I..."

*CRACK! CRACK!*

Two more bolts of lightning struck, and the Saint Son could only utter a single word before convulsing again.

"Since something unexpected has happened to you, I won't disturb you further. I'll head upstairs now..." Zhang Xuan cupped his fist.

"No..."

*CRACK! CRACK!*

Before he could finish his words, the Saint Son continued to convulse.

"Thank you for your generosity. I will certainly come to express my gratitude if the opportunity arises..." Cupping his fists again, Zhang Xuan stepped forward and quickly disappeared from the room. If the other party hadn't tried to make things difficult, he might have used his Empyrean Void Physique to contend with him. But since he deliberately sought trouble, there was no need to be polite. Stealing heavenly secrets was, in itself, a thieving act. Giving him a lesson was nothing.

"You..." The Saint Son's face was filled with anxiety. He tried to stop Zhang Xuan but found the lightning bolts growing more frequent. After struggling for a long time, unable to escape or dodge, he simply found a comfortable spot, lay down with vacant eyes, and let the bolts continue their furious assault.

The fourth level was for the Calligrapher-Painter Saint Son. Upon entering, it immediately felt like stepping into a world both real and illusory, with magnificent, overlapping mountain peaks. Knowing this was an eight-star calligraphy-painting, Zhang Xuan quickly withdrew and easily deciphered it. The fifth level was for the Startling Dance Master, the sixth for the Appraiser, the seventh for the Demonic Music Master, and the eighth for the Alchemist... Having read all the relevant books, Zhang Xuan's progress through the levels was incredibly fast. Within minutes, he passed the assessment of the final level. He took a deep breath and stepped onto the ninth floor. He had now passed eight auxiliary professions. As long as he passed the final cultivation assessment, he would truly become an eight-star master teacher.

Pushing the door open, he walked in and saw the figure seated before him, his brows furrowing once more.

"Why is it you?" The person before him was none other than Zhang Chun, the Zhang Clan genius whom the Azure Dragon Beast had previously thrashed, and who still owed him five high-grade spirit stones!

"The Master Teacher Tower requires an eight-star master teacher to preside over the assessment. Originally, Luo Xuanqing and I were both qualified, but he broke through to the Void Puncturing realm, which is beyond the scope of this assessment. So, naturally, I must personally oversee it!" With a slight smile, Zhang Chun flipped his wrist, took out a jade box, and with a gentle shake, it immediately flew over. "These are the five supreme-grade spirit stones I owe you!"

Zhang Xuan casually caught it, didn't open it, and put it into his storage ring, his brows furrowing even more. He had previously had the Azure Dragon Beast violently beat Zhang Chun, so there was enmity between them. Now that Zhang Chun had found an opportunity to assess him, how could he possibly let it go? Returning the spirit stones already indicated his attitude... By settling the debt, he was clearing the way to strike mercilessly.

"How will this level's assessment be conducted?" Understanding this, Zhang Xuan exhaled and looked at him.

"To become an eight-star master teacher, you must possess the strength of a Saint 6-dan Domain Realm expert... You are currently only at half-step Domain, clearly not having reached it. I need to test you to confirm!" His eyes glinted as Zhang Chun looked at him. "Don't worry, my assessment is very simple: I'll hit you three times. If you can block them, you pass. If you can't... I'm sorry, even if you passed the previous eight levels, you won't pass this one!"

"Three punches?" Zhang Xuan frowned. Zhang Chun had previously suppressed his cultivation to fight Zhang Xuan, so he knew Zhang Xuan's true combat power. Despite this, he still intended to throw three punches, clearly without suppressing his cultivation. Although Zhang Xuan had made significant progress recently, fighting Zhang Chun without suppressed cultivation would still clearly put him at a disadvantage.

"Three punches is fine, but I need to change my clothes first..." He paused, unable to think of any way to win, then Zhang Xuan said.

"Change clothes? As you wish..." Zhang Chun hadn't expected this request. He smiled slightly, not giving it much thought. Contests were about strength; he had never heard of anyone winning by changing clothes.

"Thank you..." Breathing a sigh of relief, Zhang Xuan waved his hand, set up an untraceable formation in a corner of the room, turned, and walked inside.