Chapter 763: The Heavenly Path Library Levels Up (Part 2)

However, based on her understanding of her teacher, he probably wouldn't care.

Dean Mi and Dean Zhao had wanted to take him as a disciple or junior fellow apprentice, but he had refused. How could he possibly go and apprentice himself to another teacher at the academy?

"Alright!"

Sure enough, upon hearing her words, the young man before her shook his head, not looking too concerned, and instead asked about someone else: "By the way, that Teacher Luo... how many students did she end up taking?"

"Teacher Luo, she... seems to have taken none. Her conditions were too harsh—memorizing ten thousand books in one hour is impossible!"

Luo Qiqi shook her head.

"Not a single one?"

Zhang Xuan found it strange.

Since she was a teacher at the academy, how could she not take any students?

"Yes, I don't know the specifics either, but everyone finds it strange!" Luo Qiqi was also puzzled.

According to legend, this Luo Ruoxi was sent down from headquarters for training. If so, she would certainly need to take students and spread teachings to complete her mission. But with such harsh conditions from the start, how could she take anyone?

This was clearly driving people away!

"I'll find a chance to ask about it!"

After thinking for a while, Zhang Xuan couldn't figure out the reason either, so he had to shake his head.

Putting aside thoughts of Luo Ruoxi, he focused his attention on Luo Qiqi. Taking a look, he couldn't help but be startled: "You broke through?"

Luo Qiqi had previously reached the peak of the Bridge Heaven realm, considered outstanding in the second year. Unexpectedly, after a few days, she had broken through the shackles and reached the seventh level of Mortal Transformation, the Return to One realm!

"Yes, it's all thanks to the teacher. I received Dean Zhao's marrow cleansing and tendon washing, which allowed me to break through in one go!" Luo Qiqi smiled.

Without Dean Zhao's help, even though she wasn't far from the Return to One realm, breaking through would have taken months or even a year.

After reaching the Spirit Fusion realm, breaking through required not only an increase in true qi but also growth in the soul. The latter was extremely difficult to cultivate, often making it hard to grow even a trace over many years.

Because of this, countless second-year students were stuck at the peak of the Bridge Heaven realm, unable to take the final step.

Dean Zhao, as a Saint Domain expert, personally took action. Not only did he purify the true qi, but he also tempered and honed the soul, allowing for a smooth breakthrough in one go.

Not only did she benefit, but Yu Fei'er, Xing Yuan, Wu Zhen, Ye Qian, and others also gained a lot.

"Credit?" Zhang Xuan blinked.

What credit did he have? And what did it have to do with Dean Zhao?

"Yes, teacher, have you forgotten about the underground palace? Rescuing us and retrieving Senior Wu Yangzi's corpse—that's a great credit..."

Luo Qiqi explained.

"Oh..."

Zhang Xuan then understood why, after he had collapsed the Alchemy Academy's guild branch, the other party had suddenly changed their attitude and didn't do anything to him. So that was the reason.

"Teacher, I submitted the Zither Refining Method to the Refining Academy without your permission. I hope you will punish me..."

With these words, Luo Qiqi quickly bowed.

The Zither Refining Method was something her teacher had helped her obtain, and submitting it without permission seemed somewhat presumptuous.

"That thing was originally taught to you by Wu Yangzi. You can handle it however you like. Besides, submitting it to Dean Zhao allows him to maximize its effect—it's nothing!" Zhang Xuan quickly waved his hand.

Luo Qiqi had formally become Wu Yangzi's student, so she was his rightful disciple. This technique—who she passed it to and how she handled it—was entirely her own decision, and had nothing to do with him.

"Thank you, Teacher!"

Although she had guessed that her teacher would agree, she hadn't expected him to consent without a second thought. Such magnanimity was truly admirable.

"By the way, Teacher, regarding the matter of Wu Yangzi's old residence, I had someone investigate. Someone claimed to know about it and arranged to meet me tonight. It's already dark now, so I need to go check it out."

After chatting a while longer, Luo Qiqi suddenly remembered something and couldn't help speaking up.

"Tonight?" Zhang Xuan looked up toward the window and realized that the sun had already set and the sky was growing dark.

After finishing the matters at the Spirit Materials Pavilion, it was already past noon. Then he attended the open lecture, strolled with Luo Ruoxi, and by the time he fell unconscious, it was already afternoon. He had been unconscious for over three days, and now, upon waking, it was the evening of the fourth day.

"How about this: I'll eat something and go with you!" After a moment's hesitation, Zhang Xuan said.

He hadn't eaten or drunk anything for three days, and his stomach was completely empty.

"I knew you'd be hungry, Teacher. I've already prepared everything!"

Luo Qiqi smiled, and with a flick of her wrist, the table in the room was laden with a sumptuous feast of wine and dishes.

"Thank you!"

Seeing the delicious food, Zhang Xuan's appetite was whetted, and he quickly began to eat.

While eating, he took the opportunity to look into his mind.

Three days ago, he had fallen unconscious because the library had trembled. Now that he was awake, he wanted to see what had happened.

His mind sank into the sea of consciousness, and soon he arrived inside the library, where he was immediately stunned.

"This... how has it changed?"

The previous library had been a vast hall filled with countless books, stretching endlessly. Now, its appearance was the same, but the hall had become even more expansive and towering.

It seemed that after the tremor, the entire library had been renovated—not only more magnificent and larger, but also more imposing.

From a distance, it gave a sense of spiritual oppression.

If the former Heavenly Dao Library, though within the sea of consciousness, had felt ethereal and intangible, like flowers in water or the moon in a mirror, now it was completely different—solid and steady, as if a real hall stood before one's eyes.

"The Heavenly Dao Library has become more real, but... what use is that?"

He was full of doubts.

Even if it had become real, what good was it?

He went to the bookshelf again and reached for a book, but as before, he grasped nothing.

In other words, although the many books before him now appeared more real than before, they were still illusory—visible yet intangible.

"What about the previous books?"

These books were empty; what about the ones that had been collected before?

He walked over, grabbed a book at random, and gently opened it.

Rustle!

He heard the pages flutter, and immediately felt his vision blur. The contents of the book shot straight into his mind, firmly memorized.

"This..."

His eyes went wide.

Previously, even when he was in the library, he had to flip through these books page by page and memorize them word by word. Now, it seemed that simply picking up a book with the desire to read would cause its contents to automatically imprint themselves in his mind, never to be forgotten.

"Excellent... From now on, my reading speed will definitely increase dramatically!"

His eyes gleamed with excitement.

He had thought that the Heavenly Dao Library had only been redecorated without much change. Unexpectedly, it had changed—he just hadn't noticed it earlier!

With the ability to memorize a book upon contact, as long as he was conscious in the library, he could easily memorize not just tens of thousands of books in an hour, but even hundreds of thousands.

From now on, he could save the Heavenly Dao volumes and not waste them on this.

"If reading speed has increased... could other abilities have also grown stronger?"

The library had become more imposing, and its abilities seemed enhanced. If so, could it have gained more functions?

He quickly withdrew from his sea of consciousness, returned to the present, and looked at a chicken drumstick in his palm.

"Flaw!"

He murmured softly.

A book appeared, and he casually opened it.

"The thigh of a boneless spirit chicken, cooked by Drunken Heart Tower's culinary master Wu Bushui using forty-seven seasonings..."

He finished reading quickly.

"No difference!"

Zhang Xuan scratched his head.

Previously, the library could also reveal flaws; after the renovation, it didn't seem to have gained any extra power.

"Maybe looking at a chicken drumstick is useless?"

Puzzled, he turned his eyes to the bookshelf not far away.

The elite district's house was fully equipped, and the bookshelf held some books, but they were all about humanities, geography, customs, and habits—not cultivation techniques.

"Flaw!"

Just as he was about to stand up, he thought of something and didn't rise. Instead, he focused his mind.

Whoosh!

His mind stirred, and a book appeared.

"This..."

He had only tried it on a whim, without much hope. He never dreamed that a book would actually appear. He quickly grabbed it and casually opened it.

After reading it, he tested it several more times. Moments later, his eyes gleamed with excitement.

"Without touching, I can store books in the library... Excellent!"

Previously, the only way to collect a book was to touch it with his hand. Now, he only needed to look at the book and call out softly in his mind, and he could collect it as well.

In other words, he could do it without touching!

Before, he had to race along the bookshelves; now, there was no need for such trouble.

Efficiency had increased several times over!

"What about other things?"

After testing books, he wanted to try other items to see if he could collect them without touching. Unfortunately, he found it impossible.

That is, for now, only books could be collected by focusing his gaze. Other treasures and objects still required touch to reveal their flaws.

He couldn't help shaking his head.

He had gotten excited for nothing.

If he could know the flaws of anything just by looking, without touching, his abilities would more than double.

Unfortunately, whether because the library's level wasn't high enough or because the Heavenly Dao itself had flaws, it couldn't be done for now.

"Let me try again!"

Still unwilling to give up, he experimented again.

While he was happily testing, Luo Qiqi, sitting across from him, was bewildered.

She had bought a table full of dishes, hoping her teacher would enjoy them. Instead, the man before her picked up a chicken drumstick, looked at it left and right as if meeting an old friend, now happy, now shaking his head, now excited, now melancholy, now solemn, now relaxed...

He displayed every expression imaginable.

Could it be that after fainting, his brain had been damaged and still hadn't recovered?

Otherwise, any normal person would be seriously looking at her, not a chicken drumstick!

After all, she was on the school beauty list, a stunning beauty one in ten thousand. How could her beautiful face be inferior to a chicken drumstick?

Just as she was lamenting, she saw her teacher reach out, tear off another chicken drumstick, and examine it even more intently.

As if answering her unspoken question: if one drumstick wasn't enough, then... two!

"..." Luo Qiqi.