Chapter 142 Knocking Out the Imperial Academy
"Someone has been poisoned in the Imperial Medical Hall!"
Several scholars passing by outside the hall immediately noticed the abnormality within. One of them hurriedly rushed out, shouting, "I'll go get the National Teachers! You all go in quickly and save them!"
The other two scholars rushed into the hall. As soon as they smelled a waft of fragrance, they stiffened and collapsed.
Not long after, Chan Master Faqing from the Qingyang Hall arrived with several monks and charged into the hall. "Hurry, save—"
Thump, thump.
The monks fell to the ground, one after another. Chan Master Faqing, after all, possessed powerful cultivation. He turned to leave, but just as he reached the hall entrance, he finally could no longer hold on and collapsed outside.
"Chan Master Faqing has been poisoned too!"
The scholars outside hurried over to help Chan Master Faqing. Suddenly, they caught a whiff of the fragrance and fell to the ground as well. Scholars from all around, seeing this, called for help while rushing over. Before they even got close, they too collapsed without any warning.
Scholars from the Scholar's Residence, the Divine Art Residence, and the Prince's Garden also received the news and hurried over. National Teachers from various other halls also set out, intending to rescue people. At the mountain gate, some scholars who had heard about the incident and couldn't bother to fight the Buddha Heart Buddha, quickly rushed up the mountain to save their fellows.
Chancellor Bashan also received the news and hurried to the front of the Imperial Medical Hall. He saw that hundreds of scholars and National Teachers were already lying on the ground in front of the hall.
The fragrance of the Stupefying Incense had already spread from the hall to the outside.
Daoist Lingyun and the other National Teachers stood nearby, their faces pale with shock. Suddenly, Daoist Shuofeng from the Array Origin Hall stepped forward, his sleeves billowing with wind. He said in a low voice, "This poison is extremely potent. We should disperse the toxic gas before we can save anyone!"
Whoosh—
Two gales of wind erupted from his sleeves, blowing toward the Imperial Medical Hall. Chancellor Bashan's face changed drastically. "Don't blow!" he roared.
Daoist Shuofeng hadn't even registered the warning before the dense fragrance inside the hall was blown out, spreading rapidly. "Hold your breath!" Chancellor Bashan shouted.
But it was already too late. The fragrance of the Stupefying Incense spread in all directions. Scholars fell to the ground, one after another, their bodies going stiff. The National Teachers, with their deeper cultivation, only felt their limbs going numb and their legs going weak. Their vital energy also became sluggish, leaving them unable to move.
Chancellor Bashan had reacted early and possessed extremely high cultivation. He only inhaled a faint trace of the fragrance and immediately used his thick vital energy to force the fragrance out of his body. He looked around and saw scholars falling in waves.
"Oh no, is this the end of our sect?" he thought, his heart filled with despair. This fragrance would soon engulf the entire Imperial Academy. Those who could avoid being knocked out would likely be only a handful—perhaps ten or twenty people. These individuals possessed cultivation at the Celestial Being realm or above, able to force the strange fragrance out of their bodies.
The Imperial Academy was the foremost sacred ground in the world. For it to be completely incapacitated by this strange fragrance—it was practically the end of the sect, if not worse.
"Those old fools in the Imperial Medical Hall, what kind of poison were they concocting?"
He didn't know that the Stupefying Incense wasn't a poison at all, merely a type of anesthetic. In an hour or two, its effects would wear off, causing no harm whatsoever.
Just then, a gourd suddenly rose slowly in front of the Great Hall of the Imperial Academy. Its mouth pointed downward, releasing a terrifying suction force that pulled downward from the mountaintop, drawing the spreading fragrance along with the air into the gourd.
A fierce wind whipped up and down the mountain. Soon, the strange fragrance vanished. Chancellor Bashan let out a sigh of relief. "Fortunately, the Grand Chancellor was here, or the whole mountain would have been covered. But these people..."
His tiger-like eyes filled with tears as he looked at the countless "corpses" before the Imperial Medical Hall. Suddenly, a voice came from beside his ear. "Bashan, they're not dead. Why are you crying?" the voice laughed.
Chancellor Bashan was slightly stunned. He hurried forward to check the breathing of one of the "corpses." Indeed, the person was breathing strongly.
The Young Ancestor came to his side, looked around, and frowned. "It looks like the work of the Poison King. Yes, I know who did it. That little rascal is completely lawless!"
Chancellor Bashan hesitated. "Grand Chancellor, I heard the Imperial Physicians were refining medicine and something went wrong..."
The Young Ancestor sneered. "Those old Imperial Physicians couldn't possibly refine such a potent anesthetic. It must have been that little ghost refining medicine in the hall, and it went wrong, knocking himself out along with all the scholars in the academy..."
As soon as he said this, his eyes went wide, staring straight ahead.
Chancellor Bashan didn't understand and followed his gaze. His eyes also went wide.
They saw a young scholar walking around from the back of the Great Hall, carrying a massive, sturdy blue ox on his hands. The blue ox had also been knocked out, its four hooves tied together, four legs pointing upward, being carried by the young scholar.
And perched on the ox's hoof was a pure white fox with not a single speck of color.
The young scholar saw the "corpses" strewn across the ground and froze for a moment. Then he saw Chancellor Bashan and the Young Ancestor. His face changed drastically. He immediately threw down the blue ox, grabbed the fox, and turned to run.
"My little oxie!" Chancellor Bashan sprinted over, catching the knocked-out blue ox. His face was pained with anger. "You little brat! You knocked out my mount! I swear I won't let this go!"
Qin Mu hadn't run far when his collar tightened. The Young Ancestor had grabbed him by the collar. Then the scenery around him blurred, and in the next instant, he was standing before the Imperial Medical Hall, right in the middle of all the "corpses."
Qin Mu stood meekly, lowering his head to look at the white fox beside him. The white fox also stood meekly, looking down at its own fluffy front paws.
The Young Ancestor was so angry he laughed. He pointed at the "corpses" on the ground, unable to speak for a long time.
"Stand in the corner!" the Young Ancestor finally barked after a long pause.
Qin Mu and Fox Ling'er walked to the corner of the Imperial Medical Hall, standing with their heads bowed.
The Young Ancestor paced back and forth in front of them, his face dark, his hands clasped behind his back. Suddenly, he shouted, "Who poisoned them?"
Qin Mu quickly replied, "I knocked out the ox myself. But as for these scholars and chancellors, I don't know anything about it."
The Young Ancestor said with a stern face, "How do you cure it?"
Qin Mu answered honestly, "There's no cure needed. Just wait a little while, and they'll recover on their own."
The Young Ancestor snorted coldly and held up a finger, counting off his grievances. "You've only been at the Imperial Academy for a few days, and you've already caused an upheaval! The scholars in the Scholar's Residence have nearly been beaten by you once over! The houses in the Scholar's Residence are almost demolished by you! Planting heads on walls and planting people in the ground—did you think I didn't know? You knocked down Daoist Lingyun, the National Teacher, in front of the Emperor, and now you've poisoned Chancellor Bashan's mount! Not only did you knock out the Imperial Medical Hall, but you've also knocked out practically everyone in my Imperial Academy! What's your next move? Knock out everyone in the capital?"
Qin Mu thought for a moment, scratched his head, and said, "That would require a truly massive furnace to refine that much Stupefying Incense... What I mean is, the Stupefying Incense that affected these scholars and chancellors was definitely not refined by me!"
The Young Ancestor was speechless with anger. "Then tell me, why did you knock out Chancellor Bashan's mount?"
Chancellor Bashan walked over and asked curiously, "Yes, why did you knock out my ox?"
Qin Mu blinked. "I was just playing around with it. I was planning to... steal some vegetables from the vegetable garden. I've been eating too greasy lately, so I wanted a change of taste."
Chancellor Bashan was suspicious. "You knocked out my ox, but then instead of stealing vegetables, you ran off carrying it? Are you after the vegetables in my garden, or is my ox the vegetable you're after?"
"Well..." Qin Mu looked down at the little fox that was standing in the corner with him. The little fox couldn't find a reason either.
Chancellor Bashan was exasperated. "You can't say anything now? Then how should you be punished? Grand Chancellor, he just arrived on the mountain and already dares to eat my ox! He also used poison and nearly harmed all the scholars in the Imperial Academy! We can't keep this boy here..."
The Young Ancestor coughed lightly and whispered, "Bashan, he's the Poison King's disciple..."
Chancellor Bashan was shocked. "The Poison King? Which Poison King?"
The Young Ancestor whispered, "Which other Poison King could it be? Of course it's the Jade-Faced Poison King. The miracle doctor from the Flower Alley who cured the Empress Dowager's illness—that's him. He's skilled at healing, but his poison skills are no worse than Fu Yuanqing of the State Preceptor's Manor."
Chancellor Bashan's hair stood on end. He quickly moved further away from Qin Mu and said with a dry laugh, "Well, since my ox is fine, I won't pursue this matter. Grand Chancellor, you handle it."
The Young Ancestor's head was aching. Everything about Qin Mu was fine, except his talent for causing trouble.
The Village Chief and the others had trained Qin Mu exceptionally well, and the Young Ancestor was very satisfied. Causing a bit of chaos at the Imperial Academy was one thing, but if he went to the Heavenly Demon Cult and caused chaos there, that would be truly terrifying.
Suddenly, the Young Ancestor broke into a smile, his expression kind and benign. "I'll be resigning in two months. I can't afford any more incidents. Can you behave yourself for these two months?"
Qin Mu nodded, then protested, "The Stupefying Incense that knocked out the Imperial Academy really wasn't refined by me!"
The Young Ancestor said with a smile, "Then who was it that spread the formula for the Stupefying Incense?"
Qin Mu lowered his head.
The Young Ancestor called Chancellor Bashan over. "Bashan, come here."
Chancellor Bashan stepped forward. The Young Ancestor smiled. "For these two months, keep a close eye on him. Once I step down in two months, you'll have an easier time."
"Grand Chancellor, you mean..." Chancellor Bashan leaned in and made a downward chopping motion with his hand, a questioning look on his face.
The Young Ancestor's smile was enigmatic. "You're overthinking it. He's a miracle doctor—even cured the Empress Dowager's illness. And with a single dose of anesthetic, he knocked out the entire mountain. If you kill him, I'll kill you."
"So it was him!" Chancellor Bashan suddenly realized. "I heard a miracle doctor had come to the capital, but I never imagined it was this kid. I don't mind taking him along, but I'm too wild and not used to staying on the mountain..."
The Young Ancestor smiled. "Wherever you go, take him with you."
Chancellor Bashan agreed.
The Young Ancestor exhaled a long breath. "Don't just stand there. Carry all the knocked-out scholars and chancellors out so they can get some fresh air."
Qin Mu and Chancellor Bashan hurried into the Imperial Medical Hall and carried everyone out.
More than half of the Imperial Academy's scholars had been knocked out, along with quite a few National Teachers. After the effects of the Stupefying Incense wore off, everyone gradually woke up, though their minds were still groggy, and they couldn't fully recover for a while.
The old Imperial Physicians apologized to everyone, feeling very ashamed. Their admiration for Qin Mu grew a few more notches.
Only now did they understand why Qin Mu had told them to step away when he was collecting the medicine. The Stupefying Incense's power was too strong, and Qin Mu had been worried about accidental exposure, so he had them stand further away.
It was precisely because of this that they hadn't witnessed Qin Mu's technique for collecting the medicine, which had led to this massive chaos.
Fortunately, it was only an anesthetic. If it had been a lethal poison that killed upon inhalation, half of the future elites of the State of Yankang might have perished in one go.
Just then, someone suddenly cried out, "Buddha Heart Buddha and Great Monk Jingming have left!"