Chapter 156: Chapter 17: Thirty Million
His eyes narrowed, Ling Buyang ultimately said nothing, turning away to leave.
Back when that incident happened, he had endured even greater humiliation. He had survived till now; this bit of shame was nothing to him.
“My lord…”
Liu Tianzheng looked anxious.
Being praised by that fat man and exchanging a punch with Zhang Xuan, then just leaving like that? You are a Fate Master, and you haven’t made a move yet…
“Let’s go back!”
Cutting off his words, Ling Buyang strode outward.
Liu Tianzheng and Xu Xin had no choice but to follow closely.
“Teacher, all this money…”
Seeing that the greatest crisis in her life had just been resolved like this, Xiaoyu hurriedly handed over the Origin Notes in her hand.
“Keep it, the trouble I caused implicated you all, consider it compensation!”
Zhang Xuan shook his head.
“That’s too much… Besides, we aren’t really hurt, and the teacher has already been so good to us, we can’t repay you enough…” Xiaoyu hastily shook her head.
“Buy some supplies and improve your strength as soon as possible, consider that as repaying me!” Zhang Xuan gestured with his hand.
Having just earned nearly ten million, three hundred thousand was a small sum to him and didn’t matter much.
The key point was, it was truly because he had implicated them that they had suffered these humiliations; otherwise, given their status, who would dare to offend them!
Hearing the teacher say this, Xiaoyu and the others said no more, instead silently hiding their gratitude in their hearts.
Especially Liu Mingyue, filled with guilt.
She knew some of the dealings between the Liu Clan and Heaven Mandate Hall. If nothing unusual happened, both Xu Xin and Ling Buyang were brought over by her father… yet the former hadn’t taken any anger out on her…
Such trust alone made her feel exceedingly unworthy.
“Teacher, rest assured, I will definitely work hard to gain your approval as soon as possible and become your official disciple…”
Liu Mingyue secretly vowed in her heart.
She was still just an auditing student now, far from becoming a real student, but no matter how far, she would strive and make it her life-long goal never to give up.
“Teacher Zhang… what… what exactly happened?”
City Lord Yu and others approached.
“Let’s talk in the classroom!”
Seeing more and more students gathering around to watch, Zhang Xuan gestured with his hand.
Entering the room, Yu Longqing and Lu Mingrong could not hold back any longer, all looking over in unison.
That was a real Fate Master who came to arrest him with such a mighty force, and it was resolved just by a few words? Most importantly, he made them apologize to a few kids and actually agreed to do it, even giving them so much Origin Currency…
“Are you… indeed a young lord from a major clan here on a training expedition?”
The room fell silent for a while; then Yu Longqing spoke.
“Yes!”
Zhang Xuan nodded: “During my training, I must conceal my identity, starting from scratch, that’s why I asked you to handle Baiyan City’s identity for me!”
Yu Longqing suddenly realized and silently admired him.
Starting training from being a coachman… that was truly striving hard!
But, to conceal it to the extent that even they could not discern, just this mental resilience alone was admirable.
“It was not my intention to hide it purposefully but a requirement from my family, and I really couldn’t say more!” Zhang Xuan bowed with his hands clasped together.
Since Ling Buyang was already suspecting him as a Mandate Chaos Master, he could only keep up the pretense, both to save Empyrean Kong shi and for his own safety.
“We understand…” Yu Longqing and Lu Mingrong nodded simultaneously.
No wonder such talent and rapid improvement in cultivation, it all made sense with the trial of a major clan’s young master.
Zhang Xuan said, “Enough about that. School Head Lu, I have ten million Origin Currency here and would like to buy enough Destiny Plates, would you have some to sell to me… ”
“You earned money desperately to buy these?”
Lu Mingrong suddenly realized.
He had always been curious why this guy was frantically taking on tasks; it turned out, he wanted to buy Destiny Plates from him…
“Baiyan Academy, over the years, has accumulated some, but not many, just a few days ago sold one to Liu Tianzheng, gave you two… now there are only four left, here, take all of them!”
Zhang Xuan sighed with relief: “Thank you, School Head Lu…”
With these four plates, the Library would have about 130,000 strands of Heavenly Mandate Vitality, obviously no big issues in his cultivation for a short period.
“Don’t mention it!”
Lu Mingrong’s gaze became intense, “Although your status is very high, Ling Buyang is a man who must get even for every grievance. Today he apologized to you personally, but I’m afraid he might cause trouble for you behind the scenes!”
“Not having him apologize will still be detrimental to me!” Zhang Xuan shook his head.
If he lets the other party go easily today, the retaliation would definitely be more severe. Making him apologize personally and injuring Xu Xin could deter him from rash actions.
“That’s true…” School Head Lu was startled for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
He had not expected to find that, despite his long life, he did not see things as clearly as this young man did.
“Fate Masters specialize in seeking out others’ destinies to sabotage them, so you must be very careful…” Yu Longqing interjected.
Zhang Xuan puzzled, “Seeking out destinies?”
Yu Longqing nodded, “Exactly! Everyone has their own fate, and if the opponent discovers it, they could sever the beneficial tributaries or place a Fate Lock on it. Even the strongest individuals cannot escape from this, which is why everyone fears Fate Masters.”
Zhang Xuan puzzled, “What do you mean?”
Yu Longqing explained, “It’s a bit complicated to explain. For example, if your destiny allows you to earn a hundred million Origin Currency in this lifetime, that opportunity will present itself at some point in your life… A Fate Master can find this opportunity through the river of fate, destroy it or lock it with a Fate Lock, thereby altering your destiny.”
Zhang Xuan was stunned, “Is this changing destiny? I thought fate couldn’t be changed?”
Yu Longqing shook his head, “It’s not changing destiny but altering the timing of when destiny arrives. To give the same example, if they do this, the hundred million Origin Currency you could have obtained at thirty might not come until you’re eighty! After all, you’d still receive it, but acquiring it young versus on your death bed are completely different concepts…”
Zhang Xuan suddenly understood.
While destiny itself cannot be changed, it can be fine-tuned. If indeed manipulated by others in such a way, it would be truly uncomfortable.
After pondering for a moment, he asked, “Is there a way to avoid this?”
Yu Longqing said, “Fate Masters definitely have ways to protect their own destinies, but I’m not too clear on the specifics!”
As the two chatted, the remaining four Destiny Plates from Baiyan Academy were also brought over. Zhang Xuan had Sun Qiang give School Head Lu eight million Origin Currency. Things that cost nothing are the most expensive, and it’s best not to owe favors if it can be avoided by spending money.
After asking for a while longer and seeing that their knowledge on Fate Masters was limited, Zhang Xuan stopped inquiring and instead looked over, “Do we have enough cultivation methods for the Divine Soul Realm?”
School Head Lu responded, “The School only has about ten. Elder Zhang, if you want to look at them, I can bring them all to you!”
Yu Longqing added, “The City Lord Residence might have more, but also not more than twenty…”
“Ten or twenty books?” Zhang Xuan frowned.
That number was too few. To synthesize the Heaven’s Path Divine Art, it seemed somewhat difficult.
“Just bring them to me for now!”
He thought he might study them first and perhaps utilize the ability of Heaven’s Order to proactively form suitable secret manuals.
…
In the Liu Clan’s main hall, silence was so profound that one could hear a pin drop. Liu Tianzheng sat cautiously to the side, hardly daring to breathe.
After what seemed like an eternity, Xu Xin asked incredulously, “Lord Ling, could that fellow really be a young master from a major family?”
Ling Buyang nodded, “With his peak Jade Bone Realm cultivation at such a young age, it’s highly likely he’s from a major family. But, even if he is, what then? Each year, countless clan descendants venture out for trials, but only those who return alive gain status and glory; otherwise, they’re no different from ordinary people.”
Due to the sheer number of people in major families, the competition is even more brutal.
If they are not of the Direct Lineage, even if they die out there, no one would care.
Thus, countless young members of great families are killed every year, so the families have an unwritten rule: once they leave the family for trials, they’re no longer considered members of the clan. Only those who return safely from the trials are eligible to regain everything they would have inherited.
Xu Xin was startled, “You mean…”
Ling Buyang’s eyes narrowed, “He dared to insult me, and if it’s not possible to kill him outright or even covertly, why not?”
Merely demanding an apology, given his status as a family descendant with a powerful backing, Ling could endure. But this guy knew too much about the incident seventeen years ago, in such detail… If it got out, how could he continue to live?
Thus, these two must die!
Xu Xin’s eyes lit up, “Do you mean to lock his fate? To ensure his constant misfortune?”
Ling Buyang shook his head, “It’s not that simple! Locking one’s fate poses a great harm to me and for him, it would only mean a temporary inability to get what he wants. It’s not worth it!”
Xu Xin puzzled, “Then…”
Ling Buyang’s gaze flickered, “In the Dharma Form Realm, one can detach the soul, invisible and intangible. If the cultivation is not high enough, they won’t be able to detect it. I will go tonight and kill him, and that fat one too… before taking action, just think of a way to obscure his Fate, then no one can trace it back to me!”
“Great, I’ll prepare the Array now!” Xu Xin exclaimed excitedly.
Ling Buyang nodded and looked toward Liu Tianzheng not far away, “The reason I’ve endured such a great loss is because you falsely reported him as a Mandate Chaos Master!”
Liu Tianzheng’s face turned pale, “Please, Lord, forgive me…”
Ling Buyang said, “Wanting my forgiveness is simple. The expenses for setting up the Array and all my losses, your Liu Clan will make up for them!”
Liu Tianzheng’s eyebrows twitched as he looked over cautiously, “May I know… how much is this so-called loss?”
Ling Buyang’s eyes flashed, “Not much, just thirty million Origin Currency! I want to see it by nightfall. If you can’t produce it… the Liu Clan can make up for it with their lives!”
“Thirty… thirty million? Make up for it with their lives?”
His face turning pale, Liu Tianzheng collapsed on the floor.
It was over; such an amount was unthinkable; even if they sold their entire Liu Clan, they couldn’t raise that much!
One million, thirty million… In just a few days, he had doomed the entire Liu Clan. It all started from preventing his daughter from becoming a disciple of Zhang Xuan…