Chapter Thirty-Seven: Sophistry!

Just as Zhou Tian was staring hungrily at all that delicious food, wondering why the Emperor of Qin was still seated at the head of the table without announcing the start of the banquet, another report rang out from outside.

"Envoys from the Kingdom of Artifacts have arrived—"

Once more, a group entered the hall, but this time, their appearance was strikingly futuristic. Clad in blue, form-fitting battle armor brimming with mechanical flair, they followed behind a distinguished figure who was clearly their general—his broad, square face was calm, and his shoulders were adorned with a dazzling array of medals.

The General of the Eastern Garrison stepped forward to greet them, and the formalities began anew—tedious and drawn-out as ever.

The proceedings were so monotonous that Zhou Tian was nearly dozing off. Beside him, Tianling was still fiddling with the ink-jade qilin in her arms, paying him no mind.

“Bored, aren't you?”

A man's voice at his side startled Zhou Tian awake just as he was about to nod off. Turning to see who it was, Zhou Tian jolted and exclaimed, “Big Brother, Second Brother!”

It was Zhou Yu who had arrived, with Zhou Ying following behind.

“The last time I saw you, you were just a little child. Now look at you—already so tall…” Zhou Yu smiled gently.

Beside him, Tianling quickly regained her composure and greeted them nervously, “Big Brother, Second Brother!”

“No need to be so formal; we’re family,” Zhou Yu said.

“Do you like that ink-jade qilin? If you want it, it's yours,” Zhou Ying told Tianling.

Before Tianling could reply, the qilin in her arms leaped onto Zhou Ying’s shoulder, nuzzling her neck with all its might, its big, round eyes glistening with tears.

Zhou Ying, however, ignored the creature and looked only at Tianling, as if the qilin would be gifted to her the instant she said “yes.”

“I… I’d better not…” Tianling bit her lower lip. Though she longed for it, the pleading look in the qilin's eyes melted her heart, and she couldn’t bring herself to say “yes.”

With a surprisingly human sigh of relief, the ink-jade qilin plopped down on Zhou Ying’s shoulder.

“I’ll catch you an even cuter one someday!” Zhou Tian said, noticing Tianling’s lingering longing.

“So I’m the villain now?” Zhou Ying shook her head with a wry smile, then produced a pale blue longsword seemingly from thin air and handed it to Tianling. “I acquired this sword by chance. I don’t even know its name. I didn’t bring much this time, so let this sword serve as my gift to you.”

The sword was not forged from any ordinary material. Its blade was semi-transparent, swirling with misty light. Despite Zhou Ying’s casual tone, the power emanating from it was unmistakable.

Tianling looked uncertainly at Zhou Tian.

“Don’t look at him. This is my welcome gift to my sister-in-law. Would he dare stop you from accepting it?” Zhou Ying teased.

Zhou Tian nodded, signaling Tianling to accept; such gifts were customary.

Tianling thanked Zhou Ying, took the sword, and with a flash of green light, the sword vanished, leaving a sword-shaped mark on her wrist—it had already recognized her as its master.

Zhou Ying nodded in satisfaction, while Tianling wore a look of disbelief. Only sacred artifacts could choose their own masters.

“In my haste to return, I didn’t have time to select a proper gift. Here, take this,” Zhou Yu said, producing an object from the air and offering it to Tianling.

It was a purple silk ribbon, shimmering softly like a tassel. Like the sword, it recognized Tianling as its master, transforming into a mark on her wrist. Her astonishment only grew.

“Sacred… King…” The feedback from the ribbon told her immediately that this was a treasure of the Sacred King tier.

“Haha, big brother’s generosity is as impressive as ever!” Zhou Ying laughed.

“This is a woman’s item—I have no use for it, and it would just gather dust. But Tianling, remember, you won’t be able to wield its power just yet,” Zhou Yu said calmly.

“I understand,” Tianling replied with a nod.

“Well, we should be on our way. Let’s talk more when we get home!” Zhou Ying said. Only the envoys from Grand Luos Academy and the Kingdom of Artifacts had arrived today. After the tedious formalities, the banquet was about to begin, but they couldn’t attend just yet—they still had matters to report to the Emperor of Qin, who, along with his ministers and the returning dignitaries, was already preparing to leave. The scholar from Grand Luos Academy and the general from the Kingdom of Artifacts also departed; their age and status made it inappropriate for them to linger.

Once the dignitaries had left, the students of Grand Luos Academy swarmed toward Zhou Tian.

One, who appeared to hold some authority, approached Zhou Tian with a sullen face and asked, “Were you the one who called us fools just now?”

Zhou Tian looked up and replied, “No, I wasn’t.”

“Oh? So you’ve got the courage to say it but not to admit it?” the young man sneered.

“No, I said you were foolish husbands, not fools,” Zhou Tian clarified.

“And what difference is there between the two?” the young man shot back coldly.

“None at all,” Zhou Tian replied without a trace of guilt.

“You—! Twisting words to win an argument!” the young man fumed.

“I know who you are,” another student stepped forward, his face brimming with schadenfreude. “You’re the son of the King of Qin—a useless good-for-nothing who can’t even cultivate!”

A tense silence fell. Zhou Zui’s expression darkened, while golden flames flickered coldly in Liu Yan’s eyes—chilling and terrifying.

The Third Prince narrowed his eyes, his fingers tracing sigils in the air behind his back. In unseen corners of the hall, several shadows began to move toward them. “The heir of the King of Qin has been insulted!” he thought. “A perfect excuse—enough to kill a few of them!”

The others drew closer, their auras swelling. This was no longer a simple dispute. Who were these people, anyway? Did they really think Grand Luos Academy would risk war with the Empire of Qin over their deaths?

“Oh,” Zhou Tian replied, his expression unchanged.

Oh? That was all? The student who had spoken looked disappointed—where was the pain, the humiliation?

Then Zhou Tian spoke again, “Allow me to correct you. I am an ordinary man who cannot cultivate—not a useless good-for-nothing.”

“There’s no difference!” the first student retorted.

“No, there is a difference,” Zhou Tian replied, slowly and deliberately. “Being able to cultivate doesn’t mean you’re not useless. Take you, for example—you dress the part, but inside you’re rotten. Right now, you must be thinking that Zhou Tian only has what he has because of his family, and if you’d been born into the same family, you’d be better than me.”

As a seasoned master of verbal sparring, Zhou Tian understood the art of reframing an argument. The young man’s thoughts were hardly unique or particularly dark; they had nothing to do with whether Zhou Tian was useless or not.

“But if you can’t cultivate, you’re definitely useless!” the other shot back furiously.

Nice! Zhou Tian had set a trap from the very start—one that required no thought to fall into. Sure enough, this naive rabbit had taken the bait.

“Fine, then let me ask you this,” Zhou Tian said, stepping up to meet the young man’s gaze.