Chapter 348: Guardian Beast

Translator: StarveCleric Editor: StarveCleric

"I won't take your medicinal herb for free. How about this then!"

Just as Prince Fei Xuan was dismayed over the daylight robbery, the young man before him spoke. "Just like with Emperor Tianxue, I'll offer you a free treatment!"

Even though Zhang Xuan was determined to grab the Spirit Beast Grass, which was equivalent to two pieces of spirit stones, he didn't think that it was appropriate for him to take it for free.

Placing his hands behind his back, he walked around Prince Fei Xuan and said, "When I was treating you, I realized that there are some blockages in your meridians, resulting in your zhenqi being unable to flow smoothly. While your body seems fine on the surface, it is actually a little weak! If I'm not wrong, do you find it hard to wake up early and difficult to sleep at night recently?"

"I..."

Prince Fei Xuan was seriously contemplating whether he should snatch the Spirit Beast Grass back when he heard Zhang Xuan's words. His body trembled and his face paled, "You... You... How did you know?"

He had indeed been facing such a problem recently.

The blockages in his meridian prevented his zhenqi from flowing smoothly. On top of that, the lack of quality sleep made him constantly grumpy and frustrated.

If not for the case, he would have attempted to use the spirit stone to attempt a breakthrough to Half-Zongshi realm already. He wouldn't have to keep it with him all this time, eventually resulting in him losing it to the fellow before him...

However, these were things that he had never told anyone before. Even Envoy Ran Mu beside him knew nothing about it, so how could this Liu laoshi know of it?

Did he really notice something?

"I am a physician, and I’ve checked on your physical condition while treating you a moment ago. Naturally, I would know it!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

"Guild leader... I beseech you to help me!"

With a pale face, Prince Fei Xuan clasped his fist respectfully. The arrogance from before had disappeared completely at this instant.

This illness had prevented him from concentrating, thus resulting in the stagnation of his cultivation. The Spirit Beast Grass was valuable, but if he could have his condition treated in exchange, it would be well worth the cost.

"Un. Actually, the problem is simple. Your talent is not bad, but under normal circumstances, it shouldn't have been possible for you to reach Tongxuan realm pinnacle at your age. If I'm not mistaken, in order to raise your cultivation, you utilized some unique methods, right? I will tell you upfront that it’s precisely those methods that left you with a trauma, thus inducing such symptoms!"

Zhang Xuan said.

Prince Fei Xuan's body shuddered.

The other party was right.

His talent could only be considered as above average.

The royal family was a cold and brutal place. Without sufficient strength, he would meet with all kinds of trouble and danger. For the sake of his survival, he could only look for ways to raise his cultivation swiftly. Thus, he used a secret art, which involved the consumption of some unique medicinal herbs, to stimulate his acupoints and trigger his potential.

Even though he managed to improve swiftly, it had left traumas in his body.

Could it be that... his recent physical condition was a result of this?

"Exactly. I will prepare a prescription for you. If you follow it strictly, your trauma should be solved completely within a month. By then, it should be possible for you to attempt the breakthrough for Half-Zongshi realm!"

Smiling, Zhang Xuan walked to a nearby table, took out brush and paper from his storage ring, wrote a prescription, and passed it over.

"Thank you, Guild Leader Liu!"

Grabbing the prescription, Prince Fei Xuan's face flushed in agitation.

He had been tortured by this condition for quite a while, causing him to be lethargic, absentminded, and irritable. This was precisely the reason why he was unable to hold himself back as soon as he felt provoked by Zhang Xuan, resulting in the lack the restraint that he, as a prince, should possess.

If he could treat his condition and advance to Half-Zongshi realm, then this prescription was truly something too valuable to him.

Putting aside a spirit stone and a stalk of Spirit Beast Grass, even if he had to give in his entire fortune, he would be willing to do so!

This was because... Kunqian Kingdom hadn’t chosen a crown prince yet. If he could reach Half-Zongshi, there was an extremely high chance that the seat would be his!

Waving casually, Zhang Xuan turned to Mo Tianxue and said, "Your Majesty, please bring the patient here. I still have some things to attend afterward!"

Just like the others, Mo Tianxue was also in a state of shock. After hearing those words, he quickly recovered and stood up, "Guild Leader Liu, the condition of this patient is slightly unique, so I will have to trouble you to proceed over to meet him..."

"You want me to go over? Sure, lead the way!"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

"Prince Fei Xuan and Envoy Ran Mu, you two should rest at the embassy for now..."

Mo Tianxue turned to the duo and clasped his fist.

"We will be taking our leave!"

The duo knew that it was an important matter of Tianwu Kingdom, and that they didn't want too many people to learn about it. Thus, they turned around and left as well. A eunuch hurried up to them and escorted them out.

"Guild Leader Liu, this way please!"

After the duo had left, Mo Tianxue started leading the way.

Zhang Xuan followed closely behind him, but he had barely taken a few steps before a faint aroma drifted to his nose. After which, a telepathic voice sounded.

"Zhang Xuan, Zhang shi! You sure have deceived me well..."

"Cough cough!" Zhang Xuan was taken aback. "Princess Mo Yu, you must be mistaken. I am Liu Cheng, not Zhang shi!"

"If you don't want to admit to it, so be it. I wanted to tell you about an interesting matter but since you're behaving in such a manner, let's forget about it then!"

Seeing how the other party refused to admit to it, Mo Yu harrumphed.

What she wanted to tell Zhang Xuan was the duel between Zhao Ya and Mu Xueqing. However, since this fellow was unwilling to admit to the matter, she couldn't be bothered either.

In any case, they are both your students. Whether they fight or not is none of my business!

Seeing the lady turn her head and walking away in displeasure, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

It seemed like he would have to pay careful attention being when being around those who were familiar with him. Otherwise, there was a good chance he would give his identity away.

He had been together with Mo Yu for quite a period of time, and not to mention, there was the matter with the Viridescent Eagle as well. As such, he wasn't too surprised to know that the other party had managed to figure his identity out.

"Princess Mo Yu, this is a test from the Master Teacher Pavilion so I hope that you won't leak this out!"

Knowing that the other party was already certain of his identity, Zhang Xuan felt that it was impossible to keep it hidden anymore. Thus, he replied to Mo Yu's words.

"Don't worry. I am not the type to gossip about such stuff!" Seeing Zhang Xuan admit to the matter, Mo Yu smiled. "Since you've admitted to it, I won't hide the matter from you then. Come and find me tomorrow noon, I'll bring you to see a good show!"

"Tomorrow noon? What good show?"

Zhang Xuan was perplexed.

"You'll know once you're there!"

Mo Yu grinned.

Seeing the confusion on his face, it was clear that Zhang Xuan didn't know about Zhao Ya and Mu Xueqing's duel. It would be fun to see his reaction when she brings him there tomorrow.

Honestly speaking, she was curious to see how he would react to the sight of two of his students fighting one another for his honor...

This fellow had always infuriated her, so she wanted to make use of this opportunity to get back at him.

Of course, to do so, she had to stop this fellow from returning to the academy first. Otherwise, given the many mouths there, it was extremely probable that he would find out about it in advance. If so, it wouldn't be fun anymore...

Thus, she started scheming her plan as she walked beside Zhang Xuan.

"We're here!"

Just as Zhang Xuan was about to ask matter it was that warranted her to behave so secretively, Mo Tianxue's voice sounded.

Lifting his head, Zhang Xuan realized that they were at the entrance of a vast courtyard.

The courtyard wasn't exceptionally big, but for some reason, he was unable to see the other end of the courtyard. It was as if something had sealed off the area, concealing whatever that was inside.

"Could this be... a formation?" Zhang Xuan thought.

Only a formation could possess the ability to hide the interior of a courtyard from those standing outside.

"The one who requires Guild Leader Liu's treatment isn't a human but our kingdom's... guardian beast!" Seemingly sensing the other party's bewilderment, Mo Tianxue explained.

"Guardian beast?"

"Indeed. Our Tianwu Kingdom doesn't have any powerful old ancestor so we depend heavily on our guardian beast to guard our territory and deter aggressors."

Mo Tianxue explained.

"However, along with the passing of time, our guardian beast has been growing older, and its strength and stamina is on the decline! Just some time ago, it fell severely ill and it doesn't seem like it has long to live. Thus... I thought of troubling Guild Leader Liu to diagnose it to see whether there is a cure for it or not. If not, I am hoping that you would be able to extend its lifespan, at least until Mo Yu matures!"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

If a kingdom wanted to grow peacefully, there must be a sufficiently powerful guardian present in the country to deter aggressors.

It was just like Old Ancestor Shen Hong with Tianxuan Kingdom. Without his presence serving as a deterrence, it was highly likely that other kingdoms may invade Tianxuan Kingdom to annex it.

As it was entirely impossible to avoid wars and conflicts, the Master Teacher Pavilion would usually stay out of such affairs. Unless it had really close ties with the kingdom that compelled it into action, otherwise, for most cases, it would maintain its neutrality.

After all, even if the kingdom were to switch hands, no one would dare to lay their hands on the continent's most powerful occupation.

In other words, no matter how many kingdoms were destroyed, the influence of the Master Teacher Pavilion wouldn't be rattled at all.

"This formation..."

Zhang Xuan stared at the formation doubtfully.

Since it was where the guardian beast lived, why did they set up a formation here?

"The guardian beast is already old, and due to its severe illness, it has been on a rampage recently, hurting several people. Left with no choice, I could only invite the experts of the Formation Master Guild to set this formation to confine it. Given its strength, if it were to run wild in the palace, no one would be able to stop it!"

Mo Tianxue smiled bitterly.

Hearing the other party's explanation, Zhang Xuan came to a realization.

No matter whether one was a human or a savage beast, one couldn’t possibly wait idly for one’s death as an illness slowly ground away on one’s lifespan. At the very least, one would wish to struggle a little, even if it would be futile, in hope of earning some additional time.

However, if the guardian beast were to really struggle for its life, it would spell a calamity for Tianwu Kingdom. Thus, the emperor chose to confine it using a formation so as to avoid needless trouble.

"Guild Leader Liu, I have already invited a grandmaster of the Formation Master Guild over to bring us in. Otherwise, if we were to walk in by ourselves while the formation is still active, we might get lost..."

Mo Tianxue said.

In order to prevent the guardian beast from escaping, the formation had to be active at all moment. However, due to the complexity of the formation, even Mo Tianxue, the emperor of the kingdom, didn't know the way in. Only a grandmaster of the Formation Master Guild was able to tread through the formation freely.

"Un!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

He didn't know a thing about formations. Even though he had collected a significant number of books on the subject in the Master Teacher Pavilion, he hadn't had the time to browse through them yet. Thus, his understanding of formation was still stuck at the level of knowing its name.

"Since the formation is active, will the Library of Heaven's Path be able to see its flaws?"

Standing on the spot, a thought suddenly appeared in Zhang Xuan's mind.

The Library of Heaven's Path could see the flaws in a cultivator and his battle technique once he executed a technique.

The same also applied when observing an apothecary in the midst of forging pills. The Library of Heaven's Path could compile the flaws in his pill forging technique and determine whether the pill could be successfully forged or not.

It was also able to tell the problem when a formation master was setting up a formation.

In other words, the Library of Heaven's Path could see the flaws of any ongoing actions.

Since this formation was currently in operation, it should be able to be considered as an ‘ongoing action’ as well. Zhang Xuan was suddenly curious to see if he could see the flaws in it through the Library of Heaven’s path.

"Flaws!"

With a thought, Zhang Xuan hurriedly dived into the Library of Heaven's Path.

Weng!

The library jolted and a book appeared.

"It works..."

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly browsed through the book.

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