Chapter 1 The Beginning

Lying in bed, slowing his breath, Zhang Yuanqing recalled his father's appearance in his mind over and over. Unlike before, he could now quickly concentrate his mind and make his spiritual power run at high speed.

Like a top sports car, it could reach top speed in two or three seconds.

Soon, white noise began to fill his ears, and chaotic images flashed like slides. Zhang Yuanqing covered his head in pain, veins throbbing on his forehead, and cold sweat pouring out of his pores.

Suddenly, the noise and chaotic images disappeared, and the world was silent.

In Zhang Yuanqing's mind, the scene of the barbecue party appeared, flashing frame by frame: Song Man's greedy eyes, the closeness in Mu Dan Xianzi’s smile, Xiahou Aotian's efforts to attract attention, but also his annoyance at not being noticed, Yuan Ting's pain of sitting on pins and needles…

Everyone's expressions and movements were clearly presented in his mind.

At the barbecue party, Zhang Yuanqing had been paying attention to the students, but only with a quick glance, leaving no trace.

During the long "rewind," Zhang Yuanqing found eight suspicious people. The length and number of times they paid attention to Jiaoren Lake far exceeded others.

They were: Zhu Mingxu, Xian Chan Jun, Sanyang Kaitaitai, Xie Lingzhou, Tianxia Guihuo, Kui Yangze, Yuan Ting, and Xiahou Aotian.

"Hoo..."

Zhang Yuanqing ended the rewind and exhaled a heavy breath. He suddenly felt warmth in his nose, and when he reached out to wipe it, his hand was covered in bright red blood.

"Compared to before, my spiritual body is clearly countless times stronger, but why haven't the symptoms of my headache changed? It's still painful, still nosebleeds, at most it's just that I don't need to rely on medicine, and the spiritual body can recover on its own." "This 'rewind' ability is very strange. Does my 'rewind' ability come from a part of the Palace Master's soul? Why didn't I ask about such an important question that night? No. Something's not right..." He didn't dwell on it, because now was not the time to think about his headache.

"Yuan Ting and Xiahou Aotian can be ruled out. One was just absentmindedly staring at Jiaoren Lake, and the other was pretending to be aloof to attract attention. As for the rest, I'm more familiar with Tianxia Guihuo. He noticed that Jiaoren Lake was extraordinary yesterday and showed some curiosity. It's normal to pay more attention to it when you finally come to the lake. If he's an Armorist, I could chat with him."

As for the other five, Zhang Yuanqing wasn't very familiar with them. In terms of suspicion, Zhu Mingxu and Xie Lingzhou, who came from Spirit Realm families, were the most suspicious.

"Of course, the Armorist may not be among them. I'll focus on them first."

Zhang Yuanqing sat up, went to the bathroom to wipe the blood from his palms and nose.

When he returned to the bedroom, Yin Yao Junzhu, sitting upright at the desk with her hands on her knees, conveyed a mental fluctuation:

"There's something wrong with your spiritual body. You'd better ask your Shifu to take a look."

"I know, my spiritual body was broken before, but it was patched up later," Zhang Yuanqing said.

If Yin Yao Junzhu could frown, her brow would definitely be furrowed now. She slowly "said": "What is this magic... Hmm, what kind of profession's ability is this?"

She changed her wording.

"Musician," Zhang Yuanqing replied. "Huh, you don't know? Musicians were extinct in your era." Yin Yao Junzhu thought for a while and said:

"Are you referring to those courtesans who were active in the Jiaofangsi and brothels?" "Ah, were musicians courtesans in ancient times?" "... No, they were very good at seducing men." Zhang Yuanqing instinctively became curious and interested when he heard Jiaofangsi and brothels. "It's not really seduction. In my era, there were very few Saints, almost extinct. Those like me, who came from famous families, were rare. Those musicians were cultivators, but their strength was weak, and they were not good at fighting. They could only gain wealth and status by singing songs," Yin Yao Junzhu explained.

Zhang Yuanqing thought of the abilities of extraordinary-level musicians and nodded: "Reasonable! It's a pity that there are no musicians in brothels now. Otherwise, listening to music in brothels every day would be wonderful." The next day, he left the Thunder Drum Purple Gold Hammer, Yin-Yang Daoist Robe, Disguise Ring, Beast-Skin Bracelet, Sliding Shovel Shoes, Gale Gauntlets, Houtu Boots, and Longtianyuan Jade Plate, packed them into the cloth bag that came with the room, and solemnly handed it to Yin Yao Junzhu.

"This is half of my fortune. I hope that everything is peaceful behind the stone gate and that there are no accidents. Otherwise, I can only go to the roof..." Zhang Yuanqing muttered in his heart.

The first class in the afternoon was Artifact Forging, and the location was a small pavilion by the lake. It was a two-story building. The first floor was the Artifact Forging Room, and the second floor was the Tool Storage Room.

The Artifact Forging Room was very large, the size of half a football field. Dozens of platforms were built with cement and bricks, and each platform was equipped with a furnace, a blower, and an anvil.

The cement platforms were filled with various clamps, hammers, and knives. At first glance, it was like a handmade paradise.

The teacher, Mo Pan, was wearing a white shirt and black trousers, and his hair was neatly combed. It could be seen that he was a very serious and upright teacher.

His facial features were ordinary, his eyebrows and eyes were gentle, and he had the image of a refined teacher.

"Today's class task is to forge consumables, Water-Repelling Beads. The materials are Jiaoren Tears, and the administrator will send the materials over later." Mo Pan said in a serious tone, "Now, I will take you to visit the second floor first. There are many Hundred Flowers Association tools on display inside..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xiahou Aotian interrupted excitedly:

"I understand. There must be a divine artifact hidden inside, just waiting for the protagonist to arrive, and it will obediently recognize him." Teacher Mo Pan was silent for a second and patiently advised:

"That's not the case, student Xiahou. Read less meaningless books. We Scholars should read more in-depth books." "Like *Quantum Mechanics* and *Black Hole Theory*?" Zhang Yuanqing secretly slandered.

"I want to state in advance that the tools in the exhibition room cannot be touched. I will introduce them to you. Remember, do not touch them, or you will be attacked by the guards of the exhibition room." Mo Pan earnestly warned:

"You should have learned about the overseas profession courses. The guard is a puppet, a puppet that combines the abilities of a Swordsman and a Judge. It is forbidden to touch anything in the exhibition room. Those who violate this rule will be punished." After clarifying the stakes, he led the students upstairs to a two-meter-tall double wooden door.

Beside the tall double wooden door stood a puppet in knight armor, leaning on a sword. It was 1.8 meters tall, wearing medieval knight armor, and the cross-shaped knight's longsword was simple and sharp. Mo Pan took out his work card and handed it to the knight puppet.

The lifeless puppet lowered its head, and the joints in its neck made "creaking" sounds. There was a slight sound of gears turning inside its body. It stared at the work card for a few seconds and then looked up to examine Mo Pan.

Its face was hidden inside the iron mask, revealing only a pair of ruby-encrusted eyes that shot out red light, scanning Mo Pan. After a few seconds, the red light retracted, and the knight puppet opened the wooden door of the exhibition room with clanking steps.

Mo Pan led the students inside, and the knight puppet followed behind, carrying its simple longsword, as if it would strike anyone who dared to touch the tools in the room. Inside the exhibition room were glass display cases, and the tools were stored inside the cases.

"The four rows of display cases on the left contain tools of extraordinary quality, the two rows of display cases on the right are of Saint quality, and the row in the middle contains tools of Ruler quality, for a total of 42 items." Teacher Mo Pan explained, "This is where the Hundred Flowers Association headquarters stores its tools. I must remind you again, do not have any bad intentions. In the past, some students sneaked into the exhibition room at night, trying to steal tools, but they were killed by the knight. It is not something you can deal with at this stage."

"Who's so stupid? Isn't that the same as robbing a bank or a museum?" Zhang Yuanqing thought.

At this time, he saw Hongjige walking straight to the display case for Ruler-level tools and pointing to a full-length mirror with a brass frame, asking:

"Teacher, what is this tool?" Mo Pan said: "This tool is called the Mirror of Fate. It is the work of a level 9 Artificer, and it combines the skills of astrology and divination. Its function is to observe a person's fate and answer questions." "The question must be related to fate. For example, you can ask it if you will have a son or a daughter in the future, and it can answer you. But if you ask it who sneaked into Jiaoren Lake the night before, it cannot answer you, because it has nothing to do with fate."

"Stand in front of the mirror, say your Spirit Realm ID, and then ask the question." The students were immediately interested and flocked to the mirror. "Get out of the way, let me go first!" Hongjige overbearingly drove away the students.

The students stepped back, happy to let him be the guinea pig.

"Ahem!" Hongjige cleared his throat, stared at himself in the mirror, and said, "My name is Hongjige, and my question is: who will my future wife be?"

The mirror surface rippled like water, then calmed down, and a delicate and dazzling girl appeared.

Then, the mirror surface rippled again, and a charming and sexy woman appeared. Finally, an ordinary-looking, gentle girl appeared.

"I, I will... Have three wives?" Hongjige was pleasantly surprised, and he couldn't believe it.

Mo Pan was silent for a moment and said in a pitying tone: "No. The correct interpretation is that you will get divorced twice."

Hongjige stood there dumbfounded.

The crowd cast sympathetic glances at him.

"Get out of the way, let me try." As the class monitor, Xiahou Aotian pushed aside the stunned Hongjige, stood in front of the mirror, and asked, "My name is Xiahou Aotian, Mirror of Fate, answer me: can I become a Demigod?"

The full-length mirror with the brass frame fell silent. After a long while, five large characters appeared:

[Are you an idiot?]

"Why does this broken mirror insult people?" Xiahou Aotian was furious, but after taking a look at the puppet knight in the distance, he calmed down. Mo Pan calmly interpreted the information, saying:

"The mirror means that as a Ruler-quality tool, it cannot predict the position of a Demigod, as that exceeds its capabilities."

"Let me try!" Sun Miaomiao excitedly pushed Xiahou Aotian away, put her arms around Xiao Doubi, and said:

"I am Sun Miaomiao, please tell me, will Yuan Shi Tianzun give me a child?"

The mirror surface rippled like water. After a short while, a Sun Miaomiao with a big belly, seven or eight months pregnant, appeared in the mirror. Sun Miaomiao: "???"

Mo Pan hurriedly interpreted: "The magic mirror means no. If you have to get a child from him, there is only this way in the future."

Many female students secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Next, each student experienced the Mirror of Fate, asking what they desired in their hearts. Some received satisfactory answers and were overjoyed, while others were disappointed, pained, and depressed. In the end, only two were left: Sanyang Kaitaitai and Zhang Yuanqing.

"Me first?" Sanyang Kaitaitai asked, seeing that Yuan Shi Tianzun had no intention of asking.

Zhang Yuanqing nodded. He didn't want to experience the magic mirror, because he had too many secrets and was worried that the tool would see something.

Sanyang Kaitaitai, whose ID was flamboyant but whose appearance was extremely honest and simple, stood in front of the full-length mirror, took a deep breath, and asked with a nervous and expectant mood: "My name is Sanyang Kaitaitai, Mirror of Fate, will I have the happiness I want in the future?"

He didn't dare to ask too directly, for fear of getting a bad answer. The mirror slowly showed two words:

"Will not."

Sanyang Kaitaitai's face turned pale, and he asked unwillingly:

"Will I have..."

"No."

"Damn it!"

"This... I don't have this either." The exhibition room fell into an eerie silence.

Sanyang Kaitaitai opened his mouth, suddenly crying and rushing towards the magic mirror: "I want to smash this broken mirror, I want to die with it!"

Then, he punched the Mirror of Fate.

Hongjige and Ren Junzi, who were beside him, reacted the fastest and knocked him down. The other students swarmed up and dragged the wailing Sanyang Kaitaitai to the side. The puppet knight silently lowered his sword.

"What is yours will eventually be yours, and what is not yours, don't force it..." Hongjige persuaded bitterly, but couldn't help but chuckle. The students wanted to laugh but felt it was unkind, so they forced themselves to hold back, each wearing a mask of pain. The calm and gentle teacher Mo Pan looked at Yuan Shi Tianzun:

"Do you want to experience it? What do you want to ask? Is the Demon Lord dead or alive? What did my dad leave in my soul? Can I successfully save the Demon Lord's eyes?" Zhang Yuanqing silently complained.

"Teacher, I haven't thought about it yet. Can I keep my experience slot, and I'll find you when I think of something?" He came up with a compromise.

Teacher Mo Pan thought for a moment and nodded: "Okay!"

Jiaoren Lake.

With a cloth bag hanging around her neck and wearing a Yin-Yang Daoist Robe, Yin Yao Junzhu slowly floated towards Hundred Beasts Island. In a night-traveling state, she didn't have to worry about being seen, but Jiaoren were natural water ghosts and were extremely sensitive to undercurrents, so she didn't dare to recklessly control the water. Following the route Zhang Yuanqing had given her, the Junzhu slowly swam.

An hour later, she finally arrived at Hundred Beasts Island and saw a lone peak standing at the bottom of the lake.

She saw two Jiaoren holding long spears, patrolling near the stone gate.

Yin Yao Junzhu swayed her long legs and lightly leaned towards the two Jiaoren.

As soon as she approached within twenty meters of them, the two Jiaoren sensed the unusual surge of the undercurrent and subconsciously looked over, but in the next second, the bodies of the two beautiful Jiaoren stiffened. Two black talismans appeared on their foreheads.

Sleep Charms.

Their spiritual bodies fell asleep.

Time was limited, so Yin Yao Junzhu quickly controlled the water and darted towards the stone gate. While swinging her legs, she took out the jade plate from the heavy cloth bag hanging around her neck. She stopped in front of the stone gate and embedded the jade plate into the round hole in the middle of the two stone doors.

The jade plate immediately lit up with a dazzling red light, and the rippling water distorted the light. With a muffled "creak," the stone doors slowly opened outward.