Too Many Fools

On the arena stage, Su Yu's words fell, and dead silence descended in all directions. Seventh-layer Qianjun, mid-stage Yangxing, and a contender for the Top 100 Rankings, Chen Qi had crumbled in a single move—an instant defeat! This sight exceeded everyone's expectations! No one had imagined that Su Yu would win so cleanly, with such overbearing power! In the next instant, the gazes of the crowd fell one after another upon Lin Yao! Lin Yao stared blankly, his face completely pale. Su Yu... scheme against him? Would a Su Yu this powerful, who shattered Chen Qi in one move, bother to scheme against Lin Yao, someone who had barely entered the Qianjun Realm? Even slip him drugs... Did anyone believe that? No one believed it! A self-directed charade! A complete clown of a character! How utterly laughable! Su Yu didn't need any evidence at all; this was the greatest proof possible! To defeat you wouldn't even take a single strike! After a heartbeat of silence, the students of the intermediate class erupted from their shock, and someone suddenly shouted at the top of their lungs, "Class Monitor is mighty!" "Class Monitor is too awesome!" "Class Monitor..." Excitement, adrenaline. The students were wildly thrilled. Moments ago, some of them had indeed felt a flicker of doubt, wondering if Su Yu had truly plotted against Lin Yao. At this moment, all doubts vanished! All hesitation disappeared! A Su Yu capable of felling Chen Qi with a single blow would never demean himself to plot against Lin Yao and dirty his own hands. Just as Su Yu had said: mere clay chickens and pottery dogs. Why would he ever go through the trouble to scheme against Lin Yao? ... Below the stage. Several monstrous talents of this year's class bore grave expressions, each watching Su Yu with heavy eyes. Some of the older students who had come merely to watch the excitement also wore grim faces. Even several rankers on the Top 100 Rankings grew intensely wary. In a corner. Wu Lan's mouth hung open in utter disbelief, her usual pride nowhere to be seen as she murmured, "He... defeated Chen Qi?" Even if she looked down on Chen Qi, she knew she was no match for him herself. Yet Chen Qi had fallen to Su Yu in a single strike! Beside her, Lin Qing, who had come along to watch the commotion, also wore a solemn expression. "The power he erupted with earlier reached the Wanshi Realm. It looked like he swallowed some kind of blood essence... He doesn't possess Wanshi strength himself, but... third-layer Qianjun! Lanlan, what cultivation did he have back in Nanyuan?" "He had barely entered the ninth layer of Kaiyuan..." "So fast!" Lin Qing said gravely, "In two months, he opened thirty-six acupoints!" On June twenty-fifth, Su Yu had just entered the ninth layer of Kaiyuan. That meant in those two months, Su Yu had opened thirty-six acupoints—opening an acupoint in less than two days. Lin Qing herself was actually only at the seventh layer of Qianjun. Of course, her Yangxing was at its peak, meaning her fullness degree had exceeded ninety percent. On the warrior path, she had opened forty-eight more acupoints than Su Yu. At Su Yu's current speed, he could catch up to her in three months. As for Yangxing... Su Yu's willpower cultivation speed was even more terrifying than his warrior cultivation! ... "Xia Chan, this guy... feels terrifyingly strong!" At that moment, on another side, several of the top geniuses of this year's batch were also reeling with shock. Wan Mingze spoke up, then asked, "Xia Chan, are you confident?" Xia Chan knitted her brows. After a pause, she remarked coolly, "If this is all he has, victory or defeat... will only be known after we trade blows!" With that, she calmly asked, "What about you?" Wan Mingze chuckled. "He consumed blood essence and suddenly erupted with Wanshi strength. That should be related to the research of the Multiple Divine Characters Faction. Without consuming blood essence, he naturally wouldn't be my match, but if he does... it depends on how long he can sustain it. Under a furious offensive, I might not last very long." In other words, if Su Yu couldn't keep it up for long, Wan Mingze was confident he could endure it and then turn the tables to slay Su Yu! Such was the self-assurance of a monstrous genius! Even if Su Yu had defeated Chen Qi, it was nothing to be overly alarmed about. With that, Wan Mingze glanced at Lin Yao in the distance, smiled faintly, and murmured, "That idiot can be said to have done a good deed. Without him, Su Yu might not have revealed his full strength." Defeating Lin Yao was far too easy for Su Yu. Without Lin Yao stirring up this mess, Su Yu might not have exposed his cards. According to what Su Yu likely had in mind, fighting Lin Yao meant he couldn't look too timid, but he also couldn't appear too strong—otherwise, what if Chen Qi got scared off? Yet Chen Qi had stepped up first, and Su Yu, burning with pent-up fury, had gone all out without holding anything back. ... Far behind the arena, Jia Mingzhen and several veteran geniuses were also observing the fight. Right now, what they cared about wasn't victory or defeat, but that drop of blood essence! The chubby Jia Mingzhen frowned slightly. "Has the Wen Tan Research Center already achieved a stable method to produce Wanshi innate talent blood essence? If so, it would be best for the academy to get involved!" "Hong Tan won't agree to it!" Someone countered, "A stable supply of Wanshi innate talent blood essence can only be considered average at best. If they have Tengkong innate talent blood essence... then we truly must get involved! On the All-Heavens Battlefield, the Wanshi Realm is the mainstream, while the Tengkong Realm is the backbone. If it can allow someone to erupt with Tengkong combat power... then it's worth investing heavily!" There were too many in the Wanshi Realm on the All-Heavens Battlefield; bursting with Wanshi strength really wasn't a big deal. However, if a Wanshi cultivator could erupt with Tengkong combat strength, that would be monumental! For a Tengkong expert to slay a Wanshi cultivator was far too simple. "I wonder if the production cost is high..." an elder murmured. "If the cost isn't steep, Wanshi innate talent blood essence could also be promoted widely. After all, the army still has vast numbers of Qianjun soldiers!" "It's likely not cheap. Setting aside development costs, just the blood essence raw material alone would probably make Wanshi innate talent blood essence ten times the price of ordinary blood essence. If one drop costs fifty merit points just to unleash a single Wanshi blow... it isn't cost-effective and won't be suitable for wide adoption!" The cost was too high! On the All-Heavens Battlefield, killing an early-stage Wanshi enemy earned only ten merit points. If the blood essence needed to burst with power cost fifty merit points, it simply wasn't worth mass promotion! Dropping the topic, Jia Mingzhen looked toward Su Yu again, grinning. "This kid is advancing rather fast... His momentum is soaring right now. Should I go suppress him and take the chance to knock him flat with one punch?" "..." The others turned to look at him. Could you act like a decent human being for once? The kid had just reached a personal peak, and you want to plunge him straight into hell in the blink of an eye? That would break someone. "Ahem, wait a bit. He's still in the stage of rapid advancement. People like Xia Chan haven't even made their moves yet, and he hasn't entered the Top 100 Rankings. Striking him too hard right now isn't good. Wait a while!" The other elders stepped in to dissuade him. Provoking and tempering a genius required a gradual process. To strike right now would be too black-hearted. It was practically inhuman! ... On the stage. Su Yu stopped looking at Lin Yao and turned to Liu Hong. "Teacher, do I count as having won?" Liu Hong nodded without saying a word. Seeing this, Su Yu didn't ask further. He walked over to Chen Qi, who was still frozen in a daze, and crouched down. The black little saber instantly vanished from Chen Qi's shoulder as blood seeped out. Without a word, Su Yu took out a drop of yuanqi liquid and dripped it into the wound. The wound slowly began to heal. Chen Qi looked up at him, unable to conceal his desolate, crushed state. Su Yu said calmly, "I wasn't venting my anger on you. Our duel was agreed upon long ago! I, Su Yu, am not a fool; how could I lightly agree to a match without confidence? It can only be said that you, Chen Qi, underestimated me!" "You underestimated me, so don't blame me for defeating you on the arena stage!" "The Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence was won by my teacher, not forcibly seized by me. If your teacher hadn't agreed to use it as a wager back then, none of this would have happened. Accept your defeat when you lose; a loss is a loss. To relentlessly pester someone over it—with such a mindset, how could you ever become a true expert?" Chen Qi's throat went dry, his expression shifting repeatedly. After a long while, his voice came out raspy: "Su Yu... so you're saying... from the very beginning, you were confident in beating me? Because of that drop of blood essence..." Su Yu replied, "Yes and no! I am at the third layer of Qianjun, my willpower has reached Yangxing, I nurture three divine characters, and I have a cultural weapon in hand. Today, I only did this to prove myself, unwilling to waste words arguing with a piece of trash like Lin Yao. If I were to fight you properly, even without the blood essence... you would certainly be careless facing me. If I suddenly burst out, could you truly have won?" Su Yu stated frankly, "Relying on your contempt, even if my raw cultivation were inferior to yours, I would still have had a shot at victory! Chen Qi, do you think you would have stayed vigilant against me from the start?" Chen Qi looked dejected. Indeed, Su Yu was right. Even if Su Yu hadn't consumed the blood essence today and had engaged in a prolonged match, feigning weakness before suddenly unleashing his cultural weapon, Chen Qi might not have held a guaranteed victory amid his complacency. Su Yu said no more and helped Chen Qi to his feet. Chen Qi remained despondent, hanging his head in total silence. At that moment, Su Yu stopped minding him and turned his gaze once more toward Lin Yao below. "Lin Yao, right now my yuanqi is drained and my willpower is depleted. Didn't you claim that I schemed against you? Come up onto the stage and see if I, in this state, can defeat you! Against trash like you, even if I have exhausted everything, defeating you... is as easy as lifting a hand!" Su Yu's aura surged! His voice rang out loud and clear! Didn't you claim you disdained fighting me? Didn't you say your sea of will was unsettled? Fine! Now my willpower is depleted and my yuanqi is drained. Come up to the stage, and I will still defeat you all the same! Lin Yao's face flushed crimson! Go up on stage? If he went up now, even if he defeated Su Yu, he would still become a laughingstock in everyone's eyes, earning himself titles of shamelessness and villainy! It would only further cement his reputation as a bully who picked only on the weak! Winning would get him cursed. Losing... he might as well not live anymore. If he couldn't even defeat a Su Yu who had just fought a battle and exhausted everything, there really was no point in him staying alive; he might as well go die. There was no benefit in winning, and losing was even worse! Why would he go up! Moreover, the fact that Su Yu was this powerful had truly caught him off guard. He had originally thought that even if Su Yu was strong, it would at most be by a narrow margin. But reality proved that Su Yu was far superior to him! Even without consuming that strange blood essence, Lin Yao was no match for Su Yu. ... Below the stage, everyone looked at Su Yu, then turned to Lin Yao. Someone remarked with admiration, "Su Yu... well done. Even toward a defeated opponent, he maintains his grace. From what he said, he had an agreement with Chen Qi long ago. Chen Qi truly was shameless enough to challenge Su Yu so far in advance!" Su Yu's words earlier had enlightened everyone. Su Yu and Chen Qi had an arrangement long before, having already scheduled a duel. Today's challenge against Lin Yao might have just been a warm-up exercise. Under such circumstances... would Su Yu bother scheming against Lin Yao? What a joke! The man hadn't placed Lin Yao in his eyes at all. His duel with Chen Qi was clearly over the blood essence matter, and Su Yu had never even considered the possibility of losing! "He truly possesses the grace of us Civilization Masters..." Someone in the crowd agreed. Look at that: after defeating his opponent, he treated the injury and even helped him up. With Su Yu's strength and natural talent, even if he turned around and walked away right now, no one could say a thing. Chen Qi had lacked the skill and lost; what right did he have to demand respect from his opponent? Yet Su Yu remained so humble! While the crowd was absorbed in that, Xia Huyou couldn't care less about grace. At this moment, his face looked somewhat pale, and he suddenly yelled, "Lin Yao, didn't you say earlier that if Su Yu proved himself, your wager with him would still stand? So are you going to admit defeat now, or go up and fight Su Yu again?" He had to speak up! He couldn't afford not to! Damn it, if he didn't speak, how would the outcome between Lin Yao and Su Yu be settled? Wouldn't the betting pool he opened be completely wasted? Quite a few merit points had been wagered! However, Xia Huyou's shout instantly snapped several people back to reality. Many had previously bet on Lin Yao to win, and someone immediately called out, "Forget it, don't fight! Lin Yao, you're no match for him. Su Yu has drained his yuanqi and willpower anyway. I say we just call this challenge off..." "Forget it!" "Lin Yao, don't fight!" "..." "Fight! How can we not fight? If you won't fight, then admit defeat! Are you a sore loser?" Those who had bet on Su Yu voiced their protests one after another! How could they not fight! Even if you didn't fight, you had to admit defeat. If you didn't admit defeat, wouldn't their bets be in vain? Lin Yao's face burned even redder. The people who had come with him all remained silent. After a while, seeing that Lin Yao still hadn't spoken, a young man standing beside him gave a soft sigh and suddenly spoke up: "I concede on Lin Yao's behalf!" With that, the young man looked toward Su Yu and said, "Lin Yao can afford to lose! My Great Xia Association can afford to lose as well! Su Yu, on the path of cultivation, being able to win naturally means being able to lose! However, the fact that Lin Yao was afflicted with Cultivation Disruption Powder is undeniable..." The young man continued slowly, "Our Great Xia Association will investigate this to the very end! If Lin Yao orchestrated this charade himself, then he... will be expelled from the Great Xia Association! From that point on, Lin Yao will have no right to be one of our members!" "However, if he was truly schemed against..." The young man said coldly, "Then my Great Xia Association will certainly not sit idly by! The person who drugged him must pay the price!" "It's Dai Qing! He stepped up!" Someone recognized the young man, their tone turning solemn. Some freshmen didn't recognize him and quietly asked around, "Who is Dai Qing?" "Haven't you looked at the Top 100 Rankings? Ranked seventy-fifth on the Top 100 Rankings, vice president of the Great Xia Association. They mainly recruit talented students from the Great Xia Prefecture, forming their own faction. Lin Yao is a top-high student, so he definitely joined the Great Xia Association. To think Dai Qing is still willing to stand up for him at a time like this!" Vice president of the Great Xia Association—just like the Tianshui Association Hu Zongqi had joined, where Hu Zongqi's older brother was also a vice president. These small factions usually held group activities or took on collective missions. Like now, when a member suffered a loss, they would step up to back them. Lin Yao had come with them today precisely because he had been drugged; the Great Xia Association had initially come to seek justice for him. Unfortunately... before they could settle scores with Su Yu, Su Yu had cleanly and decisively crushed Chen Qi, turning all prior suspicions into a laughingstock. On the stage. Su Yu said calmly, "Investigate all you want! If it was me, I'll wait for your revenge! But if it wasn't me... don't you dare try dumping dirty water on my head!" "I don't look for trouble, but I don't fear trouble!" Su Yu swept his gaze across the surroundings, looked at the crowd, and declared loudly, "I came to the academy with no intention of showing off; I only wanted to cultivate in peace! I've thought about entering the Top 100 Rankings, and I've thought about reaching the Tengkong Realm, but... I truly have no desire to participate in meaningless squabbles!" "The Top 100 Rankings offer resources, fame, and greater nurturing, so I naturally aspire to join. But these private disputes... if it weren't for the substantial merit points they put up, I wouldn't have bothered giving them a glance!" "I don't bully others, but others shouldn't dream of bullying me!" "The Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence has long been used by me. Those harboring designs on it can give up now! If I had lost earlier, my teacher would naturally have found a way to compensate for that blood essence. But now... if anyone comes after me again over the Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence... next time, I won't hold back. My blade won't be stabbing a shoulder!" Su Yu leaped down from the arena stage and strode away! The crowd parted to make a path. As Su Yu walked, several hundred intermediate class students fell in behind him. Someone shouted loudly, "We, the intermediate class of the Divine Character College, stand fully behind our Class Monitor! Don't think we're easy targets! Before trying to splash dirty water on him, see if we agree first!" "The Great Xia Association doesn't belong to just a few of you! My brother is in it too. Recruiting and shielding people like Lin Yao makes it utterly foul. I'm telling my brother to quit when I get back!" "Exactly! My sister is in the Great Xia Association too, and she told me to join once I enter the advanced class... If I have to share an association with someone like Lin Yao, I won't join!" The intermediate class students voiced their outrage one after another. Around them, others chimed in with chuckles, "Right! The Great Xia Association is becoming a mess. You'd be better off joining our Beifeng Association. New students who want to join are welcome at Beifeng; we treat everyone equally and don't care about regional origin!" "The Tianshui Association welcomes everyone as well! Any black sheep will definitely be purged!" "..." These rival associations piled on, kicking them while they were down! Dai Qing's expression remained impassive, and he said nothing. He cast another glance at Lin Yao, his eyes somewhat cold! Today, he had to step forward. If he didn't, there would still be trouble; the Great Xia Association had arrived with such momentum, so if he didn't step up, how would others view them? Yet stepping forward had led to the current backlash, proving just how much trouble it caused. Their reputation had been dragged through the mud by Lin Yao! If the investigation revealed Lin Yao had orchestrated it himself... don't blame him for being ruthless! If you lose, you have to take it on the chin! If Lin Yao shrank from battle, feared fighting Su Yu, and took Cultivation Disruption Powder himself, what was the point of keeping someone like that around? On the battlefield one day, one would have to watch out for a stab in the back from him! Among the All-Races Sect, there were plenty of deserters! Lin Yao was currently showing signs of becoming just that! Lin Yao's face was somewhat pale as he whispered, "The lost merit points, I'll pay them myself. The Cultivation Disruption Powder... I truly didn't take it myself. I didn't know Su Yu was this strong beforehand, so why would I be afraid of him... Someone must have drugged me..." As he spoke, he glanced out of the corner of his eye toward Chen Qi on the stage, adding in a low voice, "Someone feared that I would defeat Su Yu and take the Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence, so they quietly arranged another duel with Su Yu..." The moment those words were spoken, Dai Qing's gaze shifted drastically! Too much had happened earlier for him to ponder it carefully! Yet right now... if Lin Yao hadn't done it himself, then it was Chen Qi—Chen Qi was the most likely culprit! Dai Qing looked coldly at the despondent Chen Qi on the stage. Chen Qi was also a member of their Great Xia Association. If Chen Qi had done it... Dai Qing cursed internally! Even if it turned out to be Chen Qi, it would have to be handled quietly. Otherwise, the Great Xia Association would be humiliated to the utmost extreme. Internal strife among their own members! Chen Qi and Lin Yao even belonged to the same lineage! *Fuck!* Dai Qing cursed furiously in his heart, feeling the urge to slaughter both of them. Useless bastards! Lin Yao breathed a secret sigh of relief. Fortunately, although he had made a fool of himself today, smart people would quickly deduce the clues—Chen Qi... was heavily suspect! He naturally knew this was Chen Qi's doing, but he had also worried about losing to Su Yu, which was why he had staged such a performance today. He hadn't wanted to fight Su Yu! He had been afraid of losing and humiliating himself. Yet now, all face had been lost anyway; there was nothing left to lose. But he could not bear the reputation of having drugged himself. Otherwise, he would offend everyone in the Great Xia Association! Bringing the Great Xia Association along in force to demand justice, only for it to be self-inflicted—how could he ever survive in the academy after that? *Chen Qi...* Lin Yao glanced at Chen Qi and sneered inwardly. Fine, then. Having someone accompany him in disgrace, someone who would now face sanctions from the Great Xia Association and end up even worse off than him—that would make him quite happy! Originally, the two of them should have hated Su Yu... but at this moment, Lin Yao hated that bastard Chen Qi even more! That bastard had schemed against him. If not for him, Lin Yao might not have resorted to this farce today, which ended in ultimate disgrace, witnessed by the entire academy. ... On the stage. Liu Hong saw through everything clearly. In truth, the moment Su Yu and Chen Qi stepped onto the stage, he had broadly guessed the cause and effect. He simply hadn't expected Chen Qi to actually have the nerve to drug someone. *Foolish!* He passed judgment in his heart. Even if you, Chen Qi, defeated Su Yu and claimed the blood essence, the fact that you schemed against Lin Yao might still have come to light. *Just as foolish as your teacher!* he added inwardly. Though Hu Wensheng was foolish, at least he was upright. Chen Qi was not even on par with Hu Wensheng! Without saying much, Liu Hong stepped down from the stage, walked up to Lin Yao, patted his shoulder, and said gently, "Teacher believes you wouldn't drug yourself. Victory and defeat are common in battle; don't take it to heart." At this moment, Lin Yao felt a wave of genuine emotion! Truly touched! When everyone was doubting him, his teacher had stepped forward to back him up and vouch for him! "Teacher..." Liu Hong patted his shoulder and said softly, "Don't be disheartened. Su Yu... is indeed very talented. Among the freshmen, those with hope of defeating him number no more than three..." *Not counting those few bizarre fellows!* he added in his head. "You were just a bit too proud. Cast off your pride and stay grounded. Teacher believes in you; you will catch up to him soon!" Liu Hong said earnestly, "Lin Yao, back then, I wasn't as good as Su Yu's teacher, Bai Feng, and even now, I might not necessarily match him. But now I am at the eighth layer of the Tengkong Realm, and among the students of our generation, those stronger than me number no more than five... We might not be able to contend for first place, but we can still become powerhouses, geniuses in everyone's eyes. The road ahead is long; we take it step by step. If Tengkong doesn't work, there's Lingyun; if Lingyun doesn't work, there's Shanhai..." Liu Hong's dose of toxic inspirational talk left Lin Yao immensely invigorated! Yes, Teacher was right! Being inferior to you today didn't mean I would remain inferior to you in the future! I can do it! "Go back and cultivate diligently. Work harder. If there's anything you don't understand, come ask me. Teacher will also try to secure some opportunities for you. Unfortunately, my strength is limited, and I am still just an assistant instructor. With certain things... my heart is willing, but my strength falls short." Liu Hong gave a gentle sigh, conveying a touch of helpless vulnerability. It wasn't that your teacher didn't want to secure things for you; it was that your teacher was too weak and had no choice! "Teacher..." Lin Yao was moved beyond words. At this moment, all his earlier gloom and despair vanished into thin air! Teacher would grow stronger, and once he was strong, he would fight for more opportunities for him! "My grandfather said..." Liu Hong frowned and pressed his shoulder. "Don't talk about that. The path of cultivation depends on oneself! Lin Yao, you still don't understand: external assistance is ultimately just external assistance. Only what is your own truly belongs to you!" He hadn't counted on Lin Yao securing anything for him in the first place; if he wanted something, he would naturally negotiate with Lin Yao's grandfather. What right did Lin Yao have to discuss such matters with him? *This year's quota for a full position... I want one.* *The old master of the Lin family had better support me generously. Otherwise... take your grandson back yourself!* He had no desire to waste more words on Lin Yao—just a fool; having him cultivate obediently was enough. Taking a few steps, Liu Hong suddenly transmitted his voice to Lin Yao: "Be careful of Chen Qi. Teacher suspects he was the one behind it. Hu Wensheng lost to Bai Feng and went into secluded cultivation. Now, I am the pillar holding up the Tengkong Realm for the Single Divine Character Faction. Behind Chen Qi... there might be others. This time, perhaps Teacher has implicated you. But don't fear, Teacher will step forward to resolve it! Endure this round of attacks; once Teacher's position is secure, my students will have an even brighter future!" "They don't want me to become the spokesperson for the Tengkong Realm. Someone wants to seize my standing, embarrass me, and threaten my position by striking at you. Lin Yao, hang in there; Teacher stands with you!" Lin Yao's eyes lit up instantly! Yes, so that was it! It wasn't just because of the Mountain-Breaking Ox blood essence; there was also this objective! They wanted to suppress Teacher; they wanted to strip away Teacher's current standing! He understood! He truly understood! Lin Yao suddenly grew excited. Liu Hong had finally acknowledged him. That meant as long as Liu Hong could stabilize his current position, he would reap even greater benefits than before! *Grandfather... I have to speak to Grandfather! We can't let Teacher be suppressed any longer!* *Damn it, Chen Qi's side actually still wants to turn the tables? Hu Wensheng has already lost. If Teacher doesn't hold up the sky for the Tengkong Realm, do they expect those useless trash to do it?* Lin Yao suddenly burned with fury! If Liu Hong's position was stable and elevated, then as his student, Lin Yao would naturally gain far more opportunities. Damn them, Chen Qi's faction was too shameless! ... "Too many fools..." Liu Hong departed briskly, sighing with emotion. Without having to pay anything at all, the harvest was quite substantial. Very good. He liked this way of living. As for losing face... What a joke. The one who lost was Lin Yao, not him; what face did he have to lose? Bai Feng's lineage was so strong that he had to fight for more good resources to better suppress them. Those people had better give him more, or else he wouldn't be able to keep them down!