110: Ten hits with the ruler

Xu Sanyan, with dull eyes and stiff steps, shuffled into Da Gu Mountain like a puppet.

The rope swirled over and quickly reached Xu Sanyan's feet, binding him tightly. The man's face lit up with joy, thinking to himself that Da Gu Mountain was not as terrifying as rumored; perhaps if he found the right method, he could explore it.

The other two also relaxed slightly. The woman spoke, "Brother, quickly bring him out. We can ask him what happened inside. This Da Gu Mountain is truly intriguing."

"Mhm." The man pulled hard on the rope, which suddenly tightened. Xu Sanyan's steps halted, and he stopped moving further inside.

The man gripped the rope tightly, his face flushed red. "Come help me, he's so heavy, I can't pull him!"

The other two immediately stepped forward, pulling on the rope with effort.

Xu Sanyan's eyes were vacant, and he turned his head blankly, his hollow gaze fixed on the three.

Whoosh...

A cold gust of wind swept through, and the three instantly changed color. They found themselves seemingly stuck to the rope, unable to break free.

"Brother, quickly withdraw the Magic Treasure!" the woman shrieked, her face filled with terror.

The young man was also full of dread, "I... I can't control it anymore."

Xu Sanyan continued walking deeper into the mountain, pulling the three with him, inch by inch, into the confines of Da Gu Mountain, until they were completely inside.

Immediately, the three became dazed, released the rope in their hands, and followed Xu Sanyan's steps one by one, walking into Da Gu Mountain...

"The Saint said, 'Guard a kind heart, dispel vain thoughts...'"

The three figures appeared at the schoolhouse entrance. The sound of reading stopped again. Xu Sanyan's gaze swept over them, and a moment of clarity flickered in his mind.

"Panel!!" Xu Sanyan roared in his heart, and a layer of light screen instantly appeared in his eyes.

Countless chaotic thoughts encroached upon his mind, but all were blocked by the light screen, like a vast tide attempting to engulf an isolated island. The light screen protected his last piece of pure land.

"Hoo, hoo..."

Xu Sanyan gasped heavily, trying to keep himself calm, secretly elated. It really worked!

This was his only option in his utter desperation.

Because he had noticed during his previous sporadic and brief moments of clarity that he had lost his magic power.

He wanted to transform his Dao body, but he couldn't mobilize even a trace of Qi within him, as if he had instantly returned to when he first arrived in this world.

Fortunately, the panel appeared, preventing his mind from becoming muddled. The power of the cheat successfully stopped him from falling into eternal damnation.

Where is this?

Xu Sanyan's expression remained unchanged as he pondered. He remembered being chased by those three people, then running onto a black mountain, and after that, he appeared here.

What a strange place.

"Ah!"

A scream pulled Xu Sanyan's thoughts back. He saw the three at the entrance receiving slaps on their palms, and the scream came from the woman.

Because they were late, all three also received the cane.

Xu Sanyan's eyes narrowed. He noticed that with each slap the woman received, her height decreased slightly. After ten slaps, she went from about six feet to five feet.

When the woman screamed, she seemed to regain her senses, instinctively wanting to resist, but before she could make a move, she fell back into a daze.

"Take your seats." The Old Gentleman spoke, and the woman walked stiffly to an empty seat.

The next two men followed the same procedure.

Xu Sanyan's peripheral vision scanned the room, seeing that all the students in the schoolhouse were children, some even appearing to be less than three years old, their tender faces silent, like porcelain dolls.

Xu Sanyan slightly lowered his gaze, looking at his hands. His palms were delicate and fair, completely different from before, making him doubt if they were his own hands.

So he instinctively wiggled his fingers.

Swish!

Suddenly, the Old Gentleman turned his head and stared intently at Xu Sanyan. "Moving around freely, disrespecting your teacher, five strikes of the cane."

Xu Sanyan's heart tightened. He just wiggled his fingers; how could such a subtle movement be discovered?

But the pressing matter now was whether he should step forward to receive the punishment himself, or if the Old Gentleman would come down to punish him?

If he chose incorrectly, would something else happen?

Xu Sanyan's mind raced, remembering that both he and the three others had been punished by the Old Gentleman coming down. So, he steeled himself and obediently raised his palms, standing still.

The Old Gentleman indeed walked over with the cane and mercilessly delivered five "slaps, slaps, slaps..." without reservation.

Xu Sanyan endured the severe pain, trying his best to suppress his cries.

He couldn't understand why such a small cane had such immense power. Normally, even a sharp blade piercing his abdomen wouldn't make him frown, but now, just a cane striking his hand made it unbearable.

"Take your seat." The Old Gentleman finished striking and turned to continue his lecture.

Xu Sanyan looked at his hands, finding them much smaller, and also... his vision was off.

Before, he only needed to look straight ahead to see what was in front of him, but now he had to tilt his head slightly. He seemed to have gotten shorter?

A hint of anxiety surged within Xu Sanyan. He seemed to understand what was going on with the three and four-year-old children around him; it was probably all due to that cane.

Each strike would make them shrink a little. If he didn't find a solution, he was afraid it wouldn't be long before he turned into a tadpole-like state and completely dissipated between heaven and earth.

Half an hour later, the Old Gentleman placed the book face down. "Class dismissed. Today's homework is to recite the 'Sleeping Ox Sutra.' I will check tomorrow. Those who haven't completed it will receive three strikes of the cane."

After the Old Gentleman finished speaking, he packed his things and left. Seeing that no one in the schoolhouse moved, Xu Sanyan also dared not move until the first person walked out of the schoolhouse, and then the others gradually got up and left.

However, their limbs were still stiff, and they were in a daze.

Xu Sanyan casually picked up the book on the table and followed them to the bamboo house on the left side of the schoolhouse.

This was the dormitory. Identical bamboo beds filled the room, one next to the other. Everyone lay down on them one by one, like puppets being controlled, completely unconscious.

Xu Sanyan took a deep breath. They had no intention of reciting the 'Sleeping Ox Sutra,' or rather, they weren't aware that they needed to recite it.

Xu Sanyan lay on the bed and turned his head to the side. The woman from the Yue Family was lying stiffly beside him.

The woman's expression was momentarily dazed, and her eyes briefly regained color. She suddenly turned her head to Xu Sanyan, her face filled with terror. "Da Gu Mountain..."

Before she could finish her sentence, she fell back into a daze. This sound seemed to have startled something, as the Old Gentleman appeared at the bedroom door as if by teleportation.

"Disturbing your classmates, three strikes of the cane."

Xu Sanyan glanced quickly and immediately feigned sleep, lying motionless on the bed, stuffing the book under his clothes.

Strangely enough, as his body shrunk, his clothes also shrunk, fitting him perfectly.

Fortunately, the Old Gentleman did not notice him but kept looking at the Yue Family woman, pulling out the cane and striking her three times.

After a long time, Xu Sanyan dared to secretly open his eyes a crack. Less than a foot away from him was a hunched figure in a grey robe.

He could see the intricate array patterns on the robe and the black inner lining beneath it.

Fortunately, the Old Gentleman had his back to him, hunching over and pressing his body tightly against the Yue Family woman's face, as if observing something.

Xu Sanyan immediately closed his eyes. For a moment, his breathing was a little ragged, but he quickly adjusted it with his strong psychological resilience.