chapter 18

The spring breeze blew through the mountain trees, producing a sight of raw natural beauty. The breeze carried the aroma of dirt, wildflowers, and trees, gently brushing against Fang Zheng's face as he stood by the open window of his room.

He was looking out at Gu Yue village, watching as the sun dipped below the horizon, the darkness gradually consuming it, and the flaming red sun slowly giving way to the soft glimmer of the jade like moon.

Fang Zheng took a long breath, allowing the fresh aroma of dirt, flowers, and trees to fill his senses and clear his thoughts.

Two days had passed since the incident with the merchant Carvan, and the caravan had already departed and left the village.

Following Carvan's departure, a heavy rain began, which lasted two days before coming to an end, leaving the air fresh and clean, allowing Fang Zheng to appreciate this peaceful time.

Fang Zheng closed his eyes for a moment to clear his mind, before reopening them. his gaze flashing with a mysterious light.

Turning away from the window, Fang Zheng walked out of his room and strolled around the house for a bit until he came across an elderly woman carrying a pile of dirty clothes.

"Ah, young Master Fang Zheng! It's you! Is there anything you need ? Just let me know, and I'll do my best fulfill your need" the old servant surprised by fang Zheng sudden appearance but instantly smiled and said.

"I want to take a bath. Please have someone prepare warm water for me," Fang Zheng replied, pausing for a moment to think if there is more instructions to give. "Let me know when it's ready. I'll bath myself; I don't need anyone to assist me."

The elderly woman nodded quickly, taking in every word. "Of course, young master. I'll look into it right away," she responded, bowing slightly before scurrying off to find another servant.

As she left, Fang Zheng's expression turned a little strange. "Tch, why do these old folks in this world run so fast, aren't they supposed to be old and weak ?" he muttered, he was irritated by the harsh reality, that he couldn't even run as fast as the old people here.

The old servant really moved quickly, because in less than two minutes, she returned, slightly out of breath.

"Young master Fang Zheng, the water is ready. Please follow me..." She wheezed, having rushed to meet fang Zheng's request.

"Hmmm, don't overexert yourself. It's not good at your age," Fang Zheng stated, gently waving her off. He went to take a bath himself and let the woman rest.

For the next few hours, Fang Zheng soaked in the warm water of the large basin, his eyes closed as he relaxed and cleared his mind. To maintain the bath's temperature, a servant would bring fresh warm water every few minutes.

After finishing his bath, Fang Zheng dried himself and dressed in clean clothes, then went downstairs.

In the hall, his uncle and aunt sat at the head of the table. It was dinnertime, and the table was filled with food.

The dinner went smoothly and softly; they ate very silently. Occasionally his uncle and aunt would attempt to start a conversation, but Fang Zheng's quick and short answers would fail their attempts.

After dinner, Fang Zheng returned to his room and sat on his bed. He took a deep breath, then seat crossed his legged on his bed, seemingly getting ready to cultivate.

Yet, unlike normal times, he didn't take out any primeval stones to use, even though he now possessed quite a small fortune from the events with Carvan two days ago.

Fang Zheng concentrated, focusing his mind on his aperture. Inside, the sea of primeval essence surged, with waves of water rising and falling within the aperture.

The waves came one after another, growing in strength and accumulating into larger and larger tides. Fang Zheng willed, and a massive wave began to stir, rising to a impossible height.

Splash, splash, splash.

The tides rushed forward, racing against each other as they charged toward the surrounding apretur walls.

Boom.

The tides crashed into the aperture's walls, creating a majestic scene. Soon after bursting into the apretur walls, the large waves turned back into gentle droplets of water. But with another command from Fang Zheng, the little droplets fused together once again and crashed into the apretur walls once more.

The waves repeatedly struck the walls, splitting apart but fusing again under Fang Zheng's control. However, such forceful attacks came at a cost. Each time the waves crashed and reformed, a portion of the primeval essence was lost, disappearing into nothingness.

Thankfully, as this "grand battle" continued, the losses were replenished by the fast natural regeneration of primeval essence of an A grade aptitude, replacing what was lost in each strike.

"Rise, strike!" Fang Zheng commanded, urging the tides to fuse and strike the aperture walls relentlessly.

Tik tik.

Suddenly, the sound of cracking echoed, and tiny fractures appeared on the aperture walls. Like falling dominoes, the cracks spread, extending and growing, covering more and more of the wall with larger cracks.

Fang Zheng's heart surged with excitement as he saw the cracks spreading. He commanded the primeval essence to keep attacking without rest.

"Wha—?" But soon, beads of sweat began to form on his forehead, as though he were standing under a downpour. The strain of controlling his primeval essence for such an intense and prolonged assault had taken its toll on his mind. In his moment of excitement, when the cracks appeared and victory seemed close, Fang Zheng's control slipped. His strict command over the primeval essence loosened, causing more primeval essence to be lost with each clash against the aperture wall.

Now, the remaining primeval essence wasn't enough to make the final breakthrough.

Realizing his mistake, Fang Zheng quickly tried to refocus. He slowed the pace of the waves crashing against the walls, doing his best to conserve his primeval essence.

The cracks on the aperture walls started to heal, gaining ground because of Fang Zheng's carelessness. But fortunately, by regaining his focus, Fang Zheng was able to stabilize the situation. He found a rhythm where the walls couldn't fully regenerate, yet his primeval essence could be replenished at the same time.

As time passed, Fang Zheng's primeval essence continued to regenerate, and the steady pressure on the walls kept the cracks from healing completely. Finally, with his primeval essence recovered enough and the situation being under his control, Fang Zheng was able to turn the tide in his favor again, and send a sudden massive wave towards the apretur walls, making the final breakthrough.

Click.

The light-shaped wall finally shattered, breaking into pieces. In its place was a brand new wall—it was liquid and spiral shaped, thicker than the previous light wall, with gentle ripples flowing across its surface.

"Pant... pant... I... finally... advanced," Fang Zheng gasped, smiling while being too exhausted. His entire body was drenched in sweat, as if he had been swimming with clothes on.

He collapsed onto the bed, still smiling as he fall asleep.

....

The night sky was filled with stars, shining brightly over Gu Yue village. All the lights in the village had already been turned off, and there wasn't a single sign of life in the quiet, empty streets.

It was 1 a.m., and even the insects had gone silent, let alone the humans.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

But even in the dead of night, work never stops, and peace is hard to come by.

"Who is it at this late hour?" The Academy Elder grumbled angrily as he reluctantly got out of bed to see who was knocking at the door. He was furious—he often worked until late at night, which left him with little time to rest and sleep. And now someone had the nerve to disturb his remaining precious time to rest ?

This old man was truly angry. If this wasn't something very important, some people might not live to see the tomorrow.

He stomped and walked toward the door, his irritation rising with each step, eager to see who dared to wake him at such an late hour.

When he opened the door, he saw a muscular middle-aged man kneeling before him.

"Hmph! Why did you wake me up ? This had better to be important, or else..." the Academy Elder's voice was full of anger, he didn't beat around the bush as he directly threatened the trembling man in front of him.

The academy guard was trembling, he was clearly feeling the old man's rage. He knew that, at this moment one wrong word could cost him his life.

He was only a mortal, not even a gu yue clansman. In the eyes of a Gu Master, his life was worth less than dirt. It wasn't uncommon for a Gu Master to kill a mortal on a whim, just because they feel like it.

But the guard managed to calm himself, reminding himself of the reason he had come. He was confident that once the elder heard his report, his life would be spared.

"E-elder sir, I have something important to report" the guard stammered, trying to maintain himself under the pressure of an angry rank three gu master's aura. He knew the news he carried would save him, but he couldn't help but to feel scared.

"Stop wasting time and just right get to the point," the Academy Elder cut in coldly, clearly annoyed.

The guard flinched but quickly continued "S-sir, one of the academy students came to the academy a few minutes ago and claimed to have had a breakthrough..."

"What?" The Academy Elder was stunned. Given the time, none of the students should have reached rank one middle stage yet.

"Lead the way," academy elder ordered, his tone suddenly hurried, all traces of his earlier irritation gone. If this news was true, it was worth being woken up in the middle of the night.

"Yes, sir," the guard replied, breathing a sigh of relief. He knew his life was spared, at least for now.

After a few minutes of walking, with the guard leading the way, the Academy Elder reached the academy, eager to see which student had managed to advance so early.

But in his mind, only three students could have possibly progressed this fast. After all, logically speaking, only the three with the highest talent had any chance of achieving such a feat this early, not some c grade or d grade talent.

Amongst the three, Mo Bei and Chi Cheng both possessed B grade talent and were backed by two of the strongest factions in gu yue village that provided them with ample resources. Then there was Fang Zheng, who, despite not having as many resources as the other two, had a A grade aptitude, allowing him to bridge that gap.

Arriving at the academy, the Academy elder's pace quickened, his hurried steps showing just how eager he was to discover which of these students had advance to middle stage so early.

The Academy Elder finally arrived at his destination and stood there, shocked for a moment from what he was seeing, "Fang… Yuan?"

Before him was a young man in a black robe with messy hair, looking almost exactly like one of his students, Fang Yuan. But how could that be possible? Fang Yuan was only a C grade talent, so this couldn't be right. He had to be mistaken.

Fang Zheng, hearing the Academy Elder's voice, turned around, his head slightly dizzy because he woke up not long ago. But when he realized what the academy elder had said and processed it, his face was filled with confusion.

"Ah, I'm Fang Zheng, not Fang Yuan…" he said in a low, awkward voice. Even he had forgotten for a moment that just how much he looked like fang yuan in the state he is in now—after all, they were twins.

The atmosphere grew awkward as both the Academy Elder and Fang Zheng stood there staring at each other in silence.

"Uh, I guess it's my fault for wearing a black robe, like the one Fang Yuan usually wears," Fang Zheng said, finally breaking the uncomfortable and awkward silence, blaming his choice of clothing for what happened now.

"Hahaha, it was my mistake as well, not recognizing you immediately." Academy Elder laughed, coughing and masking his embarrassment.

"Maybe it's a bit late, but this student pays his respects to the great elder," Fang Zheng said suddenly, cupping his hands in a respectful gesture.

"Haha, there's no need for that," the academy elder waved his hand dismissively, before turning the conversation back to the matter at hand. "Hmm I see, so you've had a breakthrough to the middle stage huh. I knew you'd be the first to advance—you've been working really hard lately."

"Ah, if it weren't for sir elder's guidance and the waivers throughout this time, I wouldn't have been able to cultivate like this. I owe all my progress to you, sir." Fang Zheng replied respectfully, both flattering and thanking the academy elder for his waivers during the classes.

The Academy Elder, understanding Fang Zheng's words, smiled in satisfaction. He was genuinely pleased with Fang Zheng's progress.

"According to the details of the test, even without checking anyone else's progress, as the first one to advance to rank one middle stage, you'll be the academy's chairman. But to make it official, you'll have to wait a little while longer.." academy elder said kindly, explaining the rewards and details of the test to him once again.

As the academy elder finished speaking, Fang Zheng's eyes glinted with a mysterious light. He hadn't came here just to report his breakthrough like a dutiful student—he had some plans in his mind.

"Um, I was wondering… is there any chance I could get the thirty primeval stones for first place now ?" Fang Zheng asked in a shy voice, waiting for the academy elder's response.

"Normally, the rewards are distributed at the end of each week, along with the students allowances.." the Academy Elder replied, pausing to see Fang Zheng's reaction.

Fang Zheng's face fell with disappointment. He clenched his fist "secretly" but he couldn't hide such a reaction from the sharp eyes of the Rank Three Academy Elder.

Raising an eyebrow, the academy elder noticed something was weird about Fang Zheng's, he just smiled and continued "However, since you've advanced so quickly, much faster than we've seen in previous years, I'm willing to make an exception and give the primeval stones to you now."

Hearing this, Fang Zheng's face lit up with joy, his earlier disappointment vanishing instantly.

None of Fang Zheng's reactions went unnoticed by the Academy Elder. He was intrigued—why was Fang Zheng so excited over a mere thirty primeval stones ? The academy elder knew Fang Zheng's uncle was a relatively wealthy man, not on the same level as a Rank Three elder but still quite formidable and wealthy among the village's Rank Two gu masters. And besides that, academy elder had heard that just two days ago, Fang Zheng received eight hundred primeval stones in compensation from Jia Fu, because of what happened in the Carvan.

With this knowledge, the Academy Elder couldn't help but wonder, why Fang Zheng was so happy over such a small amount of primeval stones.

"Fang Zheng, I want to ask you something, Please be honest with me," the Academy Elder said, smiling as his curiosity got the better of him and he decided to ask the question in his mind.

"Uh, yes, of course sir" Fang Zheng replied, a little confused, but inwardly he smirked, thinking, "Hehe, finally he took the bait."

"Seeing one of my students so happy makes me happy too," the academy elder continued, "But your excitement over just thirty primeval stones seems… odd to me. I thought you had enough primeval stones, that just this much wouldn't matter much to you."

Fang Zheng paused, staring at the academy elder as if he was processing the question. Then, his face flushed slightly, and he spoke in a shy tone, "Ah, I must have shown you an embarrassing scene, sir elder" He hesitated before continuing, "Actually, my family is in a difficult financial situation…"

"Your family is in financial trouble ?" the elder asked, surprised and even more confused than before.

"To put it simply, as you probably know, my family isn't that wealthy. I live with my uncle and aunt, and my brother used to live with us too, but..." Fang Zheng's voice trailed off as he showed a brief expression of sadness. He took a deep breath and continued, "anyway, the thing is, my uncle is getting old and can't provide for his family like he used to, and there aren't many jobs in the village for an old Gu Master..."

"Oh, is that so…" The Academy Elder's smile had changed. It was no longer the genuine smile from before, but now it was a forced smile.

"Yes, so sometimes I have to help my family with their financial issues," Fang Zheng replied, a helpless smile crossing his face as he lowered his head.

"Wait… what? Helping with financial matters ?" The Academy Elder almost shouted, his face now completely devoid of even the forced smile from before. His expression solemn.

"Oh yes, umm… recently, my family's financial situation has worsened. As a member of the family, I have to step in and help" Fang Zheng explained, while he was looking at the ground, he had a helpless smile on his face, but what academy elder couldn't see was the mysterious shining light in his eyes. He continued, "like, i usually give half of whatever I earn to my family, including the academy's allowance."

"then...what about Jia Fu's compensation ?" the Academy Elder asked, his face turning grave and his breath growing heavier.

"Oh, I gave all of that to my uncle."

"Y-you did what ?" At this point, the Academy Elder was at a loss for words.

"So you see sir, My uncle has told me about a large debt that our family owed. If we didn't pay it back, they were going to take my uncle and aunt house," Fang Zheng explained, pausing for a moment to take a deep breath before continuing, "So, on the day I received those primeval stones, my uncle came and talked to me for hours and eventually asked if I could give him the eight hundred primeval stones… and I agreed."

"Did you see any paperwork to prove this debt was real ?" the Academy Elder asked, his voice was quiet and solemn, his face growing more and more grave.

"Oh, well, he showed me some documents for a moment, but I don't really understand these kind of stuff," Fang Zheng said, lifting his head, looking at academy elder while having a Navie smile on his face, "But if sir is worried that I might be tricked, please don't be. I'm sure it's real. After all, he's my uncle. How could a family member lie to another family member ? Especially when he's the one who raised me from a young age. I trust him completely."

The Academy Elder's face was now completely expressionless as he looked at the innocent smile on Fang Zheng's face. inside, the academy elder felt a wave of sadness and pity rising up.

In the end, the academy elder forced a smile and praised Fang Zheng, saying, "Haha, I'm proud that our village has such a young man like you Fang Zheng. With a young man like you, who would help his family without a second thought, our village's future is secured."

"Hehe, you're flattering me, Sir Elder…" Fang Zheng replied with a shy smile, his face lighting up with the elder's compliment.

At that moment, a guard entered the room, carrying a red pouch in his hand.

As per the Academy Elder's orders, the guard handed the pouch over to Fang Zheng.

Fang Zheng accepted it with a smile. "I'm sure my uncle will be happy too. since part of the debt is still unpaid, this thirty primeval stones would help a lot."

"I'm sure he will, I'm sure he will" the Academy Elder replied with a forced smile, personally sending Fang Zheng off.

The two said goodbyes to each other, and with a final word of thanks from Fang Zheng, he left the academy.

As academy elder watched Fang Zheng's figure disappear, he muttered to himself, "this Gu Yue Dong Tu… Hmph."

Because of Tonight, academy elder was filled with a mix of emotions, two of them standing out the most—happiness and anger.

Happiness, because tonight he saw that fang Zheng was actually such a kind hearted boy, so willing to help his family without hesitation. The Academy Elder could see Fang Zheng's innocence and naivety tonight as well as his love for his family.

Anger, because of what he had learned tonight.

"Debt, huh? Gu Yue Dong Tu… I wouldn't care if he gaved Fang Zheng a little amount of primeval stones, or even if he didn't give him any at all. It could be a good lesson for Fang Zheng, helping him understand the value of resources and temper his character, a chance for him to increase his management skills as well. But..." The academy elder paused, took a deep breath as his face turned serious. "To actually take his own primeval stones from our village's only hope and deprive him of the resources he needs to grow, abusing a family member's trust like this … That's going too far."

The Academy Elder's mind was made up. If he hadn't known, he wouldn't have intervened. But now that he did, he wasn't going to let this slide. He was determined to teach this Gu Yue Dong Tu a lesson, and make him pay back everything he took from Fang Zheng tenfold, no, a hundredfold.

....

Fang Zheng walked through the quiet streets with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Phew, everything went smoothly…" he let out a breath of turbid air, feeling a sense of relief wash over him.

What had just happened at the academy was the most difficult acting he had ever done in this world.

Two days ago, dealing with Jia Fu had been challenging too, but it hadn't been as tough as today. Today, he had to keep up the pretense, showing emotions that weren't his own and were completely fake. But with Jia Fu, it was simpler—he had just played the role of a righteous man who felt uneasy in front of a powerful figure. That wasn't entirely a lie; part of it was true, so it was easier to pull off.

But today, in front of the Academy Elder, it was a whole different story. He had to spin a complete lie, faking and showing the emotions he didn't feel at all.

Still, he had managed to do it.

Of course fang Zheng got lucky too because academy elder actually took the bait, but even if the Academy Elder hadn't taken the bait, Fang Zheng had already prepared a backup plan. If academy elder didn't fell for it, he would just try to guide the conversation in the direction he wanted.

And even in the worst-case scenario, he was ready to give up. There were still plenty of opportunities to make his plan succeed, after all there will be more tests like this in the future and that means more of such a meetings with academy elder and more chances to try this plan again.

Fang Zheng chuckled and he thought about his uncle.

He really had given the eight hundred primeval stones to his uncle—of course not just giving it away, but for his uncle to hold onto them for fang Zheng.

Fang Zheng knew his uncle wouldn't dare to take the money for himself. After all, they both lived in Gu Yue Village, and doing something so bold would bring severe consequences. Maybe if it were someone else, his uncle would've been tempted to keep the primeval stones for himself. But since it was Fang Zheng, he wouldn't even think about it.

And the reason for this move was simple: if the Academy Elder ever investigated, he would find that the primeval stones from jia Fu were really with his uncle, which would only strengthen his belief in Fang Zheng's fake story tonight.

And even if the truth eventually came out and his uncle tried to reveal everything, no one would really believe in him.

who people prefer to believe ? A naive young man with little experience in life ? Or a cunning old man, with there being "evidence" against him ?

The answer was obvious, no one would think a Navie, inexperienced you man would pull off such a plan.

Besides, even if all of Fang Zheng's efforts and the "evidence" weren't enough, the village would never favor a weak old gu master with no potential to grow in power over a genius with A grade aptitude.

"Oh, my dear uncle, I'm sorry, But the path of cultivation is very demanding on resources and I'm not really pleased with just getting seven primeval stones from you each week." Fang Zheng laughed as if he could already see, his uncle "willingly" help his nephew with more primeval stones.

With a smirk on his face, Fang Zheng continued walking towards uncle and aunt home.