Zhou Zheng let out a soft sigh, picked up the teacup before him and gently blew the hot steam. The students understood that this was a sign that Zhou Zheng was about to start teaching them, and they all became serious.
“Feng Zuojun, how long have you been studying here?” Zhou Zheng finished the hot tea in his cup and put it on the table.
Feng Zuojun thought for a moment and replied, “I enrolled at the end of last autumn, and it has been more than half a year.”
“More than half a year, and you only learned one word ‘cool’ from the four gentlemen’s teachings? Can’t you… say a few more words?” Zhou Zheng asked again.
Feng Zuojun scratched his head, not knowing how to answer. It was Lan Yuzhe who laughed and said, “Master Zhou, you might not know this, but in the nine months since Young Master Feng enrolled, he spent the first eight months sleeping. It wasn’t until he met you that he started fighting for a whole month. It’s no wonder he can’t think of anything else to say except ‘cool’.”
“Oh? Then tell me more about where this ‘cool’ comes from.” Zhou Zheng’s expression did not change, and it was impossible to tell whether he was happy or angry.
Feng Zuojun cleared his throat, “Since the teacher wants me to say it, I will say it openly. I, Feng Zuojun, am destined to inherit the Heavenly Dawn Cloud Realm. I have been living freely since I was young. I can drink with my friends until dawn, and I can drive away those who I don’t like with my blade. So the teacher’s evil way is exactly what I want. Who cares about the world, the truth is in the fist! So the teacher’s lesson is really good! It’s really ‘cool’!”
“Nonsense.” Zhou Zheng threw a teacup at Feng Zuojun’s head, and then the teacup bounced back to his hand. He scolded, “This lesson is about the evil way, but it’s not to make you join the evil! The gentleman’s etiquette taught by Li Wai is different from my lesson in appearance, but they are actually the same in essence. If you can’t understand this, then go back down the mountain and be your Cloud Realm Sect Master.”
Feng Zuojun sighed, “Alas, if I could beat my father, I would have gone down the mountain a long time ago…”
“What did you say?” Zhou Zheng raised an eyebrow slightly, and clenched his fist.
A gust of wind swept through the academy.
Feng Zuojun hastily lowered his head and said, “I misspoke, Master. Please enlighten me.”
“You claim to be capable of any evil, but is that all there is to you?” Zhou Zheng pointed at Su Baiyi who had been laughing for a long time. “Su Baiyi, what are you laughing at?”
Su Baiyi quickly stopped smiling and shook his head. “I saw Feng Zuojun and the teacher speak frankly, and I laughed at this young man’s honesty.”
Feng Zuojun frowned slightly, “What do you mean by that?”
“He means you are brainless.” Xie Yuling, who had been silent for most of the class, finally spoke up at this moment.
Feng Zuojun was about to get angry, but he was glared back by Zhou Zheng. Zhou Zheng then asked Su Baiyi, “You just enrolled today. After listening to our discussion about the evil way, do you have anything to say for yourself?”
Su Baiyi thought for a moment, then bowed his fist and said, “Today is the first day of my enrollment in the academy, and I’ve already been ambushed by two major sects. Forming alliances is for those who can’t do anything alone. But I’m different. I’ve been wandering alone in this world since I was young. I’m the king of loneliness!”
There was an uproar in the academy. One was because of Su Baiyi’s arrogance, who offended the two biggest forces of this generation’s disciples in one breath. The other was because this sentence… was really well-written, very rhythmic, and very appealing to the hearts of the academy’s disciples.
Even Feng Zuojun pondered for a long time and finally nodded his head. He praised him, “You are not bad! I admire you!”
Su Baiyi sighed inwardly, “Master, oh master, this academy claims to gather the literary spirit of the world, but I recited a few lines from “Hot Blood Academy”, and they all admired me. Did I go to the wrong place, or has this academy fallen to this point in the years since you retired from the martial arts world?
Zhou Zheng was stunned for a moment, then his mouth twitched and he wanted to laugh, but then he thought he shouldn’t laugh, so he finally put on a serious face and raised a hand to signal the disciples to be quiet. “Baiyi, these words of yours have some deep meaning. Why don’t you explain them to everyone?”
Su Baiyi thought for a while, then smiled ambiguously at Zhou Zheng, and raised his eyebrows, “I do have something to say, teacher, if you come here, I’ll tell you.”
“Why can’t you say it in public?” Zhou Zheng asked.
Su Baiyi still smiled mysteriously. “I can’t, I can’t.”
Zhou Zheng hesitated for a moment, but still got up and walked to Su Baiyi’s side. “What do you want to say?”
Su Baiyi stood up, leaned to Zhou Zheng’s ear, and covered his mouth with his hand, “Master Zhou, I haven’t bought the latest volume yet, I can’t go on, please spare me.”
Zhou Zheng’s face turned red after hearing this. He patted Su Baiyi’s shoulder, then coughed lightly, “Let’s end the class here today. Today is Su Baiyi’s first day in the academy, don’t bother him.”
“Yes.” The disciples answered.
“Class dismissed.” Zhou Zheng said loudly.
The students rushed out of the academy. Su Baiyi walked to the front, but was hugged by Feng Zuojun’s shoulder. Feng Zuojun seemed to forget that Su Baiyi had just mocked him for being brainless. He was in a good mood. “You kid just said something that suits my taste. What did you say to the teacher later?”
Su Baiyi shook his head and said, “Teacher just patted my shoulder, do you know what that means?”
“What does it mean?” Feng Zuojun asked.
“Teacher meant.” Su Baiyi also imitated Zhou Zheng and patted Feng Zuojun’s shoulder, “If you tell anyone, you are dead!”
“Hahahaha, then I won’t ask. But are you sure you don’t want to join our Evil Gang? You have good martial arts skills, and you are not afraid of anything. If you join our Evil Gang, when the teaching period is over, we will defeat the Blood Cherry Sect, and then I will be the strongest man among the disciples of this generation in the academy.” Feng Zuojun looked at Su Baiyi, his eyes sincere, “And you will be the strongest follower of this generation in the academy!”
“Please excuse me!” Su Baiyi made a fist and palm salute.
After the disciples left the class, someone emerged from behind the building, pushing aside a painted scroll. He smiled and said, “You didn’t expect it, did you? The new student is actually a reader of your ‘Hot Blood Academy’, and he can even recite lines from it without batting an eye.”
Zhou Zheng looked a bit embarrassed. “He probably thinks I’m also a fan of ‘Hot Blood Academy’.”
“He is Su Baiyi who was mentioned in Xi`er’s letter, right? Xie Kanhua’s disciple, and he also has the surname Su. It’s really intriguing.” The person sat in front of Zhou Zheng and poured a cup of tea for himself and Zhou Zheng.
Zhou Zheng took a sip of hot tea and exhaled, “Xie Kanhua was taken away by Shanglin Heavenly Palace. Then the chaos in the martial arts world that I predicted will happen within three years will be advanced.”
“The chaos in the martial arts world will start from Shanglin Heavenly Palace. And what will Shanglin Heavenly Palace cause chaos for?” The person blew the hot tea.
“Of course, it’s the Book of Immortals.” Zhou Zheng tapped his fingers lightly on the table.