Chapter 121: Chapter 121: A Bunch of Lowlifes
Chen Feng didn’t spare the three men a single glance, walking straight up to Hua Luoxuan. "Elder Hua, the Law Enforcement Hall arrested the wrong person this time. I am deeply ashamed. I hope this hasn’t affected your mood."
"Not at all. This has nothing to do with you, Master Chen." Hua Luoxuan shook his head; he naturally wasn’t going to get angry with Chen Feng. "It’s just that our Alchemist Association’s Law Enforcement Hall has indeed become quite a cesspool. Today it was me. Had it been any other Alchemist, I’m afraid they would have been in for no small amount of trouble."
Chen Feng’s expression turned grim.
He knew that what Hua Luoxuan said was no exaggeration.
Nodding, Chen Feng turned around, a terrifying glint in his eyes. "Xuu Ji, Zhao Fan, Liu Yun. The three of you have violated the discipline of the Law Enforcement Hall. Effective immediately, you are no longer officers of the Law Enforcement Hall. The Alchemist Association will launch an immediate review and determine the full extent of your crimes. Do any of you have an objection?"
"None. We have no objections." The three men’s faces were masks of misery. "We are willing to accept our punishment."
"And as for you, Prince He," Chen Feng said, turning to Zhao Xun. "I hear you reported Elder Hua of our Alchemist Association for all manner of wrongdoing. Is that correct?"
"A misunderstanding! It’s all a misunderstanding." Zhao Xun’s earlier arrogance had vanished, replaced by a fawning smile. "Elder Hua, it was all just hearsay. I was misled by malicious gossip."
At this point, he couldn’t afford to worry about his dignity as a prince. The Alchemist Association was a behemoth in the kingdom, and its elders all wielded immense power. To offend them, even for a prince, was to court death.
"A misunderstanding? On the contrary, I don’t think this was a misunderstanding at all," Hua Luoxuan said coldly. "I will report this matter to His Majesty personally, so he can seek justice on your behalf, Prince."
"No, there’s really no need!" Zhao Xun was on the verge of tears. It was true that as a prince, his status was noble. But if His Majesty found out he’d been running rampant through the Royal City, he would be in for more than he could handle.
"Very well, Prince He. This is the Alchemist Association, so we won’t keep you any longer," Chen Feng said placidly. "The Alchemist Association values fairness and never uses its power to bully others. Your matter will be reviewed and handled impartially. Until the results are out, our association will suspend all cooperation with the House of He. I hope you understand."
"This..."
Prince He was stunned. He had assumed Hua Luoxuan was just some minor, out-of-town Alchemist he could push around as he pleased using his connections. He never imagined the man was actually a high-ranking member of the Alchemist Association. He had really lifted a rock only to drop it on his own foot.
’No wonder he wasn’t the least bit afraid of retaliation from my House back at the restaurant, just as Meng Yi reported. How could I have been so stupid? Why did I have to come charging over here to get even?’
"Elder Hua, Master Chen, I..."
"Show them out!"
Zhao Xun wanted to say more but was cut off by Hua Luoxuan’s cold voice. Under the watchful eyes of the Alchemist Association guards, Zhao Xun had no choice but to swallow his words and leave in disgrace with Zhao Jing and Meng Yi.
Once outside the Alchemist Association, Zhao Jing pouted. "Father, are we just going to let this go? That Hua Luoxuan is just an elder of the Alchemist Association. We’re imperial relatives! I refuse to believe there’s nothing we can do about them!"
"You, shut your mouth!" Zhao Xun snarled, raising a hand. He really wanted to give his daughter a hard slap across the face.
For the first time, Zhao Xun realized just how much trouble his daughter could cause.
But as his hand was raised, he found he couldn’t go through with it. As Zhao Jing stared in terrified disbelief, he sighed and lowered his arm. His brow furrowed deeply, his eyes anxious. "Forget it. I’ll have to think of some way to smooth things over."
"From now on, you are forbidden from ever provoking them again, do you understand?"
The prince’s tone was severe. He knew that this time, he and the House of He were in deep trouble.
Naturally, Ye Xuan and the others, who were in secluded cultivation back at the inn, knew nothing of these events. They were all completely absorbed in their rigorous training.
By nightfall, neither Hua Luoxuan nor Luo Zhan had come back. Only Leng Yingying returned to the inn.
However, both Hua Luoxuan and Luo Zhan had sent messages, telling Ye Xuan and the others to go register on their own when Profound Spirit Academy’s enrollment began. They both had matters to attend to in the Royal City and wouldn’t be able to return for now. Of course, they added that if they were needed, they could be found at the Alchemist Association and the Li family’s estate, respectively.
Everyone understood about Hua Luoxuan being at the Alchemist Association; he had just returned to report on his duties and surely had much to do.
But the mention of Luo Zhan being at the Li family’s estate made Leng Yingying gasp in surprise.
"What is it, Leng Yingying? Have you heard of this Li family?" Feng Rouyi and the others asked, their curiosity piqued.
Leng Yingying nodded, her expression growing serious. "If I’m not mistaken, the Li family estate that Teacher Luo Zhan mentioned belongs to the foremost military family in our Liuyun Kingdom."
"The foremost military family?"
"That’s right. The old patriarch of the Li family is a major figure in the kingdom’s military. His son, the current Li family Patriarch, is the Commander of the Golden Lion Corps, the Minister of Military Affairs, and head of the Commandery. His power and status in the kingdom are terrifying and second to none!"
Hearing the title "Commander of the Golden Lion Corps," it dawned on Ye Xuan. No wonder Luo Zhan had gone to the Li family. As a former Captain in the Golden Lion Corps, he naturally had deep ties with them.
The departure of Hua Luoxuan and Luo Zhan didn’t change much for Ye Xuan’s group. After all, once they were at the academy, the two men wouldn’t be able to look after their every need anyway.
「Three days passed in a flash.」
The day of Profound Spirit Academy’s enrollment had finally arrived.
"So many people."
Dismounting their horses, Leng Yingying and the others gazed at the huge, open space and the magnificent buildings before them, a thrill of excitement stirring in their hearts.
Before them was a vast plaza, bustling with a throng of people. It was filled with youths around sixteen or seventeen years old, most of them led by elders, their faces beaming with the same excitement as Leng Yingying’s group.
At the far end of the plaza stood a magnificent gate, above which were carved several large, flourishing characters: Profound Spirit Academy.
Legend had it that the calligraphy was the work of Li Chengfeng, the kingdom’s greatest expert from several hundred years ago. Li Chengfeng was the most powerful master the Liuyun Kingdom had ever known, a Tier Six expert of the Venerable Martial Realm, who had passed into dust two hundred years ago.
But his inscription remained above the gates of Profound Spirit Academy, inspiring all who came after.
The calligraphy was magnificent—sharp and domineering, carrying the momentum of an otherworldly sword strike, like a celestial descending from the heavens. It was as if a lone Swordsman stood proudly between heaven and earth, radiating an aura of absolute power and solitary pride.
Leng Yingying and the others were deeply captivated by these characters. It wasn’t just them; even the various experts who had come from all over to escort their disciples were humbled by the artistic conception within the strokes.
Ye Xuan gave it a casual glance and remarked faintly, "It has an excess of dominance, but it lacks subtlety. No wonder he only ever became a Tier Six Martial Venerable and failed to step into the realm of a Tier Seven Martial King."
"What did you just say?" Although Ye Xuan hadn’t spoken loudly, two disciples standing nearby heard him clearly. "What would a peasant like you from the countryside know?"
Ye Xuan’s group turned to see two lavishly dressed youths staring at them with disdain. With their noses held high, they wore expressions of such arrogance it was as if an emperor was looking down upon a beggar.
"What did you just say?" Chen Xing, not being one to hold his temper, immediately snapped back. But Ye Xuan pulled him back. ’Their reverence for a powerful figure isn’t necessarily a bad thing,’ he thought.
One of the youths snorted coldly. "I said you’re a bunch of peasants from the countryside, so don’t spout nonsense. Although my brother and I are peerless geniuses destined to surpass Lord Li Chengfeng, he is not someone that scum like you are qualified to criticize."
He kept calling them scum, not because of Ye Xuan’s critique of Li Chengfeng, but simply because he saw from their clothes that they weren’t nobles. He was filled with contempt, believing that commoners had no right to comment on Li Chengfeng at all.
Even Ye Xuan was left a little dumbfounded by this reasoning.
’Even for a backwater place like the Liuyun Kingdom, this level of ignorant idiocy is a bit much,’ Ye Xuan mused.
"You..." Chen Xing flew into a rage, and the expressions on Leng Yingying and the others also turned ugly.
But to their surprise, Ye Xuan simply nudged him. "Let’s go. Time to register."
"Young Master Xuan," Chen Xing said, stunned. But Ye Xuan just shook his head with a smile. "They’re just frogs in a well, unaware of how vast the sky is. Why should we lower ourselves to their level?"
"Besides, if a rabid dog bites you, are you going to bite it back?"
Ye Xuan had seen so many idiots like this that he was no longer surprised by them.
Ye Xuan’s words instantly made the two youths’ faces darken, their eyes turning ice-cold.
"You country peasants! If it weren’t for the academy enrollment today and the rule against fighting at the gates, I’d make you scum crawl back home on your knees!"
One of the youths said coldly, but Ye Xuan and his group couldn’t be bothered to respond. Without even a backward glance, they were already walking away, leaving the two youths fuming, their faces ashen with rage.
One of them said sinisterly, "Those guys must be here for the entrance assessment. They’d better pray they don’t run into us during the test. Otherwise, we’ll make them regret it."
In front of the main gate, several teachers from Profound Spirit Academy were seated behind a long table, on which various registration forms were laid out.
A long line of applicants had already formed in front of the table.
Many of the youths took out letters, handed them to the teachers, completed their registration, and after receiving their own number tags, excitedly entered a nearby assessment hall.
The recommendation letter only granted one the qualification to apply; the assessment hall was where one’s cultivation level and age were actually tested.
After all, recommendation letters could be forged, so they weren’t the sole credential. On the contrary, the entrance assessment was the key factor in determining a candidate’s future status within the academy.
Soon, it was Ye Xuan’s group’s turn.
The middle-aged man behind the table spoke directly, "Recommendation letters. Out with them."
