Fangxian Heretical Path

Chapter 106 Ceasefire and Fight to the Death
The calm voice rang out in the council hall, immediately making the eyes of the disciples around light up.

Many people immediately began whispering among themselves, like flies buzzing.

Fang Shu's expression was calm and composed, showing no fear whatsoever.

Qin Min narrowed her eyes slightly, then a cold smile appeared on her face, as if she was about to agree immediately.

But just then, the owner of the Dushi Pavilion, who was standing in the lobby, suddenly shouted: "Alright, everyone take a break!"

The shout was like a thunderclap, echoing throughout the hall and even causing the eaves to tremble slightly. Some disciples with low cultivation levels felt their blood and qi tremble, and their faces turned slightly pale.

Fang Shu and Qin Min were unaffected, but immediately turned their gazes toward the owner of the Duguan Pavilion.

The other person stood with his hands behind his back, his face calm, and then slowly began to explain:
"I asked you two to demonstrate your cultivation, verify the truth, and inspire your fellow disciples, not for you to be fierce and fight each other to see who is better."

With the imperial examinations approaching, internal competitions offer little opportunity for experience and carry a risk of injury. Furthermore, regardless of victory or defeat, the winner will expose their weaknesses, and the loser will suffer a blow to their morale—both unwise actions for the sect.

After a pause, the owner of the private club stared intently at the two of them:

"If you have any anger in your hearts, save it for the imperial examinations. Even if you two meet there, I will not say a word. Let each of you accept your fate."

Upon hearing this, Fang Shu slowly calmed the anger that had been simmering within him.

Heeding the advice, he cupped his hands in thanks and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Master."

Qin Min, standing beside him, had a cold and stern expression. Her eyes flashed with displeasure, and she even gave Fang Shu a blatant sidelong glance, her face practically screaming "disdain."

Seeing Qin Min's expression of joy and anger, Fang Shu almost smiled.

Fortunately, under the gaze of the owner of the private residence, the woman finally uttered, "Understood."

Seeing that both disciples had stopped arguing, the master's expression softened.

After thinking for a moment, the old woman simply waved her hand, giving up on letting Qin Min and Fang Shu display their cultivation levels. She only asked the two of them to share their insights from breaking through the third tribulation with the other disciples.

Although the disciples in the hall were disappointed that they didn't get to see the two fight, they listened with great interest and excitement as the two preached and shared their experiences in breaking through barriers.

After a while, the two had finished speaking, and the headmaster dismissed the other disciples, leaving only Fang Shu and the other two in the hall.

After giving Qin Min a thorough admonition, she turned to Fang Shu and asked:
"While family background isn't the most important factor in the imperial examinations, it can sometimes be the straw that breaks the camel's back. I heard that you and Master Yu Le have already established a business in town. Have you settled the household registration matters?"

Fang Shu was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. He had somewhat overlooked this matter and wasn't entirely sure if it had been handled properly. He wasn't making things up and honestly replied:
"I don't know yet, I'll go and ask later."

The owner of the private residence nodded: "Alright. There are still three days before the spring imperial examination registration. If it's not ready yet, just have Master Yu Le come to me. If it's ready, just bring your household registration."

"Thank you, Master." Fang Shu bowed.

After another round of casual conversation, he bowed once more and then left the council hall.

As he walked outside the hall, a slight look of dejection appeared on Fang Shu's face.

He thought he could take advantage of the "selection of generals" to have a good showdown with Qin Min.

Given Qin Min's personality, this woman would definitely agree, as she could help him hone his skills and make some progress.

Unexpectedly, the owner of the private club stopped him.

However, what the owner of the inn said was indeed a wise and experienced opinion. Fang Shu thought about it briefly and then put the matter aside.

Soon, he found his second uncle, Yu Le, in the office and asked him about the household registration.

Upon hearing this, Second Uncle Yu Le did not utter a single word.

With a smile, the other party pulled out the household registration and property deeds of the uncle and nephew from his bosom, clearly having been prepared in advance and just waiting for Fang Shu to come out of the pass to collect them.

Fang Shu raised an eyebrow, immediately clasped his hands in a salute to his second uncle Yu Le, and then, carrying the household registration and other documents, turned back to find the headmaster. He had the necessary signatures and fingerprints made, thus completing the registration for the spring imperial examination.

Everything is ready.

Next, it will take at least three days, and at the latest seven days.

Once disciples of the Immortal Sect descend from the mountain, the people of Guling Town can rush to the Spring Examination and strive for a path to immortality by ascending the mountain and joining the sect!
………………

In the past few days, it wasn't just the dojo master who was calling out his generals in his own dojo.

The twenty or thirty Taoist temples of all sizes in the market, as well as some family-based Taoist practitioners, were all teaching their disciples and passing on their experience in their respective temples and homes.

The scale of the burning tail hall was even greater than that of the solitary poison hall.

The academy master made a rare appearance before everyone, gathering all the disciples from both the inner and outer courtyards, as well as the stewards and servants.

The reason for doing this was to create momentum for the white dog.

The man, Ling Baiquan, was naked, his muscles bulging like cast iron. He stood motionless in the center of the field, surrounded by ten inner court disciples who were beating him.

However, the punches and kicks of the ten inner disciples landed on Ling Baiquan as if striking a bronze bell, making only a thud, but failing to harm Ling Baiquan's skin.

"Too soft, too slow!"

A carefree smile appeared on the white dog's face. He suddenly shook his body, and a burst of energy immediately rushed out, sending all ten inner courtyard disciples flying.

This powerful energy left the surrounding disciples of the Burning Tail Pavilion visibly shocked, and they began to discuss amongst themselves.

"Impressive skills! Your senior brother will surely emerge victorious in this spring's imperial examinations."

"As expected of your senior brother!"

The headmaster looked at his disciple with a calm expression, but a hint of satisfaction was in his eyes.

The white dog looked around the arena, cracking its neck as it twisted.

"Hahaha!" He grinned maliciously, looking around and shouting:

"Again, again! But this time, I'm going to have to use some tricks. Immortals of the First Tribulation, stop here, or you'll have to bear the consequences."

Upon hearing his words, many disciples took a half step back, their faces showing fear. After a while, a Second Tribulation Immortal finally stepped forward, cupping his hands in greeting: "Junior Brother, please enlighten me."

Bang!

In just a few breaths, the man was sent flying by a punch, spitting out a mouthful of blood, clearly injured.

This situation made the people around him even more hesitant, and for a moment no one dared to step forward to ask for advice.

Seeing this, the white dog's aura grew even stronger, and his blood and qi slowly condensed into the shape of a wolf's head above his head, exuding greed and arrogance.

But just then, someone else suddenly stepped forward, attracting everyone's attention and causing many to look on with surprise:

"What's that old guy doing here?!"

"Is he here to die? He couldn't even defeat a first-stage immortal back then."

When the white dog saw the newcomer, it also narrowed its eyes slightly.

The person who came was not a disciple of the Shaowei Pavilion, but a manager, namely Manager Xiao Hu.

Xiao Hu's face was numb. He stood in the middle of the field, his body thin and frail. He didn't say a word, but simply reached out his hand, making a gesture of challenging Ling Baiquan to teach him a lesson.

This scene caused a stir among the dojo members, and even made the dojo master frown slightly.

For reasons unknown, some people immediately shouted and even tried to physically pull or shove the object.
"The imperial examination is a matter for the disciples. Xiao Hu, what are you doing? Come back quickly."

Ling Baiquan seemed to have thought of something. He grinned at Xiao Hu, reached out to stop those who wanted to pull the other party down, and turned to look at Ling Guanzhu.

“Master, since Steward Xiao also wants to test my abilities, why not grant his wish?”

Upon hearing this, the museum owner nodded thoughtfully, only instructing, "Be mindful of your behavior."

"Thank you, Master."

Both Ling Baiquan and Xiao Hu bowed to Ling Guanzhu.

After exchanging greetings, the two stood in the center of the room. One was young and vigorous, full of energy and fiery in temperament, while the other was old and frail, barely breathing and as withered as a dead tree.

"Old man! I don't need your daughter as a furnace at all; I can break through the three tribulations on my own."

The white dog deliberately shouted loudly, "Why do you insist on ruining my reputation time and time again?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he charged straight at Xiao Hu, his body radiating a fierce aura, seemingly capable of knocking Xiao Hu away.

Faced with such a powerful display, Xiao Hu showed no panic, only a blank expression.

Bang!

The strong and the old collided violently, but the scene that everyone expected did not occur.

Xiao Hu actually planted his feet directly into the floor tiles, and despite his bones cracking, he managed to withstand Ling Baiquan's attack. Moreover, his hands were still tightly gripping Ling Baiquan's hands.

This scene astonished everyone in the museum, who all thought to themselves, "What a ruthless person."

Upon seeing this, the white dog looked surprised, then a sinister smile appeared on its face as it tried to grab the steward, Xiao Hu, and kill him.

The next moment, something even more astonishing happened.

Before the white dog could muster its strength and attack the tiger, a loud shout suddenly rang out from inside the hall:
"You dare!"

It was the owner of the restaurant, who was sitting in a high position. He suddenly opened his eyes and with a flick of his hand, a covered bowl flew out like an arrow, striking one of the people.

But the old man's target was not the white dog, but the gaunt steward Xiao Hu.

Roar!
A tiger's roar erupted from Xiao Hu's mouth almost simultaneously, its sound shrill and no less than the shout of the sect leader.

Before the master of the academy could use his methods, Xiao Hu's face was fierce and resentful.

With his shout, he shook the white dog, then opened his mouth and, disregarding the danger beside him, his two saber teeth bit down hard on the white dog's neck.

With this bite, Xiao Hu actually shattered the white dog's protective aura, his saber teeth piercing into the dog's flesh, approaching its throat and meridians.

Then, bang!
The covered bowl that the restaurant owner had shaken out then flew over and struck Xiao Hu's chest with precision and force, causing his chest to cave in.

Even though Xiao Hu suffered such trauma, he didn't utter a sound, only relentlessly biting and killing the white dog.

His eyes were wide open like copper bells, bloodshot, as if he had taken some kind of potent drug and was determined to die.

This unexpected turn of events left the white dog momentarily flustered.

When he came to his senses, he was both shocked and furious. He immediately took drastic measures, grabbed Xiao Hu by the neck, broke his neck, and then tried to tear him off his body.

"You old dog! Get out of my way!"

Even though Xiao Hu's breath had ceased, his eyes were dim, and his body was like a rag doll, being torn apart by the white dog.

His old teeth were still firmly clenched on the other person's neck, refusing to let go.

Faced with this situation, even the furious Master Ling's expression became complicated, and he did not make another move.

When Ling Baiquan finally managed to pry Xiao Hu's teeth open with his hands and remove him from his neck, Xiao Hu's body was covered in blood, a complete mess, and it was impossible to tell whose blood it was.

After removing Xiao Hu, the white dog hurriedly stroked its own neck to check its injuries, its face filled with resentment yet also showing a look of relief.

Little did he know that the wolf head aura that had taken shape above his head had already dissipated completely in the chaos just now.

Seeing Xiao Hu's horrific actions, almost every disciple of the Burning Tail Pavilion showed a look of pity on their face.

Many people looked at Ling Baiquan with strange expressions, their eyes filled with gloom as they stared at him, seemingly lost in thought.

(End of this chapter)