167: A natural leader

Soon, everyone else woke up one by one.

Li Qingyao looked at Lu Chen with indescribable tenderness.

She bit her red lip, "Lu Chen... you saved me."

She looked around at the demon corpses strewn across the ground, a flicker of lingering fear in her eyes. "I never imagined that the prestigious Martial Arts Academy would collude with these demons, treating us as Alchemy Materials... This is utterly inhumane!"

Zhang Xuan punched the wall, blood seeping from his knuckles. "These beasts!"

Long Ju was so enraged that he trembled all over, his long spear humming.

The other rescued Martial Arts Cadets were also filled with righteous indignation, their eyes burning with the flames of fury.

Seeing this, Chu Yu's eyes flashed with a sharp glint.

He stood with his hands behind his back, his voice low and powerful. "Do you all think this is an isolated incident?" He sneered, "Out of the seventy-two cities in the entire Tianwu Dynasty, besides the Royal City which is still under the control of Great Emperor Tianwu, all other cities have long been used as bargaining chips and handed over to the various Immortal Cultivation Sects! Even the recruitment decree issued by Great Emperor Tianwu is just a facade—those talented individuals summoned to the Royal City eventually become Materials in the Pill Furnace!"

"What?!" Long Ju, Zhongli Mo, and others were struck as if by lightning. Ji Bu's face turned pale. "But... but hasn't the imperial court always been reducing taxes...?"

"Just to win over people's hearts!" Chu Yu flicked his sleeve, his eyes shimmering with the light of wisdom. "To be honest, I've traveled far and wide precisely to find like-minded individuals." He suddenly raised his voice, "If you all trust me, Chu Yu, why not follow me south to the Chu Territory! We will raise an army and overthrow this corrupt Dynasty!"

The scene immediately fell silent.

Although they were all hot-blooded youths, rebellion... they were just a group of Transcendent Realm Martial Artists, how could they contend against an entire Dynasty?

Chu Yu seemed to see through everyone's concerns and suddenly burst into hearty laughter. "Back then, Great Emperor Tianwu started with just a hundred cavalry and eventually conquered the world! Why can't I, Chu Yu? We can take his place!"

His gaze swept over everyone, burning brightly. "I swear here and now: all who follow me, when we achieve success and fame, will be granted titles and high positions, and Immortal Cultivation resources will be yours for the taking!"

"I'm in!" Long Ju was the first to step forward, his eyes burning with Battle Intent.

Zhongli Mo followed closely. "Count me in!" Soon, Ji Bu, Yu Ziqi, Heng Chu, and others responded one after another, completely captivated by Chu Yu's innate leadership charisma.

Chu Yu finally cast his fervent gaze upon Lu Chen, his eyes full of expectation.

Lu Chen was almost swayed by this Aura, but then he thought: Wait! I was the one who saved everyone, how did you, kid, steal all the thunder?

Then he let it go—he never wanted to get involved in these disputes anyway.

Immortal Cultivation and longevity were his true pursuits.

"I support you all," Lu Chen said faintly. "However, the most pressing matter is figuring out how to escape. We've caused such a commotion; the City Lord's Mansion won't let this go easily."

"Escape?" Chu Yu raised his sword-like brows, full of heroic spirit. "That word isn't in my, Chu Yu's, dictionary! Why don't we seize the opportunity to storm the City Lord's Mansion and take that corrupt official's head!"

"Good!" "Let's do it!" Everyone was incensed. In a short while, Zhang Xuan, Long Ju, and others had completely become Chu Yu's loyal followers, their eyes gleaming with fervent Battle Intent.

Fortunately, Li Qingyao had already made up her mind, her heart completely set on Lu Chen, and she was not influenced by Chu Yu. Her body very honestly stood beside Lu Chen, not Chu Yu.

Lu Chen's thunder was completely stolen by Chu Yu.

But Lu Chen didn't care.

It was a good opportunity to retreat behind the scenes and quietly observe how Chu Yu, this born leader, would contend with the City Lord's Mansion.

Chu Yu acted swiftly and decisively, giving no one a chance to catch their breath. He immediately raised his arm and shouted, "Follow me!" and led everyone out of the Silk Merchant Guild.

The weasel demon guards they encountered along the way, as well as the white rabbit spirits disguised as Guanyin's maidens, all perished under everyone's fury, their blood staining the merchant guild's floor tiles.

Chu Yu defeated them with a single punch each, utterly domineering.

Chu Yu was not impulsive; he was both brave and strategic: "First, to the Martial Arts Academy!"

Directly attacking the City Lord's Mansion was too risky, and the Genius Cadets in the Academy, who were still in the dark, were the power they needed most.

Long Ju was indeed Chu Yu's most capable assistant. Using his connections accumulated in the Academy, he gathered over a hundred Cadets within half an hour.

These young people were all exceptionally talented, rare Geniuses that any School would be lucky to see once in a century.

Long Ju gave Chu Yu the opportunity to persuade everyone and display his charisma.

Standing on the high platform in the Academy square, Chu Yu's robes fluttered, and his voice boomed like a great bell. "Everyone!" He got straight to the point, exposing the long-standing conspiracy of Feiyun City one by one.

From the live sacrifices at the Guanyin temples in various villages, to the underground meat factory of the Silk Merchant Guild, and then to those Cadets who were supposedly "chosen by Immortal Cultivation Schools" but disappeared forever... every detail was chilling.

"They were refined into blood fiend pills! Turned into Materials! Became goods sent to the Cihang Sect in the East Sea!" Chu Yu's voice trembled with anger. "And the mastermind behind all of this is our City Lord, Ge Hong!"

The square erupted in an uproar. Some Cadets angrily raised their weapons, while many more had red eyes—many of their relatives and friends were precisely those "lucky" chosen Cadets.

"Only by overthrowing Ge Hong can we protect our families and the people of Feiyun City!" Chu Yu's call was powerful and resonant.

His words seemed to possess a magical power, making everyone present's blood boil. Even those who were initially skeptical involuntarily clenched their fists.

Lu Chen leaned against a distant pillar, a faint smile playing on his lips.

He had to admit, Chu Yu was indeed a born leader—a few short words had made over a hundred Genius Cadets willingly follow him. This innate charisma was probably something even those great Immortal Cultivation experts would have to admit inferiority to.

"Everyone, don't listen to his deceptive words, you're seeking death!"

Xiao Yunfeng was furious, his eyes bloodshot. This veteran instructor roared, pushing out his right palm. The Cloud-Dispelling Palm force surged towards Chu Yu like a raging tide.

"Boom!"

Amidst the churning Qi waves, Chu Yu met it with a single palm. The two forces collided in mid-air, shaking the surrounding stone slabs, causing them to crack inch by inch.

Xiao Yunfeng's pupils contracted—his palm strike had the power to split mountains and rocks, yet it was effortlessly parried by this young man.

"Instructor Xiao!" Chu Yu's voice boomed like a great bell, his robes fluttering. "If you don't believe what I say, you can go to the Silk Merchant Guild right now to investigate! In the underground secret chamber there, corpses are piled up like mountains!" He pointed his sword towards the southeast, "Those interconnected secret passages connect to the Guanyin temples in various villages, connecting countless man-eating strongholds!"

Xiao Yunfeng was struck as if by lightning, his clenched hands trembling uncontrollably. The doubts buried deep in his heart for years erupted like a volcano—those proud Disciples he had personally nurtured, those Geniuses who were said to have been chosen by Immortal Cultivation Schools, why had none of them ever returned home to visit their families? Why was even a handwritten letter a luxury?

"Ah ah ah—!!" This iron-blooded instructor suddenly roared to the sky, his voice filled with endless regret and anger.

He remembered that rainy night three years ago, when he personally sent his daughter to the so-called Immortal Cultivation trial, the glimmer of expectation in his daughter's eyes.

"Ge Hong!!" Xiao Yunfeng's eyes were bloodshot. "You are utterly inhumane! Today, I will surely die with you!"

This furious roar was like a thunderclap, awakening all the instructors present.

More than a dozen instructors stood in unison behind Xiao Yunfeng.

"Kill!"

"Avenge our Disciples!"

The shouts of hundreds of Cadets shook the heavens and the earth, and the entire Martial Arts Academy was in an uproar.