Funds Arrive

January 13, 9:00 a.m., the third day of winter break.

In the bedroom, the warm winter sun streamed through the window and fell across the desk.

Li Wen sat upright, his fingertips tracing the pages of a thick Galactic Common Language (Basic and Advanced Edition) textbook. His brows furrowed slightly, and his lips moved soundlessly as he struggled to sound out a series of complex syllables.

The report card lying beside the book clearly showed his final grades: the other five subjects—Excellent; Foreign Language (Galactic Common Language)—Good.

"Ugh... These rules for initial syllables are such a tongue-twister." Li Wen rubbed his throbbing temples.

Even with the thirty-percent boost to his comprehension from Absolute Focus, learning the language had still been a struggle. That was proof enough of just how shaky his foundation had been.

This winter break, mastering Galactic Common Language and raising his overall cultural-subject scores—and thereby gaining more Scholar experience—had become another major task alongside cultivation.

This new human lingua franca, spoken by one hundred percent of the population, had a mysterious origin that the textbooks and classrooms barely touched on.

It was no longer English, Russian, or Japanese from the old era. It came from the backdrop of a much broader galactic civilization, and every human child was expected to learn it from the moment they began to babble.

For Li Wen, it was not only necessary for exams; it might also be a key to exploring a wider world in the future.

Just as he was sinking into the mental whirlpool of unfamiliar grammar, two crisp message alerts rang out—"Ding-dong! Ding-dong!"—followed by the distinctive deposit notification from the payment app on his phone.

Li Wen's spirits lifted, and he snatched up the phone on his desk almost instantly.

He unlocked it with his fingerprint. The screen lit up, revealing two clearly visible messages at the top from Huanong Bank:

[Huanong Bank]: Your account ending in 9409 received a deposit of 2,000.00 yuan at 9:00 a.m. on January 13, "Progress Award, etc." Balance: 2,574.85 yuan. Payer: Qingshi County Treasury Central Payment Center.

[Huanong Bank]: Your account ending in 9409 received a deposit of 10,000.00 yuan at 9:00 a.m. on January 13, "Second-Class Scholarship." Balance: 12,574.85 yuan. Payer: Qingshi County Treasury Central Payment Center.

"Phew..." Li Wen stared at the vivid "12,574.85" on the screen and let out a long, genuine sigh of relief. A heartfelt smile bloomed across his face.

"Right on time! They said three to five days, but it came through on the third!"

These twelve thousand yuan were the key to unlocking a rapid path to raising his Flesh Rank.

Especially the one thousand yuan Progress Award, plus another thousand for placing in the top three in his class.

What surprised him a little was that he had actually climbed to the top three in the class rankings. That was five hundred yuan more than he had initially expected.

That meant he could buy a full twenty-four Level 1 Blood Qi Potions.

For an ordinary student, going through twenty-four Blood Qi Potions in thirty days of winter break was almost unthinkable.

At a normal person's absorption rate, they needed to wait about three days before they could fully digest one potion without damaging their foundation.

For most students in Class 21, ten potions a month was the limit. Those with slightly better talent and a solid grounding in the Basic Method could barely manage one every two days by pushing themselves to the limit.

But Li Wen was different. He had Absolute Focus!

This ability could be used not only for studying and comprehending the Dao; when he practiced the Basic Method, it let him wield willpower far beyond an ordinary person's, precisely wringing out and tempering every trace of potential in his body. He could completely absorb and convert his blood qi, without wasting a drop.

The standard stance that ordinary Warriors struggled to maintain through the extreme exhaustion at the end of stance training was, for him, a daily trial under the effects of Absolute Focus.

Twenty-four potions, one winter break—that was the intensity plan he had tailored to himself.

"I should tell Mom and Dad the good news." Li Wen quickly typed a brief message and sent it to his father, Li Hong, and his mother.

He hadn't mentioned applying for the scholarship beforehand. His father was already under tremendous mental strain after being laid off, and Li Wen didn't want to get his family's hopes up for nothing.

His father had been busy these past few days attending memorials for the coworkers who had died in the Greenwood Project accident, leaving early and coming home late. Li Wen hadn't had a chance to tell him in person, either.

After sending the messages, Li Wen picked up the Galactic Common Language textbook again. His gaze grew focused and sharp once more.

Time slipped by as he concentrated.

It wasn't until his phone alarm rang at 12:30 that Li Wen put down his book and stretched with a long yawn. A notification appeared in his mind at the same time:

[You studied diligently for six hours. Scholar experience +36]

[Profession: Scholar lv5 (200→236/1600)]

The clear-headed feeling that came with his increased Scholar level still lingered pleasantly, but he had a long way to go.

He briskly slung on the backpack he had already filled with compressed energy bars and high-protein energy paste, then left home.

The bus to Xinhuo Hall rolled along smoothly.

Familiar streets sped past outside the window. Li Wen had his eyes closed, reviewing the afternoon's difficult points in the Rainbow Light Blade Art, when a sudden voice broke the quiet inside the bus.

"We interrupt our broadcast with an urgent news announcement. Residents of Qingshi County, please take note: be sure to avoid Greenwood Road and the surrounding area when traveling! Due to an unexpected incident, the area has been temporarily sealed off by the Public Security Bureau. The reopening time is yet to be determined... We apologize for any inconvenience."

The serious announcement replaced the advertisement that had been playing over the bus radio.

"Greenwood Road?" Li Wen opened his eyes. "Isn't that near the original Greenwood Project site? There was a massive collapse there just two days ago, with heavy casualties... It's only been that long, and something happened again?"

A trace of unease and suspicion passed through his mind. The project had entangled far too many people. His father had once been part of it, and the list of dead from that disaster had weighed on the whole family for days.

A few minutes later, the bus neared the outskirts of Greenwood Road. Li Wen looked out through the window.

Sure enough, a taller ring of blue temporary barricade panels had been erected around the original accident site. Several uniformed public security officers stood at the entrance, with conspicuous warning tape stretched across it. The no-entry signs stood out clearly.

Beyond the panels, a faint haze of smoke seemed to linger. Vehicles and pedestrians had been diverted well away from the area.

"Looks like a pretty big disturbance..." Li Wen frowned, but that was all.

He tried to get a better look and find out more, but he couldn't make out anything beyond the officers and the barricade panels.

The bus soon passed by, and the sealed-off area quickly disappeared from view.

His intense curiosity was soon drowned out by reality—his father no longer worked there, and the site was a long way from home. Aside from passing nearby on his way to Xinhuo Hall, it was in a completely different direction from his home.

The news had said to go around it, so he would leave it alone. His time was precious now; he couldn't afford to let anything distract him.

Cultivating, getting stronger, and earning money to treat his father's illness—that was his most important battleground.

"You've arrived at Xinhuo Hall!" a clear electronic announcement rang out.