Braised Dragon with Soy Sauce

Chapter 281 A Prodigy Among Prodigies

No matter where you are, spoiled brats are all the same. You can't reason with them; the only solution is to use force.

Mo Yuming never expected that his academy, which he founded, would already be causing trouble for him before it even began teaching. He had been the one to set up the competition arena and arena, because the students were all young and impetuous, and various conflicts were inevitable. Simply suppressing and controlling them wasn't a good solution; the best approach was to let them vent their emotions. But Mo Yuming never imagined he would be the first unsuspecting victim to come knocking on his door.

"Oh? You want to fight me? Did I hear that right? Do you even know your own limitations? You actually want to fight me!"

Yuan Gou was taken aback by Mo Yuming's initiative to challenge him.

"Isn't this exactly what you wanted?"

Mo Yuming said indifferently.

"Alright! You've got guts, but I've never liked being controlled by rules and regulations. I can't really let loose in the arena, and if I lose control and hurt someone, I'll be punished by the academy, which is no fun. So I'm not going to the arena; I'll go to the ring. I wonder if you have the guts!"

Yuan Gou said provocatively.

"Young Master Yuan is about to unleash his power. This kid is doomed. He actually wants to compete with Young Master Yuan. I wonder who gave him the courage? I heard that Master Yuan once bought a high-level Earth-rank profound martial arts technique at the auction house in Zhongdu. It's very powerful. I guess Young Master Yuan's cultivation has improved so quickly because of that mysterious Earth-rank profound martial arts technique."

"That's what the skinny young man standing behind Yuan Gou said."

"I heard that last year, Young Master Yuan defeated a mercenary at the early stage of the Earth Rank with his peak Human Rank strength. It caused quite a stir at the time."

Are you sure you want to go into the ring?

Mo Yuming originally only wanted to teach this spoiled brat a lesson and curb his arrogance. He hadn't expected this idiot to actually try to cripple him, which infuriated Mo Yuming. This kind of person, even if he grew up, would definitely be a menace; since he was courting death, he couldn't be blamed.

"Scared? If you're scared, kneel down and kowtow three times to me, then crawl between my legs, and I might consider letting you go!"

Yuan Gou said sinisterly.

"Let's go! Remember what you said!"

After Mo Yuming finished speaking, he turned and walked downstairs. The news that someone was going to have a duel on the first day of school spread like a thunderclap throughout the entire campus. If it weren't for the fact that the students in the School of Literature still had exams, they would have all put down their pens and rushed to watch.

"Who is so arrogant as to challenge someone to a duel on the very first day of the academy? This is outrageous!"

Duan Shichen was furious when he heard the students challenge him to a duel. This was utterly disrespectful to the academy! The academy hadn't even started the semester yet! And it had already become a place for fighting. If word got out, it would be a complete slap in his face!

"Regardless of who is right or wrong, you will all be severely punished by the academy!"

Duan Shichen roared as he walked down from the eighth floor. When he and all the teachers and students of the martial arts academy arrived at the arena in the west square, he couldn't utter a single syllable.

"What kind of show is this?!"

Duan Shichen's face became quite interesting. Seeing the two people already standing on the ring, he was caught in a dilemma—whether to speak or remain silent. After glancing around at the people several times, he turned to a staff member beside him and said:

"How do you manage your students? This has already happened before the college even started. How will the college manage in the future? Who is that young man? Tell me about his family background in detail."

"That young man is named Yuan Gou, the eldest son of the Yuan family head of the Yuan family business in Shangyuan City. Yesterday's test results showed that he has above-average aptitude in fire element and his Xuan Gong cultivation is at the early stage of the Earth rank. The Yuan family is one of the wealthiest families in Shangyuan City, owning shops on two commercial streets and also having businesses in other cities in the Long Kingdom. I don't know anything about that boy; the academy doesn't seem to have any information on him."

This employee seemed to know a lot about Yuan Gou's background, as he casually recounted it without even bothering to look it up.

"Who told you to investigate him?"

Duan Shichen glared fiercely at the unambitious staff member.

"Regardless of the outcome, summon Patriarch Yuan tomorrow and have him take his son back!"

"But the situation is still unclear, isn't the principal's handling of this matter a bit hasty?"

The employee was somewhat surprised by Duan Shichen's decision.

"Who's the principal, you or me? Go find that guy surnamed Yuan right now and he has to come to the school this afternoon! Otherwise, the descendants of the Yuan family can forget about ever entering the academy again."

Duan Shichen roared in anger.

The staff member had never seen the principal so angry before. He was acting like he was on fire, completely disregarding his dignified image! He was so frightened that he quickly ran out of the school.

"It seems that the boy Yuan Gou challenged is no ordinary person, otherwise the principal wouldn't have been so angry. It seems that yesterday the boy broke the platform, and the principal didn't say anything, and even explained it to him. Today, during the competition with Yuan Gou, the principal didn't say a single word about the boy from beginning to end, as if he had already assumed that the boy had no problems at all."

"I think so too. I don't know if you noticed, but the way the principal looked at that boy on the stage yesterday wasn't the kind of expression a principal should have when looking at a student. It was more like... what was it again? It should be the way a subordinate looks at a superior, just like how we usually talk to the principal."

"My God! Can it be that absurd? Could that boy be surnamed Su or something like Huo?"

Several female faculty members standing not far away began to whisper among themselves after witnessing this scene.

Although they kept their voices very low, they never imagined that a master of the Heavenly Rank would have such strong hearing.

"All staff and students of the college must return to the school buildings. Except for relevant personnel, no one is allowed to linger here!"

Duan Shichen used his profound skill; although his words were soft and his voice low, everyone around the arena heard him clearly. Urged by their instructors, the students reluctantly left the area around the arena. Only a few staff members responsible for managing the arena, Duan Shichen, and a few elders remained in the arena area.

Mo Yuming and Yuan Gou stood facing each other on the arena. Neither of them immediately made a move.

"See? Even the school administration has been alerted. They're worried that the outcome will be too tragic and have a bad influence. So I'll say it again: for Old Man Duan's sake, if you kneel down and kowtow to me, I might consider sparing your life."

Seeing that the school had dismissed all the students who had gathered around, Yuan Gou naturally assumed that the school was trying to minimize the impact of the fight and avoid putting psychological pressure on the ordinary students with average abilities.

“You’re the one who should be kowtowing and admitting your mistakes. Do you think you can do whatever you want in the academy just because your father donated some money? It’s a waste that your father spent so much money to send you to the academy.”

Mo Yuming said coldly.

"I don't need you to teach me a lesson! A lowly beggar like you will never know how despicable you are. Crushing you is as easy as crushing an ant!"

Yuan Gou's lips curled into a sinister grin, and he began to gather power in his palms, his killing intent gradually building. He had already planned it out; although the academy hadn't stopped their duel, they certainly wouldn't want any casualties, so the man surnamed Duan would intervene at the crucial moment.

Therefore, he intended to use the most ruthless move to cripple or even kill his opponent from the start. This way, even if Duan Shichen realized something was wrong and tried to save him, it would be too late. At most, he would be given a symbolic punishment, and the Yuan family could then spend a little money to clear up the matter.

Mo Yuming saw this but didn't try to persuade him further. Such a ruthless person would only be a menace if left alive; it was better to get rid of him sooner rather than later. He stood there quietly, as if nothing had happened, waiting for the other party to make his move.

Although Yuan Gou is an arrogant young man, his family's martial arts technique is really good. In addition, he also has some talent. Although he has only recently advanced to the Earth Rank, his aura is already comparable to some Earth Rank Level 2 martial artists.

Seeing that Mo Yuming remained motionless, Yuan Gou assumed that the other party had been terrified by his combat skills and had forgotten how to fight back. So he shouted:

"Take your life!"

He then leaped nearly ten feet into the air with a powerful kick, his hands, now fiery red, slashing down at Mo Yuming like two red-hot steel knives.

Upon seeing this, Mo Yuming inwardly exclaimed:

"Well done!"

Just as the opponent's palm was less than two feet from Mo Yuming's head, Mo Yuming calmly pushed his palm upward, and a dark water elemental force transformed into a cloud of water mist to meet the pair of fiery palms.

'laugh! ’

With a soft thud, the menacing fiery palms struck as if they had struck a piece of ancient, cold iron, failing to penetrate even a fraction of an inch. The seemingly formless and intangible mist actually resisted the fiery palms, but after emitting only a soft thud, it vanished instantly, like a red-hot wire dropped into a water vat, without even forming any steam.

Instantly, Yuan Gou felt a bone-chilling cold in his hands, and all his spiritual energy was frozen solid. Before he could even react, the bluish-black mist enveloped him, as if he had fallen into an ice cave. Even his blood began to freeze. He tried to open his mouth for help in terror, but found that he couldn't even make a sound.

"Young Master, please spare his life!"

Upon seeing this, Duan Shichen hurriedly pleaded with Mo Yuming. With his strength, he naturally knew that if a few more breaths passed, even a Great Luo Golden Immortal like Yuan Gou would not be able to save him.

"Anyone who dares to disregard the academy's rules and deliberately stirs up trouble must not remain in the academy! Even the Great Xia Dynasty would not welcome such a black sheep."

Mo Yuming looked at Yuan Gou, who was lying on the arena like a dead dog, and said indifferently.

"I have already sent someone to inform his family. Once they arrive, I will have him taken away immediately."

Duan Shichen quickly said.

"Yes, let's take this as a warning. From now on, anyone who gathers crowds to cause trouble and disrupts the order of the academy must be severely punished!"

"Yes, after Dean Fang finishes his business with the School of Humanities tomorrow, we will hold a general meeting for all students to reiterate the school's guiding principles and rules. In addition to teaching, the school also needs to strengthen moral education."

"You guys carry him to the infirmary for treatment, and wait for his family to come and take him away."

Duan Shichen spoke to the few staff members who were still standing there in a daze, and then left with Mo Yuming and several elders.

"Did you hear that? Dean Duan just called that young man 'Young Master'!"

After the group left, the three employees in charge of the arena began to discuss in astonishment.

"I've also heard that our Great Xia Empire has a mysterious young master who's rarely seen. Could it be him? How old is he?!"

"Didn't you witness the young master's profound skill just now? With your current Earth Rank Level 4 strength, are you capable of displaying it?"

"That kind of skill is far beyond what we can achieve. He subdued that guy with a casual wave of his hand, as if he hadn't even used any effort. In my opinion, he's definitely at the seventh level of the Earth Rank... no, he should be at least the eighth level of the Earth Rank, or even at the peak! My god! How old is he!"

"Stop talking. Those kinds of people are beyond our comprehension. Let's hurry up and carry this unfortunate fellow away, lest he die and we have something to say about it."

The three of them hurriedly carried Yuan Gou towards the infirmary.

"Old He, take a look at this kid, is there any hope for him?"

The three men carried Yuan Gou into the school's infirmary. The doctor on duty was a level-two alchemist.

"What a miserable life! My first day at work and I can't even have a moment's peace. Sigh! Turns out, this college isn't all that peaceful after all!"

Master He, a level-two alchemist in his sixties, had been unable to advance his alchemy skills and had turned to medicine to treat patients. His medical skills were decent, and he was also quite approachable, earning him the respect of many. Invited by the academy, he became its alchemy instructor and school doctor.

"Is this the guy who was fighting that teenager?"

"Master He asked. After all, the academy has little contact with the outside world, and it's very difficult for people from the outside to be brought to the academy."

"Old He, don't ask anymore, let's focus on getting him treated first!"

On the way here, the three of them felt that Yuan Gou was in a very bad situation. His aura was so weak that it was almost imperceptible, and his whole body was still as cold as ice. However, unlike those who were injured by ice-type profound arts, his whole body was not frozen. Apart from the cold, they could not find any other abnormalities.

"What's going on? Wasn't he injured by an ice-type mystical technique?"

After examining the patient's condition, Master He Dan was also stunned by this strange phenomenon, as he had never encountered such an injury before.

"We don't know either. The boy just swung his palm and released a cloud of black mist, and this guy was frozen like this. It only took three or four breaths."

"This is too bizarre! I've never seen this kind of water-based martial art before. This kind of damage is similar to but different from water-based martial arts. It's really difficult! Let's treat it conservatively as water-based damage first and save his life. If we don't treat him, he might not live for more than an hour."

"You mean, that kind of harm is still ongoing?"

"One of the employees said in surprise."

"Yes, that strange spiritual energy has been lingering in this guy's body and slowly spreading, and this guy's spiritual energy has no ability to counteract it. It just keeps retreating and dissipating. In another hour, even if he doesn't die, he will be a cripple, and all the spiritual energy in his body will be completely dissipated."

"This is absolutely outrageous!"

"Luckily, this strange spiritual energy was very little; if it had been just a little more, this guy would be dead already!"

While explaining, Master He treated the patient. First, he used his profound skills to control the spread of the injury, then he dissolved a Xuan-dispelling pill and used his spiritual power to guide it into the patient's body to dissolve the black spiritual power.