The Three-Year Period Has Arrived

"Tomorrow will mark exactly three years."

Xiao Chen counted the days. This time, it really should be here.

Three years meant three full years from the day he obtained Hextech.

1,095 days—not a single day less.

He had originally thought he could successfully break through on the first day of the year.

So, early that morning on Lunar New Year's Day, Xiao Chen had rushed to the Law Transmission Hall and sat cross-legged on the cushion in the very first row.

It had genuinely startled Old Man Wu.

He had even opened the window to check whether the morning sun had risen in the west.

Otherwise, how could Xiao Chen—who always arrived at the last possible moment and curled up in the final row—be so proactive?

Old Man Wu had initially thought Xiao Chen had turned over a new leaf, and he had even felt a little gratified.

After all, now white-haired and aged, his greatest wish and pleasure was to pass on the Dao and impart knowledge, guiding these young men.

Who would have thought—

The very next day, Xiao Chen was once again arriving right on time, returning to his familiar spot in the lower-left corner of the last row.

Over the past three years, whether old disciples or new, everyone had voluntarily left that seat open. No one ever took it.

Everything was as it had always been, as though what had happened on the first day of the year had merely been an accident.

For a moment, Old Man Wu had even felt dazed, as if his memories had gone awry.

What followed was fury—a frustration that iron had failed to become steel.

He sternly berated Xiao Chen and punished him by making him stand outside.

Who would have thought that Xiao Chen would scamper out at once, as though he had been granted release?

Old Man Wu was so angry he slapped the desk. "Rotten wood! Rotten wood cannot be carved!"

But it did not matter. Those had all been false appearances of the past.

The misunderstandings of others were no more than a clear breeze brushing his face. Xiao Chen merely smiled them away.

Once the Three-Year Period arrived, he would transform in a single shake, changing from rotten wood into a pillar of the sect.

With the strength of the Mid-stage Qi Refining Realm, he would advance to become an Outer Sect Disciple.

As far as he knew, among the more than two hundred people who had entered the sect alongside him, the vast majority were still stuck at the Qi Refining Third Layer.

Only a handful of descendants from Cultivation Families had received support from their families' resources.

And there was one lucky fellow named Lin Ping'an, who was said to have found a Spirit Fruit and successfully broken through.

This meant that once Xiao Chen joined the outer sect, he would already be ahead of ninety percent of the Chore Disciples, becoming an elite one in ten.

Of course, there was still one urgent matter he had to take care of.

That was to lay down a slight pretext for his breakthrough.

He could not exactly sleep for one night in the sect and then break through. That would be far too bizarre.

If it drew the attention of some sect higher-up with nothing better to do, it could bring disaster upon him.

Thus, early the next morning, Xiao Chen once again arrived at the Law Transmission Hall ahead of everyone else and sat on the cushion in the very center of the first row.

There was great significance behind this choice.

It was said that fifty years ago, a disciple who had only been in the sect for half a year had suddenly attained enlightenment on this very cushion and soared straight into Late-Stage Qi Refining.

Xiao Chen also planned to attain enlightenment, paying tribute to that senior brother.

Before long, Old Man Wu, who had arrived late as usual, spotted Xiao Chen sitting near the front at a glance.

After staring in astonishment for a moment—

He bent slightly at the waist. "Oh my, what day is it today? You've actually come to the front row, honored elder?"

Xiao Chen's expression was solemn. "Reporting to Instructor, this disciple realizes that he has wasted his days in the past. It was truly a grave mistake. From today onward, this disciple will turn over a new leaf and diligently strive forward."

"Oh."

Old Man Wu nodded, then returned to the lectern with an unexpectedly calm expression. "Today, we'll continue from yesterday and talk further about the allocation of mana."

"Xiao Chen, tell us: what are the common methods of allocating mana?"

This really could not stump Xiao Chen. These lessons repeated every half year, and he had already heard them five times.

"Reporting to Instructor, the common methods of allocating mana are two defenses and one offense, or one defense, one offense, and one in reserve—two modes in total."

Old Man Wu continued questioning him. "And how do you usually allocate yours?"

In the Qi Refining Realm, each time a cultivator advanced by one Minor Realm, they gained one Strand of Mana. By the Qi Refining Third Layer, they had a total of Three Strands of Mana.

After that, until the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, every breakthrough by one Minor Realm allowed a cultivator to condense three more Strands of Mana.

The number of mana strands was extremely crucial. Whether casting spells, activating magical artifacts, or triggering Talismans, all of them consumed mana.

Xiao Chen currently had only a single strand of mana, enough to cast the Small Cloud and Rain Spell just once.

What distribution method could there possibly be?

Old Man Wu's question was clearly meant to needle him.

Damn it. The first time he cultivated mana had been at Chen Shi and a quarter, and now it was only Chen Shi and a quarter past the hour.

They said three years, and they truly wouldn't allow even a moment less.

He was still stuck in the Rotten Wood Realm. How was he supposed to answer that?

"Wow!"

A cry of surprise suddenly rang out from behind him.

Xiao Chen turned to look and saw a handsome young man with his eyes closed in concentration, spiritual energy surging around him. He was clearly breaking through the minor bottleneck of early Qi Refining.

Dressed in a long black robe and fair as polished jade, he was none other than Ye Fei, the talented disciple who had entered the sect this year and whose name was currently resounding throughout Chore Peak.

As spiritual energy gathered, under everyone's watchful eyes, his aura suddenly surged, and he successfully broke through to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.

At the same time, a strange gust of wind suddenly blew through the Law Transmission Hall. It actually circled Ye Fei three times before abruptly dispersing.

Hiss—!

Xiao Chen could not help drawing in a sharp breath. Someone had actually attained Sudden Comprehension again.

If he remembered correctly, Junior Brother Ye Fei had only broken through to the Qi Refining Third Layer seven days ago, becoming the foremost among the new disciples.

Yet now he had broken through again. His talent truly defied the heavens.

"Quick, all of you, sit down and cultivate at once. Take this opportunity to sense the shifts in the Qi Mechanism."

Old Man Wu hurriedly called for the disciples to begin cultivating.

Witnessing the breakthrough of a cultivator at the same realm with one's own eyes should naturally benefit one's own cultivation.

Hearing this, Xiao Chen immediately began meditating with utmost focus. Eyes closed and face full of devotion, he pretended to comprehend the Dao.

What a perfect opportunity. If he broke through alongside them now, wouldn't it seem a little more reasonable?

However, several breaths later, a cold female voice sounded.

"So that's how it is."

Then another aura erupted.

Xiao Chen opened his eyes and looked over. He saw a young woman in a red dress, smiling as she held a Spirit Stone in her hand. Rolling waves of heat were actually radiating from her body.

Several disciples standing nearby were forced back one after another by the heatwave.

"It's her—Jiang Sixuan. As expected of the Jiang Family's direct daughter!"

"I heard the Jiang Family heirloom Fire Method is incredibly domineering. Just judging by its aura alone, it's several times stronger than the Basic Breathing Technique."

Old Man Wu stroked his sparse beard and nodded in satisfaction. "Good, good, good!"

Xiao Chen blinked. Again?

What was this supposed to mean? Why had she broken through too?

Could it be that your Three-Year Period also ended today?

By then, the time had quietly reached Chen Shi and a quarter. The Three-Year Period had ended.

Within Xiao Chen's Dantian, that sole strand of mana seemed to have gained a spirit of its own.

It actually began circulating through his body on its own, following the route of the Basic Breathing Technique.

Because he was leaping straight from the Qi Refining First Layer to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, Xiao Chen broke through three times in succession within just ten breaths, his aura surging explosively three times in turn.

It even formed a small spiritual energy vortex on the spot, drawing in the nearby Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy to fill the emptiness within his Dantian.

The commotion was even greater than that caused by the previous two, immediately drawing everyone's attention.

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