Chapter 185: Teacher, thank you for your hard work

Ignoring the two pretentious individuals, Zhang Xuan returned to the classroom.

"Teacher, you're back!"

All the students were there, and upon seeing him enter, they bowed.

"Not bad, it seems you've all been working very hard these past few days."

Zhang Xuan looked around, clearly observing everyone's cultivation level, and nodded with satisfaction.

In just five days, all five students had made significant progress. Wang Ying, Liu Yang, Zheng Yang, and the others had all reached the peak of the Martial Artist 1-dan Meridial Breath realm.

Although Zhao Ya was also at the peak without a breakthrough, her strength was much more profound than the others, seemingly just a step away from the Dantian realm.

As for Yuan Tao, who had the weakest foundation, he had astonishingly progressed from the early to the middle stage of the Meridial Breath realm.

The Breath Nourishing Pill, combined with the cultivation technique he imparted, indeed proved to be highly effective.

Now, even without his guidance, Zhao Ya should be able to easily defeat the former Zhu Hong.

"Zhao Ya, Yuan Tao, come with me."

After checking everyone's cultivation progress again and feeling satisfied, Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

Entering the teacher's inner room, Zhang Xuan took out the medicinal pills he had just purchased. "Zhao Ya, this is a Spirit Breaking Pill. It can activate your unique constitution. Tonight, find a wooden tub, soak in it beforehand, and then take the pill."

He handed over the Spirit Breaking Pill.

"Thank you, Teacher..." Although she didn't know the pill was worth tens of millions, Zhao Ya was pleasantly surprised to receive such a valuable and proper medicinal pill from her teacher. She took it, feeling immense gratitude in her heart.

"Yuan Tao, do you know why I accepted you as my student?" After giving Zhao Ya the pill, Zhang Xuan looked at his chubby disciple nearby.

"I..." Yuan Tao scratched his head.

In fact, he had been a bit puzzled these past few days.

He had been last in the entrance examination, and at first, he wondered if Teacher Zhang had taken him only because he couldn't recruit any other students. However, after witnessing Teacher Zhang's true capabilities, he understood that this wasn't the case at all.

How could someone with such great abilities fail to attract students?

Therefore, although he had been diligently working with Zhao Ya, Zheng Yang, and the others these days, he secretly felt a bit insecure.

He felt certain he would drag everyone down.

Precisely because of this, his former shameless and roguish personality had toned down considerably.

"Don't feel inferior to others. If you cultivate diligently, you will definitely go further than Zheng Yang and the rest!" Zhang Xuan said, seeing the doubt and fear in his heart.

The Dragon-Rhino Bloodline, even among special constitutions, is considered extremely powerful. If fully activated, his cultivation would certainly make a great leap, easily surpassing Zheng Yang and the others.

"Teacher... I... I can really go further?" Yuan Tao's face flushed with excitement.

He had been worried these past few days that Teacher Zhang might abandon him, so he never expected his teacher to value him so much.

"Rest assured, your teacher definitely won't be mistaken." Zhang Xuan waved his hand, his gaze sharp as he looked at him. "However... your raw talent isn't exceptional. If you want to surpass others, you'll certainly have to endure more hardship. Are you willing?"

After reading through the Alchemist Guild's advanced library, he knew that fusing with the blood of a giant rhinoceros beast to stimulate one's constitution would be extremely painful. If one couldn't endure it, not only would they fail to advance, but they might even die as a result.

Therefore, Zhang Xuan didn't directly give him the item. Instead, he first motivated him, allowing him to firm his resolve.

Cultivation involves defying the heavens. Without the determination to face death a hundred times without regret, it would be impossible to stand out and make rapid progress.

"Teacher, as long as my cultivation can improve and I don't drag everyone down, I'm willing to endure any amount of hardship!" Yuan Tao knelt on the ground, his eyes filled with unshakeable resolve.

Having come from a rogue cultivator background and experienced countless hardships, he knew how difficult it was to find a good teacher. He would never give up this opportunity, even if it cost him his life.

"Good. This is what I've prepared for you. Tonight, when you return to your residence, apply it to your entire body. The process might be extremely painful, but as long as you persevere, you will certainly gain unexpected rewards. Are you willing to try?"

After speaking, Zhang Xuan handed over the giant rhinoceros beast blood.

"As long as it can improve my strength, I'm willing to endure any amount of pain!"

Yuan Tao gritted his teeth.

Although he seemed jovial and not always proper in his conduct, when it came to perseverance, he was likely first among the five disciples.

"Applying this substance won't succeed in just one go. Once the pain subsides, continue applying it. I'm giving you five days. Return for the freshman competition; I want to see your progress. Otherwise, don't bother coming to see me again!"

Zhang Xuan waved his hand, his voice growing stern at the end.

"Yuan Tao will never betray Teacher's trust!"

Hearing these words, Yuan Tao knew he had been given an unbreakable pledge. Holding the jade bottle, his eyes seemed to burn with fire.

Teacher Zhang hadn't given up on him despite him being the weakest; instead, he had specifically found items to help him advance. As a student, if he were to be timid and hesitant now, wouldn't he be letting down his teacher's painstaking efforts and profound care?

Even if he died, he would complete it and not fail his teacher's expectations.

Yuan Tao gritted his teeth.

"Very well, you two may leave. Call Wang Ying in."

Seeing their determined and unwavering attitudes, Zhang Xuan nodded with satisfaction.

Shortly after, Wang Ying walked in. The young girl's face flushed red as usual when she saw someone.

"Teacher, you called me..."

"Yes. How do your legs feel after using the Body Nurturing Fluid?"

Zhang Xuan looked at her.

"Thank you, Teacher, my legs are completely fine now! Teacher, this is... the money for the Body Nurturing Fluid that my father asked me to give you. He said that your guidance is already a great kindness, and he can't let you spend any more money..."

Wang Ying stepped forward and handed him a gold note, which surprisingly had a face value of five hundred thousand.

The Body Nurturing Fluid was available at the Alchemist Guild, and its price was not difficult to ascertain. While Zhang Xuan, as an official alchemist, could buy it for a lower price, outsiders had to pay at least three hundred thousand gold coins per portion.

It seemed Patriarch Wang Hong had specifically inquired about the price after learning that Zhang Xuan had given his daughter a portion of the Body Nurturing Fluid.

"Then I'll accept it," Zhang Xuan said, not refusing.

When teaching students, it was impossible for the teacher to always cover expenses. His reason for purchasing it was simply to save time and win the Teacher Qualification Exam.

Moreover, accepting it would prevent the Wang family and Wang Ying from feeling a psychological burden, making the teacher-student relationship purer.

"Perform a set of fist techniques for me to see!"

After accepting the gold note, Zhang Xuan instructed.

"Yes!" Wang Ying immediately extended her graceful arms, moving with a fluid swiftness that stirred the air.

With his increasing cultivation, Zhang Xuan had accumulated many cultivation techniques and martial arts in his mind. Even without actively using them, he could tell that her legs were now completely fine.

Soon after completing the martial technique, Wang Ying was slightly sweating.

"These are leg techniques and movement techniques I specifically created for you. Cultivate them diligently. I'm also giving you five days. No matter what method you use, you must achieve minor accomplishment in them within these five days."

Zhang Xuan handed her two books.

These were precisely the Heaven's Path Movement and Heaven's Path Leg Techniques he had comprehended from the Kingdom's Library. Although they had been simplified and lacked the full power of the originals, they were still considered top-tier martial techniques. If mastered, they would certainly greatly increase Wang Ying's speed.

"Thank you, Teacher Zhang..."

After glancing through the books, Wang Ying's breathing became ragged with excitement.

With her leg injury fully healed, she had also found some leg martial techniques within the Wang family to study. Those techniques were reputed to be among the best in the entire Tianxuan Kingdom, but compared to what Teacher Zhang had given her... they were worlds apart.

They weren't even on the same level.

This alone revealed the preciousness of these secret manuals.

"Go call Liu Yang in!"

Ignoring her gratitude, Zhang Xuan continued to give instructions.

Soon, Liu Yang walked over.

Due to practicing martial techniques too early with insufficient true qi, he had developed a hidden problem: his right-hand meridians were damaged, making its strength far inferior to his left hand. However, after nourishment from the Meridian Nurturing Pill, the injured area had now fully recovered.

After testing him and seeing that his fist techniques had significantly improved, Zhang Xuan nodded with satisfaction and passed on the Heaven's Path Fist Technique he had comprehended from the Kingdom's Library.

Finally, it was Zheng Yang's turn.

After a few days of cultivation, his Heaven's Path Spear Art had become even more proficient. Although it was just a simple move, it could already transform into countless variations, greatly increasing his combat power.

If fighting with a spear, even Zhao Ya would likely not be his match. Among the five, his overall strength might not be the highest, but his combat power was definitely the strongest.

"Your spear art cultivation is good. However, your cultivation level is still too low. Within five days, find a way to break through to Martial Artist 2-dan."

Zhang Xuan said, after a slight hesitation.

This student of his was indeed a spear art genius. Although he had only taught him for a few days, Zheng Yang had already fully grasped the spear art. There was nothing more to say about his spear art; the most crucial thing was his actual strength.

"Yes!" Zheng Yang nodded.

Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to progress from Martial Artist 1-dan to 2-dan without a year or a year and a half of diligent practice. But for Zheng Yang, it wasn't necessary at all.

It wasn't because of his innate talent, but because Zhang Xuan's explanation of the Martial Artist 1-dan realm had reached the very core essence. These days of learning and comprehension had given him a deep understanding of the Martial Artist 1-dan realm. Coupled with the Breath Nourishing Pill and his tailor-made cultivation technique, breaking through was not difficult.

"Go cultivate..."

After giving instructions to his students, Zhang Xuan could no longer resist his fatigue. Regardless of whether it was a classroom or not, he leaned back in his chair and fell asleep.

Soon, night fell.

"Where's Teacher Zhang?"

After their cultivation, everyone felt a little strange when Teacher Zhang still hadn't appeared.

"Zhao Ya, why don't you go check?"

"Okay!" Zhao Ya, also filled with curiosity, pushed open the door to the small classroom room. Immediately, she saw Teacher Zhang leaning back in his chair, sleeping soundly.

"Teacher... he's asleep!"

Quietly stepping back out, Zhao Ya's eyes were slightly red.

Taking out these medicinal herbs, imparting new fist techniques, movement techniques... it went without saying that Teacher Zhang must have been working tirelessly these past few days to do all of this.

No wonder they had seen him looking unwell earlier, with bloodshot eyes.

"Teacher..."

Zheng Yang and the others also felt a pang in their hearts.

For an Aperture Acupoint realm expert, not sleeping for two or three days was no problem. How exhausted must he have been to fall asleep sitting upright like that?

As students, having such a teacher was definitely the luckiest thing that could happen in their lives.

"We must cultivate diligently, fulfill Teacher's instructions, and win the Teacher Qualification Exam. Only then will we not disappoint Teacher Zhang's expectations," Zhao Ya said, gritting her teeth.

"Exactly. Teacher has already given so much for us. If we lose again, are we even human?" Zheng Yang also nodded.

With that, they simultaneously looked through the crack in the door at their teacher, who was leaning on the stool, fast asleep. All five of them clenched their fists, a single thought emerging in their hearts...

Teacher, you've worked hard!