Outside the door, Jun Wu Xie saw Fan Zhuo standing there. His face was pale and without colour, and his mouth curled up ever so slightly in an attempt of a self mocking and bitter smile.
He did not know how long he had stood outside that door, but Fan Zhuo could not find the courage to push open that door.
He did not know how he could face Fan Jin. If not for Fan Qi’s intention to protect him, Fan Qi wouldn’t have declared to everyone that he was the biological son, and Ning Rui wouldn’t have been able to pin the crime on his brother with the excuse that Fan Jin had plotted to usurp the position of Headmaster, and murdered Fan Qi.
With all that had happened, Fan Zhuo felt that he owed the Fan Family just too much.
“I can cure him.” Jun Wu Xie said, staring at Fan Zhuo.
Fan Zhuo managed a bitter smile.
“I will trouble you to do that please.”
Jun Wu Xie remained silent. She didn’t know how to comfort Fan Zhuo, and she didn’t what kind of words would be suitable at that moment.
Just as the two of them were about to walk away, Ye Sha suddenly appeared.
“Reporting to Young Miss, Ning Rui is planning to deploy the entire student body of the Zephyr Academy to go to the Heaven’s End Cliff in three days’ time!”
Volume 8
Chapter 719: Parting Pains (3)
After Jun Wu Xie and the others had left, Ye Sha had stayed behind in the Zephyr Academy to keep watch. When he heard Gu Ying’s and Ning Rui’s conversation, he had immediately rushed towards Chan Lin Town to tell Jun Wu Xie the news.
Jun Wu Xie’s eyes turned chilly. She had not thought that Ning Rui would carry things to such a far extent!
Sending all the disciples of the Zephyr Academy to the bottom of the Heaven’s End Cliff?
After Jun Wu Xie and her companions had just experienced the terrifying horrors of the Heaven’s End Cliff, she could almost be sure, that even if there were a thousand of the Zephyr Academy’s disciples, going down to the bottom of the Heaven’s End Cliff would only result in a complete wipeout of all of them!
Was Ning Rui really intending to use the entire Zephyr Academy to win the favour of the Twelve Palaces! ?
“It’s Ning Rui, isn’t it?” Jun Wu Xie had not even said a word when Fan Zhuo asked, his eyes suddenly narrowed dangerously.
Although Fan Qi was not his biological father, but Fan Zhuo was indebted to him for raising him. It did not matter whether it was Ning Rui or Gu Ying, both of them were now his arch enemies with forever irrecoverable differences!
“We have only three days. Seems like the plans have to be moved forward.” Jun Wu Xie rubbed at her chin as her mind whirled.
“Little Xie, what have you got planned?” Fan Zhuo realised that now was not the time to sink into despair and pain. The enemy was still walking free, how could he allow himself to wallow in his grief and not take any action?
His heart was grieving for the loss of Fan Qi, and bleeding from knowing Fan Jin had lost his mind.
Before vengeance was exacted, he did not have the right to go see Fan Jin.
“I’ve said it before. Only you can prove Fan Jin his innocence.” Jun Wu Xie said, looking at Fan Zhuo.
Fan Zhuo smiled, immediately understanding what Jun Wu Xie was saying.
“That’s right, only the imposter of the Headmaster’s real biological son can convince everyone.”
If the fact that Ning Rui had been able to pin the crime of murdering Fan Qi onto Fan Jin was because Fan Jin was not the “biological son”, then when Fan Zhuo comes forward to reveal the real truth, that would completely negate Ning Rui’s line of reasoning in establishing the motive for killing!
As the biological son of Fan Qi, it would be impossible that Fan Jin would kill his own father over a position that would rightfully and legitimately be handed down to him!
Jun Wu Xie had figured all of that out all this time and that was why she had told Fan Zhuo about everything that had happened in the Zephyr Academy. Because, only when Fan Zhuo showed himself before everyone, would this ridiculous slander be completely crushed!
Ning Rui had thought he would be able to use Fan Jin’s identity as the adopted son to remove him from the line of ascension, but he would never ever expect, that what he knew as fact for almost two decades, had actually been a lie right from the start!
Fan Qi had only one biological son, and that had been Fan Jin right from the start!
“But, I will need one more person.” Jun Wu Xie turned to look at Ye Sha. “Have you sent someone to inform Brother Hua?”
Just having Fan Zhuo show up alone was not enough. She needed one more person, before she could boot Ning Rui over into the deep abyss!
All her pieces were in place, and she needed just one more rook!
Ye Sha replied: “I’ve sent out a little snake. I believe Brother Hua will arrive here very soon.”
Although Ye Sha’s snake was not capable of speech, but it was able to swallow handwritten notes. Once Hua Yao and the others saw the note, they would immediately understand what was going on.
Jun Wu Xie’s plans, involved far much more than her earlier actions at the Zephyr Academy. She had rescued Fan Jin, saved Gu Li Sheng, but there were still things that she wanted repayment for, and she would not accept a single cent less for that!
“Ready the horse carriage immediately. Once Brother Hua reaches here, we will move out immediately for the Zephyr Academy!” Jun Wu Xie said in a cold voice.
[The curtains are just about to raise. Ning Rui, Gu Ying, prepare yourselves for what’s about to come!]
It was some hours later, by the time after Hua Yao and the others received the message that Ye Sha sent to them and they rushed straightaway to come to Chan Lin Town. And in the next moment after they met with Jun Wu Xie, they were already on the horse carriage speeding directly towards the Zephyr Academy.
Volume 8
Chapter 720: Eighth Slap (1)
The Zephyr Academy on this day was one big mess of chaos. As it was at the end of the year, they were supposed to await the new entrants from selections in the branch division, before holding another round of the annual Spirit Battle Tournament and everybody would all be able to happily return to their respective homes thereafter, to congregate back together again the next year.
But Ning Rui had suddenly announced that all disciples of the Zephyr Academy were to participate in a brand new trial for their training, and as the location was extremely far away from the Zephyr Academy, it would require months’ of journeying for the back and forth trip, therefore, the entire Zephyr Academy would need to ready themselves to move out in three days.
Ning Rui had also reminded the disciples to prepare themselves well, saying that the training would not be at the Battle Spirits Forest this time, but at the bottom of a great cliff.
Once that piece of news spread, the already bubbling pot that was the Zephyr Academy immediately exploded into chaos.
The ripples from the shock stirred up from the Headmaster’s murder had not even calmed and the Academy was already throwing them another bombshell. The disciples who had all been prepared to start packing to go home started to moan and wail in protest.
However, the current figure of authourity in the Zephyr Academy was no longer the kind and benevolent Fan Qi, but Ning Rui.
When Ning Rui was still holding the position of Vice Headmaster, his demeanor had been just as benevolent. But immediately upon Fan Qi’s death, and Ning Rui took on the mantle of the Acting Headmaster, his administration of the academy had grown suddenly harsh and gotten more strict. And the one thing in addition to all these was the addition of the coldblooded Gu Ying, who killed people with remorse or any form of restraint!
Recently, the Zephyr Academy was plaughed with many cases of suddenly missing disciples, and many of them knew deep down in their hearts that all those who had gone missing had in actuality been killed by Gu Ying. In the beginning, some had gone to Ning Rui to plead for him to seek redr
ess for the injustice, but when all of them found the complainant’s body thrown before the Zephyr Academy’s front gates the next day, none of them ever dared say a thing about the matter after that.
They had all clearly realised that Ning Rui was in cahoots with Gu Ying, and no matter how much they cried and bemoaned, Ning Rui would never stand up for them.
It was at those moments, that they all missed the kind and benevolent Fan Qi who would always protect them terribly. Terrified and jittery, there wasn’t a single one among them who did not yearn for the end of the school year to arrive quickly, so as they would be allowed to return home, and avoid that maniacal killer.
But just as that time was coming around the corner, Ning Rui had suddenly come up with an expedition for a trial for their training!
Many of them wanted to protest vehemently, but when they saw Gu Ying standing right beside Ning Rui, they had no choice but to swallow their grouses back down into their belly. They all went their own ways in dejection, their heads hung low, to pack up their things, for the long journey that they would be embarking on in three days.
In regards to Ning Rui sudden and unilateral request for the trial training, Nangong Xu found that he could not under the rationale behind it. He had gone to his office wanting to see Ning Rui a few time to ask about it but he had been stopped by Gongcheng Lei who stood guard outside the door.
Seeing that there was only one more day before they were to leave, Nangong Xu could not hold himself back anymore and he struck out Gongcheng Lei to send him flying before he kicked open Ning Rui’s office door with a resounding crash!
In the office, Ning Rui was sitting behind the table, and placed upon it, was Ning Xin’s box of human ashes. Seeing Nangong Xu bursting into the office, Ning Rui lifted his head, his eyes ringed with dark circles, looking extremely worn and tired.
Nangong Xu had actually been filled with rage, but when he saw the dispirited state Ning Rui was in, he was suddenly stunned a moment.
“Vice Headmaster….. What happened to you?” Nangong Xu saw Ning Rui so completely sapped of energy that the angry words he had at the tip of his tongue were suddenly stuck in his throat.
Ning Rui’s brow creased up slightly as he looked at Nangong Xu and said: “Senior Nangong seems to have forgotten that you should now be addressing me as the Headmaster.” As he spoke, Ning Rui slowly kept Ning Xin’s ashes away.
Nangong Xu replied: “Alright, Headmaster it is then. Then, can the Headmaster please explain this to me? What is the deal with this map?” Nangong Xu asked, slapping a brand new piece of map onto Ning Rui’s table.
That was a map he had just received and the destination marked out on the map, was the place that the training trial would be conducted for the Zephyr Academy’s disciples.
Ning Rui glanced at him and retorted: “That map shows the location that the trial training would be held as it should. So what is Senior Nangong getting so upset about?”
Volume 8
Chapter 721: Eighth Slap (2)
Nangong Xu then asked, filled with rage: “Does the Headmaster then know what that place is! ?”
Ning Rui threw Nangong Xu a glance, but his eyes were looking past Nangong Xu, at the space behind him, and a his lips curled up in a chilling laugh before he asked: “So, what is that place?”
“It is called Heaven’s End Cliff! A place filled with unbelievable dangers! Needless to even talk about our entire horde of half grown ups just in their teens, even a powerful indigo spirit exponent would not stand a chance of surviving in there! I do not know for what reason the Headmaster would choose such a place for a training trial, but that is a place that we must not go to!” The map had just been delivered into Nangong Xu’s hands some hours ago and he was informed that that would be the path their convoy would be taking tomorrow. He had not really wanted to bother about it but when he took a closer look, he realised the dangers that would be involved and he had come running over to Ning Rui.
“Heaven’s End Cliff? Senior Nangong has got to be kidding. How can that place be Heaven’s End Cliff?” Ning Rui said nonchalantly, his eyes still looking past Nangong Xu.
Seemingly not having noticed, Nangong Xu continued to say huffily: “To tell you the truth, I have gone there once when I was younger. It was with a bunch of extraordinarily powerful group of seniors. They went down to the bottom of the cliff while I remained on the clifftop with a few companions to await the seniors’ return. But they did not come back. We waited for an entire month and we still saw no sign of them! Even after so many years have passed, there has been no news that a single one of them had survived! The Heaven’s End Cliff’s notorious fame, as a place of insurmountable dangers, is now widely known, far and wide. The Headmaster must not allow our academy’s disciples to go there, or the results will be disastrous!”
The Heaven’s End Cliff had subsequently become a place of nightmares and he had been just a teen then. His father and uncles had been some of the highly regarded exponents in their time and they had heard many things said about the Heaven’s End Cliff for a long time. They had once chanced upon the Heaven’s End Cliff’s location and they invited some other equally powerful exponents to go together. Nangong Xu had tagged along then to join in the fun but not a single person among the group of highly skilled exponents had come back alive. And after such a long period had passed, Nangong Xu was convinced, that all those people who had gone down to the bottom of the cliff, had all lost their lives down there.
He did not know how Ning Rui had suddenly come to have conceived such a preposterous idea of sending the Zephyr Academy’s disciples to the Heaven’s End Cliff for a training trial, but he knew he must most definitely stop it from happening!
Ning Rui pretended to be perplexed as he looked at Nangong Xu and he stood up and said: “That place is truly the Heaven’s End Cliff?”
Nangong Xu saw that he was finally getting a reaction out of Ning Rui and he heaved a sigh of relief and quickly nodded. “I am most certain that I am correct.”
Ning Rui continued to ask: “Has Senior Nangong mentioned anything about this matter regarding the Heaven’s End Cliff to anyone?”
Although Ning Rui’s line of questioning was going slightly askew, the straightforward and candid Nangong Xu had however not noticed anything strange. He only assumed that Ning Rui had realised the severity of the situation and was going to call off the training expedition. With that thought, Nangong Xu went on to say: “The moment I realised the map’s destination, I rushed here immediately. I did not have time to tell anyone else about it.”
The moment Nangong Xu finished his statement, Ning Rui suddenly broke out in a bout of sinister laughter.
“Since you did not not bring it up to anyone, then everything’s fine.”
Nangong Xu was just beginning to find it strange why Ning Rui was saying such things when he suddenly detected a strong and intense wave of murderous aura from behind him. Nangong Xu immediately wanted to turn around to face the threat, but before he had even moved, he saw that a long slender arm had pierced through his chest from his back!
A bright red flower seemed to have bloomed out from Nangong Xu‘s chest as he stared through his eyes, wide open with shock, looking at the still laughing Ning Rui.
“Nangong Xu, why must you be so meddlesome?” The smile on Ning Rui’s face twisted up grotesquely as he lifted his head to look at the person who had stealthily attacked Nangong Xu from behind.
The corners of Gu Ying’s mouth were curled up, his face filled with glee. He retrieved the hand that had pierced through Nangong Xu’s body and the warm blood droplets flowed down his arm, dripping into a small scarlet pool that formed on the floor!
Volume 8
Chapter 722: Eighth Slap (3)
Nangong Xu fell suddenly to the floor and blood was gushing out from his mouth as his eyes stared at Gu Ying who was smiling brilliantly at him.
“People who know too much would always not get to live long. Don’t you agree? Senior Na
ngong?” Gu Ying asked, smiling at Nangong Xu, watching him breathe his last. Gu Ying then lifted his head and looked at his blood covered arm, the corners of his mouth curling up higher. He turned to face Ning Rui.
“I had not thought that anyone in the Zephyr Academy would be able to recognise the way to the Heaven’s End Cliff. Looks like the matter cannot be delayed any longer.”
Ning Rui nodded his head. The fact that Nangong Xu had known of the Heaven’s End Cliff greatly surprised Ning Rui and to prevent anyone else from discovering it, Ning Rui had no other choice but to reply: “I will make an announcement immediately. That all the disciples of the Zephyr Academy are to move out right away.”
Gu Ying nodded his head, satisfied with the answer.
“They should be arriving soon. They should be able to make it here before we move out.”
Using the disciples of the Zephyr Academy was just one of the avenues they were taking to explore the bottom of the Heaven’s End Cliff. Gu Ying knew it clearly, with just a bunch of young immature kids, it would be sorely inadequate to fully grasp the terrain down there and he had arranged for more people from his side to go with him, but the task of scouting the way out first would be wholly taken up by the Zephyr Academy’s disciples.
Gu Ying’s intention for this expedition, was to use the lives of the many disciples in the Zephyr Academy at his disposal, to slowly find his way through the bottom of the Heaven’s End Cliff!
Ning Rui nodded and immediately summoned Gongcheng Lei who was standing guard outside to relay the message. Nangong Xu’s eyes were still wide open, probably shocked even till his moment of death, not expecting that he would be killed under the hands of a youth just in his teens.
Genius Doctor: Black Belly Miss Volume 8 Page 6