Rewards

"Junior Brother Yang, we meet again."

Zhou Han stood with his hands behind his back, his expression unreadable.

"Senior Brother Zhou is busy with state affairs, why would you think to wait for me here?"

Yang Chen tensed his muscles, ready to flee and call for help at any moment. Zhou Han, as a supervisor, had a cultivation at least at the Blood Martial Seventh Level. The power gap between them was too vast; he had no chance of winning in a conflict.

"I heard from my subordinates that Junior Brother Yang has now broken through to the Blood Martial Realm. Truly, the younger generation is formidable."

A hint of coldness lurked deep within Zhou Han's eyes. Yang Chen's cultivation speed made him wary. If this trend continued, the other man would undoubtedly become an Outer Sect disciple in the future.

Undeniably, Yang Chen was his formidable rival. If they were outside, he would have ruthlessly eliminated the threat without hesitation. But this was within the Sun Moon Sword Sect, where killing fellow disciples was akin to suicide.

He had come to probe Yang Chen's intentions. If there was room for reconciliation between them, he was willing to let bygones be bygones.

"Judging by Senior Brother Zhou's expression, you don't seem to be here to congratulate me."

Yang Chen sneered, "Junior Brother is very busy. If Senior Brother has no urgent matters, please excuse my absence."

Hearing this, Zhou Han understood that there was no possibility of reconciliation between them. He took a sudden step forward, his eyes flashing with extreme coldness.

Yang Chen's hair stood on end, as if he were being stared at by the most terrifying beast. The killing intent emanating from Zhou Han seemed to drown him. He shouted, "What does Senior Brother Zhou intend to do!"

At his shout, probing gazes turned from afar.

"What? Does Junior Brother seem afraid I'll make a move?" Zhou Han asked with a fake smile, "Don't be nervous. Why would I make a move here?"

"Do you think I'm afraid?"

Yang Chen responded coldly. He didn't believe Zhou Han would risk mutual destruction.

Zhou Han, of course, wouldn't be foolish enough to seek mutual destruction. He had a chance to advance to the Outer Sect, with a bright future within his grasp. Why would he do something so foolish?

"Yang Chen, we'll see."

With that, Zhou Han left without looking back.

Seeing him walk away, Yang Chen breathed a sigh of relief, then quickly let out another cold laugh, "We'll see!"

Soon, he returned to the living quarters. The boisterous crowd dispersed the worries in his heart. He responded to the greetings of other disciples as he walked towards the plaza.

Arriving at the cultivation rankings board, he looked up. Compared to two days ago, three more people had entered the Blood Martial Realm on the rankings. His own position had also dropped to ninth place.

"Look quickly, Senior Brother Yang is here to challenge the rankings again."

"Senior Brother Yang is so patient, coming only now when the rankings are about to close."

"That's confidence. The rewards are calculated based on the ranking on the last day of the month anyway."

Amidst the anticipation of the disciples, Yang Chen walked to the testing stele and struck it with his fist.

The result quickly appeared on the stele—18,858 kilograms. Upon seeing this number, a wave of groans erupted around him.

"An increase of over three hundred kilograms in punching force in two days? How can we live with ourselves?"

"This rate of strength increase is too outrageous, over a hundred kilograms of punching force per day?"

"I heard that after the Blood Martial Realm, the strength gained from each cultivation session is far greater than in the Qi Martial Realm. Is it related to this?"

"Look quickly, Senior Brother Yang is seventh!"

Many disciples immediately had their attention drawn. Indeed, Yang Chen's ranking had moved up two spots, reaching seventh place.

The discussion erupted once more. This was unlike the past few months. These were the top ten positions with the highest value. Since the cultivation rankings were opened, the names on them had barely changed.

But Yang Chen had only entered the top ten two days ago and had moved up one spot today. This was simply unbelievable.

In the crowd, Xue Cang watched the scene silently, his heart churning with jealousy.

He had also broken through to the Blood Martial Realm today, but his current ranking was thirteenth, further and further away from the top ten.

He truly couldn't understand how Yang Chen cultivated. In terms of talent, he had a ninth-grade spiritual root, and Yang Chen's was at most ninth-grade, definitely not extraordinary or even saint-level.

In terms of resources, during the Qi Martial Realm stage, he had ensured he had one Qi Strength Pill daily. Moreover, because he consistently ranked in the top ten of the cultivation board, he often bought Spirit Calming Incense to recover his state.

Yet, even so, Yang Chen had still broken through with an unstoppable momentum.

Why?

"Unless this bastard only cultivates and does nothing else every day, there's no way he could improve this quickly!"

But Xue Cang didn't believe this. He could understand persisting for a few days or even ten-plus days, but doing so for ten months straight was clearly unbelievable.

Where were there so many fanatical lunatics in this world!

"The gap is getting wider and wider."

Xue Cang wasn't the only one who found it hard to accept. Wei Xiao also stood in the crowd, his face filled with displeasure. He had already tested his strength earlier, but his ranking remained unchanged, still tenth place.

This should have been something to be happy about, but now he truly couldn't be happy, because Xu Qingqing, standing beside him, had a shifting gaze, clearly showing curiosity towards Yang Chen.

His mother had told him that when a woman becomes curious about a man, it's the beginning of her heart being moved.

"Zhu Xi, you're telling me he's from your Fulong County?"

"How could such a fierce person emerge from a poor, remote place like your Fulong County?"

Meng Shijun, with his thick eyebrows and large eyes, nudged Zhu Xi standing beside him, his eyes full of doubt. Over this period, through his intentional efforts to befriend Zhu Xi, they had become friends.

Zhu Xi gave a wry smile and said, "How would I know? He wasn't like this before."

If anyone had the most complex feelings, it would be him. Both he and Yang Chen came from Fulong County, with similar family backgrounds; in fact, Zhu Xi's origins were even slightly better than Yang Chen's.

Yet, he was still ranked ninety-third on the board, while Yang Chen had broken into the top seven. This left him utterly bewildered. It couldn't be that the Yang clan had gone mad and poured all their resources into Yang Chen.

That was clearly impossible. The Yang clan was a major family in the county, with at least a thousand members, including maids and servants. How could they possibly invest such a fortune in Yang Chen?

"You're quite fortunate, kid. If Yang Chen truly soars, a single word from him could set you up for life."

Meng Shijun looked at Zhu Xi with a hint of envy. Friendships formed in humble beginnings were always the most precious.

Zhu Xi sighed inwardly. The rift between him and Yang Chen remained unresolved to this day, and he had been trying to find a way to mend it, but he just hadn't found the right opportunity.

Not long after, Lin Chuan arrived.

He loudly praised Yang Chen and the other disciples who made the rankings, announcing an exhilarating piece of news: each disciple would be rewarded with three Spirit Crystals!

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene became chaotic, with all the disciples who hadn't made the rankings erupting in cheers.

Lin Chuan arranged for the Spirit Crystals to be distributed before leading Yang Chen and the other thirteen disciples to a secluded area.

"You've all done very well!" Lin Chuan said with a smile. "I promised you a generous reward if you could elevate Area 8 to second place."

Hearing the promise of a generous reward, even Huang Tianyu couldn't help but feel anticipation.

"Huang Tianyu, your contribution to Area 8 reaching second place is paramount!" Lin Chuan said with great admiration. "Therefore, I have decided to reward you with 300 Spirit Crystals!"

300 Spirit Crystals!?

Everyone held their breath, and Huang Tianyu's pupils constricted sharply. Following that, his eyes filled with overwhelming joy, and he bowed deeply, saying, "Thank you, my lord!"

A reward of 300 Spirit Crystals was incredibly valuable! It was an astronomical sum that even a Labor Disciple's earnings over five years couldn't match.

Lin Chuan smiled at him, personally handing him a cloth pouch, and then patted his shoulder, saying earnestly, "Cultivate diligently, strive to advance to the Outer Sect as soon as possible, and contribute to the sect."

Even though Huang Tianyu hailed from a royal family and was accustomed to schemes and deceit, he felt a surge of emotion, his eyes welling up. He clutched the Spirit Crystal pouch, his face filled with earnestness, "Please rest assured, my lord. Huang Tianyu will not disappoint!"

This was exactly the effect Lin Chuan wanted. He didn't say anything further and turned his gaze to Yang Chen.

If you find this book good, remember to add it to your bookshelf to avoid losing it next time.

Due to popular demand from readers, we are now offering a VIP member ad-free feature.

Click to view.