Chapter 361: " I Did It. So? (3)"
The youth was already too weakened to even make any noise and the other youths were too shocked by the sight to even move.
Even Qiao Chu and the others were in shock.
That sudden attack was..... simply brutal!
Rong Ruo snapped back to reality suddenly and whispered urgently to Qiao Chu: "We cannot allow Jun Xie to pummel at him anymore, or the consequences will be really dire."
Qiao Chu realised what Rong Ruo was saying and rushed up to put his hand between Jun Wu Xie and the heavily pummeled youth. "Little Xie, that's enough." Qiao Chu looked at Jun Xie, his eyes gentle. Jun Xie was protecting the four of them.
They could not fight back and Jun Xie had done it for them.
He could not find the right words to say at that moment and his emotions just surged wildly within him.
Jun Wu Xie's fist was still held up and the orange glow still swirled around it. Her whole fist was already covered in blood as she raised her head to look at Qiao Chu. She held the unconscious youth a moment longer before she dropped him to let him fall to the ground in a heap. She turned to the terrified youths around her and simply said: "Scram."
The youths immediately picked up their unconscious companion and ran away with their tails between their legs.
None of them had expected that the spineless cowards in the East Wing who had always not dared to put up any retaliation no matter how much they were bullied would suddenly house such an unreasonable and obnoxious little tyrant. That puny sized brat had charged straight into them and thrashed all of them up, not giving them any opportunity to even speak up.
After those youths had left, the air in the courtyard hung with a faint smell of blood and the place was suddenly quiet.
Qiao Chu sniffled his nose and suppressed his emotions. Without a word, his held up Jun Wu Xie's bloodied hand and wiped off the blood carefully with the corner of his tattered shirt.
"Why would you hit them? They have now dirtied your hands."
"Felt like it." Jun Wu Xie said calmly, as the murder in her eyes diminished.
Qiao Chu sniffled again and did not say anything else. Only after wiping Jun Wu Xie's hand clean, Qiao Chu looked up again at Jun Wu Xie, but did not say anything but only scratched at his own head.
Jun Wu Xie turned and walked towards Rong Ruo and handed him a hanky.
Rong Ruo was surprised a moment before he accepted it and muttered his thanks softly as he wiped the spit from his face.
"That felt great." Hua Yao carried the little black cat and came before Jun Wu Xie, returning the unconscious cat back into her arms.
Jun Wu Xie carried the black cat in her arms and lowered her eyes. Those eyes were now calm and tranquil, completely unlike what they saw just moments ago, brutal and murderous.
"I swear, if Qiao Chu had not stopped Jun Xie earlier, Liu Chan would surely be dead now." Fei Yan whispered softly into Rong Ruo's ears.
Jun Xie's body was small and skinny, and he did not speak much. But her temperament was something else. She spoke with her fists, simple and straightforward.
Rong Ruo stared at Jun Xie thoughtfully, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
She's rather..... nice.
"Whoa! What mischief have you brats been up to again!?" Yan Bu Gui who had just left them just moments ago was led to come back after hearing the ruckus. When he saw Jun Wu Xie standing in the middle of his four disciples, he stopped in his tracks. But the faint smell of blood in the air did not escape him and he scanned his eyes around, seeing the splatters of blood just outside the entrance to the courtyard.
"Teacher, Liu Chan brought people from the South Wing here again." Qiao Chu stiffened up when he saw Yan Bu Gui and he replied honestly to the query.
Yan Bu Gui frowned slightly, but his bushy beard covered much of his face and they could not read his expression.
"You retaliated?" Yan Bu Gui's voice suddenly turned chilled.
Qiao Chu opened his mouth slightly and stopped. He then lowered his head and muttered in a low voice: "They were extremely rude to Rong Ruo and I could not hold myself back."
Qiao Chu heaped all responsibility for it upon himself.
Yan Bu Gui's eyes steeled and a flash of light burst from his hand, hitting Qiao Chu on his chest, the blast throwing him across the courtyard.
"I warned you guys so many times! You are not to lay a finger on the other disciples of the Phoenix Academy! Did my words not get into your head!?"
Chapter 362: "I Did It. So? (4)"
Yan Bu Gui strode quickly over and stood before Qiao Chu, his hand raised.
In the courtyard, Hua Yao and the others lowered their heads unable to watch.
Yan Bui Gui's raised hand remained in the air and did not lower.
Jun Wu Xie held Yan Bu Gui's hand back with her eyes. The small faced looked up at Yan Bu Gui, her eyes bitingly cold.
"I did it. It was me." She said curtly.
Yan Bu Gui hesitated.
"If you seek to punish, it should be me." Jun Wu Xie said, narrowing her eyes.
Yan Bu Gui looked at Jun Wu Xie, the anger fading from him. He retrieved his raised hand turned to walk away. He took two steps and turned back as if to say something but could not find the right words.
But Jun Wu Xie had something to say instead.
"I take back my words." Jun Wu Xie said suddenly.
Yan Bu Gui waited silently for her to continue.
"A Master like you doesn't deserve me to be your disciple." Jun Wu Xie said coldly. She saw very clearly what Qiao Chu and the rest of them had to put up with. She had never had a master but she knew that as a master, if they could not protect their own disciples and instead expected them to swallow the pride and rage when they suffered under the humiliation countless times and not allowed to fight back.....
That clearly showed the incompetence of the master!
A master like that, however powerful, did not deserve her respect!
Yan Bu Gui remained silent. He stared at Jun Wu Xie and that cold face and that chilly expression. Those eyes were frosty as they stared at him and he felt as though he was sinking in an icy lake, its waters crystal clear.
Qiao Chu and the others were shocked beyond words.
Jun Wu Xie turned to walk away but Yan Bu Gui suddenly spoke: "A master like me? What did that mean?"
Jun Wu Xie stared at Yan Bu Gui with the same frosty eyes and said: "As a master, if they cannot protect their disciples, and allow their disciples to suffer humiliation and endless bullying from others, a master like that, I'll rather do without."
Jun Wu Xie's voice was soft, but every single word of hers struck at the heart.
Yan Bu Gui narrowed his eyes, but his bushy beard hid his expression on his face.
Qiao Chu quickly reacted then and stood before Jun Wu Xie. "Little Xie! You've misunderstood! Things are not what they seem to be! Our master..... he is doing all this to protect us!"
Jun Wu Xie turned to Qiao Chu and said coldly: "If I'm constantly oppressed by people like those, and am forced to bear and grin it, even if I were to achieve what I wanted in the end, that would be no victory and I would get no satisfaction from it. To live, you live gloriously. Even if the skies fall, the back must never bend! Arrogance can be done without, but pride must never sway!" Forbearance did not mean to bear up under merciless bullying and character building did not mean getting beaten down all the time.
Jun Wu Xie might have been locked up in a room for more than a decade and had no freedom, constantly bombarded and forced by that demon's ideals throughout that period, Jun Wu Xie had never bowed down to him and never allowed a moment's humiliation from it.
Even if her bones crushed, her back would remain straight till the last moment!
Jun Wu Xie's words drove a shock through Qiao Chu and made Yan Bu Gui seemingly thoughtful.
Living like dogs and subjected to the abuse and humiliation of anyone that wanted to, was that a life worth living?
Maybe, the little lad was right.
Living like this, they were better off dead.
"You're Jun Xie right?" Yan Bu Gui raised his head at that moment and his eyes seemed different.
Jun Wu Xie looked at him with the same chilly eyes.
"If you think that we can live a properly and proudly, don't take back your words. Let me see if you can do it your way, and turn the fates of Qiao Chu and the others." Yan Bu Gui said smilingly.
Chapter 363: "Human Skin Map (1)"
It was interesting to note that when the little lad seeked for discipleship, Yan Bu Gui was hesitant to accept. And now that the little lad was unwilling, Yan Bu Gui was seeking to accept the discipleship.
But.....
It was now up to Jun Wu Xie to decide instead.
Jun Wu Xie did not reply and Qiao Chu was getting flustered. He grabbed at Jun Wu Xie by the arm and pulled her into his room.
The others stood still and did not move from their spots. They knew very well what Qiao Chu was up to and did not step in to stop him.
When they were inside the room, Qiao Chu searched and produced a small brocade box. Jun Wu Xie had seen that box before. They retrieved it when they were in the Qing Yun Clan.
"This is the reason why Brother Hua and I infiltrated into the Qing Yun Clan." Qiao Chu brought the box before Jun Wu Xie and gestured for her to open it.
Jun Wu Xie opened the box and a map laid within. She looked closer and she saw that the map was drawn on a piece of human skin!
"That piece of human skin was cut out from my father's back." Qiao Chu's voice suddenly grew suppressed.
Jun Wu Xie looked up. The map drawn on the piece of human skin was not complete and she could see that it formed only a part of the whole map.
"Me, Brother Hua, Fei Yan, Rong Ruo and our Master, were all from the Middle Realm. The powers of the Middle Realm is broken up into, One region, Four sides, Nine Temples and Twelve Palaces. The lone region among them refers to the Dark Regions, under the command of the Dark Emperor, and is the most powerful force in the Middle Realm. The people who attacked us previously were two people from the Palace of Flame Demons from the Twelve Palaces. Centuries ago, the Dark Regions held control over the Middle Realm, and the four sides, nine temples and the twelve palaces capitulated and surrendered all their magic items and weapons to the Dark Emperor. But the Dark Emperor died suddenly and all his treasures and magic items were buried together with him deep in the catacombs of the Dark Emperor."
Qiao Chu slowly explained further: "The tomb of the Dark Emperor, contains all of the most powerful magical items and unimaginable riches in the Middle Realm and it was the treasure trove everyone in the Middle Realm dreams of possessing. But for the unendingly and rigidly loyal minions of the Dark Emperor, no one knew where the catacombs of the Dark Emperor laid. The Dark Regions had lost their Dark Emperor and their might was not like before. But the Dark Emperor was the one man who dominated the entire Middle Realm and even after his death, his dominating reputation lingered. If anyone dared to make any moves towards the Dark Emperor's tomb, the Dark Regions would swarm out of their nest and annihilate them."
"But human greed had always been insatiable and people continued to eye the Dark Emperor's treasures. With intensive but discreet investigations over long periods of time, they finally uncovered news that the Dark Emperor's tomb laid in the Lower Realm. In order to not alert anyone, and to keep the treasures for themselves, the Twelve Palaces sent a group of people into the Lower Realm to locate the catacombs of the Dark Emperor. The search carried on for hundreds of years over an endless number of expeditions. Finally, seven out of the countless people sent out found the location of the tomb. They had come from different powers and in order to curb and restrict each other, they split up the map and tattooed them on the backs of the seven of them."
Upon saying that, Qiao Chu's face darkened as he continued: "The people who located the Dark Emperor's tomb all returned to the Middle Realm, and handed their portion of the map to the powers they served respectively. They had thought that their mission was accomplished with all the hard work they had put in in the Lower Realm, and they deserved a good rest. But what awaited them instead was a massacre!"
"The Twelve Palaces were fearful of reprisal from the Dark Regions and pushed all blame of desecrating the Dark Emperor's tomb onto the seven men. None of them survived and the tattooed maps on their backs were carved out and held by seven of the twelve palaces. As the maps were split and all the individual palaces selfishly wanted to monopolize the treasure, till this day, they still have not found the exact location of the catacombs."
Chapter 364: "Human Skin Map (2)"
"Those people gave up their whole lives in the search for the Dark Emperor's tomb for the powers they served, they suffered the curses and verbal abuse while alive and were not able to rest in peace even after their deaths. They died under torture and their souls were completely destroyed. Their families were not spared and massacred without exception." Qiao Chu laughed loudly suddenly after he told the story, tears forming in his eyes as he looked at Jun Wu Xie.
"Wouldn't you think that those people were so dumb? They knew that the Dark Emperor's tomb was not to be desecrated and they got themselves and their whole family tree massacred because of their blind loyalty to the various powers they served respectively. The Twelve Palaces seek the Dark Emperor's treasures, but they did not want to shoulder the responsibility of betrayal and used those few people as scapegoats. Those people were really dumb to fall for the tricks of the Twelve Palaces."
Jun Wu Xie listened to every word in silence. Qiao Chu laughed, seemingly mocking himself as the tears flowed down his face endlessly at the same time.
"If not for Master's timely interference that saved the four of us here, we would not be here now. Master sneaked us out of the Middle Realm and brought us here into the Lower Realm at a great risk. Here, he taught us how to develop our spiritual powers, and to hide our identities to bide for time. Right from the moment our entire families were massacred, we had all given up on life. The only thing driving us forward is to exact our revenge upon the Twelve Palaces! Our Master has forbidden us to fight the other students so as we do not draw attention to ourselves and expose our identities which will bring us certain doom. So, Little Xie, please do not blame him. If not for him, we would not be alive now." Qiao Chu said as he wiped the tears from his face and pushed down the raging emotions within him.
He exposed this most painful wound he carried in his heart all his life to Jun Xie as he did not want to see his newly found brother harbour any prejudice against his revered Master.
They were both precious to him and he wished they could get along well.
Jun Wu Xie narrowed her eyes and suddenly stood up to walk towards the door.
Yan Bu Gui stared at Jun Wu Xie as she strode quickly towards him, his face was edged with worry.
Jun Wu Xie stopped before Yan Bu Gui and she said in a clear voice.
"Master."
"My disciple."
Yan Bu Gui wasn't just being weak, but doing everything he could to protect his four disciples. His methods might have been a little extreme but his intentions were nevertheless noble.
For Yan Bu Gui to escape from the Middle Realm with four young ones in tow, only the Heavens knew how much hardship he had gone through to hide and protect the four young kids from the pursuit and persecution from the twelve palaces while he brought them up and teached them.
The simple form of address of "Master" made the tensed up Hua Yao and the others heave a sigh of relief. Jun Wu Xie's earlier unhesitant defence of Rong Ruo against the humiliation by the youths had left a deep imprint of gratitude on their hearts and they were glad things had turned out well.
"Cough..... Since you have addressed me as your Master, would that mean you will listen to Master from now onwards? When things just like today happens in future....." Yan Bu Gui was deeply gladdened by his new disciple and was just starting to educate him on the "ways to survive in the Phoenix Academy" when Jun Wu Xie suddenly interrupted him by saying:
"If something like this happens again, I will fight back just as I did today." Her face calm and expressionless.
Yan Bu Gui was at a total loss for words.
"I appreciate Master's noble intentions and your justified concerns for us, your disciples. But I cannot agree." Jun Wu Xie's eyes were determined. She acknowledged Yan Bu Gui's righteous and noble character, but his methods of handling such matters were a little overboard.
"For such matters, please leave it to your disciple to handle in future." Jun Wu Xie said finally.
They were now in the same boat now that she had acknowledged Yan Bu Gui as a Master. She would never in a million years allow her Master and fellow senior disciples to live under anyone's humiliation and abuse.
Yan Bu Gui gaped like a goldfish and no words came out.
Standing on one side, Qiao Chu was beaming like a newly risen sun. They had held back and suppressed their rage at the constant abuse for a long time, and they wished for nothing more than to see their new junior teach those brats from the other wings a lesson they would never forget.
Those four youths who had always abided by Yan Bu Gui's words and had not challenged him once, did not notice that with Jun Wu Xie's addition, their lives had started to change. This was the first step towards what fate had for them to become and their lives were to change drastically. In the near future, the destined six that were to come together to kick up a unbelievable storm throughout the three realms now numbered five!
Chapter 365: "Human Skin Map (3)"
Faced with Jun Xie's "insistence", Yan Bu Gui was helpless and had no choice but to give in to him. But he secretly instructed the others to keep an eye on Jun Xie and protect him from harm.
Because Jun Xie possessed a rather unique ring spirit, Yan Bu Gui did not give him the usual instructions in the development of his spiritual powers but to just stay by the lotus pond and accompany the recovering Snow Lotus.
Qiao Chu and the others were looking into ways to locate the other six human skin maps. The Twelve Palaces might have seized possession of them, but they did not dare to keep that hot potato in hand. The Twelve Palaces had instead secretly colluded with various powers of the Lower Realm and had given the maps to them to do their dirty job of searching for the Dark Emperor's tomb on their behalf.
Sneaky tactics like this, were commonly employed by the Twelve Palaces.
The treasures in the Dark Emperor's tomb, would grant anyone who found it, power capable of obliterating the Twelve Palaces.
Qiao Chu and the others seeked revenge and Jun Wu Xie's objective coincided perfectly with them as she seeked the annihilation of the Palace of Flame Demons.
On the other hand, Jun Wu Xie's discipleship had also made her aware of Yan Bu Gui and his disciples' painful destitution.
Qiao Chu and the others possessed strong powers, but they were forced to hide them in fear of drawing unwanted attention. Every single mission's objective was very clear, and it was only to pursue the other maps from any clues they had gathered.
Other than that, the five of them in the East Wing of the Phoenix Academy had no other survival skills. At least in terms of earning money, their talent in this aspect was zilch.
It had not been that bad just a few years ago. Yan Bu Gui had pawned some of the treasures he had brought from the Middle Realm, but it did not last and soon they had spent every single cent. Yan Bu Gui did not have anything else he could exchange for money and for the recent few years, the five of them had barely scraped by, living in poverty.
An obvious instance would be that the few of them had not worn any new clothes for at least the past two years.
In contrast, Jun Wu Xie did not understand their quandary as she had never been pressed for money in both her past and present life. In her past life, she might have been young when she left the demon's lair, but with her unsurpassed skills in medicine, she led a bountiful life. And after her rebirth, although the Lin Palace had been plagued by endless dangers, they had nevertheless not faced any shortage when it came to money.
To the extent that when Jun Wu Xie was looking at her brand new Master and fellow disciples squatting in a circle in the courtyard, discussing how they were going to try to raise money to hand over to the headmaster, her mind had, on this rarest of occasion, and for the first time in her two lives, drawn a complete blank.
"Why don't Fei Yan and I make a quick trip out? We can try out robbery?" Qiao Chu suggested innocently.
Without a word, Yan Bu Gui smacked him mightily on the head!
Qiao Chu rubbed the back of his throbbing head and shrugged his shoulders, trying to indicate he was just kidding.
The double headed bone snake is still in recovery, or I might be able to gather some herbs from the hills." Hua Yao was frowning, deep in thought. When they had been extremely hard pressed previously, Hua Yao had sent the double headed bone snake into the hills silently in the night to dig up some herbs to sell for some money several times.
But the double headed bone snake had not recovered from its injuries and Hua Yao could not bear to make his ring spirit suffer the toil at that moment.
"We're really all cleaned out..... Sigh....." Fei Yan wanted to cry at that point.
Rong Ruo was the calmest among them, but his brow furrowed deeply as well.
"Sigh..... Forget it! I'll go see the headmaster and ask him for a few more days' grace again." Yan Bu Gui's heart winced as he saw the forlorn looks on his disciples' faces and he tried to wave it off. As the Master of these poor kids, he felt that these problems should be handled by him alone.
Alas, anything that can go wrong will go wrong. Before Yan Bu Gui could go see the headmaster with his plea, the person in charge of the South Wing, He Qiu Sheng, came storming towards the East Wing, his face dark as thunder.
He Qiu Sheng was the Master of the South Wing, and the youth that Jun Wu Xie had beaten to a pulp was his disciple. When his disciple had gone to the East Wing to press for payment of their debt as usual, who would have expected this time that the barbaric disciples of the East wing would blatantly attack his disciple, to the extent that his disciple was still bedridden till now!
Chapter 366:"Rise of the East Wing (1)"
He Qiu Sheng's rage visibly showed on his face and his eyes were aflame as he stared at Yan Bu Gui and his disciples.
"Yan Bu Gui! You still owe the academy their fees and you indulge in your disciples' violence!? And you can still sit here drinking wine leisurely!?"
The viciously berated Yan Bu Gui gripped at the wine jar in his hand and smiled weakly. Wine? Where would he find money to buy wine? The wine jar was filled with water and the faint wine's fragrance was just the smell that had seeped deep into the wine jar.
But Yan Bu Gui was not about to give himself any excuses.
"It's Qiu Sheng I see, what brought you to our East Wing here today? Do you want to come in and take a seat?" Yan Bu Gui asked smiling.
The look Yan Bu Gui gave was almost grovelling but Qiao Chu and the others who knew the real reason why he discarded his pride only felt all the more bitter.
If it was not for the four disciples that dragged him down and kept his hands tied, with Yan Bu Gui's strong spiritual powers, he would be able to live a life of luxury anywhere he chose in the Lower Realm.
"You seem to be taking it real easy. Let me tell you Yan Bu Gui! If you do not give me a satisfactory answer about this, even if the headmaster spares you, you and me will remain irreconcilable! You think I would even bother to step anywhere near this dump of yours? If it was not for the headmaster's summons for you to go to him, I wouldn't want to dirty my shoes by coming here!" He Qiu Sheng's attitude was an exact replica of his head disciple's. In their eyes, the East Wing only housed a gaggle of beggars that refused to leave, sponged on the Phoenix Academy as freeloaders, were all weak and useless, and played dumb and extorted the headmaster.
Yan Bu Gui was at a loss. He might have been able to smooth over some other situations, but now that he faced the accusation of his disciples injuring He Qiu Sheng's disciples, the situation was getting rather tricky. If he remembered it right, most of He Qiu Sheng's disciples might be completely lacking in talents, but they made up the group that held the highest "gold value" among the all the disciples of the Phoenix Academy. It was estimated that almost half of the Phoenix Academy's funds, came from the families of the South Wing disciples.
"If you don't like it here, then scram." Suddenly, a cold voice broke He Qiu Sheng litany.
He Qiu Sheng's eyes narrowed and he turned to the source of that voice.
He only saw a small petite youth, who was staring coldly right at him.
"Who do you think you are!? How dare you speak to me in that manner!?" He Qiu Sheng was now quivering with rage. He never would have imagined that a mere disciple in the East Wing would dare to humiliate him like that.
Jun Wu Xie lifted her chin and continued staring coldly at He Qiu Sheng.
"Disciple of the East Wing, Jun Xie."
"I see! You are the little beggar they just picked up! You have sponged on the Phoenix Academy long enough and we have yet to settle the bill with you! And furthermore, you actually had the audacity to beat up my disciple!" Once He Qiu Sheng heard that name, he knew that that was the culprit in the East Wing who had beat up his disciple so badly that he could not even get out of bed. He exploded at that moment and strode menacingly towards Jun Xie, raising his hand, intending to teach the little brat a lesson.
However, before that hand could lower down, it found its wrist tightly bound by the iron grip of Yan Bu Gui.
"He Qiu Sheng, my disciples are not people you can touch just because you want to." Yan Bu Gui's eyes had suddenly turned steely. Jun Wu Xie's words had struck a chord within him and he had not stopped thinking about it. Those words had brought a change in that strong heart.
When it was just targeted at him, he could tolerate it, he would concede to it, even when it humiliated him. But he would never allow anyone to lay a finger on his disciples!
That was the first time He Qiu Sheng saw those eyes on Yan Bu Gui. It was just a single look, and He Qiu Sheng paled immediately.
All this time, the drunkard had never retaliated to any of his endless provocations and humiliations. But today, those steely eyes had unnerved He Qiu Sheng and that had quickly stopped his intimidation of the puny and weak boy.
"You! That's great! Yan Bu Gui, that's just great! You would shield the little brat to such an extent. Let us bring him to see the headmaster together. Let the headmaster see for himself what kind of trash your beggars' den is harbouring nowadays!" As if he had suffered unbelievable injustice, he raged as he drew his hand back and continued with his shouting tirade.
Chapter 367:"Rise of the East Wing (2)"
Yan Bu Gui's brow was furrowed. He did not want to involve Jun Wu Xie with such matters.
But Jun Wu Xie readily agreed: "Let's go."
Even the Qing Yun Clan fell before her. How can the headmaster of a decrepit academy compare to that?
"Good! I'll wait for both of you in the headmaster's study!" He Qiu Sheng left hurriedly after saying that.
After He Qiu Sheng left, Yan Bu Gui's eyes softened immediately as his gaze fell upon Jun Wu Xie in helplessness.
"Jun Xie, you don't need to....."
"I'll go." Jun Wu Xie said curtly. The concept of the servitude as a disciple to a Master was foreign to Jun Wu Xie and she was only just learning from her observation of Qiao Chu and the others and that little bit was all she knew at that moment.
Yan Bu Gui sighed heavily. He knew that Jun Wu Xie did not speak much but it was clear to him that his new little disciple was a little man of his words. Whatever passed those lips became unwavering truth, and could not be changed easily.
Jun Wu Xie handed the little black cat into Rong Ruo's care once again and left to go to the headmaster's with Yan Bu Gui.
Along the way, they passed several Phoenix Academy disciples. When those youths saw Jun Wu Xie with Yan Bu Gui, they started pointing and whispering among themselves blatantly, paying no heed nor showing any respect for Yan Bu Gui's position as a Master in the academy.
Yan Bu Gui was used to their disrespect and had not ever been affected by all that. But this time, his eyes glanced at Jun Wu Xie, feeling sorry that Jun Wu Xie had to suffer under those pointing fingers and hushed whispers.
But Jun Wu Xie did not seem affected by it in the least. Yan Bu Gui could see that his little disciple's back would stand just as straight and not bend in the slightest even if the sky fell on them then.
He had been worried as he thought Jun Wu Xie might not have had to suffer from so many gazes thrown at them, full of disdain.
But the fact was, Yan Bu Gui could not have been more wrong!
Before Jun Wu Xie had embarked on her quest to force a change of the regime in Qi, her reputation had been in tatters. They looks the people of the Qi Kingdom had given her in those days had been many times worse. But.....
She had never been bothered by them. Her eyes had not even bothered to rest on those people even for a second then.
The original Phoenix Academy had had a huge campus but its lands had shrunk drastically after it had been rebuilt. Due to its lack of funds, the academy's buildings had not been refurbished or properly maintained for years and its decrepit facade were painfully visible, showing starkly the academy's embarrassing financial situation.
The headmaster's study was a small little place and the paint on the door was peeling. Weeds grew in the crevices of the steps leading up to the door and the whole place looked dismal.
As they pushed the door open, a slouchy old man with a full white beard was in the room, sitting behind his table. Upon the old and wrinkled face, a pair of eyes narrowed as He Qiu Sheng stood at one side, criticizing Yan Bu Gui and his new disciple, Jun Wu Xie endlessly in a high pitched voice.
When he saw Yan Bu Gui and Jun Wu Xie enter, He Qiu Sheng's complaints intensified and the pitch of his voice started to rise even higher.
The expression on Yan Bu Gui's face was clearly flustered but Jun Wu Xie was a placid calm, looking as though those complaints had nothing to do with her.
"Headmaster, look over here. These two people are flagrantly flouting your rules! I had just tallied the numbers earlier today and over the past few days, the East Wing's losses had increased by another ten over taels! If we are to continue to indulge them, they might drag the whole Phoenix Academy down with them." He Qiu Sheng continued persistently.
The moment money was mentioned, the headmaster's bored expression perked up. He raised his head and stared at Yan Bu Gui and Jun Wu Xie.
"Bu Gui, when are you going to pay up on the money still owing? We cannot allow you to drag your feet on the payment indefinitely. You allowed this disciple of yours to injure another disciple of the South Wing, and when the news of this incident reaches the ears of his family, the family is going to come after you! And if they decide to withdraw their child from the academy, we would lose another source of income here!" The old headmaster nagged at Yan Bu Gui, his face deeply aggrieved.
Chapter 368:"Rise of the East Wing (3)"
Yan Bu Gui's expression grew more helpless as the headmaster's nagging continued, and He Qiu Sheng stood on one side in glee.
"If I might add headmaster, I think the East Wing should be led by a different person. Look at what Yan Bu Gui had done now? He had only attracted just those few disciples all these years. Besides those little beggars, who would accept his as their Master? And now, the situation in the East Wing is only getting worse. They had suddenly decided to pick up another little beggar from somewhere out there who isn't going to pay as well, further sponging on the academy. That little beggar had even had the audacity to injure my disciple from the South Wing! If you are to allow this to continue, the academy is sure to be doomed!" He Qiu Sheng incited viciously, his words dripping with venom.
"This....." The headmaster frowned deeply, exasperated.
Jun Wu Xie observed coldly at all that was going on in the study, and the chill in her eyes intensified.
"Headmaster, you must not hesitate any longer. Do you want to wait till the leeches in the East Wing finally drive out all the South Wing disciples from the academy before you'll act? Those disciples are all....." He Qiu Sheng had not finished talking when.....
Jun Wu Xie slapped her hand on the headmaster's table. Her voice was clear and it made all the other pairs of eyes in the room turn to her. They looked down at the small hand on the table and saw one bank note pressed under it.
"Is this enough?" Jun Wu Xie asked coldly.
In that moment, the study was filled with silence.
The old headmaster's eyes were dead fixed on that note and he did not move, but his eyes sparkled brightly when he saw it.
A bank note.....
When was the last time he had laid his eyes on a bank note?
He Qiu Sheng who had been pushing vehemently for the headmaster to dismiss Yan Bu Gui and to kick out his freeloading disciples before he was suddenly interrupted turned white as a sheet when he saw the bank note!
His face twitched and he tried to calm himself before he continued: "The East Wing had had their fees outstanding for years. Don't think you can appease the situation with just a few hundred taels. That disciple of mine comes from a rich family and his family would not think much of the measly few hundred taels. It is not something a little beg....."
He Qiu Sheng's voice trailed off as his throat caught.
The old headmaster reached his hand over towards the bank note as He Qiu Sheng was speaking and examined it closely. When he saw the amount stated on the note, he suddenly drew in a deep breath!
He Qiu Sheng snuck a quick peek as he forced a nonchalant look on his face. When his eyes picked up on the figure on the note, his eyes bulged and he stared in disbelief and his knees almost buckled.
On that snowy white bank note, an astounding figure was written clearly in bold.....
One hundred thousand taels!
The old headmaster's hands trembled as he held the bank note, and his beard bristled.
The Phoenix Academy's annual income minus expenses totaled only thirty to forty thousand taels, and Jun Wu Xie had just thrown out a hundred thousand taels without even flinching!
That was the Phoenix Academy's three years' profit right there in the headmaster's hands!
No wonder the headmaster was shaking like a willow in the wind.
He Qiu Sheng looked like he just swallowed faeces and he was absolutely speechless.
His disciples might be capable of coming out with a few hundred taels and that brat had easily thrown out a hundred thousand taels!
He Qiu Sheng suspected his eyes must be playing tricks on him.
"That.... that bank note must be fake!" He Qiu Sheng shouted in disbelief. It was impossible that such a decrepit looking brat would have so much money!
Jun Wu Xie raised an eyebrow and stared at the fuming He Qiu Sheng but could not be bothered to even speak to him.
The old headmaster heard He Qiu Sheng and he squinted his eyes as he carefully examined the bank.
After a few moments, he broke into a wide smile: "The bank note is real! This is the seal of the Soul Moon Bank! It's definitely authentic!"
He Qiu Sheng was completely stumped this time. The Soul Moon Bank was the biggest bank around and their branches were all over the lands and their seals were imprinted with spiritual powers and could not be fully duplicated by others.
Chapter 369: "Do you want more? (1)"
He Qiu Sheng's face was green and his lips had turned purple. He felt as if he had been slapped across the face and felt humiliated beyond words.
The old headmaster turned his eyes back onto Jun Wu Xie, and his expression had turned incredibly warm and passionate towards her, and those eyes only saw a walking and speaking gold ignot in Jun Wu Xie.
"Jun Xie is your name right? You can stay in the East Wing as long as you like and if you happen to find anything unsatisfactory, feel free to let me know." The old headmaster had suddenly turned servile towards the unbelievably generous and extravagant youth and wished at that moment for Jun Wu Xie to stay in the Phoenix Academy for life.
Jun Wu Xie did not grace him with a reply.
The old headmaster cleared his throat and told He Qiu Sheng off sternly: "The incident with your disciple is a matter of the past and I do not want to hear another word of it. Jun Xie had just come to the Phoenix Academy and is just adapting herself here. Keep a tight rein on your disciples and do not let them stray too far and inconvenience others. If I ever hear that your unruly disciples were to bully him, I will not take it so lightly again."
Under the lure of the filthy scent of money, and having weighed the situation under its irresistible persuasion, the old headmaster fell heavily under its spell!
He Qiu Sheng was still standing at the side, turned into stone, and he could not utter a single word.
Bullied!? That brat was standing before them alive and well with nary a scratch! His disciple was the one that was still lying in bed!
Who was doing the bullying here!?
Nevertheless, He Qiu Sheng was helpless as he knew all this time that the headmaster only had eyes for money. Whoever had more, would win his favour! The South Wing had dominated the Phoenix Academy all this while because many of the disciples under him were from well to do families, but things had now changed suddenly. The beggars' den was just admitted a fabulously loaded nouveau riche and snatched the top spot in the academy from him!
All the fees of the disciples in the South Wing would not add up to a hundred thousand even in a couple of years, there was no way they could beat that.
After berating He Qiu Sheng, the old headmaster came over to Jun Wu Xie smiling like a fresh spring breeze again and said: "If you think that Yan Bu Gui is unsuitable in any way, please let me know so I can arrange the Masters from the other wings for you if you like."
Jun Wu Xie replied curtly: "East Wing is good."
"Yes yes yes. Yan Bu Gui must have been extremely blessed to be able to recruit such an amazing disciple, he must have done some great deeds in his past life." The old headmaster was bowing till his head was almost touching the floor.
"If there is nothing else, I would like to leave." Jun Wu Xie was not interested in the fawning old headmaster.
"Sure, sure. Please go back and rest. Bu Gui, hurry and send your disciple back for his rest. It's windy here, do not let your disciple catch a cold. He seems a little thin, I'll get the kitchen to prepare something a little more nutritious for the East Wing tomorrow." The old headmaster was actually displaying a rare moment of generosity.
Yan Bu Gui's face was blank as he led Jun Wu Xie out. Even after they had stepped out of the room, his expression was still in shock.
"Kid, where did you get so much money?" Yan Bu Gui had seen Jun Wu Xie pull out a single bank note and it had not only almost blinded He Qiu Sheng and the headmaster, even Yan Bu Gui felt the world was an amazing place filled with bizarre things and people.
His little disciple had been dressed in plain clothes and had looked like he had come from a simple family. But he had pulled out a one hundred thousand taels bank note without blinking an eye.....
Yan Bu Gui had come to the Lower Realm for so many years and he had never seen money more than a hundred taels of silver.
"Much?" Jun Wu Xie looked at Yan Bu Gui, her eyes doubtful.
After her rebirth, she had never bought anything nor needed to pay for anything. Anything and everything that she needed, Jun Xian prepared them for her and she had never handled money before in this world. The bank notes she had with her were just what Jun Xian had stuffed into her hands just before she left. Those notes were as valuable as waste paper in her eyes.
"Do you want more of them? I have them here." Jun Wu Xie saw that Yan Bu Gui seemed to hold a rather strong interest in the bank notes and she pulled out a wad of them from her sleeve..... A thick wad of bank notes.
The lowest denomination among that thick wad valued at least fifty thousand taels!
After Jun Xian had done it, Mo Qian Yuan had done the same thing and stuffed money into Jun Wu Xie's hands before he would let her leave.
A Duke, and an Emperor..... They would not have in their possession any bank notes in denominations less than ten thousand anyway..............
Chapter 370: "Do you want more? (2)"
Yan Bu Gui's eyes almost popped out of his head. He was shocked beyond words at the amount of money Jun Xie had pushed into his arms. His eyes swept past those bank notes and he counted and estimated the amount in his head. There was at least a million taels in his hands.....
As if Jun Xie had dropped hot coals in his arms, Yan Bu Gui hurriedly shoved them back to Jun Xie.
"I don't need it. You better keep these." As those words came out of his mouth, his heart was nevertheless, dripping with blood.....
A small petite sized kid was actually carrying such a large amount of money on him!
Made the burly towering Yan Bu Gui felt so small before Jun Wu Xie.
Jun Wu Xie kept the money back into her sleeve, oblivious to Yan Bu Gui's crumbling self esteem and deeply conflicted heart.
When they got back to the East Wing, Qiao Chu and the rest of the gang were waiting anxiously in the courtyard. When they all saw Jun Xie and Yan Bu Gui who had returned so quickly, they rushed up to the pair just coming in through the gate.
"How did it go? What did the headmaster say?" Qiao Chu asked anxiously.
Yan Bu Gui sighed heavily and his face was a mask of deep melancholy, making the four hearts of his disciples fall so heavily they almost reached their toes.
"In future....."
Qiao Chu and the others looked up at Yan Bu Gui's heavy tone, staring at him with tears brimming in their eyes.
"That He Qiu Sheng would never come here to seek trouble with us again!" Yan Bu Gui's face suddenly beamed into a wide smile.
"What?" Qiao Chu and his other three fellow disciples stared in wonder at their Master.
At that moment, Qiao Chu's eyes widened in alarm as he turned to Jun Wu Xie to ask: "Little Xie! Don't tell me you..... you thrashed up He Qiu Sheng and the headmaster as well!?"
With Jun Xie's temperament, that must be the case!
"No." Jun Wu Xie replied.
"You..... you must not take so hard. If they had done anything to you, Little Yan and me would go abduct him and revenge you without letting Master know." Qiao Chu promised worriedly, without even thinking.
Yan Bu Gui's huge hand slapped Qiao Chu on the back of his head once more, and he said rolling his eyes at his moron of a disciple: "You must think I'm deaf!"
Jun Wu Xie was made speechless at Qiao Chu's antics. She could not understand how such a simple matter like this became so complicated in their minds.
"Alright, alright. Everything's fine now, you kids go keep up with your training, and not just stay here and laze." Yan Bu Gui dispersed the group with his words, a wide smile hidden behind his bushy beard.
His new little disciple, really exceeded all his expectations!
Yan Bu Gui was not prepared to explain everything in detail and Jun Wu Xie did not seem to want to at all as well. Qiao Chu and the others could only leave begrudgingly to continue with their training, but their minds were still filled with worry. They prepared themselves mentally to face up to He Qiu Sheng and the headmaster and protect their little junior fellow disciple when they next come looking for trouble.
Jun Wu Xie went back to her room and sat down carrying the little black cat in her arms. She called out softly and Ye Sha appeared suddenly through the door.
"Miss, what are your orders?" Ye Sha asked, kneeling on one knee.
Jun Wu Xie took out a wad of bank notes and put them on the table. She whispered a few words to Ye Sha and moments later, Ye Sha kept the money carefully before he disappeared soundlessly.
Jun Wu Xie remained sitting on the chair and looked down at the sleeping black cat.
If it was awake, maybe it could have told her how to handle the situation before her now.
The next morning, Qiao Chu and the others walked out of their rooms with dark rings below their eyes. They had not slept the whole night, having tossed and turned the whole night with worry, but no one had come throughout the night after all. Their curiosity was further piqued by what had happened at the headmaster's and when they saw each other's dark eyes, they all smiled sheepishly at each other.
"Looks like the headmaster really won't be coming to stir up trouble after all. But how did Master and Little Xie do it?" Qiao Chu scratched his head in confusion.
Hua Yao's fair complexion made his darkened eyes look more prominent and he stood shaking his head as well, similarly befuddled.
"It good that they're not coming, let's not worry about it." Fei Yan stretched lazily, her sweet and pretty face was still tinged with a bit of sleepiness.
Rong Ruo just pulled at his clothes to tidy them, and did not say anything.