Ye Zhen's Secret

In the sweltering heat of June, Black Water Country, Qi Yun Sect.

As one of the oldest cultivation sects in the history of Black Water Country, the Qi Yun Sect possessed a massive plaza in front of its mountain gate, stretching over a thousand meters in both length and width.

At this moment, the plaza before the Qi Yun Sect's gate was packed with a dense, swarming crowd.

Everyone gathered here was craning their necks, peering toward the small paths inside the mountain gate. Whenever a young man dressed in the gray robes of a Menial Disciple ran out, one or two middle-aged people would rush forward in delight, embracing them.

The Qi Yun Sect managed its Menial Disciples with extreme strictness; no Menial Disciple was permitted to leave the mountain unless for major family matters.

However, while the Menial Disciples themselves could not leave, their relatives were allowed to visit once a year.

June was the only month the Qi Yun Sect permitted relatives to visit the Menial Disciples, so from the first of June, the plaza had been crowded with kin coming to see their children.

Even though it was now the end of June, the stream of relatives coming to visit the Qi Yun Sect's Menial Disciples remained endless.

Ye Tiancheng and his wife were among them.

They had submitted their request as soon as the gates opened that morning, but now, with noon approaching, they had yet to catch a glimpse of their son, Ye Zhen.

Ye Tiancheng was holding up well, but Ye Zhen's mother, Mi Jiangue—who carried a long sword on her back and possessed a virtuous yet spirited air—was sweating profusely from anxiety.

Had it not been for the strict rules of the Qi Yun Sect, Mi Jiangue likely would have had the urge to charge into the sect to find her son, Ye Zhen, herself.

Suddenly, Mi Jiangue's grip on Ye Tiancheng's arm tightened sharply, and Ye Tiancheng's expression abruptly shifted to one of joyful surprise.

"Zhen'er, it's Zhen'er!"

Inside the Qi Yun Sect's gate, a spirited youth with a tall frame, gray robes, and sword-like brows slanted toward his temples was running toward them, drenched in sweat.

The Qi Yun Sect was filled with countless peaks and spanned a vast territory. After receiving the steward's message, Ye Zhen had sprinted without pause, yet it still took him over two hours to reach the mountain gate.

"Father! Mother!"

From a distance, Ye Zhen spotted his parents waiting anxiously. With a cry that was both joyful and choked with tears, he lunged toward them.

While Ye Zhen was still hesitating, Mi Jiangue pulled her son into her arms.

He had left home at fifteen to become a Menial Disciple at the Qi Yun Sect, a path Ye Zhen had insisted upon.

Yet, after nearly a year of separation, Ye Zhen missed his parents dearly; the moment he saw them, his nose began to sting.

"Zhen'er, you've grown thin, and you've tanned."

The family moved to a pavilion by the road to pour out their longing. Mi Jiangue, in particular, touched him here and inspected him there, convinced in every way that her son had grown thin and suffered.

As for the bulging muscles on Ye Zhen's arms and his sturdier chest, she acted as if she hadn't seen them at all.

"Zhen'er, you've been in the sect for a year now. How has your cultivation been?" After some small talk, his father, Ye Tiancheng, began to ask.

At the mention of this, Ye Zhen's expression dimmed.

Over the past year, Ye Zhen was confident he had put in no less effort than anyone else, but his progress in cultivation had been sluggish.

"Father, I have just broken through to the Blood Refining First Level, Strength Training Late Stage. My strength fluctuates around a thousand catties, barely enough to have Blood Qi Filling the Meridians." Ye Zhen's voice was faint.

Ye Tiancheng and Mi Jiangue frowned simultaneously, Ye Tiancheng’s brow furrowing into a deep, jagged crease.

"That shouldn't be. Even if your bloodline talent is only Three Meridians Mid-Grade, after eleven months, you should at least have Blood Qi Like Waves and have reached the Blood Refining First Level Peak, with a strength approaching two thousand catties!"

Ye Zhen remained silent.

"Back when I was in the Qi Yun Sect, my bloodline talent was half a grade lower than yours—only Three Meridians Low-Grade—yet in one year, my cultivation successfully reached the Blood Refining First Level Peak, and I passed the sect's first annual assessment. Now that the one-year mark is approaching, have you been slacking off..."

Just as Ye Tiancheng was putting on a stern face, Mi Jiangue jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow and glared. "What are you saying?"

"I accept that our son's talent is average. But bloodline talent is something inherited from parents; you can't blame him for that. But if anyone dares to say my son hasn't been working hard or hasn't been diligent, I'll fight them to the death."

Under Mi Jiangue's glare, Ye Tiancheng could only offer a bitter smile. "The Qi Yun Sect has an assessment every year. If a Menial Disciple hasn't reached the Blood Refining First Level Peak after one year in the sect, they are expelled. I'm just worried..."

Menial Disciples entered the Qi Yun Sect at fifteen, with an assessment every year and a promotion every three years.

If they reached the Blood Refining Third Level Peak by the age of eighteen, they could be promoted to Outer Disciples, who had promising futures.

The Outer Disciples of the Qi Yun Sect were the cradle for military officers in Black Water Country.

As long as one could become an Outer Disciple of the Qi Yun Sect, even if their cultivation made no further progress, they were guaranteed at least the rank of a Millennial Commander in the Black Water Country's army.

The rank of Millennial Commander was considered middle-tier in the military of Black Water Country.

For most people, this position was a path to success; with a little development, one could establish a family legacy.

Conversely, if one had not broken through to the Blood Refining Fourth Level by the age of eighteen, they wouldn't even be qualified to remain a Menial Disciple, let alone receive a recommendation from the Qi Yun Sect to serve as an officer in the Black Water Country's military.

What was even more dire was that the Qi Yun Sect held an annual assessment; if a Menial Disciple failed to reach the Blood Refining First Level Peak after one year, they would be directly driven out of the sect.

Now, in just one month, Ye Zhen would face the Qi Yun Sect's annual grand assessment for Menial Disciples.

This was the source of Ye Tiancheng's worry.

Looking at his father, who was worried for him, and his mother, who was fiercely defending him, Ye Zhen wore a bitter expression.

His father's confusion was exactly his own.

In the eleven months since entering the sect, Ye Zhen's cultivation could hardly be called anything but diligent, yet his progress remained exceptionally slow.

His peers who had entered at the same time, even those with only Two Meridians bloodline talent, had broken through to the Blood Refining First Level Late Stage two or three months ago, possessing at least fourteen or fifteen hundred catties of strength.

Those with similar bloodline talent to his had long since reached the Blood Refining First Level Peak.

This situation left Ye Zhen utterly bewildered.

At times, Ye Zhen even doubted whether his bloodline talent had been measured incorrectly.

Yet, he had seen with his own eyes the three-and-a-half bloodline shadows that manifested on his chest when his talent was first tested.

With that thought, the atmosphere suddenly turned somewhat stifling.

Suddenly, Ye Tiancheng took a deep breath. "Son, why don't you come home with your father? There's no future for you staying at the Qi Yun Sect; you're just suffering for nothing. Come home with me, we have plenty to eat and wear, why suffer like this?"

"That's right, Zhen'er. Our family might not be much, but with this strength of ours, as long as you're willing to work hard, finding you five or six wives from the girls in town would be a breeze," Mi Jiangxue said, patting her chest.

"Find our son five or six wives?" Ye Tiancheng paused, seemingly stunned by Mi Jiangxue's words.

Mi Jiangxue shot Ye Tiancheng a sharp look. "What, you want some too?" The fierce glint in her eyes left no room for doubt, waiting for Ye Tiancheng to dare answer that.

Ye Tiancheng hurriedly shook his head, terrified of what might happen if he were too slow to deny it.

Watching this scene, Ye Zhen couldn't help but chuckle.

After the family finished laughing, Mi Jiangxue's expression turned solemn. "Zhen'er, Mother is serious. Why don't you just come home with me? Why endure this suffering? Mother only hopes that you live a safe and peaceful life."

Ye Zhen's expression faltered, and he tilted his head slightly to look at the deep blue sky.

The memory of that fleeting glimpse—a young girl flying overhead like a fairy—surfaced in his mind once again.

That moment had ignited an intense, burning impulse in Ye Zhen: he, too, wanted to soar through this vast blue sky. How free and unrestrained would that be?

That momentary impulse of a youth had become the dream and conviction that Ye Zhen pursued for his entire life, or at least, for the present.

Watching his son's expression, Ye Tiancheng felt a pang of reluctance, but he spoke anyway. "Son, even if you don't leave now, in one month, the Qi Yun Sect will hold its annual Sect Grand Examination for Menial Disciples. At that time..."

Ye Tiancheng's meaning could not have been clearer: if he didn't leave now, he would be driven out of the sect in a month.

Ye Zhen saw it clearly; when his father, Ye Tiancheng, said these words, his eyes were filled with disappointment.

His father, Ye Tiancheng, had once been a student at the Qi Yun Sect, but because his cultivation had not reached the Blood Refining Fourth Level within the three-year limit, he had been expelled. Even though he later reached the Blood Refining Fourth Level through bitter cultivation, it was all in vain.

This had always been the great regret of Ye Tiancheng's life.

Ye Tiancheng had originally pinned his hopes on his son, Ye Zhen, but now, Ye Zhen...

Ye Zhen's face suddenly turned resolute and solemn. "Father, Mother, I am not going back. I swear, I will definitely become an Outer Disciple of the Qi Yun Sect."

"Still swearing?"

His father, Ye Tiancheng, immediately glared at him. "Never mind whether you can reach the Blood Refining Fourth Level within three years; just look at the immediate problem—how will you pass the Sect Grand Examination in a month?"

His father, Ye Tiancheng, could not bring himself to say anything harsher.

"Father, Mother, believe in me, I can definitely do it!" As he spoke these words with such conviction, Ye Zhen couldn't help but think of the little secret he had discovered a few days ago, and his gaze suddenly became incredibly firm.

Whether for the sake of his childhood dream or his own aspirations, he had to persevere!

Just as Ye Tiancheng was about to say more, Mi Jiangxue nudged him with her elbow, and the atmosphere grew heavy once again.

"Fine, if you want to stay, then stay." With a cold snort, his father, Ye Tiancheng, darkened his face and said no more.

His mother, Mi Jiangxue, pulled Ye Zhen aside and handed him several bundles. "Your father knows the ins and outs of the Qi Yun Sect; many things inside require extra money."

"In here is the one hundred taels of silver your father earned through a year of hard work. Keep it safe, and if you need anything, buy it..."

"In this bundle are a few pairs of shoes I made for you myself, some new clothes, and the roast chicken and cured meat you love..."

Listening to his mother, Mi Jiangxue, Ye Zhen's eyes instantly blurred.

He knew his family's situation well. Although they had a few acres of land, it was hard to be prosperous even if they had enough to eat, and they still had to endure the exploitation of the clan. If not for his father's Blood Refining Fourth Level cultivation, which allowed him to do manual labor to earn silver to supplement their income, he wouldn't have the life he had now.

Having not seen him for a year, his father's temples had turned gray, clearly a sign of overexertion.

In that instant, Ye Zhen almost had the urge to go home with his parents.

"Here, take it." Seeing the moisture welling up in her son's eyes, his mother, Mi Jiangxue, forcefully shoved the bundles into Ye Zhen's hands.

"Wait!"

Just as Mi Jiangxue pressed the bundles into Ye Zhen's hands, Ye Tiancheng suddenly strode over and took them.

Then, under the surprised gazes of Mi Jiangxue and Ye Zhen, he fumbled in his own chest and pulled out two large silver ingots, tucking them inside.

Watching Ye Tiancheng's actions, Mi Jiangxue was stunned. "Tiancheng, why are you putting in the travel money for our return..."

Halfway through her sentence, Mi Jiangxue realized what she had said and abruptly covered her mouth.

His father, Ye Tiancheng, ignored her and shoved the bundles back into Ye Zhen's hands. "Zhen'er, I remember that a Blood Origin Pill costs two hundred taels of silver inside the Qi Yun Sect, right?"

"I've scraped together two hundred taels for you; remember to buy one when you get back."

"With this Blood Origin Pill to boost your cultivation, it will be enough to help you get through the Qi Yun Sect's annual sect examination."

After saying this, Ye Tiancheng gave Ye Zhen's shoulder a heavy pat, just as he always did. "Good lad, don't let your father down!"

Feeling the force of that pat, which was far weaker than before, and looking at his father's haggard complexion, Ye Zhen's expression shifted in alarm. He grabbed his father's wrist to check his pulse and suddenly cried out, "Father, your cultivation?"

In the past, the surging, powerful blood energy in his father's body and the thumping of his pulse could make Ye Zhen's fingers ache—a game he loved to play with his father when he was a child.

But now, the strength of that pulse...

"Don't make such a fuss. Your father's cultivation hasn't reached the Essence Realm. As a man ages, his blood energy declines, and naturally, his cultivation drops..."

Ye Tiancheng pulled his hand away from his son's grip with a hint of force, doing his utmost to mask the bitterness on his face.

"Son, we're leaving now. Dad believes in you!"

Waving his hand vigorously, Ye Tiancheng tugged at Mi Jiangxue, who still seemed to want to say something, and headed down the mountain, leaving Ye Zhen standing dazed in place, his vision already blurred by tears.

His father was not even forty years old this year, in the very prime of his life.

As long as he was properly nourished, how could his vitality and blood possibly be in decline?

It was clearly because his father had been working himself to the bone at grueling labor to save up silver, all while refusing to eat anything decent himself...

Watching his parents' backs disappear into the mountains, Ye Zhen waved his hand one last time, then hoisted the increasingly heavy bundle in his arms and walked toward the mountain gate.

Walking along the mountain path, Ye Zhen had already wiped away his tears, his expression now turned incomparably resolute.

I must become an Outer Disciple. Only by becoming an Outer Disciple can I lighten the burden on my parents and fulfill Father's wish.

Ye Zhen knew his persistence was perhaps too stubborn.

Yet, Ye Zhen was not the type of person to be narrow-minded or to get stuck in a dead end.

Ye Zhen was very clear that, at his current rate of cultivation, let alone breaking through to the Blood Refining Fourth Level to become an Outer Disciple, even passing the Qi Yun Sect's annual grand examination would be a major problem.

Of this, Ye Zhen was well aware.

The reason Ye Zhen remained so persistent was because he had a little secret that no one else knew.

A little secret that filled Ye Zhen with anticipation.