Tribulation of Myriad Races

Silence descended for the second time.

Liu Hong looked at Su Yu and suddenly smiled. He said, "Su Yu, I\'ve seen a lot of new students, but very few of them are as interesting as you. Your plan was very good. Even I almost fell for it..."

"Thank you for the compliment, teacher."

Su Yu smiled as well. Were they competing in smiles now? Sure, bring it on! This situation was quite amusing, considering Su Yu had learned this fake smile from Liu Hong, a smile that served as a mask for the treacherous schemes in his mind.

This was the very first lesson Liu Hong had given Su Yu. And he had never forgotten that lesson. He could still remember clearly how during their first class, Liu Hong had used his warm smile to gain the good impression of many of his fellow classmates.

Liu Hong felt somewhat uncomfortable looking at Su Yu\'s smiling face.

He couldn\'t resist saying, "Uhm...stop smiling. It feels weird. It\'s like I\'m looking at a mirror. I\'ve discovered that you look like a younger me."

Su Yu\'s face stiffened.

Fine. He would fulfill that wish of Liu Hong. He stopped smiling.

After saying that, Liu Hong looked at Su Yu again. He slowly said, "Su Yu, are you here to get those merit points back?"

At this point, there was no longer any need for Su Yu to keep talking in circles. He went straight to the point, "I wouldn\'t dare. After all, you need to take some risks as well. I will be happy with half. If you are really in need of money, I can take a third of what you have as well. But that way, I\'ll remain indignant. After all, I sacrificed a lot for this plan."

Liu Hong smiled. He didn\'t say anything, looking like he was in thought. He continued gazing at Su Yu in silence.

After a while, he suddenly said, "You\'re better than Bai Feng."

"..."

Su Yu didn\'t say anything. It wouldn\'t be proper for him to respond to that.

"Why are you silent? Are you afraid?"

"You must be kidding. My teacher is one of the greatest geniuses of our current age. He is a seventh-stage Skysoar capable of defeating a ninth-stage Skysoar. I am nothing compared to him."

"Hahaha!" Liu Hong roared with laughter. "You\'re not being honest."

After a while, Liu Hong seemed to have reached a decision. He exhaled lightly and said, "Su Yu, if you\'re willing to listen, I have some advice for you."

"Please educate me, Teacher."

Su Yu remained respectful. He had to stay polite. Even if he inwardly wanted to stab this fellow to death, he had to maintain the friendly look on his face. And even if he was going to stab Liu Hong, he would do it smiling.

"I was born in a small influential family. My family isn\'t too strong, but we are by no means a poor family. I am not a child of the main line. Instead, I am the child of a concubine."

Liu Hong sank into recollection. After a while, he slowly continued, "During my childhood, I suffered as much as you had. Perhaps I had suffered even more. Do you understand the concept of being the son of a concubine?"

Su Yu frowned. He thought for a bit and said, "So you were basically akin to a stepson?"

"..."

Liu Hong wanted to cuss out. But he nodded, "You can say that. My mother is a concubine. My so-called brothers are basically strangers. My father and grandfather only had their eyes on those main sons. As for me and Liu He...we were raised like servants."

Su Yu frowned, "Prefect Xia once announced that Great Xia would no longer keep the concubinage system. Why..."

"The prefect is the prefect. Those are mere words." Liu Hong said, "This is an era where all men need to serve in the army. Each year, countless men are killed on the battlefield. There are a lot more women than men in our society. It is basically impossible to implement what Prefect Xia said."

"In truth, someone like Prefect Xia is not suited to be a ruler."

Liu Hong spent some time complaining about the prefect before continuing with his story, "Let\'s continue with my story. I am the son of a concubine. Thus, regardless of my talent, I never earned the acknowledgment of my family. How did I start walking the path of cultural research? Because of a chance encounter with a kind man..."

Once again, Liu Hong sank into recollection. He said, "Sixteen years ago, when I was still studying in a secondary school, I met an old man. He is my first teacher in the path of cultural research. He taught me different languages. He brought me onto the path of Divine Characters. He taught me a lot of things."

"He gave me the ability to join a cultural research academy. He gave me the qualification to walk until where I am today. In my heart, he is my benefactor. Someone who gave me a second chance at life."

Su Yu kept listening. For some reason, that life story sounded very familiar. In fact, he felt like he was listening to his own life story. In his case, Liu Wenyan was his benefactor. He turned somewhat absent-minded.

Liu Hong continued, "Under the old man\'s guidance, I obtained great results and entered the academy. But on the day I passed the entrance exam, the old man passed away. I was greatly tortured. I even considered giving up..."

Liu Hong had a look of grief as his eyes turned moist. He sighed and said, "Prior to his death, he told me to never give up. He told me to complete his dream for him. To join the academy and complete the grand undertaking he hadn\'t been able to complete. At the time, I didn\'t understand..."

Liu Hong had a bitter look, "I joined the academy and entered the single character faction cluelessly. One day, an old man found me. He told me that my benefactor, my first teacher, was his close friend. My benefactor was one of the most important members of his faction. He was one of the leaders back then."

"The old man was very shocked to learn that I had joined the single character faction. He told me to leave the single character faction. But I was no longer the clueless new student. I knew how hard that old man\'s life was. His faction...was in a very difficult position."

Su Yu\'s heart thumped as a guess emerged in his mind.

"Thus, I told him I wanted to stay in the single character faction. I am going to be his spy in the single character faction! The old man was unwilling. He was a righteous man who disdained using such methods. But I am different. I am someone who had suffered before. The old man was a gentleman. Someone like him can be a good researcher, but he is not a suitable leader for a faction that wishes to grow. His faction was being subjected to endless suppression. They were on the verge of total destruction."

Liu Hong clenched his teeth and said, "His faction is my benefactor\'s faction. The grand undertaking my benefactor had not been able to complete was to strengthen the multiple character faction and reclaim their previous glory."

"No matter what, I wouldn\'t watch on and do nothing as they face destruction, destroying my benefactor\'s final wish."

Su Yu\'s expression kept changing as he stared at Liu Hong.

Slowly, Liu Hong collected himself and said, "From then on, I settled in the single character faction. I want to grow strong. Only then would I hold more power. Only then would I be able to fight for more things. Only then would I be able to protect that faction!"

"Now, I\'m already an eighth-stage Skysoar. I need to reach the Cloudbreach Realm as soon as possible. The Skysoar Realm is nothing. Only at the Cloudbreach Realm, or even the Mountainsea Realm, would I be able to truly enter the circle of the higher ups."

He looked at Su Yu with a burning gaze.

"Su Yu, I need to grow strong. I need more merit points. Do...you understand me?"

Su Yu had an odd look in his eyes. After a while, he said, "You mean...you\'re undercover?"

Liu Hong sighed, "You\'re a smart person. If it\'s Bai Feng or Chen Yong, I wouldn\'t tell them anything. I would rather keep this secret until I die. But you\'re different! I see hope in you!"

Liu Hong\'s tone was bitter as he said, "Undercover...perhaps you can consider me that. I\'ve almost forgotten that identity of mine. You\'re right. The old man who had looked for me is your grandteacher, Elder Hong Tan."

"My benefactor was one of the geniuses expelled 50 years ago. Like your Teacher Liu, my benefactor was kicked out. But he was less lucky. He was stuck below the Skysoar Realm for life. Just like that, he died, carrying with him countless regrets."

Liu Hong spoke with a self-mocking tone, "To speak the truth, over the years, I have been slowly sinking into despair. I considered giving up. I wanted to forget everything and focus on my life in the single character faction. Here, I have a Mountainsea teacher. The Mountainsea Realm...is very powerful. Meanwhile, my benefactor couldn\'t even reach the Skysoar Realm. He had only taught me for a few years. Should I stubbornly cling to his dying wish?"

"If even those geniuses from 50 years ago had failed, am I supposed to complete their mission for them? Someone as mediocre as me?"

Liu Hong\'s tone turned more and more bitter, "When I looked at you today, I felt like I was looking at the previous me. Someone foolishly trying to do everything with a burning ambition. In reality, it is only a matter of time before we realize how tiny we are."

Su Yu was in a state of shock.

Undercover?

Was this fellow from the multiple character faction as well?

This person had a similar past as him. Someone who had received the teachings of an ex-genius of the multiple character faction in his secondary school. After entering the academy, unlike him, Liu Hong had not joined the multiple character faction. He accidentally ended up in the single character faction.

Hong Tan eventually found him, but he was no longer willing to leave. He wanted to stay in the single character faction as an undercover. Su Yu felt his lips go dry.

"Do...you have any proof?"

"Proof?" Liu Hong laughed, "Is there a need for me to cook up a lie like this? If you need proof..."

Liu Hong hesitated slightly before softly saying, "Do you think that the Skybreak Technique you picked up was something I dropped to set you up? Do I need to use something worth thousands of merit points to set up a puny student like you?" Su Yu trembled.

"I was only looking for an excuse to give you that." Liu Hong sighed, "Not only that, but I had also blocked a lot of trouble for you. Otherwise, people would start creating problems for you after you reached the Mental Tempering Stage. I had Liu He make a move with the pretext of teaching you a lesson. That was why nobody else had done anything to you. You had been declared a target of Liu He."

"Your Senior Sister, Wu Jia, was seriously injured. I was worried that the same would happen to you. I have been standing in the way of the people itching to start something with you."

"Also, think about the research center. Do you think a fool like Bai Feng can manage his finances? I am the one who has been supplying him with a batch of supplies each month. He foolishly believed that those supplies came from the academy. What an idiot."

Liu Hong smiled, "If all that is still not enough, I can say more. In the research center, there is a suanni, a fire crow..."

He listed all the surviving creatures in the research center and said, "I learned of all this during my casual chats with Elder Hong Tan. No outsider is allowed to enter your place. How would I know that if not from Elder Hong Tan himself?"

Su Yu swallowed, looking at Liu Hong blankly.

This guy was one of his own?

Holy shit!