Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97

"Zhang shi..."

Walking up to Zhang Xuan, Ruohuan gongzi hesitated for a moment, gritted his teeth, and said, "I have something to request of you!"

"Feel free to speak!" Zhang Xuan replied with a smile.

While he did have some misunderstandings with this proud genius of the Myriad Kingdom Alliance, they had resolved most of their grudges back in the Glacier Plain Court. Furthermore, as fellow participants representing Myriad Kingdom Alliance, if he could be of help, he wouldn't reject it.

"Initially, I don't bear much hope in reaching the top ten. However... now that I'm already in the top sixteen, if I don't at least give it a try, I will regret it for life..." Ruohuan gongzi's face reddened.

Having picked 'A1', he was able to advance to the next round unconditionally.

Humans are born with desire. If he had been defeated in the previous round, he wouldn't have been so conflicted. Now that he was already in the top sixteen-a victory away from getting into the top ten-he couldn't help but harbor some hope.

"... But the one I'm fighting against in the next match is Qin Lei of White Helios Sect!"

With a distressed expression, Ruohuan gongzi uttered gloomily, "I don't have the confidence to defeat him!"

Zhang Xuan turned to look at Ruohuan gongzi and asked, "Qin Lei? The person who is ranked third on the list?"

He had seen this name on the list that Pavilion Master Kang gave him previously. Qin Lei was a genius of White Helios Sect. As a 4-star pinnacle master teacher and a Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle expert, he was only below Fleeting Cloud Sect's Luo Xuan and the Frigid Gale Sect's Liao Wuzhi on the list, and he was a popular contender for the champion spot as well.

"Yes!" Ruohuan gongzi nodded his head.

"If that's the case, it would indeed be difficult for you to defeat him!" Zhang Xuan frowned.

While Ruohuan gongzi improved immensely in the past two months, reaching Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle as well, it would still be difficult for him to compete against disciples of huge sects like his current opponent.

After all, there was a huge gap in the resources they were entitled to over many years, and two months of last-minute training was far from sufficient to cover the gap.

"Thus, I wish to seek Zhang shi's guidance... Regardless of whether I'm able to defeat him or not, you'll have my gratitude!" Ruohuan gongzi quickly said.

Zhang shi had truly fared impressively in this tournament. Even the most popular contenders such as Luo Xuan and Liao Wuzhi found themselves being outshone.

If there was someone who could bring him the closest to success, it wasn't his teacher Pavilion Master Kang but the young man standing before him at this instant.

"I can offer you pointers, just that..."

At this point, Zhang Xuan shook his head before continuing, "... given that we don't even know the content of the duel, how can I offer you any effective pointers?"

There were many different dueling formats to the Master Teacher Tournament, and given that the Myriad Kingdom Alliance was ranked in the last place in the previous tournament, Ruohuan gongzi didn't have the right to choose. Under such circumstances, he could only go along with the proposed dueling format from the other party, so how could Zhang Xuan offer any effective guidance?

After all, the bare minimum to preparing a winning hand was to know what cards the other party had up his sleeves. Otherwise, even if a 6-star or 7-star master teacher were to be present here, he would surely be completely helpless in the face of this situation.

Even if Zhang Xuan wished to be of help, there was nothing he could do!

Ruohuan gongzi hesitated for a moment before saying, "In the previous round, the person he faced was Wu Qing from True Breath Sect. The both of them were nearly equals, so he proposed knowledge impartation and won through it. Against me... I think there's a good chance he might choose a physical duel so as to be spared the effort!"

Wu Qing was also another master teacher whose name was listed in the top ten of the list, but due to his bad luck, he met with Qin Lei in the very first round and ended up being eliminated.

As the both of them were nearly equally-matched, Qin Lei proposed knowledge impartation.

But against Ruohuan gongzi, it was unlikely that Qin Lei would go through that much trouble; the chances were that he would outright propose a physical duel.

Even though the both of them were Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle, the other party had more years of experience behind him. Not to mention, the resources that White Helios Sect provided the other party was far greater than Ruohuan gongzi's. Thus, it was likely for Ruohuan gongzi to be the weaker one in all aspects, be it battle technique or power control.

As such, his guess was actually rather logical. There was indeed a high possibility that the other party would propose a physical duel against him.

"This..."

Zhang Xuan scratched his head.

If it was really a physical duel, then things could be solved easily. It was a walk in the park for him to raise the other party's fighting prowess up a notch within the next hour. However... what if it wasn't a physical duel?

Wouldn't all preparation be done in vain?

Just as Zhang Xuan was just about to say something, Pavilion Master Kang called over to them.

"Zhang shi, Ruohuan, have some food first!"

Turning around, they realized that most of the master teachers had already departed from the stage to rest their wearied bodies and regain their energy.

"Let's head down first!"

There was no use discussing this matter when nothing was confirmed at all. Thus, the duo walked down the stage.

The Alliance Head Residence had prepared quite a luxurious spread. There was even spirit beast meat, an extremely effective nourishment in recovering one's expended zhenqi.

Upon seeing the feast, Zhang Xuan felt his stomach grumble.

"What were you two talking about?" Zhao Feiwu asked the duo with a light smile.

"Oh, Ruohuan gongzi is facing Qin Lei from the White Helios Sect in the next match, and he hopes that I can offer him some pointer for it. However, we don't know what dueling format the other party is likely to choose," Zhang Xuan replied as he filled his mouth with the delicacies before him.

"What kind of dueling format?" Zhao Feiwu cupped her chin, and after a moment of contemplation, she replied, "I think that... it is likely to be comprehension of cultivation!"

"Comprehension of cultivation?" Zhang Xuan, Ruohuan gongzi, and the others in the surroundings turned to look at her.

In truth, most of them had agreed with Ruohuan gongzi's view that the other party would choose physical duel. As such, they were intrigued to see that someone had a different viewpoint from theirs.

"Comprehension of cultivation? But that is a very troublesome duel to hold, and the evaluation is extremely tricky as well. Very few people would choose that kind of dueling format!" Su shi replied.

There were many ways a comprehension of cultivation duel could be held, such as interpreting a battle technique, interpreting a cultivation technique, and so on... But regardless of which one it was, it was extremely time-consuming and effort-consuming. More importantly, there were many differing viewpoints regarding the topic, and they could all be correct at the same time. In other words, as long as one's interpretation wasn't too off the mark, it would be hard to decide on a winner.

On top of that, as 4-star pinnacle master teachers, it was impossible for their understanding of cultivation to be too far off the mark. As such, there were very few who would opt for such a troublesome dueling format.

"Tell us more about it!"

But still, while the princess before him was lacking in cultivation, Zhang Xuan knew that she was an avid reader, and she had shown that she was particularly astute in guessing the thoughts of others on multiple occasions as well.

"The basis behind my deduction is simple-it depends on what he hopes to achieve in this tournament!"

Zhao Feiwu chuckled mysteriously.

"What he hopes to achieve?" Ruohuan gongzi was taken aback. "Wouldn't it be winning the champion seat?"

The greatest glory one could derive from the Master Teacher Tournament would be to win the champion seat. As one of the most popular contenders for the position, it would be natural for Qin Lei to be eyeing that seat!

"You're right, but what do you know is his greatest obstruction to his goal at the moment?" Zhao Feiwu's eyes narrowed into crescents as she turned her beautiful face toward the young man before her.

"You mean... Zhang shi?"

There was no one present in this square who would offer a different answer than that at this point.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to use the word 'rampage' to summarize Zhang Xuan's performance in the preliminary selection. And after the first dueling round, there was no one else who thought that they could exploit his low cultivation. With this, he had become the strongest contender for the champion seat, standing above even Luo Xuan.

Thus, the greatest obstruction Qin Lei would face in becoming the champion was indubitably him.

"Indeed. Since his goal is Zhang shi, naturally, he doesn't view you as a threat. Thus, in the first place... he has never really thought of you as an equal before!" Zhao Feiwu said.

Ruohuan gongzi's face reddened.

Even though those words were indeed hurtful, he knew that it was true.

Given the disparity between both of their capabilities, the other party indeed had nothing to fear of him.

"However, given that you came from the Myriad Kingdom Alliance, and his goal is to defeat Zhang shi... there is a good chance he will use Zhang shi's greatest strength to defeat you so as to taunt him!" Zhao Feiwu continued.

"My greatest strength?" Zhang Xuan was taken aback by those words.

"Un. Even though you have shown outstanding aptitude in multiple aspects such as your temperament and wisdom, without a doubt, your greatest strength is your intelligence and Impartation of Heaven's Will!"

"That's right!" Pavilion Master Kang nodded his head.

Zhang shi had performed impressively throughout the tournament, but these two factors were what that left the deepest mark on the onlookers.

Using Impartation of Heaven's Will to persuade an Otherworldly Demon to kill himself; defeating the puppet of the Celestial Chest with a single move.

On the other hand, destroying the Ghost Domain Illusory City didn't really reflect much about Zhang shi's capability, especially given that the other participants hadn't had the chance to undergo it themselves, whereas memorizing twenty thousand books was due to his strong background. These two feats paled in comparison to the former two.

"Impartation of Heaven's Will is highly tied to one's Soul Depth, so even if he thought that he could defeat you in that aspect, it would unlikely to be spectacular... but intelligence is different! A master teacher's intelligence is usually reflected through the depth of his understanding of cultivation, and if he could perform outstandingly in that aspect, he might be able to steal the spotlight from Zhang shi. This is a good opportunity for him, so I believe that there's a good chance that he will grasp it!"

Zhao Feiwu chuckled as she revealed her analysis. "Rather, I think that a physical duel would be one of the less likely options for him. After all, it is unseemly for a refined master teacher to be engaged in physical brawls. It wouldn't reflect well on him even if he were to win!"

"You're right!"

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up.

Zhao Feiwu seemed to have grasped the other party's thoughts accurately, and her words seemed to fit perfectly as though a jigsaw puzzle.

"Your analysis is right, but how would a duel involving comprehension of cultivation be carried out? After all, we can't possibly find a manual on the spot and decipher it..." Ruohuan gongzi asked in bafflement.

The most direct way for to determine whose comprehension of cultivation is deeper would be for the duo to decipher the same book, but... which book would they choose? After all, wouldn't the result be biased no matter which book is chosen?

"There are other ways to measure one's comprehension of cultivation. If I recall correctly, there's a dueling format known as... 'Flaw Identification', right?" Zhao Feiwu replied with a smile.

"Flaw identification? You mean... the dueling format where both sides each execute a battle technique, and the respective opponents point out the flaws in the executed technique, and whoever manages to point out more flaws is the winner?"

Ruohuan gongzi was stunned. "But... that requires one to have an exceptional eye of discernment and profound comprehension of cultivation. Usually, only higher rank master teachers would do it for lower rank master teachers. For him to point out my flaws..."

He didn't finish his words, but what he wanted to express couldn't be any clearer.

They were both 4-star pinnacle master teacher. For the other party to actually boast of correcting Ruohuan gongzi's mistake, wasn't he being a little too arrogant?

"Indeed. Don't worry, since this Qin Lei wishes to win the spotlight and outshine Zhang shi, there is a very good chance he will choose this dueling format!" Zhao Feiwu smiled.

Since the other party was aiming for the champion seat, he had to shatter the heavy pressure Zhang Xuan was exerting on him first. And for this, Ruohuan gongzi, who was a fellow representative of Myriad Kingdom Alliance, served as the perfect stepping stone.

Only by using the most arrogant way to step down on Ruohuan gongzi would his own strength be emphasized. Only through this way could he finally get on equal footing with Zhang shi.

"..."

Ruohuan gongzi had a bitter look on his face.

What was this?

He thought that he would at least be respected as a fellow competitor in the Master Teacher Tournament given the massive rise in his cultivation, but in the end, the other party only regarded as a mere stepping stone.

"The heck, I'll screw him over!"

The more he thought about it, the angrier he felt. Gritting his teeth, Ruohuan gongzi turned to Zhang Xuan and asked, "If this is the dueling format, does Zhang shi have any ideas as to how I can achieve victory?"

To actually challenge a master teacher of equivalent rank to a match of flaw identification... the other party was indeed hubristic. But while Ruohuan gongzi hated to admit it, he had no confidence to face the other party in such a match-off.

Thus, he entrusted his hopes to the young man before him who had created miracles time and time again.

"Ideas?" Zhang Xuan frowned. After a moment of thought, his eyes lit up, and a peculiar smile appeared on his face. "I do have an idea, but it won't be easy to carry out!"

"Oh? As long as I can defeat it, I'd do anything no matter how difficult it is!"

Hearing that the other party had an idea in mind, Ruohuan gongzi's eyes lit up. He quickly stood up and bowed sincerely. "Zhang shi, I humbly seek your guidance..."

"Er... Alright then!"

Zhang Xuan casually picked up the bowl of meat soup which he was half-done with and passed it over. "Take this and pour it over your opponent!"

"Ah? Pour it... over Qin shi?"

Ruohuan gongzi's eyes widened in shock.