Chapter 198: Fighting and Brawling

If he hadn't been called out, Lu Xingzhou would have wanted to explore other areas of the second level. It was a pity to have only scoured a single volcanic region in such a vast area brimming with treasures. Even that volcanic area hadn't been thoroughly searched; there might still be something left behind.

Unfortunately, neither the Pill Academy nor the Demon Suppressing Division would allow endless trials here. The original plan was for one day, but now that a death had been discovered, they couldn't even stay that long and quickly came to halt the proceedings.

They returned directly to the small hill where they had arrived. Dean Qin Zhiyu and Instructor Meng Li of the Pill Academy were both present, surrounded by students from the Pill Academy and guards from the Demon Suppressing Division.

On the ground lay Wang Yueshen's corpse, along with a mutilated, headless mass of flesh. According to the Demon Suppressing Division guards who had been secretly protecting Daoist Xuanqing, this was indeed Xuanqing; they had witnessed him being crushed by the tortoise-dragon and half of his body being devoured.

Seeing Lu Xingzhou and the other two return, Qin Zhiyu finally spoke, "Everyone is here. First, tell us, what happened with Wang Yueshen?"

"I killed him," Dugu Qingli stated calmly. "In the center of the sandstorm, the tortoise-dragon tried to extinguish the fire seed, and Lu Xingzhou used the chaos to retrieve it. At that moment, Wang Yueshen attempted a long-range flying sword sneak attack on Lu Xingzhou, but I intercepted him. We then engaged in combat, and I slew him."

The entire crowd was stunned into silence.

Dugu Qingli had already confessed to the Demon Suppressing Division that she was the killer, so they at least had some forewarning.

Everyone else's minds went blank for several breaths.

Killing a third-rank cultivator while being of a lower rank!

Can one really transcend ranks to kill someone across the great divide of the top three ranks? And without sustaining any injury... Didn't the opponent try to escape? How did you manage to kill him?

Qin Zhiyu remained silent for a long while before finally speaking, "Miss Dugu is a direct descendant of the Holy Land, and we should not question her words. However, Wang Yueshen was also a mentor at our academy, and this matter must be clarified before we can report it to our superiors and subordinates. Does Miss have any evidence that he attempted to ambush a student under his care?"

Dugu Qingli was expressionless. "He made his move; that's simply what he did, and he didn't conceal it in our conversation. If you genuinely don't believe it, just ask my master to use the Retrospective Art, and all will be clear."

While this statement was perfectly natural for Dugu Qingli, to others, it inevitably sounded as if she was leveraging the Grand Tutor's influence.

If Dugu Qingli's account were true, this would be a significant scandal for the Pill Academy, and Qin Zhiyu's reputation would also take a severe hit.

Qin Zhiyu furrowed his brow slightly, about to speak, when Lu Xingzhou raised his hand like a diligent student. "Dean, I have a way to prove it."

"Oh?" Qin Zhiyu looked at Lu Xingzhou. Frankly, he had a good personal impression of Lu Xingzhou due to the Marrow-Changing Technique he had presented. However, from the academy's perspective, he felt a certain resistance. This person was involved in complicated affairs, wasn't academically focused, and could easily cause trouble for the academy. Indeed, it hadn't been long since the semester began, and already there was an incident during the first "ice-breaking" trial.

He sighed, "If you were far away in the desert when this happened, how could you possibly prove anything?"

"It's simple. Miss Dugu clearly didn't take any spoils. Look, his rings and other belongings are still on him. I'll wager that if the Dean searches his rings right now, he'll find treasures or a vast amount of resources that shouldn't belong to him or be part of his salary."

Qin Zhiyu reached out, removed Wang Yueshen's rings, and emptied their contents for everyone to see.

Gold, silver, spirit stones, medicinal herbs, finished pills, and magical talismans—at first glance, everything seemed normal. However, some who recognized the items couldn't help but gasp softly, "Profound Nether Grass..."

Among the medicinal herbs was a stalk of Profound Nether Grass, a first-grade herb, worth a fortune.

"Whether it's from his salary or personal gains, a first-grade item like this should not be something within his means to acquire," Lu Xingzhou stated calmly. "If the Dean were to review the imperial gifts bestowed by the Huo family over the years, he might even find a record of this very item."

Qin Zhiyu was silent for a moment, then finally said, "I will consult the Grand Tutor again and ask her to perform the Retrospective Art."

This statement essentially sealed the matter. Everyone exchanged glances, surprised that a mentor from the Pill Academy was indeed the one at fault. A team leader accepting bribes and targeting his own students... The Pill Academy had truly lost significant face this time.

Furthermore, this implicated the Huo family extending their reach into the Pill Academy, bribing mentors and secretly harming students. Could Qin Zhiyu and Meng Li possibly tolerate this?

Seeing Qin Zhiyu's face turn ashen, Meng Li interjected, "And why did you go to the second level?"

Lu Xingzhou felt more wronged than anyone. "How should I know? We were perfectly fine at that oasis, and nothing was happening. We had already left. Heaven knows why that tortoise-dragon went berserk, or what Xuanqing actually did?"

Meng Li had a look on his face that clearly said, "You've got to be kidding me." He knew perfectly well that since Lu Xingzhou was involved, who would believe that he had absolutely no connection to it and was just a passive, innocent bystander?

The Demon Suppressing Division guards then testified, "That's correct. Mr. Lu, his disciple, and our Commander Sheng were originally investigating that oasis. It seemed they found nothing, so they left..."

Qin Zhiyu asked, "You were following him? How do you know all of this so clearly?"

The Demon Suppressing Division guards sighed. "Daoist Xuanqing and Mr. Chen Yu were covertly following Mr. Lu the entire time. We were secretly protecting Daoist Xuanqing and Chen Yu, so naturally, we witnessed everything."

Sheng Yuanyao was speechless.

Oh, great. At the oasis, feigning weakness from vomiting, had she actually been nestled in Lu Xingzhou's arms?

Now, looking at the gazes of her subordinates, they were filled with knowing amusement.

Others, however, clearly understood the implication: it was Xuanqing who first sought to harm Lu Xingzhou.

Qin Zhiyu gazed coldly at Chen Yu. "Do you have anything to say?"

Chen Yu quickly responded, "Xuanqing and I are not aligned! I simply believed Brother Lu was the strongest and that following him might lead to valuable discoveries. I happened to run into Xuanqing by chance. The Dean can ask everyone; I originally wanted to join Brother Lu's team, but he politely declined..."

A group of his classmates nodded in agreement, confirming his account.

Lu Xingzhou asked with a smile, "Then, Brother Chen, do you know why the second-level entrance opened?"

Chen Yu looked startled. "I don't know... I'm just a new student; how would I know such a secret as the second-level entrance?"

"Then, Brother Chen, did you see anything?"

"The sandstorm was so heavy at the time that I couldn't see anything, but I seemed to sense a very powerful swordsman present, though I don't know who it was. Was it his accomplice who opened the second-level door?"

This time, the faces of the Demon Suppressing Division members began to darken.

With an outsider having infiltrated the area beforehand, the responsibility on the Demon Suppressing Division guards stationed there was significant.

In other words, by directly implicating this person, Chen Yu demonstrated he wasn't part of their group, effectively clearing himself of suspicion.

Sheng Yuanyao exclaimed angrily, "You clearly..."

Lu Xingzhou waved his hand, stopping Sheng Yuanyao's outburst, then smiled and extended his right hand to Chen Yu. "Brother Chen, we can be friends in the future."

This handshake gesture wasn't common, but its meaning was clear. Chen Yu understood, and smilingly stepped forward to shake hands. "Brother Lu, you went to the second level and stayed for several hours completely unharmed. Such strength is truly admirable. I'll have to seek your guidance more often in the future."

"Oh, not at all," Lu Xingzhou replied, shaking his hand with a smile. "I, Lu, have poor upbringing and am quite a hooligan. If I cause fights and brawls in the academy, I hope Brother Chen won't mind being associated with me."

"What are you saying, Brother Lu? When have you ever been involved in a fight or brawl..."

"Now."

Chen Yu's heart leaped; he had already sensed a silent kick aimed directly at his groin from below.

He tried to step back, but Lu Xingzhou held his hand in an unyielding grip, making retreat impossible.

Reacting with lightning speed, he slightly twisted his hip, allowing the kick to land on his thigh instead. Simultaneously, he moved his left hand forward, striking Lu Xingzhou's tiger's mouth to free his gripped right hand.

The series of actions was seamless; the fierce and precise strike from his left hand was so formidable that Lu Xingzhou was forced to release his grip, declaring the failure of his usually effective groin sneak attack.

Chen Yu swiftly floated backward. "Lu Xingzhou, you..."

Just as he uttered a single word, Lu Xingzhou slammed the armrest and delivered an aerial flying kick.

Chen Yu barely managed to block with both hands, but a terrifying burst of explosive force erupted. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and suddenly, fierce flames erupted behind him with a "boom," engulfing him in a sea of fire.

Lu Xingzhou intended to instantly kill him before Qin Zhiyu and the others could react! It was an incredibly ruthless move.

Unfortunately, Qin Zhiyu, a first-rank alchemist, was no pushover. The next moment, Chen Yu was magically pulled out of the sea of fire and brought before Qin Zhiyu, having sustained only minor burns.

Qin Zhiyu roared, "Lu Xingzhou, what are you doing?"

Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly. "As the Dean can see, I am fighting and brawling. I am willing to accept punishment."

"You!"

Lu Xingzhou sighed. "The Dean is remarkably strong; you must have discerned my true strength just now, correct?"

Qin Zhiyu had to acknowledge Lu Xingzhou's formidable power. On the surface, he appeared to be of the fifth-rank, but that sneak attack, that flying kick, and the precisely timed destructive golden fire—none of it could have been defended against by anyone below the fourth-rank.

Even a fourth-rank cultivator would need significant combat experience to withstand such a barrage; an ordinary student would have been dead long ago from such a continuous three-pronged assault.

As he thought this, he looked at Chen Yu, who had sustained only minor injuries, and a thought struck him.

This Chen Yu was merely an alchemist rookie, not even ranked among the top newcomers. Where did he acquire such formidable strength?

Lu Xingzhou also secretly felt a pang of regret. Knowing he lacked concrete evidence against Chen Yu, he had intended to eliminate his adversary directly, even if it meant facing punishment. As for revealing that his legs were fine, he no longer cared about that.

Unfortunately, his opponent was stronger than anticipated and actually managed to block. That groin kick, even the novice Pei Chuyun hadn't been able to defend against... This Chen Yu was at least stronger than Pei Chuyun when Lu Xingzhou first met her!

He was truly keeping his strength hidden.

However, he had likely succeeded in planting seeds of doubt in the minds of Qin Zhiyu and Meng Li, and that was enough. Most young people love to show off, and their sects need a strong reputation. What ulterior motive could a young man have for meticulously hiding such formidable strength?

By fully exposing him to everyone, he would at least be less able to plot in secret.

Chen Yu, realizing he had been exposed, could only say, "Brother Lu, you are too reckless! I merely dislike showing off, you..."

Lu Xingzhou cupped his hands in apology. "My apologies, my hands were itching. Anyway, Brother Chen isn't seriously hurt, so you won't hold it against me, will you?"

Chen Yu had a belly full of words that were choked back, and his face turned purple with suppressed rage.

Qin Zhiyu and Meng Li exchanged glances. Aware that there was an underlying issue, they did not press further on the case, nor did they question Lu Xingzhou's "fighting and brawling."

Meng Li directly changed the topic. "The case is largely clear, and the academy will discuss its handling with the Demon Suppressing Division and the Holy Land. All of you entered the Demon Subduing Realm for the trial, after all. You may now present the pills you refined so we can assess your trial results."

Most students, including A'Nuo, dutifully submitted their pill-refining assignments. Only Chen Yu, who had wasted a great deal of time and had only just gathered enough medicinal ingredients (unsure if it was sufficient), and Lu Xingzhou, who had the ingredients but no time to refine, had not.

Lu Xingzhou raised his hand again. "Instructor, the trial was for one day, wasn't it? Has the time not run out yet?"

Meng Li retorted impatiently, "What, are you going to refine high-grade pills on the spot to submit?"

"No, no," Lu Xingzhou said with a smile. "Everyone else has already submitted their work. How could I possibly make everyone wait and waste their time? Don't you agree, Brother Chen Yu?"

Chen Yu almost spat blood in frustration.

He had originally planned to refine pills on the spot to submit. Lu Xingzhou had obtained a massive haul from the second level, but he himself had found little of value on the first! This trial served as a reference for top masters to select disciples and also offered resource rewards from the academy, which he greatly desired!

As a result, Lu Xingzhou wore an expression of "noble integrity," feigning no desire to compete. If Chen Yu insisted on doing so, he would undoubtedly offend all his classmates.

Chen Yu gnashed his teeth in anger but forced a smile. "Yes, then both of us will simply receive zero points."

"Oh, don't say that. The trial also assesses foresight and fortune. The medicinal ingredients you find can at least count for some points." Lu Xingzhou pulled out a mushroom. "A third-grade Lava Mushroom. I'll take the second-to-last spot, no problem with that, right?"

Chen Yu was speechless.

Of course, there's no problem with being second-to-last, because everyone will only remember who came in last.

How could Lu Xingzhou be so devious!