Qingcang Academy

Late autumn. The setting sun slanted across the sky.

Beside the Martial Arena in Qingcang Academy's Outer Prefecture stood a massive black obsidian stele, inscribed with five large characters: "Outer Prefecture Battle Merit Rankings."

"Jin Jin, have you heard? On Martial Day three days from now, Senior Brother Ning is challenging Qin Jue!"

In front of the stele, a round-faced girl tugged at her friend and deliberately lowered her voice, though excitement was written all over her face.

The round-faced girl was Shen Zhiqiu. Her talent was nothing special, but her family was skilled at doing business, so she managed to rank in the middle-to-lower tier of the Outer Prefecture.

The girl she was tugging along had long hair that fell to her waist and gentle features. Her name was Su Jin, and she was also an Outer Court Disciple.

At Shen Zhiqiu's words, Su Jin froze for a moment, her brows knitting unconsciously.

"Challenge Qin Jue?"

A hard-to-name feeling welled up inside her. Her voice dropped as she asked, "Why... why is Senior Brother Ning challenging him?"

She knew the answer perfectly well, yet couldn't help asking anyway.

Shen Zhiqiu lowered her voice, her eyes glinting with mischief. "Jin Jin, don't play dumb. A few days ago, you turned down his invitation, and right after that, he went to challenge Qin Jue. The reason behind it... anyone with half a brain can see."

"Who in the Outer Prefecture doesn't know how Senior Brother Ning feels about you?"

Su Jin said nothing. She simply gazed toward the Martial Arena in the distance, her eyes full of worry.

Seeing Su Jin fall silent, Shen Zhiqiu dropped her teasing manner and spoke seriously. "I just passed by Deacon Hall and saw that the challenge has been officially registered. On Martial Day three days from now, Qin Jue won't be able to avoid it."

"According to the rules, disciples ranked in the top thousand can challenge disciples ranked in the bottom thousand. The winner takes half the loser's Battle Merit."

She paused and shook her head. "It's supposed to be a chance for those at the bottom to save themselves. If they can defeat a stronger opponent, they can avoid being eliminated. But in reality... who could ever bridge a gap of several thousand places and beat their opponent? Qin Jue has so little Battle Merit to begin with. If he loses half of it, he'll probably be expelled from the Outer Prefecture outright."

"Eliminated..."

Su Jin murmured to herself, Qin Jue's ever-calm face appearing in her mind.

Shen Zhiqiu nodded. "And this time, Senior Brother Ning posted the challenge notice right at the Martial Arena entrance. Everyone in the Outer Prefecture saw it. If Qin Jue doesn't dare accept, how will he be able to show his face around here again?"

Su Jin bit her red lip, a flicker of conflict in her eyes. "Senior Brother Ning has gone too far. If Qin Jue loses his Battle Merit and gets expelled, what will he... do after that?"

Seeing Su Jin like this, Shen Zhiqiu grew anxious. She knew Su Jin too well: softhearted and sentimental. If anything really happened to Qin Jue, she would be miserable for a long time.

She clasped Su Jin's hand, her expression earnest. "Jin Jin, you're just too sentimental!"

"I know you and Qin Jue grew up together, but look at Senior Brother Ning. He may be a collateral member of the Ning Family, but Senior Brother Li Changfeng from the Inner Court thinks highly of him and often gives him pointers."

At that, she glanced at Su Jin and sighed helplessly. "Then look at Qin Jue. He's ranked below eight thousand. Sigh... how could he ever compare?"

"What's more, Senior Brother Ning is at the Hundred Refinements Fourth Layer and has already entered the Jade Bone stage, while Qin Jue has only just reached the Hundred Refinements Third Layer. They're not even in the same league!"

The Hundred Refinements Realm was the starting stage of martial cultivation. The first through third layers were the Forged Skin stage, focused on training the skin, flesh, muscles, and sinews. The fourth through sixth layers were the Jade Bone stage, when the bones began to be tempered and one's strength multiplied.

The leap from the third layer to the fourth was a massive divide. Once a martial artist crossed it, their bones would undergo their first tempering. When they threw a punch with all their strength, their joints would vibrate and their power would surge. A third-layer martial artist simply couldn't stand against them.

Su Jin remained silent.

Once upon a time, that boy had been full of ambition, promising her with absolute confidence, "Once I get into Qingcang Academy, I'll make a name for myself."

But now...

"Maybe this is just fate."

A complicated look crossed Su Jin's eyes. "Without talent or resources, no matter how hard you try... it's all just futile."

Just as the two girls were talking, a deafening burst of cheers suddenly erupted from the middle of the Martial Arena.

They both turned toward the sound. In the center of the arena, a young man in an ornate robe was practicing his saber techniques.

The young man was handsome and tall. As he swung his saber, the blade wind howled, sending out waves of force like a surging tide. Each strike was heavier than the last, its momentum astonishing.

Even more astonishing, every time he swung his saber, a deep rumble of thunder rolled from within him. It was the sound of his bones resonating, so powerful that the air around him trembled faintly.

Boom!

Boom!

The thunderous rumble echoed across the Martial Arena alongside the saber wind. When the young man finished his set, he lowered his saber and stood at ease, not a single bead of sweat on his forehead. Clearly, he had performed it effortlessly.

"Truly worthy of being Senior Brother Ning!"

"Is this the power of the Mortal Tier High-grade Hundred Bones Thunderous Sound Art? The sound of his bones resonating is downright terrifying!"

"Look at the momentum of that saber! Each strike stacks on the last, like waves rolling in. That's the essence of the Thousand Waves Saber!"

The watching disciples cried out in amazement, their eyes brimming with envy.

This was Ning Zhiyuan.

In Qingcang Academy, this talent-forging furnace built by the Divine Dynasty, ranking among the top eight hundred already made someone a true expert. And with his Mortal Tier High-grade cultivation method and martial skill, he had few rivals among those of the same realm.

Hearing the praise around him, Ning Zhiyuan's lips curled into a faint smile. His gaze swept toward the Stone Pavilion in the distance, where he spotted Su Jin. A look of determination flashed in his eyes.

"Senior Brother Ning, you must have already mastered the Thousand Waves Saber to the Layered Waves stage, haven't you?"

A disciple who looked like a lackey hurried up to him, his face full of flattery.

Ning Zhiyuan waved a hand, his expression mild. "I've only just begun. I still have a long way to go."

He said that, but the smug look on his face was impossible to hide.

Another lackey beamed at him. "Senior Brother Ning, you're too modest! Senior Brother Li Changfeng even said you have a gift for saber techniques. With your strength, that Qin Jue won't dare show up three days from now, will he? He's ranked somewhere in the eight thousands. Where would he find the nerve to step into the arena?"

At the mention of Qin Jue, Ning Zhiyuan's expression darkened slightly. He let out a cold snort. "He wouldn't dare come? I issued that challenge in front of everyone. If he runs away, will the Qin Family still have any face left in the Four Directions Alliance?"

"Then if he does come, he'll only be walking to his death!"

The lackey kept fawning over him. "You're at the Hundred Refinements Fourth Layer, Senior Brother Ning, and you're cultivating a Mortal Tier High-grade method. He's only at the third layer. You could split him in two with one strike!"

Ning Zhiyuan frowned. "Don't put it like that. We're fellow disciples. I just... want him to face reality."

As he spoke, he glanced toward the Stone Pavilion again, lowering his voice. "Some people don't deserve to stand beside certain others."

The lackeys immediately understood and nodded in agreement.

Ning Zhiyuan drew a deep breath and turned to leave the Martial Arena. Before he went, he looked once more toward the Stone Pavilion, the obsession in his eyes growing ever clearer.

At the Stone Pavilion, Shen Zhiqiu had grown even more excited after watching Ning Zhiyuan's display. She tugged at Su Jin. "Jin Jin, did you see? Senior Brother Ning is amazing! The thunderclap of his resonating bones, and the waves of his Thousand Waves Saber—how could Qin Jue possibly win three days from now?"

Su Jin was silent for a while, saying nothing.

Her gaze drifted to the Battle Merit Rankings beside the Stone Pavilion. On the massive black obsidian stele, Ning Zhiyuan's name was ranked eight hundred and thirty-first, while Qin Jue's... was somewhere past eight thousand three hundred.

A gap of seven thousand places, like an insurmountable chasm.

"Sigh, I wonder what Qin Jue is doing right now."

Shen Zhiqiu suddenly thought of something and shook her head with a sigh. "He's probably terrified, right? Maybe he's hiding in his courtyard, too afraid to go out... I can't blame him. If I faced a gap like that, I'd probably hesitate for ages just to concede."

Su Jin was silent for a moment, then said softly, "I hope... he can come to terms with it."

What she meant was that he should just concede. At least then, he could keep his life.

Shen Zhiqiu nodded regretfully. "Yeah. Conceding may be humiliating, but at least he won't get hurt. Qin Jue is just too stubborn."

The two fell silent for a while, then went their separate ways.

The sky darkened as the sun sank, and the Martial Arena steadily emptied.

In groups of two and three, the Outer Court Disciples returned to their courtyards, talking all the way about the challenge three days away.

"Qin Jue's probably finished."

A Hundred Refinements Third Layer against a Hundred Refinements Fourth Layer—he doesn't stand a chance.

"And the gap between their cultivation methods is even bigger. Senior Brother Ning practices a Mortal Tier High-grade method, while half the Academy is learning Qin Jue's Azure Pine Qi Drawing Art."

"Sigh, what a gap..."

In the southwestern corner of the Outer Prefecture stood a remote little courtyard.

Its walls were mottled, its door had split in several places, and a few withered weeds grew by the corners.

Behind the courtyard gate, a thin figure sat cross-legged on a cushion, utterly motionless.

That was Qin Jue.

His eyes were closed and his expression calm, as if the gossip outside had no effect on him at all.