5 Minutes 31 Seconds

Zhou Leng did not head to the barbecue skewer shop they had eaten at before with Hu Yi and Feng Wenhao until after he had seen Xu Qingjin to the entrance of her residential complex. They ate skewers and chatted as they went.

By the end of the conversation, Hu Yi finally could not hold it in any longer and spoke of what had happened to him.

Before the College Entrance Examination, his family had run into a small mishap and used the money meant to buy him pills to repay debts.

He had done poorly on the exam, so he simply tore up his admission notice and planned to take a long-term job at Pioneer Company.

But Jiang Yan, the deputy team leader, had repeatedly obstructed him. Unable to endure it any longer, he cursed Jiang Yan out and then quit.

He was now working as a waiter at a nightclub, taking odd jobs for the time being while slowly looking for other work.

After he finished, Zhou Leng and Feng Wenhao looked at each other, unsure what to say.

Feng Wenhao sighed and said, "Zhou Leng and I don't have much social experience, so we don't know how to help you. But I still suggest that you find a stable job."

To their surprise, Hu Yi smiled. "Actually, I've figured it out recently. I've come clean with my parents too. I'm lying flat now."

"This..." Zhou Leng and Feng Wenhao exchanged a look.

Hu Yi said, "Anyway, I suddenly understood. We're all going to be oxen and horses either way, so I might as well retire the moment I graduate. I'll take odd jobs—so long as I don't starve to death, that's enough. If I really can't survive, I'll go to Demon City and use my life to fill the trenches. That's still better than my parents working their fingers to the bone their whole lives and ending up with nothing."

The Two of Them tried to persuade him for a long time, but Hu Yi kept smiling.

In the end, Hu Yi mocked himself. "Not only am I lying flat, I'm going to be a fun-seeker too. How comfortable is it to lie flat and watch the show? I know you mean well, but there's really no need to persuade me. Retire fifty years early—enjoy life early, be comfortable early. I'm already planning to buy a fishing rod."

Zhou Leng sighed. "Fine, we won't persuade you anymore. But I suggest you learn some basic trade skills, at least enough to ensure you can survive. Get a driver's license or something. I don't have much money, but if you're short on cash for the license exam, come straight to me."

"Alright!"

Zhou Leng looked at Hu Yi. "If anything happens in the future, as long as there's something we can help with, just speak up. Don't be embarrassed."

Feng Wenhao said, "I can't compare with Zhou Leng, but advancing to the Blood Circulation Stage, or even the Body Tempering Stage, shouldn't be a problem. Zhou Leng will advance to the Blood Circulation Stage in a Few Days too, so he'll count as a minor expert in his own right. We can't handle major matters, but small matters will absolutely be no problem."

"Alright!" Hu Yi said with a smile.

Once it was all out in the open, Hu Yi felt more relaxed instead.

By late at night, Hu Yi and Feng Wenhao had drunk themselves into a complete mess. Zhou Leng remained sober, paid the bill, and sent the two of them home.

Reeking of alcohol, Zhou Leng walked back beneath the Frost Giant Tree.

Big Yellow sniffed him, then barked loudly at Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng pounced on Big Yellow and rubbed his head as he said, "You're fated to worry your whole life."

Big Yellow's face drooped as he glared at Zhou Leng indignantly.

When he woke from a nap, Zhou Leng checked the time.

01:37.

Leaning against the Frost Giant Tree, Zhou Leng sat lazily and habitually opened his Demonic Watch.

There was no signal.

Big Yellow lay belly-up, sleeping soundly with his pinkish-white stomach exposed.

Zhou Leng took his backpack and counted his pills.

Both the Qi Nourishing Pills and Marching Pills had already been used up.

The military training over the past Few Days had been too intense, and he had also cultivated the first stance of the Chapter of Establishing Image twice, consuming quite a few Great Replenishing Pills.

Because he had continuously received rewards for maintaining a high ranking, he still had thirty-two left, worth thirty-two thousand.

Zhou Leng calculated carefully.

"Every time I cultivate the Ten Inverse Beast Fist, I have to take one Great Replenishing Pill, or my body will be left with injuries."

"For the school's Normal Times training, the meat from the cafeteria is enough to replenish me. But for the occasional high-intensity training, I need to eat at least one a day."

"I heard the instructor say that Meat Medicinal Cuisine is best not stopped. Its value is second only to the first three Essence Replenishing Pills."

"One serving of Meat Medicinal Cuisine a day costs one thousand. That's thirty thousand a month. Until I save up enough for the third Essence Replenishing Pill, I still can't afford to eat it every day."

As Zhou Leng thought this, he took out the Essence Replenishing Pill Principal Lu had awarded him.

The second pill.

Zhou Leng first got up and jogged slowly. Afterward, he circulated his qi, and once he had warmed up, he swallowed the Essence Replenishing Pill.

After taking the Essence Replenishing Pill this time, he did not expel impurities as he had last time.

There was only a faint layer of oil over his skin, as though he had gone days without bathing during a stifling summer.

Zhou Leng checked the time. It was still early, so he circulated his qi and observed himself.

There was no obvious change in his true qi. Yet under the National Divine Ability, "Martial Path Perception," his body seemed even more refined than before.

It was as if rough gravel had transformed into fine sea sand.

The damage within his body had been repaired even further.

"As Expected Of an Essence Replenishing Pill..."

Zhou Leng stood, jogged lightly for a while, then began Qi Running at full force.

Once his true qi was exhausted, he lowered his head and looked at the time.

5 minutes 31 seconds.

His final test on the school track before the Martial Arts Examination had been 3 minutes 9 seconds.

For those in the Qi Nourishing Stage, maintaining Qi Running for five minutes was a major threshold, the basic standard for Qi Nourishing Perfection.

Five minutes thirty seconds, however, was the limit of Qi Nourishing Perfection.

Zhou Leng was clearly only at the Greater Mastery Tenth Stage, still one small step away from Qi Nourishing Perfection.

Feeling that his body was in good condition, Zhou Leng first practiced his fists, then cultivated. After squeezing every last bit of strength from himself, he picked up the second Golden Page and Studied the Divine Script representing the "Chapter of Establishing Image."

Only the image of the first stance continuously Appeared in his mind.

Zhou Leng assessed his physical state, slept first, then cultivated the Chapter of Establishing Image.

His body leaned forward, his back arched, one arm raised and the other lowered, resembling an elephant.

The image of the Chapter of Establishing Image Appeared before his eyes as he circulated his true qi along the route shown in the image.

One cycle, two cycles, three cycles...

The nineteenth cycle.

Zhou Leng's body swayed, and he skillfully put a Great Replenishing Pill into his mouth.

He lay on the ground, facing the sky.

Previously, the first stance of the Chapter of Establishing Image could only be cultivated for eighteen cycles.

Now, he could cultivate it for nineteen.

On Monday morning, Class 01's Martial Arts Hall was bustling with activity.

"Who do you think will take first in the practical combat competition?"

"Definitely Xu Kang'an. They're all at the Blood Circulation Stage, but the purple on other people's bodies is practically invisible. The purple outside his blood vessels is crystal clear."

"Could Zhou Leng have a chance?"

"For Zhou Leng to win, there are two conditions."

"Which two?"

"First, the opponents he meets at the beginning have to fight him quickly and decisively, without draining his true qi."

"Second, he still has true qi left when he reaches the finals."

"Yeah, Zhou Leng's amount of true qi is a weak point."

"So Zhou Leng should be able to reach the top eight, then lose in the semifinals because he lacks true qi."

"Once he reaches the Blood Circulation Stage, he can compete for first place in the Monthly Exam."

Zhou Leng ate five rounds of breakfast in the cafeteria, then slowly made his way toward Class 01's Martial Arts Hall and waited beneath a willow tree nearby.

He checked the message Instructor Deng Zhijue had sent him. He had arrived five minutes early.

Before long, Deng Zhijue, dressed in camouflage, walked over.

"Hello, Instructor," Zhou Leng said.

Deng Zhijue nodded. "How was your rest?"

"Very Good."

"I called you here this time to discuss the scholarship and subsidy matters. Let's start with the scholarship..."

Deng Zhijue explained to Zhou Leng, item by item, the scholarship terms he had told Wang Boxiong about, then reminded him of several details.

Zhou Leng listened carefully and recorded some of it in his Demonic Watch.

Deng Zhijue added, "Besides that, there's also a clerical subsidy. Have you done any research in fields such as pills, martial arts, Demonized Items, knowledge of the Ten Realms, or Divine Script? Ideally, something where you can earn a qualification certificate. Choose whichever field you're best at."