"If the silver were stolen..."
After the excitement faded, Fang Han began to worry about gains and losses. Though this was the Fang Clan residence, making theft unlikely.
Still, neither in this life nor his previous one had he ever seen so much silver. With such a fortune sitting in his room, he could not help but feel uneasy.
"Recharge."
Taking a deep breath, Fang Han charged seven hundred taels of silver into the System Panel, leaving only seventy-seven taels for emergencies.
The System Panel immediately changed.
[Host: Fang Han] [Root Bone Talent Amplification: 4x (Level 3 amplification requires 1,000 silver)] [Sword Art Talent Amplification: 4x (Level 3 amplification requires 1,000 silver)] [Possessed Wealth: 700 silver]
"Now I don't have to worry about it being stolen!"
Seeing the seven hundred taels lying within the System Panel, Fang Han finally let out a sigh of relief.
Once silver entered the System Panel, let alone bandits or thieves, even he himself could not take it back out.
Because the System Panel could only accept recharges and could not withdraw funds.
"Five taels a month... that'll take over three years..."
Fang Han calculated silently.
At present, he was still short two hundred and twenty-three taels from the thousand taels needed to unlock Level 3 Talent Amplification.
He received five taels of monthly allowance each month. Under normal circumstances, it would take more than three years to save up that sum.
Naturally, he was unwilling to wait that long, and began considering ways to obtain silver quickly.
"A reward from the Lineage?"
The thought flashed through his mind before Fang Han dismissed it.
Those two generous rewards had been exceptions among exceptions. He had only received them because he had won great honor for the Lineage at critical moments. Such opportunities could only be encountered by chance, not relied upon as a regular source.
"The Martial Dao Stele's top ten..."
Fang Han thought of the rewards for the Martial Dao Stele's top ten.
Ordinary Inner Hall disciples could only receive five taels of silver as their monthly allowance, but the top ten on the Martial Dao Stele were different.
Once one entered the Martial Dao Stele's top ten, one would not only receive an exclusive Martial Dao Room and no longer have to share a training ground with other Inner Hall disciples, but would also receive generous monthly rewards.
Moreover, the higher the ranking, the richer the rewards.
If he could enter the Martial Dao Stele's top ten, he would surely greatly shorten the time needed to accumulate silver.
"With my current strength, if I took the Martial Dao Stele test, entering the top twenty should not be a problem. But there should still be quite a gap between me and the top ten."
Fang Han calmly assessed himself.
There was currently a gap between him and the top ten, but it was not an insurmountable one.
"If I can raise my cultivation to Tendon Refining Late-Stage, or break through with the Breeze Sword Art into the Mastery Realm..."
Fang Han estimated that whether he advanced to Tendon Refining Late-Stage or brought the Breeze Sword Art to Mastery, both would greatly raise his ranking and allow him to enter the top ten.
And entering the top ten was currently his most likely means of increasing his monthly income.
With his goal clear, Fang Han cast aside all distractions and began cultivating madly every day.
In the days that followed, the Inner Hall disciples on the Martial Arts Arena discovered in surprise—
Fang Han, who had just defeated Lin Jiao, become famous throughout Liangshui City, and been praised by outsiders as the Fang Clan's "Qilin Child," had not grown the least bit complacent. Instead, he cultivated even harder than before.
Time slipped by silently.
More than ten days later, as Fang Han stood in a corner of the Martial Arts Arena and once again practiced the Breeze Piercing Forest move he already knew by heart, a sudden change occurred!
The instant the sword tip thrust out, the air seemed to be sucked empty. A concentrated burst of force silently shot from the blade.
"Hiss—!"
Like cold lightning sundering the void, it left a clear, straight sword mark more than an inch deep upon the hard bluestone slab over ten feet away.
Compared to the nearly powerless force generated when his Sword Art had been at the Proficiency Realm, this burst possessed considerable might, enough to threaten a Flesh Refining Realm martial artist.
Of course, more importantly, this force was unaffected by the sword's length, making it impossible to guard against.
"The Breeze Sword Art has reached Greater Accomplishment!"
Light shone in Fang Han's eyes. With such force, his Breeze Sword Art had surely advanced from the Proficiency Realm to Greater Accomplishment.
"It took just over a month!"
Fang Han made a rough calculation. Advancing his Sword Art from the Proficiency Realm to Greater Accomplishment had taken him just over a month.
That might have sounded somewhat long, but considering how difficult it was to advance in Sword Art realms, it was in fact astonishingly short.
Fang Xue, who ranked second on the Martial Dao Stele and was known as a Sword Art genius, had taken more than half a year to advance her Sword Art from the Proficiency Realm to Greater Accomplishment.
Meanwhile, ordinary Inner Hall disciples entered the Inner Hall at sixteen, and by the time they left at twenty, their Sword Art often had still not reached Greater Accomplishment.
"That burst of force actually left an inch-deep mark on bluestone! Greater Accomplishment—this is definitely Sword Art Greater Accomplishment!"
"My heavens, how long has it been? How long did he take to go from Proficiency to Greater Accomplishment?!"
"Senior Sister Fang Xue was hailed as a Sword Art genius, yet she took more than half a year to go from Proficiency to Greater Accomplishment, didn't she? Fang Han... took only a month?"
"A monster... he's simply a monster!"
The Martial Arts Arena instantly erupted. Every Inner Hall disciple who witnessed the scene, whether newly admitted or from previous cohorts, drew in a sharp breath.
They knew all too well how difficult it was to advance in Sword Art realms. They had never even heard of such speed as Fang Han's!
"As expected of Fourfold Sword Art Talent Amplification. It allowed me to raise my Sword Art from Proficiency to Greater Accomplishment in just over a month!"
Feeling the unprecedented smoothness and obedience of the sword in his hand, as well as the sharp force that had just surged from its tip, Fang Han's heart churned with excitement.
Fourfold Sword Art Talent Amplification was truly heaven-defying.
His blazing gaze turned toward the courtyard where the Martial Dao Stele stood.
"It's time to see whether the current me can squeeze into the top ten!"
Once the thought arose, he no longer hesitated. Carrying this Refined Iron Sword used for practice, he strode toward the Martial Dao Stele courtyard.
"Is Fang Han going to the Martial Dao Stele?"
"Quick, follow him! Greater Accomplishment Sword Art combined with Tendon Refining Mid-Stage—his ranking is definitely going to soar!"
"Top ten... he might be challenging the top ten!"
The atmosphere on the Martial Arts Arena was instantly ignited. Numerous Inner Hall disciples immediately stopped cultivating and followed Fang Han's footsteps.
Some quick-witted ones realized that they might witness a dramatic shift in the rankings today, and hurried to inform the top ten disciples who possessed their own Martial Dao Rooms.
By the time Fang Han arrived before the Martial Dao Stele, quite a few disciples had gathered behind him to watch the spectacle.
Without the slightest hesitation, he extended a finger and steadily wrote the two characters "Fang Han" upon the cool jade surface of the stele.
Then his gaze instantly became incomparably focused and sharp.
"Breeze Piercing Sun!"
The Breeze Sword Art at the Mastery Realm erupted with full force.
The sword light was no longer a simple streak. It transformed into an incomparably condensed white stream of light, as though it could pierce through all things.
The power of Tendon Refining Mid-Stage poured forth without reserve. The sword tip tore through the air with a shrill, ear-piercing sound of ripping silk, striking the center of the Martial Dao Stele with fierce force.
"Buzzz—!!!"
The Jade Stele shook violently, its light flashing with extreme brilliance. The entire courtyard seemed to tremble slightly.
Everyone's hearts rose to their throats as their eyes remained nailed to the stele's surface.
The number behind the name "Fang Han" began to jump wildly, soaring upward.
Fifty... forty... thirty... twenty... fifteen... eleven... Finally, the light faded, and the number froze at tenth place!
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