Chapter 143: Sanctuary

The steward of the Hall of Rewards and Punishments paused, stunned. Gazing at the unusually large demon core, he couldn't recognize it at first. Only after examining it closely did his eyes widen in shock, exclaiming, "This... this is a Beast King's demon core!"

"It's a Beast King's demon core!"

"My heavens! You killed the Beast King of Mount Hundred Beasts?"

The vast square instantly erupted into a boundless clamor. It was fortunate the area was open-air; indoors, the uproar would have likely torn off the roof.

"Isn't the Beast King in the Core Formation realm?"

"He actually killed someone in the Core Formation realm?"

"Within our Azure Cloud Sect's territory, there's only one Beast King, from Mount Hundred Beasts!"

"This proves that the demon beasts Jiang Fan killed earlier were indeed from Mount Hundred Beasts!"

"He didn't cheat; he really did kill so many demon beasts!"

All the skeptics fell silent. Other demon cores could be bought, but where could one buy a Beast King's demon core?

Tang Tianlong's face turned grim. He had intended to spoil Jiang Fan's first-place ranking. But to his surprise, it only solidified Jiang Fan's first place, leaving no room for dispute!

Seeing his beloved disciple so humiliated, Feng Guchan angrily shouted, "Sect Master! Since you knew Jiang Fan was in first place, why did you keep it hidden just now? If not for that, how would Tang Tianlong have dared to question him so boldly, only to be utterly humiliated?"

Liu Wenchen's mouth twitched. "You ask me, who should I ask?" He was more baffled than anyone. This disciple, whom he had always disliked, had actually achieved such astonishing results! Who could he complain to?

However, in front of the entire sect, he naturally couldn't reveal his foolishness. He cleared his throat and said, "Well... wasn't I afraid of disheartening your disciple, Tang Tianlong? Who knew your disciple would insist on getting to the bottom of it? Now that he's humiliated, you can't blame this Sect Master."

Feng Guchan clenched his jaw. Indeed, today, he and his disciple had brought shame upon themselves! Not only had they lost face, but they had also allowed the Sect Master's Peak to gain immense prestige!

To make matters worse, Jiang Fan didn't let it go. He clasped his hands behind his back and looked at Tang Tianlong, asking, "Do you have anything else to question, second-place Tang Tianlong?"

That last remark was truly a stab to the heart, causing many in the crowd to twitch their lips. Tang Tianlong was indeed enraged, shouting in unbearable humiliation, "So what if you gained more than me? It's just a bit more time to cultivate in the Sacred Hall! You're a good-for-nothing without a spirit root; cultivating for any longer is meaningless!"

Jiang Fan shrugged, "Even if I can't cultivate, can't I have two wives?" He waved to Xu Youran, who was observing from the crowd. Under everyone's gaze, she shyly scurried to Jiang Fan, complaining, "Wouldn't it have been enough for you and Siling to go? Why drag me along? It's so embarrassing with so many people watching."

Jiang Fan pulled her into his embrace as well, smiling, "This way, those who usually envy and slander you can clearly see whether your chosen husband was truly a mistake!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Youran's eyes sparkled faintly. She unconsciously lifted her fair neck slightly. She was so beautiful and possessed a high spirit root, yet her fiancé was Jiang Fan, known by all to have no spirit root. How could there not be gossip? There were many envious people who criticized her for having poor judgment. Normally, she never argued back, because Jiang Fan truly had no spirit root, and she couldn't refute them. But today, she could finally hold her head high! Who would dare say her fiancé was worthless now? Or that she had poor judgment?

Watching Xu Youran and Chen Siling bask in Jiang Fan's glory, Xu Yining felt an unusual pang of discomfort in her heart. She bit her red lip slightly with her pearly teeth, staring intently at the two of them without a word.

Tang Tianlong, noticing her expression, felt even more disgraced. Before setting off, he had boasted about what he would achieve. Yet in the end, Xu Yining was overshadowed. He loudly declared, "Do you think entering the Sacred Hall means you can rest easy? Cultivation requires guidance! You, a crippled spirit root, can you guide them?" Then, he turned to Xu Yining and said, "Junior Sister Xu, come! I, your Senior Brother, will personally guide your cultivation! I guarantee that one day of cultivation with me will be better than ten days with them!"

A bright gleam appeared in Xu Yining's eyes. "That's right! The outcome isn't decided yet!" What kind of extraordinary talent did Tang Tianlong possess? With his personal guidance in cultivation, how could her progress be inferior to theirs?

Upon hearing this, the crowd finally came to their senses. "Yes, what if he ranked first? Merit points are ultimately for cultivation in the Sacred Hall. No matter how many merit points Jiang Fan has, can he guide his two wives? Xu Yining is still lucky. Even if it's divided equally, she'll only get a day and a half of cultivation in the Sacred Hall. But I bet her gains will be far greater than Jiang Fan's two wives!"

Liu Wenchen, who had just stepped on the Grand Elder and hadn't been happy for long, also sighed inwardly, "Jiang Fan going in is a pure waste of merit points." Pondering, he said, "Jiang Fan, if you don't mind, I can have Wang Chengjian enter the Sacred Hall in your place to guide them." This way, it wouldn't waste the merit points, and it would also help Jiang Fan guide his two wives well. However, he didn't realize this was a rivalry between Jiang Fan and Tang Tianlong, and between Xu Yining and the two women. Jiang Fan had to go himself.

"Master, I've recently gained some insights into martial arts and wish to take this opportunity to share them with my two fiancées. Therefore, your disciple regrets being unable to comply."

Upon being refused, Liu Wenchen raised an eyebrow. But remembering the great honor Jiang Fan had just brought him, he suppressed his emotions and nodded, "Then you may make your own arrangements." After all, if his wives' cultivation fell short of others after the Sacred Hall training, it would be Jiang Fan's humiliation, not his.

Tang Tianlong chuckled, "Jiang Fan, perhaps you should follow the Sect Master's arrangements. Let someone else guide your wives. At least, your wives won't lose too badly."

Jiang Fan glanced at him, then subtly jingled the full bag of demon cores. This caused Tang Tianlong's face to darken. "It was just a stroke of luck that you gained so much! We'll see the true outcome in the Sacred Hall!"

Jiang Fan simply smiled. His gains could earn him 180 merit points. Divided equally among three, each could cultivate for five days individually. This was enough for all three of their cultivation realms to improve. As for how much, that would depend on just how miraculous the Sacred Hall truly was.

"Jiang Fan." At that moment, Elder Li Qingfeng of Sky Sword Peak approached, a troubled expression on his face. Although Li Qingfeng had initially overlooked him and always belittled him, claiming his cultivation was achieved by overdrawing his potential, he had always been good to Chen Siling and Xu Youran. Therefore, Jiang Fan maintained due courtesy, saying, "Greetings, Elder Li."

Li Qingfeng hesitated before asking, "Why haven't I seen my disciple, Ding Wanping? Do you have any news of him?" He had already asked the disciples who returned earlier. All they knew was that Ding Wanping had been highly regarded by a Soul Master and had become the young master of the Ding family. Remembering Ding Xuhui's entrustment, Jiang Fan explained the entire sequence of events in detail.

After listening, Li Qingfeng's heart trembled, and a hint of sadness appeared in his eyes. Yet, he was helpless. No matter what, Ding Wanping was a member of the Ding family; that was their family matter. As an outsider, he couldn't interfere. Moreover, even if he wanted to intervene, it was too late.

"Alas! I always reminded him to broaden his mind and avoid arrogance and impatience, otherwise he might bring harm upon himself. I never thought it would ultimately come true." Looking at Jiang Fan, who stood before him neither humble nor arrogant, with a calm demeanor, he couldn't help but secretly think that if Ding Wanping had even half of Jiang Fan's composure, perhaps he wouldn't have met such ill fortune. With that thought, he realized Jiang Fan wasn't completely useless. His unexpected and astonishing gains this time were probably not unrelated to his temperament. He raised his hand and patted Jiang Fan's shoulder. "You did well this time. However, to be worthy of my two female disciples, you're still not enough. Keep up the good work!"

Jiang Fan felt a sense of unfamiliarity. Was this still the Li Qingfeng who had always disliked him? Shaking his head, he led the two women to the Sacred Hall.

In front of the Sacred Hall, two unkempt old men were whispering to each other. One of them was Huang Zhantian, who guarded the Scripture Repository. Seeing Jiang Fan arrive, he quickly said, "Old Zheng, that's the kid." Old Zheng was another Supreme Elder, Zheng Qiushuang, responsible for guarding the Sacred Hall. Following his gaze, he couldn't help but look doubtful. "His cultivation is very low, only at the fourth layer of Foundation Establishment. Have you been reading too many inappropriate books, blurring your vision? To actually favor this kid."

Huang Zhantian rolled his eyes. "When have I ever been wrong about people?"

Zheng Qiushuang pouted. "Alright, didn't they just finish hunting demon beasts? Let's see how well the disciple you favor performed in this operation. Don't tell me he only got one merit point."