Chapter 73: Different Paths, Inevitable Opposition

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Chapter 73: Different Paths, Inevitable Opposition

“Master Chen, I think we need to discuss how we’re going to resolve this matter,” Kong Quanlu said. The members of the Metaphysics Club stood behind him, filling the dormitory’s entire living room. As he spoke, he swept his gaze around the room. The people who had been watching immediately looked away, not daring to meet the president of the Metaphysics Club’s eyes. After all, his reputation at Xishu Academy was formidable. Many of the talismans and other items with various effects sold at the academy came from him. People were naturally awed by things they didn’t understand, and the particular field Kong Quanlu dealt with was one that most people preferred to keep their distance from.

Those who were different from everyone else might be feared, but they would also be ostracized. Chen Yuan himself had experienced the same thing. Once people started calling him “Chen the Half-Immortal,” hadn’t they already begun to see him as something different from themselves?

Chen Yuan silently nodded at Kong Quanlu’s suggestion. However, he knew perfectly well that his reason for wanting to resolve the matter was different from Kong Quanlu’s. Kong Quanlu wanted to discuss a resolution because he was concerned about the reputation of the Metaphysics Club at Xishu Academy. Chen Yuan, on the other hand, wanted to get involved because of the problem with Kong Quanlu’s methods.

“The person at the center of this matter is Student Lan Jingwei, right?” Chen Yuan looked toward Lan Jingwei. He saw nothing strange about addressing someone two years older than himself as “Student Lan” in the tone of an elder. The whole matter had started because Lan Jingwei wanted to use a talisman from the Metaphysics Club, only for Huo Jian, who belonged to Chen Yuan’s lineage, to stop him. When it came to conflicts between different schools, it was best not to let things escalate if they could be avoided. So letting Lan Jingwei make the choice himself seemed like the best solution.

Originally, this should have been a perfect plan. Once Lan Jingwei made his choice, the matter could come to an end for the time being, and the rest could be dealt with gradually without unnecessarily escalating the conflict. Unfortunately, Chen Yuan had failed to understand Lan Jingwei’s true intentions, so he never anticipated how abruptly the situation would take a turn.

After Huo Jian had gone to all that trouble on his behalf, and considering Chen Yuan was Huo Jian’s master, Lan Jingwei naturally wasn’t going to disregard Chen Yuan’s wishes. On the other hand, as someone who gave Yu Shenliu the same sort of impression he had of himself, Lan Jingwei wasn’t the type to be intimidated by Kong Quanlu’s status as president of the Metaphysics Club, as others might have been. So when Kong Quanlu and Chen Yuan both looked toward him, he answered without hesitation:

“I trust Huo Jian’s advice, so I’ll go with what Master Chen says.”

To Chen Yuan, this was simply a matter of trusting someone he knew. But to those who knew what was really going on, Lan Jingwei was actually trying to ingratiate himself with them. On the one hand, he was showing his closeness to Huo Jian; on the other, he was currying favor with Huo Jian’s elder. Yu Shenliu could see what he was doing, though he wasn’t necessarily going to fall for it. Chen Yuan, meanwhile, didn’t notice anything at all and wouldn’t think much of it. So all that careful thought had ultimately gone to waste.

At Lan Jingwei’s words, Chen Yuan remained perfectly composed, while Kong Quanlu’s expression immediately darkened. Although Kong Quanlu felt that he probably couldn’t compare with a renowned master like Chen Yuan, at Xishu Academy, surely no one should have the nerve to disregard him like this.

“Classmate Lan, are you sure?” he asked, deliberately slowing his tone.

Among students at the same school, Classmate was used more frequently than Student when addressing one another, while Student was generally used by people from outside the school or by non-students.

Lan Jingwei simply nodded without hesitation. Of course he was sure.

On the one hand, he had his own reasons for doing so, and even if Kong Quanlu was the president of the Metaphysics Club and had all sorts of abilities at his disposal, what was there to be afraid of? On the other hand, Huo Jian and his master were right here, so what could possibly happen to him? And if Kong Quanlu openly did something that violated the rules accepted by society at large, the authorities wouldn’t allow it either. No matter how many tricks Kong Quanlu had up his sleeve, he still lived in this country and had to abide by certain rules. Lan Jingwei had thought this through very clearly, so he had no reason to fear Kong Quanlu.

The problem now, however, was no longer whether Lan Jingwei was afraid of Kong Quanlu. After losing face like this, Kong Quanlu couldn’t simply back down, even though he knew perfectly well that he was no match for Chen Yuan.

There were quite a few people in the dormitory. If word got out that the Metaphysics Club had backed down in front of Chen Yuan, how would the club do business in the future? Losing face himself was one thing, but if it affected his standing with his master, he had no idea how much lower he might fall in his master’s eyes.

He had no choice but to go up against Chen Yuan. Even if he lost, he still had to challenge him. Otherwise, Kong Quanlu would lose his master’s support.

So Kong Quanlu gritted his teeth. Ignoring Lan Jingwei, he looked directly at Chen Yuan and said, “Master Chen, although Classmate Lan has chosen you, I don’t think that necessarily proves which of our different methods is superior.”

The moment those words left his mouth, the people around them let out small gasps of surprise. Kong Quanlu had actually dared to say something like that? He was going up against one of the most renowned fate-analysts in all of Xishu Province. Kong Quanlu was certainly impressive himself, but compared with someone of Chen Yuan’s caliber, there was still a considerable gap between them, wasn’t there?

“After all, I represent my master’s reputation as well,” Kong Quanlu added.

Compared with the people around him who were still confused, Chen Yuan could more or less understand what Kong Quanlu was thinking. When it came to matters involving one’s lineage, there were times when backing down simply wasn’t an option. Chen Yuan didn’t know the details, but since Kong Quanlu had brought up his master, that meant the Metaphysics Club at Xishu Academy was essentially a training ground for his master’s lineage. If the club lost face, Kong Quanlu had to defend it. Otherwise, it would amount to showing insufficient regard for his lineage. Chen Yuan could make a rough guess at the situation, but he didn’t know the specifics. So he asked, “Who is your master?”

“Zhou Qin,” Kong Quanlu replied.

The people around them once again drew a sharp breath.

Many people knew that Kong Quanlu had a master, and that his master was an expert, but almost no one knew that his master was Zhou Qin, the renowned fate-analyst of Xishu Province. So now, it turned out that a disciple of one of the two most famous fortune-tellers in Xishu Province had gone up against his master’s rival? Now that was quite a bombshell!

The others were astonished, while the people standing behind Kong Quanlu wore proud expressions. Clearly, the members of the Metaphysics Club had known about this for a long time; they simply hadn’t gone around telling everyone.

Chen Yuan also showed a trace of surprise, though only Yu Shenliu noticed it. This wasn’t the first time he had heard the name Zhou Qin. He had been quite interested in the renowned fate-analyst who was as famous as he was in Xishu Province. It was just that they had never crossed paths, and since fate had never brought them together, he had never had any particular desire to seek Zhou Qin out. And now, he had actually encountered Zhou Qin’s disciple? What a coincidence. Even so, Chen Yuan still intended to proceed according to his own principles.

“So, what would you like to do?”

“Let’s put our skills to the test!” Kong Quanlu had thrown caution to the wind and stated his request for a contest outright.

Chen Yuan raised an eyebrow. Although he doubted the other man would change his mind, he still asked, “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure!”

The people around them immediately erupted into an uproar. Some of them pulled out their phones and began spreading the news to everyone they knew. Under the pressure of having to face Chen Yuan, Kong Quanlu had no time to concern himself with them. As for Chen Yuan, he thought of the Shi Hexagram he had drawn. Since it called for acting in accordance with public sentiment, why would he stop them?

Chen Yuan shifted slightly and asked Kong Quanlu again, “What would you like to compete in?”

Kong Quanlu knew this was a contest he was bound to lose, but he had no choice but to go through with it. Even if he was going to lose, he couldn’t afford to lose too badly. After thinking it over, he chose the area he was best at. “How about curses?”

Chen Yuan was silent for a moment before answering, “That wouldn’t be appropriate. Are we supposed to choose someone to curse? That would go against the laws of Heaven.” It wasn’t that he was incapable of using such methods, but they were ultimately not part of the proper path, and it wouldn’t be right to use them.

Unexpectedly, Kong Quanlu replied, “We can just curse each other directly. There’s no need to involve a third person.”

True, that wouldn’t involve anyone else. But did that mean Chen Yuan could simply curse Kong Quanlu? Even though Kong Quanlu had allowed himself to be blinded by the mortal world, Chen Yuan wasn’t one of those people in television dramas who had somehow gotten it into their heads that they had to stand on a lofty pedestal and play judge in the name of Heaven. How could he abandon the principles that should govern his own conduct simply for the sake of so-called justice, only to stray onto a path he shouldn’t take himself?

He gave a firm, resonant answer: “No!” Yet his gaze remained calm and gentle as he looked at Kong Quanlu.

Of everyone present, only Yu Shenliu, Huo Jian, and Kong Quanlu himself understood what Chen Yuan meant. The students watching, however, couldn’t understand why Chen Yuan had refused Kong Quanlu. Was it because Chen Yuan wasn’t good at curses and would lose to Kong Quanlu, so he was deliberately refusing? That made no sense. After all, Chen Yuan was a famous fate-analyst on par with Kong Quanlu’s master, Zhou Qin. For a moment, whispers spread through the crowd.

But from the firmness in Chen Yuan’s eyes, Kong Quanlu understood what Chen Yuan meant. He fell silent.

The people from the Metaphysics Club also felt that something was off, but they were practitioners themselves. Since Kong Quanlu hadn’t said anything, they weren’t going to butt in and pretend to understand something they didn’t. Still, their expressions were all somewhat unnatural. Even the vice president, who had previously thought Kong Quanlu might be able to beat Chen Yuan, gradually realized that Chen Yuan was actually the one in the stronger position. She couldn’t help looking worried.

“…Then how about choosing someone and reading their fortune?” Kong Quanlu changed the subject. He understood Chen Yuan’s meaning, and in truth, Chen Yuan was doing this for his own good, so he simply chose another subject. After all, anyone in this line of work had to learn fortune-telling. It was practically an entry-level skill that anyone could learn, although everyone had their own methods. And with fortune-telling, it was also easier to determine who was better.

Chen Yuan nodded. “All right. Then who should we choose?” Clearly, it couldn’t be either of them, nor could it be anyone they knew.

“Then let’s have Classmate Lan do it.” Kong Quanlu’s gaze flicked to the side as he said this.

Lan Jingwei really was a good choice. For one thing, he was already involved in the contest between Chen Yuan and Kong Quanlu. For another, Chen Yuan didn’t know him very well, while Kong Quanlu had merely heard of him.

Lan Jingwei immediately said, “I have no objections.” In fact, having a master like Chen Yuan and the president of the Metaphysics Club at Xishu Academy read his fate at the same time was a privilege others could only dream of. One glance around was enough to see how many people were looking at him with envy and jealousy.

More importantly, both of them were heavyweight figures, and since this was a contest, neither of them would naturally charge Lan Jingwei. For the students here, the fee for having either of them read their fate would be no small sum.

“Do you have any paper and a pen?” Chen Yuan asked first. After several people eagerly handed him writing materials, he took one set and handed it to Lan Jingwei. “Student Lan, please write down your Bazi. And please don’t let anyone else see it.”

He then handed another set of paper and a pen to Kong Quanlu and said, “How about the two of us write our results down and let Student Lan judge them himself?”

Kong Quanlu nodded.

In fact, even these few instructions showed how careful Chen Yuan was. A person’s Bazi weren’t something that could be casually shown to others, and Chen Yuan reminded Lan Jingwei because he was afraid he might not know. Nor were the results of a fortune-reading something that should simply be announced to everyone. With so many people standing around, it would have been rude to simply send them away, so Chen Yuan had them write down their results and let Lan Jingwei read and judge them himself. At the same time, this also avoided the awkwardness of having the two of them announce their results aloud in front of everyone.

Ultimately, the Dao Chen Yuan had cultivated all these years still emphasized kindness and gentleness. Naturally, Chen Yuan would not drive someone into a corner. Even the Great Dao of Evolution discarded nine and preserved one, leaving a sliver of hope for all living things. Since Chen Yuan followed the laws of Heaven, he would not do anything too extreme.

Or, to put it another way, it was always better to leave some room for others. You never knew when you might have to face each other again.

After all, Chen Yuan still felt it was a pity that someone as talented as Kong Quanlu had gone down the wrong path. He hoped the other party could find his way back to the orthodox path.

However, Chen Yuan’s way of handling things left the onlookers around them somewhat disappointed. If only Lan Jingwei could see the result, where was the fun in that? A proper head-to-head showdown was what made things worth watching! Still, they were facing the president of the Metaphysics Club and a big shot like Chen Yuan, so no one said anything. Even if the spectacle was a little less exciting than they had hoped, it was still worth watching. Quite a few people even pulled out their phones and started recording. At the very least, this would make for a precious memory, right?

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