Cold Smoke Breaks the Wall

"Whoosh—bang!"

"Whoosh—bang!"

"Whoosh—bang!"

The last old bus rattled and swayed beneath streetlights where the neon had begun to thin. Only two or three weary homebound passengers remained inside.

Li Wen sat by the window, the endless clamor of the night sky outside ringing in his ears.

In midair, dazzling fireworks bloomed one after another. Multicolored sparks briefly lit up the lead-gray night sky before vanishing in an instant, leaving behind a faint scent of gunpowder that slipped in through the crack in the window.

Watching that fleeting splendor, Li Wen paused slightly before pulling himself free from his constantly racing thoughts. Oh, right. Tomorrow was New Year's Day.

The bells of the new year also marked the approaching end of the semester. Final exams were just around the corner.

"This final exam..." Li Wen unconsciously rubbed the faded cuff of his school uniform. His gaze returned to the retreating streetscape outside the window as he swiftly calculated in his heart.

"Top ten in class... the highest-tier bonus for the school's 'Annual Progress Award' is one thousand, plus five hundred for the top-ten 'Excellence Scholarship'... that makes fifteen hundred. It should be enough to buy three Level 1 Blood Qi Potions."

Three potions. The thought was like a faint cluster of flames, temporarily dispelling the gloom coiled around his heart.

With those three extra supplies, he could raise his Flesh Rank a little more during the winter break that followed.

That way, when the Flying Star Class selections began at the start of next semester, his greatest weakness—his Flesh Rank score—would not fall too far behind everyone else's. He would not let the advantage in technique that he had painstakingly built go to waste.

Yet however the flame flickered, it could not illuminate the heavy foundations of reality.

A nearly inaudible sigh slipped from his lips.

Poor. He was truly far too poor.

A single coin could stump even a hero.

Otherwise... with a Scholar panel that was practically a cheat at his side, why would he need to rack his brains over such copper-stinking things, haggling over every penny?

As his thoughts surged, the bus chugged out of the bustling main district.

The flowing neon outside seemed to be wiped away by an invisible giant hand. The humming booms of fireworks also rapidly faded with the distance until they fell completely silent.

In these days of rampaging demonic beasts and scarce resources, fireworks had long ceased to be ordinary things. Only wealthy merchants and powerful nobles with mountains of money could afford to squander their spare wealth on a momentary blaze of light.

A fireworks ban? It had long become nothing but empty words on paper. Between survival and pleasure, people's choices had always been so... clear-cut as the Jing and Wei rivers.

The bus entered the old district. Outside the window, there was only night so dense it could not be dissolved, and a few scattered dots of dim yellow light. Li Wen sat silently in the corner, his shadow stretched long and thin.

The next morning, January 1, 226. New Year's Day.

There was no holiday. In the life of a Grade 12 student, New Year's Day was merely a slightly different number on the calendar.

When Li Wen woke from his light sleep, Father Li, Li Hong, and Mother Li, Wang Juan, had long since vanished from their cramped home.

Only the old wooden table in the center of the empty living room still retained the traces of morning life.

A familiar hard cardboard box with purplish-brown patterns had been placed solemnly on the table. Beneath it was a small folded note.

Li Wen walked over and gently picked up the box. Underneath, his mother's familiar, graceful handwriting came into view:

"Ah Wen, Happy New Year! —Mom"

Those brief two lines carried the warmth of breakfast still fresh from the stove.

A warm curve rose at the corner of Li Wen's mouth. He carefully folded the note and tucked it into the inner pocket of his school uniform, as though he had properly stored away that concern still carrying her warmth.

Then his gaze fell upon the empty box. These were the three guaranteed Qi-Blood Potions allotted to him for the month.

The amount was not much, but they were crucial bargaining chips for his Flesh Rank test in the final exams.

He carefully checked the inside of the box to make sure there was nothing wrong before picking it up and heading into his tiny room, where he securely hid it in the bottom drawer of his bedside cabinet.

He had no plans to take them immediately. He planned to use them on the nights three days before the final exams began.

There was no other reason. It still came down to two words—efficiency.

He needed to use these precious days to raise the proficiency of the Fracture Edge Gold Sha Method a little further.

Even if he only raised it from its current Minor Accomplishment of 5 points to 10 points, the effect would be completely different.

If he took the Qi-Blood Potions then, the circulation and absorption of his blood qi, as well as the efficiency with which it stimulated his body, would all be higher.

He had to squeeze every last drop from his limited resources and calculate every fraction of every cent. It was a helpless choice carved into his bones and blood, the only way he knew how to live.

Ask his parents for more? Unless he had truly reached the end of the road, how could he bear to?

Their weathered yet resilient figures rose earlier and returned later than he did every day. That weighty love and sacrifice had long made him unable to ask for anything more.

As for borrowing money... a bitter smile flashed across Li Wen's lips. Those relatives... everyone he could borrow from had already been borrowed from.

Back then, gathering the fifty thousand Huaxia Coins for the "class selection fee" had already drained every last scrap of goodwill. Poor in a bustling city, and no one asked after you.

After hurriedly washing up, he quickly yet carefully finished the simple breakfast Mother Li had specially kept warm for him, wasting not a second more.

Li Wen slung on his faded canvas schoolbag, its corners worn with age, and once again stepped alone into the biting New Year's morning wind.

Qingshi No.3 High School, Class 21, Grade 12 cultural studies classroom.

There were no surprises. Before the first faint rays of dawn had fully driven the shadows from the corridor, Li Wen had already pushed open the classroom door.

The empty classroom echoed only with the sound of him pulling out his chair. The seat by the window in the corner was his fixed fortress.

The previous night, he had already confirmed the final exam schedule in the class chat.

The cultural subjects would be tested on January 9, while martial techniques and Flesh Rank testing would take place on January 10.

And the greatest obstacle standing before his goal of reaching the top ten in class was the final point of experience stuck at [Technique: Blade Technique · Advanced (Greater Accomplishment 99/100)].

That invisible, untouchable, yet incomparably solid bottleneck. Break through it, and he would enter the realm of Greater Accomplishment Perfection, only one step away from Peak Blade Art.

His greatest reliance and hope still lay in raising his Scholar level.

Now a level 2 Scholar, he had gained level 2 Absolute Focus, increasing his comprehension by 20%.

That was already an immensely precious boost. But it was not enough. Far from enough.

Level 3 Scholar! That would mean level 3 Absolute Focus, raising his comprehension by a terrifying 30%.

When he used his skills then, his ability to deduce, understand, and integrate blade techniques would leap onto an entirely new level. Only then could he maximize his chances of breaking through the final bottleneck of Perfection.

The Scholar level was the core foundation of his martial path. Raising it could not wait a moment! Its priority was irreplaceable!

Six hours of grinding experience every day, without fail! This was his battlefield as he raced against time and wrestled with fate.

He opened High-Energy Mathematics Fundamentals and immersed himself in the ocean of intricate, profound formulas.

Ten minutes later.

[You studied earnestly for ten minutes. Scholar experience +1]

[Profession: Scholar lv2 (8→9/200)]

The cold notification appeared, yet it was a blazing record of him steadily advancing toward his goal.

"Morning, study maniac." A familiar, boisterous voice came from the doorway. Wei Wu pushed the door open right on time.

"Morning!" Li Wen lifted his head from the book and answered.

Wei Wu seemed somewhat different today. Obvious curiosity and probing showed on his face. He crossed the room in a few quick strides, leaned over Li Wen's desk, fixed his small eyes on him, and lowered his voice.

"Li Wen, I heard people saying... your blade technique's about to reach Greater Accomplishment Perfection? Is that true?"

Li Wen set down his book and looked at him calmly, nodding frankly. "It's true."

At this point, there was no need for him to hide it. Since he had chosen to display his transformed blade technique before everyone, he naturally did not fear what they would say.

This concerned his Flying Star Class application. It concerned whether he could obtain that vital Progress Award in the final exams.

Besides, a breakthrough from Greater Accomplishment to Perfection was hardly earth-shattering among Grade 12 students, where Dark Horses emerged every year.

The enormous external threat facing human civilization would only make the Alliance happy to see more geniuses rise to prominence, not suppress them.

"It's actually true! Holy shit!" Though he had already prepared himself mentally, Wei Wu was still so excited that his voice rose several pitches. His small eyes widened into circles.

"Could you really have... awakened? That legendary thing where long accumulation erupts all at once, where potential explodes?!"

Wei Wu's face had turned red with excitement, as if that heaven-shaking good fortune had fallen upon him. He began gesturing animatedly as he painted the picture.

"If you really awakened, that'd be incredible! It'd be a carp leaping over the dragon gate! Xinhuo Hall! Virtual Company! Those major powers would definitely catch wind of it and rush to sign you! You might even get an S-Level Contract right away! You'd stride straight to the pinnacle of life and marry a rich, beautiful woman..."

"Ahem..." Watching his deskmate grow more and more excited, Li Wen had no choice but to cut off his grand ambitions. "It's not that exaggerated." Even so, a faint ripple passed through Li Wen's heart.

Being signed early by those top powers that commanded vast resources? He had indeed considered it.

Under the human Galactic Alliance stood four great giants:

Xinhuo Hall, responsible for nurturing the finest talents;

Virtual Company, which controlled the Virtual World and information networks;

Galaxy Bank, which linked every economic lifeline;

And the Mercenary Alliance, which led external exploration, mercenary forces, and the acquisition of scarce resources.

They were colossal entities standing above nations, jointly sustaining humanity's survival and development beneath the threat of demonic beasts.

Rumor had it that true geniuses noticed by these giants would all be signed early, given lavish resources and elite training systems as an "investment."

Even the lowest-tier contract could easily be worth more than a million Huaxia Coins. As for the higher S-Level Contracts... legend said they involved astronomical sums capable of lifting an ordinary person into the clouds in a single step.

If any one of them signed him early... the Flying Star Class? That would merely be a starting platform! Resources? They would flow in without end!

At that thought, even with Li Wen's composure, his heart could not help but pound several times faster. But he quickly calmed down.

With the little talent he had currently displayed? He might count as outstanding at Qingshi No.3 High School, but among the vast number of Grade 12 students across Qingshi County, or even the entire Huaxia Kingdom... even the lowest D-Level Contract was likely beyond his reach.

In all of Qingshi County, only those freakish talents from No.1 High School who had successfully entered the Unity Realm had been signed by the major powers this year.

And according to circulating news, even they had only received B-level Contracts at best. Most had received merely C-level or D-Level Contracts.

Contract grades directly reflected a faction's assessment of a signer's future potential. The higher the grade, the more highly they were valued.

He, Li Wen... still had a long and arduous road ahead.

Under Li Wen's rational analysis and persuasion, Wei Wu finally cooled down from his boiling imagination and smacked his lips as he returned to his seat, lingering excitement still on his face.

Yet the shock and longing at the possibility that the classmate beside him might soar into the sky in a single leap remained in his heart, impossible to fully calm throughout the morning's studies.

Time seemed to have had its acceleration button pressed.

"Ring-ring-ring—" The dismissal bell rang punctually at noon.

[Profession: Scholar lv2 (9→44/200)]

Li Wen calculated silently. Six hours of hard study had earned him 36 experience points. The efficiency remained constant. In another five days, on January 6, he would have accumulated 200 points, and his Scholar level would successfully rise to level 3!

And January 6 was still three days away from the January 9 cultural studies final exam.

There were four days left until the martial arts test on the 10th.

In other words, the 30% comprehension boost granted by level 3 Scholar would become his sharpest spear for breaking through the wall as he charged toward blade technique Perfection and even attempted the Initiation of Peak Blade Art.

"Time... it's tight, but I hope it'll be enough." He skillfully and swiftly stacked the books spread across his desk and put them back into the drawer.

Li Wen stood up. The stiffness from sitting too long made faint cracking sounds as he stretched his bones.

Feeling the soreness in his muscles, he took a deep breath and strode out of the classroom.

Outside the corridor, the winter noon sunlight spilled down with rare warmth, illuminating his back as he headed toward the cafeteria—more resolute than when he had arrived.