Chapter 66: The Other Students

Over the next few days, I spent most of my time in the library of Seven Stars University. I searched for the relevant books I needed and read through them as best as I could, doing my best to find whatever dredges of information I could regarding Heaven and Earth Sect or Heaven and Earth Formula.

Qi Xing was telling the truth. The Heaven and Earth Sect and all information related to them had been virtually erased from official records. They were more akin to a mythological existence now, written off by most contemporary academics and scholars as a legend made up by people millennia ago. What little information I could find mostly related to history…about their most powerful leader to have ever existed – and also the last leader before the destruction of the sect – Tian Mo, and the atrocities he committed throughout the cultivator world.

Tian Mo was the pinnacle of demonic cultivators, a ruthless mass murderer who had no qualms massacring entire populations just to feed his cultivation. Apparently his cultivation techniques involved sucking the qi essence from people as a shortcut to growing stronger.

That was why most people viewed demonic cultivation as evil. The senseless plunder of so many lives just for personal gain…as bad and corrupted as so-called orthodox cultivators were – even in their pursuit for power and status – they wouldn't go that far. At least I hoped not.

In any case, the Heaven and Earth Sect eventually fell apart because of inner strife and betrayal – evidently, the demonic cultivators inevitably turned on each other once their greed and ambition spiraled out of control. It was good that they did, because the cultivator world was on the verge of being destroyed and conquered by the Heaven and Earth Sect and the coalition of demonic sects that it led.

There was some useful information to be gleaned from the scarce historical records, though. The cultivator world they referenced to turned out to be the Celestial Realm. Interestingly enough, that was the term that Kai Li Si used to describe the world he came from. I doubted it was a coincidence. From what I could figure out, the Celestial Realm had to be the other world that Kai Li Si was coming from, the place where I rebuilt a new Heaven and Earth Sect in future. It explained how I ended up learning Heaven and Earth Formula and reestablishing the sect there. If they were from the same world, then everything would neatly fall into place.

The problem was that there were almost no other mentions of the Celestial Realm elsewhere. Other historical records might raise it once or twice, but then never again. The Celestial Realm was often perceived as a mythological place that probably didn't exist in reality.

Of course, that meant nobody knew how to get there in the first place…or how the information regarding both the Celestial Realm and the Heaven and Earth Sect ended up here in my original world. Perhaps cultivators from the Celestial Realm somehow made their way here, but it was a one-way trip. Once they found themselves here, there was no returning to the Celestial Realm for them.

But I would think they had at least attempted to find their way back…and these attempts would be recorded somewhere. However, I couldn't find anything regarding such attempts.

"Ugh…"

I sighed wearily and put the books back into the shelf. After a few days of reading, I decided I wouldn't get any more information regarding either Heaven and Earth Formula or the Celestial Realm. I would stick around and try the library from time to time in hopes that I might stumble across something I missed earlier, but for now I needed a break or I would burn out.

Stepping out of the library, I decided to return to training. I was close to a breakthrough, and if I could just make that final push through the bottleneck, I might just…

"Shu Cong! There you are!"

Mu Zi Xing ran toward me, accompanied by a stoic Si Nan. The latter looked around somewhat grimly before he returned his gaze to me.

"Fortunately, we found you before the others. Otherwise things might get messy."

"Huh? Others? Messy? What's going on?"

"I'll explain later. For now…"

Si Nan trailed off and groaned, burying his face in his palm.

"Too late. They've found us."

Even before he said that, I could already sense the presences approaching us from multiple directions. A large group of people…no, from the deposition of their numbers, it appeared to be two huge groups of people. Three, perhaps, with a third group that was smaller than the other two, but no less powerful in terms of the quantity of qi they emanated.

"There you are!"

"Hey! We found him first!"

One group, dressed predominantly in blue, approached us from one side, while another group, dressed mostly in red, closed in from the opposite direction. I tensed, preparing to fight. Bloody hell, Qi Xing promised me a safe place to train. The old man said I didn't have to worry about getting ambushed or attacked by other students here. He lied…!

No, wait. Even though I could sense the aggression in their violently swirling qi, and tension so thick I could slice through it with my sword, I realized that their hostility wasn't directed at me. No, it was toward each other. The two huge groups, in particular, appeared to be facing off…with Si Nan, Mu Zi Xing and I caught in the middle.

"Uh oh," Mu Zi Xing muttered.

"What's going on?" I asked my friends, my voice on edge. Si Nan sighed and shook his head.

"Seven Stars University is divided into several factions. The two largest factions are the red and blue gangs. Well, you can see for yourself."

Yeah, he was right. They were clearly color coded. Even though we technically didn't have an official uniform for Seven Stars University, the two gangs had clearly developed their own uniforms. Well, uniforms were a stretch. They were wearing whatever casual clothing that regular college students would normally wear, but making sure to have the color of their allegiance represented in their attire. Whether it was a sash or the shirt they were wearing or a ribbon or a cap or jacket or accessories, their color codes were clearly visible.

"What do they want?"

"…uh, to recruit you. You're the newest student, and you kind of made waves on social media after what you did in Imperial Valley University and Ten Thousand Swords University. They're all scrambling to bring you to their side right now."

Oh. That explained the tension between them…and why their aggressive hostility was directed at each other and not me.

"That's Zhang Ping. He's the vice-leader of the blue gang. I believe he's ranked twelfth on the Seven Stars List. He's at Heaven realm, level 1."

Si Nan pointed out a handsome guy at the head of the group of people displaying their blue colors. Then he nodded toward a pretty girl with her pink hair tied into a ponytail, the person leading the group of people wearing red.

"That's Liu Yu Feng, and she's also at the Heaven realm, level 1. She's ranked eleventh. Currently serves as the vice-leader of the red gang. Both Liu Yu Feng and Zhang Ping are rivals, and their ranks are always in flux."

"What happened to their leaders?" I asked, confused. Si Nan scratched his head and shrugged.

"I don't know. I heard rumors that they both went into isolation. They are ranked second and third, but just like Zhang Ping and Liu Yu Feng, their ranks are always in flux. They compete against each other to see who gets second all the time. To beat their rival, the both of them apparently went into isolation training to try and achieve a breakthrough."

"Uh…you said they compete against each other to see who gets second…why aren't they aiming for first?"

"Qin Lie is currently ranked number one on the list…and nobody at this university can beat him. In our generation, I mean."

"Ho…"

I felt intrigued, but rankings didn't matter much to me. These guys sounded strong as hell. The Heaven realm cultivators are ranked eleventh and twelfth, so what could an Earth realm cultivator like me do against the likes of them? I would be lucky to make it to the top twenty.

"Hey, new student! Your name is Shu Cong, right?" Zhang Ping was approaching me and waving in a friendly manner. "How would you like to join my blue gang?"

"Huh? Are you stupid? Why would he join a trash gang like yours?" Liu Yu Feng blocked him. "He's joining my red gang!"

"You…aren't you going too far in bullying others?"

"You're the one who tried to rob others of their recruits first!"

"What? Since when is Shu Cong your recruit? He's free to join whoever he wants! And I was the first to reach out to him! First come, first serve!"

"Hah! Are you kidding? It's not first come, first serve. Strength determines the victor!"

"Exactly what I wish for! You only won against me the last time because of a sneak attack! I'll show you how much I've improved since then! The victor will recruit whoever he wants!"

"Agreed!"

Zhang Ping and Liu Yu Feng clashed, their hands colliding violently and causing an explosion of qi. They traded several blows, wrestling in the courtyard and sending shockwaves that buffeted the members of their gangs. Si Nan was right. The both of them were rivals, evenly matched with each other. Right now, their duel was grinding into a stalemate.

However…

"Hey…how come none of you are asking me for my opinion?" I folded my arms, sounding annoyed. "I didn't say I want to join either of your gangs."

Nobody was paying any attention to me. Zhang Ping and Liu Yu Feng continued to wrestle, rolling about in the ground and trading punches. They were getting into a dogfight now, their attacks messy. Actually, they looked more like lovers tussling with each other in bed than two rivals settling their grievances.

Okay…this just looked weird.

Since they were ignoring me, I had no reason to hang around with them and entertain these rowdy gangsters. Also…blue gang and red gang? What the hell were these kids playing at? Were they trying to make themselves feel strong or something?

"Huff…huff…"

"Looks like it's…a draw…"

"Damn it…this isn't over yet…!"

"I would continue, but I have more important tasks to do…where's Shu Cong?"

The two of them realized that I was no longer there and they stopped. Their gang members whirled about, realizing that I had slipped away while they were so immersed in watching their vice-leaders battle it out.

"There he is!"

"Get him!"

"Don't let him get away!"

The two gangs chased after me. I groaned and got ready to use my footwork technique to escape until I suddenly detected an incoming attack.

"This…! Get back, all of you!"

At my warning, the two gangs skidded to a stop. I ended up using my footwork technique after all, retreating as something smashed into the place where I had been.

"That's…Pang Hei Shan!"

Si Nan gritted his teeth when he caught sight of my assailant, a tanned cultivator with black tattoos. He straightened up and waited for the rest of his group to catch up with him. This guy led the third group, a smaller force compared to either of the two colored gangs earlier, but no less powerful.

No…he might be stronger than both vice-leaders.

"Pang Hei Shan is ranked fourth on the seven stars list. He's level 4 of Heaven realm." Si Nan seemed to know everything.

"That's right. I heard so much about you, Shu Cong. I'm here to test your abilities and see if you are really as capable as the rumors online make you out to be."

Pang Hei Shan grinned before he lunged at me.