Chapter 591: Seeing a Ghost?

You want me to teach you how to beat this Qin Lei in the competition, so why did you have me splash him with broth?

Brother, I'm a master teacher, not a thug, not a brawler...

Besides, doing this will only make him angrier and do nothing for the competition!

I thought, with how brilliant this guy acted, he'd have some good idea—never dreamed... so unreliable!

If he really does this, his reputation will be ruined on the spot, and he'll lose all face.

Not only was he stunned, but Hall Master Kang and the others also stared wide-eyed.

Splash him in the face?

What... what kind of tactic is that?

Full of doubt, they all turned to look at Zhao Feiwu beside them.

She had just analyzed everything so clearly; surely she could figure something out this time too!

One look, and they all jolted.

They saw that Sister Feiwu's eyes were about to pop out, her face completely blank.

Although her cultivation was lacking, her insight and intelligence were praised by all. She thought she could guess at least a bit of whatever he said, but... what did 'splash in the face' mean?

This... the brain gap was too wide; she couldn't keep up at all!

The two were about to compete on understanding of cultivation. If Young Master Ruohuan wanted to win... you want him to splash broth in the other's face? That doesn't even connect...

How was she supposed to guess that?

"Unwilling? Then I can't help it..."

Zhang Xuan shook his head.

He had given his advice; if the other didn't want it, so be it.

Even though Bai Zong's Sect Leader Bai Kaizhi had made a move against Zheng Yang and the others, he had already been executed on the spot, and the guilt shouldn't fall on the younger generation. Helping Young Master Ruohuan was a favor; not helping was fine too.

"If I do this... can Teacher Zhang guarantee my victory?"

Seeing him shake his head, Young Master Ruohuan knew this was a gamble. Gritting his teeth, he clenched his fists.

"Guarantee? No one can guarantee. Believe and go; don't believe and forget it!"

Zhang Xuan continued eating.

If Zhao Feiwu was right, the other party wanted to slap his face. Having Young Master Ruohuan slap back wasn't a big deal, and his method would surely win.

But if the other didn't want to cause trouble... the method would be useless.

"This..."

Young Master Ruohuan's eyes flickered. After hesitating a moment, he gritted his teeth: "Fine, I'll go!"

The top ten had a chance to study at Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy. If he seized it, his future would be limitless; if he lost it, becoming a five-star master teacher would be the biggest hurdle in his life, and it was uncertain whether he could cross it.

As for whether this would be too unfair to that Qin Lei... he couldn't care about that.

The path forward was full of competition. If he didn't act, the other would surely use him as a stepping stone.

There was no true fairness in the world. If he only thought about accommodating others, he might as well give up cultivation.

"Ahem, Ruohuan, think it over..."

Hearing that his student actually believed this Teacher Zhang and was about to splash broth, Hall Master Kang's eyebrows twitched: "I'm afraid if you do this, that Teacher Qin might beat you to death... and the relationship with White Sun Sect will completely sour!"

Young Master Ruohuan's mouth twitched.

True, if he really did this, the other might indeed beat him into a meat patty.

"Don't worry, if he hits you, can't you run? With so many master teachers watching, he won't dare act recklessly. Besides... beating to death isn't that easy!" Zhang Xuan waved his hand: "And rest assured, I guarantee he won't hit you. As long as you run, he'll let you leave."

"..."

Young Master Ruohuan.

It would be a ghost if he didn't hit me...

"Alright!"

Knowing that to win, he had to rely on Teacher Zhang's guidance, Young Master Ruohuan stopped hesitating. Gritting his teeth, he picked up the half-bowl of broth and walked over.

It felt like a warrior heading to a doomed battle.

Seeing him head straight for Qin Lei without stopping, Hall Master Kang and the others couldn't help but twitch their mouths.

Though they trusted Teacher Zhang, doing this... was too much of a trap!

"Teacher Zhang, doing this... is it really okay?"

Zhao Feiwu couldn't help asking.

"Of course there's a problem!" Zhang Xuan picked up a piece of meat, ate it, and said in a muffled voice.

"A problem?"

Everyone's eyebrows jumped.

If there's a problem, why did you let Young Master Ruohuan go? Could it be you want to see him beaten into a pig's head?

"Your analysis was good. There's an eighty percent chance the other will choose to compete on understanding of cultivation, but... there's still a twenty percent chance he'll choose a martial match!"

Seeing their expressions, Zhang Xuan knew he had to explain or they wouldn't let it go, so he spoke.

"Mm!"

Zhao Feiwu nodded.

No matter how accurate her speculation, Qin Lei was not her; he had his own thoughts and might choose a different way.

"Splashing him in the face so blatantly is a direct provocation. If I did that to you, what would you do?" Zhang Xuan looked at her.

"I would... beat you to death!" Zhao Feiwu said.

"Exactly. Qin Lei will surely think the same, but... he's determined to get a top ten spot. Young Master Ruohuan's provocation sends the clearest signal: he wants a martial match. Under these circumstances, what do you think he'll choose?"

"This..."

Everyone was stunned.

Splashing broth in the face was a naked provocation. Qin Lei would know Young Master Ruohuan did it on purpose. With the big competition coming, acting so arrogantly naturally meant he wanted to propose a martial match...

If he dared do this, he must have some trump card, or else he wouldn't believe it!

But since Qin Lei was determined to get into the top ten, without certainty, he would choose to give up the martial match. First, to avoid being passive; second, to show magnanimity and win people over.

"Being splashed with broth in the face, anyone would get angry and want to fight. As long as he makes a move, we can see some problems in advance, so we won't be flustered on stage!"

Zhang Xuan continued.

If the other didn't use martial techniques, there was no way to know the crux. Competing with normal methods alone made victory almost impossible.

But if he got angry and used martial techniques, he could see the flaws and prescribe the right remedy.

As for whether Young Master Ruohuan would get beaten, that was out of his hands.

After all, wanting to win without paying some price was unreasonable.

"So that's it..."

Hearing the explanation, everyone finally understood, their eyes wide.

Earlier they thought Zhao Feiwu's analytical ability was astonishing, but now they realized this Teacher Zhang thought even deeper and further.

In a short time, he not only made up for Princess Feiwu's loophole but also left a way out... Impressive!

Good thing he was from the Ten Nations Alliance; if he were the opponent, they'd be dead without knowing how.

"Look, it's starting!"

Just as they were marveling, Teacher Su pointed forward.

Everyone looked and saw Young Master Ruohuan had already reached Qin Lei's spot.

At that moment, Qin Lei was also eating. Seeing his opponent, instead of eating properly, come over with a bowl, he looked confused.

"Teacher Qin, hello!"

Young Master Ruohuan nodded.

"You... hello!"

Qin Lei frowned.

"We'll be competing soon. I want to discuss something with you..." Young Master Ruohuan said politely.

"Discuss something? What? If you want to concede early, no deal!"

Qin Lei snorted, but before he could finish, he felt something greasy and hot splash onto his face, covering it.

"Damn it!"

His mind exploded; Qin Lei was about to go mad.

Seeing this guy come over, he thought he wanted to concede early to avoid a bad loss. Never in his dreams did he expect a bowl of hot broth to splash over...

"I'll kill you..."

With a roar, his aura surged, and his palm lifted, striking at Ruohuan before him.

"Whoosh!"

Young Master Ruohuan was prepared. He dodged, turned, and fled, shouting as he ran: "Sorry, Teacher Qin, I didn't mean it, just a slip of the hand..."

"..."

Everyone was speechless.

Coming over with a bowl of broth, splashing it on someone's head before finishing a sentence, and claiming it wasn't intentional?

And the key point: he was two or three meters away. A slip of the hand could splash it on his head? That's too much of a slip!

Do you even believe that excuse yourself?

"Damn it..."

Sure enough, hearing this only made Qin Lei angrier. Just as he was about to chase and slap the guy to death, an old man grabbed him.

"Elder Zhou..."

Seeing it was the sect elder, Qin Lei hurriedly said.

"Don't fall for his trick..." Elder Zhou transmitted his voice.

"Trick?" Qin Lei was startled.

"Mm. He came to provoke you deliberately, wanting to make you angry. If you fight him now, you'll likely be disqualified!" Elder Zhou said.

The master teacher competition followed order. If they fought fiercely before even stepping on stage, they could easily be disqualified.

"But..." Qin Lei's body stiffened. Though he understood the logic, he was still about to explode with anger.

A peak four-star master teacher, splashed with broth in the face in public—how could he not be angry?

"The sect leader was killed, and our White Sun Sect faces the greatest crisis. You must get into the top ten this time... Otherwise, our sect will be swallowed by other forces sooner or later!"

Elder Zhou said gravely.

He had also been in the siege of Zhang Xuan that day, and the scene of Teacher Yang killing the sect leader with one move was still vivid.

Having offended a suspected eight-star master teacher, their White Sun Sect could be destroyed at any time. The only hope was for this Qin Lei to break into the top ten!

Once he went to study at Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, even if other forces wanted to move against them, they would think twice.

"This guy came specifically to provoke you, so he must have some backing. Otherwise, he's given up, thinking he can't make the top ten anyway, and if he can drag you down, it's a win!"

Elder Zhou continued: "Don't be reckless and fall for it!"

"Then what do we do?"

His heart shook, and Qin Lei stopped.

"Don't worry. Continue the competition as we planned. First, secure the top ten spot. As for this guy... we can issue a [Master Teacher Challenge] after the competition, or even a life-and-death duel!"

Elder Zhou snorted, his eyes flashing: "Then you can kill him however you want! Even if you cut him into pieces, no one will stop you!"

"This..." Qin Lei paused, then gritted his teeth, his face twisted with rage: "Fine! I'll have a life-and-death duel then. If I don't kill him, my name isn't Qin Lei!"

...

"Huh? He didn't chase? Didn't hit me?"

After running a while, seeing no one chasing him, Young Master Ruohuan was startled, recalling Teacher Zhang's words: "Could it be... I really saw a ghost?"