Chapter 176: The Costliest Championship Title

All of the figureheads of Celestial Being Warrior Academy could only bow and agree, and Bing Qianshan quickly lost interest, turning to depart.

"Don't worry, the Xue Clan wouldn't dare to come after you," he reassured.

"Thank you, Master Bing!" Fang Che hurriedly replied.

"Boss, I want to go with Master Bing!" Ding Jieran declared with fervent excitement glowing in his eyes.

This was the first time that Fang Che had seen the light of hope in Ding Jieran's eyes.

"Go," Fang Che said as he patted Ding Jieran on the shoulder. "Don't call me boss anymore. You are your own boss!"

"No! You are my boss!" Ding Jieran stubbornly insisted. "We are friends who will defend each other in times of peril!"

He spoke those words as if he were reciting from some sacred scripture.

Fang Che faltered slightly upon hearing this.

Those were the same words that he had spoken to Ding Jieran prior to their battle in the new student tournament, and he didn't even think that Ding Jieran would still remember them.

A hint of warmth welled up in his heart as he declared, "That's right! Regardless of the outcome, we will still be friends who will defend each other in times of peril!"

Ding Jieran gave a firm nod, then bade farewell to Mo Ganyun and the others one by one.

"There's no need to make such a big fuss, I'll only be teaching you for some time before sending you back to the academy," Bing Qianshan said.

He then turned to Fang Che as he ordered, "Make sure to keep up your sword practice!"

"Yes, Master Bing!"

With that, Bing Qianshan grabbed onto Ding Jieran's shoulder, and the two of them instantly vanished out of sight amid a flash of swordlight.

All of the Celestial Being Warrior Academy staff were busy treating Xue Wanshi, while the dean looked as if he were mourning a dead relative.

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Only after Bing Qianshan's departure did all of the spectators erupt into a raucous frenzy.

Never had they seen anything like this before!

Celestial Being Warrior Academy had already secured the championship title, yet Xue Wanshi still wasn't satisfied, insisting on adding insult to injury.

Finally, his wish was granted, and he managed to goad Fang Che out into the open, yet he seemed to have bitten off far more than he could chew.

Fang Che's sheer intimidation alone was enough to drop him to his knees, knock him unconscious, and force him to release his bowels.

Furthermore, the dean of the academy had just been publicly dismissed.

This had to have been the costliest championship title in World Academy Tournament history!

Furthermore, Celestial Being Warrior Academy was faced with an awkward conundrum. What were they going to do about the awards ceremony? Xue Wanshi was the team captain, yet he was in no condition to accept the trophy.

Even if he could somehow recover in time for the awards ceremony, he would be regarded as nothing more than a joke!

He could change into new clothes and bathe himself all he wanted, but he would be forever known as the pathetic coward who had shat his pants in front of hundreds of thousands of people!

None of this had anything to do with White Cloud Warrior Academy.

They were still going to attend the awards ceremony for their second-place prizes.

Li Changkong strode over to Fang Che and slapped him in the back of his head as he admonished, "How are you able to cause trouble everywhere you go? It's been really peaceful recently in your absence, yet as soon as you come back, you pull a stunt like this!"

Despite his admonishment, Li Changkong was internally very pleased.

He had just been as furious as Yu Zhongge and the others at Xue Wanshi's brazen taunts, and it was profoundly satisfying to see him being humiliated in such brutal fashion.

In the wake of the Xue Wanshi fiasco, White Cloud Warrior Academy suddenly felt like the champions, while Celestial Being Warrior Academy was made to appear like a laughing stock!

Our team may have lost, but that's only because our strongest first-year didn't take part in the tournament!

All of the instructors present knew what had happened to Xue Wanshi. He was like a new soldier that had been brought up entirely on training drills, only to be suddenly thrust onto a real battlefield. It was no surprise that his will was broken.

Huang Yifan also approached Fang Che with a complex mix of emotions on his face. He was clearly very proud and elated, but begrudgingly so.

"Are you a ninth-rank General now?" he asked.

"Almost," Fang Che replied.

"Didn't we forbid you from coming? Why did you come anyway? Just to cause trouble?"

It had felt just as cathartic for Huang Yifan as it did Li Changkong watching Fang Che crush the pride of Celestial Being Warrior Academy, but the thought of Fang Che's identity filled him with vexation.

If only he wasn't a One Heart Church mole!

He was truly feeling very conflicted.

"Don't be so harsh, Assistant Dean Huang," Li Changkong interjected. "At the very least, Fang Che should be commended for defending our academy's honor!"

"Oh yeah? And how did he do that?" Huang Yifan countered. "He shouldn't even be here, and he just ruined one of the continent's top young prospects! The higher-ups are not going to be happy about this!"

"What do you suggest we do then? Tie him and crucify him?" Li Changkong snapped. "It's not like he took part in the tournament, so what're the higher-ups going to say? Who's even going to say anything? Zhao Shanhe?"

It was in these situations that Huang Yifan really wanted to reveal Fang Che's secret identity for the entire world to see, but he could only stomp his foot in frustration as he seethed in silence.

The medical staff of Celestial Being Warrior Academy began administering treatment to all of the members of both first-year teams, while the commotion in the venue slowly died down.

***

The dean of Celestial Being Warrior Academy was dismissed, but the tournament still had to go on.

Furthermore, no successor had been decided yet, so the dismissed dean would just have to serve as the interim dean for now.

Night fell before the conclusion of the second-year grand final, so the tournament proceedings were adjourned for the day.

Mo Ganyun and the others had already returned after receiving treatment. They were still bruised and battered, but all of them were in very high spirits as they joined Fang Che for jovial celebrations.

"You were so badass earlier, Boss! How did you do that?" Mo Ganyun asked, his eyes practically glowing with admiration.

Everyone was looking at his red headband with sympathetic expressions. At this rate, he would most likely have to wear that headband for the rest of his life...

"It's a good thing you didn't make the headband green," Qiu Yunshang sighed.[1]

Everyone erupted into laughter.

Mo Ganyun's face became flushed with embarrassment as he declared, "I'll definitely surpass Boss! I'll..."

His voice trailed off into a deflated silence. At his current cultivation base, he would've been no match for Xue Wanshi, yet Fang Che had managed to completely crush Xue Wanshi's spirit with just a single yell. The gap simply appeared insurmountable!

"What's your cultivation base right now, Boss?" Yu Zhongge asked.

"Let's just say that I most likely still won't be able to defeat Mo Ganyun with a single roar for now. It'll probably take at least two," Fang Che replied in a serious manner.

"Don't drag me into this," Mo Ganyun grumbled.

They had nothing to do now that the first-year grand final was over, so they had the free time to chat as much as they pleased.

"What future path do you think the four of us should take, Boss? How should we proceed from here?" Yu Zhongge asked.

In the wake of Ding Jieran's departure, there were only four of them left.

"What do you think?" Fang Che asked.

"Witnessing what you did to Xue Wanshi today has alerted me to the importance of accumulating practical experience on the battlefield, so I want to go out on more missions," Yu Zhongge replied.

Mo Ganyun nodded in agreement.

They had initially planned to go out on missions with Fang Che, but that was clearly out of the question. Fang Che was already too far ahead of them, and they would only be weighing him down.

"We just removed Xie Gongping from our team, and now, you've left us all in the dust. Maybe this is some form of divine retribution," Mo Ganyun sighed, and the others could only crack a wry smile.

Indeed, the gap between them and Fang Che had widened to even further than the gap between Xie Gongping and them!

Even if they were to go at him four on one, Fang Che would still be able to easily crush them without even breaking a sweat. Under these circumstances, how could they possibly expect him to go out on missions with them?

Furthermore, Ding Jieran had just been taken away by Bing Qianshan, and he was sure to have improved by leaps and bounds upon his return.

The four of them came from the best clans, had the best cultivation foundations from birth, and enjoyed the best cultivation resources, yet they had somehow been left behind!

"You have the right idea," Fang Che approved. "Go out on spirit medicine collection and demon beast hunting missions first before you go after demonic church members. Otherwise, given your current lack of experience, you'll only be rushing to your deaths."

All of the Generals back in the Parasite Ascension Project had been seasoned veterans on the battlefield, and Yu Zhongge and the others had to accumulate much more experience before they could tackle such formidable opponents.

Against normal opposition, Yu Zhongge and the others were all exceptional prodigies that could punch above their weight, but there were many prodigies from the demonic churches that could defeat them even at the same cultivation base.

Furthermore, all of them were incredibly ruthless, cruel, and underhanded, and Fang Che was genuinely concerned that Yu Zhongge and the others would be no match for them.

"Let's do as Boss says! What do you three think?" Yu Zhongge asked.

Mo Ganyun's trio raised no objections.

The four of them then heaved a collective sigh, with Yu Zhongge's sigh the most heartfelt of them all. Technically speaking, he had taken over as the leader of their group, but he had a very long way to go before he would be truly worthy of that position.

1. In Chinese pop culture, the color green relates to being cucked. In fact, "wearing a green hat" is an informal expression for being cucked by a romantic partner. ☜