Chapter 939: Unexpected Acquaintance

: shenshuzw

The schoolmaster opened his mouth, intending to argue, but the words withered on his tongue before he could utter them.

It seemed Lu Yang’s words possessed a certain reason after all.

"Then how do you explain the Heaven-Splitting Axe? Immortal Ying Tian could not possibly have used an axe to hack a path through the sky, shouted 'This heaven was opened by me,' collected tolls, and thus named it the Heaven-Splitting Axe!"

The schoolmaster recalled the origin of the Heaven-Splitting Axe; not a single ancient chronicle from the antiquity recorded why Immortal Ying Tian had bestowed such a name upon his immortal axe. It was a riddle that perplexed their guild of ancient historians, giving rise to a multitude of conflicting theories.

Some claimed Immortal Ying Tian had once used the immortal axe to cleave the heavens, separating chaos and dividing yin from yang; others asserted that when the axe was forged, an omen of a splitting heaven appeared, prompting ten thousand spirits to bow in reverence; still others believed that with this axe in hand, Immortal Ying Tian could refine heaven and earth anew, giving rise to earth, fire, wind, and thunder... Antiquity historians had argued endlessly over this, never reaching a consensus, for all was mere speculation devoid of evidence.

"Because Immortal Ying Tian thought the name sounded grand, what other reason could he possibly need?" the Immortal Fairy looked at the schoolmaster with genuine bewilderment.

Though she had always believed that techniques and magical treasures required no flamboyant names—preferring simplicity, like the Art of Playing Dead or the Fairy Fist Technique—Immortal Ying Tian had always insisted that the names of his techniques and treasures must sound grand, such as the Heaven-Splitting Axe, the Chaos Furnace, or the Universal Bell.

"Absurd! What manner of supreme figure was Immortal Ying Tian? His naming must have possessed profound significance!" The schoolmaster clearly refused to believe the Immortal Fairy's rhetoric, deeming it utterly preposterous.

"Take the legendary Chaos Furnace, for instance; the ancient texts record it with utmost clarity. Immortal Ying Tian once used this furnace to refine chaos, which is precisely why it was named the Chaos Furnace!"

"Oh, you mean the Chaos Furnace? That was because this Fairy..." The Immortal Fairy subconsciously began to expose her identity, but catching herself halfway through, she deemed it unwise and changed her tune on the fly. "That was because Immortal Ying Tian used that furnace to stew a Chaos beast, so he simply named it the Chaos Furnace."

The Chaos, one of the four ancient perils, shared equal infamy with the Qiongqi.

The Immortal Fairy actually missed the Chaos Furnace quite a bit; whenever she cooked without it, she always felt the food lacked a certain flavor.

The schoolmaster hesitated for a moment and did not refute her. He suddenly remembered that Immortal Ying Tian seemed to have written a book titled *The Grand Compendium of Cooking*, wherein he mentioned how to prepare a Chaos beast; it actually seemed to make sense.

Could it be that Immortal Ying Tian’s aptitude for naming was truly so lacking?

"Lu Yang, since you hold yourself in such high regard concerning your understanding of ancient history, do you dare come to my Imperial Academy for an academic discourse?"

The schoolmaster was named Ye Gu. He was not a member of the Meng family but a historian from the Imperial Academy; his presence as a private tutor at the Meng estate was solely because the Meng family paid exceptionally well.

"Right now?"

"Right now!" Having suffered consecutive blows from the Immortal Fairy, Ye Gu intended to seek assistance from the Imperial Academy.

The moment these words were spoken, the Meng family disciples below the stage instantly erupted into a chorus of joy.

The master returning to the Imperial Academy meant there would be no lessons for the rest of the day.

Ye Gu glared fiercely at the young brats and ordered the printed exam papers to be distributed, which immediately turned the joy back into a chorus of lamentations.

The Emperor of Xia had not entered the private school; he had been waiting outside, and now he watched as Lu Yang walked out.

"Where are we heading?"

"To the Imperial Academy. This fellow thinks my grasp of ancient history is quite decent, so he invited me to give a lecture at the Imperial Academy," the Immortal Fairy said with delight.

The Emperor of Xia cast a peculiar glance at them. The Imperial Academy was filled with a bunch of obstinate, foul-tempered old pedants; would they truly invite Lu Yang to lecture?

"I said I am inviting you to my Imperial Academy for an academic discussion!" Ye Gu corrected.

"A reverse psychology tactic, I understand completely." The Immortal Fairy saw right through Ye Gu’s non-existent hidden motive at a single glance.

As Lu Yang's companion, the Emperor of Xia naturally followed along to the Imperial Academy.

The Imperial Academy was a highly renowned institution within the Great Xia, yet what was researched here was not cultivation, but history; most historical information regarding the Great Qian and Great Yu dynasties was the fruit of the Imperial Academy's labor.

And the most mysterious, myth-shrouded ancient history also fell within the research scope of the Imperial Academy.

Along the way, the Immortal Fairy observed many disheveled scholars arguing with one another, each holding fast to their own views, neither side willing to yield an inch.

"It is recorded with absolute clarity in *The Grand Compendium of Cooking* that dishes ought to be seasoned using seconds as a unit, how could this possibly be wrong!"

"A phonetic loan character! This must be a phonetic loan character!"

"What phonetic loan character? It is clearly because Immortal Ying Tian loved eating salt! Have you not read that after defeating a powerful foe, Immortal Ying Tian would always look down from above and say, 'The salt this monarch has eaten exceeds the paths you have walked'? This is ironclad proof!"

Three scholars fell into a fierce dispute, looking very much as though they might come to blows at any moment.

Within the spiritual space, Lu Yang watched all of this in silence, feeling that Immortal Ying Tian’s public reputation might be beyond salvation.

Lu Yang then noticed another group of scholars engaged in discussion.

"According to my analysis, Immortal Ying Tian's Dao Fruit is highly likely to be related to the Heavenly Tribulation."

"It is indeed possible... what did you just say?"

"I said Immortal Ying Tian... wait, what did I just say?"

The two scholars stared at each other blankly, neither able to recall what had just transpired.

Ye Gu led Lu Yang and the Emperor of Xia into the depths of the Imperial Academy, arriving before a simple thatched cottage.

Inside the cottage, an old man with a face lined by age was engrossed in a discussion with someone, his face lighting up with animation as the conversation reached an exciting peak.

This grey-haired elder was none other than Qi Xiuyi, the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy. Long renowned and thoroughly versed in ancient and modern history, his achievements in the historical field were unmatched, earning him the respectful titles of "Chancellor Qi" and "Old Qi" from the outside world. He rarely appeared in public, living a life of complete seclusion; even Lu Yang, whose fame was currently at its peak, had never heard of him.

It could even be said that he harbored no grievances whatsoever with the Daoist Buyu, which spoke volumes about the depth of his isolation from the world.

The person seated across from him had their back to the door, obscuring their appearance.

Seeing Ye Gu enter, Qi Xiuyi expressed a trace of surprise and asked with a smile.

"Xiao Gu, at this hour you ought to be teaching at the Meng estate, why have you come here?"

"Master, while your disciple was lecturing at the Meng estate, we discussed the origin of the Mountain-Splitting Axe. This fellow Daoist named Lu Yang offered another possibility for its origin."

Ye Gu recounted what the Immortal Fairy had said. Qi Xiuyi stroked his long white beard, remaining silent.

"That is indeed an interesting perspective, yet there is no evidence to support it."

Qi Xiuyi himself could not discern whether the Immortal Fairy's words were right or wrong, so he turned for assistance to the person seated across from him.

"Daoist Jin, what is your view on this?"

Qi Xiuyi solemnly introduced the person opposite him: "Allow me to introduce you all. This is a fellow Daoist I have recently befriended. Though appearing young in years, this person possesses a unique reservoir of insights regarding ancient history; a mere half-day of conversation has greatly broadened my horizons."

The person addressed as Daoist Jin lowered their head in thought: "I have indeed heard that in the early years, before Immortal Ying Tian achieved prominence and suffered from a lack of cultivation resources, he did collect tolls. At that time, he did indeed employ a Mountain-Splitting Axe, and would mutter phrases like 'This mountain was opened by me...' and the like."

"Strange, people of the present era should not be aware of such matters."

Daoist Jin rose and turned to face Lu Yang, a hint of astonishment appearing in their gaze.

Only then did Lu Yang clearly behold Daoist Jin's appearance—a petite and lovely young girl with a cold, solemn little face that wore no trace of a smile.

Lu Yang did not recognize Daoist Jin, but the Immortal Fairy did.

The young ancestor of the Qiongqi clan, Jin Caiwei.