Chapter 532: All Emperors Fear Death
Upon being summoned by the emperor, the old officer entered the room, bowing low.
“Speak.” Feng Junwu was visibly upset and also tired.
The old officer bowed one more time. “Your Majesty, I have uncovered Appraiser Lin’s background…”
Subsequently, he began to explaining Lin Jin’s past, from his humble beginnings in Jade Dragon Kingdom’s Maple City, to him participating in the Rank 4 beast appraiser assessment here in Heavenly Spiral City.
“Looks like this Appraiser Lin is indeed a remarkable character. All else aside, him being able to gain Senior Shu’s regard makes him an incredible figure.” Feng Junwu regained the solemnity of an emperor, and the sharpness returned to his gaze.
“I’ve summoned him twice but he’s never showed up. Why? Was it just as Ziqian reported?” Feng Junwu asked. The old officer nodded. “That is actually true. Appraiser Yang Ming of Heavenly Spiral Academy has previously gotten into some trouble…”
The old officer provided his report detailing recent events without concealing nor exaggerating the facts.
After hearing his report, Feng Junwu’s expression visibly mellowed quite a bit.
“Looks like it really was a coincidence. But is Appraiser Lin truly so amazing? Could he actually treat injuries that even Mr. Zhong and Senior Shu could do nothing to help?” Hints of curiosity and concern appeared on Feng Junwu’s face.
“Your Majesty, although it sounds preposterous, that is indeed true. Given the information that we know, we can thank Lin Jin’s brilliant teacher for his achievements. There have been many rumors about Curator recently. His visit to Daluo Temple and forcing them into submission was a fascinating incident. More importantly, I have received an insider’s report that when Curator ventured to Daluo Temple alone, Daluo Temple’s Buddha was actually present…”
When he heard that, Feng Junwu’s expression faltered and his breathing became erratic.
Buddha’s existence was akin to that of immortals. Wouldn’t this mean that Daluo Temple was being guarded by a living, breathing immortal?
“I knew it!” Feng Junwu muttered to himself. Daluo Temple couldn’t possibly compare to a premium country like Heavenly Spiral unless they had a strong background. Rumors of Daluo Temple possibly having Buddha presiding over them had existed for a long time, but this incident confirmed it to be true.
Daluo Temple aside, the fact that Curator managed to force Buddha’s hand made him an existence that was on par with immortals.
In terms of combat ability, Rank 5 pet beasts were now considered stronger than immortals. Heavenly Spiral Kingdom may not be overflowing with Rank 5 pet beasts, but they still had a handful of them.
This was their nation’s strength.
In addition to these beasts, they also housed the sacred ground for beast appraisers, Heavenly Spiral Academy. Hence, even if Feng Junwu were to go against Buddha, he wouldn’t feel apprehensive about it.
Yet, blood contract cultivation still had its shortcomings.
The advantage would be a powerful boost in one’s combat ability by sending pet beasts to battle in their stead. They could even use their blood contracts to strengthen their own bodies and gain unimaginable powers.
The shortcoming would be the fact that humans were still only humans. Their lives were short, and they were bound to die at some point.
For normal humans, one hundred years was the limit. For somewhat accomplished blood contract cultivators, they could afford to live an extra few decades. The world even had experts who possessed immortal cultivation techniques so a handful of them could achieve the limit of two hundred years.
Of course, some cultivating monsters, spirits, and rare beasts had an average lifespan of over two hundred years. Some would even live for several hundred years.
As the Emperor of Heavenly Spiral Kingdom, Feng Junwu agonized over this matter. He feared death and yearned for longevity.
He did not desire to rule his nation like the immortals and gods, who possessed supernatural powers. No, he merely envied their ability to live a long life.
Take Daluo Temple’s Buddha, for instance. Everyone knew that most immortals had died out a thousand years ago. If Buddha did actually exist, then he must be a survivor from that era.
Even the safest estimate indicated that he was alive for at least one thousand years now. Perhaps he might have even been alive for two whole millennia, maybe more.
What a long life he had!
How envious he was!
Feng Junwu was in the ninth year of his seventh decade on earth. In a few more days, he would turn eighty.
Eighty years old. For a premium country’s monarch like Feng Junwu, eighty wasn’t considered very old. However, a custom here at Heavenly Spiral Kingdom was that monarchs were prohibited to continue ruling their nation after they reached the age of ninety. After all, for humans, with age comes deterioration. His mind would inevitably grow dull and his physique weakened when he reaches that age.
By then, what’s left was to enjoy his days of retirement. To put it more bluntly, he would merely be waiting for his death.
What did it matter then to live one or two decades longer?
So Feng Junwu sought longevity.
“Yan Quan, do you think this Curator is an immortal?” Feng Junwu suddenly asked. The old officer then felt pressure coming down on him.
Having served Feng Junwu for so many years, he understood his lord’s character well enough. For him to speak in such a tone proved just how concerned he was about the matter.
The officer had to answer cautiously.
His answer had to be accurate, but he also had to be mindful of the emperor’s feelings.
“Your Majesty, I’ve only ever heard rumors about Curator, but since he could take on Daluo Temple alone and still leave in one piece, he must be an outstanding individual. Whether or not he’s an immortal, we will know when we meet him,” the officer responded vaguely. Surprisingly, his answer was exactly what Feng Junwu wanted to hear.
Yes! His third son, Feng Ziqian seemed to be acquainted with Curator. He had even mentioned his name several times now, saying that Curator wanted to borrow Daojun’s Hieroglyphic that was being kept in their treasury vault.
Now, it was Curator who had a request to make of them. That being the case, Feng Junwu could surely meet him and ask this question.
With this thought in mind, Feng Junwu’s mood lightened.
“Right, Curator’s disciple, that newly appointed Rank 4 beast appraiser of the academy, Lin Jin, is giving a lecture this afternoon. I heard it has caused quite a commotion inside the academy,” the old officer mentioned.
Feeling great, Feng Junwu said after a thought, “Haha, Appraiser Lin is such a busy man. Since he doesn’t have time to see me, I’ll just go and see him. It’ll be like taking a walk.”
The old officer’s intel was quite accurate.
After Lin Jin announced that he would give a lecture on acupuncture last night, the people at the academy grew restless.
Several hundred years since the academy’s establishment, the quickest rising star it had ever seen must be Lin Jin and no one else. In just a short few days, Lin Jin’s name had spread like wildfire around the campus.
Just him treating Appraiser Yang Ming last night was enough to make him famous because even Mr. Zhong couldn’t help with those injuries. Whoever saw Appraiser Yang Ming knew well that his injuries would cripple him forever.
Despite this, Appraiser Lin had used only ten hours to heal Appraiser Yang. Many were shocked the instant Appraiser Yang stepped out of Peach Blossom House on his own.
The most excited among the crowd had been Appraiser Yang’s pupils.
Yang Ming was a veteran lecturer of the academy as he had obtained his Rank 4 qualification many years ago. Boasting a high status, although he didn’t have too many students, there were still about twenty of them.
These pupils cried tears of joy during that miraculous moment.
When everyone assumed that Appraiser Yang’s future was ruined, he made a sharp comeback, which shocked them to the core.