Chapter 175: Chapter 175: King Chu
A mocking expression touched the corner of the middle-aged steward’s mouth. Without even going in to check, he immediately drew a large X on the results sheet in his hand, his face a mask of disdain.
That trace of apprehension he previously felt toward Ye Xuan had now vanished completely.
Meanwhile, Ye Xuan had already arrived at the final, third trial.
This third trial was, surprisingly, a painting.
At the back of the hall hung an enormous painting. It depicted a river flowing into the distance. With just a few simple brushstrokes, it perfectly captured the majestic momentum of a great river surging eastward.
Before Ye Xuan stood a desk, and upon it were a brush, ink, paper, and an inkstone. This third trial required the student to create a new painting based on the one before them.
’This third trial is actually a test of artistic skill?’
Ye Xuan raised an eyebrow slightly. In his past life, he had known a great deal about painting. Though he wasn’t a woman, he was a master of all four traditional arts—the zither, Go, calligraphy, and painting. Imitating a painting made with just a few simple strokes would naturally be exceedingly simple for him.
But based on the first two trials, Ye Xuan knew this third one was definitely not as simple as it appeared on the surface.
’Huh? This is... Flowing Water Sword Intent!’
As Ye Xuan stepped closer, he immediately sensed a faint, hazy aura of Sword Intent emanating from the painting. He instantly understood that the third trial actually required students to comprehend the Flowing Water Sword Intent within the painting and then express it through their own artwork.
’This Flowing Water Sword Intent has the unrestrained power of a river, but it lacks the sorrow of its passing. "The great river flows east, its waves washing away all heroes of the ages!" A true Flowing Water Sword Intent requires not just power, but also a core of profound, time-worn vicissitude. The person who painted this Sword Intent hasn’t even mastered the true intent of flowing water themselves. How could they possibly teach others?’
Shaking his head, Ye Xuan suddenly picked up the brush and ink from the desk. With a few quick strokes—SWISH, SWISH—several lines of ink appeared, sharp and clear on the white xuan paper.
With a casual flick of his wrist, the brush landed perfectly back in its holder.
Had an expert been present, they would have surely seen that in the instant Ye Xuan put brush to paper, a soaring Sword Qi flowed between his brush and the page, carrying an essence that seemed capable of slicing through anything.
After Ye Xuan left the room, the middle-aged steward walked in. He looked at the painting Ye Xuan had made—just a few simple strokes—and could see none of its delicate beauty. He immediately sneered, "What is this garbage?"
With that, the man tossed Ye Xuan’s painting aside and once again marked a large X on the results sheet.
It was an hour later when he finally came out of the hall.
To his surprise, Yun Aoxue was still waiting outside.
"Ye Xuan, how did the assessment go?" Seeing him emerge, Yun Aoxue immediately walked up to him, asking excitedly.
"It was so-so, I guess."
Ye Xuan hadn’t followed the conventional procedures during the assessment, so he didn’t know what his final score would be. In fact, he couldn’t be bothered to find out.
Judging by the design of the three trials, the person who created them must possess immense power in the Liuyun Kingdom. However, from the Flowing Water Sword Intent alone, Ye Xuan could tell that this person was, at most, a Martial Sect expert. They were far from qualified to teach him.
If Yun Aoxue hadn’t dragged him here, he wouldn’t have even had the slightest interest in participating.
Hearing this, Yun Aoxue sighed. "I was being too wishful. That lord’s power is heaven-defying. He sets up an assessment at our Profound Spirit Academy every year, but in ten years, not a single person has been accepted as his disciple. It’s best not to get our hopes up."
Although Yun Aoxue had complete faith in Ye Xuan’s talent, she couldn’t guarantee he could pass that lord’s assessment.
Parting ways with Yun Aoxue, Ye Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The young woman was stubborn, yet she cared for him deeply. Ye Xuan didn’t want to act high and mighty in front of her, so whenever she caught him, it was always a draining ordeal.
’I haven’t seen that kid Chen Xing in days. I wonder where he’s been.’
Just as Ye Xuan was about to head back to the dormitory to look for Chen Xing and the others, a playfully smug, surprised voice suddenly rang out, and a fatty rolled over toward him like a rubber ball.
"Haha, Young Master Xuan! Long time no see! Where’ve you been hiding these past few days?"
Who else could that smug voice belong to but Chen Xing?
He was animated, speaking with a look of feigned regret. "You really missed out while you were gone! A couple of days ago, King Chu—Lord Chu—came to the academy to give a lecture. The crowd was massive, a total sea of people! Tsk tsk, almost every student in the academy was there. I squeezed in and listened for a few days, and I feel like I’ve had a major breakthrough."
"King Chu?" Ye Xuan asked, puzzled.
"Yeah! Lord Chu Yunfei, the one known as the number one expert of our Liuyun Kingdom!"
As he spoke, Chen Xing flicked the hem of his robes, a look of awe on his face. "You should have seen it! King Chu, Lord Chu, is truly the epitome of handsome, dashing, and debonair. Long sword at his waist, wearing a long robe... tsk tsk. In terms of looks alone, he’s just a tiny, tiny bit less handsome than me, Chen Xing. The moment he appeared, so many female students screamed for him. They were even more enthusiastic than when they see me."
Shaking his head repeatedly, Chen Xing wore a look of indignation. "To think that I, Chen Xing, am even more handsome than Lord Chu, yet I’ve never received such a welcome! It’s so unfair! I think it must be because Lord Chu is too far ahead of me, Third Young Master Chen, on the Martial Dao. So, I’ve decided! From now on, I will become an expert who’s even more popular with the ladies than Lord Chu!"
Listening to this, Ye Xuan could feel a headache coming on. But he also understood now. The person who had been lecturing at the academy for the past two days was Chu Yunfei, the man known as the number one expert of the Liuyun Kingdom. No wonder Teacher Yun Aoxue had said that if he could become Chu Yunfei’s disciple, not even the Crown Prince would dare to make a move against him.
Ye Xuan had, of course, heard of this Chu Yunfei.
In truth, he wasn’t a member of the direct royal line, but from a branch family. And this branch was so distant from the Zhao family’s royal bloodline that the only connection was an ancestress from several hundred years ago who had been a Commandery Princess of the royal family.
That Commandery Princess later married a commoner, so one could say that Chu Yunfei was essentially a descendant of a fallen country family who just happened to have a trace of the Zhao family’s blood.
From birth, he displayed astonishing talent in the Martial Dao. He later joined the military and earned brilliant achievements in battle, eventually joining the Imperial Guard. He rose from a mere captain all the way to commander of the one hundred thousand strong Imperial Guard.
Ultimately, he gained the favor of the Liuyun Kingdom’s Monarch and was ennobled as King Chu, commander of the Royal City’s Imperial Guard. His strength reached the pinnacle; as early as twenty years ago, he had broken through to become a Tier Five Martial Sect of the Sect Martial Realm.
His strength now was even more unfathomable, and he was hailed as the kingdom’s number one expert.
In the Liuyun Kingdom, Chu Yunfei was a banner, a symbol, revered by countless Martial Artists.
Everyone said this Chu Yunfei was a genius of the Sword Dao. Ye Xuan figured that the Flowing Water Sword Intent from before must have been his handiwork.
To be able to rise from a commoner to become the Liuyun Kingdom’s number one expert—for that, Ye Xuan held a fair bit of admiration for Chu Yunfei.
"Young Master Xuan, take a look at me. With my aptitude, how long do you think it’ll take for me to surpass Lord Chu Yunfei? Five years? Ten years? Or twenty?"
Chen Xing’s face was full of anticipation, but then his brow furrowed. "No, twenty years is too long. In twenty years, I’ll be in my thirties. How about ten years? Is that doable? After ten years, I’ll be in my twenties, the prime of my life, when I’m handsome and dashing."
As he spoke, Chen Xing seemed to be imagining some romantic exploit, and he nearly started drooling.
"Hmph. You, a fatso like you, dashing? Even a pig is more dashing than you."
Before Ye Xuan could speak, a cold, mocking voice cut in, its tone icy.
"Who is it? Who’s spouting nonsense over there?"
Chen Xing’s eyes widened as he spun around. Not far ahead, a group of five or six people was approaching. Profound Qi billowed from each of them as they stared coldly at Ye Xuan, their eyes filled with a strange hostility.
’The Crown Prince Alliance.’
Ye Xuan’s gaze turned cold. He recognized a few of them; they were high-ranking members of the Crown Prince Alliance who had stood with Tong Hong during his challenge.
At this moment, they were gathered around a man dressed in a brocade robe with a hairpin in his hair. A piece of fine jade hung from his waist, his fingers were slender, and he had a graceful demeanor. His eyes, however, were cold and chilling. He looked at Ye Xuan as if he were looking at a dead man, the corners of his mouth curled in a sneer of disdainful mockery.
The others seemed to treat this brocade-robed man as their leader, flocking around him and looking at Ye Xuan with sneers on their faces.
"Well, look who it is. A few homeless dogs from the Crown Prince Alliance," Chen Xing said. His expression changed, but there was no fear in it, only mocking laughter.
He and his friends had already fallen out with the Crown Prince Alliance, so Chen Xing didn’t believe for a second they were here for anything good.
At his words, the youth who had spoken mockingly earlier scowled, a cold glint shooting from his sinister eyes. "Kid, what did you say? Are you looking to die?"
"Don’t be so quick to talk about dying. This is the Profound Spirit Academy, not your personal backyard. Young Master Xuan, let’s not stoop to their level. We’re leaving."
Chen Xing grunted and grabbed Ye Xuan, preparing to leave.
He wasn’t afraid of them, but that didn’t mean he had to fight them to the death. He wasn’t a first-day rookie; he knew how powerful the Crown Prince Alliance was. There was no need for a head-on confrontation if it could be avoided.
But just because he wanted to leave didn’t mean they would let him.
Several of the youths took two steps forward, easily and subtly surrounding Ye Xuan and Chen Xing. Each of them released a terrifying aura.
Among the six, even the weakest was a Martial Master Third Layer. They were clearly all ranked near the top of the academy.
As they released their auras in unison, Chen Xing, a mere Second Layer Samurai, was immediately unable to withstand the pressure. He stumbled back two steps, THUD, THUD, his face turning pale.
"I don’t believe I’ve done anything to offend you, have I?"
Seeing this, Ye Xuan suddenly released a burst of his own aura. Like a spring breeze, it instantly swept away the oppressive pressure enveloping Chen Xing. He then looked up at the group opposite them and spoke calmly.
It wasn’t that he was backing down. It was just that after killing two Celestial Martial Artist experts like Mosen, Ye Xuan simply couldn’t bring himself to care about these so-called student experts at the academy anymore.
