Chapter 144: Chapter 144: Crown Prince Alliance
Ye Xuan had, after all, experienced so much in his previous life, and his will was already incredibly firm.
Moreover, he knew full well that choosing the Nine Revolutions Sacred Body meant he had to be prepared to endure the torment of a thousand cuts, an agony akin to the eighteen levels of hell.
So, in the face of this pain, he gritted his teeth and endured it in silence.
He actually had many methods at his disposal to alleviate this kind of pain.
But he didn’t use them. To him, the process of cultivation was a baptism. Taking shortcuts was always an act of irresponsibility toward oneself.
Time ticked by, and Ye Xuan soon immersed himself in that bitter cultivation.
Meanwhile, Ye Xuan, deep in his cultivation, was unaware that outside the Cultivation Tower, several figures radiating a chilling aura had stepped inside. They headed straight for the stairs and began ascending.
"This way."
A rather disheveled young man led the way, speaking to the others. It was none other than Yuan Shan, whose arm had been crippled by Ye Xuan.
Behind him were several youths who also exuded a coldness. Each one had a sharp, energetic look and a piercing gaze.
Many students along the way paled when they saw this group, respectfully stepping aside on the stairs to let them pass.
Only after the group had disappeared did a student pat his chest, suck in a cold breath, and say in horror, "That was Senior Brother Tong Hong and his group! The one leading them was Senior Brother Yuan Shan. He looks like he got beaten up. Could it be he brought Senior Brother Tong Hong here to get revenge?"
"Unbelievable. In our academy, someone actually dared to beat up Senior Brother Yuan Shan? He’s a member of the Crown Prince Alliance! Hitting him is a slap in the face to the entire Crown Prince Alliance, isn’t it?"
"No matter who it was, they’re out of luck now. Offending the Crown Prince Alliance in the Profound Spirit Academy means they won’t be able to take a single step without trouble."
The students along the path all broke into discussion, filled with shock and bewilderment.
Yuan Shan and his group didn’t stop until they reached the ninth floor of the Cultivation Tower.
"It’s Tong Hong and his group."
In the ninth-floor hall, Shi San and his three companions, who were waiting for a cultivation room, saw Yuan Shan’s group. Their expressions changed drastically, and they all shot to their feet.
Their gazes were all fixed on a handsome young man behind Yuan Shan, their eyes revealing boundless apprehension.
"Yuan Shan, is this the place? Where’s that kid you mentioned?"
The handsome youth’s gaze was like a torch as he swept it across the hall. His eyes were so cold that no one dared to meet his stare. Everywhere his gaze passed, the temperature in the hall seemed to drop by more than ten degrees.
Yuan Shan scanned the area, his brow furrowed. "Senior Brother Tong Hong, the kid really did injure me here earlier. Could he have gotten scared that I’d go get backup and left already?"
"You lot, do you know where that kid is?" Tong Hong’s gaze fell casually upon Shi San and his friends. His eyes were deep and carried an immense, chilling coldness.
His tone of voice was domineering, as if he were a Monarch commanding his subjects from on high.
"Senior Brother Tong Hong, that kid already went into a cultivation room. It’s this one."
Unable to bear the pressure of Tong Hong’s gaze, one of the students hastily pointed to the cultivation room Ye Xuan was in and spoke up.
Tong Hong raised an eyebrow and shot the student a disdainful look. "Useless trash. There are so many of you, yet you let a newcomer take the cultivation room first? You’re a disgrace to us senior students."
"Yes, yes, Senior Brother Tong Hong is right to scold me." The student, who had been so arrogant in front of Ye Xuan, now had a flushed face. In front of Tong Hong, he didn’t dare let out so much as a peep.
"Senior Brother Tong Hong, the kid is in this cultivation room. Want me to drag him out?"
One of the men behind Tong Hong stared at Ye Xuan’s cultivation room, his eyes eager.
Although academy regulations strictly prohibited anyone from disturbing a student who had already entered a cultivation room—with severe punishment for violators—Tong Hong and his group from the Crown Prince Alliance couldn’t care less.
Tong Hong thought for a moment, then shook his head and said indifferently, "No need. Just last month, I crippled a student here at the academy and received a severe reprimand from the disciplinary office. If I openly disregard the rules again today, not even the Crown Prince Alliance will be able to protect me. If I get expelled, I’ll become a disgrace to my family."
Hearing Tong Hong’s words, the man glanced at Yuan Shan with a helpless expression.
Yuan Shan grew anxious and quickly said, "Senior Brother Tong Hong, please wait a moment. Let me call this kid out."
With that, he turned to Ye Xuan’s cultivation room and bellowed.
"Ye Xuan, get the hell out here!"
His voice boomed, echoing throughout the ninth-floor hall, with a large portion of the sound penetrating Ye Xuan’s cultivation room.
Inside the cultivation room, Ye Xuan, who had thrown his entire being into cultivating the Nine Revolutions Sacred Body, faintly heard the angry shouts.
Ye Xuan’s brow furrowed. ’It’s Yuan Shan! So he refuses to give up. He actually dared to come back and shout at my door. Did he find some backup?’
A chill spread through Ye Xuan’s heart.
If he were cultivating any other Cultivation Technique, he would have decisively ended his session and gone out to teach Yuan Shan a lesson he would never forget.
But the Nine Revolutions Sacred Body was different. Once started, the cultivation could not be easily stopped. He had to wait until the Five Elements Crystal was completely absorbed. Forcibly stopping now would cause massive, irreversible damage to his body.
"You peasant! You were so arrogant before, so why are you so soft now? Turns out you’re just a coward hiding in your shell! Get the hell out here!"
Yuan Shan’s furious roars came from outside again.
Since he couldn’t go out, Ye Xuan simply shut down his Profound Sense, blocking Yuan Shan’s curses from his mind and focusing his entire being on cultivating the Nine Revolutions Sacred Body.
Outside, Yuan Shan stared intently at Ye Xuan’s cultivation room. It was completely silent, with no sign of movement.
"I, Yuan Shan, am standing right here! If you’re a man, if you have any guts, then come out!"
"Looks like you don’t even count as a man. A peasant is just a peasant."
Yuan Shan continued to roar, but no matter what he said or how he cursed, the cultivation room before him remained silent.
"Yuan Shan, who gave you the nerve to cause such a ruckus here?"
His shouting failed to disturb Ye Xuan, but it did cause the doors of other cultivation rooms on the ninth floor to crack open.
One person, clearly annoyed at being disturbed, even snapped coldly.
However, when they saw Tong Hong standing next to Yuan Shan, they all hastily slammed their doors shut, so scared they didn’t even dare to breathe.
"Senior Brother Tong Hong, it seems he knows I’m here for revenge and doesn’t dare to come out."
Seeing the handsome youth’s face grow impatient, Yuan Shan finally stopped his tirade and spoke helplessly.
He hadn’t expected Ye Xuan to endure such insults without any response. If the guy was determined not to come out, there was nothing he could do.
Tong Hong’s brow furrowed as well. "Since he’s not coming out, I don’t have time to waste here. How about this: if you’re willing, you can stand guard here until he comes out. If not, then just notify me when you hear he’s emerged."
With that, Tong Hong turned and left without so much as a glance at Yuan Shan.
Several senior students left with him.
"Kid, I never thought you’d be this much of a coward. But when you do come out, I, Yuan Shan, will definitely show you the consequences of offending me."
Yuan Shan clutched his injured arm, his eyes terrifyingly cold as a savage smile spread across his face.
The thought of the harm Ye Xuan had caused him filled his heart with resentment.
In the following days, Yuan Shan came to the ninth floor of the Cultivation Tower almost every day to check if Ye Xuan had come out.
To his great annoyance, a month passed in the blink of an eye, and there was still no news of Ye Xuan leaving his cultivation room.
’This kid... does he really plan on being a coward in his shell forever?’ Yuan Shan felt extremely agitated.
’Since you won’t come out, I’ll take care of those friends of yours for you.’
Yuan Shan’s gaze was venomous as he thought to himself.
What frustrated him, however, was that Ye Xuan’s friends had also been in their cultivation rooms the whole time and hadn’t come out either.
’Have these guys gotten addicted to being cowards in their shells? I refuse to believe you have that many Profound Coins on your Cultivation Cards.’
After more than a month, Yuan Shan finally lost his patience. After ordering a few of his subordinates to keep an eye on Ye Xuan and his friends, he entered a cultivation room himself.
However, his cultivation sessions weren’t very long. He would basically come out every two or three days to check for news.
But every time, the news was deeply dissatisfying. This constant entering and exiting of the cultivation room left Yuan Shan unable to calm his mind. Coupled with his injured right arm, his cultivation not only failed to progress but actually regressed.
’This won’t do. This person has become a demon in my heart. If I don’t vent this anger, I won’t have the mindset to cultivate at all.’
After coming and going several times, Yuan Shan finally understood his situation.
This time, he forced himself to calm down and finally managed to stabilize his regressing cultivation.
Half a month later, when he emerged from the cultivation room again, he finally received his first piece of good news: Ye Xuan’s friends had left their cultivation rooms two days prior.
"Good." Yuan Shan’s eyes finally lit up with a trace of excitement. "Go gather our people immediately! Since that kid won’t come out, we’ll vent our frustrations on his friends first!"
A savage light shot from Yuan Shan’s eyes...
In his cultivation room, Ye Xuan was naturally unaware of all this. Every day, he was immersed in absorbing the Five Elements Crystal, constantly reforging his physical body.
As it was reforged, Ye Xuan’s body grew stronger and stronger, while the Five Elements Crystal in his hand grew smaller and smaller.
By the time the Five Elements Crystal in his hand was completely depleted, more than three months had passed.
BOOM!
When the last trace of the five elemental powers merged into Ye Xuan’s body, his frame suddenly shuddered. A refreshing sensation instantly spread throughout him, and at the same time, a five-colored rainbow of light flashed silently within his body before dissipating.
Ye Xuan’s eyes snapped open, and a bolt of electricity shot out from them, shining with a brilliant light.
