Chapter - 4

The inner place was immersed in silence.

Zhou Yuan gazed at Zhou Qing, who was seated beside him. The latter's usually imposing face was listless and filled with powerlessness at this moment. It was obvious that the events from back then had been a huge blow to him.

His son's destiny had been stolen by his enemy right in front of him, destroying the former's foundations, and he had been completely powerless. It was possible to imagine what kind of humiliation that had been for any father.

This King Wu's methods are truly vicious." Zhou Yuan gazed at the slowly squirming bundle of dark red on his palm with a look of delight.

Yes, Delight. Why? Some may ask.

While King Wu might have left the Dragon's resentment poison in his body as a way to torture him, it was a blessing in disguise, as due to his gifts and foreknowledge Zhou Yuan was sure that he could use the poison as his power(remember the physique he asked for in the first chapter).

This poison was also his only way to practice the Ancestral Dragon scripture. The most advanced Qi cultivation art present in Tianyuan World.

What infuriated Zhou Yuan the most, was that his mother had suffered greatly because of this, and she now had less than ten years to live.

With a deep breath, Zhou Yuan slowly pushed down the surging rage in his heart.

Zhou Yuan pretended to be in a rage, and spoke in a low voice, "Father, am I truly unable to become a Genesis Master?". Even though he knew the answer to this question he still had to ask this as it would be very suspicious to know the information about the ancestral grounds when his father never mentioned it to him.

Upon hearing Zhou Yuan's words, Zhou Qing deeply frowned, as if he was thinking about something. A long while later, he finally replied in a soft voice, "Are you truly unwilling to give up?"

Zhou Yuan lightly nodded. Zhou Qing was rather gratified by the determination Zhou Yuan had shown. After being silent for some time, he roughly patted Zhou Yuan's shoulder. "Good! Unwilling to easily give up. As expected of my son! Since you are willing, your father will naturally do all he can to help you!"

"But, you shouldn't celebrate too early, because even I am not certain if this method will work."

Hearing this Zhou Yuan looked on patiently, due to his previous life and current circumstances his maturity and patience were far above his peers.

"The ancestral offering ceremony is three days later. This time, you will follow me to the ancestral grounds."

Zhou Qing merely chuckled and did not explain in detail. Soon after, he paused before continuing, "However I have one condition for you."

"What condition?" Zhou Yuan asked.

Zhou Qing sternly said, "Regardless of whether you can unlock your meridian or not, you cannot give up on studying Genesis runes. You must know that if your eight meridian channels are not unlocked, Genesis rune cultivation will be the final path you can take. If you can ascend to the peak of Genesis rune cultivation, it may be possible to suppress the Dragon's Resentment Poison in your body."

Genesis Masters were the most prevalent power in this world, however, it was not the only path. There were many different styles and paths, and the path of Genesis runes was the most broad and deep among them.

When Zhou Yuan's eight meridians had yet to appear, under Zhou Qing's instruction, Zhou Yuan studied the Dao of Genesis runes. As the saying goes, having more skills will not burden oneself. Many Genesis Masters would also have some basic understanding of Genesis runes.

Zhou Yuan lightly nodded his head upon hearing this. Of course, he knew this, because in his opinion Only those muscle-headed and some idiotic Qi Masters would disdain Genesis Runes.

Zhou Qing nodded, as a happy smile formed on his face.

"Rest for today. You still have to go to the Great Zhou Institute to study. I will bring you to the ancestral grounds three days later."

"hmm"

Zhou Qing chuckled as he tousled Zhou Yuan's hair. Subsequently, he carried the unconscious Qin Yu and walked out of the inner palace with Master Qin at his side.

....

The next day.

When early morning arrived, Zhou Yuan left the palace under the protection of a group of guards, heading straight for the north-west district of Great Zhou City where the Great Zhou Institute was located.

Zhou Qing had personally given the command to establish the Great Zhou Institute years ago. At the same time, he had gathered the experts in the army to become tutors. The Great Zhou Institute did not discriminate when it came to accepting students, as long as one had enough talent, even the commoners were allowed into the Great Zhou Institute to practice cultivation.

Over the years, the Great Zhou Institute had groomed several outstanding individuals, hence allowing its status to grow greater and greater in the Great Zhou Empire. Thus, even his royal highness Zhou Yuan would come here to study.

The gates of the Great Zhou Institute were tightly guarded. Guards in armor rigorously checked the identities of all who entered. However, Zhou Yuan was naturally exempt from this procedure. After all, everyone in Great Zhou City recognized the prince.

"Greetings your Highness!"

Therefore, the guards respectfully bowed to Zhou Yuan when he appeared at the gates.

"Your Highness." Several Great Zhou Institute students came and went along the way. There was some respect in their expressions as they smiled at Zhou Yuan.

Zhou Yuan likewise returned their smiles and cupped his fists together in greeting. He knew that most of these students were commoners, and the respect they had for him was mostly due to his father's establishment of the Great Zhou Institute. It allowed commoners like them to raise their status and gave them the chance to change their destinies.

West district of the Great Zhou Institute.

Desks were arranged in an orderly manner within a rather spacious and bright teaching hall. Numerous youths were seated in a kneeling position before the desks. It was a tranquil atmosphere.

Zhou Yuan was also quietly seated on the first desk of the first row.

Zhou Yuan held the red jade Genesis Rune Brush, while he looked to the very front, where a middle-aged lecturer was lecturing with a calm voice.

"Focus your soul on the tip of the brush to draw each stroke. Every line and stroke must be drawn with one's soul as the ink. Only then will the drawn Genesis Runes be able to utilize the external Genesis Qi."

"You must remember that when drawing Genesis Runes, one's heart must be akin to still water, and no distractions can be present. Only by making the Genesis Rune Brush a part of your body, will you be able to focus your soul into the tip of the brush, such that the brush and you will become one, allowing any action to be smoothly completed with a single breath."

After finishing his explanations, the lecturer said, "Next, we will continue practicing the three Genesis Runes that I taught you last month. I hope that someone will be able to successfully

complete one of the three today."

The moment these words were said, cries of grief rang could be heard in the lecture hall, and many youths had pained looks on their faces. Though practicing Genesis Runes might seem simple, every practice session would exhaust one's spirit, and make one feel extremely worn out.

When he heard their cries, the middle-aged lecturer spoke out sternly and angrily, "Humph, stop your whining. The three runes that I taught you; Rampaging Bull Rune, Light Body Rune, and Metal Skin Rune are merely elementary level."

His voice was brimming with resentment towards these students of his who had failed to meet his expectations.

The many youths shrunk back when they saw that their lecturer had been angered, and did not dare to make any more noise. After that, all of them grabbed their Genesis Rune Brushes and started to draw on the jade tablets before them.

Zhou Yuan smiled slightly. These Runes were too easy for him.

Rays of light emerged between his brows, and the tip of the brush started to flicker with faint red light.

Zhou Yuan's brush fell, and the brush tip slowly moved across the jade tablet, leaving behind several complicated strokes. These strokes looked like the horns of an antelope and gave off a certain charm. When they were completely assembled, they seemed to possess a magical power.

Every Genesis Rune was made from numerous strokes and lines. In general, the more strokes and lines there were, the greater the quality and might of the Genesis Rune formed.

The rune that Zhou Yuan was currently drawing was the Metal Skin Rune. It was merely an elementary-level rune(0 Grade) and had over a hundred strokes. However, a tremendous amount of practice was required to perfectly draw over a hundred strokes.

The tip of Zhou Yuan's brush quietly flowed like water. There was no hesitation at all, and its movement had a natural and free-flowing kind of beauty. 

Because his soul was far stronger than anyone in his class(reaching the intermediate Illusory realm), Zhou Yuan had practically spent all his time practicing Genesis Runes. Thus, his foundations were far stronger than the other students.

A minute later he had done making a light curving movement downwards, and a radiance suddenly emerged from the jade tablet in front of him. One could only watch as a complex and beautiful Genesis Rune slowly took shape.

"Good, good. Such fast speed and precision and the strokes are perfect and full of liveliness. This Metal Skin Rune can be considered a successful masterpiece, Your highness truly is a genius in Genesis Rune cultivation." The moment Zhou Yuan completed his work, an exclamation of admiration was suddenly heard from the side.

Zhou Yuan lifted his head, only to find that the lecturer had been standing beside him since some unknown time, and was currently looking at the Genesis Rune on his jade tablet with a smile of appreciation.

The other youths in the lecture hall raised their heads and looked towards Zhou Yuan. There was some surprise, awe, and admiration in their eyes. They had yet to even start, while Zhou Yuan had already succeeded.

The lecturer's mood was much better as he lamented to the many students, "It would be nice if all of you learned and worked as well his Highness."

The youths chuckled and shook their heads upon hearing this. His Highness Zhou Yuan was very talented in this area. How could the lecturer expect everyone to be so good?

However, a strange laughter suddenly rang out amongst the chuckles.

"Hehe, the lecturer's words might be a little unfair. Most of our efforts are concentrated on opening our meridian channels, hence we naturally cannot put our hearts and souls into the study of Genesis Runes like his highness. Otherwise, would we not be putting the cart before the horse?"

This laughter was rather piercing, and immediately silenced the lecture hall, as numerous gazes shifted over.

Zhou Yuan slightly smiled and raised his eyebrows and likewise cast his gaze over. Subsequently, he saw a youth in embroidered clothes looking back at him with a superficial smile as the latter lazily twirled the Genesis Rune Brush in his hand.

The corners of this smile had slight hints of mockery.

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END 

1939 Words