All afternoon, Zhang Tie was as restless as the other young bucks. That day's biology class with Teacher Daina had left everyone with an unforgettable memory. Even by afternoon, some were still in a daze, seeming unable to believe that a green young lad like them could have made such a promise with Teacher Daina. Could the unattainable, goddess-like Teacher Daina really, someday, have even the slightest chance of becoming his woman?
Even the slimmest possibility was enough to make all the young bucks erupt with unprecedented spirit on the training ground. They were all as excited as if they'd been injected with chicken blood, leaving the instructors on the field astonished.
From that afternoon until school let out, and even after he returned from his part-time job at Tang De's general store, Zhang Tie could think of only two things.
The first was the Flawless Fruit. According to Teacher Daina, a tremendous amount of energy leaked from the human body in daily life. Urine was one source, semen another, and sweat another. Even the energy contained in food that was wasted because the digestive system failed to fully digest and absorb it counted. No one could say how much all that energy added up to. After thinking it over, Zhang Tie realized that if Teacher Daina was telling the truth, then since last week—not counting today—he hadn't had a nocturnal emission for five days. In the past, he would have had at least three during that time. But now he hadn't had a single one. Didn't that mean the life energy from those three emissions—the energy that had created billions of little tadpoles—had all been converted into energy for the Flawless Fruit? Zhang Tie had no idea how powerful that energy was, and neither did Teacher Daina. The only information she could offer was that, supposedly, in the ancient secret cultivation system of the Qi Practitioners in the East, there was a practice called "refining essence into qi"—turning the tangible human body's essence into the powerful, intangible life energy known as "qi." It seemed to be connected to harnessing the immense life energy produced by the reproductive system. And that was only one source of the Flawless Fruit's energy. Thinking carefully, Zhang Tie realized that his urine had seemed much lighter in color these past few days, his appetite had grown, and he seemed to sweat less when exercising. Could all of that be the fruit's effect?
Teacher Daina said those were only the tangible, visible forms of energy loss. There were many more invisible losses: the heat our bodies constantly gave off; the magnetic fields and human bio-glow that people had discovered before the Great Cataclysm and that surrounded us; and an energy called electric charge, which Zhang Tie didn't understand, but which had also been discovered before the Great Cataclysm and was produced inside the human body every second. The greatest invisible loss of all came from the chaotic, ever-changing thoughts racing through each person's mind every second—in other words, the activity of the human spirit and consciousness. Such mental and conscious activity also caused immense energy loss. Some of these thoughts were things people could perceive themselves, and were called the conscious mind; others went unnoticed and were called the subconscious or superconscious. When Teacher Daina said that dreaming and idle thoughts were also channels through which this conscious or spiritual energy leaked away, Zhang Tie remembered that he'd been sleeping exceptionally well lately. Every morning, his mind felt especially clear. Could that be because the Flawless Fruit was converting and absorbing the conscious energy he would normally lose?
What miraculous effects would the Flawless Fruit have, after gathering all the tangible and intangible energy from his entire body over the course of a week?
Thinking about it made Zhang Tie even more eager for the Flawless Fruit, which would emerge in just three days. At that moment, he still couldn't fully understand the meaning of the two words "flawless" in its name. But to Zhang Tie, no matter how profound that meaning might be, it couldn't compare with the rank badge of a Blood Scorpion Warrior right before his eyes.
The second thing Zhang Tie had spent the entire afternoon thinking about was how he could become a Blood Scorpion Warrior before he turned twenty, gain the strength to protect Teacher Daina, and make her his woman. No matter how hard he racked his brains, he couldn't see even the slightest possibility.
Blood Scorpion Warrior—the fourth rank of the Warrior profession. Before becoming a Warrior, one had to pass through five ranks as a Battle Soldier. That made a Blood Scorpion Warrior a ninth-rank high-level professional recognized by the Continental Warrior Guild: a mighty fighter who had ignited the Thought Fire in all thirty-four Bright Points along his spine. Many people could only look up to such a high-level combatant for their entire lives. They were even stronger than One-Eyed Dragon. What a dazzling presence a twenty-year-old Blood Scorpion Warrior would be! If he weren't that dazzling, how could he possibly deserve a goddess like Teacher Daina?
To rise eight ranks in five years, before turning twenty, starting out as a green young lad who hadn't even ignited the Thought Fire at his Divine Palace Bright Point—that was the only way he could win Goddess Daina's heart in this lifetime. What kind of genius could pull that off?
But for Teacher Daina, he'd give it everything he had! He still had Castle of Black Iron and that magical Little Tree, after all...
Thinking of Teacher Daina's promise, Zhang Tie's heart burned with excitement.
On his way home from Tang De's general store, Zhang Tie watched the streetlamps gradually light up. The fifteen-year-old's gaze grew steadily more resolute, and he began to look up toward a goal he'd never imagined he could reach in this lifetime: becoming a powerful warrior bearing the Blood Scorpion as his totem before he turned twenty...
Gurgle, gurgle—his stomach started rumbling again. Zhang Tie muttered that he seemed to be turning into a bottomless pit, then, urged on by his belly, broke into a run toward home...
When he got home, Zhang Tie was surprised to find the front door unlocked and even slightly ajar. Had there been a thief? Knowing his parents' habits, Zhang Tie's heart stirred. He gently pushed the door open and crept inside, picking up a stick hidden in the house along the way. He tiptoed toward the rooms, but before he even made it inside, he heard an unfamiliar voice.
"I raised my daughter for twenty years, and your son got her pregnant! How's she supposed to show her face in public now? How's she supposed to get married? I've brought her to your Zhang family today. If you won't admit the child in her belly is one of yours, fine—kill her, and I'll pretend I never had her. Then we can all be done with it. If you do admit it, your Zhang family had better give our Wang Family an explanation..." The voice was furious. As the man spoke, Zhang Tie heard a sharp slap from inside, followed by the same man's curses: "You shameless little wretch, you've disgraced the family!"
A woman's sobs drifted out. Just as Zhang Tie was about to enter the inner room, its curtain was lifted, and the tailor shop's Owner Wang and his wife came out. Owner Wang was fuming as he stepped outside. When he saw Zhang Tie, Zhang Tie quickly hid the stick behind his back and forced a smile. "Uncle Wang, why don't you stay a little longer..."
"Hmph! There isn't a decent soul in your Zhang family!" The man stormed out, slamming the door behind him. The woman following him gave Zhang Tie a long, thoughtful look, sighed, and went after him. Once they'd left, Zhang Tie followed them to shut the front door from inside, put the stick away, coughed twice at the entrance, and walked into the living room...
There were three people in the living room. His father sat to one side, brows knotted as he smoked. The harsh smell of the cheap local tobacco Black Flame City produced filled the room. Normally, his mother would have scolded his father for smoking, but now she was comforting another woman, who sat with her head bowed, crying. One look at the woman reminded Zhang Tie of the smacking noises coming from his older brother's room over the past two months. He understood everything. His parents clearly did, too.
Who would've thought his older brother, a lifelong womanizer, would finally get caught with his pants down this time? Heh... heh...
"I've kept your dinner warm. Go eat," his mother said when she saw Zhang Tie return, forcing her head up to speak to him before going back to comforting the young woman.
His father gave Zhang Tie a meaningful look. Zhang Tie, quick to take the hint, said, "You go on talking. I'll get something to eat!" Then he dashed into the kitchen and brought out the food his mother had kept warm in the pot. The meal was simple, but his mother's cooking always tasted delicious. Zhang Tie ate until he was full.
After dinner, Zhang Tie washed the dishes and tidied up the kitchen. There went another Merit Value, he thought happily, just as his father walked in. It seemed his parents had made their decision.
"Zhang Tie, come here. I need to talk to you about something..."
"What is it, Dad?"
"Your brother, that good-for-nothing, and that girl..." For a father, it was terribly awkward to talk about such a thing. His father didn't even know how to begin.
"Am I getting another sister-in-law?" Zhang Tie asked with a cheeky grin.
"Stop fooling around!" His father glared at him, then swung a hand around and rapped him hard on the forehead. Zhang Tie jumped. "Anyway, your good-for-nothing brother won't be home for a while, so that girl will be staying with us. She'll sleep in your brother's room. Mind your manners. Call her big sister when you see her, understand? Don't make her feel uncomfortable..."
"What's there to feel uncomfortable about? It's not like it's her first time staying in my brother's room..." Zhang Tie muttered, rubbing his head indignantly.
"What?" His father's eyes widened again.
Zhang Tie quickly stuck out his tongue. "Nothing. I was just thinking that in a year or so, Dad will be a grandpa. I'm really happy for you!"
Before his father's foot could reach his backside, Zhang Tie had already run off. He'd figured it out while eating. With his parents' personalities, how could they force the girl to abort the child in her belly? That would be a terrible sin. Besides, the girl wasn't bad-looking, and her family was respectable enough. They lived on the same street, and his parents had practically watched her grow up. There wasn't much to complain about. The only ones to blame were his brother, for moving too fast and failing to take precautions.
By the time his brother came back, the two families would probably be discussing the wedding. And when Zhang Tie had said their father would soon be a grandpa, he could've sworn his father's face looked angry, but there was a joy around his brows he couldn't quite hide.
Zhang Tie didn't want to make trouble, either. After dinner and washing up, he went to the living room to greet his mother and future sister-in-law, who were talking quietly, then returned to his little room alone.
Back in his room, Zhang Tie sat on the bed and began practicing Abacus Mental Calculation. After studying it for the past few days, he'd found that visualizing Abacus Mental Calculation before and after cultivating the Divine Palace Bright Point really seemed to improve his results. After visualizing its method, then cultivating the Divine Palace Bright Point, his mental strength seemed a little more concentrated than usual. And after cultivating the Divine Palace Bright Point, when his mental strength was exhausted, visualizing the golden abacus from Abacus Mental Calculation again let him recover faster than usual. Zhang Tie thought he'd discovered the wonder of the visualization method in Abacus Mental Calculation.
During these past few days of cultivation, Zhang Tie had found it especially easy to enter the right state. Before, it had taken a long time, and when his mind was unsettled, sometimes he couldn't get there for an hour or two. But these days, he often just sat down and closed his eyes, and the feeling came at once. His mind emptied of all distracting thoughts, clear and bright. Under the "polishing" of that pure mental strength, the green light at the Divine Palace Bright Point near his navel was growing brighter, and its resonance with the crystal was growing stronger. It seemed that in a few more months it could turn completely blue, taking his cultivation to the next level. Could that be the Flawless Fruit's doing, too? Zhang Tie wasn't sure, but it was a good thing, wasn't it? He'd leave it at that. The only thing that bothered him was that the limits of the crystal he used for cultivation were becoming obvious. He hadn't noticed much before, but the deeper he went into cultivation, the more he felt that the energy an ordinary crystal could provide was no longer enough for his needs. It was a frustrating feeling, like a thirsty man pressing his mouth to a pipe, turning on the tap, only to find that the outlet was no wider than a pinhole, with the water trickling down in a thin thread—not enough to quench his thirst. That was the reality the poor had to face. If he had a Pyramid Crystal, Zhang Tie believed that his Divine Palace Bright Point might already have cultivated a violet glow by now.
After more than two hours of cultivation, Zhang Tie stood up and stretched his legs, which had gone numb. He sighed, then put the white crystal in his hand back among the Crystal Sand on the windowsill to recharge. He looked out at the streets, dark and empty under the curfew, and closed the window again—there were no streetlamps on the roads in this residential area at night.
What was his older brother doing right now? The thought flashed through Zhang Tie's mind.
Before going to sleep, Zhang Tie made a habit of visiting Castle of Black Iron again.
--Close your eyes... lock on... enter
The process felt smoother and smoother...
Zhang Tie opened his eyes and found himself standing inside Castle of Black Iron.
--Welcome to Castle of Black Iron, Fortress Master, you handsome and imposing man!
Zhang Tie casually opened Castle of Black Iron's basic attributes panel.
--Castle of Black Iron
--Length: 1 Krosha
--Width: 1 Krosha
--Spirit Qi Value: 7.3
--Merit Value: 52
--Basic Energy Reserve: 0.5
--Special Produce: None
As expected, he'd earned five Merit Value today: two at home and three at school. But the increase in Spirit Qi Value surprised Zhang Tie a little. After closing the attributes panel, he thought for a moment, then went over to his plot of land and crouched down to examine it closely.
You wouldn't know unless you looked, but when he did, he found a pleasant surprise: a row of sturdy little shoots had already broken through the soil in the patch where he'd planted the corn.
The corn he'd planted had sprouted—Zhang Tie's heart instantly filled with joy. It had sprouted three days earlier than he'd expected. The soil here seemed very good for growing plants. Thinking of how grain prices had risen when he'd bought rice over the weekend, then looking at the nearly thousand acres of empty land in Castle of Black Iron, a somewhat crazy idea suddenly sprang into Zhang Tie's mind: if he planted a hundred acres of grain and fruit in Castle of Black Iron, could he make a fortune from it...