Thirty-Nine: Teacher, Am I a Lost Cause?

"There's such a thing?"

Inside the office, Shen Yiwei's eyes flickered.

"Limit Breaking Awakening, and an extremely high talent for the Body Tempering Path!"

Shen Yiwei set down the wineglass in his hand, his eyes shining with excitement.

Limit Breaking Awakening meant the other person had tremendous willpower. Talent for body tempering meant he could go far.

"I never thought a tiny place like Green Mountain Town would have someone like this. Old Luo, you've struck gold." Shen Yiwei laughed.

Though he still looked exhausted, the sorrow that had filled his face vanished in an instant.

For a genius like this to be excluded from the Town Martial Class by the Chu Family—what nerve they had.

"That kid really is something. He's smart, determined, and loyal. Old Shen, I'm planning to give him the Military Martial Guard's Heavenly Pride cultivation funds."

"Give them to him!" Shen Yiwei, dark circles under his eyes, burst out laughing.

"If you can't give them to someone like this, who can you give them to?"

Shen Yiwei stood and looked around, as if searching for something.

"Old Shen, what are you looking for?"

"A gift. Luo Puxin, you've always had a good eye for people. From what you've told me about his past and what he's done, I think he deserves something, too."

It was the only good news he'd heard in days.

Smiling, Shen Yiwei took an Origin Crystal from the storage cabinet behind his desk.

It was an Origin Crystal that had yet to be infused with Skill Energy. Luo Puxin smiled and asked,

"Old Shen, what are you planning to give him?"

"He's learning the Crimson Gang Body Tempering Canon, right?"

"Mm." Luo Puxin nodded.

"Then I'll give him an external combat technique: Crimson Heart Fist." Shen Yiwei smiled.

Luo Puxin was slightly startled.

"Have you made up your mind? It's your signature technique."

"Give it to him." Shen Yiwei smiled faintly, then sighed as he sat back down.

"Someone this talented would get a reward from the Gong Family if they knew about him, too. Do you know what happens?

"Some people finally escape the oppression of the aristocratic clans, only to..."

Shen Yiwei lit a cigarette.

"Become a new aristocratic clan.

"I don't want that. If there are geniuses, they can come to me. I can give them opportunities, too. Don't you agree?"

Luo Puxin's eyes were complicated. He knew his old comrade had been having a rough time these past few years. Now he looked so gaunt he seemed as if he might collapse at any moment.

He said nothing, just picked up a piece of food and put it in his mouth.

"I'll come get the Origin Crystal another day, then. Crimson Heart Fist is a technique you created yourself. I doubt Chen Yan will be able to learn it anytime soon."

Shen Yiwei waved a hand.

"Tonight, then. There's still time. I'll infuse this Origin Crystal tonight and give it to him. I want him to understand something.

"Limit Breaking Awakening is a great opportunity, sure, but first you need to live long enough to benefit from it. The Body Tempering Path is grueling, but it can keep you alive."

Shen Yiwei smiled.

Chen Yan had succeeded in Limit Breaking Awakening, and Shen Yiwei had only one thought: the kid had tremendous willpower and was suited for body tempering.

The path of breaking limits required willpower, opportunity, and talent.

Awakening proved only that you had willpower. It didn't prove you had talent.

Who knew how Zhou Ming had managed to awaken his physique? The old veteran from the Town Martial Division had lacked talent, and the strain of Limit Breaking Awakening had slowly killed him.

"You're infusing it tonight?" Luo Puxin stared.

"You're crazy. You really don't sleep, do you? Crimson Heart Fist isn't simple. Infusing it will leave you weak for days."

Shen Yiwei gave a faint smile. A pale red light flowed from his fingers into the Origin Crystal.

"Honestly, I haven't slept in over half a year. Oh, right..."

Shen Yiwei spoke up.

"Has that Chen Yan already joined the Town Martial Class?"

"Not yet." Luo Puxin smiled. "I brought him here today. He's in the Blood Sensing Chamber. He snuck in so he could practice the technique first."

"Huh?" Shen Yiwei froze. "So that was the kid."

"You've seen him?"

"Mm." Shen Yiwei smiled faintly. So it had been a misunderstanding. He continued infusing the Origin Crystal.

"Holy crap!"

Shen Yiwei exclaimed in shock.

"What's wrong?" Luo Puxin frowned.

"He only awakened today?" Shen Yiwei's mouth fell open as he recalled how quickly Chen Yan had absorbed the energy.

Setting aside the help from the Origin Crystal of Talent, that speed clearly showed that his understanding of the technique had already reached a certain level.

"Yeah, just tonight. A few hours ago," Luo Puxin said.

"Huh?" Shen Yiwei stood up. That wasn't normal.

Should I just infuse him with a Blood Qi Martial Technique instead?

Shen Yiwei's eyes flickered. Breaking through the Hundred Meridians was incredibly difficult.

Then he sat down again.

"Forget it. I'll infuse this first."

After five hours, an invisible force appeared around Chen Yan and began pushing him out of the Blood Sensing Chamber.

"You!"

The woman in the distance stood up, her expression icy.

She had been competing with Chen Yan for Qi and Blood, never expecting him to hold his own against her.

At one point, his absorption speed suddenly surpassed hers. She had tried to interfere with his Qi and Blood, but he had destroyed her interference again.

She was furious.

The woman gritted her teeth. She had already lost to Chu Xuanxian, and now she had lost to someone from the Gong Family who had only just entered the Five Viscera Realm.

"Thank you!"

A young man's cheerful voice suddenly came from the doorway.

The woman stood frozen. What was he doing?

Was he mocking her?

Four [Skill] fruits and nine [Blood] fruits!

Holding the Origin Crystal, Chen Yan walked out of the Blood Sensing Chamber. He rolled his neck, feeling stronger than ever.

I really am strong.

That was why he had thanked the woman. She had sincerely helped him.

"You're out." Luo Puxin smiled at Chen Yan.

"Your file's been registered. Your Martial Merit Badge should be ready tomorrow."

Chen Yan handed the Origin Crystal to Luo Puxin and asked curiously,

"What's a Martial Merit Badge?"

"I'll explain later." Luo Puxin took Chen Yan to the Skill Room first, though Chen Yan wasn't allowed inside.

A while later, Chen Yan walked out of the Town Martial Division with a Backpack on his back.

There was another Origin Crystal inside.

It was a gift from the Town Martial Division's Deputy Commander, Shen Yiwei. He still had a meeting to attend, so he naturally had no time to meet Chen Yan.

But Chen Yan was deeply grateful for such a generous gift.

"Go home and practice hard. Come back to the Town Martial Division when you have time to visualize the Chaos Abyss Art.

"But next time, you'll have to pay."

Luo Puxin smiled.

Chen Yan nodded. Luo Puxin had just explained some of the Military Martial Guard's cultivation standards to him.

He'd received a subsidy, but he'd need Martial Merit Points to get a lot of things.

He could earn them by killing Ancient Beasts, completing missions, or meeting training goals by a certain date.

For instance, if Chen Yan could condense another Strength Stripe within a week, he'd be rewarded with Martial Merit Points.

Cultivating Heavenly Prides was, above all, about motivating them—pushing Chen Yan to grow stronger.

Eleven in the morning.

Chen Yu walked into Green Mountain Town.

"I told you to take twenty thousand yuan, and you wouldn't. Then you went and bought your brother another bottle of Qi and Blood Drink."

In the Consciousness World, the Red-dressed Woman sighed.

My silly disciple.

"Teacher, don't worry. I'll earn enough money soon!"

Chen Yu spoke softly.

The Red-dressed Woman was speechless. Am I telling you to earn money?

I'm telling you to focus on cultivation, on yourself.

Don't let your family hold you back. You're only just starting out, Chen Yu. Even a thousand yuan matters.

Chen Yu said nothing more. As she passed her family's shop and saw it closed, she clenched her fists.

Just then, someone by the roadside noticed her.

"Is that Chen Yan's younger sister? She's really pretty."

"She looks just like her brother. Actually, her brother's even better-looking."

"They're both good-looking."

Chen Yu paused, realizing that a lot of people were looking at her. She was surprised.

What's going on today?

"Xiao Yu!" An old man selling vegetables by the roadside suddenly called out. He wrapped some of the best vegetables on his stall in paper and handed them to her.

"Take these home. Old Uncle won't sell them all today."

Chen Yu froze, accepted the vegetables, and thanked him.

"That's strange," Chen Yu muttered.

"It's not strange." In the Consciousness World, the Red-dressed Woman spoke up.

"This week's monthly exam—you came first in your grade. The news must have gotten back. I told you to hold back your score."

"I already held back a lot. Who knew everyone else would do so badly?" Chen Yu pursed her lips.

"Xiao Yu, Uncle just roasted a pork knuckle. Take it home."

As Chen Yu passed a roadside stall, the owner of the Barbecue Shop came over enthusiastically and placed a bag with a roasted pork knuckle in the stunned girl's hands.

Gulp.

Chen Yu swallowed. Pork knuckle was expensive.

"Thank you, but I can't take it."

She put the pork knuckle back on the man's table and hurried away.

"This is the benefit of being strong. As long as you work hard, won't your family's problems be swept away with a wave of your hand?"

The Red-dressed Woman spoke, smiling.

She was secretly trying to change Chen Yu's thinking: become strong, and become strong quickly.

Her brother and father were ultimately on a far lower level.

Just after leaving town, Chen Yu saw Hu Zeyuan fawning over someone.

The other person's head was still wrapped in gauze. When he saw Chen Yu, he quickly turned away.

Chen Yu was slightly stunned. Was Hu Zeyuan afraid of her?

So coming first in school could make this much of a difference?

Chen Yu was delighted. Her brother had probably heard that she'd come first, too.

Behind her, Hu Zeyuan looked at Zhang Ge in front of him.

"Brother Zhang, you've got a lot of pull. Whether my son can become Xia Tong's student depends on you."

Across from him, Zhang Ge watched Chen Yu's retreating figure, deep in thought.

"Brother Zhang?" Hu Zeyuan called. Zhang Ge frowned and started to leave, so Hu Zeyuan hurriedly grabbed him.

They'd been getting along just fine a moment ago. Zhang Ge had agreed with a casual wave of his hand.

"Get off me." Zhang Ge looked down at Hu Zeyuan's dirty hand clutching his sleeve.

Hu Zeyuan hurriedly let go and pleaded,

"Brother Zhang, you..."

"Get lost." Zhang Ge seemed to have thought of something and had no time for Hu Zeyuan.

"What makes you think you can touch my clothes?"

Behind him, Hu Zeyuan's face turned deathly pale.

Meanwhile.

City Martial Division.

"What?" The woman named Lu Linqian gaped and stood up, but then she sat back down as if her soul had left her body.

"What's wrong, Xiao Qian?" Shen Yiwei asked in surprise.

His disciple had just come in and asked him if she was a good-for-nothing.

Now that she knew Chen Yan's identity, she was bewildered again.

Of course, she didn't know about Limit Breaking Awakening.

What Shen Yiwei didn't know was that at that moment, only one thought rang through Lu Linqian's mind.

He only awakened yesterday?

He only awakened yesterday?

He only awakened yesterday?

"Huh?"

At that thought, Lu Linqian looked at Shen Yiwei, her voice breaking into tears.

"Teacher, am I a good-for-nothing?"

"What... happened?"

At the entrance to her home, Chen Yu stood rooted to the spot.

To her astonishment, people were actually lining up to bring gifts to her home. The neighbors who had once barely spared her a glance were now looking at her with eager smiles.

In the Consciousness World, the Red-dressed Woman's mouth fell open too.

Her disciple had come first in the monthly exam, but the ripples she'd caused were a little too big.