Library of Heaven’s Path

The Tower of Physicians consisted of seven floors in total.

The first floor was mainly used for miscellaneous matters, such as patient diagnosis, the Wall of Dilemma, sales of medicinal herbs, and such.

From the second floor onward were the mechanisms for the 1-star to 6-star physician examination.

Just like the Ocean of Weapons, mechanisms and formations were incorporated into the Tower of Physicians to create a simulation for the examinees. As such, not only would they have to possess deep understanding of the Way of Medicine, they must be experienced in treating patients as well.

Treating an illness was unlike smithing or pill forging. A single illness could easily have thousands of different methods to cure it. One had to assess the patient’s constitution and overall condition before choosing the most suitable one.

As such, the examination in the Tower of Physicians couldn’t be as routine as the one in the Ocean of Weapons. Thus, the wills of countless predecessors had been left within the Tower of Physicians to assess the proficiency of the examinees.

The wills of the predecessors wouldn’t have much trouble conducting examinations for others, but when it came to Zhang Xuan…

Zhang Xuan was able to even criticize the ’correct answers’ left behind by the predecessors in the Ancestor Forest to such a degree that they seemed completely worthless… If he were to come up with far better solutions than those of the predecessors in the Tower of Physicians, they would surely feel ashamed of their own ignorance and think that they were unworthy of assess the work of others…

Thus… just like what happened in the Ancestor Forest, the Tower of Physicians ended up collapsing as well!

It had been millenniums since the Physician School first came into existence, and yet, the crystallization of countless predecessors’ wisdom over all those years couldn’t even compare with that fellow…

It was no wonder School Head Mo, School Head Zhao, and even the reserved School Head Wei would regard with him respect and give him their personal tokens… That fellow was a complete monster!

Sun Yuan and the others hurriedly drove their zhenqi to form a barrier to protect themselves from the flying rubble thrown out from the collapsing building.

At this point, Sun Yuan and his juniors were feeling their hearts bleed within.

Vice School Head You was in charge of the affairs concerning the Tower of Physicians. For Zhang Xuan to have destroyed the entire place while abiding by the rules… this meant that all responsibility for the damage would have to be shouldered by their teacher alone!

Wasn’t it just a mere Ten-leafed Flower…

To think that single darned flower would cause the doom of the Physician School!

This wasn’t just a matter of the destruction of facilities and the reparation cost, but the reputation of the Physician School as well!

For a freshman to literally destroy the four most prided assets of the Physician School with his knowledge, and on top of that, not a single one lasted more than ten minutes…

Furthermore, all of the Academic Credits had been swiped by him, leaving the Physician School currently deep in debt with the pending payments for the missions and tasks undertaken by students… Without a doubt, it wouldn’t be long before the students began abandoning the Physician School, and by the next year, it would fall to the very bottom in the rankings, beneath even the Terpsichore School!

Just what the heck was this!

No, I must inform Teacher of the matter immediately! Just as Sun Yuan was feeling deep desolation within, he suddenly recalled his teacher.

When he left, his teacher was still gleeful about teaching a freshman a lesson, not realizing the calamity he had just brought upon the Physician School.

Thus, he immediately rushed from the ruins to Vice School Head You’s small residence.

Stepping through the doors, he saw Vice School Head You watering the plants leisurely, oblivious to the mess that had happened outside.

In order to retain a dense concentration of spiritual energy within the herb garden, a formidable formation had been set up in the courtyard. But while spiritual energy was unable to escape, sound was unable to enter as well.

Despite the huge commotion outside, isolated from the rest of the world, the herb garden remained unaffected.

Seeing that it was Sun Yuan, You Xu raised his gaze and glanced at him. ”You are back. How is it? Did you capture that fellow?”

Sun Yuan’s lips twitched. ”I didn’t…”

”You didn’t? Did he not go to School Head Zhao or the others to complain? You know the rules as well, defaming a higher ranked master teacher warrants the death penalty,” You Xu sneered coldly.

”He didn’t find the other school heads to complain. Instead, he went to the Tower of Physicians…” Seeing that his teacher was still immersed in his world, Sun Yuan wasn’t too sure how he could break the news to him.

”He went to the Tower of Physicians? For what?” You Xu was perplexed.

Not knowing where to start, Sun Yuan said, ”Teacher, I think it might be better if you head outside to see for yourself…”

”See for myself?” You Xu was growing more and more intrigued by the baffling words his student was spouting. Nevertheless, seeing the grim expression on his student’s face, he nodded and left his residence.

As soon as he stepped out of the door, a sight of ruins appeared before his eyes. The towering Tower of Physicians from before was nowhere to be seen.

”This rubble… is the Tower of Physician? What happened? Was there an enemy attack?” The huge contrast between what he expected to see and what he saw left You Xu on the verge of insanity.

That was the Tower of Physicians, the trademark building of the Physician School! For it to collapse all of a sudden… Who was the culprit?

Could it be the Otherworldly Demons?

”No, it is…”

But just as Sun Yuan was about to speak, a resounding voice echoed throughout the entire Physician School. ”I, Zhang Xuan, request the physician headquarters’ permission for a ’Life-and-Death Physician Dual’ against 6-star physician, Vice School Head You Xu. I beseech your approval!”

Hong long!

The next moment, a physician emblem flew into the air, and with a brilliant flash of light, a massive word appeared in the sky—Permitted!

Life-and-Death Physician Duel? Sun Yuan’s vision darkened.

Life-and-Death Physician Duel was a platform for physicians to resolve irreconcilable grudges between them through a duel, somewhat similar to how the Master Teacher Confrontation worked.

As long as the headquarters gave its permission, both parties would be able to decide on a type of duel to resolve their grudges.

So, the reason he took the 6-star physician examination is for this! Realization suddenly struck Sun Yuan.

Typically speaking, the headquarters would only approve of Life-and-Death Physician Duel between physicians of similar rank. Thus, Zhang Xuan decided to get his 6-star physician emblem first.

However, entering the higher levels of the Tower of Physicians to take the physician examination required Academic Credits, which Zhang Xuan lacked as a freshman… That was why he went for the Wall of Dilemma first!

In other words… Zhang Xuan was intending to challenge his teacher in a battle of their medicinal knowledge and force him to his death!

This duel was indeed the most straightforward and official way to destroy another physician in public!

It was no wonder that fellow specially asked his teacher one last time before leaving. It seemed like he was indeed giving his teacher one last chance. However… it was a pity that his teacher thought little of the other party’s threat, thinking that it was impossible for a mere student to do anything to him…

But now, not only did the other party destroy the Tower of Physicians, he was even challenging his teacher to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel… What should they do now?

”Life-and-Death Duel? How conceited can you get! But that works fine by me too, I have been wanting to teach you a lesson as well! Since you are the one who came at me, don’t blame me for getting nasty!”

Vice School Head You hadn’t expected a freshman to dare challenge him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel, and his face immediately darkened upon hearing those words. Flicking his wrist, he took out his physician emblem. Following which, he bit his finger and dripped a droplet of blood on the emblem.

Hula!

With a glimmer of light, the emblem flew into an air, and an authoritative voice boomed, ”I, You Xu, agree to the duel!”

”Teacher…” Not expecting his teacher to accept the duel without any hesitation, Sun Yuan’s body shook weakly.

Too overwhelmed with shock, he hadn’t had time to explain to his teacher the various unbelievable feats that Zhang Xuan had accomplished before his teacher suddenly accepted the duel in his moment of delay.

This was truly a disaster!

Just like the Master Teacher Confrontation, the Life-and-Death Physician Duel was overlooked by the headquarters. Once accepted, any party that backed out would be severely punished. Some had been stripped of their physician licenses due to this matter, and there were even a few who were killed outright!

If it had been before, he would have surely thought that the freshman who dared to challenge his teacher was a fool seeking death… But after all he had seen, his instincts were telling him that even if his teacher went up against that fellow for ten thousand rounds, it was unlikely that he would win even a single round!

Or to put it in other words… his teacher stood no chance at all!

Nevertheless, as Vice School Head You’s student, it was still his duty to warn him of the matter so that he could be prepared. ”Teacher, you shouldn’t have agreed to the duel. That Zhang Xuan isn’t as simple as he looks…”

”What’s wrong?”

Seeing how little faith his student had in him, You Xu’s face darkened, and he harrumphed coldly. ”He’s just an insignificant fellow, there’s nothing to fear. I shall make him learn the price of daring to stand against me! You should return to the residence first and heat up some fine wine for me. I should be done by the time it’s warmed up…”

Then, ignoring Sun Yuan, he leaped into the sky, in the direction his emblem had flown to.

In his view, no matter how talented Zhang Xuan might be, he was only a twenty-year-old brat. On the other hand, he had been immersed in the study of the Way of Medicine his entire life. To challenge him to a Life-and-Death Physician Duel, what else could that be other than committing suicide?

”Heat up some fine wine? Teacher…” Sun Yuan nearly burst into tears.

Indeed, there is someone who will be destroyed in a few moments, but… that will be you and not Zhang Xuan!

Sun Yuan hurriedly shouted for his teacher, only to realize that the latter was too far to hear him.

”No, I have to inform him of this matter before it’s too late…” Sun Yuan said determinedly.

If his teacher were to let his guard down in the duel on top of everything else, there truly would be no hope at victory whatsoever. Thus, Sun Yuan swiftly pursued his teacher.

…

In the head of the Apothecary School Lu Feng’s residence, School Head Mo clasped his fist and asked, ”School Head Lu, do you have any news regarding Senior Byzantium Helios Beast?”

In response to the question, Lu Feng shook his head.

Lu Feng was a tall old man with a black beard. Despite being the head of the Apothecary School, the number one school in Hongyuan Academy, he was dressed in exceptionally simple clothing, giving others the impression that he was an ordinary old man.

”I have tried following all of the clues we have, and I have paid a personal visit to Leiyuan Peak as well. However, I am still unable to find anything significant yet,” Lu Feng said worriedly.

As soon as he had learnt that the Byzantium Helios Beast had been captured by the Otherworldly Demons, he had immediately begun his investigation. However, despite seven days’ effort, he was still unable to find anything at all. At this point, he was starting to feel a little anxious inside.

The longer it took them to find the Byzantium Helios Beast’s whereabouts, the slimmer the chances that he would be alive.

Were they going to lose the old principal’s tamed beast too, shortly after losing the old principal?

”I haven’t been able to find anything either. I had the students of the Beast Tamer School ride their aerial beasts to search the surroundings, but there was no sign of the Otherworldly Demons or Senior Byzantium Helios at all. It’s as if they’ve disappeared into thin air!” School Head Mo shook his head and sighed deeply.

He felt extremely helpless and frustrated by this issue.

It was by his invitation that Senior Byzantium Helios went to the Leiyuan Peak to invigilate the students’ exam. But who could have known that he would disappear in the midst of the examination?

If it wasn’t for him, Senior Byzantium Helios would have never gone missing… As such, School Head Mo had always blamed himself for this matter.

”Alright, let’s not talk about this anymore… The best we can do now is wish Senior Byzantium Helios good luck!” Lu Feng shook his head before turning to School Head Mo once again and asked, ”I heard that you are very interested in the freshman named Zhang Xuan from the newest batch, and you intend to take him in as your direct disciple?”

”There’s indeed such a matter, but… I fear that I don’t have the fortune to do so!” School Head Mo replied with a bitter smile.

”You don’t have the fortune to do so?” Lu Feng was slightly perplexed. ”Just what kind of talent does that fellow have to make an old withered tree like you blossom?”

”His affairs are truly incredible. You will understand once you hear his story…”

Stroking his beard, School Head Mo was just about to tell the latter Zhang shi’s formidable deeds when the ground suddenly shook intensely. In the next moment, a deafening rumbling sounded in the distance.

Following which, they saw the towering Tower of Physicians, which stood at the very center of the Physician School, collapse abruptly.

”What happened?” Narrowing his eyes, Lu Feng hurriedly rushed out of his residence and headed right for the Physician School. However, before he could get far, he heard an impassive voice echoing resoundingly in the surroundings.

”I, Zhang Xuan, request the physician headquarters for a ’Life-and-Death Physician Dual’ against 6-star physician, Vice School Head You Xu. I beseech for your approval!”