Time flew by.
Dongfang Chen turned fifteen and was about to start high school.
High school was also where the story of Full-Time Magician began.
Magic Awakening began around this time, too.
At fifteen, Dongfang Chen had grown into a handsome young man, while Ye Xin Xia, who was always by his side, had blossomed into a graceful young woman.
A lot had happened over the past few years.
Just as in the Original Work, Ye Xin Xia's mother, Ye Chang, abandoned her daughter.
This time, though, Ye Chang didn't seek out the kindhearted Mo Jiaxing. Instead, she left her daughter with Dongfang Chen and quietly disappeared.
When she learned that her mother had "gone missing," Xiao Xin Xia had burst into tears.
Only after Dongfang Chen patiently comforted her did she finally recover. But the experience had left Xiao Xin Xia feeling even more insecure.
She wouldn't even sleep at night unless she was in bed with Dongfang Chen.
Then there was Mu Ningxue.
As time passed, Mu Ningxue grew increasingly aloof.
On top of that, she had recently undergone Self-Awakening and awakened an Ice Element Spirit Seed, making her seem even colder.
But she only acted that way around other people.
Whenever she was with Dongfang Chen, the block of ice that was Mu Ningxue melted in an instant.
Over the past few years, the Broken System had become much less active.
Instead, the Daily Check-in rewards had been a great help to Dongfang Chen.
Thanks to the large quantities of medicinal materials he received from his daily check-ins, along with years of uninterrupted cultivation,
Dongfang Chen had advanced from a One-Star Dou Zhe to a Five-star Dou Practitioner.
With the strength of a Five-star Dou Practitioner, he could easily defeat even a Commander Level Demon.
The Daily Check-in rewards didn't just include medicinal materials. Sometimes, he received low-level Dou Techniques and Cultivation Methods, too.
Dongfang Chen had also tried to teach Ye Xin Xia and Mu Ningxue to cultivate Dou Qi.
But this was a world of magic, with no Dou Qi, so no matter how hard they tried, neither of them could sense it.
As for why Dongfang Chen could cultivate it—
That was all thanks to the system.
And even with the system's help, which allowed Dongfang Chen to cultivate Dou Qi, the lack of Dou Qi in the world meant his cultivation was slow.
Most of the time, he had to rely on pills to reach a normal cultivation speed.
That left Dongfang Chen feeling a little frustrated.
Taking too many pills could destabilize his foundation, so he didn't dare take them recklessly. Otherwise, he wouldn't still be only a Five-star Dou Practitioner.
Although his strength hadn't increased by much, his status as an Alchemist had brought Dongfang Chen an enormous fortune.
People in this world couldn't cultivate Dou Qi, but they could still use pills made with it—and the effects were astonishing.
It was like a patient who had never taken antibiotics experiencing them for the first time. The results were unexpectedly good.
Even an ordinary bottle of First-grade Coagulating Blood Powder, used to treat injuries, was three or four times as effective as it had been in the Original Work.
And that was nothing compared to the other pills, which could accelerate cultivation, protect the meridians, and calm the mind.
When used by people in this world, the effects of these pills were almost always doubled.
Dongfang Chen's Hangzhou Dongfang Family had relied on its monopoly over pill sales to rise swiftly into the ranks of China's top families.
Lately, the Dongfang Family had been using its exclusive pills to break into the international market, while also forging close ties with the logistics division of the Huaxia Military.
The fortune it had amassed in just a few short years was already enough to rival the Zhao Clan of Huaxia, and its influence in China was comparable to the Mu Clan's.
If the Dongfang Family weren't still missing a Forbidden Curse Mage of their own, and if their international influence weren't still somewhat lacking, they could probably have changed their name to the Dongfang Clan by now.
But the day the Dongfang Family became the Dongfang Clan wasn't far off.
The current head of the Dongfang Family, Dongfang Mo, had already reached Half Forbidden Curse. He was just one step away from becoming a Forbidden Curse Mage.
Hangzhou, Huaxia. The Dongfang Family.
"Uncle, this ring contains the pills the family will need for the second half of the year."
Dongfang Chen handed Dongfang Mo a delicate, compact Storage Ring.
Dongfang Chen had received the ring as a check-in reward one day. It was also what he used to transport the pills.
The pills produced by the Dongfang Family had been rapidly claiming market share, but they had also attracted plenty of ill-intentioned people.
Many had tried every trick in the book to find out where the family's pills came from.
But no one could have guessed that the person making them was only a fifteen-year-old boy—and that the pills were transported in nothing more than a small ring.
Dongfang Mo took the ring and said with a smile, "Are you planning to head back to Bocheng again this time?"
Dongfang Chen nodded.
He had already completed the task of settling in Wutan City—Bocheng—and could have left long ago.
But after living in Bocheng for so many years, he'd grown used to it and couldn't be bothered to move.
"I'm planning to go to high school in Bocheng. This time, I'm just taking Xin Xia sightseeing and delivering the pills while I'm at it."
As he spoke, Dongfang Chen glanced at the graceful girl beside him.
Noticing his gaze, she smiled sweetly at him.
The girl was Ye Xin Xia.
Thanks to Dongfang Chen's years of effort, Ye Xin Xia still couldn't use her legs properly, but she could manage to stand and walk short distances without much trouble.
At most, she couldn't do anything too strenuous, like running.
"All right. Chen'er, you've grown up, so I won't interfere too much with your decisions."
Dongfang Mo was still quite worried about Dongfang Chen's safety.
After all, he wasn't just his nephew. He was also the lifeline of the entire Dongfang Family's pill supply.
If anything happened to Dongfang Chen, the whole family would be plunged into decline.
Fortunately, Butler Sai had recently advanced to Archmage. With him by Chen'er's side, he should be able to provide some measure of safety.
After leaving the Dongfang Family with Ye Xin Xia, Dongfang Chen spent several days having fun in Hangzhou. Then the two traveled to the Imperial Capital, where they visited Mu Ningxue at the Imperial Capital Magic Academy.
Ever since Mu Ningxue had awakened Ice Element Magic through Self-Awakening, she had been accepted into the Imperial Capital Magic Academy.
Having grown up together, Mu Ningxue and Ye Xin Xia got along exceptionally well.
That also gave Dongfang Chen the chance to enjoy having a girl on each arm.
"Xuexue, have you gotten used to living in the Imperial Capital?"
The three of them sat on a bench at the Imperial Capital Magic Academy.
Dongfang Chen alternated between resting his head on Mu Ningxue's soft lap and cuddling up to Ye Xin Xia.
The other students passing by couldn't help but envy him.
"It's all right. But just as you said, after I awakened my magic, the Ice Crystal Bow fragments inside me started affecting me."
Mu Ningxue's expression was icy.
But when Dongfang Chen, resting on her lap, turned his head inward, a faint blush still appeared on her cold face.
"Don't fool around. Listen to what I'm saying."
"Mm-hmm. I'm listening."
Dongfang Chen sighed inwardly.
The Ice Crystal Bow was indeed affecting Mu Ningxue a lot.
When they were little, she used to call him Brother Chen in a soft, sweet voice. Now, she no longer called him that.
Mu Ningxue suppressed the strange feeling in her body, glanced at Dongfang Chen, and continued, "My cultivation hasn't been affected for now, but you can see that my personality and emotions have already changed."
"Even so, do you still plan to collect all the Ice Crystal Bow fragments?" Dongfang Chen asked.
"Mm. It's one of the few things I can find that's connected to my mother," Mu Ningxue replied.
When they were little, Dongfang Chen had told Mu Ningxue about the Mu Clan and the Ice Crystal Bow.
He had planned to use Dou Qi to safely draw the Ice Crystal Bow fragments out of Mu Ningxue's body, but she had refused.
"All right. I respect your decision." Dongfang Chen continued enjoying his lap pillow.
Mu Ningxue gazed steadily at Dongfang Chen. "So, to keep the Ice Crystal Bow from affecting my personality, I need your help."
"How can I help you?"
"Like this..."
As soon as she finished speaking, Mu Ningxue lowered her head and leaned in for a kiss.
Dongfang Chen:!!!
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