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Huang Quan had threatened to “beat up” Feng Jiuyuan more than once, but she had never actually done so. For one, her words were meant to intimidate rather than act. And secondly, every time she said it, Feng Jiuyuan would stop causing trouble.
After many such instances, Huang Quan noticed something quite amusing.
Feng Jiuyuan seemed to have a “shadow” over the idea of being beaten.
This shadow wasn’t fear.
It was annoyance.
And why was he annoyed?
Huang Quan, having heard about Feng Jiuyuan’s family dynamics from the Dean of Tianhuang Academy, understood it well.
Feng Jiuyuan’s father was quite strict.
Sure enough…
When Huang Quan made her usual threat, Feng Jiuyuan didn’t press her further.
The three of them quietly watched the battle inside the barrier.
Huang Quan observed the two fighters within, her delicate brows furrowing slightly.
She had indeed been lost in thought earlier.
Qinqin was incredibly skilled.
So skilled, in fact, that it was easy to forget he was only eighteen years old.
Eighteen—still a year younger than her eldest and second eldest brothers.
At such a young age, how much of a genius must he be to have attained this level of power?
Born with death energy.
A strength that far surpassed others.
Huang Quan felt a vague sense of unease…
But this subtle feeling was quickly pushed aside.
For her, no matter what mysteries surrounded Di Qin, as long as his soul remained the person she loved, nothing else mattered.
Everyone had their secrets. There was no need to dig too deeply.
The faint crease in her brow smoothed, and Huang Quan decided not to dwell on it any longer.
At this moment, the battle inside the barrier was also drawing to a close.
The Dean was no match for Foshen—that much everyone knew. So when they saw the Dean heavily injured and collapsing to the ground, they weren’t surprised in the least.
At the same time, a sense of relief washed over the crowd.
With the Dean subdued, they were safe.
There would no longer be any instances of someone mysteriously disguising themselves as those around them, killing them, ripping out their hearts, or draining their spiritual power.
Within the barrier, Foshen stood in front of Dean Mu, lowering his gaze to look at him.
“Dean Mu, will you hand over the dark-element technique yourself, or shall I search you for it?”
Dean Mu glared at Foshen, seething with rage.
“Don’t even think about it!”
He had lost, but he would never surrender the dark-element technique.
“Dark-element techniques are exceedingly rare. I imagine Dean Mu must carry it on him,” Foshen said calmly.
“Since you refuse to hand it over, then I’ll wait until we return to Fosdu to conduct a search.”
“Several years ago, I captured a demon from the Abyssal Realm who excelled at skinning people and consuming their flesh and blood. I believe she would be more than happy to assist me with the search.”
“Inside and out, not a single spot will be overlooked. No matter where Dean Mu has hidden the technique, I am confident she will find it.”
The crowd: “!!!”
What the heck!
This wasn’t a search—it was letting that demon kill him!
While everyone was shocked by Foshen’s methods, their fear of him grew even deeper.
Such ruthless tactics—so the rumors were true!
Jing Chen, hearing Foshen’s words, reached out to tug on Feng Jiuyuan’s robe and asked, “Is there really such a demon?”
Feng Jiuyuan looked down at him. “There is such a demon, but certainly not in Fosdu.”
“What do you mean?”
Feng Jiuyuan replied, “A demon that specializes in skinning people and consuming their flesh and blood—just hearing that description, you know it’s done countless evil deeds. If Foshen had caught such a demon, he wouldn’t have let it live. He would have killed it long ago.”
“He’s just scaring Dean Mu.”
Jing Chen: “…” Foshen seemed quite different from how he’d imagined.
Feng Jiuyuan continued, “Don’t be fooled by his pure and untouchable appearance—he’s actually quite nasty.”
He’s just as bad as me, if not worse.
Hearing this, Jing Chen glanced at Feng Jiuyuan, his gaze flickering slightly.
From the tone of his words, it seemed there was some unresolved grudge between Feng Jiuyuan and Foshen.
439
“You!”
Dean Mu was furious after hearing Foshen’s words.
“Hmm?” Foshen looked at Dean Mu, raising an eyebrow. “Does Dean Mu wish to say something?”
“I’m all ears,” Foshen added with a faint smile. “Feel free to speak.”
Dean Mu glared at Foshen, his face contorted with rage, looking almost like a demon himself.
Foshen, watching him, maintained a faintly mocking smile.
Dean Mu found that smile chilling, as a cold sensation rose from his feet to his head.
After a moment of tense silence, Dean Mu reluctantly pulled the dark-element technique manual from his spatial storage.
Foshen extended a finger, sending out a force that gently caught the manual and brought it before him.
Taking the manual in hand, Foshen looked at Dean Mu and remarked, “It cannot be duplicated. To view its contents, it must be activated with blood. Once blood touches it, it will recognize its owner, and the techniques within will be revealed.”
“Dean Mu, have you ever seen another manual that requires blood to open?”
Dark-element techniques were inherently sinister.
Due to widespread destruction in the past, there were few such manuals remaining.
With so few in existence, people had begun to forget how different they were from other techniques.
They were dangerous.
Anyone could use blood to open them and begin cultivation, but without a dark-element spiritual root, anyone who forcibly cultivated them would inevitably suffer—if not by losing their mind or descending into madness, then by damaging their body.
Dark-element spiritual roots were a foundation.
An unalterable necessity.
The onlookers gazed at the dark-element manual with lingering curiosity, but after witnessing the calamity brought about by Dean Mu, their desire to possess it had greatly diminished.
Foshen stowed the manual away and turned to the Vice Dean. “The manual and Dean Mu will be taken by me. There’s no need for this competition to continue.”
With the ultimate prize gone, was there any reason to proceed?
The Vice Dean said, “The barrier is still in place. You can’t leave.”
A soft laugh escaped Foshen’s lips. With a wave of his hand, the barrier surrounding the courtyard instantly dissipated.
Dean Mu, seeing the barrier disappear, thought of escaping.
But before he could act, Foshen swiftly seized him.
Foshen looked at Dean Mu with a faint, mocking smile. “Dean Mu, you are to accompany this monk back to the Buddha Capital. You may not go ahead on your own.”
Dean Mu’s face turned deathly pale. Caught firmly in Foshen’s grasp, he dared not struggle further.
Foshen then turned to Huang Quan, smiled, and said, “Farewell.”
Everyone present was surprised to see Foshen make a point of bidding farewell to Huang Quan.
It was well-known that Xuan Yong was Foshen.
During the competition, Xuan Yong had voluntarily conceded to Huang Quan.
This was Foshen!
The infamous Buddha Capital deity of slaughter—ruthless, cold, and indifferent!
Although he had never followed the Buddhist precepts, it was still unthinkable for him to be moved by someone, wasn’t it?
But if he hadn’t been moved, then how else could they explain Foshen’s unique attitude toward Huang Quan?
And if he truly had been moved, well, that would be very interesting indeed…
The Crown Prince of Tianqi Empire and the Buddha Son of the Buddha Capital—neither of them was easy to deal with.
Huang Quan looked at Foshen and smiled faintly. “Take care.”
Foshen nodded slightly, said no more, and, holding Dean Mu firmly, walked out of the courtyard.
The Vice Dean and the Academy’s elder protectors followed after him.
The others didn’t rush to leave. After all, with the barrier in place, even if Foshen could open a section of it to leave, the barrier would repair itself after he left.
As expected, Foshen opened a small part of the barrier, took Dean Mu through it, and left without giving the Vice Dean another chance to plead.
The Vice Dean had no choice but to return to the courtyard after the Dean was taken away.
Although the incident had concluded, he still had to apologize to everyone for the trouble caused.
End of the chapter. Thank you for reading! 😊
