Chapter 16: Nine-rank Spiritual Root, Nothing More

As Chen Zhengdao landed, Xu Zhengyan, accompanied by Lu Zheng, led the entire Xu family out. They knelt on one knee to greet him.

"Welcome, esteemed dignitary from the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion!"

Chen Zhengdao smiled and nodded slightly. "I am Chen Zhengdao, Deputy Pavilion Master of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion."

A Deputy Pavilion Master?

Everyone present was stunned.

They had initially thought only an elder or a similar official would arrive.

Who knew, a Deputy Pavilion Master had come!

Everyone was both apprehensive and deeply shocked.

The Heavenly Mystery Pavilion's emphasis on a ninth-grade spiritual root far exceeded their imagination!

"Which one of you possesses the ninth-grade spiritual root?" Chen Zhengdao asked eagerly.

In just one hour, he had consecutively broken through three cultivation levels.

This was simply defying common sense.

Everyone's gaze simultaneously turned to Lu Zheng.

A mix of envy, jealousy, and joy converged in their eyes, making Lu Zheng immensely proud.

He cupped his hands and said, "Junior Lu Zheng greets Deputy Pavilion Master Chen!"

Hearing this, Chen Zhengdao immediately stepped forward, personally helped him up, and nodded repeatedly in praise.

"Excellent, excellent, a truly distinguished young man!"

Lu Zheng was overwhelmed with flattery.

He never expected Deputy Pavilion Master Chen to be so cordial, which made him feel a little self-conscious.

Chen Zhengdao smiled and held Lu Zheng's hand. "No need to be nervous. In a way, we're almost from the same hometown."

"I hail from Willow Creek City, right next door. Thirty years ago, when I was found to possess an eighth-grade spiritual root, it caused quite a stir in the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion."

"Now, thirty years later, you have been found to possess a ninth-grade spiritual root, astounding the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion once more."

"This is our shared destiny."

Everyone suddenly understood.

So Chen Zhengdao was the prodigy from Willow Creek City who was discovered to have an eighth-grade spiritual root all those years ago!

His proactive move to forge a connection and win over Lu Zheng was clearly understood by everyone present.

It meant that once Lu Zheng joined the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion, Chen Zhengdao would definitely protect him.

Lu Zheng's potential was truly boundless!

Qin Changsheng excitedly clenched his fists and muttered to himself, "I knew it, Qin Changsheng has never made a wrong choice in his life!"

"Aligning myself with Lu Zheng is the most correct decision I have ever made."

Chen Zhengdao and Lu Zheng conversed for a long time. Only after they had become comfortable with each other did he get down to business.

He glanced at the Xu family members still kneeling on the ground and said, "You may all rise."

Xu Zhengyan was the first to stand, and respectfully said, "Deputy Pavilion Master Chen, please come in."

Thus, the group moved to the main hall.

Chen Zhengdao sat alone, while everyone else stood silently, holding their breath, on either side of the hall.

"Young Lu, I've already heard about the power of your ninth-grade spiritual root on my way here."

Chen Zhengdao chuckled softly. "Even that cold-hearted girl from the Azure Cloud Sect was brought to tears by you."

Lu Zheng looked somewhat bewildered.

The girl from the Azure Cloud Sect?

Who was that?

Chen Zhengdao continued, "Could you perhaps demonstrate for us, what sort of extraordinary phenomenon occurs when you activate your spiritual root?"

Breaking through three levels in an hour, the speed at which he absorbed spiritual energy must be comparable to a whale gulping down seawater.

Lu Zheng nodded and stepped to the center of the main hall.

It was expected that the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion would ask him to demonstrate his abilities.

However, simply activating his spiritual root wouldn't fully showcase the power of his ninth-grade spiritual root.

Therefore, he already had a better idea.

"Deputy Pavilion Master Chen, would it be possible to conduct a sparring match instead?"

Chen Zhengdao nodded without hesitation. "Who do you wish to spar with?"

A true master's skill is revealed in a single move.

During a confrontation, Lu Zheng could demonstrate the unique qualities of his ninth-grade spiritual root more comprehensively.

Lu Zheng sneered inwardly. He raised a finger and pointed it at Jiang Fan, who stood composedly with his hands tucked into his sleeves.

"Jiang Fan, do you dare to have another match with me?"

Chen Zhengdao followed his finger and saw Jiang Fan.

He noticed that Jiang Fan couldn't speak and could only respond by writing, which made him ask in surprise, "A mute?"

Lu Zheng explained, "Deputy Pavilion Master Chen, you don't know the full story!"

"My beloved was taken from me by him through a marriage contract. To win back my love, I challenged him to a contest to see who could break through a cultivation level faster!"

"However, he resorted to underhanded means to win."

"I am not reconciled. So I wish to ask Deputy Pavilion Master Chen to be a witness, and watch me legitimately and honorably reclaim my beloved."

This was a clear request for Deputy Pavilion Master Chen to preside over a fair judgment.

Deputy Pavilion Master Chen, however, frowned slightly.

A mute, could he really bully Lu Zheng, who possessed a ninth-grade spiritual root?

Wang Yingfeng quickly stepped forward, and covered for her nephew, saying, "Reporting to Deputy Pavilion Master Chen, it is indeed true."

"This Jiang Fan, relying on the past favor he showed us, forced my eldest daughter to marry him."

"Out of gratitude, we endured in silence, and let our daughter swallow her pride and agree to the marriage."

"However, when my nephew was found to possess a ninth-grade spiritual root and wished to reclaim his beloved, Jiang Fan cheated to win."

As she spoke, her peripheral vision swept over the Xu family members, coercing them to support Lu Zheng's lie.

Perhaps out of conscience, or perhaps intimidated by Deputy Pavilion Master Chen's authority, none of them dared to utter a sound.

Qin Changsheng, however, his eyes darted, and he immediately said, "Deputy Pavilion Master Chen, I guarantee by the Qin family's reputation that this is true!"

With two people vouching for it, Deputy Pavilion Master Chen's expression subtly chilled.

He looked at Jiang Fan with a hint of authority and said, "Abusing a past favor is no different from outright robbery!"

"Do you dare to compete with Lu Zheng based on your own abilities to win your beloved?"

Xu Youran, standing nearby, was stunned.

It was clearly the Xu family's ingratitude that led to the change in the marriage contract.

How did it become Jiang Fan abusing a past favor?

She opened her mouth, about to explain, but Jiang Fan stopped her. He raised his brush and wrote, "More words are useless!"

"Matters that can be resolved with fists require no debate."

He then looked at Lu Zheng and wrote, "How shall we compete?"

Lu Zheng arrogantly said, "Naturally, we'll compete in strength! Do you have the guts to challenge me?"

Almost without a second thought, Jiang Fan drew his brush in a stroke, writing, "Good!"

Seeing the character, Lu Zheng sneered inwardly.

Overconfident fool!

He was at Qi Refinement Layer Five, and in the past few days, he had secretly cultivated the Xu family's *Xu Family Sword Art*.

As for Jiang Fan?

He had merely relied on luck to coincidentally break through to Qi Refinement Layer Three.

What could he possibly use to win against him?

"Then come on!"

Lu Zheng drew his sword and pointed it at Jiang Fan from a distance.

Today!

He would step on Jiang Fan's face, snatch Jiang Fan's woman, and prove the might of the ninth-grade spiritual root to the world!

And Jiang Fan would be his stepping stone to becoming a dragon and soaring to the heavens!

Jiang Fan remained unperturbed, walking to the center of the hall with his hands clasped behind his back.

He casually beckoned with a finger.

Such a dismissive gesture provoked Qin Changsheng's mockery:

"How ignorant must one be to provoke a ninth-grade spiritual root?"

"He kept saying I would regret it. Soon, when he's lying on the ground like a dead dog, I'll ask him if he regrets it then!"

Chen Zhengdao also shook his head slightly and sighed, "To be so arrogant even when facing a ninth-grade spiritual root!"

"This young man is overly conceited."

Such a dismissive gesture towards himself also infuriated Lu Zheng.

"You asked for it!"

Lu Zheng snorted coldly. With a move called "Power Cleaves Mount Hua", he wielded the powerful spiritual energy of Qi Refinement Layer Five and brought his sword down with force.

Jiang Fan simply smiled.

After so many days, Lu Zheng hadn't improved at all.

As the sword's shadow approached, Jiang Fan released the spiritual energy of Qi Refinement Layer Six!

His finger, imbued with spiritual energy, lightly flicked the sword blade.

An immense force, far beyond what Lu Zheng could withstand, instantly sent the sword flying from his hand.

Lu Zheng froze for a moment; before he could even comprehend what had happened, Jiang Fan changed his finger to a palm and struck towards his face.

Lu Zheng frantically circulated his spiritual energy, and roared as he threw a punch to counter.

He tried to send Jiang Fan flying, to save face.

However, the result of their clash was that Lu Zheng's hundred-jin body was sent flying by a single palm strike, only stopping after overturning a tea table.

The entire hall fell silent.

A deathly silence!

All that remained was the sound of Jiang Fan calmly dusting off his sleeve, and a line of text he then wrote with his brush.

"A ninth-grade spiritual root is nothing special."