What Eldest Senior Brother Can Do, I, Cao Youqian, Can Do Too

Elder Hong asked, "What is your name?"

Before Cao Youqian could speak, Elder Cao of the Pill Dao Institute said, "Elder Hong, there's no need to ask. Youqian is a member of my Cao Clan."

Elder Hong paused. "Since when did the Pill Dao Institute have body cultivators among its disciples?"

Seeing that the two were about to quarrel, Elder Gao of the Heavenly Spirit Institute spoke up. "Cao Youqian, was it? Are you willing to become my disciple? I can make an exception and take you in, and provide you with the resources to break through to the True Fate Realm!"

"Shameless!"

Elder Hong and Elder Cao said in unison.

Elder Gao ignored them and continued, "I forgot to introduce myself. I am an elder of the Heavenly Spirit Institute, and its only body-cultivating elder."

At those words, Elder Hong and Elder Cao nearly lost their tempers and hit him.

Cao Youqian was no fool. Besides, he had seen this happen to his eldest senior brother before.

Only, a group of chief seats had fought over his eldest senior brother. When it was his turn, it was three elders.

It seems I'm still a fair way behind Eldest Senior Brother!

He said to Elder Gao, "Thank you for your kind offers, Elders, Third Uncle, but I already have a master, and I have no intention of joining another institute."

All three elders froze.

Elder Cao said irritably, "Youqian, has your brain gone bad? What can you learn at the Miscellaneous Dao Institute?

"Even if the Miscellaneous Dao Institute produced a Xiao Chen, he was already a prodigy of the Sword Dao Institute.

"Come back to our Pill Dao Institute. Whatever body-tempering pills you want, your third uncle will refine them for you."

The two elders beside him also came to their senses.

Though they didn't get along with Elder Cao, they agreed with him on this.

Elder Hong said, "That's right. Although you've completed Body Tempering twice, the Miscellaneous Dao Institute has no cultivation techniques for the stages afterward. If you stay there, your future holds no promise!"

Elder Gao nodded. "Cao Youqian, I still hope you'll give it careful thought."

Cao Youqian smiled. "There's no need. What Eldest Senior Brother can do, I, Cao Youqian, can naturally do too. Besides, the inheritance I received from Master is no weaker than his. Farewell!"

With that, Cao Youqian walked straight past the three elders.

He left a crowd of dumbfounded onlookers behind.

Although a prodigy emerged in the Dao-Seeking Academy every so often,

They had never seen a despised hedonistic young master like Cao Youqian become the object of a struggle between three inner institute elders in less than a year.

Most importantly, Cao Youqian had actually refused to become their disciple. One of those three was an elder of the Heavenly Spirit Institute!

The news of what had happened soon spread throughout the Dao-Seeking Academy.

Even the chief seats of the various institutes received word.

When the Profound Fire Pill King heard his nephew's report, he smiled. "Good! Qian'er hasn't let me down. I was right to promise that fellow Little Feng cultivation resources back then."

???

Elder Cao looked utterly bewildered. "Granduncle, why are you helping the enemy?"

Smack!

The Profound Fire Pill King slapped the lad on the head.

"What do you mean, helping the enemy? Is Qian'er no longer a member of the Cao Clan just because he joined the Miscellaneous Dao Institute? When he becomes a king or marquis one day, won't he still have to return to the Cao Clan to pay respects to his ancestors?"

The two questions left Elder Cao completely bewildered.

But his eyes soon lit up. "That's right! No matter what, Youqian is still a member of our Cao Clan, and I'm still his third uncle.

"Doesn't that mean we haven't lost an inner disciple, but gained a future king or marquis instead?"

"At least you weren't too slow to catch on."

The Profound Fire Pill King said, "From now on, whatever Qian'er asks for, see that he gets it."

"Of course."

Elder Cao asked, "What about the resources Youqian was getting before?"

The Profound Fire Pill King said, "Give them to him if he wants them. But how could a prodigy of his generation possibly think much of those things?"

At the Sword Dao Institute.

The Sword Martial King was stunned as he listened to the news. "How is it that brat Chu Feng again?" he murmured. "I really did underestimate him back then."

The elder beside him offered some comfort. "Chief Seat, this is good news!"

"Explain yourself."

The Sword Martial King kept a stern face, his expression seeming to say, "If you can't give me a proper explanation, just wait and see how I deal with you."

The elder said, "Chief Seat, have you forgotten that Cao Youqian is a member of the Cao Clan and a body cultivator? If he breaks through to the True Fate Realm, at least three factions will fight over him.

"If he refuses them again, more than half the factions in the Dao-Seeking Academy will be at odds with the Miscellaneous Dao Institute.

"For that brat Chu Feng to take on disciples then will be harder than ascending to the heavens."

"That makes sense, but I still don't want to watch that brat jumping up and down, showing off."

The Sword Martial King felt particularly displeased whenever he thought of how Chu Feng had talked back to him that day.

At the Heavenly Spirit Institute.

As soon as Elder Bing heard the news, she went to find Elder Gao.

"Brother Gao, do you want to take Cao Youqian as your disciple?"

"Of course I do, but that brat has a screw loose. He even compares himself to Xiao Chen. What can I do?"

The more Elder Gao spoke, the more frustrated he became. The Heavenly Spirit Institute was, after all, the Dao-Seeking Academy's golden signboard.

Taking on disciples had always been easy for them.

But now someone had turned him down.

Elder Bing smiled. "If the Miscellaneous Dao Institute ceased to exist, wouldn't you be able to take Cao Youqian as your disciple fair and square?"

"Hmm?"

Elder Gao paused, then realization dawned. "You want me to lend your young disciple a hand?"

"That's right. It's a chance to kill two birds with one stone. I don't think you'll refuse, Brother Gao."

Elder Bing looked confident.

Elder Gao said, "Tell me your conditions."

Elder Bing said, "You needn't provide any resources, Brother Gao. Just have your accomplished disciples spar with Rou'er."

"Very well. I agree."

At the Miscellaneous Dao Institute.

Chu Feng looked his disciple over and nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad. The word 'perfect' describes your body tempering this time."

Cao Youqian said, "But Master, my Spiritual Qi is full again. If I undergo Body Tempering again, I'm afraid I won't be able to suppress my cultivation."

"No matter. I know Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin too."

Chu Feng wore an expression as though the whole thing were a trifle.

Cao Youqian's eyes lit up at that.

"Master, is Ten Thousand Swords Return to the Origin a technique passed down directly within the Miscellaneous Dao Institute?"

Chu Feng patted him on the shoulder. "I didn't have any cultivation back then, did I? So when I was creating the technique, I practiced it first. As it turned out, I mastered it too."

"..."

Cao Youqian stared at him in astonishment. Master really is extraordinary. If anyone calls him a mortal again, I'll have it out with them!

"Please go ahead, Master!"

Chu Feng immediately used Sword Rushing Through Disabled Acupoints, draining the spiritual power from Cao Youqian's body.

After a while, Cao Youqian looked at Chu Feng, his face full of terror.

He hadn't expected the same move to be so terrifying when his master used it.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Master, just how strong are you?"

"I don't know either. Let's try it and see."

As Chu Feng spoke, he carried Cao Youqian out of the Dao-Seeking Academy and flew several dozen li away. Then he held two fingers together like a sword, transformed the disabled spiritual power in his body into Sword Qi, and slashed at the sky.

A streak of Sword Qi over a hundred zhang long cleaved the clouds in two.

"Holy shit!"

Looking at the clouds that had yet to close back together, Cao Youqian couldn't help exclaiming, "Master, you're actually this terrifying!"

Chu Feng carried Cao Youqian back to the Miscellaneous Dao Institute. "I'm nothing special. At most, I could fight any of the eight chief seats to a draw."

Cao Youqian said, "..."