The Imperial Martial Pill Venerable

"How dare you address the Mansion Master by name, and with such utter disrespect! Who are you to be so bold?" Even though Lin Yifeng had never met the Mansion Master of Mingxin Academy, he knew his name. He took a sharp step forward and bellowed.

Upon hearing this, the other teachers covered their faces, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. A kind-hearted teacher stepped forward and pulled Lin Yifeng back. "Teacher Lin, that’s Zhao Yunge, one of the Academy’s only five Special-Level Teachers."

Lin Yifeng glanced at Zhao Yunge, his face filled with suspicion, as if to say, ’You’ve got to be kidding me. How can someone so young be a Special-Level Teacher?’

Teacher Yun Yu smiled. "Teacher Zhao, you’ve arrived. You’re looking even younger. I presume you’ve gained deeper mastery of the Withered Wood Meets Spring technique."

Zhao Yunge gave a faint, rather smug smile. "Heh, it was all due to a fortunate opportunity. Otherwise, I couldn’t have progressed so quickly."

"Now you’re being modest, Teacher Zhao," Yun Yu said, slowly shaking his head. "We cultivators all talk about fortunate opportunities, but if you aren’t prepared, you can’t seize them even when they appear." Everyone deeply agreed. Some even clapped and cheered, their eyes gleaming with admiration.

"Mm, Teacher Yun is right," Zhao Yunge said with a smile, clapping Lin Yifeng on the shoulder. "But I’d like to add something: opportunity and danger go hand in hand. There’s nothing wrong with chasing opportunities, but one must be careful. You don’t want to miss the prize and land yourself in a world of trouble instead. That’s why we must always be cautious in our words and actions. Wouldn’t you agree, Teacher Lin?"

"You are absolutely right, Teacher Zhao. I was out of line earlier." Cold sweat dripped down Lin Yifeng’s forehead. He had just joined the Academy and had already managed to offend such a petty Special-Level Teacher. He wanted to cry but had no tears.

"Don’t mind him, Teacher Lin. Teacher Zhao is always like this," Yun Yu said with a faint smile, comforting Lin Yifeng, who felt incredibly moved.

"Hmph." Seeing this, Zhao Yunge let out a haughty snort, then grumbled, "That old coot Huaa Que is making us wait this long."

Just as he was grumbling, a conversation drifted in from outside the Master Dao Pavilion.

"Hey, old geezer, are we there yet?"

"We’re here, we’re here! If I hadn’t gone to arrange lodging for your aunt and Ningshuang, we would’ve arrived ages ago. And still you complain."

As they spoke, the great doors of the Master Dao Pavilion swung open. An old man and a youth walked in slowly, drawing everyone’s gaze. The youth, who looked to be about sixteen or seventeen, wore an expression of clear disdain and dissatisfaction toward the old man.

"Is that... the Mansion Master?"

"Uh, yes it is. But who is that youth next to him?"

"To be so... brazen with the Mansion Master?"

"Weren’t they supposed to be bringing a new teacher? I don’t see anyone."

"It couldn’t be that youth, could it?!"

"Haha, you must be joking. That youth is probably some genius the Mansion Master dug up from somewhere, right? A new student?"

The teachers buzzed with discussion, but as Huaa Que walked to the head seat, they immediately fell silent. In unison, they said respectfully, "Greetings, Mansion Master!"

Except, of course, for Zhao Yunge and Qin Ya, who both looked unimpressed.

Lin Yifeng’s eyes shone with adoration and longing as he stared at Huaa Que. ’So this is him, an Extraordinary Strong Person... Huaa Que, the Mansion Master of Mingxin Academy.’

Most people in the world only knew that the Martial Arts Realms were divided into Human Element, Profound Essence, Spiritual Element, Earth Element, and Celestial Essence. They didn’t know that these were all merely part of the Mortal Realm.

Above that was the state that transcended the mundane: the five Great Realms of Sky-Controlling, Celestial Human, King, Venerable, and Saint Realm. And among the few Extraordinary Strong Persons in the entire Yunxiao Empire, Huaa Que was considered one of the very best.

Even the current Emperor had to treat him with utmost respect.

"Good, everyone is here. Hm? Where is the Vice Mansion Master?" 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Just as Huaa Que asked, a middle-aged man in green robes walked in slowly. "Elder Huaa, you’re finally back. Now I can finally relax for a while."

"Haha, I’ve really troubled you lately. I’ll invite you over some time, and we’ll have a few good drinks. I’ve got some century-old Jade Fall Cold."

The green-robed man’s eyes lit up, and he laughed heartily. "Excellent! It’s a deal. Century-old Jade Fall Cold... I remember its taste as if it were yesterday."

"Hey, hey! You’re planning to drink without me?" Zhao Yunge was instantly displeased and began clamoring for a share. It made one wonder if it wasn’t just his appearance that had grown younger, but his personality as well.

"Alright, alright, you’ll get your share." Huaa Que and the green-robed man didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

"That’s more like it."

Watching them, Lin Yifeng couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. ’Only those at the Extraordinary level can talk to each other so brazenly. If it were me, I would never, ever dare.’

"Old man, get me a hundred jars or so of that Jade Fall Cold, too," Qin Ya said nonchalantly, licking his lips. The words sent a chill through everyone listening.

Old man...

The teachers were dumbfounded. They even began to wonder if they had made some error in their cultivation that had damaged their hearing.

In front of everyone, the dignified Mansion Master of Mingxin Academy, an Extraordinary Strong Person, was being called "old man" by a snot-nosed kid.

It was understandable for Zhao Yunge to call Huaa Que an old man; after all, their relationship was unusual, and both were Extraordinary Strong Persons. But Qin Ya?

No one present was weak, so they could all tell that Qin Ya was merely a Martial Artist of the Profound Origin Realm. To put it bluntly, in their eyes, he was an ant they could crush with a casual squeeze—far too weak.

And yet, an ant like that dared to call the dragon-like Extraordinary Strong Person "old man," and with such a casual attitude and natural tone.

"You brat!" Huaa Que huffed. "You think this stuff is water? A hundred-odd jars? Why don’t you just go rob a bank? I only have twenty-something jars at most!"

"Fine, then give me ten jars," Qin Ya said coolly.

"No way! I can’t even bear to drink this Jade Fall Cold myself most days, and you ask for ten jars right off the bat? You’re asking for half my life! Absolutely not!"

"You really won’t? What if I teach you that method to perfectly refine the Green Dew Pill in exchange for ten jars of Jade Fall Cold?" Qin Ya stated his offer.

"This... No. Five jars."

"Nine jars."

The old man and the youth began to haggle as if no one else was in the room, completely ignoring the other teachers, who were too stunned by the scene to speak.

’Who on earth is this guy, to dare treat the Mansion Master like that!’ Lin Yifeng and the others felt their brains short-circuiting as they instantly came up with countless theories about Qin Ya’s identity.

A cultivation prodigy? A True Inheritor from some major power? They even entertained the absurd notion that the boy might be the Mansion Master’s illegitimate son. They couldn’t help it—the scene was simply too incredible to believe.

Soon, Huaa Que agreed to a deal for seven jars.