Chu Chuyan knew that Xie Xiu was intentionally voicing the doubt in everyone’s minds to give her an opportunity to explain herself, before any unwanted complications came about. “That’s because the Shi clan prepared an artifact for Shi Kun in times of danger. He had a ring with the spirit of an ancient beast named ‘Devouring Kun’ sealed within it.”

“Devouring Kun?”

That name caused a stirring of unease within the crowd.

Some of the less knowledgeable students turned to those around them to enquire about it, while the smarter students made use of this opportunity to flaunt their knowledge.

“Devouring Kun is an ancient beast that spans over a hundred meters in length. It can continuously evolve by devouring the bodies of its enemies. Even the weakest Devouring Kun could rival a ninth rank cultivator upon adulthood…”

The crowd gasped in shock when they heard the explanation. They couldn’t help but wonder how such a massive beast could possibly float in the air.

Some of the students who were in the dungeon earlier felt something click in the back of their minds, and their eyes went wide. They recalled sensing a powerful pressure and seeing a massive shadow in the sky at one point in time, which vanished soon after. It was a shocking encounter, but they hadn’t thought much of it, since it seemed natural that anything could happen in the mysterious dungeon.

Not even in their wildest imagination could they have dreamed that it was released by Shi Kun. If what was described was true, the Shi clan’s ability to turn such a powerful being into their servant was utterly frightening.

Despite this, there was one other thing that they were more curious about. They couldn’t fathom how Chu Chuyan had escaped when faced with such a terrifying being.

Chu Chuyan answered the doubts of the surrounding crowd. “The Devouring Kun was just a soul fragment of its former self, so it was much weaker than usual. Nevertheless, it was still a being far beyond my ability to deal with. Left with no choice, I had to resort to my forbidden art to subdue it. While I successfully destroyed the Devouring Kun’s soul fragment, it also resulted in the internal collapse of my ki meridians as well, turning me into a cripple.”

A huge commotion broke out upon hearing those words. They were astonished to learn that Chu Chuyan had even been able to defeat even a ninth rank ancient beast. As expected of the number one prodigy of our academy!

Some also wondered what Chu Chuyan’s forbidden art was, if it allowed her, as a fifth rank cultivator, to defeat such a powerful opponent. Of course, they also understood that this was one of her greatest secrets, so there was no way she would reveal it to them.

However, most were simply shocked to hear that her ki meridians had collapsed, and that she had been crippled due to her forbidden art. After all, Chu Chuyan had always been a lofty goddess in their eyes. Even though she was now married, it did little to mar her charm.

On top of that, there was news circulating that Zu An and Chu Chuyan still hadn’t consummated their marriage yet. Those rumors were oddly convincing, since no one thought that the Chu clan would really treat the good-for-nothing Zu An as their true son-in-law… 

… though the happenings at the Clan Tournament and the revelation of Zu An’s ‘strength’ had shaken the faith of those men.

Even so, Chu Chuyan still remained their dream lover.

Because of all this, the knowledge that Chu Chuyan’s ki meridians had collapsed left them infuriated. Many even started speaking up against the Shi clan.

Jiang Luofu was horrified as well. She immediately rushed over to Chu Chuyan’s side and grabbed her wrist to check her pulse. When she confirmed that her pulse was steady—in fact, it was stronger than ever—she heaved a sigh of relief.

“What a joke! Are you really trying to claim that you’ve been crippled when everyone saw you fend off my attack earlier?” sneered Shi Lezhi.

Jiang Luofu also looked at Chu Chuyan doubtfully. “That’s because Zu An desperately did everything he could to save my life,” responded Chu Chuyan. “He found and fed me an Evanescent Lotus, which eventually led to the restoration of my ki meridians.”

She was too embarrassed to dissect the exact process of how Zu An had saved her life, so she could only vaguely attribute it to the Evanescent Lotus. Even so, her cheeks still began burning up.

“The Evanescent Lotus!”

The crowd let out a unified exclamation of shock. That was a legendary treasure! Even a single one of its small petals could raise one’s cultivation by a step!

There were indeed rumors that there could be an Evanescent Lotus in the dungeon, and that was the ultimate treasure that many of them had been aiming for. 

It was a pity that none of them had been able to find it despite combing through the dungeon, and they eventually believed it to be just a rumor. Who would have thought that its existence was real?

Everyone immediately began glaring at Zu An, their faces displaying a range of emotions.

“Isn’t Zu An’s luck way too good? How can heaven be so unfair as to let him stumble upon a treasure of that caliber?”

“I’m more surprised to hear that Zu An was actually generous enough to give the Evanescent Lotus to Miss Chu. It looks like he’s going all-in this time around.”

“No wonder so many women stand up for him. He does have some qualities that are deserving of their affection. At least, I don’t think I’d be able to do the same thing he did.”

“I think that he’s far too reckless. Such a gift could touch a woman’s heart for a while, but as the gap between the two of them grows larger and larger, they would inevitably drift apart.”

“Yeah, I share the same thoughts as well. Wouldn’t it be much better for him to use it himself? Once he grows strong, he can have his choice of the ladies. By then, even Miss Chu would have a far higher opinion of him. In this world, it’s one’s strength that counts!”

… 

In contrast to the logical analysis by those envious men, the women present stared at Zu An with glittery eyes. A man who would give his all for the woman he loved—wasn’t this the love that they had been pursuing all their life?

Pei Mianman bemoaned the poor decision she had made. She should have insisted on tagging along with Zu An back then. If so, she could have at least gotten a share of the loot. To make things worse, Zu An’s sacrifice had most likely won him Chu Chuyan’s heart, likely resulting in their ‘partnership’ falling apart.

Most importantly of all, while she was a close friend to Chu Chuyan, she thought of the latter to be a rival as well. She viewed herself to be in no way inferior to Chu Chuyan; in fact, she believed that her cultivation was a slight bit higher than that of Chu Chuyan’s.

However, Chu Chuyan’s consumption of the Evanescent Lotus meant that her cultivation had risen by at least an entire rank, and the fact that she could hold her own against Shi Lezhi earlier on hinted at just how powerful she had become.

In other words, Chu Chuyan had just taken a huge lead over her.

To make things worse, she knew that they were equal in terms of aptitude and resources. If she didn’t come across a huge fortuitous encounter herself, it was likely that she would never be able to catch up with Chu Chuyan in this lifetime.

The thought that she would always have Chu Chuyan towering over her for life made her feel incredibly irritated. She shot a glare at the culprit who landed her in such a state. It’s all his fault!

You have successfully trolled Pei Mianman for 666 Rage points!

Meanwhile, Zheng Dan also had a complicated look on her face. She had been wondering all this while how Zu An had managed to escape from the elaborate schemes Shi Kun had concocted to kill him. Now, her questions were finally answered.

I never thought that he would be such a sentimental man.

Unlike the others, from her very first encounter with Zu An, Zheng Dan could already tell that he wasn’t a good-for-nothing as the rumors put him out to be. She could sense an air of mystery about him, which was fatally seductive to her.

The knowledge that he carried such deep feelings for Chu Chuyan left her feeling a little wistful. She wondered if her fiancé, Sang Qian, would do the same for her if they had been in the same position.

She soon shook her head, and her lips flattened into a bitter smile.

Even Wu Qing couldn’t help but direct a look of admiration toward Zu An. It looks like I’ve misjudged his character all this while.

Only Jiang Luofu looked at Zu An bizarrely. She was one of the rare few who knew just what the Evanescent Lotus meant to him. He was actually willing to make such a huge sacrifice to save his wife-in-name-only?

Sensing the gazes from the gossiping crowd around him, Shi Kun’s face turned livid, and he turned to Shi Lezhi for help.

Shi Lezhi hadn’t lived for so many years without anything to show for it, so it didn’t take long for him to figure out a solution. “Rubbish! Who has ever heard of anyone in this entire world who managed to restore their collapsed ki meridians to their original state? At the very most, the Evanescent Lotus should have only restored her mobility. She would have been weaker than an ordinary human! Besides, the Evanescent Lotus is only known for its ability to raise a person’s cultivation; there are no records of it reconnecting one’s ki meridians. If you don’t believe me, you can look for Divine Physician Ji and ask him about it!”

The close acquaintances of the Shi clan quickly chirped in agreement too.

Jiang Luofu frowned as well. She didn’t recall the Evanescent Lotus being able to reconnect a person’s ki meridians either.

Shi Lezhi’s statement gave Shi Kun some inspiration. He stopped forward and said loudly, “Even though Divine Physician Ji isn’t here, his daughter, Ji Xiaoxi, is here. Everyone knows that Miss Ji has inherited her father’s legacy. Why don’t we get her to give her analysis of this matter?”

Everyone immediately turned their eyes towards Ji Xiaoxi.

Ji Xiaoxi was a shy person, and having so many eyes on her made her even more flustered. She opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, but found herself unable to utter a single word.

“Miss Ji, everyone knows that you aren’t able to lie. Your opinion carries the authority of your father as well. I suggest you think things through carefully before making your statement,” said Shi Kun grimly.

Zu An immediately protested in anger, “Hey, Shit Kun! Are you trying to threaten an eye-witness?”

“Threaten? I’m just giving her a reminder lest a vile miscreant tries to lead her astray!” Shi Kun responded with an angry huff.

No matter how he racked his brain, he couldn’t figure out why, for a period of time, he had actually thought of Zu An as his own friend. The matter made him feel so disgusted that he almost wanted to puke.

He wasn’t the only one with the urge to retch, though. Zu An was feeling utterly distressed over the hundred thousand taels of silver he had wasted.

The same went for the hundred thousand taels he had spent on Zhang Han as well. It hadn’t been as utterly useless then, but its effects were hardly worth such a staggering sum. It looked like he would have to think twice before using the ‘Befriending a Rich Man’ skill in the future, since it was much weaker than he had expected it to be.

Ji Xiaoxi fell silent for a moment. Perhaps because of Shi Kun’s words reminding her that this was a professional evaluation, her attitude suddenly grew solemn as she offered her analysis. “Based on what I know, there are no records of the Evanescent Lotus having the ability to reconnect one’s ki meridians.”

Shi Kun burst into laughter upon hearing those words. He turned to Chu Chuyan gleefully and said, “Do you hear that? Even Miss Ji has said so! It’s obvious that you’re spinning a lie!”

Chu Chuyan frowned. She had indeed lied about this matter, but there was no way she could bring herself to reveal the truth before such a huge crowd.

However, Ji Xiaoxi quickly added, “That being said, even though there are no records of the Evanescent Lotus reconnecting one’s ki meridians, we can’t conclude that there isn’t such an effect. The Evanescent Lotus is simply too precious, and no one would ever use it on a crippled person. Naturally, we wouldn’t have evidence of it. If what Miss Chu said is real, this would be a major breakthrough in the medical field, bringing a ray of hope to those who have been crippled by their collapsed ki meridians.”

Chu Chuyan’s face heated up. It would be disastrous if she ended up misleading patients all over the world because of this lie she had spouted.

She subconsciously shot a glance at Zu An as she made a mental note to clarify the matter with Ji Xiaoxi privately, to tell her that it would be better for the patients with collapsed ki meridians to seek Zu An’s help instead.

Zu An seemed to understand the significance behind Chu Chuyan’s glance. Well, those male patients should stay as far away from me as possible, and if the female patients are beautiful, I guess I could at least give it a try…