Molten Stone Training Method

On his way back, Su Chen kept thinking, Even with the blood oath, I'm still at a disadvantage against Jiang He.

If I can find a way to break free, or get myself a backer, things might become much simpler... Special cultivation...

If I reveal that I've already taken up a profession... No, there are too many things I can't explain. It might only cause more trouble.

Jiang He acted quickly. By the time Su Chen reached the cafeteria, he found that his student card had already been credited with money—100 gold.

It was no small amount. In the past, Su Chen had needed ten days of work to earn a single gold coin.

But it was not much, either. A tube of compressed nutrient solution cost fifteen gold.

"This is way too expensive... Bai Fengxi was pretty generous..." Su Chen hesitated. Under intense training, one of these would only keep him from getting hungry for a day or two.

"Forget it. I only bought them so I wouldn't starve." Su Chen stopped hesitating, paid at the counter, took six tubes, tucked them into his clothes, and returned straight to his dormitory.

He did not intend to attend any classes. According to Southwind Academy's rules, anyone who became a Professional could even graduate early. He already met the standards of a graduate.

After drinking the nutrient solution, Su Chen first crushed the token Qi Chuan had given him.

Then he began training directly. Once he trained himself to exhaustion, he developed his mental strength, pushing the intensity to the limit. By the time he lay on his bed, he did not want to move a single finger.

"He really knows."

In an extravagantly decorated room, Qi Chuan looked at the similarly shattered card in his hand, an odd smile crossing his face.

"What do you plan to do... Are you really going to place him in a special cultivation slot?" A deep voice sounded. Qi Chuan composed himself, looked at the imposing middle-aged man before him, and nodded slightly. "That would be overestimating him. He's nothing more than a lowborn drifter."

"My arrangements that day should have been foolproof. Without figuring out what exactly happened, it would be difficult to make further plans. Since there's a ninety percent chance that he knows, we can just capture him and torture the truth out of him."

"He's in the academy," the other man emphasized.

"In a little over ten days, he'll have to leave the city." Qi Chuan smiled.

"Looks like you thought this through long ago." The other man slowly nodded, his voice gradually turning grave. "Handle it as soon as possible. Southwind only has one slot each year. In another half year, it will be decided. I do not want any accidents."

"Rest assured..." Qi Chuan hurriedly said.

Three days passed in a flash. Su Chen had crushed the token Qi Chuan gave him long ago, yet Qi Chuan had never come looking for him.

"The Strongman loan only has four payments left..." Su Chen let out a long breath and checked his panel.

[Strongman: 6%]

[Candlefire Mental Training Method—Proficient: 25%]

The time requirement for [Scholar] had only one year left. In a few more days, Su Chen estimated that he would be able to take up this special profession.

"There are less than ten days until I leave the city..." Su Chen calculated the days. What does that wronged party mean? Is he just going to leave me alone, or...

Knock! Knock! Knock!

There was a knock at the door. Su Chen was rather surprised. What timing—speak of the devil?

The person knocking looked somewhat familiar to Su Chen. The man held his head slightly high and looked quite presentable.

"Someone downstairs is looking for me?" Su Chen asked tentatively.

Zhou Zong frowned slightly and emphasized, "I'm looking for you."

"You?" Su Chen was surprised. He examined the man carefully. "Have we met somewhere before?"

Zhou Zong said indifferently, "I've read your file. A lowborn drifter who luckily climbed into Jiang He's bed and only then entered Southwind Academy."

"How long do you think Jiang He's fascination with you will last?"

"Oh, I remember now. You know Bai Fengxi, right?" Only then did Su Chen recall.

So he really was not one of Qi Chuan's people. What did this guy want?

Zhou Zong said calmly, "Won't you invite me inside to sit?"

"The room's a mess. If you have something to say, say it here." Su Chen shook his head.

Zhou Zong looked displeased. "I came to give you an opportunity."

"What opportunity?" Su Chen looked at him.

"A real chance to turn your life around." Zhou Zong smiled. "As long as you tell me everything you know about Bai Fengxi, without leaving out a single detail..."

Bang!

The door slammed shut in front of him. Zhou Zong's smile froze on his face, and he could faintly hear the voice from inside—"...Where did this idiot come from..."

The veins on Zhou Zong's forehead bulged as his face darkened.

"Someone is plotting against Bai Fengxi?" Su Chen muttered. "Trying to court her, or scheme against her?"

"Forget it. I'll let her know when I run into her."

Su Chen did not take it too seriously. He continued considering the matter of the wronged party while training.

By late afternoon, there was another knock at his door. This time, it was Jiang He.

"Isn't this the boys' dormitory?" Su Chen welcomed her inside. She was still dressed in that sexy teacher outfit.

"Who here would dare not welcome me?" Jiang He asked in return. She looked around the room, casually sat on the bed, and crossed her legs. "Has Qi Chuan come looking for you?"

"Not yet." Su Chen shook his head.

"It's already been three days." Jiang He looked at Su Chen suspiciously.

"I crushed the token a long time ago." Su Chen found the card wrapped in tissue paper.

"Wind Letter Paper..." Jiang He nodded, then looked puzzled again. "If that's the case, why hasn't he come? Did something hold him up?"

"I don't know." Su Chen shook his head, then held out his hand. "What I asked for."

Jiang He hesitated briefly, but still pulled a thin book from her small bag and handed it to Su Chen. "An F-rank Refinement Method. It'll be enough for you."

[Molten Stone Training Method]. The large words on the cover made Su Chen's heart skip slightly.

Refinement Methods were graded from low to high by ranks such as F and E. Though this was the lowest rank, it was indeed used by Professionals.

Something like [Candle Flame] did not even qualify for a rank.

"Wait for him to contact you." Jiang He was just about to leave when Su Chen stopped her. "Add more money."

He said it with complete confidence. Jiang He snapped irritably, "Are you getting addicted to living off a woman? I'll add another 100. If you run out of money, figure it out yourself."

"Or... beg me?" Jiang He suddenly gave him a seductive smile.

"Please." Su Chen's expression did not change.

Jiang He's face stiffened slightly. She said coldly, "No fun at all."

Rather than returning to her office, she walked through the gazes of passersby, left the academy, and headed deeper into the city.

"Father..." Jiang He asked the white-haired old man before her in confusion, "Qi Chuan has not contacted Su Chen since then. What do you think is going on?"

The old man's face was deeply lined, but he remained full of vigor. His gaze flickered. "He never contacted him?"

After a brief silence, he could not help but praise, "Worthy of being my fine son-in-law. We wanted to bait him, but he ended up baiting us instead."

"What do you mean?" Jiang He did not understand.

"In Qi Chuan's eyes, what kind of person is Su Chen?" the old man asked in return.

Jiang He did not react at first, but the old man slowly explained, "A lowborn drifter. A lucky man who managed to climb into his wife's bed. Perhaps a little clever, but nothing more."

"For someone like that, if Qi Chuan wants to learn something from him, how could he possibly send him into a special cultivation list? Once he confirms that Su Chen knows something, taking action would be the simplest and most direct method."

"In another ten days, Su Chen will leave the city."

Jiang He thought about it for a while before finally understanding. Her expression turned cold. "He had calculated it all along. Their previous contact was only a test."

"Then... then wasn't what I gave Su Chen a waste?"

The old man sighed. "Don't dwell on those little things. The trouble now is that once Su Chen leaves the city, there's no way to stop him. Your Blood Oath Contract has not been lifted yet. In these ten days, you need to advance to Arcane Scholar as quickly as possible."

Jiang He's face went pale, but she said, "Qi Chuan doesn't know that Su Chen is already a Strongman."

The old man shook his head. "He's only a first-rank Strongman. Given Qi Chuan's nature, he will probably make multiple preparations."

He paused, then added, "However, this may not be an opportunity."

In the dormitory, Su Chen was studying the [Molten Stone Training Method].

This Refinement Method was not particularly profound. It simply used a special method to make the blood circulate rapidly, stimulating the body from within and thereby tempering it.