Chapter Twenty-Two: Five-Spirit Gu

Gao Yunqi and Zhou Yi drank opposite each other, tacitly avoiding the mention of this matter.

Regarding this accident, no one was to blame.

The only person at fault was Ximen Xuri, but Ximen Xuri was already dead.

Fang Che had been ambushed and launched a hasty counterattack; could Fang Che be blamed?

Did they expect Fang Che to bare his neck and let himself be killed in order to be considered free of fault?

In that situation, even if the Academy Chancellor himself had been acting as the referee, he might not have been able to stop it!

Naturally, neither Gao Yunqi nor Zhou Yi could be blamed either.

Who could have anticipated that Ximen Xuri was hiding a concealed weapon in his sleeve, and a living demonic beast at that?

However, since a man was dead, someone had to take responsibility. And for a martial arts academy, reputation was paramount.

No matter what, an attitude had to be shown.

Therefore, the two of them chose to shoulder everything themselves. Without waiting for the academy to punish them, they would punish themselves.

This was to preserve the dignity of the academy.

Just as the two of them made up their minds, a clear voice rang out: "The two teachers certainly have refined tastes."

The two looked up.

At the doorway stood a youth draped in a black cloak with dark gold patterns, holding two jars of wine with a beaming smile on his face.

"Teacher, may I come in?"

"Fang Che?"

Both of them were slightly stunned. "Why have you come here?"

"I happened to have two jars of fine wine on hand, so I wanted to find a place to enjoy them."

Fang Che smiled and placed the wine jars on the table.

"Iron-Blood Terrace? Fifty-year-aged Iron-Blood Terrace?"

Their eyes lit up.

Iron-Blood Terrace was ranked as the number one fine wine in this world. A fifty-year-aged Iron-Blood Terrace was even harder to find and acquire.

Immediately afterward, their expressions darkened. "Ah, the righteous and loyal Young Master Fang is indeed able to casually pull out fine wine."

Fang Che smiled faintly.

He had never intended for his actions to be kept hidden from the world.

However, none of that mattered.

Living in this world, what was reputation worth?

Perhaps others cared about it, but the path Fang Che chose from the very beginning was extraordinary. The so-called praise and condemnation of the world were, to him, nothing more than a fart!

"Because of this student's affair, the two teachers have been implicated. Of course, saying these words now has little meaning."

Fang Che said indifferently: "As for this student's personal character, I know what I'm doing, and I'll let the world judge as it pleases."

He slowly sat down opposite the two instructors and said, "The student came here today because I have a few heartfelt words I wish to share with the two teachers. I will leave right after I finish speaking. I hope the two teachers can grant me the courtesy of listening until I am done."

"Speak."

The two looked at each other, both feeling somewhat strange.

And also feeling a trace of warmth in their hearts.

*Because of this student's affair, the two teachers have been implicated*—these words brought a sense of comfort to both of them.

Although the matter started because of you, you cannot be blamed.

For you to care enough to come here and say these words was in itself an attitude.

"The martial arts academy is not a battlefield. On a battlefield or in the martial world, deaths are extremely common. However, the martial arts academy recruits students from all over the world, so the death of a student is naturally a major event. Regardless of who is right or wrong, a dead person is a dead person—it is an accident! That much is certain."

"Since it is an accident, someone needs to take the blame."

"And the two teachers are the only candidates."

"The two teachers surely have already made up your minds about this, and the student is in no position to meddle, but I do have a few words."

"On the battlefield, there is no shortage of soldiers whose combat strength has not yet reached its peak, but there is a desperate shortage of teachers who are rich in teaching experience, upright, responsible, and filled with righteousness!"

"Two soldiers sent to the front lines will, at best, kill a few minor infantrymen, slay a few enemies of equal or lesser rank, and eventually die on the battlefield, leaving behind a fine reputation."

"But the two dedicated teachers remaining in the academy can continuously nurture future forces. Year after year, generation after generation, even among the students who are mediocre in martial arts, you can teach them a heart full of passion; and among the students who are geniuses, with proper guidance, they can become pillars holding up the sky in the future!"

"It takes ten years to grow a tree, but a hundred years to cultivate a person!"

"The battle against the Only My True Cult cannot be completed in a single generation."

"Only when successive talents continue to emerge, and the mindset of every single person walks the righteous path, will there be a sliver of hope for the future."

"The martial arts academy has stood for a thousand years; a little bit of pressure is merely a passing moment in a thousand years of wind and rain. But the academy's world-renowned reputation is achieved through the talents it has nurtured over tens of thousands of years, shining brightly in every corner of the land. Only by gathering sand into a tower, gathering fur to make a robe, and merging a hundred rivers can this be accomplished."

"Perhaps the two teachers will say that the academy is brimming with talent and does not lack the two of you, and that if you leave, there will naturally be more formidable teachers to take your place in teaching the students."

"But this student also wants to ask: among so many faculty members and staff in the academy, are truly all of them members of the Guardian Alliance?"

"Among them, are there truly no traitors of the Only My True Cult?"

"Is it really as solid as a monolith?"

"If you leave, will your successors necessarily be our people?"

"Is there any possibility that someone might use this opportunity to plant their own people?"

"Just for this mistaken-yet-not-mistaken error, to simply abandon the students you are currently teaching, and the batches of future students waiting to be taught—can the two teachers truly ease your consciences?"

"To shoulder the error, be exiled to the battlefield, and spill your blood across the borders—that is undoubtedly being a hero!"

"However, to brazenly endure for a few days, push through this difficult period, continue to fulfill your duties, and truly maximize your value—that is what a true hero and great man is!"

"For the foundation of ten thousand generations, for the thousands of students in your remaining years, what harm would it do for the two teachers to endure a little?"

When Fang Che finished speaking, he clapped twice, shattering the mud seal of the Iron-Blood Terrace.

As a rich fragrance of wine drifted out, he smiled, stood up, and said, "This student has said all that needs to be said, and now I take my leave."

He glanced at the two men, who were still sitting there in a daze.

Fang Che bowed in salute, turned around, and walked out, gently closing the door behind him.

The sound of footsteps faded into the distance and instantly vanished.

After a long while.

Gao Yunqi let out a long breath. "Never would I have imagined that the righteous and loyal Young Master Fang is such a person."

Zhou Yi wore a bitter smile and sighed as well. "I've taught students for half my life, yet today I've been given a lesson by my own student. This feeling... tsk tsk... is truly special."

The two looked at each other and smiled, both sensing that the other's spirit seemed somewhat different from just moments before.

"Are you... still leaving?"

"A fleeting reputation... I, Gao, can still bear a few insults. I'm not leaving. What about you?"

"My skin is thicker than yours!"

"Hahaha..."

After exclaiming with deep emotion, the two looked at the two jars of wine beside the table.

"This kid is really... cautious. Fearing that the two of us wouldn't drink, he actually opened them directly."

"Then... shall we drink?"

"Since our skin is already this thick, drinking two jars of a student's wine doesn't seem like much of a big deal?"

"Then let's drink?"

"Drink!"

"When I finish drinking and return to the academy, I'm going to hoard a mouthful of wine fumes and blow it right into Chancellor Huang's face, testing him on how many years of aging this Iron-Blood Terrace has."

"Right, and by the way, tell him: we aren't leaving, and you'll have to shoulder this matter!"

"Hahahaha..."

"Hahaha..."

...

Fang Che returned to his courtyard deep in thought.

It seemed that the aftermath of Ximen Xuri's affair still needed to be dealt with. Otherwise, there were still loose ends. If he cut them off now, would it be a pity?

A moment later, he made up his decision: if it's a pity, so be it; after all, they were just some small fry.

Sun Yuan was waiting for him as usual.

"How did it go?"

"I defeated Ding Jieran, but I didn't kill him or cripple him... After all, I killed Ximen Xuri just yesterday. If I finished off another one today, I reckon I'd be expelled."

Fang Che said, "So, I didn't deal a fatal blow."

"That goes without saying. If you really killed all three of them, how could you survive in this academy? Defeating them is already the greatest victory."

Sun Yuan's bias naturally tilted toward his own disciple long ago.

"Remember, at any time, preserving yourself is the most important thing. What are your thoughts on the last one?"

Fang Che smiled faintly. "Easy as pie, absolutely no problem!"

Sun Yuan's spirits lifted. "That's good. I'll report to the Cult Master tonight. I imagine the Cult Master will be very pleased."

Fang Che asked, "Master, there is something I don't know whether I should ask."

Sun Yuan said, "Just speak. In front of me, even if it's somewhat inappropriate, could I possibly sell you out? A scolding and we'll pretend we heard nothing."

Fang Che smiled somewhat bashfully, then asked, "Master, how do you manage this communication? How do you contact the Cult Master? I noticed your communication seems extremely convenient."

This was also Fang Che's greatest puzzle from his past life.

The bunch of people in the Only My True Cult communicated with astonishing speed.

Long before the Guardian Alliance came up with soul jade talisman communication, the Only My True Cult had already achieved it for countless years.

Moreover, it had never changed, yet it was much faster and more convenient than soul jade talismans.

This was because the Guardian Alliance's soul jades required a minimum cultivation level of the Emperor Realm to possess the ability to activate communication talismans.

Yet the Only My True Cult clearly had no such strength restrictions.

There had to be some trick to this.

"This matter is easy."

Sun Yuan said, "I thought it was something major. It's just communication jade."

"Please enlighten me, Master."

"The communication jades are issued from the headquarters. As long as they are needed, you basically don't have to worry about shortages."

Sun Yuan said, "As for how they are manufactured, we don't know; but using them is very simple."

"Everyone in our bodies—as long as you become a member of the sect—has a certain thing inside them: the Five-Spirit Gu."

When Sun Yuan said these words, his tone carried a profound meaning. "You have one in your body too, given to you in the medicinal pill by your good sworn brother Su Yue."

Fang Che's heart stirred.

The Five-Spirit Gu! It was actually the Five-Spirit Gu!

He had long known that the Five-Spirit Gu had major problems and too many secrets, but he never imagined that the miraculous Gu insect could actually be used for communication.

How did it communicate?

Yet his words were filled with pleasant surprise: "Big Brother Su is truly a good person, actually giving me such a precious item."

Sun Yuan's pupils stiffened slightly.

How... how could he interpret it that way?

Thinking that Su Yue was probably dead to the point where not even his bones were left, he stopped explaining.

Think whatever you want; anyway, your good sworn brother is already a ghost now.

And Fang Che had the exact same thought in his mind: *Think whatever you want; anyway, my good sworn brother... isn't even a ghost anymore.*