Chapter 432: So Pitiful (1)
After meeting Zhou Hao and reaching an agreement with him, the 19th arrived.
The tournament would be held on the 20th.
Only when Su Yu met Xia Huyou on the 19th did he realize what had happened during his seclusion.
...
Su Yu did not spend much time talking with Xia Huyou and went to the books depository instead.
Books depository. Top floor.
These two days, Wu Jia had been staying indoors. Chen Yong had been using the time to teach her about the ignition of blood essence.
When Su Yu arrived, Chen Yong invited him to sit down with a smile and asked, "You're out? How's your cultivation of the Sky Sundering Saber?"
"Martial Uncle, I finished cultivating it."
Chen Yong was slightly stunned, but he quickly recovered and sighed as he said, "What a genius. The path of willpower has actually delayed your progress. If you had concentrated on physical cultivation, you would probably be a Skysoar already."
In only a few days, this kid had completed the cultivation of the Sky Sundering Saber. If he wasn't a genius, who could be called a genius? Chen Yong was in awe of Su Yu's talent.
Su Yu smiled and said, "Not really. Without the multiple character faction, I wouldn't have gotten all these opportunities. I wouldn't have gotten the chance to meet the Xia Family and learn their cultivation method."
Grotto, merit points, Sky Sundering Saber...
If he hadn't joined the multiple character faction, he would have a much harder time getting access to all that.
Without the fake formula he sold, where would he have gotten his first windfall? How could he have obtained the chance to enter the grotto so frequently? People had only believed in his fake formula due to the multiple character faction's reputation.
Chen Yong smiled and said nothing else.
Beside them, Wu Jia curiously asked, "Junior Brother, are you at the Infinite Strength Realm already?"
"Nope."
"No? Oh..."
Wu Jia sounded slightly disappointed, but she was also relieved. She said, "I'm going to reach that realm soon. I formed another character recently. I now have eight characters."
Su Yu smiled and said, "Incredible, Senior Sister!"
Wu Jia's character technique wasn't a particularly powerful one. It only required 10 foundational characters.
Although Bai Feng had come up with the disassembly method, Chen Yong still requested that Wu Jia walk the stable path and form 10 characters before her advancement. That way, she would be able to strengthen those 10 characters during her breakthrough.
She would definitely need way less time forming more characters now than she would forming and advancing new characters to the second tier after her advancement.
Wu Jia was happy at first, but she soon turned gloomy as she said, "Even after growing stronger, I am still as strong as a top 70 student. And that is only if the top 100 are still at the same standard as before. In truth, everyone is growing as well. I might not be as strong as a top 70 student anymore."
Everyone was growing.
She had spent two months recuperating, delaying her own cultivation. Even if she were as strong as a top 70 student before, her new strength might not be enough for her to maintain the same ranking.
Su Yu comforted her, "Don't worry. You will be able to catch up with everyone soon, Senior Sister. By the way, Martial Uncle, has Grandteacher taught Senior Sister the Heaven Shaking Sutra?"
Chen Yong gave him a deep look and said, "A cultivation method is not something that can be taught lightly. Su Yu, think it through before making this decision."
Chen Yong knew very well that the actual owner of the cultivation method was Su Yu, not Hong Tan. And a cultivation method couldn't be taught lightly.
Even the basic version of Xia Family's cultural art was not something that would be taught to anyone easily. Only their direct descendants from the main branch would be taught that cultural art.
Even Xia Chan was not taught that cultural art previously. She had only been taught that art recently after Xia Huyou obtained a better alternative with 36 apertures. From this, one could see how important cultural arts were.
Chen Yong knew about that cultural art as well, but he didn't ask for it. Nor had he asked for it to be taught to Wu Jia. If that was really something from the multiple character faction's predecessors, it would be fine. But it wasn't.
Su Yu smiled, "Martial Uncle, cultivation methods exist to be cultivated. Senior Sister has a slot to the grotto, right? With this cultivation method, she might even be able to open dozens of apertures in the grotto."
The Willpower Grotto would be a great opportunity for her to grow.
If she missed this grotto, it would be hard to find another opportunity where she could open so many apertures at once.
Chen Yong inhaled lightly and said, "You know how valuable this cultivation method is. It was why the Xia Family had agreed to teach you the top-tier Sky Sundering Saber so easily. Otherwise, Marquis Xia would have given you a much harder time before giving you the Sky Sundering Saber."
In truth, this cultural art was almost equal in value to the Sky Sundering Saber.
Su Yu smiled and said, "That is why I want Senior Sister to cultivate it as well. I wouldn't have dared to reveal it otherwise. Now that the Xia Family knows the cultural art as well, even if the others know about it, they have to consider the consequences before trying to snatch it."
Since the Xia Family already knew the cultural art, it would be more acceptable for the multiple character faction to know it as well. Otherwise, they would need to be constantly cautious of the hidden enemies that might try to snatch their cultural art.
Beside them, Wu Jia looked completely lost. She asked, "What Heaven Shaking Sutra?"
Chen Yong softy said, "A foundation cultural art with 36 apertures. It is comparable to a top-tier heaven-grade cultivation method in value. It was something your junior brother obtained through one of his fortuitous encounters. It didn't come down from the predecessors of our faction. Now, your junior brother is offering it to you..."
Su Yu hurriedly corrected, "Martial Uncle, that was a cultivation method created by both Grandteacher and Teacher..."
"..."
Chen Yong laughed and said nothing else to Su Yu. He looked at Wu Jia and said, "Your junior brother does not wish to see you miss out on this opportunity. If you are lucky, you might even be able to open 36 apertures with this cultural art in the grotto. With 36 apertures, you can rapidly reach the ninth stage after entering the Skysoar Realm. At that time, you only need to cultivate the Myriad Text Sutra and accumulate more strength to break through into the Cloudbreach Realm."
That was why foundation cultural arts were so coveted.
At the Mental Tempering Stage, apertures were much easier to open. If one could open 36 apertures during that time, one would instantly reach the ninth-stage Skysoar Realm the moment one's willpower and characters reached the corresponding level.
Although most foundation cultural arts did not have follow up arts for one to cultivate at higher cultivation levels, it did not matter. With 36 apertures opened, one would be able to open the Myriad Text Sutra apertures easily. And the early advancement into the ninth-stage Skysoar Realm would also grant one more strength for self defense.
Even after moving on from the foundation art to the Myriad Text Sutra, one would still be stronger than other cultural researchers in the same level. Any foundation cultural art was an invaluable treasure.
Wu Jia looked at Su Yu in astonishment. Her junior brother was actually so lucky? Of course she knew about foundation cultural arts. But she had not expected her junior brother to have one in possession. And now, she was going to receive it as well...
She suddenly slapped the back of Su Yu's head and chided, "Junior Brother, have you lost your mind? Why did you trade something like this for a different cultivation method? Physical cultivation methods are not valuable at all! The Xia Family has taken advantage of you!"
Wu Jia had a look of heartache as she said, "You should have cultivated it in silence and reached the ninth-stage Skysoar Realm without anyone knowing. At that time, even Invincibles might try to recruit you..."
Su Yu laughed, "Senior Sister, what's the point of getting recruited by Invincibles? Great Xia King is an Invincible. Should I pay him to be my teacher with the cultural art?"
"You should! He would definitely agree!"
Su Yu smiled, "Senior Sister, what's the point? Buying the position of a student like this will only hurt my own reputation. It has no substance to it."
Wu Jia gloomily said, "But you're very talented. Teacher has been repeating over and over how talented you are. Since you are always being bullied with us, you might as well find an Invincible to be your teacher and leave the multiple character faction. I have been wanting to leave for a while. What a pity that I can't bring myself to leave Teacher. Why would I want to be a member of the multiple character faction otherwise?"
Chen Yong rolled his eyes and said, "Lass, I'm still here."
Wu JIa grumbled, "Even if you're here, I'm speaking the truth. Junior Brother is so impressive, but he is being constantly suppressed because of us. He would have been treated like the most valuable piece of treasure if he hadn't joined us."
Chen Yong had nothing to say. He felt quite helpless.
Su Yu smiled and said, "Senior Sister, the multiple character faction is a good place. We don't have a lot of people, so nobody is around to fight us for resources. The moment something happens, our backers will come immediately. Why? Because Martial Uncle and Grandteacher have no other successors. They have no choice but to back us up. Just look at the pitiful single character faction members. They have too many people. You can kill a few of them and their teachers will need to think about consequences and worth before actually doing anything. Why? Because they have too many members. A few dead members won't be that big of a deal."
"That's true."
After thinking about it, Wu Jia nodded in agreement. She seemed to have completely forgotten about the cultural art already.
Su Yu was starting to get a headache speaking to his senior sister. He said nothing else and gave Chen Yong a jade talisman. Accepting the talisman, Chen Yong gave Su Yu a look before sighing. He said nothing.
Su Yu wasted no time and asked, "Martial Uncle, is Zhou Pingsheng still the deputy head manager?"
"Yeah."
"I heard that his student, Di Feng, and a few others were talking drivel all over the academy. There is no need for you to waste your time on them. These people are incapable of doing anything apart from running their mouths around. Even then, they aren't really that good even when it comes to talking."
Su Yu sounded somewhat disappointed as he said, "I wanted to use the tournament tomorrow to teach them a good lesson. It's a pity that the Discipline Hall has suddenly punished them. These sorts of punishments won't really hurt them. They are completely pointless. These people won't remember these punishments. They are very forgetful. Before long, they will put this incident behind them. And because of these punishments, my plan to act against them has been delayed as well."
Wu Jia was about to say something when Chen Yong smiled and said, "You are all fellow students. There is no need to be too harsh against them."
"True. I doubt those students have the guts to provoke you. It must be Zhou Pingsheng. That fellow is clearly not a good person. What a pity. He has been let off too easily this time."
As Su Yu said that, he focused on Chen Yong's face. But Chen Yong was expressionless.
Su Yu said, "But this fellow is really quite useless. This is the same guy who lost tens of thousands of merit points to me in a scam not long ago. What a piece of trash. There is no need for you to do anything to him, Martial Uncle. I will deal with him sooner or later."
Chen Yong gave Su Yu a deep look. With a simple and honest smile, Su Yu said, "Don't worry, Martial Uncle. People like him are too power hungry. He cares too much about fame and wealth. And now, he has lost both fame and wealth. People like him will probably blame everyone in the world except himself for his current predicament."
Chen Yong frowned slightly. Su Yu continued, "People like him will eventually die because of his own greed."
Chen Yong stared at Su Yu for a very long time before smiling, "You're right."
Su Yu also smiled, "Therefore, you don't need to waste any time on him. The multiple character faction is already too small. It is not worth losing more people over someone like that."
"You..."
Chen Yong then looked at his confused student before smiling. Su Yu was very smart. But he still preferred his own student. It was very tiring to be too smart as smart people would always think too much.
This kid would probably be the future of the multiple character faction. But he still felt closer to his dumb student. And he also felt more accomplished teaching someone like her. He couldn't help but pity his junior brother. With a student like Su Yu, one would probably have the urge to cough blood on a daily basis.
Chen Yong moved on from the topic and asked, "Are you sure you're joining the tournament tomorrow?"
"Yeah." Su Yu nodded and said, "Liu Hong is turning the tournament into team matches. Everyone will be split into teams of five. He is probably preparing to put some deadweights in my team."
Chen Yong frowned and said, "He's rigging the matches?"
"I think so."
"How audacious of him." Chen Yong coldly said, "I'll be there tomorrow. Let's see how he's going to pull that off."
Su Yu smiled and said, "Don't get angry, Martial Uncle. It's not necessarily a good thing to expose him. This will ruin the tournament that so many people are looking forward to. The single character faction can simply decide not to hold the tournament anymore. In any case, some of the elders have already been given some slots so those elders won't care. This will only turn the public against us, even if the single character faction will also attract some hostility because of it."
There was really no need to escalate this issue. The single character faction could simply refund the 10,000 merit points sponsored by the academy and cancel the tournament. The elders that mattered already had their slots anyway, so the single character faction would still be able to open the grotto despite the cancellation of the tournament.
If needed, they could give even more slots to some elders to shut their mouths. As for the students, they would place the majority of their blame on Su Yu and the multiple character faction instead of Liu Hong. That was how humans were.
And that would be the consequences of making a fuss about the matter. As for Liu Hong, he wouldn't suffer either way.
Chen Yong frowned and said, "Then we won't participate."
"No!" Su Yu smiled, "I need to join. I can't let them have a good time. Don't worry. I am still confident. But I do need to trouble you for something."
"Yes?"
"I am thinking of sending the fire crow to Teacher Zhao Li. Teacher and Grandteacher are both not around. Can you help with the transportation?"
"Fire crow?"
"Yeah. Hes offering to refine my cultural weapon with his lifebound fire. I don't trust him so I would prefer to have Teacher Zhao around. After all, he's a master smith."
"Sure..."
Chen Yong was quite surprised. "The fire crow is actually willing to refine your weapon with his lifebound fire? He will lose a lot doing that. How did you persuade him?"
"I had a talk with him about the future. He was moved by my sincerity."
"..."
Chen Yong completely ignored all of that. What a load of nonsense!
...
Half an hour later.
Wentan Research Center. Prison Zone.
Chen Yong had an indifferent look as he opened cage number six.
The fire crow remained completely still. With a casual wave of his hand, Chen Yong grabbed the crow in his hand. His grip was so tight that the fire crow's tongue was sticking out of his mouth. He seemed to have been turned into a meatball by Chen Yong.
With the meatball in hand, Chen Yong looked at the water elemental and demanded, "Give me some water essence."
The water remained silent.
Chen Yong opened the cage and said, "So are you giving the water yourself or do you want me to take the water from you?"
"Chen Yong..." The water elemental softly said, "If I give you more water essence, my cultivation will drop..."
"You sure talk a lot."
With a snort, Chen Yong grabbed at the water elemental. The water elemental struggled as best as he could, unleashing a burst of willpower that gave Su Yu the illusion of facing a furious sea.
But that illusion only lasted for a split second. In the blink of an eye, the illusion had been crushed. In Chen Yong's hand was a clump of rubbery substance. As he squeezed, a drop of transparent water came out.
Then, Chen Yong threw the rubbery clump back into the cage before locking it again. All the other beasts were shivering in fear.