Regret (Added Chapter for More Reads!)

Huo Academy, inner courtyard, fallen petals carpeted the path.

"Two wins and one loss? That's passable, I suppose." Huo Lin listened to Tao Ping's report and spoke indifferently.

Tao Ping added, "Master, I observed that Junior Brother Chen did not use his full strength. Although his blood-energy is average, his progress in Six Harmonies Mind Boxing is rapid. If all goes well, he might break through to Clear Force in another month or two."

"Oh?" Huo Lin was somewhat surprised. "Breaking through to Clear Force in about three months with a D-Grade Bone Structure? According to you, this Chen Yuan's comprehension must be quite high."

He recalled the time he taught Chen Yuan the Six Harmonies Mind Boxing and did not feel that Chen Yuan's comprehension was particularly remarkable back then.

Was his light obscured by Xu Heng, or was Chen Yuan the type of talent who accumulates strength slowly before bursting forth?

Xu Heng walked over and said coolly, "Chen Yuan is certainly diligent, but his bone structure is a fatal flaw; he's unlikely to achieve anything great. His current progress doesn't mean much. He might just get stuck at the Clear Force bottleneck for a year or more."

Tao Ping's words made him feel a touch of disdain. Since when did Chen Yuan deserve to be called "rapid"?

Three fights and two losses—it was a disgrace to Huo Academy.

Huo Lin nodded slightly and said to Tao Ping, "Keep an eye on him. Only when he successfully knocks on the gate can he be considered to have taken the first step in the martial path."

With the Martial Examination imminent, Chen Yuan's current progress was not enough to qualify.

Outer courtyard.

Upon returning, Chen Yuan found a corner to stand still, chest hollowed and back arched, energy sinking into his dantian as he began to practice the Rock-Solid Stance Technique.

With the Chen Family's trouble resolved, he should be able to practice in peace for a while.

For a martial artist, a calm and comfortable state of mind is also vital.

Sun Chengjie saw Chen Yuan's composed demeanor and thought to himself that he must have settled that private matter.

He, too, settled his mind to practice.

The Gu Family assessment was less than half a month away. To avoid being eliminated, his family had scraped together over a tael of silver for him; he had to prove himself!

He thought of He Qing, whose family was even poorer. His father had lost an arm and could only do light labor to make ends meet.

For this assessment, he had actually considered going up the mountain to hunt.

Although finding medicinal herbs or hunting rare beasts could bring in a good amount of silver—perhaps even enough to cover his training expenses for the next few months—risk and reward went hand in hand.

Even though he often followed his father to hunt and was experienced with the terrain, wild beasts were ferocious. One slip could lead to ruin; his father was a living example.

Thus, for the past few days, He Qing had been searching the Huo Academy for like-minded senior brothers to join him and mitigate the risk.

Naturally, He Qing had first shared this idea with their group of four.

But all three of them had refused.

They hadn't even broken through the Skin Realm; what capital did they have to fight wild beasts?

However, if He Qing held a lead of significant value, perhaps a senior brother who had already successfully knocked on the gate would be tempted, as the returns were considerable.

Zhang Shi watched Chen Yuan's figure, having long harbored a guess, and leaned over to strike up a conversation.

"Junior Brother Chen, you didn't really go and challenge them, did you? Seeing you so calm, could it be that you won all three fights?"

Chen Yuan shook his head and smiled. "Senior Brother, you flatter me. I barely won one fight by giving it my all. If I'm not injured, it's only because those senior brothers showed mercy."

Zhang Shi laughed.

Though he looked honest and simple, he wasn't stupid. Did one really expect an opponent to show mercy after challenging them at their doorstep?

It wasn't as if he were some delicate beauty that one couldn't bear to strike.

But since Chen Yuan wouldn't say, he was tactful enough not to ask further, laughing loudly instead.

"Come on, Junior Brother Chen, let's spar. Let me see what you're made of."

Why did that sound a bit wrong?

Chen Yuan's mouth twitched, but he cupped his hands and stepped forward.

Immediately, fists and feet crossed.

Lotus Lane, Chen Family.

The house was in shambles. Chen Dashan and his wife were beaten black and blue, and even the dining table had been smashed.

Li sat on the floor, wailing miserably and complaining:

"Chen Dashan! Look at the beast you've raised! We raised him, and in the end, he wants to have his own father and stepmother beaten to death! That short-lived mother of his, giving birth to such a wretch—she deserved to die!"

"Stop it! Do you want to get beaten even more?" Chen Dashan roared. "Don't go provoking Chen Yuan again. He's a madman now."

"So we just let it go? Chen Dashan, why are you such a coward?" Li shouted in a shrill voice.

Chen Dashan slammed the table and raged, "Shut your mouth! Do you want to force Chen Yuan into a frenzy and have him cripple Kai'er? When it comes down to it, wasn't it you who insisted on stealing his two taels of silver!"

Li's expression was complex; she felt both fear for Kai'er's safety and resentment toward Chen Dashan for bringing up old accounts and shifting the blame onto her.

"Everything I did, wasn't it for Kai'er's sake?"

Chen Dashan sighed. "Then say no more. Once Kai'er succeeds in his martial arts, everything will be fine."

"Right, once Kai'er succeeds in his martial arts, he will definitely take revenge. I'll peel the skin off that wretch! I'll make him kneel and apologize!" Hope reignited in Li's heart as she gritted her teeth.

Just as she staggered to her feet, several voices rang out from outside the door:

"Is this the Chen Family?"

"Are Chen Kai's parents in?"

The two hurried out, only to see Chen Kai, whom they regarded as their only hope, lying pale on a stretcher as two men carried him inside.

Chen Dashan felt as if the sky had collapsed; his legs nearly gave way, and he had to steady himself against the doorframe, wailing, "Young brothers, what has happened to my son?"

The disciples carrying the stretcher replied, "Junior Brother Chen was sparring with Chen Yuan, who came to the Martial Hall to challenge him. He suffered three broken ribs and fell unconscious from the shock. Per our master's orders, we have brought him home to recover. Once he has healed, he may return to the Martial Hall to continue his training."

A single thought buzzed incessantly in the minds of Chen Dashan and Li.

Chen Yuan had said he would cripple Chen Kai, and he had actually dared to do it! He had done it openly, striking with heavy blows right in front of the other Martial Hall disciples!

They had assumed Chen Yuan only sent people to attack them because he didn't dare touch Chen Kai.

They never imagined he would strike on both fronts!

Overcome with grief and rage, Li couldn't catch her breath; her vision went black, and she fainted on the spot.

Chen Dashan forced himself to settle Chen Kai down, and as he looked at his son's pale face, endless regret surged within his heart.

He should never have provoked Chen Yuan again!

Alas, it was already too late.

Time is ruthless; it never pauses for anyone.

In the blink of an eye, another half-month passed.

The world is equally heartless, and everything continued along its predetermined path.

It grants no leniency to the diligent, nor does it rain setbacks solely upon the gifted.

Senior Brother Zhang Shi attempted to break through his bottleneck, but he failed. His blood-energy spiraled out of control, injuring his body, and he left in dejection.

Chen Yuan went out to see him off.

The two sat on chairs outside a tavern and ordered a pot of Burning Knife Liquor.

Chen Yuan sipped slowly, listening as Zhang Shi drank and recounted the past, lamenting the hardships of martial arts, cursing his own incompetence, and resenting the injustice of the world.

In the end, all that remained were blessings for a fellow traveler: "Junior Brother Chen, I hope you ascend like a dragon. The path of the pugilistic world is long; may we meet again if fate allows."

With that, he shouldered his pack and walked away.

Chen Yuan raised his cup, sending him off with the murky wine.

Returning to Huo Academy, he continued to cultivate at his own pace.

A few days later, another major event occurred within the academy.

Xu Heng had grasped Clear Force.

From the day he entered, it had been barely two months.