Chapter 20: Chapter 20 Take the credit
Su Yu and Chen Hao were dividing up the spoils.
Office of the Head Instructor.
Bai Feng appeared somewhat bored, sitting on a small chair in the office, watching as the group argued incessantly. When they had nearly finished speaking, he interjected, "Senior Brother, are we still receiving the prospective students from South Yuan Academy?"
"Receiving? They're coming to live in Daxia Prefecture. Isn't that without funding?" Lian Wenyan retorted in one sentence, leaving Bai Feng somewhat helpless. It was you who said you wanted to send them, I'm just asking.
"Senior Brother, have you made arrangements for your physical tempering? Does South Yuan have any powerful blood or Qi pills for you to use?" This remark caused the old prefect to hesitate, chuckling awkwardly, "That... Researcher Bai, you see... the Civilized Academy over there..."
"No need to ask them!" Lian Wenyan said indifferently, "Slow tempering is fine. The will has manifested, so there's no need to rush."
"Senior Brother, you can't say that. Without powerful blood to assist in body tempering, your physique might not even reach the level of ordinary sky-realm cultivators. This has a significant impact for the future."
"The stronger the blood, the greater the help to you. With the blood of a sky-realm demon or tiger, your formidable willpower could easily lay the foundation for the third level of the sky."
The cultivation of willpower does not emphasize physicality in the early stages. However, upon reaching the Sky-Rending Realm, physicality becomes crucial as it marks the foundation of bodily cultivation.
At this moment, the stronger the demon and deity blood used, the more robust the foundation that is forged.
Lian Wenyan pretended not to hear, demon and deity blood?
Demon and deity blood in the Sky-Rending Realm!
Where can it be found?
It's difficult to kill a demon and deity on the battlefield of the heavens, and most demons and deities on the battlefield of the heavens are above the Sky-Rending Realm. The too powerful ones are not suitable, and the weak ones are also unsuitable. The best is the Sky-Rending Realm.
Lian Wenyan had never thought of using demon and deity blood to build the foundation, even in a civilized academy, where only a few can use demon and deity blood to build the foundation in a year.
Too rare!
Seeing Lian Wenyan ignoring him, Bai Feng thought for a moment and said, "Teacher, it seems that there are still a few drops of Sky-Rending Realm Flying Tiger blood. Flying Tigers are also powerful with a robust physique. Should I inform Senior Brother and the teacher...?"
"Get lost!"
Lian Wenyan had just finished scolding when the old prefect exclaimed excitedly, "Flying Tiger? Ranked 32nd on the million clan list, Flying Tiger blood?"
"Yeah."
"Old Lian!"
The prefect exclaimed, "Don't be so proud! Relying on you alone, relying on our South Yuan, where can we get the blood of the top hundred races on the million clan list? Even if Flying Tigers are not as good as demons and deities, the difference is not big. Building a foundation directly achieves the second or even third level of the Sky-Rending Realm. You're quite old now. Do you still want to waste many years in the early stages of the Sky-Rending Realm?"
Without a strong blood foundation, forging a first-level Sky-Rending Realm physique, Lian Wenyan's formidable willpower, reaching the third level, would take at least five years, perhaps even ten years.
He's over seventy, how much time does he have left to waste?
Beside him, Longwuwei Chief Xia Bing hesitated for a moment and then muttered, "Instructor Lian, Flying Tiger blood is indeed powerful. I think it's better to go to the civilized academy and seek a few drops of foundation-building. Now that the Million Clan has entered Daxia Prefecture, South Yuan's strength is limited... Instructor Lian needs to provide more support."
Building a foundation with Flying Tiger blood, with bad luck achieving the second level of the Sky-Rending Realm, with good luck, it's the third level. Moreover, the foundation is solid, and breaking through the middle stage might only take a few years.
In a few years, South Yuan will have one more mid-level Sky-Rending Realm powerhouse, making it easier to defend than it is now.
Ignoring them, Lian Wenyan looked at Bai Feng and frowned, "These things don't need you to worry about. Bai Feng, how many people is the civilized academy preparing to recruit in South Yuan this time?"
"About ten."
Bai Feng smiled, "Senior Brother, are you planning to add a few more?"
Lian Wenyan didn't respond, and continued, "How many people in total are they recruiting?"
"About 2000, but there are 500 slots for other prefectures, and the rest are for Daxia Prefecture. Daxia Prefecture recruits about 1500 people in total each year, with nearly 1000 in the prefectural city and the rest in the 28 cities."
Among the 28 cities, South Yuan is the smallest and weakest, thus receiving the fewest recruitment slots.
Around ten slots—this is the number of people Daxia Civilization Academy recruits annually in South Yuan.
"How many more slots this year!"
Lian Wenyan spoke up, "At least add two more!"
"Senior Brother, I can't decide on this..."
"Assistant researchers have at least two slots. Since you effortlessly killed a Sky-Rending Realm fourth-tier, use those slots as compensation."
"Senior Brother, isn't this unreasonable? I killed the person, if I don't agree, you can't do it..."
"Yes, I'm being unreasonable!"
Lian Wenyan prepared to be unreasonable, "South Yuan lost over ten students this time. The students are feeling low, which is South Yuan's and Daxia Prefecture's responsibility. Daxia Prefecture failed to arrive in time to assist, which shouldn't have happened!"
"Increasing a few slots to help the students overcome their low spirits quickly, shouldn't we?"
Bai Feng hesitated.
Although these two slots weren't used much, giving them away was still a significant favor.
Forget it. Bai Feng sighed, "Alright, Senior Brother. South Yuan will increase by two slots, but they must meet the basic requirements. Otherwise, it won't work. Even if they get in, they'll be kicked out."
Lian Wenyan finally smiled, "Of course! These two basic slots, one for Su Yu and one for Liu Yue!"
Everyone looked at him, a cunning old fox!
Both of them are almost guaranteed to get in if you give them your slots.
After they're admitted, it won't occupy South Yuan's original slots. This way, South Yuan will have two more people going to Daxia Civilization Academy this year.
Clearly, Bai Feng knew this. The academy also had the names of those people. He sighed with a wry smile, "Fine, this way, when these two succeed in the academy, it can be considered my merit."
It's not bad this way. It saves face and avoids embarrassment if they really do poorly and get kicked out later.
Lian Wenyan smiled again, "That's settled. Also, since these two are entering using your slots, to ensure they don't fail, you should guide them a bit. Otherwise, if they fail the assessment, I won't let you off!"
"Senior Brother, this..."
Bai Feng looked frustrated, "I'm a researcher, and they're just students from a mediocre academy..."
The difference is significant!
"Do remember, Assistant Researcher!"
Lian Wenyan emphasized. Assistant comes first, researcher second. Understand?
"Alright, alright, Senior Brother, since you said so, no problem. I'll have them come to me later. I'll stay here for another two or three days before leaving. It's been quite exhausting traveling."
Lian Wenyan was finally happy this time, impatiently waved his hand, and sent Bai Feng away.
"Using someone and then abandoning them!"
Bai Feng muttered helplessly, had to leave.
After he left, the old prefect couldn't help but smile, "Old Lian still commands great respect. Now the academy will gain two more talents!"
On the side, Xia Bing seemed straightforward, muttering, "That's Senior Researcher Hong's face."
"What did you say?"
Lian Wenyan's expression turned cold, and Xia Bing instantly shut up.
That's the reality. If it weren't for this, Bai Feng wouldn't have given you face. Even if you reached the manifest stage, Bai Feng wouldn't care.
Though he thought so, Xia Bing didn't continue, changing the subject, "Someone just reported that two disciples of the Million Clan were killed near the cafeteria. One died in a real-life battle at the academy, and the other had their heart shattered by claw power. There were no instructors, city guards, or Wind Pursuit Hall members nearby."
Lian Wenyan frowned, "Does killing disciples of the Million Clan require identification?"
"Don't misunderstand, Instructor Lian. I'm worried someone is lurking in the academy."
He added, "However, their strength shouldn't be too strong; there's an element of surprise attack, more likely at the Thousand-Jin Realm."
"Any claims of responsibility?"
"Not yet, still under investigation."
The old prefect pondered, "It's difficult to locate someone at the Thousand-Jin Realm. Even if there are hidden Thousand-Jin Realm practitioners, the academy shouldn't be incapable of dealing with them. Once Lao Lian breaks through, even the Million Stone Realm won't be much of a challenge."
"No need to investigate for now, nor too concerned. It might have been a parent worried about their child's safety and rushed in, killing the other party. That's also possible."
The prefect wasn't too concerned either. It might have been a parent concerned about their child's safety, running in at the time and killing the other person.
"That makes sense."
Xia Bing nodded in acknowledgment and smiled, "Let's see later if anyone claims responsibility. I'm concerned about students falsely claiming credit. It's quite troublesome, especially during the assessment period at a high-level academy. If caught, it could significantly impact the students."
"Which student would be foolish enough to risk claiming undeserved credit!"
The old prefect scoffed. If a parent killed someone and then had their child falsely claim credit for it, involving academy quota and later being discovered would bring serious consequences.
Impatiently, Lian Wenyan interjected, "Don't speak so definitively. It's not impossible to be lucky enough to kill one. Of course, if someone does come forward with a claim, we'll investigate. No need to overreact."
The topic was dropped. The old prefect didn't believe any student would dare claim credit. In reality, one student was currently lurking, waiting to report their achievement once the bodies were disposed of.
...
With the matter resolved, night fell.
This time, Su Yu didn't accompany Lian Wenyan home. Lian Wenyan was busy now, and Su Yu didn't want to disturb him. He waited until the alert was lifted before returning home.
Arriving back, after several days away, the house was already dusty.
It wasn't until he returned home that Su Yu finally sighed deeply.
Today, he had killed two people.
In front of Chen Hao, he hadn't shown any abnormalities, but internally, he was deeply affected. He wasn't a warrior, just an ordinary student from a mediocre academy. It was his first time taking a life; how could he not be shaken?
"Luck was on my side. If luck had been slightly worse, I would have been the one killed today."
Especially the first guy, at the time even Su Yu almost believed it was a teacher looking for someone. If he had believed it, he and Chen Hao would have been dead by now.
"Although I can unleash the attack power of the Thousand-Jin Seventh Realm, the gap between me and the Thousand-Jin Realm is still too large. As long as the opponent reacts, I'm done for."
"My strength isn't enough. It's the strong who decide the outcome of battles."
"If Lian Zhiyuan doesn't break through, South Yuan Academy is finished this time. No, Bai Feng also arrived, but all this shows that only the strong can determine the course of war..."
Today, he had a lot of feelings. It was actually those Sky-Rending Realm powerhouses who decided the course of the battle.
Once the City Lord Wu Wenhai and Dragon Martial Guard Captain Xia Bing were killed, South Yuan would have no chance.
Just like those few Sky-Rending Realm of the Million Clan, after one was killed, the army was instantly defeated, and one person determined the entire battle, leading to the annihilation of the Million Clan.
"So... Father is indeed cannon fodder on the battlefield."
Su Yu was a little worried. Today was just a local small-scale war in South Yuan, but his father was involved in the super battlefield of the various celestial races.
That's not the small skirmishes here!
"Even though it's Sky-Rending, it's not much there, either. One South Yuan had seven people fighting today, let alone the Celestial Battlefield, perhaps in any battle there are dozens or even hundreds of Sky-Rending participants."
"I was thinking too simplistically before. Even if I have the opportunity to intern at a war academy, I'm afraid I won't be able to do much as a Thousand-Jin or even a Million Stone Realm. At least I need to reach Sky-Rending Realm to be effective and mobile in the Celestial Battlefield."
Su Yu thought about a lot. In summary, strength was still crucial, and the sooner the better, the stronger the better.
"I need to continue using blood essence to continue cultivation!"
At the moment, he had a total of five drops of blood essence, three seized and two exchanged before the battle.
"260,000 Anping coins, 10 gold coins, 5 drops of blood essence, 5 Body Refining Pills, 7 merit points, one secret book, one martial art..."
This was all Su Yu's current assets.
Among them, the Body Refining Pills weren't needed now; they were for the Thousand-Jin Realm, not cheap, and the Xia family business was worth almost 30,000 each.
"Two drops of Ironwing Bird blood essence, both used for cultivation. Next time I'll go and exchange for a few drops... no, buy a few drops; I can't use all my merit points, I need them for self-defense."
Leaving a few drops for self-defense, just in case. After all, it's not known if someone from the Million Clan is lurking.
"Continue cultivation!"
Su Yu felt his strength was weak, not even cannon fodder level. He no longer hesitated at this moment.
Swallowing a drop of blood essence, like before, the surrounding elemental energy quickly gathered.
The nine apertures emitted a faint light, and the right ear aperture vibrated and throbbed, showing signs of opening.
An hour of cultivation time, less than half of what Su Yu spent last time.
This time, the duration of continuous cultivation was a bit longer.
"The Yuan Absorption Technique is used by the Ironwing Bird tribe for foundation building. The absorption rate of elemental energy isn't fast, which is why it's suitable for Su Yu at this stage."
...
About 40 minutes later, Su Yu stopped cultivation.
The right ear aperture didn't open this time, but Su Yu felt that with another attempt, he might succeed in opening the right ear aperture and reaching the Opening Element Fifth Realm.
However, his body was slightly overloaded, and today wasn't suitable for further cultivation.
"Tomorrow, I'll come back to continue swallowing blood essence. Tomorrow, I might have a chance to reach the Opening Element Fifth Realm!"
Su Yu was overjoyed in his heart, reaching the Opening Element Fifth Realm!
The Opening Element wasn't very obvious, and ordinary people would find it difficult to detect. South Yuan Academy had students at the Opening Element Fourth Realm, but whether there were any at the Opening Element Fifth Realm was unclear. Some individuals liked to keep it hidden until the assessment period to make a startling impression.
At this stage, it seemed like there were no reports of anyone at South Yuan Academy reaching the Opening Element Fifth Realm.
After completing his cultivation, Su Yu finally had time to study the three drops of blood essence and the martial arts secret book he had seized.
...
Just as Su Yu was engrossed in his studies.
South Yuan Academy, nightfall.
The office of the teaching department.
Chen Hao had been brought in!
He had been waiting all along, waiting for the bodies to be cremated so he could immediately claim credit. As a result... he was brought to the teaching department for interrogation.
The old prefect and Lian Wenyan personally conducted the questioning!
The old prefect's nose was crooked with anger as he solemnly asked, "Did you kill them?"
"Yes!"
"False claims of credit will be severely punished, do you understand?"
"I understand!"
Chen Hao nodded. He understood this well. But what Su Yu killed... was what I killed, so it doesn't count as a false claim. He felt no psychological pressure.
Besides, Su Yu took his hidden money; he exchanged it.
Su Yu didn't want this credit, wasting it was a pity. He spent over ten years of his hidden money to exchange it, so wasn't it his credit?
So at this moment, Chen Hao was very open.
"I didn't falsely claim credit!"
"I also helped Su Yu divert the enemy's attention. I also deserve credit for attracting the attention of two people. If we combine them, it's like I killed one person, which is reasonable."
The old prefect looked at Lian Wenyan, who was tugging at his beard so much that it was almost coming off.
He felt... Chen Hao wasn't lying!
The old prefect understood and was somewhat stunned. Didn't see through it?
This kid, Chen Hao, is quite deep-minded?
Doesn't seem like it!
A child of over ten years old, where did he get such deep scheming?
"Tell me, how did you kill them?"
"I and Su Yu were hiding in the cafeteria. Suddenly someone pretended to be a teacher and came in. Su Yu recognized it and tricked him into thinking there were others hiding. That guy followed Su Yu foolishly, and I came from behind and killed him with one strike..."
Chen Hao explained it simply because Su Yu had asked him to keep it simple, afraid he might forget if it was too complicated.
"Su Yu?"
Lian Wenyan asked.
"Yes."
"You two were together?"
"Yes."
"Why were you carrying a knife? The practical teaching department said you had borrowed a practical knife long ago..."
"Su Yu said he broke through to the Opening Element Fourth Realm. I didn't believe it, so I went with him to the practical room for real combat. He said to keep it low-key, so we went out to find a place for real combat..."
"Opening Element Fourth Realm?"
The old prefect exclaimed, "He broke through to the Opening Element Fourth Realm?"
"Yes, he's been working hard in cultivation now, probably related to going to the Celestial Battlefield with Uncle Su."
The old prefect nodded. He somewhat understood and wasn't surprised. From the Third Realm to the Fourth Realm, with a bit of luck, it was normal to break through now.
Su Yu is clever. Before, he probably didn't work hard in cultivation. It's not slow to reach the Third Realm.
Lian Wenyan thought for a moment and asked, "How did you kill the other person outside the cafeteria?"
"What?"
Chen Hao pretended not to understand, which couldn't be acknowledged. According to Su Yu, killing one person was a coincidence, but if they killed two, they would surely be caught and investigated.
Lian Wenyan chuckled, "So you only killed one?"
"Yeah."
"Do you know how strong he was?"
"I don't know, didn't have time to ask when I struck."
The old prefect almost laughed out of frustration, "Then why are you here now to claim credit? Why didn't you earlier?"
"I got scared."
Chen Hao looked innocent and replied honestly, "It was my first time killing someone, I was scared. Almost wet my pants, didn't regain my composure until later... But I didn't wet my pants, really!"
Ignoring him, the old prefect scanned him and noticed faint blood stains, furrowing his brows slightly. Was this kid really the one who killed him?
"Where's Su Yu?"
"He went home. Su Yu said the credit points should go to me, but he gets the merit points. Since killing people is my accomplishment, but he also contributed with his intelligence, so we share the merit points."
"This kid!" Lian Wenyan chuckled, "So you take the credit, he takes the merit points, and you get extra points at the War Academy?"
"Yeah."
Lian Wenyan glanced at the old prefect and then at Xia Bing. At this point, the old prefect didn't know what to say.
After considering for a moment, Xia Bing spoke up, "Have you practiced claw techniques?"
"No."
"How did it feel when you swung the knife?"
"Didn't feel much, I was too scared at the time, got a bit stuck, and his neck was really tough!"
"The knife?"
"Just returned it to the practical room."
"Has your father come to the academy?"
"No, just called him. Dad said he's working overtime at the Transportation Supervision Department, he's the deputy director there."
Xia Bing's voice turned serious, "Get someone to check his father's whereabouts!"
"Yes!"
A guard outside the door responded. After three to four minutes, someone reported back, "Chen Qinghe has been at the Transportation Supervision Department all along, hasn't left. He was commanding during the incident, maintaining order in South Yuan's transportation."
"Understood."
Xia Bing glanced at Chen Hao. Chen Hao grinned foolishly. Xia Bing pondered for a moment, then looked at the old prefect and Lian Wenyan, "Let the academy and the Dragon Martial Guards sign a joint document to confirm he killed him. Killing a Qianjun Sevenfold of the Wan Clan during wartime earns the student 30 extra points and 3 merit points."
After saying this, he turned to Chen Hao, "Furthermore, if it turns out you also killed the one near the cafeteria, that's an additional 60 points and 6 merit points. With 60 extra points, even an idiot like you can definitely enter the War Academy."
"Ah, there's another one?"
Chen Hao regretted, "Can that count as mine? No one else is claiming credit, so... I don't need the merit points, just the 60 points, okay?"
Xia Bing was speechless.
The old prefect and Lian Wenyan were also speechless, wondering what he was thinking.
One near the cafeteria was killed by Chen Hao and his group, but what about the one outside?
Lian Wenyan shook his head slightly, never mind, it wasn't a big deal anyway. However, it was surprising that Chen Hao killed a Qianjun Sevenfold of the Wan Clan, contrary to everyone's expectations.
"Ask Su Yu about it tomorrow."
Lian Wenyan thought and nodded, "Let's sign the confirmation. If the time, place, and situation match, and the loot is submitted with the knife, and unless someone else claims credit later, there's no need for further investigation."
Xia Bing nodded. Killing a Qianjun wasn't a big deal; the three were concerned because the killer was a student. Otherwise, it didn't matter who took credit.
This matter could be put behind them.
Once Chen Hao happily left, the old prefect suddenly said, "Lao Liu, do you believe him?"
Lian Wenyan shrugged, "Believing or not doesn't matter. Whether he's a genius or mediocre, it'll show at the War Academy. If a mediocre insists on going in and ends up dead, don't blame others. Besides, Su Yu was there at the time, he's clever, maybe he plotted to kill that guy, there's no need to delve too deep into this."
"Yeah, no need to publicize this. Beware of retaliation from the Wan Clan, and don't let other students imitate this dangerous behavior."
The old prefect chuckled, "Speaking of which, your student is quite like you, calculating. Doesn't want extra points, wants merit points. Anyway, he's aiming for the Civilized Academy, doesn't need extra points."
Lian Wenyan smiled and quickly joked, "That's his ability. Can your Opening Realm kill a Qianjun?"
"... "
The old prefect was speechless. The two soon smiled and didn't delve further. In any case, the academy might have one more student at the War Academy this year, approved by Xia Bing, which was enough.
The Dragon Martial Guards had a lot of influence; if they wanted to buy them, it was better to spend the money directly on the War Academy. After all, substantial sponsorship funds went into the academy every year.
Xia Bing ignored the two and signed the document, then turned and left.
At the door, after some thought, he said, "I believe he was involved, but whether he actually killed the person is uncertain. If not him, then it's Su Yu. Since Su Yu isn't claiming credit, it'll be considered his. However, lacking that talent and strength, insisting on entering the War Academy might not be a good thing. I hope you both can make it clear to him."
"We will."
Xia Bing didn't say much more. There were still many doubts about this matter, such as who killed the one outside. However, as the old prefect and Lian Wenyan said, it wasn't that important.
He chose his own path, just don't regret it in the end.
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