"Did you hear, there was an assassination earlier, and several Rank two Gu Masters died."
"Are you serious?"
"It's true, I came here early, and I saw Gu Yue Fang Zheng carried away by several clan elders, hurrying away."
"Gu Yue Fang Zheng is too unlucky, to encounter something like this during the exam."
"Hehe, you don't know huh. The target was Fang Zheng, because he is A grade talent!"
"I wonder if he'll die?"
"Even if he doesn't die, he's gonna be affected. Maybe his talent might drop after that injury."
Fang Yuan's footsteps halted, as a smirk played on his face.
The academy elder's expression was ugly, Fang Zheng was actually assassinated. Without any clues or evidence, he would not be able to guess that Fang Zheng had become Fang Yuan's scapegoat, but thought of the Bai clan and Xiong clan!
Fang Zheng was the only A grade talent that the Gu Yue clan had for the last three years, the Bai clan and Xiong clan would naturally not let him grow. Sending an assassin Gu Master to kill him and prevent him from getting stronger, this was normal.
Even the Gu Yue clan would do something like this. Secretly sending Gu Masters and targeting the other two clan's genius students.
"The assassin was killed on the spot, but I wonder how is Fang Zheng's injuries?" Academy elder thought, and at this moment, his attendant brought him a piece of paper.
Academy elder received the paper, reading without paying proper attention, "In this year's examination, the results are as follows… Gu Yue Chi Cheng sixteen tusks, Gu Yue Mo Bei fourteen tusks…"
The surrounding students' attention were obtained. The results were clear.
D grade students, even if they worked together, they could only obtain three to four tusks. B and C grades, at most eight to nine. Those with more than ten tusks were the good performers.
The best was Gu Yue Chi Cheng with sixteen tusks. Next was Mo Bei, and as for Fang Zheng he had ten.
Gu Yue Chi Cheng showed a smug expression. He was lucky this time and encountered two wild boars fighting each other, thus he got the easy reward. Gu Yue Mo Bei was indignant, allowing Chi Cheng to surpass him.
The academy elder announced, "As such, I announce the number one student for this examination is…"
"Stop!" Fang Yuan stepped out at this moment.
"Fang Yuan, you are late. The examination ended an hour ago, according to the rules, the wild boar tusks that you obtain will be deducted by four as punishment." Chi Cheng immediately shouted.
Fang Yuan ignored him and opened the bag on his back, grabbing the bottom of the bag and pouring out the contents.
Crash.
Dozens of wild boar tusks gathered into a pile by his feet.
"This!" Chi Cheng stared with his mouth agape.
Mo Bei and the others stared their eyeballs out at the pile.
"How can there be so many? This is too much!" The academy elder looked at Fang Yuan in disbelief, "Fang Yuan, did you hunt all these?"
Fang Yuan cupped his fists, "I only hunted a few tusks myself, but I found a bag that could've been hidden by hunters. Inside it were many wild boar tusks. I thought about it, the exam was that we had to obtain as many tusks as possible within a day, and did not specify that we have to kill it ourselves, thus I brought it here."
Once he finished, the crowd burst into discussions.
"How can this be?"
"Way too lucky!"
"This is too fake, could the questions have leaked thus he cheated?"
The academy elder stared at Fang Yuan, looking for a while, then declared, "This exam, Fang Yuan is the first."
...
The family head room's atmosphere was heavy.
Gu Yue Bo sat at the leading seat, and the other dozen elders sat in two rows beside him, their faces full of rage.
"Gu Yue Yao Ji, you are the number one healer in our clan, I'm asking you how is Fang Zheng now?" Gu Yue Bo asked a clan elder.
Gu Yue Yao Ji was an old woman with a hunched back, her face full of treebark-like wrinkles.
She coughed twice, slowly saying, "Reporting to clan head, the situation has stabilized. Fang Zheng's life is in no danger, but he is still sleeping. His talent did not drop because of this."
"Good if the talent didn't drop." Gu Yue Bo breathed a sigh of relief, then asked the punishment hall's elder, "Has the assassin's situation been assessed?"
The punishment hall elder was not as senior as Gu Yue Yao Ji, and immediately stood up, lowering his head, "Yes, thirty-five years old, male, identity unknown, possibly a demonic faction Gu Master. He has two Gu worms, Shadow Follower Gu and Love Life Separation."
Gu Yue Bo nodded, "Seems like an assassin, Love Life Separation… the Rank two number one poison, no wonder he could kill three of my Gu Masters."
"Clan head, we have to investigate further! It's either the Bai clan or the Xiong clan!" Gu Yue Chi Lian shouted, his eyes almost bursting into flames.
"Shadow Follower Gu, Love Life Separation… this is not like the Bai or Xiong clan's pawn pieces. He might be an outside demonic faction Gu Master, wanting to get affiliated with the clans, thus being instructed to assassinate Fang Zheng to prove his loyalty. Regardless, this matter definitely has to do with the two clans," Gu Yue Mo Chen coldly said.
These two clan elders in power, although they did not get along, once an external enemy appears, they would discard their hatred and knit tightly together.
Gu Yue Bo nodded, thinking the same himself.
At this moment, the academy elder walked in.
"Clan leader…" He looked worried and was about to speak when Gu Yue Bo answered, "Academy elder, Fang Zheng is fine, his talent is still A grade."
The academy elder's face became relaxed.
"Oh yes, are the other students safe? And for this examination, how are their results, which place is Fang Zheng?" Gu Yue Bo asked conveniently.
The academy elder answered truthfully, and when he said that Fang Yuan had accidentally picked up a bag of wild boar tusks and got first place, Gu Yue Bo's eyes shone.
The hall too went silent. The clan elders, as if they sensed it, subtly observed the atmosphere, and the originally nervous environment became slightly more peculiar.
"Fang Yuan getting first place, the deeper meaning behind this is definitely not simple. He actually said he found a bag of hidden wild boar tusks, this is too unbelievable."
"This bag might've been prepared by someone, it is not possible for Fang Yuan to do it himself. That means someone is helping Fang Yuan in the dark."
"This year's mid-year exam is unlike the previous ones. We had to deploy tens of Rank two Gu Masters to invigilate the exam. Thus the contents of this examination, not only does the academy elder know, but many of the elders in the clan as well."
"If anyone wanted to prepare this bag in advance, it can only be the clan elders present here now, or even the clan leader!"
The clan elders were all shrewd foxes. After being in the political field for years, they immediately thought of many things.
Fang Zheng was an A grade talent, if he really reached Rank four, what did that mean?
That would mean he is the next clan leader!
Fang Yuan is Fang Zheng's brother. Even if he is only C grade, with that blood relationship, he is worth investing in!
To the clan elders, Fang Zheng who is the only A grade talent in years, has already been absorbed into the clan leader's faction. If he was really nurtured, the clan leader's faction would be even stronger. However, if the clan elders made Fang Yuan into their own, using this layer of blood relation, it would be a good chess piece when dealing in Fang Zheng in the future.
Thus, the ten over people in this hall, they all had the motive to help Fang Yuan.
But who?
Gu Yue Bo knew that he himself did not take any actions to recruit Fang Yuan. Thus, the greatest suspect was Chi Lian and Mo Chen.
"These two old fellows, their acting is improving. Seeing their expressions, I really cannot tell. Don't tell me it really isn't them, but some other small faction?"
After a short silence, Gu Yue Bo could not see any more clues, thus he spoke, "An eye for an eye, since the other party has started targeting Fang Zheng, our Gu Yue clan is not to be trifled with, we will show them! Dark Hall Elder, formulate a plan for this matter and report to me afterwards."
"Yes, sir clan leader." Dark hall elder immediately nodded.
"As for Gu Yue Fang Zheng, I'm afraid his heart might be damaged from such an encounter. He is an A grade talent, and to our clan, the status is monumental. From now on, I will teach him personally." Gu Yue Bo said.
No clan elders objected.
"As for Gu Yue Fang Yuan…" Gu Yue Bo dragged his words.
At once, all the clan elders paid their fullest attention. Was the clan leader hinting that he was the one helping Fang Yuan secretly?
Gu Yue Bo looked at everyone's expression as his gaze swept through, but he was destined to be disappointed.
Thus, he could only continue, "With his C grade talent, he managed to get first place. It is not easy. Thus, in my personal name, I reward him thirty primeval stones. Academy elder, pass my word and tell him to continue working hard."
"Yes, clan leader." The academy elder bowed as he received his orders.
"Thirty primeval stones, such an ordinary reward, what does this mean?" The clan elders frowned.
"No matter who absorbed Fang Yuan, this thirty primeval stones is my expression of goodwill. After all, there is still the Bai and Xiong clan other than Gu Yue." Gu Yue Bo sighed in his heart.
Fang Zheng was assassinated by external foes. Fang Yuan's cheating was internal conflict.
Against external foes, one had to use hard handed methods to retaliate, but for internal conflict, Gu Yue Bo chose to use the soft approach, in order to avoid too much internal conflict and result in the entire clan's strength being weakened.
"Alright, this matter will be settled like this. Everyone may leave and do all your work well, the clan's prosperity has everything to do with your performances." Gu Yue Bo waved his hand.
"Yes clan leader, we will take our leave."
The clan elders left one by one, and after a few breath's time, only Gu Yue Bo was left in the room.
He sighed deeply, using his fingers to rub his two temples.
"These years of being the clan leader, although I had sufficient resources, my cultivation has barely advanced. My heart is tired from all these tiresome clan affairs. Sometimes, I really want to be a lone cultivator, free and easy with no burden. That would allow me to move faster and I might travel even further in my cultivation path."
Gu Yue Bo sighed in his heart.
As long as one is in the clan system, they had responsibilities on them. Once they had responsibilities it would not be easy to wholeheartedly cultivate.
But on the reverse, if one is not in the system, the clan's resources would not be available to them, and without resources, their cultivation would come to a halt.
This formed a contradiction, a weird loop.
Because of this loop, many people's futures were ruined, burying an insurmountable number of talents and geniuses.
...
Fang Yuan received 1,200 Primeval Stones as a reward for turning in 120 Wild Boar Tusks.
However, he barely paid attention to the reward.
Instead, his focus was on a young girl named Li Yao, who was happily chatting with her friends in the distance.
Once the group dispersed and everyone headed home, Fang Yuan began quietly trailing her from a distance.
When he confirmed they were alone, he quickly approached and struck her, rendering her unconscious.
Gu Yue Li Yao was an orphan—her parents had recently passed away. While they had D-grade talent, she was born with C-grade talent. Despite this, no one seemed to notice or care when she was taken in the midnight darkness.