Arrogant and Untamed

Even the finest silver needle is useless in an ordinary person's hands—the key lies in the technique of insertion.

Fortunately, the Method of Detoxification granted by the system was comprehensive, and Qin Yuan quickly struck the acupoints accurately, temporarily sealing Dugu Yan's heart meridian to prevent the poison from spreading further.

Only after the attendant had brewed the herbal medicine and fed it to Dugu Yan did her complexion begin to improve.

Ye Lingling released her healing soul skill, and a milky white light fell into Dugu Yan's body, yet she could still sense the presence of the poison.

"Teacher Qin, it seems there's a lot of poison accumulated inside Sister Yanzi... This..."

Qin Yuan said calmly, "Ice three feet thick is not the work of a single cold day. These toxins have built up over time. Perhaps it's related to Dugu Yan's flawed cultivation method."

"What about the academy's teachers? Why haven't they arrived yet? Also, when Dugu Yan wakes up, have her grandfather come see me. I have a way to completely cure the poison accumulated in her body, but I'll need his cooperation."

Ye Lingling nodded seriously, committing every word Qin Yuan had said to memory.

As for the academy's teachers, Ye Lingling had already sent word back to the academy.

Because Dugu Yan's identity was special, ordinary teachers dared not take responsibility, so they could only wait for the news to reach the three Education Committee members.

Before long, Meng Shenji, the chief of the Education Committee, personally arrived at the inn to take Dugu Yan away.

When he saw Qin Yuan, Meng Shenji clasped his hands and said, "This must be Mr. Qin. I've long heard of your reputation."

Ning Fengzhi had frequently built up Qin Yuan's reputation in Xue Qinghe's ears.

Knowing that Qin Yuan was unwilling to join the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, he thought to do Xue Qinghe a favor by having the Heaven Dou Empire recruit Qin Yuan.

And Meng Shenji was a supporter of Xue Qinghe, so naturally he could hear some news from the Crown Prince's residence and had secretly investigated Qin Yuan's background, intending to ease Xue Qinghe's burden.

"I didn't expect Mr. Qin to also understand medicine. Why not accompany this Old Man to the academy, so you can keep an eye on Dugu Yan's condition? What do you think?"

Qin Yuan did not refuse, as he also needed to wait for Dugu Bo's arrival.

At the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, in Dugu Yan's dormitory.

Ye Lingling had wiped away the grime from Dugu Yan's body, and the foul stench had finally disappeared.

Qin Yuan had done all he could; now it was just a matter of waiting for Dugu Yan to wake up.

The detoxification method he had used could only provide temporary relief for Dugu Yan, not a complete cure. Given her current condition, as long as she continued cultivating as a soul master, the toxins would accumulate in her body and could erupt at any time in the future.

Ye Lingling looked exhausted but did not rest. She bowed solemnly to Qin Yuan and said, "Thank you, Teacher Qin."

Qin Yuan shook his head. "I am not a teacher. Don't call me that anymore. Get some rest early."

Now, with the second Soul Master Tournament about to begin, Heaven Dou City was bustling with activity.

Even at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, many students were putting in extra training at night.

Dugu Yan would not wake up anytime soon, and there would be no further complications.

So, accompanied by a logistics teacher from the academy, Qin Yuan strolled around the campus.

Most of the students at the Heaven Dou Royal Academy were idle second-generation aristocrats who didn't bother to study. On ordinary days, these students weren't even on campus. At night, the dormitory area was dark, and combined with the academy's unique geographical setting, it felt rather desolate.

Teacher Jiang, in charge of logistics, said helplessly, "Mr. Qin, to be honest, the quality of our student intake has been declining for the past twenty years. Now, we can barely scrape together two teams."

"Alas, who knows what the situation will be like by the next tournament. Maybe the academy won't even be able to field a single team."

Among the new generation of students, only Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling had enough talent and the willingness to cultivate.

Yu Tianheng and the others hadn't joined the Heaven Dou Royal Academy yet, so it was no wonder Teacher Jiang was so disheartened.

With the student pool getting worse, the academy would struggle to achieve good results in the Soul Master Tournament, and as time went on, no one knew what the academy's future would hold.

Of course, none of this was Qin Yuan's concern. He merely nodded along to Teacher Jiang's complaints without saying much.

After a while, the two wandered into the rest area of the Imperial Fighting Team, where they ran into the team members who were training.

For this tournament, the captain of the Imperial Fighting Team was Lei Meng, a mid-level Soul Ancestor with the Thunder Blade martial soul.

In terms of soul power level alone, Lei Meng, at level 46, was far stronger than Yu Tianheng at level 43. This showed that the decline of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy was happening at a visible pace.

Perhaps the academy's decline hadn't started just twenty years ago. Back then, Teacher Jiang had probably just started working, and since he didn't know the past situation, he couldn't speak carelessly.

"Would Mr. Qin like to show us a thing or two?" Teacher Jiang asked with a smile.

Qin Yuan's "training" of Ning Rongrong was well-known among the teachers of academies near Heaven Dou City.

How could an ordinary person possibly teach the young lady of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect well? Even if Qin Yuan wasn't a teacher, his abilities were more than enough to qualify him for any advanced soul master academy.

Meng Shenji had instructed him beforehand to quickly familiarize Qin Yuan with the Heaven Dou Royal Academy in preparation for future recruitment. If he could pull this off, promotion opportunities would surely follow.

Qin Yuan twisted his neck and said with a smile, "Alright, let's take a look. If there's anything wrong, I'll point it out."

The team training room was private, and ordinary teachers didn't have the key to enter.

Fortunately, Teacher Jiang was in charge of the academy's logistics and had the corresponding key.

As the training room door swung open and Qin Yuan stepped inside, a blade of lightning thrust toward him.

The offensive power of a lightning attribute was not to be underestimated—if it hit, he would certainly be injured.

Qin Yuan had profound mastery in blade techniques. He easily found the weak point in his opponent's force, clamped two fingers onto the blade's edge, applied slight pressure, and flipped the man to the ground with ease.

The one who fell was none other than the captain of the Imperial Fighting Team. He stood up, his face full of surprise: "Teacher Jiang, which sparring instructor is this? His strength is formidable! Does he also possess a blade-type spirit?"

Teacher Jiang leaned close to Qin Yuan's ear and whispered, "Mr. Qin, Lei Meng is arrogant. Handle him carefully."

Having said that, he silently withdrew, leaving Qin Yuan to teach these fellows a lesson.

The Imperial Fighting Team had been directly promoted to the finals, so even as the tournament began, they still had plenty of time to adjust and train.

But Lei Meng was like a fierce eagle—extremely hard to tame. With his own considerable skill in blade techniques, he was overbearing and erratic. Even Meng Shenji could do nothing with him, yet had to rely on his strength for Heaven Dou Royal Academy to compete in the Soul Master Tournament.

Qin Yuan clasped his hands behind his back, sweeping his gaze over everyone on the Imperial Fighting Team, finally fixing it on Lei Meng.

He spoke slowly, calmly: "You thrust out a blade, yet your strength scatters across your wrist and elbow. Your blade is slow and dull—there's no need for commentary at all!"

His proud blade technique being belittled, Lei Meng instantly bristled.

The other members of the Imperial Fighting Team, seeing this, quickly retreated, afraid of being caught in the crossfire.

"Don't think that just because you're a teacher, I won't beat you. If you've got the guts, fight me with blade techniques, no spirit skills!"