Chapter 24: Throwing Out

"This is impossible..."

Wang Tao was stunned, unable to believe what he saw. Before coming, he had specifically inquired about Zhang Xuan's strength. Zhang Xuan was a Martial Artist 3-dan True Qi Realm practitioner, and his abilities were said to be utterly dreadful! How could he possibly block his attack with just two fingers?

To accomplish this, one needed not only strength but also a precise understanding of timing, the force of the strike, direction, and so on. Even a slight miscalculation would result in severed fingers and severe injury. Even his own teacher, an elder in the Aperture Acupoint Realm, couldn't do this! How could a man described as a good-for-nothing... possibly do it?!

"A coincidence, it must be a coincidence!"

A thought flashed through his mind, and Wang Tao's expression turned ferocious again. He strained his arms, roaring, "Let go of me!" He tried to pull his long sword, which was clamped between the other's fingers, back. However, after two powerful tugs, veins bulged on his forehead, and he felt as if he was about to collapse and vomit blood from exhaustion. To his astonishment, the long sword was held so firmly by the other's fingers, as if rooted, that no matter how much force he applied, it wouldn't budge.

"Could it be... that his strength isn't just True Qi Realm?" A strange thought emerged. That couldn't be right! It hadn't been long since the last teacher assessment, and everyone in the academy knew he was only at the peak of the True Qi Realm. Even if he had made a breakthrough, he would only be at the Skin and Bone Realm, similar to himself. It shouldn't be possible for him to be rendered helpless by just two fingers!

"Get out!"

As he was still pondering, a surge of power transmitted through the long sword, and he heard the other person's faint voice in his ear. Whoosh! Before he could react, he was sent flying through the air.

Crash! He slammed through the large door and flew outside.

"All right, let's continue with the lesson!" Casually tossing Wang Tao out, Zhang Xuan looked at the students and said calmly.

...

Wang Ying, Zhao Ya, Liu Yang, Zheng Yang, Yuan Tao, and the others exchanged bewildered glances. Their minds were reeling, about to explode from shock. That was a Martial Artist 4-dan Skin and Bone Realm expert! Not only was his full-strength sword strike casually parried, but he was also effortlessly thrown out...

Wasn't their teacher the worst in the entire academy, with the lowest cultivation? How did he do it?

"Teacher... is he hiding his true strength?"

Suddenly, Zhao Ya understood, and her face flushed with excitement. The only explanation was that their teacher, standing before them, must be hiding his strength! Otherwise, how could he pinpoint issues that no one else could see, and with just a casual pointer, double someone's combat power?

Once she realized this, the others, who were not fools either, clenched their fists in excitement. Who wouldn't want a powerful teacher to guide them when entering an academy? Before, they had thought that by choosing the worst teacher in the academy, their future would be difficult. But now they knew... they had struck gold, and a massive fortune at that! This teacher, with such a terrible reputation in the academy, was actually... an unparalleled master!

"Yes!"

With this thought, all other concerns vanished. They nodded repeatedly in excitement, and Liu Yang, who had previously been resistant to Zhang Xuan's class, couldn't help but look over excitedly, afraid of missing a single word from the teacher. Teachers like Lu Xun and Wang Chao... were instantly cast to the back of their minds.

Forget about them, even the elders would probably have to kneel before Teacher Zhang!

***

"Young Master rushing in like that, he should be fine, right?"

Outside the classroom, Old Liu watched Wang Tao furiously enter the room and felt a little worried.

"Don't worry," Yao Han said, nodding and smiling. "Young Master Wang Tao has reached Martial Artist 4-dan Skin and Bone Realm. That Zhang Xuan is only in the True Qi Realm. He'll soon teach him a lesson and bring Miss Wang Ying out!"

Yao Han nodded and smiled. He was just envisioning the shameless fake teacher being beaten to a pulp, losing all his teeth, and looking utterly wretched, when he heard Wang Tao's furious roar from inside the room.

"It's starting!" Yao Han's eyes lit up, and the corners of his mouth turned upward.

If Zhang Xuan were merely the worst-ranked teacher in the academy, that would be one thing, and Yao Han wouldn't bother with him. But how dare he be disrespectful to Miss?! Unless he had done or said something, how could Miss willingly become his student? If Yao Han were to act, he would surely displease Miss and potentially offend Hongtian Academy. Wang Tao taking action was simply perfect! Hongtian Academy was located in Tianxuan Royal City, and the Wang family was a local power. Even if a teacher were beaten, they would surely have a way to handle it! Furthermore, Wang Tao was an elder's disciple, holding a respected position, making it more justified and appropriate for him to act than Yao Han.

"Hehe, I'll just watch how this garbage teacher makes a fool of himself..."

The more he thought about it, the happier he became. Yao Han quietly approached the door, intending to push it open a crack and peek inside. However, just as he reached the door, he heard a loud "Boom!" in his ears as the previously tightly shut door suddenly burst open.

Thud! The iron door violently swung forward, striking Yao Han directly in the face before he could even react. As he reeled, dizzy and disoriented, another head slammed into him again!

Crack! That head and his face made intimate contact once more, followed by the crisp sound of bone. The two remaining teeth he had painstakingly preserved were gloriously sacrificed.

"Pffft!" The intense pain made Yao Han convulse, and a mouthful of fresh blood gushed out. It wasn't that he was weak; it was... that his injuries from yesterday hadn't healed. He had already been hit in the face yesterday, and now he was first struck by the iron door, followed immediately by a head-on collision... It was a wonder he didn't die on the spot.

"Young Master..." Old Liu, realizing that the person who flew out was his own young master, rushed over in fright.

"Damn it, damn it!" Although Wang Tao had hit the iron door, he wasn't seriously injured thanks to Yao Han acting as a human cushion. As he stood up, he recalled how that "good-for-nothing" had casually blocked his attack and then thrown him out. He was still shaken. Despite roaring loudly, he dared not approach again.

"Young Master Wang Tao, you... you..." Dizzy and disoriented, Yao Han finally realized that it was Wang Tao who had crashed into him. He struggled to his feet, full of questions. Weren't you going in to beat someone up? Why did you come flying out?

"I... I was practicing a new martial skill!" Wang Tao dared not admit that he had been thrown out by a "good-for-nothing," so he blurted out an excuse.

"A martial skill?" Yao Han, still dazed from the impact and unable to see clearly, quickly asked, "Did you expose that fellow's true colors? What did our Miss say..."

"Cough, cough, I... I didn't even get to make a move. My sister threw me out. I think... maybe we should just wait here for now!" Wang Tao's face was flushed with embarrassment. He had just stormed in, intending to teach someone a lesson, only to come flying out horizontally. He would rather die than admit such a humiliating incident!

"Wait?"

Yao Han scratched his head, full of doubts but too embarrassed to ask directly, so he changed the subject: "Young Master Wang Tao, you're a student at Hongtian Academy. I just happen to have something I want to ask you!"

"Please, go ahead!" Seeing that Yao Han was no longer pressing about what happened in the classroom, Wang Tao breathed a sigh of relief and quickly responded.

"Is there any female teacher in our academy whose name contains the character 'Bi'?" Remembering the person who hit him yesterday, Yao Han felt a surge of anger.

"'Bi'? The most famous one is our academy's goddess, Shen Biru! I heard that Teacher Zhang Xuan also wants to pursue her. He's really a toad trying to eat... swan meat..."

Wang Tao stopped mid-sentence. In the past, everyone knew Zhang Xuan was weak, a terrible teacher, and yet he wanted to pursue the academy's goddess, Shen Biru... That's why he was called that. But now that he had personally experienced Zhang Xuan's strength, realizing it was beyond his ability to contend with, calling him a toad trying to eat swan meat didn't seem quite right anymore!

"Shen Biru? Zhang Xuan wants to pursue her?" Yao Han's eyes lit up. He immediately understood that the person mentioned by the fellow yesterday must be her. He asked again, "Besides Teacher Zhang, are there any other teachers pursuing her?"

"Teacher Shen is so beautiful that too many teachers want to pursue her; I can't even count them all. However, the most famous one is Teacher Shang Bin, the grandson of Elder Shang Chen!" Wang Tao thought for a moment, then looked over with a puzzled expression. "Steward Yao, why are you asking this?"

"Oh, just asking casually, just asking casually!" Yao Han said no more, but a glint flashed in his eyes.

"I'll inquire later to see if this Shang Bin had any conflict with Zhang Xuan yesterday. That will confirm it. If it really was him, no matter whose elder's son he is, I'll definitely make him pay!" As the steward of White Jade City, with power second only to one and above thousands, when had he ever suffered such a great loss?! If he didn't get revenge, his heart's hatred would not be appeased. He swore he wouldn't be a human being if he didn't!

***

While Yao Han was contemplating whom to ask for information, Shang Bin, the person in question, had just finished teaching his students and was walking out of the room when he encountered a young man.

It was Teacher Cao Xiong!