Chapter 0671: The Frustrated Regent

Astral Sage College, within a pavilion of the Gilded Palace at night.

Vice Principal Su Xin was sitting cross-legged, looking at the wryly smiling Shen Jinxiao. At the moment, he was very leisurely pouring a cup of tea.

"Mentor Shen Jinxiao, regarding the situation earlier, House Luolan's Pei Hao suddenly burst forth with massive strength, even reaching the quasi-Duke Stage! Might you happen to know how this was done?" Vice Principal Su Xin curiously observed Shen Jinxiao, not beating around the bush but asking directly.

A look of surprise surfaced when Shen Jinxiao heard those words. "Quasi-Duke Stage? Pei Hao is actually that talented?"  

"The one you speak of has quite ordinary potential. He borrowed the usage of certain opportunities to breakthrough into the Heavenly Pearl Stage. That should have been his limit. From a normal perspective, it would be exceedingly difficult to reach the quasi-Duke Stage even with the aid of secret arts. Yet he achieved it. I feel that a Duke expert interfered with the situation," Vice Principal Su Xin calmly explained. 

Shen Jinxiao smiled. "Since you’re asking me, Vice Principal, could it be that you suspect it was me?"

"Although you and Pei Hao don't seem to have any sort of relationship, you've constantly targeted Jiang Qing'e and Li Luo for the past year. Frankly speaking, I am suspicious," Vice Principal Su Xin enunciated.

Shen Jinxiao shook his head. "It might be true that I made Li Luo's life difficult because of Jiang Qing'e. However, I won't conceal anything either. I truly admire Jiang Qing'e greatly from the depths of my heart, and she used to be my student. Unfortunately, I inadvertently chased her away with my passionate actions. As a man, I simply don't like Li Luo as a result. Isn't that reasonable?"

Vice Principal Su Xin frowned as she glared at Shen Jinxiao. "Is that really the case?"

"Still, I have to admit that my intentions were not pure, but a teacher liking a student... is that so hard to believe? This would put me under the spotlight and I would be criticized by all. Thus, why would I casually speak of this?" Shen Jinxiao helplessly answered. 

Vice Principal Su Xin continued slowly, "Wasn’t your second resonance a rarely seen Heart Beast resonance?"

The Heart Beast resonance belonged to the family of beast resonances. It was a strange spirit beast that was rumored to have the ability to manipulate one's spirit and heart.

Shen Jinxiao smiled as he nodded in response. With a thought, an illusory manifestation appeared behind him. It looked like a massive rat with a body of snow-white fur. It had no mouth or nose, and atop its head was just a single large eyeball, constantly looking around.

Vice Principal Su Xin glanced at it. The Heart Beast resonance seemed to emit a rather welcoming aura as she nodded. "It's rare to see you utilize your second resonance."

"Vice Principal Su Xin, you keep interrogating me, but I think that you should spend time contemplating the problem with Mentor Chi Chan. The news of her facing off against House Lanling will inevitably spread, and all of the Xia Kingdom's peak powers will seek an explanation from our college. After all, our neutrality is sacred and should not be violated." Shen Jinxiao grinned.

In response, Su Xin merely calmly nodded in acknowledgment. 

After which, the two exchanged a few more words before Shen Jinxiao took the opportunity to leave.

As he left, Vice Principal Su Xin removed a compass from her robes. The compass was spinning, constantly swallowing wisps of air. Half a moment later, she frowned slightly as she muttered to herself, "It detected no abnormalities with Shen Jinxiao's second resonance. Its fluctuations are peaceful and stable and there seems to be no trace of killing intent... could it be that it wasn't him?"

Meanwhile, as Vice Principal Su Xin was lost in thought, Shen Jinxiao was currently sauntering along a small road within the college. As he passed through a patch of shadows, the space behind him warped slightly and the Heart Beast resonance's manifestation reappeared. Its snow-white fur quickly darkened into an inky-black color, radiating cold and strange undulations.   

Once he walked out of the patch of shadows, the manifestation disappeared as though it had never been there.

A grin could be seen on Shen Jinxiao's face.

...

Xia City, which had been engulfed with activity, finally returned to peaceful silence.

Within the Regent's palace.

The Regent Gong Yuan was currently standing by a lake, emotionlessly watching the night sky.

Behind him, the dual-pupil youth had strutted over with a smile. "Who would have expected that Li Taixuan and Tan Tailan had left behind such a trump card?"

"How could they have become so powerful?" the Regent dryly asked.

When he had exchanged brief blows with Tan Tailan, his opponent's might had far surpassed even his greatest expectations.

"There's no need to ponder so much over this. Their projections probably used the might of the divine matter to strengthen themselves. Thus, it should be the last means at their disposal. I'm afraid they won't be able to do that again," the youth explained.

"Just once is enough. Li Taixuan has repaired the defensive ward of House Luolan, so it will be impossible to gain another opportunity any time soon." The Regent coldly snorted.

"The coronation ceremony will take place in three days' time. I can't afford to wait for a second opportunity to steal the divine matter."

The youth grinned and nodded. "Plus, you've completely offended Li Taixuan and Tan Tailan this time! Once they return from the Nobles' Battlefield, I feel that the situation will become a little stickyyyyy..."

A hint of gloom could be seen within the Regent's eyes. Li Taixuan and Tan Tailan's survival was something that left him both worried and troubled. The two already had exceptional means at their disposal. Who knew how powerful they would be by the time they left the Nobles' Battlefield? 

The two of them truly struck fear into the depths of his heart.

“Phew.”

The Regent exhaled deeply. "There's no point in talking about this further. Now that I don't possess the divine matter, then I will have to use other means. I will need to take control of the Kingdom Protecting Formation. With that in hand, even a King Stage expert will be unable to kill me in Xia City."

The youth nodded. "The Kingdom Protecting Formation can only be completely controlled by the one who completes the coronation ceremony. This is also the First Princess' hope. Once the Little Emperor completes the ceremony, she will no longer live in fear."

The Regent indifferently replied, "How can it be so easy? My plan was to use the divine matter to forcefully control the Kingdom Protecting Formation. Now that this is no longer an option, there are other methods. The only problem is that Pang Qianyuan is the biggest issue here. I cannot let him out of the Umbra Cave and participate in the ceremony."

The Regent's gaze turned towards the youth. "Since I don't have the divine matter, I believe I can only rely on you now. You guys should also have the same aim as me. If Pang Qianyuan is released, it would do no good for either of us." The youth grinned warmly as he nodded slightly.

"Relax. We've planned for so many years. How can we let Pang Qianyuan escape from the palm of our hand? You can just focus on your plan. We'll deal with him."

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