Chapter 134: Please Summon the National Master

On the peak of Mount Jade, in the Grand Academy Hall, all the Grand Rectors, Libationers, and Secretaries from the various halls of the Grand Academy were present. Their expressions were shifting, growing increasingly grim as reports kept arriving from outside. Only the young Patriarch, seated on the Saint's throne, remained calm and composed, seemingly indifferent to victory or defeat.

At that moment, messages poured in one after another: "Reporting, Grand Libationer: The Daoist Disciple defeated the Second Prince!" "The Daoist Disciple defeated Jiuyin, the Crown Prince of Nanping!" "The Daoist Disciple defeated Princess Duoduo of Xiping!" "Ling Shiji of the Imperial Strategy Bureau also lost!" "Lin Qiuhu was wounded by the Daoist Disciple!"

After a long while, no more reports came in, but the expressions of those present had reached their grimmest. The silence meant that no more Grand Academy students were challenging the Daoist Disciple, Lin Xuan. The young Daoist Disciple had crushed the arrogance and spirit of the Grand Academy students, leaving them to simply watch him block the academy's entrance.

A Libationer frowned and said, "Our Grand Academy has been open for so many years, producing countless masters who serve as pillars of the nation. Can we not find a single person capable of contending with this Daoist Disciple?"

A Grand Rector shook his head. "Yes, there are. Over the years, we've had three or five geniuses who were no less capable than the Daoist Disciple. However, these individuals are no longer students; they've left the Grand Academy to serve as officials in the imperial court. Our Grand Academy is different from those martial arts sects. In sects, there's no concept of 'leaving the sect,' but once someone departs our Grand Academy, they are no longer considered a student."

Everyone exhaled sharply. Daoist Lingyun sighed, "Are we just going to let this Daoist Disciple block our entrance? That would be too humiliating."

Silence fell upon the hall.

Suddenly, Zen Master Faqing of Qingyang Hall said, "Report this to the Imperial Preceptor as soon as possible. Perhaps his disciples can defeat the Daoist Disciple."

"Great Monk, the Imperial Preceptor's disciples are not students of our Grand Academy. Even if they defeat the Daoist Disciple, will the Daoist sect truly accept that?"

Just then, a large pleasure boat gently docked on the peak of Mount Jade.

Several young people disembarked from the boat and proceeded directly to the Grand Academy Hall. The leader bowed and said, "Esteemed teachers, we are disciples of the Imperial Preceptor. The Imperial Preceptor heard that the Daoist Disciple was causing trouble, so he ordered us to come."

The Libationers, Grand Rectors, and Secretaries in the hall exchanged glances, then uniformly turned their gaze to the young Patriarch. A Secretary said solemnly, "Grand Libationer, the Imperial Preceptor's disciples are not students of our Grand Academy. Whether they can represent our academy in battle needs your decision, Grand Libationer."

Ba Shan, the bearded Libationer, suddenly slammed the table and protested, "Nonsense! What good would it do if the Imperial Preceptor's disciples defeat the Daoist Disciple? The Imperial Preceptor's disciples are trained according to old customs; they are taught solely by him, no different from how other sects train their disciples! If news of this spreads and reaches the Daoist sect, they will surely rebel! If the Daoist sect rebels, all righteous forces in the world will follow! Who among us can bear such a grave responsibility? Who is capable of taking on that burden?"

The Secretary retorted angrily, "You're a Libationer, you have your reasons. So tell us, what should we do?"

"What should we do?" Ba Shan, the Libationer, burst into laughter and sharply retorted, "Whatever we do, it'll be better than you Secretaries! You Secretaries spend your days guarding those useless old books upstairs, claiming to research Daoist magic and divine powers. What have you accomplished all these years? If you had any ability, you would have researched Daoist magic capable of countering the Innate Grand Profound Art, and our students wouldn't be in such an embarrassing situation, completely helpless against someone blocking our gates!"

Inside the Grand Academy Hall, the Secretaries were enraged, shouting back, "Haven't we passed on all the Daoist magic and divine powers we researched to you? It's you Grand Rectors and Libationers who are incompetent, unable to teach good students!"

"Well said! For example, what good is the Imperial Medical Hall? They spend their days teaching students alchemy and herb gathering, neglecting their proper duties! Every other day, it's a student vomiting blood from poison, or another student's face turning black from poison! And they still have the nerve to collect their salaries!"

The Imperial Physicians from the Imperial Medical Hall, who were also Grand Rectors, became furious upon hearing this. Physician You trembled with rage and stammered, "If not for our Imperial Medical Hall saving lives and treating injuries, most of these students would die from poisoning or cultivation deviation alone! You Secretaries are incompetent! We asked you to organize the various sects' elixir and medicinal formulas, but you've been slow to deliver. The Empress Dowager's illness was cured by a mere youth! Why don't you just die?"

"Old fool, you should be the first to die! Your Imperial Medical Hall couldn't cure the Empress Dowager's illness, yet a mere youth did. Why don't you pull out an eyelash and hang yourself?"

The entire Grand Academy Hall erupted into a chaotic argument, with tempers flaring higher and higher. The Imperial Preceptor's disciples exchanged bewildered glances.

After a moment, Libationer Ba Shan suddenly chuckled. "Alright, alright, stop arguing. Since we can't come up with a plan, isn't there someone in charge here? Grand Libationer, what are your thoughts?"

Everyone looked towards the young Patriarch on the Saint's throne. The young Patriarch rubbed his temples, clearly suffering from a headache due to their noise. He said, "The Imperial Preceptor's disciples are, after all, not students of the Grand Academy. If they were to fight and defeat the Daoist Disciple, the Daoist sect would seize the opportunity to rebel. In that case, their rebellion would be justified, putting the empire in a passive position. Therefore, please invite the Imperial Preceptor himself."

Everyone was slightly stunned, not understanding his meaning. Even the Imperial Preceptor's disciples looked confused.

"The Daoist sect consists of rigid thinkers," the young Patriarch said, standing up with a smile. "They only accept irrefutable logic; trying to cheat them won't work. If that's the case, then we'll meet them head-on. It's been a long time since the Imperial Preceptor lectured at our Grand Academy, hasn't it? He used to come frequently to impart Daoist magic, swordsmanship, and divine powers. Some of our students can even be considered his partial disciples. The few of you should go back and invite the Imperial Preceptor here to teach our Grand Academy students."

The Imperial Preceptor's disciples were momentarily startled, then bowed in acknowledgment. They left the hall and boarded the pleasure boat, departing.

Libationer Ba Shan seemed to ponder for a moment, then smiled. "Grand Libationer, do you mean to have the Imperial Preceptor come and impart swordsmanship and divine powers, and then have our Grand Academy students defeat the Daoist Disciple?"

The young Patriarch nodded with a smile.

Libationer Ba Shan held up three fingers. "Three days! Only three days! Old man, do you believe the Imperial Preceptor can teach a genius to defeat the Daoist Disciple in just three days?"

"I do," the young Patriarch replied with a smile. "Ba Shan, don't underestimate the Imperial Preceptor's capabilities. He is, after all, the foremost person below the gods; his abilities far exceed your imagination. And..."

He walked to the entrance of the Grand Academy Hall and looked down at the mountain gate. A cold sneer played on his lips. "That brat only moves when there's profit! I thought he wouldn't be able to resist challenging the Daoist Disciple, but I didn't expect him to be so patient! Well, it's a good chance to invite Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang over; it's a bargain for him!"

At the Imperial Preceptor's Mansion, Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang paused slightly upon hearing his disciples' report. "The Grand Libationer wants me to lecture?" he mused. "What is that old fox up to now? He could simply stamp a seal to make you students of the Grand Academy; why does he insist I go there?"

One disciple explained, "The Grand Libationer means that the Daoist sect only accepts irrefutable logic. If they knew we were your disciples, Master, they would certainly not acknowledge our victory and would seize the opportunity to rebel."

The Imperial Preceptor chuckled. "The Daoist sect is indeed stubborn. I once met the Dao Master years ago; he truly had that difficult temper and only recognized absolute truth. Very well, I'll go myself. Bring in the Little Poison King."

Fu Yuanqing arrived. The Imperial Preceptor handed him a dagger and said, "You've seen my wounds. Now, create wounds on my body that look similar."

Fu Yuanqing was startled but took the dagger and traced patterns on the Imperial Preceptor's chest, making him bleed profusely. He then used the blood as pigment to make the wounds appear even more realistic.

"Make the wounds smell a bit putrid," Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang said, his eyes glinting.

Fu Yuanqing sprinkled a little powder on the wounds, giving them a slight, but not overwhelming, putrid smell.

"Now, sprinkle some perfume on them," Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang instructed.

Fu Yuanqing complied, sprinkling perfume to mask the foul odor. Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang changed his clothes. After a moment's thought, he ordered rouge and powder to be brought, and had a maid apply a sickly flushed color to his cheeks.

Once everything was done, Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang smiled. "Now, can this fool the rebels?"

Fu Yuanqing chuckled. "Are you implying there are rebels in the Grand Academy? In that case, it would be best for you, Imperial Preceptor, to bring some masters with you, to appear less confident."

"The Grand Academy is so vast, it's only natural for a few rebels to be hiding within it," Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang said, understanding his meaning. "However, this is the capital. Who would dare to kill me here? As for the Grand Academy, it has more masters than the imperial palace, so there's no need to bring more. You should come along, lest the Empress Dowager take advantage of my absence and sneak in to kill you."

Fu Yuanqing breathed a sigh of relief. His original intention was indeed for Imperial Preceptor Yan Kang to take him along, to prevent the Empress Dowager from seizing the opportunity to kill him.

At the Grand Academy, a bell suddenly rang, its sound echoing throughout the entire mountain.

Numerous Grand Academy students guarding the mountain gate heard the bell and immediately ascended the mountain. Qin Mu, bewildered, asked Ling Yuxiu, who explained, "That's the bell calling Grand Academy students to assemble. When you hear it, you must gather in front of the Grand Academy Hall. The Grand Libationer likely has something important to say."

Wei Yong asked worriedly, "Could it be that they can't defeat this Daoist Disciple, so they're going to disband the Grand Academy?"

Many students glared angrily at him, and Wei Yong quickly recoiled.

Upon reaching the mountain, they saw that the area in front of the Grand Academy Hall was already a sea of people. Princes, nobles, and commoner students alike were all gathered there.

After a moment, once everyone had arrived, the young Patriarch smiled. "Imperial Preceptor, please begin."