On the Verge of Breaking Through

After the teacup incident, the fragile harmony in the dormitory was gone. As the two parties involved, Lin Hong and Qian Wende had naturally torn their faces apart; Lin Hong had also angrily lashed out at Xiang Qichen, who had tried to mediate, and their relationship likewise froze over; when Lin Hong cursed Qian Wende, he had dragged Jiao Kun into it as well, shattering their relationship too.

Xiong Lei usually stuck with Xiang Qichen, Jiao Kun, and Qian Wende, so he naturally began to drift away from Lin Hong as well.

--Xiong Lei was not especially diligent by nature. After lunch and dinner, he would rest for a while, usually spending time with Xiang Qichen, Qian Wende, and Jiao Kun. Then there was Qian Wende's constant tug-of-war with him—taking too much paper, leaving the door open, provoking Xiong Lei's temper again and again, then soothing him with one "Brother Xiong" after another. Through that repeated push and pull, Xiong Lei came to acknowledge him as a lousy friend. Of course, that was only what he thought; Qian Wende probably just saw him as a fool.

The other little group in the dormitory was Zhuang Jin and Bi Kai, the "diligent duo." Oh, Wu Hao was extremely hardworking too and often followed along, so he could be counted among them as well.

After the teacup incident, Lin Hong's relationship with Xiang Qichen's group of four broke apart. He had never been particularly close with Zhuang Jin's group of three before, but lately, after lunch and dinner, he had gradually begun joining them instead.

Ten days passed in a rush. Time was the best medicine, and the teacup incident's impact on the dormitory gradually faded. When Lin Hong ran into Qian Wende, Xiang Qichen, and the others these days, they would begin nodding and exchanging greetings again. But a broken mirror could not be made whole; that was all it was. The dormitory would never again have the harmony it had after last month's group dinner, when they had discussed Martial Skills at the beginning of the month.

The date reached December twentieth.

That evening, after they had washed up and the lights were out, the eight dormmates lay in their beds. Xiang Qichen spoke of his own situation. "Today, I completed my One Meridian Realm accumulation and sensed the Second Meridian Bottleneck."

On one hand, he said this to share his own situation and learn everyone else's progress. On the other, as the dormitory's eldest, he felt it was no good for the dormitory to remain in this atmosphere. Now that his relationship with Lin Hong had recently begun to thaw, he wanted to use this chance to guide things a little and restore the dormitory's early-month harmony.

"Boss, you're amazing!" Qian Wende immediately buttered him up, then asked, "Boss, what does this Second Meridian Bottleneck feel like?"

"It feels much harder than the One Meridian bottleneck. I don't know whether I can break through before the end of the month."

As Xiang Qichen spoke, he did not sound very confident. He then asked, "What about you guys? Second Brother, how's your Black Fiend Palm training going?"

"Not great. Teacher Tang said the speed of Martial Skill training depends on comprehension and innate talent. I feel like my comprehension isn't that good, so I probably won't get started this month. If I'd known, I would've chosen to focus on my Cultivation Realm too..."

Xiong Lei sighed, but stopped halfway through. Back then, even if he had wanted to focus on improving his Cultivation Realm, he did not have the money to buy enough Black Essence Powder for daily training!

"Third Boss, what about you?" Xiang Qichen asked Jiao Kun.

"Not great either. I'm not very confident." Jiao Kun shook his head.

Compared to Xiong Lei, his comprehension was a little better. But ever since he had gotten his first taste of women, he had been unable to stop, fishing for three days and drying nets for two. Naturally, he had no confidence.

"Hong Zi, what about you?" Only after asking Xiong Lei and Jiao Kun to ease the atmosphere did Xiang Qichen turn to Lin Hong in order.

"I'm doing all right." Lin Hong answered coolly.

This month, he had focused entirely on Martial Skills. In truth, two days ago, he had already sensed that the Black Fiend Palm was close to getting started. Yet no matter what he did, it was always just short by a little—that tiny gap held him fast, and no amount of practice let him improve. He knew he had encountered a Martial Skill bottleneck.

Still, if he remained patient and continued practicing every day with perseverance, he was confident that he could get started with the Martial Skill before the end of the month.

"Fifth Boss?"

"More or less." Zhuang Jin answered vaguely as well.

In truth, he was confident that within five days, he could complete his One Meridian Realm accumulation and break through to the Second Meridian. But it was inconvenient to reveal his progress. After all, his situation was special and might involve a Golden Finger, so he had to keep that secret.

Seeing Lin Hong speak vaguely and Zhuang Jin do the same, Xiang Qichen wondered how he was supposed to guide the dormitory's atmosphere. He immediately became somewhat displeased. "Jinzi, what does 'more or less' mean? Can't you speak plainly? Give us a clear answer—can you break through to the Second Meridian or get started with a Martial Skill this month?"

"Who can say for sure about something like that?" Zhuang Jin shook his head.

He could certainly coordinate with his own breakthrough timing and fabricate a lie that he had sensed the Second Meridian Bottleneck long ago. But aside from provoking Xiang Qichen and making himself feel better, such behavior would serve no purpose. It would only make him seem childish.

Besides, Zhuang Jin had thought further ahead.

Ever since breaking through as a Martial Artist and encountering the first bottleneck, Martial Artists cannot avoid dealing with bottlenecks. But the first Martial Practitioner Bottleneck is the easiest; those afterward only become harder and harder.

--Take Ping Yongfeng, for example. At his age, he was only in the Two Meridian Realm. Was it because he did not want to break through? Of course not. That showed just how obstructive bottlenecks could be.

I have no bottlenecks. As long as I have sufficient Provisions for cultivation, the only thing that truly takes time is the accumulation within each Meridian itself. Once I accumulate enough and refine my Inner Breath to a certain degree, while others encounter the bottleneck of breaking through to the next Meridian, I can break through directly.

And apart from the deficit in my body, my true aptitude should be at the very top among those of above-average talent, nearly approaching superior aptitude.

According to what Ping Yongfeng had once said, those with superior aptitude needed five to ten days to Grasp Blood Qi. If Zhuang Jin's body had not been depleted, he definitely would not have needed seventeen days. It would probably have taken eleven or twelve days, thirteen or fourteen at most.

My aptitude is good, and I have no bottlenecks. Taken together, as long as I have sufficient Provisions, I will soon surpass every Martial Artist of my generation and leave them far behind. In the future, they will not even have a chance to see my back... When that time comes, I will inevitably draw attention!

That was precisely why Zhuang Jin did not state his progress clearly. He knew that if he let something slip now, or indulged in vanity and showed off, it would leave traces. People would speculate about his aptitude, planting seeds of doubt over his future advancement far beyond ordinary people and leaving behind potential trouble.

Seeing that Zhuang Jin still answered vaguely and gave him no face, Xiang Qichen could do nothing about it. He could only skip over Zhuang Jin and continue asking Qian Wende.

"Not too good. I feel like I won't get started this month." Qian Wende was not particularly hardworking either, and recently he had been going out to have fun with Jiao Kun every few days. No wonder he lacked confidence.

"Seventh Brother?"

"Me? I don't feel anything!" When Bi Kai was asked, he reacted with unusual agitation, as if someone had stepped on his tail, blurting it out instinctively.

--Back then, he had nearly died because he showed off his progress. If he still had not learned his lesson, he would be a fool.

In truth, he too had vaguely sensed a Martial Skill bottleneck today. He was just still short of that final feeling.

Finally, Wu Hao said that he felt the Black Fiend Palm would probably not get started until next month. Like Zhuang Jin and Bi Kai, he was among the most diligent in the dormitory, but his aptitude and comprehension were limited.

Xiang Qichen had asked them one by one because he had intended to use it as an opening to get everyone talking. But seeing that Lin Hong and the others would not cooperate, and that the dormitory fell silent as soon as he finished asking, he became somewhat disheartened and could not be bothered to do anything more.

Thus, this attempt to ease the dormitory's relations began like a tiger's head and ended like a snake's tail, coming to a hasty close.