Chapter 28: Country Bumpkin

“Zhang Xuan?”

Wu Yunzhou was taken aback and quickly turned around, “Who is Miss Yu referring to? I’ve never heard of him before.”

“This Zhang Xuan is just Xue’er’s coachman. He accompanied us to the academy today and stayed outside the arena. He seems very low-key, not fond of showing off. Without seeing it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have known that he is quite skilled in beast taming.”

Yu Xiaoyu said.

When she first met this young man, he seemed ordinary. Yet afterward, he counterattacked Feng Jin, tamed the Cangbai Eagle, and obtained his identity, all flowing smoothly like water. Even if she wasn’t as clever as Mo Yanxue, she could tell there was something remarkable about him.

Such a remarkable person, willingly staying inconspicuous as a coachman… his low profile was infuriatingly extreme.

“Beast taming?” Wu Yunzhou looked over, puzzled.

“Yes, my father was able to tame the Cangbai Eagle so quickly because he helped…”

Yu Xiaoyu nodded and explained the recent events.

Of course, she only said that Zhang Xuan helped with the beast taming, but didn’t go into the steps or methods used in detail.

“A subordinate capable of beast tamings, as well as having such swift reactions to topple the person framing us and seek revenge without overnight delay, indeed has some skills.”

After listening to her explanation, Wu Yunzhou nodded and looked over curiously, “Miss Yu mentioned earlier that this Mr. Zhang Xuan was staying under the arena. Do you remember which position by the Nine Dragons Pillar he was in?”

After contemplating for a moment, Yu Xiaoyu said, “Due north!”

“Due north?”

Wu Yunzhou’s pupils constricted.

The stone pillar that first showed “Unrecorded” was located due north. Could it be that the genius they were looking for was sitting there?

Could it be that the super genius they diligently sought was not a student nor a family offspring but just a coachman?

If so, the reason they hadn’t found him made perfect sense.

Their focus had all been on the students who came for the evaluation. No one had considered a subordinate!

“Dean Wu, is something amiss?”

Seeing his odd expression, Mo Yanxue looked over, her delicate brows revealing a trace of confusion.

Zhang Xuan might be somewhat clever and have some small abilities, but to say he was worthy of the dean personally admitting him as a student, worthy of City Lord Yu sealing the city for him, that was absolutely impossible.

“Nothing much… Do you know where this coachman is? Could you take me to meet him?” Wu Yunzhou asked.

Whether he was the one or not, a careful look would confirm it.

“He just went to the Book Collection Vault to look for cultivation methods he could practice. He should be back soon. Perhaps Dean Wu could wait here for a moment?” Yu Longqing suggested.

After hesitating, Wu Yunzhou said, “I have matters to attend to later, so why don’t we just take a look now! The City Lord’s vault shouldn’t have any secrets that would prevent me from visiting, right?”

Even if the other party was extremely low-profile, as long as he faced him, he would definitely not escape his investigation. With that in mind, a glance would confirm it. There was no need to keep waiting here.

“Why would you say that, Dean Wu, this way, please!”

Seeing that he insisted on viewing the matter, City Lord Yu no longer said much and led the way. Yu Xiaoyu and Mo Yanxue exchanged a glance and followed closely.

…

Meanwhile, Zhang Xuan was unaware that Dean Wu had arrived at the City Lord Residence. At that moment, his eyes sparkled with excitement as he looked at the densely packed array of books before him.

This library shelf before my eyes holds no fewer than several hundred thousand books on cultivation, the Way of Medicine, geography, humanity… a dense and comprehensive array that contains everything. If only I could store them all in the Library of Heaven’s Path, I’d understand this Source World much better and wouldn’t be as completely bewildered as before.

“You may peruse the books on the first floor of the Book Collection Vault at will, however, you may neither take them with you nor copy them. You have only two hours, so make your selection quickly. How much you can memorize depends on your ability…”

With a cold snort in his heart, Steward Liao scoffed.

Let me embarrass you so that even if you enter the library, it’ll be as if you’ve achieved nothing.

Not to mention that you’re just an uncultivated bumpkin who cannot discern the quality of secret manuals. Even if you found a good one, how much could you memorize in two hours?

Practicing cultivation involves acupoints, meridians, and many specialized terms, which are hard to remember, not to mention that there can’t be even the slightest mistake, or else the consequences will be endless. He didn’t believe that someone who had never been exposed to cultivation could, in a mere two hours, memorize a complete cultivation method, without a single error.

And if he couldn’t do it… well, it would only prove his incompetence, no one else to blame.

This was probably why City Lord Yu was at ease with him coming over casually.

“Alright…”

Ignoring the other’s thoughts, Zhang Xuan lifted his head and looked at the bookshelf in front of him. The first book that caught his eye was a secret manual on how to Sense Pools — Pagoda Seeking Pond Technique.

With a tap of his finger.

“Flawed!”

With a low call in his heart, the Library of Heaven’s Path shimmered, and a book infused with fragments of the heavens emerged, materializing from phantasm to reality, and becoming identical.

“It seems that only books absorbed with Heavenly Mandate Vitality can be used…”

Zhang Xuan nodded silently to himself.

He had suspected this when he copied the Hong Mountain Pool-Seeking Method, and now he was certain.

The Library of Heaven’s Path in his mind was indeed activated, capable of recording books and discerning their flaws, but it could not be used infinitely as on the Master Teacher Continent. It had certain restrictions — fragments of the heavens.

Baiyan Academy absorbed around ten thousand strands of Yuan Power, taming the Cangbai Eagle consumed seven or eight hundred paths, and now he should be able to copy an excess of 9,000 books.

It seems I can’t just record everything; I need to learn to choose.

Otherwise, if I record a bunch of useless ones, in the end, I still won’t be able to practice.

Resolved in his heart, he withdrew his finger and turned his gaze to other books.

Li Shoulin’s Contemplative Pond-Seeking Art, Homecoming Pond-Seeking Method Explanation, Exploring the 108 Potential Locations of the Origin Pool, Meditation Aids in Seeking the Origin Pool, Dual Cultivation Pond-Seeking Method…

Books of all sorts captivated the eye. Without recommendations, indeed, they dazzle and confuse, but to Zhang Xuan, it mattered not. As soon as he spotted the words “Origin Pool,” he tapped on them, and the next moment, a book would form within the library.

In just over a dozen breaths, hundreds of books floated in the air, each shimmering with a mellow light, exuding an aura of serenity.

“Indeed, an uncultured bumpkin who knows nothing…”

Upon seeing the young man scanning the bookshelf ceaselessly, aimlessly tapping with his finger, unaware of which book to take, Steward Liao couldn’t help but sneer, his dark eyes brimming with scorn.

Just as I guessed, limited by your understanding, even if you had the chance to come to the library to search for a cultivation technique, you are of no use…

A real cultivator would focus on one book, memorize it carefully, not like him, who wants to see every book, yet is undecided about whether to take it or not…n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Up to now, not a single book has been opened, and a quarter of an hour has already passed…

With no clear purpose, what kind of practice can he speak of!

Thinking this, Steward Liao couldn’t help but shake his head, instantaneously labeling Zhang Xuan with the tag of being aimlessly ambitious and impetuous.