Chapter 359: Teaching Swordsmanship

Spirit stones were extremely important, so since the other party offered them, he certainly had to accept. However, Zhang Xuan would not accept benefits for nothing. He would provide them with a free medical treatment as repayment.

“Speaking of treatment, President Liu, I might truly need your help this time!” Mo Tianxue said, clasping his fists after a moment of speechlessness. His main purpose in befriending this person was to leverage his medical skills. Now that he had spoken, he naturally wouldn’t refuse.

“Let’s spar!” Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

“Spar?” Mo Tianxue was speechless again. Shouldn’t treating an illness involve describing the condition? What was this about sparring? He chuckled awkwardly, “It’s not for my treatment, but... how about this: if President Liu is free now, would you be willing to visit the royal palace?”

“I still have some matters to attend to. Once I’m done, I’ll pay a visit!” Zhang Xuan said after a moment of hesitation.

“Very well then, Xiaoyu, isn’t President Liu going to the Alchemist Guild? You can accompany him. Since you’re a two-star alchemist, you’re quite familiar with the place!” Seeing him agree, Mo Tianxue stroked his beard with a smile. “Besides, you’re both geniuses; you can take the opportunity to learn more about each other and have some discussions.” The fact that he had just mentioned going to the Alchemist Guild was a perfect opportunity. If the two developed feelings for each other while spending time together, it would be even more perfect.

“His Majesty is having Princess Mo Yu accompany him?”

“It’s clearly to introduce the princess to Teacher Liu…”

Seeing this scene, Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan both looked crestfallen. Status, beauty, talent... it seemed heaven favored Princess Mo Yu alone, bestowing all benefits upon her. Any man, being with her, would likely find it impossible to refuse. The Emperor’s words were now so explicit, almost proposing marriage directly, leaving those who secretly admired her heartbroken.

Just when they thought Teacher Liu would surely agree with pleasure, they saw him frown and shake his head. “No need…”

“No need?” Mo Tianxue was also stunned. “Isn’t President Liu going to the Alchemist Guild? Although my daughter isn’t top-tier there, she still has some influence. Having her take you would save you a lot of trouble when buying elixirs and so on!” In the Tianwu Kingdom’s Alchemist Guild, even the highest-ranking president was only a three-star alchemist, so a two-star was considered high status.

“Oh, I won’t be going to the Alchemist Guild after all. I have other matters, so I’ll take my leave now. Once I’ve finished here, I’ll visit the royal palace!” Zhang Xuan clasped his fists in farewell. He had intended to go to the Alchemist Guild to find spirit-infused medicinal ingredients, but now that he had spirit stones, he naturally didn’t need to. His immediate priority was to return to his residence and teach the sword art to Zhao Ya. After all, she had a match against someone in two days.

“Not going?” Mo Tianxue blinked his eyes.

Mo Yu gnashed her teeth even more. Her father had spoken so clearly and explicitly, yet this fellow actually refused… Refusal was one thing, but he had just firmly stated he was going to the Alchemist Guild, and upon hearing she would accompany him, he immediately changed his mind and decided not to go… *Am I so ugly that I scared you like that?*

“Farewell…” Unaware that his casual remark had caused a misunderstanding, Zhang Xuan turned and left. Master teachers possessed a status that could disregard royal authority. The other party was, at most, the king of a first-tier kingdom. Not to mention the deterrence of the Master Teacher Guild, even an ordinary two-star master teacher was someone they wouldn’t dare to offend. Because the appeal of a master teacher was simply too great. If they truly offended such a 'monster,' a casual lecture could probably gather most of the kingdom’s elites. Once they gained benefits from a lecture, it would be akin to having a semi-teacher-student relationship, making it effortless for them to overthrow royal authority.

“Father, that fellow is simply too ill-mannered!” Princess Mo Yu said angrily after he had walked away.

“It’s normal for geniuses to be arrogant and disregard etiquette. I recall you saying that Teacher Zhang seems even more ill-mannered!” Mo Tianxue replied. Any great talent is certainly different from ordinary people. If they were like everyone else, how could they stand out and proudly surpass the masses?

“Teacher Zhang has real ability; what is he? How can he compare?” Mo Yu scoffed. From the Beast Hall onwards, she had witnessed Teacher Zhang’s abilities. Though not unmatched in the world, they were close, making him her object of admiration. This Liu Cheng... was merely an unworldly nobody whose medical skills were luckily high. How could he possibly compare?

“That’s not necessarily true. This President Liu is not only skilled in medicine but also excellent at teaching students!” Mo Tianxue smiled, flipped his wrist, and produced a secret memorial. “Take a look at this!”

Mo Yu took it with a puzzled expression. Just one glance made her beautiful eyes widen. “He, he only guided them for one day and all his students made breakthroughs? And he effortlessly resolved Mu Xueqing’s pill poison?” Mu Xueqing’s father was Alchemist Mu, one of Mo Yu’s assessment teachers. She had met him a few times and was quite familiar, knowing that the girl carried pill poison. As the President of the Physician Guild, it was normal for him to be highly skilled in medicine and effortlessly resolve pill poison. However, guiding an entire class to break through in just one day was something beyond the capabilities of an ordinary person! Even she, a one-star master teacher, would likely be unable to achieve that.

“Indeed. If he weren’t so formidable, how could I let you befriend him!” Mo Tianxue smiled. “Moreover, keep reading; there’s something even more interesting further down!”

Princess Mo Yu continued reading and was surprised again. “Teacher Zhang’s student, Zhao Ya, drew with his student, Mu Xueqing? And they’ve agreed to another match in two days?”

“Yes. If Mu Xueqing wins this match, it would show that Teacher Liu is even more formidable than Teacher Zhang in teaching! Such a person, even if not a master teacher, would absolutely be a pillar of the nation. Just imagine, if he were to lecture in the army... how great an effect would that have?” Mo Tianxue said.

“This…” Mo Yu fell silent. Simply offering guidance allowed an entire class to make breakthroughs. Such an ability, applied to the army, could undoubtedly produce unimaginable effects, even causing a kingdom’s military strength to rapidly surge.

“This President Liu is skilled in medicine and formidable in teaching. Although he’s far from Teacher Zhang in alchemy and beast taming, he’s by no means weak. Befriending him certainly won’t be wrong. Of course, you also need to follow up with Teacher Zhang. If he can speak on your behalf, even if Mo Hongyi is formidable, he won’t be able to affect your position!” Mo Tianxue instructed seriously.

“Yes!” Mo Yu nodded. Then, as if remembering something, she hesitated and looked up. “Since we want to befriend both of them, should we stop Mu Xueqing and Zhao Ya’s match?”

“Why stop it? Not only should we not stop it, we should widely publicize it, let everyone know about it, and create an even greater sensation! Only then can President Liu’s reputation truly expand and win his favor!” Mo Tianxue held wisdom firmly in his grasp. “He didn’t stop Mu Xueqing and Zhao Ya from fighting; it’s clear he wants to use this incident to become famous throughout the world. If that’s the case, we’ll give him a helping hand!”

Mo Yu understood. Her heart was also filled with curiosity about the match in two days: would Teacher Zhang’s student, Zhao Ya, win, or would President Liu’s student, Mu Xueqing, prevail? However, regardless of who might win, the fact that they had drawn once already showed that President Liu’s teaching was in no way inferior to Teacher Zhang’s!

*In two days, I must come and watch their match…* She made a silent decision.

Leaving the academy, and finding no one tracking him, Zhang Xuan found a place, transformed into "Teacher Yang's" appearance, and entered his residence.

“Master, last night a few guards arrived, saying they wanted to pledge allegiance to the young master. Since the young master isn’t here now, what do you think we should do?” Sun Qiang came forward to greet him.

“Pledge allegiance to the young master?” Zhang Xuan looked over, puzzled.

“Yes, they said they used to be guards from the Ji family, and because they had an agreement with the young master, they came here seeking refuge…” Sun Qiang explained.

“Oh!” Zhang Xuan nodded, remembering. When he first arrived in the royal city the day before yesterday, he had offended Young Master Ji Mo, the calligrapher and painter. That fellow had sent people to cause him trouble, but Zhang Xuan had thoroughly beaten them, then threatened them with poison to make them teach Ji Mo a lesson. Now Zhang Xuan was not in the royal city, undergoing the two-star master teacher assessment… so these people, to avoid being hunted by the Ji family, could only flee here.

“Zhang Xuan mentioned this to me. Tell them to work diligently here, and I’ll help resolve the hidden dangers they carry!” Zhang Xuan waved his hand. To him, these people’s cultivation wasn’t exceptional, but they had all reached the Tongxuan realm. For protecting the residence, they were much stronger than the hired guards. Although he knew this was Teacher Zhang’s residence and no one would dare cause trouble, it was still better to be prepared for any eventuality.

“Yes!” Although he didn’t understand what ‘Master Yang’ meant by that, Sun Qiang still noted it down.

“Call Zhao Ya over!” Ignoring the guards, Zhang Xuan entered the main hall and instructed. Sun Qiang nodded and left. Before long, Zhao Ya arrived.

“I have a set of sword techniques here. I will teach them to you now. Regardless of who you compete against in two days, I hope you win and don’t disappoint your grand-teacher and your teacher!” Zhang Xuan said calmly, looking at the girl before him.

“Grand-teacher, please be at ease. Zhao Ya will surely live up to your expectations!” Zhao Ya clenched her teeth.

“Good then. This is the secret manual for the sword art. If you don’t understand anything after reading it, just ask!” He casually handed her the simplified version of the Path of Heaven Sword Art that he had compiled. Zhao Ya knew that what her grand-teacher taught would certainly not be simple. Without the slightest hesitation, she immediately began to study diligently. The Path of Heaven Sword Art simplified complexity, pointing directly to the grand Dao, and was not complicated to learn. An hour later, Zhao Ya had basically mastered it, though it would still take some time to become completely proficient. Even so, she already knew how powerful this set of sword techniques was! It even surpassed Zheng Yang’s spear techniques.

“Teacher, Hall Master Jiang wishes to see you!” After teaching Zhao Ya the sword art, Liu Ling stepped forward.

“Let him in…” Zhang Xuan waved his hand, then suddenly paused, slapped his forehead, and an idea popped into his mind. He had always acted in his own identity, forgetting about his current disguise. As Zhang Xuan, he was only a one-star master teacher and wasn’t qualified to enter the two-star archives of the Master Teacher Hall to read. But as "Teacher Yang," it should be very easy to get in! He believed that as long as he made the request, and it wasn’t a big deal, Hall Master Jiang would definitely not object!