Chapter Eight: "Radish Head" Xie Zhan

Every morning, I water Xiao Hei’s new book.
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“Xu Wen!”

Early the next morning, Xu Wen had barely walked far from his door when someone hurried up behind him, calling out his name. He paused, turning in confusion to look at the caller.

“Are you talking to me?”

Xu Wen looked curiously at Xie Zhan, who wore his usual cold expression. Xu Wen couldn’t imagine why this guy, who now firmly held his place as an inner disciple, would suddenly want to speak to him.

“Heading to the Medicine Peak?” Xie Zhan’s tone was as frosty as ever, answering with a question.

Xu Wen frowned. He felt little desire to engage with this boy who always played at being aloof and mysterious, but he nodded anyway. His instincts told him that Xie Zhan, who had never spoken a word to him before, wouldn’t approach him without reason.

“You have a grudge with Ding Yushan, don’t you?”

Xu Wen glanced at the cold-faced youth, eyes fixed ahead.

“…If you have something to say, just say it. You don’t seem like the type to speak in riddles.”

Xie Zhan was momentarily surprised, turning to look at Xu Wen before nodding slowly. “Last night, someone saw you return from the Medicine Peak in the middle of the night and told Ding Yushan. I don’t know what history there is between you two, but word is already spreading among the registered disciples. Ding Yushan claims that if someone creates enough obstacles for you to prevent you from reaching the second star level of Fire Magic, a spot among the inner disciples will open up. Since you started so late… there are now several disciples, ranging from the fifth to the ninth level of one-star Fire Magic, who are preparing to block the road to the Medicine Peak.”

To be honest, Xu Wen wasn’t all that surprised by the news. The inner disciple quota was extremely limited, so it wasn’t unusual for outer disciples to play dirty.

With Drunken Spring Breeze in hand, he feared not even Ding Yushan, let alone a few with one-star Fire Magic.

When it came to combat experience, he wouldn’t lose to a few greenhorns. Besides, his storage pouch was filled with no less than eight kinds of potions and powders for various uses. If things got ugly, he was confident he wouldn’t come off the worse—unlike Xie Zhan.

Xu Wen looked at him intently. “You seem to dislike Ding Yushan.”

“…I wouldn’t say dislike,” Xie Zhan replied reflexively, but seeing a hint of irony in Xu Wen’s eyes, his tone shifted. “I just don’t like the way he carries himself, acting superior because he has an Elder for a grandfather, looking down on us commoners, barking orders at those weaker than himself.”

Xu Wen nodded slightly, easily guessing his motive. “So, you want me to safely enter the inner circle and always stand as Ding Yushan’s rival, keeping his attention away from you?”

This time, Xie Zhan didn’t evade the point.

That was indeed his plan; rather than worry about clashing with a princeling like Ding Yushan someday, he’d rather ensure Ding Yushan never noticed him at all. Xie Zhan gazed earnestly into Xu Wen’s eyes. “Now I’m even more certain you’ll make it into the inner circle—and that you’ll be able to handle Ding Yushan.”

The implication was clear; he hadn’t been so confident before.

At first, when Xie Zhan saw Xu Wen, he only thought the new registered disciple was diligent, but never believed a poor boy from a humble background, just beginning to learn magic, could win such a precious inner disciple place. But the rumors, Ding Yushan’s seriousness, and the repeated mention of shattered stone targets gradually drew his attention to Xu Wen. Now, at this moment, he really could believe that Xu Wen might squeeze his way into the inner circle—might truly rival Ding Yushan, creating a space where Xie Zhan himself could cultivate in peace.

Xu Wen didn’t mind Xie Zhan’s answer. If he had no value, Xie Zhan wouldn’t have bothered to come find him.

“…Since we can’t go to the Medicine Peak, Xie, how about we head to the Heishui Mountains together?” Xu Wen mused, proposing to Xie Zhan. Since Ding Yushan was already using other registered disciples to block his path, he had likely given up on lying in wait himself and gone off to train alone. The Drunken Spring Breeze he’d refined last night was meant as a gift for Ding Yushan in a quiet moment, not for use against mere one-star mages.

With all his stimulants and potions prepared, there was no need to force his way to the Medicine Peak—instead, he might as well proceed straight to the Heishui Mountains for his second stage of training.

“Heishui Mountains? You?” Xie Zhan was astonished. Beyond being thrown by the abrupt change of topic, he looked at Xu Wen with deep skepticism.

No wonder—after only twenty-one days of practicing Fire Magic, how strong could he be? A first encounter with magical beasts would be lucky to see him perform at half his ability. A rookie like him going into the Heishui Mountains would almost certainly be torn apart by magical beasts—and surely Senior Sister Michelle wouldn’t approve!

Xu Wen ignored his look, continuing calmly, “From your first day, you’ve been able to come and go safely in the Heishui Mountains alone. You must know the place well. I’ll only take one day of your time—be my guide, and in return, I’ll give you ten portions of Fire Phosphor Powder and two bottles of Stimulant Pills.”

“No way! You need at least two-star Fire Magic to enter the Heishui Mountains. You’ve only been training for such a short time—Senior Sister Michelle would never agree. Besides, even with me there, I can’t guarantee your safety unless we assemble a whole team,” Xie Zhan refused flatly. He was indeed familiar with the Heishui Mountains, but taking someone else in was risky—splitting focus during battle was a grave mistake.

“Don’t worry, I won’t be a burden.” Xu Wen knew what Xie Zhan was truly concerned about. As he spoke, he expertly summoned blazing fire elements to cover his entire right arm.

“Flaming Hand! You’ve already reached above the sixth level of one-star?” Xie Zhan immediately recognized the intermediate fire spell—and from Xu Wen’s execution, he saw that Xu Wen’s proficiency was no less than his own.

Before he could finish, the Flaming Hand rapidly dissipated before his eyes, momentum surging as it transformed into a searing, razor-sharp blade of fire, which shot from Xu Wen’s hand without delay, leaving a deep mark thirty meters away.

Xie Zhan was stunned.

He stared in disbelief at the spot where the flame blade vanished, then turned back to look at Xu Wen as if he were gazing at a monster.

“In just twenty days, your strength is nearing two stars… No wonder the master personally selected you. But that just means I can’t take you to the Heishui Mountains—if something happened, the master would kill me.”

“…”

“But,” Xie Zhan’s tone suddenly changed, a hint of mystery in his voice, “if you insist on going, I certainly won’t stand by if we meet in the Heishui Mountains.”

Xu Wen shrugged; as soon as they changed course, he’d known Xie Zhan wouldn’t refuse—Xie’s pride and confidence wouldn’t allow it.

On the way, the two began to chat.

Xu Wen gained a basic understanding of Xie Zhan. Xie Zhan had an older brother; the two had depended on one another since childhood and lived in hardship. The elder brother, lively and talented, was chosen early by the Hortonklin family and, through his own ability, became an inner disciple on the Artifact Forging Peak. After further study on the First Artifact Forging Peak, he’d reached four-star Fire Magic and could now craft some basic and intermediate magical artifacts on his own.

Inspired and encouraged by his brother, Xie Zhan had also fallen in love with fire magic as a child, determined to become an inner disciple of the Hortonklin family with two-star Fire Magic—but his chosen path was the Medicine Peak!

In comparison, Xu Wen’s background was much simpler—a family scraping by on herb gathering, with nothing but a father knowledgeable about medicinal plants.

Perhaps their similar upbringings fostered a sense of kinship in Xie Zhan. After collecting two sets of essential equipment for entering the Heishui Mountains from the gatekeeper at the mountain entrance, Xie Zhan began enthusiastically sharing his battle experience in the mountains.

The equipment consisted of three items: a sharp short sword, a lightweight round shield, and a set of dry, tight-fitting clothes of good quality, with unknown patches sewn into vital areas for extra protection.

Xie Zhan explained that the clothing offered decent defense, able to reduce attacks below high two-star level; even if a magical beast got close, it would be hard to tear through. The round shield, crafted on the Artifact Forging Peak, was a basic defensive tool, able to withstand several attacks from a two-star magical beast.

Normally, Xie Zhan disdained using the short sword, but for a first-timer in the Heishui Mountains, having one offered a sense of security—at least, if panic set in or mana was depleted, it still provided a means of attack.

After putting on the tight clothing under his registered disciple robes, Xu Wen took the shield in his left hand and the sword in his right, following Xie Zhan into the Heishui Mountains.

The magical beasts in the mountain’s outskirts fell into three main categories: melee beasts, magical beasts, and magic-warrior hybrids, ranging from low one-star to high two-star in strength.

The first group excelled at close combat and preferred to attack at short range—encountering one left no room for carelessness; one had to stay calm and strike at their weak points.

Magical beasts were also extremely dangerous, launching spells from afar—against such foes, the weaker side was at a huge disadvantage, and one-star fire magic offered little defense. If alone, it was best to flee before being noticed.

The most terrifying were the magic-warrior hybrids, whose battle prowess was formidable at any range, with ever-changing tactics, making them very difficult to handle.

“By the way, which spells can you cast?” Xie Zhan asked.

Xu Wen didn’t hide anything and listed them all.

“Fireball has limited damage, and Chain Fire Blast requires too much control for a first fight. Start with Flaming Hand—it’s good for both close and ranged attacks. Stay behind me and watch my movements.”

Xu Wen readily agreed. As a rookie in his first real battle, learning through close observation was ideal. Though he was eager to clash with magical beasts, there would be plenty of opportunities—the Heishui Mountains were teeming with them.

The two entered the forest, moving cautiously, heading deeper into the mountains.

Not long after, several registered disciples on the distant Medicine Peak heard the news.

“What?”

“That kid went into the Heishui Mountains with Xie Zhan? Are you sure?”

Five disciples leapt to their feet, staring in shock and disbelief at the messenger.

“I watched them go in myself! There’s no mistake—he’s got guts, that one!”

The leader, a boy with a broad black sword strapped to his back, smirked coldly. “Well, all the better. Senior Brother Ding took Chen Jie and the others into the Heishui Mountains first thing this morning to hunt a two-star, eighth-tier Swiftwind Fox. If they run into each other in there… that’ll be quite a show!”