Chapter 540: Are You a Pig?

Everyone was bewildered, and Lu Zhan, who stood to one side, was so startled he nearly fainted on the spot. Others didn't recognize him, but Lu Zhan had just been speaking with the man. How could he have, in the blink of an eye, wandered into the medicine garden and started touching things indiscriminately?

If you don't understand medicine cultivation, you could have asked. Even if you didn't, seeing so many people standing still, wouldn't it occur to you to wonder what was happening? Touching the Earth Vein Spirit Vine might have been excusable; it's enormous, and even chopping it a few times wouldn't kill it, let alone just touching it. However, those spirit medicines are absolutely not to be touched!

Just as Lu Zhan was frantically trying to figure out how to explain the situation, he saw the young man turn around, clap his hands, and look at them with a calm expression.

"Oh, I want to see if I can treat this Earth Vein Spirit Vine!"

"Treat it?" Lu Zhan nearly choked in shock.

"You hold a respected position, one that even four-star master teachers are wary of. Yet, we just spent a long time talking, and you clearly know nothing about medicine cultivation. If this plant could really be treated just by a simple touch, then our families, who specialize in medicine cultivation, would have no reason to exist!"

"If you were just touching it randomly, you should have said you were curious. Why claim to be treating it? Didn't you see that so many people were helpless?"

"What arrogance!"

"Who are you? Spouting such nonsense here? If it were that simple to treat, Elder Liu, Elder Lu, and others would have already offered suggestions. What's a raw youth like you going to do?"

"Where did this guy come from? Medicine Master Chen, is he with you?"

"I don't know him..."

Sure enough, upon hearing his words, everyone began murmuring amongst themselves, each letting out a cold snort. So many medicine cultivation experts couldn't identify the ailment; what could a guy under twenty years old possibly see? What impudence!

Garden Master Xue was also taken aback, her brow furrowed as she looked over with doubt: "Have you perhaps discovered something?"

"I have indeed noticed something," the young man said, "but... there might be some things that require Garden Master Xue's cooperation!"

"Cooperation? Speak, if I can do it, I will!" Garden Master Xue nodded. Although her thoughts were similar to everyone else's, not holding much hope for this individual, she still wanted to try.

"Very well then..." The young man looked a bit embarrassed, giving an awkward smile: "Could you... throw a couple of punches for me to see?"

"Throw punches?" Garden Master Xue was stunned, and the others also froze in place. They expected some kind of request, but never expected him to ask Garden Master Xue to throw punches! "Weren't you here to examine the Earth Vein Spirit Vine? Why punches? It sounds like a monkey show... throw two punches, and I'll throw you a peach..."

"Presumptuous! How dare you make fun of the Garden Master?"

"You're seeking death!"

With a commotion, several young disciples from medicine-cultivating families surrounded him. Garden Master Xue was a famous figure throughout Myriad Kingdom City, and the master of the First Medicine Garden. Asking her to throw two punches sounded like a joke... "This must be a deliberate provocation, right?"

"Everyone, don't be hasty, there must be some misunderstanding..." Lu Zhan could no longer hold back and stepped forward. "This Brother Zhang is very likely a four-star master teacher. Not to mention these people, even my grandfather wouldn't dare offend him."

"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding could there be? What does treating the Earth Vein Spirit Vine have to do with Garden Master Xue throwing punches?" A young man scoffed.

"This..." Lu Zhan was also puzzled and couldn't help but look at the young man: "Master Zhang, what exactly is going on..."

"Oh, I've already discerned the ailment affecting this Earth Vein Spirit Vine," the young man, who was naturally Zhang Xuan, explained. "To confirm it, Garden Master Xue just needs to throw two punches for me to observe!"

His Eye of Insight had studied it for a long time, reaching the same conclusion as everyone else: the spirit vine was not ill. Out of helplessness, he touched it, and through the Library of Heaven's Path, he indeed saw that something was amiss. Immediately after, he touched several more medicinal herbs and found the same situation. A conjecture arose in his mind, which led to this request.

"Master Zhang?" Hearing the address, everyone's brows furrowed.

"Yes, Brother Zhang is a master teacher. Since he's doing this, he certainly has his reasons..." Lu Zhan said quickly.

"A master teacher?" Everyone was startled and looked over simultaneously. Since he was a master teacher, he should be mindful of his status and wouldn't speak carelessly or spout nonsense! Furthermore, it was common for master teachers to observe others demonstrating martial arts. It was just that... they all somewhat failed to understand what this had to do with the Earth Vein Spirit Vine's illness.

"Alright!" Knowing the other party was a master teacher, Garden Master Xue nodded, even though she was curious about his purpose.

Her internal energy surged, True Qi surged, and she threw a punch. A sharp crack! The air beneath her punch let out a violent sonic boom, like muffled thunder. The surrounding people only felt a fierce gust of wind hitting their faces, almost blowing them over.

Although it was just a very ordinary punch, it mobilized the natural power of heaven and earth, creating an air blast that could compress the air. This alone was something countless experts at the peak of Transcendent Mortal 4-dan could not achieve. No wonder Alliance Master Zhao was so wary of her; Garden Master Xue's strength was indeed formidable!

"Is this alright?" After throwing the punch, Garden Master Xue withdrew her fist and stood quietly, looking over.

"Hmm!" Zhang Xuan responded, as if confirming something. He couldn't help but shake his head, then looked back again, an unspeakable sympathy on his face: "I fully understand the root cause and problem of your Earth Vein Spirit Vine! However, before that, I just want to ask you one thing..."

Garden Master Xue and the others all looked over in unison. So many of them had studied it for so long and didn't know, yet this master teacher, just by watching the Garden Master throw a punch, determined it... Is this real or fake? They all pricked up their ears, afraid of missing anything, and then heard the young man's slightly sighing voice: "Are you... a pig?"

Garden Master Xue staggered, almost exploding with rage. "What did you say?" A thunderous roar! The aura around her was like ignited hot oil, ready to erupt at any moment. She was a renowned expert in Myriad Kingdom City, the master of the Western City Medicine Garden. Even if he was a master teacher, directly insulting her was unacceptable!

"He said Garden Master Xue is a pig?" "Didn't they say master teachers were reliable, incapable of speaking carelessly or spouting nonsense?" "I don't know either..." The other bystanders also widened their eyes, almost going mad. Directly calling Garden Master Xue a pig—this guy's courage wasn't just big; he was utterly lawless to the extreme.

Lu Zhan also almost bit his tongue. Earlier, when he was touching things indiscriminately, saying he was a master teacher could still explain it away. But now, directly cursing someone to their face, how could that be explained? If he had known he was so audacious, he wouldn't have associated with him. Now this was trouble. Having provoked Garden Master Xue's wrath, he didn't know if the Garden Master would blame the Lu family in the future...

Song Chao, who was following the crowd, planning to seize an opportunity to retrieve his mid-grade spirit stones, also froze. He was a four-star master teacher with excellent discernment. Although Garden Master Xue had only demonstrated one move, he could tell her strength was extraordinary, and her combat power infinite. Not to mention him, even among the sect elders, few could defeat her! To call such a powerful expert a pig... This Master Zhang truly had immense courage.

Everyone's expressions varied, but they all thought this guy must be insane.

"No need to rush, let me finish!" Seeing Garden Master Xue's eyes blazing with fury, ready to strike at any moment, Zhang Xuan wasn't anxious. Instead, he calmly waved his hand and pointed to an empty spot not far from the Earth Vein Spirit Vine: "If I'm not mistaken, you often cultivate here, don't you?"

"That's right!" Garden Master Xue nodded, but her anger hadn't subsided. It seemed that if it weren't for his status as a master teacher, she would have slapped him to death long ago. Within the medicine field, with countless spirit medicines, cultivating here allowed one's mind to be calm, making breakthroughs easier.

"Are you implying that the Earth Vein Spirit Vine's condition is related to my cultivation?" Garden Master Xue frowned and scoffed.

"More than just related! It's critically linked!" Zhang Xuan shook his head: "Let me tell you the cause now. This Earth Vein Spirit Vine isn't actually sick, nor has it suffered from pests or withered away. Instead, it has... lost its spirituality and soul!"

"Spirituality and soul?" Everyone froze in place.

"All things possess spirituality. Spirit-grade medicinal herbs, just like spirit weapons, have their own spirituality. The Earth Vein Spirit Vine, as the treasure of the medicine garden, how could it distribute the necessary nutrients to each medicinal herb if it didn't possess this characteristic?" Zhang Xuan said.

Everyone nodded. When life forms reach the spirit level, not only weapons possess spirits, but plants and medicinal herbs do too. This is where the term 'spirit medicine' comes from. It is precisely because of this spirituality that they repel cultivators whose True Qi doesn't match, sometimes even leading to death. It's why they only grow when they hear singing and dancing, and why they can discern a maiden's pure body...

"Without spirituality, the Earth Vein Spirit Vine is like losing its most important essence. Naturally, it will carry a death aura and could die at any moment."

"It's true that spirit medicines lose their vitality and quickly die when they lose their spirituality, just like a person losing their soul. But... what does that have to do with Garden Master Xue's cultivation?" Everyone was puzzled.

"If I'm not mistaken, Garden Master Xue has been stuck at Transcendent Mortal 4-dan, the Turbid-Clear Realm, for at least seventy or eighty years, correct?" Without answering their question, Zhang Xuan looked over.

"Eighty-seven years!" Garden Master Xue nodded.

"Being trapped in the same spot for eighty-seven years, it's impossible that you didn't want to break through! However, Transcendent Mortal 5-dan, the Spirit-Fusion Realm, is the first major hurdle among the nine Transcendent Mortal stages. It requires the soul to completely merge with nature, achieving 'spirit-fusion-as-one,' before one can break through! Garden Master Xue's continuous failure isn't due to poor talent, but because her soul... has been damaged!" Zhang Xuan said.

"You, you... how did you know?" Garden Master Xue was startled, her entire body stiffening. Just a moment ago, she had been furious, intending to slay this fellow. Upon hearing his words, the True Qi she had accumulated dissipated, replaced by unspeakable shock. She had indeed suffered soul damage; otherwise, with her talent, she would have certainly broken through long ago. Why else would she have been trapped in the same spot for eighty-seven years! But... this matter was her secret, something she had never told anyone. How did this person before her perceive it?

"Don't concern yourself with how I know! You know your soul is damaged and you can't break through, yet unlike others, you haven't lost hope. Instead, you've tried to mend your injuries through other means!"

"Somewhere, you obtained information that the spirituality within spirit medicines could replenish one's soul. So, you established this medicine garden, cultivating herbs not for sale, but solely to absorb their spirituality to supplement your own soul!"

"Though the idea was good, unfortunately, you went in the wrong direction from the start! If the spirituality of plants could replenish a human's soul... wouldn't everyone be able to cultivate to the Spirit-Fusion Realm?"

Zhang Xuan looked at her calmly, his eyes filled with a 'frustrated by failure to meet expectations' expression: "As a grandmaster of medicine cultivation, accompanying spirit medicines for so long, yet you couldn't see through this point... If not a pig... then what are you?"