Chapter 159: Begging for Guidance

Expecting Li Jiansan to spout some other high-flown theories, Liu Desheng almost fainted from anger when he heard these words.

Liu Desheng had entered the fearless realm and could go without food, drink, or sleep for months on end. Even an ordinary person would not die from going a few days without food, drink, or sleep. Yet Li Jiansan now claimed that Liu Desheng would die if he went without food, drink, or sleep for just a few days. This left Liu Desheng with a face full of dark lines; he was living perfectly fine, yet apparently, it was he who was about to die...

"I have lived for so long and taught quite a few geniuses, but this is the first time I have seen a lawless brat like you. Although I am not some heaven-shaking powerhouse, I have cultivated diligently all along and reached the Profound Penetration realm," Liu Desheng sneered. "Even if my cultivation level is not the highest, I still have a very clear understanding of my own physical condition. To say that I will die just because I go a few days without eating, drinking, or sleeping is simply laughable."

"Your physical condition is indeed very good right now!"

As Li Jiansan's words spread, murmurs arose among the onlookers once again. Since there was nothing wrong with Liu Desheng's body, why was he spouting nonsense? Was he slapping his own face? Everyone looked at Li Jiansan with strange expressions, wondering if the brains of these martial arts geniuses were completely filled with excrement.

"Hah, this brat is still quite composed."
"Why stop putting on an act? Keep pretending for me."
"If he manages to pull this off, I'll call him grandpa."

Amidst the mocking jeers of the crowd, Li Jiansan calmly said, "What I mentioned earlier was merely your symptoms, and I never said that going without food, drink, and sleep is the reason you are about to die, did I?"

Hearing this, everyone looked at each other in blank dismay. It seemed he truly hadn't said that... Even Liu Desheng was momentarily stunned at this point.

"Besides, who told you that someone with a healthy body won't die?"

Hearing these words from Li Jiansan, Liu Desheng was clearly startled. "Fine then, tell me, what is the reason I am about to die?"

Li Jiansan chuckled. "Heh, didn't you refuse to believe me earlier?"

At this, Liu Desheng grew exasperated.

"If you want me to tell you, it will cost the same as Hu Jun's price: hand over half of your monthly cultivation resources."

Pausing for a moment, Liu Desheng gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, as long as you can convince me."

Li Jiansan said nonchalantly, "Rest assured, I will even cure you. The reason you are about to die—to put it accurately—is not an illness, but rather..."

Just as Li Jiansan started speaking, Liu Desheng interrupted him. "Not an illness? Then what is it?"

At this, Li Jiansan stopped and fell silent.

"Speak already!" Liu Desheng urged impatiently.

"In the future, do not interrupt me when I am speaking, or else I will not be polite!"

At this moment, Li Jiansan's aura turned icy cold. His chilling gaze fell upon Liu Desheng, causing the latter to shiver all over, as if he had fallen into an ice-cold skull.

"I... I understand." Liu Desheng nodded timidly. It was his first time witnessing such a terrifying aura. Had he not experienced it firsthand, he simply could not have believed that such a bone-chilling presence could emanate from a mere youth.

"Did you take some sort of heavenly treasure a month ago? If I am not mistaken, it should be a three-hundred-year-old Ganoderma lucidum." Li Jiansan looked at Liu Desheng, the terrifying aura on his body now completely vanished.

"You!" Liu Desheng stared at Li Jiansan and cried out in terror. "How did you know?"

This time, Li Jiansan was spot on. Indeed, a year ago, he had obtained a precious medicinal herb. Because of its immense value, he treated it as a priceless treasure and hid it in a secret chamber where no one knew of its existence. It was only recently, upon encountering a bottleneck in his cultivation, that he had consumed this miraculous herb. He had concealed the matter so thoroughly that even his wife and son were completely unaware of it.

How on earth did Li Jiansan find out about this?

He now felt more than ever that Li Jiansan was unfathomable. If Li Jiansan detecting his symptoms of internal heat from his facial complexion could be explained by medical skill, then the fact that Li Jiansan even knew he had consumed a heavenly treasure—down to the exact type of herb and its age—was downright bizarre. This clearly could not be explained by mere medicine. Could he truly be the reincarnation of a divine fortune-teller?

Liu Desheng looked at Li Jiansan as if gazing at a ghost—no, something even more terrifying than a ghost!

"Your condition is actually quite similar to Hu Jun's. His problem was chaotic vital energy, while your issue is that your vital energy is blocked and congested within your body," Li Jiansan said, looking at Liu Desheng. "A three-hundred-year-old medicinal herb contains terrifying primordial energy. Swallowing it so blindly makes it difficult for your body to absorb. With such a massive amount of energy piling up inside you, it's practically a miracle that you've managed to live this long."

Hearing Li Jiansan's words, Liu Desheng instantly panicked. "Master, I beg you to save me!" He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his eyes filled with shock as he looked at Li Jiansan.

Li Jiansan said indifferently, "Relax, since I said I would help you solve it, I will definitely do it. Now, hurry up and do a handstand."

Although this request from Li Jiansan was rather bizarre, Liu Desheng complied nonetheless. Soon after, Li Jiansan produced a silver needle.

Hum!

A sliver of true essence burst forth from Li Jiansan's body, converging onto the silver needle. In an instant, the needle stood upright in the void, vibrating and humming loudly.

"Go!"

With a flick of Li Jiansan's wrist, the silver needle instantly pierced through the air. With a soft thud, it struck precisely upon Liu Desheng's Shanzhong acupoint.

Boom!

Immediately afterward, a foul-smelling gas erupted explosively from Liu Desheng's rear, and the sheer force of it knocked him flat on his back, sprawling out in all directions.

Far from feeling any resentment, Liu Desheng scrambled eagerly to his feet and threw himself gratefully before Li Jiansan. "Master, thank you so much! The congested energy in my body has been completely cleared. I feel thoroughly refreshed, and what's more... it feels like I'm about to break through..."

As Liu Desheng spoke, growing more and more delighted, a loud booming sound echoed from within his body, and his cultivation realm instantly surged into the third tier of the Profound Penetration realm!

The eyes of everyone present widened in utter and profound shock. Li Jiansan was simply divine! Not only was his talent peerless, but his medical skills were also astonishing, and he possessed the dignified bearing of a true grandmaster. Li Jiansan was quite literally a perfect genius!

"We beg Master for your guidance!"

The elders who had previously shouted at the top of their lungs about guiding Li Jiansan were now swarming around him like pug dogs, begging for his pointers. The situation had completely reversed.

"This..."

The Grand Steward had overseen dozens of cohorts of new disciples, but this was his first time ever witnessing such a spectacle. Since when could a newcomer guide the elders? Since when did elders have to beg a newcomer for guidance? The Grand Steward smiled bitterly as he looked at Li Jiansan; all of this was brought about by the youth right before his eyes.

"Every single one of you has problems!" Li Jiansan didn't even look at them, speaking as casually as if he were cracking a joke or scolding someone. Yet these elders nodded and bowed obsequiously.

"Yes, yes, yes, we all have problems. How should we resolve them, Master?"

At these words, the surrounding disciples stared with bulging eyes. The scene before them completely subverted their worldview. The elders, who usually appeared high and mighty, were actually acting so submissive toward a newcomer—something entirely unimaginable before. But now, thinking back on Li Jiansan's previous performance, everyone felt it made complete sense. Earlier, Li Jiansan had pointed out the fatal flaws of two elders in just a few words, and then effortlessly resolved their issues while helping them break through. Who wouldn't rush forward for such a fabulous opportunity to receive guidance from Li Jiansan?

"I will point out the problems in each of you one by one. The condition remains the same: hand over half of your monthly cultivation resources."

A short while later, Li Jiansan laid out their respective issues one by one. However, this time, Li Jiansan did not step in to solve their problems for them; instead, he simply provided the methods and left them to handle it themselves. If he had to personally fix every single one of them, he would literally be worked to death.

Seeing that all the surrounding elders had received guidance from Li Jiansan, Elder Liu Yan of the A-grade class could not help but grow green with envy. Driven by shamelessness, he walked up to Li Jiansan and said with extreme politeness, "Master Ye, a certain palm technique I've been cultivating has hit a bottleneck and won't break through. Could you possibly offer a few pointers?"

Li Jiansan said coldly, "Guidance? You are unworthy!"

"What did you say?" Liu Yan was genuinely stunned.

"What kind of thing are you? Are you worthy of receiving my guidance?"

Growing somewhat angry, Liu Yan retorted, "Didn't you just give guidance to all of them?"

"So what if I did? I'll guide everyone here, but you alone—you are unworthy!" Li Jiansan sneered. Liu Yan had previously tipped off the elders of the Misty Forest, plotting for them to eliminate Li Jiansan; Li Jiansan had already figured out all these underhanded tricks. For Liu Yan to dare shoot cold arrows behind his back and still expect guidance? What a joke. In Li Jiansan's eyes, Liu Yan was already on his must-kill list.

"I can give you half of my cultivation resources. As long as you point out my flaws, anything goes," Liu Yan decided inwardly. As long as his strength could advance even a little, paying a small price mattered not at all.

Li Jiansan roared coldly, "Scram!"

"You..."

Liu Yan had already lowered his pride to such an extent, yet not only did Li Jiansan refuse to give him pointers, but he also humiliated him so severely. How could he possibly endure this?

Boom!

Consumed by rage and unable to suppress his fury any longer, Liu Yan unleashed a fierce palm strike. Terrifying power instantly condensed in the void, as if converging the formidable momentum of heaven and earth, causing the entire surroundings to tremble violently!

Swish, swish!

Before Liu Yan's palm even landed on Li Jiansan, the razor-sharp gale of the palm wind was already howling forward, stinging the faces of the onlookers.

"Insolent! How dare you act presumptuously in front of me! Do you think that being an elder of the A-grade class gives you the right to act like a tyrant?"

Seeing this, the Grand Steward shouted sternly and flicked his sleeve, instantly shattering Liu Yan's incoming attack with a terrifying wave of pressure.

The Grand Steward, who had never made a move until now, was actually this terrifying!

The hearts of the crowd trembled with immense shock as they cast astonished gazes toward the Grand Steward.

"I wouldn't dare." Toward the Grand Steward, Liu Yan still harbored deep apprehension. Glaring coldly and resentfully at Li Jiansan one last time, he flicked his sleeve and stalked away. Before leaving, the look in his eyes directed at Li Jiansan was filled with unadulterated malice...

"This kid Li Jiansan is truly arrogant... but he indeed has the capital for such arrogance." The Grand Steward stood off to the side, witnessing the entire event with a helpless sigh. "Alright, let's begin the class assignments."

The Grand Steward glanced at Li Jiansan. "Li Jiansan, which class do you wish to enter?"