At Huo Academy, the Inner Court was carpeted with fallen blossoms.
"Two wins and one loss? That's not bad," Huo Lin said mildly after hearing Tao Ping's report.
Tao Ping continued, "Master, I observed that Junior Brother Chen didn't use his full strength. His qi and blood are only average, but he's making rapid progress in Six Harmonies Mind Boxing. If all goes well, he might break through to Clear Force in another month or two."
"Oh?" Huo Lin was a little surprised. "Breaking through to Clear Force in about three months? For someone with D-Grade Bone Structure to reach that point, Chen Yuan must have considerable comprehension, as you say."
He thought back to when he had first taught Chen Yuan Six Harmonies Mind Boxing, but he hadn't thought Chen Yuan particularly perceptive at the time.
Had Xu Heng's brilliance simply overshadowed him, or was Chen Yuan the sort of talent who built up strength over time before finally making a breakthrough?
Xu Heng walked over and said coolly, "Chen Yuan is diligent, sure, but his bone structure is a serious weakness. He'll never amount to much. His current progress doesn't prove anything. Maybe he'll get stuck at the Clear Force bottleneck for a year or two."
Tao Ping's words had struck him as absurd. Since when had Chen Yuan's progress been rapid?
Losing two out of three bouts was an even greater disgrace to Huo Academy.
Huo Lin nodded slightly and said to Tao Ping, "Keep an eye on him. He won't have taken his first step on the martial path until he successfully breaks through."
The Martial Examination was imminent, and Chen Yuan's progress still wasn't enough to qualify.
Outer Court.
After returning, Chen Yuan found a corner and stood there, chest tucked in and back straight, his qi sinking to his dantian as he began practicing Rock-Solid Stance Technique.
Now that he'd settled the trouble with the Chen Family, he ought to be able to focus on his cultivation for a while.
For martial artists, peace of mind mattered, too.
Seeing Chen Yuan looking so calm and composed, Sun Chengjie thought, He must have settled that personal matter.
He, too, settled his mind and got to practicing.
The Gu Family's assessment was less than half a month away. To avoid being eliminated, his family had borrowed here and there and scraped together a little over one tael of silver for him. He had to prove himself!
Then he thought of He Qing. His family was even poorer; his father had lost an arm and could only scrape by doing light labor.
For this assessment, He Qing had even considered going into the mountains to hunt.
Finding a rare medicinal herb or hunting some unusual bird or beast could bring in a good deal of silver—enough, perhaps, to cover several months of training expenses. But risk and reward went hand in hand.
Even though he often went hunting in the mountains with his father and knew the terrain well, wild beasts were fiercer still. One careless mistake could spell ruin. His father was living proof.
So, for the past few days, He Qing had been looking around Huo Academy for like-minded senior brothers to travel with, hoping a group would lower the risk.
Of course, He Qing had first told their group of four about the idea.
But the other three had all turned him down.
They hadn't even broken through the Skin Realm. What business did they have fighting wild beasts?
Still, if He Qing had valuable information to offer, a senior brother who had successfully broken through might be tempted. The potential rewards were substantial.
Watching Chen Yuan, Zhang Shi had already guessed what had happened. He went over and struck up a conversation.
"Junior Brother Chen, you didn't really go challenge them at their door just now, did you? You look so calm and composed. Don't tell me you won all three bouts?"
Chen Yuan shook his head with a smile. "You give me too much credit, Senior Brother. I fought with everything I had and barely won one bout. The only reason I wasn't hurt was that those senior brothers went easy on me."
Zhang Shi laughed.
He might look honest and simple, but he wasn't stupid. Chen Yuan had gone to challenge them at their door. Why would he expect his opponents to go easy on him?
It wasn't as if Chen Yuan were some delicate beauty no one could bear to lay a hand on.
But since Chen Yuan wasn't saying more, Zhang Shi tactfully asked nothing further. He laughed heartily and said, "Come on, Junior Brother Chen. Let's spar. Show me what you've got."
Why did that sound a little strange?
Chen Yuan's mouth twitched, but he still cupped his hands and stepped forward.
In an instant, fists and feet clashed.
Lotus Lane, the Chen Family home.
The house was already in ruins. Chen Dashan and his wife were bruised and swollen, and even the dining table had been smashed.
Li sat on the ground, wailing bitterly as she complained, "Chen Dashan! Look at what a beast you raised! We raised him, and now he's going to have his own father and stepmother beaten to death! His short-lived mother gave birth to such a little bastard. She deserved to die!"
"Stop shouting! Haven't we been beaten enough already?" Chen Dashan roared. "Don't provoke Chen Yuan again. He's a madman now."
"So we're just going to let it go? Chen Dashan, why are you such a coward?" Li shrieked.
Chen Dashan slammed his hand down on the table and snapped, "Shut your mouth! Do you have to drive Chen Yuan mad and make him cripple Kai? And whose fault is this in the first place? You were the one who insisted on stealing his two taels of silver!"
Li's expression turned terribly complicated. She was both terrified and worried about Kai, and resentful that Chen Dashan had brought up the old matter and pinned the blame on her.
"Wasn't everything I did for Kai's sake?"
Chen Dashan sighed. "Then let's say no more. Once Kai succeeds in martial arts, everything will be fine."
"Right! Once Kai succeeds in martial arts, he'll get revenge for sure. I'll skin that little bastard alive! I'll make him kneel and apologize!" Hope flared up in Li's heart again, and she ground her teeth.
Just as she staggered to her feet, several voices sounded outside the door.
"Is this the Chen family home?"
"Are Chen Kai's parents here?"
The two hurried outside, only to see Chen Kai—their hope for the future—lying pale-faced on a stretcher as two people carried him in.
Chen Dashan felt the sky collapse around him. His legs nearly gave way, but he caught himself on the doorframe and cried, "You two, what happened to my son?"
One of the disciples carrying the stretcher said, "Junior Brother Chen fought Chen Yuan, who had come to challenge him, at the Martial Hall. Chen Yuan broke three of his ribs, and the shock left him unconscious. On our master's orders, we've brought him home to recover for now. Once he's healed, he can return to the Martial Hall to continue training."
Only one thought buzzed through Chen Dashan and Li's minds.
Chen Yuan had said he would cripple Chen Kai, and he'd actually dared to do it! He'd done it openly, right in front of the Martial Hall's disciples, striking with all his might!
They'd thought Chen Yuan had sent people to attack them because he didn't dare lay a hand on Chen Kai.
They hadn't realized he was hitting them from both sides!
Grief and rage surged through Li. She couldn't catch her breath, and her vision went black as she fainted.
Chen Dashan forced himself to settle Chen Kai in. Looking at his younger son's pale face, he felt endless regret well up inside him.
He shouldn't have provoked Chen Yuan again!
Unfortunately, it was already too late.
Time was merciless. It never stopped for anyone.
In the blink of an eye, another half month passed.
The world was merciless, too. Everything carried on along its destined path.
It made no allowances for those who worked hard, nor did it spare those blessed with extraordinary talent from hardship.
Senior Brother Zhang Shi tried to break through, but failed. His qi and blood ran out of control, injuring him, and he left in disappointment.
Chen Yuan went out to see him off.
The two took seats outside an inn and ordered a pot of Burning Knife Liquor.
Chen Yuan sipped slowly, listening as Zhang Shi drank and talked about his past, lamenting how difficult martial arts were, hating himself for his own weakness, and resenting the unfairness of the world.
At last, all he had left was a blessing for someone on the same path. "Junior Brother Chen, may you ascend like a dragon. The jianghu is vast—perhaps our paths will cross again."
Then he shouldered his bundle and walked away.
Chen Yuan raised his cup, sending him off with a toast of turbid wine.
After returning to Huo Academy, he continued cultivating at his own pace.
A few days later, another major event took place in the academy.
Xu Heng had comprehended Clear Force.
He had barely been training for two months.
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