Chapter 598: Mount Wen Academy! The Chaos Begins! Scholar Reports the News! The Situation is Critical! Words of the Sage!

In Pu City...

This county town was renowned for its scholarly culture and had a temple dedicated to the Literary Saint. Although it was not one of the major cities of Donglin Prefecture, it had produced a number of notable scholars and civil service candidates.

Pu City also had Mount Wen Academy, whose head, Mr. Jinyan, was admired both for his virtue and his literary talent.

Over the years, graduates of Mount Wen Academy had not fared particularly well in official appointments. Yet the character and spirit of these scholars, with their integrity and devotion to study, were widely praised.

Mount Wen Academy especially provided an accessible path for children from poor families, allowing many from humble backgrounds to rise through the imperial examinations.

Mr. Jinyan dressed simply and looked like a scholar in his early fifties, with a distinguished appearance.

In his youth, he had been a charismatic and elegant top-ranking scholar, known for his achievements as a

tanhua

[1].

Riding along the imperial streets in the capital, he had once been the center of attention. Yet most of the common folk in Pu City knew little of this glorious chapter of his past.

Mount Wen Academy was located in the west of the city. The environment was elegant. It lacked the imposing aura of larger academies but had a unique atmosphere conducive to quiet study and scholarship.

At this moment, a young scholar suddenly stumbled into Mount Wen Academy, bloodstains smeared across his clothes.

“It’s terrible. Something’s happened. Bandits have come into the city, and they’re pillaging the people.”

The scholar ran into the academy, bleeding heavily.

Behind him, two fierce-looking ruffians followed closely. One of the men’s eyes narrowed, and a surge of energy flowed through his body. His steps quickened, and he reached out toward the scholar, his fingers curved like hooks. If it weren’t for wanting to take a living captive, they would have killed him on the spot.

“Freeze, in accordance with the command!” a stern, commanding shout rang out.

The two ruffians were instantly frozen in place, unable to move, as if struck by the immobilization technique of an immortal.

Mr. Jinyan appeared, accompanied by two or three instructors. His presence was imposing without anger, and he commanded authority.

“Wang Wencai, what happened?!” Mr. Jinyan asked in a deep, serious tone.

“Dean, a gang of bandits is pillaging the city. Even the county office can’t stop them. Please, Dean, intervene.” The student, Wang Wencai, spoke weakly.

Mr. Jinyan was usually very gentle with others. Seeing one of his students at Mount Wen Academy so gravely injured, he immediately knelt down to support him.

“I understand. Don’t speak anymore. Rest and recover.” His tone was calm and composed.

Wang Wencai nodded.

Mr. Jinyan then looked up toward the two ruffians nearby, intending to question them, but suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his chest. A dagger had pierced his chest, and the assailant was none other than the student Wang Wencai himself.

“Dean!”

“Sir!”

The instructors and students around him cried out in alarm.

Wang Wencai’s eyes were dark and menacing. The dagger in his hand followed through for another slash.

Mr. Jinyan immediately activated a brush he carried in his bosom, which emitted a divine radiance, and forcefully pushed Wang Wencai backward.

Wang Wencai floated lightly in the air, dissipating the force, and landed softly on the ground. The dagger was still lodged in Mr. Jinyan’s chest.

For an ordinary person, such a strike would have been instantly fatal. But Mr. Jinyan was a great Confucian cultivator.

His expression remained composed as he calmly said, “I’m not harmed.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, a powerful force pushed the dagger out of his chest. Even the wound sealed itself, as if he had never been injured.

“You’re not Wang Wencai. Who are you really?!” Mr. Jinyan demanded in a deep, steady voice.

“As expected of a great Confucian... truly formidable. You can recover from even a mortal wound like this,” Wang Wencai sneered coldly.

Suddenly, dozens of mounted warriors appeared along the street. They were tall and muscular, wearing light armor and carrying military crossbows.

Their temples bulged with forceful energy, their blood and qi overwhelming. All of them were genuine martial experts.

“Shoot! Leave no one alive,” Wang Wencai commanded coldly.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The sharp, piercing sounds of arrows filled the air. Dozens of crossbow bolts shot toward the scholars of Mount Wen Academy.

Mr. Jinyan’s expression darkened. He waved both hands, and the brush in his grasp shot into the sky.

A vast, righteous qi formed an invisible barrier, enveloping the incoming crossbow bolts. These arrows were specially designed to counter cultivators’ power.

𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Yet Mr. Jinyan’s righteous qi surged mightily, and his aura wall forcibly blocked the deadly bolts.

“Fire!”

Murder gleamed in Wang Wencai’s eyes.

The dozens of mounted warriors suddenly drew firearms from their backs. These were regulated weapons of the Kingdom of Qian army.

Mr. Jinyan’s eyes widened in surprise. If these men attacked him directly, with his cultivation, he could block them instantly. But these attackers were ruthless and cunning, dispersing in the blink of an eye to strike at the many students of Mount Wen Academy.

Mr. Jinyan could only use his righteous qi to shield the students.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The immense firepower of the guns exploded against the aura wall formed by righteous qi.

Mr. Jinyan’s expression turned cold. He wanted to fully mobilize his righteous qi to crush these mysterious riders.

But suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his body. His qi flow became chaotic. A flicker of green-black qi appeared on his face.

“That dagger is poisoned!”

Mr. Jinyan realized this instantly and used the mystical power of his brush to suppress the toxin.

The methods of Confucian cultivators were the most elaborate and subtle. Even if the poison was a rare, deadly toxin, it could not truly harm Mr. Jinyan.

He was a great Confucian, a Confucian master at the peak Yin Spirit realm. Even the ferocious gu poison of the southern frontier could be held in check by relying on the Confucian school’s flashy methods.

The green-black qi on his face quickly dissipated. But Wang Wencai’s expression suddenly turned icy as a sharp whooshing sound pierced the air.

Among the mounted warriors, a burly man leaped forward with his legs, becoming a blur, and charged at Mr. Jinyan.

At this moment, Mr. Jinyan was busy mobilizing the brush’s mystical power to suppress the poison inside him, slowing his reaction by a beat.

And that single beat was all the opening the man needed.

Clang!

A long sword slid from his waist, cold light flashing menacingly. The sword thrust toward Mr. Jinyan’s chest.

Yet, a special force emanated before Jinyan, stopping the sword three cun from his chest.

The burly man’s eyes darkened, and suddenly a flickering sword light nearly one and a half chi long surged from the tip.

In an instant, Mr. Jinyan’s chest was pierced. The nearby instructors were horrified, and they immediately unleashed righteous qi, attempting to counter this man.

But with a flick of his wrist, the swordsman sent out multiple strands of sword qi.

Several instructors of Mount Wen Academy were instantly wounded. The sword qi ravaged their bodies, leaving them unable to speak.

Confucian cultivation was often mocked as “verbal combat”, relying on the power of the saints’ words, poetry, and writings to suppress opponents. If one could not speak, their combat effectiveness was severely diminished.

Mr. Jinyan again called on the mysterious power of his brush. Astonishingly, even though his chest was pierced, the fatal wound kept healing continuously.

1. Tanhua is the title given to the candidate who placed third in the imperial examinations of China, specifically in the palace examination. The first place winner was called Zhuangyuan, and the second was known as Bangyan.

The term “Tanhua” already appeared in the imperial examination system during the Tang dynasty. At that time, those who passed the jinshi examination would celebrate with a garden outing known as the “Tanhua Banquet.” Among the successful candidates, the youngest and most handsome was chosen as the “Tanhua Envoy,” who would visit famous gardens to pick flowers and welcome the Zhuangyuan. ☜