"I" Zhang Xuan suddenly fell silent.

For a moment, he was tempted to admit that Ruoxin was indeed his girlfriend.

However, he eventually still swallowed those words back then.

Considering how the Zhang Clan and the Luo Clan were already in a mess after hearing that the little princess had someone that she fancied, he would only be making things worse if he revealed the matter right now.

He would have to reveal his relationship with Luo Ruoxin eventually, and now was definitely not a good time.

First and foremost, he would require an identity that would allow him to withstand the pressure exerted from the Zhang Clan. This way, Luo Ruoxin would be able to face her family as well. Otherwise, if others knew that the person whom she liked was just an ordinary person from a humble Unranked Kingdom not only would it not ease the predicament they were in, it would only be complicating it.

It was traditional thinking, but marriage had to be between two equals, or else there was no way Luo Ruoxin's family would be willing to accept him. He did not wish to see his girlfriend falling out with her family over him, criticized by the world.

"Zhang shi, I am thankful for what you have done, but I am in no mood to joke with you!" Luo Xuanqing said grimly. He turned to Zhang Feng and said, "You said that this incident happened half a month ago?"

All in all, their journey to obtain the Dongxu Gourd had taken roughly twenty days. If the incident had happened half a month ago, it would mean that it had happened right after he left the Sanctum of Sages.

If that was the case, it would explain why he had not caught wind of the matter.

"That's right." Zhang Feng nodded.

Luo Xuanqing stood on the spot with a livid expression on his face for a while before he suddenly turned his head to Zhang Xuan and said, "Zhang shi, I'll leave this fellow to you. Make sure to give him a good lesson so that he learns how to watch his mouth in the future. I'll be right back."

After which, he leaped up into the air and flew off in a certain direction. Before Zhang Xuan could say a word, he had already disappeared into the distance.

"Brother Luo" Zhang Xuan frowned, not expecting the other party to leave just like that.

The other party moved so quickly that even the execution of the Unbounded Voyager would have been insufficient for him to catch up, so he could only hold back the urge to chase him. He turned his gaze to the Netherworld Azure Dragon Beast and said, "Teach him a lesson, but don't kill him."

"Roar!" Nodding, the Netherworld Azure Dragon Beast was just about to make a move when a whiz sounded. The three elders who had been planted into the ground had flown back up into the sky.

"This friend over here, Zhang Feng is our guild's Inceptive Sage. Hurting him is no different from going against the entire Spirit Awakener Guild. I hope that you can think things through before making a move," an elder said through gritted teeth.

"Furthermore, the system of Inceptive Sages is something that is determined by the Sanctum of Sages. To show public defiance for it is equivalent to opposing the Sanctum of Sages, and you'll be expelled for it."

"Expelled?"

"Indeed. Luo Xuanqing is one of the core members of the Luo Clan, and his cultivation had reached Half-Dimension Sundering realm, so expulsion from the Sanctum of Sages doesn't really mean anything to him. However, it's different for you. Judging from your age, you must be a freshman who has just enrolled this year, right? You still have a long future ahead of you, so why ruin your entire life just to vent a moment of anger?" another elder added.

"Ruin my entire life?" Zhang Xuan shook his head with a light chuckle. He turned to the three elders and said, "Since we are in the Sanctum of Sages, let's settle this matter by the rules of the Sanctum of Sages then. I am currently an 8-star spirit awakener, so as long as I replace him as the Inceptive Sage, it won't be considered a violation of the rules no matter what I do to him, right?"

"Of course! If you can become the Inceptive Sage, even if you were to beat him to death, our guild will help you cover up the matter," an elder replied with a nod.

An Inceptive Sage could be considered the most outstanding member within a certain occupation among the younger generation, so if there were to be any conflicts with others, they were inclined to help him.

With the current situation, for example, if not for the fact that Zhang Feng was their Inceptive Sage, they would not have rushed out at all.

After all, it was apparent that both Luo Xuanqing and the young man before them were tough nuts to crack.

In all honesty, the collapse of the Spirit Awakener Hall was not a big matter; they could easily have it fixed by enchanting a couple of puppets. However, having their Inceptive Sage beaten up would really be a huge slap to their face, and this was something they could not accept.

"I see." Zhang Xuan nodded. "I'll have to trouble you all to tell me how the test for the Inceptive Sage works then. I still have some matters to attend to after this, so I don't have much time to waste."

There was no backing out of this matter anymore given how far they had come. In order to ensure that there would be no negative implications from the day's events, he would have to replace Zhang Feng as the next Inceptive Sage.

After all, what he was aiming to do was build up his reputation in preparation for his inauguration as the sanctum head, not sully it. How embarrassing would it be if he were to become the next Luo Xuanqing, hated by the entire student populace?

"You want to challenge the Inceptive Sage?" Hearing those words, the three elders nearly snorted their beards off.

They had seen plenty of arrogant people in the past, but they had never met one that was so conceited!

Only those who were the greatest of geniuses would be able to become the Inceptive Sage of an occupation, and Zhang Feng was one who had even broken many of their records. Initially, they had still intended to have him represent their Sanctum of Sages' branch to challenge the candidacy for the position of the headquarters' hall master, but who could have known that he would end up being nearly beaten to his death by someone else instead and the culprit was even planning to replace him!

Even though spirit awakener was not an Upper Nine Paths occupation, it still had a complete heritage to it, and it was considered one of the top occupations of the Master Teacher Continent. For someone who had merely cleared the 8-star spirit awakener examination just six hours ago to spout such arrogant words

The trio felt that the young man was simply taking spirit awakeners too lightly.

Gritting their teeth, they were just about to berate Zhang Xuan to put him back in his place when they suddenly noticed the Netherworld Azure Dragon Beast looking at them intently with malicious intentions in its eyes.

It seemed as if it was ready to swipe its claws down on them should they speak a single unnecessary word.

Knowing that they were no match for the Netherworld Azure Dragon Beast, one of the elders suppressed his anger and explained, "The challenge to become the Inceptive Sage is very easy. As long as you can enchant the guardian golem and have it move more than the previous record holder, it'll be considered your victory.

"Zhang Feng, this young man over here says that he wants to challenge your position as the Inceptive Sage. Are you willing to accept his challenge?"

With irrepressible fury in his eyes, Zhang Feng glanced at Zhang Xuan before nodding. "I'll accept his challenge!"

He had been beaten up for no good reason earlier, and even though it was Luo Xuanqing's doing, this fellow was an accomplice. Since this fellow was looking for trouble, he did not mind teaching him a lesson and showing him what a true expert was!

"There are two golems right in front of our Spirit Awakener Hall, and the both of you can choose either one of them to enchant. If you manage to get your golem to travel further than Zhang Feng's, you will be able to replace him as the next Inceptive Sage of our Spirit Awakener Hall!" one of the elders said as he pointed forward. "First and foremost, I'll have to ask you to let go of Zhang Feng."

Tracing the elder's finger, two guardian golems sat where the entrance to the Spirit Awakener Guild used to be. Even though they were slightly tilted due to the various prior events, they were not damaged in the slightest.

Upon hearing that the rules of the challenge were so simple, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief before waving his hand.

The Netherworld Azure Dragon Beast nodded as well before releasing Zhang Feng. Nevertheless, it still continued glaring at the other three warily, as if saying that it was ready to crush them into minced meat should any of them dare make a move against its master.

Zhang Feng shot a spiteful glance at Zhang Xuan and the Netherworld Azure Dragon Beast before walking over to one of the golems. A sharp glint flashed across his eyes, and he waved his hand grandly. "Let's waste no time and begin right away!"

"Very well," Zhang Xuan replied calmly as he made his way over to the other golem.

He had taken a look at the golems before, and it would indeed be rather difficult to enchant them considering their sizes and the materials that they were made of. However, after reading through the 8-star spirit awakener books, he had managed to gain a deeper understanding of spirit enchantment, so it would not be too difficult for him to succeed anymore.

"On my count, start!"

At the elder's command, Zhang Xuan suddenly sensed a huge disturbance in the surrounding spiritual energy. Following which, Zhang Feng's Primordial Spirit leaped out from his glabella and entered the interior of the golem.

I guess his title as the Inceptive Sage of the Spirit Awakener Hall isn't just for show. His Primordial Spirit is indeed rather strong, Zhang Xuan remarked internally.

While the other party's Primordial Spirit was still far from comparing to his, it was still a sight to behold. Just its very presence was able to exert immense pressure upon others.

One's ability to enchant was deeply related with the strength of one's Primordial Spirit. The stronger one's Primordial Spirit was, the easier it would be for one to enchant an artifact.

In terms of cultivation, Zhang Feng was far from a match for Luo Xuanqing and Zhang Chun, but when it came to the strength of their Primordial Spirit, he was much stronger than the both of them.

Tzzzzzzz!

As soon as his Primordial Spirit seeped into the guardian golem, a unique energy began gathering and diffusing all over it. A slight gleam appeared on the surface of the golem, and it looked as if it would come to life at any moment.

Even though Zhang Feng had already started his enchantment, Zhang Xuan was in no hurry to start. Instead, he activated his Eye of Insight and observed Zhang Feng's actions closely.

It had to be said that while Zhang Feng's personality was so-so, his ability as a spirit awakener was indeed notable. He pulled forth the various abilities of an 8-star spirit awakener perfectly with grace and elegance, such that there was even a peculiar kind of beauty to his actions.

"Alright, it's about time for me to start too"

A while later, Zhang Xuan turned his eyes back to his own golem and placed his hand on it.

Tzzzzzzz!

Submerging a hint of his consciousness into the golem, he was immediately plunged into a world of endless darkness. Driving the Heaven's Path Spirit Enchantment Art, he tapped his finger forward, and a ball of flames was immediately conjured before him.

The ball of flames was not too big, but it was expanding to the surroundings at a steady pace.

Expand! Zhang Xuan willed with raised eyebrows, and in an instant, the ball of flames exploded into a sea of flames that rapidly spread across the area.

Even though the golem was steadily absorbing in the flames as well, the area which the flames covered was simply too great such that the rate it was growing at far exceeded the rate at which it was being absorbed.

It did not take long for darkness to be fully vanquished from this space, replaced with radiant light.

Seeing that the enchantment was a success, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

It wasn't too difficult after all

Even with a leaking pail, as long as one's influx of water was fast enough, it was still possible to fill it fully.

After mastering the 8-star Heaven's Path Spirit Enchantment Art, the speed at which he could enchant artifacts had become much faster than before. He was able to easily exceed the speed that the golem was undoing his enchantment at.

Turning his head to look at Zhang Feng, he saw that the latter was just about to finish as well.

With a light chuckle, he snapped his finger, and a sliver of his consciousness flew over. Right after he was done making preparations, he heard a voice beside him. "Elder, I am done"

After which, a Primordial Spirit slipped out from the golem and floated in midair with a look of agitation and excitement on its face.

"Good. Make it move, and we'll count how many steps it can take. Let's see if we can break your previous record." One of the elders nodded.

"Yes!" Zhang Feng nodded as he gestured his hand forward grandly.

Huala!

The stationary golem abruptly opened its eyes, and amid a cacophony of noises, it stood up.

Dong! Dong! Dong! Dong!

The golem began to walk forward, and each time its massive foot stepped down on the ground, the surrounding area would tremble under its sheer weight.

With every step that it took, the spirit harnessed within the golem would dissipate considerably. Nevertheless, it still continued to make its way forward.

"One step. Two steps. Three steps" The elder in the sky counted as the light in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

Dong dong dong dong!

The golem continued forward, and soon, it came to its seventh step. In the sky, agitation could be clearly seen on Zhang Feng's face, and his fists were tightly clenched together. He willed with all of his might for the golem to make the seventh step.

Boom!

Zhang Feng's golem lifted its leg with great difficulty and took a small step forward before finally losing consciousness with a resounding buzz, collapsing back to the ground.

A triumphant look emerged on Zhang Feng's face as he turned to Zhang Xuan with a gleeful smirk on his lips. "The golem I enchanted has managed to take seven and a half steps in total. It's your turn!"

"Alright," Zhang Xuan replied casually before snapping his fingers.

Huala!

His golem stood up, but despite moving its arms here and there, it did not advance forward at all.

"Your golem hasn't moved a step at all, so I'm afraid that we'll have to consider this your" one of the elders began announcing with a frown.

However, before he could finish his words, another elder beside him exclaimed with a shrill voice tinged with disbelief.

"It's not that his golem isn't movingit's dancing!"