Over the following stretch of time, Su Mo kept pushing himself to the limit every day. He drank Body Strengthening Soup as he honed his body, and as he practiced the Azure Origin Body Tempering Art, he grew ever more proficient. Before long, the movements came to him as naturally as breathing.
But his blocked meridians still caught up with him. Once his cultivation broke through to the mid-stage of the Body Tempering Realm, his progress slowed to a crawl. Fortunately, he had Body Strengthening Soup, and the Ancient Profound Pearl extracted the soup's pure medicinal essence every time.
Thanks to that, his cultivation speed remained at least respectable.
Even so, reaching the late stage of the Body Tempering Realm would still take three months.
"Su Mo, these are Ye Zongsheng and Sha Pengxiao. They live in the dorm next to ours, and they joined the school around the same time we did. You could say we're all part of the same batch."
One day, Xie Baolin brought two people over to introduce them to Su Mo.
One was named Ye Zongsheng. He had regular features and a cheerful, outgoing personality, and he liked to talk.
The other was named Sha Pengxiao. He had an unremarkable appearance and a melancholy, quiet disposition. He hardly spoke.
"Su Mo, I'm Ye Zongsheng. I live next door. I hope we can get along."
Ye Zongsheng was delighted to see Su Mo and hurriedly introduced himself. Many of the young disciples at Guande Martial Arts School thought Su Mo was impressive, though they couldn't say exactly why. They just had the feeling that there was more to him than met the eye.
That was why Ye Zongsheng felt so excited.
"I'm Sha Pengxiao."
Unlike the outgoing Ye Zongsheng, Sha Pengxiao was quiet. After introducing himself, he fell silent.
Su Mo nodded. Xie Baolin had gotten to know Ye Zongsheng and Sha Pengxiao because their dorms were close together. After seeing each other day in and day out, they had become familiar.
Ye Zongsheng and Sha Pengxiao had also joined Guande Martial Arts School around the same time as Su Mo, only a day or two apart. So they didn't call one another senior or junior disciples, just used each other's names.
Word was, both of them had excellent martial arts talent. Some people had already taken notice of them and were sponsoring their training.
Lately, Senior Brother Yue Haofeng had been training even harder. It seemed he'd been spurred on by Young Master Fang and Fang Xinwu that day. But people said there was trouble at home for Senior Brother Yue Haofeng.
Su Mo carried on as usual. Every day, he went to the school's medicine hall for Body Strengthening Soup, then headed to the training ground. After all, reaching the late stage of the Body Tempering Realm would take time.
And so, the days slipped by.
Before long, a month had passed in the blink of an eye.
Over the course of that month, Su Mo's cultivation had begun to stir. He was steadily advancing from the middle stage of the Body Tempering Realm toward its peak, and it probably wouldn't be long before he reached it.
On the one hand, he had his tireless daily training to thank. On the other, the Body Strengthening Soup provided by the school had helped him immensely.
But soon, he wouldn't be able to drink it anymore.
His one-month period of free lodging at the school had ended. If Su Mo wanted to stay, he'd have to pay five taels a month in lodging fees.
And if he wanted Body Strengthening Soup, that would cost an additional five taels.
In other words, to keep training at the school as usual, Su Mo would have to pay ten taels a month.
That was no small sum for him. He'd have to go back to the village, bring meat to town, and sell it for money.
"Su Mo, where are you going?"
Seeing Su Mo about to leave, Xie Baolin hurriedly asked.
Xie Baolin's aura was already impressive. He had reached the peak of the early stage of the Body Tempering Realm, and his cultivation speed was astonishing. He seemed completely unaffected by the way the Azure Origin Body Tempering Art grew less effective once someone became a Martial Artist.
As a result, some of the school's higher-ups had begun to take notice of him.
After all, Xie Baolin was young—only sixteen. His constitution wasn't nearly as problematic as Su Xin's or Yue Haofeng's.
Su Mo's cultivation speed wasn't slow, but his age was a factor. Some of the school's higher-ups didn't think he would achieve much in martial arts.
Xie Baolin, on the other hand, had made them sit up and take notice.
"I'm going back to the village for a while. I'll be back at the school soon," Su Mo said.
"All right. Take care. I'll be waiting for you at the school!"
Xie Baolin looked solemn. He knew Su Mo was probably running short on money. If he couldn't pay, he'd have no choice but to leave the school—the cost of staying there was simply too high.
Xie Baolin himself had run out of money and couldn't afford another month's lodging. But because of his outstanding performance in martial arts, some people at the school had sponsored him and paid his steep ten-tael lodging fee.
They had even promised to cover his lodging costs at the school going forward.
That showed how much faith they had in Xie Baolin. They believed he was destined for great things and had chosen to invest in him early.
Because of Su Mo's age, those people had simply overlooked him, deciding he wasn't worth investing in.
When Su Mo left the school, he didn't see Senior Brother Yue Haofeng. Xie Baolin told him that there seemed to be trouble at home for Yue Haofeng, and he hadn't been to the school for several days.
When Su Mo departed, Ye Zongsheng and Sha Pengxiao from the neighboring dorm came to see him off. Though Su Mo kept saying he was just going home for a while and would soon return to Guande Martial Arts School,
Ye Zongsheng and the others knew that was just a tactful way of putting it. Maybe once he left, he'd be gone for good.
They didn't call him out on it. They simply told him to take care on the road.
Even Sha Pengxiao, who hardly ever spoke, said more than usual this time. He knew that after this farewell, it might be a long time before they met again.
They might not have called one another senior and junior disciples, but their bond was every bit as strong.
When Su Mo left, Xie Baolin was so reluctant to part that he wiped away tears.
Su Mo waved and walked out of Guande Martial Arts School.
"Su Mo, are you leaving the school?"
Just as Su Mo was leaving Guande Martial Arts School, he ran into someone. He knew the man well: Senior Brother Luo Lianbo, who had brought him into the school in the first place, and a genuine expert in the Meridian Opening Realm.
"Mm. I'm going back for a while," Su Mo replied.
Luo Lianbo looked him over. "Go on, then. Don't stay away too long."
Su Mo nodded and disappeared into the crowd.
"Su Mo may have issues with his age and constitution, but his cultivation speed isn't slow. It's just that those people don't think he's worth investing in. I hope they won't regret it."
Luo Lianbo watched the passersby on the street and spoke in a low voice. He had brought Su Mo to Guande Martial Arts School, and he had kept an eye on Su Mo's progress. That was why he thought so highly of him.
But those people, including some of the school's higher-ups, had always believed Su Mo's martial arts talent was far inferior to Xie Baolin's, who shared his dorm, and even to that of Ye Zongsheng and Sha Pengxiao next door.
Ye Zongsheng and Sha Pengxiao had also found sponsors for their training, which was why they hadn't left the school.
But those people had little faith in Su Mo.
They believed that because of his age and constitution, the best he could ever hope for was the peak of the late stage of the Body Tempering Realm.
And they said it would take Su Mo at least five years, perhaps even ten, to reach the late stage of the Body Tempering Realm.
It was plain to see how little faith they had in him.
But they thought highly of Xie Baolin, Ye Zongsheng, and the others. They all believed they could reach the Meridian Opening Realm at the very least, and perhaps even break through to a higher realm.
So naturally, they chose to sponsor Xie Baolin, Ye Zongsheng, and the others.
Luo Lianbo had tried to persuade them, but they remained convinced that their judgment was sound.
For a Martial Artist to grow stronger and raise their cultivation, they needed martial arts resources. They could either seize them for themselves or rely on someone who believed in them enough to provide sponsorship.
Yet not a single person was willing to sponsor Su Mo, a young man who stood out even at Guande Martial Arts School.
That left Su Mo no choice but to leave Guande Martial Arts School.
Luo Lianbo shook his head, feeling that it was a shame.
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