That's why I should maintain a low profile at all times. Otherwise, if Luo Ruoxin realizes that so many people like me, she won't be happy, Zhang Xuan thought with a nod.
And to be honest, he had indeed been much more low profile ever since he entered the Sanctum of Sages. The only time he had been high profile was when he challenged the Tower of Master Teachers.
Otherwise, how could the Cultivation Technique Forest and even the entire Inner Sanctum still be intact?
He had already been actively trying to play it cool!
Ah, it sure is tiring maintaining a low profile, Zhang Xuan thought as he rubbed his glabella.
If not for his wish to maintain a low profile, he would have simply taken Vicious' upper body out. At the very least, he would not have just stopped with challenging a mere Tower of Master Teachers and breaking a couple of records.
Do you know how difficult it was to suppress myself?
However, this worked out fine as well. It was aligned with his humble personality anyway.
Having spent a year as a cultivator, he understood the deep importance of maintaining a low profile. If he had gone around boasting about his strength and trump cards like his clone did, he probably would have already died.
After a brief moment of thought, he flicked his wrist, whipped out a token, and began assessing it closely.
It was the Sanctum Head Token that he had received from Sage Kui.
The first layer of the seal on it had unraveled back when he received his 8-star master teacher emblem after clearing the Tower of Master Teachers. However, he had not had the time to examine it closely back then. Since he had some time on his hand now, it would be a good opportunity to study its changes.
At this very moment, the Sanctum Head Token was emanating a warm glow. Stroking it lightly with his hand, he could immediately feel a will surging into his consciousness. Even though his physical body remained motionless in the real world, he felt as if his consciousness was being dragged into a peculiar space.
Hu!
The next thing he knew, Sage Kui was standing right before him with a faint smile on his lips.
"You sure became an 8-star master teacher fast. The rate at which you are growing has far surpassed my imagination!" A hint of approval could be heard in Sage Kui's voice. "How far have you cultivated your Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld to? Let me take a look!"
"Regarding that… to be honest, I haven't started cultivating that optic art yet," Zhang Xuan replied awkwardly.
There were simply so many errors in that optic art that he could not bring himself to cultivate it. In fact, after he had obtained it, he could not even be bothered to give it a second glance.
Hearing those words, Sage Kui frowned. "If you don't cultivate the Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld, how are you going to remove the seals on the Sanctum Head Token and be officially inaugurated as the new sanctum head?"
The most crucial requirement for becoming the real sanctum head was the cultivation of the Eye of Insight to the realm of Demon Vanquisher, and it was impossible to reach that level without cultivating the optic art.
"I do want to cultivate it, but the Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld is a little… Never mind! Do you have any optic arts with you? If possible, I would like to borrow a couple of them for reference purposes!" Fearing that Sage Kui would be unable to take the trauma if he criticized the Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld once more, Zhang Xuan swiftly changed his words.
The cultivation of the Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld would only be a viable option to him after he successfully upgraded it into a Heaven's Path battle technique. After all, he had no intention of cultivating a battle technique only to end up becoming color blind or even completely blind at that!
"Only my teacher, Ancient Sage Bo Shang, has the ability to create a battle technique as profound and abstract as optic art. There's no way you will be able to find another optic art out there on the Master Teacher Continent!" Sage Kui shook his head. "May I know which part of the optic art you are confused about? Feel free to speak of it, and I'll slowly explain it to you."
"It's fine. I'll try deciphering it myself for now." Zhang Xuan shook his head.
It seemed like, in terms of capabilities, Sage Kui still came nowhere close to comparing to Ancient Sage Qiu Wu. The latter's fragmented souls were still capable of communicating with one another whereas the Sage Kui in front of him was clearly unaware of his conversation with the Sage Kui in the Mountain Gate examination.
"It's fine?" A displeased look materialized on Sage Kui's face. "What do you mean by that? In order to become the next sanctum head, you must cultivate the Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld! I have spent many years cultivating that technique, and my insights will allow you to swiftly grasp the technique! Or perhaps, do you think that your understanding of the technique is even deeper than mine?"
"Elder, that's not what I mean. To tell you the truth, there's a doubt that has been in my mind for a while that I would like to clarify with you." Knowing that Sage Kui's time was probably limited, Zhang Xuan did not want to waste time talking about the Divine Eyes of the Ninth Netherworld. At this point, he suddenly recalled what he had noted back at the Inner Sanctum, so he decided to make use of this opportunity to obtain some answers.
"Feel free to speak!" Hearing that Zhang Xuan had a question to ask him, Sage Kui flicked his hand behind his back grandly and assumed the image of a powerful expert.
"If I'm not mistaken, there's a skeletal frame of an Otherworldly Demon Emperor in a sculpture of yours in the Inner Sanctum. I'm curious to know how you managed to suppress its aura to the point where it's almost indiscernible." Zhang Xuan revealed his doubts.
He had been wondering about this matter ever since leaving the Inner Sanctum, but he was just unable to make sense of it.
Since Sage Kui's will had appeared before him once more, this would be a good opportunity for him to seek an answer to that.
"You know that there's a skeletal frame of an Otherworldly Demon Emperor in my sculpture?" Sage Kui's eyes widened in astonishment. In an instant, the image of a powerful expert that he had just built up shattered, and disbelief could clearly be seen on his face.
"Indeed. If I'm not mistaken, the Otherworldly Demon Emperor was an ancient figure in your era known as Vicious!" Zhang Xuan elaborated.
Considering that Sage Kui was Kong shi's grandstudent, he should have heard of Vicious.
"You… know of Vicious?" Sage Kui's cheeks began twitching.
"How did you manage to seal his upper body in your sculpture without any hint of his aura leaking out?" Zhang Xuan asked once more.
"This…" Sage Kui was stunned. Hearing the affirmative tone behind the young man's voice, Sage Kui hesitated for a brief moment before sighing deeply. "Since you have already seen through this much, I guess there's no harm in telling you the truth. You're right, the skeletal frame that is sealed in that sculpture in the Inner Sanctum indeed belongs to Vicious. Many years ago, when I first found it, a will had already developed within it. In order to prevent its resurrection, I could only make use of Kong shi's strength to suppress it."
"Kong shi's strength?"
"Yes. The Inner Sanctum is located in the very center of the formations of the Five Halls, and by using Kong shi's personal handwriting and the fortune harnessed in this very land, I was able to suppress it thoroughly, to the point where it's rendered completely helpless to retaliate," Sage Kui explained.
Hearing that, Zhang Xuan swiftly went through the relative position of the Inner Sanctum to the Five Halls, and indeed, the Inner Sanctum was located at the very center of their formations.
That would explain why it was so rich in spiritual energy and the overwhelming academic aura that lingered there.
"Back then, when Vicious fought against Kong shi, his strength had already reached a level surpassing all Ancient Sages on the Master Teacher Continent. At his peak, he was an entity whom none of us could match. In order to prevent his resurrection, I could only make use of all resources I had at my disposal to suppress him." Sage Kui shook his head.
After which, he turned a doubtful gaze to Zhang Xuan and asked, "The aura of the skeletal frame should have been suppressed to the point where it's completely indiscernible. How did you manage to notice it when your Eye of Insight is only at the third realm?"
There had been several generations of sanctum heads prior to him, and their mastery of the Eye of Insight had far exceeded his, but even so, they had been unable to notice the presence of the skeletal frame. Yet, the young man before him had actually noticed that something was in the sculpture and was even able to discern what it was clearly. How in the world did he manage to do it?
"I only managed to notice it by coincidence," Zhang Xuan replied perfunctorily, not bothering to explain.
"Regardless of how you noticed it, listen to my advice and don't even try to touch it. Even Saint 9-dan cultivators might not necessarily have the strength to stand against it." Seeing that Zhang Xuan was unwilling to talk too much about the matter, Sage Kui did not probe. Nevertheless, he still felt compelled to issue a warning.
"What if I have the confidence to tame the skeletal frame and prevent it from doing harm? Would it be fine if I take it out?" Zhang Xuan asked.
Given that he possessed the Book of Heaven's Path, not to mention that Vicious' head was under his control, he was very certain that he would be able to take down Vicious' upper body too. However, he was just unsure if there was any way that he could retrieve the upper body without resulting in any adverse consequences for the Inner Sanctum.
"You want to tame Vicious' skeletal frame?" Hearing those words, Sage Kui was clearly startled for a moment before he shook his head. "It's good that you intend to contribute to mankind, but I can tell you for certain that it's impossible. Even Kong shi failed to do it back then, so do you think that you'll really be able to do it?"