The sight of the endless stream of people at their doorstep left Chen Yu and the Red-dressed Woman stunned.
It was truly a little too shocking.
The villagers waiting in line saw Chen Yu and smiled, ready to strike up a conversation.
Chen Yu panicked and hurriedly ducked her head as she ran into the courtyard. Chen Yuxu had just reached the door and pulled her inside.
What on earth was going on?
Chen Yu was full of questions.
This wasn't something that could happen just because she'd come in first on an exam.
Looking at her father blocking the door, Chen Yu was about to speak when she saw Chen Yan walk out of the room with an old man.
Chen Yan had naturally come back a while ago; after all, Luo Puxin was strong.
Inside Chen Yu's Consciousness World, the Red-dressed Woman hadn't paid Chen Yan much attention at first, but her expression suddenly changed.
Had he grown a little taller and become a little more handsome? His physique... seemed stronger too, and there was the scent of Qi and Blood.
He...
"Thank you for your kindness, Teacher Xia Tong, but... I haven't been short of these things lately."
Chen Yan looked at Xia Tong and smiled faintly.
Xia Tong froze, then looked at Chen Yan and down at the gift in his hands.
His face was like a gloomy painting, knotted with regret and conflicted feelings. Then he slowly shook his head and left.
Wang Yang really was lucky.
Chen Yan was a Heavenly Pride whom the County Town Martial Division Chief had personally sought out. He was the real deal—a dragon among men, about to soar.
And Xia Tong had never noticed.
He'd been blind.
Chen Yan still wore a faint smile, but there was a chill about him, as if he'd frozen solid. Only when he looked at Chen Yu did he smile warmly.
"You got back just in time. Dinner's ready."
He walked over and ruffled his little sister's hair.
Chen Yu immediately narrowed her eyes like a cat, then dodged Chen Yan's hand. Watching Xia Tong leave and hearing the noisy crowd outside the courtyard, she finally exclaimed excitedly:
"Big brother, you became a martial artist?"
"Mm. A Hardening Martial Artist." Chen Yan nodded.
Not many people knew he'd Awakened Blood Qi: Luo Puxin, Shen Yiwei, and the female student of Shen Yiwei who had helped him—though he'd only learned of her later.
There was no need to announce that he'd Awakened Blood Qi. Luo Puxin had also used some methods to conceal it.
"Wow!"
A moment later, a little cat leaped into his arms. Chen Yan hugged Chen Yu and smiled too.
"I knew it! My big brother's amazing."
"Hardening Martial Artists are way stronger than Blood Qi Martial Artists!"
Chen Yu was bursting with pride. Since her big brother practiced Horizontal Refinement, that meant Horizontal Refinement was stronger than Blood Qi.
"The other day, Zhou Jiayi even made fun of me."
"Who's Zhou Jiayi?" Chen Yan asked.
"She's in my class. She said her big brother got into the Town Martial Class." Chen Yu looked thoroughly unconvinced.
Chen Yan smiled faintly. After all, his little sister was only fifteen.
Inside Chen Yu's Consciousness World, the Red-dressed Woman furrowed her brow.
She could clearly sense the Qi and Blood in Chen Yan, and that someone had used methods to conceal it.
But why didn't he tell anyone?
He was both a Hardening Martial Artist and a Blood Qi Martial Artist. A normal young man would have found it hard to hide that. Who didn't love showing off in front of everyone, being a saint on top of a saint?
"What's that Secretary Ye's name?"
At the dinner table, Chen Yu wore a cold expression, clearly furious.
After hearing what had happened to Chen Yan last night, the little girl was filled with anger.
"Don't worry about it." Chen Yan smiled, a glint of Cold Light passing through his eyes. He'd deal with Secretary Ye in the next few days.
"Ye Yong. He's nothing but a dog!" Chen Yuxu said with a cold snort. The more he thought about yesterday, the angrier he got.
"Mm." Chen Yu nodded and lowered her head, but she was talking to the Red-dressed Woman in her Consciousness World.
"Teacher, I..." Chen Yu hesitated.
There were things she was afraid of too, but that person had already endangered her family. If her big brother hadn't pulled through...
The Red-dressed Woman parted her red lips and smiled faintly.
"You... Then we'll set off in the next few days. I'll take care of it for you. It's time you went through something like this."
"Thank you, Teacher."
Chen Yu spoke up. There were things she had to do.
The meal was very lavish. Their family had money these past few days, so they could finally eat things they'd never been able to afford before—especially now that Chen Yu was home.
A while later, Chen Yan noticed that Chen Yu seemed a little strange and asked:
"What's wrong?"
Chen Yu kept her head down. After a long pause, she mumbled:
"Big brother, I want some money."
"What do you need money for?" Chen Yuxu asked loudly. Chen Yu's heart sank.
"How much?" Chen Yan asked, sipping his soup as he looked at his sister. If she could come in first, that meant she had great talent. A genius needed money.
Hearing Chen Yan ask how much right away, Chen Yu breathed a sigh of relief and said cautiously, "Twenty thousand."
"Twenty thousand!" Chen Yuxu jumped to his feet. That was a huge sum!
At that moment, the Red-dressed Woman fell silent in Chen Yu's Consciousness World.
It was laughable—she was actually worrying about twenty thousand yuan.
Twenty thousand was indeed a substantial sum for Chen Yan's family.
She, who had once looked down on the whole world, was now on edge over twenty thousand.
"That much?" Chen Yan was surprised too. When he was fifteen, he'd been careful even spending a single yuan.
"To buy Blood Qi Potion. I'm close to Awakening Blood Qi," Chen Yu blurted out.
Chen Yan's brow relaxed. Then he looked at Chen Yuxu.
"Dad, just give her thirty thousand. I don't need to spend money right now, and I'll have ways to make some later."
That settled it.
Chen Yuxu still wanted to ask more, but Chen Yan managed to convince him.
"Don't worry. Becoming a martial artist was incredibly difficult for me, so I won't let things be difficult for you." Chen Yan spoke calmly.
A smile lit Chen Yu's face. The Red-dressed Woman fell silent in her Consciousness World.
This time, she didn't say anything about Chen Yan.
Not bad.
"Xiao Yu, I'll prepare some Qi and Blood Medicine for you at First High School. Come find me in a while," Chen Yan told Chen Yu after dinner, clearly taking her path to Qi and Blood seriously.
"Big brother, you're already in the Town Martial Class. How can you prepare Qi and Blood Medicine?" Chen Yu was taken aback.
"I have some connections." Chen Yan went into his room.
Chen Yu returned to her room, still mulling over what Chen Yan had said. She smiled.
"Teacher, my big brother's amazing, isn't he?"
The Red-dressed Woman lightly pressed her red lips together.
"With me here, you'll progress extremely quickly. If your brother wants to prepare Treasure Medicine for you, he'd better do it soon. Given enough time, you may not need it."
"Mm, but my big brother only just joined the Town Martial Class." Chen Yu spoke softly.
"I joined the Tianbang Boxing Tournament. I might earn money faster than my big brother. When that happens, he'll be so shocked."
[Saint Breaking Realm: 3rd level (28/75)] [Saint Breaking Fruit: Strength: (78/100) Blood: (6/100) Skill: (12/100) Physique: (93/100)]
Inside his room, Chen Yan checked the Saint Breaking Tree.
The little tree, which had been bent over at first, was still slender, but now it carried a vitality rarely seen before.
If you think this book is good, add it to your bookshelf so you can find it again next time.
Alone in the vast, mist-shrouded expanse, it stood lonely yet determined.
On its seemingly withered branches, four fruits of different sizes were round as pearls, shimmering with light.
Four fruits...
Chen Yan watched closely, then his gaze suddenly trembled.
On a branch he'd never paid attention to, there was a silver fruit no bigger than a mung bean.
If Chen Yan hadn't looked closely, he wouldn't have noticed it at all.
Perhaps the fruit had been there all along, but it hadn't grown.
No.
Something was wrong.
Chen Yan's mouth fell open. The Data Panel showed only four kinds of fruit, and he'd never obtained Silver Energy before.
So where had this fruit come from?
The more Chen Yan thought about it, the stranger it seemed.
After a long while, he stopped paying attention to it.
He couldn't pluck the fruit before it ripened. Whatever it was, he couldn't find out now.
He forced down his curiosity.
Chen Yan took an iron box from his Backpack. According to Luo Puxin, the Deputy Chief Director of Town Martial Division had personally forged the Horizontal Refinement boxing technique for him.
The man had taken him far too seriously. Chen Yan couldn't help feeling conflicted.
On this journey, some had looked down on him, while others had thought they could crush him with a careless step.
But there had also been people who supported him and people who believed in him.
He wasn't always facing despair.
Those who looked down on me, I'll look down on in turn; those who value me, I'll value in turn!
Chen Yan took the Crimson Origin Crystal out of the iron box. At a glance, he saw crimson light surging within it, forming the figure of a man.
"Chen Yan, I've been too busy to meet you, but after learning of your deeds, I wanted to pass this move, the Crimson Heart Fist, on to you."
A man's voice rang out. Chen Yan froze. It was the voice of the man from the Blood Sensing Chamber.
The Origin Crystal could actually transmit sound.
"The Crimson Heart Fist evolved from the Crimson Gang Profound Strike Fist, and it matches your Breathing Technique, so you don't need to worry about problems with your meridians.
"I created it when I was twenty-five, caught between life and death. With it, I killed my first Ancient God Beast."
"The name Crimson Heart Fist is crude, but as I lay dying, the only thing I thought of was this crimson heart of mine."
He seemed to look straight at Chen Yan.
"I hope you have a crimson heart too."
As the man finished speaking, the scene within the Origin Crystal suddenly changed. He stood before a mountain.
Chen Yan watched closely. At that moment, a surging golden light appeared inside the Saint Breaking Realm and streamed toward him.
The man stood tall, his body slightly bent, muscles bulging. A bizarre crimson vortex, like Blazing Flame, rose around his right fist. As he gathered strength, the vortex grew wilder, curling and coiling around his fist and wrist.
"Ha!"
The man glared and let out a furious shout, then threw a punch!
The enormous vortex abruptly spun in reverse, carrying the force of a landslide and a collapsing sea as it exploded!
Boom!
A fifty-meter-high hill was blasted apart. The raging Crimson Gang whipped through the area like a hurricane, snapping trees.
Chen Yan tore his gaze away. After watching that scene, it felt as if he'd been struck by the punch itself, and he fell backward.
He lay on the bed, shaken to the core.
That was... a punch that shattered a mountain!
What level of martial artist was that?
This punch...
Chen Yan suddenly sat up, staring fixedly at the Origin Crystal.
He had to learn it!
Ignoring the stabbing pain in his mind, Chen Yan began visualizing it with ravenous hunger.
This was his first glimpse into the world of the strong. If he had power like that, who could bully him?
Within the Saint Breaking Realm, golden light flowed without end, surging like a great river.
After an unknown amount of time, Chen Yan took a [Skill] Character Saint Breaking Fruit. He absorbed the Skill Origin of the [Crimson Heart Fist] in an instant.
At that moment, an indescribable surge of boldness welled in his heart. Chen Yan got off the bed.
He threw a punch. Waves of wind surged, and then his little sister's voice sounded from next door.
"Big brother, are you practicing your punches?"
Chen Yan's gaze flickered. He had indeed been too noisy, so he opened the door and stepped out.
"Big brother, where are you going?" Chen Yu asked.
"I've got something to do. Go to sleep first." Chen Yan had already left the courtyard.
Chen Yu was left behind, pouting and muttering to herself:
"It's already the middle of the night."
Next door, Chen Yuxu opened the door and shook his head.
"Your brother's just like that. He barely ever rests. Martial artists..."
Chen Yuxu's eyes were full of complicated emotions.
"Martial artists get tired, too."
All he wanted was for his son and daughter to live safe, happy lives.
Chen Yu slowly shook her head.
"It's not martial artists who get tired. It's my brother. He really is so hardworking."
It was as if she'd caught his enthusiasm. Her master had just advised her to get some rest earlier.
She needed to work hard.
"Rest is important, too. A good night's sleep will make your cultivation more efficient. Your brother's only forcing seedlings to grow by pulling them up; it won't do much good."
The Red-dressed Woman spoke. She was telling the truth.
Push yourself too hard, and something could go wrong.
But Chen Yu still cultivated for another two hours before going to sleep.
The next day.
Cloud Palace, Qin Prefecture.
"How could Chu Lan be so stupid!"
A cold shout rang out from an exquisitely decorated room. Gong Hengwen, another Deputy Commander of the City Martial Division, looked utterly grim.
"The Old Chief Director is placing tremendous importance on this Town Martial Class. It's also a major point of competition between Shen Yiwei and me!"
A leopard couldn't change its spots!
To shore up his connections, Chu Lan had actually dared to dip into his master's rice bowl!
How could Gong Hengwen not be furious?
"Then I'll go. I'll take Chu Lan's place."
A man named Gong Tuo spoke from the sofa nearby. Gong Hengwen fell silent for a moment before replying:
"Brother Tuo, it can't be helped. The Old Chief Director cares about the younger generation. Luoshan County is my weak point, but I absolutely can't afford to lose it."
Gong Tuo nodded.
"I'll offer Gong Family contracts to five outstanding Heavenly Prides."
"Good." Gong Hengwen nodded. Then, remembering something, he said, "I heard Chu Lan was removed because of a Horizontal Refinement genius named Chen Yan. Give Chen Yan one of those contracts."
Gong Tuo was taken aback. "Chen Yan has talent, but his foundation is terrible. And if we sign him, won't that be a slap in the Chu Family's face?"
Gong Hengwen said nothing, his hands clasped behind his back.
Gong Tuo understood. Gong Hengwen did indeed want to use Chen Yan to slap the Chu Family in the face.
Chen Yan and the contract were nothing but tools to beat a dog.
The Chu Family must hate Chen Yan by now, but the Gong Family was going to give him a contract anyway. It was a way of telling them:
The Chu Family was the Gong Family's dog.
They'd better learn to heel.
Before you continue