Urban Extraordinary Immortal Doctor-Chapter 1011: Gao Shuxian’s New Backer

Tu Hu’s cultivation team had emerged from their mountain trial this time with a collection of a dozen low-tier Spiritual Medicines, two three-hundred-year-old low-rank Spirit Beasts, and a single medium-tier Spiritual Medicine that was roughly five hundred years old.

In Tu Hu’s view, his team’s acquisition of these Cultivation Resources gave them a strong chance to rank within the top ten of this trial, thereby attaining favor from the higher-ups of the Martial Academy and a substantial reward of Cultivation Resources.

However, the appearance of Huang Miao’s team instilled a sense of crisis in Tu Hu.

Tu Hu knew that the Cultivation Resources brought back by Huang Miao’s team were only a part of their total haul, and their real "trump card" lay in the antlers from the dozens of Antlered Silver Lions.

Even though those antlers weren’t from mid-tier Spirit Beasts, their combined value could easily surpass the total gains of Tu Hu’s team.

This meant that with Huang Miao’s team in the picture, Tu Hu’s team would likely be pushed back a rank.

Tu Hu’s gaze shifted as he silently observed the cultivation teams gathered in the square and was delighted to discover that, out of the hundred or so teams that had gone on the mountain trial, only seven or eight had achieved more, led by Personal Transmission Disciples.

In other words, even if Huang Miao’s team’s Cultivation Resources surpassed theirs, it wouldn’t pose an obstacle to their entry into the top ten.

Assured of a hopeful spot in the top ten, Tu Hu let out a relieved sigh, while also marveling at the good fortune of Huang Miao’s team, who had Fang Bai, a deeply concealed and unfathomably strong member at their helm.

Tu Hu believed that without Fang Bai, Huang Miao and the rest probably couldn’t have even crossed the Nether River, let alone secure dozens of antlers as Cultivation Resources.

During their trial in the Bitao Mountain Range, Tu Hu had clashed with Fang Bai over the dozens of antlers, and despite pushing his body to its limits to increase his strength, he was unable to defeat Fang Bai. Instead, he ended up passing out from the side effects of forcing his potential, and it was Fang Bai who lent him a hand.

That encounter made several members of Tu Hu’s team view Fang Bai with newfound respect and a hint of wariness.

Without Fang Bai, Tu Hu’s team would have easily taken the dozens of Antlered Silver Lions’ antlers from Huang Miao’s team in the Bitao Mountain Range, and with those antlers, Tu Hu’s team could have aspired to rank in the top five.

It was no exaggeration to say that Fang Bai alone had made Huang Miao’s team successful.

Since Tu Hu’s team knew about the dozens of antlers acquired by Huang Miao’s team, there was no intention to conceal it. They planned to hand them over to the Martial Academy according to the rules, in exchange for the Cultivation Resources rewarded by the Academy.

Antlers from the Antlered Silver Lions were an exceptionally rare and precious commodity, but ever since Fang Bai had found dozens of medium-tier Spiritual Medicines in the Ice Peak region, Huang Miao and the others cared less about the antlers.

The dozens of antlers were hanging on the waists of the five individuals in Fang Bai’s team. As they were also carrying various Spiritual Medicines and Spirit Beasts on their backs, which obscured the antlers, many members of the cultivation teams in the square initially didn’t notice them.

It wasn’t until Huang Miao and the others laid their Spiritual Medicines and Spirit Beasts at their feet that the antlers on their waists were revealed, which instantly drew gasps of admiration from many members of the cultivation teams in the square.

Those who had a good relationship with Huang Miao’s team came forward to congratulate them, while those who bore grudges stood in the distance and watched with cold eyes.

"Hmph, just lucky, what’s so great about that!" Gao Shuxian’s gaze had been glued to Fang Bai, Liu Qingqing, and Liu Liehu ever since they appeared in the square, her expression barely concealing her hatred, which deepened into envy as she noticed the dozens of Antlered Silver Lions they brought back.

During this mountain expedition, Gao Shuxian joined a cultivation team led by Ouyang Jian, the top-ranked personal transmission disciple in terms of combat power, only to have him go missing by the Nether River, his fate unknown. Without him, the courage of the other team members to venture deeper into the core area dwindled, and they hastily returned to Bitao Martial Academy with some Spirit Beasts and Spiritual Medicine they had previously acquired.

Although the cultivation resources that Gao Shuxian and her group obtained under Ouyang Jian’s lead ensured their place within the top ten of the team, they had difficulty breaking into the top three, resulting in the worst performance in the history of Ouyang Jian’s teams.

In recent years, the disciples from Bitao Martial Academy who teamed up with Ouyang Jian for expeditions, apart from Gao Shuxian who had an ambiguous relationship with him, were all his admirers and followers. Now, Ouyang Jian’s probable fall in the Bitao Mountain Range was nothing less than a massive blow to Gao Shuxian and the others.

At the very least, in future expeditions, they would lack a pillar to rely on, making it difficult to achieve good results. They would have to look for a new backer.

Gao Shuxian was a proud and extremely vain woman. She would not be a faithful follower of anyone; she was only true to herself.

After crossing the Nether River and learning that Ouyang Jian’s fate leaned more towards misfortune, Gao Shuxian, considering her own safety, immediately urged the other team members to return to Bitao Martial Academy.

On her way back, Gao Shuxian had already decided that since she had lost the support of Ouyang Jian, it was time to find a new one.

Among the personal transmission disciples, apart from Ouyang Jian, the strongest was Shen Yulin. However, Shen Yulin had always had a poor relationship with Ouyang Jian, and she also held Gao Shuxian—who used her beauty to seduce disciples of Bitao Martial Academy—in disdain.

Therefore, if Gao Shuxian planned to seek refuge with Shen Yulin, it was purely a humiliation to herself, and it was impossible that she would be accepted by Shen Yulin.

Behind Shen Yulin, ranked third among the personal transmission disciples, was Yang Gang, who was reclusive and independent, not keen on forming cliques. It was also unlikely that Gao Shuxian could seek refuge with him.

Half of the disciples below Yang Gang were on good terms with Shen Yulin. The others, who had originally sided with Ouyang Jian, now faced his probable fall during the mountain excursion. They began to change sides, seeking to mend their relations with Shen Yulin, making it even less likely that they would offend Shen Yulin for the sake of Gao Shuxian.

Gao Shuxian understood this very well, so she decided that when choosing a new backer this time, she should not pick among the disciples of Bitao Martial Academy but aim higher and more long-term.

In fact, before this, Gao Shuxian already had a suitable target in mind and had even made contact with him.

That person was Zhuang Zhi, one of the eight stewards of Bitao Martial Academy.

In Bitao Martial Academy, the position of steward was higher than that of personal transmission disciples and ranked among the higher echelons of the academy, only below the four Great Elders, the two Vice Deans, and the Dean.

Zhuang Zhi was a man who greatly enjoyed the company of women, with a household full of wives and concubines and numerous mistresses outside. Even though he was now over sixty, his nature remained unchanged. He used his high status within the Martial Academy to engage in affairs with numerous female disciples.

In the True Martial Realm, powerful men could have many women, and powerful women could also have many men. Such matters of mutual pleasure were entirely normal and no one would intervene.

It was precisely because of Zhuang Zhi’s fondness for women that Gao Shuxian sought an opportunity to make contact with him, intending to use her beauty to bewitch Zhuang Zhi and thereby achieve her own goals.