Almost at the same moment, in another place.
"Honorary father and mother, that was pretty much how things went." Fang Zheng stood straight, his tone respectful and cautious.
In the hall, Fang Yuan's uncle Gu Yue Dong Tu as well as his aunt sat in their wide-back huge chairs frowning. Aunt gnawed her teeth. While feeling injustice for Fang Zheng and at the same time gloating over the matter, she said, "Fang Yuan that bastard son, him extorting others is one thing, but to think he would not even spare his own younger brother. How heartless and unfeeling!
However this time with such a huge crime, I expect he will be expelled from the academy soon after this."
"That's enough, you should talk less." Uncle heaved a deep sigh and told Fang Zheng, "You only lost a piece of primeval stone, don't worry. Go to the treasury and pick up a stone, there is no business for you here now. You must go and work hard in cultivating. With your A grade talent, becoming the first Middle stage Gu Master is a huge possibility.
Do not waste the talent that heaven blessed you with, for your mother and I look forward to seeing you become number one."
"Yes, father and mother. Your son takes his leave." Fang Zheng left with a heart full of trepidation.
He secretly thought, "Big brother robbed all the students when he blocked the academy gates today. He created such a terrible aftermath, I'm afraid he might really be expelled. If that happens, should I plead on his case for him?"
Two voices appeared in his head.
A voice said, "No need to plead for him, he even robbed your primeval stone away although you are his younger brother. Even if he was expelled, that's his own fault. If Heaven commits a sin, it can be forgiven, but if one commits a sin himself, he deserves to die!"
Another voice said, "But he is your very own older brother, he shares a similar face, his blood thicker than water. Alright, even if you do not acknowledge him, you still must plead his case. If you do not do so, how will the outsiders look at you? I'm afraid they might think of you as a heartless and ungrateful person."
Seeing Fang Zheng leave the hall, Aunt could not help but exclaim happily, "Husband, we cut off Fang Yuan's living expenses. This little bastard finally couldn't stand it and went off committing a huge error! To actually dare to block the academy gates and fight in public, not to mention extortion, this is the equivalent of provoking the academy elder.
I daresay the time for him getting expelled is very near."
However Uncle shook his head. "You think too simply. Fang Yuan will not be expelled; in fact, there may not be any punishment."
"Why?" Aunt was puzzled.
Uncle snorted. "Brawls and fights are encouraged as long as there are no heavy consequences. Did any students die in this fight? No."
Aunt refused to comply. "Husband, how would you know there weren't any casualties? There are always accidents happening from fighting."
Uncle closed his eyes, leaning against the back of his chair. "Woman, you are really naïve. Do you really think the academy elder is just for show? When did the guards start acting? They came out at the last moment, this means that the entire scene was under control. If someone was heavily injured, they would have rushed over a long time ago, not at the last moments."
"You are not a Gu Master, so you won't understand. The academy does not forbid brawls among the students, but in fact they maintain an encouraging attitude towards it. The more brawls there are, the more helpful it would be for battles. Some students can even create strong bonds through fighting. The elders will not pursue this. It is already a routine.
If anyone wants to take action on behalf of their offspring, it would break the rules."
Aunt was dumbfounded as she heard this, and she replied, unsatisfied, "Then nothing's going to happen to Fang Yuan who robbed away such a huge amount of primeval stones? He's just going to be let go like that? With such a big number of primeval stones, it will bring a lot of help to his cultivation."
Uncle opened his eyes, his face cloudy. "What else can we do? Are you expecting me to go over by myself and snatch away all his primeval stones? However, this matter is not something that we cannot exploit. For Fang Yuan to rob and extort even his own brother Fang Zheng, this is the key to his fall. Fang Zheng is an A grade talent, he will definitely be stronger than Fang Yuan one day.
We will use this matter to divide and sow discord in Fang Zheng. We'll lead Fang Zheng away from Fang Yuan for our own use!"
And with that, three days passed.
The disturbance that Fang Yuan caused from his robbery and extortion did not spread or grow bigger, but instead it gradually died down.
No elders broke the rules and came to find trouble for Fang Yuan, and the academy elder naturally closed one eye and opened one eye, acting like nothing happened. Although in this period of time, there were two to three youngsters who refused to accept the truth of having their primeval stones taken, and they challenged Fang Yuan.
But after Fang Yuan knocked them down easily, everyone became aware that if they did not train hard in martial arts, they would never beat Fang Yuan.
Among these teenagers, a burst of mass fervor towards training hard in martial arts erupted.
The martial arts instructor was overjoyed, he had never seen a batch of students so enthusiastic and dedicated towards martial arts. Before this when he was teaching, the students were all lacking in interest, yawning all day. But right now they would constantly seek advice with eyes brimming with radiating vigour.
The academy elder specially came over to inquire about his situation.
The martial arts instructor had an excited tone as he reported, "The students have been showing unexpected enthusiasm, and this change is too great. Only one student among them called Fang Yuan remains as lazy as ever."
The academy elder laughed and patted his shoulders. He said, "This student that you speak of is the cause of the other student's transformation."
The martial arts instructor was puzzled. But of course the changes were more than this.
After the incident, Fang Yuan had undoubtedly become the public enemy of the entire student batch. Everyone was hostile towards him and he was isolated. No longer did anyone speak to him, and no one greeted him.
The youths exerted full force, training their basic techniques privately. With their parents' and elders' encouragement and inspirations, they had decided that they must reclaim their honor by their own hands.
Under the calm surface, the undercurrent was surging.
Another four days passed.
The academy elder passed out the primeval stone allowance once more, and the time for Fang Yuan to act came again.
"Fang Yuan, once wasn't enough for you, you still want to rob away our primeval stones again?!" The students were shocked and angry as Fang Yuan blocked them at the gates once more.
Fang Yuan stood in the middle of the entrance, his hands behind his back, his expression cold and tone flat. "A piece of primeval stone per person and you'll be spared of physical pain."
"Fang Yuan, your bullying is excessive. I want to challenge you!" Gu Yue Mo Bei roared angrily, coming out first.
"Oh?" Fang Yuan raised his eyebrows slightly.
Mo Bei raised his fists and rushed forward. After a few rounds, he fainted onto the ground.
"Mo Bei, you're too useless! Watch me!" Gu Yue Chi Cheng yelled loudly and dashed towards Fang Yuan. After a transition of attack and defence, he joined after Mo Bei's footsteps.
Fang Yuan's battle experience was ten thousand times more than theirs; although he only started cultivating, every force inflicted was used properly. Meanwhile, this bunch of students had only started their journey. If they came at him together, they might still be able to bring him a little trouble.
But with them coming up to challenge him one by one, it was more relaxing than the first time of extortion.
After fifteen minutes, Fang Yuan leisurely walked away with a bulging money bag, leaving behind a floor full of youths. Some of them were lying motionless, and some were holding their bellies or clutching their crotch as they moaned and howled.
"Brothers, time to come up and sweep the field fast!" the guards shouted and all rushed over.