Soaring

"Brother Zheng, are we still going to keep scamming him?"

After sensing Jiang Chen's cultivation level, the few older disciples changed their attitudes.

The reason they stayed at the Martial Arts Hall was to recruit and sponsor talented disciples.

Someone with Jiang Chen's talent fell right within their scope of recruitment.

"If we don't scam him, who's going to help us pay off our debts? If the family finds out the sponsorship money was all lost in the gambling den, breaking our legs would be the least of it."

Zheng Hao didn't dwell on it much.

So what if Jiang Chen had high comprehension?

At the end of the day, he only had ordinary bone structure—his martial path was extremely limited.

At most, he'd end up like them, stuck at the Second Qi and Blood Gate.

And in the Prefecture City, the Second Qi and Blood Gate only made you a bit stronger than an ordinary person.

The families backing them were looking to recruit talents who could step into the True Martial Realm, not mere Blood Qi Realm cultivators.

Hearing Zheng Hao's words, the others said no more.

True, they'd blown through the sponsorship money and had to find someone to fill the gap.

Even if they wanted to recruit someone, they had to get through this first.

And so, the group hung around the edge of the Practice Field, bored, waiting for Jiang Chen to finish his training.

As for actively disturbing him—that was strictly forbidden in the Martial Arts Hall.

Anyone who deliberately interfered with another's cultivation would be expelled on the spot.

That was why even Sun Wu, who was in charge of guidance, only approached Jiang Chen during his breaks to teach the Stone Moving Method.

And so they waited, from the blazing sun overhead all the way to dusk.

"Damn it! How can he stand in that stance for so long?"

Zheng Hao and the others, growing impatient, kept glancing toward the Practice Field.

It had been over two hours—and Jiang Chen hadn't rested for even a moment?

Was his body made of iron?

"Brother Zheng, are we still going to keep waiting?"

One disciple looked at Zheng Hao.

"We've waited this long. A little more won't hurt."

Glancing at the sky, Zheng Hao didn't leave.

Dinner time was coming up. Even if Jiang Chen didn't need rest, he still had to eat.

"Hah!"

As Zheng Hao expected, when the You Hour arrived, Jiang Chen, who had stood as steady as an old bell, slowly withdrew his fists and straightened his posture.

[Cultivation: First Qi and Blood Gate Stage 41%]

On the Myriad Dao Chart, his martial blood qi had surged, increasing by 24%.

That meant his afternoon training had averaged a 4% increase per hour.

Compared to the effect of the Blood-Qi Soup, this was exactly double.

In other words, his cultivation speed would now be twice as fast as before.

"No—more than twice!"

Feeling the medicinal power still boiling within him, Jiang Chen's eyes gleamed.

The effect of the Blood-Qi Soup only lasted most of the day.

For example, if he drank it at noon, it would last until evening at best, and by the next morning, the effect would be gone, drastically slowing his cultivation speed.

But Blood Ginseng Powder was different.

Judging by the medicinal energy still lingering inside him, it would likely last until tomorrow.

And if he trained six hours in the morning, six in the afternoon, and four at night, that would be sixteen hours a day.

At a 4% increase per hour, that meant 64% in a single day!

64% in one day!

What did that mean?

It meant that in at most four or five days, he could reach the peak of the First Qi and Blood Gate!

If it were anyone else, there was no way they could sustain sixteen hours of training a day.

Forget the mental strain of focused cultivation—just the continuous stance-holding alone would drain their physical stamina.

But he was different.

The Myriad Dao Chart could help him focus his mind.

With Stance Sense always active, he could ignore physical exhaustion.

Thus, despite having only ordinary talent, as long as resources kept up, his cultivation speed was still quite impressive, and his future held great promise.

"Junior Brother Jiang."

Jiang Chen had just finished his training when he heard a familiar voice.

"Zheng Hao?"

Following the sound, he saw Zheng Hao and the others.

Over the past six months, in order to chase Wang Qingzhu, he had taken a roundabout approach by ingratiating himself into Zheng Hao's little clique—only to be treated as a cash cow.

His recent intrusion into the Cursed House was also indirectly related to Zheng Hao and his crew.

But honestly, if he thought about it, he was actually quite grateful to them.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have awakened his past-life wisdom.

After all, if he had awakened it a few years later, past the optimal age for martial training, even with the Myriad Dao Chart's help, his martial path would have been in jeopardy.

"Junior Brother Jiang, how's your body? Nothing serious, right?"

Zheng Hao and the others put on concerned expressions.

"Just a minor injury."

Jiang Chen brushed them off casually.

"Good to hear."

Zheng Hao and his companions exchanged glances, all sensing the change in Jiang Chen's attitude.

Not only was Jiang Chen no longer warm and ingratiating, but he seemed... somewhat cold?

"Oh, by the way, Junior Brother Jiang, the Thousand Fragrance Pavilion is releasing new dishes tomorrow. Qingzhu will be there to try them. Don't miss this good opportunity."

Zheng Hao immediately pulled out his trump card.

Though he didn't know why Jiang Chen's attitude had shifted so drastically, as long as Wang Qingzhu was involved, he was sure Jiang Chen would take the bait.

"No time."

Jiang Chen didn't bother with them further and headed to the dining hall for dinner.

"What's gotten into this kid?"

Watching Jiang Chen stride away, Zheng Hao and the others stood frozen in place.

Jiang Chen had heard Wang Qingzhu's name and reacted with such indifference—even outright disregard?

Was this still the same simp they remembered?

"Could it be that he ran into something evil a few days ago and got rattled?"

An older disciple speculated.

"If he's lost interest in Junior Sister Wang, what do we do about our gambling debts?"

The other older disciples turned their gazes to Zheng Hao.

They were still counting on Jiang Chen, that sucker, to fill the gaps for them.

"He's probably still smarting from the Jiang Clan's scolding a few days ago. No rush—as long as we keep pestering him a few more times, we'll reel him back in."

Zheng Hao sneered.

He didn't believe Jiang Chen could hold out.

As the saying went, birds of a feather flock together.

If Jiang Chen could hang around with them, then deep down, he wasn't any better.

This sudden hard work was just for show—in a few days, his true colors would show.

At the dining hall, Jiang Chen loaded up his tray with a full meal and a bowl of hot soup.

After dinner, he didn't slack off and returned to the Practice Field.

This time, instead of standing in a stance, he picked up a Stone Lock and began practicing the Stone Moving Method, honing his control over Blood Qi.

Thump~

After about fifteen minutes, the Myriad Dao Chart radiated a precious light:

Code
[Martial Art: Stone Moving Method · Minor Completion 0%]

Counting the half-hour he had trained at noon, it had only taken him about forty-five minutes of total practice on the Stone Moving Method to reach Minor Completion.

"My combat power has increased by at least twenty percent."

With the breakthrough in the Stone Moving Method, Jiang Chen's control over martial Blood Qi had become noticeably more fluid.

That hundred-plus-jin Stone Lock swung more and more easily in his hands.

And the more proficient his martial Qi and blood became, the more pronounced the boost to his combat power.

"Standing stake!"

With that, Jiang Chen set down the Stone Lock and began standing stake to nurture his Qi and blood.

His main focus now was still on raising his martial Qi and blood.

As for the Stone Moving Method, he could practice it during rest breaks.

Before he knew it, night had fallen.

But the entire Practice Field was lit up with torches, and disciples kept coming and going.

Even at night, the Martial Arts Hall still provided a training environment.

The monthly tuition of twenty taels of silver wasn't just a mere apprenticeship fee.

Under that fervent training atmosphere, time flew by.

Stars twinkled, the bright moon hung high in the sky.

As the night grew later, the disciples on the Practice Field gradually left.

In the end, only Jiang Chen remained on the entire field, quietly standing stake.

As always, not everyone could keep training like he did.

It wasn't until nearly midnight that he withdrew his mind back to his body, retracted his fists, and straightened his posture.

[Cultivation: First Qi and Blood Gate · Early Stage 57%]

On the Myriad Dao Chart, his martial Qi and blood had increased by 16%, just like during the day.

He had only just condensed his Qi and blood yesterday, and now he was already past the halfway point of the First Qi and Blood Gate's early stage.

This training speed was already stronger than that of an ordinary medium-grade bone talent.

Thump thump thump.

Then, Jiang Chen walked up to a wooden post and unleashed a rapid flurry of punches.

Faint fist marks appeared on the wood.

"Strength, explosive power, speed, defense—all have improved considerably."

Jiang Chen smiled, satisfied with this feeling of growing stronger.

He glanced at the night sky, then went to the bathhouse to wash up before heading to his quarters.

The Outer Courtyard disciples' lodgings were all large communal rooms for ten people.

Because of this, many nearby disciples chose to go home every day to sleep.