Chapter 596: Bai Xiaochun's Answer!
Bai Qi spoke loudly and clearly, and even backed his voice with the power of his extraordinary cultivation base. As a result, everything in the area trembled, and the clouds in the evening sky roiled in shocking fashion.
It was almost as if heaven and earth were confirming that his answer was correct. The faces of the clan members in the area all flickered, and many seemed to suddenly be struck with new insights. Countless shining eyes focused on Bai Qi.
“A phoenix that could dance in the highest heavens, the foremost among all birds in the world! This answer….”
“How come I didn’t think of an answer like that!?!?”
“I would never have dared to think in such a way. How could a single feather actually turn into a living creature!?!?”
The fifth young lady trembled, seemingly lost in thought. As for Bai Lei, although his hands were clenched into defiant fists, inside he was sighing. He knew that his own skill in spirit enhancement didn’t match up to Bai Qi's, and that Bai Qi’s answer was certain to become a legend in the clan.
Bai Xiaochun’s gaze sharpened as he looked over at Bai Qi. Although the answer wasn’t the correct one, it showed that Bai Qi had already begun to forge his own path of spirit enhancement.
“Sadly, it's still wrong!” he thought. Bai Xiaochun knew that it didn’t matter that Bai Qi had begun to forge his own path. In the end, that path would never become a reality.
Madam Cai’s face was flushed with pride and excitement as she looked at Bai Qi. The fact that this blazing sun of the clan was her own son left her feeling extremely pleased.
And then there was the clan chief, who was Bai Qi’s father. He looked very satisfied; clearly, Bai Qi was definitely the qilin son of the clan as far as he was concerned.
The other elders were visibly moved and even shocked by Bai Qi’s answer. In fact, the grand elder from the Hall of Justice actually stood up. Smiling, he said, “Excellent! You truly are the qilin son of the Bai Clan! Truth be told, I can’t say if your answer is correct or not, but what I can say is that your boldness is the type that can dominate mountains and rivers!” The grand elder threw his head back and laughed heartily. The praise in his eyes was clear; obviously, Bai Qi’s answer was in line with what the grand elder had already come to understand about spirit enhancement.
Based on the skills he had developed, he had long since come to understand that spirit enhancement was broken up into different realms. The ability to create rainbows or feather spirits was one realm, but just as Bai Qi had said, there was clearly a higher realm.
Looking over with a smile at the clan chief, the grand elder said, “No wonder the patriarch has taken such a liking to Bai Qi. That would explain why he agreed to open the ancestral land for him. In terms of spirit enhancement enlightenment and latent talent, he is clearly extraordinary.”
“He doesn’t deserve such praise, Grand Elder,” the clan chief said. “The kid still needs a lot more training.” However, it was impossible for him to hide how pleased he was.
Considering that the grand elder had approved of Bai Qi’s answer, the other clan members began to raise their voices in praise. It was a thunderous cacophony that filled the area, causing Bai Qi to suck in his breath in surprise, and leaving Madam Cai visibly moved, her eyes shining with unprecedented levels of pride.
“That bastard Bai Hao might be good at spirit enhancement,” she thought, “but he’s definitely not as good as my Qi’er. The only difference is that Qi’er doesn’t like to make a big show of his skills.”
Bai Xiaochun was not very impressed at all by how everyone seemed to be fawning over Bai Qi. In fact, he couldn’t hold back from yawning openly. “The Young Master doesn’t wish to sink to your level,” he thought, “otherwise I’d reveal the answer out loud, and all of your jaws would drop.”
By now, this so-called assessment was getting so boring that he was really wondering when it would all just end. However, it was in that moment that the pompous, preening Bai Qi looked out into the crowd and happened to spot Bai Hao yawning. Malice glimmering in his eyes, he laughed loudly.
“Bai Hao!” he called out. “Didn’t you say that you were talented in spirit enhancement? Everybody else gave an answer for the assessment, perhaps you would like to do the same? Come on, let’s hear it. There’s no need to feel embarrassed.” An enigmatic smile could be seen on Bai Qi’s face. He really did sound like an older brother offering a bit of encouragement to his younger brother. However, his sinister goal was clearly to humiliate Bai Hao.
He was obviously completely confident that the answer he had given left no room for anyone else to say anything worthwhile. Any answer that was given would have to either touch on something immaterial, or something corporeal. Therefore, as far as Bai Qi could tell, no matter what answer Bai Hao gave, he could accuse him of copying his own answer. Then he could act like the older brother and publicly teach Bai Hao another lesson!
That would once again cause Bai Hao to lose a huge amount of face in front of the clan. Furthermore, because he had already been found guilty of cheating, then when the ancestral land opened and Bai Qi found an excuse to kill him, no one would think to even complain.
As soon as the words left Bai Qi’s moth, everything went quiet, and all eyes turned to Bai Xiaochun.
“Bai Hao is nothing more than a Foundation Establishment cultivator. What answer could he possibly give that would be worth listening to? I’d say there's an eighty to ninety percent chance he’ll just chicken out and refuse to say anything.”
“Watch, I bet he says that it’ll become a phoenix which could dance in the highest heavens, the foremost among all birds in the world…. That would be pushing the limits of shamelessness though, wouldn’t it?”
“You never know. He cheated his way to 1st place in all three clan trials by fire. That alone shows you how shameless Bai Hao is. It's a good thing Bai Qi puts righteousness above family ties, and wiped his name off of the stone steles.”
Although most of the gazes were those of scorn and disdain, there were a few that seemed to contain pity at the malice being put on display by Bai Qi.
The fifth young lady and Bai Lei were among those who looked at Bai Hao with pity. Although neither of them knew him well, the fact that Bai Qi hated him so much earned him their sympathy.
Unfortunately, there was no way for them to stop what was happening right now, not when Bai Qi was at the peak of glory.
It only took Madam Cai a moment of thought to realize what her son was up to. Although she was a bit worried about what might result, she trusted Bai Qi’s judgement, and thus, looked over at Bai Xiaochun with an intensely sinister glare.
A placid expression filled the clan chief’s eyes, as if he had no idea what Bai Qi was planning to do. As he looked over at Bai Xiaochun, the other clan elders did the same, their eyes flickering with amusement as they exchanged silent glances. As for the grand elder from the Hall of Justice, he wasn’t a member of the official clan circle of elders, and although he couldn’t be said to be completely impartial in all clan affairs, he came close. Smiling, he looked over at Bai Hao, whom he had never paid much attention to before.
Bai Xiaochun frowned as he studied Bai Qi’s vicious smile. Slowly, Bai Xiaochun’s own eyes turned icier as he realized how vile Bai Qi really was. Earlier, he had been planning to keep a low profile, but now that Bai Qi was going so far as to force his hand, it seemed he had no choice. Since Bai Qi was feeling suicidal, Bai Xiaochun would respect his wishes! Snorting coldly, he rose to his feet.
As he did, the scorn among the audience grew more intense.
“He's actually standing up? Well isn’t this amusing. Let’s see how he copies Bai Qi’s ‘bird’ answer.”
“He really overestimates himself. Bai Hao, the bastard son, daring to compete with the best in the clan!”
“People like him can do nothing but cheat. He’s a disgrace to the entire Bai Clan!”
Bai Xiaochun heard the things that people were saying. He could see the venom in Madam Cai's eyes, and the coldness in the clan chief’s. He also saw the expressions on the faces of the clan elders. Of particular note was that no one did anything to stop the derisive talk. In fact, almost everyone in the clan was speaking scornfully of him.
As for the representatives from the two other clans and the emissary from Giant Ghost City, they were clearly taken aback by the commotion, and were looking at Bai Xiaochun. However, despite all of these things, Bai Xiaochun felt no anger.
Sticking his chin up, he looked around at the crowd as if they were a bunch of house sparrows that could be crushed to death in the blink of an eye. Swishing his sleeve in very proud and aloof fashion, he pointed at Bai Qi and growled, “I didn’t want to say anything, but since you’ve come to me looking to be humiliated, you villain, then I’ll do just that.”
Bai Qi’s eyes flickered with killing intent as he chuckled coldly. “Whatever answer you come up with will seem amazing to you, but will sound like a bucket of dog crap to me!”
Bai Xiaochun swished his sleeve again. Although he only unleashed the fluctuations of a Foundation Establishment cultivation base, it definitely made him look like a grand figure.
“Very well, I’ll tell you the correct answer to the question of thirtyfold spirit enhancement!
“That one feather will become a world of its own. In fact, anything that receives a thirtyfold spirit enhancement will become its own world!” Bai Xiaochun’s voice boomed like thunder, spreading out in all directions and piercing into the hearts of all clan members.
His answer seemed to provoke reactions from the magical laws of heaven and earth! His voice was like heavenly thunder that rocked everything in the area, completely shattering the cloud layer up above.
Evening light spilled down from above, bathing Bai Xiaochun in brightness, causing him to suddenly radiate a very profound air.
In response to his words, the eyes of many clan members went wide. They felt as if their minds were being struck by lightning, and even Bai Qi began to shiver visibly as an extremely unsightly expression overtook his face.
Never could Bai Qi have imagined that Bai Hao would give an answer like this. There wasn’t even a need to try to compare it with his own answer. Regardless of whether or not that answer was correct, anyone could see that it vastly surpassed the answers of anyone else present, and had crushed his own answer into smithereens.